This particular passage of Scripture extracted out of the Holy and Righteous Word of God—deals definitively with three boys of Hebrew origin of Jewish descent and ancestry. It was after the Babylonian army had spread its empire from India to Ethiopia—that Jerusalem (the place of peace; the holy city of God) had already been sacked and the nation of Israel had been robbed of its best and brightest minds, that these three boys who were known in their hood as Mishael, Hananiah, and Azariah—were taken into bondage and slavery. According to the Afrocentric-semitic tradition of their day, each child’s name bore a special, spiritual, and divine significance—such that each time that their name was mouthed, it was a VERBAL reminder of the goodness and grace of Almighty God. Their names were designed to MEAN something. Consequently, in that tradition—these three Hebrew boys were given names that bore significance in relationship to the depth of the faith of their family, tradition, and ancestral lineage.
- Hananiah meant JEHOVAH IS GRACIOUS
- Mishael meant GOD IS OUR RESEMBLANCE
- Azariah meant JEHOVAH IS MY HELPER
• Their names meant something—and, by the way, I need everybody to understand and agree—your name ought to mean something too.
So let me ask you: WHAT DO PEOPLE THINK ABOUT WHEN THEY HEAR YOUR NAME?
• Are they irritated or inspired?
• Are they helped or are they harmed?
• Are they encouraged or exasperated?
These three Hebrew boys were captured and carried from the hills of Jerusalem and taken, in shackles, to the lowlands of Babylon. They were brought there as slaves; and yet because of their combined and cumulative ingenuity, creativity and initiative, they were quickly elevated from being captives into being courtiers in the king’s service.
It was a customary part of the indoctrination of the empire whenever people were enslaved to CHANGE their names and thereby, disconnected them from their history, their heritage, and their hope.
- Because, whether you know it or not, history, heritage, and hope are all connected.
• It teaches us that if we don’t know our HISTORY, we will have no sense of our HERITAGE. And if we are unaware of our HERITAGE then ultimately we will have no HOPE.
• You have to know where you ARE in order to have an insight of where you are GOING.
And that is why everything from your past is intricately connected to where you are right now; and can become the platform that becomes the stage that sets you up to where God is sending you TO as a direct correlation of what the Lord brought you THROUGH.
• Be careful how you try to cancel out where you’ve been…because God can use where you’re FROM to set your shout and your testimony of what and where HE is trying to take you TO!
- Born on the wrong side of the tracks; baby out of wedlock; the hurt, the pain, the mistakes, the missteps, the infidelity, the divorce, the embarrassment and humiliation; the people who walked out; the loss; the divorce, the eviction, the layoff, the setback—every failure—YOU HAVE TO KNOW WHERE YOU ARE FROM IN ORDER TO GET A GRIP ON WHERE YOU ARE GOING, WHERE THE LORD IS SENDING YOU TO!!!
• Be careful at how you curse your past in the face of your present—because it can bless your future!!!
Your heritage and your history can help you to see clearly where you are. And these three Hebrew boys were given NEW names in the land of their captivity and came to be known as Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego.
But though their names were changed—they remembered the meaning of the names they received in their heritage.
- Hananiah(God is gracious) to Shadrach meant UNDER THE COMMAND OF AKU (the Babylonian moon god)
- Mishael (God is our resemblance) to Meshach meant WHO IS LIKE AKU (the Babylonian moon god)
- Azariah (God is my helper) to Abednego meant SERVANT OF THE GODS
• They weren’t tripping over a label or a tag—they remember WHO they were and WHO’s they were.
• Deliver me from people who get hung up on titles
• People who try to be in name who they are not by function and reality
You can TALK that TALK…but if you can’t WALK the WALK that you TALK…your title means nothing at all.
- You don’t have to keep announcing you’re a Christian—BE a Christian!
- You don’t have to keep telling people you own a business—just run your business!
- You don’t have to keep reminding everybody you’re a preacher/pastor/deacon/leader/president of this and that…all of that really doesn’t matter—what are you doing with your life, witness, testimony and your function?
