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We thank God for blessing us in the year of 2010. We experienced the work of the Holy Spirit when we obeyed our annual key verse, Zechariah 4:6, “Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit.” Now we are facing a new year of 2011 with great hope and expectation. At this time, what is most important is making a clear decision of faith. In this sense, studying Daniel’s decision of faith is very meaningful and encouraging at this time. May God bless us to learn Daniel’s life of faith and his decision of faith so that we may also start a new year with a clear decision of faith. Look at verses 1and 2. “In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. 2 And the Lord delivered Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, along with some of the articles from the temple of God. These he carried off to the temple of his god in Babylonia and put in the treasure house of his god. These verses give us historical background of Daniel’s time. During the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon invaded Judah and besieged Jerusalem. Jehoiakim allied with Egypt despite God’s warning through his prophet. At that time Egypt was the most powerful nation, and Babylon was just a rising power. So Jehoiakim depended on Egypt. But at the battle of Carchemish Egypt was defeated, and Judah her alliance was also invaded. It looks like political problem, but actually God was dealing with his people’s spiritual problem. Verse 2 says, “The Lord delivered Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand.” It was the act of God. God is the Sovereign Ruler of history. When we read 2 kings and 2 Chronicles, we know that it was because of the sin of God’s people that God delivered his people into the hand of Babylonian king. The king of Judah and some of the articles from the temple of God were carried off to Babylon. The articles from the temple of God were placed in the temple of Babylonian god. This shameful event happened to God’s people because of their unfaithfulness to God. But from God’s perspective, it was God’s divine love to discipline them and purify them and restore them so that they might serve God’s purpose once again. At this time many handsome young men and beautiful women were also taken to Babylon. This is called the first Babylonian captivity. Look at verse 3 to 5. “Then the king ordered Ashpenaz, chief of his court officials, to bring in some of the Israelites from the royal family and the nobility— 4 young men without any physical defect, handsome, showing aptitude for every kind of learning, well informed, quick to understand, and qualified to serve in the king’s palace. He was to teach them the language and literature of the Babylonians. The king assigned them a daily amount of food and wine from the king’s table. They were to be trained for three years, and after that they were to enter the king’s service.” The king of Babylon chose promising young men from royal family and the nobility and brought them to Babylon. The selection criteria were very high standard. It meant only the smartest people were chosen for this full scholarship in the Royal Academy of Babylon. These young men’s future was guaranteed after 3 years of study. They were also privileged to eat food and wine assigned by the king. They were gourmet palace food. Even though his country was in great shame, it was an opportune time for them to enjoy luxurious palace life and become successful in the world. Look at verse 6 and 7. “Among these were some from Judah: Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. 7 The chief official gave them new names: to Daniel, the name Belteshazzar; to Hananiah, Shadrach; to Mishael, Meshach; and to Azariah, Abednego.” They say Daniel was about 15 to 17 years old young man like my son Abraham. He was given all this opportunities like all other captives. The chief official changed the names of Daniel and his three friends. Their Jewish names are all related to God. But their new Babylonian names are all related to Babylonian gods. He intentionally changed their names in order to eliminate their Jewish identity and make them Babylonians. Spiritually speaking, it was a great crisis for them to lose their identity as God’s people and be assimilated to Babylonian culture and religion. What did Daniel do at this time? Look at verse 8. “But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way.” Daniel might felt pressure around to make him one of the Babylonians. He felt spiritual crisis in his life of faith. He felt helpless because everything seemed to happen beyond his own control. But at this situation, he did one thing he could do. He resolved not to defile himself with the king’s food. What is the king’s food? It was given by the king of Babylon. By accepting his food, Daniel was conforming himself to become a Babylonian. Also, this food was offered to foreign idols first. This food also contained food God forbid to eat in the Law, such as poke and many other unclean animals. Some might think what a big deal of eating royal food. But to Daniel, a man of God, it was defiling himself according to his conscience of faith. In this way he wanted to keep his purity as a man of God. In this way he wanted to keep his identity as God’s chosen people. In this way he wanted to keep his love relationship with God. But it was not easy at