FAITH OF SHADRACH, MESHACH, AND ABEDNEGO

Daniel 3:15-25; James 1:6

September 20, 2026 – SUN a.m.

     Let us study the kind of faith of three friends of Daniel. 

     Let us open, James 1:6 “But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.”

Notice the phrase “But let him ask” 

     The context is asking in faith for wisdom. 

     The verb “ask” (in Greek “aiteo”) is in the present imperative, signifying a continual command to believers who desire God to answer their prayer for wisdom in the midst of trials. The verb “ask” is singular rather than plural, emphasizing that each individual believer must personally meet this requirement. No one can rely upon the faith of another; every child of God must come to the Father personally, asking with confidence and trust.

Notice the added words “in faith”

     Asking in faith means asking without doubt, nothing wavering, not trusting the Lord or not but we should be confident trusting God as we pray. 

     The words “ask in faith” is the persuasion that God can and will give James begins and ends with faith. (compare Matthew 7:7 “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:”; Hebrews 11:6 “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.”). We cannot hope to obtain any favor from God if there is not faith in regard to the wisdom necessary to guide us, in order for us to be we sure that it is in accordance with the will of God to grant it to us, so that we may come to God with the utmost confidence, the most entire assurance, that it will be granted. 

     There are different aspects of faith and we have different words for them. But often those different aspects of faith are all incorporated in this one Greek word “pistis” (faith). It is trusting. A person needs faith to be saved, and we are saved by faith. But after we got saved, God wants us to trust Him every moment.

     The background of the story (Daniel chapter 3):

Daniel 3:16-18 “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter. ¹⁷ 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. ¹⁸ 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.”

King Nebuchadnezzar built a gold statue of an idols that he believed was worthy of worship. Then king Nebuchadnezzar called and gathered all the government officials to the dedication service for this golden statue, and the three friends of Daniel was included. This service was more of a combination political and religious rally. When the music began, everybody was commanded to bow and worship this golden image (v.5). Whosoever refused to bow down, would be tossed in a fiery furnace as ordered by the king (v.6). And when everybody bowed down (v.7), the three friends of Daniel refused to bow down and worship because they don’t want to worship other than Jehovah God (v.12). When everyone bowed down, these three Hebrew children were seen and were brought before the king and these three Daniel’s friends had to answer the king (v.13). And the king was furious (v.13). Now, the king gave them a second chance and if they refuse the second time around, they would be cast into the fiery furnace (v.14-15), that the king would turn up the heat seven times harder than the normal heat (v.19). But, these three friends of Daniel were godly and courageous men and faithful to Jehovah God (v.17-18). These three Daniel’s friends were determined to honor God whatever the price, the cost and the consequence

   I – FIRMNESS IN POSITION

Daniel 3:16 “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter.”

     Notice the words “answered and said to the king.”

Though Shadrach, Meshack and Abednego were firm but they did it in a respectful manner. They neither reviled the monarch nor his gods. They used no reproachful words respecting the image which the king had set up, or any of the idols which he worshipped. Nor did the three Hebrew young men complain of his injustice or severity. They calmly looked at their own duty, and resolved to do it, leaving the consequences with the God whom they worshipped.

     These three friends of Daniel were not anxious and were not in a hurry and were not eager to answer this king’s question, “who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?” (v.15), and the king was waiting for the answer.

     There is nothing to say. In essence they admit their guilt and thus make no attempt to defend themselves. These three friends of Daniel were not being arrogant. They were not saying, “We don’t have to tell you anything.” Instead, they were admitting that the charge against them was true; therefore, no defense or apology needed to be made. They were not eager or in a hurry to answer the question of the king Nebuchadnezzar because they already knew what the king would do for already told them the price, they would be cast into the fiery furnace.

     Such an answer by itself might be considered arrogant and disrespectful to the king; but coupled with the explanation, it is clear that they feel their case is not in their hands anyway. The pronoun "we," implying that it is the Lord Himself Who will deal with this king who thinks he is sovereign on earth.     

     Sometimes, we face circumstances in life not as terrible or awful as Meshack, Shadrach and Abednego faced. But sometimes in our lives we face fiery trial of furnaces because our faith is being tested. 

      Read Daniel 3:18 “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.” 

     Remember that these three young men had not read the end of the chapter yet and thus had no idea that God was about to miraculously deliver them. They had not received any special revelation promising their deliverance. In short, as they stood before the king, they knew they might truly die.

     Notice the words “But if not”, it means they were ready to burn rather than betray their God! Why? Because they had yielded their hearts to Him, which paved the way for them surrendering their physical bodies to Him for His purposes.

