Sermon for the Second Last Sunday of the Church Year

You probably remember Daniel from the story of the lions’ den, maybe Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego and the fiery furnace which we heard about on Easter Vigil. This Daniel also spoke many prophecies of the times to come. He lived with the exiles of Judah in Babylon, a land that did not generally recognize God. Much like our land, it was the most powerful empire on earth and hosted people from many nations which it had conquered. The Jews were one of these people, and they got along ok as long as the empire’s laws didn’t interfere with their worship, which Daniel found out when he was thrown into the lions’ den.