PrayingMan

Q1. (Joshua 3:1) Why do the Israelites have to break camp at Shittim before the day they cross Jordan? In what ways is your life settled into a routine that keeps you from fully following God’s leading? What do you need to do to make yourself ready? They needed to commit to the pilgrimage status and rely on God to lead them. It is too easy to get comfortable and not want to move forward. When you get comfortable, you are relying more on yourself and less on God. It is easy for me, as a Christian, to settle into a comfortable place. I need to stay active and try new things to keep my reliance on God fresh. When I trust in Him more than myself, more is accomplished.

Q4. (Joshua 2:4-6) Does God honor Rahab for lying to the king's men? Is her lying justified in this case? Is there ever a time it might be permissible to lie? I believe God looks on the heart. Rahab's heart was pure in her lie as she was protecting God's people. If it is a selfish lie for one's own benefit, it is wrong. But if it protects a greater evil, than it may be justified. Dr, Wilson wisely added that we can also pray for divine wisdom to help us know how to respond without lying when we are in those situations. I think in all situations, we need to pray and seek God's wisdom in how to proceed. Rahab was not commended for lying, but neither was she condemned or even chastised. Not only Rahab deceived the soldiers, but the spies also deceived those who were looking for them as they were hiding deceiving the soldiers into thinking there were no spies in Rahab's house. The whole underlying purpose of spying is deceit, sneaking around and pretending.

Q3. (Hebrews 11:31; James 2:5; Matthew 1:5) Why is a prostitute honored by being mentioned three times in the New Testament? How does God look on prostitution? On prostitutes? How did Jesus treat prostitutes? What does this teach us about God's attitude toward sinners and sin? God's grace is about people trusting in HIm for salvation. She is mentioned in the New Testament as she is an example of a sinner coming to faith in God for her salvation. She is mentioned in the same sentence as Abraham for he believed and God credited it to him as righteousness, before he entered into covenant and was circumcised. Therefore, in essence, Abrham was not yet a Jew when he believed. Sinners are sinners and prostitutes are in need of salvation as anyone else.

Q2. (Joshua 2:2-11) What indicates that Rahab believes in Israel’s God Yahweh? What does she believe about Yahweh? How deep is Rahab's faith? How deep a faith does someone need to have in order to be saved from the destruction of a city? From eternal punishment? Rahab acts to protect the spies and acknowledges God as her God. She trusts in Him at risk of her own life. She believes God has power over hers and that Jericho will fall if he says so. Her faith is deep enough to deny her own gods and her own king. She trusted enough to put out a scarlet cloth to identify her as committed to the Israelites and their God

Q1. (Joshua 2:1) What were the spies sent to learn? Why do you think they sought to lodge in a prostitute’s house? Do you think God sent them there? They were sent to Jericho to spy out the land and the people and get an idea what they were up against. They were looking for any intelligence that would be an advantage to them and to know what they were up against. As Dr. Wilson suggested it was for anonymity and for easy escape that they took refuge in a prostitutes house. Did God send them there? Providentially, God knew the heart of Rahab was different from the rest of Jericho. God provided opportunity and salvation for Rahb, as well as working out someone to help the spies escape.

Q4. (Joshua 1:8) What does it mean to meditate on the Word? What is the difference between Christian meditation and Eastern meditation? How does God work through his Word to renew our minds? Mediating on God's word means reading and considering it as it applies to your life. It is letting God teach you and transform you. The difference between Christian meditation and Eastern is that Eastern is about emptying your mind. Christian thought is about filling your mind with God's truth and changing our thinking to God's thinking. God teaches us from the Scripture and we change our way of thinking to God's way of thinking.

