Turn with me, if you would, to
Daniel chapter 2. Daniel chapter 2. The king of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar
was his name. He went to war with Jerusalem
and he won. He besieged Jerusalem. And he took some of the Jews
who were educated with wisdom and knowledge, some who were skilled with different
abilities, especially those who had been counselors to King Jehoiakim. who was the king of Judah, the
king of Jerusalem. Nebuchadnezzar took all of these
Jews prisoner so he could use them for his own use. He wanted to use their abilities
for himself. Among those Jews were four men
named Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, who the keeper of
the prison, when they were taken and put into prison, the keeper
of the prison changed their names to Belteshazzar, Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abednego. They were to be kept for three
years. And then after that, they were
to be used by King Nebuchadnezzar. Well, in the second year, King
Nebuchadnezzar had a dream that greatly troubled him. And he wanted his magicians and
his astrologers, he had these men who, you know, they could
do some things and they were supposed to be able to read signs.
He wanted them to tell him the meaning of this dream, the significance
of the dream. The only problem was he couldn't
remember what it was. Couldn't remember the dream. So he told his magicians and
his astrologers, I want you to prove to me that you can do what
you say you can do. I want you to tell me first what
the dream was. And then after that, you tell
me what it means. When you tell it to me, I'll
remember it. I'll recognize it. It'll, it'll
spark my memory. And he said, if you tell me the
dream and you tell me the meaning, I will reward every one of you
with gifts and high honor. He said, but if you don't, I'm
going to slay every one of you and I'm going to slay your houses. And they all said, King Nebuchadnezzar,
there's not a man on this earth that can do that. No king would
ask this of his magicians and astrologers. If you tell us the
dream, we'll tell you the meaning of it. But we can't tell you
what the dream was. He said, then get ready to be
slain. Well, word got out about this,
made it all the way into the prison. Everyone was talking
about it. And the Spirit of God moved on
Daniel's heart to say to the keeper of the prison, get word
to the king. You tell the king. Don't slay anybody. Wait just
a second. Don't slay anybody. We will tell
the king what the dream was, and we'll tell the king the meaning
of it. All right, now look with me at chapter two, verse 17. Then Daniel went to his house
and made the thing known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions,
who we know to be Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. And those four
men bowed down and they started praying to the God of heaven. Verse 18, that they would desire
mercies of the God of heaven. They started calling on God for
mercy. Those four men got together,
bowed before the true God and started crying out for mercy.
concerning this secret that Daniel and his fellows should not perish
with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. And I'm gonna tell
you this, just in case something happens to me before this message
is over, cry out for mercy. This is our
only hope, cry out for mercy. Cry out for mercy that we will
not be destroyed with the rest of Babylon. These men cried out for mercy
that they would not be destroyed. Verse 19 says, Then was the secret
revealed unto Daniel in a night vision. Then Daniel blessed the
God of heaven. Daniel answered and said, Blessed
be the name of God forever and ever, for wisdom and might are
his. And he changeth the times and
the seasons. He removeth kings and setteth
up kings. He giveth wisdom unto the wise
and knowledge to them that know understanding. He revealeth the
deep and secret things. He knoweth what is in the darkness,
and the light dwelleth with him. I thank thee and praise thee,
O thou God of my fathers, who has given me wisdom and might,
and has made known unto me now what we desired of thee, for
thou hast now made known unto us the king's matter. So Daniel
went in, and he told King Nebuchadnezzar exactly what the dream was, and
he told him exactly what the meaning of it was. Look at verse
48. Then the king made Daniel a great
man and gave him many great gifts and made him ruler over the whole
province of Babylon and chief of the governors over all the
wise men of Babylon. Then Daniel requested of the
king and he set Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego over the affairs
of the province of Babylon. But Daniel sat in the gate of
the king. Well, the king's dream was of
a great image. That's what he dreamed about,
this great image. So he decided to make one. He made one, it was 90 feet high
and it was 9 feet wide. And he called all of the governors
and all of the captains over the provinces of Babylon to come
dedicate it. They all had to come dedicate
it. Daniel sat in the king's gate. Apparently he didn't have
to attend. But Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego
were governors and they had to attend this dedication. While
they were all standing there, this great crowd of people, while
they were all standing there before this image, the decree
went out that as soon as you hear the music that has been
appointed for this dedication, Every person here is to bow down. Everyone here is to fall down
and worship the image that Nebuchadnezzar has set up. And whoever does
not fall down and worship the image is going to be cast into
a burning, fiery furnace. Well, the music started playing. And this great crowd of people
all fell down and started worshipping the image, except for three men. Everything went, except for three
men. Three men would not do it. They would not bow to a false
God. They would not follow the masses,
I mean follow the masses into eternal destruction just because
they were threatened with temporary destruction. They said there is only one God
to bow before. We worship Him alone. They said, Nebuchadnezzar, we
do not regard you. We do not regard your little
G gods. And we do not regard your image. It's nothing to us. It is nothing.
