Godly Convictions, Commitments, and Obedience

As Christians, we should know what our convictions and commitments are and or should be, based upon what is written in God's Holy Word.

 

    I. Convictions seen in the Book of Daniel

 

1. Dan 1:8 But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile

himself with the portion of the king's meat, nor with the wine which he drank:

therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile

himself.

Dan 1:9 Now God had brought Daniel into favour and tender love with the

prince of the eunuchs.

Dan 1:10 And the prince of the eunuchs said unto Daniel, I fear my lord the

king, who hath appointed your meat and your drink: for why should he see

your faces worse liking than the children which are of your sort? then shall ye

make me endanger my head to the king.

 

A. We need to purpose in our hearts to follow God, and then stick to our

convictions, and stand by our commitment to Him.

    

    a. When we allow our convictions to lesson, or if we try to make our

convictions stretch, in order to get along with everybody, we are

making a statement that we are not truly placing everything into

God's hands where it belongs, and that we know better than God.

 

    1.) When we lessen our convictions, even for a moment, we

often cause ourselves or others heartache by our

disobedience.

 

2. Dan 2:16 Then Daniel went in, and desired of the king that he would give him

time, and that he would shew the king the interpretation.

Dan 2:17 Then Daniel went to his house, and made the thing known to

Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions:

Dan 2:18 That they would desire mercies of the God of heaven concerning this

secret; that Daniel and his fellows should not perish with the rest of the wise

men of Babylon.

 

    A. Whenever we find ourselves in a tight spot or situation, we should

gather ourselves together with others who believe and trust in the

power of God, and pray together.

 

        a. When we panic and forget to come to God, we confirm our

hopelessness; while if we take before the Lord in prayer, we confirm

our trust, hope, and faith in Him.

 

1.) When we turn aside from God for answers, instead of

waiting on Him, and we try to handle everything in and by

ourselves, we put ourselves above God, and we cause

ourselves to fail, where God would have given us the

victory.

 

3. Dan 3:14 Nebuchadnezzar spake and said unto them, Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, do not ye serve my gods, nor worship the golden image which I have set up?

Dan 3:15 Now if ye be ready that at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of music, ye fall down and worship the image which I have made; well: but if ye worship not, ye shall be cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace; and who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?

Dan 3:16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter.

Dan 3:17 If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king.

Dan 3:18 But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.

 

A. When we compromise our convictions, it poisons the very conviction,

and brings dishonor to ourselves, and more importantly to God.

 

B. If we choose to disobey God,(even if we think this is the only way to

actually serve Him, [Not even close to being in any form truth]), our

testimony for God can be forever erased in the sight of those we are

trying to bring to God.

 

a. There is no excuse that a Christian can use to justify disobedience to

God. We cannot tell others to keep their eyes on the Lord, and then

when times become to a point that we find ourselves stressed, take

our eyes off of Him, and then try to handle things our own way.

 

b. We ought to have enough faith and trust in the Lord to be able to

wait for His timing; when we wait on Him, all things will come

together, and always for His glory, and without causing ourselves to

become a stumbling block for others to fall upon, or possibly even

cause others to forever turn away from God.

 

        1.) We do not want to be the object of this statement;

         "If that is what a Christian is, or how a Christian is

supposed to be, then I want no part of it".

 

4. Dan 3:26 Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, and spake, and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, ye servants of the most high God, come forth, and come hither. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, came forth of the midst of the fire.

Dan 3:27 And the princes, governors, and captains, and the king's counsellors, being gathered together, saw these men, upon whose bodies the fire had no power, nor was an hair of their head singed, neither were their coats changed, nor the smell of fire had passed on them.

Dan 3:28
Then Nebuchadnezzar spake, and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in him, and have changed the king's word, and yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God.

 

    A. We need to trust God in the midst of every trial, and understand that

even when God doesn't intervene in our every trial or situation, He is still in control, and we should keep our faith that He alone knows what is best, and we should not just take matters into our own hands, and do something outside of His ways.

 

a. "The ends Never Justify the Means", no matter how many

excuses we might come up with.

 

5. We must always remember, God is always in control, even when we can't see

it.

 

A. Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, could have each tried to

make excuses to why they should follow the King's orders such as;

 

        a. If we die, we can't help our fellow peoples.

        b. God will understand because we are in a foreign land. (Caused

by their peoples own disobedience.)

        c. We will obey the king's commands, but we won't really mean it!

 

    B. Christian, are you making excuses in order to do things your way?

 

        a. You might be saying, "Pastor, we don't follow the Law, we are

under grace!"

 

b. I answer, "does being under grace, give us a license to disobey

God? or, does it give us even more reason to do things God's

                 way, because of His grace?" What is your answer?

How Can We Live a Full and Abundant Life?

 

 

1. Put the Lord into the Center of all you do.
   

   
    

   1. Put the Lord First in Everything.
      
      1. [Matthew 6:25 – 34] Teaches us that when we seek first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness, all of our needs will be met. Anytime we put all focus on the Lord, everything else falls in line, and the Lord is glorified.
         

