The living God

I make a decree, That in every dominion of my kingdom men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel: for he is the living God, and stedfast for ever, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed, and his dominion shall be even unto the end. He delivereth and rescueth, and he worketh signs and wonders in heaven and in earth, who hath delivered Daniel from the power of the lions. So this Daniel prospered in the reign of Darius, and in the reign of Cyrus the Persian. – Daniel 6.26-28

Like King Nebuchadnezzar before him King Darius apparently came to a full knowledge of God. After he saw Daniel delivered from the lion’s den he saw the reality of God and ordered that God be recognised as the true God. I don’t really like the fact that he declared a state policy of worshipping God but I do like his acknowledgement of some basic truth about God.

He is the living God

He is steadfast forever

His kingdom will not be destroyed

He delivers

He rescues

He does signs and wonders on heaven and on earth

That’s quite a proclamation for a king who just tried to have Daniel killed. Without theology training he knew a lot about God. God is alive and eternal and His kingdom is forever. Darius knew his kingdom would not last forever, but God’s would.

But God’s kingdom was not only heavenly. He is also involved in the lives of His people. God takes care of His people. He delivers and rescues His people. I think most of us have something in our lives that we can’t see an answer to. We can’t see a rescue. But we are not God. Just as He did signs and wonders for Daniel he can do it for us.

Do we even have the same faith that Darius had? 

Because he believed

Then was the king exceeding glad for him, and commanded that they should take Daniel up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no manner of hurt was found upon him, because he believed in his God. – Daniel 6.23

How did Daniel survive the lion’s den? The Bible says that the Lord shut the lion’s mouths so they could not eat Daniel. We are not privy to how that night went, but we do know the aftermath and we do know why Daniel got through it.

No manner of hurt was found upon him, because he believed in his God.

I don’t think that you or I will be cast into a lion’s den because of our faith. But we are all going to go through tough times. We are all going to face our own lion’s den circumstances.

We can, however, get through the times when we, like Daniel, believe God is able to carry us through. Our trials may not be just like his and we may suffer some bumps and bruises, but we can be sure that God will carry us through and be with us. At this time God had a greater purpose in showing the king His power

God may not always deliver us from trials. We may have to go through them and may suffer through them, but we can be assured that He will deliver us from this present world and our souls will go through with ‘no manner of hurt’ if we believe in Him. 

O king live forever

Then said Daniel unto the king, O king, live for ever. My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions' mouths, that they have not hurt me: forasmuch as before him innocency was found in me; and also before thee, O king, have I done no hurt. – Daniel 6.21-22

‘Honour the king’ Peter writes to the believers scattered abroad by persecution. Honouring the king is a tough thing to do when the king is a bad man. How do we do that?

Daniel shows us how. The king had just had him thrown into a den of lions. He had been tricked by his advisors and regretted his decision. He could not sleep that night and when morning came he went to see how Daniel had done.

Daniel could have been angry and lashed out. He was, after all, God’s man. But look how he started his comments – ‘O king, live forever.’

The Bible teaches a lot of very practical things. This is a very clear Bible principle that a lot of believers neglect. Here he is, down with the lions, looking up at the king who put him there, and he says ‘O king live forever.’ He is honouring the man who signed his  death warrant. 

This is hard for me as anyone. I love politics and I am quick to be critical of leaders who fail. Honest, respectful, humble disagreement is one thing. I have no room though to mock or belittle leaders or call them names. 

As was his custom

Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime. – Daniel 6.10

About 15 years ago we went through a huge blow to the work here. It was enough that we considered leaving. The church was small. We had three couples coming other than our family and on a Saturday morning they sent me an email. They told me that unless I conformed to their wishes they were all leaving the church.

I couldn’t conform – so what do I do next?

I prayed and started looking at the word of God. I am not sure how I came across this passage over those next few days, but there it was. God gave the answer to what you do when you get bad news.

When the notice came telling Daniel he could not pray to his God he did what he did every day. The Holy Spirit used that to keep us going. If David could ‘according to his custom’ with this decree from the king we could what ‘was our custom’ despite the email from the folks who had been in our church.

Daniel was not rattled by bad news. He didn’t get in a funk and take a ‘woe is me’ attitude. He had the faith to just keep on plugging away and trust God to sort out the rest. That preaches easier than it lives. Our flesh gets in the way and our eyes only see the visible. Like David when things are not going well or we get that knock on the door or letter in the post of email or text message or phone call that shales us to the core we need to stop, pray, and keep on doing ‘as is our custom.’ 

