Week of 2/24-3/1: Scattered - God Prepares His People for Delieverance

Day One: Dan. 1:8-9 Daniel determined that he would not defile himself with the king’s food or with the wine he drank. So he asked permission from the chief official not to defile himself.

Read the rest of the story, Daniel 1:10-17, in your Bible.

RIOTING IS AN OLD, but common form of rebellion. During a riot, lawlessness abounds. Riots can be generated over public anger toward a political decision or some injustice. Riots can also start as celebrations where crowds of people are expressing excitement over their team’s winning a championship or their candidate being nominated to office. The celebrations turn south as the swarms of crowds begin acting out, leading mobs of people to abandon order.

At the heart of riots lies lawlessness, which is a disregard for the law. In riots people act on their impulses with no concern for whether the act is legal, safe, or moral. In riots, particularly where looting and other crimes begin happening, individuals are put into position to join the lawlessness or abide in the law. You do not have to turn cars over or set fire to anything to participate in riots. You may simply take advantage of the fact that a store is broken into and you have free reign to take free merchandise. There is no law, no order.

So what would you do?

Some people, even in the midst of rioting, continue to obey the law. They understand that the law is for their good and for order, even if circumstances arise which could give excuse to not follow the law.

For believers, God’s Word serves a governing law and authority over us, which should continue to be our guide, even if we find ourselves in difficult circumstances. Lawlessness often abounds in believers, whom when facing difficult circumstances, often think to themselves, “I am free to do whatever want, after all, God has left me in this terrible situation.”

This is not how Daniel responds in the midst of affliction. In Daniel 1, we see Daniel plucked from his homeland, exiled to Babylon, and thrown into a world abounding in lawlessness. However, Daniel preserved the law, even in his difficult situation. He did not let circumstances give birth to sin. Rather he chose to stay the course.

PAUSE AND REFLECT

▷▷Why should Christians avoid lawlessness?

▷▷How do we avoid lawlessness?

▷▷How should we respond to God when we get caught up in lawlessness?