Momentum - Learning to Get God's Best for Your Life, Part 1

God wants you to get the very, very best in life. But let me tell you something. Most Christians do not get God's best. The great majority of all believers miss the best God has for them.

Why? That's what I'm going to tell you today on Living on the Edge. Welcome to this Edition of Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. Living on the Edge features the Bible teaching of Chip Ingram on this daily discipleship program.

I'm Dave Drouy. I think it's safe to say that we all want to get God's best for our lives. In this program, Chip opens the book of Daniel and lets us in on the secret to Daniel's amazing life, not the least of which was surviving the lion's den. This is one of those messages you're going to want to hear again or share with a friend. You can do that any time with the Chip Ingram app. Chip's interactive fill-in notes are there for you too. Well, now with part one of his message, learning to get God's best for your life.

Here's Chip. Most Christians aren't experiencing God's best. And it's not because God doesn't want to give it. We're going to learn there are certain factors that will seduce your soul.

They will become belief system and lies that will have you thinking you're moving on the right path and direction to get the best out of life that will absolutely destroy you and your relationships. And there is another pathway that God gives that will seem very hard on the upfront. But if you follow it by his power and by his grace, you'll receive the best that he has to give you.

So we're going to jump in together. The greatest picture of this in the Old Testament for me is a teenage boy. In fact, we get his whole story. We hear about him when he's a teenager in chapter one, his friends a little bit later in chapter three. By the end of chapter one, they give a little structural marker and it tells us that he was held this role until a king named Darius that is 539 BC, which doesn't mean much to you. But it means he had about a 70 year run in his job. And the guy's name is Daniel. So let me picture it for you.

You ready? The year is 6605 BC, Babylon. Most powerful empire in the world.

Their most powerful king, Nebuchadnezzar. It's moving across the known world like a wave, just conquering kingdom after kingdom after kingdom after kingdom. They're the home of the mystery religions. They're arrogant. They have immorality like you can't imagine. This Babylon makes Vegas look like a Sunday school class.

No joke. Idols everywhere. Immorality in ways and practices you can't even imagine. So king, powerful Babylon is moving with his armies to take over the world. And over here is Jerusalem, God's people. But God's people have not been following God.

And so he gave him this promise in Deuteronomy chapter 28, 29 and 30 and multiple other places. If you will walk with me, I will be your God and you'll be my people. I love you. I care for you.

I want you to get the best. But if you turn away from me, if you worship idols, if you will not fear me and the idea of fear me is doing life my way, because I care about you, then I will bring judgment. I will scatter you to the corners of the earth. And so as we open the text, if you're at Daniel, notice how it opens up. It says in the third year of the reign of Jehoakim, king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and he besieged it. Notice the next line.

And the Lord delivered Jehoakim, king of Judah, into his hands along with some of the articles from the temple and he carried him off from God's temple, this is important later in the book, to his God in Babylon and he put them in treasury of his God. So did you notice who caused the bad guys to win the battle? It's God.

Why? Judgment. When we do things, whether we're a nation or an individual that are on the wrong path over a long period of time after multiple warnings, God loves you and he loves me so much, I call it the velvet vice of grace. And what he does is, you know, your life isn't going, you know, you're doing things apart from God says don't do this and you go, well, maybe, maybe, maybe. And he'll bring pressure to your health, to your finances.

He'll ruin relationships. I mean, he loves you so much. When he sees someone headed off a cliff, he will start putting barriers up, car wrecks, health issues, job losses. He'll bring all kind of things to bear to get you to think, maybe like the 12 steppers call it, I hit bottom. Sometimes God allows very difficult, painful things for us to say, you know, maybe how I'm living isn't exactly how I ought to be living. Maybe I need to get on God's path.

And maybe the reason is that he really loves me and this difficulty is like flashing red lights. It's like him caring enough to bring about adversity to get my attention. And so that's what God is doing with this nation. Now, the next thing you need to understand is as they're taking over the world, they're very smart. And when you conquer kingdoms or countries, what happens is over time, you know, they're real spread out and they don't have a lot of, you know, telecommunication, obvious reasons.

And so what you wanted to do is you wanted to figure out how to engraft that nation that you conquer into your culture so you don't have coups later. And so what they were going to do is they're going to take from the royal family, the people who would eventually be the kings and the rulers of Judah, Jerusalem, they want to take the best, the smartest, and the brightest. And we're going to hear about four of them. And they're going to take them, this is 605 BC, and it's an initial, what they call a deportation. And they're going to take them because they're the leaders and they're going to go take them to Babylon to brainwash them.

Now, in 597, they'll do another one with more people and then 587, they'll complete it. And so here they are, they're going to take Daniel, Meshach, you know, Abednego, remember the story of the three guys in the furnace? They get these weird Babylonian names. They're going to take them there for a three-year graduate program in brainwashing.