No fault in Daniel

Then said these men, We shall not find any occasion against this Daniel, except we find it against him concerning the law of his God.  – Daniel 6.5

As I mentioned a couple of days ago Daniel, a Jewish captive, had risen to the position of what was very possibly the second most powerful man in the world as ‘prime minister’ of Babylon.

Of course these guys were not happy so they tried everything they could to bring him down. They watched him. They had to find his skeleton in the closet. In our world today those skeletons are coming out every day. Surely there was something they.

But they found nothing – nothing at all. ‘We are not going to find anything wrong with him unless we can do something relating to his God. He is true to his God so we have to find something there.

There still was nothing.

So there only answer was to make his worship illegal. They had the king sign a decree that no one could pray to anyone but the king.

More on that later, but for now Daniel reminds me that we ought to live our lives in such a way that there is never a reason for anyone to condemn. We must give them no ammunition against. The only offence should be the offence of the gospel of Christ.

The we can leave the results with Him. 

A mother's prayer and 25 years

And she vowed a vow, and said, O LORD of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the LORD all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head.  – 1 Samuel 1.11

On the 25^th of November 1992, the day before Thanksgiving, my dear mother slipped into eternity. Today marks twenty-five years since that day. In some ways 25 years seems like an eternity, but when I think of my mom and the memories flood back it seems like it just happened. Last week a local radio station played Patti Page’s ‘Tennessee Waltz.’ It was Mom’s favourite song and when they played it I could hear her puttering around the kitchen singing it. At the time I am sure I thought it was silly and bothersome, but oh what I would give to hear her today.

So how do these sappy memories apply to the passage in 1 Samuel?

When I was ordained to ministry in January 1992 Mom told me something I had never heard before. She told me that way back in the autumn of 1954 when they were living at Ladd Air Force Base in the frontier town of Fairbanks, Alaska. She discovered that she was pregnant and she and my dad really wanted a son. Mom began praying for a son and had read the story of Hannah. She told God that is He would give her a son she would give him back to God to be a preached.

For nearly 40 years she never said a word to influence me to take that path. She was just there loving and caring and welcoming my friends and guiding and being Mom. It took those 40 years for me to be shaped and moulded and transformed into the man I needed to be to be a preacher of the gospel.

I am where I am today largely because of my mother’s Hannah prayer. What work is done here for God’s glory began when a mother prayed for a son.

Thank you Mom. I love you and miss you every day. I look forward to seeing you soon. 

An excellent spirit

It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom an hundred and twenty princes, which should be over the whole kingdom; And over these three presidents; of whom Daniel was first: that the princes might give accounts unto them, and the king should have no damage. Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king thought to set him over the whole realm. – Daniel 6.1-3

Another king and another promotion for Daniel. Darius was now king and he went about restructuring the government of Babylon. He was the king. He set up 120 princes over the various realms of the kingdom. Over these he set three presidents to supervise them and the serve as something of an appeals court. The most important of that group was Daniel.

All of a sudden Daniel was acting as the prime minister of the land.

Needless to say the other officials were angry, and that is going to bring a cost.

But what was it about Daniel that made him so popular and prompted the king to promote him to prime minister

Along with all the other compliments about Daniel here we read that he had ‘an excellent spirit’ in him. His excellent spirit was not only seen by God’s people. Everyone saw his excellent spirit that was manifested in all he did.

I have to wonder if I have any kind of an excellent spirit in me that the world can see. Are there things in my life that cause me to stand out in a positive way? Is my spirit the excellent spirit that others will want in their lives? 

You have not humbled yourself

And thou his son, O Belshazzar, hast not humbled thine heart, though thou knewest all this; But hast lifted up thyself against the Lord of heaven; and they have brought the vessels of his house before thee, and thou, and thy lords, thy wives, and thy concubines, have drunk wine in them; and thou hast praised the gods of silver, and gold, of brass, iron, wood, and stone, which see not, nor hear, nor know: and the God in whose hand thy breath is, and whose are all thy ways, hast thou not glorified: – Daniel 5.22-23

Just before this section Daniel praised Nebuchadnezzar for his turning to the true God. Part of what Nebuchadnezzar did was to be humbled by God and acknowledge him.

‘But you his son, Belshazzar,’ Daniel said, ‘have not humbled yourself, even though you knew all about this.’

