Daniel: Living in a Hostile World

We're reading from chapter 1, it's on page 883.

In the third year of the reign of Jehoiachim, king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon,

came to Jerusalem and besieged it.

And the Lord delivered Jehoiachim, 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.

Then the king ordered Ashpinaz, chief of his court officials,

to bring in some of the Israelites from the royal family and the nobility.

Young men, without any physical defect, handsome, showing aptitude for every kind of learning,

well informed, quick to understand and qualified to serve in the king's palace.

He was to teach them the language and literature of the Babylonians.

The king assigned them a daily amount of food and wine from the king's table.

They were to be trained for three years and after that they were to enter the king's service.

Among these were some from Judah.

Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah.

The chief official gave them new names.

To Daniel, the name Belteshazzar.

To Hananiah, Shadrach.

To Mishael, Meshach.

And to Azariah, Abednego.

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 in this way.

Now God had caused the official to show favor and sympathy to Daniel

but the official told Daniel,

I am afraid of my lord the king who has assigned your food and drink.

Why should he see you looking worse than the other young men of your age?

The king would then have my head because of you.

Daniel then said to the guard whom the chief official had appointed over Daniel,

Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah.

Please test your servants for ten days.

Give us nothing but vegetables to eat and water to drink.

Then compare our appearance with that of the young men who eat the royal food

and treat your servants in accordance to what you see.

So he agreed to this and tested them for ten days.

At the end of the ten days they looked healthier and better nourished

than any of the young men who ate the royal food.

So the guard took away their choice food and the wine they were to drink

and gave them vegetables instead.

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.

At the end of the time set by the king to bring them in

the chief official presented them to Nebuchadnezzar.

The king talked with them and he found none equal to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah

so they entered the king's service.

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

and Daniel remained there until the first year of king Cyrus.

There's a little sheet there to hand out.

If maybe somebody could get the box of pens as well and pass them around if anybody would like a pen

please put your hand up and a pen can be brought to you.

Thanks Connor for reading that.

We're going to be looking at Daniel over the next number of weeks.

You can follow the headings which will give you an indication of perhaps what it's about each chapter in the term programme

and we will also be following it up on our Wednesday evening studies as well.

So as we start into Daniel let's pray and ask for God's help.

Our Father God we are amazed that a book, a story written hundreds of years ago

is now preserved for us, before us in a language that we can understand.

But we come to this story recognising that it is not just any story

but it is God's word to us.

God speaking his truth to us about himself, ourselves and the world in which we live.

God's word to us about himself.

God's word to us about himself.

So Father please would you teach us, instruct us, command us, train us in the ways that we should go.

Speak to us now, through your holy word we pray.

Amen.

The world that we live in is hostile and dangerous.

With conflicts raging between Russia and Ukraine,

the spread of ISIS across Syria and Iraq,

the innocent slaughter of whole villages by Boko Haram,

the continual news of murder and rape and violent assault on our own streets,

the world we live in is not a safe place to live,

especially if you are a follower of Jesus Christ.

Listen to the news headings from around the world this past month.

In Afghanistan, a Christian minister is kidnapped.

In Cameroon, church buildings were burnt down and their houses looted.

In China, a pastor sentenced to 12 years in prison.

In Egypt, a few Christians sentenced to five years in prison.

In India, a group of 100 Christians attacked by a mob.

In Nigeria, gunmen opened fire on worshippers, killing some in four churches.

In North Korea, tourists arrested and charged.

In Pakistan, a Christian teenager raped and killed.

In Syria, homes belonging to Christians confiscated.

In Tanzania, a church building torched.

In Vietnam, Bible school students taken away for interrogation.

And let's not forget our friends who have been imprisoned on the border.

Now we mightn't face the same pressures that we have just read.

But I think we all feel the reality that our Christian views are no longer tolerated or accepted.

We feel the squeeze of being rejected perhaps by family, maybe isolated by friends.

The world that we live in as Christians is hostile and dangerous.

And this is the kind of world that Daniel lived in.

Having experienced the brutal onslaught of the Babylonian military forces,

Daniel now finds himself somewhat of a slave in a foreign land,

under the rule of an unfaithful king who stood opposed to Daniel's God.

