Go a little deeper
Pastor Keith opens a series on Daniel by calling the present moment “Daniel days.” Drawing on 2 Timothy 3, he argues that patterns of cultural decline repeat across history and urges believers to respond with confidence in Jesus rather than fear. He uses Jesus’ prayer in John 17 to call for faithful living within society rather than withdrawing from it.
Much of the message is historical setup for Daniel 1. Pastor Keith walks through Israel's division into northern Israel and southern Judah, the Assyrian conquest of the north in 722 BC, and Babylon's later conquest of Judah under King Jehoiakim, whom 2 Chronicles 36 describes as doing evil. He reaches back to Hezekiah, who showed Babylonian visitors all his treasures and heard Isaiah's prophecy that they would one day be carried off. From this he draws a practical warning about over-sharing and about leaving a legacy of trust rather than giving the enemy a route into what is precious.
Pastor Keith then treats Babylon as both a real place, modern-day Iraq, and a spirit of pride and confusion rooted in Babel. Nebuchadnezzar's program of new language, new food, and new names becomes a picture of how the enemy targets identity, especially the young. Daniel, possibly around sixteen, chooses not to compromise his faith, and God gives him favor. The application is identity: curses spoken over a person are broken in Christ, and believers are called to be salt and light, resolved and determined to live differently, with a closing invitation, prayer, and a call to stand.
Take this with you
Perilous times are not new
Pastor Keith argues from 2 Timothy 3 that today's moral confusion repeats patterns Scripture already describes, so believers need not be paralyzed by fear. Faith offers a living hope that reframes difficult days as a reminder that Jesus is coming soon.
Faithfulness within society
Pastor Keith draws on Jesus’ prayer in John 17 for the disciples’ protection while they remain in society. He urges believers to remain involved in the world while finding their identity and direction in God. Their hope in a heavenly future should shape how they live now.
Babylon as pride and confusion
Alongside the historical city, Pastor Keith describes a spirit of Babylon, pride and confusion that takes what belongs to God and twists it, tracing it to Babel in Genesis. He points to the pull of power, sex, and money as pressures that draw people from faith in Jesus.
The enemy targets identity
The Babylonians changed Daniel's intake, language, and name, which Pastor Keith reads as a strategy still in use: reshaping what people consume and what they believe about themselves. Daniel's Hebrew name means God is my ruler, and he presents the new name as an attempt to redefine him. Pastor Keith grounds believers' identity in passages such as John 1 and Ephesians 1, where those who believe in Jesus are made children of God, and he says that in Christ the curses and lies spoken over a person no longer define them.
Resolve makes a difference
In Daniel 1:8–9, Daniel chooses faithfulness to God over accepting the king’s provisions, and receives favor from the official in charge. Pastor Keith applies this as determination to live differently. He connects it with Jesus’ salt and light imagery, calling believers to make God’s goodness visible and direct credit toward the Father.
The conversation,
in their words.
Transcript from the recording’s captions. Select any timestamp to hear the original audio.
well you came to church on a good day we're kicking off a new series in the Book of Daniel if there was ever a time to read this book to understand this book it would be right now so if you brought your Bibles would just take it hold it in the air like you care on the count of three we're all going to shout word one two three word we're getting into God's word so that God's word will get into us we're living in what some would call perilous times that's an old English word you could find in second Timothy chapter 3 in the ESV it says Paul writes to Timothy he says uh in the last days there will be difficult times in the King James version it says in the end times there will be perilous days these are the days that feels like almost overnight the culture shifted does anybody else feel like that like
man these aren't the days that I used to live in when I was a kid these aren't the days that they used to be long ago in fact we can look around us and it seems like morality is declining prisons are full families are falling apart and some people would see all that and they would just be depressed some people would see this and have a a feeling of hopelessness some would say what's happening to the world but if you believe in Jesus and you take God at his word we ought not fret we should not have fear in fact because of our faith the Bible says we have a Living Hope in in fact the Bible teaches us that everything we're going through is not new I know it feels new to you but we can actually look at the
Bible and see that what we're going through is just what's been repeated and it's a reminder that Jesus is coming soon and as we dive into this book we're we're going to see that God wants us not to live like the world but he wants us to live for him that you're made for something more we have one God and three person the Father the Son Jesus and the Holy Spirit completely imperfectly one Jesus Is God completely incarnate in man fully God fully man he came to show us what kind of God we have how to depend on the father how to be filled with the spirit and in John chapter 17 we've got this incredible recorded prayer of Jesus and he he says in this prayer to the father he says in John 17:1 15 and 16 I
do not ask that you take them out of the world so the goal of following Jesus is not to move out to the middle of a desert and create a monastery and say let's remove ourselves from the world but instead Jesus prayed for you that you father keep them from the evil one there's a real enemy that's going after you the greatest lie of the enemy would be for you not to even think about the enemy but Jesus is interceding on your behalf that you would be aware there's a devil that's going after to you and God's not asking you to remove yourself from the world but what he's asking you to see is what he's done verse 16 they are not of the world just as I am not of
