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Daniel and the King's Men - The Book of Daniel · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

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  Speaker 1: Let us pray. But Daniel purposed in his heart that
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  Speaker 1: he would not defile himself with a portion of the
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  Speaker 1: king's meat, nor with the wine which he drank. Therefore
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  Speaker 1: he requested the prince of the eunuchs that he might
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  Speaker 1: not defile himself. Daniel 1.8 Lord, because my purpose means
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  Speaker 1: more to me than my comfort, I will be mindful
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  Speaker 1: to treat my body in a way that will allow
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  Speaker 1: me to carry out my mission while here on earth. Today,
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  Speaker 1: like Daniel and the young men, I am making a
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  Speaker 1: conscious decision to honor my body by not defiling it
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  Speaker 1: with food or substances that would stop me from experiencing
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  Speaker 1: the fullness of all you have in store for me.
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  Speaker 1: I thank you, Lord, for the will and the fortitude
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  Speaker 1: to stand strong when I'm tempted to choose the comfort
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  Speaker 1: of laziness and poor health habits. I declare that health
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  Speaker 1: is a top priority. I declare that through my decision
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  Speaker 1: to live a healthy lifestyle, my mind will be sharper
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  Speaker 1: and more creative than ever before. I praise you and
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  Speaker 1: thank you in advance for uncommon outcomes and alliances that
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  Speaker 1: are working on my behalf to help realize the dreams
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  Speaker 1: and destiny you've placed on and in me. No matter what,
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  Speaker 1: I will not be ashamed of my acceleration. because I've
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  Speaker 1: made the decision to honor my body, which is the
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  Speaker 1: vehicle needed to take me to my future. In Jesus' name, amen.
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  Speaker 1: Thank you for praying with us today. Continue your time
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  Speaker 1: with God by listening to today's Bible story, brought to
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  Speaker 1: you by BibleInAYear.com.
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  Speaker 2: Daniel and the Kingsmen In our last story, we were
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  Speaker 2: taken up in the Spirit of the Lord with Ezekiel
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  Speaker 2: as he scanned a vast valley of dry bones. As
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  Speaker 2: the Spirit of God rushed into the valley, the bones
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  Speaker 2: came to life and were restored. This was an image
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  Speaker 2: of God's plan to restore Israel and pour out His Spirit.
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  Speaker 2: Now we look into the life of Daniel. He, along
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  Speaker 2: with the rest of God's people, was taken captive by
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  Speaker 2: Babylon and Daniel is brought into the fold of King
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  Speaker 2: Nebuchadnezzar to study and serve. Slowly, Daniel begins to influence
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  Speaker 2: the wicked king and his men, inspired by the book
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  Speaker 2: of Daniel.
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  Speaker 3: This is Jack Graham with today's episode of the Bible
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  Speaker 3: in a Year. I'm so glad that you've joined us
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  Speaker 3: once again. In our previous reading, we heard how God
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  Speaker 3: spoke to Ezekiel, taking him up in the Spirit and
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  Speaker 3: giving him a vision of dry bones that were brought
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  Speaker 3: back to life by the power of God's Word and
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  Speaker 3: His Spirit. It was a message to Israel that God
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  Speaker 3: would restore them to life and make one nation of
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  Speaker 3: the two kingdoms of Israel and Judah. And ultimately, it
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  Speaker 3: is a promise, a greater promise, of one who would come,
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  Speaker 3: the Messiah, Jesus Christ, who would not just give life
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  Speaker 3: to Israel, but offer life to the whole world. Today
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  Speaker 3: we'll hear a reading about a young exile named Daniel. He,
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  Speaker 3: along with a few of his faithful Israelite captives, is
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  Speaker 3: chosen to serve the Babylonian king. God is placing this
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  Speaker 3: young man, a godly follower of the Lord, into a
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  Speaker 3: place where he can influence evil men for the glory
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  Speaker 3: of God. So, let's hear God's word today.
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  Speaker 2: The kingdoms of Israel and Judah fell to the mighty
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  Speaker 2: hand of King Nebuchadnezzar. Hooks were sewn into their lips,
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  Speaker 2: and they were carted off to their captivity in Babylon.
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  Speaker 2: Along with the people, King Nebuchadnezzar took the vessels in
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  Speaker 2: the temple and placed them in his own treasury with
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  Speaker 2: his gods. King Nebuchadnezzar was determined to graft Israel into
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  Speaker 2: Babylonian culture. He would do so first by taking their temple.
