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00:11 ♪♪♪ 00:21 ♪♪♪ 00:33 Jean Ross: Good morning, friends, 00:34 and welcome again to "Sabbath School Study Hour" here 00:36 at the Granite Bay Seventh-day Adventist Church in Sacramento, 00:39 California. 00:40 I'd like to welcome those who are joining us online 00:42 across the country and around the world. 00:44 I know we have our online members and we always like to 00:46 recognize them at the time of our "Sabbath School" program. 00:50 Thank you for tuning in and being a part of our extended 00:53 "Sabbath School" class. 00:55 We'd also like to welcome our regular "Sabbath School" members 00:57 and those who are visiting with us today. 01:00 We are delighted that you are here to study the lesson 01:02 and we're very excited about this quarter study. 01:05 It's all about the book of Daniel, 01:07 that wonderful, important, timely, 01:10 prophetic book that we find in the Old Testament. 01:12 And so, we're going to continue our study today on lesson 01:16 number two on the book of Daniel. 01:18 It's entitled, "From Jerusalem to Babylon." 01:21 Now, if you don't have a copy of the lesson quarterly-- 01:24 I know many of you here have the quarterly, 01:27 but some of those who are joining us online, 01:28 you might not have a lesson quarterly. 01:30 If you'd like to download today's lesson, 01:33 you can simply go to, lesson.aftv.org, 01:37 lesson.aftv.org. 01:40 You can download lesson number two and you can study 01:43 along with us on the book of Daniel. 01:45 We also have a free offer we'd like to let our friends know 01:47 about who are joining us online or on various 01:50 television networks. 01:51 We have a book we would like to share with you. 01:53 It's got a very captivating title. 01:56 It's called "Hogs and Other Hazards," 01:59 and we'll be able to send this to anyone who calls and asks. 02:02 The number is ... and you can ask 02:08 for the book entitled, "Hogs and Other Hazards," 02:11 or ask for offer number 160. 02:14 There's another way that you can get the free offer, 02:16 by simply texting the code "SH136" to the number 40544, 02:24 and you'll be able to download and read our free offer today. 02:29 Well, before we get to our study, 02:31 we like to begin by lifting our voices in song. 02:35 So, we have our song leaders that'll be leading us in our, 02:37 "Sabbath School" song today. 02:39 ♪♪♪ 02:47 male: Good morning. 02:48 We're going to begin our singing this morning with number 518, 02:51 "Standing on the Promises," which is what Daniel and his 02:53 friends were so good at doing, was standing on God's promises. 02:57 We'll sing 518, all three verses, 02:59 "Standing on the Promises." 03:01 ♪♪♪ 03:07 ♪ Standing on the promises of Christ my King ♪ 03:11 ♪ Through eternal ages let his praises sing ♪ 03:16 ♪ Glory in the highest, I will shout and sing ♪ 03:20 ♪ Standing on the promises of God ♪ 03:24 ♪ Standing, standing ♪ 03:28 ♪ standing on the promises of God my Savior ♪ 03:32 ♪ Standing, standing ♪ 03:38 ♪ I'm standing on the promises of God ♪ 03:43 ♪ Standing on the promises that cannot fail ♪ 03:47 ♪ when the howling storms of doubt and fear assail ♪ 03:51 ♪ By the Living Word of God I shall prevail ♪ 03:56 ♪ Standing on the promises of God ♪ 04:00 ♪ Standing, standing ♪ 04:05 ♪ standing on the promises of God my Savior ♪ 04:09 ♪ Standing, standing ♪ 04:15 ♪ I'm standing on the promises of God ♪ 04:20 ♪ Standing on the promises of Christ the Lord ♪ 04:24 ♪ Bound to him eternally by love's strong cord ♪ 04:29 ♪ Overcoming daily with the Spirit's sword ♪ 04:33 ♪ Standing on the promises of God ♪ 04:37 ♪ Standing, standing ♪ 04:39 ♪ standing on the promises of God my Savior ♪ 04:46 ♪ Standing, standing ♪ 04:52 ♪ I'm standing on the promises of God ♪ 04:59 ♪♪♪ 05:09 Jean: Let us pray. 05:10 Dear Father in heaven, we thank you that we have 05:12 this opportunity to open up your Word and study 05:15 a very important passage, something that's practical, 05:18 something that's useful for us today. 05:19 And we want to invite your Spirit, as always, 05:22 to come and guard our hearts, our minds. 05:23 Help us to understand, but more than just simply understand, 05:26 help us to apply these important biblical principles 05:29 that we'll be looking at today. 05:31 For we ask this in Jesus's name, amen. 05:34 Our lesson today is going to be brought to us by Pastor Doug. 05:41 Doug Batchelor: Thank you, Pastor Ross, 05:44 and welcome everybody to our "Sabbath School Study Hour." 05:47 And I want to welcome those who are watching on TV or online, 05:51 and some on satellite around the country. 05:53 I'm really excited because this quarter we're getting 05:55 into a study on Daniel, and today we actually dive 05:59 into Daniel chapter 1. 06:01 And if you don't have one of these-- 06:03 and this is the study guide, the outline we use. 06:06 We don't always follow it word for word, 06:08 but it creates a good guide for us to get through 06:11 the different chapters in the book of Daniel. 06:13 You can get one online by going to the Adventist Church website 06:17 under "Sabbath School," or you can probably just pick one up 06:20 for free at your local Seventh-day Adventist Church. 06:22 Now, we know a lot of people watching this program, 06:25 including some of our online members, 06:27 do not have a nearby local church they can attend, 06:30 and that's when the online version is very helpful. 06:33 All right, Daniel chapter 1, and we want to dive 06:37 into our study today. 06:39 Have a lot of really, I think, valuable information, 06:42 and this lesson is one that can actually lengthen your life, 06:45 seriously. 06:47 Our memory verse is Daniel 1, verse 17. 06:49 If you have your Bibles, you might want to open 06:51 and you can read this with me. 06:53 Daniel 1:17, here it's in the New King James version. 06:57 Are you ready? 06:59 "As for these four young men, God gave them knowledge 07:03 and skill in all literature and wisdom, 07:07 and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams." 07:12 Now, the book of Daniel begins with somewhat 07:16 of a note of defeat. 07:19 The children of Israel, because of their unfaithfulness, 07:21 they are carried off. 07:23 Let's read in the first chapter. 07:25 chapter 1 of Daniel, verse 1 and 2, 07:28 "In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, 07:32 Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem 07:36 and besieged it. 07:38 And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, 07:42 with some," notice that word, "some," "some of the articles 07:45 of the house of God, which he carried into the land of Shinar 07:48 to the house of his god; and he brought the articles 07:52 into the treasure house of his god." 07:54 Very beginning of the book of Daniel, 07:56 you see that there's a battle between gods. 07:58 It looks as though the God of Israel is being defeated 08:02 by the god of Babylon. 08:04 What's the first kingdom or city that you hear mentioned 08:08 in the Bible? 08:10 Remember Cain, he went and he built a city. 08:14 And then you read about Nimrod, and you read in Genesis 8, 08:17 verse-- 08:19 I'm sorry, Genesis 10, verse 8 and 10, 08:21 "Cush begot Nimrod; and he began to be a mighty one on the earth. 08:24 And he was a mighty hunter before the Lord; 08:27 therefore it is said, 'Like Nimrod the mighty hunter 08:30 before the Lord.' 08:31 And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel," 08:36 and it goes on to say, "Erech, Accad, and Calneh, 08:40 in the land of Shinar." 