This week's Bible Study - September 16, 2007
Facing the Fiery Furnace
 Background Scripture:
Daniel 3:1-28
Quote of the Week:
“Many of us crucify ourselves between two thieves - regret for the past and fear of the future.”
-- Fulton Oursler
What goes through your mind when you have to face something that many people fear? I know of several people, including myself, that have white-coat syndrome. Whenever I go to the doctor, my blood pressure seems to rise and I am on edge. I'm not really sure - I've never really had any bad experiences at the doctor. Sure, I don't like getting poked and prodded - but who does? When I was a child, I often had bouts of asthma. I had to go to the doctor often for shots - sometimes multiple shots. It was never fun, but I survived.
Some people have no fear of the doctor, but they may fear crowds or speaking in front of others or many other things. I believe everyone has a fear of something - although just what that something is may vary from person to person. Often, our choices in life are based on avoiding facing fear. At times, we may do things that we know to be wrong, in order to avoid facing something else. Some people are more worried about what others think, so there choices in life are based upon not causing problems with others.
In the last lesson, we learned that King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream that kept causing problems in his life. He couldn't remember the dream and he asked his wise men to figure it out. He wanted to know what it was that he dreamed and what it meant. Nobody could tell him, and they were all to be executed for their incompetence (not being able to do what no person could do!). Daniel heard of the problem and he took it to God and asked others to pray for him as well. God gave him the answer - the dream and the interpretation. Daniel gave credit to God and he explained the dream. The king praised the God of Daniel, because Daniel deflected the praise that the king wanted to give him.
In his dream, the king had dreamt of a large statue. I would imagine that this image was in his mind for many days, weeks, months and possibly years. Although the king had praised the god of Daniel because of the revelation of his dream - and it's interpretation, King Nebuchadnezzar seemed to keep thinking about this statue. In the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon, the king erected a gold image, ninety feet high and nine feet wide. He had an elaborated dedication, in which all of the provincial officials, including governors, advisors, judges, magistrates and the like were summoned. Since the request came from the king, these people came and stood before the image.
When I was in Thailand earlier this year, we toured a temple which had many different statues and images that had been erected. Some were very elaborate - the detail was amazing. A couple of miles away from the temple, there was mountain that had been cut back to the rock on one side. On that rock was a very large image of Buddha - outlined in metal. It was very impressive, but it was a thing - not a god - at least to us as believers. I suppose some people worshipped it, just as they worshipped the statues at the temple.
When all of the people were assembled for the dedication, the herald proclaimed what they were to do at the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes and all kinds of music. They were to fall down (they must fall down!) and worship the image of gold that the king had set up. This applied to all people - all nations - men of every language. The penalty for not falling down and worshipping was to be thrown into a blazing furnace.
Can you imagine what that must be like? At the sound of the music, all of these people were falling down and worshipping the image. What would be the easy thing to do? Fall in line and do it - not to make a scene. Too often we focus on fitting in and not taking a stand. If you were in the crowd - what would you have done? The ones standing were fairly obvious - would you take that stand?
A couple of weeks ago, I went to a college football game with some of my kids. It was a large school playing against a big school, but much smaller. It was at the stadium of the large school. My daughter attends the smaller school - so one of my sons was wearing a shirt for that school - and my other son wore a shirt for the larger school. The larger school dominated the game. We were in the middle of a very large section that was very much for the large school. When they scored, it was easy to stand up and clap. After most of the game was over and it was no longer close, the smaller school scored a touchdown. Ben, my son with the shirt for that school stood up and whooped it up. Of the nearly 1000 people in that section - he was the only one who stood and clapped. It was rather humorous - people turned and looked at him. Most people wouldn't stand and clap when everyone else was sitting - because they don't want the attention. It didn't seem to bother Ben. He got some looks, but nobody came after him and he wasn't in danger for his life.
The king's statue was a hit - for a lot of reasons. Surely, a lot of people didn't care to worship it, but they fell in line. Better to not make a scene. Can you imagine how this must have gone to the king's head? It was some form of unity, but it was certainly coerced. Again, thinking of the football game with the thousands upon thousands of people that were very excited. It was difficult to sit in the stands and not feel some sense of electricity in the air.
After this event happened, some of the astrologers came forward and denounced the Jews. They reminded the king that he had indeed issued a decree that EVERYONE who heard the music MUST fall down and worship the image of gold. Those who did not do so were to be thrown into a blazing furnace. The king surely agreed with what they had said. They indicated that there were some Jews (Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego) who had risen to some prominent positions in Babylon. Although they seemed to be exemplary employees, they paid no attention to the king. They would not serve the gods of the king nor would they worship the image. I believe that these astrologers had some beef with these Jews. They were captives from Judah - they should be slaves, they must have thought - but instead they had risen to prominent positions.
The king was furious with rage. Surely, with the events of the day and the electricity generated with the music and the crowds bowing - the king must have been on a high. This was not the news he wanted to hear. He summoned the three men and asked them if it was true that they would not serve the king's gods nor worship the image of gold? He was willing to give them another chance. All they had to do was, when they heard the sound of the music, they were to fall down and worship the image. If they did so, this indiscretion would be forgotten. However, if they refused (again), they would be thrown into a blazing furnace. That would show them - no god would save them.
