Honest and Faithful

Yesterday was Veterans Day. I want to take a minute to thank and appreciate all who have served and are serving our country.

In honor of our veterans I have a few little jokes I think they might like:

What do you call a military officer who goes to the bathroom a lot? A LOOtenant!

What do you call a group of kids who enlists in the military? The INFANTry!

What do you call a troop who survived pepper spray AND mustard gas? A SEASONED Veteran!

Why do optometrists set their clocks to military time? They want their patients to see 20:20!

What do you call someone who joined the military out of spite? A PETTY officer!

As I was thinking about our veterans, I was thinking about all the different qualities of a good soldier. To me, maybe two of the top qualities have to be integrity and faithfulness.

To me a good soldier you must be trusted to do what you’re supposed to do no matter the opposition.

Christians are compared to soldiers in part because we are called to exhibit those same traits in our walk with the Lord. We should be honest and faithful. Our lives should be lived as servants. We may not put on uniforms for people to see our position or rank, but people should still see that we are different because of the lives that we lead in serve to the Lord.

Daniel is a good example for us to follow. Before I read our scripture for today I want to remind you of his service.

Daniel was taken into captivity as a teenager but didn’t give in to the rules of the new kingdom. God showed everyone that He was with Daniel.

We meet him again a few years later in chapter 2, when as a young man he is called upon to interpret a dream to king Nebuchadnezzar or face death! Daniel trusted the Lord, remained calm and faithful, and was given the interpretation. He was saved and so were his friends.

He shows up again in chapter 4 as a middle aged man who again is called upon to interpret a dream for the troubled king. Daniel was living a comfortable life, but he was called upon to deliver a difficult message that could have angered the king. Once again, Daniel stepped up, and was found being faithful.

In chapter 5, Daniel delievered another difficult message to the King. He was standing for God and being faithful.

In the scripture we will read today, Daniel is a man in his 80’s. He has been in Babylon for about 70 years. Yet, he has not veered from the course he started on as a young man. He is still faithfully serving the God Who saved him by his grace. But He is about to be tested with maybe one of his most difficult challenges.

Daniel never made a big splash in Babylon. Though he was continually being promoted through the ranks of government, arriving at the position of Prime Minister, the Jews were still in captivity in Babylon. The new king, the king in this chapter Darius, allows the Jews to return to Israel to rebuild their Temple, but most of the exiles choose to stay in Babylon, having adapted to the customs and lifestyle of Babylon.

After all those years of being influenced by God’s people, Babylon is unchanged. The rulers have changed, but they are still idolatrous, cruel and wicked. There have been no great revivals in Babylon while Daniel was there. It seems that few are really impressed with Daniel and with his walk for the Lord.

It seems that all his faithfulness to God did was to draw the jealousy of his peers, the hatred of the ungodly, a plot against his life, and a death sentence in a lion’s den. But, through it all, Daniel remained faithful in spite of the changes going on around him.

Daniel was a faithful man, yet he found himself in a terrible place. Daniel is thrown into a lion’s den. He is sentenced to die for doing nothing more than being faithful to his God. While Daniel faced a terrible sentence, he held on to what made him a great man. Daniel kept the faith!

As we read this passage, I want you to see that it is possible to be faithful in spite of what others around you are doing.

Let’s read the scripture together:

