Fearless | Session 1 | Daniel
Sermon • Submitted
0 ratings
· 9 viewsNotes
Transcript
- Fear. It’s something we all live with. Listening to people talk about what they are afraid of can be funny, right? Spiders. Snakes. Roaches. I interviewed my roommates, and these were some of their answers. I asked them to share an embarrassing thing that they are scared, and these were interesting.
- Starting off, I’ll go first. When I was little, we used to have a shed where we stored things, outdoor equipment, bikes, lawn chairs, etc. Just a generic storage shed. (SHARE RAGGEDY ANNE STORY)
TOP TEN FEARS LIST - 2020
10. necrophobia - fear of death
9. brontophobia - fear of thunderstorms
8. cancerphobia - fear of developing cancer
7. acrophobia - heights
6. emetophobia - fear of throwing up
5. claustrophobia - enclosed spaces
4. agoraphobia - open or public spaces
3. aerophobia - fear of flying
2. social phobia - social or public situations
arachnophobia - spiders
Raggedy Anne. - TOM
Lobsters in the tank. - ALEX
Bugs in my fruit. - ADAM
ANY SIZE SNAKE CAN EAT ME, EVEN THE SMALL ONES. - MEREDITH
But guess what? For those people who is afraid of the monsters under their bed, they are still scared. Fear is real. And fear keeps us from being ourself.
When we get older, the things that scare us change. As a teenager you may not be afraid of the dark anymore. But there are other things that you fear. Other things that keep you from being you. I WILL BE HONEST, I AM STILL TERRIFIED OF RAGGEDY ANNE. And if we’re totally honest with ourselves, the fear we feel that’s associated with our faith keeps us from being who God wants us to be.
What are the things in your life that keep you from fully engaging in the plan God has set before you?
- Is it insecurity?
- Do you doubt yourself?
- Maybe you fear how people will react to you if you stand up or stand out.
- Maybe you’re afraid your voice doesn’t matter very much.
- Or maybe you simply fear failure.
- You’re living under the weight of unrealistic expectations set by you or others, and you’re worried what will happen if you risk making a move.
Whatever it is that you fear, you need to know this: God is calling you to face your fears.
TIRED OF BEING ON THE SIDELINES AND HIDING FROM YOUR FEARS
If you’re tired of your fear keeping you on the sidelines of what God wants to do through you, then hey, this event is for you.
The things in your life that keep you from having an impact on the world? They don’t have to.
With God’s help, you can overcome them. You can be fearless. And your life, and this world will never be the same.
- Teaching Point 1: We can fearlessly trust that God will be faithful when it seems like there’s no way out.
(((First, provide a little background on who Daniel was and how he found himself in the situation he was in. Lead students to grasp the following:)))
WHO WAS DANIEL?
- Daniel was a young Jewish guy who came from a noble family.
- When the Babylonians attacked the southern kingdom of Judah roughly 600 years before Jesus was born, they carried off many of the Jews and took them to Babylon to live.
- Along with the other best and brightest young Jewish people, Daniel was identified as someone with the potential to serve the Babylonian king, King Nebuchadnezzar.
- And so Daniel was trained in the king’s courts for three years in Babylonian language, customs, and culture.
- The only problem is that Daniel wanted to stay true to God and God’s ways.
- He didn’t want to give in to the culture around him.
- Daniel faced tremendous pressure to turn from God and become like the Babylonians.
- We’re going to see some examples of how Daniel remained bold in the face of such pressure.
Instruct students to turn to Daniel 1. While they’re finding it, provide some context for the passage you’re about to read. Say something like:
Part of Daniel being trained to serve in the king’s court was to eat the food served in the king’s palace. The only problem is that this violated the dietary restrictions God had set out for His people, the Israelites, in the Law thousands of years earlier. This may not seem like a big deal to us, but to Daniel observing the Law was huge. It was how he served and worshipped God. And so where we’re about to pick up, Daniel is refusing to eat the king’s food. Which is a really, really big deal. Let’s see how it turns out.
