Through The Fire

Introduction

Good evening students! If you have a copy of God’s Word with you, please open with me to Daniel 3. That is where we will be for our entire time together.

If you don’t have a copy of God’s Word with you this evening, no worries, we have plenty of them on the black table in the middle of the room.

If you are reading with us from the black Bible, the page number of our story is found on 692 and continues on page 693.

Have you ever asked the question: where is God in the midst of my trials?

1. Maybe you’re going through something right now in your life.

2. Or maybe you just came out of something difficult in your life.

3. Or maybe you are about to enter into a trial or something difficult.

Those are typically the three scenarios when it comes to trials in our life, or so I’ve heard preached growing up.

Tonight, we will ask two questions:

1. Where is God in the midst of our trials? and

2. What we should know about Him during those trials?

Before we go any further, I want to give you a brief recap of what has happened so far in Daniel:

Recap

Daniel and his friends were young Jewish men who were exiles taken into Babylonian Captivity

They refused to eat the food the King was giving to the rest of the young men, instead they eat veggies and drank water, and after 10 days they were found better and healthier than all the other young men eating the king’s food

God gave Daniel and his friends knowledge and understanding, and no one was found equal to them. The king had them consulted them for every matter of wisdom and understanding.

King Nebuchadnezzar had dreams that he wanted told to him and interpreted, and only one person could do that: Daniel. And even Daniel recognized it wasn’t by his own power, but through God’s power he was able to reveal and interpret the king’s dream.

King Nebuchadnezzar responds in awe, gives Daniel many gifts, and promotes him, making him the ruler of the entire province of Babylon and chief governor over all the wise men. Daniel also requested that his friends be managers of Babylon, and the King granted that request.

Two Themes

Throughout the entire book of Daniel, we see two major themes:

God is sovereign - meaning, there is nothing outside of God’s control. He is in control over all nations, all kingdoms, all people; nothing is outside of His rule and nothing takes place without God allowing it to.

God is with us - even in the midst of the difficulties, even when it might have not seemed like it, God was with Daniel and his friends, and He is with us.

This leads us to chapter 3, where we will be tonight. Before we go any further, let’s take a moment and ask God to help us as we open His Word and seek to understand what Daniel 3 is about.

(Pray)

Text

Main Point

I want to give you tonight’s main point for the entire chapter of Daniel 3 right up front and the answer to our first question: Where is God in the midst of my trials?

God is with His people in the trials they face.

The King’s Command

King Nebuchadnezzar created a massive golden statue. This statue was ninety feet high, and nine feet wide. To put this in perspective, a regulation size basketball court is 94 feet long, close to the height of this statue.

So, take the Charlotte Hornets basketball court and it’s length, and raise it up, and that’s about how tall this statue was.

King N had a dedication ceremony for this statue, where all of the governors, counselors, treasurers, justices, magistrates, officials, pretty much any important person, came to to see this statue be dedicated.

They all stood before the statue, and were given a command, which we see starting in verse 4:

Daniel 3:4–6 (ESV)

4 And the herald proclaimed aloud, “You are commanded, O peoples, nations, and languages,

5 that when you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, you are to fall down and worship the golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up.

6 And whoever does not fall down and worship shall immediately be cast into a burning fiery furnace.”

They Refuse

All people were commanded to bow down to this statue anytime they heard any sort of music playing and worship this image.

However, there were three guys who did not obey this command. And this did not go unnoticed. The Chaldeans (Cal dee ins), the same people who told in chapter 2 King N they could interpret his dream for him, told the King about these three guys. Read with me in verse 12:

Daniel 3:12 (ESV)

12 There are certain Jews whom you have appointed over the affairs of the province of Babylon: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These men, O king, pay no attention to you; they do not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”

This made the King furious. He commanded that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought before him. He asked them: “Is it true that you do not serve my gods or worship the golden image I have set up?”

Look at what S, M, and A say back to King N:

Daniel 3:16–18 (ESV)

16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter.

