In the book of Daniel, we read the account of three Hebrew young men who were taken captive to Babylon, had their names changed to Shadrack, Meshack, and Abednego, and were commanded to bow down and worship a golden statue of Nebuchadnezzar. Their resistance meant facing the wrath of the king and being thrown into a furnace of fire.
They refused to bow to the statue, saying, “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” (Daniel 3:17-18).
They refused to serve the gods of the Babylonians nor bow down to the statue of gold, and so they were bound and thrown into the fire. The fire was so hot it killed the soldiers who threw the three Hebrew men into the fire.
God performed a miracle to keep the three Hebrew men from being burned, and they walked out of the furnace, having lost only that which bound them. They were freed in the fire, and free when they came out.
But the most significant point of the story is what the King, who had thrown the men into the fire, saw when he looked into the 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’” (Daniel 3:24-25).
The Son of God, Jesus Christ Himself, had gone into the fire to rescue these three Hebrews and brought them out safely.
The Hebrew men had their minds, hearts, and eyes set on God before they went into the fire, so they were content to face death; they did not resist the persecution. And in the fire, they saw Jesus, the Son of God, face to face. Jesus saved them and set them free.
About six hundred years later, the Son of God went into another fire, the fire of God’s wrath against sin. He went to a criminal’s cross and was baptized by fire as He endured not only the beatings of the Romans and the mockings of the Jewish leaders but also the intense hatred of a holy God against our sin. This time, the fire of God’s wrath completely consumed Jesus, and in so doing, it set us free. All who believe are free from sin’s penalty, free from guilt, and are being freed from sin’s power. We come to the cross, watch the fire consuming the Son of God, and we are content to face the temporary hardships and calamities of this life because we know that not one spark of that eternal fire of wrath will reach us; indeed, nothing of that fire even touches us.
“...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” (Daniel 3:27).
Just as Jesus entered the fire to rescue the three Hebrew young men, so He has entered the fire of God’s wrath to rescue you from it. He died in it and, at the same time, freed you from it. Now, find your contentment in Jesus and His finished work.