Taking a Stand for Jesus

"Don't push it Back up, pray and trust Me"

"Don't push it Back up, pray and trust Me" Whole gospel with Public Speaking class

"It's time for Christians To stand up and fight!"

Presuppositions: - Our Purpose as believers And as the church - Our ownership

Jesus' Purpose: To seek and to save…? I have not come to call the righteous, but…?

No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him - 2 Tim. 2:4

Our Purpose: "Go therefore and make…?" "You will receive power… You will be my…?"

Second: We don't own it But we steward it By how we live, vote Pray and influence

The "Unoffendable" Question

I feel the same way Esp. as I watch videos From certain pastors Talking boycotts, votes And hellfire

The question isn't: What do I feel like I should do? What will "show them!"? What will get the right results?

The question is: What has Jesus called us to do? What did he do?

Knowing when to take a stand And how to take a stand Gives God room to work

OT and NT

In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it

And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, with some of the vessels of the house of God

And he brought them to the land of Shinar, to the house of his god, and placed the vessels in the treasury of his god And he brought them to the land of Shinar, to the house of his god, and placed the vessels in the treasury of his god

Then the king commanded Ashpenaz, his chief eunuch, to bring some of the people of Israel, both of the royal family and of the nobility

…youths without blemish, of good appearance and skillful in all wisdom, endowed with knowledge, understanding learning, and competent to stand in the king's palace…

…and to teach them the literature and language of the Chaldeans

The king assigned them a daily portion of the food that the king ate, and of the wine that he drank

They were to be educated for three years, and at the end of that time they were to stand before the king

Among these were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah of the tribe of Judah

And the chief of the eunuchs gave them names: Daniel he called Belteshazzar, Hananiah he called Shadrach, Mishael he called Meshach, and Azariah he called Abednego

At what point Do you take a stand? Defiled sacred temple items! Named after their gods!

Knowing when to take a stand And how to take a stand Gives God room to work

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

I won't act contrary to what God has explicitly commanded For his people

So how do you take a stand?

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

And God gave Daniel favor and compassion in the sight of the chief of the eunuchs, and the chief of the eunuchs said to Daniel…

“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 of your own age?

So you would endanger my head with the king”

A'ight- Now it's Go Time #JewWanSummaDis?

Then Daniel said to the steward whom the chief of the eunuchs had assigned over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah…

“Test your servants for ten days; let us be given vegetables to eat and water to drink

Then let our appearance and the appearance of the youths who eat the king's food be observed by you, and deal with your servants according to what you see”

So he listened to them in this matter, and tested them for ten days Trusting God to come through

Could it be that one of the Reasons God's people Fight so hard against the culture Is that they don't believe in a God who will come through?

At the end of ten days it was seen that they were better in appearance and fatter in flesh than all the youths who ate the king's food

So the steward took away their food and the wine they were to drink, and gave them vegetables - Daniel 1:1-16

When do I take a stand? Not when I'm offended but When I can't and still follow God How do I take a stand? Respectfully and with wisdom

…in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy…

…always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect…

…having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame - 1 Peter 3:15-16

When? Not when I'm offended but When I can't and still follow God How? Respectfully and with wisdom

King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold, whose height was sixty cubits and its breadth six cubits. He set it up on the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon

When do they take a stand?

*Some assembly required (Jews not included)

When do they take a stand?

“You are commanded, O peoples, nations, and languages, that when you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music…

…you are to fall down and worship the golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up

And whoever does not fall down and worship shall immediately be cast into a burning fiery furnace”

When do they take a stand?

Knowing when to take a stand And how to take a stand Gives God room to work

Therefore, as soon as all the peoples heard the sound…all the peoples, nations, and languages fell down and worshiped the golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up

Therefore at that time certain Chaldeans came forward and maliciously accused the Jews

They declared to King Nebuchadnezzar, “O king, live forever! You, O king, have made a decree…

…that every man who hears the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, shall fall down and worship the golden image

And whoever does not fall down and worship shall be cast into a burning fiery furnace

There are certain Jews whom you have appointed over the affairs of the province of Babylon: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego

These men, O king, pay no attention to you; they do not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up”

Easiest person to manipulate: Someone full of ego

Don't want to be manipulated? Be humble and unoffendable You can only be manipulated If something you want

Then Nebuchadnezzar in furious rage commanded that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought

So they brought these men before the king. Nebuchadnezzar answered and said to them…

“Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the golden image that I have set up?

