MAKING THE RIGHT CHOICE!

Pharaoh Neco was the most powerful emperor to ever rule Egypt. It was his ambition to conquer the world according to Jer 46.  His plan failed at the river Euphrates where he was defeated by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon. In the process, Nebuchadnezzar conquered Jerusalem and installed a puppet King, Jehoiakim, in 606 BC. In 598 BC, Nebuchadnezzar returned to Jerusalem put down a rebellion by Jehoiakim and installed Zedekiah in his place. Zedekiah also rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar in 586 BC.; this time Nebuchadnezzar had the city of Jerusalem destroyed and its primary residents deported to Babylon. The city lay in ruins until the times of Ezra & Nehemiah who were contemporaries of Daniel.

TEXT: Daniel 1…

Daniel was one of thousands of Hebrew people who were deported to Babylon for the purpose of indoctrinating them in the ways of that kingdom. The king wanted to change their beliefs so he could control the people.

Daniel was a man of great character and courage.

·      Some would say that he was found in the wrong place at the wrong time.

·      In reality, by God’s providence, he was in the right place at the right time.

Esther 4:14 Mordicea said to Esther,.. “For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father's house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”

 
The key verse in chapter 1 is v 8. “But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's meat, nor with the wine which he drank.”

Daniel’s success is seen in the life changing decisions he made as a young man.  It is evident that he remained firm in this decision throughout his life.  His decision was tested on at least four different occasions. This brings us to the first primary thought we wish to consider.

1.     The CHOICES you make reveal the CHARACTER you possess.

“Leadership is a potent combination of strategy and character. But if you must be without one, be without strategy.” -- General H. Norman Schwarzkopf

• Daniel made the choice to build his life around godly principals. Character is the quality of a person’s life that distinguishes them from others; their personality, reputation, good moral presence or integrity.

The word INTEGRITY comes from the same Latin root as 'integer,' untouched or whole. Like a whole number, a person of integrity is undivided and complete. A person of character acts according to their core beliefs, not according to expediency. They are consistent. There is no difference in the way they make decisions from one situation to another. Their principles don't vary at work, home, in public or alone.

·      Daniel chose not to eat the king’s meat (v 8). Many people disagree with Daniel’s decision. They see no problem with such a compromise.

“In Babylon it was customary to throw a portion of their meat on the ground as an offering to the gods. Daniel believed that to partake of such meat would be showing approval of idolatry.” —Jamieson-Fausset-Brown

·      What was so important about Daniel’s decision? 

It revealed the foundation of his conscience – the Word of God. His conscience was based on his knowledge and value of the Word of God.

It gave him an opportunity to glorify God. His resources were limited; His opportunities were few; He must make the best use of them.

C.H. Spurgeon: “May God give us back the old grit that used to be in Christians, to whom God’s Word was everything;… Daniel would never have been called “a man greatly beloved” if he had not been… a youth greatly decided; neither would he have continued to the reign of Cyrus had he not stood firm in the reign of Nebuchadnezzar. You shall read the evening of life in the morning of life, and you shall decide what your evening is to be by what your morning is.”

“Fame is a vapor, popularity an accident, riches take wings, and only character endures.” -- Horace Greeley (1872) owner of “The New York Tribune.”

2.     “What is RIGHT is not always POPULAR and what is POPULAR is not always RIGHT.” (Howard Cosell, Albert Einstein)

·      There were hundreds of Hebrew captives from Jerusalem in Babylon. They were being schooled and trained in the same manner.

·      There were captives from other conquered nations as well. To the best of our knowledge no one had a problem with eating the king’s meat except these four Hebrew children. We know they made the right choice because God blessed them (v 9).

·      Egypt represented Bondage / Babylon is a world without boundaries!

Each day amid life’s noisy throng
We’re bound to hear this world’s case,
And if we’re not alert to wrong,
The Savior’s name we may disgrace.

What’s POPULAR isn’t always RIGHT! Just because everybody else is doing it, doesn’t mean that it’s right to do.

What’s RIGHT isn’t always POPULAR! Going to church, reading your Bible, dressing modestly, obeying your parents, paying your bills, etc...

3.     Things of TRUE VALUE are worth FIGHTING FOR.  Why did Daniel do this?

·      He Counted The Cost.

Luke 14:25-27, 33 “There went great multitudes with Jesus: and he turned, and said unto them, ²⁶ If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. ²⁷ And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple… ³³ So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.”

·      He Was Willing to Pay The Price.

Philippians 3:7-11 “What things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. ⁸ Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, ⁹ And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: ¹⁰ That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; ¹¹ If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.”

·      He Reaped The Reward.

James 1:12 “Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.”

“You shall read the evening of life in the morning of life, and you shall decide what your evening is to be by what your morning is.” --Spurgeon