Q3. (Joshua 1:6-8) What kinds of things might Joshua be tempted to fear if he were to allow himself to dwell on his anxieties? What does it mean to “be strong and very courageous”? What is the distinction between weakness and strength in Joshua’s situation? What is the relationship between fear and faith? Can you be courageous and still be fearful? Joshua might fear all the things that kept them from entering the promised land before such as the giants in the land or the strength of the cities or armies or even the people who might rebel again and refuse to go in. He could fear himself as not adequate of a leader. How could he do something Moses couldn't even do? He could fear changing the status quo. They had got used to living in the wilderness. Maybe they would be comfortable here and not want to risk their lives. Joshua could fear the enemy, but he could also fear the people he was leading. They had a reputation of being stubborn and stiff-necked and rebellious, afterall. Being strong and courageous is trusting in God when you know God's will for your life and people oppose it. To stand firm in your faith takes strength,not in horses or chariots, but in your character and resolve to trust and follow God no matter what. It is doing the right thing because it is the right thing. It may not be the popular thing, but it is the right thing. Persecuted Christians show strength and courage when they stand for Jesus no matter what. The distinction between weakness and strength would be to not trust God's provision and God's victory. Weakness would be giving in to fear or opinion polls or public pressure or anything contrary to faith in God to do what God asks you to do. Fear would be going with the flow of pleasing people and not stirring up the pot. It would be "playing it safe." You can be courageous in the midst of fear. Courage is not absent of fear, courage is acting in spite of your fear and doing what needs to be done. I have often been scared to death going into situations that knew not what to do or say. But I give it to God and trusted Him. My fear actually heightened my sensitivity to hear and follow the leading of the Spirit when I didn't know what to do.

Q2. (Joshua 1:5b) Why is God’s promise to be always with Joshua so important to him? Why is this promise so important to you in your present situation? If God is with you, what limitations do you have? Joshua had now become the leader, following in the footsteps of Moses. Joshua had been with Moses from the beginning and also one of the spies that had been faithful and had tried to convince the Israelites 40 years earlier to enter the promised land. Now, Joshua was leading a people, whom, the greatest leader of Israel, Moses had been unable to accomplish. Joshua knew that if Moses couldn't get the people there, neither could he . . unless God were with him. Joshua knew that his faith was not in himself or positive thinking or anything else. It was rooted and firmly established in God alone. As a pastor of a church, it is also humbling to lead a congregation. I am in the same place Joshua is. I cannot lead alone. Alone, I am too inadequate, too imperfect, too weak. But with God's presence with me, I can go where He leads. But my trust has to be constant as I find myself over my head often and need God's provision and leadership to continue forward.

Q1. (Joshua 1:3) In what way is God’s promise to Joshua, “I will give you every place where you set your foot,” a conditional promise? What’s wrong with a faith that consists primarily of the philosophy: “If God wants me to have it he will give it to me”? What areas that God has promised you that you must press forward to receive? For the Israelites, God had given them a promise when He delivered them. I will lead you to the Promised Land. When they arrived and Moses sent spies into the land, only Joshua and Caleb believed God would give them the Land as He was greater than the obstacles the other ten feared. God would give them the land, but they had to trust Him to do as He commanded and go where He led. The first time, they didn't. When Joshua returned to the land, He was willing to trust the Lord to go before them. The promise was conditional on whether or not they would follow God. Would they step out in faith and move forward and set their foot on the land or continue wandering int he wilderness? A faith that primarily sits and waits for God to deliver it on a silver platter is a faith that isn't very active. The first word of the Great Commission is "go." God has given us a field that "White unto harvest." The church can't sit back and only wait for the world to show up at the door. The church needs to go out into the world, preach the gospel, disciple, love, serve, be salt and light, etc. God will go before us and grant us success as we trust in Him.

Q6. (Daniel 12:10) In what way will intense persecution in the End Times lead to many being “purified, made spotless, and refined”? In what ways is the Church in our day in such need of this? How do you think we can prepare ourselves for this time? I remember hearing that the American church needs a taste of persecution for the purpose of maturing us, purifying us, helping us see the true value of our faith in Jesus. We tend to follow Jesus as long as life goes well for us, but when the going gets tough, we think God has failed us. Persecution refines the church, weeding out compromises, laziness, drifting, half-hearted commitment and self-serving attitudes. Those who are not serious about following Jesus will run away. We do need this refinement. We need this challenge to evaluate what is most important. And I think the time will come for us too. How can we prepare? Surrender to Jesus. Rejoice in our sufferings whatever they are. Have a heart of compassion for those who are currently persecuted and don't close our eyes to those who are already suffering. Hurt when they hurt. And I ask myself, who is actually being blessed? Those who are suffering for Jesus and remain faithful and are strong in faith. Or am I more blessed because I have escaped suffering but in many ways am soft in faith? I love to read the testimonies of those persecuted Christians. I have much to learn from them.