We read in an earlier chapter ‘those who are full of pride God is able to bring low.’ Belshazzar chose to worship gods who pleased him, not the God who holds man’s breath in hands and own all man’s ways. Belshazzar ‘lifted up himself against the Lord of heaven.’

Belshazzar was a lot like a lot of people. God is way down the priority list for most of the world. Folks may not drink wine from holy vessels, but they often put themselves before God. The world refuses to acknowledge the God who holds their breath in His hand.

The eventual state of all men who exalt themselves above God is the same. One day every man will stand before God to give account of his life. Those who exalt themselves God will judge like He did Belshazzar. 

Keep your money

And I have heard of thee, that thou canst make interpretations, and dissolve doubts: now if thou canst read the writing, and make known to me the interpretation thereof, thou shalt be clothed with scarlet, and have a chain of gold about thy neck, and shalt be the third ruler in the kingdom. Then Daniel answered and said before the king, Let thy gifts be to thyself, and give thy rewards to another; yet I will read the writing unto the king, and make known to him the interpretation. – Daniel 5.16-17

Belshazzar was desperate to find out what the words on the wall meant. The words were MENE MENE TEKEL UPHARSIN but nobody could figure out what it meant. When some in the room told him about Daniel he called for Daniel and offered him all the riches of the kingdom if he would translate the writing in the wall. He offered him a place in the government as well.

Daniel’s response was a mark of his character – ‘keep your money and your royal clothes and your offer of power. I’ll tell you what it means.’

I like the fact that David had the character to not take any of the stuff he was offered. I think it went back to a long time ago when we decided that he would ‘not defile himself with the king’s meat.’

There is nothing wrong with getting paid for ministry. Paul makes that very clear. But it is wrong when we are paid in any what that might compromise the truth. Daniel did not want to be swayed by the riches. He simply said ‘I will tell you what the words says.’ He didn’t do it out of a desire for ‘filthy lucre.’ He did what God wanted him to do without regard to how much it paid off. 

There is a man in your kingdom

There is a man in thy kingdom, in whom is the spirit of the holy gods; and in the days of thy father light and understanding and wisdom, like the wisdom of the gods, was found in him; whom the king Nebuchadnezzar thy father, the king, I say, thy father, made master of the magicians, astrologers, Chaldeans, and soothsayers; - Daniel 5.11

Belshazzar was clearly and literally shaken. He needed to know what the writing in the wall meant. He looked for an answer and finally someone said ‘wait, there is a man in your kingdom. He has the spirit of the gods in him (notice how that got corrupted from Nebuchadnezzar’s time), he has the wisdom of the gods and he shed light on things when your father was king. The king trusted him over all the magicians and soothsayers.’

I find it amazing that Daniel’s reputation was so important that he was still remembered even in Belshazzar’s pagan administration. That shows us how much impact he had. He showed how powerful his witness was.  

What would happen if people in our lives were looking for someone who knew God? Would anyone even think of us? Would our names come up?

We must live our lives in such a way than even if those around us don’t totally get it, like the folks above, there know there is something special about us. They need to know that there is something that sets us apart from the rest.

Do our lives present that kind of testimony? 

The writing is on the wall

They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold and silver, bronze and iron, wood and stone. In the same hour the fingers of a man's hand appeared and wrote opposite the lampstand on the plaster of the wall of the king's palace; and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote. Then the king's countenance was changed, and his thoughts troubled him, so that the joints of his loins were loosed, and his knees smote one against another. – Daniel 5.4-6

Chapter 5 opens with a new king. Nebuchadnezzar was dead and his son Belshazzar is on the throne. Things have changed. The scene opens at a great royal party. Belshazzar has decided to bring the vessels from the Temple in Jerusalem into the palace and was using them for his debauched party.

We find out than rather than worshipping the God his father had come to worship Belshazzar and the others worshipped gods of silver and gold and bronze and iron and wood and stone.

He thought he was grand. The nation had thrown off the shackles of this foreign God his father had adopted. They were free to party hearty.

But then, suddenly, the writing was on the wall. Belshazzar’s countenance changed. His knees were knocking. He was terrified.  I suspect that all this happened because somewhere in his past He had an encounter with God and he knew exactly what he was doing when he used the Temple utensils at his party.

Now it was time to reckon with God. 

His works are true

Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase. – Daniel 4.37

At the very end of the account of Nebuchadnezzar it looks like he finally gets it right. It is the last we hear about him and it appears that he finally understands God. Without reservation he praises and extols the King of heaven. He realises that those rulers who walk in pride God is able to put down.

