DANIEL 1 DANIELS TRAINING IN BABYLON2011 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: Daniel 1 Daniels Training In Babylon

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You are listening to FerventWord, an online Bible study ministry with teachings and tools to help you grow deeper in your relationship with God. The following message was taught by Jerry Simmons in 2011.

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As we pick it up in chapter 1, we're dealing with the beginning, kind of the introduction of the book, and Daniel's training that takes place in Babylon. Let's start out this evening looking at verses 1 and 2. It says, In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem and besieged it.

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And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand with some of the articles of the house of God which he carried into the land of Shinar to the house of his God and he brought the articles into the treasure house of his God.

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And so what Daniel is explaining here at the very beginning is the time frame for when these events have taken place and what the background is. And so the book of Daniel is written at the time that Jerusalem was conquered for the first time by Babylon.

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The city of Jerusalem and the nation of Judah was conquered by Babylon three different times. And hopefully you're familiar with that because as we've studied through Jeremiah and as we studied through Ezekiel, we've been talking about that repeatedly because Jeremiah was prophesying in Jerusalem all of the days leading up to that final destruction of Jerusalem.

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And so he was there during the times that Babylon came and conquered. And so we talked a lot about it during our study of that book. And then Ezekiel. Ezekiel was a prophet who is sharing not from Jerusalem, but he was in Babylon...

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a different part of Babylon than where Daniel was, but during the same time. In fact, Ezekiel came to Babylon a little bit later than Daniel, and he was prophesying about the destruction of Jerusalem that would take place on the third time that Babylon conquered Jerusalem. And so Daniel here is explaining that this is happening. He's beginning his story at the first time Babylon conquered Jerusalem.

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Babylon conquered Jerusalem, but didn't wipe it out. Instead, they just set up another king and said, okay, you be good, be faithful to us. Otherwise, you know what we can do. We'll come back here and conquer you again. And the king was good for a little bit, but then turned away and stopped paying tribute, started to rebel. And so Babylon had to come again, conquer them, set up a new king. Okay, you be good. And then the third time when that...

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that second guy rebelled. He said, okay, that's it, forget it. And so the third time they conquered, then they just wiped it out and leveled it and the nation of Judah was left desolate.

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But this is the first time that it was conquered. And so here Daniel is writing these things. It's the time when Jerusalem was conquered and he, as well as some others, were carried away captive into Babylon. You can read a little bit more about the historical side of it in the book of 2 Chronicles chapter 36 and get some of the background from that perspective.

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But as we continue on in verse 3, it says, Then the king instructed Ashpenaz, the master of his eunuchs, to bring some of the children of Israel and some of the king's descendants and some of the nobles, young men in whom there was no blemish, but good-looking, gifted in all wisdom, possessing knowledge and quick to understand, who had ability to serve in the king's palace and whom they might teach the language and literature of the Chaldeans. Verse 5.

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And the king appointed for them a daily provision of the king's delicacies, and of the wine which he drank, and three years of training for them, so that at the end of that time they might serve before the king.

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Now from among those of the sons of Judah were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. To them the chief of the eunuchs gave names. He gave Daniel the name Belteshazzar, to Hananiah Shadrach, to Mishael Meshach, and to Azariah Abednego. And so as we go on here in verses 3 through 7, we see that Daniel is carried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon, along with some friends of his and along with other Jews.

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And as they're carried away to Babylon, they're carried away for a specific purpose, to be trained in the ways of Babylon. They actually are enrolled basically in a university. And this university is to train them, to teach them the language, to teach them the ways of the government, the ways and the knowledge of the Babylonians.

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and to prepare them to serve in the king's court. They were going to be servants to the king, advisors to the king. They were going to be involved in the government work there in the kingdom of Babylon. And so what King Nebuchadnezzar was doing in this was he was getting the best of the best.

