Game on Session 3: Into the Lion S Den

XP3 Students | Game On | Session 3

Game On Session 3: Into the Lion’s Den Bottom Line: You talk by the way you walk.

TEACHING OUTLINE

INTRODUCTION There’s something about being a smooth talker that didn’t find its way into my gene pool.

So when I started following and walking with God, I wasn’t sure if I could ever talk freely and clear ly about it if the subject came up.

TENSION Our faith is a difficult thing to talk about.

When I started walking with God, some of my friends noticed and asked questions.

And I was afraid.

What would people think of me? Would I say things the wrong way? Would I feel stupid?

What do you think about the idea of sharing your faith?

What we see in the life of Daniel could be a total game-changer for you when it comes to sharing your faith.

TRUTH In Daniel chapter 6, the Babylonians, who were the rulers when we last saw Daniel, have been taken over by the Persians.

Daniel has faithfully served God, won the favor of a king, and now that kingdom is taken over by an entirely new empire.

But like the king of Babylon, the king of Persia notices Daniel too:

Now Daniel so distinguished himself among the administrators and the satraps by his exceptional qualities that the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom (Daniel 6:3 NIV).

It wasn’t so much about what Daniel said. It was about what Daniel did.

But then the haters started hating.

Whatever the problem, one thing was certain—it was time to get rid of Daniel.

“All the commissioners of the kingdom, the prefects and the satraps, the high officials and the governors have consulted together that the king should establish a statute and enforce an injunction that anyone who makes a petition to any god or man besides you, O king, for thirty days, shall be cast into the lions’ den” (Daniel 6:7 NIV).

But Daniel kept following God, even when it wasn’t the popular thing to do.

Then the men went as a group to King Darius and said to him, “Remember, Your Majesty, t hat according to the law of the Medes and Persians no decree or edict that the king issues can be changed.” So the king gave the order, and they brought Daniel and threw him into t he lions’ den. The king said to Daniel, “May your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you!” (Daniel 6:15-16 NIV).

Faith isn’t conditional on everything going our way. Sometimes faith is catapulted by things not going our way.

The story doesn’t pick back up until the next 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, “May the 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. Nor have I ever done any wrong before you, Your Majesty” (Daniel 6:19-22 NIV).

Now Daniel talked. He talked about what God had done for him.

But the way Daniel had lived prior to this is what got him an audience to begin with.

APPLICATION I realize this story is dramatic

But the application for you is simple:

Earn the right to be heard. Keep going. When the time is right, talk about it.

LANDING Don’t just focus on what you say—focus on how you live. Because you talk by the way that you walk.

Game On Session 3: Into the Lion’s Den

Teaching Script Bottom Line: You talk by the way you walk.

GOAL OF SMALL GROUP: To help students understand what it means to “earn the right to be heard” when it comes to their faith; and to help them realize that the way they live (and love people) is often louder than their words.

INTRODUCTION A. When I was 18, I got a traffic ticket for a “noise code violation.” The town where I was living at t he time had an obscure law that prohibited playing music too loudly within certain district limits. A nd I can understand that—when parents are trying to put their kids to bed and a car with huge su bs in the trunk drives by and rattles the entire house, it can be a bit frustrating.

But I drove a Saturn with a factory sound system. And I’m not talking about a factory system like y ou see in nice, newer cars, where you can get the volume up to a respectable level. I’m talking ab out a system that if played while driving with the windows down, it was hard for me to even hear it. My car was designed for moms with kids, not 18-year olds who love hip-hop music. It wasn’t pos sible for me drive by and rattle someone’s house. I couldn’t even rattle my own car.

So when I got pulled over, I had some questions for the officer (respectfully, of course). I tried to a rgue that whatever the noise code violation was, there’s no way my wimpy little Saturn broke it. H e finally said to me, “If you want to challenge this ticket, call the number on the back and find out t he court date. You can say all of this to the judge.”

So that’s exactly what I did.

B. I don’t remember much of what happened at my court appearance until it was my time to stand up and talk. That I remember quite vividly. Why? Because if you had heard my defense for why m y ticket was unjust, you would’ve thought I had no understanding of the English language. I fumbl ed through sentences, misspoke words, coughed, lost my train of thought, and anything else you can think of that makes a presentation absolutely horrible.

I remember sitting down and thinking, “What’s wrong with me?! Why can’t I do a better job of sayi ng what I want to say? Why can’t I be a good talker like some people I know? Why don’t the word s flow out of me?” I knew what I felt; I knew that I had a pretty good argument as to why I didn’t de serve a ticket. I just couldn’t seem to say it correctly.

In the end, the judge took $30 off my ticket price. Not exactly a supreme court victory that will be t urned into a made-for-TV movie. But it’s better than full price, I suppose.

C. There’s something about being a smooth talker that didn’t find its way into my gene pool when I was born. I was never good at talking with members of the opposite sex. I’m terrible in argument s. And growing up, I couldn’t talk my way out of trouble with my parents like many of my friends c ould. So when I started following and walking with God, I wasn’t sure if I could ever talk freely and clearly about it if the subject came up.

TENSION A. See, words can be a tricky thing. It’s hard to find the right words to express emotions like love, pain, anger, heartbreak, disappointment, hope, etc. In the same way, our faith is a difficult thing to talk about.

o For some of you, you’re not even sure what you believe, so you know you’d sound confus ing if you talked about your faith—because you feel confused. That’s okay. o Some of you call yourselves followers of Jesus, but you get terrified at the idea of talking t o anybody about anything that could be misinterpreted or controversial. o Some of you are followers of Jesus and have talked about God with your friends or family members. But it sounded a lot like my ticket defense to the judge. You confused words, ju mbled sentences, and said things in a much different way than you intended. B. When I started walking with God—instead of living life however I wanted—it was a somewhat drastic change for me. Some of my friends noticed and asked questions. And I was immediately thrown into situations where I had to talk about my faith. It was game on! And I was afraid. What would people think of me? Would I say things the wrong way? Would I feel stupid?

