So the story goes like this…..King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold – a big ole statue that measured about 90 feet high and 9 feet wide, and called all the leaders to come to the dedication of this statue. During this dedication, it was decided that every time the people heard certain music being played, they would stop what they were doing and bow down in worship of this image. Whoever did not obey this decree would be thrown into a fiery furnace. Music played – people bowed – all was good, with 3 exceptions. The Chaldeans happened to notice that there were 3 people in particular, Jews that had been set over the affairs of Babylon, that refused to bow and worship this statue. Of course, these loyal Chaldeans had to report this to the King. This information infuriated the King, and he summoned the 3 rebels to ask them if what he’d heard was true, and to give them one more chance. Their reply is found in Daniel 3:
16 Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter.
17 If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king.
18 But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up."
Ok, wait right there. Verse 17 says, “the God we serve is able to deliver us..” Our God is able. I know this, in my mind, I know this. Sadly, being the worrier that I am, I don’t always act like I believe this. They go on to explain to the King that not only is their God able to deliver them, He will deliver them from the King’s hand. Whether God chooses to deliver them, and they continue living on earth, or if God chooses to let them perish in the flames and they go to heaven, they will be delivered.
It’s a Win-Win situation for them either way. Talk about blind faith – they were pledging allegiance to a God they had never seen – They hadn’t even felt the presence of the Holy Spirit yet, this event happened before Jesus came and the New Testament was written, which makes it even more amazing to me. Pure, unadulterated trust in God gives them the strength to tell the King to take a hike – they’re not bowing to his statue.
Wow.
This really makes the King angry, and he orders the furnace to be turned up 7 times hotter than usual. Then he orders his strongest guards to tie up the 3 men and throw them into the furnace. The Bible says that the flames of this furnace were so hot that it actually killed the soldiers who threw the men into it. I’m wondering….what were these 3 Hebrew children of God thinking during all of this? When I get to heaven, I’m going to track them down and ask them. It’s on my list.
My mind is boggled by their unwavering faith. But wait, there’s more.
So, the King sits back and watches the furnace. He sits down, looks at the furnace, then jumps to his feet. This is how the conversation went:
24 Then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisers, "Weren't there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?" They replied, "Certainly, O king."
25 He said, "Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods."
26 Nebuchadnezzar then approached the opening of the blazing furnace and shouted, "Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!" So Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out of the fire,
27 and the satraps, prefects, governors and royal advisers crowded around them. They saw that the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor was a hair of their heads singed; their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them.
28 Then Nebuchadnezzar said, "Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who has sent his angel and rescued his servants! They trusted in him and defied the king's command and were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God.
29 Therefore I decree that the people of any nation or language who say anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego be cut into pieces and their houses be turned into piles of rubble, for no other god can save in this way."
Every time I read this story I feel like I’m going to have a “Pentecostal Fit” – are Baptists allowed to do that? I’m just kidding…..but seriously, something inside me almost bursts when I read this story and I see, once again, how God delivered these 3 men. How can you help but get excited when you read about something like this! Not only did God save their lives, he untied them, sent an angel to be with them, allowed them to walk around completely unharmed – shoot, they didn’t even smell like they had been around fire.
Our God is able.
God is God, and we are not. He is able to deliver us, and He does, again and again.
God, give me the faith of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
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