The great evangelist Dwight L. Moody defined character as "what you are in the dark." The measure of someone's character is what they would do if they knew they never would be found out.
Although they were young, Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego had character. These Jewish teenagers literally were taken from a very simple lifestyle to the very lap of luxury, with the finest education the world could offer and the finest food in the world served to them every day.
The king of Babylon at that time, the great Nebuchadnezzar, was looking for the brightest and best of Judah, some young men that he could bring into his court and school in the way of the Babylonians, in the culture of Babylon and in the worship of the false Babylonian gods. Among those who were brought in were Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego.
It was Nebuchadnezzar's desire to turn them into Babylonians, to have them leave their Hebrew roots and belief in the Scriptures and to think like Babylonians. But there was one thing Nebuchadnezzar didn't consider: These boys had purpose and conviction.
The Bible tells us that "Daniel was determined not to defile himself by eating the food and wine given to them by the king. He asked the chief of staff for permission not to eat these unacceptable foods" (Daniel 1:8 NLT).
The king wanted them to eat at his table, but Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego chose not to. We don't know exactly why. The Bible doesn't tell us. It may have been that what the king was offering to them were foods that were forbidden for a Jewish person to eat. Or – and this is probably the real reason – it may have been because the food had been offered to pagan gods, which would have been a compromise for them.
Whatever it was, they were making a stand in a relatively small area. Even so, it mattered to them. Consider this fact, however: Nebuchadnezzar was an intimidating person. This was a cruel and wicked king. In fact, we know from the Scriptures that when he laid siege to Jerusalem, he captured King Zedekiah and brought Zedekiah's sons before him. Then he killed Zedekiah's sons and gouged out his eyes so the last thing the king saw was the death of his own sons. Talk about cruelty.
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That is the kind of man Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were dealing with, yet they made a stand in this relatively small area. In the same way, we should pay attention to little things in our lives, because one day they'll become big things. Little compromises will turn into big problems.
At a single moment in time, you can make a decision that affects your entire life. Therefore, those little tests matter. The stand you make today determines the stand you'll make tomorrow. There are people who work with you, who are related to you, who live near you, and they're watching you because you've identified yourself as a Christian. You're making your stand, and they're hoping you'll mess up.
They want to see you become a hypocrite because then they don't have to be uncomfortable with the message you proclaim. On the other hand, when you live a godly life and stand on your principles and treat people with love and kindness, it's aggravating to them.
We are all being tested more than we may realize, and that was certainly happening with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego.
Later Daniel bravely stood up for the Lord when a law was passed that no one could pray. But Daniel prayed anyway. Similarly, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego refused to bow down before the golden image of the king he had set up. They took significant stands, and the little things had prepared them to do what they did. It was in their choice of food where Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego took their first stand.
God will bless us when we make a stand for him. Daniel struck a deal with the man in charge of enforcing the king's will and said, in effect, "Look, buddy, we're not going to eat this food. But I'll make you a deal. We're going to eat what we're going to eat, and you guys eat what you eat. Let's do it for 10 days, and everything will be all right."
By the way, this is not about what they were eating or not eating. This was not Daniel's new diet book that we all need to study in that way. This is a principled stand they were making on their faith in God and the convictions they held.
Here we have this man enforcing the king's will, yet he went along with the plans of Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. When you take a stand for the Lord on principle, even non-Christians are impressed. That's because courage and conviction and principle are in such short supply these days. Proverbs 16:7 says, "When people's lives please the Lord, even their enemies are at peace with them" (NLT).
Ten days passed, and guess what? Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were healthy and strong. In fact, they looked better than the people who had eaten the other food from the king's table. When we make our stand for what is true, God will bless us. And a little with God is better than much without him.
Really, what do we miss in life when we choose not to get on that merry-go-round of selfishness, drinking, drugs, partying, illicit sex and so forth? If you put God first and the principles of the Scriptures first, then you will know in the end that you made the right decision.