As we get older, we long to see another generation come along with the desire to wholeheartedly follow the Lord. At the same time, we may lament our own failures that have brought the governmental hand of God upon our individual and collective lives and that have brought in circumstances that tend to discourage. We thank God for Daniel, who, in spite of the sad condition of things and God’s needed government, purposed in his heart to obey the Lord, regardless of the circumstances or the consequences.
We thank God for young people of the Bible like Joseph, Daniel, Timothy and Samuel who stand before us and our young as shining examples of God’s promise to every generation, “Them that honor Me I will honor” (1 Sam. 2:30). Yet, it sobers us to see the state of the man and his family to whom these words were spoken. To Eli the Lord said, “Wherefore the Lord God of Israel saith, I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before Me forever: but now the Lord saith, Be it far from Me; for them that honor Me I will honor, and they that despise Me shall be lightly esteemed.”
As we read this issue, may Daniel’s life encourage us, whether young or old, to walk before God and this world as His dearly beloved children and sons and to live to the honor of His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.