The Daniel Dilemma: How to Stand Firm and Love Well in a Culture of Compromise

by Chris Hodges

Through worship, we move from viewing our problems as big and God as small to the exact opposite: because we remember how big our God is. Worship restores our perspective.

Similarities between what Daniel experienced while captive in Babylon and what Christians face today are unmistakable. At least four parallels seem to be mirror images of one another. Let’s briefly consider each one:

1. We live in a society hostile to faith in God.

2. We face commands from those in authority to do something that violates the essence of our faith.

3. We face serious consequences for noncompliance.

4. We endure cultural and societal punishment for maintaining our beliefs.

The spirit of the Antichrist that was at work in Daniel’s day continues today in his mission of overthrowing God and destroying God’s followers. Typically, it’s a two-pronged attack. First, the Enemy tries to get people to exalt humans above God. Second, he attempts to stop the worship of God. We see both strategies pervading our culture.

Perhaps the easiest way to get us to elevate humanity above God is to make life all about us.

The Devil executes his plan by working nonstop to replace God’s truth with two big lies: (1) “If it feels good, do it!” and (2) “Live you...

The Devil knows that if he can get us entirely dependent on something earthly, then we’ll be miserable and will only want more and more of it to escape our pain.

Culture loves to drive a wedge between our convictions and our worship.

Worship is respecting who God is and how he sees things.

What did Daniel do in the face of this royal decree? He prayed! He worshipped God and prayed three times a day—“just as he had done before.” Daniel didn’t panic, he didn’t force a confrontation, and he didn’t argue about the unfairness of the decree. He simply did what he had always done—prayed and worshipped the Lord he loved and served.

Daniel consistently refused to give in to the demands of his captors and their culture. He would not bow down to their idols or participate in their unhealthy hedonism. And when they told him he could not pray to anyone but the king, he didn’t even blink. He went home and prayed three times as usual.

This boldness is what I want for you—and for all of us who follow Jesus and want to stand strong in our bow-down culture: The boldness to stand courageously in the face of an ever-shifting culture.

the key to courage always comes back to spending time with Jesus.

Some of the best, most creative ideas have come to me when I pray and listen to God as he speaks to my heart through Scripture.

Even when I don’t like it, God’s Word tells me the truth. Sometimes it makes me miserable as it confronts areas of my heart and life that need to change. But if I submit myself to God’s truth, it sets me free. Surrendering to God’s truth strengthens our convictions and fuels our courage, providing confidence in the face of the storm.

If we build our lives on popular opinion or our feelings, then we will always feel unstable and insecure, fearful that everything could change at any moment.

Courage comes from the heart. Like love, courage requires a commitment of unbreakable trust.

Courage is doing what you are afraid to do, and not allowing fear to rule your decisions. Simply put, courage looks up, stands up, and speaks up.

God’s truth has the power to set people free—this should fuel our desire to connect with others, not a smug attempt to prove we’re right.

Do you realize how important it is that you not be a coward about your faith? Jesus said essentially, “Hey, if you deny me here on earth, I will deny you before my Father in heaven. If you’re ashamed of me, I’ll be ashamed of you.” Sound harsh? Not if you’re seriously committed to what you believe.

Refuse to give up your ground. Do what God wants, not what people want.

Faith is deliberate confidence in the character of God whose ways you may not understand at the time. —OSWALD CHAMBERS

We may struggle with some of the same questions, doubts, and concerns in the face of such tragedies. But this is when we must exercise our faith to the fullest. This is when we must choose to worship God and to trust in his goodness, sovereignty, and power. This is when we remind the world around us that we are not God. And even if he’s not being God the way we think he should, it doesn’t matter. He’s still God. We are the creation, not the Creator.

God is still God even when we don’t understand his ways.

When the unimaginable happens, we have to stop thinking, analyzing, and problem solving and simply trust God.

True worship happens when you don’t understand and choose to trust God anyway, acknowledging his goodness, power, and sovereignty even amid situations that defy rational human explanation.

We have to trust that God didn’t get it wrong even when we can’t figure it out.

even when we trust God we still must wrestle with heartache, with loss, with disappointment, and with the doubts that may accompany such painful emotions.

