Welcome. Today we’re going to be talking about a Bible story in which we are all familiar. Although the story might be one we’ve heard before, the lessons behind the story are overwhelmingly still relevant in our world. So let’s look at the original flameproof trio, and learn what we can from their example.

What trio am I talking about? I’m talking about Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego from the third chapter of the Book of Daniel, of course.

I’m going to recap the story for us pretty quickly. It starts with Nebuchadnezzar who is the king of Babylon building an idol of gold. Now what this statue was isn’t stated outright, but it is either a statue of a pagan god or possibly the king himself. Either way, it is an idol that the king demands the people worship.

So all the officials of the kingdom are brought together at the dedication of this image of gold where they are informed that when they hear music, they are required to stoop down and worship the idol. This decree is to be followed by everyone. The king declares that anyone that does not bow down to the image is to be executed by being thrown into a fiery furnace.

Well, our three friends are officials at this dedication, and they of course refuse to bow down to the golden idol, being that they worship the true God, and Him alone. So there are some tattletails in the crowd that tell the king that they are not bowing down.

So ole Nebuchadnezzar calls for Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego and questions them directly. They tell the king the truth that they will not bow down to any other god and nothing can change their minds.

The king is absolutely furious when he hears this, and he orders that the furnace be heated to seven times its usual temperature. When the furnace is ready, the king has the men thrown into the fire. The fire is so hot that it actually kills the men that pushed them in.

The king gloats for a moment, but suddenly realizes that there are now four men in the fire, instead of just three. We are told by Daniel that the final man appears like the Son of God, and He obviously keeps the trio safe in the flames.

So the king calls the three out of the furnace and they come out completely unharmed in the sight of all these witnesses that have gathered for the dedication. Not a single hair on their heads had been singed, and their clothes were completely intact. In fact, they were so well protected that they didn’t even smell like smoke at all!

Of course the king freaks completely out, and realizes that these guys apparently have the right deity since they were delivered so completely from the fire. He decrees that anyone that speaks a word against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego is to be cut into pieces and his house is to be destroyed. Finally, the trio are all promoted to higher positions.

This is the basic rundown of what happened, and what we’re going to be drawing our information from. So what can we learn from the fiery furnace?

We see firstly that God’s people are a persecuted people. When the king first finds out about the trio’s refusal to worship the golden image, he is infuriated. He seeks to punish God’s people, and to cause them a great deal of suffering. Beyond all this he seeks to put them to death.

These guys are persecuted because of their stand on the issues. They stood firm on their faith and their conviction to live a life that is true to the Lord and His commands. We are supposed to live the same way nowadays in our own lives.

(2Co 6:17) Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you. What the Bible is telling us here is that we have to take a stand against the world around us. The trio in the fiery furnace stood up against the paganism that surrounded them. They stood firm on their beliefs, and though they were severely persecuted by the world, they were received and protected by the Lord, just as God will receive us.

(Col 3:1) If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. (Col 3:2) Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. Our trio would not love and worship the golden image, they had their sights set a little higher, instead focusing on God, and the things of God, instead of focusing on the things of man.

As we see here, we have to live up to a higher standard than those worshipping the almighty dollar around us, or worshipping at the altar of ego, or any of the countless other idols society has constructed in this old world.

Our friends were also persecuted because of their Savior. The king gives the guys a second chance at verse fourteen, but the guys don’t change their mind and continue to stand firm for the Lord.

In verse fifteen, the king mocks God and challenges God by asking them just who would save them if he did indeed throw them into the furnace. He is implying, clearly, that he believes himself to be more powerful than God.

Of course he is not, and the trio is delivered from the fiery furnace in spite of what the king said or thought.

We are to walk in the will of the Lord. He should be first in our lives, and we should strive to meet His standards and acknowledge Him as the ultimate power in our world, and our lives.

Facing death did not change our friends’ minds. They were dedicated to the Lord until their very last breath. They were not bothered by the idea of death, they had no fear of the grave because they put all their trust in God.

This is an important point for us. (Mat 16:25) For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. If your concerns are for the worldly things and not the spiritual, you need to realign your views. The trio knew exactly what Jesus is telling us here, that God will deliver you if you are true in your heart to Him. These guys were, and they went to what should have been their deaths for God. But God saw the faithfulness that was in them, and He delivered them from the fire.

