Daniel 3:16-18King James Version (KJV)
15 And who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?
16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter.17 If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king.
18 But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.
The other day I was reading this old familiar scripture, and a question came to my mind. What if He doesn't do it? Have you really ever just thought about that thing you've been praying so diligently about? That thing that has your expectations on alert! Think about that very thing and ask yourself, What if He doesn't do it? I want you to stick with me for just a moment because I'm not trying to kill your faith, or make you doubt that God can do the very thing that you need Him to do! I am one of his biggest fans! And will be the first to tell you that He can absolutely blow your mind!
Now! Back to the question: What if He doesn't do it? Whatever that is for you! Let's look back at verse 17 as they are explaining to the King that God is able to deliver them...then they go a step further and say that He will deliver them out of the King's hands! It intrigued me that they included verse 18! What made them include verse 18? They had their faith "locked down" with verse 17.
The Hebrew boys knew, even in their expectation that there was a chance that God, in his sovereignty, could have chosen not to deliver them...What they say in verse 18 is a game changer!
But if he doesn't chose to deliver us ....Be it known unto thee..Oh King! that we will Not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up!
What I love about this is that it is indicative of what they knew to be true about the God they served. You gotta know something about the person in whom you are boasting when you have a fiery furnace in your face!! You better know that you know who you're talking about When you have a fiery furnace trying to set up camp in your body! You better know beyond the shadow of a doubt who's praises you're singing When you have a fiery furnace threatening to devour your children, your marriage, your purpose! The enemy will test what you're claiming! "We KNOW the God we serve is ABLE!"
But, "Even if he doesn't deliver us!" Even if he doesn't approve that loan..even if he doesn't fill that womb with child...even if he doesn't heal of that illness..Be it know unto thee...Oh King! We will not bow! The King then wants to ask a question. "And who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?" How do you answer this question? Is it With certainty? Is it With assurance!? The one and only true God that's who!
Let's talk about the part everybody loves and that is the furnace! I wondered why they turned up the levels in the furnace? Wasn't the first level hot enough to kill them? Obviously this wasn't the norm! I think the King found out quickly that there was nothing average about these boys! Just like the enemy knows there is nothing average about you! Which is why he can't deal with you on a average level!!
Why turn the furnace up to level 7? I believe that when the King saw what he was dealing with, he knew that a normal plan wasn't going to work! They couldn't have left the fire on level 1 because they realized that these here boys weren't level 1 saints! They realized they weren't dealing with a level 1 faith... nor were they dealing with a level 1 anointing.. Which means they couldn't have been serving a level 1 God!... They're saying, "We gotta make this thing "hotter than usual" because ..their faith ain't usual, their Anointing ain't usual, that type of assurance..it ain't usual! I want you to know that what you're going through is Not usual because you're not usual!! You were built to stand! You were built to last! And how does the enemy attempt to destroy something that was built to last? He turns up the heat!!! Saying, "Surely they can't be delivered from this type of heat! This type of attack! This type of illness! Come on somebody! This type of financial mess! But guess what? The King's heat wasn't the only heat in the story! These boys prayed ferverently. Fervently means with intense heat? So, it turns out that these boys were the only ones really bringing the heat! They had power backing their heat, while the King's heat had no power!! and no effect!
The King is trying to figure out how in the world they can stay faithful to a God, who is able to deliver them, but can chose not to! The enemy is trying to figure out who does that? Who claims that they will stand no matter what God's answer may be!! Where do you stand? What if God has a No on the other side of this story?! Is he still faithful? What if he choses not to deliver, Is he still worthy? The Hebrew boys says... yes! "We will NEVER bow down to your God! But what do you say when the enemy ignites a furnace just for you?
Are you intimidated by the furnace? Is your response, "Be it known oh Satan, I will never bow down. What do you do?...how do you respond! When you're faced with a furnace situation? "We will never bow down Oh King!" I love this part because they're still acknowledging the fact that he is "A" King, but letting him know that they're alligiance is to The King of Kings!! Can you embrace God in ALL of his sovereignty (when It's a yes!)..in ALL of his majesty..(when he says wait!) And in ALL of his glory! (When he says No!) Can you embrace all of him? Can you embrace him when favor is flowing, and still embrace him when storms are raging? Can you embrace him on both sides of the story? "Be it known unto you, oh King...I will love him forever! Not just for his attributes that satisfy me, but in ALL of who he is! 100% good! 100% God..100% of the time!.