God had had enough of the human wisdom from Job and those around him. Basically, God said, “You want answers? Then let me ask you a question first.” Have you comprehended the vast expanses of the earth? Tell me, if you know all this. What is the way to the abode of light? And where does darkness reside? Can you take them to their places? Do you know the paths to their dwellings? Surely you know, for you were already born! You have lived so many years! (Job 38:18–21) Like a frustrated parent, God made his point. Job immediately got it and reached a conclusion we all need to reach just as much: “Then Job answered the LORD: ‘I am unworthy—how can I reply to you? I put my hand over my mouth’” (Job 40:3–4). Job realized he could not come close to comparing himself worthy of knowing and understanding God’s ways.

Job’s response was built on three components. Together, these omni-beliefs illustrate the kind of humble faith we need if we are to stay firmly rooted in the face of the world’s reasoning that we should leave God behind when life’s trials feel unbearable. Let’s consider each one and how it applies to our lives.

A belief that God is all-powerful. The theological term for God’s all-powerfulness is omnipotence, and it conveys more than sheer strength—it’s the ultimate power that is the source of all other power we see in our world. It’s the belief that nothing is too difficult for God. Job said, “I know that you can do all things; no purpose of yours can be thwarted” (Job 42:2).

When we’re faced with a hard situation, one of the best ways to respond is to believe God can make ...

A belief that God is all-knowing. Omniscient is the theological term for “all-knowing,” and it simply means God is smarter and wiser than we have the ability to comprehend or imagine. Job recognized the vast difference between himself and God: “You asked, ‘Who is this that obscures my plans without knowledge?’ Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know” (Job 42:3). His observation about God’s ways being “too wonderful for me to know” captures the essence of faith: accepting what you don’t understand.

God knows things we don’t know; we simply have to trust him. We want a better now, but God offers a better place for the rest of our lives.

Remember: God knows the end of your story. He is at work right now in ways you can’t see—all for your ultimate good and his glory.

A belief that God is ever-present. Theologians might say “omnipresent.” This means God transcends the limits of time and space as we know it. He can be present with each one of us at any time, no matter where we are; all we must do is draw near and choose to meet him. Job said, “My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you” (Job 42:5). So many of us know God from a distance, but if we get close—really up close and personal—then we’ll know him and his heart and come to truly trust him.

real worship ultimately boils down to trust.

It’s the belief that God gets to be God and we don’t. In fact, we don’t even have the right to question God and his ways, including his Word. If we only believe what we like in the Bible but don’t believe what we don’t like, then it’s not the Bible that we trust but ourselves.

Clearly choosing what we believe and, thus, who we trust, is at the heart of standing strong in the face of an ungodly culture.

Knowing and worshipping God fulfills us and organically grows our trust with deeper roots—even when it’s incredibly painful, illogical, and seemingly unbearable.

The human mind tries to make a rational narrative for why God allows suffering, disease, violence, crime, and so many other terrible forces to operate in our world. But we know God gave us a choice: the free will to decide for ourselves whether we will worship and obey him—or something, or someone, else.

The Enemy doesn’t come dressed in a red jumpsuit, wearing little horns. He comes dressed in everything we think we want.

So we must be careful what we choose. We always become what we worship.

If you don’t like who you’re becoming, then take an inventory of what you store in your heart. If you don’t like what you find, then simply ask God to forgive you and ...

What makes humility so desirable is the marvelous thing it does to us; it creates in us a capacity for the closest possible intimacy with God. —MONICA BALDWIN

We seem to think everyone’s opinion matters but that whoever can defend theirs the best or shout the loudest wins. But this obsession is really only another major symptom of the cultural cancer plaguing our society—the sin of pride.

So far we’ve focused on culture’s greatest goal (trying to change our identity) and culture’s greatest test (pulling us away from worshipping God). Now it’s time to consider our culture’s greatest sin: pride. Pride is one of those words that has come to be synonymous with self-confidence and strength of character. And while there’s nothing wrong with a healthy sense of self, I believe to stay healthy, we must stay humble. Anytime we feel like we’re better than another person, or another group of people, then pride inflates our egos. Anytime we place ourselves before God, we’re in even bigger trouble.