Standing Firm When the World Puts Your Faith to the Test | Tony Evans Highlight

Dr. Tony Evans speaks about the challenge of maintaining Christian faith in environments that oppose or undermine it. In the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, we’ll see how believers today can face similar pressures to compromise their values for career advancement or social acceptance. SUBSCRIBE: https://www.youtube.com/user/drtonyev… If you would like to download two encouraging, FREE full-length MP3s of Tony’s popular sermons: “The Sovereignty of God” and “How to Handle a Crisis,” you can do so by clicking on this link: https://share.hsforms.com/1atT9MJvXQN… If you would like to sign up for our daily devotional bringing you hope and inspiration, please go to this link: https://share.hsforms.com/1CkOLA910Sm… ▶ Do you know Jesus as your Savior? https://tonyevans.org/know-jesus-christ/ ▶ Stream Sermons: https://tonyevans.org/podcast/ ▶▶ Free Sermon App: https://subsplash.com/tonyevans/app/ ▶▶ DONATE: https://give.tonyevans.org/the-altern… ▶ Facebook:   / drtonyevans   ▶ Instagram:   / drtonyevans   ▶ Are you a preacher? Free sermon outlines: https://go.tonyevans.org/dr-tony-evan… Dr. Tony Evans is the founder and senior pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas, founder and president of The Urban Alternative and author of over 100 books, booklets and Bible studies. The first African American to earn a doctorate of theology from Dallas Theological Seminary, he has been named one of the 12 Most Effective Preachers in the English-Speaking World by Baylor University. Dr. Evans holds the honor of writing and publishing the first full-Bible commentary and study Bible by an African American. His radio broadcast, The Alternative with Dr. Tony Evans, can be heard on over 1,400 radio outlets daily and in more than 130 countries. Dr. Evans’ sermons are also streamed and downloaded over 20,000,000 times annually. #tonyevans #tonyevanssermon #FaFaith\

