Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him…the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” Daniel 3:16-18
It was a custom of Babylon when they conquered a place to take some of the young people and make them servants in the court of the king. This is what happened to three guys named Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These guys served the Babylonian king faithfully but still practiced their own religion. After a while, King Nebuchadnezzar decided he needed to double down, and make these Jews into real, idol-worshiping Babylonians. He built a massive statue, brought all his officials, and told them all to worship it. But Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused. They were thrown into a furnace as punishment, but they were rescued by a mysterious human-like figure.
It’s unclear if it was Jesus or an angel, but God showed up in a monumental way to save these boys who stood up for their faith. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego believed that God was able to deliver them. They believed that their faith in God was worth more than anything else in this world. They believed that no fear would get in the way of what God had planned for them.
God saving them from the fire is indeed remarkable, BUT the real miracle of this story is not just that they were saved from the fire. The REAL MIRACLE is that these three young men had the courage, the fullness of heart, the assurance of God’s love for them, and their love for God that they would be willing to walk into that fire. The real miracle, the real Courage in this story, is not just in what God did, but in what these young men said: “…we do not need to defend ourselves … the God we serve can deliver us … but even if he does not….” May we all have courageous faith just like the young men in this story.
Kena Hawkins Newkirk 