Title Test Results (Daniel 1:14-16)
Contents
Result of Lecture 7 Test (Daniel 1:14-16)
1:14-16
He followed them and tried them for ten days, and after ten days they saw that their faces were more beautiful and their flesh was more supple, and they looked better than all the boys who ate the king's delicacies.
Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, had young boys taken captive from each country he had conquered. The boys were from royalty and nobility, and they were flawless and beautiful. They had to be boys who had mastered all feats, had knowledge, and were accustomed to learning. King Nebuchadnezzar had the boys teach the Chaldeans in the learning and dialects for three years, and he provided them with good fat food and expensive wine. It was to train them well and make them his close servants three years later. Meanwhile, the chief eunuch, Asbunas, who was in charge of the task, changed all the names of the boys entrusted to him to Babylonian ones.
Here were four young men who had been brought from among the boys of Judah. Who was it? They were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. These four have made up their minds. They took the king's delicacies and the king's wine, so they would not defile themselves. Because receiving food from the king was like making the king his master and swearing that he would be loyal only to the king. I decided not to accept the king's delicacies and the king's wine because it was impossible for me to serve the king as my master because I had lost allegiance to Jehovah God.
Daniel and his three friends told the eunuch Asbunas about their decision. God moved the eunuch's heart. So the eunuch was quite sympathetic towards Daniel and his three friends. However, he could not comply with the request of Daniel and his three friends, fearing that his life would be in jeopardy before the king if he and his three friends were injured by doing so.
But Daniel and his three friends did not give up because they had made up their minds. How did you do it? They went to the overseer under the eunuch and told them about their situation. And he told them to try the test for only ten days. "Give us a vegetarian diet instead of the king's delicacies, and let us drink water instead of the king's wine, and then dispose of it as you please."
In that case, what did the overseer do? That's today's content. Please see verse 14. “He tried ten days according to their words.” I tested it for ten days. Ten days is not long enough to damage life or damage health. It's also plenty of time for testing. So I followed the advice of Daniel and his three friends and tested them for ten days. There is a benefit to the overseer during the ten-day trial. Since the king takes the delicacies and wines from the middle and gives them cheap ones, how much would it be in terms of quantity? This is food for four people to eat for ten days. The ten-day trial also benefits the overseer in the middle.
What would have been the result? Perhaps his colleagues ate beef ribs, ate chicken legs, drank expensive wine from pork belly, and said they couldn't understand Daniel and his three friends. But Daniel and his three friends did not envy it.
What was the result? Verse 15 says, “After ten days, their faces were more beautiful and their flesh was fuller, and they looked better than all the boys who ate the king’s delicacies.” Why did King Nebuchadnezzar give the boys food and wine? Wasn't it meant to make your face more beautiful and your skin more shiny? However, the results were reversed. It shows that sovereignty does not belong to the king of the world.
I ask you once. Why could Daniel and his three friends, who ate vegetarian food and water, have a brighter face than the other boys who ate the wine and delicacies that King Nebuchadnezzar had given them? Why? It's not because vegetarians and water are healthy foods. It is not because it is a diet food. There was no reason for the food itself, but because God was with them. The God of Daniel became their judge and protected them, the God of Hananiah was gracious to them as his name suggests, Mishael was the good shepherd and guided them, and the God of Azariah became their God and helped them. Because it was given to them, they were able to be healthy.
In the book of Samuel, such words are found. He said, "I will honor those who honor me, and those who despise me I will despise." When Daniel and his three friends made up their minds and looked only at God, why wouldn't God take care of them?
It was around 1980 when I was discharged from the Marine Corps. I'm on my last vacation. Up until that point, I was living a life of debauchery. At that time, there was a World Evangelization Crusade in Yeouido, and I happened to attend it. I have been blessed. repented. "The whole life I've lived up to now has been in vain." Changed direction. I returned to the military again.
From then on, I started to pray for repentance. I was moved to fast for 40 days in my heart. So I woke up in the morning and didn't put anything in my mouth until 12 noon. In the army, I was an infantry platoon commander. You have to run like a soldier and train together. However, it is not easy to receive training without eating until 12 o'clock. I did that for 40 days. Whenever I was hungry, I thought of God. When I heard a rumbling sound in my stomach, I thought I should eat the Word, and whenever I had time, I opened the Bible, read it, and recited it. However, as the days go by, the face should become more emaciated, but when my colleagues saw that my face was oily and shiny. Why would you? Is it because you like fasting? It's not like that. It is because God helps me, because I am filled with Jesus Christ.
A man named St. Francis had a dream. Everyone, are you familiar with Francis' prayer? Jesus appeared to him and said, "Francis, what can I give you? Get me." What would Francis have saved then? "Lord, I am content with you alone. So give me you. Fill my heart with you."
I hope that the hearts of our beloved saints today will also be filled with Jesus. When we are filled with Jesus, our hearts can overflow with joy that flows like a river. The true peace of the Lord can overflow in our hearts. So, like Daniel and his three friends, our faces can become more beautiful, fattening, and shiny.
Food is not the cause. It is only possible with God's help. I pray in the name of Jesus that today too, you may fill our hearts with Jesus and make our lives rich, beautiful, and blessed.