We will Not Serve Your gods

chapter 3 looking at verses 16 to 18.

Let us read through these three verses again.

Well, I'm sure this is a chapter or part of it that we've heard and known from childhood.

Most of us know the story of Daniel.

We were brought up with these sort of passages in the Bible made very familiar to us.

And for most of us, we would turn perhaps to the end of the chapter more so than other parts of it,

where we find the incident of the burning fiery furnace,

where these three were cast in and where they were preserved by the power of God

and where Nebuchadnezzar then came to express his astonishment,

as he saw not just three figures, but four figures in that burning fiery furnace.

Anticipating the New Testament age,

anticipating the way in which the Lord is with his people in all the circumstances of their lives,

however much beyond themselves these circumstances may be.

Now, these events are repeated in the history of God's people,

in the history of the world, in the history of the church.

They're also very much relevant to our own day.

And in fact, this passage itself, verses 16 to 18, you might say,

is bristling with relevance for the circumstances today in which we find ourselves,

in our own nation and other places throughout the world.

Because they set out what is a very deliberate and arrogant challenge to the authority of God,

to the rule of God, to the way in which these three men represent

God as against the paganism represented by Nebuchadnezzar and his people.

And the passage sets out for us not only how that challenge came to these three men,

but also how they responded to it, the manner of their responding,

and also how they actually stated the matter for Nebuchadnezzar,

though he, of course, was such a tyrannical ruler himself.

But they didn't actually in any way feel intimidated by his presence,

because they knew that there was a presence with them much greater than he was.

So it tells us the challenge facing us, the challenge faced by the faithful.

These three, as they represent the faithful of God,

you might say down through all the generations, including our own day,

in Shedrach, Meshach, and Abednego, we find ourselves,

and we find ourselves facing the challenges of the age in which we live,

the challenges to our standing in the gospel, to our presenting of the gospel,

to our witness to the gospel, the standing of our insistence on the truth of God being relevant,

as we find it in the Bible, presented to the world of our day,

as it was in ages before us.

That's the first thing to look at, the challenge faced by the faithful.

And that's going to be taking account of the golden image that was set up,

but also the confidence of Nebuchadnezzar and those who governed with him,

their confidence in their own authority, in their own status, in their own power.

Second thing we'll look at is the positive response that the faithful of God gave to this challenge.

How did they face this challenge?

What was their response to it?

How do we find in their response to it matters which are relevant to our own place today?

Well, you can see the account, of course, of the golden image earlier in the chapter,

and there is undoubtedly a representation in that golden image.

It is emphasized a number of times that Nebuchadnezzar set it up.

He speaks of it as the image that I have set up, the image that I have created,

what I have actually set before the people, not just of his immediate environment,

but right, everybody over whom he at that time had sway in the Babylonian government.

He is emphasizing, this is the image that I have made,

and therefore you must bow down to it.

What did that image represent?

It wasn't just the arrogance and the grandeur of Nebuchadnezzar himself.

The image undoubtedly was intended to convey a sense of the power and authority of his rule

and of his government.

The image really, you might say, is a representation of supreme state authority,

or a state that seeks to have supreme authority over all its citizens.

That is what this image really represents.

Now, that can be either by a government such as Nebuchadnezzar had,

dictatorship, all of those types of government,

but it can also happen with a democracy that a government,

even elected by democratic means,

can still use oppressive ways by which to stem or seek to stem the truth of God,

and people living by that truth of God,

and that truth having an influence in society amongst human beings in that particular location.

And that is more likely the more you find the Bible put aside,

the more you find replacements for the teaching of the Bible in human philosophies,

in other religions,

whatever places are given to other ways of thinking,

of conclusions, of ways of looking at the world,

other than in the Christian faith.

The more you find the Christian faith put aside,

or not actually in any way given an influence in society,

the more that type of thing is going to actually be set up.

The more you're going to find the supremacy of state authority

coming to show itself more and more in the works of such governments.

Now you notice the size of this image.

We're told at the beginning of the chapter,

he made an image of gold,

whose height was 60 cubits,

and its breadth 6 cubits.

That was something like 90 feet high,

something like 30 meters high,

and around 3 meters wide.

We're not told that it was an image of a human figure.

Might have been different to that,

but others think that it would have been a human shape

or something similar to that.

But in any case, that was the size of it.

It was an enormous thing.

It was a massive construction.