the world I want you to pick up on what Jesus said I am not of the world if you were to dissect that you can seriously understand that you are Made for More Than This World You Are Made for More you're not meant to settle in this world you're not meant to compromise you are not defined by what you're going through or what's happening in this world You're Made for More you're on a journey to a Heavenly home that if you take your faith seriously you'll live for more than you can see right now but you're going to live for something far greater you might be in the world but you're not of the world and today we're going to see more clearly what does that look like to be in a world that might be dark in a world that might be full of of sin in a world that might be compromised
in every area of our faith how can we be in this world but not of the world in the Book of Daniel we're going to better understand what that looks like and I would argue if we were just to define the days we're living in these are Daniel days these are Daniel days and you'll you'll understand this as we dive into the text and you start to understand who Daniel is and the days that he was living in we are living in the same type of days days that Daniel was living in and God is looking for some leaders like Daniel that you would rise up and be like Daniel in the days that you're living in despite what they look like so go with me to the Book of Daniel while you're going there I'll tell you a little bit about this book The Book of Daniel is where we pick up today it's in the Old Testament the Bible is made up of 66 different books it's divided into two sections the Old Testament before
the birth of Jesus the New Testament after the birth of Jesus the Bible is not written in a chronological form where you start at the beginning and just read to the end in a chronological matter rather it was compromised with the help of the holy spirit so that we would better study the Bible and get to know God the first five books of the Bible we would call the Torah these are the instructions the Commandments the the the the word of God God gave us this through Moses we've got the pentat the first five books the Torah then you got these historical books that continue with the same theme it shares the history the heritage of God's people this is where we understand this reciprocal cycle that we're still living in today right in the middle of the Old Testament are the poetic books these are praise songs they're prayers the the this is the praise to God in a poetic
form we find poems there then after the poetic books you get the prophetic books the book of prophets that's where you find Daniel Daniel is in the book of prophets and the Book of prophets are the last books before you get to the New Testament so if you are in your Bible and you turn right to the middle and you find a big book called Psalms that's the poetic books these are the praise songs just keep flipping until you get to Daniel Isaiah Jeremiah Lamentations Ezekiel and then Daniel are you guys there Daniel chapter 1 okay here we go we're going to Dive Right In Daniel chapter 1 this is about 530 years before the birth of Jesus to give us a timeline of when these things happen in the third year of the reign of jeim king of Judah Nebuchadnezzar King of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it we've got to
stop just in the first verse so that we understand the context and the history of what we're looking at Daniel chap 1 vers one introduces us to two kings King jeim who's the king of Judah and King Nebuchadnezzar who's the king of Babylon we're told that King Nebuchadnezzar came and waged war with Judah in fact he took over the capital city of Jerusalem I want to just make sure that we understand what Judah is I want to go back to the first book of the Bible Genesis God God made a promise through a man named Abraham that a great nation would come out of him Abraham had a son named Isaac Isaac had a son named Jacob Jacob wrestled with God and God changed his name to Israel this jacob Israel had 12 sons they would be known as the TW tribes of Israel this family settled in Egypt and that's where after several
hundred years they were slaves in Egypt under the hand of pharaoh but God would raise up deliverer to deliver the Israelites these 12 tribes out of of Egypt and God said I'm going to give you a land he promised them what we call today the promised land that was at the time modern day Canaan and as they came to Canaan under the leadership of Joshua they entered this land and it was known as Israel you've got the Israelites the 12 tribes but how many you know wherever there are people there are problems and this Kingdom of Israel they divided into two kingdoms one became the northern kingdom that is the Kingdom of Israel and their capital city was Samaria and the southern kingdom was called Judah and their Capital was Jerusalem so now you got these two kingdoms Israel and
Judah the northern kingdom and the southern Kingdom each having their own King now the northern kingdom they were the most evil of the kingdoms the northern kingdoms continually had these Wicked kings that would lead the people astray God wanted the Israelites to trust him to follow him so he gave them prophets he gave them his word he gave them everything they needed to follow him but consistently there were evil Kings that led them astray now the southern Kingdom Judah they also had many evil Kings but they had more good Kings than the Northern Kingdom Israel but they still had many Wicked kings that led them astray now jeim was he a good king or an evil King well we can go to those history books that we were mentioning earlier 2 Chronicles 36:5 tells us
Joakim was 25 years old when he began to reign and he reigned 11 years in Jerusalem and he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord his God so jeim was the king of Judah and he did not do what was right instead he rejected God instead of obeying God's word he ignored God's word now God over the ages continually reminded his people that if you reject me you will receive the consequences God is a good god he's a holy God he's perfect in every way but he's also just he's also judge and he has to do what's right and it's in this place that every King both of Israel and
Judah had the opportunity to trust God in 722 BC the Northern Kingdom Israel was ransacked and taken captive by the Assyrians 136 years later the southern Kingdom Judah would now be ransacked and taken captive by the B ionians under the leadership of jeim now we read about this in 2 Chronicles verse 6 and 7 of chapter 36 against jeim came up Nebuchadnezzar King of Babylon and bound him in Chains to take him to Babylon Nebuchadnezzar also carried part of the vessels of the house of the Lord to Babylon and put them in his place in Babylon now I give you this history lesson the teaching before the preaching so that we understand what's happening here are you guys still tracking with
