Daniel 10: 1-3 “Your Work”

Here’s my fairly literal translation of these verses:

¹In the year of the third to Cyrus the king of Persia, a word was revealed to Daniel, who was called [by] his name Belteshazzar, and the word [was] true and a great conflict/burden, and he understood the word, and understanding [was given] to him in the vision. ²In the days of those, I, Daniel, was mourning three sevens of days. ³Bread of desires I did not eat and meat and wine did not come to my mouth and anointing I did not anoint [myself] until were full the three sevens of days.

One more thing I want to note before I leave these first three verses. Here is our Daniel, as always actively, passionately being a godly man. I have pointed this out before, but I never want to lose sight of it –where has he been from the very beginning of this book? Let us all be reminded, he’s been at work. He has been doing his job. In these final chapters, and in the verses before us, there’s no indication that what he is doing is necessarily related to his work, but we see the same Daniel we have seen since chapter 1 – a man whose faith calls forth our deepest respect.

We first found him forcibly enrolled in Babylon U. to study what was really in essence witchcraft, only to be found one of the valedictorians – along with his three friends! Then again and again, he has been using his God-given gifts to interpret the visions of his kings, while doing his own job with such integrity that not even his most vicious enemies can find any fault in that work.

In all of this, you and I are presented with a man who models for us what it means to be a man of faith, whether in the privacy of his own personal relationship with God or in the day to day life he’s living in a very secular (in fact wicked) workplace.

Of course God wants you to have a personal relationship with Him – which Daniel models for us as a man who personally studies the Scriptures and invests much energy and time in prayer. Certainly all of modern Christianity would do well to note and follow Daniel’s example in this – but what about your job? Does God care who you are at work? Does God care what kind of worker you are? Does He want you to use even your spiritual gifts to bless the people you work with and work for? Daniel would tell us the answer is a resounding yes!

Notice Titus 2:9,10: “Teach workers to be subject to their bosses in everything, to try to please them, not to talk back to them, and not to steal from them, but to show that they can be fully trusted, so that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive.” Did Daniel not model this for us? Back in chapter 6, his accusers “could find no corruption in him, because he was trustworthy and neither corrupt nor negligent” (v.4). Also, again, please notice he was at work, doing his job. The NIV calls it “making the teaching about God our Savior attractive.” The old KJV called it “adorning.”

In the Christmas story, have you ever wondered about “the wise men from the east”? Who on earth were these guys? The name “wise men” is translated from “magoi,” a Persian word. If they came from Persia, we’ve already learned that is a four month trip to get to Israel. They made a trip like that and asked “Where is He who was born King of the Jews, for we have seen His star in the east and have come to worship Him” (Matt. 2:2). This seems crazy, but obviously there were people in Persia who knew about the promised Messiah, who somehow knew about this star business, and would travel four months to worship Him when He was born! Who on earth were these guys and how did they know all this?

We won’t know until we get to heaven, but can I suggest that these men were some of the fruit of Daniel’s ministry back in Persia? What was Daniel’s job in Babylon? He was a “wise man.” In fact way back in chapter 2, not long after he and his friends graduated valedictorians of Babylon U., Nebuchadnezzar promoted Daniel “and placed him in charge of all his wise men.” He was actually the head over all the “wise men.” The group in general of course were not “wise” at all. They were a bunch of soothsayers and necromancers and literally warlocks, but in the end nothing but charlatans.

As of the chapter before us, Daniel has been “one of them” for over 70 years! You can think it through yourself, but I find it no stretch at all to believe that some of those charlatans saw this man who “adorned the Gospel” and “made it attractive” and became his disciples. Being a prophet, not everything Daniel ever said or taught was written down. Perhaps it was him who gave them the knowledge of this “star” which would announce the birth of the Messiah, that the Messiah would actually be God Himself come in the flesh (they came “to worship Him”), and taught them to watch for it. By the birth of Jesus, it had been over 500 years, but I don’t doubt the “wise men” of Matthew 2 could have been some of that “fruit that remains.”

That is all conjecture, of course, but, in my mind, the pieces sure fit together and would perfectly illustrate what we’re trying to observe – it is very important to the Lord what kind of person we are at work. In the New Testament, what do we learn the Lord is trying to nurture in us? Is it not “the fruit of the Spirit?” Is it not, “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Gal. 5:22,23)? During our working years, we all spend on the order of fifty hours a week taken up with our “work.” That’s basically half our waking hours! If we don’t learn to practice “love, joy, and peace” at work, where will we?

And back to Titus 2, when we do truly live our faith at work, live that life of love and joy and peace, what do we do? We make “the teaching about God our Savior attractive.” We “adorn” the Gospel! I don’t think there’s any question, like Daniel, our work drops us straight into the very middle of this world that desperately needs to see Jesus. Our churches are very important and certainly our families are also important, but let none of us overlook that it is our jobs that will bring us into the most extensive exposure with the people of this world. Actually living our faith there might land us in a lions’ den, but it also might be used of the Lord to draw many people to Christ.

So, whatever your “work” is, my friend, rest assured it is very important to the Lord. Whether you actually  work at a job, stay home and take care of your babies, or simply putter around in your retirement, Jesus tells us, “And whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving” (Col. 3:23,24).

Naomi was “just” a wife and mother and she won a Ruth. David was a king and wrote the Psalms. The Centurian was a Roman soldier and won his whole house to the Lord. What do you “do”? May you be like our Daniel, do it for the Lord and win a few Ruths of your own!