Daniel 6:1–28 CEV

1 Darius divided his kingdom into a hundred and twenty states and placed a governor in charge of each one. 2 In order to make sure that his government was run properly, Darius put three other officials in charge of the governors. One of these officials was Daniel. 3 And he did his work so much better than the other governors and officials that the king decided to let him govern the whole kingdom. 4 The other men tried to find something wrong with the way Daniel did his work for the king. But they could not accuse him of anything wrong, because he was honest and faithful and did everything he was supposed to do. 5 Finally, they said to one another, “We will never be able to bring any charge against Daniel, unless it has to do with his religion.” 6 They all went to the king and said: Your Majesty, we hope you live forever! 7 All of your officials, leaders, advisors, and governors agree that you should make a law forbidding anyone to pray to any god or human except you for the next thirty days. Everyone who disobeys this law must be thrown into a pit of lions. 8 Order this to be written and then sign it, so it cannot be changed, just as no written law of the Medes and Persians can be changed.” 9 So King Darius made the law and had it written down. 10 Daniel heard about the law, but when he returned home, he went upstairs and prayed in front of the window that faced Jerusalem. In the same way that he had always done, he knelt down in prayer three times a day, giving thanks to God. 11 The men who had spoken to the king watched Daniel and saw him praying to his God for help. 12 They went back to the king and said, “Didn’t you make a law that forbids anyone to pray to any god or human except you for the next thirty days? And doesn’t the law say that everyone who disobeys it will be thrown into a pit of lions?” “Yes, that’s the law I made,” the king agreed. “And just like all written laws of the Medes and Persians, it cannot be changed.” 13 The men then told the king, “That Jew named Daniel, who was brought here as a captive, refuses to obey you or the law that you ordered to be written. And he still prays to his god three times a day.” 14 The king was really upset to hear about this, and for the rest of the day he tried to think how he could save Daniel. 15 At sunset the men returned and said, “Your Majesty, remember that no written law of the Medes and Persians can be changed, not even by the king.” 16 So Darius ordered Daniel to be brought out and thrown into a pit of lions. But he said to Daniel, “You have been faithful to your God, and I pray that he will rescue you.” 17 A stone was rolled over the pit, and it was sealed. Then Darius and his officials stamped the seal to show that no one should let Daniel out. 18 All night long the king could not sleep. He did not eat anything, and he would not let anyone come in to entertain him. 19 At daybreak the king got up and ran to the pit. 20 He was anxious and shouted, “Daniel, you were faithful and served your God. Was he able to save you from the lions?” 21 Daniel answered, “Your Majesty, I hope you live forever! 22 My God knew that I was innocent, and he sent an angel to keep the lions from eating me. Your Majesty, I have never done anything to hurt you.” 23 The king was relieved to hear Daniel’s voice, and he gave orders for him to be taken out of the pit. Daniel’s faith in his God had kept him from being harmed. 24 And the king ordered the men who had brought charges against Daniel to be thrown into the pit, together with their wives and children. But before they even reached the bottom, the lions ripped them to pieces. 25 King Darius then sent this message to all people of every nation and race in the world: “Greetings to all of you! 26 I command everyone in my kingdom to worship and honor the God of Daniel. He is the living God, the one who lives forever. His power and his kingdom will never end. 27 He rescues people and sets them free by working great miracles. Daniel’s God has rescued him from the power of the lions.” 28 All went well for Daniel while Darius was king, and even when Cyrus the Persian ruled.

There are three things we all have in common with Daniel. They can be good or bad depending on our level of commitment to integrity and faithfulness.

We all have: Character, Choices, and Challenges.

Daniel was a Slave

At 80 years old, Daniel was the only person who answered directly to the King. He was over the 120 men who were vice-regents in King Darius’ kingdom. One thing we need to remember is that, even with all his influence and authority, Daniel was still a slave.

He was brought to Babylon as a young man, enslaved, taken from his home and his people, and trained in the ways of the Babylonian court. He has been faithful to God, and God has blessed Daniel’s faithfulness, causing Daniel to find favor with every pagan king he served. After 70 years of faithful service, this former slave has become Prime Minister of the most powerful government in the world.

When you live a life of good Character God will honor you. God always honors faithful service.

If not in this life, you will be rewarded in the next.

Revelation 22:12 CEV

12 Then I was told: I am coming soon! And when I come, I will reward everyone for what they have done.

Daniel may have been a slave to the earthly king, but his heart was fully surrendered to the heavenly King. He cared most about what the Lord wanted him to accomplish.

Character is what you do when no one else is looking.

The problem with having good character is that others can become jealous of the honor you’ll receive.

We see that here in Daniels story.

The rulers were jealous of Daniel and wanted to destroy him.

Verse 6-9 tells us that they came up with a plan that no one could pray to any God. They would only be able to worship the King.

Daniel’s character would not allow his position of authority to compromise his devotion to God. He was faithful even when it meant he might lose his position.

As we live for the Lord, we might expect opposition. People aren’t going to like it if you are honored for your character.

Remember the words of Jesus

Matthew 10:34–36 CEV

34 Don’t think that I came to bring peace to the earth! I came to bring trouble, not peace. 35 I came to turn sons against their fathers, daughters against their mothers, and daughters-in-law against their mothers-in-law. 36 Your worst enemies will be in your own family.

Or what about what Paul said:

2 Timothy 3:12 CEV

12 Anyone who belongs to Christ Jesus and wants to live right will have trouble from others.

Character means that you won’t bow to others. You will only bow to the Lord.

What about our choices? How does being honest and faithful affect the choices we make?

