​Daniel ch 3  Facing the Fiery Furnace Part 1
 
 
Did anyone notice how repetitive this first reading was, the same words and phrases over and over, almost hypnotic in effect?  Almost like if we hear something often enough we don’t really think critically anymore, we just go along with it?
 
This probably wasn’t the first time in history someone tried to manipulate a crowd, it certainly wasn’t the last.  Go to a concert and you’ll see how easily a band can get the crowd to sing along.  Often it’s quite innocent but sometimes it’s a lot more serious.
 
In Nuremberg in the 1930s mass rallies were held by the Nazi Party.  Everyone was there, dressed the same, under the same flag.  There was dramatic lighting and seductive music and the message of Adolf Hitler repeated with passion again and again.
 
It seemed to be visionary stuff.  The economy was thriving, unemployment was down, everyone seemed to be happy, this was good, right?  But before long Germany, a nation with a long Christian heritage was doing the unthinkable.
 
That was a long time ago.  These days we are supposed to be ‘free’, ‘tolerant’ and ‘progressive’, we talk a lot about ‘human rights’, we celebrate ‘equality’, ‘diversity’ and seek to be ‘inclusive’.  These are the words we hear repeated constantly with more music and colour than ever.
 
It looks and sounds great on the surface, just like Nebuchadnezzar’s orchestra and image of gold, but we need to listen with discernment.  History has demonstrated numerous times how if people just ‘go with the flow’, we could quickly find ourselves trapped with a system that is much less tolerant than we were led to believe!  Doing things in Ireland North and South that 20 years ago would have seemed unthinkable.
 
Perhaps the time is ripe here for people of courage like Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to stand up and say No!  With all due respect we will not be hypnotised into bowing to the idols of this world.  We will not give assent to something God says is wrong.  Whatever the cost, we will stand for what is right.
 
 
 
Daniel ch 3  Facing the Fiery Furnace Part 2
 
So, 600 years BC, Nebuchadnezzar, absolute monarch of mighty Babylon is having a team-building exercise with all his officials.
 
The king was disturbed in ch2 by a symbolic dream in which he was represented as just one of a succession of empires that would in time be eclipsed by the kingdom of God.  Perhaps he’s trying to consolidate his power while he can!  He’s out in the provinces getting together anyone with any authority to take part in a communal act of allegiance to the state, the state religion and himself personally, all represented in this impressive image.  Go along with it and it can be a national festival, a real party.  Refuse and you get incinerated.
 
It’s all going well for Nebuchadnezzar until a tiny minority of three refuse to take part.  These are three of his best officials so he gives them a second chance but no, they refuse to bow.  His sympathy towards them changes and he orders them thrown into a blazing furnace but then watches amazed as they don’t burn but are rescued by one who ‘looks like a son of the gods.’
 
Let me suggest four lessons here for those who are serious about trusting and following Jesus Christ:
 
Our God saves
We must take our stand
We have to trust, whatever
And Christ is with us in the trial
 
Firstly, our God is a God Who saves.  In Daniel ch 1 we learn God is a holy Judge as He allows His people to be conquered and exiled from Jerusalem for their idolatry.  The name ‘Daniel’ actually means ‘God is my Judge’.  In ch 2 we learn God is the Revealer of mysteries Who holds the future in His hands.  Here in ch3 we learn He is a Saviour Who comes to the rescue of His servants.  These three young men who trust Him are miraculously preserved from death.
 
This is not a new idea for us.  We’ve been celebrating God as our Saviour in the Christian Church for almost 2000 years now.  Every day and every Sunday here together we give thanks that God so loves the world He gave His only begotten Son Jesus to suffer for our sins that whoever believes in Him shall not perish in the fires of hell but be given everlasting, heavenly life!
 
Now because we gratefully love our Saviour God for all His grace and kindness to us that means we will sometimes have to take a stand for Him and the truths and standards He reveals in His Word.
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego knew their Scripture.  They knew the 10 Commandments.  They knew they must worship God and not bow down to images formed by human pride.  There will be times when, like them, followers of Christ must dare to put Him first, even if it’s politically incorrect.
 
