Surviving in difficult times
Going through it all/Decisions
Nebuchadnezzar asked them, ‘Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, is it true that you don’t serve my gods or worship the gold statue I have set up?’ ” The world, like Nebuchadnezzar, expects us all to follow its fashions and to obey its rules. The god of this world is the devil, and he claims implicit obedience. Sin in some form or other is the image Satan sets up and requires us to serve. If we mean to be a Christian, and therefore intend to cast off the bondage of this present evil world, our resolve must be taken to bear all consequences rather than worship the idol of the hour.
Though the Bible teaches us to obey, honor and pray for those in authority over us (Ro 13:1–7; 1Ti 2:1–2; 1Pe 2:13–17), our first duty is to God. If we obey what Jesus called “the first and greatest commandment”—to love the one true God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength (Dt 6:5; Mt 22:37–38)—we cannot worship or honor any false god or any image representing a god. This would also include giving priority to anything above God in our lives
These godly Jews refused to transgress the First and the Second Commandments by bowing before idols.
The three faithful men refused to compromise—even at the loss of their lives. As we can see from their words, “But if not.…” their conviction didn’t come from a promise that God would deliver them. They were full of faith. They lived by faith, and they were prepared to die in faith. We, too, are called to be faithful in the face of death. Neither do we have a promise of deliverance from the hands of ungodly men. God allowed Stephen to be martyred, as well as eleven of the original apostles and millions of other martyrs down through the ages (see note for Acts 7:55: “History reveals the fate of the apostles.”)
The power of pressure
Nebuchadnezzar’s image was meant to dominate. Any great monstrosity 27 metres high by 2.7 metres wide (60 × 6 cubits) would do so. The dedication service required the attendance of the whole range of civil service employees (2) and the homage paid was tantamount to a pledge of loyalty to the state. So the stakes are now higher for Daniel’s three friends. In chapter 2 their danger arose from an occupational hazard; in chapter 3 it comes via an assault on first commandment loyalty.
It will be useful to analyse the pressure Daniel’s friends faced. First, it came from authority. In the original Aramaic of vv. 1–7 King Nebuchadnezzar (1) is mentioned six times, almost as if to overstress the king’s authority. Secondly, the pressure came from conformity. The raft of civil service folks are gathered (2–3), told (4–5) and threatened (6). Pressure is intensified by malice (8–12), if we know that enemies already have a vested interest in our downfall, and finally, pressure mounts from intimidation (13–15). There is something withering about the towering rage of a monarch anyway, but all the more so when he mentions a blazing furnace (15).
What forms of pressure are you under to compromise on loyalty to God? Is it possible for you to laugh in the face of such pressure?