The Boys

Baptism

[In Christ Alone — Video]

I’d like to invite Brian’s family and friends to come forward and stand by the piano. Feel free to get out your phones and record this so you can remember this moment.

“In Christ Alone.” This song expresses the reason Brian is here, standing in the water with me today.

Romans 6 tells us that Baptism is a symbol of our experience of dying with Christ, resting in the watery grave, and then rising to a new life in Him.

It’s a public confession of Brian’s recognition and acceptance that he has been “Bought with the precious blood of Christ.”

Brian grew up without a religious context—agnostic—but one fireman he worked with kept asking him to consider faith in God. He challenged him that he couldn’t say he didn’t believe in the Bible’s account of God if he hadn’t read the Bible. Brian couldn’t get that thought out of his mind, so he finally relented and began reading the Bible. It didn’t always make sense to him, at first, but the more he read the more he connected the dots. And he found that he truly believed in this God the Bible portrayed.

Brian began going to Rhonda’s church and between asking questions of other members, studying the Bible on his own, youtube, and hours and hours of digging into questions and issues online, Brian finally concluded that he wanted to be a part of the Seventh-day Adventist community of believers.

I got to know Brian when he and Rhonda came with their little girl, Adeline, to the Discovering Revelation series that we hosted back in May. And today It is my sincere privilege to be the one to baptize you.

Daniel, because of your love for Jesus, and your decision to give Him your life and devotion, I baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

[baptism, then allow Brian to exit the baptismal]

Chriatianity isn’t a moralistic club of people—it’s a group of Jesus followers. And the chief thing he has invited us to do is follow him in death. He says, “take up your cross and follow me.” If you’ve been sitting in the sidelines, doing life on your own terms, I’d like to invite you to explore what it means to give up your life for Christ’s sake. Ask me or any one of our members to study the Bible with you. Maybe you’ve been baptized before but by your actions you’ve demonstrated to the world and to other believers that you are no longer Christ’s, and now you’d like to recommit your life to Jesus in Baptism. Please talk to me after church.

It is now time for our children’s story.

-----

Let’s Talk

Been here for two years this week.

Appreciate the leadership team.

In the time I’ve been here I‘ve seen God growing us as a community.

Affirm commitment to mission — update on Radio Station.

Invitation to church

Introduction — Refugees

For most of us its hard to imagine what was going on in the minds of Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, four young men that I’ll just call “The Boys.” Most of us haven’t been ripped from our home, separated from our family, and force-fed the culture of an occupying power.

While it is less common for people to be taken from their homes and forced to live in a foreign country, hundreds of thousands of people today have had to go into voluntary exile as refugees to save their lives.

The UN Refugee Agency and a photographer, Brian Sokol, put together a series of picture stories called The Most Important Thing.

What would you bring with you if violence or persecution forced you to flee your country?

Some have to flee with no warning at all. Others have weeks or months to anxiously weigh their options — until mounting danger finally forces them to leave their homes behind.

The things they carry offer insight into their lives and cultures and the circumstances from which they fled. The Sudanese people mainly prioritized objects that could help keep them alive during their difficult trek to safety: a pot, an axe, a water jug, a basket. For Syrians, the objects were largely sentimental: an old ring, a torn photograph, the key to a door that may no longer exist.

Those who fled Mali often took objects reflecting their cultural identity, while those from Central African Republic tended to bring practical objects, like a sewing machine or a pair of crutches. Many of the Angolans preparing to return home still possess the items they fled with — some as long as 50 years ago.

Magboola brought this cooking pot that was small enough to carry, yet big enough to feed her family. They had weathered air raids for several months. They finally decided it was time to leave their village in Sudan the night that soldiers arrived and opened fire. Magboola traveled 12 days with her three children to a town on the South Sudanese boarder.

Fedeline holds one of the school notebooks she was able to salvage when she and her family fled for their lives from Central African Republic to Batanga, Democratic Republic of Congo. Her father announced they were leaving immediately when Fedeline told him that she and her friends had seen a businessman being summarily executed in the market square. “I couldn’t take my school bag, my shoes or the coloured ribbons for my hair, but I did bring my notebooks and my pen. I want to study so I can become someone.” She said.

Elizabeth brought her Bible that was given to her on the day of her baptism. It’s the only thing she has from her exile 52 years ago. She says, “In this world, bad things happen, but in the Bible you can find words which help you.”