It’s not that we want to be awkward for the sake of it.  We try to be good citizens – we work hard, pay our taxes and cheerfully play our part in the community.  We certainly don’t wish to offend anyone.  It’s just that we love our Lord and Saviour and want to obey Him rather than simply follow the trends of this world, some of which may be popular but wrong!  May the Lord give us courage and wisdom to be distinctive for Him, positively and refreshingly so!
 
The Lord Jesus did tell His disciples to expect some opposition in this life.  Nebuchadnezzar was incensed with rage and frustration because he liked to control things and now he had found something he couldn’t control.  These men were prepared to die for their convictions.  He could kill them, maybe, but he couldn’t change them.  Followers of God must be prepared for a degree of resentment, antagonism, even persecution from people like Nebuchadnezzar who have yet to learn humility before their Maker.
 
Believers must be prepared to trust in our God, whatever the risks in the short term.  Roman emperor Nero threw Christians to lions in the 1st century AD.  The British Foreign Office report in 2019 records that 80% of religiously motivated attacks worldwide are against Christians with acts of violence and other intimidation becoming ‘increasingly widespread’, in some countries amounting to ‘genocide’!
 
God saved these three from the flames and has sent His angels to protect countless others in countless places through the ages, but sometimes we are called upon to suffer for our Master.  Jesus Himself did not shrink from the suffering He had to endure for us at Calvary.  The Apostle Paul, imprisoned on ‘Death Row’ for his faith prayed not for safety but simply that he might glorify Christ by living or dying, either way.  We must be faithful and obey even if it brings us hardship for a limited time.  Jesus assures us the Kingdom of heaven is ours.  Only let us prove fruitful in His service!
 
One of the most impressive pictures we are given in Daniel ch3 is not proud King Nebuchadnezzar and his large but really quite useless statue.  It is the picture of our Lord walking with His loyal servants through their fiery trial.  Pagan Nebuchadnezzar struggles to describe what he’s seeing – one who ‘looks like a son of the gods?’  A human figure, but no ordinary human.  This man is shining brighter than the flames of the king’s furnace.  This heavenly looking man has freed the prisoners from their bonds and, like a good shepherd accompanying His flock, He is walking with them through ‘the valley of the shadow of death’!
 
(In the Old Testament the phrase ‘the angel of the Lord’ is sometimes used reverently to express the presence of the Lord Himself.)
 
There is no doubt that God’s people may and should take great comfort from this picture.  Our Lord is promising to be with us in times of trial.  Many are the testimonies of believers who have found that in their times of greatest challenge and difficulty, that’s when they have experienced God’s greatest presence and comfort.  There seem to be a freedom and a peace that surpass normal human logic and understanding as Jesus draws near and walks with His followers through our trials.
 
So God saves.  He delights to rescue with forgiveness and the promise of eternal life those who trust in Jesus, Son of God, the Saviour.  We who trust will want to obey His Word, even if it means going against some of the world’s fashion and may bring pressure and trouble in the short-term.  We are not alone.  Our Shepherd is with us through everything.
 
Let’s follow Him with wholehearted commitment, assured that His grace will be sufficient through all circumstances and that to live in His glorious presence will be our eternal reward!
 
 
 

Everyone has a ‘back story’, a personal history, a collection of actions, choices and events that brought us to be where we are in our present circumstances.  Where we go from here depends greatly on whether or not we’ve learned anything that will affect the choices we make today.
 
605 years before Christ, Daniel and his friends had a back story.  The most recent dramatic event was that these bright young people from influential Israeli families had been deported to serve foreign king Nebuchadnezzar in Babylon.  They had seen their capital city Jerusalem overrun by foreignors, their king deposed, quite possibly some family and friends killed or imprisoned.  They were effectively prisoners in exile, with no choice but to learn a new language and serve an alien administration.
 
Now some might have thought it not so bad.  These four were to be given a top education free of charge, assured of prestigious future careers in this legendary city of culture and meanwhile food prepared daily by the king’s own chef!  Some might have said these lads had ‘landed on their feet’!
 
But these four were godly young men who knew only too well there was a reason behind these events.  They knew that while we human beings have freedom to choose what we do and must be held responsible for our actions, over and above all that happens is a Sovereign God Who is working through His plan and purpose to His glory.  He can prosper individuals, families. communities and nations and equally He may humble individuals, families, communities and nations.
 
