Can we just give a big shout out to the New Year we are in!! I don’t think the world has ever been more ready to see one year end and another year begin. Here’s to 2021!!! At the beginning of every year we have the opportunity to make a commitment to improve not only our lives but our world. I am not a big fan of making New Year’s resolutions because I know that by now, January 3rd, I will probably have broken them, but there is something exciting about the New Year. I see it as a clean slate where we can write out the life we want to live. The New Year provides us the possibility of being all we want to be, but it takes courage and commitment to live with conviction. To help inspire us to live this way this year, we are going to look at some stories of courage and commitment found in the book of Daniel.
In this OT book, we hear about Daniel and 3 friends who chose to stand up to honor God. Through all kinds of challenges, they stood strong and firm in their faith, and because they did, their world was changed. Before they stand up, or stand strong, or stand firm, they first have to make the decision to stand out. As we begin a New Year, can we make the choice to stand out in the world around us. Can we be the light shining in the darkness? Can we be the power of love in a world filled with hate and division?
Living for Jesus means standing out and at times looking different because the values of God’s kingdom are different than the values of the world. Jesus stood out among other religious leaders of his day because he loved and accepted people that others wouldn’t. He went places that other leaders wouldn’t go. He worked for justice and called for forgiveness. He stood out and because he did, people were drawn to him. The disciples and the early church stood out and their lives of love and faith drew people in. It is my hope that in this New Year we will choose to stand out with Jesus so that the world might be drawn not to us but to Him.
David mentioned last week that we don’t love people to win them to Jesus, we love them to love them. I read the same thing this week in a devotional by Bob Goff. He said, No one leads people to Jesus. He leads people to himself. All the pressure is off. All we have to do is give away all the love He’s poured into us. So all we have to do is love like Jesus, love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength, and our neighbor as ourself, but that kind of loving and living will cause us to stand out in this world.
Daniel and his friends stood out because they wanted to love God with all their heart, soul, mind and strength. The story begins in 589 BC when King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon began a siege of Jerusalem. For more than a year he blockaded the city so the people of Israel could not get supplies. This not only destroyed their strength, but it deflated their morale. They had given up hope. Two years later, the walls of Jerusalem fell and Nebuchadnezzar began to destroy all the religious symbols in the Temple. He thought if he could put an end to the religious life of the people, the nation would not be able to regroup and rebuild.
Nebuchadnezzar also wanted to destroy any hope of Israel rising up in the future so he not only forced the people to leave their homes and settle all across Babylon, he also took the best young men who might one day be leaders in Israel and forced them to enter into his service. This is where the book of Daniel begins. Daniel 1:3-6
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 plan was to fully indoctrinate these young men into the Babylonian culture so that they would completely let go of their faith. By surrounding them with the Babylonian language, literature, history, traditions, gods, and people, the king hoped that these young men would eventually lose their love for God and let go of their faith. In trying to change their identity, the king also changed their names. Daniel 1:7. The chief official gave them new names: to Daniel, the name Belteshazzar; to Hananiah, Shadrach; to Mishael, Meshach; and to Azariah, Abednego.
The power of this name change wasn’t just that they would now have Babylonian names, the king was trying to disconnect them from their God and connect them to the gods of Babylon. Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah were all names that referenced the God of Israel. For example, Hannaniah means God has been gracious and Azariah means God has helped us. Their old names connected them to their God, but their new names referenced the Babylonian gods. Shadrach means command of Aku, who was the Babylonian moon god, and Abednego means servant of Nebo who was the Babylonian god of wisdom. So now anytime someone called them, instead of being reminded of the one true God, they were reminded of the new pagan gods they were being told to follow. The King’s plan was to undermine their faith in God.
Not only were they given new names, but we heard earlier that they were given a new diet. They were now to eat only from the king’s table, and while this sounds great because it would be all the best food, the problem was that it was also food that had been sacrificed to the gods of Babylon. Not only did Nebuchadnezzar want them physically strong, he wanted them to honor, and in some way worship, his god.
All these changes were part of the process of indoctrination and if Daniel and his friend were going to stand strong in their faith, then at some point they were going to have to stand out. At some point they were going to draw a line and separate themselves from the those around us and it was with the food that Daniel made a stand.
Daniel 1:8 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.
It’s interesting to think about why Daniel made a stand on the food and not on the name. While we aren’t given any reason, it’s easy to hear Daniel say, look, you can call me whatever you want, it doesn't matter because I know who I am, and I know who I belong to. I belong to God and no name will change that, but I will NOT defile myself by eating food sacrificed to your god. I won’t honor or worship your god in any way. So Daniel resolved not to eat the food, and what’s important to note is that he made this decision ahead of time.
