Facing Adversity by Thomas Cash
2 Chronicles 36, Daniel 1, James 1
Introduction: He lived a life of dashed hopes and shattered dreams. His mother died when just a boy. He had to work in the fields to help his family. He only attended school sporadically, but read every book he could get his hands on. His business ventures and political career failed, and he became a surveyor to get out of debt. He married and had four children, but only one grew to adulthood. He regularly dealt with depression but never stopped working toward his goals. Yet we know him as one of the greatest men America ever produced: Abraham Lincoln.
She was an energetic young woman whose life was forever changed by an accident. Because her spinal cord was severed, she first struggled to survive. Forced to live her life as a quadriplegic, she nearly lost the will to live. Slowly, she achieved the impossible. She painted by holding a brush with her teeth. She produced record albums of joyful music. She married, & is now known as an encourager to countless thousands of people. Her name? Joni Eareckson Tada.
Life for many is filled with experiences of disappointment, disillusionment, and despair. As a result, relationships, families, and careers are often scarred. When we encounter a young man named Daniel, we find him facing unthinkable adversity.
Proposition: We can learn a lot from Daniel, who in spite of continual hardship, overcame tragedy and achieved success. When facing trouble for the sake of Christ, count it all joy!
1. His nation collapsed (2 Chronicles 36)
How do you suppose the nation of Judah felt when Jehoiakim surrendered to Babylon’s first onslaught & became a servant to Nebuchadnezzar?
Did they feel relief because destruction was averted, or shame at the country’s loss of sovereignty?
After 3 uneasy years, the end came swiftly. Jehoiakim tried to throw off Babylon’s power, and Nebuchadnezzar’s retaliation was swift.
Jerusalem was conquered.
We know little about Daniel’s family. He was of royal blood.
We know he was well schooled, or else he would not have been signaled out.
He was probably aware of the prophesies of Judah’s fall, and now was experiencing the fulfillment firsthand.
When something historic occurs, we remember it the rest of our lives. Where were you on September 11, 2001? I was listening to the radio after taking my wife to work. Suddenly, an announcer interrupted and said there was “an incident” in New York. The reports worsened during that eight-mile drive home. I found myself glued to the television for the next nine hours. Sensing the need to be with family, our daughter Amanda drove over and spent the rest of the day with us.
We remember where we were when first hearing of disaster or tragedy. The security industry has become big business. Otherwise there would be no market for burglar alarms, smoke detectors, security systems, guard dogs, and weapons designed to defend our home and family. Out of fear, we purchase these products in an attempt to somehow prevent our most valued possessions from being snatched out of our hands.
”Our” possessions? No! They are God’s; but he entrusts them to us as caretakers. The most valuable, yet least considered God-given treasure is our souls. We know we must protect our families and homes, but it is of utmost urgency that we secure our souls as well. David understood this when he wrote, “Keep me safe, O God, for in you I take refuge…apart from you I have no good thing” (Psalm 16:1-2).
A refuge is more than a shelter; it is a place of safety and protection. When I was a kid, where do you suppose I felt the most secure when a terrible storm rattled the windows of our house? With my Mom & Dad. When life’s storms rattle the windows of our souls, we need to do exactly the same thing: Run to the Father! David did. “I have set the Lord always before me. Because He is my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body will also rest secure” (Psalm 16:8-9).
Stability, security, safety, protection, and shelter: God offers them all through the saving grace of Jesus Christ. In spite of our inadequate praise and constant battles with sin, he continues to claim us as his children. “My sheep listen to my voice…no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand” (John 10:27-29). What a promise! What security!
Some people will pay anything to protect their temporary treasures on earth. Jesus promises to protect our eternal treasures in heaven (see Matthew 6:19-21).
A preacher was delivering a sermon before a large congregation. He pointed out that believers aren’t exempt from trouble. In fact, some Christians are surrounded by trouble — trouble to the right, trouble to the left, trouble in front, and trouble behind. At this, a man who had served the Lord for many years, shouted, "Glory to God, it’s always open at the top!"
To improve our outlook when facing trials, try looking up!
2. He was uprooted (Daniel 1:1-7)
Isaiah predicted, “Some of your [Hezekiah’s] descendants…will be carried away” (2 Kings 20:18).
Not only were holy items from the temple removed, the best of the young men of royal blood were taken as well.
They became civil servants in a pagan government.
Customs were different; language was different; worship was idolatrous.
Unanswered questions would have swirled through his head.
•Did his family survive the sacking of Jerusalem?
•How would he deal with being a prisoner of war?