And undoubtedly, that was intended to be very intimidating,

to represent the authority,

the supreme authority of Nebuchadnezzar,

and the government that he presided over,

and to represent that to the people,

so that as soon as they saw the image,

they would think,

this is such a massive authority.

We have to bow to this.

We have no option.

We've got to actually let this be our master.

And of course, you find that down through history.

You can still go to places like North Korea today,

and you'll find huge statues there,

according to photos at least you've seen.

You'll find huge statues of the present leader,

the former leader, the leader before that,

who are, of course, revered as gods.

And the gigantic proportions of these great statues

are intended just to keep people's minds focused

on their need to bow to the leader,

to actually give all due place to his authority,

the authority of his government, or else.

And or else is the case with Nebuchadnezzar's figure as well.

Because not only did he erect this gigantic edifice,

he accompanied it with laws

that really are pretty much to do with persecuting anybody

who refused to comply with his instructions.

Laws that are reinforced, you might say, with persecution.

Anybody who does not bow down to this image that I have built

shall be cast into a burning, fiery furnace.

That is the threat.

That is the intimidatory word and declaration

of the supreme leader.

You have got to do this, or if not, this will be the result.

And you'll note that in the list that are given there,

when he sent word out to gather,

the satraps, the prefects, the governors, the councillors,

a few times these various official figures are mentioned.

And the reason for that is that the political

and the judicial officers of the nation

of the empire are actually all there

so that they're all gathered here

so that everybody will understand

this is the official policy.

This is what all of these figures

are themselves vowing to uphold.

That is why they're chosen.

That's why they're there.

Now you can step from that into our present age.

And you might say, well, there's no gigantic figures like that

on the streets of London or in Glasgow or Edinburgh.

Yes, but remember, these are representations.

And the principle of this is really what you must take with you.

And you see it down through the ages.

You don't just look at this as something relevant

to Nebuchadnezzar's day.

And because there's no such giant figure

erected now in our particular society,

it doesn't mean these things are not relevant anymore.

State authority is still very much a thing

to be watched and to be feared

when it's used excessively.

And there are arguments and inducements,

as you very well know today,

to try and present the state's power to us

in a way that seeks that we comply with it.

In a way that would cast its shadow over us, if you like,

so that we would actually feel obliged

to bow to the authority of the state,

even when it means that we are required

or so-called required to do things

which we know are against our conscience

or against our Christian knowledge, particularly.

I'm not suggesting in any way

that our situation is really in any way

at the level of which it was here

or in North Korea or something like that.

We value the freedoms that we have.

We value the liberties that we still enjoy in our society.

We value the things that we very much take for granted

sadly every day, myself included,

but that have been bought for us at such great price.

Even people, as we remember recently,

going to war and giving their lives in war

to protect these freedoms.

However, there are very many inducements

and pressures brought to bear,

even by the state and by figures of the state

and by proclamations and laws of the government

that are themselves contrary to what you and I

as Christians believe in

and would want to see upheld

and would want to see as the policy of the government,

certainly on religious and moral issues,

particularly moral and spiritual matters.

Arguments such as, you know,

it's fine for people who want to follow their own religion.

The state will not bother with that.

If you want to keep your own religion,

you can actually do that as long as you do it in private.

But of course, the argument following on from that

is that you have to keep religion out of public life.

You have to keep the Christian religion,

especially out of public life,

the Christian faith,

even to the extent sometimes,

and it's happened on this island,

where people who are church officers,

by that I mean elders in the church particularly,

are really regarded as disqualified from public office

because they have that office in the church.

Now that has happened in recent times,

in our own locality.

And the argument being,

not only are you a Christian,

but you're an elder in the free church,

and the free church is against same-sex marriage,

seeking to uphold the teaching of the Bible,

which excludes that.

The free church is against many other aspects

of immoral lifestyles.

And therefore you,

because you're an elder or a minister in that church,

you shouldn't actually be given a place

in any council chamber

or in any organization

that wants to present things politically.

Thankfully, that's all too rare,

certainly in our own locality,

but let's not in any way imagine

that it can't occur again

and even more forcibly.

So state religion,

keep it out of public life,

keep it out of our education,

keep it out of schools,

keep it out of universities,

keep it out of all of those areas of public life,

keep it to yourself,

keep it private,

follow it by yourself,

whatever religion you have,

but don't let it actually in any way

appear in public life

or have to do with

how you carry out your public office.

