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Growing up, I
played tennis. To be honest, I was pretty good at tennis, a fact I
neglected to mention to Rachel before we ever played tennis against
each other. She refuses to ever play against me again. I played my
first two years of high school before giving up, but I really enjoyed
tennis.
There's another
tennis player who's about my age. He's only about two months older
than I am, but his career has lasted a little longer than mine. You
may have heard of him. Goes by the name of Roger Federer. He's won
77 career tournaments, including a gold medal at the Olympics, and
has a nice sum of $77 million in career prize money, not counting
endorsements. Many people would say he's the best tennis player
ever. I've never played him, so I can't say that he's definitely
better than me, but his record indicates that he would win if we ever
played head to head.
Shockingly, Roger
Federer lost in the second round of the Wimbledon tournament this
week. The chances of this happening were about the same as the
chances of me winning Wimbledon.
So here is the
question: is Roger Federer still good at tennis?
How
about another situation. In 2006, just before I got married, I
bought a new car. To this day, Rachel and I disagree over whether it
is blue or green, but one thing we do agree on is that it is very,
very reliable. In the seven years we have owned it, we've put
115,000 miles on it, including Rachel driving it in Atlanta traffic,
where every mile driven should count for 4 miles. Until March, we
had never had a single part break on that car. The alternator went
out that month, and I had the opportunity to learn how much more
expensive alternators have become. It was only $500 more than I had
expected. Since then, it has run just fine.
So
here is the question: is our car still reliable?
Life
is filled with instances that occur outside unexpectedly. These
events are often far outside of what is normal, and they cause us to
question our understanding of life around us. Plane travel is
usually regarded as one of the safest ways to travel, and yet
whenever a plane crashes, we instantly wonder: are
airplanes safe? We eat at a
restaurant we've always loved and enjoyed, when suddenly, we get a
terrible meal there. We wonder: is the food still good
there? Should I go back? We
don't know what to do with these events. We don't have a category
for them, and they cause us to question our underlying assumptions.
For big events, they cause us to question everything.
For
example, we might lose a job, or discover an illness, or go through
divorce. In these times, we pray and we pray and we pray, and we
also wonder: does God still care about me?
Sometimes,
tragedy strikes. We lose a loved one. Terrorists attack. A gunman
shoots children in an elementary school. We wonder: Is
God still good?
We've all wondered this at times. Life has happened around us, to
us, and it doesn't make sense. The world that we once understood
seems to lie shattered at our feet, and we can't help but wonder if
God is still good. Can God be good and not answer our prayers, even
when they are our deepest, most desperate prayers? If it seems that
God is silent in the face of death and disease, is God still good?
Here's where we turn to Daniel 3. In this text, three young men,
Shadrach, Mesach, & Abednego have been appointed to high
positions. They are Jews who worship the most high God, the only God
of heaven and of earth, and they have sworn to refuse to worship any
other God. This is the first commandment for them, as it is for us.
We must worship God alone.
But Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, isn't a one-God kind of guy.
He builds a massive statue, 90 feet tall, and commands that everyone
in his kingdom should bow down to worship it. Most of the people
don't seem to mind, but these three young men refuse to worship this
false god. Think of the peer pressure—every other person in the
kingdom bows down, and you refuse.
Also, the decree is issued that anyone refusing to bow down to the
false god will be thrown into a fiery furnace to peril in a rather
painful manner. So there's that.
Shadrach, Mesach, & Abednego refuse to worship the false god, and
their refusal does not go unnoticed. Their refusal to worship the
false god is brought to the attention of the king, and he is not
pleased with their stubbornness. He gives them one last chance, one
final opportunity to accede to his request. The choice is
clear—worship the false god and everything will be fine, the king
days in verse 15. Otherwise, they will be thrown into the fiery
furnace to perish.
Shadrach, Mesach, & Abednego face a difficult decision. They can
worship their God, or they can live, but they cannot do both, in the
words of the king.
What they tell the king is astounding. Your Majesty, they
begin in verse 16, a quite respectful beginning considering this man
is threatening their doom. We don't need to defend ourselves.
The God we worship can save us from you and your flaming furnace.
But even if he doesn't, we still won't worship your gods and the gold
statue you have set up.
They refuse, preferring death to idol worship. But what they say
amazes me. They tell the King that God can save them, despite what
the King had said. The King believed that no god could save them
from the fiery furnace. Shadrach, Mesach, & Abednego believe
otherwise. But notice what they say at the end: But even if he
doesn't, we still won't worship your gods.
Even if he
doesn't...
Keep
in mind—if God doesn't save them from the furnace, they will die a
horrible, painful death. If God doesn't save them from the furnace,
it will look like Nebuchadnezzar has won. If God doesn't save them,
all is lost, right?
Shadrach, Mesach, & Abednego want Nebuchadnezzar to know that God
can save them. Even if he chooses not to, it's important to remind
him that he can, because this means that God is sovereign and
all-powerful. They do not pretend to know the mind of God, and they
do not claim to be able to manipulate it. I'm sure that they would
prefer that God did save them, but they want to affirm that even if
their prayer goes unanswered, that does not change that God is
all-powerful, and they believe that God is worthy of worship and
praise, even if they must go to their deaths to proclaim that. They
think God is so awesome and majestic that death is preferable to the
thought of betraying him.
