Daniel 3

Introduction

Representative Emmanuel Cleaver closed his prayer to open congress with “ in the name of the monotheistic God, Brahma, and god known by many names by many different faiths. Amen and a-woman.”

He didn’t want amen to be sexist so he added and “a-women”

These are your elected officials people

You see the congressmen showed what a pluralistic culture looks like. among other crazy things

You’re going to hear the word pluralistic used- what does that mean? Let’s define terms.

Pluralistic means a society where the people believe all kinds of different gods are true as long as you play the game with everyone else in public

That all paths lead to the good life we long for just affirm each others self destructive lifestyle choices and we are ok

tolerate each other's beliefs as long as nobody says any of the others are not true.

With that definition and description in mind wouldn’t you agree that is us

Don’t just tolerate another belief about truth..you better recognize it as true or you are in trouble

We have not changed from the days we are seeing in Daniel.

As the congressman showed eventually the exclusive claim of our faith will bloody our nose in a pluralistic culture

To really believe the first commandment and not compromise will put you at odds with the world you live in

What’s the first commandment? There is ONE God and there is no room for anyone else to play God

God has given us Daniel Chapter 3 to show all believers how to live in a pluralistic culture and be on mission there

The Folly of Sin (1-3)

1.King Nebuchadnezzar made a gold statue ninety feet high and nine feet wide. He set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon. 2 King Nebuchadnezzar sent word to assemble the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all the rulers of the provinces to attend the dedication of the statue King Nebuchadnezzar had set up…Then they stood before the statue

One of my favorite authors is a man named Cornelius Plantinga.

he has an amazing book where He describes sin in many ways and one of the ways he describes sin is Folly.

Folly sounds like a fancy word but what it boils down to is that sin is dumb

He says “Why is it not only wrong but foolish to offend God? God is our final good, our maker, and savior, the one in whom alone our restless hearts come to rest. To rebel against God is to saw off the branch that supports us”

Does that sound familiar from the branches and vine sermon a few weeks ago?

So here we are in Daniel 3 seeing what happens when our crazy sin shapes how a culture lives

When we last saw the King with Daniel at the end of chapter 2 the king was being shown that It is Daniel's God, the God of Heaven who will set up an eternal throne that will fill the earth

Remember the stone that fills the earth?

He had a dream that told him this: 4 metals make up a giant image in his dream that represent present and future world powers and the Neb’s kingdom is the top one the one of Gold

But the KIng only hears that he is the powerful kingdom of Gold at the top.

Selective hearing

You can just see Daniel like no thats not what I am saying but Neb just runs with it

The stupidity of sin is to ignore the truth God lays out

Not only ignore it we try with all our might to use god to best build our own kingdom

Before we think the king is unlike us we need to realize how often we try and add god to our plans and our own kingdom building.

That is the contrast the author wants to confront us with

In chapter 1 we saw it is repeated that it is God that gives God sets up

In this chapter 9 times it is emphasized that the king set up

The author is saying look how ridiculous it is when we go against God and sell out to set up our own kingdom so the world revolves around us

How are we this week setting up our kingdom or are we joining God in His setting up of life to be whole

Neb calls the A list to come and see it.

This list was all the people he had conquered and assimilated

This affirmation of others is part of the insanity of our sin

Don’t just tolerate my self destruction you better affirm it and recognize it and participate in it even if it just means you call yourself an advocate for me… we are nuts

Let’s make it relatable- Don’t we like when we’re gossiping and the other person agrees with us and even starts saying bad things too?

Imagine this spectacle.

On the plains of modern day Iraq a 9 foot wide 90 foot tall gold plated image of a man and all are called to bow to what the king set up.

Invited are the three friends of Daniel who had decided long ago not to participate in this mess

Hananiah, Mishael, azariah… AKA shadrach meshach and abednego if you grew up in sunday school

Close curtain on act 1 the stage is set for our boys in babylon to enter the stage

The Pressure of Culture (4-15)

A herald loudly proclaimed, “People of every nation and language, you are commanded: to fall face down and worship the gold statue that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up. 6 But whoever does not fall down and worship will immediately be thrown into a furnace of blazing fire.”

Then our boys are ratted out by people in love with the comfort of compromise…

12 There are some Jews you have appointed to manage the province of Babylon: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.a These men have ignored you, the king; they do not serve your gods or worship the gold statue you have set up.”

13 Then in a furious rage Nebuchadnezzar gave orders to bring in Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. So these men were brought before the king. 14 Nebuchadnezzar asked them, …if you don’t worship it, you will immediately be thrown into a furnace of blazing fire—and who is the god who can rescue you from my power?”

The word worship is repeated 11 times between verse 5 and 28.

the author wants us to see it aggressively

We all worship.

The question is what do you worship

So often what we worship is ourselves and we want everyone around us to affirm and participate in our being our true self

This a worship of him as much as it is a worship of the idols.

Enter the pressure of a lost culture

Pluralism says worship your Gods as long as you also acknowledge everyone else's As equal

Our culture - and their culture- is not just asking you to tolerate the insanity of their beliefs- it’s asking you to celebrate it and recognize it as truth

That is what we are seeing today in our culture

There is a great temptation that can lead you down a slippery slope of compromise that is same for us as it was for Daniel and these 3

The allure comfort.

Toe the line.

Keep your faith to yourself, feel the pressure of compromise by not saying you believe differently from someone else

Cultural pressure to compromise on your beliefs or stay quiet about your beliefs has been a struggle since the beginning of time

As motivation, if the attractiveness of giving in doesn't work…

in the background for all to see is the furnace being built as the tower is going up.