That's the situation we're facing.

And I don't need to tell you

that state legislation has

and is continuing to propose

legislation,

which you and I know is very contrary

to the teachings of Scripture,

to the Christian ethic,

to our Christian standards

on which this nation,

this Christian state,

is largely founded.

And of course,

not only that,

but persecution

takes many different forms.

You don't actually have to have

a burning, fiery furnace

threatening you

before you can think of it

being persecuting.

Discrimination

is persecution.

Denial of justice

is persecution.

Laws that are enacted

contrary

to Christian liberty

is persecution.

Just last week,

a candidate for

Liberal Democrats

and constituency in England,

just last week,

he said that

he had faced

what he called

direct harassment

and hostility

from activists

in his own constituency party,

the Lib Dem constituency party

in that particular constituency.

Now,

he's a former BBC journalist,

a man called David Campanal,

and he has himself

reported from places

where there has been war

in Europe in recent times.

But he said that

in facing this direct harassment,

he's now facing

the very strong possibility

of removal

as a Liberal Democrat candidate

because of his Christian views.

We're supposed to be a country

of liberty of speech

and liberty of thought

and liberty of religion.

This is the reality.

This is what you get

when that is pushed aside.

And he went on to say

that there is a movement

in Britain

that wants to undermine

the Christian foundations

of our constitution,

that wants to remove

all references

to Christianity

from the way

in which our national life

is guided and built.

It's happening in education.

It's happening

in the council culture

at work in universities.

It's there in business.

It's in the law

and in schools.

So he said,

I want to rally all people.

Step up.

Now is the time

to engage.

Well, there's a man

who knows

the Nebuchadnezzar situation.

There's a man

who can actually relate

directly in his own experience

to verses 16 to 18

of Daniel 3.

There's a man

who doesn't look at that

as just a fact of history.

There's a man

who knows that

that opposition,

that attitude

is alive

and well

in our present society.

And he's calling on people

to stand up,

to get real,

to realize

that this is a movement

that's underway,

that has been underway

for some time.

And that if we don't

actually stand up

for our Christian values

and our Christian ethic

and our Christian principles,

then we're going to be swamped

one of these days

if this movement

and these similar movements

are allowed

to carry on.

So there's the challenge

facing the faithful.

Here is the command.

Fall into line

with these proposals.

Fall into line

with our view of marriage.

Fall into line

with our view

of the sanctity of life

or otherwise

abortion on demand.

Fall into life

with our policies

on whatever else

subjects they may be,

even if they're contrary

to our Christian understanding.

And if you don't,

then we'll make it

really difficult for you

and your work,

your employment,

your access to justice,

all of these things.

These are real things.

That is the real situation.

And I'm not using

this pulpit, God forbid,

as a political platform.

Far be it.

I have never taken

the view

that I should

in any way

align myself

with any political party,

even if there was

a political party

that I might be strongly

inclined to support,

which there isn't.

This is something

that the preaching

of the gospel

has always sought

to include

when injustices abound,

when there are threats

to liberty of conscience,

to liberty of speech.

That is part

of the gospel message

by which we counter that.

And you can see

the arrogant confidence

that's in Nebuchadnezzar's

insistence

on bowing to this image.

See the last part

of verse 15 there.

If you do not worship,

you shall immediately

be cast into a burning,

fiery furnace.

And then he says,

and who is the God

who will deliver you

out of my hands?

Who is the God

who will deliver you

out of my hands?

And that's the same,

pretty much the same feature

that you find

in anti-gospel movements

today,

especially when they gain

in political influence

and political power.

You see,

when you lose

things like

biblical humility

and a biblical attitude

to the views

of other people,

when you lose

that freedom

that's given

to people's choice

of who they follow

and what they believe,

not talking about

freedom just now

in terms of relationship

with God,

but freedom

in a free society,

once you lose these,

you don't set up

a vacuum.

You set up things

such as arrogance

and pride

and self-assertion

and even subversion.

And you'll find them all

in our society

around you today.

The threat,

the challenge

faced by the faithful.

And you don't have

to go very far

in the world

in our day and age

before you come across

that thing

challenging you

to your views.

Challenging you rights

as a Christian.

Challenging why it is

that you think

you're right

and not other people.

The challenge

faced by the faithful.

But look at,

secondly,

the positive response

of those faithful

to God.

