I have been praying with
some this week who love the Lord and yet face danger and disease. I am praying
for the Sudanese woman facing death for her faith in Christ. In the times of
State-sponsored terror against Christians all around the world, I love to read
about the three faith giants: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Because of their
faith, these three young men are unquestionably biblical heroes. The writer of
Hebrews says, "through faith … [they] quenched the power of fire"
(Hebrews
11:34). With great courage they expressed their faith by
refusing to bow to the image of gold. Yet, when Shadrach, Meshach and
Abednego's obedience put them on the brink of the king's fiery furnace, they did
not pretend to know what was going to happen to them. They did not claim to
know what their circumstances would hold or what their God would do. Even
though they affirmed that God was able to deliver them, they added, "But if not,
be it known to you, O King, that we will not serve your gods"
(3:18).
Shadrach, Meshach, and
Abednego said that even if God did not deliver them from death, that they would
only serve Him. Their words tell us that faith is not measured by the strength
of our expectations but by the strength of the conviction that "whatever my God
ordains is right" (Samuel Rodigast, 1676). Biblical faith calls for each of us to
acknowledge that God's provision is sufficient, loving, and good, even if it
falls short of, or contradicts, immediate desires that cannot fully anticipate
his plans or fathom his wisdom. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego trusted their God
because time after time he had delivered their forefathers from enemies, despite
Israel's sin and rebellion ( Daniel2:23). God had been faithful even when his
people had not. God even had promised that He would save his people from their
captivity in Babylon (2:44). Although things looked awfully grim in the
immediate, the faith of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego was not shattered,
because it was not rooted in present circumstances but in the nature of their
God—a God whose purposes are loving and eternal can be trusted
(3:17).
This can be our great
confidence, too, when we express faith that tragedy does not mean God has
vanished; danger does not indicate that he has failed; difficulty does not imply
that he is weak. Our Risen Lord is in control. Difficulties may still arise,
but He enables us to surmount them. Grief may still come, but He gives strength
to bear it. His hand is never capricious or clumsy. True faith simply
acknowledges that God knows and does what is right.
To trust God as He desires,
we must believe that we can entrust ourselves to His care. To do this we need
to know that God is worthy of our trust. Biblical faith is not merely the
confidence that our God is able; it also requires the confidence that our God is
good.
Shadrach, Meshach, and
Abednego affirmed God's goodness when they removed all doubt from their
assertion of their ultimate rescue from Nebuchadnezzar. They affirmed that God
was able to deliver them from the fire, but they did not say that He would.
"But if not …"
In Christ,
Brown
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