So the big question we want to start with at the very beginning is this.

How do we, as God's people, live in a hostile world?

How do we live in a hostile world?

Well there are three things that we need to know.

The first thing that we need to know is the way in which God rules the world.

The way in which God rules the world.

Look at verse 1.

In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim, king of Judah,

Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem and besieged it.

Now when we read about these two kings, this isn't just two kings at war.

This is the world at war with God.

You see, each nation, and it was well known at the time,

that each nation had their own God, which each nation represented.

Nations and gods were inseparable.

So if you attacked another nation, in effect you were attacking their God.

And the king who won that battle, therefore had the more powerful God behind them.

Judah knew this.

Babylon knew this.

And more importantly, God knew this.

Because God had chosen the people of Judah to be his special people.

He had rescued them from Egypt.

He had entered into a special relationship with them.

And now they were to represent him in the world as his people.

To live for him.

So if Judah gets defeated, then God gets defeated.

If Judah loses this battle with Babylon,

then it's going to be reported all around the kingdom that God has lost the battle.

So our expectation is, isn't it,

that God is going to fight the Babylonians,

and going to send them home battered and bruised.

But look what happens in verse 2.

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.

You see, not only is the king defeated,

but the temple, which was the very symbol of God's presence and power,

has been pilfered.

The physical objects or the articles from the temple

that represented Judah's God,

have now all been taken away,

and now they're sitting as trophies in the treasure house of Babylon's God.

God has lost the battle.

God is no longer in control.

All of this talk about God being the creator,

the sustainer of the universe,

the supreme authority,

the one with absolute power,

that's all just hot air.

Now as we look out on the world today,

isn't that our same conclusion?

God powerful?

Don't be so stupid.

Look at all the wars out there.

Look at all the violence that's going on.

God in charge?

Don't be so silly.

Look at how his people are being persecuted and oppressed

in every nation.

And so we look and we watch,

and we think God is a loser,

and people think he's pathetic,

he's weak,

and he's a failure.

But let's not rush to conclusions,

and let's not read this introduction too quickly.

Look at verse 2 again very carefully.

Look what it says.

And the Lord delivered Jehoiakim,

king of Judah,

into his hands.

You see, the king of Babylon

may have come with his military might,

but it was the Lord

who delivered them into his hands.

And the chat about town may have been that Nebuchadnezzar rules,

but history records for us

that it is God who rules.

You see, what seems like the death and the defeat of God

is in reality

the power and authority of God.

The nation of Judah might feel that God has abandoned them,

that he's left them,

that he's weak,

and he's lost control,

and he's no good.

And as we live in this world

with all its hostility,

we might think that God is lost,

and that he's weak,

and he's powerless,

and somehow we're left on our own

to try and cope.

But don't forget the assurance of verse 2.

The Lord delivered Jehoiakim,

king of Judah,

into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar.

God is in charge.

And at the very outset of the book,

we are to get this message drummed into us,

that here is a God who rules over the kings

and the kingdoms of this world.

He orders events as he wills.

He does what he pleases

to accomplish his plan and his purpose.

This is the way in which God rules.

So the first thing we need to know

as we live in the hostile world

is to know the way in which God rules.

He is in charge.

The second thing we need to know

is the way we should live.

Look at verse 3.

After the siege,

which was horrific,

and the people were taken into slavery,

we read in verse 3

that the king ordered Ashpenaz,

chief of the court officials,

to bring some of the Israelites

from the royal family and nobility,

young men

without any physical defect,

handsome,

showing aptitude for every kind of learning,

well-informed,

quick to understand,

and qualified to serve

in the king's palace.

And among those,

look at verse 6,

were some who were from Judah,

Daniel,

Hananiah,

Mishael,

and Azariah,

all taken.

Now these lads were the pick of the crop,

weren't they?

They had the looks,

they had the brains,

and they had the body.

But here we find them,

not with any special treatment,

but here they are

under the oppressive rule of a king,

who opposed their god,

and forces them

into a program

or a regime of assimilation.

He wants to turn these young men

into Babylonians.

And they had a very clever way to do it.

They had to, first of all,

learn a new culture.

So look at the rest of verse 4.