Q5. (Daniel 12:5-7). How long will intense persecution last during the final tribulation? What will happen to God’s people during this? Why do you think this difficult time is revealed to us people who don’t like bad news? The intense persecution of the final tribulation refers to time, times and a half of time, which has been interpreted three and a half years. This is a time when it would appear the enemy has won and God's people have been broken. But there is resurrection. Persecution, death and defeat is only temporary for the Christian. Jesus was three days in the tomb, but resurrection happened. Ours is the same hope. This news is to prepare us, to help us keep perspective in our Christian walk that God doesn't promise a trouble-free walk with Jesus. Sometimes it is a hard and difficult walk. It also keeps in perspective for me that there are others in the world who are suffering for Jesus and count it a privilege to suffer for HIs name. It says much to me that to suffer for the Name of Jesus is a greater desire than safety and a happy carefree life. Paul said in Philippians 3, "I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead." This is counter-cultural to those who seek safety and painfree and happy life as a successful Christian life. I think Paul saw something more profound than a happy Christian life free from problems.

Q4. (Daniel 12:3) What is the end of those who are wise and influential for God? What is their reward? How does God use your influence currently to advance his Kingdom? What would need to change so that you might have greater influence for Christ? Those who are in Christ shall reap a great reward. There will be resurrection and joy and eternal life and we will be with the Lord forever. I seek to be used of the Lord to share His gospel that others may know Jesus and find eternal life in Jesus. I pastor a church and it is my heart's desire to help people find their way in Jesus and grow in Him, and in turn, become faithful servants to share the gospel and spread God's love and forgiveness to others. What would need to change? My prayer is as John the Baptist who said, "He must increase and I must decrease." The greater His presence in my life, the more I am out of the way for God to use me more effectively.

Q3. (Daniel 12:2) What do we learn about resurrection? How does this compare with New Testament teaching? What is the future of the righteous who are raised? Why do you think the unjust will be raised also? Daniel 12:2-3 says, "Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt. 3 Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever." (12:2-3) Jesus says in John 5:28-29, "Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice a nd come out--those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned." Those who trust in Jesus and are clothed with His righteousness will be saved and resurrected to eternal life and those who reject Jesus and have done evil will be condemned.

Q2. (Daniel 12:1) What will happen during the great distress of God’s people? In what ways does this time seem to conform to the “great tribulation” spoken of in the New Testament? The great distress appears to be talking about persecution of those who follow Jesus. "They will persecute me because they hate Me." The tribulation often has a western interpretation in that the Great Tribulation will occur when America starts getting persecuted. However, there is already great persecution in many places throughout the world. I think when we consider a great persecution, we need to look beyond our own context and our own nation and look to what is happening in the rest of the world. The persecution against the Church is intensifying in places all around the world. How this differs from the Great Tribulation maybe more global in perspective. It does appear we are moving toward that direction more and more.

:Q1. (Daniel 11:36-45) What do we learn about the character of this Antichrist figure? What seems to be his prime motivations? What does he have to do with the land of Israel? The Antichrist is just that. He is anti Christ, against Christ and all he stands for. He is in rebellion and leads others in rebellion against God. He opposes Jesus and everything Jesus stands for. He seeks power and wealth and is about building up his own kingdom. He exalts himself. He not only exalts himself, but is about tearing down Jesus and blaspheming. And his desire is opposing God's chosen people, Israel. Because they are God's people he opposes them too.