17 If this be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king.

18 But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”

As you could imagine, this only made King N even more furious. Just as his command stated, those who do not bow down and worship the statue would be cast into a burning fiery furnace.

King N ordered that the fiery furnace be heated seven times more than it was usually heated. S, M, and A were tied up, and cast into the fiery furnace.

Catch this: the furnace was so hot, that the men King N ordered to take S, M, and A up to the furnace died. The flame killed them.

God Delivers

S, M, and A are in the furnace.

What would seem to be like the end of the story based on the fact that they are inside of a fiery furnace seven times as hot as usual, takes an interesting turn. Look down at verse 24 with me:

Daniel 3:24–25 (ESV)

24 Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished and rose up in haste. He declared to his counselors, “Did we not cast three men bound into the fire?” They answered and said to the king, “True, O king.”

25 He answered and said, “But I see four men unbound, walking in the midst of the fire, and they are not hurt; and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods.”

Imagine the amazement on King N’s face when he saw the three men he threw in the furnace heated up seven times as hot, and seeing another man in there, walking around unharmed!

S, M, and A were walking in the midst of the fire, completely unharmed. The Bible tells us that the hair of their heads was not singed, their clothes were not harmed; there wasn’t even a single scent of smoke upon them.

Notice too in verse 25 that there was a fourth person in the fire with them, whom King N referred to as “like a son of the gods.” There are two options of who the fourth person was believed to be:

Pre-Incarnate Christ

A possible interpretation, believed by most Christians

Angel of the Lord

Another possible interpretation. Believed that it could be the angel of the Lord that appeared to Moses in the burning bush.

Although we are not told specifically, I am personally led to believe it was the Pre-Incarnate Jesus Christ with the three men in the fire.

King N later on in verse 28 believed it to be an angel from his perspective.

Whether is was the Pre-Incarnate Christ or the angel of the Lord, we can confidently say that it was God who was with them.

(pause)

Look with me at verses 26-30 and let’s find out what happens as our story comes to a close.

The King’s Decree

Look at verses 26-30 with me:

Daniel 3:26–30 (ESV)

26 Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the door of the burning fiery furnace; he declared, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out, and come here!” Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out from the fire.

27 And the satraps, the prefects, the governors, and the king’s counselors gathered together and saw that the fire had not had any power over the bodies of those men. The hair of their heads was not singed, their cloaks were not harmed, and no smell of fire had come upon them.

28 Nebuchadnezzar answered and said, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent his angel and delivered his servants, who trusted in him, and set aside the king’s command, and yielded up their bodies rather than serve and worship any god except their own God.

29 Therefore I make a decree: Any people, nation, or language that speaks anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego shall be torn limb from limb, and their houses laid in ruins, for there is no other god who is able to rescue in this way.”

30 Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the province of Babylon.

King N went from commanding that his statue must be worshipped, to then decreeing that anyone or anything that speaks against S, M, and A’s God, the One True God, would face severe consequences.

This was the decree of a King who had witnessed something incredible. A rescue, but not just any ordinary rescue, one that the king himself said: “for there is no other god who is able to rescue in this way.”

Application

Our main point from tonight’s text is:

God is with His people in the trials they face.

If God is with His people in the trials that they face, what can we take away from this true story?

What should we know about God in our trials?

He is Good, No Matter the Outcome (v. 17-18)

Daniel 3:17–18 (ESV)

17 If this be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king.

18 But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”

The outcome did not matter to S, M, and A. The three friends were committed to worshiping their God, the One True God, no matter what. They were not going to allow anything to deter them from that, not even the King who was over them!

They were committed to the point that they would be willing to burn to death in a fiery furnace for God. Thankfully, the Lord rescued them and protected them from any harm.

What happens, however, when things don’t turn out that way?

When the rescue we expect doesn’t take place?

When the circumstances we are praying for don’t change in the way we would like?

When our own lives are on the line for what we believe?

How will we respond? Will we give up and give in, or will we stand strong on the firm foundation that is God Himself, remembering that He is a Good God, and He is working ALL things for our good and His glory, no matter how it may look or seem on the outside.

