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Spiritual Courage

Daniel 1, 3, 6

When Babylon conquered Judah, they took the cream of the crop from Jewish families back to Babylon—like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah—to serve in Nebuchadnezzar's court. But, with amazing displays of courage, these four young men refused to compromise their commitment to God.

• Commitment to purity (Daniel 1:8-16). As soon as they arrived in Babylon, the boys were put on a Babylonian diet, the meat and drink of which violated the Levitical dietary laws. They asked to be put on a vegetarian diet for 10 days as a test. At the end of the test they looked healthier than any of the other young men who ate the royal diet. And God blessed them, giving them greater wisdom than the royal sages in Babylon.
• Commitment to profession (Daniel 3:1-30). King Nebuchadnezzar set up a 90-foot high golden image in Babylon. At the dedication of this image, everyone in attendance was to fall down and worship when the music played. To refuse carried a threat of death by fire. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused to bow down. They told Nebuchadnezzar that their God could deliver them from the furnace, but even if he chose not to deliver them they would never worship his image. God honored their courage, delivered them out of the furnace, and the king promoted them.
• Commitment to prayer (Daniel 6:1-28). Officials in the court of the Persian king, Darius, were jealous of Daniel and sought a way to condemn him. Knowing Daniel prayed faithfully to his God, they convinced the king to pass a law that no one could pray to any God except Darius' upon pain of being thrown to the lions. Daniel was reported and thrown into the lions den from which God delivered him without harm. Daniel continued to prosper in the Persian courts. 

Spiritual courage is manifest in the commitments we prove by our choices and our lifestyles.

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