Faith in the Journey - Pt. 7

 

Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with fury, and the expression of his face was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He ordered the furnace heated seven times more than it was usually heated. And he ordered some of the mighty men of his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and to cast them into the burning fiery furnace. Then these men were bound in their cloaks, their tunics, their hats, and their other garments, and they were thrown into the burning fiery furnace. Because the king’s order was urgent and the furnace overheated, the flame of the fire killed those men who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell bound into the burning fiery furnace. (Daniel 3:19-23 ESV).

 

Nothing like a good old fiery furnace to stop you in your tracks! In our reading today, King Nebuchadnezzar had made an image of gold and had ordered people to bow down and worship it (cf. Daniel 3:1-6). But Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused to do that, because they did not worship idols or other gods. They worshiped only the true God. So the king’s astrologers spoke against these men and said they should be thrown into a blazing furnace. And they were! Sometimes, for various reasons, we get tossed into the furnace too. We need to understand how to go forward from there.

 

Let’s look at Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego’s reply. They said they would not worship the image of gold for any reason, even if God did not deliver them. They were determined to obey God, and they trusted in God to protect their souls even if the fire killed them and burned them up. Many people expect “realistic compensation” for their actions, but Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego declared that they would obey God, no matter what happened. This is the great failure of the heresy of the prosperity gospel. God is not a vending machine.

 

The faith in your journey that allows you to be safe in or out of the fiery furnace is the absolute trust that God has not abandoned us to our own devices and will continue to protect and guide us through every circumstance. Trust Him, He’s got this even if we do emerge smelling a little smoky! Have faith in the journey!