Then, read Daniel 1:8-16:
But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the king’s food, or with the wine that he drank. 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.” 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. 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.
God did a miraculous thing here.
God enabled Daniel and his friends to abstain from eating the king’s food and to only eat vegetables and water instead.
And instead of looking sickly and emaciated, they looked healthier than the others!
This was God working in Daniel’s life in a way that only God could have worked.
I don’t know about y’all, but it would take a lot of faith not to eat whatever kind of meat they would have.
Y’all pay attention here: Daniel being a captive, even though he’s in a good position
Can you imagine what it is like to be Daniels?
He’s a prisoner in a foreign land.
And while he has landed in a pretty good position (he could have been a slave or a laborer of some sort) he’s still at the mercy of his captors.
Can you imagine the boldness it took to stand up for what he believed in?
Daniel boldly stood up for what he believed in, trusting God to take care of it as only God can.
This is a powerful example of what it looks like to trust God to provide a way for us to stay true to Him in a tough situation.
The African Impala
Ask the group if they know what an impala is. (If you have time, do a Google image search for an impala and show it to your group as you give this illustration.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vtoVpVnZcg0
Provide a few basic facts about the impala. Say something like:
The average impala is about three feet tall at the shoulder. They can weigh anywhere from 90-170 or so pounds. Their distinctive horns can grow up to 3 feet long.
Then, say something like:
The most distinctive feature of the impala is its ability to jump.
When running full speed, the impala will jump up to 30 feet at a time!
Standing still it can jump 10 feet in the air.
But here is a unique “fact” about the impala.
According to legend, the impala can easily be penned in with a wall as short as three feet.
Why? Because an impala won’t jump if it can’t see where it will land.
Help students see that this is a great analogy for us as we consider what it means to be fearless in our faith. Say something like:
We can’t be afraid to take a leap of faith just because we can’t know where we might land.
Daniel stood firm not knowing if God would provide a way out or not.
The point is that being fearless for our faith is the right thing to do, regardless of the outcome.
Is it easy to live this way? Nope. That’s why a lot of Christians allow fear to shape their lives.
But being fearless is the right way to be. It’s how God has created you to be!
Transition Statement: let‘s think of it this way, what if Daniel was supposed to face persecution to express his bold faith?
Remind students that God’s plan may have been for Daniel to experience persecution because of his bold expression of faith.
In this case, God’s plan allowed for Daniel to come out OK.
Even if it had gone differently for Daniel, his boldness is a powerful example of what it looks like to be fearless in the face of big odds.
And it sets up our next teaching point.
- Teaching Point 2: God always honors our fearlessness.
Let’s look at Daniel’s life. Instruct students to turn to Daniel 6.
- Years later, a new king had come into power, King Darius. But Daniel was still serving as an official in the court, and still living out his faith fearlessly.
- The other officials were jealous of Daniel’s position, and so they figured out a way to trap him.
- They knew Daniel faithfully prayed to God. And so they tricked the king into signing a law that said that anyone who prayed to anyone other than the king must be put to death by being thrown into a den of lions.
- Working in the palace, Daniel knew about this law, but he was fearless. He continued to pray to God.
- The officials caught Daniel praying and reported it to the king.
- The king respected Daniel and tried to find a way to keep Daniel from his fate. But he could not. So the king and the officials went and threw Daniel into a pit of lions, covered the opening, and waited until morning. We pick up the story there.
King Darius wanted to keep Daniel from harm, but that was going back on his word, and as a king, that is seen as weak.
read Daniel 6:19-24 aloud.
Then, at break of day, the king arose and went in haste to the den of lions. As he came near to the den where Daniel was, he cried out in a tone of anguish. The king declared to Daniel, “O Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to deliver you from the lions?” Then Daniel said to the king, “O king, live forever! My God sent his angel and shut the lions’ mouths, and they have not harmed me, because I was found blameless before him; and also before you, O king, I have done no harm.” Then the king was exceedingly glad, and commanded that Daniel be taken up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no kind of harm was found on him, because he had trusted in his God. And the king commanded, and those men who had maliciously accused Daniel were brought and cast into the den of lions—they, their children, and their wives. And before they reached the bottom of the den, the lions overpowered them and broke all their bones in pieces.