Ch'adrach, Meshach,

and Abednego

answered and said,

O Nebuchadnezzar,

we have no need

to answer you

in this matter.

And it didn't mean

that they weren't

going to answer.

They were refusing

to answer.

These words really mean

that the matter

is plain enough.

They didn't need

to think too much

about it.

They didn't need

to really think

how they were going

to respond

to this.

It was actually

there already

in their minds.

They were so firmly

in their view

of their God

that that's what

really immediately

came to the fore.

So the first thing

you find here

on that part

is a deep

knowledge

of God.

How do you face

this movement

in our society?

How do you face

ungodliness?

How do you face

movements that seek

to usurp

the Christian principles

on which this nation

and our society

was founded?

How do you face

that arrogance?

How do you face

that pride,

that self-assertion,

that subversion,

that challenge

to authority itself?

How do you face

it?

First of all,

you face it

by a deep

knowledge of God.

These men

had a deep

knowledge of God.

You cannot go out

and face that world

without having

a deep knowledge

of God,

without seeking

that your depth

of understanding

of the Bible

is something you

add to day by day,

something that you

actually find

increasing day by day.

You don't actually

set out as a Christian

to face the things

in the world

without really thinking

too hard about

where you are

in your Christian

knowledge,

where you are

in your relationship

to God

or to Jesus.

The more you

and I are

schooled in the

things of God,

the more you

will actually

be then prepared

as these men

were to face

and to respond

to the challenges

that they faced

and we face

in our age.

And that's why

our place

in the church

is so important.

The value we place,

I should say,

on what the church

is to us,

what the teaching

of the Bible

is to us,

what Christian

fellowship is to us,

what worship is to us,

what the preaching

of the gospel is to us,

what sharing together

and understanding

and discussion

on the Bible

is to us.

All of that,

you see,

is part of the

strengthening program

by which God

deepens our understanding,

deepens our relationship

to himself,

deepens our relationship

to one another.

You couldn't put

a wedge

between Shadrach,

Meshach and Abednego

as three believers

in God.

They were bound

together closely

by the truth

which they believed,

by the God

in whom they believed.

Not only that,

but you couldn't put

a wedge between them

and their God either.

Because here they are

facing this great challenge.

Here they are

facing this intimidation.

Here they are facing

this threat,

this threat of persecution.

All the things

we've mentioned.

And what do they do?

They express,

firstly,

their knowledge of God.

They tell

this pagan,

authoritative king

about their God.

O king,

Nebuchadnezzar,

if this be so,

our God,

whom we serve,

is able to deliver us.

But if not,

O king,

we will not serve

your God.

So that's the first thing,

the deep knowledge

they have of God.

They have no doubts

whatsoever

about God's ability

to do the impossible.

What they would regard,

maybe,

or we would regard

as the impossible.

That is to deliver them

out of a burning,

fiery furnace

if it so happened

that they were thrown

into it.

We have no doubts

whatsoever

of God being able

to keep us,

to maintain us,

to protect us

in that environment.

We know

he can do that.

He's our God.

We know

what he's like.

But then,

you see,

they said,

well,

even if that is not

the case,

we are still

going to serve him.

And they make it

very clear

that whatever happens,

our God,

whom we serve,

is able

to deliver us

and to deliver us

from your hand

or out of your hand

also,

O King.

Not only do they have

this unashamed confidence

in God,

but they're carrying it

through

into facing

the threat

of Nebuchadnezzar

and facing

the authority

of Nebuchadnezzar.

They're really presenting

the authority

of their God

as vastly superior,

supreme,

in fact.

Now,

it is important

that we

regard

that they are

actually

respecting

the king

to a certain extent

as the king.

That itself

is rather

important,

I think,

in the context.

They actually

speak respectfully

to him

and

the old

Puritan commentator

Matthew Henry

has some very

significant words

to say on that.

I'll just read to

what you find

in his commentary

on Daniel.

This is what he says.

They did not speak

out into any

intemperate heat

or passion

against those

that did worship

the golden image.

They did not

insult

or affront

them,

nor did they

rashly

thrust themselves

upon the trial

or go out

of their way

to court

martyrdom.

But when they

were duly called

to the fiery trial,

they acquitted

themselves bravely

with a conduct

and courage

that became

sufferers

for so good

a cause.

They keep

their temper

admirably.

They do not

call the king

a tyrant

or an idolater.