The Boys

The executioners in Ezekiel’s vision were representative of the judgments God would bring on Israel when Nebuchadnezzar would destroy Jerusalem with fire, kill Israelites by the thousands, and take the rest captive as exiles to Babylon. If God stayed in Jerusalem, there would be no temple, and no one left for Him to dwell with. So God did the most loving thing. He left Jerusalem and headed east to Babylon—HH

These were intelligent, handsome, young men who the occupying power could train for diplomatic purposes.

Whatever Babylon’s plans may have been, The Boys’ exile was the product of a national apostacy. The God of the Israelites, who promised to provide for their daily needs, and to protect them from wild animals and foreign armies, had withdrawn his protection when they refused to keep their allegiance to Him. Not after one offense, or even ten offenses, but after hundreds of years of grace and discipline and exhorting prophets. Finally, He sent the people away from the promised land. He sent The Boys away.

But these weren’t rebellious boys. These were the children of faithful Israelites. They had learned the lesson of submission to God’s will. And so, the most significant thing they carried with them were the words of Jeremiah:

Jeremiah 35:14–17 (ESV)

I have spoken to you persistently, but you have not listened to me. I have sent to you all my servants the prophets, sending them persistently, saying, ‘Turn now every one of you from his evil way, and amend your deeds, and do not go after other gods to serve them, and then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to you and your fathers.’ But you did not incline your ear or listen to me... Therefore, thus says the Lord, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I am bringing upon Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the disaster that I have pronounced against them, because I have spoken to them and they have not listened, I have called to them and they have not answered.”

These words must have been ringing in their ears as they trudged the weary, 900 miles from Jerusalem to Babylon. It would have taken them a month to make the trip, if they were marching at the speed of an army. And while their families had been god-fearing to begin with, a deep resolve settled into these young men’s hearts.

The Boys realized that they were in this position because their people had refused to keep allegiance with the God of the covenant. They had done horrible, despicable things to each other—even their children were offered as burnt offerings on the idols of Molech in the valley of Hinnom outside of Jerusalem. These exiled boys knew they had two options—fight their oppressors, or submit to the discipline of God.

According to Jeremiah, submission was the obedient choice. And so they chose allegiance to God by submitting to their captors.

They watched as the rough soldiers hauled the precious emblems of their worship in heaps into the treasure house of the false god Marduk. And then they were marched into the barracks that would be their home for the next three years.

They were commanded to wash and put on clothes that had been provided by the king and then were escorted into a mess hall where all the new students were to take their meals.

Daniel records that these were strong, healthy, and good looking young men (Dan 1:4), but after a month or more of hiking across the desert, The Boys were looking a little gaunt. The king had generously provided them with food from his own kitchen—the best food in all the land. But there was a catch. The meat had been offered to idols, and the wine was alcoholic.

While The Boys weren’t vegetarian—they ate the passover lamb, after all—they knew that eating this meat implied that they were acknowledging and benefiting from the blessings of false gods. They couldn’t do that.

And maybe they remembered Proverbs 31:4 where it says

Proverbs 31:4 ESV

It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine, or for rulers to take strong drink,

Not wanting to submit themselves to foreign gods, and not wanting their judgment to be corrupted by alcohol, Daniel records that he made a decision:

Daniel 1:8 NKJV

But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s delicacies, nor with the wine which he drank; therefore he requested of the chief of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself.

For centuries the people of Israel had wandered away from their allegiance to God. And now, when Daniel was faced with a difficult, potentially life-or-death choice he decided to choose allegiance to God over apparent safety.

Maybe he was thinking about the promise that God had made in Leviticus 26 that if they would give him their allegiance in obedience that he would keep them safe:

Leviticus 26:3, 6 (ESV)

“If you walk in my statutes and observe my commandments and do them, then... I will give peace... and none shall make you afraid.

And that’s exactly what God did The Boys.

Daniel 1:9 NLT

Now God had given the chief of staff both respect and affection for Daniel.

There is a clear link between Daniel’s faithfulness to God, and God’s faithfulness to Daniel.

You might say that Daniel and his friends put themselves in a place where God could bless them.

God can’t bless you in disobedience. He can’t bless your self-willed, self-determined course of action. But when you step into the path of God, he can bless you.

The Finest Food

Even though the chief of the eunuchs favored Daniel and his friends, he was afraid their health would fail and he’d loose his life if he let them eat anything but the finest food the King had provided.

Daniel 1:10 NLT

But he responded, “I am afraid of my lord the king, who has ordered that you eat this food and wine. If you become pale and thin compared to the other youths your age, I am afraid the king will have me beheaded.”

