June 20th, 2022

Jesus Will Follow You into the Furnace

Daniel 3:28 NIV

"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.'"

      If you're someone who grew up in church, I'm sure you've heard the children's story of the three boys being thrown into a blazing furnace because they wouldn't worship the king's golden idols. While the children's story paints a picture that is easy for tiny minds to grasp, there are great details left out that we as adult Christians must know to take this story and run with it in our own lives. During this period of exile, where we meet Daniel and his friends Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, many Jews were held captive by King Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians. The King ordered the chief of his court officials to bring men from Israel into his service-certain men that met his strict requirements. However, God granted these four men with wisdom and understanding, and their faith in Him was unbreakable. This became an issue when the king created an image of gold and ordered that the people worship it.

      It's important to note here, that king was so mad that the men wouldn't worship his idol that he ordered that the furnace be so hot that when the soldiers went to put Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego into the furnace, the flames killed them. But guess what? The flames didn't even touch the three men in the fire. Much to the king's amazement, not only were the men walking around freely in the fire but there was a fourth man in there with them (I bet we can all guess who that was). You see, even when the fire around us is burning so hot and we don't see a way out, much like this story, Jesus will come into the furnace with us. This is done through faith. Here, these men were honoring Jesus by fulfilling the commandment that they shall not worship any other Gods- even if it meant dying. Their unwavering faith is seen in V. 17-18 when it says, "If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from your majesty's hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, your majesty, that we will not serve you gods or worship the image of gold you have set up."

I want to encourage you to evaluate where your faith in God stands? Are you willing to go into that furnace in His name? Do you believe that Jesus will be there with you? I know it's hard to have this type of faith in God, but we're called to have unwavering faith in Him. All it takes is knocking down that barrier of trust. As a result, others will see and know of His mighty power.