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as he would conquer a nation he would take the young the bright you know people from that nation he would bring them in he would teach them their ways and then they would begin to be a part of the nation of Babylon now an advantage that he

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he would gain by doing this was he would be able to relate to the people that he brings back captive to Babylon because he's got these which are their descendants you know their same heritage right there in his court and they can advise him on what the people are like how they respond you know how to treat them and those types of things

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And so Daniel, as well as his three friends, as well as some of the other Jews were there. They're in training. They're enrolled in this institute. It's kind of like, you know, a crash course on all things Babylon. And then the end result is that they are going to serve before the king. Now, this was the fulfillment of a prophecy that was given to Hezekiah in 2 Kings chapter 20.

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where Hezekiah is told there because Babylon sent him some messengers letting him know that they were wishing him well because he had just gotten better from a sickness that he had had. And he went and he shows them all the treasures that he has there in Jerusalem.

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And so God sends them a message and says, everything that you showed them is going to be taken away to Babylon because it was done in his pride. And so he says, everything you showed them, that's going to be taken to Babylon as well as some of your sons and some of your descendants. They're going to be carried away captive to Babylon as well.

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And so Daniel we see here is a descendant probably of Hezekiah. He's certainly part of the royal court or the noble family. And so he's one of those who is carried away. And he's estimated to be probably between 14 years of age or 20 years old. So between 14 and 20, different scholars have different opinions. Usually it averages out around 17 is what we estimate Daniel to be.

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And so he's very young. He's going here to school. He's getting trained. He's going to Babylon's best college. And the goal is for them to be assimilated into the nation of Babylon. Now we also see that they give them new names. And this is part of bringing them in and making them Babylonians instead of Jews. And so they give all of them new names. Daniel...

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They give him the name Belteshazzar. Now all of these names, I'm not going to get into all the details, but all of these names, they're Hebrew names, refer to God or Jehovah or the Lord and have some aspect of referring to the God that they worshipped in their names. It was part of their names. It was part of how they were called.

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the names that they are given there in Babylon all refer to Babylonian gods. And so Belteshazzar means may Bel protect his life. And Bel was one of the gods that they worshipped there in Babylon. And so Daniel's name was changed from God is judge, that's what Daniel means, to may Bel protect his life. And so they were trying to convert them and get them to worship their gods and get them to be

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part of the Babylonian nation and think like they do and believe like they do. But what's interesting about this and what I was thinking about as I was preparing for this service this evening...

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is as you go through the book of Daniel, you'll find that Daniel's name really didn't stick. Although they gave him the name Belteshazzar, and that name is referred to a couple more times throughout the book, the book of Daniel is called Daniel. That's the name that really stuck. It never really changed, although they tried to change it. In chapter 12, at the closing of the book, God speaks to Daniel and he calls him Daniel. All

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Also in Daniel chapter 5, we'll get there in a few weeks, there's a situation where the queen is telling the king, hey, bring in this guy who can interpret and who has the Spirit of God and his name is Daniel. In Daniel chapter 6...

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As you remember, he's cast into the lion's den and then God protects him and then he's brought out and there's this big pronouncement made by the king, right? The king sends it out to all of the nation that they should worship Daniel's God and it refers to him as Daniel. And so throughout the book, you'll see that really the name didn't stick. And I thought that's really interesting and something for us to consider.

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Because we live in a world that tries to do to us what Babylon was seeking to do to Daniel and his friends. They were trying to get them to conform and to be like them and to assimilate and to think like they think and believe like they think. That's what the world attempts to do to you and I as believers. That we're here in this world and there's things all around us.

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You know, advertisements and shows and radio and all of these different things, friends and co-workers, and there's this pressure to conform, to be like the world. And they try to change our names and to force upon us and push upon us the beliefs and the mindset, either through ridicule or mockery or persuasion or, you know, lofty arguments. They try to get us to assimilate and to conform to the world.

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But I would encourage you to consider, is the name sticking? The new name that the world wants to give you, the identity that the world wants to give you, and say, this is who you are. Are you believing it?

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Is it becoming real in your life? Or does it really not stick? They can say all these things about you and try to give you this identity, but you know who you are in Christ and you're staying faithful to that because that's how Daniel was. He knew who he was in God and we'll see that in just a moment. And so he did not, he refused to conform.

