Hope in Passing the Test

October 17, 2009

Pastor Darryl Bentley

Midland SDA Church

Homiletical Idea: When we choose to follow Jesus we will be tested to see if we will remain faithful to Him in all areas of life.  When Jesus was anointed as the Messiah He was driven into the wilderness by the Spirit of God to be tested.  When we decide to live for Christ we should expect no less.  Daniel and his three friends are an example to us on how to pass the test of discipleship.

Taking Tests

            When I was in college I had the awesome opportunity to study Greek and Hebrew.  One of the aspects of studying these languages at Southern Adventist University is taking vocabulary tests.  These vocabulary quizzes would be between 10 and 12 words and we were required to get 100% on each test.  If you did not get 100% the first time around you had to continue to take it until you did.  This generated a lot of stress for some of the people in the class because they would wait until near the end of the semester to try to make up the quizzes.

            I worked as the reader for Dr. Michael Hasel one semester and it was my job to work with students to make up those tests.  It would amaze me at how some would wait so long to try to come in and pass those quizzes.  When I had to make up one I never waited.  I would make it up right away so it was not hanging over my head.

Jesus’ Test

            Now while those vocabulary tests were important, there other tests in life that are much more important.  I think back to the time of Christ’s anointing as the Messiah.  He came to where John was baptizing in the Jordan.  He came not because He was sinful and needed a new birth experience, but rather because He needed to be anointed as the Messiah that He might begin His public ministry.

            The Bible tells us in Mark 1:10 that when Jesus came up out of the water the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in the form of a dove thus anointing Jesus for His ministry.  In verse 12 of Mark 1 it says, “Immediately the Spirit impelled Him to go out into the wilderness.” Notice it says that the Spirit compelled Him to go to the wilderness.  Why was it necessary for the Spirit to compel Christ into the wilderness to be tempted? 

It had to happen that Jesus might be tempted in all ways that we are yet without sin.  You see if Jesus never had any tests of discipleship then He could not really relate to what we as regular human beings must endure as we sojourn in this life.  But Paul affirms to in Hebrews 4:15 that our High Priest, Jesus, has been tempted in all ways just as we are, but He did it without ever sinning.  Jesus passed the test of discipleship.  Each time Satan came at Him He responded with the Word of God as His defense, and each time He came out victorious.  That same Jesus is now able to help us stand and pass our tests of discipleship too.

Daniel’s Story

            As we discuss passing the test of discipleship it makes me think back to Daniel and his three friends; Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.

            In Daniel chapter one, we discover that the nation of Judah was not living according to God’s plan.  That is why the Bible tells us that the Lord gave Jehoiakim into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar.  Thus began the many years of captivity under the rule of the Babylonians.  Once again God’s people were taken captive and forced to live away from their promised lands.  Nebuchadnezzar not only took the people captive he also took the vessels from the temple of God and had them taken to his treasury.

            One thing that the Babylonians did when they took another group captive was to attempt to retrain their youth for service to their new king.  Notice this from Daniel 1:3.  These young people that were brought in were the best and brightest from among those taken captive.  The Bible says there were no defects, they were good looking, and they showed intelligence in every branch of knowledge.  These were the crème de la crème of Judah.

New Teaching

            They were chosen that they might learn the ways of the Chaldeans.  The goal was to train the captives to learn and love the ways of their captor’s so that when they come of age they would not want to rebel and cause trouble within the kingdom.  The Babylonians hoped that they could train the Jews in their ways so they would not want to return to their old lives back in Jerusalem.  They hoped that after several generations the Jews would be so assimilated into Babylonian culture that they would want to stay and just live their lives peacefully among their captors.

A New Name

            One of the first things they did to the new captives was to give them new names.  Why did they need new names?  It is not that they needed new names, but they were give new names as a sign that they have new ownership.  In essence it was the captor’s way of saying, “I am your father now, and you will do as I say.”  If you think about it is the job of the parents to name a child.  Nebuchadnezzar wanted them to know that he was in control of them now and they would have to do as he said.  That is why they received new names in Daniel 1:7. 

Daniel became Belteshazzar, Hananiah became Shadrach, Mishael became Meshach, and Azariah became Abed-Nego.  Each of the four young men had names that spoke of God.  Daniel means “God is my Judge”, Hananiah means “Yahweh has been gracious”, Mishael means “Who is what God is?”, and Azariah means “Yahweh has helped”.  Their godly names were traded in for pagan names in hopes that they would forget the God of their youth.

A New Diet

            A parent not only names their child, but they also have the job of feeding them.  Nebuchadnezzar wanted to make sure that his new captives had the very best of Babylon available to them.  He ordered the captain of the guards, Ashpenaz, to give each of the captives a portion or ration from the king’s table (Daniel 1:5).  In other words they were to eat whatever the king was eating.  This would have been the finest food and wine that the nation of Babylon had to offer.

