Daniel 3

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TALKS FOR GROWING CHRISTIANS

The Fiery Furnace

BACKGROUND NOTES



DOCTRINAL POINT(S)

  1. Faithful believers trust God even when they are not delivered from the fiery furnace.

  2. Faithful believers come to know God in the midst of the fiery furnace.

PRACTICAL APPLICATION

  1. Have you experienced the benefits of the fiery furnace?

QUESTIONS

  1. What may have prompted Nebuchadnezzar to build this statue of gold?

  2. How did Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego respond to Nebuchadnezzar’s threat of the fiery furnace?

  3. What does the fiery furnace represent for us, as believers?

  4. Who was the fourth figure seen in the fiery furnace?

  5. Does God always deliver believers from the fiery furnace?

  6. What New Testament verse reminds us that we can come to know God in a more intimate way in the midst of the fiery furnace?

ANSWERS

  1. The statue was probably inspired by the dream Nebuchadnezzar had in Daniel 2. However, in the dream, Nebuchadnezzar and Babylon were only the head of gold, but in this image the whole statue is gold – the implication is that proud Nebuchadnezzar did not want to admit that there were empires that would follow his great Babylon.

  2. They responded with confidence that God would deliver them – but if not, they still would not bow down.

  3. It represents the trials you face in reference to your faith.

  4. It was probably the Angel of the Lord Himself, the pre-incarnate Son of God.

  5. No, sometimes He delivers us through the fiery furnace, and we come to know Him in a more intimate way.

  6. Hebrews 13:5, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

DISCUSS/CONSIDER

  1. How is your faith? Is it strong enough to say, “Even if God does not deliver us from the fiery furnace, we will not compromise in our Christian faith”? Discuss trials to your faith that you have experienced. Did God deliver you from those trials? Or did He bring you through them and strengthen your faith through the experience?

  2. Discuss the faithful remnant of Jews who will go through the future Tribulation Period. Discuss whether they will be delivered from or through that fiery trial.

CHALLENGE

  1. The fire had no negative effects on the Hebrew men, but the ropes that bound them were burned! When God allows us to pass through the fiery furnace, the entangling ropes of this world are removed. Through the fiery furnace you can come to know what true freedom is all about.

KEY VERSES

  • “And whoever does not fall down and worship shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace.” Daniel 3:6

  • “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



Daniel, Old Testament, TalksDeb HarmsDaniel 3