Even in the midst of tragedy, there were some positive things on Daniel’s side.
•Daniel knew His God is always faithful.
•Daniel had three friends who would stand with him for what was right.
•Daniel had his heritage. His ancestors Joseph, Moses, & David all endured through their own tragedies.
•Daniel used the power of prayer.
Listen to what James said in chapter 1, verses 1-12.
When we go through difficulties, verses 2-4 are some of the most enlightening and encouraging words in the Bible. Trials should not be viewed as a foe but as a friend. God chooses what we go through; we choose how we go through it. The trials work for our good and God’s glory.
How many enjoy a freshly baked Krispy Kreme donut? Many of us have tasted them. Some people will line up and wait for hours to purchase these sweet delights. Let me tell you about the process that leads to a Krispy Kreme donut.
First the little balls of dough are shot through with a piercing blast of air to create a hole. Then they go into the proof box where they ride up and down an elevator in an atmosphere of heat and humidity. This causes the dough to rise. After this, they are dropped into hot oil and boiled thoroughly. After surviving this ordeal, the donuts pass through a cascading waterfall of icing.
Does anyone here today feel like a Krispy Kreme? Do you feel like you have been blasted with air? Do you feel like you have been boiled in oil? Well, remember that these experiences precede the sweet delight that follows. None of us look forward to trials. None of us love hardship. But without them, we will never enjoy the sweet fruit of maturity.
Billy Graham said, “Mountaintops are for views and inspiration, but fruit is grown in the valleys.” (from sermoncentral.com)
Someone asked CS Lewis, "Why do the righteous suffer?" "Why not?" he replied. "They’re the only ones who can take it."
Most of you are training for ministry at Johnson Bible College. Had I known what I would endure in thirty years of ministry, I might have had second thoughts. But I have discovered that God is faithful and will help us through. Andrea Crouch wrote a song that’s given me a lot of comfort:
Through It All
Lyrics and music: Andre Crouch
I’ve had many tears and sorrows;
I’ve had questions for tomorrow;
There’ve been times I didn’t know right from wrong.
But in every situation
God gave blessed consolation
That my trials come to only make me strong.
Through it all, through it all,
(Oh,) I’ve learned to trust in Jesus;
I’ve learned to trust in God.
Through it all, through it all,
I’ve learned to depend upon His Word.
I thank God for the mountains
And I thank Him for the valleys;
I thank Him for the storms He brought me through;
For if I’d never had a problem,
I wouldn’t know that He could solve them;
I’d never know what faith in God could do.
Through it all, through it all,
(Oh,) I’ve learned to trust in Jesus;
I’ve learned to trust in God.
Through it all, through it all,
I’ve learned to depend upon His Word.
3. He was a survivor (Daniel 1:21)
Daniel faced a choice.
•Entering the service of the king of Babylon was not a matter of choice.
•How he performed that service was.
He could have allowed bitterness to sour his relationship with God.
•After all, God did not protect him from disaster.
•He was so far from home, it might be easier to adopt to the customs of this new land.
•He could have reasoned, “They won; we lost. When in Babylon, do as the Babylonians do.”
He could have become bitter toward his captors & his situation.
•He didn’t come to Babylon on a student visa.
•Why not do the bare minimum?
•Or surround himself with pity & let hopelessness overtake his life?
After all, nothing would ever be the same again.
•Life as he knew it was over.
Instead, Daniel chose to faithfully serve God by serving his captors to the best of his ability.
Daniel was much like a middle-aged woman who lived a quiet life in Holland during the first third of the twentieth century. She & her sister kept house for their widowed father. Her greatest joy was teaching a group of mentally handicapped children Bible lessons in the afternoon. When the Nazis invaded, her family sheltered Jews in their home. Turned in by an informant, they were arrested & sent to a concentration camp. After enduring a particularly hard beating, the women were comforted by the reminder that “They did this to our Lord as well.”
Her father & sister died there. She survived to tell her story: not of bitterness, but of a victory in the grace of God that can light the darkest circumstances of life. Her name? Corrie Ten Boom.
Daniel sought God on a daily basis.
•He completed his studies with distinction & served admirably for 70 years through the reign of 3 kings: Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar, & Darius.
•Not only was he an administrator, but a prophet & advisor.
•Throughout his life, Daniel was usable by God.
He stands as our example as one who will work through less than ideal conditions & not swerve from his commitments.
Max Lucado wrote the following in his bestseller In the Eye of the Storm:
Chippie the parakeet never saw it coming. One second he was peacefully perched in his cage. The next he was sucked in, washed up, and blown over.