The cause

of God

needs not

the wrath

of man,

but with

an exemplary

calmness

and sedatedness

of mind,

they deliberately

give in their

answer,

which they resolve

to abide

by.

And Matthew Henry

is reminding us

of whenever we

respond to

even such

arrogancy,

such

self-presentation

of grandeur

as you find

with Nebuchad

Neser

or others

in this world,

even when you

find self-confident

secular

pronouncements,

whether it's

from government

or whatever,

we don't

actually respond

in kind,

even if they

are unkind

to us.

What

Matthew Henry

was reminding

us of

is that

there is a

great need

to maintain

respect,

respectful

language,

temperate

language,

tactful

language,

loving

language,

all the

things that

will really

in many

ways disarm

the person

who really

wants to

be provocative,

who wants

you to be

provocative

back in

response,

who wants

you to

actually lose

the plot,

so they

can then

say,

well,

if that's

your

Christianity,

look at

what it's

doing to

you.

You have

to pray

that God

will keep

you calm,

keep you

in every

way as a

Christian should

be and

facing,

whether it's,

and I'm just

talking here,

of course,

about direct

speech between

us and

those who

are against

the gospel.

There was no

social media

in Nebuchadnezzar's

Day, of

course,

many, many

generations

afterwards.

There is

nowadays,

and it is

not against

social media

as such,

but its

misuse is

obvious to

us all,

and one of

the things

that very

much lends

itself to

is

disrespectful

language,

disrespect of

other people's

views,

talking people

down,

treating them

with contempt,

all kinds of

nasty language

presented to

them, and

sometimes you

don't even

know a face,

you don't even

know who's

doing it.

people's

people's

and we

have to be

careful with

all that,

especially our

young people,

we have to be

careful and

train them

into how

dangerous social

media can

be if we

allow it to

actually get on

top of us.

Anyway,

that's by the

way, but

hopefully not

an unimportant

by the way.

But of course,

Nebuchadnezzar,

they were facing

face to face,

and this is

nevertheless how

they actually

respected,

in one sense,

his own place

as king

over the

whole of

the empire.

So the

Shandarugan

confidence

met by a

deep response,

a deep

knowledge of

God.

But finally,

in the

positive response,

you find a

determined

commitment to

God in

verse 18.

You see,

this is really

so important,

so interesting,

how it's put

and how they

put it.

He's saying,

they're saying,

if this is so,

if our God,

whom we serve,

is able to

deliver us from

the burning,

fiery furnace,

and he will

deliver us out

of your hand,

O king.

That is something

we absolutely

believe in,

they're saying.

But if he

doesn't,

if he doesn't

believe,

if he doesn't

actually deliver

us from the

burning,

fiery furnace,

if he doesn't

deliver us out

of your hand,

and in his

wisdom and

providence,

I'm just adding

to the words,

but this is the

sense of them,

in his wisdom

and providence,

he does himself

allow this to

go ahead,

and we be

thrown into

the burning,

fiery furnace,

be it known

to you,

O king,

we still will

not serve

your gods

or worship

them,

the golden

image that

you have set

up.

In other

words,

they're taking

the worst

case scenario

and they're

saying about

the worst

case scenario,

they're saying

this is not

going to make

any difference

to our

allegiance,

it's not

going to make

any difference

whatsoever to

our view

of this image

or change

our view

of our

God.

We will do

what we've

always done,

we will

honour

our God.

it made

no difference

whatsoever

to them,

whatever

threats they

were faced

with,

and it

made no

difference

whatsoever

who was

making the

threats,

even king

Nebuchadnezzar.

They knew,

you see,

that the

king could

issue a

command there

and then

that their

life be

terminated.

but the

one thing

he could

not compel

them to

do was

to worship

the image.

He could

take their

life,

he could

not take

their

conscience.

He could

take their

life,

but he

could not

take their

allegiance

to their

God.

And that's

one of the

great lessons

of the

story.

Whatever

that world

out there

will do

to you,

whatever

it threatens

you with,

whatever

finally it

may actually

impose upon

you,

the one

thing it

cannot do

is remove

your Christ,

your Jesus,

your allegiance

to him

and his

care for

you.

The cost

of resistance

to oppression

and persecution

and ungodliness

is always

set fairly

high.

and the

more the

persecution

increases,

the greater

the cost

inevitably

is going

to be.

But denying

God is

catastrophic.

Denying

God is

catastrophic

to any

individual,

to any

society,

to any

group of

people,

to any

church

group,

whatever it

might be.

