All-Stars: Heroes of the Old Testament | Daniel 3

All Stars: Heroes of the Old Testament | Daniel 3
Hebrews 11:34a “quenched the fury of the flames,”

Daniel 1:20 “In every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king questioned them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his whole kingdom.”

Daniel 3:5b-6 “…you must fall down and worship the image of gold that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up. Whoever does not fall down and worship will immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace.”

 Daniel 3:12b “…pay no attention to you, Your Majesty. They neither serve your gods nor worship the image of gold you have set up.”

Daniel 3:14-15 “Nebuchadnezzar said to them, ‘Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the image of gold I have set up? 15 Now when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of music, if you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very good. But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?’”

Daniel 2:47 “Surely your God is the God of gods, the Lord of kings.”

If you obey God, you will eventually find yourself facing the opposing winds of the world.

Warren Wiersbe: “Faith rests on truth and the promises from God not on arguments and explanations.”
“Faith is not believing in spite of evidence, that’s superstition, but obeying in spite of consequences.”

Your faith is on display when the heat is on.

Daniel 3:16-18 “Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. 17 If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. 18 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.”

John 19:10b-11a “Pilate said. “Don’t you realize I have power either to free you or to crucify you?” 11 Jesus answered, “You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above.”

Daniel 1:1-2a “In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. 2 And the Lord delivered Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand…”

God will defend both Himself and us!

Exodus 20:3, 5 “You shall have no other gods before me…5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them.”

Even if God doesn’t rescue them, they would still remain faithful.

Matthew 4:9 “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”

God specializes in the impossible!

Daniel 3:27b-28 “They saw that the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor was a hair of their heads singed; their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them. Then Nebuchadnezzar said, “Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent his angel and rescued his servants! They trusted in him and defied the king’s command and were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God.”

1 Peter 4:12 “Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.”

William Wilberforce “So enormous, so dreadful, so irremediable did the [slave] trade’s wickedness appear that my own mind was completely made up for abolition. Let the consequences be what they would: I from this time determined that I would never rest until I had effected its abolition.”

Which is more important: Living for the LORD or pleasing the world?  
Romans 15:4 “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.”

Daniel 3:29 “Therefore I decree that the people of any nation or language who say anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego be cut into pieces and their houses be turned into piles of rubble, for no other god can save in this way.”