sometimes when God wants to give you an

encounter with him sometimes he takes

you out of it sometimes he delivers you

from it sometimes you don’t have to

worry about it but sometimes he wants to

take you through it he wants you to see

what it’s like when you’re in the fire

and not being burned by the fire you are

in the bad situation at work and he’s

working right beside

you how do you be

Christian when the environment you’re in

doesn’t support your

Christianity when the environment that

you’re in is trying to woo you away from

your faith as colleges do with you and

me and and our children and as the

society does with people of God so

that’s the situation that’s the

circumstance that they find themselves

in

well something happens in the beginning

of the chapter chapter 3

Nebuchadnezzar the head of Babylon

develops a Theo

ego Theo is God ego is is your mindset

he he developed a a god

mentality he deified

himself it goes on to say in the first

nine verses you’ll see seven times

discussion about this image image he

built to himself he builds a statue to

honor him 90 ft tall and 9 ft

wide he not only builds a

statue he comes up with a

law the law says that everybody is

supposed to bow to the Statue of

Nebuchadnezzar he calls all of his

leaders together and he says I want you

to all to Bow and then he gives a

warning in verse 6 whoever does not fall

down and worship shall immediately be

cast into the midst of a furnace of

blazing fire okay watch

this now the issue BS around one

thing who you going to

worship it says he built a statue and he

says you are to worship before the

statue

at the heart of the Bible from Genesis

to Revelation is this issue of

idolatry let me for those who may not

remember the definition of an idol an

idol is any noun person place thing or

thought that becomes your

source so any person place thing or

thought that becomes your Source has now

become your God anything that competes

with the god of the Bible

as the thing you ultimately look to as

your source is your god rather no matter

whether you call it your God or

not you and I live in a culture that not

only wants our work they want our

worship because they often ask us to

compromise biblical values in order to

be accepted or in order to be

promoted so Shadrach mhak and abendigo

found

themselves in a

dilemma and their career was on the

line while all of this is taking

place racism reared its ugly

head a racial dilemma takes place

because verse 8 says for this reason at

that time certain Chans came forth and

brought charges against the

Jews so some Babylonians brought charges

against the Jews they didn’t like the

Jews they didn’t want the Jews working

at the company and the reason they

didn’t like the Jews is one they were

Jewish and two they brought their faith

to

work see they knew they were followers

of God so let me ask you a question if

you were accused of being a Christian on

your job would there be enough evidence

to convict you or would you be found

innocent of all

charges cuz your faith is very vague you

know it but nobody else does they were

clearly followers of God and they were

Jewish they could not condemn them

because of their work so they had to

condemn them because of their

faith so these three Hebrew boys find

themselves on a hor a dilemma because

now the Babylonians who work with them

their co-workers come and say and play

politics you know how politics is in the

office they come and play politics they

said oh oh Nebuchadnezzar

you got these Jewish guys here and they

won’t bow oh then they come to work they

do their job but you told them to bow to

the company and they not bowing to the

company they not submitting to the

authority of the company so

Nebuchadnezzar when he finds out this

minority group would not

bow he said bring them here verse 13

bring me sharra and Ben go here and in

verses 14 and 15 he says I’mma give

y’all another

chance and then he asked the

question if you don’t

bow verse

15 if you do not worship you will

immediately be cast into the midst of a

furnace of blazing fire and what God is

there who can deliver you out of my

hands now that’s the

question the question is I’m so

powerful this this company is so strong

this government is so much in

control that if I fire you you will be

fired and you don’t know

anybody who can overrule my decision cuz

I’m the

Man Shadrach mesach and

abedo responded to the king yes he did

okay say I don’t know if you caught that

Shadrach mesach and abedo responded to

the king

so they either all talked at the same

time or one talk for all three because

it says all three

responded that’s why you need to hook up

with some other Christians in your

company so that you’re not standing

there alone okay so they responded to

the king

respectfully we do not need to give you

an answer concerning this matter let us

answer

you if so be

Our God whom we serve is able to deliver

us you are to look at your occupation as

service to the Lord through the vehicle

of that company it is the Lord Christ

whom you serve so they say we may work

for you but we serve the Lord The God

Who We Serve is able The God Who We

Serve cuz that’s what got him in trouble

in the first place their co-workers knew

that they serve the Lord in their job

description but most Christians many

Christians divorce their everyday work

from their service of

God and these three boys didn’t but

because we serve him The God Who We

Serve is able to deliver us but let’s

hear the rest of the

story even if he does

not because there are two things you

need to know about God he’s powerful so

he’s able but he’s Sovereign so he can

choose in other words you never let

God’s omnipotence his power cancel out

his

sovereignty God must have the option in

any situation to choose what the right

thing is to do at that moment and

sometimes he does

not and you need a theology that covers

when he doesn’t cuz if you don’t have a

theology that covers when he doesn’t

then you going to be mad at him when he

doesn’t cuz somebody told you from the

pull pit He’s

Able so you got to keep both

intention and about both you must say

the same thing because they say even if

he does not let it be known to you oh

King we respect you we’re going to work

for

you we are not going to serve your gods

or worship the golden image that you

have set up cuz it says in verse verse

19 then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with

wrath filled with wrath and his facial

expression was

altered okay it’s written all over your

face you don’t have to say a word you