God

is

going to

be.

And all

the way

through the

days of

the apostles,

when they

were threatened

by the

religious

authorities of

that time,

and they

were told

not to

say anything

or preach

again in

the name

of Jesus.

They said

to them,

whatever is

right in

your eyes,

we cannot

but speak

the things

which we

have seen

and heard.

we are

not going

to be

untrue

to our

God,

despite

whatever,

despite what

you may

say to

us.

That was

their view

as well,

very much

the same

in principle

with Daniel's

views.

Now,

this really

is so

relevant and

significant,

as I said

at the

beginning

today,

tonight,

on this

particular

passage.

And as

you try

and bring

into your

own mind

the relevance

of this

for today,

it really

raises a

lot of

questions,

doesn't it?

How do

we respond

to any

threats?

And it's

not just

a matter

of our

own life

personally.

You may

never

personally

feel the

bite of

opposition

as others

do.

You may

never

actually

feel

what's

happening

in our

society

to other

Christians

elsewhere,

such as

this man

David

Campanel

that I

mentioned

that was

in the

Christian

Institute

reports

last week.

We may

never have

that personally

to stand

against.

We may

never have

to experience

that personally,

but we are

bound up

together as

Christians with

the Lord's

cause and

with such

people who

stand true

to the

Lord.

That's why we

pray for

them and

we remember

them and

even if

possible send

messages to

them for

their

encouragement.

all of

that is

so significant,

so important.

But the

principle is

this.

Whatever

happens in

our own

experience,

in our

own nation,

our own

society,

our own

locality,

the one

thing we

must never

ever even

think of

doing is

being untrue

to God.

How we

express that,

the language

we use,

all of that

is so

important.

But the

truth itself

is the

most important

thing of

all.

And as

we live

out the

truth,

and as

we seek

to promote

the truth,

as we

seek to

witness to

that truth,

may it be

so that

you and

I,

together and

as individuals,

will find

increasingly

that spirit

of Shedrach,

Meshach,

and Abednego,

who said,

in their

days we

must say

devourge.

Even if

it's the

case that

God will

not keep

us from

the persecution

from the

fiery furnace,

be it

known,

we will

not bow

down to

these images

or worship

your gods.

And that's

not being

legalistic,

that's not

just being

thrown

religiously,

simply

being

true to

God,

simply

standing

on the

foundation

he has

given

us,

his own

truth.

Because

when truth,

as Isaiah

puts it,

has fallen

in the

street,

somebody's

got to put

it back

on its

feet.

And if

you and I

don't do it

as Christians,

well,

we shouldn't

be surprised

if no one

else does

it.

So here's

the Bible's

appeal to

us tonight.

Know what's

going on

around you,

know what's

going on

in government

and proposals

for legislation,

know what's

going on

and the

events that

take place

in our

land,

check out

all the

websites,

the Christian

Institute,

Christian

Concern,

all of

those that

you give

where you

get access

to what's

going on

and good

advice and

all sorts

of things

that help

you as a

Christian to

face up

to the

reality of

what's

happening.

And as

you do

so,

be inspired

by these

three faithful

men and

be inspired

so that

their stand

will also

remain our

stand in

our day as

well.

Let's pray.

Lord,

we thank

you that

your word

has its

own way of

making an

appeal to

us to

be faithful

to you in

our day

as so

many

were in

days gone

by.

Lord,

we pray

that you

would empower

us and

equip us

with the

right knowledge,

with the

right spirit

and attitude,

but especially

with that

deep understanding

of your

word that

these three

men had in

their generation.

Lord,

we ask that

every effort

that we make

to stand

for your

truth,

to promote

your glory

and your

praise in

our society,

that you

would be

pleased to

accompany that

with your

power and

blessing.

We do

pray for

those in

authority over

us,

Lord.

You have

given us

that command

in your

word to

pray for

those who

are set

over us.

We would

want to

do it,

oh Lord,

not out of

a mere

sense of

duty,

just because

it's required

of us,

but out of

a true

and a

true and

spiritual

concern for

their

well-being,

for the

well-being of

your church

in our

land,

for the

well-being of

our fellow

citizens,

who may be

bowing down

to other

gods or

none at

all.

Grant these

mercies to

us, we

pray now.

Hear the

prayers of

your people,

hear silently

and also

spoken,

for Jesus

sake.

Amen.