Reformation Sunday October 27, 2024

Reformation Sunday October 27, 2024

Reformation Sunday

October 27, 2024

Daniel 3:16-28

Live Like You’ll Live Forever—

Live a Life of Courageous Witness!

 

16Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. 17If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O King. 18But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”

19Then Nebuchadnezzar was furious with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, and his attitude toward them changed. He ordered the furnace heated seven times hotter than usual 20and commanded some of the strongest soldiers in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and throw them into the blazing furnace. 21So these men, wearing their robes, trousers, turbans and other clothes, were bound and thrown into the blazing furnace. 22The king’s command was so urgent and the furnace so hot that the flames of the fire killed the soldiers who took up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, 23and these three men, firmly tied, fell into the blazing furnace.

24Then 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, O king.”

25He said, “Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.”

26Nebuchadnezzar then approached the opening of the blazing furnace and shouted, “Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!”

So Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out of the fire, 27and the satraps, prefects, governors and royal advisers crowded around them. They saw that 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.

28Then Nebuchadnezzar said, “Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who has sent his angel and rescued his servants! They trusted in him and defied the king’s command and were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God. (NIV1984)

 

 

Dear fellow heirs of the Lutheran Reformation,

 

With the advent of the cell phone came the ability to text people.  Instead of actually talking to someone and perhaps getting caught up in a lengthy conversation, you can quickly type a short message into your phone and send it to them all but instantaneously.  As cell phones progressed so did the ability to text.  As texting became more common, various acronyms became more in vogue.  For example, the acronym LOL is widely used and widely known.  It stands for:  Laugh Out Loud.  The acronym FOMO is also well-known.  It stands for:  Fear Of Missing Out.  People will impulsively do something because they are “afraid” of “missing out” on an opportunity that “everyone else” is enjoying.  And then there is the acronym that I never liked:  YOLO.  It stands for:  You Only Live Once.  My understanding is that people will do something that they would not ordinarily do because no matter how it turns out— hey, you only live once.

 

The topic of acronyms popped into my head as I was contemplating the overall theme of our new sermon series.  The acronym is:  LLYLF.  It stands for:  Live Like You’ll Live Forever!   Since we are beginning this new sermon series on the Sunday we celebrate the Festival of the Reformation let’s see how living like we’ll live forever leads us to:  Live a Life of Courageous Witness!

 

Many of us have probably not studied the account of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego since we were in Sunday school.  This portion of Daniel chapter three is not a part of the three-year cycle of Scripture lessons that we follow on Sunday mornings.  For that reason let’s make sure we understand the larger context in which we find our sermon text for today.

 

The first time King Nebuchadnezzar conquered the nation of Judah (in 605 BC) he carried away the upper echelon of Jewish society as exiles to Babylon.  Included among those exiles were four men we know by name:  Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego.  By God’s grace and according to God’s plan these four men were given important positions in the Babylonian government.  After God enabled Daniel to interpret Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of an “enormous, dazzling statue” the king made Daniel “ruler over the entire province of Baylon and placed him in charge of all its wise men” (See Daniel 2).  In turn, Daniel asked the king to appoint Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego as administrators over the province of Babylon— and he did.

 

Daniel chapter three opens with King Nebuchadnezzar commissioning a statue that was ninety high and nine feet wide.  This idol probably represented the god Nabu whose name formed the first part of Nebuchadnezzar’s name.  Once the statue was finished the king summoned all the government officials and ordered them— along with all the people of every language— to “fall down and worship the image of gold that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up” (Daniel 3:5).  For some reason Daniel was not included in this group.  Perhaps it was because he “remained in the royal court” (Daniel 2:49).   The king also issued this warning, “Whoever does not fall down and worship will immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace” (Daniel 3:6).  This edict was undoubtedly issued to elicit obedience to the king as well as obedience to the empire of Babylon.  Everyone was willing to do this— except Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. When the king heard about this he became “furious.”  He summoned Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and told them, “If you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very good.  But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace.  Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?”  That brings us to the opening portion of our text.

 

Look at verses sixteen through eighteen.  It’s very easy for us to see how Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego lived a life of courageous witness!  While showing respect for the king they courageously said, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter.  If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king.  But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”

 

That’s living a life of courageous witness, isn’t it!  While Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were not rude to the king, they were very direct.  In view of the king’s command they saw no need to give a lengthy theological explanation for why they would not bow down and worship the golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.  They simply confessed their faith in the one true God and in His abilities while also remaining faithful to His will— regardless of what He chooses to do.  Contrary to the king’s claim of absolute power and control over them, these three men knew that their lives were in God’s hands.  Since they knew that they were safe in God’s hand they were at peace with whatever happened to them.  Even if obedience to the Lord their God cost them their physical lives they knew that they would continue to live forever in His presence!

 

This courageous witness of faith and this confident refusal to go against God’s Command against idolatry, “you shall not bow down to them or worship them” (Exodus 20:4, 5) enraged King Nebuchadnezzar even more!  He ordered the furnace to be “heated seven times hotter than usual.”  Then he ordered “some of the strongest soldiers in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and throw them into the blazing furnace”— still wearing their robes, their trousers, their turbans and everything else they were wearing.  We’re told that the furnace was so hot and the king’s command was so urgent that “the flames of the fire killed the soldiers who took up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, and these three men, firmly tied, fell into the blazing furnace.”

