As Christians, how are we to live in a "modern-day Babylon"?

Amen. Praise the Lord for all the positive patterns in the bible. I really appreciate Daniel's life which is such a picture of our own situation today as believers. We live in the World which is a system that is governed and dictated by satan.

Daniel and his three companions were such overcomers in their time. Here they were, captives in a strange land. In this land there was the changing of their diet, language, identity and the challenging of their belief in God, especially when it related to their prayer and worship of God.

Daniel 1:5

And the king appointed to them a daily portion from the king's choice provision and from the wine that he drank and appointed that they should be brought up for three years so that at the end of the time they might stand before the king.

What was Daniel's response to this diet?

Vs 8

BUt Daniel SET HIS HEART not to defile himself with the king's choice provision and with the wine that the king drank... so he requested of the leader of the enuchs that he might not defile himself.

Praise the Lord for Daniel's determination. That even though he was in a strange land, one that typified the World, he knew who he was. He was someone who belonged to God and would not be defiled by even the choice meats and wines from the king's table. There is a principle, where you are what you eat.

This is satan's tactic today even to us in "modern Babylon".. that we would be those who partake of the things of this world, enjoying worldly entertainment, worldly music, driven with the worldly current and tide... and not be those who eat only of Christ as the living bread and drink of Him as the living water... to be filled and constituted with this lovely One. May the Lord strengthen us to be careful of what we put into our selves each day. May we be those who have a taste for only Christ. May we not be defiled by this world.

Daniel means "God is my Judge and was changed over to Belteshazzar which means "the prince of Bel, or the favorite of Bel.

We see mention of "Bel "in Isa 46:1 and this is a Babylonian god supposed by some to be the Babylonian name for Baal.

How is it, that a person, whose identity is "God is my Judge" be called by the name "Prince of Bel".

This is satan's stretegy. To cause us to be ones who do not know who we are, where we blend in with the world. How we need to be aware as believers to confess before men, that we are children of God, so that the world does not confuse us as one of their own. We are a peculiar people, not common. We do not only believe in our hearts, but also confess with our mouths ( Rom 10:9). This saves us from much trouble with worldly friends.

Matt 10:32

Everyone therefore who will confess Me before men, I also will confess him before My Father who is in the heavens."

Daniel, in ancient Babylon, was forced to learn the language of the Chaldeans ( vs 4), This was a dialect of Akkadian used by the wise men of Babylon. How the enemy seeks today, in this world, to cause us to be those who are loose in our speaking. Cracking jokes that are unseemly, or loose in our conversation with others. Spoiling our testimony and annuling our ability to speak for the Lord. If we are those who speak like the world, and bring shame to the Lord's Name, then it will be very difficult for us to then take that same mouth to speak forth Christ as the gospel to others. How we need to ask the Lord to cleanse us, to be the One regulating our speaking, that our words would be seasoned with grace.

Psa 45:1 says that our tongue should be "the pen of a ready writer,".. we should be able to be those who readily speak Christ to others.

Satan would also use the world, as this "Modern Babylon" to cause us to be prayer-less people. Prayer is what causes God's Will in the heavens to be carried out on the earth. Daniel, this man of Preciousness was one who made himself available to God through his faithful prayer. All that God desires to carry out on the earth, is carried out through much prayer. Satan knows this and it is no wonder that prayer and prayer meetings of the church is one of the most attacked gatherings. We do not mind meeting to praise and worship God on a Sunday morning, but the least attended gathering of the saints are for the prayer meetings. If satan can prevent prayers from ascending to the Throne of Grace, then he can frustrate all that God desires to do on the earth.

God has a principle. He does not want to work alone. He desires man to work along with Him to carry out what is on His heart. This is the principle of incarnation.. God working with and through man...

Daniel made himself available to God. Each day he would go to his room three times and face Jerusalem, praying for God's interest on the earth. That God's purpose would be carried out, His Will would be done. God knew, that if He did not get Daniel in the morning, that He would get him at noon..if not at noon, then in the evening. Prayer was Daniel's habit, he was used to taking time in God's presence to be infused with God's desire. It is no wonder that this man of preciousness could speak so readily, on the spot regarding life and death matters ( King's dream of the idol). Daniel was someone who lived in God's presence.

May the saints rise up to be people of Prayer who stand for God's interest in the midst of a wicked and crooked generation.

One thing that I truly appreciate treasure with Daniel was that he did not care to be a super believer in God. He had companions who stood with him and for God. These ones were challenged and their lives were on the line, yet they stood up for God when told to worship the Image of the King. They denied themselves, and did not love their own lives more than God. An interesting happened when these three hebrew young men were thrown into the fiery furnace. After the heat was raised 7 times hotter, it was in this blazing intense situation, that the Son of God was manifested. Sometimes sister, it takes the intense situations, for us to SEE something of Christ. We experience Him in a deeper richer way when the temperatures are at their heighest. Here we are truly loosened from our bonds and walk about in the liberty of the Lord... where we experience His very presence and protection.

May the Lord preserve us in this "modern Babylon" where we SET OUR HEARTS and take Him as our sanctified diet, our identity, our speaking, our protection to pray for His interest. May we be bold like Daniel and his companions....

Grace be with your spirit sister.

