Scripture to Read: Daniel 1:11–16
In Daniel 1:11–13, we read that Daniel did not back down from the commander's resistance but offered the commander a time to test Daniel’s idea on Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. We must remember that every time we pursue God and His will, there will be resistance. The devil hates it when we pursue God and seek to obey Him, so he is going to try and stop us (Ephesians 6:12). What we read next (in Daniel 1:14) reveals God’s abundant favor being on Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, for God’s Word says, "So he listened to them in this matter and tested them for ten days." When we have God’s favor on us, God moves on the lives of those around us to trust us. The commander trusted these 15-year-old young men because God’s favor was on them. We also see the results of God’s work in Daniel 1:15–16, "At the end of ten days their appearance seemed better and they were fatter than all the youths who had been eating the king’s choice food. 16 So the overseer continued to withhold their choice food and the wine they were to drink, and kept giving them vegetables." God blessed Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah’s obedience to Him and His Word in Exodus 34:15. God tells us the same thing in James 1:25, "But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does." God’s favor is on those who obey Him.
Challenge & Application
• Why was the commander willing to listen to a 15-year-old young man even with his life on the line?
• How do we know we have God’s favor, and how do we maintain God’s favor?
Don’t forget to pray using the A.C.T.S. (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication) method!