with me if you were like me you didn't like history in school some of you are history nerds and you say go deeper go deeper but we're going to stop pretty soon here because I want you to understand what's happening jeim was not following the Lord and as a result he was leading other people away from the Lord your life matters what you do with it you're a leader whether you know it or not leaders are influencers and you're either influencing people for good or you're influencing them for evil and some of you have a sphere of influence that great that's greater than others in this case jeim sought to ignore God's word instead of obey God's word and he's going to get the results and the consequences of this evil now this isn't
the first time that we see something like this God warned them over and over through his word and through prophets he tried to get their attention in fact about a hundred years earlier there was a king of Judah named Hezekiah Hezekiah was actually a pretty good King he wasn't nearly as evil as the rest of them in fact he he wanted he wanted Judah the Israelites to follow the true God so he got rid of the false altars he got rid of the false gods and he tried to point people to God but near the end of his life he got sick and some Babylonians came to visit Hezekiah they brought him some chicken noodle soup and and they said hey we wish you the best from Babylon and we hope things are well and Hezekiah thought thought hey this is a great opportunity for me to show you
how great our God is let me show you the temple let me show you all the gold and silver that we have and we want to give it to God let me show you exactly where all of this is and what we have and where it is let me show you the details of of my own house and and and Hezekiah showed them absolutely everything now the prophet Isaiah came to Hezekiah and he said this to him then Isaiah said to Hezekiah Isaiah 39:5 hear the word of the Lord of hosts behold the days are coming when all that is in your house and that which your fathers have stored up to this day the Legacy that people left for God it shall be carried to Babylon nothing shall be left says the Lord and some of your own sons who will come from you whom you
will father shall be taken away and they shall be unic in the Palace of the king of Babylon then Hezekiah said to Isaiah so now this is the king responding to the prophet the word of the Lord that You' spoken is good for he thought there will be peace and Security in my days what a disaster here this guy here's a prophetic word that because you showed the enemy everything eventually he's going to come and take it but you're going to die it'll be your kids and your grandkids and your great grandkids that going to experience the result of your decision to show the enemy everything can we just start by saying in our day you do not need to show the world everything come on let's go it is okay to go on vacation and not post your
pictures you don't need to tell everybody you just got in a fight with the person you live with you don't need to tell them exactly the way you feel about some person whether they're running for office you don't need to open up your heart and display absolutely everything that's going on in your life it's okay to give it to God and not give it to your enemy we can learn from Hezekiah that if you leave it all out out there you're actually not leaving a legacy to the Next Generation to trust God to be disciplined and obey God but instead you're being flippant in your ways and you're simply giving the enemy a route to what's precious and valuable in your life so all of a sudden we fast forward a 100 years to jeim and we say how did it get to this place that Babylon could come in and absolutely take everything including all the gold including all the silver and make a des
desecration a decimation of of of the temp of God how could this happen well it happened generation after generation after generation and eventually Babylon comes in and does what God Said would happen now we have a God that if we repent that means you change your thinking and align your heart with God you'll receive Mercy you'll receive Grace you'll receive the favor of God but if you do not he will allow you to experience the consequences of your own decisions and that's the place that we find ourselves in in Daniel chapter 1 now you got to understand this about Babylon babyon was an actual place at the time of this writing is modern day Iraq archaeology has supported the
accounts that we'll actually be reading and studying throughout the Book of Daniel it is modern day Iraq but I want to propose to you and I really believe this that Babylon is not a place or a space Babylon is a spirit Babylon is a spirit of the enemy we would call it a demonic Spirit Babylon will take you to places you don't want to go to do things that you shouldn't do and you end up as a person that you're actually not created to be jeim was evil in the eyes of God and he would end up in the place he would be taken captive by the enemy he would be taken in Chains to Babylon there's an old adage that says sin will take you farther than you want to go keep you longer than you want to stay and cost you more than you want to pay
so it was with jeim Babylon represents a spirit of Pride and pride is the ultimate root of every sin we see the word Babel first in Genesis chapter 11 in Genesis chapter 10 we see Humanity got together and they use the intelligence that God gave them and when they United together they can do great things we see this when you go to places like New York and you you witness these huge towers that go up to the heavens and you think who came up with the engineering for this are absolutely awesome Minds that God created and in Genesis chapter 10 they began to build this Tower and they said let's build a tower up to the heavens what can stop us we can get our own way to God and they thought we can do this
without God's help and God could see the pride of the people and so he divided them and because of this division there was this Babble now the Hebrew word for Babble means confusion there was confusion because they did not trust in God and they trusted in their way instead of God's way there was confusion and we see the beginning of this word Babel this demonic Spirit of confusion that it leaves you in a place where you don't want to be now some would say well pastor this was a long time ago didn't Jesus change this stuff and I don't know about these demons well if you get to the Book of Revelation you still see Babylon working his ways the spirit of Babylon still exists all you have to do is look around you today and you still see Power and Sex and Money taking
