Victory in the Fire – Daniel 3:15

Victory in the Fire

Daniel 3:15  “Now if ye be ready that at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, ye fall down and worship the image which I have made; well : but if ye worship not, ye shall be cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace; and who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?

Introduction:

  1. All of us have an IDENTITY.
    1. One of the first things asked when stopped by a police officer is your ID
    2. We have PASSPORTS to IDENTIFY us.

2) Our IDENTITY involves much more than our names and physical characteristics.  Our IDENTITY also involves our CHARACTER.

4) Our relationship with the LORD affects that CHARACTER.

5) The Book of Daniel shows us the SPIRITUAL IDENTITY of Daniel and these other Godly men.

6) As believers we are to LEARN from these men:

a) They can HELP us.

b) They can STRENGTHEN us.

c) They can ENCOURAGE us.

d) They can TEACH US valuable lessons.

Last Week:

We looked at Daniel 3.

My message was entitled; “Walking Through The Fire.”

We looked at the story surrounding King Nebuchadnezzar, his 90/ft tall golden stature, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, and a fiery furnace.

My Text this Week:

Daniel 3:15  “Now if ye be ready that at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, ye fall down and worship the image which I have made; well : but if ye worship not, ye shall be cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace; and who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?

Again:

…and who is that God that shall deliver you?

This Week:

  • The FIRE represents any number of things the Child of God may face.
  • The FIRE could be an employment or financial crisis, a difficult / life changing circumstance, a failure in a relationship, an accident or injury, some life changing disease, or a loved ones death.
  • The FIRE could represent a very challenge to our faith.

I am a child of God – How can this be happening to me? / Why am I going through this?

There is VICTORY to be had in that FIRE.

And GOD will be the REASON for that VICTORY.

1) The FIRE is REAL.

Daniel 3:15 “…but if ye worship not, ye shall be cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace…”

What these men faced was the REAL DEAL.

The FIRE can have effects on us:

PHYSICALLY, MENTALLY, EMOTIONALLY, and SPIRITUALLY.

 

What we face is the real deal and can shake us to our very core.

RELATIONSHIPS – Trust is broken

SPIRITUAL – affects our FAITH

2) The FIRE requires FAITH.

Daniel 3:17-18 “If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. [18] But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.”

The FIRE requires a lot out of us: physically, mentally, emotionally

VICTORY in the FIRE requires a “NO MATTER WHAT” kind of FAITH.

See verse [18]: “…But if not…”

3) In the FIRE there were BLESSINGS.

Daniel 3:27 “And the princes, governors, and captains, and the king’s counsellors, being gathered together, saw these men, upon whose bodies the fire had no power, nor was an hair of their head singed, neither were their coats changed, nor the smell of fire had passed on them.”

  • Some BLESSINGS that can only be had by going through the FIRE.
  • The POWER of the FIRE is DIMINISHED. “…the fire had no power…”
  • The discussion was no longer what the fire could do but what it could not do.
  • The smallest things can become the biggest things (the smell??).

4) In the FIRE the FOCUS CHANGED.

Daniel 3:24-25 “Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonied, and rose up in haste, and spake, and said unto his counsellors, Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? They answered and said unto the king, True, O king. [25] He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.

  • The GOD of the BLESSINGS became the FOCUS, and not the FIRE.
  • The STORY was changed when God showed up.

1 Peter 1:7  That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:

Daniel 3:15 “…and who is that God that shall deliver you…”