Look at chapter three, verse 13. Then Nebuchadnezzar, in his rage
and fury, commanded to bring Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Then they brought these men before
the king. Nebuchadnezzar spake and said
unto them, Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, do not
you serve my gods, nor worship the golden image which I have
set up? Now if you be ready that at what time you hear the sound
of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all
kinds of music, you fall down and worship the image which I
have made well." What he's saying is, I'm going to give you one
more chance. Just in case you're second guessing this stand that
you have made for your God. just in case you want to reconsider
this faith that you have in your God. Verse 15, if you be ready
that at what time you hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp,
sackbutt, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of music, you fall
down and worship the image which I have made well. But if you
worship not, you shall be cast the same hour into the midst
of a burning fiery furnace. And who is that God that shall
deliver you out of my hands? Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego
answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not
careful to answer thee in this matter. We are not full of care. we don't have to reconsider our
answer. Verse 17, if it be so, our God, whom we serve, is able
to deliver us from the burning, fiery furnace, and he will deliver
us out of thine hand, O King. Even if we die at your hand,
it'll only send us straight to him. To be absent from this body
is to be present with the Lord. Verse 18, But if not, whether
he delivers us from the fiery furnace or not, be it known unto
thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the
golden image which thou hast set up. It's Christ alone. It's grace alone. It's the glory
of God alone. We're not sharing the glory or
giving the glory to ourselves or you or anybody else. The glory
goes to God alone. Deliverance is in His hands.
Salvation is in His hands. This is His work and no other
man's. Verse 19, Then was Nebuchadnezzar
full of fury, and the form of his visage was changed against
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Therefore he spake and commanded
that they should heat the furnace one seven times more than it
was needed to be heated. And he commanded the most mighty
men that were in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego,
and to cast them into the burning fiery furnace. Then these men
were bound in their coats, their hosen, their hats, and their
other garments, and were cast into the midst of the burning,
fiery furnace. Therefore, because the king's
commandment was urgent, and the furnace exceeding hot, the flame
of the fire slew those men that took up Shadrach, Meshach, and
Abednego. And these three men, Shadrach,
Meshach, and Abednego, fell down, bound into the midst of the burning,
fiery furnace." They bound them so they couldn't run back out. The furnace was so hot, the men
who picked them up and threw them into the furnace were consumed
by the fire. Now here these three men are,
bound, laying on the floor of this furnace. Verse 24, Then
Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonished, and rose up in haste, and spake
and said unto his counselors, did not we cast three men bound
into the midst of the fire? They answered and said unto the
king, true, O king. He answered and said, lo, I see
four men loose. Their bands have been cut asunder.
They're not bound, they're free. They're not in turmoil. They're
not in trouble. They are calmly, peacefully walking
in the midst of the fire. And they have no hurt. And the
form of the fourth is like the Son of God. Verse 26, Then Nebuchadnezzar
came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace and spake
and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, ye servants of
the Most High God, come forth and come hither. Then Shadrach,
Meshach, and Abednego came forth of the midst of the fire. And
the princes, governors, and captains, and the kings, counselors being
gathered together, saw these men upon whose body the fire
had no power, nor was in hair of their head singed, neither
were their coats changed, nor the smell of fire had passed
on them." Completely untouched. Then Nebuchadnezzar spake and
said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who hath
sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in
him, and have changed the king's word, and yielded their bodies,
that they might not serve nor worship any God except their
own God. Therefore I make a decree that
every people, nation, and language which speak anything amiss against
the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego shall be cut in
pieces, and their houses shall be made a dunghill, because there
is no other God that can deliver after this sort. Then the king
promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the province of Babylon. Now here's the question of the
morning. Here is the question of the morning. Who is that God? Who is that God? Everybody's worshiping a God,
aren't they? Everybody's worshiping a God.
Everybody has a God right here. Well, this is who I think God
is. Well, I'll tell you who my God is. Who is that God? That is exactly what Nebuchadnezzar
asked at the end of verse 15. He said, Who is that God that
shall deliver you out of my hands? Who is that God? I need that God. You need that God. That is the only God that can
save. And if I'm not careful, I'll
tell you the end of the message. That is the only God that can save. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego's
God is still God. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego's
God is our only hope. He is our only hope. That God is our only hope. So who is he? Who is he? Nebuchadnezzar. answered his
own question. He's the one who asked, who is
that God? And he answered his own question. Out of his own mouth came the
declaration of who the only God is that can actually save sinners
from destruction. He described Him by five things.
