Episode Transcript
If you take your Bibles and turn to Daniel chapter 1 please.
Daniel chapter 1.
I've been fighting off a cold the past couple of days.
So I haven't shaken anyone's hand today.
So if I keep my distance from you, then that's why.
It's not because I don't want to be around you.
It's just I don't think I'm contagious.
I'm not running any fever.
I haven't run any fever.
But I've been trying to stay on top of it.
Just to be cautious, I want to make sure and not pass anything on just in case.
Our outreach this past week was 83 gospel contacts.
And that brings our yearly subtotal up to 390.
So good job with getting the gospel out there.
And good job ladies with the book study.
And I know I heard this morning that some were being blessed from it.
Am I right Tammy?
And I would overheard.
Yeah, so I'm grateful for that.
I'm looking forward to hearing more about that later.
But I overheard one of the people in the Genesis to Jesus class tell my wife.
Daniel chapter 1.
Don't forget our couples banquet is going to be February the 8th.
And the Marithys will be down for that.
And that will be nice.
It will be the first time they've ever been able to come in person.
And Chad and Kim will be down for that as well.
The title of the message this morning is "Prove Thy Servants."
"Prove Thy Servants."
Don't forget we have dinner on the grounds after church today.
In Daniel chapter 1, the kingdom of Babylon has conquered the kingdom of Judah.
And certain of the people of Judah such as the king's children and wise and talented men.
Have been taken captive to be servants to the king of Babylon.
And this by the way fulfills what Isaiah told Hezekiah in 2 Kings chapter 20 verses 16 through 18.
Which says, "And Isaiah said unto Hezekiah, hear the word of the Lord.
Behold the days come that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store until this day, shall be carried into Babylon.
Nothing shall be left, saith the Lord.
And of thy sons that shall issue from thee which thou shalt begin, shall they take away and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.
Isaiah said those days shall come.
Daniel is saying those days have come.
And if you've been listening to Brother Shepard's Sunday School class in 2 Kings.
And you've been listening to that along with our study here in the book of Daniel.
Then you've had the added benefit of studying these corresponding points of biblical history together.
And it's just very enriching to be able to have them happen at the same time.
Now among the people who were taken captive we've learned were four godly men.
Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah.
And they have determined in their hearts to not eat or drink the king's food.
Because that would have violated God's dietary law that they've been given.
And King Nebuchadnezzar's chief of staff, the prince of the eunuchs, was afraid that he might lose his life if he allowed Daniel and his friends to not eat the king's food.
In verse 10 last week we read, And the prince of the eunuchs said unto Daniel, I fear my lord the king who hath appointed your meat and your drink.
For why should he see your faces worse liking than the children which are of your sort?
For the other Israelites we took captive.
Then shall you make me in danger, my head to the king.
Now moving forward to verse 11 this morning we read, Then said Daniel to Melzar, whom the prince of the eunuchs had set over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah.
Let's pray.
Father thank you for your precious word.
Thank you Father for the wonderful Sunday school class you gave us this morning.
I love those people.
I'm so thankful for them coming.
And I thank you Father for these precious people who've come here for our service today as well.
Lord I pray that all eyes will be on you.
You'll remove all distractions, all inhibitants Father God, to the full fellowship and study of your word today Father.
May all eyes be on you we ask in Jesus' wonderful name.
Amen.
Verse 11, Then said Daniel to Melzar, whom the prince of the eunuchs had set over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah.
Then said Daniel, Daniel is clearly the spokesperson for these four men, and thus probably the chief or the principal man among them.
And Daniel is speaking to their earthly boss, whom the king of Babylon had set over them, and thus being over them he had the authority to make their lives miserable if they didn't eat the king's food.
This was, if you hadn't figured it out, this was one of those uncomfortable conversations that you don't want to have with someone.
And the children of Judah apparently just did what they were told, except for Daniel and his three friends.
The other children of Judah just ate the king's food and didn't want to rock the boat, but Daniel was the one who had to confront Melzar for the four of them and bring this up.
Have you ever been with someone and there's people around you and they're all part of the situation that you're in.
And it's one of those uncomfortable situations and somebody needs to say something.
And I know I've been in that many times and I bet you have too.
And you were glad that somebody besides you volunteered to speak up.
Have you ever been there?
I have.
Well, I'm glad they said something.
I was thinking it, but I didn't want to say anything.
Well, Daniel was the kind of man you'd want to have around when things got bad.
He was the kind of man who would rise to the occasion in the grace of God to address matters that affected the people of God.
You know what most people do in a situation like this?
Well, most people will do what the other children of Judah did.
They'll just eat the food.
But if they're concerned about eating the food and they don't want to, most people just sit back in silence and let their buddy or let one of their other comrades confront the powers that be and see how it goes with them.
And if it goes okay with them, then that's great.