     These well-trained Hebrew lads undoubtedly knew God's clear command in Exodus 20:3-5, and were not prepared to bow to anyone but the Almighty. Beloved, when we know God's Word and obey God's Word, His Spirit will fortify us so that we too can be bold as a lion! God's commandments always include His enablement! Our obedience may not cost us our life, but it may cost us our job, some relationship, some possession (or desire for some possession), etc.

     They have that normal sense that they did not want to be cast into that fiery furnace. They did not want to answer the king to make the king angrier than he was already, but they are fully determined in their heart they had to answer the truth that God is the only One worthy to worship and not anyone or anything else. They could not worship this golden image. Firm in their conviction.

          Notice the words “we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image” 

The answer of Shadrach, Meshack, Abednego is firm and noble. It showed that their minds were made up, and that it was with them a matter of “principle” not to worship false gods. This verse shows us their mind determination to do their duty, whatever might be the consequences. The attention was fixed on what was “right,” not on what would be the result. The sole question which was asked was, what “ought” to be done in the case; and they had no concern about what would follow. True religion is a determined purpose to do right, and not to do wrong, whatever may be the consequences in either case. It matters not what follows - wealth or poverty; honor or dishonor; good report or evil report; life or death; the mind is firmly fixed on doing right, and not on doing wrong.

II – FAITH IN PRAYER

     The text does not say something, and we suppose that moments, the Shadrack, Meshack, Abednego talked to the Lord and said, “Lord help me. Give wisdom.” They just quickly prayed to the Lord seeking for the God’s guidance. That is exactly the right attitude of trusting God. That is the way how we should face difficulties and bring these burdens to the Lord whenever our faith is being tested, to ask for God’s wisdom.

      Read Daniel 3:17 “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.” 

     This verse contains the answer of the three friends of Daniel to the question of king Nebuchadnezzar. So, these three Hebrew children needed God’s help for they were facing a trial. But because they were men of prayer, so they acknowledged God is able to deliver them, and that they were going to honor God whether He delivered them from fiery furnace or not. These three Hebrews young men never know what God was going to do, just trusting God. That is exactly what will happen to us when we bring our burdens to the Lord in prayer. Like the three friends of Daniel, we always don’t know what God is going to do. The hymn "I Know Who Holds Tomorrow" was written by Ira F. Stanphill in 1950. It reflects a deep sense of faith and trust in God, emphasizing that while the future may be uncertain, it is held in His hands. The hymn begins with the lines: "I just live from day to day. For its skies may turn to gray. For He knows what is ahead. And I know who holds my hand." This hymn serves as a reminder of God's guidance and presence in our lives, even during times of uncertainty.  Faith in prayer for what God can do, for whatever God’s answer.

     “If it be so,” means 'Assuredly.' They are saying, if it be our lot to be cast into the furnace, our God (quoted from Isaiah 6:4 "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord”) is able to deliver us, (a reply to Nebuchadnezzar's challenge, Daniel 3:15 "Who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?") and God will deliver us, etc., either from death, or in death (II Timothy 4:17 “Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me, and strengthened me; that by me the preaching might be fully known, and that all the Gentiles might hear: and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion.”). They are saying, we trust God will, literally deliver us, but certainly God will do so.

     Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego answer the king’s challenge directly: “Our God...is able to deliver us.” There is no hesitation. They do not say God might possess enough power. They do not say they hope God is able because they know God is able. They do not deny the reality of the furnace, minimize the king's power, or presume upon God's will. They simply affirm that Nebuchadnezzar's power is no match for God's power.

     Trusting God doesn’t mean God is going to do what we told God to do because we have faith. No, God is not our servant, we are God’s servants. 

     So many Christians want to make deal with God. saying “Lord, I’ll stand up for you as long as I don’t lose my job, Lord, my friends don’t make fun of me, I still get that promotion, I don’t get in trouble with my boss, I can still have a successful career.” But God doesn’t make deals with anyone. God calls us to be faithful and we are called to leave the results with God. God doesn’t promise us an easy road if we decide to be faithful to Him. 

     When we pray, bringing our requests to the Lord, we leave our prayers on God’s mercy hand and we don’t know what will be the outcome and we are not sure what God will do with our requests. As we pray, we are hoping that God would bring deliverance and hoping God would provide happy results, but in reality, we don’t know what will be the outcome and we are not always happy. 

     What is the point? The point is that we are to pray, trusting that God is good no matter what is going to be the outcome. If we pray for something and God doesn’t bring it to pass, then we can pray trusting God will give us the grace and strength to accept His will, trusting God that we may endure whatever fiery furnace we are to face. So, we are to pray, trusting whatever the outcome of our prayer because God’s way is perfect, that He knows the best, that He is a wise God.  

