Faithful to the Finish

He was a man from Kerioth. A small town in the south. Nowhere famous, Nowhere important. And yet Jesus called him to follow. And so he did.

He left his life behind: Joined the others. Walked the roads. Heard the teachings. And watched the many miracles.

He saw demons tremble. He saw blind men see. He helped pass bread to thousands from just five loaves and two fish and gathered up baskets of leftovers.

He heard words from Heaven from the mouth of the Son of God. He saw Him touch lepers, raise the dead, walk on water, and silence a storm.

He wasn’t a fringe follower. He was one of the 12.

He was trusted with responsibility. Put in charge of the moneybag. He prayed with them. Sang with them. Laughed with them.

And yet, something was off. He heard the truth but never loved it. He was near the Light, but never left the dark. He followed Jesus, but never surrendered to Him.

The signs were subtle at first. He asked hard questions with sharp edges. He worried more about appearances than repentance. He criticized worship disguised as wisdom: “That perfume could have been sold and given to the poor…”

But it wasn’t about the poor; it was lining his pockets, for the man was a thief. A little here, a little there. He helped himself to the moneybag when no one was looking.

And yet, Jesus knew. He had always known.

Still: Jesus washed his feet. He handed him bread. And he even called him “friend.”

But the decision had already been made. He sold out the Lord of Life for thirty pieces of silver. That’s all it took.

Later that night, in a quiet garden, he led the ones who hated Jesus straight to Him.

He didn’t run or hide. He didn’t hang back in the shadows. He walked right up to Jesus, looked Him in the eyes, and kissed Him.

That was the signal. That the was sign. And with that kiss, he betrayed the Son of God.

Why though? After all, Judas had everything. He walked with Jesus, He talked with Jesus, But his heart was far from Jesus. So what was missing?

Faith. Faith is what was missing. Because faith makes the difference between a Judas and Daniel.

That’s the tragedy of Judas. So close to Jesus - but so far away.

And without faith, that will be our tragedy too,

In Daniel chapter 12, We find a man of faith at the end of his days. He’s not standing in a lion’s den. He’s not standing before a pagan king. He’s standing before God.

And here’s what God says to him:

¹³ But go your way till the end. And you shall rest and shall stand in your allotted place at the end of the days.”

Daniel 12:13 ESV

This verse is more than a farewell. It’s a final word from Heaven to a man who had remained faithful to the end, in the face of lions, kings, threats, and thrones. Where Judas faltered, Daniel stood. Not because he was stronger, but because he trusted the One who is.

And so if we too are to remain faithful to the end, we must: To remain faithful to the end we must:

1. Walk with Conviction
2. Wrestle in Hope
3. Wait for Glory

In verse 13, God tells Daniel to: “Go your way until the end”

This doesn’t mean to wander until the end; it means to stay the course. Because at this point, this is an old and faithful Daniel. he’s around 90 years old.

And Daniel, like the Apostle Paul, could say at the end of his life:

⁷ I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.

2 Timothy 4:7 ESV

That’s what Daniel had done. From the moment he arrived in Babylon as a teenager, he had walked the path of quiet, steady faithfulness. He didn’t rage against the exile. He didn’t wait for ideal conditions. He simply resolved: “I will not defile myself.” As Daniel 1 verse 8 says.

That’s where faith starts. In the little choices. God’s laws you won’t break. The words you refuse to speak. The lines you quietly won’t cross, even when no one else sees. That’s where faithfulness begins.

Daniel wasn’t loud about his convictions. He wasn’t screaming them from street corners. He was faithful in the small things.

Daniel faced every pressure to cave while living in Babylon. He lived in a godless society, He stood before pagan kings, He faced the mouth of lions, But he never lost in faith and hope in God.

And so he did go “his way” with conviction and faithfulness for all his days: Not just in chapter one, but in chapters 2 through 12.

