Of Kings and Prophets: Daniel’s
Dilemma
August 9, 2015
BMC- Daniel 2:46-49 (Daniel 1-3)
Through the Bible in a Year
Introduction: The Fiery Furnace
Many of you
probably know that late Friday afternoon into early Friday evening, we hosted a
couple of groups of children from Adriel.
We invited them to come over, top their own pizza and then we baked them
in the oven. And I want to thank each of
you who came out to help make that possible and those of you who have donated
to cooking supplies for the pizzas.
We’ve easily baked between 150 and 200 pizzas in our oven so far.
But the
process begins in the afternoon when someone goes over and starts a fire in the
oven. That was me on Friday. It’s not a very involved job really; just one
that takes time and a little tending now and then. Which left me with time to do some other set
up of tables and such and then to do my daily Bible reading. Now those of you who are participating in our
Bible reading plan this year know that Friday was the day that we read about
Nebuchadnezzar’s fiery furnace.
This was
not lost on me as I sat in my lawn chair in front of a fiery pizza oven. I have joked with Todd and Mark that we
should name our pizza oven, Nebby’s Fiery Furnace Pizza Oven. And I must confess that I am more convinced
of this now than ever because of what I discovered when I got home, but I’ll
come back to that. First we need to take a step back before the fiery furnace
and before the passage that Dena read for us today.
Daniel: The Food
It was “in the
third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, [that] Nebuchadnezzar king
of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it.
And 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.
“Then the king
ordered Ashpenaz, chief of his court officials, to bring into the king’s
service 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 those who
were chosen 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 this way. Now God had caused the official to show favor and compassion 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 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 with
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 into his service, 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.”
Daniel: The Dream
Now “Nebuchadnezzar
had dreams; his mind was troubled and he could not sleep. So the king summoned the magicians,
enchanters, sorcerers and astrologers to tell him what he had dreamed. When
they came in and stood before the king, he said to
them, “I have had a dream that troubles me and I want to know what it means.”
“Then the
astrologers answered the king, “May the king live forever! Tell your servants
the dream, and we will interpret it.” The
king replied to the astrologers, “This is what I have firmly decided: If you do
not tell me what my dream was and interpret it, I will have you cut into pieces
and your houses turned into piles of rubble.
But if you tell me the dream and explain it, you will receive from me
gifts and rewards and great honor. So tell me the dream and interpret it for
me.”
“Once more they
replied, “Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will interpret it.” Then the king answered, “I am certain that
you are trying to gain time, because you realize that this is what I have firmly
decided: If you do not tell me the dream, there is only
one penalty for you. You have conspired to tell me misleading and wicked
things, hoping the situation will change. So then, tell me the dream, and I
will know that you can interpret it for me.”
“The astrologers
answered the king, “There is no one on earth who can do what the king asks! No
king, however great and mighty, has ever asked such a thing of any magician or
enchanter or astrologer. What the king
asks is too difficult. No one can reveal it to the king except the gods, and
they do not live among humans.”
“This made the
king so angry and furious that he ordered the execution of all the wise men of
Babylon. So the decree was issued to put the wise men
to death, and men were sent to look for Daniel and his friends to put them to
death.
“When Arioch, the
commander of the king’s guard, had gone out to put to death the wise men of
Babylon, Daniel spoke to him with wisdom and tact. He
asked the king’s officer, “Why did the king issue such a harsh decree?” Arioch
then explained the matter to Daniel. At this, Daniel
went in to the king and asked for time, so that he might interpret the dream
for him.
“Then Daniel
returned to his house and explained the matter to his friends Hananiah, Mishael
and Azariah. He urged them to plead for
mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that he and his
friends might not be executed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. During the night the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision.
Then Daniel praised the God of heaven.”
“Then Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had
appointed to execute the wise men of Babylon, and said to him, “Do not execute
the wise men of Babylon. Take me to the king, and I will interpret his dream
for him.” Arioch took Daniel to the king
at once and said, “I have found a man among the exiles from Judah who can tell
the king what his dream means.”
“The king asked
Daniel…, “Are you able to tell me what I saw in my dream and interpret it?” Daniel replied, “No wise man, enchanter,
magician or diviner can explain to the king the mystery he has asked about, but
there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries. He has shown King
Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in days to come. Your dream and the visions
that passed through your mind as you were lying in bed are these:
“As
Your Majesty was lying there, your mind turned to things to come, and the
revealer of mysteries showed you what is going to happen. As for me, this mystery has been revealed to
me, not because I have greater wisdom than anyone else alive, but so that Your
Majesty may know the interpretation and that you may understand what went
through your mind.