The problems began when Chippie’s owner decided to clean Chippie’s cage with a vacuum cleaner. She removed the attachment from the end of the hose and stuck it in the cage. The phone rang, and she turned to pick it up. She’d barely said "hello" when "ssssopp!" Chippie got sucked in.
The bird owner gasped, put down the phone, turned off the vacuum, and opened the bag. There was Chippie -- still alive, but stunned.
Since the bird was covered with dust and soot, she grabbed him and raced to the bathroom, turned on the faucet, and held Chippie under the running water. Then, realizing that Chippie was soaked and shivering, she did what any compassionate bird owner would do . . . she reached for the hair dryer and blasted the pet with hot air.
Poor Chippie never knew what hit him.
A few days after the trauma, the reporter who’d initially written about the event contacted Chippie’s owner to see how the bird was recovering. "Well," she replied, "Chippie doesn’t sing much anymore -- he just sits and stares."
It’s hard not to see why. Sucked in, washed up, and blown over . . . That’s enough to steal the song from the stoutest heart.
How do you face your afflictions? Why not sing?
We sing when God delivers us
We are blessed when we can sing after sunset, when it seems like nothing but darkness envelops us.
Daniel did so from the pit of the lion’s den.
Paul & Silas did so from the dungeon in Philippi.
We can sing to God no matter what befalls us.
We can sing when we face death.
Let me tell you about some dear friends of mine: "Punk" and "Beanie" Peters. Punk’s real name was Ralph; Beanie’s was Lavena. They were members of Driftwood Christian Church near Vallonia Indiana. Beanie was a simple farm wife who had an unshakable faith.
Dying of liver cancer, I was at the hospital with her family, essentially on a deathwatch. Beanie’s pain was excruciating, and the pain medicine kept her in a nearly unconscious state. Others left the room for a moment; only her daughter Harriet and Punk were present with me. Suddenly Beanie opened her eyes.
Looking at the ceiling, she said, “Sing.” I leaned over her bed and asked, “What did you say, Beanie?” “Sing.” Do you want us to sing a hymn? She nodded. So I started:
“I heard an old, old story, how a Savior who came from glory…”
By that time Ralph and Harriet joined in:
“How He gave His life on Calvary to save a wretch like me;
I heard about His groaning, and His precious blood atoning;
Then I repented of my sin and won the victory.”
On the chorus, Beanie joined us. She sang the melody; Harriet sang alto; Punk sang tenor, and I picked up the bass.
“Oh victory in Jesus! My Savior forever;
He sought me and bought me
With His redeeming blood
He loved me ‘ere I knew Him
And all my love is due Him
He plunged me to victory beneath the cleansing flood.”
I started singing the last verse. With eyes fastened on the ceiling, Beanie’s voice became stronger:
“I heard about a mansion He has built for me in Glory
And I heard about the streets of gold beyond the crystal sea;
About the angels’ singing the old redemption story;
And some sweet day I’ll sing up there the song of victory!”
Sing the chorus with me.
Victory in Jesus, my Savior forever! We prayed together, and Hours later, Beanie Peters died. Just a few years later her daughter Harriet died of the same type of cancer. Not long ago Punk also went home to be with the Lord. Out of the four in that room, I am the only one left to tell the story. No matter what trials you face, sing. God is there to help you through.
Conclusion: John Eldredge tells the story of a Scottish discus thrower from the 19th century. He lived days before professional trainers and developed his skills alone in the highlands. He made his own discus from the description he read in a book. What he didn’t know was that the competition discus was made of wood with an outer rim of iron. His discus was made of pure metal, four times heavier than the ones used by his would-be challengers. This committed Scotsman trained day after day, laboring under the burden of extra weight. He marked the record distance and kept working until he could throw that far.
Of course, when he arrived at the competition, he was handed the official wooden discus. He threw it like a tea saucer. He set new records and for many years, none of his competitors could touch him.
As Eldredge reflected on this story, he said, “So that’s how you do it – train under a great burden.” (from sermoncentral.com)
Some of us here today are training under a great burden. It hurts. It is unpleasant. Sometimes we despair. Sometimes we cry. Sometimes we are angry at the burden. And yes, sometimes we are angry at God. But we must always take heart. We must always have a deep sense of joy. Why? Because the burden is producing perseverance. Perseverance is producing maturity. Neither of these virtues so prized by God would ever be ours without the burden.
Dear brother, dear sister, Count it all joy. There is indeed victory in Jesus!
