Have you ever felt pressure in life?  The kind of pressure that screams at you, ‘There is no way out of this, do what everyone else is doing, do the easy thing.’  Maybe you are in school and you have felt the overwhelming pressure from the kids and from social media.  Maybe you are in the workplace and you feel pressure to go along with something that is wrong.   That’s what we talk about today.   How do we stand against and walk through pressure?

We are in chapter three of Daniel.  Before we jump into today, let’s quickly talk about what we learned from Sam last week.   Chapter Three is a fifteen-year time jump from Chapter Two.  That makes Shadrack, Meshach, and Abednego around thirty years old.  What is happening?  King Nebuchadnezzar built a ninety-foot golden statue, which is pretty impressive.  For context, that’s like a seven or eight-story building.  And he demanded that everyone bow down to his idol, or they would be thrown into a fiery furnace.  But the three didn’t bow down.

Sam said, at first glance, when you hear this story, you may think we don’t have much in common with living in Babylon, but we have more in common than we think.  No, we don’t have to go to the center of town and bow down to an obnoxious seven or eight-story idol, but what is similar?  Idols.  We have modern-day idols.  

What is an idol for you and me?  The Greek definition of idol worship is ‘over-desire’.  Anything that we want more than God is our idol today.  To understand modern-day idol worship, we have to understand that they are extremely sneaky.  So sneaky, you probably won’t see it or recognize it.  Modern-day idols take good things and twist them into things we want more than God.  They start as good things, but then we over-desire them.  That’s what makes modern-day idol worship so hard to identify.   

Two quick examples.   It’s good to rest, right?  ‘Me’ days, mental health days, rest days, rest from volunteering.  Who would ever say they are against rest?  But when I pursue rest more than I am pursuing God and the things of God, rest has become an idol.  Do you see it?  Rest is good.   There is nothing wrong with rest.   We encourage you to rest and be healthy.   But if I overly desire rest over my relationship with Jesus, it’s become my idol.

It’s good to have money, success, and comfort, right?  Work hard, play hard.  Save and build a retirement.  With more money comes more security.  Who would ever say that working hard and saving is wrong?  But when I pursue wealth and comfort more than I am pursuing God and the things of God, money has become an idol.  Do you see it?  Money is good to have.  Scripture says, ‘The love of money is evil.’  There is nothing wrong with money, it’s a tool.  We encourage you to work and save.  But if I overly desire money over my relationship with Jesus, it’s become my idol.

Modern-day idols take good things and twist them into things we desire more than God.  

And if you don’t think these things have become idols, see what happens when you ask people to surrender them to Jesus.  Phew!  How do you think it goes when you tell people to destroy their modern-day idols, the good things?  People respond today the same as they did when God told the Children of Israel to destroy their idols.  I told Sam, I don’t know how we can talk about modern-day idols without offending people.   

Remember the verse Sam gave us, what Jesus said?

Matthew 22:36 Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law? 37 Jesus replied: Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. NIV

We are to love God with all our heart, all our soul, and all our mind.  Jesus didn’t say love God with some of your heart, some of your soul, and some of your mind.  Jesus didn’t say, exhaust yourself living life and getting everything done, and then maybe, after your ‘Me’ day, give God your leftovers.  

Such a powerful talk to understand the idols of today.  It sets us up for today’s talk.  Let’s jump back into the story to see what we can learn.

Daniel 3:13 Then Nebuchadnezzar flew into a rage and ordered that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought before him. When they were brought in, 14 Nebuchadnezzar said to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you refuse to serve my gods or to worship the gold statue I have set up? 15 I will give you one more chance to bow down and worship the statue I have made when you hear the sound of the musical instruments. But if you refuse, you will be thrown immediately into the blazing furnace. And then what god will be able to rescue you from my power?” NLT

What would you have done?   Can you imagine how intimidating this had to be?  You are in front of the most powerful man in the world, and he is livid.  He is demanding that you betray God and bow to him.  Then, with everyone watching, he taunts you with, ‘Who do you think can rescue you from me?’  This feels like an impossible situation.  In this moment, everything in life is screaming, ‘Do the obvious thing, do what everyone else is doing, do the easy thing.’  Why?  There is no way out of this.  The pressure is intense.