When they left the hills of Judah as captives, they were forced to leave all of their possessions behind—
• the city lay in ruins
• their towers were destroyed
• the gates of their city’s had been ripped from its hinges
• their families had been decimated and scattered
• their businesses had been shattered and ruined
• their wealth had been plundered
• their money had been seized
• and even the privilege to choose their own praying ground—all of THAT was left behind.
The Babylonians were an irreligious and polytheistic people. They worshiped, not one God, but many gods. And one of the unique features of Babylonian worship—was that its FOCUS changed according to who sat on the throne. That whenever there was a new king on the throne it meant a new god, a new order of worship and a new practice of faith. They switched gods when the switched kings. So when Nebuchadnezzar ascended to the throne in Babylon, he brought with him his own method and manner of religion. And the Babylonian people, accustomed to the shifting of religious affection, turned their attention to another god.
• But although these three Hebrew boys (Shadrach, Meshcach, and Abednego) had lost all of their possessions in Judea—they had NOT lost their faith in Yahweh along the way. They brought that with them to Babylon—whose name meant corruption and carnality.
TAKE YOUR FAITH WITH YOU
They knew God; they loved God—and they were determined to serve no one BUT God.
And although they had lost their families, they didn’t lose their FAITH. They brought their faith with them to Babylon (the place of corruption and carnality)
• The Lord is my light and my salvation……….they brought that with them to Babylon.
• Hast though not known… that the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, faints not, neither is He weary—there is no searching of His understanding. For He gives power to the weak and to them that have no might, He increases their strength…for even the youths shall faint and be weary and young………………..they brought that with them to Babylon.
• In all your ways acknowledge Him and He….they brought that with them.
• Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart….they brought that with them.
• Fret not thyself because of evildoers for they will soon be cut down….they brought that with them.
• The Lord is my shepherd…..they brought that with them.
• You shall have no other Gods before Me…you shall not make any graven images or bow your knees to any other god….they brought that with them.
All of their possessions and property were in Judea, but their faith still lingered in their HEARTS and the laws of God were still etched deeply in their mind.
TAKE IT WITH YOU
After Nebuchadnezzar had been successful in expanding the boundaries of Babylon; after his borrowed power had been used to consolidate his stronghold on the territory—King Nebuchadnezzar sought to celebrate his own success. And what he decided to do was build and concoct an image to celebrate his success; to build an image to honor himself. According to verse 1, he built a solid golden image on the flat plain of Dura in Babylon that stood 90 feet high and 9 feet wide; an iridescent, 24 karat symbol of solid gold.
• Nebuchadnezzar was a success; and nothing succeeds like success!
• He was a winner; and everybody loves a winner!
• He was a number one stunner; balla and shot calla; blinging and shining and rolling; and poppin’ his collar…
This image symbolizes for us all of those FALSE gods that arise around US that demand our attention and solicit our worship. Can I come to your seat? WHAT is the false god near YOU that YOU are tempted to bow down and worship.
- Is it your man/woman/boo/child/job/sex/pleasure/possessions/rings/things????
I want to tell you very quickly that there is a false god in every one of our lives that seeks our praise and wants to get us to BOW DOWN.
Bow down (nefal and sageed in Hebrew) means to wither, to die, yield and surrender and submit.
And I want to tell you:
- you can have money; but money can’t give you meaning
- you can have a good job; but a job is not going to give you joy
- you can have a lot of good things; but things can not give you tranquility
- you can have gorgeous gadgets in your kitchen, sparkling splendor in your bathroom, luxury in your living, and beauty in your bedroom—but none of those things can make your house into a HOME.