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The Apostle Paul tells us in Romans chapter 2, or sorry, Romans chapter 12 verse 2, he says, do not be conformed to this world. And the verb that's, or the tense of that verb where he says to not be conformed, it literally means to stop being conformed to this world. The world is already trying to conform us, and our flesh is already desiring and

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participating in the process of being conformed. We're naturally, if we don't stop it, we are naturally becoming conformed to this world.

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He says, stop being conformed to this world. Stop being like the world. Stop having your beliefs and your opinions and your thoughts and all of those things be impacted by what the world says and the things that the world believes. He said instead, be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

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Be renewed, be transformed rather by the renewing of your mind. And when you do that, then you will be able to understand, you'll be able to test what is the will of God. If you struggle with knowing what the will of God is, it's an indication that you need to stop being conformed to this world and you need to be transformed by the renewing of your mind. You need to get back to

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to your identity in Christ and stop being what the world calls you to be. Well, that's what Daniel did and we can see that as we go on in verse 8. It says, Verse 9,

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Now God had brought Daniel into the favor and goodwill of the chief of the eunuchs. And so Daniel here has decided to stay faithful to the Lord. And he's not going to be persuaded. He's not going to be changed. He purposes in his heart that he would not defile himself.

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Now you can imagine the situation that Daniel is in. This is not a comfortable, luxurious situation. Even though he's there in Babylon and being trained to be part of the royal government, he's still a captive. He's still been brought from Jerusalem. He's still a very young man, probably around 17 years old. And so he's very unsettled. There's a lot of things going on and a wrong step, a misstep,

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Could easily cost him his life. Babylon was not known for their graciousness and their mercy. They were known for their fierceness. They were known for their torture. They were known for the atrocities that they committed to those who were not like them and rebelled or resisted what Babylon wanted. But Daniel wasn't consumed or preoccupied by those things. Instead, he was consumed, he was preoccupied,

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By the word of God. By pleasing God. That's what he wanted. He wanted to please God. That's what was most important to him. Even if it cost him his life, he purposed in his heart not to defile himself. And so part of this training program that was set up for these guys was the king set apart some food for them.

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Now the food that was set aside for them would be part of the normal Babylonian food system and the things that were from the king's table.

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And so those things that were given to the students of that university, to those who are being trained, that food would be food that is defiled from the Jewish perspective because some of it would be unclean animals that the Jews were forbidden to partake of throughout the book of Leviticus and in the law. You know, God gave them specific instructions on the diet that they are to have. And so...

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Some of the food that they would be given would be contrary to what God had instructed them in. But also, much of the food would have been offered to these false gods that the Babylonians worshipped. Many times the meat was part of a ritual sacrifice for their religion and they would offer this meat to these idols.

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And then they would partake of it after that. And so the food that they were offered was defiled in Daniel's perspective, in Daniel's understanding of the Word of God. And he wanted to not defile himself. He purposed. He decided, I'm not going to participate in that. I don't want to do anything that displeases God. I don't want to do anything that's contrary to His Word. And so he purposes. He decides in his heart.

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To be faithful to God. Even if it's costly. Even if it means that he only gets to eat vegetables. He is going to be faithful to the Lord. Now what's interesting about this as we go on in this account, you see that his friends, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, they go along with Daniel. They're with him. They're part of his group. And they...

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they as well decide we're not going to partake of the king's food, the food that is being offered to us. But what makes that interesting is those weren't the only guys who were brought from Jerusalem. There were others as well.

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But it's only these four who are singled out, who are mentioned by name. Which is interesting because, well, it probably means that these are the only four who really had purposed in their hearts not to defile the Lord. These are the only four who objected to the food that they were being served. These are the only four who decided to remain faithful to God at all costs.

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The commentator John Walvoord puts it this way. He says, the corrupting influence of Babylon was probably too much for the others and they were useless in God's hands. Because the rest of the book of Daniel, you'll see how the Lord used Daniel. You'll even see how the Lord used Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.

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But the rest, they're not even named. They're not part of the story because they weren't part of the work of God because from the very beginning, they hadn't decided, they hadn't purposed in their hearts not to defile themselves. And as we consider this portion here in chapter 1 of Daniel this evening, I think it's a strong challenge, it's a strong exhortation to us to purpose in our hearts not to defile ourselves. If you want to be part of the work of God,

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If you want to be involved, some of the things that we'll read in the coming chapters in the book of Daniel, there's some fantastic things that took place. The visions that Daniel is able to interpret, the visions that Daniel himself receives, and the visitation by the angel, and the vision of Jesus, and these incredible prophecies that came forth, they all go back to this root here in verse 8, where Daniel purposes in his heart not to defile himself.

