Goodness in The Fire
Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the door of the burning fiery furnace; he declared, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out, and come here!” Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out from the fire.
And the satraps, the prefects, the governors, and the king’s counselors gathered together and saw that the fire had not had any power over the bodies of those men. The hair of their heads was not singed, their cloaks were not harmed, and no smell of fire had come upon them. Nebuchadnezzar answered and said, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent his angel and delivered his servants, who trusted in him, and set aside the king’s command, and yielded up their bodies rather than serve and worship any god except their own God. Therefore I make a decree: Any people, nation, or language that speaks anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego shall be torn limb from limb, and their houses laid in ruins, for there is no other god who is able to rescue in this way.” Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the province of Babylon. Daniel 3:26-30
I have been stirred about this particular story in the book of Daniel since the message, The Forge, was released at The Rock, and feel it is a worthy reminder. I would encourage you to go read chapter 3 in the book of Daniel and refresh yourself on what took place.
Because of the stand of these three men, and their refusal to bow down, worship, and give attention to a false god they were thrown into a fire heated 7x hotter than what it would have been for any other man. Why? Because of their stand that their God “could deliver them from your hand, but even if He doesn’t, we still will not bow to your idol”. Their faith in their Creator, Yahweh, caused them to be thrown into a natural furnace, but they walked in a super-natural fire. Because of their true faith in God, not their faith in a miracle, but their faith in He would do as He saw fit the miracle followed.
So, what was the true miracle that followed? Was the miracle that the three men lived through the fire of a blazing hot furnance that killed others who even came too close to the door? Yes, indeed that was a miracle. But, what of the miracle that became the decree of a king who built the idol and gave the order to worship it in his kingdom? As he witnessed what took place he rose from his seat in haste (v.24), he too, took a standand led his people to the one true God. He reversed decrees to worship false idols and acknowledged the living God.
There is goodness in the fire, and the decree that comes after.