Then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisers, “Weren’t there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?”
They replied, “Certainly, Your Majesty.”
He said, “Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.”
Daniel 3:24-25
It’s interesting to recognise the different levels of rest afforded to the many places of the world that celebrate Christmas. Here, we get a good couple of weeks off, sometimes more, with everything but the most essential services shut down on Christmas Day. I was talking to someone from America recently who told me that Christmas holidays are more like a week for her and there are still movie theatres and things like that open on the big day. And places like Japan barely celebrate Christmas as more than a one-day event. For all the commercialised fanfare, not everywhere regards Christmas as this big monolith that we probably often think it is.
That’s more true than anyone else for Satan. He doesn’t rest. Evil and sin knock at our door every day of the year, even Christmas Day. Sometimes internal; sometimes external. Around the world, we face all kinds of challenges and persecution for our faith. It may be temptation or personal vices, or it may be the people and authorities of our own homes looking to punish us for putting God first. Evil wants to throw us into a fire and watch us burn. And sometimes, under pressure, we may feel tempted to cave in to what other people want from us. Maybe there’s even a part of you that wants to burn. It’s hard to endure.
Not so for the famous case of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego:
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, “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
What absolute legends! The sass on these lads! If they’re afraid, we don’t see it here. They are defiant for God, fully committed in the faith that He can save them. But they also recognise that God’s will may be for them to die in pain in this furnace, and that doesn’t deter them. They make a point of declaring, “we want you to know”, there is nothing more important to them, even in the face of a fiery death, than serving God and worshipping Him alone.
And sure enough, God delivers them.
He said, “Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.”
Daniel 3:25
There’s speculation about this fourth man; some believe it’s an early cameo by Jesus in the flesh. It could be. It could just be an angel, as Nebuchadnezzar suggests in v28. It doesn’t matter as much as the main point that God was with them as they had faith that He would be. They were not alone in the fire. Whoever was with them, one look, even through the smoke and flames of the furnace was all the king needed to identify Him as godly.
Whatever pressure you’re under, especially in this festive season when struggles can fly under the radar, recognise that following God is worth it. He alone can save us. And whether you survive the furnace before you or not, He will reward your faith. We know that, not only because He’s the only true God who can save us, but because of what He did for us.
“Therefore I decree that the people of any nation or language who say anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego be cut into pieces and their houses be turned into piles of rubble, for no other god can save in this way.”
Daniel 3:29
“No other god can save in this way.” Remember what Christmas is. Remember how far God went to save us from the greatest furnace of all – our own sin. He became a human baby for us. He lived a modest human life for us. He died a human death for us. How many other gods make that claim? How many other kings served their people like that?
The struggles against the never-resting evil of the world can be hard, but remember that. No other god can save in this way. No other god is worth that sacrifice. And when you go through the fire, that same God who was born in a stable-place will be with you.
Rejoice!
Written by Jack Mowat
A thought to remember: Emmanuel will rescue his own from firey trials.
A bit more to read: Daniel 3
A question to ask: What fires might you be facing, and how can you trust God to rescue you from them?
A song to sing: How Many Kings - Downhere