Daniel 3:12b

PASSAGE: Daniel 3:12b - "These men, O king, pay no attention to you; they do not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”

PAUSE: There are times when governing authorities might demand that Christians do things that are directly opposed to the clear tenets of our faith. This is when courageous faith in God must be displayed. For the Israelites in exile in Babylon this became a real situation! King Nebuchadnezzar set up a golden image and demanded that all bow down and worship it or else be cast into a fiery furnace. This directly violated the first two of the Ten Commandments: You shall have no other gods before me. And You shall not make for yourself a carved image…you shall not bow down to them or serve them. (see Exodus 20:3-5). This created a line that these three men could not cross. So, in an act of courageous faith and obedience to God they refused to bow down. And they proclaimed their faith in God and that they would obey Him whether He delivered them from the fiery furnace or not. Friends, may we have the discernment to recognize when lines are created that we cannot cross and may we have the courage to trust and obey God with the results!

PRAYER: Lord, I want to be faithful to be subject to governing authorities. But if the time ever comes that I need to choose between God and government give me the courage to obey You! Amen.