Who Do You Say I Am? – Part 2
The Israelites were taken captive in Babylon and forced to serve under King Nebuchadnezzar. In the Book of Daniel, King Nebuchadnezzar built a towering gold statue and ordered everyone to bow down and worship it. Anyone who refused would be thrown into the fiery furnace. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused, and the fiery furnace became their reality.
Daniel 3:14-18, NIV 14 And Nebuchadnezzar said to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the image of gold I have set up? 15 Now, when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of music, if you are ready to fall and worship the image I made, excellent. But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace. Then what God will be able to rescue you from my hand?” 16 Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. 17 If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us[a] from Your Majesty’s hand. 18 But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”
We all know the outcome; King Nebuchadnezzar threw three men into the furnace, but four men were walking in the blazing furnace when he looked into it. Nebuchadnezzar called the men out of the furnace unharmed. He proclaimed God’s greatness and promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
If I left it there, it would be a great message of God’s ability to rescue His people from certain death. But what I love most about this story is the declaration that God can save Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, but even if God decided not to save them, these men choose never to serve any other god or image except the one true God.
Even if He doesn’t… who do you say God is?
Even if He doesn’t work things out according to how I think my life should be.
Even if He doesn’t provide me with the answer ‘yes’.
Even if He doesn’t give me that relationship.
Even if He doesn’t work all things for his glory without pain.
Whatever you are or wherever you may be in life, even if He doesn’t, can you still say, ‘You are Christ, son of the living God?’ (Matthew 16:16). I have learnt a few things from this story.
1. God will not share His glory.
Daniel and his friends made a decision when they were taken captive in Babylon not to defile themselves with the rich foods of the Babylonians. Instead, they were committed to God, following His ways, and living the way they had been taught from childhood. They didn’t start believing in God when they arrived in Babylon; their faith had been strengthened in Babylon because they honoured God from their childhood.
God had been stirring up their hearts over the years. When we declare God’s deity and walk in His ways, He causes our faith to increase. Their faith was so strong they refused to eat the king’s food. Instead, they choose to eat vegetables for ten days. After ten days, they asked the guards to check their muscles, and indeed, they looked healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who ate the king’s food. The truth is that when we walk in obedience to God, we won’t lack or miss out on anything that we need. Daniel and his friends did not lack good health even though they lived on vegetables.
2. God continues extending His grace as we face the trials of this life.
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego did not have an easy life. First, they were taken from their home in Jerusalem, living as captives in a foreign land. Then, because of the incredible wisdom GOD had given them, they were prime targets for others who were jealous. Nevertheless, they had survived imprisonment and an execution order. Repeatedly, as they sought to remain faithful to the God of Israel, they saw God come through for them continually. He gave them favour with the captain of the guard. He enabled Daniel to interpret the king’s dream, saving them from execution. And now, even as they stood before the fiery furnace, they were confident their God—the God who had rescued them repeatedly—was able. This is faith.
3. God isn’t confined by human understanding or defined by human opinion.
So often, we want to put God in a box. Not only do we limit Him to how we believe He should act and intervene in our situations, we expect Him to do whatever we want Him to do. I’ve learnt a lot about expectations. God doesn’t live up to our expectations; He lives up to His word, and He goes beyond and surpasses our expectations with His word. We think He should always provide for our needs according to our limited understanding. We believe He should open doors and not only open them but also in our time and our way. Maybe we don’t admit to that line of thinking, but our actions betray our beliefs.
Shadrach, Messiah, and Abednego understood that God is not confined or defined by us; God’s purposes are often accomplished outside human understanding. They understood that God often allows circumstances – painful circumstances that seem contrary to His excellent nature – to point the world back to Him, to create good for our lives and give His Father glory. They understood that we don’t always understand or see the bigger picture.
Isaiah 55:9, NIV “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.
God can turn our ashes into beauty as we participate in life’s journey. We must learn to say, ‘Even if He doesn’t do what I want, He is Christ, the Son of the living God’. So, who do you say He is? Who you declare Him to be will affect every area of your life.