I have to wonder if others may have not bowed to the image and were thrown into the furnace. Being thrown into a blazing furnace would seem to be a pretty sure end to a life. Regardless of whether others had died already or not, the king seemed certain that no god would save them. He reminded them of this, thinking that would make their decision to 'play along' much easier.
The Jewish men listened to what the king had said, but they couldn't quite fall along. Sure, maybe they were getting a break by getting a second chance. They were strong in their defense - or lack thereof. They told the king that it really wasn't even a choice for them. Supposing that the king threw them into the furnace - the God they served (the only God) was able to save them - and rescue them from the hand of the king. However, even if they were not rescued, they had made their decision - they would not serve the king's gods nor would they worship the image of gold that he had set up.
What would you do? Really. Would you be willing to stand firm in your decision - ready to accept the fate and possible death? They were resolute. They knew that God could save them - but even if God didn't, they were going to follow what they knew to be right. This is a huge lesson to us today. Some people are believers and follow God because they believe that God will always make everything work out to the best possible solution. There would be no disease, no loss, no broken relationships, no financial difficulties, no career problems, no crisis at all. This isn't what God has promised - at any point in his word. Sometimes, God will provide a miraculous escape - sometimes people lose. Are we going to base our decision on the outcome - or is there something much deeper that drives us?
The king was irate - furious - very, very mad. He had offered them a second chance, which he hadn't indicated he was willing to do. How could they not accept? Had they not seen what the king had done for them? They could have been slaves, in hard labor. But, they had prominent positions because of the king. But, rather than allowing him to give them another chance, they were unwilling to change. Didn't they owe him allegiance? This is another thing that happens to some people today. A person may have given them a break and it may feel as if they are owed something. The question comes down to this - who are we trying to please? How many things have you done in your life to pacify others - perhaps some people that you no longer even know where they live? Our only constant in life is our relationship with God, through Jesus Christ. Are we living to please God or men?
The king ordered the furnace heated to an unreal temperature. It was seven times hotter than usual. He got his strongest soldiers to tie these men up and throw them into the blazing furnace. No more chances - they were going to meet their fate now! Shadrach, Meschach and Abednego were bound and thrown into the blazing furnace. The fire was so hot that the flames killed the soldiers who had bound these men and threw them in. The king's problem was solved. Not only did he solve the issue with these men, but he knew that he had set the precedent. Who else was going to defy his command?
The king looked in the fire - expecting to see charred remains - skeletons in the midst of the fire. However, he leaped to his feet in amazement. He had to ask his advisors how many were thrown into the fire. Wasn't it three? I feel sure he counted the soldiers - had one gone in with them? It wasn't so much that he saw four bodies, but he saw four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed. The three men and the one other - who appeared to look like a son of the gods. From many commentators, this fourth person was the person of Jesus Christ. This was one of the occurrences of his appearing in the Old Testament.
The king was changed. He was no longer irate - but now more than surprised. He approached the furnace opening and shouted that these men, servants of the most High God should come out. I believe his focus went away from the image of the statue and towards the god that saved these men. The men came out of the fire - and people gathered around them. I'm sure that they wanted to make sure that they just hadn't seen something, but these men were real. The advisors to the king saw that the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor had it singed a hair on their heads, nor had it scorched their robes, nor was there any smell of fire on them. It's fairly easy to tell when someone has been smoking - it would seem to be easier to think that you could smell the fire of a blazing furnace on the folks that had just been in there.
The king praised the God of Shadrach, Meschach and Abednego. His angel had been sent to rescue his servants. What an amazing stand that these men took - they risked their lives rather than serving or worshipping another God. What an example to those around them.
Closing
Unless something changes in a big way, I don't think that any of us will be threatened to be thrown into a blazing furnace. Nor do I think that the majority of Christians will die for their faith. There are, of course, Christians in parts of the world that risk their lives because of their beliefs. These believers are amazing heroes of the faith - men and women have true faith that supersedes anything else that could happen to them.
What is it that keeps you from being the man or woman or boy or girl that God has called you to be? What are you afraid of? Some are afraid of losing a reputation if they stand for God. Some are afraid of losing a friend - or perhaps losing a family. I spoke this week to a friend in another country who serves as a missionary. None of her family is a believer in Christ, yet she takes a stand to share her faith on a daily basis. She is a hero of the faith. Many other missionaries leave jobs and friends and families to share their lives in a way that honors Christ - every day. At the same time, there are church members who have blended in with the world so much that they seem to be more concerned about breaking those ties than they are to please God.
Let us pray for each other that we will all grow in our faith, so that we will be able to take a stand for our faith, regardless of what it might cost. You won't be thrown in a furnace, but you may lose a friend. (But then again, you may not - our own thoughts about what happens if we stand for Christ are often overblown).
One other point of this lesson is that there were three. Who are you with? Do you have other believers that would take a stand with you? When you have others that can support you, you will be much more able to take that stand. Let us find the believers in our workplaces - and in our neighborhoods - and in our schools - and let us bond with them to really be the hands and feet of Christ. Are you somebody who others could find and draw strength from?
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