He was to teach them,

these young men,

the language

and the literature

of the Babylonians.

They would have to learn history

from their perspective.

They would have to learn

all about their culture

and the way that they do things.

And,

they had to adopt

to new customs.

Verse 5.

They had to eat

what the king wanted them to eat.

The king assigned them

a daily amount of food

and wine

from the king's table.

And they were to be trained

for three years.

And after that,

they would enter the king's service.

And in case

they ever got any illusions

as to thinking

of going back,

they were given

a complete new identity.

Verse 7.

The chief official

gave them new names.

And all their new names

were named after

Babylonian gods.

So to Daniel,

he would be called

Belshazzar,

to Hananiah,

Shadrach,

to Mishael,

Meshach,

and to Azariah,

Abednego.

The message

was plain and simple.

You are no longer

God's people.

You are now

Babylonian people.

At every point

of their life,

they were to conform

to this new way

of living.

They were to be like

the people around them

and they were to live

like the people around them.

And isn't that

the pressure

that God's people face

every single day?

to be like

those around us,

to become

like the world,

to think

like the world,

to behave

like the world,

to live

like the world.

We've got to

change our views

on marriage

and become

politically correct.

We mustn't be

so narrow-minded

on abortion

we must adapt

to the culture.

we must accept

that there isn't

just one truth

but whatever

you determine

is true.

We've got to

learn to conform.

We've got to

fit in

to everybody else

and that's the

pressure we all

face every single

day

as we go to

school or college

or go to work

or wherever we are.

So how are we

to live

in this

hostile environment?

well,

God calls us

to remain

loyal

to him,

to make

deliberate

choices

to be loyal

to him.

Look at

verse 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

in this way.

Now that

seems quite

strange.

Daniel was

willing to

live in a

new culture.

He didn't

fight that.

He was

willing to

accept a

new name

and accept

that,

well,

I'll be

called

Belshazzar.

I'll put

up with

that.

But I'm

not going

to eat

the food.

Instead,

he tells us

in verse 12,

he says to

one of the

officials,

please test

your servants

for ten

days.

Give us

nothing but

vegetables to

eat and

water to

drink.

Why was

he so

against

eating the

king's

food?

Well,

this is not

a campaign

for more

vegetarians

or to

save the

furry

animals.

This is

all about

loyalty to

God.

You see,

the custom

of accepting

food from

the king

was to

show loyalty

to the

king.

If you

had steak

with the

king,

you are

entering

into a

covenant

with the

king.

So to

eat the

king's

food

was to

turn your

back on

God.

It was to

break loyalty

with God

and to

align yourself

to say,

here's my

new king,

my new

lord,

my new

master.

And Daniel

wouldn't

do that.

God

will

be

and we

too

have to

make our

stand

in this

hostile

world

to hold

to the

fact

that

scripture

is

the supreme

authority,

that

Jesus

Christ

is

the

absolute

truth.

It

might

seem

so

small

and

insignificant,

but it's

by those

little

choices

of

obeying

scripture

and

trusting

Christ

with our

lives

that we

show to

a

watching

world

where

our

loyalty

lies,

that my

devotion

and my

loyalty

is to

God

and his

word

and to

his

son

the

Lord

Jesus

Christ.

But let's

remember,

we don't

do this

alone.

Look very

carefully here

at what's

going on.

The God

who rules

over this

world

is present

with us

in the

world

to help

us as we

face the

hostilities

and the

pressures

all around

us.

So look

at verse

9.

Now

God

had

caused

the

official

to show

favour

and sympathy

to Daniel.

It's a

little bit

like verse

2.

The

Lord

delivered.

Now

it's

saying

God

caused

the

official

to show

favour

to

Daniel.

We're

not

sure

how

the

official

managed

to

allow

Daniel

his

vegetables

and

his

water

without

the

king

finding

out.

We

don't

know

if

he

bribed

the

chef

for

what

he

did.

But

we

do

know

that

God

caused

the

official

to be

favourable

to

Daniel.

God

had

not

abandoned

Daniel.

Yes

they were

in a

foreign

land.

Yes

they were

in a

different

place.

But

God

hadn't

left

them.