08:42 Now, didn't we just read that Nebuchadnezzar carried 08:44 the temple gold from God's temple to his god? 08:49 And so there's almost like a battle between gods. 08:52 In the very beginning, you see that God said for man 08:56 to go out to fill the earth, to scatter, to multiply. 09:00 Instead, they build a tower of what? 09:03 Tower of Babel. 09:04 Babel represents opposition to God. 09:07 It represents-- 09:09 I think the word "babel," the original word, 09:12 it means "Gate of God." 09:14 And it's almost like man was trying to build his own way 09:18 to heaven. 09:19 But later, the word "babel" came to mean "Babbling. 09:24 "When you call a baby a baby, you know why you say 09:26 it's a baby? 09:28 It's 'cause babies babble, and it's connected to that word. 09:31 Because the tower languages were cursed, you remember? 09:34 And no one could understand each other 09:35 and they were all babbling. 09:37 And that's how the word went through 09:40 that metamorphosis there. 09:42 And so there's a battle between-- 09:44 you get to Revelation, you've got Mystery, Babylon the Great, 09:47 the Mother of Harlots and Abominations of the Earth. 09:49 That's Revelation chapter 17. 09:51 And then you get to Revelation chapter 21, 09:54 "And I saw the new Jerusalem coming down from God 09:56 out of heaven." 09:57 So there's this battle that's running between Jerusalem 10:00 and Babylon that you see going from Genesis to Revelation. 10:06 So Nebuchadnezzar, because of the unfaithfulness 10:09 of the people of God--you can read about this in 2 Kings, 10:12 just so you have the background. 10:15 In 2 Kings, chapter 21, verse 10, 10:18 "And the Lord spoke by his servants, 10:20 the prophets, saying, 'Because Manasseh the king of Judah 10:23 has done these abominations, he's acted more wickedly 10:26 than all of the Amorites.'" 10:28 Amorite was sort of a generic word 10:29 for all the Canaanite people that lived in the land, 10:32 the Promised Land, before Israel. 10:34 "That he did more wickedly than all the Amorites 10:36 who were before him. 10:37 I will wipe Jerusalem as one wipes a dish, 10:39 wiping it and turning it upside down. 10:42 So I will forsake the remnant of my inheritance and deliver them 10:45 into the hand of their enemies. 10:47 And they shall become victims of plunder of all their enemies 10:50 because they have done evil in my sight and provoke me to anger 10:53 since the day their fathers came out of Egypt to this day." 10:57 And so because of their unfaithfulness, 11:00 Nebuchadnezzar came. 11:02 And during the time of the first captivity, 11:07 the first group that was carried off, 11:08 he didn't destroy the temple. 11:10 He didn't burn the temple. 11:11 He didn't take everything out of the temple. 11:13 He took some of the articles from the temple. 11:15 Jehoiakim eventually surrendered. 11:18 He carried off certain of the young people. 11:21 Now I'm getting ahead of myself, but he comes back later 11:25 and the temple is destroyed. 11:26 So if we go to Daniel chapter 1, and we read here-- 11:30 I'll be thankful if we can get through the book of Daniel, 11:33 chapter 1 today. 11:35 And it says that he besieged it and he carried these articles 11:39 from the house of God to the land of Shinar, 11:41 to the house of his god. 11:44 Now, you know, before the book of Daniel's over, 11:46 Nebuchadnezzar comes to believe in a different God, doesn't he? 11:51 To the house of his god with the treasures of his god. 11:54 Did he take the candlestick? No. 11:59 Did he take the altar of incense? 12:02 No. 12:03 Did he take the Ark of the Covenant to Babylon? 12:06 No, he just took some of the treasures. 12:09 He allowed them to continue to worship their God and 12:11 he left the important articles for their worship there. 12:14 He did not destroy the temple. 12:16 That's because they agreed that they would pay taxes. 12:19 So Jehoiakim is one of the sons of good King Josiah. 12:25 Probably next to David, maybe even better than David. 12:29 Josiah was among the best kings of Judah that 12:33 they ever produced, probably better than Hezekiah. 12:36 There's no record of Josiah ever doing anything wrong or evil. 12:40 Near the end of his life, he gets killed going 12:42 into a battle he was advised not to go into, but you know, 12:45 that was a question of courage, you might say. 12:48 And so his son Jehoiakim, he's too young. 12:52 He gets carried off by Nebuchadnezzar 12:54 and Nebuchadnezzar puts his Uncle Zedekiah in charge. 12:57 He says, "Now, you promised before the Lord 12:59 you will pay taxes." 13:00 He made a vow before the Lord he would pay taxes, 13:02 he would submit to Babylon. 13:03 But then after Nebuchadnezzar left and a few years of 13:06 paying taxes, he said, "No, we don't want to do this anymore." 13:10 And everyone advised him not to do it. 13:11 Jeremiah the prophet said, 13:13 "Zedekiah, you made a vow in the name of the Lord. 13:15 You need to submit to the king of Babylon. 13:18 The king of Babylon being over us is a punishment for our sins. 13:22 Just embrace it and you'll have peace. 13:24 You fight against him, it's going to be worse than ever." 13:27 He would not listen to the prophets like Jeremiah. 13:31 And so, you read then in 2 Kings chapter 24, verse 18, 13:37 "Zedekiah was 21 years old when he became king, 13:40 and he reigned 11 years in Jerusalem. 13:42 His mother's name was Hamutal the daughter 13:44 of Jeremiah of Libnah." 13:46 Different Jeremiah of course. 13:48 "He did evil in the sight of the Lord, 13:49 according to all that Jehoiakim had done. 13:52 For because of the anger of the Lord this happened in Jerusalem 13:56 and Judah, that he finally cast them out from his presence. 13:59 Then Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon." 14:02 Nebuchadnezzar then conquered the city. 14:05 Zedekiah had his sons killed before him, 14:08 his eyes plucked out. 14:10 The temple was burned. 14:12 The city was burned and everybody 14:13 was carried off captive. 14:15 So during the first captivity, a small group was carried off 14:19 to Babylon, and that's when you get to Daniel chapter 1. 14:22 And it tells us that-- it says in verse 3, 14:27 "The king instructed Ashpenaz, the master of his eunuchs, 14:31 to bring some of the children of Israel, 14:34 and some of the king's descendants, 14:36 and some of the nobles, and the young men 14:38 in whom there's no blemish, but good-looking, 14:41 gifted in all wisdom, possessing knowledge 14:44 and quick to understand, who had ability to serve 14:46 in the king's palace, and whom they might teach 14:49 the language and the literature of the Chaldeans. 14:51 And the king appointed for them a daily provision 14:54 of the king's delicacies and of the wine which he drank, 14:58 and there'd be three years of training for them, 15:01 so that at the end of that time they might serve 15:03 before the king. 15:05 Now from among those that were chosen from the children 15:07 of Judah were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. 15:13 And to them the chief of the eunuchs gave the names: 15:16 to Daniel he gave the name Belteshazzar; 15:19 Hananiah, Shadrach; Mishael, Meshach; and Azariah, 15:25 Abednego." 15:26 And so here they're carried off and it tells more 15:29 about these young men who were carried off. 15:32 This is under the section under, "Faith Under Pressure." 15:35 You remember in Isaiah 39, Hezekiah became sick. 15:42 He prayed that God would heal him. 15:43 He had a terminal illness, but he prayed that God 15:46 would heal him. 15:47 He wept and he cried, and Isaiah was sent back to Hezekiah. 