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And if Daniel had not purposed in his heart not to defile himself, if he would have just, you know, went with the flow and did what was easy and just, you know, partook of those things that God had asked him not to partake of, the book of Daniel would be an entirely different story. For you and I to experience the fullness of God's work and God's plan and the amazing things He wants to do in our lives,

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We need to purpose in our hearts not to defile ourselves. And so this evening, I want to encourage you, purpose in your heart, but also understand.

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As you make this firm commitment, as you make this decision, I'm going to follow Jesus at all costs. I'm going to follow Jesus no matter what. I don't care what it takes. I'm going to be faithful to the Lord. As you make that commitment, as you purpose that in your hearts, understand that you will be tested. You're going to be tested to see if that commitment is real.

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To see if that purpose in your heart is firm or if it's just something you said because, you know, you read Daniel chapter 1 and you thought that was a good thing to say. Is it for real in your life? You will be tested. Daniel was tested and that's what we see happening here. He purposed in his heart. He decided, I'm not going to defile myself. And then he goes to dinner that evening and there before him is all this stuff he's not supposed to eat.

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There was the test. Is he going to be faithful? What's he going to do? In this dangerous situation, if he offends, he could be killed. If he rebels, he could be killed or tortured or whatever they decided to do to him. It was a dangerous situation. But Daniel had purposed in his heart, so it really didn't matter.

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Now it tells us there in verse 9 that God had given favor to Daniel in the authorities that were over him. The chief of the eunuchs had a likening of Daniel. And so he had this open door. And so now he begins to share with this guy a thought that he has, a suggestion that he has to make it so that he does not have to defile himself while he's in this training program. Look at verse 10.

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Verse 11. Verse 11.

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So Daniel said to the steward whom the chief of the eunuchs had set over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, Please test your servants for ten days, and let them give us vegetables to eat and water to drink. Then let our appearance be examined before you, and the appearance of the young men who eat the portion of the king's delicacies, and as you see fit, so deal with your servants. So he consented with them in this matter and tested them ten days."

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And so Daniel approaches this guy and says, look, I appreciate all the food, looks wonderful, but this is against what God has called us to do. We can't partake of this food. We can't participate in this feast. And the chief says, well, I can't not let you partake. I can't let you get away with not eating this because, we'll see at the end of the chapter, the king is going to interview each of them individually.

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The king's involved in this training program. He's part of it. And if he sees you and you're looking all sickly and pale and you're weak, then I'm going to be in trouble because you're not getting the nourishment. You're not getting taken care of the way that you're supposed to. And so Daniel uses some great wisdom here and discretion.

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He says, let's just do a little bit of a test. Would you allow us that? How about just for 10 days you can test, you can give us only vegetables and we'll eat that, we won't partake of those other things and then you can put us side by side with the rest of the people who are partaking in the feast.

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And if we look sickly, if we look bad, then you can do whatever seems best to you. But if we look fine, then if you would please, we'll just continue to eat the vegetables so that we do not defile ourselves with the king's portions, with those things that have been offered to idols, with those things that are unclean according to the law. And so we see Daniel acting with great wisdom here. He's tactful and yet he's gentle.

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And so as you purpose in your heart, understand that you will be tested. And when you are tested, be wise. You know, sometimes as Christians, we kind of flip out. We kind of go off the deep end when it's really not necessary. So let's say today you purpose in your heart. And say, man, usually I don't get to make it here on a Wednesday, but...

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I think God wants me to be here on Wednesday nights. I'm going to purpose in my heart, Lord, you want me to be here, so I'm going to be here on Wednesday nights. And then tomorrow your boss says, hey, I've got to change the schedule and you can't be here on Wednesday nights or you can't get off early on Wednesday nights anymore.

