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December 4 - Daniel 3 · A Chapter a Day Bible Reading

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  Hello friends, it's Sean here. It's Thursday the 4th of
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  December and I'm so grateful that you have invited me into
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  your day so that you and I can take this moment and continue
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  reading this awesome book of Daniel.
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  And today the story continues. And you have probably heard the
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  story from when you were little, and when you were little, the
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  message was very simple. The message was God is in
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  control and you need to honour God.
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  But I think we're probably a bit beyond that now.
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  And we can listen for a bit of nuance.
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  We can listen to how often we find ourselves in these really
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  powerless situations and we feel as though there's no opportunity
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  for us to have any agency. But still God is suffering and
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  still God offers us a way that we can be faithful to him and he
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  can care for us. So Holy Spirit, as we hear your
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  word today, open our hearts and our minds that we can really
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  understand your truth shared with us, our friends.
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  And as well as all that, they are just bangers of stories.
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  So let's enjoy them as we read together Daniel chapter 3.
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  King Nebuchadnezzar made a gold statue 90 feet tall and 9 feet
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  wide and set it up on the plain of Jura in the province of
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  Babylon. Then he sent messages to the
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  high offices, officials, governors, advisers, treasurers,
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  judges, magistrates and all the provincial officials to come to
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  the dedication of the statue he had set up.
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  So all these officials came and stood before the statue King
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  Nebuchadnezzar had set up. Then herald shouted out people
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  of all races and nations and languages.
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  Listen to the King's command when you hear the sound of the
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  horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes, and other musical
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  instruments bowed to the ground to worship King Nebuchadnezzar's
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  gold statue. Anyone who refuses to obey will
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  immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace.
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  So at the sound of the musical instruments, all the people,
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  whatever their race or nation or language, bowed to the ground
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  and worshipped the gold statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had set
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  up. But some of the astrologers went
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  to the king and informed on the Jews.
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  They said to King Nebuchadnezzar, Long live the
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  king. You issued A decree requiring
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  all the people to bow down and worship the gold statue when
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  they hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp,
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  pipes, and other musical instruments.
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  That decree also states that those who refuse to obey must be
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  thrown into a blazing furnace. But there are some Jews,
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  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, whom you have put in charge of
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  the province of Babylon. They pay no attention to you,
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  your Majesty. They refuse to serve your gods
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  and do not worship the gold statue you have set up.
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  Then Nebuchadnezzar flew into a rage and ordered that Shadrach,
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  Meshach, and Abednego be brought before him.
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  When they were brought in, Nebuchadnezzar said to them, Is
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  it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you refuse to
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  serve my gods or to worship the gold statue I have set up?
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  I will give you one more chance to bow down and worship the
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  statue I have made when you hear the sound of the musical
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  instruments. But if you refuse, you will be
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  thrown immediately into the blazing furnace, and then what
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  God will be able to rescue you from my power?
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  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied.
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  O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you.
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  If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God whom we
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  serve is able to save us. He will rescue us from your
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  power, Your Majesty. But even if he doesn't, we want
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  to make it clear to you, Your Majesty, that we will never
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  serve your gods or worship the gold statue you have set up.
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  Nebuchadnezzar was so furious with Shadrach, Meshach, and
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  Abednego that his face became distorted with rage.
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  He commanded that the furnace be heated 7 times hotter than
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  usual. Then he ordered some of the
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  strongest men of his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and
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  Abednego and throw them into the blazing furnace.
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  So they tied them up and threw them into the furnace, fully
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  dressed in their pants, turbans, robes, and other garments.
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  And because the king in his anger had demanded such a hot
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  fire in the furnace, the flames killed the soldiers as they
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  threw the three men in. Sir Shadrach, Meshach, and
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  Abednego, securely tied, fell into the roaring flames.
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  But suddenly Nebuchadnezzar jumped up in amazement and
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  exclaimed to his advisers. Didn't we tie up three men and
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  throw them into the furnace? Yes, your majesty, we certainly
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  did, they replied. Look, Nebuchadnezzar shouted.
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  I see four men unbound walking around in the fire, unharmed,
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  and the fourth looks like a God. Then Nebuchadnezzar came as
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  close as he could to the door of the flaming furnace and shouted.
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  Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, servants of the Most High God,
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  come out. Come here.
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  So Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego stepped out of the
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  fire. Then the high officers,
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  officials, governors, and advisers crowded around them and
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  saw that the fire had not touched them, Not a hair on
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  their heads was singed, and their clothing was not scorched.
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  They didn't even smell of smoke. Then Nebuchadnezzar said.
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  Praise the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
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  He sent his Angel to rescue his servants who trusted in him.
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  They defied the King's command and were willing to die rather
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  than serve or worship any God except their own God.
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  Therefore, I make this decree, if any people, whatever their
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  race or nation or language, speak a word against the God of
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  Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, they will be torn, live from
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  limb, and their houses will be turned into heaps of rubble.
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  There is no God who can rescue like this.
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  Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to even
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  higher positions in the province of Babylon.
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  Our Lord, I wonder in our lives what are the gold statues that
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  the world is telling us to bow down and worship of?
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  Lord, whatever those things are in our lives, be it careers, be
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  it friendship, be it our own success, be it sporting
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  achievement or competition of any kind, be it comfort, be it
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  hedonism, be it whatever it is, Lord, that we are told or
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  tempted to place higher than you.
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  But I pray that it would bear down before You, for even a 90
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  foot gold statue would be comically dwarfed beside you,
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  the universe creating God who we worship.
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  But Lord, that's going to be tricky for us to do on our own.
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  So we need Your help. Transform our hearts away from
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  the adulterous hearts that our sinful nature has placed in our
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  chests. And may they be Your hearts
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  transformed, purified by fire, like Shadrach, Meshach and
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  Abednego were proven to be holy and faithful to you.
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  May we too, we love you. And we are so grateful for all
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  that you do for us, for the daily provisions, but more
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  importantly, your endless patience and work transforming
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  us. Oh, we are so grateful.
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  Here we are. Your unfinished projects
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  continue your work on us. They pray all of this in your
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  precious name, Jesus, Amen.