Reading… and Thinking

Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up."

– Daniel 3:16-18 (NIV)

The living God is able to save people out of trouble; His power is unlimited, and He can intervene in any way He chooses. And yet, He does not always intervene to save His people.

Peter was brought out of prison on the eve of his execution. But a little earlier, James was executed. Elijah was fed by ravens and sustained in the wilderness, and Jeremiah was saved out of the cistern, but other prophets were killed by rulers who didn't like their message. Paul was stoned, but got up and went about his work (probably a resurrection, but at least a miracle of healing). But Stephen died and was not raised. In the letters to the churches in Revelation, Jesus tells Smyrna that they are going to suffer at the hands of their enemies, but promises Philadelphia that he will protect them when their enemies try to harm them.

Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego are aware of this paradox. God is able to save – nothing is too hard for Him. And if He chooses, He could easily save them out of the furnace. The real declaration of the faith of these men comes in the next sentence. Even if He does not choose to save them at this time, they still will be faithful and will not dishonor Him by bowing to a false god.

For the most part, God does not overtly intervene to overturn the free will of men. He gave us truly free will to choose, and some choose evil. The evil includes doing harm to faithful people.

So what is the difference? What causes God to intervene on some occasions, and not others? He intervenes for two reasons: first, to demonstrate that He is able to save; and second, if He has additional work in mind for someone to do. But we need to recognize that the "normal" situation is for free will to be truly free. With all the consequences that follow.

This seems unfair. We need to keep in mind that God's standard is not fairness: it is justice. And there will be justice! God will save His people, forever – and that's what truly matters. And He will call to account those who abuse His people. We need to elevate our perspective and look at it from God's point of view. As Paul says, "This light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison." (2 Corinthians 4:17, ESV)

We sometimes have a hard time with this, but Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego are great examples for us. They were three regular people, who would not compromise their integrity. And the Lord delivered them. Whether He delivered them on the spot or not wasn't the critical thing – the eternal is what matters.

It proved to be His will to deliver them right away in this case, and we can take this incident as a demonstration that our God is able to save us out of death. We learn the lesson from this account that He has power over life and death, and more than that, He wants life for His servants. So His promise of life is trustworthy – He will grant it to us, forever, as He has promised. We can therefore have the confidence to remain faithful to Him even in the most extreme circumstances, knowing that He will deliver us. If now, wonderful; but even if not now, He will certainly grant us the eternal deliverance that matters most.