Resistance to Change

            While this new diet was the finest that was available anywhere, it was not in accordance with what the Lord had told His people to eat.  As we have studied in our seminar series, God has a diet that He wants us to follow.  There are certain things the Lord has asked to stay away from.  We saw this when we studied how to have hope in living according to God’s plan last Saturday night.  God has a diet plan for us that includes clean meats, nuts, fruits, and grains.  When we follow that plan we can have the best health possible.

            Daniel knew about this plan and he wanted to live in accordance with it.  Notice what the Bible says about Daniel’s stance. **Read Daniel 1:8**

            Notice here that Daniel decided that he would not defile himself with this food.  Why would the king’s food have defiled Daniel?  Because the king’s food was not in harmony with what the Lord wanted His people to eat.

            Let’s consider another question for a moment.  Do you think that Daniel and his friends were the only ones taken captive that knew about God’s plan for our diet?  Of course they were not the only ones who knew.  But they were the only ones willing to stand up and not just go along with the flow.  But notice that the Bible says that Daniel was granted favor by God in the eyes of the official.  Not only favor but compassion too.  Friends, when we stand firm for God He is able to open a way for us.  He is able to bless us when we live according to His plan for us.

Godly Approach

            Although the commander had compassion of Daniel and his friends he was still afraid for his life.  He knows that if he does not take good care of the captives then he will be the one to pay with his own head (Daniel 1:10).

            I love how Daniel responded.  He does not start yelling and screaming and pitching a fit.  Daniel calmly and patiently comes with his request.  He says “please test your servants”.  He does not make demands because he is not in a position to make demands.  Yes, God was opening doors for him but he still had to conduct himself in such a way that honored God.  We could learn a lot from this approach my friends.  Too often we as Christians do injustice to God by the way we conduct ourselves publicly.

**Summer Camp Illustration**: I spent some time as a camp pastor at a camp I will not name, and when I was there summer camp was ending and it was followed by a ministerial retreat.  The staff was all dreading the pastors and their families coming because the pastors were often the rudest and messiest of all the groups that came to the camp that summer. 

            What a shame that God’s under-shepherds had the reputation for being the rudest group to come through the camp.  What a shame that the staff dreaded seeing them come.  Why did they act that way?  Perhaps because they had to be nice to their church members for fear of being fired, but true godliness means that we are the same no matter where we go.  Amen?  They needed to read Daniel 1 and learn what it means to be humble and kind when dealing with others.

The Test & the Results

            Daniel asked that they be given only vegetables and water for ten days.  Daniel knew that God would bless this diet so he was able to say with confidence that they should be tested, and at the end of ten days they were to be observed to see if they had suffered loss.

            When the ten days had expired the Bible says in Daniel 1:15 that, “…their appearance seemed better and they were fatter than all the youths who had been eating the king's choice food.”  They looked better because they were following God’s plan.  They looked better because they were eating things God has blessed.  Will God bless us when we follow His diet?  Of course He will.

            What is so awesome about this story to me is that at the end of the preparation period Daniel and his three friends were found to be the best among the group.  Notice how the Bible reads in Daniel 1:17-20.  They were blessed because they honored God in their lives.  They passed the test because they were faithful to their convictions.

Our Test

            For Daniel the test of discipleship came in regards to his diet.  Of course there were other tests they had to endure, but the first test came in regards to their food.  Had they wavered on this test it would have set them up for failure in the other tests that no doubt came their way.

            What will our tests be?  Only God knows for sure, but we need to recognize that we will have tests as Christians.  We will be given opportunities to either stand or fall for Christ.  And these tests will reveal just how committed we are to following God.  Some would say if I mess up I can just try harder to get it right the next time, and I would agree that God does not give up on us easily.  He keeps trying to prepare us for heaven.  He keeps trying to mold us into the characters that He wants us to be, but when we resist Him it causes us a set-back.  When we stumble and fall sometimes we lose ground and it takes longer to get back to where we were.

Wrap-up & Appeal

            Today as we close this message I want you to consider the tests in your life.  For Daniel and company it was food.  What will be your test of discipleship?  What will come your way that challenges your faith in God to the very core?  What will be your reaction?  Will you turn to God and ask Him to keep you faithful or will you buckle under and let Satan have a victory in your life?

            It is my prayer today that each of you will choose to stand though the heavens fall.  It is my prayer that when the test of life come your way that you will choose to follow Christ all the way.

            How many of you today would want to say with me, “God, by your grace I want to hope.  Lord, I want to pass the test of discipleship with your help.  I want to live for Jesus.”  If this is your desire today would you simply raise your hand today?  Let us pray.