15:50 He said, "All right, you're still terminal." 15:52 By the way, we're all terminal. 15:54 Did you know that? 15:56 He said, "But I'm going to prolong your life." 15:59 And he said, "I'm going to add to your days 15 years." 16:03 And during that time, Manasseh is born 16:05 who turns out not being such a good king. 16:08 But God makes the sun go backwards 16:11 as a sign that he's healing Hezekiah. 16:14 And the messengers come from Babylon, 16:17 and Hezekiah is so excited that God-- 16:20 that messengers have come from Babylon and they want 16:22 to find out about the God that did this miracle. 16:25 And instead of Hezekiah talking about God, 16:27 he talks about himself. 16:29 And he says, "Wow, I'm honored, messengers from Babylon. 16:33 That's the center of intelligence and studies, 16:35 and I want them to be impressed with me." 16:38 And he shows them all of his treasures, 16:40 and his armory, and his perfumes. 16:41 And he shows them everything, but he doesn't talk to them 16:44 about God, unlike Solomon when the Queen of Sheba comes. 16:47 So Isaiah comes to Hezekiah with a judgment. 16:52 And this is Isaiah 39, verse 5, "And Isaiah said to Hezekiah, 16:56 Hear the Word of the Lord of hosts. 16:58 'Behold, the days are coming when all that is in your house 17:01 that your fathers have accumulated until this day 17:05 shall be carried to Babylon. 17:07 Nothing will be left,' says the Lord. 17:08 And they'll take away some of your sons who will descend 17:11 from you, who will--you will beget, and they will be eunuchs 17:15 in the palace of the king of Babylon." 17:17 Now, did that literally come to pass? 17:19 We see that in the book of Daniel? 17:21 That here it says of the king's seed from the tribe of Judah, 17:25 these bright young men are taken. 17:28 They're taken to be eunuchs. 17:31 Now, you know, Jesus talks about this, 17:33 and I don't want to belabor the point, but Christ said that-- 17:36 and you know, he said, once a man's married, 17:42 he shouldn't get divorced. 17:44 And the disciples were so surprised that there was really 17:46 no biblical grounds for divorce other than adultery. 17:50 And one of them said, "It might even be better 17:52 not to get married." 17:54 And Jesus said--I mean, it seems strange that 17:57 they would think that, you know, it's impossible to be faithful. 18:01 And Jesus said, "Well, there are some people that are eunuchs 18:04 because they're born that way, and some people are made eunuchs 18:07 of men, and some people choose to be eunuchs." 18:09 Paul may have been in that third category. 18:12 He just chose not to marry. 18:14 And then there were people who were made eunuchs by others, 18:19 and it was common in ancient times that if you were a king 18:23 and you had a harem with many wives, 18:25 you wanted your wise men, and your counselors, 18:29 and people that worked-- took care of the women, 18:33 they went through that surgical procedure to make sure that 18:36 all the king's children were indeed the king's children. 18:40 I think you all understand what I'm saying. 18:42 And you never hear about Mrs. Daniel, 18:45 or Mrs. Hananiah, Meshach, and Azariah. 18:48 So because they were to be focused on their studies, 18:52 then they were--they went under that procedure. 18:56 And so, that of course in itself must have been 19:00 a humiliating for any Jew. 19:03 You know, important thing for them was children, 19:06 and to have seed, and hopefully maybe even the Messiah 19:09 would come through your descendants. 19:12 So then we hear that the chief of the eunuchs, 19:15 the one who's in charge of these young men that are going through 19:18 this training--the idea is Nebuchadnezzar was a very smart 19:20 king, and as he conquered he realized he needed to organize. 19:24 Education was very important. 19:25 Alexander did that too, but he got some 19:27 of it from Nebuchadnezzar. 19:29 Alexander established libraries and schools, 19:31 and he was, you know, perpetrating the teachings 19:34 of Plato and Aristotle. 19:36 And Nebuchadnezzar believed you gotta educate. 19:39 Babylon was a center of learning. 19:41 It was--remember the magi that we're studying the heavens? 19:45 And they weren't just all astrologers, 19:47 they were astronomers. 19:50 And so he said, "Look, I want to have some 19:54 of the Hebrews in my court. 19:56 I've conquered all these people. I don't know their language. 19:58 I don't know their customs. 19:59 I need representatives that will be trained. 20:01 Get the brightest and the best young men 20:03 with the most potential." 20:05 And they need to be good looking because they're going to be 20:10 in the palace, and you know, the king doesn't want to look 20:12 at anything that might offend. 20:14 And so he says, you know, "Get the brightest and the best 20:16 and bring them in that they can stand before me 20:18 and we can be trained. 20:20 They can be intermediaries with their own people, 20:22 and maybe there's some bright ones that could be part 20:24 of the council to help advise for different problems." 20:28 And so that was the custom. 20:30 Well, if they're going to be trained in the king's 20:32 university, then they'll be fed from the king's cafeteria. 20:36 And so, they were told, "You're going to be able to eat 20:38 from the Babylonian banquet." 20:43 And so it said, "You'll teach them the language 20:46 and the literature of the Chaldeans. 20:48 And the king appointed them a daily provision 20:50 of the king's delicacies." 20:52 This is the nicest food. 20:54 It's from the king's store. 20:55 "And the wine which he drank. 20:57 And this is a three-year training program." 21:00 How long did Jesus train his disciples? 21:03 Three and a half years. 21:04 "And it's a three-year training program that at the end 21:09 of that time they might serve before the king." 21:12 And then again it mentions that these three are chosen, 21:16 except there's a problem. 21:18 It says that--and someone is going to read this for me. 21:22 Who's got--Dan, you got a microphone there? 21:24 I'm going to have you read Daniel chapter 1, verse 8. 21:29 Dan: Daniel 1, verse 8, "But Daniel purposed in his heart 21:32 that he would not defile himself with the portion 21:35 of the king's delicacies, nor with the wine which he drank; 21:39 therefore he requested of the chief of the eunuchs 21:41 that he might not defile himself." 21:44 Doug: Now, I think we're safe in assuming 21:46 that it wasn't just Daniel, but Daniel spoke up, 21:49 and Daniel and his three friends, they said, 21:52 "We can't do this." 21:54 Now, there's several reasons that they could not participate 21:59 of the king's banquet. 22:02 One, and I'll spend a moment talking about this, 22:05 some of the food in the Babylonian cafeteria 22:08 was very likely unclean, what the Bible would call unclean. 22:12 Now, where do you find in the Bible the distinction 22:15 between food that is clean and unclean? 22:19 Leviticus 11. 22:20 Let me just read some of this to you. 22:23 "Speak to the children of Israel," Leviticus 11, verse 2, 22:27 "saying, 'These are the animals which you may eat 22:30 among all the animals that are on the earth. 