Let's stop right here for a moment. This is a place worthy of
lingering. This is a point not to be missed.
Just because God doesn't answer our prayers doesn't mean that he
isn't still all-powerful. Just because God doesn't dramatically
intervene doesn't mean he isn't loving and good. We don't understand
the ways or the mind of God, but just because it appears as though
God is not still abiding, that doesn't mean that he isn't here with
us, loving us and at work in our lives. Even when it appears as
though God has abandoned us, God is still with us, and God is still
good, although we may not be able to grasp this fully.
Shadrach, Mesach, & Abednego were willing to bet their lives on
this fact. The sovereignty and goodness of God were not on trial
when they were thrown into the furnace. That remained true whether
or not they survived this situation.
Are we willing to live like this?
Shadrach, Mesach, & Abednego had no plan B. The only fallback
option was to worship the false god of Nebuchadnezzar, and they
weren't going for that.
Are we willing to live with the same abandon? Are we willing to
commit everything to God, without holding something back just in case
God doesn't come through in the way we imagine?
God has demonstrated his willingness to always come through for us.
It may not be exactly how we imagine it, but God has promised he will
never let anything in this world separate us from his presence. He
has promised us a place in eternity beside him, promised that we will
triumph over victory and death in Christ—and in this way he assures
us of his ultimate goodness, despite our setbacks and trials in this
life.
Here, in Daniel 3, he demonstrates his presence in an astounding way.
Although Shadrach, Mesach, & Abednego are thrown into the
furnace that is heated up 7 times hotter than usual due to
Nebuchadnezzar's rage at their answer, they are safe and sound within
the flames. Indeed, when Nebuchadnezzar peers into the oven, he sees
a fourth figure with the appearance of a god dwelling in the flames
with them. He is so astounded that he calls them out of the fire,
when it is noticed that they don't even smell like smoke. Anyone who
has ever walked by a bonfire and then smelled like smoke for the next
week realizes what a miracle this is.
In the midst of the fiery furnace, in a trial so hot it killed those
standing nearby, the presence of God near Shadrach, Mesach, &
Abednego was revealed to all who witnessed it. What I'd like to
propose is that God's nearness is only fully understood when we have
committed everything to God. When we give our hearts and minds and
lives and money and future to God, we begin to understand just how
near he always is. I believe that God was near Shadrach, Mesach, &
Abednego throughout this entire story, but it was the presence of the
fire, the trial of their lives, that revealed that presence.
So here's the question for us: are we willing to emulate Shadrach,
Mesach, & Abednego in their complete devotion to God? Are we
willing to proclaim that God is sovereign and good, even though we
may not fully understand exactly how God is at work? Are we willing
to acknowledge that the circumstances of our lives do not dictate
God's goodness, but that God is still good and all-powerful, even
though we don't fully grasp this?
A life of total commitment to God stood out easily in Babylon. When
everyone else bowed down to a false god, those willing to remain
standing and risk being thrown into the furnace were obviously those
committed to God.
Today, in a land of cultural Christianity, it's harder to stand out.
It's possible to go to church and not let the Gospel have any
influence on the rest of your life. It's possible to live like
everyone else, to be swayed by popular opinion and pursue riches at
any cost and self-glory, and yet profess to be a Christian.
So I'd like to propose a few areas we can examine, three ways we can
look at our own lives to see if we live in total commitment to the
Gospel.
What does total commitment to the Gospel look like? How about we
examine our checkbooks to see how we spend our money? Do we let the
Gospel lay claim to our entire checkbook? Or do we just give 10% and
pretend that God doesn't care what we do with the other 90%? What's
it look like for us to beyond the tithe and give more than 10%?
What's it look like for us to examine easy expenditures, the money we
spend without thinking? The amount of money we spend in American on
ice cream could solve many of the world's hunger problems—but we
don't think about that when we're buying ice cream. And there's
nothing wrong with buying ice cream. What's wrong is spending money
thoughtlessly, without paying attention to where it's going, without
thinking that there might be a better use for it. God has given it
all to us—let us use it all wisely.
Secondly, let's talk about mediocrity. In our work, it might be easy
to pursue mediocrity, to let good enough be our best work, to get by
without causing any problems. But God hasn't give you gifts to do
'just enough'. God calls us to do our best, to pursue excellence,
whether it is in school or your work. It's easy to skate by, and I'd
suggest that many people do just that. But if we want to be great
stewards of the gifts God has given us, let's pursue excellence in
all of our work. Let's commit ourselves fully to using every ounce
of the gifts God has given us, and in so doing may our efforts
glorify God.
Finally, let's talk about marriage. Much has been made about the
Supreme Court ruling on the Defense of Marriage Act. And while we
can debate that all day, we Christians need to take a look at our
marriages. What does it mean for us to pursue excellence in our
marriage, to demonstrate faithfulness to the world? How do we commit
fully to serving our partners, and in so doing model a marriage ethic
for the world to see?
In all things, may we be completely committed to Christ, willing to
risk anything, because we know that God is good and that God is
powerful. We may stand on this side of the furnace, unable to see
exactly how God will intervene, but just because we don't fully
understand God's goodness doesn't mean that we can't proclaim it with
all of our lives.
Let us pray
