Perfectpeace

Matthew 11:6: “And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.”

This is what Jesus said when John the Baptist asked if He is the one to come.

It might be a strange question coming from John, who initially refused to baptize him  saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” Matthew  3:14.

When he eventually did the baptism, he saw the Holy Spirit come down on Jesus in the form of Dove. This was a sign given to him in order to identify the Messaih.

He even testified to others “behold the Lamb of God that removes the sin of the world”

John has been unjustly imprisoned, I am not sure if he started wondering why Jesus was not doing much to save him, if He is who he claims to be.

He might have been offended at that

Thus, Jesus says in  Matthew 11:6:” And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.”

There is someone in the bible who was not offended in God despite  enduring so much loss, pain, and unjust death sentence.

That blessed man is Daniel, who authored the book of Daniel.

In the 1st Chapter second verse, Daniel writes

“And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, with part of the vessels of the house of God: which he carried into the land of Shinar to the house of his god; and he brought the vessels into the treasure house of his god.”

Daniel understood God gave King Jehoiakim over to King of Babylon.

Israel was defeated! So many died, and some were taken captive, Daniel, one of them.

Daniel was about 16 yrs old when he was brought to training to serve a pagan king with three other friends.

Daniel 1:8 “But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself.”

Daniel, after going through all this hardship, still wants to honor God.

He wants to obey the Word that tells him to not eat food and drink that are defiled.

Leveticus 11 prescribes food to be eaten and food to avoid.

Daniel is not saying, ” Why did you let us get defeated,  why did you let the enemy kill us, be take up captive to pagan land”

Instead, we see Daniel give God glory and acknowledge Him as Sovereign King over the Kingdoms of the world, also as a source of wisdom and light, and the God of his fathers.

Daniel 2:20 
“Praise be to the name of God forever and ever; wisdom and power are his.
21: He changes times and seasons;
he sets up kings and deposes them.
He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning.
22: He reveals deep and hidden things;
he knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with him.
23: I thank and praise you, O God of my fathers:
You have given me wisdom and power. You have made known to me what we asked of you. You have made known to us the dream of the king.”

This shows us that despite everything that happened to him, his family, friends, and  countrymen. He understood and trusted that God is sovereign. He is just, merciful, and righteous.

Sometimes, we face difficulty, and we ask God, ” How can you do this?” Or

“Why did you let  this happen to me?”

Indirectly, we are saying, ” You made a mistake” or “you are not just”

But God continues to be gracious and merciful to us.

Lamentations 3:22: “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.”

Let’s return back to Daniel. His work was impeccable that jealous administers could not find fault, so they decided to trap him  with a decree that He can not pray to His God but to the mortal human king.

Daniel 6:10:’ Now, when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day, he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before.”

Daniel did not ask, “Why me?” Or ” why do you let them, Lord?”

He gave thanks to God, just as he had done before.

No matter what circumstance comes our way, God is still in control, He is righteous,, He is just. He is true.

He makes no mistakes.

We need to trust him!.

Let us thank God and not be offended in Him.

Shalom.