But they would not say that word, they would not bend that knee. I don’t know what furnace you’re facing; I don’t know what this means for you. Did I not get the recognition I must have at work or at school or from the opposite sex? John Ortberg. Who’s the king?
It turns out to be the adventure of a lifetime. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused to worship or serve any god but the living God. Jesus said to them what he says to people still, “ I’ll meet you in the furnace,” because he’s a furnace kind of guy. If that moment were to come for you, and one day it will, what would you write? I wonder if the fourth man in the furnace told them how proud the Father was of their loyalty, devotion, and love. You are left with what you believe, what you've built your life on. [KM2]Ship and submarine names should be in italics, here and in text of sermon. What’s the message you want to leave behind?
Two words from that note were displayed in a black frame next to his coffin at his funeral service. Jesus always walks with us in our fiery trials. To both experience and celebrate God's grace, we must allow him to swallow us whole.
Maybe there’s a Nebuchadnezzar that God wants to reach through you. Nebuchadnezzar was not exactly up for the Employer of the Year award, and God used Shadrach’s, Meshach’s, and Abednego’s willingness to go into the furnace to change his heart. Somebody told me recently they were praying to find a job in an easier environment.
Only that which bound the men was burned away! Jesus said what he says to people still, “ I’ll meet you in the furnace. Twenty-three of these men survived in an isolated chamber for several hours after the explosion. So I want to ask you to pray a dangerous prayer: “ God, give me an opportunity to show my devotion to you. Christ meets us in our worst trials. Now, I wonder what the rest of their lives were like? Who was this fourth man, who appeared from nowhere and cheated death and, “ looks in appearance like a son of the gods”? Maybe the furnace involves a relationship or financial hardship or giving or sacrifice. Something is going on this man’s life. God delivers people from the furnace, but sometimes God delivers people in the furnace. Verse 26: “ Nebuchadnezzar then approached the opening of the blazing furnace and shouted, ‘Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out.’ “ So Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out of the fire. They’ve seen the end coming since they first heard about the command to bow down before a statue of gold.
Ironically, the furnace that looked like death turned out to be the safest place of all. Because God was there. Maybe it involves using some spiritual gift, and you’re afraid to do it. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, it is not necessary for us to answer you on this point.If our God Whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. If our God Whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. Twenty-three of these men survived in an isolated chamber for several hours after the explosion.
It was the can’t-miss event of their whole lives. Sometimes. They said, “ I work with fallen, difficult, cranky, hostile people all the time.” Well, so do I, and so do the people who work with me.
Maybe you need to stop praying for deliverance from the furnace and ask for the presence of the God who meets people there. Babylon first appears in the Bible under the guise of the tower of Babel in Gen. 11. Wouldn’t you love to see that? They hoped somebody besides the Nazis would read the notes and know their story. They hoped to be delivered from the furnace, but God decided to deliver them in the furnace. There is something better. They say, “ The God we serve is able to save us, but even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods and worship the image of gold you have set up.” That looked like their final words: Verse 19: “ Then Nebuchadnezzar was furious with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and his attitude toward them changed.” Literally that could be translated, “and the expression of his face changed.” When they were brought to him for not bowing down, he was mad, but he had been using the velvet glove approach.
Mustn't despair. That kind of devotion to God is possible for ordinary people. This moment came in the lives of three young men, possibly the age of Captain Kolesnikov. Prisoners of the Nazis in a Warsaw ghetto, after seeing people shot or starved to death, used their last breaths to write notes and store them in crevices in the wall. You would carry that moment to your grave.
But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.’ “. The best part is what happens to turn this from a miracle to a divine encounter. For He will never leave you or forsake you! They are headed toward unimaginable pain and death, and one word would mean life for them. Maybe it’s at work. Peter and Paul had their days. Illustration: Last August, you might remember 118 crewmen dying when a series of explosions caused the Russian submarine Kursk to sink.
Where does Jesus say that? He wrote, " Mustn't despair." I just know that the golden statue in our world tends to involve gods with names like comfort, ease, security, and success. Tell him you’ll meet him there. Ask for the presence of the fourth man in the furnace. This is your day. They would remember when they were young men, full of courage and faith, when they defied the king and walked around in the flames and spent a few moments in the presence of the living God. I wonder what they said to each other. They trusted in him and defied the king’s commands.” They trusted in God and defied the king’s command. Or might you bend the knee to the wrong God? 2007 - 2020 He tried to woo them to the other side: “ Now, when you hear the music, when you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very good; you can have everything back.” But in the face of their unshakable devotion, the staggering commitment to face death rather than disobey God, Nebuchadnezzar lost control. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?’ Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king, ‘O Necuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. (Daniel 3:16-18).
I wonder if, when they were old men, many years later on the anniversary of this date, they would get together to remember. I’ll tell you what’s striking to me about their story. Where did Jesus say to his followers, “ God has a wonderful plan for your life, and that involves a great house, an attractive spouse, a terrific job, a wonderful car, and an endless succession of easy days”? One of them was 27-year-old Lieutenant Captain Dmitry Kolesnikov, and he wrote a note to his wife while he waited to die.
The Second Extreme: Contempt for the Lost.
The Fourth Man in the Fire. Did I get an unexpected expense, which means I can’t buy something I’ve got to have? The furnace was so hot that the flames of the fire killed the soldiers preparing to throw the men in. Maybe he wants to grow you up in judgment and discernment, in your ability to know when to speak and when to be silent. “ Life, or death?” They chose death. The Hebrew number for four is Dalet, it means a door. Make my life smooth, make my life easy, and make life comfortable, make it pleasant. It is the last time they are ever mentioned in Scripture. I don’t ask primarily for comfort or riches or ease or security.” If you are not sure that your devotion level is where you want it to be, talk to him about that, be honest about it.
They would wear their old robes (which their wives had probably tried to throw away, because they had holes in them or were out of fashion). When human beings experience the moment when they know they're going to die, it' s almost instinctive that they want to send a message; they want someone to know their story.
What's your story? I’ll meet you in the furnace.”.
Somewhere along the line, too many people in too many churches have gotten the idea that following God guarantees an easier life. Is my career not climbing as high up the ladder as I want it to go? In that final moment when the scaffolding of life gets stripped away, all the toys we've spent our lives chasing--success, reputation, security, wealth, comfort, ease--mean nothing. We may not always perceive the Lord in the midst of a trial, but be assured that Satan sees the Lord by your side. Their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them. I bet they poured out adoration, gratitude, and worship. They followed the same path he walked on, they followed him through servanthood, they followed through sacrificial generosity, they followed him through community, they followed him to suffering, they followed him to persecution, they followed him to death. You have been avoiding what feels like the furnace.
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