Sermon

Daniel • Week 2

Willow Ridge Sermons

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  1. Welcome to the Willow Ridge Sermons Podcast, where you can listen to audio from our most

  2. recent sermons and more.

  3. Thanks for listening, and be sure to add this show to your library if you'd like to automatically

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  5. I want to invite you to join us in Daniel chapter 1.

    Daniel 1 chapter mention

  6. We continue on week 2 in our study of this book.

  7. If you do not have a Bible, we would like to give you one.

  8. And so after the service is over with, you can come back to this table right back here

  9. to my left.

  10. We have some black Bibles that are back there.

  11. We'd love to give you one of those.

  12. As a gift, we want you to be in God's Word, studying God's Word, and engaging with God's

  13. Word on Sunday morning as we gather here together.

  14. And it's a wonderful opportunity to get you connected with a Bible.

  15. No strings attached.

  16. You can be a member.

  17. You can be a first-time guest.

  18. Anybody who is here is welcome to come back there and get one.

  19. And then also for our first-time guest, my wife Erin and I will be in the very back as

  20. well at the end of the service at that table.

  21. Would love for you to stop by with just an opportunity for us to meet you and to thank

  22. you and to welcome you today for worshiping with us.

  23. I want to read this verse from Daniel chapter 1, verse 9 as we get into God's Word.

    Daniel 1:9

  24. And it says,

  25. God, I thank you for the beauty, for the wonder, for the truth of your Word.

  26. God, as we dive into the study in Daniel today, Lord, may you teach us what you would have for

  27. us.

  28. God, may you convict our hearts, the sin that we have.

  29. Lord, may you draw us closer to you.

  30. And Lord, if there's anyone here who does not know you, Jesus Christ is their Lord and Savior.

  31. May today be the day of their salvation.

  32. God, may I be faithful to your Word and may all that is said bring glory and honor to your name.

  33. And it's in Jesus' name we pray.

  34. Amen.

  35. Amen.

  36. We started last week in our study in Daniel.

  37. This will be our study that we go through this fall.

  38. And Daniel's a very interesting book.

  39. It's one of the major prophets that we find in the Old Testament is Daniel.

  40. But it's written a little bit differently than when we see a lot of our prophetic books in the Bible.

  41. Chapters 1 through 6, we're going to deal with the man and the story of Daniel.

  42. It will be a narrative of Daniel's obedience to God.

  43. And then what we'll see in chapters 7 through 12, we'll deal with the message of Daniel.

  44. So Daniel is the prophet that God is using.

  45. So in the first six chapters, we'll see Daniel's obedience to God.

  46. And then the last half, we'll see this apocalyptic vision that God gives Daniel.

  47. And Daniel shares, Daniel records, because Daniel is also the writer of Daniel.

  48. And then for us to be able to see what God has for us.

  49. Last week kind of helped us in the setting of what brings us into Daniel.

  50. So if you weren't here last week and you haven't listened to it online, I would encourage you to do so.

  51. It gives kind of an introduction into how do we find ourselves, how do we find Daniel,

  52. where we find Daniel and God's people, where we find God's people being conquered by the Babylonians.

  53. So here, a couple sentences, what happened?

  54. The Babylonians conquered God's people.

  55. And verse 2 tells us that this happened by the hand of God.

  56. So it was not through military cunning.

  57. It was not through the power of man.

  58. But it happened by the very hand of God that God handed over his people to these pagan outsiders.

  59. As God's people have ignored his calls to return to him, to be obedient to him.

  60. And God says, this is what I'm going to do.

  61. This is what I'm going to do.

  62. This is what I'm going to do.

  63. And then God, because he is truth, God doesn't just speak truth.

  64. God doesn't just operate in truth.

  65. God is truth.

  66. God fulfills what he says he is going to fulfill.

  67. So we're looking at God's people who are largely marked by their disobedience to him.

  68. But just as not always everyone is faithful, we find here that not everyone is unfaithful to God.

  69. That there are those in this time who have been faithful to God, but they're not set free from this captivity that they have to walk through.

  70. There's young and old that have been faithful, but large majority have not.

  71. And we're introduced to four of these faithful teenage boys last week.

  72. Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, all from the tribe of Judah.

  73. All part of God's people.

  74. And as we begin in this part of Daniel, we see that these are some of those who have been faithful.

  75. Now this is not the first nation that the Babylonians have overtaken.

  76. This isn't the first group of people that they've taken captive.

  77. And so what they seek to do, and this is very interesting, we think of domination.

  78. We think of when one country takes over another country.

  79. We think through, they then govern that country through military power, right?

  80. That's largely what Rome would do when Rome came in and overtook Jerusalem, right?

  81. There was a military presence that's there.

  82. Or through governmental powers, they would do that as well.

  83. But the Babylonians, their strategy would be, is that they would come in and try to convert people into their culture.

  84. They would try to change people.

  85. And so it would be like today if one country took over another country,

  86. and everything about them being their religion to the way that they operate, to the language that they speak.

  87. Instead of saying, we're going to plant military bases all over your country,

  88. what they would do is they would begin to bring in people into their country and begin to influence them

  89. so that maybe at the end of the day, they're like, well, yeah, this is, I'm now a Babylonian.

  90. And this is, this is who I am.

  91. So it tells us at the beginning of chapter one that they brought the youngest, the best, the brightest of the people of Judah.

  92. And they brought them in.

  93. And those four, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, are four of those who get brought in.

  94. Four of the faithful.

  95. Four of the faithful.

  96. Babylon even realizes, Nebuchadnezzar realizes, that they're part of the best.

  97. So they had a strategy of what they would do.

  98. They would isolate them, all right?

  99. So they would take them away, remove them from their people.

  100. They would indoctrinate them.

  101. They would teach them their language.

  102. They would teach them their literature.

  103. They would teach them their religion.

  104. They would assimilate them.

  105. They would eat of their food.

  106. They would drink their wine.

  107. They would literally change them from the inside out.

  108. With a goal of converting them.

  109. And very early on, when convert them, what I mean is that they want to change their identity.

  110. And very early on, these four men, teenage boys, have their names changed and they're given Babylonian names.

  111. And we saw last week that their names had meant, their previous names had been in their relationship with who God is in their life.

