Amen. You may be seated. Turning your Bibles this evening to the book of Daniel and chapter one, we're going to be reading verses eight through 21, the end of the chapter. So give your attention now to God's word, Daniel chapter one, beginning with verse eight. But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the king's food or with the wine that he drank. Therefore, he asked the chief of the eunuchs to allow him not to defile himself. And God gave Daniel favor and compassion in the sight of the chief of the eunuchs. And the chief of the eunuchs said to Daniel, I fear my lord the king. who assigned your food and your drink. For why should he see that you are in worse condition than the youths who are your own age? So you would endanger my head with the king.' Then Daniel said to the steward whom the chief of the eunuchs had assigned over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, test your servants for 10 days. Let us be given vegetables to eat and water to drink. Then let our appearance and the appearance of the youth who eat the king's food be observed by you and deal with your servants according to what you see. So he listened to them in this matter and tested them for 10 days. At the end of 10 days, it was seen that they were better in appearance and fatter in flesh than all the youths who ate the king's food. So the steward took away their food and the wine they were to drink and gave them vegetables. As for these four youths, God gave them learning and skill in all literature and wisdom. And Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams. At the end of the time when the king had commanded that they should be brought in, The chief of the eunuchs brought them in before Nebuchadnezzar, and the king spoke with them, and among all of them, none was found like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. Therefore, they stood before the king, and in every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king inquired of them, he found them 10 times better than all the magicians and enchanters that were in all his kingdom. And Daniel was there until the first year of King Cyrus. Thus far, God's word. Let's pray together. Father, we thank you for your truth. We thank you for this inspired record of the life and labors of Daniel and his friends. And we ask that you would open our hearts tonight that we would, like Daniel, put our whole trust in the living God and that we might follow his commandments and honor him that he in turn will honor us. Lord, thankful, we are thankful for your word and for your truth. Bless it now, we pray in Jesus' name, amen. Well, at first glance, the title of the sermon this evening might just sound a little strange. The man God chooses to honor, I mean, shouldn't we be talking about the man who chooses to honor God? To even think of God honoring any man seems unusual and perhaps out of place. But actually, my friends, the Bible calls us on more than one occasion to think about this remarkable truth, that God, almighty God, in his infinite grace and unspeakable mercy is pleased to honor and to bless mere mortal men. Especially when those men or women or children, we could say, seek to honor God, to fear God, and to keep his commandments. And we see this time and time again. Just think of Psalm 1. Blessed is the man who does what? Who does not walk. in the counsel of the wicked, who does not stand in the way of sinners, who does not sit in the seat of the scornful, but his delight is in the law of the Lord and the word of God. He loves that and he desires to walk according to it. Verse four of Psalm one tells us the ungodly are not so. For this man who loves God, who loves the word of God, who seeks to follow that, God will bless him. He'll make him like a tree, planted by the rivers of water, bringing forth fruit. And nothing that he puts his hand to will wither. We see it again in Psalm 34. In Psalm 34 and verse 15. We read that the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous and his ears are open to their cry. But the next verse tells us his face is against the ungodly. There's a stark contrast here between those who want to honor God and how God acts in relationship to them. We see this in some sense in our call to worship this evening. I am the high and lofty one, I dwell in the high and holy place, but I also will draw near to the one who is of a broken and contrite heart, who is grieved by his sin. But I think most explicitly we see this in the words of 1 Samuel 2 and verse 30. If you remember that situation where Eli and his sons as priests were corrupt, and God comes and he says, I promised I would bless you, but you have corrupted yourselves and you are not walking according to my commandments. So far be it from me that I am going to honor you. And then these words, he who honors me, I will honor. here is a striking truth for us to consider. And perhaps one of the clearest examples of this principle is right here in Daniel chapter one. Here we see God honoring Daniel and his three friends. And while there are many lessons for us to learn from this passage, there's one prominent lesson And that is that we see this connection between these young men and how they conducted themselves in the midst of this pagan culture and how God in turn worked mightily to bless them and honor them. Now, I don't think anybody in this room will be