A Matter of the Heart

    "But Daniel set in his heart that he would not defile himself with the king’s choice food or with the wine which he drank; so he sought permission from the commander of the officials that he might not defile himself. Now God granted Daniel lovingkindness and compassion before the commander of the officials, and the commander of the officials said to Daniel, 'I am afraid of my lord the king, who has appointed your food and your drink; for why should he see your faces looking more haggard than the youths who are your own age? Then you would make me forfeit my head to the king'” - Daniel 1:8-10.

    God was carrying out His long promised judgment and discipline on His Old Testament children Israel. He had chosen them to share the good news of His coming Messiah with the nations of the world... "He says, 'It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant, to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to cause the preserved ones of Israel to return; I will also give You as a light of the nations so that My salvation may reach to the end of the earth'" - Isaiah 49:6. But they had consistently rebelled against Him in substituting other gods in their worship, elevating themselves into the place of gods, and disrespecting the value of human life. As a loving Father, God had warned them and now was disciplining them... "For whom Yahweh loves He reproves, even as a father reproves the son in whom he delights" Proverbs 3:12 (see also Hebrews 12:6). While many were praying for a revival His mercy, few were answering His call for a personal return to holiness and righteousness. To be holy and right with God is truly a matter of the heart.

    "But Daniel set in His heart that he would not defile himself" - Daniel 1:8. Daniel understood that in order for a nation to be set apart from other nations unto the special privilege and responsibility of the Lord's work, the individual hearts of the members of that nation must be set apart unto the Lord. Perhaps he was raised in a holy family or he discovered and surrendered to the truth of God's Word as he heard it. Despite the collapse and captivity of the nation around him, and despite his own personal enslavement to a foreign culture, Daniel was still "set in his heart" to remain set apart to His true Heavenly Father. As a result, despite his physical imprisonment in Babylon, he was in the perfect position to be used of God as a prophet to foreign kings and officials, an exhorter of the remnant of God's faithful children, and a witness to the unholy culture that surrounded him.

    Let's face the truth. Today, America has become a reflection of the same sins that had consumed Israel. In addition, many in America are vocally and violently attacking Israel and defending her terrorist enemies. There are many faithful New Testament children of God ("as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name" - John 1:12) praying for a national revival. I hope you are among them. But God is still searching for individuals who are willing to surrender their hearts to Him, to be set apart and available to be His prophets, exhorters, and witnesses to the collapsing culture that surrounds them, wherever He may place them. To be like Daniel, we must be set in our hearts that we will not defile ourselves, because to be part of the answer to the prayer for revival is truly a matter of the heart.

Living a Holy Life in an Unholy World

    "In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, along with some of the vessels of the house of God; and he brought them to the land of Shinar, to the house of his god, and he brought the vessels into the treasury of his god.

Then the king said for Ashpenaz, the chief of his officials, to bring in some of the sons of Israel, including some of the royal seed and of the nobles, youths in whom was no defect, who were good in appearance, showing insight in every branch of wisdom, being thoroughly knowledgeable and discerning knowledge, and who had ability to stand in the king's palace; and he said for him to teach them the literature and tongue of the Chaldeans. And the king appointed for them a daily ration from the king's choice food and from the wine which he drank, and appointed that they should be educated three years, at the end of which they were to stand before the king. Now among them from the sons of Judah were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. Then the commander of the officials set names for them; and for Daniel he set the name Belteshazzar, for Hananiah Shadrach, for Mishael Meshach, and for Azariah Abed-nego" - Daniel 1: 1-7.

    If we are reading and studying the Bible systematically, we have just completed the books of Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, and Ezekiel. The focus of the Holy Spirit-inspired prophets that God used to produce these holy words was the rebellion of God's old covenant children Israel. They also highlighted the sins of the nations that surrounded Israel. All of these nations had two major sins in common. They worshiped idols, sometimes even imagining themselves to be equal to or greater than God... "Therefore, this is what the Sovereign LORD says: Because you think you are as wise as a god, therefore, behold, I will bring foreigners upon you, the most ruthless of the nations; and they shall draw their swords against the beauty of your wisdom and defile your splendor" - Ezekiel 28:6-7. They also turned their backs on Israel, rejoicing in Israel's suffering under the judgment of God... "For thus says Lord Yahweh, ‘Because you have clapped your hands and stamped your feet and were glad with all the scorn of your soul against the land of Israel, therefore, behold, I have stretched out My hand against you, and I will give you for plunder to the nations. And I will cut you off from the peoples and make you perish from the lands; I will destroy you. Thus you will know that I am Yahweh’” - Ezekiel 25:6-7. Living in the shadow of impending judgment must have been terrifying and difficult, but God promises to help those who are living a holy life in an unholy world.

    In far too many ways, the words of these prophets reflect the heart of America today. No longer content to be one nation under God, we have elevated ourselves above God in redefining the value of life, the makeup of the family, and gender identification. More recently too many of us are abandoning Israel, rejoicing in her afflictions, and demonstrating approval of the violent attacks against her by radical terrorists. Behold... God has not changed, "For I, Yahweh, do not change" - Malachi 3:6a. Because we do not read His Word and our pulpits fail to rightly proclaim His Word, we are blind to His impending judgment... "And I will put My glory among the nations; and all the nations will see My judgment which I have executed and My hand which I have placed on them" - Ezekiel 39:21.

    But the very next book in the Holy Bible reveals hope along with instructions for how we are to live in the light of God's impending judgment. In the midst of His judgment and discipline of His children Israel, God delivered a young man named Daniel into the hands of His enemies, prepared Him to serve as His prophet to foreign kings as well as to the remnant of His children, and used him to encourage us today to be living a holy life in an unholy world.