  112. And now their Babylonian names would be names that honor different Babylonian gods.

  113. I mean, it's wrong of what they do.

  114. But it's, it works.

  115. And you see this begin to happen.

  116. But what we see and what we left off with Daniel in verse 8 is that there's a part of Daniel that says,

  117. I'm not going to compromise.

  118. I am who I am.

  119. And I am who I am because of God.

  120. So let's read back.

  121. We're going to drop back one verse.

  122. Let's read verses Daniel chapter 1, 8 through 13.

    Daniel 1 chapter mention

  123. But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the king's food or with the wine that he drank.

  124. Therefore, he asked the chief of the eunuchs to allow him not to defile himself.

  125. Verse 9 that we've already read.

  126. And God gave Daniel favor and compassion in the sight of the chief of the eunuchs.

  127. Pause real quick.

  128. The same hand of God who delivered him over was the same God who gave Daniel favor and compassion in the sight of the chief of the eunuchs.

  129. Holding in God's hand.

  130. Verse 10.

  131. And the chief of the eunuchs said to Daniel,

  132. I fear my lord the king who assigned your food and your drink for why should he see that you were in worse condition than the youths who are your own age?

  133. So you would endanger my head with the king.

  134. And then Daniel said to the steward whom the chief of the eunuchs had assigned over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah,

  135. test your servants for 10 days.

  136. Let us be given vegetables to eat and water to drink.

  137. Then let our appearance and the appearance of the youths who eat the king soon be observed by you and deal with your servants according to what you see.

  138. So here's what's happening in here.

  139. So Daniel makes an appeal.

  140. God grants him favor in the sight of the chief of the eunuchs.

  141. Daniel says, like, here, man, don't make us eat this.

  142. And the chief of the eunuchs, like, he knows Nebuchadnezzar.

  143. He's like, why should I risk my life so that you can be obedient to your God?

  144. Like, I know what's going to happen to me if you're not well cared for because Nebuchadnezzar doesn't want death.

  145. Nebuchadnezzar wants conversion.

  146. And if I'm not obeying my king, why should you be able to obey your king?

  147. And so Daniel says, give us 10 days, man.

  148. Give us 10 days.

  149. Let everyone else.

  150. And I think it's important.

  151. They're eating the food of the king.

  152. I mean, like, if all of a sudden, like, a king invites you over for dinner, like, go.

  153. Right?

  154. Like, that's going to be good, you know?

  155. And he says, just give us vegetables and water.

  156. Now, let's challenge.

  157. If someone wants to do nothing but vegetables and water for 10 days, and I'll stick to my diet, like, let's see what happens.

  158. All right?

  159. All right.

  160. And Daniel's like, you won't.

  161. And then compare us with everyone else.

  162. Compare us with everyone else.

  163. So let's see.

  164. Basically, what Daniel says is, when we understand his heart, let's see what God's going to do, man.

  165. Let's see what God's going to do.

  166. So we see this willingness of this obedience of Daniel of being uncompromised.

  167. And so, first of all, it's his uncompromised obedience.

  168. Obedience requires, when it comes to you and I, being obedient before the Lord and what he's called us to do and who he's called us to be.

  169. Obedience requires determination.

  170. Daniel makes the decision of what he will do.

  171. Why?

  172. Why is this, of all of the things that are happening and taking place, why does Daniel drive his stake in the ground on the food that he will eat?

  173. Well, God had given his people laws and dietary restrictions that they had to obey, that God had called them to in order to be faithful to him.

  174. Now, we don't particularly know why the food that he was unclean, even though it was unclean, even though it was probably the best, but Daniel resolved, is what the Bible says, Daniel resolved that he would not eat the food.

  175. It's interesting, it's interesting, it's interesting, it's a compound word in the original language.

  176. And it means to determine in the heart.

  177. It means to determine in the heart.

  178. And your heart, biblically speaking, is your connected point of your will, your intellect, and your feelings.

  179. And so Daniel determines in his mind, I will obey God.

  180. In the intellect of who I am and what I know to be true, I resolve.

  181. He determined in his will.

  182. It doesn't matter what it smells like, it doesn't matter the temptation, it doesn't matter where I'll be pulled, I'm determined.

  183. Determined in his heart.

  184. Determined in his feelings.

  185. Well, I'm here, obviously, believing the lie God's left me here.

  186. What I've done wrong, all I've been is faithful.

  187. And I can't believe that I would feel this way.

  188. But what Daniel does is he resolves in his whole being, with all that he is, that he will obey God.

  189. Church, when it comes to obedience, obedience isn't a move of the emotion.

  190. Obedience isn't an agreeance with the mind.

  191. Obedience is not a personal characteristic of faithfulness.

  192. Obedience is a determination of the heart.

  193. Of all that I am, God, I will obey you.

  194. And that's what this 14-year-old boy does, even if it costs me my life.

  195. The second thing, I think this is interesting.

  196. We see from Daniel, uncompromised compassion.

  197. Uncompromised compassion.

  198. Now, think about this.

  199. Daniel stood his ground, but he does so with grace and humility.

  200. Daniel stands for what he believes in, but does so in a way that he knows that this is going to affect this pagan eunuch who is before him.

  201. And so Daniel's got a situation where I can go on a hunger strike and make this worse for you, because who are you with your pagan god and your pagan land to tell me, Daniel, what I should do?

  202. I'm going to say, I'm going to say, I'm going to say, I'm going to say, I'm going to say, I'm going to follow God.

  203. Who are you to stand in my way?

  204. But that's not what he does.

  205. This decision carries great implications, not only for himself, but for the chief of the eunuch.

  206. The chief of the eunuch is like, listen, this could cost me my life.

  207. Daniel doesn't say, I don't care.

  208. Daniel doesn't say, not my problem.

  209. Daniel doesn't say, your pagan convictions are not going to influence who I am as an obedient follower of God.

  210. Instead, what he does, that church, I think we can miss so much in this, is Daniel stands in his convictions, uncompromised obedience, but he shows compassion.

  211. For the man who just doesn't get it.

  212. Lost people should not understand yours and my depth of love for the Lord.

  213. It should be foreign to them.

  214. It should be difficult for them to wrap their minds around.

  215. And our response to them shouldn't be, you fool, you idiot.

  216. Compassion.

  217. Daniel could have fought him.

  218. But instead, he loves him.

  219. I think sometimes our, I'm going to say our, but also my, I'm in this.

  220. I think sometimes as we stand in our convictions,

  221. we begin to look at those who are outside of our convictions

  222. as the enemy

  223. instead of the object

  224. of who we're seeking to share the gospel and the love of God with.

