InPerspective

Harry Reeder: We will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up. I had to tell you my heart soared when these young men will not be captured by intimidation. They will hold fast to the true worship of the true and living God. They will hold fast, no matter what, to God-centered worship. That's why God made them, that's why God saved them, that's why God sustained them.

Guest (Male): Putting life in biblical perspective with Dr. Harry L. Reeder. This is InPerspective, a radio and internet ministry of the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals. While Moses was receiving the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai, the Israelites were already engaging in idolatry with a golden calf.

In stark contrast, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused to bow down to the golden statue set up by King Nebuchadnezzar, even if it meant facing the king's wrath and a terrifying appointment with a fiery furnace. Stay with us now as Dr. Reeder continues our series, Daniel's Memorable Memoirs and Message, and he takes us to Daniel chapter three for today's teaching, part one of the message, Some Final Thoughts on the Fiery Furnace Incident.

Harry Reeder: Last week we were able to secure out of the scripture an understanding of the response of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to the call to bring worship, false worship, and their refusal to do that in a very godly way, in a very humble way, but in a very bold way, and their willingness to be cast into a fiery furnace and their willingness to give of their lives with confidence that the Lord would deliver them, whether from the furnace or not, He would deliver them from the hand of that king and He would sustain them. We also took a look to see Nebuchadnezzar's response to this witness that was there.

So having looked at the response of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and the response of Nebuchadnezzar, then we finally said, now what is the response of God in this text? We find that God enters in and saves Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in such a way that He arrests the anger of Nebuchadnezzar and grabs his attention.

Now I want you to come back to that text with me one more time. I want to take a look at basically five things from this text. But before we get to it, I wanted to set it up by again reminding you why God laid on my heart Daniel. I said to you God laid on my heart Daniel for two reasons. One reason God laid on my heart Daniel was because all of us want to know where is history going, and the Book of Revelation that gives us direction is based upon two books of your Old Testament directly, and that's Zechariah and Daniel.

Therefore, both of those are keys to understanding the Book of Revelation and the scope of redemptive history and where it's going to end and how God's bringing all of this to fruition. My bigger reason is Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego are presented to us without critique. It's interesting. There are two Old Testament men of God who really are not critiqued. Two of them that are not critiqued, and they are not critiqued not because they're sinless, but because they're living in certain situations and the purpose is not to critique their faltering.

The purpose is to present to you how God used them in pagan pluralistic societies. One is Joseph and the other is Daniel. Daniel is so honored in the Old Testament that he is even put in the pantheon of not only Joseph but along with Job and Noah, which is astounding because those who put him in that pantheon are actually his contemporaries. Usually it takes years later for somebody to look back at someone and say, "Man, what a godly man." But his own contemporaries like Ezekiel honored him as a wise man to learn from.

I want you to put yourself in the situation of Daniel 3 for a moment. In Daniel chapter three, we are into the captivity of the people of God. Nebuchadnezzar and the power of Babylon have conquered Jerusalem and they have pulled out exiles and they have brought the Jewish people, many of them, into captivity. They did it three times and the first time they took about 10,000, the professionals, the leaders. They took those 10,000 and they brought them.

These were young rulers. These were leaders that they were going to bring in and Nebuchadnezzar was going to use them and he was going to brainwash them and train them so that he could then use them to take care of this vassal state of Israel that he had conquered. So he brings them up and he begins the process of dealing with them. As he begins that process of dealing with them and addressing their situation, they then in Daniel chapter one stand for the Lord.

Realize what's happened. Here they were in a culture that was Bible-friendly. Not that Israel was by any means perfect, but it was Bible-friendly. You had the temple, you had the priesthood, you had the sacrifice, you had the ceremonial laws, you had the traditions. To stand for the Lord in Israel was not all that difficult. It was culturally friendly. Now they're picked up and they're put into a pagan culture that is polytheistic. Not monotheistic, one true and living God, but polytheistic.

That's the way those empires operated back in those days. When they would conquer, they would just let people keep their own gods. Just keep your own gods, it's okay, and all gods are okay because we can use religion to control people. Babylon was no different. It was polytheistic. There were all kinds of gods. So here we are ripped out of a Bible-friendly culture honoring the one true and living God and now placed in a culture that says any religion's okay, polytheism, and the way of life has nothing to do in terms of the morality of your religion.

You can just live any way you want to, the paganism of the day. Every man would do what's right in his own eyes and satisfy himself. And so now they are no longer in a Bible-friendly culture. They're in one that is a hostile culture, although professedly a tolerant culture. All religions. Are you by any means getting the transfer here for us? I meet Christians constantly and they seem to be just absolutely overwhelmed.