Shut down by the chief of the eunuchs, but still undetered, Daniel proposed a scientific study to the steward in charge of their food—a ten-day test of the healthfulness of their proposed food—vegetables and water.

Daniel 1:13 NLT

“At the end of the ten days, see how we look compared to the other young men who are eating the king’s food. Then make your decision in light of what you see.”

That seemed reasonable to the steward, so he tested them for ten days. And at the end of ten days it was obvious that The Boys were better looking than all the other students who ate the kings food. So the steward didn’t make them eat the kings food anymore, and instead gave them vegetables for the rest of their time at the king’s school.

You might be tempted to draw a straight line from eating vegetables and drinking water to physical vigor and intellectual achievement. And you wouldn’t be too far off. The truth is that when we eat what God designed us to eat, we’re more likely to have good results. Eating by God’s design is absolutely a good idea. But think about the specific situation of these boys. They’d been on the road for a month, eating whatever limited morsels were available to them. Their bodies were fatigued, and their figures were gaunt from lack of proper nutrition. So, ten days of eating good food perked them right up and gave them a strength that the other captives didn’t experience as rapidly.

But the point the passage is making is not about the benefits of vegetarianism. Daniel’s story is all about the promises of God.

Daniel 1:17 ESV

As for these four youths, God gave them learning and skill in all literature and wisdom, and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams.

Do you see the point? God gave them learning and skill. God gave them favor with the steward.

When we read Daniels’ story about him and The Boys, we are reading Daniel’s story about God fulfilling his covenant. God had promised to do the hard stuff and Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azaria were living proof that when you put yourself in God’s path, He can use you for great things.

Structure of Daniel

This opening chapter of Daniel’s Story ends with Daniel in a favorable position with the king:

Daniel 1:20 NLT

Whenever the king consulted them in any matter requiring wisdom and balanced judgment, he found them ten times more capable than any of the magicians and enchanters in his entire kingdom.

But the chapter then gives us a fleeting glance at the end of Daniel’s life:

Daniel 1:21 ESV

And Daniel was there until the first year of King Cyrus.

Daniel’s Story takes us nearly the entirety of the 70 years of exile in Babylon that Jeremiah had predicted.

And the thing Daniel wants us to know more than anything else is that God was with him that whole time.

God lives with His people

When someone is angry with you, do you feel closer to them or farther away?

The boys in Daniel’s Story were experiencing the punishment of God on their nation, and it would have been easy for them to feel that God was far from them.

Ezekiel was a contemporary prophet with Daniel and his book helps us understand some very important aspects of Daniel’s Story.

We’re going to read a few short passages in Ezekiel 9, 10 and 11 but before we do, we need to remind ourselves of why God had Israel build a sanctuary in the first place.

Exodus 25:8 NLT

“Have the people of Israel build me a holy sanctuary so I can live among them.

Ezekiel was a priest living in Judah when Nebuchadnezzar deported some of the country. Daniel was taken in the first wave in 605, but Ezekiel stayed in Judah until 597, 8 years after Daniel. But in Babylon Ezekiel received a vision of God, and visions about the Temple.

In his vision, which you can read about in Ezekiel 8, he was taken by the spirit and transported to Jerusalem where he saw deeper apostacy than he could have imagined. This was a vision about judgment. So in Ezekiel chapter 9 he wrote about a group of executioners that had been commissioned by God to bring judgment on the idolatrous Judah. These executioners came to the gate of the temple that faces the north, each holding a weapon for slaughter in their hand. Ezekiel also saw a man with a writing tool who was called to first go throughout the land and

Ezekiel 9:4 (ESV)

put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations that are committed in it.”

There are strong parallels between this passage and the passages in Revelation that talk about the mark of the beast and the seal of God. But let’s set that connection aside and look at this passage to find out where God is in this story.

Ezekiel 9:3 (ESV)

Now the glory of the God of Israel had gone up from the cherub on which it rested to the threshold of the house.

God had the sanctuary built so he could live with Israel. And from the time of the Exodus until Ezekiel, the glory of the Lord, called the Shekina Glory, was always present in the temple, sitting on the mercy seat above the ten commandments and between the two covering cherubs.

But now, in Ezekiel’s vision, the glory of the Lord moves from between the Cherubs to the threshold of the temple door — just at the edge of the holy place.

All during the work of judgment God’s presence was at the doorway of the temple.

If you’ve read any of Ezekiel you might be familiar with the description of the Lord’s throne in Ezekiel 1. It describes him as sitting on a mobile throne that is moved around by wheels with eyes on them, and guarded by four living creatures, each with four faces. It’s a scene of indescribable light and glory. And it’s to this reference of God’s mobile throne that Ezekiel returns when he describes the glory of the Lord leaving the temple.