In this chapter, we just read them. He described Him by five
things. The first one is at the end of
verse 25. He said, He's the Son of God. He's the Son of God. I hope that sinks in. Who is that God? This great God
that the Old Testament describes as Jehovah. Jehovah. I am. Who is that God? The Son of God. The Son of God. Jesus Christ. We just read about
Jesus Christ. We just read about Jesus Christ,
the Lord Jesus Christ. That's who those three men believed
on. That's who they cast their all
on. That's who they went into the
fire trusting. That's who stood there in the
fire with them. There was a fourth man in there.
Who was that man? The Lord Jesus Christ. Well, wait a minute. He wasn't
born yet. He said before Abraham was, I
am. He said, Moses wrote of me. In
the beginning was the Word, and the Word made Himself flesh and
dwelt among us. He said, a body hast thou prepared
me. Jesus Christ. He is that God. He is that God. Men and women
so sadly paint a picture of the Lord Jesus Christ being such
a weak beggar. You know, don't you have a lamb
I could hold for a minute? He is that God. He is that God. Psalm 2 verse 12 says, kiss the
son lest he be angry and you perish from the way when his
wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put
their trust in him. He himself said in John 11, whosoever
liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Men claim to acknowledge
Jesus. We're glad that God sent him
and we love him and we're thankful for him and all of his humanitarian
efforts. And maybe he can show us who
God is. He said, whosoever liveth and
believeth in me shall never die. We bow before the Son of God. We bow before and worship the
Son of God. Now the natural ear is going
to hear that and say, the Son of God? Why would you bow before the
Son of God? Nebuchadnezzar gave us the answer.
Look at verse 26. Then Nebuchadnezzar came near
to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace and spake, and said,
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, ye servants of the Most High
God." That's who Jesus Christ is. That's
who the Son of God is. wrongly believes that to mean
that he is God's Son. I am Marvin Stoniker's son. Jesus Christ is the Son of God. God in three persons. He is the Most High God. This
is what, don't turn, this is what John 5.22 says. All judgment has been committed to the Son. Colossians 1 says, He created
all things. He is before all things, and
by Him all things consist. Hebrews 1 says, He is the one
who is seated on the throne. Thy throne, O God. Revelation 1 says, He is the
one who holds the keys of hell and death. He's the one. Who
is that God? Jesus Christ. Who is Jesus Christ? The Most High God. He's the Most
High God. Now look at the next thing Nebuchadnezzar
said about Him. Verse 28, Then Nebuchadnezzar
spake and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and
Abednego, who hath sent his angel and delivered his servants that
trusted in him. He said, this God has delivered. This is the God who has delivered. Nebuchadnezzar did not say, well,
this God is obviously trying to deliver his servants. He didn't say, this God has shown
them the way of deliverance, now let's see if they take it. He said, this God has delivered. That's the message of the Gospel.
What is the Gospel? What is the Gospel? This God
has delivered. This God has delivered. Who is the Lord Jesus Christ?
Who is the Most High God? He is the God who has actually
delivered His people. He has actually delivered His
people. This fire and this story is an illustration. This is all,
this parable, this earthly story is a heavenly illustration. The fact that these men were
thrown into the fire, bound, and thrown into the fire because
they disobeyed the king. Isn't that why they were thrown
in? It's because there was a law that the king made. He made a
decree. He gave his word. And they disobeyed
the king. And this is an illustration of
the fact that we by nature have disobeyed our king. And we're
bound by sin. In our sin, we haven't bowed
to Him. We have not bowed to Him. Therefore, according to
the law of His commandment, we must be thrown into the fire
of His judgment and His wrath. Judgment and wrath over our sin. Our sin must be punished. It
must be punished. Those three men were not spared
from the furnace. Those three men had to go into
the furnace. And so do we. So do we. Had it not been for
the mercy of the Lord. Had it not been for God's mercy.
They all cried out for mercy, didn't they? Lord, would you
show mercy to us? Had it not been for God's mercy, they would
have been consumed just like the men who threw them in. The
men who just got close to the fire were consumed by it. And
they would have been consumed just like those men. But God
had mercy on them, and God has had mercy on us. What was the mercy? What did
He do? He went in with them. They had to go in. They had to
go in. Injustice. God is a holy God.
