Thriving or Surviving
Feb 5, 2012 Dan 1
Intro:
What does it take to not merely survive, but to thrive amidst difficult times? That is the uncomfortable question that jumped out at me through the pages of Scripture this week, in a story that I am going to tell you in a moment.
See, we are in the midst of a difficult time, removed from our facility, after having only partial use since July. Uprooted. Some of our ministries, like our weekly Wednesday night ministry designed to move us into our community and world with the love of Jesus, are on hold completely. Others, like our ladies Bible study and our youth ministries and our weekly worship service are in temporary locations. While still others, like our mission team in Bolivia right now, continue on. Last week I spoke about a need to come together, in patience and love and strength, and hold tight together. This week, I felt God pushing a little further. What does it take to not merely survive, but to thrive?
Meeting Daniel:
The year is 605BC. The nation is in turmoil. Young King Jehoiakim, at 28 years old, is making a royal mess of things. Literally, he did evil in the eyes of the LORD his God. (2 Chronicles 36:5). The prophet Jeremiah has been warning, begging, pleading the people to return to God, to give up their wicked ways, to treat the poor with fairness and to worship the Lord alone. So have others, like the prophet Uriah, who was threatened, fled to Egypt, hunted down and then hauled back to King Jehoiakim who promptly had him killed by the sword and his body disrespected (Jeremiah 26:21-23).
Jehoiakim has not been playing nice with others. Including the powerful nations around him, he shifted his allegiance from one to another, and now the massive Babylonian army is marching towards Jerusalem.
But my story is not really about him.
Four young friends sat together in their comfortable homes near the palace. Around their father’s tables, the conversation always seems to turn to Jeremiah and his prophecies. Is he right? Would our God really betray us, and allow our enemies to conquer Jerusalem? Did God not make a covenant with us, to always protect and always fight for us, to establish us as a people forever? Did God not promise our Father Abraham that we would be as numerous as stars?
The debate continued among the four young men as they lay around the table, popping olives into their mouths and sipping their wine. Children of the nobles, they had an excellent education, training in diplomacy, understanding of peoples and government and how to run a country. They knew the stories of their people, and the stories of their God: Father Abraham, Moses and Pharoah, King David; these they knew inside and out. They enjoyed good food and wine, security, wealth. And the luxury to sit around and debate together, as the army of Babylonia marched closer. Which they did, day after day.
Soon the Babylonians arrived. Soldiers clashed, swords clanged and arrows zipped through the air, the King put up a fight, but not much of one. Blood was spilled, but victory was easy. For the Babylonians, that is.
Mishael ran to find his three friends, and together they huddled behind closed doors. HE is actually here, the King of Babylon! I saw his horse riding through the gates of Jerusalem. Jehoiakim ordered the soldiers to surrender, and now they are going to meet. We have lost. Tension filled the room as the four together wondered what this might mean.
Then they heard weeping and wailing, and they ran out into the streets and saw people running away from the temple. Azariah grabbed one of them and the four held him against a wall. What is going on, they demanded. The Babylonians are in the Temple, they are looting it! The sacred objects, they are taking them, where will they stop? What else will they take?
Azariah let go and the man ran off, and the four ran towards the temple to see for themselves. It was a bad idea. They ran into the outer court of the temple and into the middle of the Babylonian soldiers, who quickly surrounded them. The boys struggled and fought, but were no match for the professional soldiers. They were taken captive, tied together and led outside the city walls to the Babylonian camp.
Days passed, the four went through various stages of anger, despair, confusion, resignation, and finally resolve. They sat in the dirt, able to see their home of Jerusalem but not sure they would ever set foot inside again. Daniel spoke: My friends, it appears the prophet Jeremiah spoke truth. Our God has given King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon the city. Yet Jeremiah also spoke of God’s faithfulness, that God would punish but then restore, and that we God’s people must return to God in humility and serve Him alone. I hereby vow to serve my God, and Him alone, no matter what may happen to me. Perhaps God will hear my prayer, and have mercy upon me. Mishael, Azariah, and Hananiah agreed and together the four made vows before the LORD.
Then they were carried off to Babylon. Tears flowed freely as the soldiers grabbed the ropes that bound their wrists and tied them behind their mounts. The four stared at the city as long as it was within view, listening to the lament of parents from behind the city walls as their children were hauled away. Captives. Exiles. Uprooted from all they had every known, taken from family and friends, from the streets they had played in, and from the temple of the God they served.
Many weeks later, in the Babylonian throne room, King Nebuchadnezzar sat in opulent luxury, spoils of war around him, and began to plot ways to maintain his hold over the nation of Judah. 3 The king ordered Ashpenaz, his chief of staff, to bring to the palace some of the young men of Judah’s royal family and other noble families, who had been brought to Babylon as captives. 4 Select only strong, healthy, and good-looking young men, he said. Make sure they are well versed in every branch of learning, are gifted with knowledge and good judgment, and are suited to serve in the royal palace. Train these young men in the language and literature of Babylon. (Dan 1).
Now I need some help here. I need an Ashpenaz (recruit volunteer). Now, Ashpenaz, I need you to follow King Nebu’s command, Select 4 strong, healthy, and good-looking you men. Excellent. (hang name signs, Hebrew names out).