22:32 Among the animals, whatever divides the hoof 22:35 and has a cloven hoof and chews the cud,'" 22:38 meets both criteria, "that you may eat. 22:41 Nevertheless, these you shall not eat among those 22:43 that chew the cud or those that have cloven hooves," 22:46 because they don't have both. 22:48 "The camel, because it chews the cud but it doesn't have 22:50 cloven hooves, is unclean to you." 22:52 Well, you know, camel was a very popular food in the time 22:55 of Christ, and that's why Jesus said to the religious leaders, 22:58 "They're hypocrites. 23:00 You strain a gnat and swallow a camel." 23:03 What he meant was they were straining their water and their 23:06 milk, lest a little microscopic gnat might get in there 'cause 23:09 it might be an unclean bug, but they'd eat camel steak. 23:15 And he said, "You're hypocrites. 23:16 Camel's unclean," 'cause while they chew the cud, 23:18 they didn't have a cloven hoof. 23:20 And I was talking to Steve Friend, 23:23 Michelle raises alpacas. 23:25 Alpacas are in the camel family, isn't that right, Michelle? 23:28 And they're unclean, but people eat them, 23:32 but you're not supposed to eat them. 23:34 So I just want to make sure your animals are safe 23:37 from at least this crew. 23:38 male: Don't eat your friends. 23:39 Doug: Yeah, don't eat your-- ha ha, I got it. 23:43 So the camel was unclean and it says 'cause it does not have 23:49 cloven hooves. 23:51 "And the rock hyrax, because it chews the cud," 23:53 it's like a rabbit creature, but it doesn't have cloven hooves, 23:56 "is unclean to you. 23:57 The hare, because it chews the cud but it doesn't have 23:59 cloven hooves, it's unclean to you. 24:01 And the swine, though it divides the hoof, 24:04 having cloven hooves, yet it does not chew the cud, 24:08 it is unclean to you." 24:11 I was just reading a book-- still reading a book about some 24:13 people that were shipwrecked on an island south of New Zealand 24:17 back in 1865, and they thought they were wild sheep 24:21 on the island because they saw the footprints. 24:24 They later found that it was pigs, 24:27 because they've both got cloven feet. 24:29 And unless you really know what you're looking at, 24:31 you might confuse a pig footprint for a deer 24:36 or for a sheep. 24:38 But a pig is very different from a sheep. 24:42 It does not chew the cud. They are scavengers. 24:46 They are not the vegetarians that the sheep 24:48 and the goats are. 24:50 And he says, "They are unclean to you." 24:51 Matter of fact, it says, "You shall not-- 24:54 Their flesh you shall not eat, their carcass 24:57 you shall not touch. 24:59 They are unclean to you. 25:01 These are all-- These you may eat 25:03 of all that are in the waters, whatever has fins and scales, 25:06 in the sea or in the rivers, that you may eat. 25:09 But in all the seas and the rivers, 25:10 if it does not have fins and scales, 25:12 all that move in the waters and any living thing in the waters, 25:14 they are an abomination to you." 25:17 So it needed both criteria if it's going to be clean for food, 25:21 fins and scales. 25:22 Someone always asks, "Well, is tuna clean? 25:24 Tuna technically is clean. 25:25 They do have scales. They're very small. 25:28 You have to look closely, but it's very 25:29 almost microscopic scales. 25:30 Shark is unclean. Catfish is unclean. 25:32 They're scavengers. 25:35 Snails are unclean, escargot. 25:38 Your crab--I used to love shrimp cocktail before 25:43 I knew this truth. 25:45 Lobster, used to catch my own lobster. 25:47 Crawdads I've eaten. 25:49 They're all scavengers. 25:51 They're unclean. 25:52 We have one president that actually died. 25:54 I can't remember, was it Harding? 25:57 Who--he ate contaminated shellfish and he got sick 26:00 and died from it. 26:02 So yeah, God says don't do it. 26:05 And then for the birds, it tells us-- 26:07 he gives us the names the birds. 26:09 "And these you shall regard as an abomination among the birds. 26:12 They shall not be eaten. 26:13 The eagle, the vulture, the buzzard, the kite, 26:16 the falcon after its kind." 26:17 These are the raptors. They're birds of prey. 26:19 "Every raven after its kind." 26:21 Ravens, the corvidae, they're omnivores. 26:24 They'll eat anything. 26:25 "The ostrich, the short-eared owl, 26:28 the seagull, the hawk after its kind, 26:29 the little owl, the fisher owl, the screech owl, the white owl." 26:32 That's just all the owls. 26:34 "The jackdaw, the carrion vulture, the stork, 26:36 the heron after its kind, the hupa, the bat." 26:39 People ask, "Swan, duck?" 26:42 They are in that category. They're unclean. 26:44 So the two rules for the animal: cloven hoof, chew the cud. 26:50 Two rules for the sea life: fins and scales. 26:54 The rule really for the birds, if you want to simplify it, 26:57 is if it's a foraging bird. 26:59 Now, those are the birds that are your chicken, your quail, 27:03 your turkey, your dove, technically sparrow." 27:07 I mean, the Bible says, "Are not two sparrows," but I mean, 27:10 the very poorest people might offer a sparrow in the temple. 27:12 You can never offer an unclean animal in the temple. 27:15 It was an abomination. 27:17 If you were to bring a pig to sacrifice, 27:19 that would be the highest insult. 27:22 And matter of fact, there's an adage, 27:27 if you're going to talk about someone who doesn't understand 27:30 the culture, you say they brought 27:34 pork chops to the bar mitzvah. 27:37 That's talking about someone who just doesn't understand, 27:39 and you don't do that. 27:41 And so--'cause they're unclean. 27:44 So one reason that Daniel and his friends couldn't eat 27:46 these foods is because the Bible says they're unclean. 27:48 Now, someone might say, "Well, that's because that's-- 27:50 those are the laws for Jews. 27:51 We don't have to worry about that today." 27:53 Oh really? 27:55 How many here are related to Noah? 27:58 Oh, I think that's all of you. 27:59 If you're not, we'd like to talk to you later. 28:03 You had some relatives that survived the flood, 28:06 but everyone's related to Noah. 28:07 Did God make a distinction between clean 28:09 and unclean foods for Noah? 28:11 He did. 28:13 Everyone says, "The animals all went on the ark two by two." 28:14 Not exactly. 28:16 The unclean animals went two by two because those unclean 28:20 animals didn't need to worry about being eaten 28:22 during their voyage. 28:24 But the clean animals were taken by seven because they could be 28:27 eaten and they were used for sacrifice afterward. 28:30 You could not eat anything that could not be used 28:32 for a sacrifice. 28:33 By the way, "Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, 28:36 and whosoever defiles that temple, him will God destroy." 28:40 That's the New Testament. 28:41 Some people say, "Well, didn't--" 28:44 So it's not just for Jews. 28:45 Unclean and clean food was for all people. 28:48 "Didn't Peter have a vision where God declared 28:50 all foods clean?" 28:51 He did have a vision. 28:52 God did not declare all foods clean. 28:55 Peter, in interpreting that vision himself-- 28:58 he had this vision where all this big sheet came down 29:00 from heaven, all these creatures in it, clean and unclean. 29:03 And God says, "Arise and eat." Peter says, "Not so, Lord. 29:08 I have never eaten anything common or unclean." 29:11 Now, that by itself tells you something. 29:12 That means that this is Acts chapter 10, 29:15 which is taking place, you know, probably six, 29:19 seven years after Jesus has ascended to heaven. 29:24 Peter still says, "I've never eaten 29:26 anything common or unclean." 29:27 Jesus never told 'em it was okay. 29:28 Peter's protesting against the vision. 