We’re living in a time where government is growing in power and scope at an alarming rate. Its reaction to the COVID-19 outbreak has been far from tame. Instead, governments have resorted to trampling on peoples rights with aggressive restrictions on personal travel and businesses. This is all being done in the name of safety. But is it okay to abdicate our freedom in exchange for safety? Benjamin Franklin thought it was a poor trade-off that would result in receiving neither of the two.
Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety. – Benjamin Franklin
Don’t get me wrong, precautions should be taken. We should be careful. But we should also be careful with how government reacts. Already we’re seeing people that are not happy with the restrictions. Protests are springing up across the country. People are being jailed because they simply opened up their businesses against government orders. A trip to the park has seen people get arrested in front of their own children. When is enough, enough?
This reminds me of three men in the Bible that defied the government’s order. Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon had made an image of gold, and decreed that everyone must bow down and worship it.
That at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, ye fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath set up: – Daniel 3:5
What a harsh decree by the king. Imagine if that were to happen today. Our current circumstances certainly don’t look as bad, but it doesn’t mean we should be complacent. The king had ordered everyone to bow down and worship this image. But among the people there were three brave men that believed in God and were not willing to worship an idol. These three men were Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
These three men were a few among many. The king was ruling with an iron fist and no one was willing to stand up. They all obeyed his orders without question. But, these three men had the faith and conviction to take a stand. They defied his orders because they knew who their God was and that only He was worthy of worship.
Today we need to take a stand like these three men. I’m not talking about purely political stances but stances in our spiritual life. We have to remember that our battle isn’t against people, but against spiritual forces. That’s something we have to remember especially in times where division and tensions are high.
For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. – Ephesians 6:12
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego’s defiance infuriated the king. He immediately demanded that they be brought to him. When they had been brought in to see him, he asked them, “Is it true… do not ye serve my gods, nor worship the golden image which I have set up?” He continued by saying, “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?”
This was a critical moment for these three men. This was an opportunity for them to reconsider their stance. Would they back down? They did not. Instead, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego stood firm. They pressed forward even with the threat of imminent death being presented to them. There was no going back. They had defied the king but in doing so, they had honored God and God honors those that honor Him.
Wherefore the Lord God of Israel saith, I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before me for ever: but now the Lord saith, Be it far from me; for them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed. – 1 Samuel 2:30
Nebuchadnezzar threw these men into the furnace and in his fury he commanded them to heat the furnace seven times hotter. Death was but a sure thing for the three men. But God had seen their faithfulness. Perhaps, in the eyes of the world these three men had defied the laws of the land. But in God’s eyes, they had done the right thing. Because of this, God didn’t abandon them.
Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonished, 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. 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. – Daniel 3:24-25
The king was astonished when he looked inside the furnace and noticed, not three, but four men. God was with these three brave men. The Bible says that Nebuchadnezzar called them out and blessed their God. There example impacted many that day and it continues to have an impact to this day. It reminds us that we are not alone. We can make the decision today to not bow down before the enemy, but to maintain our allegiance to God.
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