Even if you have custom hung draperies from wall to wall; 2-inch deep, double extra padded carpet, central air conditioned and heated floors; multi-stacking CD, DVD, MP3 changer hooked to your surround sound wide-screen plasma high definition colored television; a stainless steal freezer fresh full of Salmon and filet mignon—BUT if there’s no love there….no peace there…no Holy Ghost there…no prayer there…no devotion there…no family time of consecration there…then you’ve got nothing
• custom draped discord
• wall to wall confusion
• fresh frozen disappointment
• high definition trouble
• a wide screened un-televised colored catastrophe
• and an air-conditioned hell
IT takes more than that/stuff/possessions/rims/stereo systems/clothes/trinkets/gadgets—you’ve got to have fully devoted, sold out, uncomprised commitment to Almighty God!!!
King Nebuchadnezzar built a statue of himself—and sent word to all of his cabinet/officials/counselors/provincial rulers and appointees to attend a majestic dedicatorial service. It was an RSVP event and it was set to be off the hizzle for shizzle!!!
- We’re talking the drinks would be flowing/open bar/the music would be jumping/the place would be packed.
And sure enough, when that day came around—it was everything that is was promised to be. Everybody that was anybody was up in the club.
• The brothers were there looking clean and lean and mean. Hair cut, face shaved, pocket fat, suit cut, rolling in style with 24-s on their chariot.
• The sisters were there with the lips, the hips and the fingertips—hair fried, died and laid off to the side. Nails manicured with little designs on the tips. Girls with the pumps and the bumps; their bodies poured into silk and satin dresses with enough curves to make a pepsi cola bottle blush.
Everybody was there; the party was thumpin; the music was bumpin; Rihanna and Jay Z were there doing the umbrella; Nas was on stage with his one mic; Jamie Foxx showed up and got unpredictable; then Freddie Jackson, John Legend, Babyface, and Luther rocked the mic and stole the show.
And then came the crowing moment; the king unveiled his statue and so impressed with his own achievement—he issued a decree…that when the band played his song, that in honor of HIS statue/achievement/accomplish—everybody was to bow down and worship the golden image as the band played, ‘This is how we do…we make a move and act a fool when we up in the club’.
The music played; and everybody did what the king had told them to do. EVERYBODY….BUT…the three Hebrew boys. They messed it up—word got back to the king: your majesty (recorded in verses 8 through 12). This is a great party. The party is slammin’—it is off the chain, for REAL for real. You are great, there is nobody like you. But when you told everybody to bow—there were three brothers who disobeyed your royal mandate. They didn’t dance/show/bow.
Nebuchadnezzar was infuriated—because in his mind this was a day to celebrate HIS greatness and to honor HIS achievements; it was HIS party—and he could do what he wanted to do. He stood up in anger upon his throne (Verse 13) and said, ‘you mean there’s somebody in here at my party who will not bow?’ He said there’s somebody in here who will not bow, who are they? Are they generals or war/aristocrats/men or wealth who feel that their assets exempt them from my decree/politicians vying for my throne…tell me who are they?
And the messenger said, your majesty, these three men have no power. They have no political influence/wealth/royal lineage—in fact, these three men are slaves who were brought to Babylon when we bum rushed Jerusalem and robbed it of all its treasures. The king commanded them to be seized and brought before him and there they stood, without Johnny Cochran to represent them, they had nothing BUT faith and nobody but God.
• And somebody listening to me today knows what it is like to stand in a rough moment with nothing but faith and nobody but God!
I can hear the king talking now: the word on the street is that you three boys have defied my decree. Don’t you remember that it was I who promoted you from captives to courtiers; I changed you name; I opened doors for you; I know you don’t want to cross me. So I’m going to give you one more chance—because if you don’t bow down, I’m going to put you in a burning fiery furnace.
These 2 Hebrew boys, huddled over in the corner and formed their own little small group—and they decided that BEFORE they would bow…they would burn!!!
You have to admire them. They faced the king. And they said, O king. We’ve talked this over; we put a motion on the floor; and the vote was unanimous—we ain’t bowing!!!
They said—we are not even careful to answer you. In other words—this doesn’t even take a lot of thought—no matter what you say or what you do—we are not going to bow!!!
They said—we should be obligated to you—you’ve elevated us from captives to courtiers. We appreciate what you’ve done; but we have a different perspective.
For ever time you opened a door for us—we THANK you…but we PRAISE God.