Now if you are ready when you hear the sound of the horn, pipe…and every kind of music, to fall down and worship the image that I have made, well and good

But if you do not worship, you shall immediately be cast into a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who will deliver you out of my hands?”

When do you take a stand? How do you take a stand?

Knowing when to take a stand And how to take a stand Gives God room to work

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter

If this be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king

But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up”

Knowing when to take a stand And how to take a stand Gives God room to work

7 times hotter = dead guards

7 times hotter = dead guards and… 3 men plus a "son of the gods"

Nebuchadnezzar answered and said, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent his angel and delivered his servants, who trusted in him…

…and set aside the king's command, and yielded up their bodies rather than serve and worship any god except their own God

Do you believe it enough That you're willing to die for it? Or would you just rather shout On social media, boycott And hold signs?

Therefore I make a decree: Any people, nation, or language that speaks anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego shall be torn limb from limb…

…and their houses laid in ruins, for there is no other god who is able to rescue in this way” - Daniel 3

Knowing when to take a stand And how to take a stand Gives God room to work

The King who was commanding That God be profaned Is now commanding that People honor God

3 High Officials Over Babylon Including Daniel

Then the high officials and the satraps sought to find a ground for complaint against Daniel with regard to the kingdom…

…but they could find no ground for complaint or any fault, because he was faithful, and no error or fault was found in him

Then these men said, “We shall not find any ground for complaint against this Daniel unless we find it in connection with the law of his God”

We will attack him In the one area Where he can't compromise (They know that about him)

To King Darius (the new guy): We should totes have a law, bro No one prays unless it's to you For like 30 days and such

Dude, I'm down Let's throw them to the Lions if they wuss out on this Oh yeah! Goin' down for realz!

Law that is signed Cannot be revoked

When do you take a stand? How do you take a stand?

Knowing when to take a stand And how to take a stand Gives God room to work

When Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he went to his house where he had windows in his upper chamber open toward Jerusalem When Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he went to his house where he had windows in his upper chamber open toward Jerusalem

He got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God…

See? Daniel is involved In civil disobedience Just to show them that They can't push him around!

He got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God as he had done previously - Daniel 6

Let the nation do what it does Let cultural dictates continue to change You do what you've already Committed to

O Kingly Dude! Daniel srsly didn't care O noes! I like him Lion's Den, but safe and freed

OK…that's Old Testament That's Babylon and Jews What about Christians today In America?

…we urge you…to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you…

…so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one - 1 Thess. 4

What's our goal? What's our charge from Jesus? Better laws? Or changed hearts?

Yelling at the culture Says I care about me and mine Loving and engaging people Says I care about Jesus And trust him for me and mine

Yeah, but look at what they're Doing to my country! It's not yours… Your primary citizenship: heaven Change here comes from Jesus

When culture embraces False gods Coercive discourse And shifting moral truth What is needed most is…gospel

Which Did Jesus Do? - Fight- put up barriers - Flight- make a beeline - Facilitate- build a bridge

Gay, Straight, Bi, Trans Conservative or Liberal Pro-gun or anti-gun Don't miss the point Just to make your points

…always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect - 1 Peter 3:15

Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone - Colossians 4:6

Yelling at the culture Says I care about me and mine Loving and engaging people Says I care about Jesus And trust him for me and mine

Knowing when to take a stand And how to take a stand Gives God room to work

But if we don't stand up…? Maybe this is happening because Christians have been silent for too long!

Late '70s/early '80s Christians aren't known For being silent So…has it changed for good Or for bad?

Take a stand? Take a knee and pray first Never underestimate prayer

IF I call myself By the name of Jesus What does my FB wall Most reflect: Causes? Politics? A desire to make Jesus known?

Am I known for hating People who disagree politically? For pushing my causes? For loving Jesus most of all?

Pray Questions, Comments Disagreements

Today: BrauBurgers

Next Week: Baptisms at 1 PM