Zarahemla - 2019 08 11

Acts 5:29-32 – Obey God not men.

I’m not exactly sure what turn my attention to the Book of Daniel but a couple of months ago I took real interest in working my way through it.

I read four different complete commentaries and spent much time considering what is there.

Daniel can roughly be broken into two sections. There are a series of stories in chapters 1 – 6, followed by a sequence of visions in chapters 7 – 12. The stories are told in third-person form about Daniel and his friends and the four visions are cast primarily in the form of first-person reports.

It is in the chapters 1-3 where we will spend some time today (I mentioned this in class a few weeks ago.)

Many of the stories we know well:

Chapter 2: Daniel’s interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of the great image of a head of gold, breast and arms of silver, belly and thighs of brass, legs of iron and feet part iron and part clay. And then a stone cut out without hands smiting the image on its feet breaking it all to pieces.

Chapter 4: Daniel’s interpretation of another of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of the great tree that was hewn down.

Chapter 5: Belshazzar’s feast and the handwriting on the wall.

Chapter 6: Daniel thrown into the Lion’s den for refusing not to make a petition to any God or man for 30 days.

Chapter 3: You have three Hebrew men who refused to bow to an idol were thrown into a fiery furnace.

Most people study Daniel to try to understand the prophetic visions that are contained in chapters 7 – 12. There are strong echoes in the Book of Revelation and Matthew 24, places that speak and prophecy of the last days. They say to understand Revelations; you need to understand Daniel. I agree. It is difficult material and worth spending some time with, but we are not going to do that today.

I found a richness in the first six chapters of Daniel that I really had not considered before.

I especially found encouragement in the story of the fiery furnace. Especially the fact that the pre-incarnate savior, Jesus himself, stood with these men in their fiery trial.

But … before we dig into that story, I want to spend a few moments developing its context. It’s one that we know, so I won’t spend to long but just remind us of where these men are and why – and draw some parallels between their circumstances and ours. So, a little interpretation and application.

The nation of Israel (12 tribes) struggle with idolatry. The prohibition is clear in a number of places:

[Exodus 20:2-5] I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them; for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God,

[Leviticus 26:1] Ye shall make you no idols nor graven image, neither rear you up a standing image, neither shall ye set up any image of stone in your land, to bow down unto it; for I am the Lord your God.

If they continued in their idolatry: (from Leviticus 26)

· Appoint terror, consumption and burning ague over them

· Strength would be in vain

· Land would not yield its increase

· Wild beasts would come among them

· Bring a sword against them

· Make their cities waste

· Bring the sanctuaries into desolation

· Will not hear their prayers

· Scatter them among the heathen

· Fall one upon another

· No power to stand before their enemies

· Punish them seven times for their sins

Despite the Lord making it very clear what would happen to them, they did not obey. Isaiah’s words pretty much some up who they became:

Isaiah 18:2 -- a people terrible from their beginning hitherto;

So, what is God to do? One thing is sure from scripture and from the history of mankind, God exercises an active sovereignty in the history of his people. He is not absent. He is fully, completely and totally in charge of the course of human history.

We know the story well. The kingdom divides into two nations. One headquartered in Samaria and called Israel or the Northern kingdom. The other headquartered in Jerusalem and called Judah or the Southern kingdom.

The northern kingdom is conquered by the Assyrians and carried away into a land that they knew not. (2 Kings 18:9-12) This is the beginning of their seven times punishment.

The folly of the southern kingdom is described best in 2 Chronicles 36:16-20.

We see this echoed in the opening verses of Daniel:

[Daniel 1:1-2] In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah came Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon unto Jerusalem, and besieged it. And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, with part of the vessels of the house of God; which he carried into the land of Shinar to the house of his god; and he brought the vessels into the treasure house of his god.

Judah’s demise is not merely the inevitable outcome of Babylon’s great military might. No, the Lord gave Jehoiakim up to Nebuchadnezzar. By giving Judah up to Babylon, the Lord is simply being faithful to his word.

So, the book of Daniel opens with Judah in exile. That is its context. (I want to just add as a parenthetical that some escaped. We know their story in the Book of Mormon.)

What about us? Are we in exile too? I want to make that case that we are.

For those that were living in Jerusalem at the time that Nebuchadnezzar besieged it … they were literally transported from one place to another. Physically removed. That’s not our lot but we very much live in a place that is growing in its hostility to the things of God. We live perhaps in the same conditions that those that were carried to Babylon live in. You might say that we were born in exile. This is not our home.

