Who Are You | In Not Of - Daniel 1 | September 8

INTRO

Hey Family!

Over the next 12 weeks, the next three months, taking us right up to the end of the year, we’re going to be reading through the book of Daniel. In our family groups, during our time on Sunday, throughout the week we will be reading this story together and asking one very important question.

Who are you? Who are we? Who will we choose to be? What defines us?

Who are you?

This is the fundamental question Daniel is answering.

Now the book of Daniel is about a lot of things… It’s about faithful living in the midst of a culture opposed to God. It’s about God’s comfort in the midst of oppression. And it’s about hope for God’s future restoration. But primarily it is about identity.

Daniel is a story, it is filled with fantastical apocalyptic visions. And as such it serves to strengthen and encourage the people of God to stand firm in who they are to hope for a future. That God is ultimately in control!

Past. Present. Or Future. God is in control. It’s in His hands.

Daniel passionately believed that there was a God in control of history!

Even the exile that brought Daniel and his friends to Babylon was proof that global history and Daniel’s little history was in God’s hands.

GOD IS IN CONTROL

Let’s take a step back for a moment… How did we get here?

We just heard in these opening verses, “During the third year of King Jehoiakim’s reign in Judah, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. 2 The Lord gave him victory over King Jehoiakim of Judah and permitted him to take some of the sacred objects from the Temple of God. So Nebuchadnezzar took them back to the land of Babylonia and placed them in the treasure-house of his god.” (Daniel 1:1-3, NLT)

God is in control!

God is king over all nations and rules over all of history.

When we get to Daniel 5:21 we will read that the Most High God rules in the kingdom of men, and appoints over it whomever He chooses. He lifts one up and brings down another.

The LORD gave Nebuchadnezzar victory. God permitted it. It’s not just clever PR. This is not the first record of spin. God allowed His people to be carried off into the hands of the Babylonians. In fact, they are His method of redemption. This is what we call the exile.

It is life outside of Jerusalem – outside the promised land. Life outside of Eden. This is life in exile.

But that doesn’t mean it is life outside of God’s control. God is still in control. Future and Past, God is in control.

Second Kings chapter 24 gives us a little bit more information of how Daniel got here.

It says, “2 The Lord sent bands of Babylonian, Aramean, Moabite, and Ammonite raiders against Judah to destroy it, just as the Lord had promised through his prophets. 3 These disasters happened to Judah because of the Lord’s command. He had decided to banish Judah from his presence because of the many sins of Manasseh, 4 who had filled Jerusalem with innocent blood. The Lord would not forgive this”… (2 Kings 24:2-4)

God sent His prophets to speak His word to bring His people back to His covenant that He might be their God and they might be His people that they may live in peace and rest. But the people continued to rebel. They worshiped the false gods of the people around them. They turned their back on the one true God and replaced Him with images made by the hands of men and they committed the same atrocities of the people around them so God let them be taken. In fact, we read here that He sent the Babylonians to do it. God commanded it.

Daniel’s presence in Babylon was ordained by God. It wasn’t an accident. It wasn’t a concession. Daniel was where we was for a purpose.

If you don’t know who you are, then you won’t know what to do, you won’t know your purpose. Daniel knew his identity. Daniel knew who He was, who God wanted Him to be. Daniel had a great purpose.

This is not a wild assumption. It’s not something I am making up to prove a point. Daniel was a student of God’s word. He listened to the prophets. He knew God’s heart.

The only way you can answer the question “who am I?” is if you can answer the question “who is God?” Daniel knew God and so Daniel knew himself.

LOSING OUR IDENTITY

Which is strange, because exile is normally a place where people lose their identities.

What oppressive empires normally do when running over the little guy is get rid of their national identity.

We read in Daniel 1 that “3 The king (Nebuchadnezzar) ordered his chief of staff to bring to the palace some of the young men of Judah’s royal family and other noble families, who had been brought to Babylon as captives... Train these young men in the language and literature of Babylon…”

6 Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah were four of the young men chosen, all from the tribe of Judah. 7 The chief of staff renamed them with these Babylonian names: Daniel was called Belteshazzar. Hananiah was called Shadrach. Mishael was called Meshach. Azariah was called Abednego.” (Daniel 1:3-7)

This is social engineering at its finest, making everybody the same in terms of their identity. Removing their national differences, assimilating them fully into one homogenized culture.