(1Co 15:58) Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. I don’t think there is anything more I could say to be supportive than what is said in this verse.

This is what we need to come to realize in our world today. If we are going to be with Jesus, if we are going to walk the walk with God, if we are going to cast ourselves in the mold of Christianity, we are going to be persecuted. That’s just the way things are going to be.

(2Ti 3:12) Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. This is straight out there, no wiggle room in this verse. If you live a godly life, or even try to live a godly life, you are going to face persecution of some sort or kind. It is a sad thing, but it is the truth.

You see we struggle against powers and principalities of darkness and spiritual wickedness. The dark one, Satan himself, will do everything he can to break the spirit of the believers and he will try his best to corrupt them. He wants to pull you away from God, and he’s developed some seriously effective tools of persecution and he’s not afraid to use them.

(1Pe 4:12) Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: here we are told we should expect the trials and persecutions, and not be surprised when they do show up. This leads me to wonder about those that follow the gospel of prosperity and the word faith movement because of their teachings that you will get good things if you are faithful.

Clearly the Bible tells us here that we will suffer for our faith if we walk with Christ in a true, faithful manner. Anyone that teaches any different needs to stop and tell us what these verses mean because it would seem that they’re off base they aren’t preaching that there are trials we’re going to have to face in life.

Persecution is not fun, but it does have its uses. There is a reason for it. It is meant to help ‘purify’ us and help us be more like Jesus. Just like the furnace purifies gold and silver, persecution serves to help improve us, make us higher quality Christians.

We also have to realize that just because we came through one fire and grew and became better for it does not mean we are now in the clear. If you go through one furnace and there is a good change in you, then you can full well expect an even hotter fire the next time, a greater persecution. It’s hard, but it will get worse!

We see that happen not only on personal scales in the Bible but also on a grand scale as we see the persecutions rise dramatically in the Book of Revelation to the point that faithfulness becomes synonymous with execution. There has been, there is, and there will be martyrs for the faith in the world.

Not everyone will face that level of persecution, but you will be refined in the fires of trials and tribulations as long as you walk with Jesus and try to live a godly, Christian life.

Why would we even put up with this? The non-believing world finds us to be a mystery because of this. They look at us and see that we know that we will suffer persecution and are amazed because we don’t lose the faith. The reason is because we know that God is watching and that we are blessed no matter what we face here in life.

We have our reward, it is waiting for us after we shuffle off these mortal coils and come to our eternal resting place. What happens to us on this earth is nowhere near as important as the afterlife to us. This blows the mind of the world because they just don’t understand how we can accept the troubles of the sea of life because we know that if we ride out the storms we’ll eventually land on those golden shores.

(Joh 15:20) Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.

Now let’s talk about the good side of this thing: there is hope. God’s people are a preserved people as well! What happened to the three who were thrown in to the furnace? Nothing! They were perfectly fine. They were not burned at all. They didn’t even pick up the scent of the fire and ashes. They were absolutely preserved by God.

God is an ever-present being. He was there when the boys faced the fire. The Son of God walked in the flames with the trio, protecting them and preserving them. They had given their lives for their faith, and their lives were preserved because of it. Later in time, Jesus would come to the world and tell us this very same thing. (Luk 17:33) Whosoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it.

Even in the flaming furnace of Babylon God keeps His promises. He will not ever let you down. Let this be a lesson for us today. If you are walking through the fire right now, open your eyes! Jesus is walking there with you! We’ve all heard the famous ‘footprints in the sand’ thing, but know that it’s not just when you’re walking on the beach. God is with you all the time, not just here or there.

(Isa 43:2) When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee. What greater comfort could there be? God telling us that He is always with us brings a peace that the world cannot even come close to matching. I’m reminded of (Joh 14:27) Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

I’m also reminded of (Joh 16:33) These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world. These verses are so very comforting to me. What wonderful love has God shown us!

(Mat 28:20) Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen. Even more love for us, here Jesus tells us that He will walk with us until the end of the world. He’ll come through the fire, through the waters, up the mountains, through the valleys and across the plains of life with us, no matter where we might wander.