confused on the issue. But just to be clear, we're not talking about salvation. We're not talking about some kind of works righteousness or earning our salvation through good enough works. We're talking about the fact that God principally honors the efforts of his Children when they seek to honor him, especially in the eyes of the unbelieving world around them. We're gonna look at three particulars tonight. First, Daniel's commitment to God's commandments. Second, Daniel's respect for the God appointed authority over him And third, Daniel's expectation of God's miraculous intervention. So let's look first of all at Daniel's commitment. Now last week, we saw that Nebuchadnezzar was doing everything in his power to change these young Jewish followers of Jehovah. and turned them into followers of his Babylonian gods. He took them away from their families. He took them out of their houses of worship. He removed them from all religious instructions in the ways of the holy scriptures. He changed their names and perhaps most poignantly, He was tempting them with the opulence of Babylonian court life. He was giving them the opportunity to enjoy all the carnal pleasures the mind could conceive. So Nebuchadnezzar was seeking to change these young men. His purpose was to cause Daniel and all the others who had been taken captive when he took Jerusalem to think like, to look like, to act like, and to live like Babylonians. That was Nebuchadnezzar's purpose. Daniel's purpose, however, was very different. And so we read in verse eight, that Daniel resolved, Daniel was determined, Daniel purposed in his heart not to defile himself with the king's food. Now, we mentioned last week that this decision, this resolution of Daniel not to partake of the king's food and drink may have included the fact that that food and drink was sacrifice to idols. And Daniel didn't want to be a partaker of that connection. However, there were other factors, very clear factors. For instance, Daniel, according to Old Testament scriptures, was strictly forbidden to eat pork or shellfish. Babylonians wouldn't have cared at all and would have freely partaken of those things. But Daniel wanted to please God. He wanted to keep God's law. He wanted to follow God's commandments. Daniel had been taught very plainly, emphatically, you shall not bow down to any idol That became a real problem a little bit later in the book of Daniel, when Daniel refuses to pray to the king. But Daniel had been taught not to bow down to an idol, not to eat certain foods, and he was determined to please and to honor God by following his commandments. And though Daniel and his three friends, this is striking, my friends. Out of all the captives from Judah that were brought to Babylon, it appears that Daniel and his three friends were the only four individuals who took an issue with this. They were the only ones who refused to eat the king's food and drink the king's wine. Think about this. These were young teenagers. How many young teenagers do you know that have this kind of commitment? This kind of zeal to follow God, to honor God, to you young teenagers here, do you have that kind of commitment? Are you determined in this culture, in the world around you, in your school, in your home, in your neighborhood, to live in a way that honors God and brings God glory. These young teenagers were willing to stand alone in the midst of enormous pressure by the world around them to live like them. I can't hear that phrase of to stand alone without thinking about Martin Luther in the days of the Reformation, the beginning days of the Reformation. You realize Luther was not just taking on the Pope. Now that would have been significant because the entire world was pretty much given over to Roman Catholicism. Luther says no. But Luther was also taking on the governments. He was taking on Charles V, the Holy Roman Emperor over Germany. He was taking on Philip II in Spain. He was taking on governments across the globe, so to speak. He was taking on economic and social structures, and he stood almost alone for the cause of God and truth. Daniel and his three friends were willing to stand alone against this pressure. Now my friends, our situation I'm sure is quite different but understand this, this kind of commitment to honor God, to follow Christ in every area of life. This is what believing in Jesus is about. It's not just that I accept Jesus as my savior and now I'm safe from the fires of hell and I can live any way I want. When you really believe in Jesus, When you trust in Him and when you put your faith in Him and He is your Lord, your Master, your King, then my friends, you are going to realize that every area of your life is to be under His authority and under His control. And you're gonna encounter this time and time and time again. because there will be members of our family who do not share our faith in God, who do not share our love for the Lord Jesus Christ. They're gonna be coworkers in your places of work. They're gonna be fellow students in your classrooms that are gonna tell you, why don't you lighten up, man? Don't be a stick in the mud. That might be a southern expression, I don't know. You just need to relax. You need to live up a little bit. And if that doesn't work, if that pressure doesn't cause you to yield, they will resort to ridicule and hurtful words. They will try to shame