We affect those around us by how we live, whether purposefully or passively, for good or for evil. Dr. Stanley examines the responsibility and privilege of influence as seen through the life of the Old Testament prophet Daniel whose godly character and convictions drew the attention of some very powerful people.

today, people are disconnected and isolated. But imagine being fully known by those around you. Get your faithfully human workbook today and redeem your relationships in touch with Dr Charles Stanley, celebrating 45 years of God’s faithfulness in sharing the gospel worldwide. Next on in touch requirements of a godly influence, influence is both a responsibility and a privilege. We think about influence. We think about the power to affect someone’s life, the power to persuade someone to do this or to do that. And when you think about the billions of dollars that have spent every year by people who want to persuade us that is to influence us, they want to influence what we eat and where we eat it, what we drink, what we were and how we wear it or what we drive, or maybe even how we vote. But people are always trying to influence us, and they’re spending millions and millions of dollars doing so. And you think about when you influence somebody. Sometimes that influences purposeful, sometimes its passage. Sometimes it’s very good, and sometimes they could be evil. But all of us are being influenced, and all of us are influencing someone else and often times it is passive. It’s conscious or unconscious. That is, we consciously want to influence our Children, other people, but often times unconsciously, without any effort on our part, we are influencing. So if you’ll think about all these commercials, it’s all about influencing us. Well, what I want to talk about in this message is influence. But I want to talk about a godly influence, and that is the title of this message. What are the requirements in order that you and I would be a godly influence on other people and by girlie in plants, I mean a good influence. I mean, an influence, too, exert that power than us to help other people understand who Jesus is and to influence them, to accept him as their personal Saviour and the influence them to grow in their understanding and knowledge of the word of God, and influence them to walk in a way that is godly, that is holding at his righteous and influence them to serve him and followed him all the days of their life, and to support his work and to spread his message all over the world. And so all of us have a responsibility specialist believers to be influences that is exerting the power that we have now that could be back our voice by our speech by our personality, by oppositions by opposition in life. But all of us are influences. And in the Book of Daniel, you’ll find the most beautiful example of someone who indeed cast a godly in blondes on all those around him. And so I want you to turn, if you will, to Daniel. And if some of you are new believers and you don’t know exactly where that is, if you look in the Old Testament, therefore big profits. There’s Jeremiah, Isaiah Germ, a Ezekiel and did Daniel and in this book, that many, many wonderful lessons. But certainly it. Daniel is a beautiful example of someone who exerted a godly influence on those around him. This young teenage boy, Daniel, exerted a garden influence upon his three friends. Shedrick me shaking. Too many go up on the servants of the King Nebuchadnezzar, his son, who became key Belshe Aza and then of dear ias the maid and then also Cyrus, the Persian. And so the truth is, he exerted influence to guard the influence upon all those around him, plus the nation under these four kings, you say? Well, now wait a minute. But I don’t have that privilege. Think about this. You do have the privilege of exerting a godly influence on lady. One person to your friends, your family, the people you work around. Your Children, your grandchildren, all of us have the awesome possibility, responsibility and privilege of being a godly influence. And I want to say to you parents right up front, you have a divine responsibility before almighty God to exert a godly influence upon your Children so that it will be upon their Children. That is your grandchildren. Because God has given us that responsibility. And for all of us who believe us, we had this awesome responsibility and privilege. And we have the power of the Holy Spirit who lives within us to give us guidance and direction and to empower us to be there godly influence among those around us. So what I’d like to do is I’d like to give you just a set of principles here. That is what other requirements that are necessary for us to be a girl influence not just some influence, but a godly influence that can That makes a difference in a person’s life today and the days thereafter. So I want you to think first of all about this and the first requirement is this, and that is a strong conviction about the word of God. You must believe that this Bible is exactly what it says it is. That is, this is the infallible, inerrant listen, word of the living god, these air, the principles about which were to live these the principles by which we’re going to judge if you don’t listen, if you don’t have the basic principles of Scripture. If you listen. If you do not believe this book, if your convictions are not based on the word of God, you’re going to be all over the place in what you believe. What you don’t believe, because here’s the mistake many people make, they say, Well, I do have convictions. There is a difference in basic convictions, a conviction. Listen, is something that you believe in that you’re absolutely convinced and persuaded up, and so if you’re going to have a garden influence on someone else, you can’t be all over the table and doing are saying, Well, this is what I believe versus this is how I’m living