Q4. (Daniel 11) What does this rehearsal of prophecy and history teach you about the world rulers and geopolitics of our own time? How does the “big picture” inform us about the events of our day? Do you believe that God knows and cares about the details of your country’s struggles and future? Are you praying for your country’s leaders? Sometimes we start believing that God is only interested in our nation or in Israel and the other nations and people's of the earth are just incidental. But as we look at this prophecy, it is evident that God is aware of all that is going on and knows the events as they will play out in the future. This reminds me that ultimately, God is in control He is not surprised by anything that happens in our world. He knows leaders who will rise and fall. And he knows the outcomes of those things that cause us fear and uncertainty. It tells me that I cannot trust in the events of life or hte circumstances of my life as a determining factor of my plans or goals or even who or what I will place my trust in. All those things are temporal. What I can put my trust in is God who is sovereign overall and who knows all things. And all things are in his hand. No matter what I see happening in politics or who is "in power" at the time or what conspires to usurp God's control, I know that in the end, God's will shall be accomplished and God will ultimately win. I only need to trust in HIm day by day. Our nation's leaders are in need of prayer. Some for repentance and for them to see God's light in their lives. In fact, I shall be co-leading a prayer movement in our community for Franklin Graham's 2016 Decision America Tour to each state capitol to pray and call upon God for revival and our nation back to God.

Q3. (Daniel 11) What is your general impression of Daniel's vision after reading the prophetic words matched by their historical fulfillment? What other Biblical prophecies can you think of that have been fulfilled so precisely? What does this teach you about God? Daniel's vision and the fulfillment of his vision shows that God knows all things, including things that are future in our timeline, for God is outside of time. He knows these things, but as taught by Dr. Ralph, those kings were individually responsible before God for their actions. And God knows what is going to happen and what He reveals to man (in this case, Daniel) is accurate. I believe we have these revelations and fulfillments to show us that other prophecies that have not yet come to pass can be trusted if they are from God. Prophecies have also accurately revealed the Messiah's coming as being fulfilled in Jesus of Nazareth. God is faithful to His Word and we can trust Him.

Q2. (Daniel 10:12-13) Why wasn't the angel messenger able to bring his message in a timely manner? Who resisted him? Who helped him? What does this teach us about prayer? About spiritual warfare? Daniel 10:12013 says, "Then he continued, 'Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them. But the prince of the Persian kingdom resist me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia. The angel messenger was delayed because "the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days." This gives us insight into what happens when we pray. Dr. Ralph speaks of spiritual warfare that takes place in the heavens that we are not always aware is happening. But Paul speaks of this when he says that our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. I think this is an area most Christians fail to recognize. If answers to our prayer is resisted by demonic forces, we know that God's forces are fighting toward answers to our prayers. As I pray, it teaches me to be diligent, to be patient trusting God, and to pray and not give up. It also teaches me about importance, the priority prayer should have in our lives and the power of prayers. Spiritual warfare is a realm most Christians do not understand and shy away from recognizing, because it is a little outside our realm of reason and observational science, but it is real nonetheless. I take comfort that with the reality of spiritual warfare, God has given us the weapons to fight - prayer.

Q1. (Daniel 10: 3, 7-11, 15-17) Daniel is old, but why does the vision affect him so greatly? What is the physical effect on him? What is the mental and spiritual effect on him? Why is spiritual "work" so taxing on us? Prayer and communicating on a deep spiritual level whether praying or listening or seeing a vision is hard work that involves a person physically, emotionally and spiritually. Especially, the nature of the vision being something difficult to receive as it carries judgment and hard things for people, can be taxing. I am a preacher and if my sermon carries heavy truth and "hard things" to say to the people, calling them to repentance or something I am deeply passionate about, I put my all into the message. I am exhausted at the end of church. The vision Daniel witnessed was the most intense form of prayer as he was seeing what God was revealing to him. The older one gets, the more toll these kinds of things take on a physical being.

