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Daniel 3:17, 18, “If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king.  But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.”

 If you have been reading this blog for a while, you might remember what was written about “what if” books.   Today, this is a “what would you do” page. Let me give some background.

King Nebuchadnezzar set up a golden image of himself and demanded all people bow down to it.  Three Hebrews refused to do it and the king became so angry at them that he had a furnace heated up seven times more than usual and threw the three who refused to bow down into it. The fourth man showed up, kept them from even the smell of the fire, and the king praised God.  But, this is not the focus of this page of the blog.

Reread the verses above.  The three Hebrews are being told to do something they know is wrong; their choice is to bow or burn!  Worship the idol or worship God!  Isn’t that the choice each of us faces daily?  I doubt that the choice is as dramatic as what these three faced, but the choice is there.  The question becomes what would you do if you were the only one in the crowd who was not bowing?  You are the only one standing and by doing so you put your life in danger of being thrown into the fire!  You know that God can save you, take you out of the situation, out of the temptation.

But, what if He doesn’t?  I believe I have heard only one person say that he wanted all the temptation possible; he wanted to stay behind when the rapture came in order to save people.  He was a crazy youth pastor, by the way.  I do not want to face temptation.  I try to stay away from that which causes me to be tempted.  But, it comes.  I believe that we need to be prepared to face it when it shows up.  We prepare by knowing who God is and that He loves us so much that He keeps us from temptation.  More importantly, He loves us just as much when we go through the temptation.

 Read again the words of the Hebrews to Nebuchadnezzar, “He will deliver us from your hand, O king.  But if not”.  They knew God could save them from the fire.  They also knew if He did not, He was still God.  What a great statement of faith!  They simply stood their ground and told the king they would serve their God to the end, regardless of the outcome.  That is the faith each of us needs today!  “This is God’s promise to His people today – not to spare them from the fire, but to provide for them in the midst of it, be that escorting them to heaven or allowing them to live to see another day.” (Dr. David Jeremiah).

Be encouraged today that the God of creation is with you, to walk with you in whatever you are facing.  He is able to keep you from those things that cause you problems.  But if he doesn’t, He is still God and He will be with you to fulfill His purpose in that trial.

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