Don’t be different.

Conform.

This is the way.

So Daniel and his friends were trained. They were educated in the finest universities Babylon had to offer. They were given food from the king’s rations. They were given new Babylonian names. And these names are pretty offensive to the sensibilities of any true, God-fearing Hebrew.

Daniel is a name that means “God is my judge”. And this isn’t supposed to be a fear-inducing sentiment. It is a celebration of the God of justice who makes all things right in the end. The God who doesn’t let any wrong go unpunished, but He fiercely loves and shows grace in equal measure. The God who won’t forget His people.

Daniel’s name was changed to Belteshazzar which means “Bel protects his life.” The main deity in Babylon was the god Marduk. The Babylonians wouldn’t spell out or pronounce that name, so they would often substitute the word Bel which meant something like lord. That’s a similar pattern we see in these ancient near eastern people groups. Israel did the same thing we know. This is often a practice the Bible takes in clever storytelling. It purposefully adapts a cultural trope, symbol, or practice of the neighboring cultures but changes it in a significant way to make a definitive statement about the supremacy of God. That the God of Israel is not similar to but far and above all other gods. The Bible has always been written as a story that would be heard by the nations. Daniel. God is my judge.

Hananiah, which means “the Lord shows grace”, was called Shadrach “command of Aku", the moon god.

Mishael, which means “who is like God”, was called Meshach “Who is like Shak” another Babylonian deity.

And Azariah, which means “God has helped”, was called Abednego “servant of Nebo” who was the son of Marduk.

It was as if the Babylonians took their names and as a way to mock them for their perceived ignorance changed them just slightly enough so that instead of being directed to Yahweh, the God of Israel, they made congruent statements directed toward the gods of Babylon.

Their names were changed as a way of encouraging them to forget the God and traditions of their homeland and become conformed to the ways and gods of Babylon – to erase their identities.

And for some reason all of this was fine to the young men. They didn’t protest it. Indeed, we hardly even know the names Hananiah, Mishael, or Azariah. For the remainder of the book it seems they are only referred to by their new, Babylonian names. And that is how we know them best.

In this first chapter of Daniel, there seems to be little exception taken by the four young men but for the food rations provided from the king’s table. Daniel protested the royal food provided to them. Which may seem strange.

I think, if this were to happen in our modern culture, we would care little about the food and a great deal about what we were called. But for them it was the other way around.

They refused to eat the King’s rations. They insisted, in this moment, to maintain their cultural identity, to fight for it, and God honored this devotion and blessed them.

So much so that “18 When the training period ordered by the king was completed… no one impressed him as much as Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah… 20 Whenever the king consulted them in any matter requiring wisdom and balanced judgment, he found them ten times more capable than any of the magicians and enchanters in his entire kingdom.” (Daniel 1:18-20)

I can’t tell you why they cared little of their names and much of their diets. God had taken special care to give many laws about what foods should and should not be eaten as a way to separate and mark His people among the nations.

What Daniel ate perhaps said more about his identity than what he was called.

I suppose they can call you what you like and you can call yourself what you like but if you have an identity in God that’s something that will never change. They were sure to preserve their national identity not as Hebrews, but as God’s set apart people. I guess that’s the point to be made. But importantly to note, is that there are times to concede and there are times to fight.

And in exile, our identity is exactly what we need to remember and fight for. Because with every decision you make, you become someone different. And you are either becoming more conformed to the patterns of the world, or you are becoming more conformed to the image of Jesus. Romans 12 teaches us that we need to be transformed into His image by allowing God to renew our mind and change what we care about so that we will know God’s will, we will know where the important battle lines are drawn. What are we going to care about and fight and what are we going to let go of?

DRAWING OUR BATTLE LINES

Because, even though this is Daniel’s story, and Daniel is telling us what he did in his day and his circumstances and not necessarily telling us what we should do in our day and our circumstances. Even though this is Daniel’s story. This is our story as well.