  225. And the beauty of this

  226. is that what we see

  227. is that the people of God

  228. can stand

  229. both

  230. in obedience

  231. to God

  232. and in compassion

  233. for those who don't know him.

  234. And that's exactly what Daniel does.

  235. The next that we see

  236. is uncompromised faith.

  237. Uncompromised faith.

  238. Here's what Daniel shows.

  239. Daniel shows in this faith in God.

  240. Daniel knows in this situation

  241. logic doesn't work.

  242. He's got to know

  243. that committing to vegetables and water

  244. while everyone else eats meats, cakes, and drinks the finest wine

  245. is going to put him at a disadvantage

  246. physically speaking

  247. but in his 14 years

  248. he's learned

  249. in all situations

  250. in great and in loss

  251. to trust God.

  252. To trust God

  253. and to simply

  254. be obedient.

  255. To take step of faith

  256. after step of faith

  257. after step of faith.

  258. and what comes next

  259. he doesn't know

  260. but he knows

  261. that God does.

  262. The God who put

  263. his people

  264. into the hand

  265. of Nebuchadnezzar

  266. is the same God

  267. that holds Daniel

  268. in the palm of his hand

  269. and he knows

  270. he knows

  271. that he can trust him.

  272. So let's see what happens.

  273. Cake and ice cream

  274. vegetables and water.

  275. Let's see.

  276. Verse 14.

  277. So he listened to him

  278. in this manner

  279. and tested them

  280. for 10 days

  281. and at the end

  282. of 10 days

  283. it was seen

  284. that they were

  285. better in appearance

  286. and fatter

  287. in the flesh

  288. than all

  289. the youths

  290. who ate

  291. the king's food.

  292. That's got to be God.

  293. Little Debbies

  294. or baby carrots, right?

  295. Who wins?

  296. So the steward

  297. took away

  298. their food

  299. and the wine

  300. they were to drink

  301. and gave them vegetables.

  302. As for these four youths

  303. God gave them

  304. learning

  305. and skill

  306. in all literature

  307. and wisdom

  308. and Daniel

  309. had understanding

  310. in all visions

  311. and dreams.

  312. At the end

  313. of the time

  314. when the king

  315. had commanded

  316. that they should be

  317. brought in

  318. the chief of the eunuchs

  319. brought them in

  320. before Nebuchadnezzar

  321. and the king

  322. spoke with them

  323. among all of them

  324. none was found

  325. like Daniel

  326. Hananiah

  327. Mishael

  328. and Azariah.

  329. Therefore

  330. they stood

  331. before the king

  332. and in every matter

  333. of wisdom

  334. and understanding

  335. about which the king

  336. inquired of them

  337. he found them

  338. ten times

  339. better

  340. than all the magicians

  341. and enchanters

  342. that were in

  343. all his kingdom.

  344. And Daniel

  345. was there

  346. until the first year

  347. of King Cyrus.

  348. So here's what we see.

  349. We see Daniel

  350. come forward

  351. I'm not going to compromise.

  352. I'm going to be obedient.

  353. I'm going to love.

  354. And I'm going to claim faith.

  355. It's pretty simple right?

  356. That's my plan.

  357. That's my plan.

  358. Obedient

  359. love

  360. faith.

  361. He can't control

  362. his situation.

  363. He can't maneuver.

  364. He can't manipulate.

  365. He can't set himself

  366. free.

  367. Obedient

  368. love

  369. faith.

  370. Look what God does.

  371. Look what God does.

  372. What we see

  373. is

  374. uncompromised

  375. blessing.

  376. Uncompromised

  377. blessing.

  378. Physically

  379. physically

  380. they got bigger.

  381. They got bigger.

  382. In a day

  383. where fatter

  384. is celebrated

  385. this is what they get.

  386. Right?

  387. They get bigger.

  388. They should not be

  389. but they are.

  390. Mentally

  391. they get smarter.

  392. God

  393. this blows my mind.

  394. God

  395. grew

  396. their minds

  397. even

  398. in the way

  399. of the Babylonians.

  400. Oh

  401. this could be

  402. a whole other message.

  403. God's building

  404. some missionaries

  405. to understand

  406. a pagan culture

  407. in a pagan land

  408. to be wise

  409. in their ways

  410. while they're wise

  411. in the ways

  412. of God.

  413. God

  414. grew them

  415. mentally.

  416. God

  417. grew them

  418. spiritually.

  419. It says

  420. specifically here

  421. about Daniel

  422. that Daniel

  423. received the gift

  424. of interpreting

  425. dreams

  426. and visions.

  427. God

  428. grew

  429. Daniel's

  430. giftedness

  431. in this.

  432. So what we see

  433. physically

  434. they're being

  435. blessed.

  436. Mentally

  437. they're being

  438. blessed.

  439. Spiritually

  440. they're being

  441. blessed.

  442. And then

  443. socially

  444. socially

  445. these were

  446. boys chosen

  447. out of

  448. influential

  449. families

  450. and nobilities

  451. from Judah

  452. who were brought

  453. in and now

  454. captives

  455. and when Daniel

  456. stands before

  457. Nebuchadnezzar

  458. and Daniel's

  459. wisdom and

  460. understanding

  461. he brings in

  462. all of his

  463. spiritual leaders

  464. that he has

  465. and Daniel

  466. beats them all

  467. in Babylonian

  468. jeopardy.

  469. This is what

  470. we've got.

  471. The wisest

  472. the best

  473. the smartest

  474. and it says

  475. socially

  476. no one

  477. was

  478. their

  479. equal.

  480. What does

  481. that mean?

  482. God's

  483. growing

  484. their

  485. influence.

  486. God's

  487. growing

  488. their

  489. influence

  490. in a

  491. foreign

  492. pagan

  493. land

  494. as their

  495. hearts

  496. are centered

  497. and focused

  498. on him.

  499. We live

  500. in a

  501. day.

  502. We live

  503. in a

  504. time

  505. where

  506. everyone

  507. around us

  508. Christians

  509. and

  510. non-Christians

  511. desperately

  512. seek

  513. the

  514. blessing

  515. of

  516. God

  517. whether

  518. they

  519. know

  520. it's

  521. the

  522. blessing

  523. of

  524. God

  525. or

  526. not.

