Daniel 3: But If Not

As children, many of us learned the story about Daniel's three friends being thrown into the fiery furnace.  But it is more than a child's tale.  It speaks volumes about the world in Daniel's time and our world today.  It's all about where you put your trust.  In Daniel's time, under the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, trust was put in the king and in gold.  All of the leaders:  the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates, members of the supreme court, members of congress, members of the federal reserve, and secretaries of the various departments, all knew that their future and success depended on the government and so it was easy for them to worship the god of gold.

Not so Daniel's three friends, Shadrach, Meshhach and Abednego.  They put their trust in God alone.  So, as expected, they were turned in by the officials and taken before Nebuchadnezzar who was furious with rage.  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, pipes 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?"  - Dan. 14-15 NIV

But, even when faced with the threat of certain death, they saw no need to apologize. Their response to the king was:  "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." - Dan. 3:16-18 NIV

The King James version puts it this way. 'But if not, ..."  But if not, no matter what the consequences, if we lose our job, if we lose our house, if we lose our life, we will not bow down to any other god.  We will never confess that there is any higher authority than our God.  We are confident that the God we serve can deliver us, but if not...