When the Furnace is Turned UP!

Daniel: In the Fire

“When the Furnace Gets Turned UP!”

We continue our teaching series in Daniel as we move into the 3^rd chapter of the prophet’s Old Testament writings.

• The transition from chapter 2 to chapter 3 is a rather stark one.
• In Daniel 2, King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream that none of his Babylonian seers could identify or interpret.
• But Daniel, God’s prophet, was given opportunity to do so and God proved worthy … Daniel not only told the king what he had dreamt, he also interpreted the dream.
• As a result, Daniel 2 ends with this scene,

⁴⁶ Then King Nebuchadnezzar threw himself down before Daniel and worshiped him, and he commanded his people to offer sacrifices and burn sweet incense before him. ⁴⁷ The king said to Daniel, “Truly, your God is the greatest of gods, the Lord over kings, a revealer of mysteries, for you have been able to reveal this secret.”

⁴⁸ Then the king appointed Daniel to a high position and gave him many valuable gifts. He made Daniel ruler over the whole province of Babylon, as well as chief over all his wise men. ⁴⁹ At Daniel’s request, the king appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to be in charge of all the affairs of the province of Babylon, while Daniel remained in the king’s court.

King Nebuchadnezzar worshipped God, instructed everyone in his kingdom to perform acts of worship to God, he honored Daniel as a follower of God, as well as Daniel’s friends – Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego.

• It’s been about 16 years since that monumental spiritual moment for the king, and that’s enough time for the king’s memory to fade as we begin reading chapter 3,

King Nebuchadnezzar made a gold statue ninety feet tall and nine feet wide and set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon. ² Then he sent messages to the high officers, officials, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all the provincial officials to come to the dedication of the statue he had set up. ³ So all these officials came and stood before the statue King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

⁴ Then a herald shouted out, “People of all races and nations and languages, listen to the king’s command! ⁵ When you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes, and other musical instruments, bow to the ground to worship King Nebuchadnezzar’s gold statue. ⁶ Anyone who refuses to obey will immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace.” ⁷ So at the sound of the musical instruments, all the people, whatever their race or nation or language, bowed to the ground and worshiped the gold statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

⁸ But some of the astrologers went to the king and informed on the Jews. ⁹ They said to King Nebuchadnezzar, “Long live the king! ¹⁰ You issued a decree requiring all the people to bow down and worship the gold statue when they hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes, and other musical instruments. ¹¹ That decree also states that those who refuse to obey must be thrown into a blazing furnace.

¹² But there are some Jews—Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego—whom you have put in charge of the province of Babylon. They pay no attention to you, Your Majesty. They refuse to serve your gods and do not worship the gold statue you have set up.”

¹³ Then Nebuchadnezzar flew into a rage and ordered that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought before him. When they were brought in, ¹⁴ Nebuchadnezzar said to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you refuse to serve my gods or to worship the gold statue I have set up? ¹⁵ I will give you one more chance to bow down and worship the statue I have made when you hear the sound of the musical instruments. But if you refuse, you will be thrown immediately into the blazing furnace. And then what god will be able to rescue you from my power?”

• After the events of Daniel 2, the prophet and his 3 friends must have felt like they were on safe and certain ground in terms of being able to worship God in a foreign land.
• But now, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego’s convictions, having previously gotten them rewarded, are putting them into another life and death situation.

Friends, have you ever held firm to your biblical convictions and done what is right, only to have your problems heat up instead of cool down?

• It hurts, doesn’t it?
• It can really hurt … to the point where we wonder, “I thought following God was supposed to take me to green pastures and quiet waters (Ps 23). I thought believing in God was supposed to give me a rich and satisfying life (Jn 10:10). What did I do to deserve this?”

• Well, you’ve done nothing to deserve it; just as Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego did nothing to deserve their pain.
• This kind of suffering is unjust … and the furnace of suffering is never hotter than when we suffer unjustly.

• Yet, the apostle Peter wrote in the New Testament that our response to this kind of pain can bring glory to God:

¹⁹ For God is pleased when, conscious of his will, you patiently endure unjust treatment. ²⁰ Of course, you get no credit for being patient if you are beaten for doing wrong. But if you suffer for doing good and endure it patiently, God is pleased with you. (1 Peter 2:19-20)

• Why would patiently enduring wrong glorify God?
• Because it shows our trust in a trustworthy God.
• By responding with resolve and endurance, we point to the greater reality of our circumstance … we point to a righteous and sovereign God who is not constrained by our finite reality.

• Need help picturing this and deciding if it’s true?
• Let’s keep reading in Daniel 3,

¹⁶ Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you. ¹⁷ If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God whom we serve is able to save us. He will rescue us from your power, Your Majesty. ¹⁸ But even if he doesn’t, we want to make it clear to you, Your Majesty, that we will never serve your gods or worship the gold statue you have set up.”

These three understand, as God’s people throughout history have always known, that the battle is God’s.

• They don’t need to argue politics, individual rights, or theology with the king to gain their own victory.
• Quiet, determined resistance is all that’s necessary.
• God’s will reigns supreme … even, as they say in vs.18, “if God doesn’t” choose to save them from death … God’s eternal plan reigns supreme!
• Yes, Nebuchadnezzar may rule the temporal world, but neither his gold statue nor his great power can intimidate these three men or over-power the kingdom they belong to.