Latter day revelation speaks of the Babylon in which we live:

[Sec 1:3e] … every man walketh in his own way, and after the image of his own god, whose image is in the likeness of the world, and whose substance is that of an idol, which waxeth old and shall perish in Babylon, even Babylon the great, which shall fall.

I could at this point preach about our future deliverance from Babylon. Just like Judah was liberated, we too will be liberated. And we must hang on to that hope. It will happen. And just like Judah returned to a sacred place (Jerusalem) and built a temple (re-built), this place will become sacred and a temple will be erected.

(I will close this morning with a great promise of deliverance.)

But what I want to do this morning is look at how Daniel and the others responded to their exiled circumstances. I think there are lessons in them for how we should live in our exiled condition.

I think the first lesson for us is that we have to come to the realization that we are “strangers and pilgrims” and that God hath said that he will prepare for us a city. (Hebrews 11:13-16)

Though we live in this world we should stand apart from it and its ways. That’s what Daniel and three of his companions, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah did even against some difficult pressure to conform to Babylonian (or Chaldean) ways or societal “norms.”

The first thing we find with Daniel and his companions is an attempt to assimilate them into the Chaldean or Babylonian culture.

King Nebuchadnezzar ask that the best and the brightest from Jerusalem be taught “the learning and the tongue of the Chaldeans.” (Dan 1:4)

They were given the “kings meat” and “of the wine which he drank” … so only the best food and drink. (Dan 1:5)

Daniel and his companions were given Chaldean names:

Daniel - Belteshazzar Hananiah - Shadrach Mishael - Meshach Azariah - Abed-nego

Each of their Chaldean names had Chaldean meanings.

So, they were not placed in prisons, they were enticed with luxury and food and education.

At this point the Babylonian government is exercising control over every aspect of their lives. They have little means to resist the forces of assimilation that are controlling them.

The world that we live in wants to indoctrinate us with its ways. It entices us with luxury and learning. Isn’t one of the common criticisms of those that have conservative views is that they are “uneducated.” We see what’s happening in the universities.

What are Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah to do? They seize on one of the few areas where they can still exercise choice as an opportunity to preserve their distinct identity. They refuse the kings food and drink. (It is very likely that the food and drink provided did not meet the requirements of the Mosaic Law.)

Daniel 1:8 -- But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's meat, nor with the wine which he drank: …

Simply stated, they would rather obey God than men …

We too must work hard to preserve our identity as the children of God. Especially in ways that the world considers “acceptable” but ways that God’s word teaches us is sin.

Every day there is a “new normal” in the world about us. Something else is legalized or decriminalized. But God’s ways for his people never change.

Sec 108:2a -- Wherefore prepare ye, prepare ye, O my people; sanctify yourselves; gather ye together, O ye people of my church, upon the land of Zion, all you that have not been commanded to tarry. Go ye out from Babylon. Be ye clean that bear the vessels of the Lord.

Daniel refused the kings wine and interestingly Section 34:3d says that Babylon “has made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.”

God “will not spare any that remaineth in Babylon” (Section 64:5b) … it is not a place we should partake of and from.

What happened? Daniel’s resistance was followed by grace. He was blessed.

[Daniel 1:17-20] As for these four children, God gave them knowledge and skill in all learning and wisdom; and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams. …And the king communed with them; and among them all was found none like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah; … And in all matters of wisdom and understanding, that the king inquired of them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and astrologers that were in all his realm.

Being exiled seems like a losing condition. What good or positive could come from being yanked out of your home and forced to live in a society that is neither your choosing nor one that is friendly to your way of living?

But, as only God can do through His providence, he makes losers winners. He just has a way of making lemonade out of lemons. It happens over and over. God used Daniel in many ways to speak truth into Nebuchadnezzar’s life.

God’s purposes involved more than simply the fate of these Judean exiles – they were to ‘stand before governors and kings… to bear witness before them’.

It is not coincidental that the chapter 2 ends with Daniel and his friends promoted to responsible positions within the Babylonian system … Daniel was the ruler over the whole province of Babylon. These men didn’t isolate themselves from the kingdom of this world as they waited for God to establish his kingdom; rather, they poured themselves into seeking the welfare of their temporary home in Babylon.

Sometimes God may allow hardship to reach us because he wants his mercy to reach beyond us and through us.

We sojourn in exile … but we can and should work to make our exiled condition the very best it can be … for us … and for others.

We are to serve where we have been placed within a fading and corrupt kingdom as we go on waiting for the final kingdom.