people away from what matters most which is our faith in Jesus we still see the enemy deceiving us today saying focus on the things you can see instead of the things you can't see and then eventually you end up in a complete mess and you say how did I get here because you've been worshiping the wrong God so here we have in Daniel chapter 1 the beginning of this book set up two kings jeim Nebuchadnezzar verse two tells us and the lord gave jeim Daniel chapter 1 verse two the lord gave jeim of Judah into Nebuchadnezzar's hand and some of the vessels of the house of God and he brought them to the land of Shar to the house of his God and placed the vessels in the treasury of his God this is the Demonic Spirit the Demonic Spirit
actually takes what God does and actually twists it it he takes truth but perverts it you see Satan is not equal with God Satan is not a Creator Satan is a deceiver and it was Pride that got Satan kicked out of heaven and what Satan simply wants every one of us to do is to take our lives and and and miss the will of God so he would take that which was meant for worship in the temple of God and he would bring it to his false God you are made to worship but so many of us are worshiping the wrong things there are so many today that would say there's many different ways to God and God would simply say I love you too much to make it that confusing there's one way is through Jesus Christ he's the way
the truth and the life he he is the way that we have a relationship with our heavenly father so you got the king of Babylon that took that which should be honoring to God and instead he's worshiping false gods like so many take their talent today they take the treasures today and they're absolutely worshiping the wrong things in the wrong long way but pay attention here's what happens in Babylon then the king commanded ashz his chief unic to bring some of the people of Israel both of the royal family and of nobility Youth Without blemish of good appearance and skillful and all wisdom endowed with knowledge understanding learning and competent to stand in the king's Palace and to teach them the literature and the language of the calans the king assigned them a daily portion of the food that the king ate and the wine that he drank
and they were to be educated for three years and at the end of that time they were to stand before the king so here's the ultimate goal of the Babylonian spirit that still exists today is to change your identity to worship the wrong things so how can this happen I mean I know at first glance it's like oh man we just got weird really quickly at church demonic spirits changing identity but I need you to consider this there are two words there's the natural world and there's the spiritual world and if you ignore the spiritual world you're ignoring a reality that exists yes the natural world does exist and science is okay and Academia is okay but the spiritual World exists as well and you ought not to ignore the spiritual world
and we have here in this text here's the plan of the Babylonians we want to change your intake what you consume in your mind and in your body so we're going to educate you with our education we're going to give you our language we're going to give you our food undoubtedly it was not the kosher food that they were used to in Judah God had a standard of food so they wouldn't get sick so they wouldn't be like the other countries they were not to eat pork they were not to eat food sacrificed to idols and it was in this place that we could assume all of the food that was presented to them was the opposite of what they were raised up in in God's word so so as long as we could feed you and fuel you with that which is not from the one true God
you're going to not know who God is and It ultimately shapes your identity and your worship the devil is doing the same thing today we see here it only takes three years to change a person if I could change who you're listening to who you're talking to if I can just get you to fill your mind with the wrong stuff yourself with the wrong people and thinking the wrong way in three years you will be a completely different person that's why going to church is important some people say I don't need to go to church I could do this on my own the nature is my church no we need each other I need you and you need me we need each other so here we've got these Israelites
from Judah taken to Babylon and we're told in verse 6 and 7 among these were Daniel remember these were you Daniel hananiah mishel and Azariah of the tribe of Judah let's just pause here for just a moment Scholars say that Daniel was somewhere around the age of 16 years old when he was taken captives by the Babylonians 16 we'll see in the Book of Daniel he outlasts even the Kings he makes it from one king to another and he continues to lead through this all but I want to just camp for just a moment Daniel and and his three friends which we look at in the coming weeks they are youth they are strong they are goodlook they are smart and that's who the devil
wants to go after he wants to go after our youth he wants to go after our kids if we could shape them now we can shape a generation and we can shape a world we can shape a country it's exactly the tactics of the enemy to go after our teenagers but if I could speak to the teenagers listen up teenagers God wants to use you he wants to use you in a mighty powerful way you are never too young to do great things for God it is alive the enemy that you got to wait for another day or a better day until you're older until you know enough until you have enough money but I tell you today is a good day to serve God today is a good day to stand firm in your faith today is a day to know who you believe in today is a good day to know who you are today is a good day not to let the world influence who you are or put something in your body you shouldn't put in or look at something you shouldn't
look at you're not too young to to do the right things for God if Daniel was 16 he could still use 16 year olds today and he doesn't need an army to do this he just needs someone to stand up and do what's right someone who's willing to do what God wants him to do to say I'm not rejecting God's word I'm not going to ignore God's word in the midst of a Babylonian world that we live in if we're living in Daniel days then I'm going to be a Daniel today I tell you we believe in that at Journey Church we don't have child care we don't just have our teenagers meet together and have fun we believing that they are the church I'll tell you if you're a teenager here and you're not in our youth groups we've got a table out in the lobby today would you stop by that table we're going to have some of our youth staff here at Journey Church our youth pastor we believe in you we want to connect with
