Intrusion: In the Furnace


Final installment of this preaching series is "In the Furnace" which focuses on the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego from Daniel 3.  A brief historical context -- King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon conquered Jerusalem and he chooses the most knowledgeable and able young men to be trained in the Babylonian culture so that they may become administrators in the kingdom.  Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were among those chosen.

King Nebuchadnezzar set up an image of gold 90 ft high and 9 ft wide and issued a command that when the music is played, everyone must bow down and worship the image.  Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego did not bow down and were brought to the king for questioning.  King Nebuchadnezzar offered them another chance to do so or else they will be thrown into the blazing furnace.

“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.” (Daniel 3:16-18)

Later in the story, King Nebuchadnezzar saw a fourth man walking with  Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the fire. He called the three out and they were unharmed.  Only the thing that bound them were burned in the fire.

Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego knew that the God they serve is able and willing to deliver them from harm.  They knew and obeyed God.  They were already spiritually fire-proof being physically fire-proof.  The powerful statement here is 'But even if he does not...'  I hope to remember this verse especially in difficult circumstances...

VCF Fort,  Pastor Jeff, March 25, 2012

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Around the Internet 12.09.11

Image
This week's notable links are related to world population.  I tend to be interested in a subject, read about it and discover these links. 7 Billion on National Geographic .  Special series on the world's 7B population, with stories and discussions.  They have a counter of world population as well. 7 Billion Actions .  A site where anyone can upload a story, highlighting positive action.  I was checking through the site and was encouraged by all the good work that people do.  Really, we can be hopeful.  It's just a pity that only the sensational negative stories get highlighted in the media.  Positive stories are found right here.  And thanks to the internet for making this possible. What's Your Number?   7 billion is an overwhelming number.  This site let's you enter your birthday and plots you on the population chart and identifies your specific number (datapoint).  Of course this is not perfect and employs some algorithm to estimate where you are on the cha
Read more

Filipino Friday 3: Reading Habits and Book Formats

Image
Reading Habits and Book Formats . Where and how do you read? Can you read anywhere and everywhere, or do you need a certain place/mood/state of mind to get reading? Do you read more in the morning or at night or any minute that you can? Where and how do you usually read? Are you exclusively for print, or do you go for ebooks more than print? Have you ever tried audiobooks? I am old school.  Even as most books now have digital versions, I still prefer the physical, ink-on-paper variety.  I like holding a real book, flipping the pages and being able to see my progress based on the thickness of read/unread pages.  Somehow, I feel more engaged and focused reading a physical book vs. from a gadget. I very rarely reread books so most of my collection just sit on the shelf after I'm done with them.  I feel it's a waste of precious trees if they are not shared with others.  So I started a Google doc at work where the team can list down their collections and anybody interested in
Read more

It's Not Complicated: Samson and Delilah, Ruth and Boaz

Image
The last two topics for the preaching series on love entitled 'It's Not Complicated' were on Samson and Delilah, and Ruth and Boaz. ( Podcast here ) Samson and Delilah .  The story of Samson and Delilah can be found in Judges 13.  Before Samson was born, his mother was visited by an angel who said to her, "You will become pregnant and have a son whose head is never to be touched by a razorbecause the boy is to be a Nazirite, dedicated to God from the womb. He will take the lead in delivering Israel from the hands of the Philistines.”  Samson was destined to lead and deliver Israel from its enemies.  But we know that his life was far from simple.  He made personal decisions that changed the course of his life, including marrying Delilah, which eventually led to his death.  It's a tragic story and Pastor Joe explained why it happened to Samson - wrong place, wrong standard, wrong person. Samson, although he was set apart as a Nazirite, spent time in Philistin
Read more