“And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life and some to shame and everlasting contempt. And those who are wise, shall shine like the brightness of the sky above and those who turn many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever.”
– Daniel 12:2–3
Oh, what powerful imagery and what sobering reality. Verse two, “Those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake some to everlasting life and some to shame and everlasting contempt. All people, every single one of us listening to this, every single person in the world will one day die.” Jesus continues to tear. We will die and we will rise every one of us, either to everlasting life or to everlasting contempt. Like that in and of itself should remind us today to live for what’s going to matter forever, which means to live, to lead others to everlasting life, which is exactly what verse three says.
Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the sky above and those who follow this turn many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever. Want your life to shine like the brightness of the sky, like stars in the night, then live to turn many to righteousness, live to lead people to everlasting life. This is what wisdom is. Those who are wise will shine like this, and those who turn many to righteousness will shine like the stars forever and ever. How can you and I today shine like the brightness of the sky, like the stars in the sky? By leading others to turn to righteousness, leading others to eternal life. Oh God, help us to do that today. Help us to shine like Daniel 12:3 is saying, I pray this in my life, in every one of our lives. God, as we’re around different people today in school and work, in neighborhoods, wherever we find ourselves, God help us to turn people to righteousness so that when they awake, after they die, they will awake to everlasting life.
God, help us to live for that. For other people to experience everlasting life. Help us to live for the eternal. What’s going to matter forever? God, we pray that you use us to turn people to righteousness today, even as we, God, we pray that you help us to live in righteousness, to pursue righteousness in our own lives, and help us to turn others to righteousness. God, we pray this for the combo people of India, this Sikh people group. God, we pray for half million Kamboh, no known followers of Jesus.
God, we pray that you would send laborers to the Kamboh, that they might be turned to righteousness, that they might awake to everlasting life. God, we pray for the spread of the gospel to the Kamboh and to three billion people around the world who have little to no knowledge of the righteousness that’s available in Jesus right now. God, help us to live for this right around us, wherever you lead us in the world and hear our words, hear our prayers for the nations, that they might be turned to righteousness. God help us to shine like this today and every day in our lives. We pray in Jesus name according to Daniel 12:2–3. Amen.
David Platt serves as a Lead Pastor for McLean Bible Church. He is also the Founder and Chairman of Radical, an organization that helps people follow Jesus and make him known in their neighborhood and all nations.
David received his B.A. from the University of Georgia and M.Div., Th.M., and Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Some of his published works include Radical, Radical Together, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, and Don’t Hold Back.
He lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area with his wife and children.
