If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.
Daniel 3:17-18 KJV
We all know that there will be times in our lives when something can happen that has an untimely effect on us.
Someone may want us to do something that we know isn’t right.
Our decision can be one that is good or one that causes us harm.
The right decisions will always leave room for a miraculous blessing to come our way.
Even if the outcome is not what we hoped for, we still know we did the right thing.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, were three young men who were held captive and sentenced to die in Babylon.
It all happened because they stood boldly before King Nebuchanezzar regarding the mandate that everyone was to worship a golden image he created.
They stood before this fearsome king and boldly said that under no circumstances were they going to worship the golden image he had set up (vv. 1, 14-16)
All together they declared, “If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king (v,17).
That even if God did not, “Be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up (v.18).
They were standing steadfast on their faith in God.
The king was not happy with this response, ordered that they be thrown into a fiery furnace “and commanded that they should heat the furnace one seven times more than it was wont to be heated” (v.19).
He wanted them to suffer greatly for not worshipping the golden image.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were prepared to die.
They stood firm on their faith in God.
Because of their faith, God sent an angel to be by their side.
God performed a miracle and delivered them out of their situation.
All without a hair on their head singed, no burns on their bodies and no smell of smoke on their clothing (vv. 20-27).
The same God that saved Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego is there for us.
We must obey God and not man.
That it is better to suffer than to sin and miss out on the blessing God has for us.
When we let nothing keep us from living according to the Word, we are always protected from anything the enemy sends our way.
We must hold fast to our faith in Him, no matter our situations or what the outcome may be.
He is with us through every trial we face.
A WORD OF PRAYER
Father, we know that deliverance is ours when we live according to the Word. It is the best guide we have. Obeying You rather than man keeps us from suffering because of sin. Our faith and salvation need to be just as great as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the fiery furnace. A great example of what it means to keep our trust in You. We will keep faith, strength and hope no matter our circumstance. Thank You Father for always being there for us.
In Jesus Name We Pray, Amen