3-24-25<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I invite you to go back in time and remember Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. No\u2026 not that <\/em>far back; they lived in ancient Babylon. I mean, rather, the familiar story of three faithful servants of the Lord who refused to bow down to King Nebuchadnezzar and his idol, the solid gold image of a god he invented.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You might remember the vivid story from Sunday School lessons or sermons. Their trials have been the stuff of songs, spirituals, and Gospel music. The three men were examples of faith and integrity, examples to us all in our daily walk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The images that come to our minds are that the three not only were saved \u2013 no burn marks nor smell of smoke \u2013 but that they emerged unharmed, even as some of the King\u2019s men died from the scorching heat just near the furnace, not in it as the three men were. And we might remember that King Nebuchadnezzar was so astonished, or himself afraid, that he ordered all of his subjects to worship the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and not his Golden statue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This story is not a fairytale with a moral. Nebuchadnezzar was a real figure in history, recognized as a warrior and a builder. He conquered the Levant, including Jerusalem, And built one of the \u201cwonders of the ancient world,\u201d the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. He was the father of Belshazzar. It is recorded that he indeed converted to belief in the God of the Bible, influenced by his advisers Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and their superior, Daniel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some Christians miss the fact that a fourth man was seen in Fiery Furnace, or that man\u2019s presumed identity. Biblical scholars call him the pre-incarnate Jesus. This was one of the times that Jesus, by whom the universe was created, had an earthly appearance before His birth in Bethlehem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But I believe the biggest \u201cmiss\u201d in this iconic story is the over-arching lesson. Yes, God worked miracles. Yes, He protects His faithful servants. Yes, He rewards those who assert their spiritual bravery in the face of persecution. I believe that the great spiritual lesson is not only that<\/em> God saved Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego\u2026 but how<\/em> He did it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n God, who had miracles up His sleeve, and all the power in the universe, could have extinguished the flames in the fiery furnace. He could have sent ten thousand angels down to swoop up the prisoners. He could have struck the king\u2019s men \u2013 indeed, the king himself \u2013 dead or helpless. God did none of these things. He chose not to. Yet\u2026 He delivered Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I think the lesson for us today, as always, is that God delivers. Yes, sometimes He prevents things; but it is His way to deliver us from disaster, to deliver us from evil, to deliver us from hell itself. His desire is that we rely on Him, to seek Him, and to trust Him. It seldom is God\u2019s way to wave a magic wand and make challenges disappear. Note that even as we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, He does not promise to pluck us up to walk on the parallel mountaintops. He promises instead to be with us.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n He has always kept that promise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWith us.\u201d What better companion can we have? Who better at keeping promises than the God of creation? And how best to know Him\u2026 to trust Him in times of peril? Let us dare to believe God\u2019s promises. When we doubt, and do not believe Him, or do not learn from the lessons of many Biblical figures and uncountable saints since Biblical times, then we trust ourselves. Compared to trusting God\u2026 well, we can join those who laughed at Noah; and Lot\u2019s wife; and all the notable \u201cheroes of faith\u201d reviewed in Hebrews Chapter 11. They were favored of God, yet their lapses in faith prevented them all from achieving their spiritual goals. That is not faith, but presumption. The best exercise of faith \u2013 and true wisdom \u2013 is when we are ready to admit that He is our refuge and strength, and fall back into His arms. Perhaps being delivered from the fiery furnace is a picture of being delivered from hell. Such obedience is a sure-fire way to please God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n + + +<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLet that be a lesson to us\u201d \u2013 trust in God, and not to our own understanding. We never hear of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego again; but Heaven did. And too often, well-meaning believers think that they are showing faith by following God up to a point\u2026 and then assuring Him, \u201cThanks, God, I\u2019ll take it from here!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n