May I encourage you: remember that He is Good. He is a kind and gracious God. You can be sure of this. His Word tells us so. God keeps His Word and His promises, always.

He is Always in Control (v. 27-28)

I don’t think we as believers take enough time to marvel at this reality and take in the fact that nothing is out of God’s control.

Throughout the entire story, more than that, throughout the entire book of Daniel, we see that God is in total and complete control of all that takes place.

Even in the moments where it feels like He is not near, He is present and working all things for their good and for His Glory.

John Piper says this: “God is always doing 10,000 things in your life, and you may be aware of three of them.”

And notice what Proverbs 21:1 says regarding kings:

Proverbs 21:1 ESV

1 The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord; he turns it wherever he will.

It should be of great comfort to us that we serve a God who is in control of not just some things, not even just most things, but of all things.

He is Seen by Others Through Our Faith (v. 29)

Because of S, M, and A’s faith in God, the King recognized that:

“for there is no other god who is able to rescue in this way.” (v.29)

God is seen and reflected when we respond to our trials with faith.

When the world sees that we have peace and confidence despite the things taking place in our life, they will recognize that there is something different about us.

We are King Jesus’ ambassadors, we are to reflect not the world but a different world, a different kingdom: His Kingdom.

Because of S, M, and A’s faith, King N recognized that there was something different about their God. He wasn’t like the other gods who had no power.

This God was able to save three of His people from a fiery furnace seven times hotter than usual. That is only something the One True God can do.

(pause)

The Gospel

My final question to you this evening is:

Who is Jesus to you?

To S, M, and A, he was their One and only God. They lived to serve Him and Him alone. He was the God they were willing to be burned to death for. That is who He was to them.

To King N, God was simply the God of S, M, and A. He was “their own God.” Now, we do see genuine moments of King N recognizing God as different from other gods, but from what we see in scripture, we cannot emphatically or dogmatically say that King N showed signs of repentance and became a devout follower of the One True God.

So, who is Jesus to you?

Who is he in the midst of your trials?

Is He your Savior?

The One you are building your life upon, the One who is your all?

The One you would be willing to give up your life for?

Your only hope in life and death?

Or is Jesus just the means to escape your trials and get you back to the life you want to live?

Or is He “their God” or your friends God or your parents God?

The answer to this question is of utmost importance.

Tonight, students, I ask you: evaluate your heart.

Take time to examine yourself and ask the question: who is Jesus to me?

If He is your God

If He is your God, your Lord and Savior, then praise Him for that!

He has opened your eyes, saved you, redeemed you, and has promised to never leave you or forsake you, and He is one day coming back to get you.

Those are truths to hold onto in the midst of trials. He who began a good work in you will in fact bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

(pause)

If He isn’t your God

If He isn’t your God, your Lord and Savior, if He is simply the God of those around you or “their God” like King N referred to Him, then let me encourage you tonight: repent of your sins and believe in Him.

If you hear His voice through His Word and are feeling the weight of this reality, do not harden your heart. Do not close your ears. Do not shut your eyes. Repent and believe while there is time.

Peter, one of Jesus’ disciples and closest friends, tells us this:

2 Peter 3:9 (ESV)

9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

But please know, students, that this patience will not last forever. Let me read to you what happened to the Jews in the midst of their unbelief:

John 12:37–40 (ESV)

37 Though he had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in him,

38 so that the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:

“Lord, who has believed what he heard from us,

and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?”

39 Therefore they could not believe. For again Isaiah said,

40 “He has blinded their eyes

and hardened their heart,

lest they see with their eyes,

and understand with their heart, and turn,

and I would heal them.”

Students, repent and believe while there is time! Do not delay. God is gracious and He is patient, but please hear my warning: do not exhaust His patience. Do not delay. He is calling you to repent and believe in His Son.

If you have any questions on what it looks like to repent, believe, and follow Jesus, I strongly encourage you: please talk with one of your small group leaders.

God is with His people in the trials they face.

Let me pray for you as we close our time together tonight.

(Pray)