When he stood before the most powerful man on earth, he said:

²⁸ but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries…

Daniel 2:28 ESV

Daniel didn’t try to take credit for interpreting the king’s dreams, he rightly gave it all to God. And THAT is how you walk by faith WITH conviction. Humbly. Dependently. Re-directionally, as you give all credit and glory to God and not yourself.

Do you realize this is the hallmark of humility? It really is. in fact, it’s the mark of a truly great leader. And this is something even the secular world even understands to some level.

I was recently watching an interview with Jerry Jones, the owner of the Dallas Cowboys, and He pointed out that the hallmark of greatness, is being able to give other people credit for accomplishments. And that’s so true…

But while it’s true, there’s an even GREATER reality to it, which is the hallmark of greatness, isn’t just being able to give other people credit, it’s ultimately being able to give GOD CREDIT! Just ask King Nebuchadnezzar who was powerfully humbles by God. Or King Belshazzar who saw the writing of God on the wall.

This is why the Apostle Paul once said:

³¹ So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

1 Corinthians 10:31 ESV

That’s the mark of true greatness. That’s the mark of humble faith. As C. S. Lewis said:

“Humility is not thinking less of yourself; it’s thinking of yourself less often.”

And the only way think of yourself less often, is think of GOD more often. He’s the one to Whom all praise is due.

When live a life that readily gives praise to God, that’s how we can truly be comfortable also giving praise to others, And we see that in Daniel chapter 2.

⁴⁹ Daniel made a request of the king, and he appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego over the affairs of the province of Babylon.

Daniel 2:49 ESV

Do you know what happens when you can’t give praise to God and others? I’ll tell you what happens, you end up like Judas, not Daniel. Because Judas didn’t want Jesus, He wanted judgment. He wanted Jesus to pronounce himself as king, and conquer Israel’s enemies. He didn’t want a suffering servant.

And in Matthew 26, it shows us this, after Judas tries suggesting that the perfume that was poured on Jesus, be sold and the money be given to the poor.

In verse 11, Jesus tells Judas:

¹¹ For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me. ¹² In pouring this ointment on my body, she has done it to prepare me for burial. ¹³ Truly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.” ¹⁴ Then one of the twelve, whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests

Matthew 26:11-14 ESV

Do you see that? The second Judas hears that Jesus plans to die, Judas is out! He cashes out and goes to try to salvage whatever he can, because he has no interest in a Jesus who isn’t going to pay him personally. It’s all about Judas.

Judas’s mindset was: “OK Jesus, I’ll follow you, so long as it pays me personally.” “As long as there’s some glory in it for me.” But that’s not faith; that’s faithlessness.

But Daniel couldn’t have been any different. Even in exile. Even when the temple was gone. Even when every cultural current was pulling him in the opposite direction. He still wanted God, and not simply what God gives. That’s what true faith looks like.

Both men walked close to holy things. Both were given a front-row seat to divine power. But only one walked in faith. And only one made it to the end.

That’s what it means to “go your way till the end.” Not wander. Not dabble. Not drift when things get hard. But to walk with God, steadily, when no one’s clapping for you, and when no one sees but Him.

So the question is: What direction are you walking?

Right now there’s talk of revival in our nation. We recently saw a national memorial service, which looked like a church service in many ways.

And so the question is, is this true revival? The answer is: we don’t know yet. We are hopeful than it is, But we still don’t know. because we need to see what direction people will walk over time.

If this just results in a temporary spike in church attendance, then that won’t be true revival. But if it results in a long obedience in the same direction, in lives marked by repentance, conviction, humility, and faith, Then yes, it will be a revival. Because true revival doesn’t just stir emotions, it stirs the heart - which results in changed and reordered lives.

What kind of reordered lives? Marriages being rebuilt on truth and humility, not pride and blame. Men and women rejecting hidden sin like pornography. Teens shutting of their phones and opening their Bibles again. Christians seeing church as more than an optional weekend event, and instead reorienting their lives, not around school, schedules, or games. It will result in worship that leads to obedience in faithfully proclaiming the gospel and disciplining others. Sin being confessed and turned from. Church members reconciling, forgiving, and speaking the truth in love. That’s what true revival will look like. and anything less that that isn’t revival, it’s mere religious theater. it’s a moment, not a movement. A flash, but not a fire.