29:31 Three times the sheet comes down. 29:32 He never takes anything from the sheet and he never eats it. 29:34 It's a vision. You don't eat visions, right? 29:37 Unless you're, you know, you're in the Spirit, like 29:41 John when he's being told to eat a book. 29:45 But he never eats anything. 29:48 And then when he's wondering what the vision means, 29:50 three gentiles come knocking on the door. 29:53 Peter later says, "God has shown me not to call any man unclean." 29:58 That vision had nothing to do with food and it had to do 30:01 with going, taking the gospel to the gentiles. 30:04 Some people have used that to say it doesn't matter 30:06 what a Christian eats anymore, which is really absurd 30:09 because intelligent people know that God is not mocked. 30:13 Whatever you sow, you're going to reap. 30:15 Even if you're not even talking about clean or unclean foods, 30:18 if you eat a lot of cholesterol, you're going to reap 30:20 a heart attack. 30:21 If you eat a lot of sugar, you're going to reap obesity. 30:24 You're going to reap what you sow. 30:26 Anyone knows it matters what you eat, 30:28 so for a Christian to say God doesn't care what we eat is 30:30 really ludicrous when you think about it. 30:33 Of course he does. 30:34 He wants us to be wise about that. 30:36 How did Eve get in trouble? Does God care what we eat? 30:39 The whole world is in trouble now because someone 30:41 ate something they weren't supposed to eat. 30:42 God said, "Eat from that tree. 30:44 Don't eat from that tree." 30:45 God has never taken away the health laws. 30:47 The Jewish stomach is exactly like your stomach. 30:50 And those laws that, by the way, you know, 30:55 God has blessed them so they have become 30:57 a very resilient people. 31:00 And you look at history and you can see that at least 31:02 in part one reason that they were blessed is they observed 31:05 these health laws. 31:06 So one reason that Daniel probably did not eat those 31:09 things is because there were some things that were unclean. 31:12 Secondly, those things may have been butchered 31:16 in an unclean manner. 31:18 Suppose there was sheep and chicken on the menu, 31:21 and Daniel could rightly eat those things, 31:24 but God said that their necks were to be cut and the blood 31:28 was to be drained out. 31:29 You remember even in the New Testament, they said, 31:31 "Tell the gentiles they are not to eat things with blood." 31:33 Not only not unclean food, even the clean animals 31:37 were not to be strangled. 31:40 That's Acts chapter 15. 31:41 So God had specified even in the New Testament 31:43 they were not to eat blood. 31:44 That's a health law, so obviously the health laws 31:48 were not done away with. 31:51 So Nebuchadnezzar's cafeteria may have also had some things 31:54 in it that were not sacrificed in the appropriate way. 31:59 Thirdly, the food that Nebuchadnezzar was 32:03 offering them, much of it could have been offered to an idol. 32:08 And Daniel, you know, they sacrificed it to an idol and 32:10 then they bring it to him, and he did not want to look like he 32:13 was supporting these pagan gods that now had taken possession 32:16 of the sacred things from the temple. 32:19 And so, for those reasons he says very nicely, 32:25 "I don't want to defile myself." 32:27 So they've got this firm resolution. 32:29 Now, someone's going to read for me 1 Corinthians 10:28. 32:33 You'll have that, Diana? 32:35 And just before you read that, I want to mention 32:37 that for Daniel to say, "We're not going to eat 32:42 what they're giving us," you've got to keep in mind 32:44 he's trying to find out, "How do I not offend?" 32:48 Most of the children of Israel that were carried away 32:51 to Babylon didn't stay in the palace. 32:53 They didn't eat from the king's table. 32:55 Many of them probably looked like prisoners of war 32:58 by the time they arrived in Babylon. 33:00 They were enslaved. 33:02 Daniel and his three friends were extremely fortunate 33:05 in that they probably had clean quarters to live in. 33:08 They had nice clothes to wear. 33:11 They were protected by the king's guard. 33:13 They were not living in poverty. 33:15 So, for you as a captive to say, "This is what I'm going to eat 33:18 and this is what I'm not going to eat." 33:20 Can that be misunderstood? 33:22 It could sound like, "Well, how dare you. 33:25 You are so lucky that you have been chosen. 33:28 Instead of being carried off and sold in Babylon, 33:31 you've been chosen to be in the palace, 33:34 and you're going to tell us what you will and won't eat?" 33:37 And so they've got to pray that they have a way to say this. 33:39 They probably said it very humbly. 33:42 They may have even explain that, you know, 33:44 this is for religious grounds. 33:46 And Daniel said, "We cannot be defiled because of our faith." 33:50 And so, go ahead, you can read that verse. 33:53 Diana: But if anyone says to you, 33:54 'This was offered to idols,' do not eat it for the sake 33:58 of the one who told you, and for conscience sake; 34:01 for 'the earth is the Lord's, and all its fullness.'" 34:05 Doug: Now, the whole business about him not eating 34:07 the food because it may have been offered to idols, 34:10 you're going to find there seemed to be 34:13 a couple of conflicting opinions in the New Testament 34:16 about can you or can you not eat things offered to idols. 34:20 This verse that was just read helps explain it. 34:23 The disciples were pretty clear in Acts chapter 15, 34:26 "Command them to abstain from things offered to idols." 34:30 We don't want the pagans to think that we worship idols. 34:33 Paul, a little later on, he said, 34:37 "Look, you did not offer it to the idol." 34:40 And you've got to understand how it was back in Bible times. 34:43 In the Greco-Roman world, there were thousands 34:46 of different gods. 34:48 Every market where you went to do your shopping, 34:50 if you wanted to buy goat, mutton, or chicken, 34:54 or whatever it was, clean food, 34:55 I mean, biblically a clean meat, everything that was butchered, 35:01 they had a little idol in the marketplace and everything 35:04 was butchered in front of an idol. 35:06 And so Paul said, "Look, if you buy something there, 35:10 you didn't offer it to the idol. 35:12 The idol is nothing. 35:13 It's dead. 35:15 But if it bothers the conscience of the person, don't do it." 35:19 You remember when Paul says in Romans chapter 14, 35:22 "Those that are weak eat only vegetables." 35:24 Someone said that says vegetarians are weak. 35:26 No, it had nothing to do with vegetarians. 35:28 It meant those whose faith was hypersensitive, weak faith, 35:31 they couldn't eat any meat because they were afraid 35:34 they might be worshipping an idol. 35:37 The way I relate this in modern times, 35:40 how many of you like Asian food? 35:44 I had some this week. 35:45 How many of you have been in a Chinese or Asian restaurant 35:48 where they've got a Buddha? 35:53 Are you worshipping Buddha? 35:54 I've even seen when you walk in they got little incense burning 35:56 by a little statue of Buddha, or they'll have a candle 36:00 in front of a picture of Buddha. 36:02 And if you eat in that restaurant, 36:03 are you worshipping Buddha? 36:05 Well, if you worry about that, don't eat at that restaurant. 36:07 Anything that is not of faith is sin. 36:11 But if you realize, "Hey, that's just a piece of stone. 