Wednesday, October 31, 218

 

When i watch the Olympic games, I cannot help being inspired by the many determined athletes participating from all over the world. These are men and women representing their respective countries who are determined to win a medal. When they fall, they get back up; they push forward even when their bodies shut down and their brain tells them it is time to stop. No matter what the internal or external struggles might be, they do not give in; they are determined.

 

Circa 605 BC, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon invaded Judah. He destroyed Solomon’s Temple, ransacked the city, and brought back a vast amount of wealth along with the most gifted and talented people. Among those talented people were Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. By Royal Decree of the King, these people would undergo three years of training in the Babylonian customs and then they would enter the royal service.

 

But Daniel was determined not to defile himself by eating the food and wine given to them by the king. Daniel 1: 8 NLT

 

Daniel would not eat the food or wine given to him from the King’s table because these foods had been offered to the god’s of Babylon. Eating these foods would imply that Daniel’s talents and giftedness came from the false gods of Babylon. Although Daniel was taken to Babylon against his will, and was willing to do many things in his service to the King, giving credit to another god was not one of them. Therefore, he was determined to not eat foods offered to the Babylonian gods even if it meant losing his life because he disobeyed the King’s command.

 

Daniel was anchored in his position; Daniel knew what he believed and in whom he believed. Despite the fact that he was taken to Babylon through no decision of his own to serve King Nebuchadnezzar and although he could have questioned God for allowing this to happen to him, he was still determined to not defile himself.

 

As followers of Jesus, we must be determined each day of our lives, as though we were Olympians representing our country, to represent the King of Kings. The Apostle Paul writing to the church in Corinth said: “ Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.” As followers of Jesus, we too must be determined to not defile ourselves with the customs and practices of this world. We too must know what we believe and in whom we believe. We must honor God not only in what we eat, but also in everything that we say and do. We must be determined to honor God with our bodies, wealth, our relationships, and with everything that we have.

 

To walk in Daniel’s shoes means that we are determined to not defile ourselves no matter what the cost.