(intense music) - Can you guess who's the most popular and powerful superhero of all time? There's many to choose from today. Superman, Wonder Woman,
Batman, Hulk, Spider Man, Captain America, and Iron
Man, to name just a few. By definition, these fantasy
figures are brave, courageous, faithful, fearless, and
embody light and hope. They've morphed from the realm of myth, legend, and fantasy, into larger-than-life characters who captivate our world
today through radio, film, television, and electronic games. Who's the most popular
and powerful of them all? Well, I don't know. I guess that could be
debated forever, because, remember, they're just
fictional characters. There's nothing real about them. But I'd like to tell you about one of my all-time
favourite superheroes, and he's for real. There's nothing fictional
about him, he's the real deal. Like all superheroes, he's
brave, courageous, faithful, fearless, and, yes,
embodies light and hope. He represents the very best
attributes of humanity, and the ultimate force
for good imaginable. He represents us at our very best. He's an ideal of humanity's
true values and morals, and is a real-life human being, one of us. Not some distant icon,
some fantasy figure. His selflessness, compassion, and a desire to always do the right thing are traits that we can all
learn from and aspire to. So stay tuned to hear about one of the
greatest real-life superheroes our planet's ever seen. And maybe, just maybe,
we'll discover the secrets of how to develop some of
these superhero attributes for ourselves. (triumphant music) Daniel. The very name of this superhero of God brings vivid images to our minds. Dreams of world empires,
golden statues, fiery furnaces, lion's dens, horns, beasts, powerful angels delivering
mysterious end-time prophecies, the rise and fall of great empires through the corridors of time. Few people have seen more
action packed into one lifetime than Daniel. Today, we're going to look at
the life and times of Daniel, and consider the special
message he has for us today. This is Daniel's story. (exotic music) We go all the way back to the year 605 BC. A great Babylonian warrior
king, Nebuchadnezzar, went on the warpath. He set out to invade Jerusalem. In fact, the bible tells
us that this ancient king made three invading trips to Jerusalem. Three times he led his
mighty army 1,500 kilometres from Babylon, across the
fertile crescent to Jerusalem, and each time, he inflicted
a more severe punishment. On this first trip in 605
BC, he took home with him many of the precious utensils he found in Solomon's golden
temple, and in addition, he and his troops took hostage a selected number of Jewish young people, and Daniel was one of
those taken prisoner. Daniel and his fellow captives were taken north from Jerusalem, along her mediterranean coast,
then east to Carchemish, and southeast along the Euphrates River, and finally into Babylon located near the modern-day
city of Baghdad in Iraq. The journey covered over 1,500 kilometres and probably took about two months. They would have known in their hearts that they'd probably never see their homes or families again. One thing you can say about a long forced march like that one, it either breaks you or makes you. And, by the time Daniel
arrived in Babylon, he'd made some very important decisions. Now, if you think you live in
a high pressure environment, if you think you have
to succeed in a hostile, very secular world, then you'll
want to get to know Daniel, and you'll be very interested
in what happened next. You see, he rose to incredible heights and did so in an alien land. His captors tried their
best to reprogram him, but he ended up reprogramming history. As a bright young member
of Jerusalem's nobility, Daniel had been chosen to serve
in Nebuchadnezzar's palace. The Babylonians wanted to retrain him, reteach and reprogram him. Eventually, they wanted
him to worship their gods and represent their interests. Some of the retrained
young men would be sent off to rule portions of the
vast Babylonian empire, and that's the predicament
Daniel found himself in walking in the shadows of
Babylon's glorious temples and palaces. He was surrounded by an
alien and alluring culture with very different values,
and his captors were determined that their values would become his values. They wanted to get Babylon inside him, and Babylon had it all. It was appealing and tempting
to a bright young mind. Babylon was an advanced, highly-developed, innovative and sophisticated society. Way back in those days, they knew all about solving
quadratic equations, reciprocals, squares and square
roots, cube and cube roots. In fact, they were so advanced that some of their systems
come down to us today. They were the ones who came up
with 60 seconds in a minute, 60 minutes in an hour, and
360 degrees in a circle. And then, Babylonian
astronomers were world leaders. They had carefully recorded eclipses, and knew how to interpret
and predict them. That also introduced
bills, promissory notes, receipts, letters of
credit, compound interest, and even a system of checks. But Babylon was also a world leader in some other kinds of
knowledge and practises, the dark arts. Magic, pagan mythology, astrology, divination and sorcery