you we don't have it all figured out it's not perfect but if we could fan that flame of your faith you will change the world we just need a student to rise up to rise up in their schools to rise up with their friend we just need someone like Daniel today and I'll tell you you say well I'm not a student anymore we're looking for some leaders that will step up and pour into our youth so if you're saying I maybe made a mistake in my youth but I could pour into them I'll tell you we'll take you now if you're here and you say I can't stand teenagers we'll take your money so we can send our teenagers to Camp come on somebody we need each other that's not a joke it takes money to do what we're doing around here we ain't afraid to talk about it we give it to God God we're not going to pass a bucket
or a plate today so don't worry if you're at church this isn't about money this is about changing the world we're believing Central Oregon shall be saved and it's when someone takes their when someone says I Take God of his word he gave me this book not to stay the same we're not looking for information today we're looking for some transformation we're looking for some people saying I need the Holy Ghost to fill me to do what I couldn't do on my own so here we got Daniel we've got his three friends verse 7even the chief of the Unix gave them new names verse 7even they gave them names Daniel he called Bazar hananiah he called shadra mishael he called meach and Azariah he called abedo now I'm going to tell you more about those names Shadrach Meshach and abedo and the weeks to come but I want
to just look at the name Daniel for just a moment Daniel was given a new name the name Daniel is a Hebrew name it's a powerful name it's actually a really strong name it means God is my ruler the word l in the Hebrew is God God is my ruler there's one God and I serve that God there's one God that's greater than any King there's one God and he's my ruler he was prophesied early that he would serve God but now he's given a new name Bazar if we were to Loosely translate Bazar today it would say the lady protects the king the lady protects the king is Bazar Daniel this young man man strong smart
young is given a new name the lady will now serve her King are you tracking with me I shouldn't even have to preach this or teach this you're smart enough the Babylonian Spirit wants to change your identity that's right who you were born as is not who you're going to be this is what we would call a curse and I got to warn you about about this the book of Ephesians talks about armoring up with the armor of God that we ought to have a shield of Faith to protect us from the fiery arrows of the enemy the fiery arrows are lies of the enemy if we were to get real spiritual because I'm already going there with demons and everything else today these are called curses it's when someone speaks a lie over your life and you start to believe it you want to know who
you are you're dumb you're fat you're not good you're an addict this is who you are you're not talented you're not strong this is this is who you are and this is who you'll forever be a parent can curse you a grandparent can do it it could be a teacher it could be a neighbor it could be an uncle it could be even yourself when you look in the mirror it's when you start believing something over your life that's not true now go with me here for a moment because I don't have a lot of time the Bible says in John chapter 1:12 to all who believe in Jesus and receive his name he gave the right to become children of God in the book of Ephesians chapter 1 it says when you believe in Jesus you receive the gift of Grace through faith you become an adopted child of God that means you get the full inheritance of God what God Said to Abraham he says to you I will bless those who bless you I
will curse those who curse you by believing in God you're counted as righteous not because of your good deeds but because he gives you his righteousness are you still with me that means that your righteousness is not your own your counter is righteous because you believe God now you're the head not the tail now you're the lender not the borrower now you start to recognize what Peter says you are royalty you are the chosen you are a priesthood you are no longer the same person you used to be so that curse that was brought upon you by the blood of Jesus Christ you are no longer what was said about you or said over you or any lie that you've ever believed in before how many of you were here last week with Stephanie fast come on wasn't that good there was a healing impartation to this
church She's mine they don't know who you are that any evil deed that was done to you is a demonic spirit it's not of God but you are of God so any name that was brought over you Bel chazar you say well that's a caldan name how how could that be brought over me I'll tell you the devil is still doing the same thing today he wants to shape and change identity because Babel is confusion and if we can confuse people with our language listen this is not political here if you are here in the house of God I don't care what you identify as I would just want you to know that you're loved by God you're created by God you're Made In His Image and the devil's whole job is to destroy God's image
you're not good you're not beautiful you'll never be good enough but God looks at you and he loves you and says you're my masterpiece I made you you are made in my image you're fearfully and wonderfully made how good are my Works says God oh I just want to tell you what my wife told us yesterday she came back from the women's retreat yesterday and she just looked each of us in the eyes and says you're the best of the best of the very best because that's what she got from the women's conf or women's retreat this weekend and that just didn't stop all night long she just kept telling the kids you're the best of the best the very best the kids all of a sudden like why are you telling us this you're the best of the best you're the very best there's nobody like you then my daughter's boyfriend came over he walked in the door and I said Landy you're the best of the best you're the very best and he's like wow thank