“Your
Majesty looked, and there before you stood a large statue—an enormous, dazzling
statue, awesome in appearance. The head of the statue
was made of pure gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of
bronze, its legs of iron, its feet
partly of iron and partly of baked clay. While you were
watching, a rock was cut out, but not by human hands. It struck the statue on
its feet of iron and clay and smashed them.
Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver and the gold were all
broken to pieces and became like chaff on a threshing floor in the summer. The
wind swept them away without leaving a trace. But the rock that struck the
statue became a huge mountain and filled the whole earth.
“This
was the dream, and now we will interpret it to the king. Your Majesty, you are the king of kings. The
God of heaven has given you dominion and power and might and glory; in your
hands he has placed all mankind and the beasts of the field and the birds in
the sky. Wherever they live, he has made you ruler over them all. You are that
head of gold.
“After you,
another kingdom will arise, inferior to yours. Next, a third kingdom, one of
bronze, will rule over the whole earth. Finally,
there will be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron—for iron breaks and smashes
everything—and as iron breaks things to pieces, so it will crush and break all
the others. Just as you saw that the
feet and toes were partly of baked clay and partly of iron, so this will be a
divided kingdom; yet it will have some of the strength of iron in it, even as
you saw iron mixed with clay. As the toes were partly iron and partly clay, so this kingdom will
be partly strong and partly brittle. And just as you saw the iron
mixed with baked clay, so the people will be a mixture and will not remain
united, any more than iron mixes with clay.
“In the time of
those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be
destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those
kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever. This is the meaning of the vision of the rock
cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands —a rock that broke the iron, the
bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold to pieces.
“The great God has
shown the king what will take place in the future. The dream is true and its
interpretation is trustworthy.” Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell prostrate before
Daniel and paid him honor and ordered that an offering and incense be presented
to him. The king said to Daniel, “Surely your God is
the God of gods and the Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries, for you were
able to reveal this mystery.”
“Then the king
placed Daniel in a high position and lavished many gifts on him. He made him
ruler over the entire province of Babylon and placed him in charge of all its
wise men. Moreover, at Daniel’s request
the king appointed Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego administrators over the
province of Babylon, while Daniel himself remained at the royal court.
Dilemma One: Contrast Behavior
Now within this story, we read of a
number of dilemma’s that Daniel and his friends faced. And I believe that within each of these dilemmas
are encouragements for us. The first
dilemma was contrast behavior.
After Daniel and his friends were
taken into Babylonia, they were chosen to go through a three year training
process to serve in the king’s court.
This included a rich diet from the kings table of choice food and
wine. Yet Daniel and his friends had a
particular diet that they followed in faithfulness to the Lord.
This is where we get the modern
trend of the Daniel Fast. Some of you
may remember that Beth and I tried the Daniel Fast for Lent in 2014. It was a challenge to say the least. I lost weight and Beth went into the
hospital. Not a good diet for someone with
Chron’s Disease.
Daniel asked the guard to allow
them to continue their diet, but the guard was fearful so they worked out a 10
day trial basis. At the end of the 10
days, Daniel and his friends not only looked as healthy as those eating from
the king’s table, but they actually looked even more healthy so they were
allowed to continue their alternate diet.
As followers of Christ, we too are
called to live in contrast to society.
We are called to live simply. We
are called to give generously. We are called
to forgive those who wrong us. We are
called to love not only our neighbor, but our enemy as well. We are called to live as a contrast society
and I would suggest to you that when we do this, like Daniel and his friends,
we too will be healthier than those around us.
What contrast behaviors has God called you to and what were the
results? What other contrast behaviors
might God be calling you too?
Dilemma Two: Service to Society
The second dilemma that Daniel and
his friends faced was service to society.
Now just to be clear, I am not suggesting that service to society is in
and of itself bad, certainly not. Like
in the story of Joseph, we do not get any sense from the story of Daniel and
his friends that serving in the kings court was a bad thing. Quite the contrary, it seems very clear that
like Joseph, God had Daniel and his friends in these positions for a reason.
But it also becomes clear that in
the midst of this service that it will not be without a cost or at least times
in which you will be called on to do things that do not square with the
contrast society that we are called to be.
We know that Daniel experienced this when he continued to pray to God
and was thrown into the lion’s den for it.
And we know that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego experienced this when
they were told to worship an idol and were thrown into the fiery furnace for
not doing so.
