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From the story of three young men who stood up to the most powerful king of their time, we have seen that they were able to do this because of their bold faith in God. The reason they were able to have bold faith was that they knew their identity and their role. But they also personally knew the person whom their bold faith was placed in. They knew God personally because God was personally involved in their lives.
Know God Personally
For me, the most beautiful part of this whole story is not how these three teenagers refused to conform to their new cultural identities, it’s not how daring they were by refusing to bow down to an idol, or how they remained faithful to the role that God had called them to fulfill. It’s the fact that when King Nebuchadnezzar looked into those flames, he didn’t see the charred remains of three burned bodies, instead, he saw that there was another in the fire!
He saw that the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego is a personal God who gets down into the flames with us in order to protect us, to prosper us, and to make a way when it seems like there is no way out!
Nebuchadnezzar saw that this God was vastly different than any had of the gods he ever prayed too or statue he ever bowed down in front of to worship. He saw that this God was personally involved in the lives of his children and that he doesn’t run away when our lives get tough, instead, He runs into the fire with us!
Instead of abandoning us in the sinful mess that we all got ourselves into, God personally sent His Son, Jesus, who put on our flesh and walks beside us so that He can personally guide us back into a relationship with our Creator and through the difficulties that this life brings our way.
I don’t know what you are going through today, but I do know this: God is personally involved in your situation.
It’s not easy to have bold faith, but when you know that the God of the universe is personally involved in your life, then it gets a little easier.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego did an amazing thing: they stood up to the most powerful king in the world, at that time, and lived to tell their story. They only did this because they knew God was personally involved in their lives and they knew him personally. Whether God saved them or not, wasn’t the issue. They were going to remain faithful to God because He had always faithful to them. In fact, that’s what the whole book of Daniel is all about. It might look like evil is winning, hurricanes, mass shootings, generational poverty, world-wide hunger, etc. seems to be running unchecked in our world today, but God is in control and will have the final victory.
All we have to do is trust in Him and live our lives accordingly. All we have to do is have a bold faith in Him. We can have that when we know our true identity; when we know the role God has invited us to fulfill; and when we know God personally.
This world is messed up: Mass shootings have become the norm in our culture. The porn industry is more profitable than the NBA, Hollywood, Netflix, and the NFL. There are 62,000 homeless people living in NYC alone. And the list can go on and on and on.
Could it be that God is waiting for someone to be willing to burn for Him today? Could it be that God is just looking for a group of people who are willing to put it all on the line for Him in our culture today?
Could it be that God is looking for people who are ready and willing to respond just like these three friends did so long ago?
These three friends told that the king, “Burn us up!” We can say the same thing because we know that God will be in the fire with us! He gives you your true identity and He has given you a role in which to influence this culture today. Get busy because it’s time to start burning for God!