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Now there's an opportunity for you to be wise, for you to be tactful, and not to just fly off the deep end and start yelling and screaming and throwing things. Sometimes that's kind of what we do as Christians. We start yelling about all these different things and the rights that we have, and all of those things may be true, but you

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But you see how Daniel is very gentle, right? He's in this situation. He says, how about we do this? Let's try this. And God gives him this wisdom to be able to set up this test so that this guy, the chief is safe and doesn't have to worry about his life, but that both sides are able to be fulfilled and that he's still able to be faithful to not defile himself before the Lord.

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And so I want to encourage you to purpose in your heart, but also as you purpose in your heart, know that you will be tested. And so as you purpose in your heart, I'm going to be spending time with you, Lord, in your word, because that's what God's speaking to you about. Then know that there's going to be some tests and there's going to be some obstacles to overcome. That doesn't mean that you start screaming and shouting at the kids, don't you know I'm supposed to be reading the Bible? You know, it's like, you don't have to be crazy, right?

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Understand, yeah, there's going to be obstacles. And then, okay, Lord, how do you want me to handle this? Use wisdom. Be tactful. Be gentle, like Daniel was. And overcome those obstacles. Pass those tests. And then...

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Well, then the rest of your life will benefit from that purposing in your heart, those things that God is speaking to you about. You can be faithful to those things and God will bless your life abundantly. And so here we see Daniel acting with great wisdom. And so this test is set up and they're given vegetables for 10 days. And here we see the results of the test in verse 15.

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It says, "...at the end of the ten days, their features appeared better and fatter in flesh than all the young men who ate the portion of the king's delicacies. Thus the steward took away their portion of delicacies and the wine they were given to drink and gave them vegetables." And so the test came back positive. It was good. He looked at them and said, "...hey, yeah, you guys are kind of plump. You guys are looking good. You're not looking sickly. And so we'll continue this diet." And so God granted them favor.

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As they purposed in their hearts, as they dealt gently with wisdom, with those who were over them in authority, God gave them favor. He granted them favor. Again, I want to encourage you to purpose in your heart, to follow the Lord and serve the Lord and be obedient to those things that He's putting upon your heart. But understand that as you do, you will be tested. And so respond with wisdom. Respond gently. And God will give you favor.

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He will give you favor. Those things that He's putting upon your heart, He's putting them there. And so He's going to give you favor. He's going to make allowances. He's going to work those things out in your life. And it might not be in 10 days. That would be nice if everything was done in 10 days, right? I could wait 10 days. Sometimes it takes longer. But...

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Continue to be faithful to the Lord. Continue to maintain that purpose in your heart, to maintain that firm commitment to the Lord as you're responding to Him and those things that He's speaking to you. Hold fast to that because God will give you favor to those things that He's putting upon your heart.

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Well, we see that favor continued as we go on in verse 17. It says, As for these four young men, God gave them knowledge and skill in all literature and wisdom. And Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams. Now at the end of the days when the king had said that they should be brought in, the chief of the eunuchs brought them in before Nebuchadnezzar.

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Then the king interviewed them, and among them all, none was found like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. Therefore they served before the king. And in all matters of wisdom and understanding about which the king examined them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and astrologers who were in all his realm. Thus Daniel continued until the first year of King Cyrus."

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This is some incredible results that we see here in verses 17 through 21. This is really amazing if you will stop and consider what this means. These guys are foreigners. They're from Jerusalem. They're learning the language. They're learning the ways. They're setting themselves apart because they've decided we don't want to participate in things that defile us. And the end result is after the three years of training, they are the best of the best.

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Now I would not suggest to you that they are the best of the best because they had really big brains or really high IQs. I would not suggest to you that it's some natural reason or means that they ended up this successful in the kingdom of Babylon. But instead I would suggest to you that it goes back to verse 8. They purposed in their hearts not to defile themselves. As they kept themselves pure...

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As they made this firm commitment that was costly, even if it came at great expense. For three years, they ate vegetables. That's a big expense in my book. It came at great expense. But they wanted to be faithful to the Lord. They had purposed in their hearts. They had made a strong commitment. And as they were faithful to the Lord, God really helped them, didn't He? You see that in verse 17.

