Identity/Who Am I??
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DANIEL 1:1-2
Daniel 1:1-
1 In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. 2 And the Lord delivered Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, along with some of the articles from the temple of God. These he carried off to the temple of his god in Babylonia and put in the treasure house of his god.
Let’s set the stage…
Here… Daniel, shedreck, meshack, and abednego… big name of the OT because of the situations they found themselves in and the God who saved them.
So… these men and many others were prisoner’s of war for over 70 years.
Jehoikim - inherited the throne from his father King Josiah. Josiah while king tore down the altars to the false Gods. Made a commitment as king to the one true God.
Jehoikim- comes in after watching his dad… seeing the blessings of God… leads the people back into disgusting false idol worship.
Imagine the people… serving false idols, false worship, King comes in and destroys all the altars and brings them back to worship of the one true God, next king, his son comes in and takes rebuilds and leads them back into the worship of false gods.
So what we see right here isn’t surprising.... Nebuchadnezzar is and evil king, king of Babylon and he see’s an opportunity.
confusion, discouragement, grief, no direction.... evil King sees an opportunity.
Same for us today… frustrated in marriage, frustrated in finances, desperation… Satan will place an opportunity, sin, temptation in front of you. Moments of weakness…
So now… lets get into it…
VERSE 3-4
Wow… we think of Daniel & Lion’s Den, Shadrack, meshack and abednego, fiery furnace… but my goodness there’s some powerful truth in this chapter one before these things even get started.
Daniel and these other three men had spent the first years of there life underneath King Josiah… the king who turned the people back to the one true God. They had been taught, trained, and trusted the Lord.
Look what Nebuchanezzar/Evil does… Bring me the best of the best (verse 4)
and let’s train them the language and literature of the babylonians.
verse 5- trained for three years and then enter the King’s service. King Nebuchanezzar.
take them and train them to look like us, talk like us, eat like us, and live like us. We want them to fit our culture and our society.
But… the plan doesn’t stop there… it’s not just the training… it’s not just the teaching… goes a step further…
VERSE 6 - 7
Now.. why is this important…
DANIEL - GOD IS MY JUDGE
BELTESHAZZAR- BEL, PROTECT HIS LIFE. (BEL, CHIEF GOD OF BABYLON)
HANANIAH- GOD IS GOOD
SHADRACH- SERVANT OF AKU (MOON GOD)
MISHAEL- WHO IS EQUAL TO GOD
MESHACH- DESPISED & HUMILIATED
AZARIAH- THE LORD HELPS
ABEDNEGO- SERVANT OF NEGO, GOD OF WISDOM
This is so huge… you see a tactic of the enemy… that’s still alive today… works the same way today.
In this time… names were more important than they are today.
Let me give you an example… seen the movie “thor” … named that because it meant “strength, thunder”
know what the name “Dustin” means? Thor… mhm.
also… valiant warrior
i found this out… last week..
listen.. names back in this time… meant something… you were given your name and it influenced your identity.
Daniel- God is my judge.
(GO BACK TO THE NAMES)
Nebuchadnezzar understood… that if they changed their names, they could change their identity, he understood if they changed their identity, they could change/influence how they lived and what they lived for.
There’s not a coincidence that today one of the biggest topics is “gender identity”. God chose them to be male or female and then evil, society works hard to convince them that their identity confused.
without knowing your true identity you will live for nothing.
VERSE 8
*RESOLVED NOT TO....
made a decision NOT TO follow culture, society.
didn’t matter that the King tried to change their name and identity.. Daniel knew who he was!!
Now flip with me to the New Testament…
two weeks ago… hebrews.. church who was faceing trials and persecution.
FAMILY/ Children of God.
last week… ephesians… new church… give some encouragement
chosen, predestined as children of God.
redeemed
inheritance.
Peter writes.... we were given all we need in christ, made sons, and have been called to be his because of his great mercy. he writes that we are new creations.
Why am i telling you these things? It’s OBVIOUSLY imperative for believers (whether in trials, whether mature or new, whether in pastoral ministry, whether things are going great) to remember our identity and who we are.
this week… reading through colossians… sit here for a second.
Paul writes this letter to a church in Colossae who has been infiltrated by false teaching.
