Why Choose to Inspire
Scripture Text: Daniel 1-3
August 28, 2011 Thomas A. Gaskill
Today there are many people:
doubtful of the existence of God
confused about the true God
blinded by the ways of the world
surrounded with despair in the world
The top 10 addictions verify these statements:
Alcohol, smoking, drugs, gambling, food, video games, internet, sexual, shopping, work
People succumb to these addictions in search of peace and fulfillment; but fail to realize either one. It is a sad, circular, dangerous, and harmful plight. These loved ones are searching for freedom, but are becoming more enslaved.
Listen to some of these statistics found online:
In the U.S. the number of smokers is about one in five adults.
Every year, tobacco use kills more Americans than World War II and the Vietnam War combined. Tobacco related illnesses kill 440,000 US citizens per year.
Many diseases are linked to tobacco and nicotine: cardiovascular disease, stroke, lung cancer, cancer of the kidney, cancer of the larynx and neck, mouth cancer and breast cancer
Approximately 70% of smokers want to quit. About 40% try to quit every year.
About one in five high school students smoke.
About half of those who start smoking as an adolescent will continue to smoke for the next 15 to 20 years.
The cigarette industry spends about 34 million dollars a day on advertising and promotion (2006).
http://www.myaddiction.com/education/articles/tobacco_statistics.html
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 64% of Americans drink alcohol, with 50% ‘regular drinkers’.
The consequences of this are 22,073 alcohol caused deaths a year (2006) – these are deaths unrelated to accidents, suicides or homicides. About half of these deaths are from liver disease from alcoholism.
Preliminary data for 2009 from the CDC shows the highest percentage in a decade measured for adults who have consumed more than 5 drinks a day (23%). This may reflect the economic downturn.
Males lead females in consumption, and the highest use occurs in the 18 to 24 year-old group.
Alcohol is a poison; it can kill either by way of long-term damage, or acutely. In the acute poisoning, alcohol alone can be fatal, or it can kill when combined with other drugs.
One disturbing trend is that the number of women arrested has increased 30% since 1998, although men still account for the majority of arrests (six to one).
http://www.myaddiction.com/education/articles/alcohol_statistics.html
Problem gambling and suicide
One of the scariest statistics is reported by the Oklahoma Association for Gambling Addiction Awareness: “A survey of Gamblers Anonymous members in the United States found that 48 percent had considered suicide and 13 percent had attempted it.”
http://www.myaddiction.com/education/articles/gambling_statistics.html
The U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration reports that by age 18, almost 12% of all young people are illicit drug users. And they go on to state, it is generally accepted that chemical dependency, along with associated mental health disorders, has become one of the most severe health and social problems facing the US.
All this shared for an increased awareness of the necessity, as God’s people, to be inspiring.
I have never seen advertisements of Jesus with a cigarette hanging out of His mouth or at a casino gambling away His drachmas! It would be appalling to see such an advertisement and it most certainly would not be inspiring. Jesus came to give fullness of life to His followers – not cancer sticks! Jesus never squandered His money in hopes of getting more – He continually gave to the poor. The more He gave, the more He had available to give!
Things are not well with our society. Our society is hurting; there is a lost and dying world out there in need of inspiration – but not just any kind of inspiration, it must be inspiration that reveals that God exists, that reveals the true God, that witnesses against the corrupt ways of the world, and gives hope for the despairing. People must be inspired to a better way of life! We Christians know this better way of life!
Romans 15:4 “For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.” It was written to inspire us.
The Book of Daniel records four men who chose to be inspiring. It was their steadfast love for God that made them inspiring.
Historical setting:
The people of Israel had turned their backs on God and chose to disregard the prophetic voices sent by God. Their land was conquered and they were taken captive to a foreign land. Babylon was a pagan land filled with idolatry and the occult.
Daniel (Belteshazzar), Hananiah (Shadrach), Mishael (Meshach), and Azariah (Abed-Nego).
Chosen to be educated for service in the king’s palace.
Refused ceremonially unclean foods from the royal table; didn’t want to defile themselves with unclean foods or meats that had been sacrificed to idols. Refused wine so that they could remain of sober mind and consecrated entirely to God.
Chose to feed themselves properly and God blessed them so they were found 10 times better than everyone else in understanding.
Are you feeding in such a way as to prepare yourself to inspire?
What are you feeding on? Daniel …, were feeding with their eyes on God.
Daniel’s first opportunity to inspire came when king Nebuchadnessar had a dream and called the magicians, astrologers, sorcerers, and Chaldeans to tell him his dream and its interpretation upon the threat of death if unable.