I meet angry Christians and part of the anger is, "You know when I was a kid I was growing up and you didn't have to worry about Sundays and what you did and you didn't have to worry about Wednesday nights and what you did and you could walk out and leave your house unlocked and the biggest problems in school was who had the spit wads, not who had the machine guns." Now look at this culture and look at what's happening. By the way, now we can't even pray in the school. Now we can't even talk about the Lord.

The power of the state no longer is protecting that Bible-friendly culture, now it attacks it. So what do we do? Do we dare to be a Daniel? I may not be meaning exactly what you think I mean. How is it that Daniel and Shadrach and Meshach and Abednego respond to this? How do they live in this professedly neutral, pluralistic, accepting of all religions culture? How do they live in it having left that biblically friendly culture?

Here's what I'd like for you to do. I'd like you to go back through Daniel three with me and see if we can pick up a few thoughts. Look with me in the first part of it, the first seven verses. King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold whose height was sixty cubits and its breadth six cubits. Anybody ever seen the Statue of Liberty? Pretty close. So here he makes it and he puts it in the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon. By the way, was there ever another tower built in that area? Remember the Tower of Babel?

They seem to like to build towers around here. Now we've got a large image that is massive in the plain of Dura and there it is in the province of Babylon. Then King Nebuchadnezzar sent to gather the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the justices, the magistrates, and all the officials of the provinces to come to the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

Then the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the justices, the magistrates, and all the officials of the province gathered for the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up and they stood before the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up and the herald proclaimed aloud, "You are commanded, O peoples, nations, and languages, that when you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, you are to fall down and worship the golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up, and whoever does not fall down and worship shall immediately be cast into a burning fiery furnace."

Therefore, as soon as the peoples heard the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, all the peoples, nations, and languages fell down and worshiped the golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up. Here's my first thought. Why this golden image? Well, here is a golden image that is set up. I think the answer is kind of twofold for us immediately. Number one, does anyone here remember Daniel chapter two?

You remember that King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream and he couldn't remember the dream and he didn't know its interpretation and who was it that stepped up to give the interpretation? Daniel. He gave the dream and he gave the interpretation. What was the dream? He said, "This is what you dreamed, King Nebuchadnezzar. There was a large image that you saw. The head was gold, then the next part of the body was silver, then the next part of the body was bronze, then the next part of the body was iron, and then the bottom of the body was clay and iron with ten toes of clay and iron.

By the way, from a mountain came a stone and that stone hit that image and destroyed it." We studied that and we found out that those represented the history of the kingdoms of this world that raised themselves up against God. First Assyria, the golden, then silver, Medo-Persia, then the brass, Greece, and then the iron, Rome, and then it evolves further into this iron and clay. We saw that the value was descending and the strength was descending.

Now I know everybody studies that image and all the books are written and everything focuses upon trying to figure out what? The ten toes. There may be something to figure out there, but that's beyond my pay grade. I'm just a pretty obvious guy. I think what that is saying to us is it's telling us that that image that he has seen, that he has interpreted, is top-heavy and will ultimately and easily be destroyed as everything that we raise up against the Lord and that it can't stand.

Nebuchadnezzar looks at that and where is he? He's at the top. He's at the top and it's golden. So we move from Daniel chapter two to Daniel chapter three and what does he do in Daniel chapter three? He takes that golden head and he now makes a golden image that is fully gold and he now makes a statement about himself and his power. Come and worship it. Notice he doesn't name this golden image. He doesn't call it a god. He doesn't erect this and says, "This alone you must worship."

He simply says, "All of the peoples and their leaders must worship this image. You must bow down to it." Now folks, how do you hold together this multicultural, multi-ethnic, multi-religious empire? It's got to have some glue. It's got to have a bond. So what is it? This is what it is. It is the ascendancy and the power of those who are in power and the state. That image is not a new religion. That image is the supremacy of Nebuchadnezzar and the state and that he will stand.

He will not be thrown down. You may all have your private religions, but you will all bring your religion and bow down to the supremacy of the one in power and the state. That's where that golden image comes from. That golden image comes from chapter two and it's raised up by Nebuchadnezzar. Notice he doesn't name it as a god. It continually is referred to "your image, Nebuchadnezzar," "the image that you have established," "that people are to come and bow and worship to the image you have established."

So they all are to come. Now folks, why is this happening? That brings me to a second thing. Why the golden image? Here's the second thing. Why the issue of worship? Why is worship inevitably the issue of life? The other day somebody said, "Harry, do y'all at Briarwood ever go through the worship wars?" I said, "Well, I'd rather not talk about that." But worship wars, there has always been a war as to who men and women will worship.

There has always been a war. The fact that Satan has been able to work his way into the present-day contemporary church and bring worship wars within the church is just one more statement of what he is constantly does. He does not want worship to be given to the one true and living God. Any way that he can stop it outside of the church, inside of the church, any way that he can do it, there has always been a war about worship.