         
          

   2. Do Not worry about what tomorrow may bring, do what needs to be done today, there is always something that today holds that should be done without procrastination. When we keep things in perspective and do that which need to be done, and we do it at the time it calls for our attention, and we do it to the best of our ability, as if we are doing it directly in service to the Lord, we can be satisfied in our work, and know that if the Lord comes, we can be ready, and not found to be Spiritually asleep. After all, how do we even know if we will have a chance to do tomorrow? What if the Lord required your life today, or if the Lord came to Rapture His Church? Would you be ready, would you even be in a position to hear His call? Or would you be too busy preparing for your future earthly comforts doing worldly things?
      
      1. [Matthew 6:25 -34] Also teaches us that when we keep our hearts and
         

         minds focused on the Lord, that we need not worry, those that seek out and
         

         serve the Lord can be satisfied to know that God does provide for all our
         

         needs.
         

         1. One who worries about storing up for tomorrow, often forgets his service to the Lord today. Your heart is where you search out your treasures. If you are too busy to do the Lord's service because you have to fulfill your own worldly desires, then you are too busy. When give the Lord the lead in our lives, everything else will fall in line. (*NOTE… This does not mean that you will not face trials, temptations, or any sort of problems, it does mean that the Lord will help you through it, and provide all that you need when you place your faith in Him.)
            
      2. [Matthew 6:19 – 24] Teaches us that we cannot serve two masters.
         
         1. Who or What is Your Master?
            
            1. God – Creator, Provider, Savior
               
            2. Worldly Desires – Wealth, Social Status
               
            3. Self – I am the most important thing around
               

 

1. When one is satisfied with what provisions he has, and gives praise to the Lord for
   

   providing, he is not filled with……
   

   1. Worry of not having enough
      
   2. Worry that one might steal what I have
      
   3. Worry that my status evolves only around what possessions I am able to
      

      obtain.
      

      1. [Proverbs 30:1 – 9] Teaches us to be satisfied, and that our prayer should be… Let us not be poor that we might steal and take the name of the Lord in vain, and let us not be rich that we might forget God and deny Him.
         
      2. [Ecclesiastes 2:24] Teaches us to be satisfied and enjoy the fruits of our labors, as this is a gift from God. (In order to enjoy the fruits of our labors, we must do labor, and not be a sluggard, and expecting someone else to do our part for us, and provide service in our place where we should be serving.)
         

 

1. It is More Profitable to Help Others Who Are In Need, Than to Store Up, and Receive More Than You Need for Your Own Selfishness.
   

   
    

   1. Helping Others Helps us.
      
      1. [Proverbs 3:27 – 28] Teaches us to do good to those who are in need when you are able, do not procrastinate until it might be more profitable for us.
         
      2. [Proverbs 11:24 – 28] Teaches us that when we are able to help those who are in need, we lose nothing, but we gain the Lord's blessings.
         
      3. [Matthew 6:1 – 4] Teaches us that when we help the needy, we not are to do it publicly, in order to receive praise from others, (as this is being self-centered), but to do it privately and the Lord will bless you openly.
         
         1. We should give out of compassion, and out of true love and faith in God, because He loves us, and we should have a need to share that love we receive with others.
            

            
             

2. It is More Important to Have Inner Purity than to Have an Outward Appearance of Righteousness.
   
   1. [Matthew 15:1 – 20 and Mark 7:1 – 23] Teaches us to Serve the Lord with an honest and pure heart, in love, in all that we do, and do not give only "lip service" only to make others think you are pure.
      

 

1. Do Not Count Yourself as Being Better Than Anyone Else.
   
   1. If we must measure our self worth, then we must use Christ as our balance, an in this case, none of us can measure up of our own selves and deeds.
      

      A. [Romans 3:23] Teaches us that we all have sinned and we have all fallen
      

      short of the glory of God. Therefore none of us are better than any other.
      

2. We should accept the gift of Life that we are given in Christ, and humbly help others

to grow in Christ by living as an example just as Christ was a living example to His

Disciples. (For many examples of how Christ lived, please see the four Gospels of

the New Testament; Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.)

3. Remember, anything that you do, do it to your best, do it as if you are doing it in

direct service to the Lord. Give glory, honor, and praise to the Lord in everything you do. Anything that is worth doing, then is worth doing it with your best.

4. Practice In Secret What You Preach in Public.

A. God knows your heart inside and out, upside right and upside down, it is

impossible to hide anything from God. We cannot have a peace if we know

what we preach to others on how they should be is correct, then do what we

know is wrong ourselves, this will always bring conflict in our lives.

5. When We Serve Others, We are Serving Christ!

A. [Matthew 20:20 – 28 and Mark 10:35 – 45] Teaches us that if one wishes to be

a chief, or to be great, then he must be willing serve.

6. Don't try to stand as judge over others.

A. We will all be judged in the same manner in which we judge others.

a.) It is more important to show compassion, be forgiving others, than it is to

stand judge over others, this is the true sign of Love.

                 b.) God Himself shows us this ultimate example in His mercy through giving

His Son, Who gives us complete forgiveness of all our sins for as many as

will accept Him and live by His example, and His commands.

1.) [John 3:16 – 17] Teaches us For God so loved the world, that He

gave His only begotten Son, that Whosoever believes in Him should

not perish but have everlasting life. For God sent His Son into the

world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might

be saved.

 

V.
When in doubt: Pray, Wait, and Listen to the Lord. Seek out His Word, this is why it is

given to us.

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