36:15 It's not going to hurt my food," and you can eat with 36:21 a clear conscience, Paul says, "Enjoy it." 36:23 If it's going to bother your conscience, don't eat it, 36:25 because you're not doing it in faith, 36:27 and that which is not of faith is sin. 36:29 So Daniel, knowing he's being watched by others, 36:34 there were other Jews, and not only Shadrach, 36:36 Meshach, and Abednego, Daniel said, 36:39 "We're not going to eat also because it's been offered 36:40 to idols and we don't want to send the wrong signal." 36:42 'Cause you had just read how Nebuchadnezzar said, 36:45 "My god is bigger than your God, because my gods have taken 36:48 the treasures from your God." 36:50 Now, of the things that were taken out of the temple, 36:53 the Ark was not taken. 36:55 Now, this is a point in history when Daniel's first carried off. 37:00 Nebuchadnezzar enters the temple. 37:01 He takes some of the treasures. We just read that. 37:05 He comes back later during the time of Zedekiah. 37:07 He totally loots the temple. 37:09 He not only takes all the gold and everything 37:11 out of the temple, he takes the bronze pillars 37:13 and breaks it in pieces 'cause it's too big to carry. 37:16 He breaks these--the Bible says these pillars are, you know, 37:19 they're like 40 feet high and they're as thick 37:22 as a man's hand all the way around. 37:25 It's just a massive bronze pillars. 37:28 He takes everything of value. 37:30 Where does the Ark go? 37:32 Do you realize that from the time before Nebuchadnezzar 37:35 and after Nebuchadnezzar, the Ark is never mentioned. 37:38 When they come back from Babylon after 70 years, 37:41 it talks about the different articles that come back. 37:43 Never mentions the Ark. 37:45 The best that we know is that Jeremiah the prophet, 37:50 in concert with the priests, when they saw Nebuchadnezzar 37:53 was outside the city and they knew the city was going to fall, 37:56 they went into the temple, and they snuck out with the Ark, 38:00 and they hid it in one of the many caves 38:02 that absolutely honeycombed Jerusalem. 38:05 I've been to Jerusalem several times, 38:06 and under the city and around the city, 38:08 it is honeycombed with caves and graves 38:10 and you can get lost in 'em. 38:12 And every time they do any building, 38:13 they run into some new chamber. 38:15 And it is probably still hidden there to this day, 38:19 so that's what happened to the Ark. 38:21 But so, there's a battle going on between gods here. 38:24 All right, and you look for instance in Revelation 20, 38:28 verse-- Revelation 2, verse 20, 38:31 "Nevertheless I have a few things against you, 38:33 because you allow that woman Jezebel, 38:35 who calls herself a prophetess, to teach and seduce my servants 38:39 to commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols." 38:45 So can you see that in the New Testament 38:47 it did matter if you ate things sacrificed to idols. 38:50 So you didn't--you know, buying stuff in the marketplace, 38:53 Paul said, "Well, that's one thing," but if you're-- 38:55 if you're participating in a sacrificial feast, 38:58 that was forbidden. 39:00 So Daniel now makes a proposition. 39:02 He tells Ashpenaz, he said, "Look, 39:06 why don't you give us pulse to eat." 39:09 He said, "Please let your servants be tested for 10 days," 39:12 and this is verse 12, "and let them give us vegetables to eat," 39:17 just vegetable stew, "and water to drink. 39:20 Then after ten days, let our appearance be examined 39:23 before you, and the appearance of the young men who eat 39:25 the portion of the king's delicacies." 39:27 Daniel already knew they were going to be better off 39:30 'cause he'd been living on that diet when he was a young man. 39:35 And he said, "You see fit you deal with us." 39:37 He said, "You know, we're not wanting to be ungrateful. 39:40 We're actually telling you, not only does this go against our 39:43 conscience, but if your goal is to have these young men looking 39:48 bright, and sharp, and smart, give us this diet 39:51 and see which does better." 39:54 And so I think that the chief of the eunuchs is 39:56 a little intrigued. 39:57 He said, "Okay, I'll give you ten days. 39:58 What have I got to lose? 40:00 It's not going to kill you eat vegetables for ten days." 40:01 Now there are kids that will argue it will kill them to eat 40:04 vegetables for ten days, but there's probably some beans, 40:09 and legumes, and porridge, and stuff like that. 40:12 And so basically, you know what he's saying. 40:14 He's saying, "Give us a vegetarian diet." 40:16 They didn't want to risk eating anything 40:18 that had been sacrificed, which meant no meat. 40:21 And water to drink. 40:22 They're not going to drink the wine. 40:23 Why would he not drink the wine 40:25 from Nebuchadnezzar's wine cellar? 40:30 It probably was aged. 40:33 They thought, "Oh yeah, if it's got a little kick to it, 40:35 that's all the better." 40:37 And you know the Bible says that, 40:40 "Woe to him that gives his neighbor drink. 40:45 Wine is a mocker. Strong drink is raging. 40:48 Whoever is deceived thereby is not wise." 40:51 Noah drank wine and stumbled around naked in his tent, 40:55 and Ham was cursed and Canaan as a result. 40:59 The Bible tells us a lot-- Lot's daughters gave him wine 41:03 to drink and he became one of the few men in the Bible 41:06 that his children were both his children and his grandchildren. 41:13 You know what I'm saying? 41:15 He slept with his daughters, drinking. 41:17 David tried to get Uriah drunk so he'd go against 41:19 his conscience. 41:23 Wine doesn't have a very good record. 41:25 It says you give it to him who is ready to perish. 41:27 It's like a person who drinks and lies down in the midst 41:30 of the crow's nest in a storm . 41:33 The Bible doesn't say anything good about wine. 41:35 People say, "But Jesus turned the water into wine. 41:37 Wine must be okay." 41:39 That word "wine" is the only word you find in the Bible. 41:41 Wine is also "new wine," which is unfermented. 41:44 Jesus spoke of his gospel as new wine and he said, 41:49 "I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until I drink it 41:51 with you again, new in my Father's kingdom." 41:54 When Jesus turned the water to wine, 41:56 he didn't advance it, accelerate it to being fermented. 41:59 He made it the very best grape juice. 42:02 They said, "You've saved the best for last," 42:04 'cause you couldn't get fresh grape juice except 42:05 during the harvest. 42:07 So wine is bad, and so they said, 42:11 "We're not going to drink that." 42:13 And so finally, you can read here, 42:16 it says that they ate the vegetables. 42:21 The original diet God had for man is, 42:24 "I've given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face 42:27 of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed, 42:30 to you it shall be for food." 42:33 And so he gives these young men this diet. 42:39 Now, you know, I might mention here it says 42:41 they're unblemished and wise. 42:45 Why were they--why were they chosen for their looks? 42:51 Are good-looking people smarter than ugly people? 42:57 I refuse--I refuse to accept that theory. 43:01 But you know, does the Bible identify 43:03 some people as good-looking? 43:05 Many of them it identifies as good-looking, 43:07 with a couple of exceptions, are actually godly. 43:11 You've got Esther. 43:13 It says she's good looking. 43:14 Joseph, Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel. 43:19 Rachel was so good-looking that when Jacob kissed her, 43:21 he cried. 43:22 That's what it says. 43:23 He lifted up his voice and he wept after he kissed her. 43:26 Moses, Saul, David, Tamar. 43:31 Now, that's Tamar, the sister of Absalom. 