We're looking this morning at
the book of Daniel in the Old Testament. Daniel chapter 3. Daniel chapter 3 is the story
of three men that were thrown in the fiery furnace. Three men
commonly known as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Now those were
not their true names. They had names given to them
by God. Hananiah, which means Jehovah
has favored me. Mishael means who or what is
God or I believe that God is. Azariah means Jehovah has helped
me. These were the names of these
three children of Jacob, or sons of Jacob, chosen, loved by God. these children of the tribe of
Judah, which was the line of Christ, their Redeemer, these
sons of God. And yet most people only know
their Chaldean name, their earthly name. That is not their name.
Just as few know and fear the name of the Lord Jesus Christ,
of the Lord God Almighty, few know the names of these men.
Well, we need to learn them. Well, there was a powerful ruler
named Nebuchadnezzar, powerful over a great kingdom that covered
the then-known world. Babylon, it was called. Nebuchadnezzar
represents the god of this world, or Satan, as he is called. Babylon
represents the world, a world full of vain babble, like the
Tower of Babel that they raised to try to get to the heavens
and exalt themselves. Babylon. Babylon represents false
religion spoken of throughout the book of the Revelation. Well,
these three men and Daniel. Daniel was there who represents
Christ, and that's another story. But these three men were in Babylon. They were not of it. They were
in it, held captive, brought there. And yet they were not
truly captive. They were not like the Babylonians. They were not like the people
in the world they lived in. These men were of God. They were
the Lord's free men or servant. Well, Nebuchadnezzar was this
vainglorious, foolish man, just a man, who thought he was God,
just like the God of this world. Satan, Lucifer, the God of this
world who told Adam and Eve and is still telling mankind today,
you are as God's. Satan who himself said, I will
be as God. Nebuchadnezzar raised an image
that was 90 feet high and he gave the command to all his rulers
to gather the people all over the then known world in his kingdom
to come and worship, to dedicate, consecrate this image. And everybody came. In Daniel
chapter 3, the princes, governors, captains, judges, treasurers,
counselors, sheriffs, rulers of the province, and all the
people came. Everybody who was somebody. All
the people came. Verse 5 says they came to bow
down to this image. And they had music. They had
the sound of cornet, flute, harp, sackbutt, psaltery, dulcimer,
all kinds of music. sounded much like a modern revival,
a countywide revival, a citywide religious meeting. Everyone got
together and joined in, and all the music and all the entertainment. He raised this image, and most
believe it was the image of a man. The image of a man. That's fitting,
if it was. That's fitting because that is
what mankind, or rather who mankind has been worshipping from the
beginning. Satan said, you will be as God. You are as God. You have free
will. Exercise that free will. And so man today, like then,
worships and serves the creature more than the Creator, Romans
1 says. Though that which is known of
God, His eternal power and Godhead, clearly seen, they are without
excuse. Though they know something of
God's power and Godhead, they do not glorify Him as God, nor
thankful, but vain in their imagination. They change the glory of God
into an image made like. to corruptible man. I was reading
Romans 1. That image is free will. That
image is man himself. It started with Satan who said,
I will. Then Adam and Eve, we will. But
no, God says, I will. I will, God says. And Daniel
chapter 4, verse 17 says, the matter The truth of the matter
is by decree, God's decree, of the watchers, which are His watchmen,
His prophets and His apostles and His true preachers even today.
The demand is by the word of the Holy Ones. The triune God
has commanded, has decreed the intent that the living, that
all mankind may know that the Most High ruleth in the kingdom
of men and giveth it to whomsoever He will. He will. Though all mankind worships and
exalts man, not God, the will of man, that is the image of
the beast in Revelation, the mark in the forehead. Man glories
in his supposed free will, not God. That there are a few, like
these three men, who will not bow down, who will not worship
what others worship, what the world believe and bow to. No,
no. They believe God is true and
all else are liars. They believe God's will is done,
no one else's. They don't believe in free will.