          Speaking of what God can do, these young men knew that God could deliver them if that was His will because of what evidence of what hath done from the past. Like for example, these three Hebrew young men knew that "wisdom and power belong to Him" (Daniel 2:20) and that God had "granted Daniel (and them) favor" and that God had given "them knowledge and intelligence" (Daniel 1:17). We too need to be reminded of His past deliverances, so that we will be motivated and enabled to remain firm in our faith when the fiery trials and afflictions come upon us unexpectedly! An aid in remembering God's past presence and power in our lives is to keep a journal of His answers to prayer and a record of the times when God has delivered us in both "big" and "small" ways.

      Read Daniel 3:18 “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.” 

     We engage in a real spiritual battle, so we talk to the Lord regarding these situations, although we don’t know exactly what God is going to resolve the battle we are facing. But we still pray in spite of the situation, trusting that God’s answer is the best outcome. The Bible says in Isaiah 55:8-10 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. ⁹ For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.” God knows the beginning and the end, but we don’t know even if we pray to the Lord. We don’t know the outcome of the battle we are facing.

Notice the words “But if not” they want to say, “whether our God deliver us, as He is able, or do not, we will not serve thy gods.” Though God slays them, and would not protect them and not save them from the heated oven, they will still trust in Him, their determination is settled. These three young men knew God could save them but they knew God might have higher purposes in mind that would require their death. 

     Their deliverance from sinful idol worship was as great a miracle of grace as that from the furnace of nature. Their youth and position as captives and friendless exiles before the absolute world-potentate, and the horrid death awaiting them if they should persevere in their faith, but it’s all by the grace of God which carried them through.

     Jehoshaphat was the fourth and generally godly king of the southern Kingdom of Judah. His name means "Yahweh has judged". Jehoshaphat faced a very dangerous situation, being invaded by the Moabites and the Ammonites. These enemies came to battle against Jehoshaphat, so Jehoshaphat prayed to the Lord.

     Read the Jehoshaphat prayer in II Chronicles 20:12 “O our God, wilt thou not judge them? for we have no might against this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon thee.”

What a great example of humble prayer. Jehoshaphat was humble man, so he acknowledged the frailty, having no strength against their enemy, having no power, knowing not what to do, being ignorant, lack of wisdom how to handle the critical situation. Contrary to proudful spirit of king Nebuchadnezzar who regards himself as worthy of worship. 

     As a king, we expected Jehoshaphat knows always what to do, but he acknowledged and said “neither know we what to do”, he is saying that he did not always know what to do. And he did not know how the battle would turn out. The battle was fearful. Jehoshaphat like the three Daniel’s friends, was not anxious to face this enemy armies, but Jehoshaphat focus was on God, looking for God’s guidance, for wisdom, for deliverance, for grace and strength, trusting God’s hand for the outcome of the battle,          

     Proverbs 3:5 “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.” 

     We see that Daniel’s three friends and king Jehoshaphat trusted God and leaned not on their own understanding. They prayed to the Lord who is all-powerful, and able to give victory, able to deliver us, able to defeat our adversaries, but the truth is we do not know if he is going to do that or not. 

Daniel 3:17-18 “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. ¹⁸ 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.”

     Possible God has other plans and He knows what is best for us. We don’t always get what we pray but we should thank God always even if it is not the same of what we want, why? Because our prayers are not always what is good for us. God always think and desire whatever good for us and for His glory.

     The truth is we don’t know lot of things: We don’t know how the outcome of our prayers can be resolved, how to proceed our prayers, how to respond to circumstances. There are lot of things that we don’t know when we face trials, when we are facing a spiritual battle. But we know nothing of what to do during the spiritual battle but what we do know is that God is trustworthy, holy, just and good. As our adversary is coming, we should be trusting God moment by moment in our spiritual battle.

     Like Shadrack, Meshack, and Abednego we should be confident that if God doesn’t deliver us out of fiery furnace we face, God is able to deliver us through that fiery furnace. But if God allowed us to be in that fiery furnace, in spite we bring our burdens to the Lord, it means God wants us to be in that place for He knows what is good and best for us.

Conclusion: 

     How’s our attitude when we pray? How do we approach God and how do we desire to honor God, no matter what would be the outcome in our spiritual battle, leaving that outcome in His gracious and mercy hands.

     Whenever we pray, God not only can change circumstances that we face but more importantly, God change our heart attitude, learning to trust God no matter what!