43:33 Absalom was also good-looking. 43:35 Bathsheba, Abigail, Abishag, Vashti, 43:39 Job's daughters, and of course Esther. 43:43 So, these different people, other than those people 43:47 I mentioned, everyone else in the Bible is probably ugly, 43:50 so there's hope for you and me. 43:54 At least hope for me, sorry. 43:59 And all right, so we need to move on here. 44:04 Daniel makes up his mind that he's going to be faithful. 44:08 And as a result of that, they're given this final exam. 44:12 You can read in Daniel chapter 1, verse 18, 44:14 "Now at the end of that ten days, 44:18 when the king had said that they should be brought in, 44:21 the chief of the eunuchs brought them in before Nebuchadnezzar. 44:24 Then the king interviewed them, and among them, all of them, 44:28 none was found like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah; 44:33 therefore they served before the king. 44:38 Now, it says that he investigated, 44:40 and after ten days it says they were fairer and fatter in flesh. 44:44 And I know that some people kind of resent that allegory. 44:47 They think, "Well, why would I want to be fatter in flesh?" 44:49 Well, they had just crossed the desert. 44:51 They just made a long trip after their captivity 44:53 and they wanted 'em to put some more meat on their bones. 44:55 And he was surprised that just by eating the bread 44:58 and the vegetables that they started looking ruddy. 45:03 If you read about this in the book of Prophets and Kings, 45:07 it says they had elasticity in their step, 45:11 that their eyes were sharp, and sparkling, and lucid, 45:14 that their minds were clear. 45:18 And you could just look at them and say, "Wow." 45:22 Line them up next to the other captives from other empires 45:25 that were in the king's university that were eating 45:27 all of the other food and they all looked a little sluggish 45:32 and they didn't look healthy. 45:34 Daniel and his friends--and I think that God may have even, 45:38 not just 'cause they were following the health message, 45:40 I think he may have just blessed them. 45:41 Because you know, when you're obeying God, 45:44 you've got a clear conscience and it does something 45:46 for your looks. 45:48 You know, innocence will improve your appearance. 45:54 You've heard the story about when Abraham Lincoln 45:56 became president for the first time. 45:58 He had all these folks that we're seeking office 46:00 and he's interviewing all these people that are seeking office. 46:02 And after one interview, this person walks out and Lincoln 46:06 turns to his secretary and said, "I don't want to hire them." 46:10 Secretary said, "Well, Mr. President, 46:12 he's got great qualifications." 46:14 And Lincoln said, "I don't like the looks of him." 46:18 And he said, "Mr. President, you mean you're not going 46:20 to hire someone because of the way they look?" 46:23 He said, "You know, after a person's 40 years old, 46:25 they're responsible for the way they look." 46:30 And sometimes, you know, you're going to look at a person 46:34 and you can say, "You know, they don't look innocent." 46:41 How many of you know what I'm saying? 46:43 So I think just even the innocence, 46:45 the relationship with God, made them look better than 46:49 the others that were eating from the king's table. 46:53 And not only did they find them fairer and fatter in flesh, 46:56 you look at verse 20, it says, "In all matters of wisdom and 47:00 understanding about which the king examined them, 47:03 he found them ten times better." 47:06 Now, how many days were in the test? 47:08 Ten days. 47:09 And how many times better does he find them? 47:11 Ten times better. 47:13 You know, ten, when you think of ten in the Bible, 47:16 it's often a symbol of, like, the law of God. 47:19 Comes in derivatives of ten. 47:22 And it says that they were ten times better than all the 47:26 magicians and the astrologers who were in all his realm. 47:29 And you know, before three chapters go by in Daniel, 47:33 what four individuals are the leading counselors 47:36 for Nebuchadnezzar? 47:38 It's the Jewish Council of Daniel, Hananiah, 47:40 Mishael, and Azariah. 47:42 And if you go to the end of Daniel chapter 1, it says, 47:49 "Thus Daniel--" or, let me see here. 47:54 Yeah, "All wiser than all the magicians 47:57 and astrologers who were in his realm. 48:00 Thus Daniel continued until the first year of King Cyrus." 48:04 Now, you know what that little footnote, 48:07 it's not only saying that his diet helped him be healthier. 48:12 It helped him be wiser and it helped him live longer. 48:17 'Cause for him to continue until the first year of king Cyrus, 48:21 that means Daniel not only lived through the time of Darius, 48:25 he lived to the one who followed after him. 48:27 Matter of fact, I think there were two kings 48:29 between Darius and Cyrus. 48:30 Daniel lived like 90-100 years. 48:32 We're not exactly sure how old they were. 48:34 It says that they were to take young men, 48:37 so you know, they weren't-- they weren't little kids. 48:42 They were probably somewhere between 16 and 20 years of age 48:45 when they were taken, which means Daniel lived 48:48 somewhere between 90 and 100 years of age. 48:51 And it doesn't really tell us when Daniel died. 48:53 It means--'cause Cyrus reigned for many years, 48:56 but Daniel lived into the reign of Cyrus. 48:59 And so, the Bible gives us lots of good reasons 49:03 for following the principles of health that he has. 49:08 Now, is that sometimes hard for you to practice 49:11 the health message in a foreign land? 49:14 I have people say, "Pastor Doug, you know, I'd--" 49:17 First of all, I'm a vegetarian. 49:19 I'm a vegan vegetarian, and I meet people that say, 49:21 "I don't think that I could not eat unclean meats, 49:25 because as I travel, what would you eat?" 49:27 I think, "Oh, that's--, man. 49:28 There's a million things you can eat in the world today." 49:30 I travel all over the world. 49:32 I managed to eat as a vegetarian. 49:33 I managed to eat as a vegan vegetarian all over the world. 49:37 It's actually getting easier. 49:39 And yeah, some of the places where it's hard-- 49:42 go to Spain, everything's, like, soaked in fish and meat. 49:46 But see, those of you who've been there know 49:49 what I'm talkin' about. 49:50 But Karen and I just went to Spain. 49:52 We were able to stay vegetarians. 49:54 And so, when people start saying, 49:55 "I don't know how I could do it," 49:57 Daniel did it when he was a captive in the king's palace 50:00 and they were commanding him to eat the wrong thing. 50:02 He stood up for God. 50:04 Did God honor him? 50:06 Did God bless him? 50:08 Yeah, you're going to go through different tests. 50:10 Don't cave in so easy. 50:11 You know, I remember hearing one time that the reason the lions 50:15 did not eat Daniel in the lion's den is because Daniel 50:18 had too much backbone. 50:21 Daniel stood. 50:24 And you remember that song, "Dare to Be a Daniel"? 50:27 I think it might even be in our hymnal. 50:29 We've gotta take a stand even in a foreign land. 50:32 As Christians, like Daniel, we are captives in a foreign land 50:36 and we need to stand for God even in the little things. 50:40 And will God honor us? 50:42 And did Daniel get promoted? 50:44 And was he able to intercede for his people? 50:48 Are you and I encouraged today because 50:49 of Daniel's faithfulness? 