Now, pick it up in verse three. It says, then the king ordered Ashpenaz, the chief of the court officials, to bring in some of the Israelites from the royal family in nobility. These are young men, notice who they got, men without physical defect, handsome, showing aptitude for every kind of learning, well-informed, quick to understand, qualified to serve in the king's palace. He was to teach them the language and the literature of the Babylonians. And then it goes on to say, then the king assigned them a daily amount of food and wine in the king's table, and they were to be trained for three years, and after that, they're going to enter the king's service.

So here's what you need to get. They pull these four sharp, noble, intelligent, the best, the brightest, you know, the Harvard, Stanford type grads, good-looking, they're quick, and they're going to take them to Babylon to brainwash them. You know, they're going to learn the languages, they're going to learn the world view, they'll learn the wisdom books, they'll be trained by the magicians and enchanters. They're going to change their diet, they're going to change everything about them, and they're praying for the day that they would ever forget they were a Jew, they'd ever remember there was a God named Yahweh, and they would see themselves as new Babylonians. And then they would enter the king's service and become a part of Babylonian culture.

That's the game plan. Well, you'll notice in chapter, or verse eight, but Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself in this way. Now notice the intervention here. God calls the official to show favor and sympathy to Daniel. Now here's what you've got to understand. Daniel, our best research, and his three friends are at best 15 to 16 to 17 years old.

Now, how many of you have a teenager and you think if you had a 14, 15, 16 year old, you could send them to Vegas for three years without any parental oversight and be pretty happy about how they're going to turn out? Daniel's parents did, and they turned out, they not only turned out, they became God's inside men over three different kingdoms and changed the course of the world because of some convictions and courage that they had. And as the story unfolds, Daniel was not a teetotaler, and Daniel was not a vegetarian, but the wine and the meat was being offered to idols.

And so they were contaminated. For Daniel to eat that would be to say, I'm going to worship these false gods, which was at the heart, the very first two commandments. And so he goes to the head of fish and he goes, look, this really violates everything we believe, everything that we are.

What do you say you give us a little different diet, you know, just vegetables and water or something like that, okay? And there he goes, I can't do that. Like, I'll get killed. I mean, they start looking at you and these other guys, if you guys don't look sharp, I mean, I'll die. And so Daniel, I love, he doesn't get pushy, he doesn't get holier than thou, he says, I'll tell you what, how about a 10-day test?

I mean, would you, will you just work with me on this one? And so for 10 days they do it, and then notice in your Bible, you can kind of skip down, and notice it says at the end of 10 days, verse 15, they looked healthier and better and nourished than any of the young men who ate the royal food. Then notice, so the guard took away the choice food, gave him vegetables instead. Verse 17, these four young men, God gave knowledge and understanding of all kinds of literature and learning.

Daniel could understand visions and dreams of all kinds. And then you get to the final exam, after three years, all these people, not just the ones from Jerusalem, but from these different kingdoms, they've all been taken to Babylon, now they get an oral exam. Some of you have been there, right? Did a little graduate work, and had to write a long paper, and at the end of the long paper, in my case, I remember sitting down, and there was Dr. So-and-so, Dr. So-and-so, Dr. So-and-so, Dr. So-and-so, and they read my paper and had red marks all over it. And then it was the oral exam.

Chip, I notice on your paper you said this, but what about that? You know. I actually kind of enjoyed it, it was sort of fun.

But I have a warped sense of those experiences. At the end of the time set to them, verse 18, the king brought in the chief official, presented them to Nebuchadnezzar, the great king. He talked with them, he found none equal to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.

So they entered in the king's service. In the matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king questioned them, he found them ten times better than all the, notice the contrast, the magicians, those are people in the occult, the enchanters in his whole kingdom. Daniel and his four friends got God's best. Daniel reveals to us how we can get God's best. And it's interesting in this book from the time he's a teenager until the time he's a very, very, very old man. He's put in positions and blessing and God upon his life that he gets the highest and the best.

But it's because he has some convictions and he has some courage and he does some things that most people are unwilling to do. And there's just a few life lessons. These aren't your notes. I like to just wash over you and then here's what I want to do. As soon as I get done with this, I want to go back and just show you how these two cultures in conflict, I want to show you the actual game plan the Babylonians from this text had to seduce Daniel's soul because what you're going to find is the culture that you live in is using the exact same things in your life. And then I want to show you real quickly what was God's game plan.

What does he do and those who want to follow him closely to ensure that they get his best. So with that in mind, here's just a couple kind of lean back because I think we believe some lies. Life lesson number one, we are not at the mercy of a pagan culture. I mean sometimes I hear, well, you know, you just don't understand.