Now, Ashpenaz, the King has commanded you to thoroughly and completely Babylonialize them. You have 3 years. Teach them the language, the culture, train them to think clearly and have much knowledge and wisdom. Let’s even give them new, Babylonian names, that will help with their new identity. (flip signs) Then, when you have Babylonialized them, they may serve the King himself. They can be powerful and influential, be given important tasks that will make Babylon great. And, to seal the deal, the King has ordered you feed them every day from the King’s very own kitchen. All the same, mouthwatering, kingly food, the best of the land, the delicacies, the delights, fine roasted game, rich sauces, delightful sweets, all that the King himself eats you are to feed them.
See, this will really suck them in. This will help them to see the greatness of Babylon. This will prove to them they belong in the kingdom of Babylon. This will help them forget their own lands, their own gods, and become assimilated. Let them see, let them taste, let them experience the goodness of their new home. Let them eat with the King, and become his.
It is a timeless tactic. Our world still does it today, to us, citizens of the Kingdom of God but spending our days in the kingdom of this world. The world makes it really attractive, really easy, really tempting, to give in. To fill ourselves with pleasure instead of discipline. To take the easy road rather than the narrow road. To cut ethical corners to get ahead, just a little, no one will notice, everyone is doing it, it must be ok. After all, the Kingdom of God is about loving others, giving to the needy, taking up a cross and following Jesus. Wouldn’t you rather eat dinner in a fancy restaurant then serve a meal to the homeless? Wouldn’t you rather read a glossy magazine about the lives of the rich and famous than read your Bible? Wouldn’t you rather watch TV than pray? Isn’t it easier to complain than to jump in and change things? To wait to be served instead of to serve? Which kingdom sounds like more fun?
But which one feeds your soul and produces fruit that lasts for eternity? Which one pleases God?
See, that is always the tradeoff. Do what is right, as commanded by God, which is often harder, more costly, requires more effort, and yet brings deep deep experiences of joy and contentment and purpose and knowledge that this has just made a difference
But Daniel was determined not to defile himself by eating the food and wine given to them by the king. He asked the chief of staff for permission not to eat these unacceptable foods. (Dan 1:8).
Daniel: Umm, excuse me Ashpenaz, could I have permission to not eat these unacceptable foods?
9 Now God had given the chief of staff both respect and affection for Daniel. 10 But he responded,
Ashpenaz: 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.
Now, at this point Ashpenaz leaves the detailed care of these four young men in the hands of another attendant. Ash, pick yourself an attendant.
11 Daniel spoke with the attendant who had been appointed by the chief of staff to look after Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.
Daniel: Please test us for ten days on a diet of vegetables and water. 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. Besides, then who do you think will get to eat the king’s food, wink wink nudge nudge, pretty good trade for you, eh? just for ten days.
14 The attendant agreed to Daniel’s suggestion and tested them for ten days.
What do you think happened at the end of the 10 days?
15 At the end of the ten days, Daniel and his three friends looked healthier and better nourished than the young men who had been eating the food assigned by the king. 16 So after that, the attendant fed them only vegetables instead of the food and wine provided for the others.
17 God gave these four young men an unusual aptitude for understanding every aspect of literature and wisdom. And God gave Daniel the special ability to interpret the meanings of visions and dreams.
18 When the training period ordered by the king was completed, the chief of staff brought all the young men to King Nebuchadnezzar. 19 The king talked with them, and no one impressed him as much as Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. So they entered the royal service. 20 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.
21 Daniel remained in the royal service until the first year of the reign of King Cyrus (Dan 1).
(By the way, that last verse tells us Daniel served the kings of Babylon for 66 years.)
The Point:
I began with the question, what does it take to thrive rather than just survive? Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah lost everything they had ever known, taken captive to a foreign land, and were then tempted to forget who they were and completely succumb to their new culture, vividly displayed in their choice of food. That was it – that was where the choice was clear. See, it wasn’t really a matter of the food being kosher or not. It would have been pretty much impossible for them as captives to keep the Levitical food purity laws. It wasn’t about a vegetarian diet being healthier than the king’s diet.
It was about their identity as citizens of the kingdom. Were they going to reject their citizenship in the Kingdom of God and embrace the king of Babylon’s table? Or were they going to serve the king of Babylon as a vocation while retaining their identity as children of God?
It is striking to me that the question and the difficult spot of balance is the same for us today. It is all too easy to get sucked in to our culture and be absorbed by it without hardly noticing. To be more concerned with hockey scores than the plight of the marginalized. To be more concerned with worship that is entertaining and ministries that serve our needs rather than obeying what God has called us to do to serve Him and serve others. To be more concerned with the next experience of pleasure for ourselves than we are with acting in obedience to what God has commanded of us.
And if we follow the way of our culture and our world, we will survive. We will be fine. We will even be comfortable and probably happy. But we won’t thrive. We won’t be full of purpose. We won’t put our head on our pillow with that deep satisfaction and joy that comes from knowing we are tired because we used our moments and breath and resources in ways of significance for eternity, even though they went un-noticed by other people around us. If we only survive, we won’t know that we stood against momentary choices of pale enjoyment as prescribed by the culture of the world around us, and instead stood with God.
When the four captives obeyed God, stayed true to their identity as God’s children, they thrived. That is what it takes: staying true to our identity as God’s children, and living as citizens of heaven.
Last word to the Apostle Paul, in Philippians 3, 17 Dear brothers and sisters, pattern your lives after mine, and learn from those who follow our example. 18 For I have told you often before, and I say it again with tears in my eyes, that there are many whose conduct shows they are really enemies of the cross of Christ. 19 They are headed for destruction. Their god is their appetite, they brag about shameful things, and they think only about this life here on earth. 20 But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. 21 He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same power with which he will bring everything under his control.
