Step Into the Fire – Part 3

It’s time for a 3rd question, in our Step Into the Fire series. (If you’d like to catch up on the first couple posts, check Part 1 here and Part 2 here)

Question for today:

3. Did they [Shadrach, Meshach, & Abednigo] stand out from the crowd?

 Last week, I realized that these 3 men weren’t out there looking for fires. They were simply obeying God daily. I realized it was time for me to slow down, and wait for God’s timing on things, instead of trying to look for fires on my own.

But that’s the cool thing. Just as it is important to wait on God, it is as important to stand for the truth when the time comes!

^{Daniel 3:4} Then the herald loudly proclaimed, “This is what you are commanded to do, O peoples, nations and men of every language: ⁵ As soon as you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes and all kinds of music, you must fall down and worship the image of gold that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up. ⁶ Whoever does not fall down and worship will immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace.”

S, M, & A knew what the consequences were before them, if they chose to be different from the crowd. Don’t you think they could’ve thought,

 I can bow my head, as long as I imagine it is God I am bowing too and not this idol. I will think about Him as I kneel, and I will know the difference, but then I won’t have to stand out  in this crowd either. They won’t care anyway, and God knows my heart and good intentions.”

But God tells us not to bow or bend or vow or worship any other God but Him. He doesn’t even want a pretense of anything else. He is the truth. Thisis a truth. And it is worth standing up for.

Imagine how it must have looked….. at the raucous sound of timbrels and stringed instruments, drums and flutes, the people start bowing. It starts in the front, where they hear the music first, and proceeds like the “Wave” back across the ground. As people fall to the ground, it’s easy to pick out the solitary figures, standing like statues themselves, in a field of backs and bottoms. I would’ve been scared stiff. My hands would’ve been trembling and my eardrums ringing with pressure as I realized how conspicuous I was.

But they stood out from the crowd. Literally. No compromise. No half-hearted attempt. No shuffling feet or nodding heads or uplifted arms. Solid. Truth-seekers. God-fearers. Crowd -defiers. And they were called on it.

I think an important lesson here is the truth that they stood for. They knew it. They knew God upheld it. They knew it was right. Just as this truth (There is One God) is the pivot point for Shadrach, Meshach, & Abednigo, I believe there are solid truths for us to stand up for today too. One, of course, is the same in this story : There is One God. Don’t compromise this truth! Don’t get vague when talking about other religions and beliefs. Don’t “sit down” when someone or some movie or some book mentions another idol. Don’t go looking for arguments, but when a time does come, don’t back down. In a gentle and loving manner, with strength, stand up for the truth!

Next week we’ll start looking at some “fires” that lick around our heels. Here are some I’d like to look at, what are some you are thinking about?

1. Truth (in general)
2. Prayer
3. Modesty
4. Speech
5. Entertainment
6. Creation
7. Homesexuality
8. Divorce
9. Living together
10. Relationships