theyвЂ™ve taken their stand.the short term results seem to be surprisingly good.but what about the long term? now, the question is.how will it all turn out?

the man in charge of their care allowed the young men to have this special diet, and 10 days later, they looked more healthy than the ones that had eaten from the kingвЂ™s table. eating the food for them would have been disobeying the OT dietary would have been a violation of the Scriptures. of course the reason they took a stand on this particular issue was because to do otherwise would have been a violation of GodвЂ™s Word. these young men asked permission to not eat from the kings table, but instead to eat vegetables and drink water. even though Nebuchadnezzar was known for being cruel and ruthless.and taking the stand they did risked at least loss of promotion and more likely would result in their deaths.

it was on that last point that these young men took their stand. Nebuchanezzar changed their names, he enrolled them in Babylonian schools, they were cut off from their Jewish heritage, and they were allowed to eat from the kingвЂ™s table. they had been deported from Jerusalem to Babylon by a wicked king named Nebuchanezzar. We left a group of four teenage boys who had taken a stand for God. This morning, we want to look at a passage of Scripture that shows how things turned out. for people who chose not to obey God, look what happened in theirs. for people who chose to obey God, look what happened in their lives. in other words, God gave us stories to help us see вЂњhow things would turn outвЂќ. He said in Romans 15:4 - вЂњFor everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.вЂќ Paul answers that question in I Corinthians 10 when he says, вЂњNow these things happened to them as examples, and they are written for our instruction.вЂќ Why is that?.why isnвЂ™t it just a set of principles.why so many stories? in other words, God has conveyed much of his truth through life stories.so we can fly over a personвЂ™s entire life.and see it start to finish. do you know that thatвЂ™s one of the reasons so much of the Bible is given to us in narrative form? but next time.youвЂ™re determined to do better.wouldnвЂ™t it be nice to know how things will turn out when you do? or when you really should have said.I canвЂ™t do that anymore, or I canвЂ™t say that anymore.when the time came.you didnвЂ™t take a stand. or when you really should have stood out.you didnвЂ™t. and when you really should have spoken up for what was right.you didnвЂ™t. you might say that too often you blend in with the world around you. for others, its taking a stand publicly in some way.

wouldnвЂ™t it be nice, though, to know how things would turn out if you took that step. and you know its time to take a stand on that matter.to take a step a step of growth in that area. it might be a stand you need to take personally.where there has been some sort of thought or behavior youвЂ™ve been involved in that has not been pleasing to God. WeвЂ™ve been studying the last several weeks about taking a stand for God. WouldnвЂ™t you like to know how it will all turn out?

Sermons on the book of daniel