God

was

present

in

the

pressure

and

he

turned

the

heart

of

his

enemy

to

be

sympathetic

towards

Daniel.

So

verse

16

the

guard

took

away

their

choice

food

and

the

wine

that

they

were

to

drink

and

gave

them

vegetables

instead.

Amazing.

God

turning

somebody

to work

for the

good

of

his

people.

You

see

when we

face

the

pressures

of

this

hostile

world

when

we

are

being

pushed

and

squeezed

to

conform

and

fit

in

our

response

is to

remain

loyal

and

obedient

to

God

to

trust

that

God

is

always

ruling

over

our

lives

and

the

lives

of

everybody

else

around

about

us

and

we

mightn't

even

see

it

we

mightn't

even

feel

it

but

God

is

present

with

us

when

we

go

to

work

when

we

go

to

college

he

is

with

us

in

the

pressures

of

the

world

ruling

over

all

things

to

work

to

the

good

for

his

people

so

we

need

to

know

how

God

rules

we

need

to

know

how

we

are

to

live

and

third

we

need

to

know

the

way

in

which

God

works

the

way

in

which

God

works

as

he

rules

this

world

and

as

we

live

loyal

to

him

you

see

our

hope

I

think

is

this

and

we

probably

prayed

it

I've

prayed

it

that

God

would

somehow

ease

the

pressure

could

you

just

make

things

a

little

bit

easier

for

me

maybe

we've

even

asked

God

to

take

us

out

of

the

hostility

or

out

of

the

pressure

that

we

find

ourselves

in

remove

it

from

us

take

me

out

of

the

situation

but

rather than

take

us

out

God

keeps

us

in

and

works

through

us

in

the

hostility

we see

this in

three ways

first

look at

how God

works

through

Daniel

look at

verse 17

to these

four young

men

God

gave

knowledge

and

understanding

of all

kinds

of

literature

and

learning

you see

rather than

take them

out of

their

situation

he

gives

them

what

they

need

in

the

situation

he

provides

them

with

learning

and

understanding

so that

they

can

be

in

the

situation

verse

18

so at

the end

of time

set by

the king

to bring

them

in

the chief

official

presented

them to

Nebuchadnezzar

and the

king talked

with them

and he

found

none

equal

to

Daniel

Hananiah

Mishael

and Azariah

so they

entered

the king's

service

at the

beginning

of chapter

one

God

looks like

he's

dead

buried

and

defeated

by the

end

of chapter

one

God

is

ruling

with

all

power

and

all

authority

God

has

preserved

his

people

he

has

placed

them

in

his

place

right

at the

very

heart

of the

kingdom

of

Babylon

right

with an

access

to the

king

who

is

on

the

throne

who

thought

he

had

buried

Judah's

gods

isn't

that

incredible

in

fact

look at

verse

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 the

whole

of his

kingdom

and

what

we'll

discover

as we

read

through

Daniel

in the

unfolding

chapters

is that

Daniel

is the

one who

comes to

the

aid of

the

king

time

and

time

again

he's

the

one

who

can

interpret

the

dreams

he's

the

one

who

speaks

God's

truth

he's

the

one

who

witnesses

to

the

king

and

God

will

use

Daniel

to

turn

king

Nebuchadnezzar's

heart

towards

God

God

may

appear

to the

watching

world

that he

is weak

and powerless

and useless

dead

and buried

but he

is alive

and well

and he

is at work

through his

people

in the

pressure

and in

the

hostility

and if

we're in

any doubt

look at

verse 21

look at

this little

statement

at the

very end

and

Daniel

remained

there

until

the

first

year

of

king

Cyrus

well

who's

king

Cyrus

where

did

he

come

from

well

we'll

find out

about

him

later

on

in

chapters

10

I think

it is

he was

the

king

of the

Persian

empire

they

were

the

ones

that

came

in

and

defeated

the

Babylonian

empire

Nebuchadnezzar

will

go

the

Babylonian

empire

will

go

kings

will

go

kingdoms

will

go

but

God's

man

Daniel

is

still

there

he

preserves

his

people

in

his

place

and

rather

than

take us

out of

the

hostility

rather

than