  527. We live

  528. in a

  529. time

  530. and a

  531. culture

  532. in our

  533. modern

  534. day

  535. Babylon

  536. and that

  537. is not

  538. like a

  539. prophecy

  540. or a

  541. political

  542. statement

  543. alright

  544. but we

  545. live

  546. in a

  547. time

  548. and a

  549. period

  550. marked

  551. by the

  552. pagan

  553. practices

  554. of this

  555. world

  556. and you

  557. can't

  558. convince

  559. me

  560. that we

  561. don't.

  562. We live

  563. in a

  564. time

  565. and a

  566. period

  567. and we're

  568. going to

  569. look at

  570. some

  571. things

  572. later

  573. on

  574. where

  575. a

  576. third

  577. of

  578. the

  579. people

  580. of

  581. the

  582. United

  583. States

  584. 33%

  585. say that

  586. they are

  587. a

  588. Christian

  589. whether

  590. they're

  591. a

  592. Christian

  593. or

  594. not.

  595. So

  596. we're

  597. not

  598. even

  599. close

  600. to

  601. the

  602. majority.

  603. But

  604. what we

  605. deeply

  606. what everyone

  607. wants

  608. what everyone

  609. wants

  610. at their

  611. core

  612. listen to

  613. the

  614. news

  615. talk to

  616. your

  617. friends

  618. think about

  619. this

  620. yourself

  621. we want

  622. satisfaction

  623. we want

  624. to be

  625. satisfied

  626. we want

  627. peace

  628. we want

  629. joy

  630. we want

  631. hope

  632. we want

  633. worth

  634. we want

  635. purpose

  636. the difference

  637. is

  638. the world

  639. can never

  640. fulfill

  641. these blessings

  642. they can only

  643. come

  644. from God

  645. satisfaction

  646. peace

  647. joy

  648. hope

  649. worth

  650. purpose

  651. are not

  652. defined

  653. by the

  654. ways

  655. and means

  656. of this

  657. world

  658. but they're

  659. defined

  660. by the

  661. God

  662. who

  663. gives

  664. them

  665. and who

  666. gives

  667. them

  668. freely

  669. the question

  670. is

  671. as we

  672. stand

  673. in this

  674. day

  675. as we

  676. stand

  677. in this

  678. pagan

  679. culture

  680. that we

  681. live in

  682. heaven

  683. that God

  684. has called

  685. us to

  686. you could

  687. have been

  688. born at

  689. any time

  690. and at

  691. any place

  692. in the

  693. history

  694. of the

  695. world

  696. and God

  697. chose you

  698. for here

  699. and God

  700. chose you

  701. for now

  702. do we

  703. live in a

  704. manner

  705. worthy

  706. and ready

  707. to receive

  708. the blessing

  709. of God

  710. we live

  711. in a

  712. compromised

  713. culture

  714. but we're

  715. called

  716. to be

  717. an

  718. uncompromised

  719. people

  720. Jesus

  721. in his

  722. high

  723. priestly

  724. prayer

  725. prays to

  726. God

  727. prays to

  728. the

  729. Father

  730. and says

  731. that I'm

  732. sending

  733. them

  734. and they

  735. are going

  736. and they

  737. are going

  738. to be

  739. in the

  740. world

  741. just like

  742. we are

  743. in it

  744. but not

  745. of it

  746. what does

  747. that mean

  748. that they

  749. would be

  750. wise

  751. that they

  752. would be

  753. passionate

  754. that they

  755. would be

  756. purposeful

  757. but that

  758. what would

  759. mark them

  760. is the

  761. blessing

  762. and obedience

  763. to God

  764. and not

  765. the

  766. foolishness

  767. of the

  768. world

  769. the question

  770. I have

  771. for you

  772. is we

  773. live

  774. in a

  775. compromised

  776. culture

  777. but are

  778. we a

  779. compromised

  780. people

  781. are we

  782. a

  783. compromised

  784. people

  785. we

  786. in

  787. American

  788. Christianity

  789. and I'm

  790. talking about

  791. all of us

  792. as a whole

  793. all of us

  794. as a whole

  795. not just me

  796. not just you

  797. the churches

  798. down the road

  799. when we look

  800. at our

  801. culture

  802. is

  803. has

  804. American

  805. Christianity

  806. at its

  807. core

  808. become

  809. compromised

  810. now before

  811. we talk about

  812. you and me

  813. this is the

  814. snapshot

  815. I would say

  816. yes

  817. I would

  818. say yes

  819. that as a

  820. whole

  821. American

  822. Christians

  823. that we

  824. are among

  825. a compromised

  826. people

  827. but Daniel

  828. decided

  829. I came

  830. from a

  831. disobedient

  832. people

  833. I'm in

  834. a disobedient

  835. land with

  836. a new

  837. disobedient

  838. people

  839. that I'm

  840. going to

  841. be a

  842. man of

  843. God

  844. who's

  845. going to

  846. be

  847. uncompromised

  848. in who

  849. I am

  850. and are

  851. you and I

  852. willing to

  853. make that

  854. same

  855. stand

  856. I'm going

  857. to share

  858. some

  859. statistics

  860. with you

  861. this morning

  862. there are

  863. some glaring

  864. issues that

  865. are probably

  866. more hot

  867. topics than

  868. the statistics

  869. and the

  870. issues that

  871. I'm going to

  872. look at

  873. this morning

  874. some of

  875. those would

  876. be divorce

  877. sexuality

  878. pornography

  879. chemical

  880. dependence

  881. issues

  882. the list

  883. goes on

  884. and on

  885. which by

  886. the way

  887. in those

  888. just quickly

  889. again

  890. divorce

  891. sexuality

  892. pornography

  893. chemical

  894. dependence

  895. issues

  896. that are

  897. rampant

  898. in our

  899. culture

  900. today

  901. the

  902. percentage

  903. of those

  904. outside of

  905. the church

