Persevering When Everyone Else Quits Series

LITURGICAL OPENING — PSALM 34:1-8

• I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.

• My soul shall make her boast in the Lord: the humble shall hear thereof, and be glad.

• O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together.

• I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.

• They looked unto Him, and were lightened: and their faces were not ashamed.

• This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.

• The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them.

• O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.

(Psalm 34:1-8)

GREETING

Good Morning ... and too, God be the Glory!

I greet you in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus the Christ. And there is a Word from the LORD ...

So let us turn our hearts and our Bibles to the book of Daniel ... chapter 3, beginning at verse 10 ... and then to First Corinthians ... chapter 9, beginning at verse 24.

SCRIPTURE READING — DANIEL 3:10-18; 1 CORINTHIANS 9:24-25 (KJV)

(Dan 3:12) There are certain Jews whom thou hast set over the affairs of the province of Babylon, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego; these men, O king, have not regarded thee: they serve not thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.

(3:15) 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?

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

(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.

(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.

(1 Cor 9:24) Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.

(9:25) And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.

NEIGHBOR TURN

Turn to your neighbor and say ... Neighbor — BUT IF NOT ... I STILL WON'T BOW.

You may be seated ...

PRAYER

Father ... the task of teaching Your Word is once again in my keeping. I commit myself to do the very best that I can. Speak to me ... that I may speak for You. Right now, Lord ... remove self. Remove pride. Hide me behind Your cross. May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Thy sight. This is my prayer. Amen.

INTRODUCTION

We have covered culture, communication, collaboration, and the peace only Christ provides. This week we come to the pillar that holds everything else up ... PERSEVERANCE.

The culture, the communication, and the collaboration will all be tested. And the question that determines whether your culture survives the test is the perseverance question: Will you hold when the fire comes?

And the fire WILL come. Not might come. The furnace will be heated seven times hotter than normal. And everybody around you will be watching to see ... will you bow?

Point 1 — The Pressure to Bow

Point 2 — The Posture of the Persevering

Point 3 — Run to Win

POINT 1 — THE PRESSURE TO BOW

Daniel 3:10-15

Nebuchadnezzar was the most powerful ruler on earth. When the music played ... every person in the province was expected to fall down and worship. On pain of death.

And the music plays. And everybody falls. And three men are still standing.

The Hebrew word for "worship" here is SEGID — seg-eed — to fall prostrate, to bow down in complete submission.

(Hebrew: segid — seg-eed — to bow down in complete submission, to prostrate oneself in worship)

The king is saying: SEGID. Submit. Comply. Surrender your identity, your convictions, your God ... to what the majority demands.

The pressure to bow today does not always come with a fiery furnace. Sometimes it comes with a budget cut. Sometimes it comes with a vote. Sometimes it comes with the threat of removal. Sometimes it comes with the whisper: "Why are you making this so difficult? Everybody else is going along with it."

The pressure to bow is real. And it is relentless. And only perseverance will hold you upright.