6^th Sunday after Pentecost – A Review of the First Commandment – July 12, 2009

No Other Gods, No Matter What!

Hannaniah, Mishael, and Azariah, more commonly known by their Babylonian names, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, faced the most difficult decision of their lives. Their boss, King Nebuchadnezzar, had built a golden idol ninety feet tall and was ready to dedicate it. He passed a royal law that stated that any who would not bow down and worship the idol must be thrown into a blazing furnace to burn alive. Talk about pressure!

But how was it that they came to be in this situation in the first place? Well, the nation of Judah had once again failed to appreciate their blessings. They had grown indifferent to the word and will of their Savior God. As a result the almighty Lord, who will not be mocked and who does not close his eyes or stand idly by when his law is transgressed and his name dishonored, allowed the nation of Babylon to invade Judah. Over a twenty-year period the armies of Babylon smashed Judah’s army, destroyed their cities, demolished the temple in Jerusalem and led thousands of Jews into exile – among whom were Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.

Put yourself in the place of these three young Jewish men. In the prime of their young manhood they were snatched from home and family and forced to march on foot thousands of miles to a land where the enemy dwelled. They were plunged into a heathen culture that went directly against almost everything they believed. But in all of this, God did not and would not desert them. After arriving in Babylon things started to look up. These young men were hand-picked to serve in the foreign king’s palace. So instead of laboring as slaves, they were sent to school. In school they studied the language and the literature of the land, and three years later these three Jewish men entered the service of the king. God had surely been with them! But then, just when things seemed like they would be ok, things took a turn for the worse.

And here they were, standing in this immense field, expected to show their loyalty to the king and his gods by bowing down and worshiping this golden image. What would they do: Deny the true and only God who brought them safely to this land, who promised their safe return home, who promised them forgiveness of sins and eternal life in glory, or burn alive and die a painful death in taking a stand? Well, you know the story.

No doubt, it would have been easy to rationalize, arguing, “We’re not being asked to believe in this so-called god or really worship it. Just one quick act of devotion to the king. Besides, God will understand. We can do more for these people as their governors, than if we’re dead.” But to them, there was only one course of action: They must obey God rather than men, no matter how powerful or dangerous. When the other leaders complained to the king, though he was filled with rage at their defiance, he graciously gave them a second chance. After all, it’s one thing to break the rules when the boss isn’t watching, but quite another to openly defy him to his face. Yet, here’s how they responded…

¹⁶ Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. ¹⁷ 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. ¹⁸ 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… ”

What courage! The three young Hebrews expressed their faith that God could rescue them. But even if he wouldn’t, they realized that their goal in life was not to stay alive, but to bring glory to God. If they had obeyed the king’s decree they would have disgraced God, not glorified him. They feared, loved, and trusted in God above all things. They feared doing anything that would disappoint or dishonor him. They loved him enough to give their lives—if that’s what it took—to bring honor to him. They trusted that he could deliver them and would, if it was his will. But they weren’t promised or guaranteed any miracles. Their faithfulness to God wasn’t dependant upon a happy ending. They would have no other gods, no matter what, even if the consequences meant burning alive.

Nebuchadnezzar was furious! They had defied him; they had publicly humiliated him. He ordered the furnace heated seven times hotter than usual and gave the command to throw them in.

²² The furnace [was] so hot that the flames of the fire killed the soldiers who took up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, ²³ and these three men, firmly tied, fell into the blazing furnace. ²⁴ Then 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.” ²⁵ 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…” ²⁸ 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.

What a miracle! Not only were they rescued, they weren’t even touched by the fire! Their bodies were fine. Their clothes perfect. They didn’t even smell like smoke. God had sent an angel to protect and cover, to rescue and deliver his faithful from the flames.