know it’s just it’s just it’s just he’s

contorted he’s contort who do you think

you talking

to I I don’t care that you said it

respectfully do you know who I am

guess what he does he is so hot no pun

intended he is so hot he gave orders in

verse 18 to heat the furnace seven times

more than it was already heated we

talking about crispy

here oh let’s let’s look at this seven

is a number

completion this is like your boss saying

to you look if you don’t do this

not only will I fire you I will see that

you never work in this kind of business

ever

again cuz I’mma tell everybody else who

you are and what you do and and we G I’m

I’mma get the word out I’m the man you

talking about you not going to Bow cuz

you got some other spiritual

commitment so the men who brought them

to the furnace the furnace was so hot it

burned them up Bible says the men who

brought them got burned up that’s how

hot it

was they tied him

up in verse 23 and threw them into the

midst of the Furnace still tied up so

they tied up the hands tied up their

feet and threw them

in God didn’t deliver them from the

furnace he let him get fired

but something

happens verse 24 then Nebuchadnezzar the

King was astounded yes and he stood up

in

haste he said to his high

officials was it not three men we cast

bound into the midst of the Fire come on

now help me with my math wasn’t it one

two three meach Shadrach and

abendigo they replied to the king well

certainly King we put three guys in

there he said well come here come here

come come here look through this

glass look verse

25 I see four

men loosed and walking around in the

midst of the fire without harm and the

appearance of the fourth is like a son

of the

Gods can see that you you could preach

right

here he said says

of we put in three right yeah we put in

three well how

come and and we tied them up right yeah

we tied them up

okay well why am I sin

for so so if we put in three why four

and how they walking around when we tie

them up and no

crispy no nobody burnt nobody okay watch

this

sometimes when God wants to give you an

encounter with

him sometimes he takes you out of it

sometimes he delivers you from it

sometimes you don’t have to worry about

it but

sometimes he wants to take you through

it or join you in it not deliver you

from it sometimes he wants you to see

what it’s like when you’re in the fire

and not being burned by the fire you are

in the bad situation at work and he’s

working right beside you he says I see

four and the fourth one I see looks like

somebody Straight from Heaven sometimes

Heaven wants to join you in a bad

situation without taking you out of it

he just going to join you in it but

whether he takes you from it or joins

you in it you have an encounter with the

Living God cuz you’re supposed to be All

Shook Up all tied up all screaming and

hollering and worried and depressed and

here you are walking around the fire

here you are strutting around the fire

here you are moving around the fire they

messing with you at work and you still

walking they criticizing you at work and

you still praising they’re making it

hard for you and you still getting it on

why cuz you know you’re not by yourself

[Applause]

cuz sometimes he wants you to see what

it’s like when you’re in the fire with

the

[Applause]

Lord why why God why you going to do

this look I need to walk with you I need

to walk with you walk walk with me I

want you to turn to First Peter I want

to walk you through a series of

scriptures I want to walk you through a

series of youque to know these

scriptures in First Peter to show you

this is not just new Old Testament this

is New Testament he says in First Peter

a number of scriptures that will change

your bad situation at work change your

bad situation at the company when you

have this kind of understanding of a bad

suffering season in your life he says in

1 Peter chapter 2: 20 he says for what

credit is there if when you sin you are

harshly treated you endure it with

patience but if when you do what is

right and suffer for if you patiently

endure this finds favor with God so if

you doing right and taking your stand

you’re making God happy and you’re

finding favor with God even though

you’re suffering look at chapter 3

verse4 he says but even if you should

suffer for the sake of righteousness you

are blessed and do not fear their

intimidation I care who they are or what

their title is don’t be scared of their

intimidation and do not be troubled just

cuz they talking smack and talking noise

if you’re suffering for righteousness

verse 17 for it is better if God should

will it so that you suffer for doing

what is right rather than doing what is

wrong finally he says in chapter

5:1 after you have suffered for a little

while the God of all Grace

who called you by his eternal glory in

Christ will himself perfect confirm

strengthen and establish you to him be

the Dominion he going to call the final

shot he going to say where this job

situation works out whether they or

somebody else cuz remember your job your

government is only your resource it is

not your Source a man was on an island

one day and he got he got Shipwrecked on

the this island and nobody was there he

was out there by himself and he wondered

well how was he going to survive on this

island he put some sticks together to

make a little Hut to keep him away from

the inclement weather and he got in that

Hut but through a series of event the

Hut caught on fire so the Hut is on fire

he’s on this isolated island a few days

later a boat comes to deliver him from

the island he said well how did you know

I was on the island oh they said it was

simple we saw the smoke signals you were

send up to let us know you were here

sometimes God lets you catch fire but

it’s really a smoke signal saying the

God God here’s where I am and even

though I’m in a fire I know you know

where I’m located so I want you to go

back to work tomorrow and serve the Lord

Christ I want you to go back to work

tomorrow and be a Christian on your job

serving with Excellence serving the lord

but knowing the Lord knows where you’re

sitting he knows how long he wants you

there he knows when it’s time to move

and he knows the bills that you have to

pay and says he is your source and

everything else is your resource you can

lift your head up high and even if the

rest of the folk don’t like you on the

job you just find you a mishack a shatak

and an abendigo and you take your stand

for God because God ultimately owns the

company let’s give him some praise in

the midst of your problem