Q4. Why do you think Daniel's visions and prophecies have been an encouragement to Christians throughout the centuries when they are undergoing severe persecution? Revelation 6:10-11 "When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slainbecause of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained. 10 They called out in a loud voice, "How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?" 11 Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and brothers who were to be killed as they had been was completed." Revelation 7:13-17 says, 13 "Then one of the elders asked me, "These in white robes--who are they, and where did they come from?" 14 I answered, "Sir, you know." And he said, "These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 15 Therefore, "they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will spread his tent over them. 16 Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat. 17 For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes." Daniel's prophecy and passages in Revelation remind those suffering persecution that God is faithful and will prevail. It reminds them that evil will not prevail, that God is just and that their sacrifice is not in vain. I think the one word that describes the importance of passages like this is "Hope." Our hope is in Jesus Christ who keeps all things in perspective and keeps our hope for something better, something more glorious in our sight. Without hope, we see the ugliness and evil of those who oppose Christ. But keeping our eyes on Jesus shows that evil does not have the final word. Jesus has the final word. Amen! Praise His Name!

Q3. (Daniel 9:24-27) Why do you think there are so many interpretations of Daniel's vision of the Seventy Sevens? What is your interpretation of the various key parts of the vision? Everyone comes from a different perspective and we each see things a little different because of our upbringing and how we look at the world. For example,, some see the world getting better toward the end and others see the world getting worse. I have learned over the years to not have a knee-jerk reaction when I hear something I disagree with, but rather slow down my reaction to listen to the person's perspective and evaluate it according to Scripture. I have been blessed by learning from others that have both refined my thinking and have reaffirmed my viewpoints on things. But in most interactions, I have build bridges instead of walls with those I don't necessarily agree with in the non-essentials. We have often found common ground and we have found that we agree on much more than we disagree about. The harder question for me is, what is my interpretation? I am still sorting all this out and, admittedly, I do not have a mind that is very good at sorting out end times puzzles. It is for this reason, in part, that I am participating in this class, to deepen my understanding of Daniel. However, saying this, I would tend to go along with our teacher. Numbers. I do think we need to understand this issues, like numbers like the ones who wrote these things down. I believe God can be precise in numbers, but I also think that there are symbolic numbers that estimate events. However, I am continually amazed when events prophetically work out pretty close to the time predicted. Anointed One. I would agree that it seems the Anointed One refers to Jesus. Antichrist. John in his letter talks about many antichrists who come into the world. However, I believe that Jesus and Paul spoke of one specific antichrist who will come in the end. Tribulation and Final Half-Week. Dr Ralph said, "The Final Week of Daniel's Seventy Weeks seems to refer to the same period of Great Tribulation that we see in Jesus' teaching on the Last Days (Matthew 24) and Paul's exposition on the Man of Lawlessness (2 Thessalonians 2). I would agree with this statement. However, I am cautious about interpreting Scripture from a purely Western viewpoint of events. I have heard people interpret the Great Tribulation as when it will happen in the West. However, when we take into account that there is intense persecution in other parts of the world already happening right now, how does that fit into the prophecy? My concern is that we have too narrow of an interpretation that focuses only on "us" in the West. The End. I would also agree with this interpretation. Dr Ralph says, "It is also clear to me that "the end that is decreed" (12:27) refers to judgment by the Ancient of Days and his Christ, the Son of Man (7:9-14, 26-27), when Christ returns, the believers are raised, and the final judgment takes place. Someone once told me that when we get to heaven, it will be interesting to understand God's truth in a fuller, richer way and then we will see how we all had Truth, but none of us got it completely right. With that idea in mind, I am not and probably will not be dogmatic on interpretations unless they are clearly Biblical. If there are puzzle pieces missing, that can definitely affect our understanding and interpretation. This study has been helpful for me.