¹⁹ Nebuchadnezzar was so furious with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego that his face became distorted with rage. He commanded that the furnace be heated seven times hotter than usual. ²⁰ Then he ordered some of the strongest men of his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and throw them into the blazing furnace. ²¹ So they tied them up and threw them into the furnace, fully dressed in their pants, turbans, robes, and other garments. ²² And because the king, in his anger, had demanded such a hot fire in the furnace, the flames killed the soldiers as they threw the three men in. ²³ So Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, securely tied, fell into the roaring flames.

²⁴ But suddenly, Nebuchadnezzar jumped up in amazement and exclaimed to his advisers, “Didn’t we tie up three men and throw them into the furnace?” “Yes, Your Majesty, we certainly did,” they replied. ²⁵ “Look!” Nebuchadnezzar shouted. “I see four men, unbound, walking around in the fire unharmed! And the fourth looks like a god!” ²⁶ Then Nebuchadnezzar came as close as he could to the door of the flaming furnace and shouted: “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!”

So Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego stepped out of the fire. ²⁷ Then the high officers, officials, governors, and advisers crowded around them and saw that the fire had not touched them. Not a hair on their heads was singed, and their clothing was not scorched. They didn’t even smell of smoke!

What god can deliver His people out of Nebuchadnezzar’s hands?

• The Most High God, the only true God, the God of Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego.
• The God, who was revealed in Daniel 2 in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream as the One who would one day crush all human empires.
• All of a sudden, Nebuchadnezzar’s gold statue seems to have lost its lustre and power.
• What began as a monument to supreme power has become a reminder of subordination to God, the King of Kings.
• And to Nebuchadnezzar’s credit, he’s the first to admit it:

²⁸ Then Nebuchadnezzar said, “Praise to the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego! He sent his angel to rescue his servants who trusted in him. They defied the king’s command and were willing to die rather than serve or worship any god except their own God. ²⁹ Therefore, I make this decree: If any people, whatever their race or nation or language, speak a word against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, they will be torn limb from limb, and their houses will be turned into heaps of rubble. There is no other god who can rescue like this!” ³⁰ Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to even higher positions in the province of Babylon.

Isn’t it ironic that the mighty king, who ordered the world to bow before his image, now bows before the King of the world?

• Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego have faithfully pointed the king and his people to a trustworthy and sovereign God!
• …And God chose to rescue Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego…
• But his plan for you or me may be different.

• To a varying degree, we’ve all been in a furnace for the past several months.
• Thankfully, for many, things are easing.
• But for some, the fire remains and is even increasing.
• What do we do?
• How do we handle circumstances that threaten to destroy us?
• The temptation is always to compromise our convictions, compare and rationalize, and then take an easier path…

Friends, if you’re in a furnace of unjust suffering, consider 3 principles that Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego lived by … these truths are recorded in history to help us endure the heat:

1. First, remind yourself, whether the result of your obedience is triumph or tragedy, God is sovereign.
   • When things go well for us, it’s easy to acknowledge God’s sovereignty – his good and just rule over us.
   • But when the bottom drops out on us, and the pain is too much, we can wonder, “Is God still in control? Does God see what’s going on? Does he really care?”

• The fact is, God would still have been in control had he let Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego die in the flames … as he allowed thousands of faithful martyrs to die throughout history.
• Friends, He may deliver; He may not.
• As much as we want to be in control of that outcome, and have opinions on it, that is God’s determination.
• Our part is to trust His character, trust his eternal plan and obey.
  • I know that last word, “obey”, rankles many of us.
  • But throughout the Bible, God links our love and obedience … they are interwoven when he calls us.

2. Second, don’t forget that suffering is necessary, whether it seems fair or not.
   • We live in a broken world that God is redeeming.
   • And pain has its positive side – which is always easier to see when we’re not suffering.
   • Did you notice that the only things the fire burned up were the cords that bound Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego?
   • Often, suffering burns away those things that bind us, or are weighing us down … those things that keep us from being our full selves and keep us from following God fully.
   • The goal, as the apostle Peter put it, is that,

⁷ These trials will show that your faith is genuine—being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world. ⁸ You love him even though you have never seen him. Though you do not see him now, you trust him; and you rejoice with a glorious, inexpressible joy. ⁹ The reward for trusting him will be the salvation of your souls.

3. The third thing to remember in the furnace is that deliverance is striking for anyone who witnesses it.
   • What really amazed the people on that day wasn’t the gold on the king’s statue; it was the faith of three men following their God in the flames.

• Friends, when we come out of the fire stronger and freed up from the things that once bound us, we are a living testimony to God’s presence and power.
• And not only is that impressive to those around us … it can be life-changing.
  • It can be life-changing to know that whatever has happened… God was with us, and He is on the other side of each furnace experience we go through.
  • Daniel 3 reminds us that a person of conviction, one who persists in adversity, is a powerful instrument in the hand of God.

Friends, as our team leads us in two more songs … if you’re in a challenging situation, we invite you to click the prayer button.

• We want to enter into that challenge with you through prayer.

Sending/Benediction

 Friends, as we end our time together, we send you with this blessing from God’s word, found in Isaiah 43,

 ¹ Listen to the Lord who created you.
“Do not be afraid, for … I have called you by name; you are mine.
² When you go through deep waters, I will be with you.
When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown.
When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you.
³ For I am the Lord, your God … your Savior.