Let’s consider a few things here.
- First, let’s not lose sight of how much King Darius loves and values Daniel. Recall, Daniel has essentially lived his life in Babylon as a captive.
KING DARIUS LOVES DANIEL
- He is not Babylonian. He is a Jew, one of the peoples the Babylonians conquered.
- And yet, because of how Daniel has lived his life, he has earned the king’s love and respect.
- Did Daniel live in such a way that he became like the Babylonians?
- Daniel never waivered in his faith, even when it meant going against Babylonian culture.
- And still, the king was drawn to Daniel. This is an example of what happens when we live our faith in God boldly and not in fear.
SOMETHING ABOUT DANIEL STANDS OUT, HE IS DIFFERENT
Then, jump to the most obvious aspect of this story. Say something like:
- Isn’t it so cool how God honored Daniel’s fearlessness?
- Daniel took a bold stance against people who were trying to bring him down.
- And God honored his faithfulness.
- God will always honor your boldness.
- You can step out and stand up for your faith knowing that God sees you.
- Optional Illustration 2: Personal Story: SELECT SOCCER - COLLEGE
Think of a time in your life you had to take a stand for your faith and trust that God would honor it.
HBU VS A&M
Maybe this was a time when you had to go against a decision you knew to be contrary to God’s ways. Maybe it was a time when you stood up for a principle you knew was right even though it was an unpopular position. Share with students the circumstances surrounding your position and how God responded to your boldness.
Transition Statement:
Remind students that the way God honors their boldness may look different than how He honored Daniel. Say something like:
- Will God always shut the mouths of the lions in your life? Scripture tells us no.
- Sometimes He will. But other times, God, in His infinite wisdom, knows that the best thing for you, for Him, and for the world is for the lions to devour you.
- That’s tough, but true.
- But regardless of the outcome, God always sees and honors our faithfulness. We can be bold knowing that God is with us.
- Teaching Point 3: Living a life of fearless faith ultimately brings glory to God.
Then King Darius wrote to all the peoples, nations, and languages that dwell in all the earth: “Peace be multiplied to you. I make a decree, that in all my royal dominion people are to tremble and fear before the God of Daniel, for he is the living God, enduring forever; his kingdom shall never be destroyed, and his dominion shall be to the end. He delivers and rescues; he works signs and wonders in heaven and on earth, he who has saved Daniel from the power of the lions.” So this Daniel prospered during the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus the Persian.
- Check out King Darius’ response. Here is a pagan king, honoring God in a decree to his people. How crazy is that!?
- The reverence Darius showed to God is a result of seeing God do an amazing miracle. Darius recognizes God’s true power and responds to it accordingly.
- But let’s not forget that this was made possible because Daniel was relentlessly bold in his faith.
- Daniel was fearless, and because of this, set the table for God to do what He does best.
- Optional Illustration: Faith Lived Out Brings Glory To God
Reaffirm the fact that when we live bold lives of faith in God, God is glorified. Explain that this principle is expressed throughout the Bible.
Have students turn to 1 Peter 2:12 in their Bibles, or display it on a slide. Remind them who Peter was and that he is writing this to persecuted Christ-followers around thirty or so years after Jesus’ death. Then, read the verse aloud.
Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.
When you have finished, say something like:
when we keep our actions honorable, people notice.
jesus says in Matthew 5
In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
Scripture is clear on this point. The principle we see lived out in Daniel’s life is preached by Jesus and by Peter. A life of faith lived boldly points to God.
CLOSING
Personal Challenge
I WILL LEAVE Y’ALL WITH THESE THINGS
- I Challenge y’all to make the most of this event.
- Y’all will only learn and be changed if y’all are willing to.
- Allow yourselves to adopt a mindset to be moved by God and to be changed by knowing and applying His Word in your lives.