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  Speaker 2: Then he would take the best of them, the brightest
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  Speaker 2: and most educated, to serve him. Nebuchadnezzar gathered young men, strong, good-looking, skilled,
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  Speaker 2: and wise. He gave them access to his libraries and
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  Speaker 2: the finest tutors Babylon could provide. He taught them foreign
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  Speaker 2: languages and exposed them to different cultures, music, and art.
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  Speaker 2: It was Nebuchadnezzar's intention to indoctrinate these young men to
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  Speaker 2: become leaders over the captives and loyalty to Babylon. The
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  Speaker 2: king provided a daily portion of food and wine for them.
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  Speaker 2: It was his desire to educate them for three years.
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  Speaker 2: And at the end of their time, they would stand
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  Speaker 2: in front of the king. Among these young men were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael,
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  Speaker 2: and Azariah from the tribe of Judah. Their names were
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  Speaker 2: taken from them, and Nebuchadnezzar called them Belteshazzar, Shadrach, Meshach,
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  Speaker 2: and Abednego. Although Nebuchadnezzar took their names, he could not
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  Speaker 2: take their true identities. Daniel watched closely as the king
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  Speaker 2: and some of the young men feasted on the king's food.
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  Speaker 2: It was not only sacrificed to idols, but it was dirty.
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  Speaker 2: The grease dripped from the Babylonians' chin. He saw many
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  Speaker 2: of the Babylonian nobles. They were overweight and bloated. Daniel
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  Speaker 2: purposed in his heart to not defile himself. He would
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  Speaker 2: not eat the king's food. The chief servant was concerned
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  Speaker 2: for Daniel and thought that his health and favor would
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  Speaker 2: decline if he did not eat. But Daniel had a
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  Speaker 2: challenge for him and the king.' Test your servants and I,'
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  Speaker 2: Daniel challenged.' For ten days my friends and I will
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  Speaker 2: consume nothing but vegetables and water.' At the end of
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  Speaker 2: those ten days, measure who is in better health.'' So
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  Speaker 2: for ten days Daniel and his companions ate vegetables and
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  Speaker 2: drank water,' while the other young men ate the food
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  Speaker 2: sacrificed to idols.' When the ten days passed, Daniel and
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  Speaker 2: his friends were far more healthy and clear in mind
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  Speaker 2: than the others.' So the chief servant ordered for all
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  Speaker 2: the men in the palace to be given vegetables and water.
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  Speaker 2: This was but one example of how Daniel and his
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  Speaker 2: friends began to transform the Babylonian culture. They increased in knowledge, wisdom,
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  Speaker 2: and favor with God. They had visions and dreams and
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  Speaker 2: began to transform the hearts of those around them. Nebuchadnezzar
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  Speaker 2: brought them into his presence as counselors and wise men.
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  Speaker 2: In every matter, he found them ten times more insightful
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  Speaker 2: than the Babylonian scholars, magicians, and enchanters.
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  Speaker 3: In today's reading, we're reminded of the brutality of the Babylonians.
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  Speaker 3: When they conquered Israel and Judah, they didn't just take
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  Speaker 3: captives away in chains. Many of the captives were tortured
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  Speaker 3: with hooks sewn into their lips, and as an act
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  Speaker 3: of humiliation, this was meant to crush the spirit of
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  Speaker 3: their vanquished foes. They also carted off precious items from
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  Speaker 3: the temple, signaling that their gods were superior to those
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  Speaker 3: of their enemies. They did not know or fear the
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  Speaker 3: one true God. But among the captives, there were some
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  Speaker 3: young men who would begin to change that and challenge that,
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  Speaker 3: showing Nebuchadnezzar and his court who Yahweh is. Though they
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  Speaker 3: were cruel and ruthless, the Babylonians were wise in how
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  Speaker 3: they handled the people they conquered. Understanding that the best
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  Speaker 3: and the brightest in Israel could prove to be a
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  Speaker 3: benefit to Babylon, they selected the cream of the crop
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  Speaker 3: and worked to assimilate them into Babylonian culture. Among those
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  Speaker 3: chosen were Daniel and three of his friends. Rather than
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  Speaker 3: suffer as slaves, Nebuchadnezzar gave these best and brightest access
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  Speaker 3: to the riches of his kingdom, both in terms of
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  Speaker 3: education and training and in comfort and the finer foods
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  Speaker 3: and drinks the land had to offer. They were given
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  Speaker 3: new Babylonian names to replace their Jewish ones. This was
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  Speaker 3: meant to wipe away any former identity, to make their
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  Speaker 3: Jewishness disappear as they were seduced by the pagan culture.