all to keep his resolution he made before God. Firstly, he had to give up enjoying delicious palace food. But he rather chose to be God’s people eating vegetables and water than to enjoy luxurious life as a Babylonian. His decision reminds us of the decision of Moses who chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. His decision was also very costly and dangerous. If his decision was discovered by the king, he would lose everything, even his own life. But to Daniel, keeping his purity as a man of God is more important than pleasures of Babylon. To him, keeping his identity as God’s chosen people is more significant than momentary success in the world. To him, keeping his love relationship with God is more precious than golden opportunities offered by the world. In starting a new year, we want to make many plans and decisions. But through Daniel’s decision we learn that we must consider our God’s given identity most important in making decisions. We must also consider our love relationship with God most important, even if it is costly. Our decision must be the one that makes us grow as pure man of God with intimate love relationship with God. We must make decision of faith to overcome materialism and pleasure-seeking of this generation and keep our faith and love pure before God. Look at verse 9 and 10. “Now God had caused the official to show favor and sympathy to Daniel, 10 but the official told Daniel, “I am afraid of my lord the king, who has assigned your[c] food and drink. Why should he see you looking worse than the other young men your age? The king would then have my head because of you.” When Daniel made a decision of faith, God did not leave him alone. God intervened in his life and did something he could not do – changing of people’s heart. It is amazing that now the chief official was on Daniel’s side. Then Daniel suggested to the guard whom the chief official had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, “Please test your servants for ten days: Give us nothing but vegetables to eat and water to drink. Then compare our appearance with that of the young men who eat the royal food, and treat your servants in accordance with what you see.” So he agreed to this and tested them for ten days. Humanly speaking, it is impossible for Daniel and his friends who only ate vegetables and drank water look better than the other young men who were well fed with royal food. But Daniel could make this humanly impossible suggestion because he believed that God was with him. He had a personal faith in God working in his life. Paul said in Romans 8. “If God is for us, who can be against us?... Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?... No, in all these things we are more than conquerors though him who loved us.” Our God is with us! Immanuel! This should be our faith and our conviction in all circumstances of life, even in the most adverse situations. Usually when we make decisions, we have worry in our hearts. Can I keep it even for three days? But we do not need to worry about that. God will enable us to carry out our decision to the end when we make a sincere and clear decision of faith before God. That was Daniel’s faith and God blessed his faith. God never disappoints those who make God as their own God and fully trust in Him. Look at verse 15 and 16. “At the end of the ten days they looked healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who ate the royal food. 16 So the guard took away their choice food and the wine they were to drink and gave them vegetables instead.” God made Daniel and his friends look healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who ate the royal food. That is not all. Look at verse 17. “To these four young men God gave knowledge and understanding of all kinds of literature and learning. And Daniel could understand visions and dreams of all kinds.” When they lived godly life eating vegetables and drinking water, God made them very wise to understand all kinds of literature and learning. They say Babylon had world largest library, larger than Robart Library in UofT. They could master all the great learnings with God’s wisdom. To Daniel, God gave him spiritual insight to understand visions and dreams of all kinds. Daniel could see God’s visions and God’s great purpose and write the Book of Daniel, which is the Revelation of the Old Testament. Look at verse 18-20. “ 18 At the end of the time set by the king to bring them in, the chief official presented them to Nebuchadnezzar. 19 The king talked with them, and he found none equal to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah; so they entered the king’s service. 20 In every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king questioned them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his whole kingdom.” The king was amazed by their wisdom. He found them ten times better than all the wise men in his whole kingdom. We must believe that God will make us and our students ten times wiser than all others when we love God wholeheartedly and keep our purity as God’s people in this godless generation. Thank God for encouraging us through Daniel’s decision of faith. May God bless each of us to make a clear decision of faith as we start a new year. May God bless our new year’s conference and give us a clear direction for the new year.

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