Choices Matter

After the king signed the law, Daniel had a choice. Faithful to the Lord, or go along with the crowd and not make waves.

Here’s something I think we can see: The way we live now, is how we are going to live during crisis. In other words, we are preparing now, for the person we are going to become.

Watching Daniel face this crisis in his life, you get the impression that it was not a crisis at all for him. Daniel simply did what he had always done; he remained faithful to the Lord.

What did he choose?

He chose Obedience to God over Opportunities in the world

He chose Faithfulness to God over the Favor of the king

He chose Devotion to God over the Decree of the king

He chose Bowing before God to Bowing before his enemies

He chose Commitment over Compromise

He chose Faithfulness over Freedom

He chose Love over Life

He chose Character over Comfort

Daniel was determined to stand for that which was right simply because it was right. He was determined to stand for the Lord regardless of the consequences. Daniel was determined to remain faithful whatever the cost, and for Daniel, the cost would be very high.

Would the church in America be different if more people were like Daniel? Are you making the same choices to be honest and faithful to the Lord or are you compromising in life?

If you are going to align your Character with God’s will and your Choices with God’s will then I need to caution you that you will be Challenged.

Character and Choices = Challenges

When Daniel’s enemies saw him praying before the Lord, they took their accusation to the king. They accused Daniel and demanded that the king honor the law of the land. His enemies were right, Daniel was guilty of breaking their foolish law. Even the king recognized how foolish he had been. He regretted signing the law and labored all day to find a loophole to deliver Daniel from death. But none could be found.

The fact is, Daniel broke the law of the king. But Daniel did not break the Law of the Lord. Daniel did what the Lord commanded, even when it contradicted what the government demanded. We might face that same dilemma in the future. Romans 13 teaches us to obey the rulers of the land and their laws, but when their laws contradict God’s law, we must do what God says, regardless of the consequences.

For Daniel, that meant he was to be eaten alive by lions. He was thrown into the pit and everyone knew he was going to die. No one had ever survived this punishment. An 80 year old man cannot survive a fight with multiple lions.

These lions were bred for this task. They were kept half-starved so they would attack and kill anyone who was thrown into their den. In the eyes of everyone, Daniel was a dead man.

There’s something interesting in verse 16 that I want to point out to you:

Daniel 6:16 CEV

16 So Darius ordered Daniel to be brought out and thrown into a pit of lions. But he said to Daniel, “You have been faithful to your God, and I pray that he will rescue you.”

The King must have thought there was a chance because he had seen God work in Daniels life before.

We should live the kind of lives that touch the people who live around us. Whether it is a pagan king, or just our neighbor, our faith should ring true and point them to the Lord. Whether they believe in our Lord or not, they should know that we do, and they should be able to see His hand working in our lives.

Challenges are going to come to people who are honest and faithful. But our past victories will affect people more than we know.

We know the rest of the story. God saved Daniel. The King threw the men who accused Daniel into the pit. And the King gave the glory to God.

What’s the moral of this story?

God honors Honesty and Faithfulness.

Because Daniel remained faithful to God, even to the point of death, God was with him and delivered him from his enemies, from the decrees of the king, and from the power of the lions. Daniel succeeded because Daniel was faithful to the Lord.

Most likely, we will not face a den of lions. But we might face times of sickness, sorrow, distress, persecution, death, and all sorts of hardships. Through it all the Lord wants us to remain faithful.

He has promised us that He will never leave us alone for even a moment, Heb. 13:5; Matt. 28:20.

He has promised us grace sufficient for every step we take, 2 Cor. 12:9.

He has promised to guide every step we take, Psa. 37:23.

He has promised to meet every need we have in life, Phil. 4:19; Matt. 6:25–34.

He has promised to hear us and help us when we call on His name, Jer. 33:3; Phil. 4:6–7.

And so many more promises.

I read something while preparing this message written about faithfulness it says this:

There are some things I can’t do:

• I can’t give large amounts of money to the Lord’s work.

• I can’t sing and preach like some people can.

• I can’t say that I have left everything to serve the Lord.

• I can’t say that I have given my life for His sake.

But, there are some things I can do:

• I can be found faithful.

• I can be faithful to the Lord Who redeemed me from sin.

• I can be faithful to do the task to which He has called me.

• I can be faithful to pray. I can be faithful to read his Word.

• I can be faithful to witness. I can be faithful to attend His house.

• I can be faithful to love Him.

• I can be faithful to the things that matter in my life, my wife, my family, and my friends.

• I can’t be some things, but I can be faithful!