  906. who engage

  907. in these

  908. activities

  909. and many

  910. of them

  911. those statistics

  912. are the

  913. same

  914. and if

  915. they're not

  916. the same

  917. the number

  918. of Christians

  919. engaging in

  920. those is

  921. growing at

  922. the same

  923. rate and

  924. at the same

  925. percentage that

  926. the world is

  927. growing

  928. so even in

  929. those big

  930. hot topic

  931. ones that

  932. we all want

  933. to look at

  934. and we all

  935. want to talk

  936. about

  937. we're there

  938. we're

  939. compromised

  940. but Daniel

  941. his

  942. the opportunity

  943. for him to

  944. give in

  945. was on

  946. a more

  947. everyday

  948. subtle

  949. stand

  950. it was

  951. food

  952. it was

  953. on food

  954. it wasn't

  955. attendance in

  956. the temple

  957. it wasn't

  958. on sacrifices

  959. to idols

  960. it was

  961. on food

  962. and here's

  963. what I think

  964. is crazy

  965. and very

  966. interesting

  967. about this

  968. when it

  969. comes to

  970. the issue

  971. with food

  972. is that

  973. no one

  974. blames

  975. a hungry

  976. person

  977. no one

  978. blames

  979. someone

  980. who can

  981. find

  982. great

  983. justification

  984. in their

  985. mind

  986. that they

  987. will partake

  988. in this

  989. act

  990. even though

  991. they're not

  992. supposed to

  993. no one

  994. would blame

  995. them

  996. how do I

  997. know that

  998. because if I

  999. asked in here

  1000. how many of

  1001. you have

  1002. ever been

  1003. on a diet

  1004. I would

  1005. be willing

  1006. to bet

  1007. if you're

  1008. over the

  1009. age of

  1010. 30

  1011. you'd

  1012. raise

  1013. your hand

  1014. if I

  1015. then asked

  1016. you

  1017. how many

  1018. of you

  1019. have ever

  1020. cheated

  1021. on that

  1022. diet

  1023. the same

  1024. number

  1025. of hands

  1026. would go

  1027. up

  1028. right

  1029. we're

  1030. we're

  1031. people

  1032. who

  1033. compromise

  1034. even

  1035. in the

  1036. everyday

  1037. but Daniel

  1038. stood with

  1039. the resolve

  1040. so I'm

  1041. going to talk

  1042. about three

  1043. areas this

  1044. morning

  1045. share some

  1046. statistics

  1047. and hopefully

  1048. see that you'll

  1049. begin to

  1050. understand that

  1051. more at the

  1052. core not

  1053. even just in

  1054. the big

  1055. topics

  1056. but in

  1057. the everyday

  1058. that we're

  1059. we're part

  1060. of a

  1061. compromise

  1062. people

  1063. and are

  1064. you

  1065. compromised

  1066. first one

  1067. is money

  1068. money

  1069. we live

  1070. in a

  1071. time

  1072. where great

  1073. level

  1074. of importance

  1075. just as it

  1076. always been

  1077. has been

  1078. placed with

  1079. money

  1080. how much

  1081. money can

  1082. you get

  1083. how much

  1084. money can

  1085. you obtain

  1086. what can

  1087. you do

  1088. with your

  1089. money

  1090. what would

  1091. you do

  1092. to get

  1093. more

  1094. money

  1095. and as

  1096. Christians

  1097. speaking as

  1098. a whole

  1099. right for

  1100. these

  1101. we've

  1102. become

  1103. compromised

  1104. read this

  1105. statistic

  1106. this week

  1107. baffled

  1108. my mind

  1109. the statistics

  1110. came from

  1111. 2024

  1112. so it's

  1113. relevant in

  1114. today's time

  1115. the average

  1116. American

  1117. family

  1118. I'm

  1119. sorry

  1120. the average

  1121. Christian

  1122. American

  1123. family

  1124. their

  1125. average

  1126. weekly

  1127. offering

  1128. is

  1129. seventeen

  1130. dollars

  1131. seventeen

  1132. dollars

  1133. which

  1134. means

  1135. that over

  1136. the course

  1137. of the

  1138. year

  1139. the average

  1140. American

  1141. Christian

  1142. family

  1143. gives

  1144. eight

  1145. hundred

  1146. and eighty

  1147. four

  1148. dollars

  1149. to

  1150. gospel

  1151. work

  1152. the

  1153. average

  1154. American

  1155. family

  1156. spends

  1157. one

  1158. thousand

  1159. five hundred

  1160. and sixty

  1161. five dollars

  1162. per year

  1163. on streaming

  1164. and internet

  1165. the

  1166. average

  1167. American

  1168. family

  1169. spends

  1170. one

  1171. thousand

  1172. five hundred

  1173. dollars

  1174. per

  1175. child

  1176. to

  1177. participate

  1178. in

  1179. sports

  1180. the

  1181. average

  1182. American

  1183. family

  1184. spends

  1185. one

  1186. thousand

  1187. three

  1188. hundred

  1189. and sixty

  1190. five

  1191. dollars

  1192. on their

  1193. family

  1194. cell phone

  1195. plan

  1196. I would

  1197. like to

  1198. switch to

  1199. that

  1200. provider

  1201. the

  1202. average

  1203. American

  1204. family

  1205. spends

  1206. two

  1207. thousand

  1208. eight

  1209. hundred

  1210. and forty

  1211. three

  1212. dollars

  1213. on their

  1214. summer

  1215. vacation

  1216. here's

  1217. what that

  1218. means

  1219. if we

  1220. and we

  1221. are a

  1222. part of

  1223. the culture

  1224. as a

  1225. whole

  1226. which we

  1227. are

  1228. these numbers

  1229. apply to

  1230. us

  1231. which means

  1232. this

  1233. the average

  1234. American

  1235. Christian

  1236. family

  1237. spends

  1238. eight

  1239. times

  1240. the amount

  1241. of money

  1242. on

  1243. entertainment

  1244. than they do

  1245. the gospel

  1246. we might

  1247. not

  1248. say it

  1249. but we

  1250. care more

  1251. about Netflix

  1252. than the

  1253. gospel