permeated their society. And Daniel was surrounded
by all this new, exciting, and alluring culture with
very different values, and that's the challenge
that faces many of us today. We are surrounded by a culture
that is increasingly secular. The values we see promoted all around us are often opposite from our own. The demands of a materialistic world tend to stifle spiritual life. In the razzle-dazzle of
graphic images all around us, God is usually left out of the picture. So the question is, how do
we hang onto important values in a hostile environment? How do we keep our faith
in the middle of Babylon? Amazingly enough, Daniel succeeded in doing
that against all the odds. He thrived in a hostile environment. After all the attempts to reprogram him, his faith was still standing. His values were still standing tall. I believe that this young
Hebrew has a lot to tell us about succeeding spiritually
in a secular environment. So, let's look at what
happened to Daniel in exile. There was a plan for Daniel and some of the more
promising of the captives. Here's what it says in Daniel
chapter one and verse five. "The king appointed for them "a daily provision of
the king's delicacies, "and of the wine which he drank, "and three years of training for them, "so that at the end of that "they might serve before the king." Daniel and his friends were
to have Babylon's finest. They were privileged,
but there was a catch. This isn't just kindness,
it's a deliberate strategy to turn Daniel and his friends into Babylonians through and through. Many of these foods violated
the health principles and regulations of his religious beliefs. They'd been declared
unclean in the scriptures, and much of it had been offered to idols. And for sure, the intoxicating wine isn't on his approved list. The laws that God gave to the
Hebrews contained instructions about diet, and they'd become
a part of Daniel's identity. So the Babylonians were really saying, eat like us, conform to our customs. And, as the saying goes,
beggars can't be choosers. A captive has to eat whatever
is placed before him. Who were these exiles to turn down the delicacies
of the king himself? So, what was Daniel to do? Well, this is what he did. Look at Daniel chapter
one and verse eight. "But Daniel purposed in his heart "that he would not defile himself "with the portion of
the king's delicacies, "nor with the wine he drank." I love those five words,
"Daniel purposed in his heart." He made up his mind. He made a resolution that he was going to be faithful to God. He resolved. He wasn't going to lose
his identity bit by bit. He wasn't going to just keep quiet. Daniel asked the chief steward if he could eat something else. This man baulked. He was afraid to change the
menu that the king had ordered. But here Daniel showed his true colours. This young man proposed what was perhaps the world's first
comparative dietary study. Here's what it says in Daniel
chapter one, versus 12 and 13. "Please test your servants for 10 days, "and let them give us vegetables
to eat and water to drink. "Then let our countenances
be examined before you, "and the countenances of the young men "who eat the portion of
the king's delicacies; "and as you see fit, so
deal with your servants." What was Daniel saying here? He was saying that he and his friends would do better if they
stuck to God's principles and followed the diet
that he had prescribed. And furthermore, Daniel
said that he could prove it, he could prove it in just 10 days. The steward reluctantly agreed. Two menus were served for 10 days, and at the end of that period, Daniel and his friends looked
healthier than everyone else. They were doing just fine without all that wine and rich food. Daniel has something
important to teach us here. When his values stuck
out a bit in the crowd, he didn't apologise,
he didn't make excuses. He wasn't embarrassed
about being different. No, Daniel was confident
that God's way was best. God's principles produce
the best kind of life, Daniel was sure about that. If God's way was best in Jerusalem, it would be best in
Babylon, simple as that. So, what can we do to
keep our faith strong in the middle of Babylon? Well, first of all, be confident
that God's way is best. If God's way is just a bunch of rules, if you're just conforming to
His will because you have to, then you'll conform to
something else when you have to. God's way is best for you. Believe that, become convinced of that. If you do, you'll stand tall
in any environment. Now let's look at another challenge
young Daniel faced in Babylon. One night, King Nebuchadnezzar lay awake fretting about a dream that he'd had, and couldn't quite remember it. It seemed like it was important, it seemed like it meant something, but he couldn't for the life
of him recall what he'd seen. So, in the morning, the
king summoned his wise men, his magicians, enchanters,
sorcerers, and astrologers. He wanted to know what his dream meant. They answered confidently. Tell us your dream,
and we'll interpret it. But Nebuchadnezzar replied, no, you tell me what I dreamed. He figured, if they were so
great at revealing mysteries and interpreting dreams, then they ought to be able to
