THE FOURTH MAN -- Devotional for November 16, from "Good Seeds"

King Nebuchadnezzar jumped up in alarm and said, “Didn’t we just throw three men, bound hand and foot, into the fire?” Yes, O king,” his advisors answered. “But look!” he said, “there are four men now, walking around freely in the fire, completely unharmed! And the fourth man looks like a son of the gods.” (Daniel 3:24-25)

For every one miracle of deliverance recorded in Scripture or occurring in history since Bible times, there are a thousand instances of bad things happening to good people, where a miracle sure would have been handy! Although it is always right to do right and live right, we must not think that our righteousness automatically guarantees comfort and safety for us, or obligates God to surround us with protecting, avenging angels. We know that trouble dogs the wicked, but we also know that persecution for righteousness’ sake is a rather curious and peculiar avenue God to uses to bless His own. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego had done nothing wrong – nothing, that is, except to maintain their own religious convictions. But that was enough to earn for them the death penalty in the extreme anti-God culture of the Babylonian empire. It is alarming to see how stealthily but steadily “Christian America” is turning into such a culture. We know not how soon it will be before just standing up for Jesus, or standing against moral and spiritual evil as defined by God’s Word, will earn for us the very hatred we will be accused of foisting upon our fellows. In our flesh we fear such a possibility, but if the Bible is true, we’d better prepare ourselves, for it says the time is coming when men will think they are doing God a service to rid society of such trouble-makers as Bible believing Christians. When we see such persecution coming upon us, we are urged to “lift up our heads, for our redemption draweth nigh” (Luke 21:28). How will that redemption, that physical salvation, come to us? Ultimately it will come with the return of our Lord in power and great glory, to avenge Himself upon the sons of disobedience. We will be saved from the Great Tribulation. But before that final victory, we can anticipate smaller victories, as God stays with us through our suffering. “I will never leave you nor forsake you” is the promise of Hebrews 13:5. Whether we get out of our own personal fiery furnace alive, or if it will be our door into eternity, Jesus promises His calming presence. He will go with us “through the valley of the shadow of death” (Psalm 23:4). It won’t be some “unknown god” (Acts 17:23) of wondering heathen seekers – one who “looks like a son of the gods” – who walks with us in the furnace of suffering, but rather the Son of the Living God, Jesus Himself. Those three men could say, “Do your worst!” to the king, because they knew "the fourth man" was on hand to do His best on their behalf!