(Heb 13:5) Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. I think we’re getting the picture here, that is the picture that God is with us, and He will not forsake us. We will walk through our own furnaces and He will walk with us.

Let’s also consider what happens to the trio while they are in the fire. They come out fine, without a scratch of course, but they do lose something. The ties they were bound with are burnt away, and they are freed by the fire. While their clothes were not touched, the ropes that tied their hands together fell away.

What is the point of that? Well it tells us something. It tells us that when we walk through the fires we face, we are going to ultimately be freed of something. The fires of persecution will burn away something that is binding you. It might burn away a bad attitude, it might burn away bad habits, it might burn away sinful actions. Point is, something will be refined out of you, burnt out of you, and you will be improved for it just as the gold and silver are improved as they are passed through the flames.

The flames will free us, even if we don’t understand how or why at the time.

We also need to remember what happened to the trio. They were not hurt at all. They were fine as they walked through the fire. They were allowed to pass through the fire, but the fire was not allowed to pass through them. They were not burnt in any manner. This is a powerful truth for us in this day and age.

You are not brought to the furnace for your destruction, but instead for your own good. (Rom 8:28) And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. This means that nothing happens that will not work for good in the end. All things have their purpose, and when the bill is finally added up, all things work together for good. If you are saved, and that means you are called to His purpose, everything you experience is going to serve good in the end. It has a reason and purpose. Not only that, but remember that the Lord walks with you all the way.

Only three went into the king’s furnace, but four walked the flames. Then when they came out, only three emerged from the fire. What does this mean? It means that God is still in the furnace, waiting to keep and preserve any that come into the flames.

(2Co 4:17) For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; what we face here on earth is light and passes quickly compared to the eternal gift we are going to be receiving at the end of the road of life.

The trio was also preserved by an all powerful God. When God does something, He does it up right! If He saves you, you are completely saved! The trio in the flames was not scorched or burnt, they didn’t even have any soot or smoke on them! They were completely and totally preserved and saved by the Lord.

(Eph 3:20) Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, here in this verse we see that God is able to do exceedingly above and beyond what we ask or what we can even think. God is all powerful, that is where our peace lies, knowing that we are reconciled to God by His beautiful Son Jesus Christ.

Finally, God’s people are a promoted people. How can this be so when we’re so clearly told to expect persecution? Well, we can see that at first, our friends were just minor officials in the Babylonian kingdom. After they faced the furnace, they are promoted to higher positions. This tells us that God takes us through and purifies us sometimes in the fires of life before He uses us for great things.

You cannot stand on top of the mountain before you sit down beside the dry creek. You have to grow in your faith and in your walk with God. Gideon the warrior is a great example of this truth.

We can see Gideon’s story in the Book of Judges. He starts out as a general with 32,000 troops. 22,000 of them become afraid and leave him. Then he’s a captain with only 10,000 troops. 9,700 of those men are rejected by God, leaving Gideon nothing more than a sergeant with only 300 men.

His enemies basically think that he’s nothing and that they’ll roll right over him with no trouble. Well Gideon has been through the fires and God has brought him out the other side. So because Gideon had been prepared by God, God uses him to win a great victory against overwhelming odds.

When you are put through persecution it is not to destroy you or harm you, it is to grow you, to purify you, to bring you focus and strength. Each test, each trial is an opportunity to become all we can be, to learn something new.

When you come through these things, God may raise you up to a new position in life. Now don’t misunderstand me, I’m not saying that God will allow persecution just so that He can make you a vice president down at the office making tons of money. What I mean is He might raise you in your spiritual life, and may bring you to a more important role in the world for His will.

You might go through a trial that brings you to a deeper spiritual place where you become a better witness for the Lord, which in turn helps others come to repentance which glorifies the Lord. You might be brought through a trial to prepare you to be the servant that God wants you to be.

If you are going through a trial or are facing persecution, let me encourage you to hold fast to the Lord. He will deliver you just like He delivered Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego from Nebuchadnezzar’s furnace. Have faith in God.

Stand up for what you believe in. Believe in God and He’ll stand with you, to quote a Veggie Tales song. (Rom 8:28) And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. Until next time, God bless.

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 29th, 2009 at 8:26 pm and is filed under Uncategorized | . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.