Our God Whom We Serve

Our God, whom we serve, is able to deliver us. But if not, we will not serve your gods. (Dan. 3:17-18)

Dan. 3:8-18 and 1:4; I Kings 13:4-10; Job 17:9; I Cor. 15:58; James 1:12; II Cor. 1:10

What Is God Saying?

Daniel is a book of remarkable prophecies. It is also an account of some remarkable people whom God had raised as witnesses to His power and glory in places where such witnessing was hard, dangerous, and necessary. Nor is this the first and only time God did this. Joseph became a powerful leader in Egypt. Esther came to the kingdom in a foreign land ‘for such a time as this.’ Nehemiah held the position of the king's cupbearer.

Now, there is Daniel, a young man of a noble, perhaps royal, family in Judea. He was only a boy, but God gave him a rare courage and the power to live a disciplined life. He was one of four young men described as "youths without blemish, handsome and skillful in all wisdom, endowed with knowledge, understanding, and learning, and competent to serve in the king's palace" (Dan. 1:4). They would not defile themselves with the king's rich food and drink (1:8). They became vegetarians. In their depth of insight and understanding, unclouded by the indulgence of appetite, they were able to tell the king the meaning of his dreams, ten times better than the best astrologers of the land (1:20).

However, these young men incurred the wrath of the king, who was rapidly approaching the brink of insanity, when they refused to bow down before the image of gold on the plain of Dura. In his rage, the king ordered them to be cast into a burning, fiery furnace, heated seven times beyond the usual temperature. Their courageous answer was born of faith and prayer to the true, living God: "Our God whom we serve can deliver us, but if not, we will not serve your gods."

How Does This Apply To Us?

We all have our fires of testing. There is always the temptation to compromise. We face fear and doubt. We become preoccupied with the pressing demands of life around us, and we cannot answer with courage and faith. We need to trust God when tides of persecution and corruption run against us. We will face upstream. We will say, "God can keep us from going down to destruction, but if not, we still reject the way of the world."

Pray With Me

Lord, give me confidence in Your saving power and purpose. Even when others feel that I am deserted, may I know I am not. I will not judge Your blessings by outward circumstances which impress men as favorable, but rather by inner assurance, knowing Your love never fails and Your purpose is never defeated. Help me to say in the face of any trial, My God can deliver, but if not, I will still trust Your ultimate purpose. I will not let my enemies, either fears within or foes without, get the upper hand and rule my spirit. I will look for a breakdown of my relationship with you. I will own up to my lack of trust. I will return to You, my willing and able God. I will continue to say the name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run into it and are safe.

Through Him who, in praying for deliverance, said, If not, and then endured the Cross that He might bring Heaven to God's children and God’s children to Heaven. Amen.

Moving On In The Life of Prayer

We all need courage. Courage is born of faith, and faith is the essence of prayer. Even if things don't seem to be going our way, at least we and those who know us will understand that we are in Christ, who has conquered all ‘if nots.’