We haven't been taken to a new culture like Daniel. We haven’t been taken somewhere else. We’ve stayed and the culture has changed around us. Our culture is changing dramatically, so we have to know who we are. We have to know who God is so we can know who we should be. We have to know where to draw the lines.

And faithfulness will look like two things. Faithfulness will look like maintaining our devotion to God. And faithfulness will look like maintaining our witness for God.

Faithfulness will look like maintaining our devotion and witness without compromise.

We must draw the line where we are told to disobey God. We must draw the line where we are asked to compromise on matters that our conscience tells us will undermine our identity. We must draw the line when pressured to elevate man over God. We must draw the line and resist the temptation to withdraw from the world and privatize our faith. And we must also draw the line by resisting the temptation to politicize our faith.

“Some of us will be more tempted to draw lines and take on fights when faithfulness doesn’t require it. Others will be tempted to keep our heads down and make compromises when faithfulness looks like drawing a line and gently but firmly refusing to cross it. Sometimes it is straightforward to see where the line must be, but not always, and our unity depends on humbly recognizing the difference.”

IN BUT NOT OF

God is in control.

God’s throne is constant. His rule is sure.

Even when one oppressive empire is replaced by another oppressive empire. God is in control of all rule and authority. God was in control of Daniel’s little story and He is in control of your story as well.

We must know what to care about. We must know who God is so we can figure out who we are. We must live in this world, in exile, but always remember that we are not of the world. We have been called out of the world to be sent back into the world.

Have you heard this phrase “in but not of”? In the world but not of the world. It’s a bit of a Christian mantra. Maybe you’ve heard it.

It’s not exactly in the Bible. I mean you won’t find the exact phrase, but the concept is clear. It mostly comes from Jesus’ words to His disciples in John 17.

Jesus prays to the Father, “14 I have given them your word. And the world hates them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. 15 I’m not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from the evil one. 16 They do not belong to this world any more than I do. 17 Make them holy by your truth; teach them your word, which is truth.”

Through believing in the word of truth, placing our faith and trust in Jesus, we no longer belong to the world, to the kingdom of darkness. We now, in Jesus, belong to the kingdom of God, the kingdom of light. We, as believers, are no longer of the world—we are no longer ruled by sin. We are no longer bound by the principles of the world. We are, instead, being changed into the image of Christ, causing our interest in the things of the world to become less and less as we mature in Christ. Looking less like the world and more like Christ. We have been set free so that, Jesus goes on…

“18 Just as you sent me into the world, I am sending them into the world… 20 “I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me through their message. 21 I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one—as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me.” (John 17:14-21)

The disciples were taken out of, not of, sanctified, and sent into to testify. To proclaim the universal reign of God and to embody Jesus to the world around.

“We are here for the world, not against the world. It’s not us vs them. It is for them.

We’re not looking for escape. The primary christian message is not a longing to be somewhere else. It’s to see Heaven come to Earth and overlap.”

It is a command to be in the world as Jesus was in the world. To do what Jesus did. Accepting the risk/guarantee of being hated as Jesus was hated, not because our actions are deserving of hate, but because our love is an unwelcome antidote to the poison of sin which still grips the hearts of mankind.

“We are meant to do as Jesus did by loving other people, which is why we are sanctified in the first place. Our salvation is for other people.”

I read an article from a disenchanted believer so convinced by the compelling love of Christ and yet so disheartened by the failures of God’s people to be like Him in any way. And even as we step more into this reality of family and the call for the family of God to exist for those who are not yet here, I see this temptation in us. The author writes…

“I do not see Christian people laser-focused on the mission God gave us of continuing to love all people on His behalf. Instead, I see holy huddles, where we become somewhat okay at loving other Christians, if we’re lucky.

I do not see Christian people knowing that they are here for a reason. Instead, I see people waiting to be taken away from here.

I do not see Christian people living in the world they are in. Instead, I see them afraid of the world, while setting up camp just outside of the scary parts of town, so they don’t get any sin on them.

I do not see Christian people concerned with what breaks God’s heart. Instead, I see people letting it break and doing nothing but feeling bad about it, while singing about it.

