9/30/06
YOUNG PEOPLE & CHOICES
Young
people today face so many temptations and confusing situations. They are
bombarded with information and with ideas and some of these ideas are not in
agreement with Scripture.
In
addition, our young people have friends and teachers and they see and hear
people on TV and on the Internet that say and do things that are not pleasing
to God, nor healthy, nor right.
It’s a
confusing time to be a young person. You’re taught certain things at home and
at church, and then you see and hear things that are different and even the
opposite when you’re going about your life during the week.
In
addition, we are all prone to sin in the first place. We are born with a sinful
human nature that will find a way to get into sin just naturally. We don’t even
have to be tempted in order to get into sin. We are programmed for sin. And
unless we accept what Jesus has done for us, and have a daily relationship with
Him, we will always be slaves to sin and will fall an easy prey to temptation. Our
choices will be bad ones.
So it’s a
dangerous situation that we find ourselves in here in the 21st
century. But you know other young people who have gone before us also had it
rough.
The Bible
says in Isaiah 30:21, “If you go the wrong way—to the right or to the left—you
will hear a voice behind you. It will say, “This is the right way. You should
go this way.”
A long
time ago, there were three Hebrew young people who found themselves in a tough
situation. They had been taught the things of God at home, but they had been
forced from home while they were in their teens, along with Daniel.
Their
names were Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah (Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego).
* Had to
hang on to what they had been taught, when forced to live in a strange land—
* They
had already earlier chosen not to eat the food that the Babylonians ate,
because God had told them in Scripture not to eat bad things.
* Now, in
Daniel chapter 3, King Nebuchadnezzar in inspired by Satan to erect a huge
statue that is 9 feet wide and 90 feet tall, overlaid with gold.
* The
king made a decree which said when you hear the music, you must bow down and
worship this golden statue. Dan. 3:6.
* But
these young people wouldn’t do that and why do you suppose they wouldn’t do that,
even when everyone else is doing it, and even when they will be killed if they
don’t do it?
* These
young people loved God so much that they would rather die than disobey God.
Wow! They heard that voice in their ears saying, “This is the way to go. Go
this way.” That was the Holy Spirit telling them to remain true to God—even in
a strange land—even when everybody else is bowing down to that statue.
* The
Holy Spirit reminded them of the 10 Commandments. The second commandment tells
us that we should not make idols and images and that we should not worship
them.
* Their
response: Daniel 3:16-18
Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need
to answer you in this matter. If that is the case, our God whom
we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will
deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O
king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which
you have set up.”
* So the
furnace is heated up seven times hotter than usual. It was so hot that the
strong soldiers that were ordered to tie up Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah were
killed by the extreme heat!
* And so
these three young people were thrown into that super hot furnace. But I want
you to notice what happens—vv. 24, 25.
Then King
Nebuchadnezzar was astonished; and he rose in haste and spoke, saying to
his counselors, “Did we not cast three men bound into the midst of the fire?”
They answered and said to the king, “True, O king.”
“Look!” he answered, “I see four men
loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the form of
the fourth is like the Son of God.”
* Jesus
was right there with them through that horrible experience! You see, when we decide
to obey God and do the things that please Him, He honors us with His very
presence. He goes through the difficult time with us. He saves us in the midst
of our trial.
* Now,
you young people here today in this sanctuary live a long time after the time
of Daniel. You may not think that you have enemies that will try to throw you
into a fiery furnace. But wait!
* Satan
is destroying young people today! How does he do it? By getting them to make
wrong choices. Every choice for selfishness or for sin that we make leads us
closer to destruction.
Every bad
choice we make makes it a little easier to choose wrong the next time.
* We too
can hear a voice saying, “This is the way to go. Go this way.” Turn to Phil.
4:8. God’s Flashlight:
“Finally,
brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever
things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are
lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any
virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.”
* Rom.
12:9 “Your love must be real. Hate what is evil. Hold on to what is good.”
* WHEN WE
HEAR A VOICE SAYING “GO THIS WAY” THAT VOICE WILL NEVER GO AGAINST WHAT THE
BIBLE SAYS!
* We have
the 10 Commandments, we have God’s Flashlight, we must be in the Word of God,
or else we won’t be able to recognize God’s voice when He talks to us.
* We obey
not because we have to, but because we love God.