I'm on the road a lot. I mean, gosh, with all the media, I mean, our kids are going to have sex. What we need to just do is just try and, you know, and, you know, under all the pressure I am, I mean, someone's going to have some addictions and, no, I think if a 15 year old, 16 year old can do it God's way in Vegas on steroids, I think you can. Second observation is the future of our world will be determined by who captures the next generation. I mean, a lot of people are talking about our children and our children's children and economic issues. I will tell you, think about the spiritual and moral issues. Who captures the next generation?

And in a minute I'm going to show you the game plan of God and the game plan of the world. And if you're a parent, I'd really perk up. Third observation is that protection of our children from our culture is impossible, but preparation of them is imperative. I mean, unless you just are independently wealthy and can move to a remote place of Montana and tell your kids that cell phones and the internet doesn't exist, you can't protect them from stuff. But you can prepare them where they can be a Daniel in their world. And then finally, only a generation with biblical convictions and a winsome spirit can transform the Babylon culture of our day the way that God used a group of teenagers in their day. See, I think a lot of us, can I just be honest here? I think a lot of us have given up.

You have everything you need. God's power and His word in community will give you everything you need to be the man or the woman or the student that is absolutely counter to this culture and you can experience God's best. I don't think we believe that. I think we're trying to hang on and create these little, little bubbles of control where in the midst of this crazy world, somehow my life can be okay. And I want to tell you, He wants your life to be more than okay. He wants to shoot you like a projectile through this culture in a way that transforms those around you. And as an old coach, I can tell you, in many sports a great offense is better than a good defense.

We don't need to be defensive. We need to realize God wants to use us regular people to bring about first where we live and then expanding our neighborhoods, the world that we live in. Well, how did they do it?

How does it work? Let me just give a quick overview of the historical setting you've seen. It's 605 B.C. The place is Babylon.

The reason? You might just jot the word judgment. That's a good one for us to remember. You might jot Hebrews chapter 12 for sort of a New Testament reference. I mean, for us, God brings about discipline, never punishment. He disciplines us for our good. And then the spiritual climate was absolute wickedness.

The Babylonian game plan to seduce Daniel's soul that we read through is three things. They wanted to change their thinking, change his worship, and change his lifestyle. Change his thinking, change his worship, change his lifestyle.

Get information into his head that would cause him to forget his roots. Gotta change your thinking. By the way, the most important decision you, or if you're a parent, what you allow your kids to go in their brain is probably the most important decision you make every day. I mean, if you read the self-help literature or you've been to a seminar about goals and change, what's it all about?

You know what they've learned? It's a biblical principle. As a man or a woman thinks in his heart, so you become. You are always a product of your thought life.

You kill people for hours and hours and hours on your thumbs. Why are we surprised when 11-year-olds kill 6-year-olds? When the average American home goes from seven hours a day to now nine and a half to 10 hours a day in front of some kind of media, why are we surprised that over 50% of our kids are a beast? You are a product of your thought life. We have more depression than any nation in the world. We have more anxiety and more violence than any nation in the world, and we're the most prosperous.

Why? It's because you are what you eat physically and you are what you eat spiritually and intellectually. And so what would the Babylonians do? Hey, we're gonna change their physical diet, their mental diet to change their thinking. Then we're gonna change their worship.

It's really interesting. Daniel's name meant God is my judge, so they gave him a new name that meant the lady protect the king, the wife of Marduk or Belle is the protector of all. So Daniel used to hear God is my judge. Now he hears his name, the wife of Marduk? And everyone says that, and pretty soon it's to change his identity and allegiance. Hananiah's name meant Yahweh has been gracious. Well, they gave him a new name, Shadrach.

It means under the command of Aku, which was a Babylonian god. And they did that for each of the boys. So our thinking changes and our worship tied to identity. What really matters?

What's really important? Who are the stars? Have you noticed in the last 30 years how the heroes have really changed in America?

See, when I was a kid, it's not all that long ago. I mean, we were thinking like lawyers and teachers and doctors and firemen and policemen and teachers that, you know, go to other countries and nurses were just like, wow. I mean, they're people that love and care.

See, the values were about caring and loving and now, man, I've got a good friend who's a lawyer and the jokes just never end. So who are heroes? You always know your heroes by who you pay the most. Our heroes are 19 and 23-year-olds who make $23 million for catching, throwing, kicking or hitting a ball or who can dance. The number one thing that American preteens want to be, get this, the special assistant to a rock star.

Well, there's a life ambition. Your kids are living in that Babylonian world. You're living in it.

And it's everywhere, all around you and all around me and you will be what you think. Talk about heroes. Daniel figured out how to stand strong in a challenging culture and probably didn't feel like anybody special.

