It Was All a Dream

By Danny Saavedra

“During the night the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven and said: ‘Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever; wisdom and power are His. He changes times and seasons; He deposes kings and raises up others. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning. He reveals deep and hidden things; He knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with Him. I thank and praise you, God of my ancestors: 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.’”—Daniel 2:19–23 (NIV)

Over the last few days, we’ve seen a crazy story unfold. It all started with a dream that troubled King Nebuchadnezzar. He called his wise men—the magicians, astrologers, sorcerers, and every manner of mystic and spiritualist at his disposal—of Babylon. And then, he asked them to do the craziest thing: to tell him what his dream was and then interpret it. And if they couldn’t, he’d kill every single wise man in Babylon. Insanity! 

So, when they came for Daniel and his friends, Daniel asked for a little time to accomplish this impossible feat. And in order to do so, he and his friends prayed to God, who routinely does the impossible. And guess what? Today’s passage tells us that on that very night, God revealed the mysteries of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream to Daniel. 

And look with me at Daniel’s response to the revelation of God, which by the way is a revelation about the might, power, and Lordship of the Messiah who was to come—but more on that in the days to come. I want to focus in on a key part of this wonderful song of worship. He says: “Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever; wisdom and power are His . . . He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning. He reveals deep and hidden things; He knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with Him.” 

You see, all power, knowledge, wisdom, understanding, revelation, and truth come from God alone. He is the source of truth and understanding. All else is foolishness (1 Corinthians 3:19). 

Here, He revealed deep mysteries and hidden knowledge to Daniel. But listen to this beautiful reality . . . In Colossians 2:2–3 (NIV) we’re told that in Christ we “have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” As believers, we have access to all wisdom and knowledge, to the deep things of God, to complete understanding! We don’t have to fear anything, we don’t have to stay in the dark, we get to walk in the light!

Are you looking for wisdom? Do you seek revelation? Is there a dream or vision that was put on your heart that needs unpacking? Press into the Lord, the One who gave the dream in the first place, the One who planted the vision and wants to accomplish great things in and through you. Seek after His truth, and truly believe in faith that our God is the revealer of mysteries and our fountain of truth and wisdom. 

DIG: What dream has the Lord given you? What vision has He placed in your heart?

DISCOVER: How have you seen the Lord direct you into His purposes and plans for you? How have you experienced Him working to fill you with the treasures of wisdom and knowledge through Jesus?

DO: Thank the Lord for the great revelation of His glorious plan of redemption, Jesus Christ. Thank Him that in Christ we have all wisdom and knowledge to walk in the light and accomplish the good works God has prepared for us.