As I was re-reading and meditating on chapter 1 once again, making sure that I didn’t omit anything that was particularly important, I was struck with two potential messages. Neither of these are especially page-turning or calendar-turning. In fact, my theme for this morning might be considered to be too common – too often considered. But that is only before we consider it once again. And as I thought about it for a little while it seemed to me to be an excellent New Year’s theme. In fact, so is our evening message.
If you will remember, when Israel came out of Egypt, they had been using a SECULAR calendar. It may have been an Egyptian calendar, because they had spent the previous 400 years in that country. The first day of the year to them fell sometime in Autumn, based on the phase of the moon. Ah, but then the Lord delivered them from the slavery of Egypt. In commemoration, He ordered Israel to change their New Year to the day of their salvation – the Passover. Exodus 12:1 – “And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, This month shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you. Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house:… It is the LORD’S passover. For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD.” From that day forward Israel was supposed to keep the Passover, the first day of their spiritual calendar. It was their religious New Year’s Day. And they were to keep the Passover in commemoration of their deliverance from Egypt. In the various aspects of the Passover, Israel was to remember what the Lord had done. In their observance they were to praise the Lord for His mercy and grace.
This praise of the Lord is a very worthwhile and acceptable way to celebrate the New Year. Jehovah has been gracious towards us during the past year, and by faith we are looking for even more of the Lord’s mercies. It is this praise that we are encouraging this morning by noting the Lord’s absolute supremacy over all things. As I was reading this chapter last Wednesday, my heart became entangled in the words of verse 9 – “Now God had brought Daniel into favour and tender love with the prince of the eunuchs.” Now God had BROUGHT – God brought Daniel into the favor and love of a foreign official. Am I mistaken or is there something miraculous about that statement? In thinking about that I realized that this a theme which reverberates throughout this chapter.
Notice that the Lord clearly declared that if Israel chose to rebel against His authority that He would “CAUSE (them) to be smitten before (their) enemies. The Hebrew word for “cause” in this verse is “nathan” (naw-than). For the sake of this message, please remember that word – at least for the next 30 minutes. “Nathan” is translated “cause” 13 times in the Old Testament. But it is translated “to give” well over one thousand times. The sovereign God told Israel that He would GIVE them to their enemies if they sinned against Him. And God brought Nebuchadnezzar into the land of Judah fulfilling his promise to them.
This next scripture isn’t precisely directed toward Judah, but the principle applies. In Isaiah, the Lord warned the ten northern tribes that if they didn’t serve Him He would judge them. And in the process He employed a couple of unique phrases – “The LORD shall bring upon thee, and upon thy people, and upon thy father’s house, days that have not come, from the day that Ephraim departed from Judah; even the king of Assyria. And it shall come to pass in that day, that the LORD shall HISS for the fly that is in the uttermost part of the rivers of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria. And they shall come, and shall rest all of them in the desolate valleys, and in the holes of the rocks, and upon all thorns, and upon all bushes. In the same day shall the Lord shave with a razor that is hired, namely, by them beyond the river, by the king of Assyria, the head, and the hair of the feet: and it shall also consume the beard.” The Babylonians, like the Assyrians before them, were a razor, hired by God to shave His rebellious people. Jehovah brought Nebuchanezzar into Judah in 606 BC to judge those people for their sins. The Babylonians came with the Lord’s permission, and authority and even with His assistance. That may not be popular information, but it is absolutely true to the Word of God. And by the way, there is no reason to think that God might not do the same against the United States – for her wickedness.
But admittedly, this is not a very happy concept – it is not something about which we should rejoice. And yet, what if we turned it around? I don’t have a problem believing that God has authority to give this man and his nation to the Babylonians. I, also, don’t have any problem believing that the Lord has sovereign authority over ME. And then I look into the New Testament, and I listen to the voice of my Saviour. In the Gospel of John He talks about the difference between His sheep and those who are not His sheep. In chapter 10 He speaks about giving His life for His sheep. “I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.” “I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. “As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.” When some people called into question what he was saying he replied, “Ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.”
It may bother some people to hear that God gave a wicked king into the hand of another wicked king. But I rejoice in the fact that this same God can, with equal authority, NOT give someone away. He has promised to keep me, and all His saints, within his own hand. On this first Sunday of the Year, I rejoice in the sovereign authority of God over my body and soul.
We have two ways to look upon the situation into which these four young people were thrust. As parents, we might moan and groan on their behalf. Without a doubt they suffered some terrible things – in the flesh. The least of which was that they were ripped away from their loved ones, from their homes, and from their culture. Depending on the quality of our imaginations, we might picture terrible, terrible things.
