THE BOOK OF DANIEL OPENS WITH THESE WORDS – “In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it” (Daniel 1:1). In this first encounter with Judah in 605 B.C., Nebuchadnezzar did not destroy Jerusalem; rather, he took with him some of the vessels from the Temple and some of the best of the young men and women from among the leading families – “youths without blemish, of good appearance and skillful in all wisdom, endowed with knowledge, understanding learning, and competent to stand in the king’s palace” (Daniel 1:4). Among the young people taken were Daniel and his three buddies – Hananiah (Shadrach), Mishael (Meshach), and Azariah (Abednego). Nebuchadnezzar’s goal was to “re-educate” these youths in the ways of the Babylonians with the hope that one day they would return to Judah and wisely rule as vassals of his empire.
As Daniel and his friends arrived as exiles in Babylon, they had to make a decision regarding how much they would assimilate into this foreign idolatrous culture without denying their faith in Yahweh. Quite quickly it seems Daniel determined that he would not “defile himself with the king’s food.” Daniel was willing to go along with the Babylonian educational program. He even took on a new name – Belteshazzar. But when it came to the food supplied by the royal table he said, “no.” Why? It couldn’t have been because it was sacrificed to idols (that is to read a New Testament idea into the Old). It couldn’t have been because it was unclean (any food that Daniel would have eaten in Babylon would have been potentially unclean). The answer resides in the Near Eastern understanding of sharing a meal being akin to committing oneself to friendship. As James would later write, “friendship with the world is enmity with God” (James 4:4). This was a risky decision for Daniel. To deny the king’s favor was in many respects to reject his authority. Yet, Daniel stood his ground. In the long run Daniel proved his God faithful through his courage to not become “friends” with Nebuchadnezzar.
There is no doubt that Christians in America live in a Babylon-of-sorts. Though we haven’t been taken captive to another land, we live among a culture that in many respects is antithetical to Christian beliefs and values. We are consistently needing to make decisions between cultural assimilation and cultural non-conformity.
Few of us believe the answer is found in living like the Amish on one hand or taking our cues from liberal “Christian” influencers on the other. The question for so many Christians is, “Where do we take our stand? What is the ‘king’s food’ of our day?” I believe there are three critical areas in which American Christians should reject the prevailing view of the predominant culture.
Truth
In our culture today truth is individualized and relativized. The self is authoritative and determinative in the area of truth. Obviously, this idea runs completely counter to the vision of truth in the Bible, where Scripture is seen as objectively true (Psalm 119:160; 2 Peter 1:20-21) and discovered in the person of Christ (John 14:6). Jesus also declares that objective truth about God is the only thing that can set people free (John 8:32).
Sex
With objective truth out of the way, our culture has demonstrated the libertine lengths it is willing to go in the arena of sex. Christians in the West run the risk of developing a theology of sex that is not in line with Scripture. In fact, a recent survey found that half of all self-identified Christians said that casual sex was sometimes or always acceptable. Because the Bible is clear on matters of sex, Christians need to resist the cultural pressure to affirm fornication, cohabitation, homosexuality, polyamory, and transgenderism.
Human Dignity
Since sex is our culture’s greatest idol, human beings are often treated as mere objects of sexual pleasure (pornography and human trafficking) or as unfortunate consequences of sexual activity that need to be discarded (abortion). Christians must continue to speak up for the voiceless and advocate for those whose rights are taken. Though the rejection of human dignity occurs in areas of our society beyond the sexual, it is most egregious here due to the pervasive nature of this cultural idolatry.
PRAYER
Father, I need the wisdom and courage of Daniel in the day in which I live, for I see “Babylon” everywhere I look. I’m not always sure what to accept and what to reject, or when to say something and when to be silent. Help me to know how to live here as a faithful ambassador of the life and ethics of your kingdom. Amen.
PONDER
- How has your faith in God been most tested?
- If you were Daniel, what do you think would have been the most difficult for you to accept – the change of name, the re-education program, or the king’s food?
- How does Daniel’s story encourage you to live courageously in our culture?