you for your positions. They will say, what are you some kind of goody two shoes? Are you a holier than thou individual? You think you're better than us? You think this one little issue will condemn us all to hell? They're gonna try to ridicule and shame you into changing your position. Brethren, If God has worked in your heart, if he has given you a love for his truth, if he has given you a zeal for his honor, you need, like Daniel, to purpose in your heart that you will not yield. where the word of God is clear how he wants you to live. And that can take a thousand different manifestations. I just look back at what it used to be in my childhood and I'm almost stunned. The Sabbath day. once revered by God's people across the board. Stores weren't open. You couldn't buy or sell on the Lord's Day. Or you think of sexual purity. The word of God is very clear. There's no ambiguity there. And yet in our society, it's almost expected. that you will not be sexually pure. What about tithing? What about recognizing that all you own belongs to God? What about daily reading, studying the word of God, spending time in prayer with the Lord? These are not super difficult issues, but they are issues in which our society is constantly seeking to draw us away from following God and make us, as it were, Babylonians, to live like the world in which we dwell. Now, this was not an ideal situation for Daniel. For one, he's very young. Two, he's a slave. He's not exactly free to make his own choices. He has no encouragement whatsoever from family or religious community. But even so, he commits himself to follow God and keep God's commandments. Young people, Settle this in your hearts now. Don't wait. Don't wait until you're off all alone somewhere and you're in the heat of the battle or you're in the middle of some strong assault and spiritual temptation from the devil. Don't wait. Settle this now in the company of God's people under the sound instruction of God's word. Make this your purpose to honor God. and follow him determined by God's grace that you will do what is right. Secondly, let's think about briefly Daniel's respect for the God appointed authority. Daniel was not only committed to do what's right according to God's commandments, but he was committed to doing it the right way. And that's a very important addition. We want to be committed to following God's law, but we also want to be committed to doing it the right way. In this particular case, Daniel doesn't say to Aspinaz, I refuse, I will not do this. Rather, Daniel recognizes the authority that God in his providence has placed him under, and he expresses his desire to serve the Lord with great meekness and great humility. We read in verse eight that Daniel requested, he asked the chief of the eunuchs, that he would not have to defile himself by eating the king's food. Now, if you follow this, we've got the chief of the eunuchs, and then a little bit later we've got this steward that the chief of the eunuchs has appointed over their diets and training. So, when Daniel requests from Aspinaz, that he would not defile himself. Aspinaz basically refuses. He said, no, because if that happens and you look worse than your companions, then my head's on the chopping block. So forget it. Well, Daniel then turns to the steward. Notice he does not get angry. He does not get belligerent. But very gently and wisely, he proposes another course of action, a different approach. And so he asked the steward to test the servants, test him and his friends after 10 days. We'll say more about that in just a moment. But I think it's important to see this is not a flat out refusal like what happens later in chapter three with Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah refusing to bow to the golden image. They said, no way, we're not doing it. That was a flat-out refusal. Same thing with Daniel. When the time came, no prayer offered to anyone except the king. Daniel says, sorry, I'm gonna keep right on praying to my God. and he ends up in the lion's den. That was different. Here, Daniel is wisely seeking to find another way to make this work. It's very instructive. The key here is throughout all of Daniel's interactions with these unbelieving Babylonians, Daniel speaks and acts graciously. There's a winsomeness about Daniel and his situation. You know, Paul wrote to the Corinthians in 2 Corinthians 2 and he says, thanks be to God who makes us the fragrance of his knowledge in every place. Paul's traveling around the Mediterranean world in pagan lands and he says God is making us the fragrance of Christ in every place. My friends, would your co-workers say that about you? Would your family members, perhaps unbelieving family members, say that about you? There's a sweetness, there's a graciousness, there's a winsomeness that makes me want to hear more about that. That is the way Daniel deals with this situation and these are not insignificant details. We don't have to be harsh or arrogant in the expression or practice of our convictions. My friends, there's nothing spiritual about alienating unbelievers by your actions or your attitudes, by a contentious or disagreeable disposition. Remember how the Apostle Paul writes to the Romans in chapter 12 and verse 18 and he says, as much as is possible, as much as depends upon you, be at peace with all men. Not just the friendly and agreeable