you I speak this over you today you're the best of the best you're the very best you might be in Babylon right now and the world is wicked and it's dark and they're they're they're sacrificing animals to false gods they are living in debauchery of sexual perversion they are intermarrying with one another but it's time for you to understand I am the best of the best of the very best I will not do what the world is doing so what you're going through right now is is not who you are you're still in depression right now that's not who you are that's right that is not who you don't don't you listen to those lies of the devil right now you're a widow or you're divorced or you're you're broken right now that is not who you are you get into God's word you're a child of God you are
more than a conqueror no weapon formed against you shall prosper you start speaking the promises of God over your life Daniel God is my ruler Bazar that lady's going to protect the king the enemy wants to change your name but I'm here to tell you your identity matters the enemy's labels are curses that are broken by God alone you can understand today that by believing in Jesus you're an heir to his throne nothing nothing can come against you that God can't break off we don't always get to choose where we are today but we can choose how to live so I I conclude with this Daniel 18 and N Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the King's food this is a 16-year-old he would not defile himself with the King's food or with the wine
that he drank therefore he asked the chief of the Unix to allow him not to defile himself and God gave Daniel favor and compassion in the sight of the chief of the Unix Daniel resolved there's another translation that says Daniel determined not to defile himself he determined not to do what everybody else is doing doing he was resolved not just because the food was put in front of him that he doesn't have to do what everybody else is doing even if it looks good even if it feels good even if it's a Temptation I just wonder what that's going to be like Daniel was determined God is looking for some people of resolve he's looking for some people of determination because you can't make a difference if you're not
different there are people that are looking at the world today and they're wondering why isn't the church making a difference and first and foremost the church is making a difference but why isn't there more that's because the church can't do what we're not doing did you catch that it's not real deep we can't do what we're not doing so if we're supposed to love our neighbor we don't love our neighbor we're not loving our neighbor the world will be changed when we are resolved and determined eted not to defile ourselves and live like the world Jesus called us to be different on The Sermon on the Mount he says you can be blessed but it won't be like the world blessed are the poor in spirit blessed are those who mourn blessed are
those who hunger and thirst for righteousness you can be blessed and then he says when you're blessed and you believe in him you follow Jesus he says you'll now make an impact and you'll have an influence you'll be like salt and you'll be like light so in a world that needs some flavor we've got the Creator and you're meant to be the creativity it in a world that needs some preservation you will be that salt to the world we're meant to be a light in a dark place not conformed to the darkness you're meant to be the light when we start doing it together we're like a city on a hill you can't ignore this and people will look at our good works and we won't get the glory for this they'll glorify Our Father in Heaven we're just meant to be like Jesus Daniel is just a foreshadowing of Jesus the name Jesus Yeshua is Lord savior God
is my ruler he's the one I trust in John chapter 1 tells us about the Incarnation of God as a man the True Light that's God the True Light which gives light to everyone was coming into the world he was in the world but the world was made through him yet the world did not know him he came to his own and even his own people did not receive him so God steps into our story The Creator became one of the very own created he wraps himself in flesh and the world misses it they might miss you too but we don't live like the world 1 John 5 says in verse 19- 21 we know that we are from God we know who we are we know our identity and the whole world
lies in the power of the evil one and we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding so that we may know him who is true and we are in him who is true in his son Jesus Christ he is the true God and eternal life and then like a grandfather here here's the impartation that don't do what the Israelites did Little Children keep yourselves from Idols it it sounds so simple but let me tell you it's not the first commandment is there's one God you shall have no others the second is like it do not worship something made with hands Jesus said you can't serve both God and money so anytime anything is more valuable to you than God we've made it
an idol let the Holy Spirit convict you there I don't need to tell you that it's football or alcohol or your job or your stress but anything you start caring about more than God becomes your Idol but the instructions of God in Romans 12:2 is do not be conformed to this world don't live like everyone else be transformed by the renewing of your mind because what you be believe shapes your behavior be transformed by the renewing of your mind by testing you may discern what is the will of God what is good acceptable and perfect and here's what you're going to see in Daniel when you start changing your mind you don't make excuses we're living in the land of Babylon we're in Exile this is not your
home now when we read the book of Jeremiah chapter 29 you can make yourself a house you can get comfortable but not too comfortable for I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord plans for good plans to prosper you that word was given to these Israelites who are in Exile God has a plan for you and he's got a purpose for you but don't make excuses don't say oh the world's terrible yes it's terrible God knows that ask God to be a lot more like Daniel let's let's be like Daniel in the Daniel days let's let's not take the name belaz are let let's not become who others say we are let's be who God says we are and by the way that's in love and kindness and gentleness and that's that's who the
church is right now we should be like Jesus I want to pray with you and today I can't assume because you came to church that you've surrendered your life to Jesus the Bible says you've got to believe in your heart that he died on the cross for your sins meaning that you can't build a tower to heaven you can't do it you can't be good enough to get into heaven the Bible says if you believe that Jesus who was without sin took your sin on the cross but on the third day he was no longer dead by the power of the Holy Spirit he rose from the grave if you're willing to confess it Jesus Is My Savior you're saved you don't have to have it all figured out he already figured it out for you but you do have to believe and in believing you have to obey and in obeying you have to do
