Trustworthy: Learning courage from the life of DanielSample

 Day 5—God is with Us in the Fiery Furnace

Four were in the furnace. The Lord had sent an angel to be with the Hebrew men in the furnace, and this being looked supernatural. (Some scholars believe this was the preincarnate Jesus.) God went through the fiery ordeal with them. He guarantees our triumph through His strength, and wisdom for anything our enemy or this world can send our way.

Amazingly, the fire had no effect on the three Hebrew leaders. Besides destroying everything in its path, fire leaves the distinct smell of smoke. Someone close to me—I won’t say who—lit the gas barbecue with the gas set too high and singed their hair, eyelashes, eyebrows, and even the hair on their arms. There was a distinct smell of smoke and burnt hair, and they sported an interesting look until new hair grew in. There was no disguising the fact that a singeing had occurred.

But not in the case of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. They had exhibited great courage while facing the threat of death in the furnace, and when they stepped out of the furnace, not only had they not died, but not a hair on them was singed nor was there any hint of smoke on their clothing. It’s impossible to heat a furnace so hot that soldiers nearby die, yet those in the fire do not have even their hair singed!

We may not escape collateral damage from every fiery furnace we go through, but we can go through them with courage to emerge with the sweet aroma of Christ because we pressed close to Him on our journey. Even though King Nebuchadnezzar was evil and idolatrous, he recognized the power of the Hebrews’ God who had rescued them because they trusted Him. Even though Nebuchadnezzar didn’t choose to serve the living God through this experience, he commanded respect from everyone in his kingdom for the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego: “There is no other god who is able to deliver like this” (v. 29, CSB).

When these three men emerged from the fire, all the leaders gathered around and marveled. Then, instead of experiencing the death to which they had been sentenced because of their devotion to Almighty God, the three Jewish men were rewarded. Their refusal to compromise their devotion to God led to a fiery furnace experience, but ultimately to honor and even greater reward.

This devotional was based on the book Trustworthy: A Study of the Life and Character of Daniel. For more information, click here.