There they were.
The three men.
Thrown in the fiery furnace.
Because they LOVED GOD
and they refused to bow down to
anything or anyone
that wanted to take
first place over their GOD~
, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego,
that you do not serve my gods or worship the image of gold I have set up?",
said King Nebuchadnezzar.
"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?”*
What would you do?
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him,
“King Nebuchadnezzar,
we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter.
If we are thrown into the blazing furnace,
the GOD we serve is able to deliver us from it,
and HE will deliver us from your Majesty’s hand.
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”*.
What would you do?
Is GOD still GOD whether HE delivers you from the fire
or keeps you in it?
But does it really matter what the outcome is,
or is it a matter of
how much you TRUST GOD in or out of the fire?
Is your FAITH being tested?
Did GOD throw them into the fire?
NO.
Did GOD allow them to be in the fire?
YES.
UN~ BURNABLE FAITH.
STEADFAST FAITH
that empowers you to do the impossible
in the impossible
because you are
TRUSTING GOD
who will never let you burn up and be destroyed,
even if you are in a fire.
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego KNEW this.
They KNEW where their GOD would be~
RIGHT THERE WITH THEM!
So if they burned, it was okay
and
if they didn't burn,
it was okay,
because
GOD was their GOD either way
and no one could take away their GOD.
"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.
For I am the LORD your GOD. the Holy One of Israel, your SAVIOR" (Isaiah 43:2-3).
Oh when the FIRE gets hot, does your FAITH get hot?
Does your FAITH bring
you closer to the bosom of
GOD
so that
PEACE overtakes you
as if the FIRE doesn't even exist.
BIG FAITH little fear. Little faith BIG FEAR.
Oh you know how the STORY ends.
Was it really about punishing
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego
or was it about
the FAITH of Nebuchadnezzar,
and the great LOVE OF GOD
who does not anyone to perish.
Hmm.
The three men where bound and thrown in the FIRE.
But then Nebuchadnezzar couldn't BELIEVE his eyes~
“Look! I see four men walking around in the fire
, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.”*
He then called them out of the furnace
by name and acknowledging their GOD,
who now became his GOD~
“Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who has sent HIS angel and rescued his servants! They trusted IN HIM and defied the king’s command and were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own GOD" *(Daniel 3) .
The King's STORY CHANGED forever,
by our STORY CHANGER.
So who was really in the FIRE?
Who really was going to get burned?
Are you in a FIRE right now?
Could it be that it may not be about you,
if you are covered by JESUS,
as it may be about those around you
who are not covered by
JESUS,
who GOD so LOVES
that HE wants them not to perish.
And GOD will go to great lengths,
so that no one will perish.
Do you have an
UN~BURNABLE FAITH
because your know GOD IS BIGGER than your fire
and that
GOD is IN THE FIRE with you?
Oh our GOD SO LOVES
that HE will go to great lengths
to go after that one lost sheep,
because every human being GOD created
HE so LOVES
that HE put HIS SON in a FIRE that cost HIM HIS life,
so that you and everyone else would never
have to pay the cost
to be
ALL HIS
FOREVER and EVER
and
"FREE AMEN"
(listen to the song below)
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