T-62: What have I in common?

In this countdown to Camp Tsungani, we have examined the virtue of encouragement as modeled by Caleb. We have examined the virtue of faithfulness as modeled by Nehemiah. We turn now to the virtue of self-control and like Caleb and Nehemiah before, God has recorded the story of Daniel for our benefit. I hope and pray that as you accompany me in this study, you see aspects of yourself in these godly people. Their stories and adventures have been preserved and presented to us that we may learn from them, that we may see that they are fundamentally no different than we and that through faithful obedience to God, the fruits we observe in them may come to maturity in us.

Our text for this portion of my study is found in Daniel 1:3-20. I think it appropriate that we read the entire passage before we begin dividing God’s word of truth.

Now that we have an appropriate contextual setting for this study, let’s look intently at… Daniel 1:3-4 (NIV)
3 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.b [1]

As many times as I have read this passage, there is something in V3 that I have never noticed before. The Babylonian king commanded that Israelites from the royal family and the nobility be brought in. I had always thought of Daniel and his compatriots as just ordinary Israelites. But according to this account, our protagonists have a pedigree and a lineage! My initial reaction to this comes from my flesh; I have no pedigree and my lineage is common so what could I possibly have in common with Daniel?!? But at the same time, welling up from deep within comes a few observations to refute this.

First, our course of study began with Caleb, a former slave of Egypt; a man freed from his captivity and bondage by the power of the Almighty God. We were then presented with Nehemiah, a servant and a slave to a beneficent king. Now, we turn our attention to Daniel, apparently descended from royalty or nobility. In this comparison, I see the full range of humanity represented; from slave to noble. All three served God and all three are presented as examples for our emulation.

Secondly is the observation that God is sovereign over all people, whether slave, free-man or prince and king. Certainly, you and I fall under this all-encompassing umbrella! To that extent, in the eyes of God, we are all alike. No matter our position in life, our caste, our class, our education, we are all brothers and sisters in the family of God.

And the last observation has to do with our own lineage. Like Caleb, we have all been slaves to sin and like Caleb we have all been freed from our bondage by the mercy and grace of The Lord God. Like Nehemiah, we are all cupbearers in the service of a beneficent king. The cup we bear is the communion cup sharing the blood of Christ with all who draw near and The King is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords; our God. Finally, having been adopted into the lineage of Christ through his sacrifice, we are all children of The King; thus like Daniel, we have a pedigree and a lineage.

I’m going to leave V4 for tomorrow so that I may dwell upon the richness of V3 today. I trust that you understand and I charge you today to consider your own lineage in Christ. Ponder the mercy with which you were released from your bondage. Consider the benefits you enjoy in your service to The King and dwell upon the grace with which you were adopted into the family of Christ Jesus.

Regards,
Carl

b Or Chaldeans

[1] The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (electronic ed.). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.