One of the reasons so many teenagers grow up in homes and walk away from those homes where their parents claimed to be Cristian is because they see them talking about principles and doing what living by preference. Ah, principal says, That’s my conviction. I don’t change from it. I don’t walk away from it. Whatever the price, I may be rejected. I make. It might cost me my job or whatever, but I don’t alter, and I don’t waver from my basic conviction. If you’re going to be a godly influence, you’ve got to have some basic convictions over which listen about which you can’t be bought off by acceptance. You can’t be afraid and therefore give in because of somebody else’s threat. So I ask you this question. What basic principles? What basic principles do you hold so dear in your life that you would not give up under any condition? Because if we’re going to be a garden influence, we must have unalterable listen, unwavering convictions about the word of God because you see a conviction. Ah, conviction is sort of like that solid line in the highway at night. Time on the curb, You stay on the right side. You’ll be fine. If there is no land there, then you sort of wobbling all over the highway at night time. Just what your LifeScan see and all of a sudden, here’s a curve and you’re on the wrong side. Listen, the word of God conviction is your safety walking in the will of God being obedient to him, doing what he would have you to do. There is the second thing that’s absolute essential. That’s this. You and I must be committed to the conviction. What is this? I believe, um, I committed to that. It’s one thing to say. Well, yes, I have. I have conviction that you have a conviction so strong that you committed to it. You live by and no matter what somebody says or how they threaten you, whatever it might be, you hold to that. If you’re not committed to your convictions, what’s going to happen is this You’re going to move from conviction to preference from principles. Tiu just whatever is convenient to you. And this is why I often times the church is so weak today is because the unbelieving world seizes everything that went and risked. Remember what Jesus said? He was very clear in the 16th shipped of Matthew, he said. To his disciples, he says, Listen, he said, Watch out, watch out. Be careful about the influence of the Paris season This agency’s because it was wrong, bad influence. On the other hand, he said, The fifth chapter at Matthew, he said, Let your light so shine before others that they will see your good works and then do what? And glorify your father, which is in heaven. Will it cost you sometimes? Yes. But let me ask you a question. What are you willing to give up your convictions for? Can somebody listen? Would you give him up for acceptance? Would you give them up for something financial? Would you give them up for somebody’s love and devotion to you? What are you willing to? What are you willing to give up to hold on to your convictions, your convictions, about who you are in your relationship to Jesus Christ, who you are is a child of God, who you are in your service to him. are you so committed that no one has any question about the bag? You not only say you believe it, they watch how you live. Well, it’s certainly true of Daniel, because although the scripture what happens, he’s committed nothing. It happens when they come to say, We’re going to throw you in the lion’s den because you’re still praying to Jerusalem. So be it. Nothing ever bought him off. Nothing ever persuaded him to violate the basic biblical conviction that God had built into his life as a young man. But there’s a third thing I want you notice here. That’s very evident when you look at his life and there’s so many evidences of this. If you’re going to have a godly influence, it requires courage all the way through Daniel’s life. What you say is courage, you said. What kind of influence did he have? We had three friends shed Rigney Shecky have been ago, and you recall what happened. And that is that the king made this golden image. And so they said, What make this image end? Anyone who doesn’t bow down when you sound the trumpet and all these things, and when everybody gets the message everybody should bow down to this image will shed. Reckon he’s shaking a bit ago. So we’re not doing that. You know why? Listen, there’s the gardening in flights of Daniel, Daniel said. I’m not eating the meat drinking, the one the king stable. They said we are neither. So he said, You know what? You don’t bow down to anybody about God. So it’s interesting you recall what happens and so a za result of that. Remember, the king said to them, Anyone who does not bow down, here’s what’s going to happen. We’re going to have a bill that sells A good friend is here and we’re going to throw you and we’re going to throw you in In in all others who do not bow down, we’re going to throw you in to flaming fiery furnace. Well, it’s interesting what happens here because as a result of them not doing so, somebody told on him. And in this third chapter, listen what happens. Verse 40 says, Never Can, has responded and said to them, Is it true? Shedrick me shaking a bit ago that you did not serve my gods and worship the golden image to have set up. So of course, the That’s true. Verse 16 says Shedrick Michelle, Michelle can have been to go, replied of the key. Oh, never! Vanessa. We do not need to give an answer concerning this matter, my brother. That’s fearlessness. If it be so. Our God Look at that. It would be so. Our God, whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire, and he will deliver us out of your hand. Okay, here is awesome. Faith. Look at this. But even if he does not let it be known to you Oh, King, that we are not going to serve Your gods all worship the golden image that you have set up. Let me ask you a question. Do you have any convictions? Do you