They believe God will and who shall let Him. Let me give you
a few verses of Scripture about God's will. It says, "...of those
who have become the sons of God and believe on His name are born,
not of blood, not of the will of the flesh, nor of the will
of man, but of God." John 1, 12 and 13. Listen to this. In the book of Romans, chapter
9, he says very clearly, It is not of him that willeth. Before that, he said, I will
have mercy on whom I will have mercy. I will have compassion
on whom I will have compassion. So then, it is not of him that
willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy. And verse 18 says, Therefore
he hath mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will
he hardeneth. That's God's Word. That's what
God says about His will and about man's will. Listen to Ephesians
1.11. It is God who worketh all things after the counsel of His
own will. Philippians 2.13. It is God which
worketh in you both to will and do of His good pleasure. That's
what the Bible says. And James said this, of anyone
that says, I will do this or that, James calls it evil. Listen to this, James chapter
4 verse 13, go to now. You that say today or tomorrow
we will go into such a city and continue there a year and buy
and sell and get gain, whereas ye know not what shall be on
the morrow. What is your life? It's a vapor
that appeareth for a little time and vanishes away. You ought
to say, if the Lord will, we shall live. and do this or that. But now ye rejoice in your boastings,
and all such rejoicing is evil." So everyone got together, the
three, everyone got together. The music was playing. There
were all sorts of music. Rock gospel, bluegrass gospel,
hip-hop gospel, any music, all sorts to fit anybody that wants
to come. And they all bowed to the music. They all worshiped,
said, Oh, thank you. Thank you for your favor, for
your protection, for your provisions of us, when all the while it
was God that was clothing them, God that was feeding them, God
that was protecting them. But no, they weren't calling
on God. They were bowing to this image. There are many images
today that men and women bow to rather than God. The image
of gold and silver, or money, or image of science, or medicine,
or technology, oh great internet, we thank you, or a cell phone,
how can we live without you, or even Today we would make an
image of a great big golden mask or face covering. Thank you most
marvelous mask for saving our lives. Thank you oh venerable
vaccine for saving us from the hand of God. No call for mercy
to God who sent this. No cry of repentance to God who
kills and makes alive. The God who wounds. The God who's
angry. No cry No call, no glory in God. None. Well, these three men wouldn't
bow. These three men knew who it was
that they should worship, who it was that doeth all things
according to His will, who sins all things, and all things work
together for the good of His people. These three men knew.
And though a government mandate and law told them how and what
they should do, these three men said, we won't do it. We're going
to worship. We're going to bow to our Lord.
We're going to meet together, close together. We're going to
greet one another with a holy kiss. We're going to worship
our Lord just as He commanded us. We're not going to alter
our worship of God. We're not going to cringe in
fear. We're not going to live in fear to the King's command.
We're going to live in faith. And we might die, but we're going
to die in faith. And Nebuchadnezzar and all the
people mocked and scoffed. They said, You're full of pride,
like David's brethren. It came down to him, you're full
of pride. But no, David said, is there not a cause? It's the
cause of God and truth, the cause of faith to believe in God against
this giant called unbelief and fear. The cause was the same
for these three as David. That our God is sovereign. He's
still sovereign no matter what. Always has been sovereign. He
sends everything. And this great giant like Goliath
must fall. He will fall. That they said,
We won't fall. We won't bow down. We won't. Nebuchadnezzar said, Well, we'll
throw you in the furnace. Listen to what these three faithful
men said. Daniel 3, verse 16, Shadrach,
Meshach, and Abednego said, they answered, said, We don't have
to stop and think about it. We're not careful to answer thee
in this matter. We know whom we believe. We believe He's able
to keep that which we've committed unto Him against that day, whatever
day it may be. They said, if it be so, our God
whom we serve is able to deliver us. If you throw us in the furnace,
He's able to deliver us from this fiery furnace. Besides,
it's not you that's going to put us there, it's Him. And He
said, if He doesn't deliver us, if we die in the furnace, we'll
be through with you, O King. We'll be done with this whole
world because the day of our death is better than birth. No,
we don't fear the fiery furnace or death. We fear Him because
He who kills body and soul and is cast into hell, that's the
one we must fear, not man. After He kills, after whatever
it is on this earth kills us, then there's no more He can do
unto us. We fear God. So what happens? just like the Lord Jesus Christ
said. He said, You are not of this
world, His disciples. You shall be hated. They are
going to kill you. They are going to cut you off.
You are going to go through fiery trials. But He said, Fear not,
I am with you. You shall not perish, not a hair
of your head, though fiery trials shall come upon you. They reveal
true faith. Thy dross to consume, thy worldly,
fleshly, carnal reasoning and will, thy gold to refine. like gold is tried in the fire.
And it's going to come out under praise, honor, and glory of God,
not man. And so verse 17, they say, Well,
not God is able. And they threw them in that furnace.
They threw them in the furnace. Well, what happened? God saved
them. God spared them. In chapter 3,
verse 24, Nebuchadnezzar came to that furnace. He said, Didn't
we cast three men in there? I see four. Four men, loose,
in the midst of the fire, no hurt, and the form of the fourth
is like the Son of God. Yes, Jesus Christ was in that
fire, because that's Christ crucified, who went through hell for His
people. And not a hair of their head shall perish. What about
you? Is this your hope? Is He your
hope? There is no other hope. There is no other faith. Amen.