difficult things and difficult ult days and it's worth it because you will be accountable for your entire life you will face a judge who will look at your life and say what' you do with what I gave you and today you could be confident I gave it back to you and you did a good thing when I was in Exile if that's you today I'm going to just make this really simple but I'm just going to say I need you to be bold it's not about the person around you if you're worried about what they think you care more about them than you do God it's not about the preacher manipulating you all all it takes is one Daniel that will change the world but I'm going just going to ask you today if that's you and you want to believe in
Jesus you want to receive salvation to him forgiveness of your sins the gift of eternal life if you want to start following Jesus today would you just throw your hand up and keep it up and say that's me I'm I'm I want to do that come on somebody let's go let's go can we just celebrate this today let's go praise God keep your hand up for a moment keep your hand up I want to see is there anybody else anybody else right where you are just say yes yes I'm I'm done doing it my way you're never too young you're never too old anybody else right where you are just throw your hand up I tell you this boldness is believing God's best over your life you're a child of God that's who you are but you've got to start being bold we need to be a church that's bold and we need to be loving we need to be kind that the spirit's going to work through US anybody body else just raise your hand
right where you are I really don't want you to miss this you cannot earn your own way to heaven you can't do it God made a way through Jesus and there comes a defining moment in your life where you've got to say I'm all in and you might make mistakes but now you've got a father that just constantly receives you back he forgives you he gives you Grace and he takes you to places you've never been listen don't wait till it's too late I know too many many people in their 60s and 70s right now who are living in fear of their future what happens when they die you do not need to be afraid of dying you should look forward to it but you can't do that without having a living hope we have a Living Hope in Jesus anybody else I just want to make sure
that's you today like take that serious like I'm I'm in that's me is there somebody where oh come on somebody let's go let's go come on Hallelujah yes this is why this church exists for Jesus he died for you he loves you he'll never stop loving you Jesus Promised today he promised over your life I will never leave you nor forsake you that when you start looking back at your life you could realize he was with me the whole time but the Bible says in the Book of James to all those who draw near to God He will draw near to you so if you seek after God you're going to find him you start praying he's going to start answering but don't give up just because they're dark days that we live
in I want to just ask if you're willing to be like Daniel in the days that we're living in would you stand to your feet right where you are we're going to pray with those that made decisions today Lord I Thank you for those that said yes to you Jesus I thank you that that changes the trajectory of families it breaks family curses it breaks the lies of the enemy and today for those that made the decision we welcome them into the house of God we welcome them into your family Lord would you bless them with favor and protect them by the blood of Jesus we ask that they would continue as disciples to follow you help them understand your word expedite their faith may they grow more than they ever thought they could grow may you reveal yourself in ways that they didn't even know was possible if that's you today just in your own heart you've got to start praying to God you don't have to ever
stop but you got to pray in your heart out loud wherever you go prayer is talking to God and it's listening and you could just get real with God and say forgive me of my sins I'm sorry Lord I want to follow you I receive your Holy Spirit help me live through me Lord when you start praying prayers like that God will honor it he will bless you Lord I pray for your church for such a time as this that until your second coming until we know that Satan and his arm Army has been locked up forever we know that you've called us God to be your grace givers that we would receive your grace and we would give it away so I pray for a Great Awakening in your church I pray for Revival that would start in our own
hearts that we would obey your word and not ignore it that we' realize there are real consequences to evil thank you for being a god of Grace thank you for being a god of healing and restoration we believe that over not only this church but Central Oregon Central Oregon shall be saved the lives of the enemy will not Prevail the darkness of the devil will not Prevail in this region we believe it God you're raising up an army of salt and light today you're raising up people that will reflect your goodness of Who You Are God help us to trust you to follow you in difficult perilous times I ask in Jesus name if you're in agreement would you shout amen amen
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Reading the times without fear
The message opens by naming fear and hopelessness as common responses to cultural change, then counters them with the language of 2 Timothy 3 and the promise of a living hope. Pastor Keith's claim is that hard days are repeated, not unprecedented, and that this should steady rather than panic believers. This section invites reflection on how we read our own moment.
2 Timothy 3 · John 17:15-16
- Pastor Keith says these are perilous times like those Paul described to Timothy. What makes a believer's response to hard days different from fear or hopelessness?
- Pastor Keith distinguishes being taken out of the world from being protected from the enemy while remaining in it. Why does he say that distinction matters for how we live?
Learning from Hezekiah's open doors
Pastor Keith retells Hezekiah showing Babylonian visitors everything in his house and storehouses, then hearing Isaiah's prophecy that it would all be carried away. He applies it as a warning about over-sharing and about the legacy adults leave for the next generation.
