Daniel's Resolve

“But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's delicacies, nor with the wine which he drank; therefore he requested of the chief of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself.” Daniel 1:8

I can vividly imagine this scene. When the attractive, smart, and social Jewish boys (ages 15-18) were brought into the king’s court in order to be trained, Daniel and some of his friends were chosen. By the way, attractive, smart, and social were the qualifications from the king that were highly esteemed in order to immerse these Jewish boys into the culture. Sounds a lot like our culture, doesn’t it? As it started to dawn upon Daniel what was about to happen, he realized that right then and there he had to make a choice: to submit to the will of man or to submit to the will of God.

I believe that in his mind he saw no other choice.

On his knees Daniel “purposes” not to compromise. This verse speaks volumes of how to fight sin and live out godliness. Daniel’s outward change came from a very inward root. He was intentional. He was gentle. He was obedient. He gives no room for a foothold, just simply obedience.

Some of the literal Hebrew translations of “purposed” include: “to set, direct, direct toward, ordain, establish, found, appoint, constitute, make, determine, fix, to set his heart upon.” I especially like the last part, “to set his heart upon.” It reminds me of the phrase, “don’t put all your eggs in one basket.” That’s essentially what Daniel is doing here. He is putting all of his eggs in God’s basket. He is setting heart on one thing and one thing alone. That, my friends, is the only way we can truly stand up against the pressures and temptations of this world and culture.

So how do we live a “purposed” or “resolved” life? It starts with first a relationship with the Lord. If you haven’t believed or trusted Him as the Lord and savior of your heart. If you’ve never seen yourself as a sinner. If you don’t fall at His feet, offering your empty hands and praying for His grace to fill you, then you have no way of living a “purposed” life.

If you do have a relationship with the Lord, I believe that there are a few practical conclusions we can draw from this verse.

A Purposed Life is:

1. Rooted in God’s Word (Ps. 119:11; Ps. 17:4; Duet 6:6; John 17:17)
2. Reverently fearing God, not men (Ps. 19:9, Ex 20:20, Prov. 16:6)
3. Resting in the hope and promises of God (AKA, Faith) (Titus 1:2, Heb. 11:1, Heb. 3:14)
4. Regularly in prayer. (1 Thes. 5:17, Eph 6:18, Phil 4:6)

So how is your “resolve” going? If you’re like me, you may be trying to make it your own “resolve.” I am preaching to myself when I say that most importantly, give it to the Lord. Ask Him to give you a purposed life. Ask for His power and strength,.

“And if the Lord is for us, who can be against us?”