Daniel 1: Identity in Crisis

Starter Questions

Have you thought about dropping out?

Have you thought about dropping out this week?

Would a free ride to college change your previous statement?

How would you feel if, you where kidnapped and forced to go to an Ivy League school?

Read Daniel 1

Perspective on Babylon

Advanced culture, look at your watch or phone

Naturalism: the philosophical belief that everything arises from natural properties and causes, and supernatural or spiritual explanations are excluded or discounted.

Daniel 2: 10-11 “The Chaldeans answered the king, “No one on earth can make known what the king requests. Consequently, no king, however great and powerful, has ever asked anything like this of any magician, medium, or Chaldean. What the king is asking is so difficult that no one can make it known to him except the gods, whose dwelling is not with mortals.””

Babylonian gods are deifications of nature.

Highly focused on self-image and identity.

Genesis 11:1-9 Tower of Babel “ Let us make a name for ourselves”

Genesis12 Abraham/ Abram is called out of this area. “ I will make your name great”

God has put you in the place where you are

Daniel 1:1-2 “In the third year of the reign of King Jehoiakim of Judah, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came to Jerusalem and laid siege to it. The Lord handed King Jehoiakim of Judah over to him, along with some of the vessels from the house of God. Nebuchadnezzar carried them to the land of Babylon, to the house of his god, and put the vessels in the treasury of his god.”

Daniel is looking back at these events and writing about it.

God has allowed this

You are here because God has a plan and purpose.

The culture makes relative absolute

Daniel 1:2 “The Lord handed King Jehoiakim of Judah over to him, along with some of the vessels from the house of God. Nebuchadnezzar carried them to the land of Babylon, to the house of his god, and put the vessels in the treasury of his god.”

Gold is the symbol of the greatness and authority of God.

some of these vessels are made of gold. But also serve a purpose.

Relativism: the doctrine that knowledge, truth, and morality exist in relation to culture, society, or historical context and are not absolute.

Daniel 5 Belshazzar’s feast, hand writing on wall

We build on our terms and how we want, eventually are kingdom comes crashing down.

The culture demands conformity

Daniel 1:3-7 “The king ordered Ashpenaz, his chief eunuch, to bring some of the Israelites from the royal family and from the nobility—young men without any physical defect, good-looking, suitable for instruction in all wisdom, knowledgeable, perceptive, and capable of serving in the king’s palace. He was to teach them the Chaldean language and literature. The king assigned them daily provisions from the royal food and from the wine that he drank. They were to be trained for three years, and at the end of that time they were to attend the king. Among them, from the Judahites, were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. The chief eunuch gave them names; he gave the name Belteshazzar to Daniel, Shadrach to Hananiah, Meshach to Mishael, and Abednego to Azariah.”

Babylon changes names; to make everyone fit in the image of Babylon

Daniel: God is my judge

Hananiah: God has been gracious “ God shows grace”

Mishael: Who is what God is “ Who is like God”

Azariah: God has helped

The very identities tether them to God.

When identity is removed, one can replace it with whatever suits his or her needs.

It happens with Language to

Tolerance, Man and Woman, Human

Remember your identity if found Christ ( if you are a Christian ) if you are not careful, your name will be changed.

Resolve not to compromise

Daniel 1:7-8 “The chief eunuch gave them names; he gave the name Belteshazzar to Daniel, Shadrach to Hananiah, Meshach to Mishael, and Abednego to Azariah. Daniel determined that he would not defile himself with the king’s food or with the wine he drank. So he asked permission from the chief eunuch not to defile himself.”

Daniel 10:3 “I didn’t eat any rich food, no meat or wine entered my mouth, and I didn’t put any oil on my body until the three weeks were over.”

No record of Daniel leaving Babylon

What gives Daniel?

On his way to be valedictorian of Jerusalem State College

Who’s food and wine? Nebuchadnezzar.

When you go against the will of God, nothing good happens.

( Close with what you should do )

Step out on faith like Abraham

Before your Identity gets challenged study up

Don’t battle alone

Resolve to stand with the values and precepts of God.

(read 9-21)

Better Does not always mean best

( Gospel message Kyle don’t forget)