Does Your Loyalty Run Hot and Cold?
We are a consumer driven society whereby our loyalty only remains as long as that person or thing to whom we are loyal is a benefit to us. We consume and we get consumed, and once nothing is left, once it seemingly has no value left, whatever it is gets disposed of. And once the last person or thing is disposed of, we move to the next person or thing, until it gets used up, and the cycle repeats.
Like the water from our faucets, our loyalty runs hot and cold.
Does your loyalty, your allegiance, to God depend upon your circumstances? Or do you remain faithful (loyal) even when it seems God is silent? In the book of Daniel is a story of three young Jews who remained faithful to God even when the heat really got turned up, literally! The story begins when the king issues a decree that everyone must bow down and worship a gold statue made in his image or be thrown into a fiery furnace. When the three men refused to obey the king’s decree he was furious and he summoned them, giving them two choices, either bow down to the gold statue or be thrown into a blazing furnace. They refused to worship the statue.
The story continues, and in Daniel 3:16-18 we read – Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, “King 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 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.”
Shad, Mesh, and Benny were probably wondering where God was as they were bound and thrown into the fiery furnace. This fire was so hot that several of the king’s soldiers were killed by the flames as they put the three men into the furnace. After some time, King Nebby had his advisors check on the status of the three men, no doubt convinced that they were cooked to “well done” by then. But guess what, the three men were seen walking around in the fiery furnace, unbound and unharmed. Plus, a fourth man was in there with them. The story ends with the three men being rescued by God, and because of their unwavering faith an entire province witnessed this miracle and many changed their allegiance from the king to God. Even the king himself praised this God who rescued Shad, Mesh, and Benny. (Read 3:28-4:3.)
Scripture contains few more heroic words than “But even if he does not” found in v.18.
So, today, I ask you – Do you have the unwavering “I know God can but even if He doesn’t” kind of faith or do you find your faith running hot or cold depending upon whether or not God has done what you asked of Him?