But if Not
The preparations were complete. It was to be a grand and glorious unveiling of a magnificent statue commissioned by King Nebuchadnezzar himself. The musicians assembled, tuned their instruments, and sat ready, waiting for the cue to play their first note. The crowd assembled was a noble group, made up of princes, governors, captains, judges, treasurers, counsellors, sheriffs, and rulers of the many provinces which formed the vast Babylonian empire.
Finally, it was time. A royal herald stood before the crowd, speaking loudly so that all would hear their instructions. For, you see, this was not any ordinary statue. This statue was to be worshipped.
“To you it is commanded O people, nations, and languages, That at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltry, dulcimer, and all kinds of music, ye fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath set up: And whoso falleth not down and worshippeth shall the same hour be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace.” (Daniel 3:4-7)
The musicians looked at each other: this was their cue. As they played their first note, the whole multitude fell down on their faces to worship the golden image in an impressive wave of motion. But wait, what was that over there? Three men were still standing.
Could they be deaf? Or perhaps they had been distracted when the instructions were given? Didn’t they know that the penalty for not worshipping the statue was a painful and tortuous death? Surely, there must be some mistake.
The men were brought before Nebuchadnezzar, who was enraged at this blatant rebellion against his royal command. Despite his anger, he gave them one more chance, with an unmistakable ultimatum: when the music plays, bow down to the image, or be thrown into the fiery furnace.
The three men, whom the king knew as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered the king with a calm assurance:
“O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter. If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.” (vv.16-17)
You may be familiar with the rest of this account: the three men are indeed thrown into the fiery furnace, which Nebuchadnezzar had commanded to be made so hot that the men who threw them in died as they did so.
Just as the three men had told the king, God did rescue them, sending a pre-incarnate Jesus to loose their bonds and walk with them in the furnace, much to the astonishment of king Nebuchadnezzar and his court. In the end, Nebuchadnezzar acknowledged the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego as being more powerful than any other god, and promoted the three faithful men to a higher position in his government.
If you’re like me, you read this account in Daniel 3 and are inspired to stand for the Lord in the face of opposition, refusing to worship the world’s idols at any cost. But, if you’re like me, you also then go about your daily life as if the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego asked only for obedience in such dire circumstances as theirs.
It is so easy to forget that obedience to God is a day by day, moment by moment choice to stand for God in the mundane as well as the heroic instances of life.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego had been taken from their homes and families when still quite young (see Daniel 1) and had been surrounded by the evil influences of a wicked pagan society. How did they have the strength of character to stand when everyone else knelt? How could they calmly bring upon themselves the king’s wrath and its consequences without giving in to their fear?
The heroic is built upon the foundation of the ordinary. When we see men and women in the Bible who choose to do right at the one crucial moment when everything and everyone seems against them, we see the fruit that comes from daily obedience.
Obedience is like any other action: it improves with practice. But the obedience of these three men is not their only outstanding quality. Read their response to the king again and notice their unshakable trust:
““O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter. If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.” (vv.16-17)
To me, the most remarkable part of this speech is the phrase but if not. How many times do we express our faith in terms of God not doing what we expect Him to? And yet, these men were able to confidently declare God’s power to deliver them, while also acknowledging the fact that He might choose not to use that power on their behalf. Whether or not God did what they wanted Him to made no difference to their obedience.
We often think people have great faith when they say things like “I’m believing God for this (whatever the thing is), so I know it will happen.” While we can fully trust God to act in accordance with His perfect will, we have no control over Him.
The strongest faith does not rest upon some kind of assurance that God will do our bidding, but is able to trust God with any outcome, knowing that all will be made to work together for our good and His glory. (Romans 8:28)
True faith marches under the banner of “but if not.” When we are trusting God, deliverance from danger, pain, or difficulty does not determine whether or not we will obey. The obedience that flows from a heart of faith chooses to obey moment by moment, leaving everything else to the perfect wisdom and sovereignty of God, trusting that,
“Faithful is He that calleth you, who also will do it.” (1 Thessalonians 5:24)
This is the faith of Enoch, who walked with God, of Noah, who worked on the ark day after day, year after year until he completed the task God had given him. It is the faith of Abraham, trudging through the desert mile after mile, not even knowing where God was leading him to. It is the faith of prophets and martyrs, housewives and laborers.
It is the faith of those who choose the path of simple obedience,
“looking unto Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2)
As a woman, I know that God designed me to be a wife and mother, but as a single woman, I live my life day to day under the “but if not” of singleness. I know that God is glorified by my singleness when it produces a life of obedient, focused service, and I can trust Him with this, as well as every other aspect of my life, because I know that He is wholly good, wise, loving, and powerful. I trust Him to do what is right.
Just like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, you and I are called to live our lives committed to love and obedience, regardless of the situations we find ourselves in. And as we go about our daily lives, may the cry of your heart and mine be:
He is able to do it, He may do it, but if not, I will love and obey Him just the same.
My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.” (James 1:2-4)