 

Everyone who had been willing to bow down and worship the image that the king had set up undoubtedly considered Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to be fools.  All they had to do was go along with what everyone else was doing, bow down and worship this image of gold and then their lives would have been spared.  King Nebuchadnezzar undoubtedly considered his actions to be a very powerful lesson to everyone— This is what happens when you disobey me!  Until.  Until we’re told, “Then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisors, ‘Weren’t there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?’  They replied, ‘Certainly, O King.’  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.’  Nebuchadnezzar then approached the opening of the blazing furnace and shouted, ‘Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out!  Come here!’  So Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out of the fire, and the satraps, prefects, governors and royal advisors crowded around them.  They saw that 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.”

 

The courageous witness of these three men was vindicated by the God into whose hands they had confidently placed their lives.  In a truly miraculous way God had kept the promise He had made through His servant Isaiah, “When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.  For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior” (Isaiah 43:25).

 

The courageous witness of these three men also led to a miraculous confession by King Nebuchadnezzar.  We’re told, “Then Nebuchadnezzar said, ‘Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who has sent his angel and rescued his servants!  They trusted in him and defied the king’s command and were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God.  Therefore I decree that the people of any nation or language who say anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego be cut into pieces and their houses turned into piles of rubble, for no other god can save in this way.”  While we can’t say that King Nebuchadnezzar was brought to faith in the God of Israel, he was definitely brought to the realization that all other so-called gods— even his own gods— didn’t even begin to compare to the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego.

 

It’s certainly not difficult for us to see that this is a beautiful portion of Scripture to study on the day that we celebrate the Festival of the Reformation.  It’s also not difficult for us to “connect the dots” between the courageous witness of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and the courageous witness of Martin Luther.  Luther also stood before the most powerful political and religious rulers of his day and age— rulers who had the power to sentence him to death.  These powerful rulers told Luther that he had to recant all the things he had written and all the things he had been teaching the people.  We, of course, know how Luther responded.  He boldly and courageously confessed, “Unless I am convinced by the teachings of Holy Scripture or by sound reason— for I do not believe either the pope or councils alone, since they have often made mistakes and have even said the exact opposite about the same point— I am tied by the Scriptures I have quoted and by my conscience.  I cannot and will not recant anything, for to go against conscience is neither safe nor right.  Here I stand.  God help me!  Amen.”

 

Just as it’s not difficult for us to “connect the dots” between the courageous witness of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and Martin Luther, so also it’s not difficult to “connect the dots” between the courageous witness of these four men and our own courageous confessions of faith today.  Like Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego we too are living as exiles in a foreign land.  The apostle Peter describes us as “aliens and strangers” in this world.  (2 Peter 2:11)  During this time of exile we go through all different kinds of trials and tribulations.  The unbelieving world is continually trying to get us to “bow down” to all the idols that this world has set up— idols such as material possessions, pleasure, power, and fame.  Whenever we are confronted by one of these trials and tribulations it can feel like we are in the midst of a spiritual fiery furnace.  That’s when it would be good for us to remember Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego.  That’s when we need to consciously remain true and faithful to our God.  That’s when we need to courageously entrust ourselves into His almighty and all-loving hands.  That’s when we need to know deep down in our heart that He will be with us to guard us and to protect us.  That’s when we need to understand that no matter what happens to us here on this earth, we can courageously live our lives with the sure and confident knowledge that we will live forever!

 

Like Martin Luther we regularly face pressures to recant what we believe, teach and confess.  Our friends and sometimes even our family pressure us to join them in activities that we know are displeasing to our God.  They encourage us to “loosen up” a little bit and “have some fun.”  They tell us that we need to re-shuffle the priorities of our life so that instead of going to church we can go to the ball game or join them in some other type of recreation.  People at school or people at work or people in the neighborhood might pressure us to turn away from what God teaches us in His holy Word and simply accept what science teaches and society embraces.  Even the government might pressure us to conform our beliefs and our actions so that they line up with what the government wants.  Step out of line with the accepted agenda and there will be consequences.  Stand up for the Truth of Scripture and they may try to shut down your business, overwhelm you with fines or maybe even try to put you in jail.  If you think that’s an exaggeration Google Masterpiece Cakeshop or Sweet Cakes by Melissa or Arlene’s Flowers or Lisa Hanson and see what the government is sometimes willing to do.

 

In our Gospel lesson for today (Mark 13:5-11) Jesus reminded us that as the end of the world draws closer and closer living as His (Pointing to the cross) faithful witnesses is going to become more and more difficult.  Openly living our life according to what God has revealed to us in His Word will put us at odds with the prevailing winds of this world.  Courageously confessing a message of both mankind’s sin and God’s glorious salvation can easily cause the people of this world to feel “offended.”  Should we simply remain silent?  Should we keep our faith private?  Not at all!  Like Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego we are to courageously live a life of faithful witness because like Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego we courageously confess that no matter what happens to us in this life, our God can and our God will give us the gift of eternal life.  Like Martin Luther we courageously stand up for the Truth of Scripture, because like Martin Luther we have been given the confidence of knowing that we are justified, we are “Declared:  Not guilty!” by the one and only living God— purely by grace alone through faith alone in what He alone (Pointing to the cross) has done for us!

 

LLYLF.  While I doubt that this acronym will become as widely accepted as LOL or FOMA or YOLO it is an acronym that helps us remember that because we know that we will indeed live forever we can indeed Live a Life of Courageous Witness!  My prayer this morning is that on this Reformation Sunday— and every day— we will courageously join with Martin Luther and say, “Here I stand!  God help me!”

 

To God be the glory!

 

Amen