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  Speaker 3: The Bible tells us in the New Testament, Romans chapter 12,
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  Speaker 3: that we are not to conform to this world and
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  Speaker 3: the patterns and the activities of this world. Unfortunately, too
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  Speaker 3: many Christians believe often take the path of least resistance.
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  Speaker 3: We don't stand up to the culture that is trying
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  Speaker 3: to conform us. We want to blend into the world,
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  Speaker 3: enjoy the world and what it has to offer. But
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  Speaker 3: we are called to be better than this. We, like
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  Speaker 3: Daniel and his companions, are called to stand apart, even
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  Speaker 3: if we have to stand alone. But as Daniel and
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  Speaker 3: his friends watched others accept the rich foods, including unclean
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  Speaker 3: meat sacrificed to idols, He resolved not to be defiled.
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  Speaker 3: Daniel chose to honor God and refuse what Nebuchadnezzar offered him.
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  Speaker 3: This wasn't just an act of self-denial. It was a
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  Speaker 3: dangerous refusal to abide by the king's command. This act
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  Speaker 3: could have easily been viewed as rebellion and rejection and
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  Speaker 3: cost Daniel and his friends their lives. But God, as always,
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  Speaker 3: is in control, and he has a purpose and a
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  Speaker 3: plan in all of this. Daniel offered the chief of
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  Speaker 3: servants a challenge. He and his friends would eat only
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  Speaker 3: vegetables and drink water, abstaining from the meat and rich
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  Speaker 3: food and wine for just 10 days. If at the
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  Speaker 3: end of that time they were weaker, slower, less mentally
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  Speaker 3: sharp than the others, they would follow the king's diet.
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  Speaker 3: God honored the faithfulness of Daniel. And we read this
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  Speaker 3: in the first chapter of Daniel, verse 17. To these
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  Speaker 3: four young men, God gave knowledge and understanding of all
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  Speaker 3: kinds of literature and learning. And Daniel could understand visions
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  Speaker 3: and dreams of all kinds. After 10 days, it was
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  Speaker 3: apparent that Daniel and his friends were stronger and brighter
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  Speaker 3: than the others. God had big plans for these young men,
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  Speaker 3: and it all began with a simple yet courageous, confident
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  Speaker 3: step of faith. When we choose to live differently, to
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  Speaker 3: dare to be a Daniel, our witness is powerful and persuasive.
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  Speaker 3: It often opens doors for God's glory to be shown
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  Speaker 3: to the world. and often gives us opportunities to influence
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  Speaker 3: those around us. When we stand up and stand apart,
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  Speaker 3: we make a difference. We are not to be like
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  Speaker 3: the world, but we are to be different from the world.
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  Speaker 3: And so with this act of faithful defiance to the
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  Speaker 3: pressures of culture, Daniel and his friends were given access
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  Speaker 3: to an inner circle where God could work through them
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  Speaker 3: to reach the hard heart of even King Nebuchadnezzar and
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  Speaker 3: many others. Dear God, We are thankful for the courage
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  Speaker 3: of Daniel and the young men who stood with him.
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  Speaker 3: Thank you for the inspiration of their lives, that they
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  Speaker 3: purposed in their hearts not to defile themselves. May we
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  Speaker 3: also live devout lives, lives that are given over to
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  Speaker 3: you and not to the world. May our focus and
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  Speaker 3: our faithfulness be strong and true against all odds. In Jesus' name, amen.
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  Speaker 3: Thank you for listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast.
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  Speaker 3: We are so glad that you have joined us I'm
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  Speaker 3: Pastor Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas. You can download the
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  Speaker 3: Pray.com app and join millions of people who are listening
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  Speaker 3: daily to the Bible in a year. I want to
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  Speaker 3: encourage you to make prayer and Bible study a priority
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  Speaker 3: in your life, that you would seek first the kingdom
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  Speaker 3: of God and His righteousness. If you enjoy this broadcast,
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  Speaker 3: let me encourage you to share it with others, people
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  Speaker 3: that you love, people that you know, people in your church.
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  Speaker 3: because we believe the Word of God makes an eternal
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  Speaker 3: difference in people's lives. If you want more resources as
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  Speaker 3: to how you can live the Christian life, be sure
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  Speaker 3: to visit jackgram.org. That's jackgram.org. God bless you.