Joshua Grubbs
But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the royal rations of food and wine...
Most people don’t spend too much time reading the food laws found in Leviticus. Strolling through the aisles of Costco doesn’t prompt any of us to say, a la Leviticus 11:21, “Does this flying insect that walks on all fours have jointed legs for hopping on the ground so I can eat it?” Moreover, we’re exposed to a variety of foods that many in the world, especially those in the past, like Daniel, couldn’t even imagine. That’s what makes Daniel’s decision in Babylon so striking to me.
Think of it this way; it’s highly likely that Daniel, prior to being exiled to Babylon, had never even seen a chicken before, let alone all the other exotic foods that a hedonistic kingdom like Babylon would have. What he had seen, however, were the provisions in Torah, portions of our Old Testament that outline what God decreed for the ancient Israelites, relating to what he could and could not eat. When faced with a difficult ultimatum, forgo the laws delivered by God or continue to keep them even in exile, Daniel didn’t let the idea of “perfection” get in the way of doing the best that he could.
Daniel requested that he, and the other Hebrews with him, be allowed to live on rations of vegetables and water. He didn’t request this blindly, but rather made a decision that said, “I don’t know if I can eat that, but I do know that I can eat that.” Daniel’s request was an effort to do the best he could in the circumstances that he found himself in. And, in the end, it worked out as Daniel stayed faithful to God in extenuating circumstances.
How often are we faced with choices like Daniel’s? We are, as those who proclaim Christ as King, to conduct ourselves as citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven. We know what the expectations of God are as they have been revealed in the life and teachings of Jesus, but do we ever let perfection be the enemy of doing our best?
We can’t have all the answers to every single situation that we may find ourselves in. When these choices arise, we have two options just like Daniel. We can throw our hands up and say, “This is just too hard, and I don’t know what to do so I’m just going to go with the flow,” even if by doing so we know that deep down we’re disobeying God.
Or, empowered by the same Spirit of power living in us that raised Christ from the dead, we can say, “Lord, I don’t know what the perfect response is, but I know that you have told me to do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with You.” We can always do our best, no matter the situation, when we properly orient our hearts and desires to God.
We don’t have to worry about food the same way Daniel did, but we always keep the love, mercy, and obedience modeled by Christ at the front of our minds as we navigate the situations we encounter throughout our life.
Let us pray for the strength to live faithfully in a strange, and often confusing, world.
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