Sometimes in life it is as though we have been thrown into a fiery furnace. Life can be hard, and it is certainly tempting to take an easier path. But such paths lead away from God. Let us follow the example of three young men.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego were Daniel’s companions who were with him when he was taken into Babylonian captivity. Because the young men refused to worship an idol they were thrown into a fiery furnace. How God saved them and what this has to do with us today Chief Apostle Jean-Luc Schneider explained in a divine service in Cúcuta in Colombia on 15 February 2025.
Photos: INA Sud América
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God blesses faithfulness. “We know we belong to God,” the Chief Apostle said. “We do not want to follow the ways of this world. Let us model our lives on the law of God. And I will be completely honest: we have experienced this. We have experienced God’s blessing because we kept His commandments and remained faithful to Him.” But then …
Fiery trials. “One day, everything changed and suddenly we had to go through difficult times, hardship, and distress,” the Chief Apostle continued. “So, as we were taught, we prayed to God. However, nothing changed, and we had no explanation for it.”
And this is when evil started to add fuel to the fire: “You see, there is no point in following God. You know, in this difficult situation you could for once make an exception. If you decide to ignore God’s commandments, I can give you so much more. But if you stick to God’s will, you will end up with much less than others.”
And what is our answer? “I prefer to have less. I want to maintain my relationship with Jesus Christ. I love Him, which is why I obey His law. I do the will of God because I want to become like Jesus so that I can enter the kingdom of God.”
God is in the fiery furnace with us. “We can experience His presence and His help in the divine services. He talks to us there personally. And He tells us that He loves and understands us. He comforts and strengthens us. We can experience His presence in the celebration of Holy Communion. Even though He may not give us what we ask for, He still answers our prayers. We can experience His nearness in the fellowship of God’s children and in the small miracles of everyday life.”
When trials end. “Then you will experience what the three young men experienced. It was a terribly difficult time, but your relationship with God did not suffer. Your faith was strengthened. Your love for Jesus became deeper. You did not accuse anybody. You were even willing to forgive. There was no bitterness, no anger, but peace and joy,” the Chief Apostle said. And once we are in the kingdom of God, we will not even remember what we went through on earth.
Being a blessing for others. The Chief Apostle went on to say, “Let us show others that it is possible to fulfil God’s will even in terrible situations. This way, we can help them understand that the promises of the evil one are not true and show them how blessed we are by following God. And in doing so, we will become a great blessing in the kingdom of peace, teaching all nations and all people how great God is, how great His love is, and how great His help is. Brothers and sisters, this is our future.”
And this is exactly what the Bible text from Daniel 3: 28, which the service was based on, describes: “Nebuchadnezzar spoke, saying, ‘Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, who sent His Angel and delivered His servants who trusted in Him, and they have frustrated the king’s word, and yielded their bodies, that they should not serve nor worship any god except their own God!’”