Reason why I’m doing this

Maybe it’s the way that the story’s told, but I get the sense that Daniel, Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego really don’t care about anything other than pleasing God. One reason it feels this way is because the writer of the Bible didn’t care to show how Daniel and his friends felt or reacted when faced with certain death. There’s no mention of fear, of worry, or hesitation. I’m sure they felt some kind of fear, since they are only human too, but the main focus is on the way they choose to respond to the situation, and not so much their emotions.

Because it’s written this way, I can’t help but imagine Daniel and his friends possessing an aura of nonchalance as they continually face certain death and danger in what I imagine to be unstable and abusive living conditions. King Nebuchadnezzar is at the very least, bipolar. He threatens to literally rip you into shreds, then prostrates himself before you and heaps riches upon you five seconds later. His gut reaction to minor inconveniences is to kill the people causing the minor inconveniences. Most people would live cowering in fear in this kind of environment. But Daniel and Co are not afraid of death in the slightest however, and so Daniel’s friends’ reaction to death threats from a man that very well means it is:

“King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” (Daniel 3:16b-18)

But despite how nonchalant Daniel and Co are, none of them are ever disrespectful or rebellious to the king. It’s not “Our almighty God will save us from you, shove an umbrella up your ass and open it,” but “The only thing I care about is my relationship with God. I’m not afraid of death, and I’m not afraid of you. But I will still treat you with the respect that a human deserves.”

Daniel and Co do not fear because their trust in God is so great, and because they, unconsciously, or consciously, know that the only thing that matters is living a life pleasing to God, which they do.

Also, the concept of career advancement does not seem to exist in their brain. I’m sure, because they seem to be smart and diligent people, that they would give it their all at the role they are placed in. But they don’t work thinking about “I need to gain more power” or “I need this promotion.” They simply do their job well, and focus on pleasing God. Then God randomly gives them a promotion via divine intervention, placing them at the top of the corporate ladder that many would kill to be at.

So a couple things stuck out to me today:

1. There’s nothing to fear but God

2. Please God

3. Do your job well

4. Be kind and respectful to others despite not being too attached to what they think of you

#personal #slave2christ

Reason why I’m doing this

There’s a couple themes to point out.

Fate

• There’s an aspect of fate to all this. Daniel and his friends were chosen from all of Israel to serve in the courts of Babylon. They were good lookin’, smart, and all that. I’m sure there were others in Israel that could be chosen, but they were the ones. What I’m saying is that they were probably fated to be chosen.

Disciplined Commitment to Holiness

• Daniel and his friends decide at the get go that they aren’t going to eat the food sacrificed to idols. They decided it was sin, that they weren’t going to do it, and they decided to eat raw vegetables instead (pretty bad food tbh).
• The guy in charge was concerned that they would not develop properly, and grow up to be good servants of the kingdom. Then they told the guy in charge that they weren’t going to do it, and that he should test them.

Trusting in God for the Results

• Daniel and his friends trust that God is going to deliver them from having to eat food sacrificed to idols when they ask the guy in charge to test them. They would not ask the guy in charge to test them if they had no trust in God to deliver them.
• I’m sure that even if they did not pass this test, God would have given them a different way out.

Leadership

• I’m sure Daniel and his friends all led exemplary lives before God. But the spotlight is on Daniel. He seems to be one leading his friends, and they follow really well, but he does seem to be that calls the shots. But he does it in a way that is pleasing to God.
• Someone has to step up and lead.

God-given competence and excellence

• In the text, it says that God gives them all wisdom, knowledge, and discernment over the years that they study. This shows that ability is ultimately given by God. Even if we don’t receive the same talents that Daniel and co received, we can rely on God for the ability to be excellent and competent in whatever work we do, so that He will be glorified when people look at us.

#personal #slave2christ