Daniel didn’t wait for the food to be placed in front of him hoping he would have the strength to not eat it, he made a plan ahead of time so that the temptation wouldn’t even be there. Daniel went to the officials and asked them to let them keep eating their own food and if they were not in better shape than the others, they would eat the king’s food. How smart was Daniel to make a plan ahead of time? He didn’t wait until they were at the table where they would be tempted by all the best food, he removed the temptation and worked out a plan that needed them to trust God. If we want to stand strong in our faith we need to learn how to stand out and make plans ahead of time so that we can be faithful.
What plans do you need to make today so that you can stand out and stand strong in the New Year? If you want to commit to worshiping every week, then make a plan today to make it happen. Don’t wait until next Sunday and hope you feel like attending, put it on your calendar and a reminder or notification on your phone. If you want to read through the Bible this year, download a reading plan today and join me in making it happen. I chose the 5 day plan because I know something might happen one or two days a week when I won’t be able to read and I don’t want to feel like a failure before I start.
If you want to improve your marriage, make a plan now for date nights, quiet times alone, and space for important conversations, and then make it happen. If you want to be a better parent, a better student, a better musician or athlete, then make a plan now so that when temptation comes to pull you away from your goals and dreams you will be able to stand strong.
When Daniel made a plan to stand strong in his faith, he knew that he was going to stand out from those around him. Remember, there were many young men in this program, but only these 4 took a stand. Daniel and his friends were going to be seen as different, but it was what they needed to do to be faithful. Faithfulness was more important than fitting in.
As we make plans to stand strong in our faith, we have to be ready to stand out because our decisions and commitments will make us look different from those around us. If we make the decision to not gossip at work but only allow our words to encourage and lift others up, we will stand out when the stories begin and we excuse ourselves and walk away. If we carve out time to be part of a small group, and share with our friends the joy we are finding being part of the church, we will stand out. In a world that calls us to conform, it is difficult to stand out. It’s not always easy being the light in darkness but it is worth it. It changes us and it inspires others.
I spent a summer working in Rocky Mountain National Park and I was there with a ministry program that called us to be the light of Jesus among our coworkers. Every evening, most of my coworkers went to the bars to drink. At first I didn’t go because I didn’t want to drink every night and watch people get drunk, but I soon found myself sitting alone. I realized I was never going to shine the light of Jesus if I didn’t go with them. So I went out but I resolved ahead of time to not get drunk. I would go and hang out, I would talk and dance, but would not get drunk. That often meant I walked home alone when things got out of hand, but I had made that decision ahead of time and while I stood out, I was able to stick to it.
All summer I simply tried to love God and love people the best I could. I knew I stood out and I hoped that people were seeing Jesus in me, but I honestly didn’t know. At the end of the summer, one of the women I worked with who did drink a lot most nights was leaving and she wrote notes to everyone. Mine said this, don’t let anyone change you. I was stunned. I had no idea she even noticed me, let alone noticed how I lived differently. I didn't make a big deal out of the choices I made, and I didn’t put anyone down or condemn the choices they made, I just lived out my faith the best way I could and tried to love the people around me, and at least one person noticed. At least one person experienced a little bit of Jesus’ light in the darkness.
Following Jesus, shining the light of Christ in the world, loving God and loving others the way God calls us to means we will stand out. Where do you need to resolve today to stand out? At work? At school? Among your family or friends? Do you need to decide now how to more faithfully use your time or money in this New Year? Make the decision today even if it means standing out from those around you. Honor God and allow God to honor you and use you to shine His light into the world. That’s what happened with Daniel and his friends. Daniel 1:17-20
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.
To honor God, Daniel and his friends made a decision to be faithful, which called them to stand out from the rest. When they did this, God honored them. How is God calling you to honor Him? What plan do you need to make so that you can remain faithful? Make the plan today because being faithful to God often means standing out from those around us, and standing out is difficult in a world that calls us to conform. Make a plan today to be the light of God in this dark world. Make a plan to love God and love others in a clear and intentional way, and then trust that as you stand out, God will honor you with His strength, and power, and peace and use you for His glory.
Next Steps
Stand Out
How have you welcomed 2021?
What do you want to see changed in your life this year?
What plans have you made to make this change happen?
What plans do you need to make?
Read Daniel 1
How did Daniel and his friends choose to stand out?
● Why do you think they chose to stand out when it came to their diet but not to their new names?
● What did their old names mean? New names?
● What would have happened if they chose to blend in?
When and how have you chosen to stand out for your faith?
● What difference did it make in you? Iin others?
● Did anyone notice? If they did or didn’t, how did this make you feel?
When have you seen someone else stand out for their faith?
● How did this make you feel?
● Did they do it for show or for God?
● Did it make a difference?
Where can you make a plan to stand out this year and deepen your faith?
● Worship? Serving Others? Financial Giving?
● Join Pastor Andy and read the Bible in 2021. Here is the 5 day plan: https://fivedaybiblereading.com/
For further study, read about the full armor of God that can help us stand strong in faith. Ephesians 6:10-18