It had pleased the Almighty to bless their ancestors Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and the nation descended from them in the ‘promised land’ of Canaan.  But now He had surrendered the land and people into the hands of others.  The reason was national disobedience.  
 
Despite the Lord’s faithful generosity and the gracious warnings of His messengers the prophets, the people of Israel had largely and consistently welcomed the sensual worship of foreign idols, so-called ‘gods’ from other nations.  Now here’s poetic justice as the Lord allows their peaceful homeland of promise to be taken over by foreignors and its young princes exiled to serve in a different land, one swamped by idolatrous beliefs and cruel practices. 
 
We are fools if we take God’s blessing for granted as some kind of human right.  His blessing rests on those who forsake the idols of this world to reverently trust and obey Him.
 
So immediately Daniel and friends had to adjust massively to their new circumstances.  They welcomed the opportunity to study and learn and would in time become some of Nebuchadnezzar’s most talented and trusted officials but right away they faced the challenge of being assimilated into Babylonian culture and society. 
 
Nebuchadnezzar shrewdly gave captives from other regions Babylonian names, a bit like a badge or uniform.  We can imagine the ‘spin’.  ‘So welcome to the team!  These new name badges will give you access to all the government offices you need and all the services and privileges available there.  We trust you like your new homes and look forward to working with you!’
 
Their Hebrew birth names all referred to the Lord their God.  Daniel means ‘God is my Judge’, Hananiah means ‘The Lord shows grace’, Mishael means ‘Who is like God?’ and Azariah means ‘The Lord helps’. 
 
The problem was that the new names all had references to the king or his Babylonian idols.  The world has this tendency to try and wipe out the revelation of the true God and His truth and impose a uniform identity based on human pride and invention.  It claims to be diverse and inclusive but it can quickly become intolerant with dissenters.
 
While they don’t appear to have made a fuss about the new names, these young men did take a stand early on with the issue of food.  As Jews, one way of expressing their loyalty to their God was to observe the guidelines given by Moses regarding certain foods.  It’s worth noting Daniel didn’t stage a noisy protest but very tactfully asked permission to carry on this practise.  We’re told God caused the official to be sympathetic and furthermore kept His servants healthy on a modest diet. 
 
Scripture teaches that God honours those who honour Him.  He clearly blessed these young men even in exile and over time used them as an influence for good in that society. 
 
For now let’s try and imagine some of the questions Daniel might have been asking as they struggled to come to terms with their story so far, one of trauma, unexpected opportunities and challenges.  I can think of three questions he may have asked about God, and three he could have asked about himself and his friends.  And we can benefit from asking the same questions.
 
I don’t think atheism was an option for Daniel, he never stopped believing in the God of his ancestors.  However he was in unfamiliar territory now.  Was his God Lord in Babylon?  We might put it a different way:  Is the Lord still in control when disaster seems to have overtaken us, or when people of faith are become a tiny minority?  It’s estimated Babylon had over 1000 pagan temples.  How could four previously defeated believers with just one God between them hope to survive?
 
And that’s the next question.  God, their God, had miraculously saved Jerusalem back in King Hezekiah’s day but did His angelic army have jurisdiction abroad?  Can God still protect His servants in a foreign or hostile environment?  Can our God save globally?
 
We might not immediately think of this third one but remember the background.  Would God still be willing to use His people after they had failed Him and were clearly being disciplined through this bitter experience of exile?  If circumstances of life sometimes make us feel like we’ve failed and opportunities are gone and it’s all over and done, is there yet hope? 
Might we still be of some use to our God and our community?
 
The answers are yes, yes and yes, as we’ll see in the following chapters!
 
But now three questions for Daniel and for us:
 
Will we still trust in God, even if times are difficult, even if it seems He may be disciplining us for our idolatrous ways?
 
Will we learn from previous mistakes and dare now to keep God’s ways, even if the majority in society think and practise differently?
 
When do we need to decide about these things?
 
The answers to the first two?  - Maybe or Don’t know.
 
The answer to the third one is easy – NOW!
 
Let’s pray.