He's a just God. He can and must only do what's
right. They had to go in. He went in
with us. David said, I have to walk through
the valley of the shadow of death. But he said, this is my hope,
this is all my salvation. Thou art with me. You're with me. Turn with me
over to Isaiah 43. Isaiah 43 verse 1 says, But now
thus saith the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed
thee, O Israel, fear not, for I have redeemed thee. I have
called thee by thy name, thou art mine. When thou passest through
the waters, I will be with thee. and through the rivers they shall
not overflow thee. When thou walkest through the
fire, thou shalt not be burned, neither shall the flame kindle
upon thee. For I am the Lord thy God, the
Holy One of Israel, thy Savior." That's Jesus Christ speaking. I'm your Savior. As Shadrach,
Meshach, and Abednego passed through the wrath of the fire
with the Lord Jesus Christ, as they passed through with the
Lord Jesus Christ, don't turn back, but it said in our text,
the flame didn't touch them. They passed through the fire.
And the flame did not touch them, it said, Not one hair of their
head was singed. They didn't even have the smell
of fire on them. How can that be? How can that be? Christ took
all of that for them. Do you know, as that fourth man
was in that fire, do you know what he was doing in there? Taking
all of it for them. The fire had to touch him. He was taking all of it for them. The fire, he stood there and
the fire was touching him. It singed him. He bore the wrath
of the fire. He burned. He burned. He was consumed to fulfill that
law against him. and the punishment against him.
He was consumed for them. Somebody might ask, how do you
know that? What makes you say that? How do you know He suffered the
fire for them? How do you know that He literally
was touched with the feeling of their infirmity and touched
by the wrath against them? How do you know He burned for
them? Turn with me to Revelation chapter 1. Revelation 1 verse 1 says, the
revelation of Jesus Christ. This is the revelation of Jesus
Christ. John said in verse 10, I was
in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and heard behind me a great voice
as of a trumpet, saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and
the last, and what thou seest, write in a book and send it unto
the seven churches which are in Asia, unto Ephesus, unto Smyrna,
unto Pergamos, unto Thyatira, unto Sardis, unto Philadelphia,
and unto Laodicea. And I turned to see the voice
that spake with me, and being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks,
and in the midst of the seven candlesticks, one like unto the
Son of Man." That's Jesus Christ. This is Jesus Christ. He said
this is what Jesus Christ looked like. Verse 13, In the midst
of the seven candlesticks, one like unto the Son of Man, clothed
with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with
a golden girdle, his head and his hairs were white like wool,
as white as snow, and his eyes were as a flame of fire. and
his feet like unto fine brass as if they burned in a furnace. He looked like he had endured
the fire of a furnace. That's what he looked like. That's
exactly what Christ did for his people. He suffered their wrath. He bore the fire of God's punishment
on their sin. He bore it all for them and delivered
them safely through. That's what He did. Who is that
God? He's the God of victory. He is
the God of victory. He is the God who has accomplished
deliverance for His people. Now go with me back to our text.
Nebuchadnezzar said two more things and they're quick. Verse 28 says, Then Nebuchadnezzar
spake and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and
Abednego, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that
trusted in him, and have changed the king's word and yielded their
bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god except their
own god." Nebuchadnezzar said he's their
god. That god is their god and we
can say he's our god. That is our God. I love how in
Deuteronomy 32 it says, their rock is not like our rock. Their
God is not like our God. He said, I will be their God. Whose God will He be? He said,
whoever He gives faith to. Whoever He gives faith to. Faith that bows to Him alone. As those three men stood there.
Faith that bows to... You know what they did while
they were standing upright? Bowing to Him alone. That's what
faith does. It bows to Him alone. Faith trusts Him alone. They said, we're not careful
about this. Faith trusts Him alone. Whoever receives that faith on
Christ, the true and living God, can say that God is my God. That's my God. Now this is the
last thing that Nebuchadnezzar said about him after seeing such
a great deliverance. And this is what every sinner
will say who truly sees this God. This is what every sinner
will say who truly sees the Son of God. the most high God, the
God who actually has delivered, our God. After seeing Him, every
sinner will say, verse 29, therefore I make a decree. that every people,
nation, and language which speak anything amiss against the God
of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego shall be cut in pieces, and their
houses shall be made a dunghill, because there is no other God
that can deliver after this sort." No other God. Nebuchadnezzar
said he's the only one. He's the only one. He is the
only one. There is no other God. The apostles
said salvation is in no other name. No other name. But Jesus Christ of Nazareth,
the Son of God. Believe on that God and thou
shalt be saved. That's the truth. The same salvation
that came to these three men is the same salvation that will
come to each one of us. The salvation that this represents
is the salvation that comes to every soul that believes on that
God. May the Lord make it so. Okay,
let's all stand together.