Daniel and three other young men, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, were among the Hebrew people who were deported from their homeland around 605 B.C. We remember Daniel by his given name, but we know the others best by their Babylonian names: Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego. A number of young Jewish men, including even nobles and royal descendants, were selected for a special program of preparation to serve in King Nebuchadnezzar’s palace. All were healthy, good-looking, and intelligent. Daniel and his companions, probably all mere teenagers, decided from the beginning that they would remain faithful to their God even though they were captives. Eventually, they were above all the others in their physical fitness, their knowledge of the culture, and their wisdom and understanding. After Daniel was enabled by the Lord to interpret a dream for the king, the four young were appointed to high positions in the realm.
King Nebuchadnezzar was a man of monstrous ego. He had a golden image erected, ninety feet tall, and ordered “everybody who was anybody” to come to its dedication. When all were gathered, a herald announced, “As soon as you hear the musical instruments playing, you must bow down and worship the image that the King has set up. Anyone who does not kneel and worship will be thrown into a blazing fiery furnace."
The band began to play and all the people bowed down—almost all the people. Daniel’s three young friends did not. (Apparently Daniel was elsewhere in the province when this occurred.) Some Babylonian fortunetellers stepped up—perhaps those who had not been able to understand the King’s dream—and reported to the King that three young Jews, the very men he had placed in high positions,were ignoring his command. The King flew into a rage and ordered them to be brought to him. “If you do not obey,” he warned them, “you will be immediately thrown into the roaring furnace. Then who is the god who can rescue you?”
The group answered, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God whom we serve is able to save us. He will rescue us from your power, Your Majesty. But even if he doesn’t, we want to make it clear to you, Your Majesty, that we will never serve your gods or worship the gold statue you have set up.” (Daniel 3:16-18 *) This made the king so angry that he had the furnace heated seven times hotter than usual. He ordered some of his stoutest soldiers to tie up the young men, turbans and all, and throw them into the furnace. The soldiers themselves died from the intense heat, and the three young men, securely tied, fell down into the flames.
Not the end of the story! To his amazement, the King saw not three but four men, loose and walking about in the fire. “And the form of the fourth,” he said “is like the Son of God!” When the young men were pulled out of the furnace, their hair was not singed, their clothes were not scorched, and there was not even the smell of smoke upon them. They were completely free, and were given positions of even greater importance!
But the freedom of these three young men did not actually start when they were released. It began earlier when they declared, “Our God is able . . . He will . . . And even if He doesn’t . . .” It takes some faith to say that God is able to rescue us from a desperate situation. It takes greater faith to declare that we believe He will. It takes abandonment to faith to say, “But even if He doesn’t, I will go on trusting and obeying Him.”
Peace and freedom come when we begin to trust God with our lives. Our freedom and confidence increase as we develop a “history” with Him, and we have experienced His reliability. Our freedom is unassailable when we are able to declare, “If He doesn’t answer the way I would like or even if it seems He doesn’t answer at all, He knows best, and I refuse to stop trusting Him!” I am reminded of our childish retort when someone tried to lord it over us, “You’re not the boss of me!” Although we might not say exactly that, our determination must equally clear-cut. “You’re not big enough to make me stop loving and serving God!” That is a powerful freedom!
What if God had not intervened on behalf of the three young men? What if we ourselves face threats and persecution and even death? Well, the Apostle Paul says we’re better off out of our bodies and in God’s presence. That defines for us the ultimate freedom.
MaryMartha
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*Read the whole story in the Book of Daniel, chapters 1-3. It will be worth your time!
Scripture quotation is taken from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. United States of America. All rights reserved.
Email: mrymrtha@gmail.com
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