Warren W. Wiersbe - Be Resolute (Daniel): Determining to Go Gods Direction (The BE Series Commentary)

BE RESOLUTE
Published by David C. Cook
4050 Lee Vance View
Colorado Springs, CO 80918 U.S.A.

David C. Cook Distribution Canada
55 Woodslee Avenue, Paris, Ontario, Canada N3L 3E5

David C. Cook U.K., Kingsway Communications
Eastbourne, East Sussex BN23 6NT, England

David C. Cook and the graphic circle C logo
are registered trademarks of Cook Communications Ministries.

All rights reserved. Except for brief excerpts for review purposes,
no part of this book may be reproduced or used in any form
without written permission from the publisher.

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version of the Bible. (Public Domain.) Scripture quotations marked NASB are taken from the New American Standard Bible , Copyright 1960, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission; NIV taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version . NIV . Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved; NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation , copyright 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved; and NKJV are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

LCCN 2008924755
ISBN 978-1-4347-6781-3
eISBN 978-1-4347-6589-5

2000 Warren W. Wiersbe

First edition of Be Resolute published by Victor Books
in 2000 Warren W. Wiersbe, ISBN 0-78143-305-3

The Team: Gudmund Lee, Amy Kiechlin, Jack Campbell, and Susan Vannaman
Cover Design: John Hamilton Design
Cover Photo: Veer Inc.

Second Edition 2008

Contents

1. (Daniel 1)

2. (Daniel 2)

3. (Daniel 3)

4. (Daniel 4)

5. (Daniel 5)

6. (Daniel 6)

7. (Daniel 7)

8. (Daniel 8)

9. (Daniel 9)

10. (Daniel 10)

11. (Daniel 11:135)

12. >(Daniel 11:3612:13)

13. (A Review of Daniel)

The Big Idea

An Introduction to Be Resolute
by Ken Baugh

Ive heard it said that there are two tests in life: the test of adversity and the test of prosperity. The challenge, of course, during the test of adversity is not to give in to despair, not to doubt Gods love, power, and presence in our lives. The challenge during the test of prosperity is not to forget God, not to become self-sufficient and proud. I have discovered that my life seems to be in a constant state of flux between these two challenges.

For example, I believe that God is sovereign in my life, which simply means that nothing can happen to me that He does not allow for my good and His glory. I believe that God is a God of love, and as my loving Father I believe that God is always looking out for my best interests. I believe that God is with me all the time, that there is never a moment when I am alone. I believe these and the other attributes of God are true, and yet during times of adversity, I find my faith diluted by doubt. Sometimes Im even tempted to despair. And then at other times in my life, when things are going good, I feel an ever-so-subtle shift in my heart away from depending on God, toward a sense of self-sufficiency. And then I wonder, Why is it that God has my undivided attention during the times of adversity yet barely gets a nod from during the times of prosperity? Can you relate to any of this? Is it possible to go through life without the major swings from doubt to self-sufficiency? Is it possible to be steady, stable, and resolute during these tests of adversity and prosperity? The answer is YES! Let me explain by using the life of Daniel as an example.

Daniel was a normal person just like us. He was tested by adversity and prosperity, yet he was able to remain resolute in his faith and relationship with God. Take the incident of the lions den, for example. Prior to this incident, King Darius was thinking of making Daniel ruler over his entire kingdom due to his exceptional qualities and personal integrity. However, the other administrators and satraps were jealous of Daniels favored position in the eyes of the King and sought to find somethinganything in Daniels life that they could use to discredit him. Yet, Daniel was such a man of godly character that according to 6:45 ( NIV ):

They could find no corruption in him, because he was trustworthy and neither corrupt nor negligent. Finally these men said, We will never find any basis for charges against this man Daniel unless it has something to do with the law of his God.

Daniels character and work ethic were indisputable, and these deceitful men knew that the only way to hurt his credibility with the King would be to devise some type of trap that would force him into a moral dilemma with his God. Their plan was brilliant. They convinced King Darius to sign a law that required everyone in the land to worship him as God, and any who chose to rebel against this decree would be thrown into the lions den. Knowing that Daniel would never bow down to anyone else but his God, these administrators and satraps thought they had devised the perfect plan to rid themselves of Daniel, and King Darius played right into their hands. Daniel quickly found himself in a moral dilemma. Should he continue with his daily prayer routine to the one true God, or should he submit to the decree of King Darius? Daniel knew the consequences that would ensue if he rebelled, but he stood firm in his convictions, and the Bible says that immediately after hearing of this decree Daniel went home to pray with the windows wide open so everyone could see (6:10). You gotta love that! Well, as the story goes, King Darius, bound by his own law, was required to throw Daniel into the denthe place where Daniel would face his greatest test of adversity.

The Bible doesnt tell us what was going through Daniels mind during that long, dark night, but I sometimes wonder if he was tempted to doubt what he believed about God. Did he think to himself, God, I have been faithful to you and now I find myself here in this forsaken place. God, I thought You loved me. God, I thought You would take care of me. What have I done to deserve this? Why me, God? Well, well never know if Daniel struggled with doubt during this difficult time, but we can see from his answer to the king that his faith remained strong in the morning:

At the first light of dawn, the king got up and hurried to the lions den. When he came near the den, he called to Daniel in an anguished voice, Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to rescue you from the lions? Daniel answered, O king, live forever! My God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me, because I was found innocent in his sight. (6:1922 NIV )

Daniel passed the test of adversity with flying colors! After this incident, the Bible tells us that Daniel was raised to a position of prominence and prospered during the reign of both King Darius and Cyrus the Persian. As you read through the rest of the story about the life of Daniel, you will discover that he remained a humble, godly man of character throughout his years of prosperity as well.

The story of Daniel is a great example of a man who was able to navigate through the waters of both adversity and prosperity. But how did he do it? I believe that Daniel was able to stay resolute throughout the times of adversity and prosperity because his faith was anchored in the sovereignty of God. Daniel believed that God had everything in control, and that He was orchestrating all the events in the world around him to accomplish His purposes and to declare His glory. Here lies the big idea of the book of Daniel: God is sovereign over all things. I hope this book will give you a greater sense of confidence and hope in your own life as you navigate the tests of adversity and prosperity. Just remember that God has everything in control, and nothing can happen to you that He does not allow for your good and His glory.