Standing strong in difficult times
Daniel
Have you heard the story of the HMS Resolute? The HMS resolute was a vessel in Royal British vessel rigged for Arctic exploration. In August of 1853 the HMS Resolute got caught in the Arctic ice. After staying the Winter in the Arctic, the Captain of the HMS Resolute ordered the ship to be abandoned and led his crew across the ice to find one of the other ships in their exploration.
In September of 1855 the ship was found drifting in the David Straight by a whaling ship from Groton CT. The Captain re-rigged the spars and sails, and arrived at New London, Connecticut on 24 December 1855. In 1856, the HMS Resolute made her trip back to England, but it was not the last time she would see American soil. The Resolute served in the British Royal Navy until 1879 when she was decommissioned and broken up. But that’s not the end of her story.
In 1880 a desk was made from her timbers and presented to President Rutherford B. Hayes as a gift for rescuing the vessel. It has come to be known as the resolute desk and has served many presidents in the oval office.
But that still not the end of the story. In 2009, Prime Minister Gordon Brown presented President Barack Obama the framed commission of the HMS Resolute made from timber from another British vessel. And now you know the rest of the story.
But what does the HMS Resolute stand for? It stands for the ability to stand firm in difficult time. The Resolute lives on and give all a reminder of the ability to outlive current circumstances.
It is not anything new to most people when I say, that times are tough. We are living in difficult times. People are finding their jobs are being "re-structured", which I think is a new way of saying, "we are going to have to lay off people, cut back hours and freeze pay.” At the same time, basic living expenses like milk, eggs, meat, etc. are not getting any cheaper. People are seeing their houses shrink in value or even worse they are not able to afford the mortgage. And don’t get me started about my 401K, or lack thereof recently.
We are living in difficult time, but it is not the first time people have fallen on hard times. I hear a lot of comparisons between the great depression and the current economical climate. But I want to go a bit further back than that. I want to take us on a trip way back to c. 605 BC. Back to a time where difficult is defined as being conquered by the greatest empire at the time, being hauled off as a teenager to a new country, and being enlisted in the greatest re-programming campaign the world had ever seen. These young men had to deal with all this difficulty, yet they were able to stay strong in their faith and even lead the pagan leaders of the day to recognize the greatness of their God. That is "Standing Strong in Difficult Times".
Dan 1:1-4 - 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. And the king spake unto Ashpenaz the master of his eunuchs, that he should bring certain of the children of Israel, and of the king’s seed, and of the princes; Children in whom was no blemish, but well favoured, and skilful in all wisdom, and cunning in knowledge, and understanding science, and such as had ability in them to stand in the king’s palace, and whom they might teach the learning and the tongue of the Chaldeans.
Historical Background:
For many years God sent prophets to the backsliding Kings of Judah. Men like Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel called the Kings back to a right relationship with God. But they did not listen to God’s pleas for repentance, instead they continued in their rebellious ways. Instead of God’s blessings, they incurred His judgments.
In Judah’s 389 year history it had 20 kings. You can count on one hand the Kings that stayed true to God. The following are a few Kings that seem to illustrate a common theme of rebellious behavior leading Judah away from God.
-Abijah - 1 Kings 15:3, And he walked in all the sins of his father, which he had done before him: and his heart was not perfect with the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father.
-Athaliah - 2 Chron 21:6, And he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, like as did the house of Ahab: for he had the daughter of Ahab to wife: and he wrought that which was evil in the eyes of the Lord.
-Manassah - 2 Kings 21:10-12, And the Lord spake by his servants the prophets, saying, Because Manasseh king of Judah hath done these abominations, and hath done wickedly above all that the Amorites did, which were before him, and hath made Judah also to sin with his idols: Therefore thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Behold, I am bringing such evil upon Jerusalem and Judah, that whosoever heareth of it, both his ears shall tingle
Jeremiah contended that Judah had forsaken the sabbatical laws of the Land. Judah was told to work the Land for 6 years and then let the land rest for one. Judah’s covetousness and greed led them to disobey God. So, for 490 years Judah worked the ground w/o any years of rest. Jeremiah prophesied that Judah would be removed from the land for 70 years. Judah was in captivity to Babylonia for 70 years.
Other prophets foretold that God would bring judgment for Judah’s idolatry. Judah began to worship other Gods. The hearts of the kings of Israel were seduced away from worshiping God alone. This led the entire nation into idolatry. God sent the prophets Hosea, Amos and Isaiah to draw the people back, but change was only temporary. Hezekiah led sweeping changed in Judah, but his Son Manassah led the people back again into idolatry. In fact nothing seemed to get Judah’s attention. That is until 605 BC.
In 605 BC, the Babylonian Empire defeated the Egyptian Army at Carchemish and marched toward Egypt. Judah laid right in line with this assault. So in c. 603 BC, Judah surrendered to the Babylonian empire.