But they'll let them take the rap if things don't go well while they sit back in their safe space and don't say a word.
Now, have you ever had someone upset at you and trying to attack you or confront you about something and nobody stood up with you, even though they knew you were right and they just left you there all by yourself to answer for it?
I have too.
I have too.
And it's disappointing.
We live in a generation today when someone seeks to do you harm and instead of someone stepping up to help you, they'll step up to video you.
It's very bizarre, but that's where we are today.
But have you ever had someone stand up and be a voice for you?
Have you ever had someone stand up and take the heat off of you and bring it on themselves to help you?
I have.
And I tell you what, when that happened, I really had respect for the person that did that.
I really appreciated it.
Well, Daniel was that kind of man.
"Then said Daniel."
People usually don't speak up because they don't want to make themselves a target, but there's a time when you can speak up to make yourself a blessing.
And that's what Daniel did.
We have to change our way of thinking to be able to say, "Well, instead of making myself a target, is this a time when I could make myself a blessing if I stand up and say something?"
And if it is, then we need to do something.
Now, there are times when we need to keep our mouths shut.
In fact, most of the time, we probably would be better off if we kept our mouths shut.
But sometimes, speaking up is the righteous thing to do.
And in this case, it was the righteous thing to do because Daniel spoke up to secure their ability to obey God's Word.
Daniel told the prince of the eunuchs in verse 12, "Prove thy servants."
If you have a pen, underscore the word "prove."
"Prove thy servants."
Now, the word "prove" here means to test.
Melzar assumed that if these men didn't eat the king's food, then they would fare worse than their other countrymen who did eat the king's food.
We learned last week the devil wants us to view our obedience to God's Word as a sacrifice that we must make rather than a blessing that we can receive.
Melzar assumed that their obedience to God's Word would be a sacrifice that those men had to make.
But Daniel says, "Put us to the test, Melzar.
Give us a chance to obey our God and see if we turn out the way you think we will.
Prove us and see instead of being a sacrifice we must make, see if it won't be a blessing that our obedience will give us that we get to receive.
"Prove thy servants."
When I was a kid, I saw an advertisement on TV for a beautiful gold watch that played the song "The Yellow Rose of Texas."
Did any of y'all ever see that?
You saw it?
You didn't get one, did you?
Okay.
She probably couldn't afford it, but when I was a kid, I had all kinds of money.
"Prove thy servants."
But boy, I saw this beautiful watch on TV.
You'll be glad you didn't get that watch when I tell you this story, Mr.
And it played that song, "Doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo."
It was just the coolest watch I had ever seen.
And the first watch I had was a Mickey Mouse watch.
And I loved that watch until I washed my hands one day during a break at school.
And that's when I learned that sometimes water will get under that faceplate on the watch.
And I messed that watch up.
But the "Yellow Rose of Texas" watch, uh-huh, that was supposed to be completely waterproof.
And on the commercial, they even took that watch while it was playing "The Yellow Rose of Texas," and they dropped that watch down in a glass of water on television, and it kept playing that song.
And I was so impressed with that watch that I was determined to have one for myself.
So I took some of the money that I made sweeping my dad's shop on Saturdays.
I went down to the local grocery store, bought me a money order.
And I mailed it off to that company where they told me to mail it to on TV.
And I waited to get that watch in the mail.
And I'll tell you, when that mail came in, I absolutely loved that watch.
It did everything they said it would do.
But I figured I needed to prove my watch's underwater capabilities.
Putting my watch to the test, I did just like they did on television.
I got me a glass of water.
I turned on the "Yellow Rose of Texas" song, and I put it in the glass of water just like they did on TV.
And it goes, "Doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-roo-roo-roo-roo-roo."
Man, that was the end of my watch.
That watch was gone.
When tested to see if it would perform as advertised, it failed to pass the test.
And had that watch passed the test, it would have made me love that watch more, and it would have been a real testimony to the credibility of its manufacturer.
But it didn't.
It failed the test.
And Daniel is saying, "Prove your servants, because if they're put to the test, you watch what happens when we obey God.
And if when they're dropped down into the water, that song keeps playing, and God keeps blessing, and God rewards their obedience, then it will be a real testimony to their Creator.
And that's why God puts us to the test a lot of times.
While Melzar was proving Daniel and his friends, you know what was happening?
While Melzar would be proving Daniel and his friends, Daniel and his friends would be proving God.
That's how it works.
I'll repeat that again.
While Melzar would be proving Daniel and his friends, Daniel and his friends would be proving God.
It took faith.
It took my faith and the manufacturer's word to put my watch in the water.
I trusted the word of the manufacturer, and the manufacturer let me down.
But God encourages us to prove Him with our obedience to His word.
God encourages us to put Him to the test and see if He will or not do what He says to keep His exceeding great and precious promises to us when we obey Him.