He also comes the understanding that all of God’s works are truth and that all of God’s ways are just. It took a lot for him to learn that, and it all started with the testimonies of four Jewish captives who chose to honour God in all their choices and decisions.

To a lost world God is not always going to make sense. Not everything makes sense in my sin limited human mind. That’s why it is vital that God’s people live lives where we consistently trust God no matter what comes our way.  

At the end of the day we want people to know, from our lives, that God’s works and true and His was is just. As a result of our contact with us we should desire that they too ‘praise and extol and honour the King of heaven.’ 

The Most High rules

And they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field: they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and seven times shall pass over thee, until thou know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will – Daniel 4.32

Nebuchadnezzar has highly exalted himself as the one who had built great Babylon. He was proud of himself.  But then God drove him to live in the fields like a wild beast until he learned something important.

The Most High God rules in the kingdom of men and He gives kingdoms to whomever He wills.

This can be a hard one to understand sometimes when we see all sorts of wicked ruler and evil nations. I admit that I don’t fully ‘get it.’ I don’t understand the rise of the Hitlers and the Stalins and the Pol Pots.

The reason is that I don’t see the mind of God. I don’t always understand His ways. Sometimes there are things that I just have to accept things by faith and trust that one day I will get it.

The truth is that God does allow governments to come to power and he allows them to fall. These are more of the effects of free will and broken people making decisions in a broken sin-cursed world.

The point here though is that leaders need to know that they are where they are because God allows it. It is not of their own skills or ability and nothing for them to be able to brag about.

And more importantly, those who lift themselves up, God is able to abase. 

Mixed signals

Nebuchadnezzar the king, To all peoples, nations, and languages that dwell in all the earth: Peace be multiplied to you. I thought it good to declare the signs and wonders that the Most High God has worked for me. How great are His signs, And how mighty His wonders! His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, And His dominion is from generation to generation.  – Daniel 4.1-3

The king spoke, saying, "Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for a royal dwelling by my mighty power and for the honour of my majesty?" While the word was still in the king's mouth, a voice fell from heaven: "King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: the kingdom has departed from you! – Daniel 4.30-31

At the beginning of this chapter Daniel is praising God. His words speak of what God has done and about how God has used him. Look at his words ‘how great are his signs…how mighty His wonders…His kingdom is everlasting…His dominion is from generation to generation.’

That sounds like he is really coming around. He is saying all the right words.

But then, just a few verses later we see that he really doesn’t have it. ‘Look at great Babylon that I have built!’

The praise goes from God to himself. It goes from ‘God did it’ to I did it all.’ It goes from humility to pride.

We learn right away that pride is a terrible thing. When the king forgot God, God got his attention. Nebuchadnezzar loses everything and lives like an animal. God shows him Who and what is really important. The king is finally going to get this all sorted in his head, but, like a lot of us, it is going to take a little more to get through his thickness.  

The spirit of the holy God

But at last Daniel came before me (his name is Belteshazzar, according to the name of my god; in him is the Spirit of the Holy God), and I told the dream before him, saying: - Daniel 4.8

I love watching Nebuchadnezzar’s quest to find the true God and I love how God’s men had an impact on him and drew him closer and closer. The king had another dream. This happens right in between a real back and forth by the king. If we read it too quickly we could miss it in the story.

It is the king’s description of Daniel that grabbed my attention – ‘in him is the spirit of the Holy God.’ This once again speaks to Daniel’s clear testimony before the king. It was no longer just a difference. It wasn’t just a matter of being smarter and wiser than the staff magicians. Now the king knew the difference. Daniel was different because the spirit of the holy God lived in him.’

I wonder if that is the impression that I give to other when they know me. Does the Holy Spirit shine in my life so that people know He lives in me? Is that what makes me different? Is that what makes me stand out? 

Blessed be the God...

Nebuchadnezzar spoke, saying, "Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, who sent His Angel and delivered His servants who trusted in Him, and they have frustrated the king's word, and yielded their bodies, that they should not serve nor worship any god except their own God! Therefore I make a decree that any people, nation, or language which speaks anything amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made an ash heap; because there is no other God who can deliver like this." Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego in the province of Babylon. – Daniel 3.28-30

Poor old Nebuchadnezzar. Poor guy just could not get his head around these strangers and their God. Sometimes he seems to get it and then he is back to his old ways. But more about that later.

