Gospel of Peace
Week #5
Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego’s whole-hearted living gained them positions of favor with King Cyrus. However, it led to jealousy among the other high-ranking officials. We soon see them trying to drive Daniel and his friends from power. When King Nebuchadnezzar has a large statue constructed in his image and decrees that everyone is required to worship it, the officials make sure to point out that the Jews are unwilling to do so. King Nebuchadnezzar immediately threatens Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego with a fiery furnace.
Read Daniel 3:13-30
Furious with rage, Nebuchadnezzar summoned Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. So these men were brought before the king, and Nebuchadnezzar said to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the image of gold I have set up? Now when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of music, if you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very good. But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?”
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, “King 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 deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”
Then Nebuchadnezzar was furious with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, and his attitude toward them changed. He ordered the furnace heated seven times hotter than usual and commanded some of the strongest soldiers in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and throw them into the blazing furnace. So these men, wearing their robes, trousers, turbans and other clothes, were bound and thrown into the blazing furnace. The king’s command was so urgent and the furnace so hot that the flames of the fire killed the soldiers who took up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, and these three men, firmly tied, fell into the blazing furnace.
Then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisers, “Weren’t there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?”
They replied, “Certainly, Your Majesty.”
He said, “Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.”
Nebuchadnezzar then approached the opening of the blazing furnace and shouted, “Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!”
So Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out of the fire, and the satraps, prefects, governors and royal advisers crowded around them. They saw that the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor was a hair of their heads singed; their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them.
Then Nebuchadnezzar said, “Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who has sent his angel and rescued his servants! They trusted in him and defied the king’s command and were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God. Therefore I decree that the people of any nation or language who say anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego be cut into pieces and their houses be turned into piles of rubble, for no other god can save in this way.”
Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the province of Babylon.
Jealous officials will later attempt to force Daniel out of favor with another king, King Darius. Unable to find him guilty of any abuse of power, the officials convince King Darius to make a decree that no one is allowed to pray to anyone other than him for 30 days. After learning of the decree, Daniel responds in the same way that he has been responding for decades—He turns to God in prayer.
Read Daniel 6:13-24
Then they said to the king, “Daniel, who is one of the exiles from Judah, pays no attention to you, Your Majesty, or to the decree you put in writing. He still prays three times a day.” When the king heard this, he was greatly distressed; he was determined to rescue Daniel and made every effort until sundown to save him.
Then the men went as a group to King Darius and said to him, “Remember, Your Majesty, that according to the law of the Medes and Persians no decree or edict that the king issues can be changed.”
So the king gave the order, and they brought Daniel and threw him into the lions’ den. The king said to Daniel, “May your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you!”
A stone was brought and placed over the mouth of the den, and the king sealed it with his own signet ring and with the rings of his nobles, so that Daniel’s situation might not be changed. Then the king returned to his palace and spent the night without eating and without any entertainment being brought to him. And he could not sleep.
At the first light of dawn, the king got up and hurried to the lions’ den. When he came near the den, he called to Daniel in an anguished voice, “Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to rescue you from the lions?”
Daniel answered, “May the king live forever! My God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me, because I was found innocent in his sight. Nor have I ever done any wrong before you, Your Majesty.”
The king was overjoyed and gave orders to lift Daniel out of the den. And when Daniel was lifted from the den, no wound was found on him, because he had trusted in his God.
At the king’s command, the men who had falsely accused Daniel were brought in and thrown into the lions’ den, along with their wives and children. And before they reached the floor of the den, the lions overpowered them and crushed all their bones.
Discussion Questions
Opening:
What stands out to you in these stories about Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego?
Core Question #1:
How does Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego’s response to King Nebuchadnezzar—that God can deliver them from the fiery furnace, through the fiery furnace, or by the fiery furnace—illustrate the ‘gospel of peace’?
Core Question #2:
Daniel takes the same stance when he faces the threat of imminent death in a lion’s den. How does Daniel’s story illustrate ‘feet fitted’ with an inability to walk backward?
Core Question #3:
In My Utmost For His Highest, Oswald Chambers writes about the importance of preparing for times of trial:
“Our battles are first won or lost in the secret places of our will in God's presence, never in full view of the world. The Spirit of God seizes me, and I am compelled to get alone with God and fight the battle before Him. Until I do this, I will lose every time.”
Do you believe this to be true? Why or why not?
Core Question #4:
What impact does Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego’s whole-hearted, undivided living have on the people around them?
Concluding Question:
What is peace? What does it look like? What does it feel like?