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

By Chris Hodges

As Christians, we have real hope in Jesus that we have been called to share with others. But how we share that hope makes a difference. In a world that rejects everything we believe, we face a dilemma: how do we walk closely with God without caving in to pressure or alienating those we want to reach? 

In this six-session video Bible study, Chris Hodges looks at the lives of both Daniel and Jesus, showing how we can stand for our biblical beliefs without being hostile or insulting to others. We can stand up for God's truth in a morally corrupt culture–while still loving others–because the goal is never about winning the argument but about winning hearts. As Jesus demonstrated, when we connect with others before we correct them, we can handle the hard questions without compromising God's grace or truth. 

Chris offers fresh insights and practical ideas to encourage Christians struggling with their cultural reality to hold God's standards high and to keep his grace deep–just as Jesus did, and just as his followers today are called to do. 

The Daniel Dilemma Study Guide includes video discussion questions, Bible exploration, and personal study and reflection materials for in-between sessions. 

Sessions include:

1. In the World but Not of It
2. Identity Theft
3. You Are What You Worship
4. Who's the Boss?
5. Divided, Distracted, and Disturbed
6. What the World Needs Now

Designed for use with the Daniel Dilemma Video Study (sold separately).

• Language: English
• Publisher: Zondervan
• Release date: Oct 17, 2017
• ISBN: 9780310088585

Chris Hodges

Chris Hodges is the founding and senior pastor of Church of the Highlands. Under his leadership, Church of the Highlands has launched campuses all across the state of Alabama and has grown to more than 60,000 people attending weekly. He also cofounded the Association of Related Churches, launched a coaching network called GROW, and serves as chancellor of Highlands College, a two-year ministry training college. Chris and his wife, Tammy, have five children and eight grandchildren and live in Birmingham, Alabama.

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The Daniel Dilemma Study Guide

© 2017 by Chris Hodges

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Published in Nashville, Tennessee, by Nelson Books, an imprint of Thomas Nelson. Nelson Books and Thomas Nelson are registered trademarks of HarperCollins Christian Publishing, Inc.

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ISBN 978-0-310-08857-8

ISBN 978-0-310-08858-5 (eBook)

First Printing August 2017

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Contents

Ebook Instructions

Introduction

How to Use This Guide

SESSION 1: In the World but Not of It

SESSION 2: Identity Theft

SESSION 3: You Are What You Worship

SESSION 4: Who’s the Boss?

SESSION 5: Divided, Distracted, and Disturbed

SESSION 6: What the World Needs Now

Leader’s Guide

Introduction

In the Bible, we read how a man named Daniel faced a dilemma. After the reigns of King David and his son Solomon, the nation of Israel splintered. Within a few generations, the ten northern tribes of Israel abandoned their faith in the living God and started worshiping idols. God sent warning after warning that disaster would strike if they did not turn back to him, but ultimately their disobedience led to the Assyrians conquering all ten tribes in 722 BC. The southern kingdom of Judah, where Daniel lived, also turned away from God. They were conquered by the Babylonians in 598 BC.

Daniel was taken into captivity with the other people of Judah. He was probably around sixteen years old when he was transported with thousands of other Jews to be slaves in Babylon. His situation was as bleak as it gets. There was no leader organizing a secret revolt, no legal recourse or government appeal to help him. On the surface, Daniel had no hope.

Yet Daniel never despaired or gave up. Over time as he served God faithfully, his character and conduct began to stand out to the Babylonians, because it was both respectful and resolute. Daniel didn’t conform to the demands of the kings he served or the customs of the Babylonians, but he didn’t act self-righteous, judgmental, or defensive either. His life journey wasn’t always easy—he faced extreme difficulties, from watching friends endure a fiery furnace to being tossed in a lions’ den. But in the face of dangerous circumstances and a foreign culture shifting around him, he never once wavered in his faith or dedication to God.

In response to Daniel’s steadfast faith and commitment to truth, God demonstrated his supernatural power and honored the one