Kilauea Iki lava lake bed was a raging, tumultuous lake of lava during Kilauea’s eruptions in the 1950s.

“...The king’s command was so urgent and the furnace so hot that the flames of the fire killed the soldiers who took up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, and these three men, firmly tied, fell into the blazing furnace. 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?” 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.” Nebuchadnezzar then approached the opening of the blazing furnace and shouted, “Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!” and the satraps, prefects, governors and royal advisers crowded around them. They saw that the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor was a hair of their heads singed; their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them. 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.” ( Daniel 3:22-28, NIV )

A few years back Tina and I took a 15-year wedding anniversary trip to Hawaii.  While there, we visited Volcanoes National Park on Big Island, home of the famous Kilauea volcano.  We took a hike through Kilauea Iki (pictured above) which around 50 years ago was an active lava lake.  Descriptions of the eruptions at the time describe how the magma which had spilled up into the reservoir broke along the rim in waves like the ocean.  When the spouting would recede, the lava would drain down again in a giant whirlpool.  I can only imagine what it would be like to see such an event.  The heat would be so overwhelming, it would prohibit anyone from approaching.

I wonder if that’s what the heat was like in Nebuchadnezzar’s massive furnace described in Daniel. If you’re familiar with the story you know that Nebuchadnezzar built a towering gold idol and demanded everyone in his kingdom to bow down and worship the idol (a wonderful testament ultimately to Nebuchadnezzar’s own inflated ego and majesty).  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego – three Jewish captives in Babylon – refused to bow.  They were summarily bound and tossed into the fiery furnace Nebuchadnezzar had prepared for any insubordinates.  Their statement immediately before being tossed in is what has always impressed me:

“If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand.  But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”

It’s that “..even if” that gets me every time.  They had no reason to believe they would become anything but ash on that afternoon.  Who had EVER heard of someone being thrown into a fiery furnace (or lake of lava) and surviving?  Yet, they stood their ground.  No matter what, there is only one God.  And this fabricated gold idol wasn’t Him.

Life often presents us with these fiery furnace moments.  Maybe not that dramatic, but they can be a crisis for our faith either way.  Maybe the terror you’re staring down makes you feel like you’re being dangled over a lake of lava.  It’s just a matter of time before the string breaks and you’re incinerated.  It’s tempting, like Job’s wife, to want to just curse God and die.  After all, why would a Good and Loving God allow this suffering?

If that’s you I pray the Lord, by His Spirit, would fill your heart with the determination of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.  I pray you would know beyond a doubt God is able to deliver you, and even if He doesn’t He has a purpose that will bring Him glory, and you joy and peace.

Of course, the marvel of this account in Daniel is how God shows up right in the furnace.  He didn’t spare them the fire, but He showed up in the middle of it (spoiler alert! – that fourth man glowing “like a son of the gods” had to be Jesus!)    As you face down your fiery furnace today, know that even if God doesn’t spare the fire, Jesus is right with you in the middle of it.  It’s not just a nice thought, it’s the absolute truth.  He is “Emmanuel”, God with us – especially so in our fiery trials.

Kilauea’s Halema’uma’u Crater with the “Super Moon” (Hawai’i’s largest full moon of the year) rising in the distance.