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God gave them knowledge and skill in all literature and wisdom. It wasn't because they were so smart. It wasn't because they were so intellectual. It wasn't because they graduated high school. But God gave them knowledge and skill in school. Now, sometimes we think that, you know, God helps us understand the Bible. And that's true, for sure. We can't understand the Bible. The Bible is really meaningless unless God is giving us insight and speaking to our hearts. And that's true.

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But God's work in our lives is not limited to the time that we spend reading the Bible. And it's not limited to just the time that we're at church. The work of God in our lives applies to every aspect of our life. If you're going to school, you know what the best thing for you to do is? To purpose in your heart not to defile yourself. You want to be successful in school? Purpose in your heart. Make a firm commitment to the Lord.

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that you will not practice the things that are not of Him. Make a firm commitment to the Lord that you're going to be faithful to follow Him and walk with Him. Now understand, as you make that commitment, you will be tested and you will need to respond wisely and be gentle and tactful in your response. But as you make that commitment, as you go forward in faithfulness to the Lord, God's going to work in your life. He gave them knowledge and skill in all literature and wisdom.

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Not just biblical literature, but all literature. And also Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams. And so God will give you help and strength in the practical and physical things of life, but also in the spiritual things. As Daniel is given this gift of understanding vision and dreams. And the end result is, this is pretty crazy. It's been three years of training.

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The end result, King Nebuchadnezzar calls them all in. He interviews them one at a time. This is, you know, they're applying for the job. They're to work in the king's court. As he interviews them, he finds these four to be the best of the best. Not by like a little bit. You know, not like, oh yeah, that's pretty close. But yeah, I think Daniel's better. I mean, wow, I really like the way he answered this question. No, it says that the king found him 10 times better. Imagine that for a second.

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10 times better. Now let me ask you, if your boss was to come and interview you and all of your co-workers, would you be found 10 times better? Think about it. Consider it. Would you be found 10 times better? Now I'm not suggesting that has anything to do with how hard you work. I'm suggesting it has to do with have you purposed in your heart not to defile yourself? You see, if pleasing God is first and foremost in your life,

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God's going to grant you favor. It doesn't mean everything will always go your way and you'll never have troubles. But you're going to stand out. You're going to be the best of the best in those things that God has called you to. Now, I'm not the best of the best in everything, right? I wouldn't even suggest that I'm the best of the best in anything. But in those things that God has called me to do, He does the work through me. I remember working for Paychex. And I was a tech support. And so I would always go out and visit clients, right? And I would go out

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And that's something I've always been involved in and enjoy. But quite honestly, most of the time, I had no idea how to fix the problems. And I would just pray. And then I would try the things that God was putting upon my heart, and it would work, and everybody would thought I was a genius. I mean, I was like, wow. When I quit, the whole office was like,

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How are we going to survive? What's going to happen? In fact, they made provision. They set up things so that, well, we'll set it up like an hourly thing, like you could be on call. And so, like when we run into a client that has a problem, then, you know, if we can't fix it, if we can't resolve it, then we'll call you. And so they were worried about that. Now, not because I'm just so awesome, but because the Lord worked through me. The Lord worked through me. Have you purposed in your heart

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Not to defy yourself. To be faithful to the Lord. To put Him first. To please Him first and foremost. You see, we strive for excellence by putting God first. We don't strive for excellence by putting God on the back shelf and then, you know, studying extra hard or working extra hours.

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Sure, we study extra hard and we work extra hours when it's appropriate, when God calls us to do that, but not putting God aside to accomplish it. We put God first. We keep Him first. And as we keep Him first, then He does the work through us. Not just the church things, but all of our life. In the workplace, in school, in the home.

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As parents, as spouses, whatever the case may be. He does the work through us when we purpose in our hearts not to defile ourselves. Psalm 119 verse 99 tells us, I have more understanding than all my teachers for your testimonies are my meditation. Listen, you meditate on the Word of God, you invest your life in the Word of God, you spend some time studying the Word of God and you will have more understanding than all your teachers.

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You'll have more understanding than all your teachers. Now again, I'm not saying that this is, you know, some crazy magic, right? So you read the Bible and then you know all things about science. No, no, no, that's not the case. But you read the Bible, you put God first, and you have more understanding than all your teachers in spiritual things for sure. But also in those practical things, God will be working in your life and he will be working through you.