Service to society is not a bad
thing; but in the midst of our service, we will face dilemma’s and we will
encounter times in which choosing to obey God rather than man may be costly.
Dilemma Three: Impossible Circumstances
The third
dilemma that we read of Daniel and his friends facing is that of seemingly
impossible circumstances. The king had a
dream and he wanted to know what it meant.
But in order to prove that someone was able to accurately tell what the
dream meant, they also first had to tell the king what the dream even was.
Anyone out
there know what I dreamed last night? Or
what the person sitting next to you dreamed about last night without them
telling you? Of course not, how
ridiculous is that? And the wise men of
Babylonia tried to say as much to the king and his response was to have them
all killed. But what did Daniel do? What do we do?
It seems to
me that far too many of us when facing seemingly impossible circumstances
revert to what I’ll call “woah-is-me tribalism.” We get together with a bunch of other people
who believe that there is no hope and we wallow together in our own self
pity. “Woah-is-me tribalism,” but that
is not what Daniel did, is it?
Others of
us look to one person to solve all of our problems for us. We have this learned helplessness in which we
don’t believe that we can solve the problem, so we pass the problem off to one
person to fix it for us and we try to ride on his or her shoulders. It’s kinda like this commercial for Adidas
shoes…”
The problem
is that most of us don’t wear adidas shoes, right? No the problem is that none of us is called
to do this alone. We are called to do
this as a community and all too often when we expect for one person to do it
alone and he or she is unable to do it, rather than recognize our unrealistic
expectations, instead we play the blame game.
Rather than own our own part in things, we blame him or her for the
failure and sometimes even cast him or her out as a scapegoat. We feel better because we have sent off the
problem when in reality, the problem still remains. But this is also not what Daniel did to
respond to these impossible circumstances.
Daniel did
not enter into a “woah-is-me tribalism” with his friends. Instead he talked to the leaders and bought
the group some time. And he did not try
to fix this alone or enter into the blame game.
He could have simply blamed the king for asking the impossible. Instead, Daniel went back to his friends and
called on them for prayerful support.
And together they sought God to show the way through these impossible
circumstances.
Pizza Oven
This all brings me back to Friday
night and the pizza oven. In the first
place, I got a new appreciation for the heat potential of Nebby’s fiery
furnace. I think I might have gotten it
a little too hot there, because when I got home, I discovered that I had singed
the eye lashes on my right eye. I kid
you not, just ask Beth. They were are
curly-qued.
But the other realization I made is
a deeper understanding of what the pizza oven represents for me. And I only mention it as a case in point, not
as a model example because it’s not about the pizza oven, but the pizza oven
represents an intentional choice by some that all of us could follow in our own
particular ways.
It is clear from our congregation
wide survey, that many are concerned about Bethel’s future and in particular
about our lack of young families. And
with that concern, it would be very easy and natural for us to slip into a
“woah-is-me” tribalism. With that
concern, it would be very easy for us to look toward one person to solve all of
our problems and then play the blame game when he or she does not fix them.
But instead, I think that we can
follow the example of Daniel who went back to his community of believers and
sought the Lord for the answer. To me,
the pizza oven is representative of this community spirit and faithfulness to
the Lord because leadership processed this idea together and many of you have
assisted financially and with labor. But
we all know that the pizza oven will not lead anyone to Christ. It is through the work of the Holy Spirit and
through relationships, some of which may be established through things like the
tool of the pizza oven; that more may come to have a saving relationship with
Jesus Christ and enter into a journey of discipleship.
With that in mind, perhaps rather
than the adidas shoe model of faith, we are called to something more like this
model of faith…
Now I
apologize for the fact that this is a beer commercial but it is amazing the
material that you are introduced to when you attend a workshop at Mennonite
World Conference. You all know that I
personally do not drink alcohol myself.
And I am not suggesting that we would be better Christians if we did any
more than I am suggesting that we would be better Christians if we wore Adidas
shoes. What I am suggesting is that we
as a community can have a far greater impact for the community together. And while matters of faith are not nearly so
linear or automatic as dominos, there is a domino effect that can happen if we
decide to make disciples who make disciples who make disciples who make disciples.
Conclusion:
Daniel and
his friends faced the dilemmas of being a contrast society, of serving in
society, and of facing impossible circumstances. We too face these and other dilemmas in our
lives. May we like Daniel choose to
respond to these dilemmas as the community of God and through trusting in God’s
ways to bring about His kingdom purposes.
Amen.
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