And what an impact this miracle made! It would be an event Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego, Nebuchadnezzar, and all the officials would talk about the rest of their lives. It was a clear witness to all who the true God was: it was not Nebuchadnezzar, not some golden statue – but the Lord, Jehovah, the God of free and faithful love. And what a beautiful example of what it means to fear, love, and trust in God above all things; to have no other gods, no matter what!

But how about you? What if you were presented with the option: Deny the God who loves and preserves you, deny the Savior who died for you, bow down and worship an idol or be thrown into a furnace to die a painful, horrible death. Which would you choose? I like to think that given such a challenge, I’d choose the painful, horrible death. And I like to think that so would each of you.

But the problem is, Satan is not so obvious. I don’t think any of your bosses has ever told you, “Bow down to the company logo or I’ll send security to kill you.” I doubt they’ve even said, “Make the company your number one priority in life or you will be fired.” But in a much more subtle way, we are all faced with the option of which god we choose to serve.

The checkbook says to you, “Make entertainment and leisure your god, they will provide you the things you want. Why honor the true God with your offering check, what has he done for you lately?” The TV cries out, “Bow down to me! Spend time with me instead of with your Bible! I’ll give you relaxation and escape from your troubles! Make me your god!” The savings account and the 401k cry out, “Put your trust in me. With me by your side you know everything will be okay. You need me.” Even your own selfish flesh insists, “Why not just do what makes you happy? It’s your life after all – you’re the one living it. Do what you want to do.”

And when you’re in trouble, where do you turn for help? Do you turn to your own cleverness and resourcefulness? Do you expect to receive more good and more help from mom and dad than you do from God? Do you rely on the savings you have tucked away for a rainy day? In and of themselves, these aren’t bad. But Satan loves to take what is good and make it our god. When we turn to any of these before we turn to God, we make an idol of them.

Martin Luther explained the first commandment in this way: “If… your heart clings to anything else from which it expects more good and help than from God, and if your heart does not take refuge in Him but flees from Him when in trouble, then you have an idol, another god.” You see then, plain as day, that each of us has broken this first commandment time and time…time and time…time and time again. In fact, any time we sin, we break this commandment. As we put our needs and wants above God’s will, we make ourselves our own gods instead of fearing, loving, and trusting in him above all things.

And for such rebellion against the King of Heaven, the only true God, we deserve to be thrown into a furnace far hotter than the one into which the three young Hebrews were thrown. We deserve an eternity of hell—where we endure not just the physical pain of scorching flames, but the nagging torment of guilt and regret for ever and ever.

But thanks be to God! He rescued us! He sent his Son, Jesus, to deliver us from the eternal flames of that hell. Jesus not only joined us in the furnace, but took our place. On the cross he endured the furnace of hell to pay for every single time we’ve trusted in someone or something else more than we trusted him. He took our cowardice and rebellion—in denying the one true God to save our own skins, or our jobs, or our reputations—on himself and took it away from us. He took our place in life and perfectly feared, loved, and trusted in God above all things! And having perfectly kept the first commandment in our place, he gave that perfection to us.

Now you and I, who have been brought to trust in Jesus as the answer for our sins, are saved from hell. Our bodies will not be harmed by it, not a hair of our heads will be singed, our clothes will not be scorched, and our souls will be safe. As the Apostle John stated so beautifully in the second lesson, “This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins” (1 John 4:9,10). Because of what Jesus has done for us on the cross, because his victory over death with his resurrection, we now have the motivation, the power, the desire, the willingness, the eagerness, yes the ability to fear, love, and trust in God above all things!

We don’t need any other god because no other god could ever provide what Jesus has! Our money can’t buy protection from Satan! Our friends and family and the best doctors can’t save us from death! Our own hard work or our intelligence can’t ever get us out of hell! Our abilities and cleverness can’t win the forgiveness of our sins. But Jesus can! Jesus has! So we can fear, love, and trust in him above all else and have no other gods, no matter what, even if it means dying some slow, painful death for it!

To God be the glory as we live our lives to honor him and have no other gods, no matter what! Amen.