In Malachi chapter 3 verse 10, God told the people of Israel, "Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house," watch this now, "and prove me now herewith."
You obey me.
You obey my word concerning the tithes.
And by obeying it, you prove me.
You put me to the test.
He says, "Saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it."
Isn't that wonderful that God wants us to put Him to the test?
Every time we obey God's word, we are proving our God.
We are putting Him to the test.
And I'll tell you, I'll tell you, there has never been a time in my life when I have obeyed God and God let me down due to my obedience.
Never been a single time.
I'm not saying it wasn't tough obeying God.
I'm not saying that it was pleasant always obeying God.
But I'm telling you, God's always been faithful to me in my obedience and I have always regretted my disobedience.
God says, "Prove me with your obedience to my word."
The world thinks tithing is a sacrifice we make.
But obedience is a blessing we receive.
Whether it's tithing, whether it's doing anything, loving our neighbor as ourselves, no matter what it is, any time we obey God's word, from the smallest matter of the Bible to the greatest matter of the Bible, it's not a sacrifice we make.
It is a blessing that we receive and we prove God through our obedience.
Daniel and his companions were prepared to prove God's word to see if God would bless them for their obedience above their fellows who ate the king's meat.
They trusted God and they asked Melzar to put them to the test and see how God would bless their obedience.
When we prove God with our obedience, people are proving us.
Do you see the connection?
Melzar would prove them in their obedience and they would prove God.
When we prove God with our obedience, people are proving us.
Here's the Kingdom Truth for you this morning.
When we obey, our test becomes a testimony to God's faithfulness.
When we obey, our test becomes a testimony to God's faithfulness.
You look at your opportunity to obey God when it's not convenient, when it's difficult, when it's not popular.
You look at your opportunity to obey God and you see it as an opportunity for your test to become a testimony of God's faithfulness to you.
Daniel said, "Prove me this day."
Look back in your text now.
"I beseech thee ten days."
"I beseech thee ten days."
Now without making too much out of it, I have to say this.
I did notice a correlation between Daniel asking for ten days for them to be proved with the forty days, which is a normal time of proving.
Four being the number of earth, ten being the number of testing as here, and then you get forty.
When you look there in the book of the Revelation, Jesus said, "You'll have tribulation ten days."
And again, I don't want to make too much out of that, but I did see that and I wanted that to be something for you to put in the back of your head as you study the Bible that may come back up again and be a blessing to you.
But he says, "I beseech thee ten days."
Daniel didn't demand, he beseeched.
Daniel remembered that God was the one who put him under the king's authority, under Melzar's authority, so Daniel remained humble.
And he requested that they be proved for ten days, during which time they would only eat vegetables and water and refrain from the meat and wine of the king.
Not Mountain Dew, not Diet Coke, not iced tea, not milk, not grape juice, just vegetables and water.
Would you be happy with that, Brother Doug, very long?
I like groceries.
He does, he likes groceries.
He likes to eat.
That's what they were going to do.
"You just let us eat vegetables and water for ten days.
Prove us."
Daniel said, look back in your text, "And let them give us pulse."
That pulse means vegetables.
To eat and water to drink.
Now vegetables and water don't sound as exciting as meat and wine.
Alright, it just doesn't.
And the fruit of the tree of life in the Garden of Eden, it may not have looked as exciting as the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
In fact, I'm inclined to believe it wasn't.
That's just my inclination.
That's not in God's Word.
But the Bible says that the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was pleasant to the eyes.
It doesn't say that about the tree of life.
And I believe that the tree of life was probably not as pleasant to the eyes as the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
Now when the waitress asked me, when I go to a restaurant, what I want to drink, I order iced tea, half sweet and half unsweet, and order a bowl of lemons on the side.
That's just what I do.
Because I love lemon in my tea, and I don't want them sticking their fingers on my lemon.
Excuse me while I blow my nose here a minute.
Still fighting that cold.
But that's what I get.
And then when I get through with my lunch, I say, "Could I have my tea in a to-go cup please, so I can take it home with me?"
And if I'm in Tyler, when I eat out, I just reach up and I sip that tea all the way home.
It's nice.
It's kind of relaxing to sip that tea.
But when the waitress asks my wife what she wants to drink, you know what she says?
"I'll just have water."
And it's that word "just."
"I'll just have water."
Why?
Because water is the most basic thing you can drink.
It's the most boring thing you can drink.
Now I love water.
I've got my water right here.
But it's not as exciting as some of the other drinks.
Nor is it as rich and hearty.
And vegetables are considered to be sides.
Right?
Not the main course.
Not the hearty main course.
What sides would you like with that?
You see, obedience.
Obedience is like pulse and water.
This is what we're learning from this today.
Obedience is like pulse and water.