From Jeremiah’s letter to those in captivity:

Jeremiah 29:4-7 -- Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, unto all that are carried away captives, whom I have caused to be carried away from Jerusalem unto Babylon; Build ye houses, and dwell in them; and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them; Take ye wives, and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for you sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; that ye may be increased there, and not diminished. And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto the Lord for it; for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace.

Jeremiah 29:11 -- For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

I’m not going to explore it with you in this sermon this morning, but we should perhaps give some thought how we can collectively together make a difference not only among ourselves but in the communities in which we dwell. The church is terribly inward focused and should have a balanced outward focus as well.

The world would set up idols for us to worship. Money is probably at the top of that list …

Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah were also asked to worship an idol. We find this story in the 3rd chapter of Daniel. Nebuchadnezzar built an image of gold – 90 feet high and 9 feet wide. At the sound of music, they were all to fall down and worship the golden image … if they did not, they would be cast into a fiery furnace.

Here again what are Daniel and his companions to do.

They were operating under the Mosaic Law and knew that they were not to worship any other god or idol other than the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Would they obey God or man?

(Bit if irony here … it is idolatry that caused Israel to be taken captive.)

They had every reason to compromise. Why not hold on to their government posts? Could they not do good for Judah who needed friends in high places?

We are rapidly coming into an age when the world is angry when we do not worship at its shrines … we see examples every day. A baker who refuses to bake a cake for a gay wedding. Google engineer who lost job because of conservative values.

[Daniel 6 – entrapment – law created that defined one of God’s law just for the purpose of getting Daniel in trouble – he ended up in the lion’s den.]

The temptation to acquiesce or compromise is strong. Why not just give in? Would it not be easier to just go along?

All Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah had to due for a very short time (30 days) is just worship the golden idol that Nebuchadnezzar set up. Pretty simple. What’s the harm?

We already know their response … this of course infuriated Nebuchadnezzar who asked them “who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?

Daniel 3:16-18 – “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee [we do not need to give you an answer] in this matter. If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.”

Notice their confidence in God’s ability to deliver them … but also notice that it really didn’t matter to them whether he delivered them or not …

If it be so …

But if not …

What mattered for them was not deliverance but obedience. They chose to obey God rather than man.

It did not matter to them what God's response would be ... the only thing that mattered is what their response would be ... they knew that God was able to deliver them. And again, it didn't matter what God would do it only mattered what they would do ... and therein lies the heart of the lesson of Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego.

I so much wanted to tell you this morning that whenever we stand for right and obey God rather than man God will deliver us … but I remembered Abinadi who died at the hand of wicked King Noah by fire … and I remembered the latter portion of Hebrews 11 and many other places in scripture where the righteous suffered because they stood for good.

And I had to be honest with the text of Daniel 3. But if not …

What should matter to all of us is God’s absolute sovereignty over our lives and His matchless ability and capability to deliver us from any foe or evil. Our faith in Him must be strong. And what should matter to all of us is obedience to God and not man … without compromise … come what may …

When this sermon first began to conceive in my mind it was based on a comment by an author that said that Christ did not keep them out of the furnace but found them in it. He does not always shield you from all distresses and dangers, but it is in the loneliness, in the betrayal, in the loss that the Fourth Man comes and walks with you. He has the knack of both exposing you to, yet keeping you through, waters and rivers and fire.

Christian character is not forged in the moment of adversity. Christian character is revealed in the moment of adversity.

I do want this morning to leave you with a great promise of deliverance. We didn’t explore it this morning but the captives in Babylon knew that they would be delivered because God promised they would. That promise bolstered their faith. They lived in their captivity with the knowledge of that future day. We can live in our captivity with this promise of our deliverance.

Nephi reads from the brass plates Isaiah 48 and 49.

48

Israel refined in the furnace of affliction

Flee Babylon

49

Restore the preserved of Israel

God will comfort his people and have mercy upon his afflicted

God will deliver his covenant people

Nephi was asked the question: “What meaneth these things which ye have read?

He first indicates the timing early in chapter 7 –

Lord will raise up a mighty nation upon the face of this land

The Lord will do a marvelous work (BoM)

1 Nephi 7:22-41

Nephi says that the things that he has written on the brass plates are true …

1 Nephi 7:67 – And they testify that a man must be obedient to the commandments of God.

As blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke comes … let us stand firm in our obedience to God and in the assurance that the Holy One of Israel will stand among us and with us in the day of our deliverance.