individuals but be at peace with all men. I think what Daniel's example before us in this passage of scripture is doing is, number one, encouraging us to take heed to the words of Christ. Christ told his disciples in Matthew 10 and verse 16, behold, I'm sending you forth as sheep among wolves. Have you ever felt that way? We are the sheep of the Lord Jesus, and there are a lot of wolves all around us every day. And what does Jesus say? Lock and load. That'd be good advice, but that's not what he says. Be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. That's the way we're supposed to handle these kinds of situations, if at all possible. Peter, in 1 Peter 2, calls us to put on the spirit of Christ. When he says, when he was reviled, he didn't revile in return, he didn't threaten, he didn't say, you just wait till I get my glory and you're gonna pay. What did he do? He didn't revile in return, he didn't threaten. You know what he did? He committed himself to God who judges rightly. He trusted God to work in his own situation. Well, lastly, Daniel's expectation of God's intervention. Daniel was committed to keeping God's commandments. He wisely worked with those in authority over him. But there's much more for us to see here than just Daniel's sterling character and faithfulness to God. Realize that when Daniel requests a 10-day trial, There's more going on here than just demonstrating the value of a vegetarian diet. First of all, 10 days would not have been enough time to produce a noticeable physical change in their appearance. And second of all, Vegetarian diets, particularly vegan diets, do not typically make people appear stronger, better, and fatter. Oftentimes, they make people look pale and weaker. They don't make them look fatter and better. More is happening here. when Daniel says give us 10 days and then you judge by what you see. My friends, what Daniel is doing is an act of faith. He is trusting God to powerfully intervene in this situation. to help them as they seek to honor God. Daniel is trusting God will work on his behalf. I don't know if it's true, but I can certainly see how Daniel maybe has read Jeremiah 33 and verse 3. call upon me and I will show you great and mighty things that you do not know." Is Daniel, by this act of faithfulness to God, saying, do it Lord, like Isaiah, Lord come down, rend the heavens and come down and make your name known among your enemies. Daniel is looking, Daniel is expecting that God will honor his people and God chooses to honor these men who were seeking to honor him by their actions and he does so. to a staggering degree. God blesses exceedingly. When you look at verse nine, we read, God brought Daniel into favor and goodwill with the chief of the eunuchs. You look at verse 15, and it's God who at the end of 10 days caused them to appear better and fatter. After 10 days on a bunch of vegetables, That was the power of God. In verse 17, it is God who gives them knowledge and wisdom and understanding of dreams 10 times more so than any of the magicians or enchanters in the entire realm of Babylon. My friends, this chapter is about God working to honor those who honor Him. This chapter, as J. Adams puts it, is the focal point, is not Nebuchadnezzar. The focal point is not even Daniel and Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. The principal actor here is God himself, sovereign God, who takes the purpose of Nebuchadnezzar to change these young followers of God into followers of his Babylonian God, and God takes that and turns it upside down and completely frustrates the plans of the wicked. He is the God who works his own purpose of advancing Daniel and his three friends to a place of profound influence in the kingdom of Babylon. So much so, and listen to this, think about this, God advances Daniel For the next 70 years, this man is able to counsel, able to direct, able to comfort, able to encourage God's children in exile. And this man, for the next 70 years, He's proclaiming the grace and the power and the glory of the living God in the kingdom of darkness For 70 years, Daniel is faithfully honoring God And then the best part of it all is the last verse of the chapter Thus Daniel continued until the first year of King Cyrus. Does that make your heart skip a beat? Probably not. But it should. Because Daniel continued to faithfully honor God until the first year of King Cyrus. Do you realize what that means? Where's Nebuchadnezzar? He is long gone. Where's Belshazzar? Long gone. Where's Darius the Mede? Long gone. This is 70 years later. The first year of King Cyrus was the year that the king decreed that the Jews could go back home. all this time kings and kingdoms have come and gone and Daniel is still there faithfully proclaiming, honoring God, keeping his commands and showing his glory to the unbelieving nations that have come and gone. What a glorious way God honored those who honored him. May he do that. with us to his glory. Let's pray. Father, once again, we are mindful of our unfaithfulness, mindful of our weakness, mindful of our lack of resolve. Lord, only you, by the power of your spirit, can draw near to us tonight and put within our hearts a purpose, a resolve to be obedient to you, to honor your name in this generation, here and now. And Lord, we don't do it for our sake, but for your great name's sake. Granted, we ask in Jesus' name, amen.