Yours in Christ

sandy

Sorry this is so LONG..Please Read..We are to live for God and obey His Laws no matter what you see around you. Even if the New World order does come and the world is the property of it, just remember this means that Gods coming is sooner than we think. This is just one of the Signs of the End. Give up what you have,they are just things and do as Our Lord says, and that is to spread the Gospel message as best you can and as often to all who are in your Space. You can see in this country that they are pushing this Order to be a reality. We need not fear, for our life belongs to Our Savior and He has promised us a New Heavens and a New Earth that will never be like this planet Earth.{ Total Government Control.} Take from the ones who have and give to the ones that have not. {You might see this in your life time or not} The ones who have so much, they will rule the ones that don't. And don't be surprised if this means we all have to be in the same mind set of religious thinking. There is so much on the books now and when UNITY becomes "The thing to do" you will have to believe in the Religion that is the most popular and you can forget about having Religious Freedom. For me, this will be my end, for I Love Jesus Commandments AND want to keep All His Commandments and this will be so against the New Religion you will have to follow. It will look good on paper but it will not be who Christ is and His teaching, Our "Only Mediator" to the Father. Nothing, No one, dead or alive or presumed living in Heaven now, goes in between your Prayers to the Father directly through the Name of Jesus Christ ONLY. I hope you hear this message and stand firm with the Armor of Christ to strengthen you till the end. God gives us His promises that we will be saved if we do not forsake Him. God be with you in your Study of Scripture and The Book of Revelation. Love in Christ...missleslie P. S. Just in case you do not know this, is that, Sunday is the First day of the week and Saturday is the Seventh day. Genesis 2:2 and Matthew 28. I can promise you there is No Place in Scripture that says Jesus changed His Holy Day to worship on.Just note..How many Protestant Churches follow the day of Worship that Rome decreed was the Holy Day to worship. Do your research about the Year 361 AD or so and the Emperor Constantine.{Sun Worshipers} God Bless you in your Studies. I know you are thinking , well, Every Day we should worship..Yes, but God only made One Holy,or He does not care what Day,...He would not of put it in the Bible if it were not important and Jesus kept it faithfully.Look up the word Sabbath in your Concordance, its Massive.

Romans 12:18 If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.

James 1:27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

And, like Daniel: Deuteronomy 8:3...but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live.

Luke 4:4 And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.

As some of the other answers state, you must sanctify yourself and hold fast to your God. These guys believed the word of God and understood death and the resurrection. They believed that God would raise them from the dead which made it easy for them to stand in the face of death. Besides that, Jesus tells us that the flesh profits nothing. It is the spirit that is made alive. It is given to all men to suffer the first death but if you are wise then you know that there is a second death that man must suffer if he doesn't save himself. The first death is temporary but the 2nd is forever. I don't know about you but I am willing to die before I go against the true God just not to offend men. As far as Babylon the Great goes...

Revelation 18:3-5

3For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.

4And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.

5For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.

Hebrews 10:31

31It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

Luke 12:4-5

4And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do.

5But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him.

Clever question, praise God for you dear sister!

Yes let us heed the three fold message in Revelation:

Rev 14:7 Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.

Rev 14:8 And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.

Rev 14:9 And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand,

Rev 14:10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:

Rev 14:11 And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.

Rev 14:12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.

Don't know but I have been suggesting to memorize much scripture in case the wicked decide to steal our Bibles. Also, David Wilkerson gives lots of advice about what to do when this disaster strikes. He wrote the book some time ago before things got this bad. He says to have water on hand, and supplies, flashlights, etc.

Wow, if the electricity went out, I would have no way to cook here. It's all electric.

Actually, Daniel did eventually 'flee' from Babylon, along with a group of others, AT THE PROPER TIME. Read Nehemiah and Ezra to get an idea of what happened.

The call in Revelation to 'Come out of Babylon my people' means you should prepare to RETURN to His land, knowing and DOING His laws and commandments, having them written in your HEART. This means not being under control of ANYTHING EXCEPT FAITH. Lose your life to save it. Sell all your things, give to the poor, pick up your cross and FOLLOW MESSIAH.

Daniel was our good example of the way to live in Babylon.

Rev 18:4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.

This doesn't mean to leave , but to do as Daniel did and continue obeying God and His ways, regardless what the world around you is doing.

set apart; Christian means to be set apart. We are to live our lives set apart from the sin of this world, by following the examples and teachings of love, by our Savior Jesus Christ. We can not hope to set an example for our children or those around us, if our lives show no outward sign of difference to them. Do you react and act the same as the those of the world? The one thing I pray my children can say one day about me is, he may not have always got it right, but he lived his life for Christ. To live each and every second in the light of glory, for the Father is and should be the goal of every Christian. Yet how do you do that, if you do not set your life apart from the sin of this fallen world. It's not easy, we all have bad days, but even our bad days in the light of Christ are bearable because of the light of Christ. So, can we do any less for Him? Can you ever do enough? No but, that does not mean we do not try. Live a life set apart! Shine a light into Babylon!

He still obeyed God even in the Midst of them

He never wavered from abiding in Gods truths

God kept him...

So must we abide in Gods Truths and not Babylons Lies

If we abide in the ship...we will not perish

God will keep us, as He did Daniel

Gods Word is eternal and NEVER changes

WE must conform(change) to it, not it to us !!

daniel is a very good example. daniel was square in the middle. but he did not deny God or anything about him. he did not worship any idols or give credit to any babylonian god. daniel stood firm in his faith.

but daniel also worked for the babylonian king. he was not neglectful in his duties to the king.

so daniel worshiped God and stood in the faith but he also came in favor of the babylonian king. Joseph is also a good example of this.

we live in a world and must live in this world but we should not give in to this world.

Peace!!