tell him what he'd dreamed. Well, the wise men turned pale. They couldn't get inside the king's head, they couldn't tell the
king what he'd dreamed. No one can do that but the gods, they said, and they don't live among men. Well, Nebuchadnezzar did
not like to be disappointed, so he ordered all the wise men executed. And that included Daniel and his friends, even though they weren't present. Well, hearing the soldiers
were on their way, Daniel prayed earnestly to God. He prayed to the God who
reveals deep and secret things. He prayed for an answer. And then Daniel got up off his knees and asked to see the king. Daniel did indeed get an
audience before Nebuchadnezzar, and this is what he said to him, as recorded in Daniel
chapter two verse 27 and 28. "The secret which the king has demanded, "the wise men, the
astrologers, the magicians, "and the soothsayers
cannot declare to the king. "But there is a God in
heaven who reveals secrets, "and He has made known to Nebuchadnezzar "what will be in the latter days." Daniel didn't really have
the answer for the king. He didn't claim to
possess secret knowledge as did the other wise men. He didn't claim to have special powers, but he did know a God in
heaven who reveals secrets. He knew a God who had the answers. And on that fateful day,
Daniel, the Hebrew captive, proceeded to tell Nebuchadnezzar precisely what he had dreamed. The king had seen the
image of a huge metal man made of gold, silver, bronze, and iron. He'd watched as a stone
smashed into the statue's feet and broke the entire image into pieces. Then Daniel told Nebuchadnezzar
that, in this dream, God was giving him a
glimpse into the future. In fact, he was showing him
the broad sweep of history right down to the climax
of earth's history. The image represented the
future succession of empires, from Babylon to Medo-Persia
to Greece and Rome, and then onto the time of modern Europe. That stone represented the kingdom of God which will never be destroyed. This is one of the most remarkable
prophecies in the bible. It covers thousands of
years of world history, and pictures the
succession of world empires with amazing accuracy. Daniel would rise to an honoured and trusted place in
Nebuchadnezzar's government, and he did it by not hiding his faith, by not compromising his values. He did it by showing people
around him that God has answers. Don't think that God's truth shrinks just because you're surrounded by Babylon, by the secular city. God still has answers. God's truth is still relevant. So, when you feel the walls
of Babylon closing in, remember, first of all,
believe that God's way is best. Second, show people that God has answers. Now let's look at one more
challenge Daniel faced while exiled in Babylon. Later, we find Daniel appearing among the
governors of King Darius. Now, this is a remarkable fact, because Darius was a Mede. He ruled the Medo-Persian empire. That's the empire that
defeated and succeeded Babylon. A king's right hand man
doesn't stick around when a kingdom collapses or is overthrown. He's usually lucky to keep his head. But Daniel had become
such a valued advisor that he retained a place at
court even after Babylon fell, and the Medes and Persians came to power. In fact, Daniel became one of
the three most powerful men under King Darius in the
whole Medo-Persian empire. Here's what the bible
says in Daniel chapter six and verse three. "Then this Daniel distinguished himself "above the governors and satraps, "because and excellent spirit was in him; "and the king gave thought to setting him "over the whole realm." well, not everyone at court
was thrilled with this idea. High officials, in fact, were
becoming more and more jealous of this foreigner among them, this foreigner who'd risen
to such a high position. They began conspiring against him. They looked for something
to accuse him of, some indiscretion, some way he'd used his
position for personal gain. But they couldn't come
up with a single thing, so they focused on his religion. Maybe they could use that to trap Daniel. Maybe they could trip
him up over religion. Daniel was never a part
of the worship of idols. He had always worshipped
one God, the God of heaven. So, these officials laid a
careful trap for the Hebrew. They approached King Darius one day with a flattering suggestion. How about having a King Darius month? All petitions should be
directed to the Monarch during this 30-day period. Anyone who prays to any other god or man should be cast into a den of lions. Well, Darius thought this was
a nice gesture of loyalty. He signed the decree into law. Soon, Daniel heard about the decree, and he realised he was
in trouble, big trouble. He couldn't pray to Darius any more than he could pray to a log. But what should he do? Well, it was only a month. Surely the God of heaven could live without his
prayers for that long. Maybe he could simply hide the fact that he was petitioning Jehovah, the one true God, and not King Darius? Well, this is what the
record says Daniel did when he got home. It's found in chapter six and verse 10 of the book of Daniel. "In his upper room, with his
windows open toward Jerusalem, "he knelt down on his