Have you felt pressure in life?  The kind of pressure that screams at you, ‘There is no way out of this, so do the obvious thing, do what everyone else is doing, do the easy thing.’  What pressure are you facing?  What is it that is testing your trust in God?  Maybe it’s trusting God with your future.  Maybe it’s loving your wife or husband, and they don’t deserve it.  Maybe it’s the pressure you feel at school.  Maybe it’s that feeling that others are getting ahead, but you aren’t, so it’s okay to cut corners.  Maybe the pressure of life is leading you to check out of life, or check out on God.  Maybe it’s peer pressure from social media?  What pressure are you facing?

Let’s keep reading to see how they respond.

Daniel 3:16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you.” NLT

When I read this, I’m in awe.  They would not bow to the idol.  Even when the king is throwing threats at them, they would not bow to the idol.   Even when everything in life is screaming, ‘There is no way out of this, don’t be stupid, do what everyone else is doing!’ they would not bow to the idol.  How do they respond?  They calmly faced the king and said, ‘We don’t need to defend ourselves.’

How could they experience so much pressure and be so calm?  The answer is simple.  Before this moment, they had already surrendered their lives to God.  And because they made the decision to fully surrender their lives to God, they were able to calmly face the rage of the King.   This is the first thing we must learn about how to face pressure.  You must make a decision before you face the pressure: ‘Will I live for myself or will I surrender my life to God?’

Jesus said, Luke 16:13 No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. NLT

This means that today, before you leave this building, you need to make a decision to surrender your life to God.  Here’s why.   When you leave, you will face the pressure of life.  Life will scream at you, ‘There is no way out of this, do the obvious thing, do what everyone else is doing, do the easy thing.’  The truth is, you won’t be able to stand up to it.  And if you are trying to live for yourself and live for God, it won’t work.  You can’t serve two masters.  This will lead to a huge internal battle, and you will feel like following Jesus is super difficult.

Today, right now, answer the question: Have I fully surrendered my life to God?  

What seems to be common today is that people don’t want to make that decision.  Why?  Because if I don’t make the decision, I can keep doing what I want.  I can feel good about attending church now and then.  I can feel good about trying to be a good person.  I can make others feel like I am a mature Christian.  While at the same time, I can keep my options open to live however I want.  The problem is, when pressure hits, following Jesus becomes really hard.  Why?  I never fully surrendered my life to God.

James 4:7-10 Quit dabbling in sin. Purify your inner life. Quit playing the field. Hit bottom, and cry your eyes out. The fun and games are over. Get serious, really serious. Get down on your knees before the Master; it’s the only way you’ll get on your feet. MSG

Do you see that phrase, ‘Quit playing the field’?  That means stop trying to keep your options open.  Please hear me, before the pressure hits, fully surrender your life to God.  Only then can we be calm when facing the pressures of life.  

Let’s keep reading.  They continue to talk to the king.

Daniel 3:17 If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God whom we serve is able to save us. He will rescue us from your power, Your Majesty. 18 But even if he doesn’t, we want to make it clear to you, Your Majesty, that we will never serve your gods or worship the gold statue you have set up. NLT

What are they saying?   Because we fully surrendered our lives to God, we fully trust God.  Regardless of the outcome, we will not bow to your idol.  We know God is able to save us, and we are going to relax in that.  This is remarkable.  This is next-level trust.  

Are you there in your Christian faith?  This next-level trust and integrity that says, regardless of the outcome, I will never bow to any modern-day idol?  I will never bow to peer pressure.  I will never go along with the culture.  I will never overly desire the good things in my life at the expense of my passion for God.   Things like rest and vacations.   Money.  Sports.  Image.   Physical beauty.  Material possessions.  Success.  Power.   Popularity.  Careers.  Parenting.   Etc.  I know God is able.  Regardless of the outcome, I will follow Jesus.