Isaiah 39:5–8 · 2 Chronicles 36:5-7
- Hezekiah showed the Babylonian visitors everything he had, and Isaiah said it would one day be carried off. What does Pastor Keith say that example warns us about today?
- Hezekiah's response focused on peace in his own days rather than the generations to come. What does that suggest about the legacy our choices leave?
Babylon as a spirit of pride and confusion
Pastor Keith describes Babylon both as a historical city and as a spiritual pattern of pride, confusion, and distortion of what belongs to God. He connects this interpretation with Babel in Genesis 11 and warns that visible sources of power and satisfaction can draw people away from trust in Jesus.
Genesis 11
- Pastor Keith traces the spirit of Babylon to Babel, where people tried to build their own way to God. How does he describe pride as the root of that effort?
- Pastor Keith says the enemy still tempts people to trust what they can see rather than God. What examples of that does he give from the world around us?
Identity, names, and the labels we believe
Daniel and his friends receive Babylonian names and an education designed to reshape them. Pastor Keith treats this as a picture of how the enemy attacks identity, especially in the young, and contrasts those imposed names with who God says his people are. This section focuses on identity and on the church's responsibility toward youth.
Daniel 1:6-7 · John 1:12 · Ephesians 1 · Ephesians 6
- Pastor Keith says Daniel's Hebrew name means God is my ruler, and that the new Babylonian name was an attempt to change his identity. What does he say that strategy looks like today?
- Pastor Keith points to John 1:12 and Ephesians 1 to describe believers as children of God. How does he say that identity answers the labels spoken over us?
- Pastor Keith tells the young people in the room they are never too young to do great things for God. What does he say the enemy wants to do with youth, and what does he call students to do now?
Resolve, salt and light, and the invitation
Pastor Keith closes with Daniel’s refusal of the king’s provisions and the favor he receives from the official. He encourages similar determination, connecting Daniel’s example with Jesus’ salt and light imagery. He warns against idols and offers an invitation to believe in Jesus, followed by prayer for the church and region.
Daniel 1:8–9 · Matthew 5:13–16 · 1 John 5:19-21 · Romans 12:2 · Jeremiah 29
- What does Pastor Keith emphasize about Daniel choosing faithfulness to God when the king’s food was available to him?
- Pastor Keith says you cannot make a difference if you are not different, and he points to Jesus' teaching about salt and light. What does he say that difference is for?
- Pastor Keith warns that anything valued more than God becomes an idol, citing the first commandments and 1 John's closing warning. How does he say we should respond to that warning?
Answers from this recording
Start a conversation.
What does Pastor Keith mean by "Daniel days"?+
He uses the phrase to describe the present cultural moment as parallel to Daniel's exile in Babylon. The message reads 2 Timothy 3's perilous times and argues that the same cycles of moral decline and pressure to conform appear throughout Scripture. Rather than despairing, he says believers should see these days as a summons to be like Daniel: determined, distinct, and trusting Jesus. The call is to rise up as faithful witnesses in the world as it actually is.
Why does Pastor Keith spend so much time on the history of Israel and Judah?+
He argues that Daniel 1 cannot be understood without knowing who Jehoiakim and Nebuchadnezzar were and why Judah was vulnerable. He traces Abraham, the twelve tribes, the division into northern Israel and southern Judah, Assyria's conquest of the north in 722 BC, and Babylon's later conquest of Judah. Jehoiakim, according to 2 Chronicles 36, did evil in God's sight, and Pastor Keith presents the exile as a consequence that was generations in the making. The history frames the text as a warning, not just background filling.
How does Pastor Keith use Hezekiah's story?+
He tells of Hezekiah, a relatively good king who showed Babylonian visitors all his treasures and storehouses. In Isaiah 39:5-7, Isaiah then prophesied that everything in his house, and even some of his descendants, would be carried to Babylon. Pastor Keith highlights Hezekiah's response, relief that there would be peace in his own days, as a failure to think about the next generation. Applied to today, it becomes a warning about displaying everything publicly and about what kind of legacy our openness leaves behind.
What does the message say about the names given to Daniel?+
Pastor Keith explains that Daniel's Hebrew name means God is my ruler, and he then describes the Babylonian name given to him as an attempt to replace that identity with something tied to another deity. He treats the renaming as part of a broader strategy: change what someone consumes, change what they hear, change what they are called, and eventually change who they believe they are. The application is that believers must know the names God gives them, which he grounds in John 1 and Ephesians 1, and reject labels that contradict them.
What response does the sermon invite at the end?+
The message ends with Daniel’s refusal of the king’s provisions and a call for similar determination to follow God. Pastor Keith invites listeners to believe in Jesus, receive forgiveness, and begin a new life. He asks those responding to raise a hand and later stand. He prays for new believers to grow as disciples and for revival in the church and Central Oregon, asking believers to reflect God’s goodness in difficult times.