Revival doesn’t just make you feel something, it makes you CHANGE something.

Daniel didn’t just have convictions in his heart, he lived them out with his life.

He didn’t say: “God I believe in you,” and then go with the flow of Babylon. He let that belief drive his decisions. He prayed when it wasn’t safe. He stood when others bowed. He stayed clean when everything around him was compromised. That’s what a revived heart does. And Daniel’s life is such a wonderful example of this.

Yes, Daniel did this because of his convictions, but his convictions were only lived out because he wrestled in hope.

To remain faithful to the end we must:

1. Walk with Conviction

Daniel didn’t float through Babylon on some spiritual autopilot. He wrestled. He wrestled with sorrow over Jerusalem’s destruction. He wrestled with the shame of Israel’s sin. He wrestled with the weight of God’s promises still unfulfilled. He wrestled with unanswered prayers and long fasts and long waits. Yet through it all, God was his hope in life and death - as we just sang. as it was for Daniel’s 3 friends.

In Daniel chapter 3, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego didn’t know how things would turn out. They weren’t given a divine preview. No visions. No promises. No exit strategy. Just a furnace. And a choice: Bow and live. Stand and burn.

And their answer is one of the clearest pictures of people who wrestled in hope that led to faith anywhere in Scripture:

¹⁷ If this be so, 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. ¹⁸ But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”

Daniel 3:17-18 ESV

That’s what it looks like when you wrestle in hope and come out with faith. It doesn’t mean you know how it ends. It means you know Who holds the end.

By faith, these young men came to believe that even if they perished in the fire, their God who can raise the dead would not let them perish: Not truly. Not ultimately. Because they knew the Lord their God would deliver them one way or the other. And He did. But in the way anyone expected.

Because before they ever felt the flame, before a single hair was singed, before anyone could even process what they were seeing: there was Someone else in the fire. King Nebuchadnezzar blinked. Stood up. And in shock, asked his advisors:

24 … “Did we not cast three men bound into the fire?” They answered and said to the king, “True, O king.” ²⁵ He answered and said, “But I see four men unbound, walking in the midst of the fire, and they are not hurt; and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods.”

Daniel 3:24-25 ESV

Who was that fourth figure? this wasn’t just an angel. This the pre-incarnate Christ, standing with His people in the furnace. not just a rescuer, but a Redeemer. Because that’s what our Savior does. He doesn’t always stop the trial, but He walks with us through it.

This is the great hope of the faithful: not that we’ll be spared every flame, but that we’ll never face one without Him.

And that’s what Daniel had learned across a lifetime. He had wrestled with kings. He had wrestled with dreams. He had wrestled in prayer, But he never wrestled alone. Because His God was there.

When he stood before Nebuchadnezzar, God was there.

When he interpreted the writing on the wall, God was there.

When he opened the windows and prayed toward Jerusalem, God was there.

When the lions paced in the dark, God was there.

And now, in Daniel 12:13, as he stands at the end of his days, God is still there: still speaking, still faithful, still near.

But do you believe that? Do you believe He is still speaking through His Word, still faithful, still near to you? That’s He’s with you in the trials of this life?

Because if you do, it will ABSOLUTELY change how you approach those trials. Yes, it will still be incredibly difficult. Because real trials are NEVER easy. But they can be faithfully endured when we know that God is there. That’s what Daniel had learned. And that’s what you and I need to learn too:

The pain doesn’t disappear. The pressure doesn’t let up. But you don’t walk through it alone. And when you walk by faith, that changes you in the middle of it.

Because the story of faith leads: To rest. To reward. To resurrection.

To remain faithful to the end we must:

Look again at the last part of Daniel 12:13

¹³ But go your way till the end. And you shall rest and shall stand in your allotted place at the end of the days.”

