Purpose

When offered his share of Nebuchadnezzar’s delicacies, Daniel “purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the king’s food.” Daniel did not think to himself: “When in Rome, do as the Romans.” He did not get himself a new set of convictions, as many do today when they leave home. Undoubtedly my parents were too strict. I suspect they abused me, for they would not allow me to live as I please. The church has her share of these “Dinah’s,” who leave the security of an imperfect home to dance with the world’s impure daughters.

                Daniel did not allow circumstances to corrupt him or despair to distract him. He purposed in his heart. He resolved within himself. He nurtured resolve to please the Lord. He thought of all the reasons that he should obey the Lord and did not talk himself out of his convictions. The Lord is the same in Babylon as in Jerusalem. Circumstances do not change his law. I am the Lord’s wherever I am, and his word is my guide. I will live and die for him. This is my purpose in life. Daniel lived this way for the next 70 or 80 years. He survived the rise and fall of world powers, Judah’s exile, and personal danger.

                Such an unflinching purpose seems overly rigorous. What about fun and laughter? What about those little indulgences that give spice to life? What about authentic living and deserved, fleshly treats? And for Christians, we have often heard – give a little grace to yourself, whatever that means, unless grace is a cloak for doing what we want without feeling guilty about it. In our soft age, what counts most is being open to new ideas, true to self, and part of the world. We do not want to be weird! Daniel was the odd one in the Babylonian palace that day – with his three friends. They were the only ones left standing when Babylon fell.

                There is something deeper about “Daniel purposed in his heart.” When we have every incentive and opportunity to sin, to loosen up a little, then our true loves are revealed. The elder Bob Jones once said, “Character is what you are when no one is looking.” Daniel was offered life at a luxurious Asian court, with temptations and titillations galore. No parents, no temple, no checks and balances. His circumstances had changed; his heart love remained the same. Offered sin’s pleasures, Daniel chose the pleasure of pleasing the Lord.

                This is the way Daniel survived the world’s corrupting influences. He could not hide or go home. He obeyed. Daniel, even as a teenage boy, realized this was his only path. Obey. Whatever happens, obey the Lord. I am not my own, but a child of the covenant. This is one reason we fall – publicly or privately, young or old, man or woman. We are not purposed to obey the Lord. Divided, worldly hearts, self-serving hearts, cannot live by purpose, and quickly fall. They will not yield to the Lord when it matters. The disciple’s path is plain. I am purposed. Have your own way, Lord, with the outcome. Help me to love and obey.

                Defile himself? Sounds as if Daniel took himself too seriously. Daniel did take himself seriously. Fearing the Lord, he reverenced himself as an image-bearer and covenant child of his Lord. One reason we are not more purposed is that we do not take ourselves seriously enough. I do not mean being morose or fastidious, or the emotional black hole in every room. I mean taking seriously that our life is the Lord’s. We have an immortal destiny. Whatever momentary pleasure the world offers, it is unworthy to be indulged in the light of our meeting with Jesus Christ and eternal life with him.

                In an odd twist, sin has lowered our view of self, made us very willing to defile ourselves with the world, ignorant of our immortality and higher calling to please and enjoy God. Elevating our wants and wills to godlike status, we bring ourselves down. When men reject God and his word, they destroy themselves and their societies. Daniel endured and prospered because he took himself and his holiness before the Lord more seriously than he took Nebuchadnezzar.

                To live purposefully requires, first, that we know God’s will. Daniel knew from Scripture that the Lord did not want him to eat the unclean food of the Babylonian court. He knew from Scripture that the Lord did not want him praying to Darius. Scripture guided and nurtured Daniel’s purpose. It will do the same for us. God’s word is living and powerful. Challenge: to hunger for God’s word and pleasing him more than getting what you want in this life – see Job 23:12 and 1 Pet. 2:1-2.

                Second, he did God’s will. It is not enough to be a hearer of God’s word; we must be doers, or we are self-deceived (James 1:22). Daniel did not obey because he was strong. He was resolved as a believer. He made it clear that the Lord was the one who gave him his gifts, shut the lions’ mouths, and raised up kings and dominions. Daniel’s purposeful obedience is not a morality tale. He lived before the face of the Lord, as his morning, noon, and night prayers make clear. He trusted God’s promise of mercy in Christ. He was a humble, repentant man – see Daniel 9. He looked to the Lord for strength. This is the way we do God’s will: in union with Christ, drawing from our Lord constant strength, and committing our ways to him.

                Third, he faced every obstacle by obedience. Daniel was a man “greatly beloved.” Does it not thrill your soul to think of Gabriel saying the same to you? Obey. I think we would be surprised by how simply Daniel lived, how simply he thought. He was given great insights and dreams, to be sure, but this was because he purposed in his heart to obey the Lord. He did not have high views of himself: “keep your gifts for yourself.” He sought no recognition. He simply resolved, even when threatened, that he would obey the Lord.

                Daniel’s purposed heart is a far cry from today’s giddy spirituality. The results in the church are fornication and unwed mothers, drug use and addiction among our young men, distracted lives without a sense of calling, children’s church for adults, and the host of other ills plaguing you and me. We hope for a miracle – a revival, a crusade, someone great to come forward. Stop waiting and hoping. Resolve in your place to obey the Lord.

                This is real “revival:” when each believer is gripped in his heart by the resolve to obey the Lord’s word, whatever else is happening: work, relationships, hard things, quiet times, recreations, entertainments, lions’ dens and fiery furnaces. Daniel knew something. No one, absolutely no one, can make us sin. No one. The Lord rules over all. It is our privilege to keep ourselves unspotted by the world, pure virgins with oil in our lamps, watching for our Lord’s return, serving him day and night with good works and prayers. Let this be our purpose. The Lord will take care of everything else.