They begged the king to tell them the dream so they could offer an interpretation but the king refused. Daniel 2:10,11:
In desperation the Chaldeans answered the king, “There is not a man on earth who can tell the king’s matter; therefore no king, lord, or ruler has ever asked such things of any magician, astrologer, or Chaldean. It is a difficult thing that the king requests, and there is no other who can tell it to the king except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh.”
They are telling the king that he cannot know his dream or interpretation because the gods do not live among mankind.
The king became ragingly angry and ordered all the wise men of Babylon to be destroyed.
Daniel asked for time that he might tell the king the interpretation.
Daniel got his three companions and they sought God’s mercy together. God answered Daniel with a night vision.
Daniel praises God for the answer.
Goes to king.
Only God can reveal this and has done so.
Daniel admits that he does not possess secret powers in himself.
Daniel shares with the king what God has revealed and the king makes this tremendous statement: (Dan 2:47) “Truly your God is the God of gods, the Lord of kings.”
Do you trust God for inspiration so that you can inspire with truth?
Do you believe God is present and communicates with His people?
Do you seek wisdom from God in how to answer difficult people? (James 1:5)
God can take ones confusion and turn it into a time of inspiration through His revelation!
Time passes and king Nebuchadnezzar, being full of himself, makes a huge image of himself and sets it up for people to worship and swear allegiance to. It was 9 feet wide and 90 feet tall!
Nebuchadnezzar is seeking to circumvent what was revealed to him by God through Daniel.
The image in the dream was composed of a head of gold (which was Nebuchadnezzar’s kingdom), and other following kingdoms represented in the chest and arms of silver, belly and thighs of bronze, legs of iron, and feet of partly iron and partly clay.
The mixture in the feet represented a divided and fragile kingdom. The collapse of the image began at the feet.
Nebby, wanted to ensure unity and instill that his kingdom will last when he made an image of gold from head to toe and called all to worship it. Any defiance would be dealt with swift and harsh. Nebby is seeking to inspire loyalty with his enormous golden image!
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego see the matter for what it truly is and refuse to bow and worship the image. They know who God is and they know He is able to rescue them from Nebby’s hand. There is no confusion in their minds about God.
Nebby has the furnace heated 7Xs normal, bounds the three men, and has them thrown into the fiery furnace. The fire was so hot that it killed the men who took the three up to toss them in.
Nebby looks in and sees four walking around in the fiery furnace and none of them were hurt. Nebby acknowledges that fourth as being in the form like the Son of God. God made Himself known visibly and miraculously in rescuing the three men.
Listen to Nebby’s concluding remarks in Daniel 3:28-29
(28) Nebuchadnezzar spoke, saying, "Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, who sent His Angel and delivered His servants who trusted in Him, and they have frustrated the king's word, and yielded their bodies, that they should not serve nor worship any god except their own God!
(29) Therefore I make a decree that any people, nation, or language which speaks anything amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made an ash heap; because there is no other God who can deliver like this."
Steadfast faith can turn a time of infuriation into a time of inspiration.
Inspiration that results in proclamation of the One true God.
Proclamation that gives inspired direction to an entire nation.
There is more that can be said from the book of Daniel but it is enough to stop here.
Just as the people in Daniel’s time needed inspiration in order to know who the real God is and that He is present to help in the midst of their exile, so too do people today need an awareness of the One true God.
We must, like Daniel and his companions, be careful what we feed on. We must feed upon what fuels our faith in God. There will be no inspiration without proper digestion of God’s will. If we feed on the world’s banquet table of the various addictions and entertainments, then spiritual indigestion will occur. Indigestion caused by bad food is not inspiring to an already sick world.
Just as Daniel and his companions, we must recognized our limited wisdom and seek direction from God. Wait on God in listening expectation to be an inspiration. Inspiration to clear the muddy waters of confusion with His revelation.
Just as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego remained steadfast in their faith when threatened with immediate death by an infuriated king, we too must remain steadfast in our faith despite the demands of those around us to compromise. As we remain steadfast in the faith, God is always present in our time of need in a way He knows to be best. It is through difficult times that others may be inspired by what only God can do. There can be no testimony without first having a test!
There can be no inspiration without first being inspired to have a desire to inspire.
Jesus always inspired.
Be imitators of Jesus - choose to inspire.
Choose to inspire because the world needs inspiration:
Inspiration that enables them to experience God’s presence
Inspiration that enables them to know who the true God is
Inspiration that enables them to see that God’s ways are better than the world’s ways
Inspiration that enables them to have hope of life beyond the here and now
Choose to inspire that others may say as Nebby did “Truly your God is the God of gods, the Lord of kings.”