Daniel 12:13 ESV

That’s resurrection language. This isn’t just poetic comfort for an old man nearing death. This is a divine promise of real rest, real reward, and real resurrection. God is telling Daniel: “You’ve been faithful in Babylon… Now get ready to stand in glory.”

Because one day, God will raise Daniel from the grave. He will stand in the land he prayed toward all those years. He will see the Messiah reign. And he will receive his eternal reward.

That church is our hope in life and death. That glory comes after the trials. That a crown comes after the cross!

And that’s not just for Daniel, It’s for every believer who finishes the race by faith.

⁸ Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.

2 Timothy 4:8 ESV

So then, how do we wait for that glory? Not by waiting passively; but by living presently. By resisting sin and running the race. By enduring trial with your eyes on the prize. By loving His appearing more than your own applause.

Because the day is coming when you too will stand. Not just before trials. Not just before critics. But before Christ.

And if you have trusted in Him by grace through faith in Christ, you will stand in your allotted place - just like Daniel. Not because you were strong, but because you clung to the One who is. Not because you were perfect, but because your hope was in the Perfect One.

That’s what it means to “wait for glory.” It means: You don’t trade eternity for 30 pieces of silver. You don’t sell out when the path gets hard. You don’t stop short of the finish line. Instead, you keep going. Because true faith, is a faith that finishes to the end!

So don’t give up. Don’t turn back. Don’t settle for halfway.

The Christian life isn’t a sprint. It’s a long, sometimes painful, uphill run. But the finish line is glory. The finish line is seeing the KING of GLORY face to face for all of eternity.

And here’s the miracle of it all: You don’t run this race alone. You don’t finish by your own strength. You’re not earning your place at the end.

Because the same One who stood with Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah in the fire, the same One who shut the mouths of lions for Daniel, is the same One who walked up a hill outside Jerusalem and bore the fire of God’s wrath for you. He didn’t just stand with you in suffering. He stood in your place for sin.

Because Christ Jesus went into the furnace of God’s wrath for us, he stepped into the only lion’s den that could ever really destroy us, …and He willfully let it devour Him. Not because He deserved it, but because we did.

He took the full weight of justice on Himself. Every sin. Every betrayal. Every idol we ever bowed to. He bore it all - so we wouldn’t have to. He didn’t just stand beside us in judgment. He stood in our place under it.

That’s the gospel.

The innocent One condemned, so that the guilty could go free. The true Son of God betrayed, so that sons of wrath could become sons of grace.

The truth is: we were all Judas. Every one of us.

We’ve all traded the glory of God for something far less. We’ve sold Him out for silver: whether that’s comfort, approval, lust, or pride. We’ve played the part of the betrayer. And yet, He still called us. He still washed us. He still handed us bread. He still offered us friendship.

And the only reason this is possible, is because He laid down His life for His friends, which includes sinners like you and me. And He did this to turn traitors into treasure, to turn judases into Daniels.

That’s why we can be faithful to the finish like that Daniel was. Because Jesus Himself was faithful to the finish. As he walked with conviction, Wrestled in Hope. And waited for Glory. as He hung on a cross between Heaven and earth, trusting that the grave would not have the final word.

And it didn’t. Because on the third day, the stone rolled away. The tomb was empty. And the faithful One stood again, alive, triumphant, victorious over sin and death.

And now, that same risen Christ calls every believer to, “Go your way till the end. You shall rest. You shall stand.”

So church, do not lose heart. Do not trade the eternal for the temporary. Do not give up when Babylon presses in, when the furnace gets hot, or when the lions roar.

Keep walking with conviction. Keep wrestling in hope. Keep waiting for glory. Because the day is coming when our faith will turn to sight, when struggle will give way to song, when every exile will be home at last.

And on that day, you will stand beside Daniel, beside Paul, beside every redeemed sinner who was once a Judas, but by grace became a Daniel.

And together, we will see His face. The One who was faithful to the end. The One who stood in our place. The One who turned our betrayal into blessing, So go your way till the end. Trust Him. Follow Him. Finish with faith.

This is the manuscript the sermon was preached from, so the recording may differ in places.