I knew it was important for me to talk about my faith. Didn’t Jesus tell His followers to go tell people about Him? So on one hand I was nervous. But on the other hand, I didn’t want to keep my faith to myself.

What do you think about the idea of sharing your faith? Are you worried that it means you have to understand 100 percent of the Bible? Or worse, that you’ll become a preacher some day?

C. Don’t freak out. I don’t think it means any of that (although yes, some of you will end up being preachers!). If this is your first time at church, don’t be nervous. You don’t have to be eloquent with words to be good at talking about your faith. And what we see in the life of Daniel could be a total game-changer for you when it comes to sharing your faith.

TRUTH A. In Daniel chapter 6, the Babylonians, who were the rulers when we last saw Daniel, have been taken over by the Persians. Daniel stood bravely and refused to compromise his beliefs in a hostile environment. But imagine where he is now. He has faithfully served God, won the favor of a king, and now that kingdom is taken over by an entirely new empire. So here we are, back at square one.

Game on once again for Daniel!

But like the king of Babylon, the king of Persia notices Daniel too:

Now Daniel so distinguished himself among the administrators and the satraps by his exceptional qualities that the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom (Daniel 6:3 NIV).

B. You see that? The king noticed. He observed. It wasn’t so much about what Daniel said. It was about what Daniel did. He talked by the way he walked. Daniel lived his life in such a way that people noticed. He earned the right to be heard.

But then the haters started hating. Some other officials wanted to get rid of Daniel. Maybe it was their jealousy. Maybe Daniel’s integrity made it hard for them to get away with corruption. Maybe they didn’t like him because of his faith. Whatever the problem, one thing was certain—it was time to get rid of Daniel.

“All the commissioners of the kingdom, the prefects and the satraps, the high officials and the governors have consulted together that the king should establish a statute and enforce an injunction that anyone who makes a petition to any god or man besides you, O king, for thirty days, shall be cast into the lions’ den” (Daniel 6:7 NIV).

C. Okay, this seems a little extreme, don’t you think? I’d be asking, “What happened to a night in

www.xp3students.org © 2013 The reThink4 Group, Inc. All rights reserved. XP3 Students | Game On | Session 3 jail or community service? Letting people be mauled by a pack of the most dangerous animal on the planet? For not worshipping the king? That’s cruel and unusual punishment!”

But Daniel didn’t worship the king. He continued to pray to God in heaven, not god on the throne of Persia. In other words, he kept following God, even when it wasn’t the popular thing to do. Have you noticed that nothing has involved him “talking” yet? He hasn’t had to win an argument or defend his faith. All he has done is earn the right to be heard and not give up. And it was all about the way he lived his life. He talked by the way he walked.

For the jealous officials, however, the plan worked flawlessly. One for the bad guys. Zero for the good guy.

Then the men went as a group to King Darius and said to him, “Remember, Your Majesty, t hat according to the law of the Medes and Persians no decree or edict that the king issues can be changed.” So the king gave the order, and they brought Daniel and threw him into t he lions’ den. The king said to Daniel, “May your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you!” (Daniel 6:15-16 NIV).

D. It was a dark time for Daniel. First, it may have been literally dark in the cave. Which is an awful thought when you consider that you could be struck and gnawed on at any moment. Second, it was a dark culture—full of people who were violently opposed to Daniel’s relationship with God. Third, it was a dark time for Daniel personally. That one’s obvious. His life was in danger. But here’s the truth: In the dark times, our faith can shine the brightest. “Faith” isn’t conditional on everything going our way. Sometimes faith is catapulted by things not going our way.

I have no idea what the cave night was like for Daniel because the story doesn’t pick back up until the next 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, “May the 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. Nor have I ever done any wrong before you, Your Majesty” (Daniel 6:19-22 NIV).

E. Now Daniel talked. He talked about what God had done for him. And he talked kindly and respectfully (notice his intro—“May the king live forever”). But the way Daniel had lived prior to this is what got him an audience to begin with. Everything wasn’t riding on his words alone, because his life looked a certain way. People saw how he lived, and as a result, they listened when he talked.

APPLICATION A. I realize this story is dramatic. It has a happy ending. The king goes on to worship the God that Daniel loves. But the application for you is simple:

1. Earn the right to be heard. Instead of focusing on being better than people, why not focus on doing things in a way that brings more honor to God? This gets people’s attention, and people will be more willing to hear what you have to say when this is the case. 2. Keep going. There may be times when it’s not acceptable or popular to follow Jesus. It’s not the thing to do. It may get dark. But those times provide the opportunity for your faith to shine the brightest.

3. When the time is right, talk about it. You don’t have to know everything. Just talk about what you do know. And talk about it with gentleness and respect. When you practice talking about what you believe and why you believe it, it helps you build your faith.

B. But in the end, remember that you talk by the way you walk. Meaning, the way you live, love, work, and interact with others gives you the opportunity to say what you believe when your words don’t. Your opportunity may come through a positive circumstance. Or, like Daniel, it may come through a dark one.

LANDING A. This won’t always be easy. But sometimes the tough circumstances provide opportunities for your faith to shine bright and grow quickly. So don’t just focus on what you say—focus on how you live. Because you talk by the way that you walk.

[TRANSITION INTO SMALL GROUPS]