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Jesus told us in Matthew chapter 6 verse 33, Jesus says, you put God first. That's your responsibility. Everything else, that's God's responsibility. Our tendency is to make our relationship with God His responsibility and to make everything else our responsibility. We've got it completely backwards.

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Well, I've got to do this and I've got to do that and I've got to work. I've got to get money. I've got to pay this bill and I've got to accomplish this and I've got to raise these kids and I've got to... It's all my responsibility. God, I don't have time for you. That's your responsibility, Lord. You take care of that. Backwards. Seek first the kingdom of God. You put God first in your life. You make a serious commitment. You purpose in your heart. Do not defile yourself. Make God...

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First and foremost in your life, He'll take care of those other things. Those are His responsibilities, not yours. All those things, Jesus says, will be added to you. Daniel was successful. His ministry was powerful. It was long. He endured the full 70-year captivity there in Babylon because he purposed in his heart not to defile himself. And so as we consider Daniel chapter 1 this evening,

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I would ask, have you purposed in your heart? Have you made that decision, that firm commitment, that God is first, He's foremost, He's your biggest passion, He's your biggest commitment, no matter what, even if it comes at great expense. Because as you put Him first, all these other things will be taken care of. Have you purposed in your heart not to defile yourself? Or are you being conformed to the world? And your life looks just like the world's life.

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There's nothing really much different except for maybe you go to church on Sundays or Wednesdays. If that's the only difference between your life and your neighbor's life, there's a problem. Have you purposed in your heart not to defile yourself, to be faithful to the Lord, to seek first the kingdom of God? The worship team is going to come up and close us in a song and as they do,

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I want to challenge you and encourage you to take this time to purpose in your heart not to defile yourself, to put God first. As you do that, understand you will be tested. Be ready for that. Don't be surprised tomorrow when the world falls apart. You will be tested, but don't freak out. You know it's coming. You know it's going to happen. You will be tested. So be calm. Trust in the Lord. Seek Him for wisdom. Ask Him for insight.

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Use gentleness and tact. Very little screaming and yelling. Be ready for the test. And as you make that commitment, as you pass the test, and the others that will come after that, your life is going to be transformed. God's going to do a work. He's going to direct you where He wants you to be. And guess what? When you're where He wants you to be, compared to the people around you, you're going to be ten times better. Not because you're awesome. Because God's awesome. And when you put Him first, He directs you.

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And He moves you where He wants you. And He enables you to accomplish the work that He's called you to do. So let's take this time to make that firm commitment to the Lord. To be serious about it. Not like in the past where we've kind of like, yeah, yeah, I really want to follow the Lord. But then the next day, you know, we're just back to normal. Let's make a firm commitment no matter what. There was a time in my life where I had to make a firm commitment. I'd really grown lazy in my devotional life.

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Because I was always tired, I would always wake up late, and I would always be in a rush to get to work. And there came a time where the Lord spoke to me in a similar way, and He said, you need to make a decision to put me first, even if it costs you your job. And so I made the decision. And I said, Lord, I'm going to have devotions with you, I'm going to spend time with you in the morning, even if it means that I'm late to work. If that's what it means, and if it costs me my job, I'm going to put you first. You're more important than my job. And then the Lord would wake me up on time.

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It was amazing how it worked. I always thought, I don't have time. But when I really committed, when I really decided and responded to what God was speaking to my heart, then God worked it out. He made the time. He provided for me. Not because I'm so disciplined or I'm so great, because He's great. So let's take this time. Purpose in your heart. Whatever God's speaking to you about, it might be about what you eat. It might be about spending time in the Word. It might be about what you allow in your home. Whatever the case may be,

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Purpose in your heart. I will not defile myself. I will not be conformed to the world. But I'm going to put Jesus first. I'm going to walk with Him no matter what it costs. Let's make that our prayer. Let's make that our commitment to the Lord as we worship Him together. We pray you have been blessed by this Bible teaching. The power of God to change a life is found in the daily reading of His Word. Visit ferventword.com to find more teachings and Bible study resources.