If you don’t give in today there is the building of the furnace of cancel culture all around you and lawsuits if you don’t play the game as a business owner we see play out

Remember that all those invited are most likely from every conquered nation and conquered people group.

To them the gods of Babylon had already shown their might.

To them and to us it can look like culture is winning so whats the point?

To them settle in and play the game and you can have a much more comfortable life

TO us the pressure is the same

But our 3 boys in Babylon simply stood in the back of the spectacle of all the people falling down to a man made statue towering in the desert of Iraq.

Certain wise men, no doubt jealous of the success of the exiles, took it upon themselves to play to the king's pride.

They tell on the three faithful boys

Verse 9 starts it and look how they begin…may the king live forever

May the king live forever is a great way to start your next morning meeting at work when you see your boss

They say they ignored you, they don't respect you and they don’t worship the gold statue you set up. And by the way these are the guys YOU promoted king…..

he feels since they are the ones he appointed he is being made to look like a fool.

As the culture called for more and more tolerance and recognition they resolved to love God and not compromise

Resolve like this isn’t conjured up in a moment.

It is built in day after day as you hold the truth and love of God so High in your life you don’t want any allure or comfort of the world.

You know they saw the tower being built day after day.

You know they looked at each other long before this day and told each other I ain't gonna bow to that thing if it comes.

We know too much about God to deny Him.

We know how the story ends this world doesn’t get the last word

Verse 15 sets up the rest of the chapter...who is the god who can rescue you from my power?”

Why do you believe : (16-23)

16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied to the king, “Nebuchadnezzar, we don’t need to give you an answer to this question. 17 If the God we serve exists, then he can rescue us from the furnace of blazing fire, and he can rescue us from the power of you, the king. 18 But even if he does not rescue us, we want you as king to know that we will not serve your gods or worship the gold statue you set up.”

19 Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with rage, and the expression on his face changed toward Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. ….23 And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego fell, bound, into the furnace of blazing fire.

The response of these 3 is epic.

It is the stuff of heroes of the faith since.

Look how they begin…they call him by his name not “my King”

But this is what i want us to focus on...verses 17 and 18

17 If the God we serve exists,f then he can rescue us from the furnace of blazing fire, and he can rescue us from the power of you, the king. 18 But even if he does not rescue us, we want you as king to know that we will not serve your gods or worship the gold statue you set up.”

Since the king has been talking about their God in the hypothetical they talk that way to prove their steadfastness.

‘You may not believe but it doesn't matter. He is reality. And he wins in the end

One Theologian says of this passage “THey are not faithful only because God is faithful to them,

That is such a challenge to us

Are you faithful to God to the degree that your circumstances are what you want?

Remember what these boys had been through?

Had God failed them because their circumstances looked that way?

You think life had gone how they thought it should have

Has he failed us because of the circumstances you find yourself in?

They knew what they saw in a circumstance did not get the last word?

They know God can, they know God will save them...

But if not in the way they think it should look like they trust that He knows best

How does your walk with God compare to these three

I have to simply ask we all seriously ask ourselves why we call ourselves a Christian?

Do i just like the get out of hell free card Jesus but don’t care about obedience and mission

Why are you a Christian. For these 3 it was life altering reality that God was theirs.

Your faith should change everything if he never gives you a thing in this life

He is faithful to save His people

One way or another he always saves those who are his

The God who saves- (24-30)

24 Then King Nebuchadnezzar jumped up in alarm. He said to his advisers, “Didn’t we throw three men, bound, into the fire?”

“Yes, of course, Your Majesty,” they replied to the king.

25 He exclaimed, “Look! I see four men, not tied, walking around in the fire unharmed; and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.”

What is a right expectation of the christian life so the furnace doesn’t cause us to lose our faith?

Gods people are not kept from the fire we are promised to be kept in it.

If your expectation of the christian life is health and wealth you will lose your faith when the furnaces of life come

These 3 did everything right.

They were part of the few who remained faithful.

They didn't kneel.

But they were thrown in.

When that happens aren’t we tempted to say what the heck God i have been really trying to be a christian

It is so easy for us to follow Christ in obedience and when suffering hits get angry at God when he doesn’t meet our expectations

We are not saved from the fire. We are not kept from the fire. He meets us in

The exile itself had been a white hot crucible.

They had lost everything.

To many exiles years after these events things did not improve. Greek rule then Roman. What hope can God’s people have.

Oh how the church in this country needs to stop avoiding the fire and become refined Gold.

These three knew Isaiah 43:1-2 that says

But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel:

“Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.

Isaiah is writing to the exiles to hope in the future restoration of Gods Kingdom and God says do not fear the fire I am using it to make you pure… and fear not

There was a fourth in the fire…when you don’t compromise

This is called a Christophony, a preincarnate appearance of Jesus and here is why…

How are we kept in the fire of judgement.

It is because of Jesus Christ who came to take our place under the ultimate fire.

Tim Keller says this : “You will feel Jesus in the fires with you to the degree that you believe he was thrown into the ultimate furnace for you”

If you believe that He has suffered not that you wont suffer but he suffered so that you know He is with you and has saved you you will become pure gold

Listen to the description of these boys…Verse 27 - and there was no smell of smoke on them.

That is huge

God will save us in the fire but if not we will truly be saved waking up in His arms in Glory.

We do not hear from these 3 again in this book.

We know they eventually died and woke up from that ultimate fire with no smell of smoke on them for eternity.

He is with you in the fire because He has been in the ultimate furnace for you and that is how you are saved.

Know He has endured the ultimate furnace for you so you are never alone.

We will wake up in HIs arms with no smell of smoke on us.

There will be no more tears or sadness or regret

You won’t even remember its name anymore

That is what he purchased for his people when he endured the ultimate furnace for you