have a commitment level to the Lord Jesus Christ that you would say There’s someone in authority over you where you work, where you go to school, the other kind of conviction and courage to say I’m not going to do that, even if it cost me my job. I’m not going to join that no matter what. You think you can reject me. You can threaten me. Whatever it might be, I’m not going to violate what I know. God has told me to do. How many times have I said this to you? Obey God leave all the consequences to him. That is exactly what they’re doing. Obey God leave all the consequences to him. And so the truth is, we have to be men and women, young people of courage. You stand for your convictions, they’re going to be tested. But let me just say this. Your Children are going to follow your lead. You walk away, you about down, you give up UK. Then watch what happens to your Children when they get in those same situations. And you having had the greatest influence in their life growing up, they have watched you. They have listened to you both unlikely. They’re going to repeat what you say and what you do. And remember, we said that implants could be passive. Oh, it could be very purposeful. It could be conscious, or it could be unconscious, but influencing we all are. And so it takes courage to stand against those kind of difficulties and hardships because they’re coming in all of our lives. And when you look at his life, it’s very evident what happened here. And it’s gonna be happening to us and noticed something else. And that’s simply there’s. It requires confidence in the God of Scriptures. It’s one thing to say I believe the Bible, but do I have confidence in God himself? Because God makes many promises. So I believe the promise. Do you have confidence in God that if you obey him that he assumes responsibility of your obedience? Do you believe that he will protect you in those times? Do you believe that what he says is absolutely true? Are can you send your heart? I have confidence in God. I’m trusting God to do exactly what he promises. Here’s what happens. You and I can talk about faith. We can talk about our influence, but God is going to test every single one of us, not once but many times. And the unbelieving world is going to watch to see Do you really and truly believe these promises of scripture. Do you believe what you say you believe? Do you have confidence in God? Do they see you waver when the testing it’s hot when things really get tough to they See you with this. Listen, this immovable, staunch, committed, dedicated faith in the living God. Your confidence in him that he’s going to see you through because often times our greatest moments of influence divine influence. God, the influences. When our friends, all the people, we work with, all the people who maybe even our enemies, when they see us going through a difficult time, we really get tested. Maybe some kind of public tester or whatever it might be. And they see you immovable. They see you staunchly believing they see you hanging in there. They see you trusting your guard and you know what they’re thinking. Yes. So they’re thinking how they hang in there when all this is going on. You know why they ask the question? Because they couldnt if we’re going to be a garden influence, we must have unshakable faith because an FAA to get shaken and others see it shaken. And we begin to walk away and and shrink back and and we begin to deny what really? You know what we do? We cast a shadow on the Christian faith. We cast a shadow on the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. Listen, if God is who he says he is and he is, he is able to deliver us and all through the book of Daniel, you see this going on. His confidence is not shaken. This have been throwing lands. Then throw me in there. And if God wants to save me, he will. If he doesn’t, he’ll take me home. Put me before the key, and when you see what happened when this first issue came forward, first dream. What did Daniel, he said to his friends. He said, Let’s go to God in prayer And he praised this awesome prayer in this second Chapter 19 verse, he said. Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a night vision. Then Daniel blessed the God of Heaven and Daniel said, Let the name of God be blessed forever and ever. But wisdom and power belongs to him. It is he who changes the times and the epics. He removes kings and establishes kings. He gives wisdom to Wiseman and knowledge to minute understanding. It is he who reveals the profound and hidden things he knows what’s in the darkness and the light dwells with him. Do you? Oh, God of my problems. I give thanks and praise, but you’ve given me wisdom and power. Even now you’ve made known to me what we requested of you for. You have made known to us the king’s manner. Listen, here’s a man of confidence. He’s fearless. Listen, bowl crying out to God confident. And he said, The king will give you the answer. And each time there was a dream. He absolutely, beautifully interpret the dream. And sometimes it was an awesome answer, giving words of prophecy about the future that some of us have, we have long up to see some of these things coming to pass and understanding them. The question is this in your thinking about your relationship to God and other people, would you say that? Yes, I not only have the courage, but I have confidence in my God. You see, when the test comes, whether we’re really not whether we really have commitment with their convictions are really alive within us. Am I willing to trust him when I don’t have anything else I can trust? And I wouldn’t trust him. When I look at the situation and looks hopeless and helpless. Will I stand firm and strong based on this? My God has made me this promise. He will never leave me north. Aside me no matter what. Let me ask you a question. Are you being a guard? Lian Glance. As a result, in