The Babylonian forces took heavy losses in Egypt and retreated back to Babylonia. This Led Judah to rebel against Babylon. In 597 BC, the Babylonian forced were once again camped against the wall of Jerusalem. Israel surrendered saving thousands of lives and their city and temple. But about 10,000 captives were taken back to Babylon.
Judah rebelled again in 588 BC. This time the Babylonian empire laid siege on Judah for 2 ½ years. This time they laid waste to the walls, place and temple. Most of the in habitants were taken away into captivity.
Daniels and his friends were probably taken to Babylon at the time of the first conquest.
Main Characters:
These Three men received three years of training in the Babylonian culture. They would have learned thing like, language, culture, and religion. In essence, this was a re-programming campaign. Even the name of our three character were changed to further show the re-programming effort.
Nothing shows this clearer than the fact that their names were changed:
- Daniel meaning "God is my Judge" was changed to Belteshazzar which means "Bel (implied) will ’protect his life’"
- Hananiah meaning "The Lord is Gracious" was changed to Shadrach which means "Command to Aku". (the Babylonian moon God)
- Mishael meaning "Who is What God is was changed to Meshack which means "Who is like Aku is".
- Azariah meaning "The Lord will help" was changed to Abednego which means "Servant of Nebo." (The 2nd highest God in Babylonian religion)
Even in the name change is shows that the reprogramming campaign was not just to change the individuals learning, but to change their faith.
Application:
There are two major themes that must be understood in order to put the story of Daniel in its proper light.
First, this passage assures us that God is in control even in the worst circumstances. This concept is called the sovereignty of God. What is the sovereignty of God?
One Commentator puts it this way… “The Sovereignty of God. What do we mean by this expression? We mean the supremacy of God, the kingship of God, the god-hood of God. To say that God is Sovereign is to declare that God is God. To say that God is Sovereign is to declare that He is the Most High, doing according to His will in the army of Heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth, so that none can stay His hand or say unto Him what doest Thou? (Dan. 4:35). To say that God is Sovereign is to declare that He is the Almighty, the Possessor of all power in Heaven and earth, so that none can defeat His counsels, thwart His purpose, or resist His will (Psa. 115:3). To say that God is Sovereign is to declare that He is "The Governor among the nations" (Psa. 22:28), setting up kingdoms, overthrowing empires, and determining the course of dynasties as pleaseth Him best. To say that God is Sovereign is to declare that He is the "Only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords" (1 Tim. 6:15). Such is the God of the Bible.” - A. W. Pink
What is the sovereignty of God? It is the sovereign control of God over all His creation! Even when his creation rebels against Him, His sovereign control draws them back to himself. Consider Jonah. Johan said no, and God called a big fish to find him. That’s the sovereignty of God.
Second, Since God is in control, then I can trust what He is doing. This is the Biblical virtue of Faith. Faith is trust put into action. James does a great job in showing that faith is not just belief, but belief that is put into action in one’s life.
Daniel and his friends all suffered devastation. They were removed from their family and friends probably at the age of 15. They were carried away from their place of home to Babylon where they were challenged to change everything about them. It would have been easy for them just to try to fit in. It would have been easy for them to say that God had forsaken them, and just live anyway they wanted. But they did not. The entire book of Daniel is a memorial to people who stood firm in spite of their current difficulties. They remind us that it is possible stand strong in difficult times.
In fact over the next few weeks, here are the studies we will follow.
1. Standing strong in the midst of devastation…developing the biblical virtue of Faith
2. Standing strong in the midst of Worldliness…developing the biblical virtue of Purity (Dan 1:5-18)
3. Standing strong in the midst of Uncertainty…developing the biblical virtue of trust. (Dan 2)
4. Standing strong in the midst of compromise…developing the biblical virtue of Unity. (Dan 3)
5. Standing strong in the midst of success…developing the biblical virtue of Humility. (Dan 4)
6. Standing strong in the midst of change …developing the biblical virtue of faithfulness. (Dan 5)
7. Standing strong in the midst of trials…developing the biblical virtue of rest. (Dan 6:8-14)
8. Standing strong in the midst of the end times …developing the biblical virtue of Perseverance. (Daniel 7-8, 10-12)
9. Standing strong in the midst of waiting …developing the biblical virtue of Prayer. (Dan 9)
CONCLUSION:
The fall of Jerusalem looked like a triumph of the pagan gods over the true God of Israel…but in actuality it was actually a victory for the Lord! He kept His covenant with Israel and He fulfilled His promises. In fact, the same God who raised up the Babylonians to defeat Judah {sic. in accordance to his promise to judge Judah for their disobedience} later raised up the Medes and Persians to conquer Babylon. The Lord also ordained that a page ruler decree that the Jews could return to their Land and rebuild the temple.” - Warren Weirsbe, Be Resolute
God is in control! We his people are to live lives of faith that reveal the fact that God is in control.
