Trusting God in Real Life: The Example of Daniel
Genuine trust in God will result in peace as you acknowledge God’s providence in every detail of life (vv. 1-4)
Daniel endured hard times in his life because of other people’s sin.
God is the one who allowed Daniel to go through very difficult trials
The timing of Daniel’s birth
The social standing of Daniel’s family
The God-given natural abilities of Daniel
Genuine trust in God will result in faithfulness regardless of the factors that might lead others to compromise (v. 5-8)
Second, the meat and wine would have been undesirable because a portion of it was (at least on occasions if not always) first offered sacrificially to the Babylonian gods before being sent to the king and was therefore associated with idolatrous worship.
partaking of this food would have been an indirect act of worshiping the Babylonian deities.
To refuse the royal diet could have been taken as an insult to the king
Pressure from Daniel’s peers made the decision difficult
Daniel’s decision could have jeopardized his chances for advancement
The quality of food would have been attractive
Their new location may have tempted them to be unfaithful
Judah was nine hundred miles away; parents and friends would never know whether or not they kept God’s laws. Yet Daniel and his friends were aware of a very important fact. Other people might not know their actions, but God would know, and someday all will give an account of themselves to him.
Daniel could have become bitter toward God during this time
It would have been natural to argue that since God had not protected them from captivity—this horrible situation—they did not have to be careful to obey his commands.