Look!” he answered, “I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.” Then Nebuchadnezzar went near the mouth of the burning fiery furnace and spoke, saying, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, servants of the Most High God, come out, and come here.” Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego came from the midst of the fire.” (Daniel 3:25–26 NKJV)

Nebuchadnezzar had commanded that all fall down and worship his image. But three men refused to do so. They not only did not do it, but told Nebuchadnezzar that they would not do so. In words that stir our hearts today we read, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.” (Daniel 3:17–18) They were determined to do exactly what God commanded. They did not care what the king threatened to do to them, nor the end result of the matter—even if it meant death. Their faith in God caused them to live up to the command of God.

But God did not leave them alone. When thrown into a hot fire that killed those who threw them in, Nebuchadnezzar was amazed to see four men in the fire. He noted that the fourth was like the Son of God.

When we are in the furnace, is when God chooses to be with us the most. God did not deliver Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego from the furnace; He delivered them through the furnace of fire. He was with them all of the time; He never had left them.

Brethren, today we all realize that we go through times in the furnace. It may be things that tempt us to leave God, such as our friends or family. It may be things that we get ourselves into, such as financial problems. It may be things such as our health, when one moment we are in good health, and the next moment we are facing a life threatening illness.

There are many furnaces, and many, when put into the furnace, either become hard and bitter, or become soft and pliable. Some turn against God and all that He stands for—they attack God, the church, its members and all that God represents. You can hear their vicious attacks against Him in so many different ways. They turn their back on the only one that can give them hope.

But some, when thrown into the fire, become soft and pliable—they yield themselves to all God has for them to do, and seek to understand why they are in the fire. It may be that He wants them to go through this so they may one day comfort others (2 Corinthians 1:1ff). It may be that they have sin in their lives that they need to get rid of. God uses the fire to cleanse them and make their faith more pure (1 Peter 1:7).

The one thing we need to remember, however, is that God will be with us in the fire as He is with us at all other times. To the Christian, He promises never to leave us, nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5-6). He allows us to cast all of our cares upon Him (1 Peter 5:7). He will not leave us alone.

Christian, if you are facing the furnace, know that God is there. And don’t quit! Allow God to cleanse you, to purify you and make you stronger!