Character During Crisis: the Faith of Daniel

Introduction

  I have heard of a bridge that spanned a stream, and for some years it stood well enough. But eventually, through the force of the current, it began to show signs of giving way. When it came to be examined, it was soon seen that the builders never went deep enough with the foundations.

This is the mischief of thousands of other things besides bridges. We must have good and deep foundations, or otherwise the higher we build the sooner the fabric will fall. Look at many of the wretched houses in the streets around us; they are the disgrace of the city. You will see settlements and cracks everywhere because of bad foundations and bad materials.

The same is true in the characters of many professed Christians.1

In times of distress, a man’s character is revealed. His foundations are revealed, and the structure of his life stands or falls. Like a grape being pressed, what’s inside of a man will be revealed when he’s under stress.

It may be that you are experiencing stressful situations right now. Your stress might come from trouble at work, a failing marriage, political unrest, rebellious kids, or spiritual stagnation. How we react to that stress, and not the stress itself, reveals what you’re made of.

Daniel was a man who faced great stress. He responded in obedience, revealing the faith at his core.

Daniel’s Predicament

605 BC; it’s been more than 400 years since David & Solomon ruled; Israel has been divided; idolatry took over in the Northern Kingdom of Israel immediately, and eventually in the Southern Kingdom of Judah

God, acting on His promise, brought judgment on Israel first in 721 BC, and now on Judah 116 years later, by the evil Babylonians.

Among the evil idolaters carried away into captivity were four righteous young men: Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, & Azariah.

Were from the royal or noble class. Ie, kings’ blood flowed in their veins. Josephus wrote that they were members of Zedekiah’s family. This would have made them relatives of the recently deposed king, Jehoiakim.

Isaiah predicted to Hezekiah (Isaiah 39:7) that some of his descendeants would be carried away captive to Babylon. This fulfilled his prophecy.

Nebuchadnezzar wants to run a psyop on the Hebrews by having them adopt the culture of the Babylonians.

Recruited Carefully

Young men. Plato said that the Persians began educating their youth when they turned 14; the Babylonians probably had a similar practice. This would place Daniel’s age at about 14.

Good looking. Not only because they were more pleasant to look at, but good looking people enjoy more influence and social status. Nebuchadnezzar wanted to use this to turn the rest of the people.

Intelligent young men. Indicated those who could learn and adapt to this new culture quickly.

They would learn the language & literature of their captors (4).

They would eat the same food and drank the same wine as he did.

This psyop/propaganda routine would go on for three years!

Berosus, a Babylonian priest-historian ca 300BC, wrote that Nebuchadnezzar also brought in young men from Egypt, Syria, and Phoenicia.

Even a name change

Common in ancient times

Joseph in Egypt took an Egyptian name (Zephenath-paneah, Gen 41:45)

Hadassah is known to us by her Persian name, Esther (Esth 2:7).

Daniel/God is my Judge … Belteshazzar, Bel, protect his life! Bel was a common designation for Marduk.

Hananiah/Yahweh is gracious … Shadrach, Command of Aku, the moon god

Mishael/Who is like God? … Meshach, Who is like Aku?

Azariah/Yahweh has helped/will help … Abednego, Servant of Nebo (where Abednego should be Abednebo). Nabu was the #2 God in Babylonian.

Daniel’s Dilemma

The king wanted only the best for these trainees. They would eat from his own table.

Why did Daniel not want to eat the king’s food and drink his wine? Why would he think this would “defile” him?

The food probably was not prepared in accordance with God’s Law delivered to Moses (Lev 11, Deut 14). The Babylonians didn’t distinguish between clean and unclean animals as did the Jews.

Both the food and the wine probably were offered in sacrifice to Babylonian gods before being offered to the young men. This would have been tantamount to worshipping these false gods, a dilemma faced by 1st century Christians, as well (1 Co 10:25-28).

On both counts, to eat and drink this food and wine would have defiled Daniel.

Daniel’s Faithfulness

Daniel’s faithfulness was marked by humble defiance.

Daniel’s faithfulness spread to his friends (v. 11).

Daniel’s faithfulness was an act of courage. Here are six reasons.

Could have been interpreted as an insult to the king, a deadly proposition.

Peer pressure was certainly present.

Endangered their employment / future prospects.

The food itself was very desirable.

Out of sight, out of mind. Judah was a long way off; the temple and its liturgy nowhere near; why not engage the culture?

Why not, since God didn’t protect them?

Daniel’s Faithful Alternative

The word translated vegetables means “that which grows from sown seed,” which could be vegetables, fruits, and grains.

10 days...give it a shot!

Daniel’s Faithfulness Rewarded

God gave the faithful young men gifts of knowledge and understanding, qualities they would need to be successful in their position as “king’s men.”

The king found them 10x better, not only of the newly trained young men, but of all magicians in the entire kingdom.

Lessons for You and Me

When life isn’t fair.

Daniel and the others were righteous young men who sought always to please God. They didn’t deserve to be in Babylon!

A $20 couch turned out to be worth a whole lot more for a group of New York college students. They purchased the lumpy couch from a thrift store, but were shocked when they began to investigate why the sofa was so uncomfortable. The students found money in envelopes stashed in different parts of the couch. The total added up to almost $40,000, and the friends instantly started discussing what they could do with the money—until they found a deposit slip in one envelope. The students tracked down the owner and returned the money to her. The owner was a 91-year-old woman who didn’t trust banks, and her family had donated the old couch while she was in the hospital. The woman gave the three students a $1,000 reward. When asked why the friends returned the money, one of them, Reese Werkhoven, responded, “It wasn’t a debate; we immediately reached a consensus that this is her money.”2

When life isn’t fair, you must be faithful to God.

When you are forced to choose

Twin brothers David and Jason Benham were five weeks into filming their reality TV show when HGTV decided to pull the plug on the house flipping series. A liberal watchdog website said the brothers had spoken out in favor of traditional marriage and that their father was a pro-life activist. There was a social media campaign to pressure HGTV to cancel the show, and it worked. The brothers refused to give in to political correctness, responding, “If our faith costs us a television show then so be it.” Just as Daniel refused to bend his knee to the false gods of his day, these brothers are standing for what they believe.3

Remember: God is always faithful; but He’s faithful in a special way to those who are faithful to Him.

If we are faithless, He remains faithful (2 Ti 2:3).

Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him (Heb 11:6).

1 Spurgeon, C. (2017). 300 Sermon Illustrations from Charles Spurgeon. (E. Ritzema & L. Smoyer, Eds.). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.

2 Wilson, J. L., & Sandell, J. (2015). Returning $40,000 Found in a Couch. In E. Ritzema (Ed.), 300 Illustrations for Preachers. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.

3 Wilson, J. L., & Russell, R. (2015). “If Our Faith Costs Us a Television Show Then so Be It.” In E. Ritzema (Ed.), 300 Illustrations for Preachers. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.