Keep your finger in Daniel chapter three and turn with me if you would to chapter one of the Book of Romans. Look with me in chapter one of the Book of Romans. Nebuchadnezzar's response to the dream and its interpretation is there's no stone that's going to strike this image. I will build an image that stands pure and stable and it is Babylon and the state that I set up and you will all come to worship it. Now look if you would in Romans chapter one.

Romans chapter one takes us through a frightening statement that is given with the phrase "God gave them over." Look with me in verse 18: "For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made, so that they are without excuse.

For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and [what's the result?] exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen."

The religions of this age and the quote-unquote pluralistic secular societies that say all religions are to be tolerated actually stand as a statement to something that is unassailably intolerant, and that is they war against the worship of the true and living God. Isn't it interesting? Here we are in a chapter in which there is an empire that says all religions are valid. Now to bring some glue to hold this society together, here is the image that I, Nebuchadnezzar, have set up. So everyone come and bow.

By the way, you can keep all of that. So now here is seemingly, please listen carefully, here is seemingly a quote-unquote religious tolerant pluralistic polytheistic society. We're a secular society that says all religions are level and you may have your own religion, but amazingly when you peel it back we find out that it is not tolerant at all of those who will not bow to the supremacy of the image of Nebuchadnezzar. If you don't worship this image, we don't tolerate that. We will kill you.

We will kill you. See, the notion is this. Christianity says there's one true and living God. Christianity makes this statement very simply that Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the life. There's one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and therefore Christianity must be terribly intolerant. Then actually when you peel it back you find out it's very tolerant in that it doesn't say that everything people believe is right, but it does say that man is made in the image of God and you have a right to believe what you want to and we will affirm that you have the dignity and right to believe that.

But here we want to persuade you of that which we know is the truth that's revealed in the Word of God and we don't bring you by coercion, that if you don't bow to Jesus we throw you in a fiery furnace, we bring you with the cords of love and persuasion and grace and mercy. That's how we'll bring you. So here seemingly is this pluralistic secular society that is unabashedly intolerant of those who will not bow the knee.

And here is Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, unbelievably, unbelievably gracious and kind. They're in the ruling class, but they don't try to seek power to make people bow to Jehovah, but they do with their lives and their lips draw people to that living God that they might bow to Him. Daniel nor Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego become arrogant and declare themselves in power to try to coerce people. They simply live graciously, boldly, and courageously to draw and call men and women to the one true and living God.

The man that's over the state that says you may have any religion you want to privately, but publicly you will bow to what I have stated and to this image and to the state and if you don't, you will die. So now which is the patient and the tolerant? Which is affirming the dignity of what men and women are called to do and that is to freely worship the one true and living God? Well, go a little bit further with me if you would.

Not only is worship the issue because we will worship, the question is who will we worship and will we worship acceptably to the living God and here, you may worship who you want to on this day and that place in your home, but publicly and in the public square you will bow to the dictate of the state and that the state is raised up as supreme. Well, let's take a closer look at the three men. Go back with me to Daniel chapter three. Let's take just a closer look at them. Look at verse 8:

"Therefore at that time certain Chaldeans came forward and maliciously accused the Jews. They declared to King Nebuchadnezzar, 'O king, live forever! You, O king, have made a decree, that every man who hears the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, shall fall down and worship the golden image. And whoever does not fall down and worship shall be cast into a burning fiery furnace. There are certain Jews whom you have appointed over the affairs of the province of Babylon: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.

These men, O king, pay no attention to you; they do not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.'" Then King Nebuchadnezzar in furious rage commanded that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought, so they brought these men before the king. Nebuchadnezzar answered and said to them, "Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the golden image that I have set up?

Now if you are ready when you hear the sound of the horn, the pipe, the lyre, the trigon, the harp, the bagpipe, and every kind of music, fall down and worship the image that I have made, well and good. But if you do not worship, you shall immediately be cast into a burning fiery furnace." And here's the statement of supremacy: "And who is the god who will deliver you out of my hands?" Remember that dream? Nebuchadnezzar doesn't quite get it yet, does he?

Guest (Male): Are you easily swayed by the idolatry of today in its various manifestations, or do you mirror the faith and devotion of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego? You are listening to InPerspective, featuring the teaching of Dr. Harry L. Reeder. Our current sermon series: Daniel's Memorable Memoirs and Message. For additional teaching by Dr. Reeder, visit inperspective.org.

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Join us again next time as Dr. Reeder challenges us with an important question: Do you rely upon the Lord's faithfulness and constant presence with you, even in the fiery trials of life? That's next time as we turn back to the scriptures to put life in biblical perspective.