For now the important thing is the impact of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego on the king and the kingdom. They had the courage to do the right thing by not obeying the law and bowing to the image.

Although it doesn’t look like it clicked completely yet the king proclaims ‘blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego!’

For some people we are the only picture of Christ they will ever see. They need to see a difference in us. There needs to be something about us that causes men to say ‘blessed be Roger’s God.’ Do I reflect the kind of God in my life that people want to meet? I doubt any of us will ever survive being thrown in a literal fiery furnace, but we all go through hard times and struggles. How do we go through them? Do we go through those ‘fiery times’ in such a way that people say ‘I wish I had what he has?’

Nebuchadnezzar is not there yet, but the testimony of God’s people is drawing him closer and closer. 

Help in the fire

Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished; and he rose in haste and spoke, saying to his counselors, "Did we not cast three men bound into the midst of the fire?" They answered and said to the king, "True, O king." "Look!" he answered, "I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God." – Daniel 3.24-25

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were cast into the fiery furnace, heated so hot that some of the men who threw then in died. I reckon that everyone thought that was the end of the story. You get the idea from the king’s reaction that he was not so sure about his decision. He was following the events and responded with haste when it appeared that there were four, not three, men in the furnace. There was something different about the fourth one. He looked like an angel or, as they put it, ‘like the Son of God.’

There are several places in the word of God where God talks about being with His people ‘through the fire.’ ‘When we walk through the fire’ we read in Isaiah 43, ‘you will not be burned.’

The experience of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego surely speaks to the truth of God going with His people through the fire. Unlike these lads sometimes the trials and fires of life do hurt. Sometimes they do burn. But even then we have the comfort to know that Christ is there with us to give us strength and patience to get through the fire.

We have Someone with us in the fire. May we find our strength in Him. 

Civil disobedience

Now if you are ready at the time you hear the sound of the horn, flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery, in symphony with all kinds of music, and you fall down and worship the image which I have made, good! But if you do not worship, you shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who will deliver you from my hands?”

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.” – Daniel 3.15-18

There is a lot of talk and a lot of discussion about the roles of church and state and Christians and government. In some countries there is a huge mingling of church and state and there are some places when the lines are blurred.

The Bible is clear about the importance of Christians submitting to government. There can be no doubt about it. We also know that when man’s laws are in conflict of God’s law we have to obey God.

But then the government has the right to punish us for doing what God says. The question we have to ask ourselves is how we are going to choose to disobey. In these three men we find out.

Of course when they refused to bow down they were called before the king. I imagine the king must have been hurt as well as angry. He had learned to depend on these guys and trust them. But now they refused to bow down! The king warned them again, but they still could not do it.

There were polite a decent and simply said ‘do what you need to do. Our God is able to deliver us. If He doesn’t we still cannot bow down to your image.’

There was no disrespect, no protests no crying – they just had to do right, and they did it. When they broke civil law the state had the right to punish them. They did; the men were sent to the fiery furnace. But that wasn’t the end. 

Your God

Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face, prostrate before Daniel, and commanded that they should present an offering and incense to him. The king answered Daniel, and said, “Truly your God is the God of gods, the Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, since you could reveal this secret.” Then the king promoted Daniel and gave him many great gifts; and he made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief administrator over all the wise men of Babylon. Also Daniel petitioned the king, and he set Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego over the affairs of the province of Babylon; but Daniel sat in the gate of the king. – Daniel 2.46-49

Who would have thought that when these Jewish men came into Babylon that their God would have ended up being a major force in the land where they were captive. Daniel and crew quietly and simply lived their lives of reliance on God and their lives of hard work were a testimony to their God.

God revealed the secrets of Daniel’s dream to him. No one else had been able to do that. The combination of Daniel’s life and testimony and the interpretation of the dream led the king to proclaim ‘your God is the God of gods, the Lord of kings, and he reveals secrets.’ Daniel was blessed with all kinds of gift, but they great thing here is that the true King of kings and God of gods and Lord of lords was revealed to a pagan people. The true God was introduced to a nation who needed Him.

Our witness probably won’t be quite so dramatic. None of us are probably going to be called on to help the national leader with a problematic dream. But our witness matters. Our testimony in this world will make a difference, and, God willing, one day we may speak of Him and hears words like ‘your God is the God of gods!’ 