knees three times that day, "and prayed and gave
thanks before his God, "as was his custom since early days." Look at his courage. Look at his faith. Daniel prayed to the God of heaven. We wasn't showing off, he wasn't making a spectacle of his faith, he was simply following his custom. That was Daniel's custom. It's what he'd been doing for years, praying to the God who
had revealed himself in such a special way in
that Jerusalem temple. He prayed to the God of heaven as the youth carried off into exile. He'd prayed to the God of heaven when presented with the king's delicacies. He'd prayed to the God of heaven when facing execution
along with the wise men. He'd prayed to the God of
heaven when empires collapsed and kingdoms changed hands,
and he was praying still, steadfastly facing Jerusalem. It was a matter of principle for Daniel. He wasn't going to deny his God in order to accommodate
an arbitrary decree. No, he would simply live out his faith as was his custom since early days. Those jealous officials took notice. They spotted him at his window and hurried off to court
to report his violation. King Darius was dismayed when he learned that his trusted friend
Daniel had been caught. He'd realised too late the
true intent of that decree, but he couldn't change the royal law, so Daniel was thrown into a den of lions. He spent an entire night
with these hungry beasts. But in the morning, an anxious King Darius found him still standing alive and well. Here's how Daniel put it, as recorded in Daniel
chapter six and verse 22. "My God has sent His angel
and shut the lions' mouths, "so that they have not hurt me." How do we keep our faith strong
in the middle of Babylon? We do what Daniel did. We aim to please God. Now, that may sound simple, but
the aim is really important. Because, a lot of times, our
aim is toward other people. We're worried about what they think of us. We're worried about what they might be
whispering behind our back. We're concerned about being
excluded or looked down on. In a very secular environment,
we often aim one eye at God and the other at the people around us. But Daniel prayed with both
eyes on the God of heaven. His aim was true, his heart was strong. He aimed to please God,
not his jealous peers. That's what gave his life
meaning and stability. That's how we survive and
thrive in the middle of Babylon. First, believe that God's way is best. Secondly, believe that God has answers, and thirdly, aim to please God. Do this and you'll come
to know for yourself that, in every situation, every
environment, God is faithful. Daniel shows us how to keep
faith intact, even as an exile, even after the fall of Jerusalem, even after his whole world has collapsed. His faith was still standing, his values were still standing tall. Are you still standing today, or do you feel a bit
pressured, a bit worn down? Has your faith taken a beating lately? If you're swaying instead of standing, please reach out to Daniel's God today. Determine that you will keep standing with the God who reveals secrets, the God who plans the future, the God who can keep us
safe even in the lions' den. Determine that in your
heart right now as we pray. Dear Father, thank you for
giving us the shining example of Daniel in the courts of Babylon. Thank you for being trustworthy. Thank you for coming through
in all kinds of circumstances. We want to trust you
more completely today. We affirm the fact that
you have the answers. Our aim is to please you always. Accept our commitment now
in the name of our saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen. The story of Daniel has encouraged and inspired people all over the world. Few people have seen more
action packed into one lifetime than Daniel. He was indeed one of God's
real life superheroes. Sometimes, we can feel overwhelmed when struggling with
the challenges of life in a hostile and secular world. But if you're looking for
ways to live a better life and find inner peace and true happiness, if you'd like to get closer to God, then I'd like to recommend
the free gift we have for all our viewers today. It's a free bible reading
guide on the book of Daniel. This booklet is our gift to
you, and is absolutely free. There are no costs or
obligations whatsoever, so make the most of this
wonderful opportunity to receive the gift we have for you today. Here's the information you need. Phone or text us at 0436 333 555 in Australia, or 020 422 2042 in New Zealand, or visit our website, www.tij.tv to request today's free offer, and we'll send it to you
totally free of charge and with no obligation. Write to us at PO Box 5101 Dora Creek New
South Wales 2264 Australia, or PO Box 76673 Manukau,
Auckland 2241 New Zealand. Don't delay, call or text us now. If you've enjoyed today's
journey to ancient Babylon and our reflections on the
life and times of Daniel, then be sure to join us again next week when we will share another
of life's journeys together. Until then, remember the ultimate
destination of life's journey. Now, I saw in new heaven and in new earth, and God will wipe away
every tear from their eyes. There shall be no more death,
nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away. (lighthearted music)