  1254. we might

  1255. not say

  1256. it

  1257. but we

  1258. care more

  1259. about sports

  1260. than the

  1261. gospel

  1262. we might

  1263. not say

  1264. it

  1265. but we

  1266. care more

  1267. about

  1268. dipping

  1269. our toes

  1270. in the

  1271. sand

  1272. than we

  1273. do

  1274. about

  1275. eternity

  1276. as a

  1277. culture

  1278. we become

  1279. compromised

  1280. are you

  1281. are you

  1282. I don't

  1283. know

  1284. I've not

  1285. seen anyone's

  1286. bank account

  1287. I don't

  1288. know what

  1289. you do

  1290. give and

  1291. what you

  1292. don't

  1293. give

  1294. I don't

  1295. know what

  1296. you do

  1297. pay

  1298. and what

  1299. you don't

  1300. pay

  1301. but I

  1302. know what

  1303. these numbers

  1304. tell me

  1305. is that

  1306. we live

  1307. in a

  1308. compromised

  1309. culture

  1310. are you

  1311. part of

  1312. the

  1313. compromise

  1314. the second

  1315. area

  1316. is time

  1317. time

  1318. again

  1319. one third

  1320. one third

  1321. of the

  1322. U.S.

  1323. population

  1324. says they're

  1325. Christians

  1326. a poll

  1327. was done

  1328. and if

  1329. you in

  1330. that poll

  1331. identified

  1332. yourself

  1333. as a

  1334. Christian

  1335. specifically

  1336. an

  1337. evangelical

  1338. Christian

  1339. follower

  1340. of Jesus

  1341. Christ

  1342. and the

  1343. question was

  1344. about church

  1345. attendance

  1346. 30%

  1347. say that

  1348. I attend

  1349. church

  1350. almost

  1351. every week

  1352. almost

  1353. every week

  1354. so

  1355. they're

  1356. there

  1357. 14%

  1358. twice

  1359. a month

  1360. these are

  1361. people who

  1362. are curious

  1363. these people

  1364. I'm a

  1365. follower of

  1366. Jesus

  1367. 13%

  1368. once a

  1369. month

  1370. 27%

  1371. seldom

  1372. 16%

  1373. blows my

  1374. mind

  1375. never

  1376. never

  1377. so here's

  1378. what that

  1379. means

  1380. 56%

  1381. of

  1382. American

  1383. Christians

  1384. will

  1385. 56%

  1386. will

  1387. spend

  1388. one

  1389. hour

  1390. a month

  1391. or less

  1392. in worship

  1393. 56%

  1394. of

  1395. people

  1396. who say

  1397. Jesus

  1398. died on

  1399. the cross

  1400. and rose

  1401. from the

  1402. grave

  1403. and created

  1404. the church

  1405. and

  1406. call us

  1407. to be

  1408. a part

  1409. of it

  1410. 56%

  1411. spend

  1412. one

  1413. hour

  1414. a month

  1415. or less

  1416. worshiping

  1417. him

  1418. with their

  1419. brothers

  1420. and sisters

  1421. in Christ

  1422. back to

  1423. our

  1424. American

  1425. culture

  1426. but yet

  1427. the average

  1428. American

  1429. spends

  1430. 72

  1431. hours

  1432. a month

  1433. on social

  1434. media

  1435. the average

  1436. American

  1437. will spend

  1438. 105 hours

  1439. a month

  1440. on a

  1441. streaming

  1442. service

  1443. so Lord

  1444. we're going

  1445. to give

  1446. you an

  1447. hour

  1448. but we're

  1449. going to

  1450. give

  1451. Instagram

  1452. 72

  1453. Lord

  1454. we're going

  1455. to give

  1456. you an

  1457. hour

  1458. but we're

  1459. going to

  1460. give

  1461. Apple

  1462. TV

  1463. 105

  1464. our

  1465. culture

  1466. is

  1467. compromised

  1468. are you

  1469. lastly

  1470. vulnerability

  1471. vulnerability

  1472. here's

  1473. what I mean

  1474. by vulnerability

  1475. making

  1476. transparent

  1477. who you

  1478. actually

  1479. are

  1480. I believe

  1481. that

  1482. as God

  1483. saves us

  1484. and we see

  1485. this especially

  1486. in our

  1487. New Testament

  1488. writings

  1489. we see it

  1490. in David

  1491. in the

  1492. Psalms

  1493. we see it

  1494. throughout

  1495. the scripture

  1496. that men

  1497. and women

  1498. of faith

  1499. are very

  1500. vulnerable

  1501. open

  1502. and honest

  1503. about who

  1504. they are

  1505. and their

  1506. shortcomings

  1507. and their

  1508. failures

  1509. and their

  1510. sins

  1511. and God's

  1512. glorious

  1513. plan in

  1514. their life

  1515. they're

  1516. vulnerable

  1517. and the

  1518. reason why

  1519. I include

  1520. vulnerability

  1521. is

  1522. I believe

  1523. in order

  1524. for discipleship

  1525. and evangelism

  1526. to happen

  1527. not just

  1528. check boxes

  1529. not just

  1530. attend something

  1531. because it's

  1532. there

  1533. that for

  1534. discipleship

  1535. and evangelism

  1536. to happen

  1537. that you've

  1538. got to

  1539. open up

  1540. yourself

  1541. of who

  1542. you are

  1543. not just

  1544. in leading

  1545. but in

  1546. being a

  1547. part of

  1548. the process

  1549. in discipleship

  1550. meaning you

  1551. have to be

  1552. willing to

  1553. say I'm

  1554. busted

  1555. and I'm

  1556. not okay

  1557. and I need

  1558. you to

  1559. pour into

  1560. me

  1561. so that the

  1562. Holy Spirit

  1563. can do

  1564. work in my

  1565. life

  1566. because I'm

  1567. not okay

  1568. and I need

  1569. to be

  1570. more like

  1571. Christ

  1572. in evangelism

  1573. you and I

  1574. have to

  1575. acknowledge

  1576. that we

  1577. were not

  1578. okay

  1579. we're still

  1580. not okay

  1581. but the

  1582. beauty of

  1583. that is

  1584. God doesn't

  1585. say to me

  1586. come to me

  1587. when you're

  1588. okay

  1589. but God

  1590. says come

  1591. to me

  1592. with all

  1593. your filth

  1594. all your

  1595. nasty

  1596. all your

  1597. whatever

  1598. and I'm

  1599. not just

  1600. going to