Kingdoms come and kingdoms go

You, O king, are a king of kings. For the God of heaven has given you a kingdom, power, strength, and glory; and wherever the children of men dwell, or the beasts of the field and the birds of the heaven, He has given them into your hand, and has made you ruler over them all—you are this head of gold. But after you shall arise another kingdom inferior to yours; then another, a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth. – Daniel 2.37-39

Nebuchadnezzar was a powerful king. He was possibly the most powerful king of his time. That kind of power tends to corrupt the holder of the power. Through his dream God made it clear that the king really was nothing more than another cog in the wheel of time.

‘You are the most powerful king there is,’ Daniel said, but you are not going to last forever.’ Daniel said that another, less powerful king would rise to power and after that another would come. Time goes on and kingdoms come and kingdoms go. No power lasts forever.

That’s important for us to remember. As believers our citizenship is in heaven and that is the only kingdom that will endure forever. No matter where our earthly citizenship is it is only temporary. We don’t have time to get entangled in the affairs of this world and if we are in a position to have an impact our constant goal should be to point others to our heavenly eternal home.

There is a God in heaven as Daniel said. He also pointed out that no kingdom lasts forever. We must keep our eyes on the eternal and not the temporal.

There is a God in heaven

Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, "The secret which the king has demanded, the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, and the soothsayers cannot declare to the king. But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will be in the latter days. Your dream, and the visions of your head upon your bed, were these: As for you, O king, thoughts came to your mind while on your bed, about what would come to pass after this; and He who reveals secrets has made known to you what will be. – Daniel 2.27-29

Daniel had continued to rise in prominence in the king’s household. His life was an example and his testimony was right. God had put him in the right place at the right time and he had behaved himself the right way for the right time and right place.

The day came when the king had a dream. He called in his soothsayers and astrologers and magicians to try to figure out what the dream meant. They were clueless so the king called on Daniel.

Now, after doing right and having a proper testimony proving himself by his character, Daniel had the chance to speak of his God. ‘There is a God in heaven who can reveal secrets’ Daniel said.

I like how Daniel lived a life that backed up His words. The four men stood out for the character and their hard work. They lived lives that made a difference. When Daniel said ‘there is a God in heaven’ it wasn’t just the words of some foreign religious zealot chasing after some false god. His words had weight because God gave him the interpretation of the king’s prayer. If Daniel had not been such a testimony he never would have been in such a position to talk about his God.

Let us live the kind of lives that present us the opportunity to speak of our God, and may we do it faithfully. 

And they served

Then the king interviewed them, and among them all none was found like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah; therefore they served before the king. And in all matters of wisdom and understanding about which the king examined them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and astrologers who were in all his realm.  – Daniel 1.19-20

Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah passed the test. From there they went on to an interview with the king. When he was done the king found that there was no one in the land like these four men. They were wiser and smarter than anyone else and they were ten times better than the magicians and astrologers he had been depending on.

What a strange things for members of this displaced nation to be serving in the king’s government. It wasn’t a matter of happenstance. God had a plan for them. God’s plan was for His people to make a difference no matter where they were – even if they were being held captive.

All it took for it to happen was willing servants. Sure they were servants of the king but they we also servants of God doing His work in the most unexpected of places.

God is of course still looking to servants today. In our strange where we are strangers and pilgrims we can and moan about how hard it is to be a Christian is such a lost world, or we can step up and serve. We can be a part of our community and stand for our God as we serve Him and as we serve others. 

Better and fatter

So he consented with them in this matter, and tested them ten days. And at the end of ten days their features appeared better and fatter in flesh than all the young men who ate the portion of the king's delicacies. Thus the steward took away their portion of delicacies and the wine that they were to drink, and gave them vegetables. As for these four young men, God gave them knowledge and skill in all literature and wisdom; and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams. Now at the end of the days, when the king had said that they should be brought in, the chief of the eunuchs brought them in before Nebuchadnezzar. – Daniel 1.14-18

The Jews in Babylon did not just settle in to their lives in Babylon. After the crushing blow of losing their land and being deported as slaves and servants they knew it was important to stay who they were. They could not just be absorbed into the culture as was the norm. They were God’s people and they had to keep that testimony. They kindly and respectfully asked that they be exempted from eating the king’s food and asked that they be tested after ten days.

The ten days passed and the official came back to check on them. I suppose he didn’t know what to expect but when he came back he found them in better shape than anyone else. I suppose this could have been the vegetarian diet, but God had taken care of them during those ten days to show that He could be trusted. What an encouragement for these men and what a testimony to the officials.