Look what Paul writes… he want’s to set it straight…
verses 3-4
thankful for your faith and your love. that should be our standard today. faith in Jesus. Love for others.
verse 5
this faith and love spring up from the hope you have in heaven and the word of the gospel.
you know who you are… child of god, heavenly home, redeemed, reconciled, free, all because of JESUS. I am a child of God.
verse 6
all over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing.
bearing fruit… fruit of faith, love, joy, peace, kindness, gentleness, self control. Why? because you know the good news. you know who you are! you are a child of the king. forgiven.
“just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God’s grace in all it’s truth”
you have faith and love because you understand the gospel… you aren’t adding legalistic rules, you understand that you have been made alive in Christ… you have his promises and because of that you are bearing fruit. YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE. YOUR IDENTITY IS FOUND IN CHRIST.
VERSE 9-14
NOW… PLEASE HERE THESE NEXT TWO VERSES.
VERSE 15-16
WOW!!!!!
CREATED BY.... AND CREATED FOR!!!
THERE’S YOUR IDENTITY… YOU WERE CREATED FOR CHRIST. TO DO THE WORK OF JESUS. TO LIVE A LIFE WORTHY.
Why is there so much confusion and identity crisis in the world today… because the world doesn’t understand that truth.
dont understand the gospel
paid for by the blood of jesus. given a new life. new meaning. new purpose. new identity.
:1
YES!!
BUT LOOK....
Our identity can’t be wrapped up in a relationship, marriage, work, finances, physical appearance… society and culture.
we have to live with not a daily recognition, but a moment by moment recognition of who we are! why we were created! what our identity is!
Let me show you what happens with Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.
8 But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way.
:
Daniel 1:11-15
11 Daniel then said to the guard whom the chief official had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, 12 “Please test your servants for ten days: Give us nothing but vegetables to eat and water to drink. 13 Then compare our appearance with that of the young men who eat the royal food, and treat your servants in accordance with what you see.” 14 So he agreed to this and tested them for ten days. 15 At the end of the ten days they looked healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who ate the royal food.
17 To these four young men God gave knowledge and understanding of all kinds of literature and learning. And Daniel could understand visions and dreams of all kinds.
18 At the end of the time set by the king to bring them into his service, the chief official presented them to Nebuchadnezzar. 19 The king talked with them, and he found none equal to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah; so they entered the king’s service. 20 In every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king questioned them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his whole kingdom.
Daniel 1:18-
WOW!!
Because they chose to stand on God’s standards! Because they refused to compromise. Because they refused to let culture and society around them to influence their life and decisions… God blessed them in only a way that God can.
Wisdom/understanding.
There was a reason for this… God had a plan…
1 King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold, sixty cubits high and six cubits wide, and set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon.
Daniel 3:
Daniel 3:
18 But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”
21 So these men, wearing their robes, trousers, turbans and other clothes, were bound and thrown into the blazing furnace. 22 The king’s command was so urgent and the furnace so hot that the flames of the fire killed the soldiers who took up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, 23 and these three men, firmly tied, fell into the blazing furnace. 24 Then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisers, “Weren’t there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?” They replied, “Certainly, Your Majesty.” 25 He said, “Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.” 26 Nebuchadnezzar then approached the opening of the blazing furnace and shouted, “Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!” So Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out of the fire, 27 and the satraps, prefects, governors and royal advisers crowded around them. They saw that the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor was a hair of their heads singed; their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them. 28 Then Nebuchadnezzar said, “Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who has sent his angel and rescued his servants! They trusted in him and defied the king’s command and were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God. 29 Therefore I decree that the people of any nation or language who say anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego be cut into pieces and their houses be turned into piles of rubble, for no other god can save in this way.”
Daniel 3:21-28
Because of their dedication… because they refused to let culture, society, evil change their identity. Even though things around them were in chaos, things around them were hard, tough, evil… confusing… stood firm in WHO THEY WERE!!! Why they were created!
New King… King Darius…
no one may pray to any God or King except himself…
Daniel refused to be influenced.
Prayed to his own God.
Thrown into the Lion’s Den.
25 Then King Darius wrote to all the nations and peoples of every language in all the earth: “May you prosper greatly! 26 “I issue a decree that in every part of my kingdom people must fear and reverence the God of Daniel. “For he is the living God and he endures forever; his kingdom will not be destroyed, his dominion will never end. 27 He rescues and he saves; he performs signs and wonders in the heavens and on the earth. He has rescued Daniel from the power of the lions.”
Daniel 6:25-