King Nebuchadnezzar vs Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego

Easter Tuesday Old Testament Reading: Daniel 3:8-28

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were taken from their homeland to serve in a foreign king’s court.

They learned Babylon’s ways but never forgot their God.

When King Nebuchadnezzar built a massive golden idol and commanded everyone to worship it or die in a fiery furnace, they faced an impossible choice.

Standing tall while everyone else bowed down, they became instantly visible targets.

The king was furious: “Who is the god who will deliver you from my hand?”
Their response?

“Our God is able to deliver us… but even if He doesn’t, we still won’t worship your idol.”

When the king threw them into the superheated furnace, something miraculous happened.

God didn’t prevent their suffering — He joined them in it.

A fourth figure appeared in the flames.

The three emerged completely unharmed — not even smelling of smoke!

This story reveals something powerful about Christ’s grace: He doesn’t always prevent your trials, but He promises to be with you through them.

The king had to admit: “There is no other God who can rescue in this way.”

This same Jesus has rescued us from sin, death, and the devil. There is no other path to salvation.

Steve Andrews Jr is pastor of St. Matthew Lutheran Church in Lee’s Summit, MO.

#higherthings #lcms #lutheran #jesus

If you have questions or topics that you’d like discussed on Higher Things, email them to content@higherthings.org

Subscribe to our channel to get notifications when we go live: http://youtube.com/@HTgospel4all

To support the work of Higher Things®, visit https://higherthings.org/morehi/giving/

For more information about Higher Things, go to https://higherthings.org
——
Join the conversation on Social Media:

Prayer Requests