Every level that we were elevated—we THANK you….but we PRAISE God.
They said, King we can’t worship you—you were just a courier through which God sent our blessing. We can’t worship you no more than we could worship a tree for giving us shade, a cow for giving us milk or a bee for giving us honey—we appreciate it; but you are not WORTHY of our praise!!!
I PRAISE GOD ALONE
• I might love you but I’m not going to worship you
• I might respect you but I’m not going to worship you
• I might honor but I am not going to worship you
King Nebuchadnezzar said, ‘If you don’t bow…you are going to burn’. They said, ‘That’s okay king…the God that we serve is STILL able’.
YES HE IS
How the Holy Spirit works—he will have an unbeliever to raise a question to which God is the answer!!!
They said, ‘king…your arms are too short to box with God.’ They said, ‘…even if He does not…we will not bow down and worship the image that you have set up.’
These three Hebrew boys had somebody here today needs—they had unconditional faith.
Too many of us have conditional faith:
- If God does this—then I’ll do that
But you know what they said: it doesn’t even matter. If He doesn’t…God is still able. And you’ve got to get to the point in your faith where you say that even if he doesn’t…
- If I lose my job
- If I lose my house/car
- If my spouse does move out
I do know that God is still able!
• It’s not a matter of IF God can but that I KNOW that God will
• It’s learning how to take God at HIS WORD
Illustration: It is an understanding that God sometimes deals with us the way that a mouse deals with a house:
Whenever a mouse gets in your house, a mouse NEVER digs one hole. He’ll dig a who over here/there…etc
Do you know why? That’s because if a cat begins to chase him and he blocks one hole, he can go to another whole…etc. And don’t you know that is what God will do for you? That when the enemy blocks one way, God’s got another way…etc.
We don’t know HOW God is going to do it; but we know that God CAN!!!
• There were times I didn’t know how I was going to make; but somehow God made a way.
They were not phased by the king’s edict. They proclaimed, point blank, that we will not bow. If God could bring our foreparents out of slavery in Egypt and keep us—we know that HE is still able. If our God could lead our people with a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night—we know that our God is still able to deliver us. If our God could take the wind and split the Red Sea—dry out the bottom and let our fore-parents walk across and find freedom from oppression and slavery—then we know that our God is still able to deliver us.
• IF you’ve ever been sick—and yet you are still standing—you are a living witness that God is still able.
• Somebody in here has been down to nothing—had a light bill due…had a gas bill too—but you can testify that God is still able.
• Some of you have lost a loved one—the nagging questions and the long walk to the cemetery—but in the midnight hour God spoke peace to your soul—and let you know that God is still able.
The king broke out in complete infuriation. He told his people to heat up the fiery furnace seven time hotter than normal. He because, ‘I want to make sure that nobody escapes and I want to make an example out of them’.
Now in Biblical numerology, 7 is a special number. There is something special about the number seven.
• God doesn’t have to take you out of the situation; he can keep you IN the situation and make your test a testimony for what the Lord is able to do.
He’s there in your pain/sickness/despair/disappointment/trial/affliction.
I. You need to remember the 3 c’s
1. Remember your CONNECTION
Take special notice of the words in verse 17 "our God." These men knew that they were in a special relationship with the Father. These men were the sons of God by faith and that is a good relationship to be in when the fire comes near your life.
2. Remember Whose in CONTROL
Two words used by the Hebrew 3 make all the difference. Those words are "is able." These are the words of faith! These men knew that the fire was hot. They knew that the fire was able to destroy them. They knew that there was no escape, at least from a human standpoint. As they faced the fire, they knew what it could do to them. However, as they faced the fire, they were also able to "faith" the fire! They knew that even if they were thrown into the fire, their Heavenly Father had the necessary power to bring them through the fire.
(Ill. God hasn’t changed! He is still "able" to do anything that needs to be done in your life or mine! He is still God and He is still able, Eph. 3:20! Even if you go into the fire, God is still in control. He has His hand on the thermostat and He is in control of the situation. In fact, if the fire comes about in your life, it had to pass through the filter of God’s perfect plan for you before it ever came your way. Remember Rom. 8:28 when the fire is belching in your life. Hey folks, God is in control!)