God can take care of His people no matter where we are. We live in a broken world and sometimes bad things do happen to God’s people, but He is there and will provide His grace to get through it. 

Purposed in his heart

But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's delicacies, nor with the wine which he drank; therefore he requested of the chief of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself. And the chief of the eunuchs said to Daniel, "I fear my lord the king, who has appointed your food and drink. For why should he see your faces looking worse than the young men who are your age? Then you would endanger my head before the king." So Daniel said to the steward whom the chief of the eunuchs had set over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, "Please test your servants for ten days, and let them give us vegetables to eat and water to drink. Then let our appearance be examined before you, and the appearance of the young men who eat the portion of the king's delicacies; and as you see fit, so deal with your servants." So he consented with them in this matter, and tested them ten days. – Daniel 1.8,10-14

How did these guys do it? How did they stay true in a strange land with all the strange customs and different religions and the gods of Babylon? One might just give up and say ‘when in Babylon do as the Babylonians do,’ but these men had a better plan to get them through. They rose to prominence because of their character and they survived because of something Daniel did back in verse 8 where he ‘purposed in his heart’ that he would not let himself be defiled.

When the king’s man came and told Daniel and the others to enjoy the delicacies of the king’s household David refused, politely. The steward was afraid he would be punished so begged them to comply so David asked for a test. ‘Just let us eat vegetables and beans and check us in ten days to see how we are.’ The king agreed and the test began.

But let’s step back. When the time came to make a decision there was no decision to be made. Daniel had already purposed in his heart that he would not be defiled. All of us are going to face situations where we are going to be called on to decide what we are going to do. Will we compromise? Will we give in? Will we be defiled? Or have we purposed and decided that when that test comes that, by the grace of God, we will not be defiled so that there is no question about what we will do when tested? 

Stranger in a strange land

Then the king instructed Ashpenaz, the master of his eunuchs, to bring some of the children of Israel and some of the king's descendants and some of the nobles, young men in whom there was no blemish, but good-looking, gifted in all wisdom, possessing knowledge and quick to understand, who had ability to serve in the king's palace, and whom they might teach the language and literature of the Chaldeans. And the king appointed for them a daily provision of the king's delicacies and of the wine which he drank, and three years of training for them, so that at the end of that time they might serve before the king. Now from among those of the sons of Judah were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. To them the chief of the eunuchs gave names: he gave Daniel the name Belteshazzar; to Hananiah, Shadrach; to Mishael, Meshach; and to Azariah, Abed-Nego. But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's delicacies, nor with the wine which he drank; therefore he requested of the chief of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself. – Daniel 1.3-8

I have been preaching through 1 Peter about the whole notion of God’s people being strangers and pilgrims in the world. I keep looking for good illustrations of what it means to be strangers in a strange land. Then, as I started reading in Daniel I realised that Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah were the perfect picture.

Israel had been taken into captivity by the Chaldeans (Babylonians) as a result of ignoring God’s Sabbath years for nearly 500 years. This time is referred to today as the Babylonian Captivity. It was, in essence, going to be seventy years of enslavement.

So how was the nation going to handle being slaves again? Their heritage knew all about being slaves with their time in Egypt. But here it was again. What were they going to do?

These four men were going to make the best of it. Daniel and the others worked in government offices. The best have done the best they could because they rose to prominence and were seen by the government officials. Even in this strange land God’s men of character stood out.

As we wander through this world while awaiting our ‘better country’ this is the kind of life we should live. Instead of trying to make as many enemies as we can we need to be the very best we can be. We ought to be model citizens of our earthly home. The rest of the story is clear that these guys did this without compromising their faith.

This is world is not our home, but while we are here let’s use the time to serve our Lord where we are. 

Among many nations

Thus I will magnify Myself and sanctify Myself, and I will be known in the eyes of many nations. Then they shall know that I am the LORD." ' – Ezekiel 38.23

Go into the world and make disciples of all nations. You shell be my witnessing both in Jerusalem, and Judea, and Samaria, and the uttermost parts of the earth. These are the words of Jesus that show God’s commitment to be known in the eyes of many nations.

There was a day when ‘the uttermost parts of the earth’ included Ireland. It was this charge that led Patrick to come here and preach the gospel. His desire was to be the one who went to the uttermost parts.

The Jews of this day thought that God was just for them. That caused a lot of pride and error on their parts. God’s plan was much bigger. God’s plan is that His word be spread to ‘many nations’ that all will know that He is the Lord.