your convictions, in the word of God, your commitment to that your courage to stand and listen your confidence in here. Well, let’s think about something else. It’s important here. They’re simple. It is. And that is that Christ like spirit when we’re under fire. It’s one thing one thing to become. What’s a Christ like spirit? Here’s what it is Christ, like spirit is you forgive no matter what, No matter what, you forget this a Christ like spirit. And if you’re going to have a godless influence, you’ve got to respond that way. Now watch Daniel was the manipulation by some of his associates. They tried to get him in a position where he would be killed because their jealousy. You don’t see or hear anything from Daniel. His animosity, unforgiving spirit, bitterness, resentment, hostile, attended and you say, well, the bottomless and tell all those things that’s in the Bible tells a lot of bad things about the servants. But Daniel and Joseph, a two, are the most pristine people in the whole Bible. Garlic men undergoing difficulty, hardship, all kind of things but responding in the right way. Ah, loving listen, spirit of forgiveness. That’s the Christ like spirit and sometimes our greatest influence and testimonies. When people see us with a spirit of forgiveness to others, when they have wronged us, that’s that. That’s that Christ like spirit. We have to forgive and not just forgive. Listen, but not retaliate and not you see, this is what happens when you go. For example, let’s say suppose I had getting upset with this man for what he did, and then the hand is back. Said, Well, you know what? He’s just a bigot. He’s just he’s just he’s dead. You know what? It lost my testimony right there. Everything I had built up in trying to be a godly impose, I would have lost it. And you know how we lose a lot about testimony now? Influence with their lips. You said, Well, everybody’s got a right. Say something. Here’s what you have to ask yourself the question My belt to lose my God influence? Or am I about to nail it down solid for good? That loving forgiveness, that quiet, calm spirit and the last thing I’d mention? A simple of this and that is if we’re going to have a garden, it in blondes and this is where we get trapped. If I’m going to have a garden that influence, I must be consistent in my walk. And if you look at the book of Daniel and read what happens here and there’s so many wonderful things, these first six chapters, he’s very consistent. Here’s what I want you to see. Daniel’s awesome influence that influence his friends, king servants, four kings in the whole nation was a result. I’m not only his conviction in one of God, but his consistency all the way through. Now here’s what I want you to notice. I think about a child growing up in a family and what the father says this but he does this. The mother says this, but she does that. They claim this, but they do that. Here’s what goes on in a child’s mind. There’s this confusing thing that goes on. Here’s what they say is what they do on the trust them because they’re my parents. But But they’re saying one thing and doing something else. What am I supposed to do? They claim to be a Christian, but I see these actions. They claim to be moral, but I see this pornography. They claimed to be poor, but I see what they drink. They claim to be a good church members, but they don’t go very often. They claimed on a guy, but I don’t see them to you. So you know what’s going on. There’s confusion. And just because you don’t see that in your child’s heart does means not There. I get Rinty. You It’s there. I’ve heard enough over all these years to know Children are confused. And that’s when they lose their desire to do the things of God. They’d lose their desire to be. Say they live in the woods. Why? Why? Why should I? Why should I follow? This? Does Jesus. We keep doing the morning in my parents like that. What about my life? You still on that response? What? My kids do their 18 1920? Oh, yes, you are. Because you later foundation and you know what? They just built the same stuff into the rest of their life that you built in there to begin with. Now I do understand that parents can be their best sometimes. And but some raise the child goes off in some other direction on do understand there exceptions to that. But what I’m simply asked to use this by the life that you live. If I would ask your Children, did your parents give you a godless in blood? What would your Children say? Because you said there’s making us what you and I say. When somebody asked me about my past life or something, I said, You know what? The best thing he could do If you want to go as my Children because you know what they could be dead honest. Would your Children say you were godly influence in their lives? I just want to ask his apparent. You can’t shirk this responsibility and you can not escape the consequences. Are you being a godly influence on those precious gifts of God given to you to raise? Listen, will your Children grow up trusting Jesus early in life is their Saviour. Will they grow up desire ing to be like you spiritually well, they grow up desire ing to go to church, desire ing to be baptised. Will they grow up desire ing to serve the living God? Will they grow up with this hunger and thirst to know him well? They grow up reading the Bible of their own. Will they grow up knowing how to pray? Well, they grow up seeking God’s will for a marriage partner. Will they grow up committed to living by those basic principles of Scripture? Will they grow up defending the word of God? Will they grow up with the sense of confidence that God is in control of their life? Will they grow up with this sense of unshakable confidence that God will accomplish his purpose and plan in their life? All of this can be your heritage, your give to your Children when you exert to them a consistent gardening implements