Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego - When Stupid Leaders Are in Position...

Daniel 3:13-15 Furious with rage, Nebuchadnezzar summoned Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. So these men were brought before the king, and 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? Now when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes 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?"

In this post, Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego - I'd Like To Order An Attitude To Go, Please, King Nebuchadnezzar is so happy with these boys. He compliments them, he puts them to work for him, he talks with them. What happened from there to here?

Have you ever known people who you talk to that seem to love you and care about you, but the minute you show any disagreement to what they have to say, they don't seem to love you so much anymore. I had a friend that I would talk to in school. We would laugh and tell jokes and pass notes. But as soon as I told her that I didn't think going to a party and getting drunk was a good idea- our friendship dwindled. Such is human nature.

Now Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego weren't just risking a friendship or even a shunning, they were threatened with a brutal death. However, they had some inside knowledge that the king was unaware of at this time. Their God is real. So whether they die a physical death in that fire or not, they would continue their life as a child of God - either on earth or in heaven - King Nebuchadnezzar couldn't change that fact.

What if we lived life with that same attitude? "Our God is real". It doesn't matter what happens to my physical being, my soul lives on forever - I'll just move to a different location. It really is something to think that one day we will walk up to Abednego and be able to say - "Why didn't you just smack that stupid king in the face", and I'm sure his answer will be much more profound than any snide remark I could come up with.

3 comments:

Lynn - JnL4God said...

Very Good. If we could always hold on to the fact that this is just a moment of the eternal life and a physical life like you state, I think we would be much bolder for God than we are. Good thoughts to hang onto.
Blessings,
Lynn

Greg C said...

I keep telling myself not to let things upset me because this is only temporary but wow is that hard sometimes. I know that the little trials and tribulations that I face now won't matter in the end but it is still hard.

Kay Martin said...

Fitting in with the norm of society has always been an issue for the totally committed Christian. Knowing that Jesus said He spits out lukewarm keeps me wanting to be "hot" with my love for Him. If that blackballs me off lists of "in" people in my society ... so be it. I never want Jesus to be offended by me and my stand with Him.

Great words.