Our God Can Deliver Us

Daniel 3:17-18, 25---If it is so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up. Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, and spake, and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, ye servants of the highest God, come forth, and come hither. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came forth of the midst of the fire.

Nebuchadnezzar's dream went to his head. That was a pun. The head of gold was symbolic of him, so he made a 90-foot high gold statue. When his instrumentalists played, everyone had to bow and worship the image. Some think this is a foreshadowing of the image of the beast that the Antichrist will one day set up. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused to bow down because they worshipped Jehovah alone. The king gave them a second chance. No doubt, he had heard of their faithful service and promotions Daniel had given them and knew the other officials were envious. They told the king plainly, "Our God can save us, but if He does not, we still won't worship the image." Consider those words. God can work a miracle if He chooses. If He does not choose to, it shouldn't change our minds. What is right is right, regardless if God intervenes or if we suffer. Sometimes we insist that God work on our behalf. Do we have the conviction that if He chooses not to, that He knows what is best, even if we lose our business, loved one, or even our life? He is able! But we don't always know beforehand what He will do. Will we do what is right regardless of what God determines is best? The furnace was heated 7 times hotter than normal. The guards that threw them in were killed from the heat. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were walking in the fire unharmed. The king saw the fourth man in the fire that appeared to be like a son of the gods. They came out without even the smell of smoke.