There is a great big world out there that needs to know that our God is the Lord. In a world increasingly turning from Him it is more important than ever that we carry His word to them. 

One Shepherd

I will establish one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them—My servant David. He shall feed them and be their shepherd.  – Ezekiel 34.23

The gospel in the Old Testament is called a ‘mystery’ or a ‘hidden truth’ in the New Testament because it is there, but it is not always obvious. That is the case here with the reference to God sending one shepherd to feed His people. God says ‘David’ but David was long dead. David in the Old Testament often refers to David’s descendants and specifically ‘David’ often refers to the coming Messiah.

I think that is worthy of consideration here because of the phrase ‘one shepherd’ being over God’s people who will feed and lead them.

‘My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me’ the Great Shepherd said. The one true Shepherd is the One who will lead us and feed us and protect us and provide for us and comfort us and heal and provide goodness and mercy for us now and forever more.

God’s promise of ‘one shepherd’ was not fully understood in Ezekiel’s day, but we know today the truth of ‘the Lord is my shepherd.’ God give us grace to depend on Him for our daily provision and leadership, follow Him, and trust Him to see us through 

To seek

"I will seek what was lost and bring back what was driven away, bind up the broken and strengthen what was sick; but I will destroy the fat and the strong, and feed them in judgment." – Ezekiel 34.16

It seems logical that God would just give up on people eventually, doesn’t it? If nobody is going to listen why waste our time.

We are fortunate though that God it not me. God says, even in this rebellious land, ‘I will seek what was lost. I will bring back the driven away. I will bind up the broken hearted. I will strengthen the sick.’

God is still in the seeking business. It is not His desire that anyone should perish. God does not stop seeking, even to this day, and even till the Day of the Lord appears.

In a world which seems more and more determined to reject Him He does not change His desire to see all people come to Christ. Jesus came ‘to seek and to save that which was lost’ and He uses to us to carry that message to all around us.

Lord, give us seeker’s hearts like Your heart. 

That a prophet has been among them

Indeed you are to them as a very lovely song of one who has a pleasant voice and can play well on an instrument; for they hear your words, but they do not do them. And when this comes to pass—surely it will come—then they will know that a prophet has been among them." – Ezekiel 33.32-33

As we seek to serve God in this world and love people and draw them to Him we may not always have a lot of what we see as success. It can seem like we are just wasting our lives away in a fruitless effort.

In reality we never know what is happening. Just because we don’t see it doesn’t mean nothing is happening. Even if nothing does happen there is one thing we can seek after. There is one thing we can be sure of.

We strive to speak pleasant words. Our words should be as music. If we do that people will hear our words. That is the good news. They will hear, but they won’t do them. That's the bad news. 

That is terribly sad.

But there is something to be seen here. If we are faithful to live and proclaim God’s word and say and do the right things everyone will know that a prophet has been among them.

Are we willing to say and do the right things, only so people will know that ‘a prophet has been among them?’ If we are we can be content with where God puts us. 

With their mouths they show love

So they come to you as people do, they sit before you as My people, and they hear your words, but they do not do them; for with their mouth they show much love, but their hearts pursue their own gain. – Ezekiel 33.31

‘Be ye doers of the word, and not just hearers’ James writes. John says that our love should not be in word only, but in deed and in truth. The people of Israel were full of words of love, but nothing was in their hearts. God said of the people ‘they sit before you as My people, they hear your words, but they don’t do them. With their mouths they show much love, but their hearts pursue their own gains.’

Love talk is cheap. It is easy to talk about love and sing about love and all that but it when it comes down to actually acting in love it is much harder. Love means action. Love means we keep loving even when people are unlovable. The ultimate standard for love is this; greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friend. Our love in action should be such that we put ourselves last. Love means time and effort and sacrifice. True love is not only words and songs – true love is action.

Ezekiel hints at what prevents true love here when he says ‘they show great love with their mouths, but…’ That but makes all the difference in the world, …but their heart pursue their own gain.’

It is the pursuit of our ‘own gain’ that keep us from loving the way we should. Love in action may at times require great things, but sometimes love in action is cleaning the toilet or emptying the dishwasher or making an early morning airport run or minding the kid or making a hospital visit or bringing home some flowers or any number of simple every day love actions. It is listening to a friend when we have other things to do. It is making a phone call we don’t want to make. It is being rejected and still loving.

Love God and love others. That’s how Jesus summarised God’s plan for us.

How is our loving?