Renovating And Purifying Fire

Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up. Dan 3:17-18

For those of us wanting to see with absolute clarity the plans and purposes of God for our lives and for our time, we must understand the power of living without compromise. Our spiritual vision is blurred, our spiritual radars scrambled when we make deals with the devil. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, in contrast to the many thousands of other Hebrew captives living in Babylon, opted to burn rather than compromise and bow down to the Babylonian edifice (Dan 3:16-18).

We read in 1 Samuel 11 the consequence and cost of compromise. There we see the people of Jabesh-gilead in a seemingly helpless situation and facing annihilation at the hands of their enemies. They plead for their lives and the enemy craftily offers them a way out, an opportunity to compromise. They will keep their lives but it will cost each man his right eye. The pressure will be removed, the enemy will retreat but it will cost God's people their depth and scope of vision. And, of course, their marred visage will make a statement to all their future enemies – here are a people who have no recourse in battle other than to admit defeat and compromise.

But Nahash the Ammonite told them, On this condition I will make a treaty with you, that I thrust out all your right eyes and thus lay disgrace on all Israel. 1 Sam 11:2

Scripture reveals that those with the most penetrating and divinely-inspired wisdom were those who lived by the rule of 'no compromise’. Just to mention a few: Moses chose to be mistreated with the people of God rather than enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin (Heb 11:24-26); Joseph preferred death over lustful seduction (though he was thrown in prison, he could easily have been executed for his alleged crime. See Gen 39); Daniel preferred death over obeying an evil ban on worship (Dan 6:10); Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego chose to burn in a fiery furnace rather than bow down to an idol (Dan 3); Jesus embraced rejection and persecution over compromising with the religious spirit of his day. In all of these men, and particularly in our Lord Jesus, we see a spirit of wisdom, an ability to discern the times and seasons, and a finely tuned receptivity to the voice of God.

Knowledge is a wellspring of life to him who has it and wisdom is a tree of life to them that lay hold of her (Prov 16:22). But make no mistake, just as fine gold is purified through fire so also wisdom and discernment and prophetic insight are with those who choose fiery trials over the comforts of compromise.

But He knows the way I take; when He has tried me, I shall come forth as gold. Job 23:10

Moses, Joseph, Daniel, the three Hebrew friends, and Jesus our Lord all resisted the god of this world system and experienced the fury and backlash of that system. And we also can expect to endure fire as we engage in holy resistance and stand on God’s Word in a compromised world. The stakes are high – our lives and reputations are required of us – however the rewards are sweet. A promised land awaits.

Happy is the man that findeth wisdom ... Length of days is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honour. Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. Prov 3:13,16-17

His renovating and purifying fire blazes in us as we choose truth and the way of the Kingdom over the wisdom of the world. And we discover that the same fire that purges us also protects and liberates us ... as was demonstrated so powerfully in the deliverance of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.