I think living with this next-level trust and integrity can be a challenge.  I think what is common is we give our lives to Jesus, but then we are hyper concerned, worried, and stressed that life will work out the way we want.  So, in reality, we never gave our lives to Jesus.  It’s like we gave Him our lives and then we took it back.    

If we fully surrender our lives to Jesus, we can fully trust Him.  God is able and we can relax in that.  The kind of trust in God that we can be at peace as life unfolds, because we know God is in control.  The kind of living where we don’t care about what our world cares about, like wanting your own way, wanting everything for yourself, wanting to appear important, but instead care more about God and God’s kingdom.  

To have next-level trust and integrity, we need to believe that in everything that happens to us, God sees the big picture and will care for us.

Romans 8:28 That’s why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good. MSG

Are you there in your Christian faith?  Are you able to trust God, regardless of outcomes, because you know God is able?   Just a reminder, Romans 8:28 doesn’t say you will get what you want, and life will look like you want it to.  It says God will work it out into something good.

Let’s read how the king responds.

Daniel 3:19 Nebuchadnezzar was so furious with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego that his face became distorted with rage. He commanded that the furnace be heated seven times hotter than usual. NLT

Why do you think Nebuchadnezzar geeked out?  He was so angry that his face was distorted.  Maybe he was an emotional infant and couldn’t handle someone not obeying him.   Maybe he was insecure in himself and deeply resented how secure they were.  Whatever the reason, he completely overreacted.  The furnace would have killed anyone, there was no need to make it seven times hotter.  But that’s what he ordered.

This brings us to a very important point.  When you live with uncompromising trust and integrity in Jesus, it will unnerve people.   And that includes people who go to church.  And they may overreact to you.  And it has nothing to do with you.  Why? It’s about the battle that is inside them.  The problem is, you walk away and think something is wrong with me.

Over the past year, we have walked with several families.  One common theme is popping up more and more.  The family member or friend who is unreasonable.  Every time you are with them, you don’t know if you are getting the nice version or the nasty version.  You have to walk on eggshells around them because anything you say can be an explosion.  They can be nice one day, and the next, they are screaming about hurts and wounds from years ago.  They seem to rewrite history and twist what really happened.  You walk away from these encounters dazed and confused and wonder, ‘What did I do wrong?’  You did nothing wrong.  There is a battle inside them, and it is coming out on you.  

And when you live with uncompromising trust and integrity in Jesus, it can unnerve people.  Why?  Because you are reminding them of the battle they are struggling with.     

Let’s keep reading.

Daniel 3:20 Then he ordered some of the strongest men of his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and throw them into the blazing furnace. 21 So they tied them up and threw them into the furnace, fully dressed in their pants, turbans, robes, and other garments. 22 And because the king, in his anger, had demanded such a hot fire in the furnace, the flames killed the soldiers as they threw the three men in. 23 So Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, securely tied, fell into the roaring flames. NLT

What happens when we trust God?  That’s where we're going next week.  

How do you face the pressure of life?  What do you do when life screams at you, ‘There is no way out of this, do what everyone else is doing, do the easy thing.’  

Make a decision today before the pressure hits.  Will I fully surrender my life to God?  Why?  Because if you don’t, when you face pressure, your Christian experience will be hard and miserable, because you will be trying to serve two masters.  Make the decision before the pressure hits.

After surrendering your life to God, your only option is to fully trust God regardless of the outcome.   Why?  Because God is able.  God will take every detail in our lives of love for God and work it into something good.  I want to give you a verse you can walk with.

Isaiah 43:2 When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up;  the flames will not consume you. 3 For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. NLT

To fully surrender and fully trust God is next-level faith.  It means you are growing up spiritually.  You are moving from, ‘Everything has to go my way’ to ‘God, I want what you want.’

And remember, when you live with uncompromising trust and integrity in Jesus, it will unnerve people.  

Here is what I want you to do today.  Decide before you leave, will I fully surrender my life to God and trust Him?