Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego - They Don't Like Us Very Much

Daniel 3:7-12 Therefore, as soon as they heard the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp and all kinds of music, all the peoples, nations and men of every language fell down and worshiped the image of gold that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up. At this time some astrologers came forward and denounced the Jews. They said to King Nebuchadnezzar, "O king, live forever! You have issued a decree, O king, that everyone who hears the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes and all kinds of music must fall down and worship the image of gold, and that whoever does not fall down and worship will be thrown into a blazing furnace. But there are some Jews whom you have set over the affairs of the province of Babylon—Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego—who pay no attention to you, O king. They neither serve your gods nor worship the image of gold you have set up."

So all the people in the kingdom are going to bow down to this stupid idol the king had put so much time, effort and money into building. Isn't it ironic how the more foolish something seems to be, the more people seem to fall for it? What benefit does it serve to melt down all that gold to build a nine foot high statue? Surely there were people in the kingdom that could've used that money. Starving children, destitute widows, orphans and more. Nonetheless, when the music started, practically everyone bowed.

Everyone except - those three servant boys that were brought over a few years back. These boys would not bow. They wouldn't bend, wouldn't sway, wouldn't break. I don't believe this was an easy decision for these boys to make. Sure, they knew that God was the only One they would worship, but in making this decision - they put all Jews in jeopardy.
It makes me think of those Jews that were hiding in Nazi Germany. If one person made a move, one sound, the whole family would be found out and this would mean death. What a huge amount of pressure on a young person.

It works the same way with Christianity. If we stand up for what we believe in, Christians - as a whole - may be mocked, mistreated and hated. Many issues lie on the forefront where we must stand up based on our faith in Christ - Marriage of homosexuals, abortion, legalizing prostitution. . . If we waiver, if we do not stand up for what is right according to God, people will continue to bow down to these other idols - never knowing our one true God. We should take that risk - we should accept the consequences for other Christians who take that risk and support them. We should not be angry at those people who agree with the issues that go against what Jesus taught - we should love them and work hard at educating them on the love of Jesus. There is one person behind all of this - Satan, he is our enemy.