3. Remember your COMMITMENT
Way back in Daniel 1:8-21, when these men were younger and new to Babylon, they took their stand for God and committed themselves to living for Him and for Him alone. This is a commitment that they took seriously. Here they are faced with their own deaths and still they are determined to serve the Lord. They stood in the day of testing!
(Ill. When the fire comes to your life and mine, often it will be accompanied by the temptation to quit on God. However, God has promised us help for our times of testing and trials. When you are tempted to quit, remember 3 things if you will.
1. God has promised not to allow you to be tempted above your ability to bear it - 1 Cor. 10:13.
2. During the worst trial Jesus ever faced, He didn’t quit, Luke 22:42. He endured and kept His commitment because He loved you.
3. The hour of temptation and trial is when the truth of your profession is proven. It is easy to vow things to God when you get saved and it looks like the world is going to be perfect. However, when the tough times come, and they will, it is then that you get to honor the commitments you have made to the Lord. Commitments, may I add, that are binding and that you will be accountable to keep.
II. You need to know that when you step in the faith dimension, you are an overcomer!
A. V. 24 Overcome By The Presence Of God - Remember that when you face the fires of life, you will never face them alone, Heb. 13:5; Matt. 28:20!
B. V. 26 Overcome By The Preservation Of God - Remember that God did not save you to lose you to a fiery trial. He will meet you in the blaze and He will strengthen you in the day of trial. Remember, it did not come to stay, it just came to pass! (Ill. 2 Cor. 4:17)
C. V. 27 Overcome By The Power Of God - Again, we are reminded that the God we serve is all-powerful and is able to take care of His children. It doesn’t matter what you may be facing today, God is bigger than the stuff that you face! HE’s GOD!!!
(Ill. Just ask David about Goliath. Ask Noah about that Ark and that flood. Ask Samson about those blinded eyes and a temple filled with Philistines. Ask Moses about those 40 years in the wilderness. Ask Joshua about Canaan land. Ask Abraham about having to offer up his son. Ask Joseph about the pit, the prison and the palace. Ask Mary about virgins having children. Ask Paul about a Pharisee preaching the Gospel. Ask a dying thief about a saving Lord. Get the picture? God is able!)
D. V. 29 Overcome By The Program Of God - Notice that God had a higher agenda in allowing these men to go through the fire! He did it to bring glory to Himself and to speak to the hearts of a few heathen! God brought His child through to prove that He is God and that He is able to take care of His own.
Is there anybody here who knows that the Lord is performing a program in you and your life? He will let one of His children go through the fire, and He will bring them out in such a fashion that He gets all the glory and that men learn about Him. He may be using the fire in your life to spread His message.
E. V. 30 Overcome By The Promotion Of God - One of God’s primary reasons in sending us through the fire is to purify us to promote us. What you need to understand is – the truth of the matter is that you probably won’t be much use to the Lord until you go through some fires in your life. You see, fire has the remarkable ability to burn off impurities and to cleanse the object committed to its power. When God melts you, He is about to mold you into a vessel He can use for His glory!
When I was 6 or 7 years old, my daddy pastured an old country church in Goliad, Texas. One day the woods behind the house of one of the members caught on fire. We went into the woods to help extinguish those blazes. Being inexperienced, I remember some of the men tried to beat the fire out. The fire just began to spread! But then, the firemen and rangers arrived. And the firemen and the rangers (who were few in number) told the men who were there to take shovels and sling blades and move ahead of the fire to help build a fire break. It was when they listened to the professionals and did it THEIR way, that they were able to help put the fire out.
Left to themselves, we would have just made things worse!
There is a spiritual lesson here as well. When we try to fight our fires our way, we only succeed in making them worse. Let’s do it God’s way!
IS there anybody here who knows that God is still able?
- I was sinking deep in sin…..