The judgment is finished and in Ezekiel 10:19 we read this:

Ezekiel 10:19 ESV

And the cherubim lifted up their wings and mounted up from the earth before my eyes as they went out, with the wheels beside them. And they stood at the entrance of the east gate of the house of the Lord, and the glory of the God of Israel was over them.

God had moved from the most holy place to the doorway of the temple, and the He moved to the east gate at the edge of the outer courtyard.

Some more judgment talk happens, but then everything shifts from judgment to promise as God speaks hope:

Ezekiel 11:19–21 ESV

And I will give them one heart, and a new spirit I will put within them. I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in my statutes and keep my rules and obey them. And they shall be my people, and I will be their God. But as for those whose heart goes after their detestable things and their abominations, I will bring their deeds upon their own heads, declares the Lord God.”

In spite of their rebellious nature, God’s promises would be fulfilled. He was not about to abandon the world just because the Israelites had a problem with allegiance. And so God promises a remnant of the captives headed to Babylon would get a new heart that would want to follow Him.

And its only after God made this promise that Ezekiel sees God’s glory move again:

Ezekiel 11:22–23 ESV

Then the cherubim lifted up their wings, with the wheels beside them, and the glory of the God of Israel was over them. And the glory of the Lord went up from the midst of the city and stood on the mountain that is on the east side of the city.

From the ark of the covenant to the temple doorway to the outer courtyard, and now God’s presence moved to the mountains east of the city.

God had left Judah.

The original plan was to dwell with his people, but now he had left the precious city of Jerusalem and the sacred temple built specifically for the sanctuary furniture and the presence of God.

When we read this passage we may be tempted to discouragement. In our deepest trouble, it looks like God abandons us. But that’s exactly the opposite of what you should understand from this passage.

The executioners in Ezekiel’s vision were representative of the judgments God would bring on Israel when Nebuchadnezzar would destroy Jerusalem with fire, kill Israelites by the thousands, and take the rest captive as exiles to Babylon. If God stayed in Jeresulam, there would be no temple, and no one left for Him to dwell with. So God did the most loving thing. He left Jersalem and headed east to Babylon—He went into exile too.

Think about the place where Ezekiel had this vision. Ezekiel was in Babylon. That means that God was with Ezekiel in Babylon!

Besides:

Acts 7:48 (ESV)

...the Most High does not dwell in houses made by hands...

God’s promise was to dwell WITH His people. So if they all had to leave Jerusalem, God wasn’t about to abandon them. Even in their punishment—especially in their punishment—God was with them.

Conclusion

If there is anything that Daniel wants you to learn from his story, its that God is faithful, and present, and powerful to save.

He calls God:

God of heaven (Dan 2:18-19, 37, 44)

King of Heaven (Dan 4:37)

Most High (Dan 4:17, 25; 7:25)

Most High God (Dan 3:25; 4:2; 5:18, 21)

God of gods and Lord of kings (Dan 2:47)

Living God (Dan 6:20)

God of my fathers (Dan 2:23)

Yahweh (Dan 9:2, 4, 13-14, 20)

Lord (Dan 1:2; 9:3, 7, 8, 19)

Prince of the host (Dan 8:11)

And the Ancient of Days (Dan 7:9, 13)

To Daniel, God is the forever-living, sovereign king of the universe and nothing God sets His mind to do will be thwarted by men. We’ll soon find that God is the one who sets up and takes down kings. He is the God who is involved in the affairs of men. When necessary he humbles the proud and calls people to repentance. But most importantly, we’ll find that He is the God who fulfills his covenant promises—He comes to earth to be cut off for His people, to end sin and evil, and to bring in righteousness. He is the God who will one day soon overcome all the governments of the world and set up His own kingdom that will never end.

And among all that kingly talk, Daniel is not shy to tell us that God is the one who lived with Him and protected him over and over and over again—a personal God.

The Boys believed God’s promises and trusted in His power, and they gave their allegiance to Him wholeheartedly. King after king threatened them with violence and death if they didn’t turn their backs of the God their fathers. But they kept their allegiance to God, and God protected them. They put themselves in the place where God could bless them.

Who has your allegiance?

Are you in a place where God can bless you? Are you walking in God’s path today?

Closing Hymn

Stand with me and sing our closing hymn, Lord of Creation (320). You may not know the words to this song, but its sung to the tune of Be Thou My Vision, so you should be able to pick it up quickly.