  1601. make you

  1602. okay

  1603. I'm

  1604. going to

  1605. make you

  1606. righteous

  1607. before me

  1608. vulnerability

  1609. discipleship

  1610. in evangelism

  1611. of the

  1612. third of

  1613. americans

  1614. that

  1615. attend

  1616. protestant

  1617. evangelical

  1618. church

  1619. 28%

  1620. higher than

  1621. I thought

  1622. it would

  1623. be

  1624. 28%

  1625. are engaged

  1626. in

  1627. discipleship

  1628. 28%

  1629. however

  1630. 50%

  1631. 50%

  1632. of

  1633. american

  1634. culture

  1635. is a

  1636. part of

  1637. some

  1638. social

  1639. club

  1640. means

  1641. that

  1642. as we've

  1643. assimilated

  1644. into

  1645. culture

  1646. 22%

  1647. more

  1648. are engaged

  1649. in a

  1650. social

  1651. club

  1652. on

  1653. average

  1654. than

  1655. they

  1656. are

  1657. in

  1658. growing

  1659. in

  1660. their

  1661. walk

  1662. with

  1663. other

  1664. believers

  1665. and I

  1666. get

  1667. you can

  1668. say

  1669. but you

  1670. don't

  1671. know

  1672. what

  1673. people

  1674. do

  1675. when

  1676. they're

  1677. alone

  1678. I

  1679. agree

  1680. I

  1681. agree

  1682. and if

  1683. I felt

  1684. like

  1685. they'd

  1686. be

  1687. honest

  1688. about

  1689. their

  1690. quiet

  1691. times

  1692. we'd

  1693. share

  1694. those

  1695. statistics

  1696. too

  1697. but what

  1698. I

  1699. believe

  1700. is that

  1701. God

  1702. has

  1703. called

  1704. us

  1705. to

  1706. not

  1707. forsake

  1708. the

  1709. gathering

  1710. that

  1711. God

  1712. has

  1713. created

  1714. the

  1715. church

  1716. and

  1717. called

  1718. us

  1719. to

  1720. be

  1721. together

  1722. that

  1723. God

  1724. has

  1725. taught

  1726. us

  1727. to

  1728. bear

  1729. with

  1730. bear

  1731. up

  1732. work

  1733. through

  1734. one

  1735. another

  1736. to teach

  1737. to challenge

  1738. and that

  1739. I need

  1740. you and

  1741. that you

  1742. need me

  1743. and that

  1744. we need

  1745. each

  1746. other

  1747. 28%

  1748. 50%

  1749. last

  1750. statistic

  1751. of the

  1752. morning

  1753. evangelism

  1754. evangelism

  1755. 90%

  1756. of

  1757. Christians

  1758. American

  1759. Christians

  1760. polled

  1761. 90%

  1762. believe

  1763. that

  1764. sharing

  1765. your

  1766. faith

  1767. is an

  1768. important

  1769. thing

  1770. now

  1771. I'm

  1772. going to

  1773. seek

  1774. to be

  1775. the

  1776. optimist

  1777. on

  1778. that

  1779. and

  1780. not

  1781. question

  1782. what

  1783. the

  1784. other

  1785. 10%

  1786. think

  1787. but

  1788. say

  1789. that's

  1790. great

  1791. 90%

  1792. of

  1793. American

  1794. Christians

  1795. believe

  1796. that it

  1797. is

  1798. important

  1799. to

  1800. share

  1801. your

  1802. faith

  1803. however

  1804. 5%

  1805. of

  1806. American

  1807. Christians

  1808. 1

  1809. 2

  1810. 3

  1811. 4

  1812. 5

  1813. 5%

  1814. say

  1815. that

  1816. they've

  1817. actually

  1818. ever

  1819. talked

  1820. to

  1821. someone

  1822. about

  1823. Jesus

  1824. 5%

  1825. 5

  1826. 5%

  1827. of

  1828. a

  1829. sit

  1830. down

  1831. over

  1832. a

  1833. cup

  1834. of

  1835. coffee

  1836. a

  1837. conversation

  1838. at

  1839. the

  1840. dinner

  1841. table

  1842. a

  1843. point

  1844. of

  1845. brokenness

  1846. where

  1847. someone's

  1848. at the

  1849. bottom

  1850. and

  1851. they need

  1852. to know

  1853. which way's

  1854. up

  1855. and

  1856. 5%

  1857. of

  1858. American

  1859. Christians

  1860. in the

  1861. culture

  1862. we

  1863. live

  1864. in

  1865. have

  1866. ever

  1867. and are

  1868. looking to

  1869. talk to

  1870. someone

  1871. about

  1872. Jesus

  1873. but

  1874. 42%

  1875. of

  1876. Americans

  1877. will get

  1878. on

  1879. Facebook

  1880. Twitter

  1881. X

  1882. whatever it's

  1883. called this

  1884. week

  1885. Instagram

  1886. Snapchat

  1887. and make

  1888. a post

  1889. 42%

  1890. but

  1891. 5%

  1892. 5%

  1893. are

  1894. willing to

  1895. talk to

  1896. someone

  1897. about

  1898. Jesus

  1899. we

  1900. live

  1901. in a

  1902. compromised

  1903. culture

  1904. are

  1905. you

  1906. willing

  1907. today

  1908. Daniel

  1909. 1

  1910. 8

  1911. but

  1912. today

  1913. Bo

  1914. and

  1915. today

  1916. Rick

  1917. and

  1918. today

  1919. Heather

  1920. and

  1921. today

  1922. Michelle

  1923. and

  1924. today

  1925. Joel

  1926. and

  1927. today

  1928. Emma

  1929. and

  1930. today

  1931. Chris

  1932. resolved

  1933. in

  1934. who

  1935. we

  1936. are

  1937. in

  1938. mind

  1939. in

  1940. will

  1941. and in

  1942. feeling

  1943. that

  1944. I

  1945. will

  1946. not

  1947. defile

  1948. myself

  1949. for

  1950. his

  1951. name

  1952. and

  1953. his

  1954. glory

  1955. would

  1956. you pray

  1957. with me

  1958. God I

  1959. thank you

  1960. for the

  1961. goodness

  1962. of your

  1963. word

  1964. God I

  1965. thank you

  1966. for the

  1967. conviction

  1968. of your

  1969. Holy

  1970. Spirit

  1971. God the

  1972. list of

  1973. proving

  1974. that we

  1975. live in a

  1976. compromised

  1977. American

  1978. culture

  1979. could go

  1980. on

  1981. and on

  1982. and on

  1983. the

  1984. evidence

  1985. largely

  1986. speaking

  1987. that

  1988. people

  1989. who

  1990. call

  1991. themselves

  1992. Christians

  1993. have

  1994. also

  1995. compromised

  1996. could go

  1997. on

  1998. and on

  1999. and on