Q2. (Daniel 9:24-27) Why do you think people fight with each other over the interpretation of difficult Bible passages? According to Romans 14:1-5, what should be our attitude towards those who disagree with us on the non-essentials of the faith? I have often asked myself the same question. I think part of the answer is that we don't all agree on what are non-essentials. Some believe that their belief is a requirement for salvation and others believe that same thing is open to interpretation. That is not a modern problem as stated in Romans 14 where Paul was dealing with the same attitudes within the church. Some were becoming dogmatic about certain issues. Romans 14:1-8 Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters. 2One man's faith allows him to eat everything, but another man, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. 3 The man who eats everything must not look down on him who does not, and the man who does not eat everything must not condemn the man who does, for God has accepted him. 4 Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand. 5One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. 6 He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord. He who eats meat, eats to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains, does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. 7For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. 8 If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord." What I believe Paul is telling us, in relation to end times prophecy is that we should accept one another who interprets some of these matters differently than we do without passing judgment. As Paul says in verse 4, "who are we to judge someone else's servant?" And in verse 5, "each one should be fully convinced in his own mind." And verses 6-8, whatever we do we should do so to the Lord. I have concluded about all these interpretations that they are all very confusing and I know of many who hold to different interpretations who are fully committed to serving Jesus, yet see some of these things differently. In regard to the non-essentials, I think we can travel different roads, yet be heading in the same direction and reach the same destination. Therefore, those who disagree on non-essentials we should not be threatened by them or "put off" by them, but rather learn from them and find common ground as we serve Jesus together.

Q1. (Daniel 9:24) In what ways can we find in Jesus the fulfillment of the six tasks found in verse 24? To finish transgression. I can't help but think of what Jesus said from the cross: "It is finished" which I understand to mean salvation, but what Jesus accomplished on the cross essentially finished the devil's work. He is defeated and there will come a day when it is realized in its fullness. To put an end to sin. Sin reigned until the time of Christ. Even the Law could not stop sin. But Jesus gave us victory over sin through the cross. To atone for wickedness, Jesus death on the cross atoned for our sins. We can be transformed by His shed blood and death and resurrection. "He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world." (1 John 2:2) To bring in everlasting righteousness. His righteousness alone saves us. He is is our righteousness. To seal up the vision and prophecy. I think of a Roman seal that authenticates that this is from the person who sealed it. Only the authorized person can break the seal and open the contents. I think it again points to Jesus that both authenticates and has authority to break the seal. To anoint the most holy. I would agree this again points to Jesus and His anointing as the Holy One, Jesus, the Messiah.

What was Daniel's essential prayer? What are the various grounds of Daniel's appeal? How did God answer the prayer (see Daniel 9:20-23)? Two passages reveal the heart of God, that I still find amazing to comprehend. Verses 9-11 says, "The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him; 10 we have not obeyed the LORD our God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets. 11 All Israel has transgressed your law and turned away, refusing to obey you. Therefore the curses and sworn judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against you." And verse 13 - "All this disaster has come upon us, yet we have not sought the favor of the Lord our God by turning from our sins and giving attention to your truth." (9:13) Daniel's prayer was a prayer of intercession for a nation. His was a prayer of repentance and seeking God's mercy. He was not an elected representative of the people, but took on the burden of interceding for his people, his nation. God's answer is balanced between accountability for rebellion and sin, but I believe the bigger picture is mercy and forgiveness. There are consequences for sin and rebellion, but the larger heart of God is for relationship with His people which comes about through mercy, grace and forgiveness and restoration. In this I see the exile as a consequence, but also grace as God continued to work in them throughout their exile, bringing them back to Himself. Daniel's prayer is based not on the people, but on God. This is God's purpose and God's agenda and God''s plan and it is all for God's glory. God answered Daniel's prayer through Gabriel.

Q3. (Daniel 9:5) Since Daniel is such a righteous man in his generation, why does he identify himself with the sins of his people? He didn't commit these sins. How does this compare to how Jesus sought forgiveness for his people? By the way he opened his prayer, we see his love and dedication for God. However, according to the covenant, he is part of the rebellious people and nation. He is part of the covenant people. He bears the responsibility as a community. "5 We have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws. 6 We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our fathers, and to all the people of the land." (9:5-6) Daniel feels hte guilt and grieves for the sins of his people. In our day, we see ourselves in God's view as individuals, not bearing the responsibility of the community of believers. Jesus took the sins of the people upon Himself. He sees us as individuals, but He also sees us as community, as a people whom He loves and for whom He died for. As Jesus weeps for the people He loves, so ought we to weep for the people He loves and needs forgiveness.