July 10, Daniel 10
Again one having the appearance of a man touched me and strengthened me. And he said, "O man greatly loved, fear not, peace be with you; be strong and of good courage." And as he spoke to me, I was strengthened and said, "Let my lord speak, for you have strengthened me."
- Daniel 10:10-11
We admire and appreciate consistency in products we buy and the people or companies with whom we do business. Most of us would probably have to admit that we're not as consistent as we'd like to be about diet or exercise or some other important parts of life. Consistency isn't always easy for us humans. We have desires, we're easily distracted and sometimes follow what we feel instead of what we know.
There's no more important consistency than uncompromised commitment to our faith. Spiritual consistency is challenging because we live in flesh bodies in a material world. It's not always easy or popular to live true to our convictions. But spiritual discipleship is the most beautiful and valuable consistency of all.
Daniel lived an exemplary life of steadfast dedication throughout his lifetime. He refused to compromise his commitment to God when he was young. He knew the king's food and drink would be unclean according to God's law for his people. So he resolved not to eat it. He requested vegetables to eat and water to drink for ten days to prove that he and his friends would do better on that diet than the one the king had prescribed. His plan worked.
When the king (under pressure from Daniel's enemies) signed a law that prohibited praying, Daniel never hesitated. He had gone to his house and opened a window toward Jerusalem three times a day to pray. When the enemies reported Daniel's prayer habits to the king, Daniel was not swayed. The king threatened to throw him into the lions' den, but Daniel was committed to pray to his God. After the lions didn't harm Daniel, the king fed Daniel's enemies to the hungry lions and promoted Daniel to an even higher position in the kingdom.
Now in his old age, Daniel was still devoted to God. He had moved in circles of royalty for decades, and continued to serve God after the Persian empire took over Babylon. But he was not defined by their values or defiled by their idolatrous practices.
By the third year of Cyrus, the first wave of Jewish exiles had returned to their land and begun to restore the temple. But when their work was stalled, Daniel heard about it, and fasted for three weeks. The Lord loved his faithful prophet and sent a vision and angels to reassure and reveal the things that would happen as God's plan for Israel and the surrounding nations unfolded.
In the vision, Daniel saw a man who must have been the pre-incarnate Christ. His description matches the one of the man John saw in Revelation. Daniel and his friends reacted in a way that reminded me of Saul of Tarsus and the men who were traveling with him when the Lord appeared to Saul on the road to Damascus. The addressees of the visions fell down, and their companions were terrified, even though they did not see and hear what Daniel and Saul experienced. Daniel was fearless and strong before pagan kings and adversaries, but he was weak and helpless before the Lord and the angelic messengers who were with him.
The messenger assured Daniel that the Lord loved him greatly, and sent the vision and the messengers to help the prophet understand.
God loves you and me as well. It was what Paul called "the great love with which he loved us" that sent Jesus to the cross to die for us and make us alive in Christ. He had revealed his will and promises to us to strengthen and reassure us. He had made promises of great blessings and reward for his faithful ones, and God always, always keeps his promises. Let's resolve like Daniel did. Let's resolve to be faithful to God in the face of dramatic threats and in the ordinary details of everyday life.
Copyright © 2024 by Michael B. McElroy. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Today in God's Word—July 2024
East Tallassee Church of Christ
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