Jesus wants us to be here, not separate, but I see Christians doing everything they possibly can to stay separate from “the world.”

Christian bubble culture is wrong because it takes us out of the world. This is not where Jesus wanted us.

You are sent INTO the world, to make God’s love known, and to leave His mark upon it in the most Christ-like ways possible. We are called to feed the poor. Like, personally, ourselves, directly. Food into mouth. We are called to clothe the naked, with our own jackets off our backs. We are called to let other people be forceful, while refusing to be that way ourselves, even if they mistreat us because of it. We are called to show love to those who hate us and wrong us and disagree with us and want to hurt us and misunderstand us or seek to use us. We are to give, without thought of ourselves, AND without even dwelling on the decision (Matthew 6:2–4).

We are called to be Jesus in this world, as informed by writings about His life and the Holy Spirit living within us… To be like Jesus is already to be different from this world, inherently. As long as we are becoming more like Jesus, we are already becoming less like the world, in all the ways that matter to God.”

DANIEL’S PURPOSE

Daniel knew who God was. He knew who He was and He had immense purpose.

Again, this is not a guess.

Daniel tells us in chapter 9, “I, Daniel, learned from reading the word of the Lord, as revealed to Jeremiah the prophet, that Jerusalem must lie desolate for seventy years. 3 So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and fasting.”

Here’s what Daniel read, “4 This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says to all the captives he has exiled to Babylon from Jerusalem: 5 “Build homes, and plan to stay. Plant gardens, and eat the food they produce. 6 Marry and have children. Then find spouses for them so that you may have many grandchildren. Multiply! Do not dwindle away! 7 And work for the peace and prosperity of the city where I sent you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, for its welfare will determine your welfare… 11 For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.”

Daniel knew his purpose. He had a future and a hope. The God who is in control of all history, who had orchestrated their past and made way for their present, that same God had given Daniel and his friends a bright future and a spectacular hope.

And that purpose was to work for the peace and prosperity of the world into which they had been sent. Pray for them. Love them. Testify to them about the Lord. Tell them all about me, God says. And the result is redemption and rest in the presence of the living God.

This is the Gospel that changes us.

WHO ARE YOU?

“What does it look like to live as a Christian in a society that does not like what Christians believe, what we say, and how we live? It means knowing God as Daniel did — that God is in control, that he will keep his promises. He may at times deliver his people from the fire, but if not, he will always deliver us through the fire.”

So who are you?

If you don’t know who you are, then you won’t know how to act. Identity leads to action. We spent several weeks talking about the mission of God and the mission of this church. You’ll still be riding the sidelines of the mission of God if you don’t know who you are.

AFFIRMATION

You know that scene from “Cool Runnings”? You know the one I’m talking about? That’s probably a movie I can recommend. In fact, I bet you could show your kids that one. There’s the scene where the character Yule Brenner is giving a pep talk to Junior Bevil. He says, “look in the mirror and tell me what you see!? I see pride. I see power! I see a bad mother” Maybe get the edited version of that scene.

I want to end our time together with an exercise to help reshape us. I would love it if you could repeat this to yourself throughout the week. We’ll come back together next Sunday and remind each other of this truth.

Because I look out at each and everyone of you and this is what I see.

I see a child of God!

I see a beautiful creation, made in the image of the Almighty!

I see a warrior who stands firm on the truth!

I see a vessel of love, grace, and strength, filled with the Holy Spirit!

I see a citizen of Heaven who is redeemed, chosen, and set apart for God's purpose!

I see a follower of Christ who walks in victory and refuses to bow to fear!

I see a pillar of truth who doesn't take any lies from the enemy!

I see a servant, sent into the world to shine His light!

I see a messenger of hope, sent to proclaim the Good News and live out the love of Jesus!

I see an ambassador, bringing peace, justice, and mercy wherever you go!

I see a glorious expression of the King, sent to make Him known!"

Go ahead and stand up, and join me in speaking this truth and proclaiming this identity over yourself that you may know who you are, that you may know whose you are, and that you may know with confidence what you are to do as we live this life in exile not of the world, but sent into the world with great purpose.

Who are you? Stand up tall and tell me what you see.