‘Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace.’ Daniel 3:17 NKJV
When Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego refused to bow before Nebuchadnezzar’s 30-metre-high golden idol, he threatened them with a fiery furnace. Here is what they told him: ‘Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods.’ (Daniel 3:17–18 NKJV) When does God show up? When you say, ‘God is able to deliver me, but if not, I’m going to serve Him anyway.’ It’s wonderful when God provides what we need. Yet, the faith that truly pleases God says, ‘But if not, I’m going to trust God anyway.’
Peter writes: ‘So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while. These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honour on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.’ (1 Peter 1:6–7 NLT)
And one more thought: the Bible does not say that the three Hebrew children saw the 4th man who was with them in the fire. It says that Nebuchadnezzar did, and he described Him as ‘the Son of God’ (see Daniel 3:25). So even when you don’t know it, your faith, your life, and testimony are impacting those around you and bringing glory to God.
SoulFood: Num 3:1–4:33, Luke 6:1–16, Ps 104:1–23, Pro 3:9–10
Renungan Hari Ini [The Word for Today] is authored by Bob and Debby Gass and published under licence from UCB International Copyright ©