It doesn't always have the appeal to the eye like the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
It was pleasant to the eyes.
Listen, it wasn't pleasant for them to think, "Well, we'll just eat pulse and water."
It's not pleasant sometimes when we're staring in the face of God's commandment and circumstances when disobeying God's Word and going with the flow of the rest of the world seems so much better to us.
But obedience is pulse and water.
It often doesn't appear very appetizing.
You've been faced with a circumstance when God says, "Obey," and you look at God's Word and you think, "Oh, man, that doesn't look very appetizing.
It'd be so much better if I did something different."
God didn't lead Israel into paradise when they left Egypt, did He?
He led them into a desert.
He led them into hunger.
He led them into thirst.
And when He did give them something to eat, do you know what He gave them?
Bread and water.
Oh, yeah, He sent some quail down.
He wasn't very happy with them, but He sent some quail down.
But you know what their main course was?
Manna and water.
Manna and water.
He led them to eat manna and water.
And when He said, "Obey," He said, "Obey."
And He said, "Obey."
And He said, "Obey."
And He said, "Obey."
And He said, "Obey."
And He said, "Obey."
And He said, "Obey."
And He said, "Obey."
And He said, "Obey."
And He said, "Obey."
And He said, "Obey."
And He said, "Obey."
Manna was small.
Manna was like a grain.
Manna came down, they had to scoop it up.
It came off the earth, they probably had to clean it up.
And then they had to grind it up.
Just like you would any other kind of grain.
And then they had to turn it into bread.
Manna wasn't exciting.
And you know what happened after they ate manna for a while?
They got sick of it.
They got sick of it.
God didn't say, or Moses didn't say, "God led you to eat manna."
He fed you with manna that He might excite thee.
That He might encourage thee.
That He might edify thee.
He said, "He fed you with manna that He might humble thee."
So don't have some romantic idea about eating manna.
He said, "He fed thee in the wilderness with manna which thy fathers knew not, that He might humble thee, and that He might prove thee."
Is it still up there?
Good, thank you.
Keep it up there.
That He might prove thee.
Daniel and his friends were getting proved by eating the pulse and the water.
The Israelites were being proved by eating the pulse and the water.
You see the correlation here.
By eating the bread and the water.
But watch what happens at the end.
That He might prove thee, test you, see if you'll follow Him.
But watch here at the end.
What happens after the proving?
To do thee good at thy latter end.
To do thee good at thy latter end.
Oh, what a blessing.
Here's a Kingdom Truth for you this morning.
Obedience to God's Word will always do you good in the end.
It may not look appetizing.
It may not taste good.
But you know what?
It's not going to kill you.
It will always do you good in the end.
The pulse and water may not seem good now.
But if you will eat it, then God will do thee good at thy latter end.
Daniel didn't trust in the appearance of the food that was set before him.
He trusted in his God.
Daniel said, "Prove us ten days as we obey the Word of God."
Verse 13, "Then let our countenances be looked upon before thee."
"And the countenance of the children that eat of the portion of the king's meat."
You compare us with our brethren who don't follow God's Word.
You test us.
See if we don't fare better in the end for obeying God's Word than our brethren who rejected it.
That's faith.
And I'll tell you, if you're following God's Word, it may not seem so in the end, in the beginning.
But if you obey God's Word, you'll turn out better in the end for doing it than those who rejected God's Word.
Those who didn't follow it with you.
The reward of obedience is not always seen in the beginning, but it will be seen in the end.
Our obedience proves us before men, and we prove God by our obedience.
When God called Abraham to sacrifice his only son, that command, it didn't look appetizing at all.
But it proved Abraham.
The Bible says God tempted Abraham, which means He tested Abraham, which means He proved Abraham.
God proved Abraham saying, "Now you take your only son and you offer him for a burnt offering to me."
So Abraham's obedience proved Abraham, and it also proved God's faithfulness in the end.
God said, "Because you obeyed, this is what I'm going to do."
You see?
"Because you obeyed, this is what I'm going to do."
And Daniel's story should embolden us to prove God with our obedience as well.
He said, "Prove us ten days," look back at your text now, "and as thou seest, deal with thy servants."
You look, Melzar, and you see what God does when we obey Him.
And then you deal with us accordingly.
And by God's grace, we'll come back to this exciting story and see what happens next Sunday.
Father, we thank You for Your precious Word.
We thank You, Father God, for the incredible truths here.
Thank You, Father, for encouraging us and setting people like Daniel before us, and Daniel's friends.
So by looking at their circumstances in their lives, we can use it to encourage us, dear Lord, as we encounter the same circumstances in our lives.
When obedience, Father, is like pulse and water, not so exciting in the beginning, maybe a little difficult to swallow down, but it always does us better in the latter end.
Thank You, Father, so much.
Great is Thy faithfulness.
In Jesus' name, Amen.
