Trial by Fire

When is the last time you read through the entire story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego in the fiery furnace? If you have not read it recently, I encourage you to read Daniel chapter 3 before reading this post any further. You can read it by clicking this link: Daniel 3.

I grew up around church, so I heard paraphrases of this story many times; however, as an adult, reading directly from the Bible without any paraphrase, these events have much greater power.

To me, the power of this story is putting myself in the shoes of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. Try to put yourself squarely in the shoes of these 3 men. You were once selected as the best looking and brightest of all your countrymen (Daniel 1:3-7), and while the rest were captive as lower class foreigners, you have been chosen to help govern and lead the current world’s greatest superpower. You did this with a faith in God, who established all of these things for His glory. At the recommendation of your close friend Daniel, Nebuchadnezzar has promoted you even further in his kingdom. Life is good beyond your dreams.

Then one day the king creates a gold image and demands that every single person must fall to the ground and worship it when the signal is given. The music plays and the signal is given. Everyone around you falls to their knees on the ground. Startled, you realize you are the only 3 people still standing and every guard and watchman is looking squarely at you. What do you do next?

Unfortunately, I’m afraid that my response would be one of compromise. Not wanting to make a scene, not yet sure of the situation and all of the rules and repercussions, and knowing that I will not actually be worshipping such a goofy piece of gold, I would probably drop to the ground and blend in with the other people. After all, I’m not actually worshipping the thing, right?

Well, that’s not what Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego did. They continued to stand and refused to worship in any way, such that it was obvious to the guards that they were disobeying the decree of the king to worship his idol. Can you imagine if even one of them had decided to compromise? Perhaps the other two would have caved at the sight of their comrade no longer standing with them. There is strength in fellowship with other believers. Realize that if you are influenced by others when they either compromise or stand firm, that there are those who are very influenced by you, as well. Are you compromising or standing firm on the principals of God, even when compromising seems justified?

Instead, they stood together. And together they were brought before the king. At this point, they had time to think the entire thing through, and I know that our human nature with the help of the Evil One would be spitting lies and temptations into our hearts. But these three rejected the lies and temptations. Nebuchadnezzar gave them one more chance to save their own lives by simply bowing and worshiping this false god. Once again, we find them doing something that doesn’t just comply with God’s standards, but they seem to take everything one step further to make it very clear that they will not even give an appearance of forsaking their God. Daniel 3:14-18:

“Nebuchadnezzar spoke, saying to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the gold image which I have set up? 15 Now if you are ready at the time you hear the sound of the horn, flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery, in symphony with all kinds of music, and you fall down and worship the image which I have made, good! But if you do not worship, you shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who will deliver you from my hands?”
16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. 17 If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. 18 But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.’”

First of all, Nebuchadnezzar gave a direct challenge to God and His authority by saying, “And who is the god who will deliver you from my hands?” This was not a charge against the three men, which would likely spur us in our egos to rebellion because of unchecked pride, and even in this case any personal pride would be put aside at the realization of our helplessness against this king in his court…this was a challenge to God Himself.

Once again, put yourself squarely in the shoes of these men. The king of the greatest world superpower stands directly before you, giving a direct command, and threatening an immediate execution that will be excruciatingly painful (burning). What do you say in response to this king? Perhaps you try to reason with him or make some sort of an offer…maybe you appeal to any compassion in him. Not these men. These three men said, “we have no need to answer you in this matter.” Wow. A king such as Nebuchadnezzar was probably accustomed to eloquent arguments, yet still likely executed even those who respected his authority enough to argue or even beg. But these men once again went the extra step, stating that they, the king’s subordinates, had no need to answer the king. They were walking to their deaths, barring a supernatural movement of God, and they knew it. Yet they did it and with such great faith as they declared that God would rescue them.

Notice lastly their resolve and absolute abandonment to God in their final statement: “But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.” They are stating that if God chose instead not to rescue them and to let them die, they would still never forsake Him. They would rather die than worship any other god…even pretend to worship any other god…even once. How many of us can say that we have the faith to trust God to rescue us from our fiery furnaces? How many fewer of us can say that we have the commitment and abandonment to follow God even if He doesn’t rescue us?

There are many lessons here. Firstly, if you follow the Lord, you will be given opportunity. Opportunity to stand for Him in the midst of persecution. Second, if you do stand for Him in those times, you will be tempted to second guess yourself and compromise…you will need perseverance. Third, if you stand unwavering for your Savior Jesus Christ and Father God, you will face the fiery furnace. Yours may indeed be physical death, but for most of us, if not all, it will be in emotional, physical, and spiritual trials that do not claim your life. To offer ourselves as a living sacrifice is often much harder than a sacrifice that would lead to death, and this is the challenge of Rom 12:1-2:

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. 2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”

Most of us just find ourselves in the midst some sort of trial. We’re not quite sure how it came about, we don’t know how to get out, and we surely didn’t choose it! But do we have a relationship with God such that we stare down the Adversary and the trial that awaits us because of our faith, to declare God’s power, and to walk willingly, yet helplessly, into the fiery furnaces in our lives? That is an uncommon abandonment to our Lord.

But let’s not forget what awaits those who are thrown into the fiery furnace. My favorite part of the story is when Nebuchadnezzar himself looks into the fire astonished, as he sees a 4^th man and even declares his appearance to be like “the Son of God.” Brothers, sisters, and friends, when we walk into the fiery furnace, Jesus awaits us. He is there. He has been there for us already, bearing our sin and punishment, tempted as we are but remaining blameless, joyfully dying on the cross for our salvation. He meets us in our fiery furnace.

Nebuchadnezzar’s observation included 4 free men walking around in the fire. What must that have been like for these three men? They were privileged to have the closest contact with Jesus in that moment, a privilege only available to those in the midst of the fire. And not just any fire, one that was 7 times hotter than normal…so hot that it killed the guards who approached the fire to throw them in…yet, not a single hair on the heads of these three men loyal to God were singed.

Finally, the story ends with restoration. Much like the story of Job, after suffering beyond what most of us could imagine, Job was re-established with even more than he had before, and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego were promoted to even higher positions than they held previously. Please do not be swayed by the promise of physical riches as the reward for enduring trials for God’s sake. Our hearts are not after God if that is our motivation. But I can tell you with supreme confidence that what awaits you after the trial is of much greater worth than you ever had before the trial, if you walk through it with God. Life with a closer relationship with Christ is worth whatever it took to get you there, no matter how hot the trial. Do you feel like your trial is worse than anything you’ve ever experienced or the experience of anyone else you’ve ever known? Remember that this fire killed everyone who approached the flames, yet God protected his children and servants Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, and He will do the same for you. If you give your soul to Him, a God who has never broken a promise and is incapable of doing so, promises to guard you and “uphold you with His righteous right hand” (Isaiah 41:10).

I am inspired by the faith and dedication of these men. I am inspired by the presence of Jesus right in the midst of the fire with them. I am inspired by the response of those who witnessed it, testifying that there is no other God. I am inspired by the restoration of these once condemned men, a restoration that is completed in the day of Jesus Christ and our eternities in Heaven. I pray that you are so inspired, that you face your fiery furnace with confidence and trust in our Savior God, and I look forward to celebrating with you in Heaven for eternity. Through God's grace, love, power, and might! Amen.