ease

the

pressure

that

we're

in

he

works

with

us

and

through

us

in

the

hostility

so

God

works

through

Daniel

but

isn't

this

how

God

ultimately

works

all

of

the

time

he

works

through

his

son

the

Lord

Jesus

in

the

same

way

look

at

Philippians

with

me

go

to

Philippians

I

haven't

got a

page

number

so

if

somebody

has

got

it

there

they

can

call

it

out

Philippians

Philippians 2 · chapter mention

chapter

2

1179

Philippians

Philippians 2 · chapter mention

chapter

2

look

at

the

way

in

God

works

through

his

people

especially

through

his

son

you

see

God

is

not

immune

from

the

suffering

and

the

hostility

of

this

world

he

doesn't

stand

back

and

say

I'm

not

going

to

be

a

part

of

it

what

does

he

do

God

sends

his

son

the

Lord

Jesus

Christ

into

the

hostility

of

this

world

look

at

chapter

2

verse

6

who

speaking

of

Jesus

being

in

very

nature

God

did

not

consider

equality

with

God

something

to be

grasped

but

he

made

himself

nothing

and

took

on

the

very

nature

of

a

servant

and

being

made

in

human

likeness

and

found

in

appearance

as a

man

he

humbled

himself

and

became

obedient

to

death

even

death

on

a

cross

he

invaded

our

world

he

moved

into

our

world

he

didn't

escape

the

hostility

he

came

into

the

hostility

he

came

to

enemies

like

you

and

me

to

be

among

us

to

identify

with

us

to

serve

us

to

die

for

us

and

when

the

pressure

came

on

and

it's

most

intense

when

the

hostility

was

most

of

its

worst

Jesus

didn't

opt

out

he

remained

loyal

and

faithful

and

obedient

to

his

father

and

he

went

to

the

cross

for

you

and

for

me

and

while

the

watching

world

believes

that

Jesus

was

dead

and

defeated

as

he

hung

on

the

cross

look

at

verse

9

therefore

God

exalted

him

to

the

highest

place

and

gave

Jesus

the

name

that

is

above

every

name

that

at

the

name

of

Jesus

every

knee

should

bow

in

heaven

on

earth

and

under

the

earth

and

every

tongue

confess

that

Jesus

Christ

is

Lord

to

the

glory

of

God

the

father

you

see

God

didn't

remove

himself

from

the

world

he

came

into

the

world

and

he

worked

through

his

son

Jesus

to

bring

salvation

to

the

world

and

now

he

reigns

as

the

risen

Lord

victorious

over

everyone

and

everything

and

he

continues

to

do

his

work

through

those

who

love

and

trust

his

people

and

God

continues

to

work

through

us

you

see

Jesus

didn't

just

save

us

to

take

us

out

of

the

world

he

saved

us

to

send

us

back

into

the

world

he

rescued

us

he

entered

into

a

relationship

with

us

so

that

we

as

people

might

represent

him

in

the

world

in

which

we

live

he

calls

us

to

be

like

a

Daniel

live

in

the

hostility

of

the

world

live

in

the

pressure

serve

those

who

are

around

you

and

I

know

it's

not

easy

and

I

know

that

it's

tough

and

you

maybe

are

frightened

at

the

very

prospect

of

going

back

to

college

or

back

to

school

maybe

you're

the

only

Christian

in

your

classroom

maybe

you're

the

only

Christian

in

your

peer

group

and

you're

wondering

how

you're

going to

stand up

maybe

you're

the only

witness

the Christian

witness

in your

workplace

and

the

pressure

will

be

on

and

the

hostility

will

be

there

but

God

has

rescued

you

and

he

calls

you

to

be

his

representative

and

he

gives

us

something

much

greater

than

just

knowledge

and

understanding

he

gives

us

the

power

of

his

Holy

Spirit

and

rather

than

take

you

out

of

the

situation

rather

than

remove

the

pressure

from

you

he

works

through

you

where

you

are

we

mightn't

get to

serve

in the

palace

of a

king

like

Daniel

but

guess

what

we

are

serving

the

king

of

kings

the

risen

lord

Jesus

the

one

who

rules

over

the

kingdoms

the

one

who

has

authority

and

power

over

all

things

and

all

people

working

that