But then on the other hand, as believers, we might take a different perspective. God brought Daniel into a set of unique circumstances where he could shine as a servant of Jehovah. He was plunged into a world so dark, that no matter how low his spiritual battery became, he could still be a light to shine upon the Saviour. These young men were dropped into trials almost inconceivable in their extent. Some of them were cast into a human incinerator. One of them was forced to offer himself up as lion food. But in both cases they turned those lemons into lemonade. They took what some people called “curses” and turned them into “blessings” to themselves – and into great glory for their Saviour.
Through the years, I have seen the Lord bring Christian people into some terrible lion’s dens. Some of them have cast themselves on the ground, curl up into fetal balls, and wait for the fangs. But others have stood their ground and waited for God to shut the lion’s mouths. In a sense these are decisions that the Lord permits us to make.
It was demanded of Daniel that he eat food which was taken from animals dedicated to idol gods. Some of his companions ate that food out of self-preservation, but they did so under protest. Others might have jumped onto those delicious meals as if they were manna from Heaven. But Daniel, and Hannaniah, Mishael and Azariah refused, endangering their lives. The Lord indirectly put them into that dangerous situation. The Lord ordained this trial, and brought them to these dishes. Does Jehovah have any right to do such things? Absolutely.
Think about what this is saying. Is this Ashpenaz, the master of the eunuchs of Nebuchanezzar? Let’s give this man all the benefit of the doubt that we can. Let’s say that he is a kind and generous man, who has a high and difficult job which he handles as well as any unbeliever ever could. I can’t say that this is a true perspective, but let’s pretend that it’s true. Let’s say that he is affable, gregarious, charitable, gracious and friendly. And let’s say that young Daniel is all these things as well. There are still some major differences between them. One is a child of God while the other is a child of the devil. And Daniel is no closet-Christian, putting a cloak over his faith and his way of life. Daniel is bold enough to say “no,” even if it is in the most respectful way possible. And what Daniel was asking was putting Ashpenaz at risk before his dictatorial boss.
So what was the source or the catalyst for this relationship between Ashpenaz and Daniel? Despite whatever natural elements might have been involved – or not involved at all – the Bible is quite clear – the Lord created this relationship. He did the same thing between Joseph and Potiphar down there in Egypt, but that may have been more of a business relationship than a personal one. Whatever other things were involved, the primary cause of Ashpenaz’ love of Daniel was Jehovah. “When a man’s ways please the LORD, HE maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him” – Proverbs 16:7.
But ultimately, the successful conclusion of this trial was through the power of God.
I can understand when parents are concerned as their children are put into dangerous situations. And education can be as wicked and dangerous as facing lions and human incinerators. But in the case of these young people, there was a particular blessing and promise involved. “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do his commandments: his praise endureth for ever.” “Fools despise wisdom and instruction, but the fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge.” “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.” Proverbs 14:26 says, “In the fear of the LORD is strong confidence: and his children shall have a place of refuge” and later we read “the fear of the LORD is a fountain of life.” These are promises not made personally to Daniel, but to all of us. Those young men were protected throughout their diabolical education, because they first had a fear of the Lord.
Why did Daniel and his friends prosper intellectually? It might be said that even before they were made hostages they were brighter than most of their peers. They were “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 (the Babylonians) might teach the learning and the tongue of the Chaldeans.” But the fact that after three years of college they were ten times more learned than all the rest of the students and perhaps even over their teachers, proves that God especially blessed these young men.
Probably few of us adults prayed much for our education. But for Christian parents prayer should be a definite teaching tool. It’s not our skill as teachers which ultimately blesses our children or students, it’s the grace of God. God brought these four young people into knowledge and skill.
And in Daniel’s case, the Lord granted even more – an “understanding in all visions and dreams.” This was not the mere ability to give some plausible explanation and meaning to a man’s dream. And it wasn’t a guess about the future through some silly dream that a man had. Did you know that there is a word for that? It’s “oneiromancy” (o·nei·ro·man·cy). What set Daniel apart from the run of the mill “oneiromancers” was that God gave to Daniel specific visions and dreams as prophecies for our use and blessing.
God sovereignly gave, or brought, Daniel and his friends into Babylon, into trials, into favor, and into knowledge and wisdom.
As we enter the year 2010, we can only guess what the Lord is going to do in the next twelve months. Maybe this will be the year of our Saviour’s glorious return. Maybe this will be a year of serious trials for each of us. Whatever it is, you can be sure that God will never loose control. And you may also be sure that “all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to according to his purpose.”
Do you love the Lord? Have you been born again by His grace? Repent before God; believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.