(Audio)
He ordered the furnace to be heated seven times more than usual
and had some of the strongest men in his army
bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego
and cast them into the white-hot furnace.
Now when the three are bound and thrown into the fiery furnace it would seem that this is the opposite of freedom. This is the world doing its worst to inflict pain and remove options. Most people would do whatever it takes to avoid this situation. They would bow down and worship whatever golden statue was the flavor of the weak. But Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego, are aware that true freedom can only come from God.
So if the Son frees you, then you will truly be free.
It is a foreshadowing of the Son that delivers the three to freedom.
"Did we not cast three men bound into the fire?"
"Assuredly, O king," they answered.
"But," he replied, "I see four men unfettered and unhurt,
walking in the fire, and the fourth looks like a son of God."
If we want freedom we won't find it by running away. We won't find it by giving in. We will only find it by trusting in God.
Jesus said to those Jews who believed in him,
"If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples,
and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
If we look at our lives we may recognize idols that we have adopted in order to protect us from the fire of purification in the holiness of God. We may see that we turn to them rather than surrendering our self will and going where God will be most glorified. Let us cast down those idols. Let us trust in the Son of God to make us free indeed.
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you (see Isaiah 43:2).
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