What a great example. Well, Chip will be back with a final thought, but before he is, just a quick word about this series. Based on Romans 12, Momentum fleshes out the structure of Chip's series, True Spirituality, by exploring the lives of some of the most famous men of the Bible. From Abraham and Moses to Joseph and Daniel, Chip helps us appreciate how these guys lived out the practicalities of true spirituality. In the process, Chip will ignite the momentum of your faith journey. Momentum is one of those series you're going to want to keep handy and listen to from time to time.

So let me remind you that accessing momentum is easy with the Chip Ingram app. Chip, we spend a lot of time and, candidly, a lot of money on creating resources to meet the spiritual needs of people right where they are. And all last month, we talked about how we use people's gifts to help us create those resources.

Can you tell us about one of the new ones that's just coming off the press? Well, Dave, we create resources that are specially designed to help people in different seasons and windows in their life. I've got a very close friend that I've learned so much from.

His name is Lance Witt, and he developed a resource. It's called Leaving Ordinary Behind. Twenty-five days to an extraordinary faith. It's a devotional.

What I find when people need to get back on board, they need to cultivate the habit again. And sometimes something big is overwhelming. This is a devotional.

You read a little bit, you interact a little bit. Twenty-five days that will reignite your spiritual life, that will help you get unstuck, that will take you from where you're at to begin to get a fresh wind of God's Spirit in your soul and in your heart. This is a great resource for people that are struggling right now. This brand-new devotional, written by Chip's friend and fellow pastor, Lance Witt, is called Leaving Ordinary Behind. Twenty-five days to an extraordinary faith. To check out the discounts while they last, go to LivingOnTheEdge.org or give us a call at 888-333-6003.

App listeners tap Special Offers. Again, the resource we're talking about is our brand-new devotional called Leave Ordinary Behind. Twenty-five days to an extraordinary faith. Now here's Chip with his final thoughts about today's message.

As we close today's program, I want to be very direct, and I want to talk to parents. I mean, the fact of the matter is, if most of our kids were turned loose in Vegas with a MasterCard and with a little encouragement to go have a really, really good time, most of us would not be very happy about the choices they would make. So what in the world did Daniel and his friends have in a very pagan situation that ours don't? One is, I think they had parents who believed that God could give them the grace to live pure lives regardless of their circumstances.

And I don't think we believe that. I think what we do is we accommodate and compromise and try and create these holy bubble environments that don't train our kids. And then when they go off to college, all the statistics say about 85 to 90 percent of our Bible evangelical students lose their faith, at least for a significant season.

I've got a piece of research in front of me. It's from a book called Souls in Transition, and they researched young adults going away to college and their six religious types. And of the 15 percent or so that keep their faith, that stay on fire and walk with God in the midst of the Babylonian culture of their college experience, the number one factor is this. The most important factor is parents.

For better or worse, it states, parents are tremendously important in shaping their children's faith. That's the story. It's you, Mom.

It's you, Dad. And what I've heard over and over and what the research indicates, it's not just what you say, and it's not that you took them to church. It's how you live.

We have to model it. The second thing, and parents, this is a personal devotional life that their kids started in. And just, you know, okay, if you're feeling like I'm getting in your face, it's I'm getting in your face. You have got to limit some of the garbage you're letting your kids watch and play and get in their mind, and you're going to have to be a bad guy and be the only parents, dah, dah, dah.

It's not really true. And let your kids get upset with you a little bit to get some of the trash out of their mind, and you have got to help them at an early age possible, not in a legalistic, sit around the table, shove the Bible down their throat, but in a winsome, great way. Model some things and get some tools in their hands where your kids begin to cultivate a personal relationship with God. I will just tell you, in my family, we did have family devotions, but I was more concerned about helping them. I mean, nine, ten, eleven years old, most all my kids started with little times with the Lord in the morning before they went to school. And they saw their mom do it.

They saw me do it. That has been more sustainable than any missions trip, any youth group or anything you can ever give them. I love you. I care about your kids. Parents, give some of that energy that you're given to ballet and piano and youth sports and academics. Give it to developing their soul and their spiritual life.

It'll take time and intentionality and discipline, but you can do it, and God can protect and actually use your kids beyond what you could ever dream. Just before we close, I want to thank each of you who's making this program possible through your generous giving. One hundred percent of your gifts are going directly to the ministry to help Christians really live like Christians. Now, if you've found CHiPs teaching helpful, but you're not yet on the team, would you consider doing that today? To donate, just go to LivingOnTheEdge.org, tap Donate on the app, or give us a call at 888-333-6003. And let me thank you in advance for whatever the Lord leads you to do. Well, until next time, for everyone here, this is Dave Drouy saying thanks for listening to this Edition of Living on the Edge.