  2000. God we

  2001. can leave

  2002. here this

  2003. morning

  2004. defeated

  2005. and

  2006. deflated

  2007. but the

  2008. good news

  2009. Lord

  2010. is that

  2011. in your

  2012. kindness

  2013. and in

  2014. your love

  2015. as you

  2016. called

  2017. your

  2018. people

  2019. as you

  2020. called

  2021. Judah

  2022. back to

  2023. you

  2024. God you

  2025. call us

  2026. to you

  2027. and Lord

  2028. right now

  2029. we are

  2030. found

  2031. in a

  2032. time

  2033. where as

  2034. you call

  2035. us

  2036. and we're

  2037. made aware

  2038. of our

  2039. sin in

  2040. our life

  2041. God what

  2042. you give

  2043. us what

  2044. you grant

  2045. us what

  2046. you overflow

  2047. to us

  2048. God is

  2049. not your

  2050. wrath is

  2051. not your

  2052. judgment but

  2053. God it is

  2054. your grace

  2055. it is your

  2056. kindness it is

  2057. your compassion

  2058. that God we

  2059. can go from

  2060. those who

  2061. have compromised

  2062. compromised

  2063. ourselves

  2064. to coming

  2065. to an

  2066. uncompromised

  2067. God

  2068. who offers

  2069. his love

  2070. to us

  2071. so God

  2072. as we read

  2073. through these

  2074. as we

  2075. as we think

  2076. through these

  2077. Lord as

  2078. your spirit

  2079. as your spirit

  2080. leads us

  2081. may it not

  2082. bring us

  2083. to

  2084. a defeat

  2085. of I'm not

  2086. good enough

  2087. but may it

  2088. bring us

  2089. to the

  2090. victory

  2091. that I'm

  2092. not good

  2093. enough

  2094. but Jesus

  2095. is

  2096. and so

  2097. God whether

  2098. it's money

  2099. whether it's

  2100. time

  2101. whether it's

  2102. discipleship

  2103. whether it's

  2104. evangelism

  2105. whether it's

  2106. the way that

  2107. we see

  2108. people

  2109. whether it's

  2110. the words

  2111. that we

  2112. say

  2113. whether it's

  2114. how we

  2115. treat one

  2116. another

  2117. whether it's

  2118. how we

  2119. think of

  2120. people

  2121. who are

  2122. different

  2123. than us

  2124. whether it's

  2125. what we

  2126. look at

  2127. on the

  2128. computer

  2129. God no

  2130. matter where

  2131. we've

  2132. compromised

  2133. ourselves

  2134. may we

  2135. understand

  2136. that your

  2137. grace is

  2138. enough

  2139. God in

  2140. that in

  2141. the power

  2142. of your

  2143. spirit

  2144. there is

  2145. victory

  2146. and it's

  2147. what you

  2148. call us

  2149. to

  2150. God if

  2151. there's

  2152. anyone here

  2153. today

  2154. they don't

  2155. know Jesus

  2156. Christ is

  2157. their Lord

  2158. and Savior

  2159. and they're

  2160. here this

  2161. morning

  2162. thinking

  2163. okay well

  2164. what do I

  2165. need to do

  2166. what are the

  2167. rules that I

  2168. need to follow

  2169. what's the

  2170. process that I

  2171. need to put

  2172. in place

  2173. God if they

  2174. could bring

  2175. these three

  2176. things to

  2177. you

  2178. it's not

  2179. about the

  2180. rules

  2181. God

  2182. because you

  2183. tell us

  2184. that we're

  2185. saved

  2186. by grace

  2187. through faith

  2188. so figuratively

  2189. Lord we

  2190. could lay

  2191. these three

  2192. things before

  2193. you

  2194. and coming

  2195. to Christ

  2196. we could

  2197. lay our

  2198. past

  2199. all that

  2200. we've

  2201. done

  2202. all that

  2203. we've

  2204. committed

  2205. every failure

  2206. every sin

  2207. every offense

  2208. lay the past

  2209. before you

  2210. God today

  2211. not only

  2212. to lay

  2213. our past

  2214. but to lay

  2215. our present

  2216. of who we

  2217. are

  2218. of how we

  2219. define

  2220. ourselves

  2221. with the

  2222. decisions

  2223. that we

  2224. make

  2225. that I'm

  2226. no longer

  2227. who I

  2228. was

  2229. but I

  2230. now

  2231. who I

  2232. am in

  2233. Christ

  2234. and that

  2235. we lay

  2236. our future

  2237. the next

  2238. step

  2239. that we

  2240. take

  2241. the next

  2242. breath

  2243. that we

  2244. take

  2245. the next

  2246. thought

  2247. that we

  2248. think

  2249. the next

  2250. action

  2251. that we

  2252. have

  2253. God

  2254. they're

  2255. in your

  2256. hand

  2257. have them

  2258. and do

  2259. with them

  2260. as you

  2261. please

  2262. and so

  2263. Lord you

  2264. have our

  2265. tomorrow

  2266. but Lord

  2267. you also

  2268. have our

  2269. eternity

  2270. God thank

  2271. you

  2272. thank you

  2273. Lord

  2274. that this

  2275. week

  2276. you continue

  2277. to do

  2278. so

  2279. you show

  2280. me in

  2281. your

  2282. kindness

  2283. and goodness

  2284. where I've

  2285. wandered

  2286. God today

  2287. through the

  2288. power of

  2289. your spirit

  2290. may I

  2291. resolve

  2292. may I

  2293. resolve

  2294. that I

  2295. will not

  2296. defile

  2297. myself

  2298. but that

  2299. in who

  2300. I am

  2301. and what

  2302. I do

  2303. I bring

  2304. glory

  2305. and honor

  2306. to your

  2307. name

  2308. let's

  2309. send

  2310. Jesus

  2311. let me

  2312. pray

  2313. that's

  2314. it for

  2315. this

  2316. week's

  2317. message

  2318. be sure

  2319. to check

  2320. back next

  2321. week for

  2322. a new

  2323. episode

  2324. and in

  2325. the meantime

  2326. you can

  2327. visit us

  2328. online at

  2329. willowridgechurch.org

  2330. or by searching

  2331. for Willow Ridge

  2332. Church on

  2333. Facebook

  2334. Instagram

  2335. and YouTube

  2336. thanks again

  2337. for listening

  2338. and YouTube