“I’m SAFE.”
We watched as Hurricane Dorian skirted around our children and other family members in Florida and North Carolina, thankful they were safe, yet knowing so many weren’t in the Bahamas.
Natural disasters, accidents, mass shootings, human trafficking, and persecution—it only takes a moment of reading or watching the news to realize there’s no guarantee of safety in our world.
So, how can we, as God’s beloved, proclaim we are safe?
Colossians 3:2 says, “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.”
I’m reading through the book of Daniel again, and this is not the first time I’ve referenced Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in my writing because they are a perfect example of minds set on things above.
After refusing to bow down to the golden image, a furious king Nebuchadnezzar gave them one more opportunity to change their mind before he threw them into a “furnace of blazing fire (Daniel 3:15b).”
Daniel 3:16-18 records Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego’s response:
“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.”
If they had set their minds on earthly things, their physical well-being would have been their only concern. It’s likely they would have feared death and chosen to bow before the image.
That’s not their story, though. It’s clear they set their minds on things above, on the God they served. The God they knew was able to deliver them from physical harm.
God is able to keep us safe, to keep the ones we love safe. But what about when He doesn’t?
These three God-fearing men didn't stop at “the God we serve is able to deliver us,” and neither can we. We can’t dismiss the “but even if He does not…”
Jesus says, “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand.”
A bold statement. A true statement.
A promise that gave Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego the confidence to proclaim their God would deliver them.
Physical deliverance? Yes.
But even if God chose not to deliver them from the flames, they believed being apart from the earthly body meant being at home with the Lord (2 Cor. 5:8, NLT). They were safe either way.
What’s your furnace of blazing fire?
No matter what it is, when Jesus is your Savior, you can rest assured…
You are SAFE.