50:51 Don't ever underestimate how far your influence will go. 50:54 All right, our time is up, but I want to remind those 50:56 who maybe missed the opening announcement, 50:58 we do have a free offer for you. 51:00 This is great. 51:01 It's called, "Hogs and Other Hazards." 51:03 Talks a little bit about the health message. 51:04 If you'd like a free copy of this, 51:06 it's offer number 160 is what you ask for. 51:09 Offer 160, and here's the phone number, ... 51:14 That's 866-STUDY-MORE. 51:17 And you can also get it online right now. 51:19 You can text it anywhere in the world. 51:20 Simply text SH136. 51:25 You text SH136 to 40544, and I think you'll see that 51:30 there on your screen. 51:32 God Bless you, friends. 51:33 We'll look forward to studying more. 51:35 Daniel chapter 2, great chapter, next week in our study. 51:40 male announcer: Don't forget to request today's 51:42 life-changing free resource. 51:44 Not only can you receive this free gift in the mail, 51:46 you can download a digital copy straight 51:48 to your computer or mobile device. 51:49 To get your digital copy of today's free gift, 51:52 simply text the keyword on your screen to 40544 51:56 or visit the web address shown on your screen. 51:59 And be sure to select a digital download option 52:02 on the request page. 52:03 It's now easier than ever for you to study God's Word 52:06 with "Amazing Facts" wherever and whenever you want, 52:09 and most important, to share it with others. 52:16 announcer: "Amazing Facts: Changed Lives." 52:24 male: I met my ex-wife, and her family were 52:27 a real big into drugs. 52:28 And it started out with them wanting me to go 52:31 to the doctor to help get them drugs. 52:33 And you know, I'm noticing they're going to the doctor, 52:36 they're coming back with like 60 pills, 52:38 and they're selling these pills for like 1,000 bucks. 52:40 And I'm thinking, "Wow, this is a lot of money I'm giving 52:43 these people, so I'm just going to start selling it myself." 52:46 My problem with that was that we had all this money, 52:50 but we was absolutely miserable. 52:52 She would go out and sleep with other guys to get drugs, 52:56 and that ended my marriage. 52:58 But during this time, I have to get a job to build back up 53:02 to where I was at, to open my shop again, 53:04 so I get a job at Food City. 53:05 And when I get this job at Food City, 53:08 there's my wife now, Rebecca. 53:10 She's a cashier there. 53:12 And when I walk in, she's the most beautiful girl 53:15 I've ever seen in my life. 53:16 I was like, "Man, I could never have a girl like that. 53:20 Wow, she's so beautiful." 53:21 But as I'm working with her, she's actually kind of mean to 53:24 me, and she's saying, "I don't want anything to do with you. 53:28 Get away from me," stuff like that. 53:30 But you know, I just keep being nice to her and keep tryin' 53:33 to give her my phone number. 53:35 And it's around Christmas Eve, we'd just been dating 53:38 for a little while, moved in together, 53:40 my ex-wife shows up with my three children 53:43 that I had by her. 53:45 And she's like, "Here's your kids. 53:47 Here's their birth certificates. 53:48 Here's their social security cards. 53:50 I'm done." 53:51 And we were starting a family, we already have three kids. 53:54 During this time, we spent the next year watching nothing but 53:58 "Amazing Facts" on YouTube. 54:00 I didn't even know they even had a website at this time. 54:02 I just knew that this little guy on YouTube was super smart, 54:06 was teaching Bible, and I wanted to follow him. 54:09 I wanted to be a Christian. 54:10 I gave my life to God now because of these truths 54:13 that I'm learning from Doug Bachelor. 54:15 Just because Doug taught it didn't make me real sure 54:18 about going to this church. 54:20 I really didn't want anything to do with it. 54:22 But I called the guy up and I'm telling him, 54:24 and I'm not very nice about it actually. 54:26 I'm telling him, "Look, we was thinkin' about coming 54:28 into your church," and he's really nice. 54:31 He's like, "Well, you're more than welcome to. 54:33 We'd like to have you come." 54:35 And I'm like, "Well, hold on. 54:36 I'm going to lay down some ground rules." 54:38 I'm tellin' him, I said, "Look here, 54:39 I'm covered in tattoos and I'm a tattoo artist," 54:42 and he don't say, "Well, you know, wow. 54:45 I didn't know all that. Don't come to my church." 54:47 He says, "You're more than welcome. 54:48 We would love to have you. 54:50 Please come." 54:52 He asked me what I want to do and I said, 54:54 "Well, I want to preach." 54:56 I said, "I have all these truths. 54:58 I have all this knowledge, stuff I've never known before, 55:01 stuff if I'd've had when I was younger that would've been 55:03 life-changing to me," I said, "I got to share this 55:07 with the world." 55:08 I said, "I want to preach. I want to teach." 55:11 He gives me the book, says, "Study that." 55:13 Well, now that I'm a Bible worker, 55:15 I'm able to go reach people that most of the normal churches 55:19 wouldn't even bother to even speak to. 55:21 I'm able to go out and reach the people who have lived 55:24 the life that I've lived. 55:25 I'm able to let them know that I am like you. 55:29 I've been there. I've done that. 55:31 I want to show you what my life is like now. 55:34 I'm want to teach you this Bible. 55:35 I want to show you what Jesus can do for you. 55:38 It's not too late. 55:39 ♪♪♪ 55:51 ♪♪♪ 56:00 Doug: So what is the brightest light in the world? 56:03 Well, naturally you'd say the sun, but we're talkin' about 56:06 the brightest manmade light in the world. 56:08 It's the light that shines out of the roof of that 56:10 pyramid-shaped hotel in Las Vegas called the Luxor. 56:15 There in the cap of that hotel, there's a room that contains 56:17 39 washing machine-sized xenon bulbs, 56:21 and each of those bulbs requires about 7,000 watts. 56:25 Altogether, they produce about 40 billion candle power 56:29 of light. 56:31 Can you imagine getting that electric bill 56:33 at the Luxor Hotel every month? 56:35 That light is so bright that planes can see it 56:37 250 miles away. 56:40 They are shooting light 10 miles up into space, 56:42 meaning if you happen to be floating by, 56:45 you could read a newspaper up there. 56:48 And as you might have guessed, that bright light has become 56:50 the world's best bug attractor, bringing in moths, and bats, 56:54 and owls, creating its own ecosystem there at night 56:57 above the hotel. 56:59 But the sad thing about the brightest light in the world is 57:01 especially when the night air is clear without any particles, 57:04 the light doesn't hit anything and it's invisible. 57:08 It shoots up into empty space. 57:11 The brightest light in the world illuminates nothing. 57:15 You know, the Bible tells us that there's another 57:17 great wasted light, and that's the light of God's Word. 57:20 It says in Psalm 119, verse 105, "Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet 57:25 and a light unto my path," and yet so many people 57:28 are walking in darkness. 57:30 Furthermore, Jesus said, "If you do have that light, 57:33 make sure you don't put it under a bushel, 57:35 but you let it shine and illuminate the lives of others." 57:38 Jesus said in Matthew chapter 5, "Set your light up 57:41 on a hill like a city so that all might see it." 57:44 Light only benefits others when it reflects off of something. 57:48 God wants our lights to illuminate the lives of others. 57:53 So are you glowing for God? 57:54 Remember, Jesus said, "Let there be light." 57:57 ♪♪♪ |
Revised 2020-01-07