Fiery Devotion | Morning Routine Daily Devotional for February 3

Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the door of the burning fiery furnace; he declared, “Shadrach, Meshach, and…

Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the door of the burning fiery furnace; he declared, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out, and come here!” Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out from the fire. And the satraps, the prefects, the governors, and the king’s counselors gathered together and saw that the fire had not had any power over the bodies of those men. The hair of their heads was not singed, their cloaks were not harmed, and no smell of fire had come upon them. Nebuchadnezzar answered and said, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent his angel and delivered his servants, who trusted in him, and set aside the king’s command, and yielded up their bodies rather than serve and worship any god except their own God.Daniel 3:26-28 ESV

The book of the prophet Daniel was written after the Israelites were conquered by the Babylonians. Daniel was one of four Judeans educated in Babylon. We tend to remember the other three by their given Babylonian names, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. While their allegiance was to the Lord, the four served Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Babylonians. As you can imagine, their loyalty to the Lord was tested on many occasions.

In Daniel 3, Nebuchadnezzar builds a statue of gold that the people were obligated to worship at his command. If anyone refused to bow to the statue, they were sent to be burned in a furnace. While Daniel was away in the king’s court, the decree to worship came to the people. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were then faced with a decision: they could bow and worship an idol (and live!) or honor the Lord (and die!). Disregarding their lives, they refused to bow, and so proved faithful to God. When they faced the consequence of their loyalty to the Lord—being thrown into the furnace—the unthinkable happened: They were not burned at all. Though they were thrown into the fire all bound up, they now walked around in the fire unbound. And if this doesn’t give you goosebumps, what happens next will: Three men were thrown in, and yet four men are walking in the furnace! (The fourth, whose appearance is described as ‘like a son of the gods,’ is commonly thought to be the pre-incarnate Christ). The three who went in are brought out, not even smelling like smoke! 

Today’s application can be summed up in the last line of the passage: they “yielded up their bodies rather than serve and worship any god except their own God.” We’re over a month into the new year already and activities, responsibilities, commitments are increasing. You’re likely being pulled in all sorts of directions. Let me encourage you, pause today, at this moment, and rededicate yourself to the only one worthy of your devotion, worthy of your worship! May our devotion to the Lord burn hot, no matter the cost.