The God Story: Living In Babylon

The God Story | Living In Babylon | Gareth Nicholson | 08 March 2026

Catch Up on: | YouTube | iTunes | Spotify

Finding Your Place in God’s Story

When I was growing up, someone told me about the boogeyman.

Maybe some of you heard that story too. As a child, it created a deep fear of the dark. I never wanted to be alone in the dark because I believed the story I had been told.

Someone told me a story. I believed the story. And I lived according to it.

The truth is, we all live according to the stories we believe.

We believe stories about God, about ourselves, about the world, and about the future. Those stories shape the decisions we make and the way we live our lives.

So the real question is: Are we living the right story?

The Story God Is Writing

To understand our place in the world, we need to understand the story God is telling.

In 2 Corinthians 5:17–20, the apostle Paul gives us a snapshot of that story:

“If anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here… God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ… We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors.”

Right away, we see a few key themes:

• The old is leaving, and the new is coming

• God is reconciling the world to Himself through Jesus

• Followers of Jesus are invited to participate in this work

The Bible’s story moves through several big movements:

Creation: God created the world, and humanity lived in unity with Him.

Rebellion: Humanity rejected God, and sin entered the world.

Redemption: Jesus came, died on the cross, and rose again to rescue humanity.

Reconciliation: Right now, God is restoring people to Himself through Christ.

Restoration: One day, Jesus will return, and all things will be made new.

We are living in that “in-between” moment — the time of reconciliation before the final restoration.

So the question becomes:

What are we supposed to do while we wait?

Living Between Two Kingdoms

The Bible describes a tension between two ways of living.

On the one hand, there is what Scripture symbolically calls Babylon — a culture defined by:

• self-reliance

• power and control

• materialism

• status and approval

• comfort and accumulation

Sound familiar?

On the other hand, there is the Kingdom of God, which operates in a completely different way:

• love instead of power

• service instead of status

• generosity instead of accumulation

• unity instead of division

• humility instead of self-promotion

As followers of Jesus, we live in Babylon but belong to the Kingdom.

The challenge is learning how to live faithfully in that tension.

How Babylon Shapes Us

In the book of Daniel, we see how Babylon attempts to shape God’s people in three ways:

1. Babylon Attacks Your Identity

When Daniel was taken into exile, the first thing the Babylonians did was change his name.

His Hebrew name honored God. His new Babylonian name honored their gods.

This was an attempt to reshape his identity.

The same thing happens today. Culture constantly tries to define us by:

• what we achieve

• what we own

• what others think of us

• our status or success

But the gospel tells a different story.

Your truest identity is not what the world says about you.

Your identity is who God says you are.

Through Jesus, you are:

• a child of God

• loved

• accepted

• forgiven

• secure

Living from that identity brings peace, confidence, and freedom.

2. Babylon Shapes Your Thinking

Daniel and his friends were placed into a Babylonian education system where they were trained in Babylon’s language, philosophy, and worldview.

In other words, they were being indoctrinated.

Today, our “Babylonian training” often comes through media, news, social platforms, and algorithms constantly shaping what we see and think.

If we’re not careful, our understanding of the world can be shaped more by headlines than by Scripture.

That’s why Romans 12:2 says:

“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”

Followers of Jesus are called to think differently.

3. Babylon Wants Your Influence

God has given every person gifts, talents, relationships, and opportunities.

But Babylon wants those gifts used for one purpose: self.

• build your career

• build your comfort

• build your success

• build your reputation

But God invites us to use those same gifts for something far bigger:

His Kingdom.

The Goal Is Not Escape

Sometimes Christians can fall into survival mode:

“Jesus, just come back and get me out of this place.”

But the goal of the gospel isn’t to get us out of Babylon.

The goal is to get Babylon out of us.

And then for God to use us within Babylon to bring His Kingdom.

This is exactly what Daniel did. He lived in Babylon without becoming like Babylon.

Through his faithfulness, even the king eventually recognized the greatness of God.

From Survival Mode to Revival Mode

Every follower of Jesus faces a choice.

We can live in survival mode, just trying to hold on until Jesus returns.

Or we can live in revival mode, asking God to use us right where we are.

• in our workplaces

• in our schools

• in our neighborhoods

• in our city

God’s plan to bring renewal to the world begins with renewal in our hearts.

Personal renewal always precedes public renewal.

Three Ways to Live Faithfully in Babylon

1. Step Into the Kingdom

The starting point is placing our trust in Jesus.

Through faith in Him, God transfers us from darkness into His Kingdom. From that moment forward, we begin learning to live according to a new story.

2. Own Your Own-ables

There are many things in the world we cannot control.

But there are some things we can take responsibility for:

• our hearts

• our attitudes

• our words

• our choices

• our relationships

We cannot change everything happening around us, but we can steward what God has placed in our hands.

3. Collaborate in Communitas

God’s work in the world is never meant to happen alone.

Throughout history, movements of change have happened when people come together around a shared purpose.

William Wilberforce, for example, fought tirelessly to abolish slavery in the British Empire. But he didn’t do it alone — he worked alongside a group of committed believers who shared the same vision.

The church is meant to function in that same way.

Not just as a gathering place, but as a community of people committed to seeing God’s Kingdom come.

Your Place in the Story

God is writing a story that stretches across history.

A story of redemption.A story of reconciliation.A story that is ultimately heading toward restoration.

And the incredible truth is this:

You have a place in that story.

God has placed things in your hands:

• gifts

• relationships

• influence

• resources

• opportunities

The question is simple:

What will you do with them?

Because the tragedy would be reaching the end of our lives and realizing we spent our energy building our own little kingdoms — while missing the eternal story God was inviting us into.

But when we surrender our lives to Jesus and allow Him to shape our identity, renew our minds, and guide our influence, something powerful happens.

God begins to use ordinary people…

to bring His Kingdom into Babylon.

---

Life Group Discussion Questions

1. How do you think the stories we believe shape the way we live our lives?

2. The message said we are “ambassadors for Christ.”

   What do you think it looks like to represent Jesus in everyday life?

3. In what ways do you sometimes feel the tension of living in the world but belonging to God’s Kingdom?

4. What does it practically mean for you to live from the identity that God calls you His child?

5. How might God want to use you where you already are (workplace, school, neighborhood, friendships)?

6. What is one step God may be inviting you to take this week to live more intentionally in His story?