God’s Care for His Children
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May 6, 1897 God's Care for His Children.
"Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, whose height was
threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof six cubits; he set it up in the
plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon. Then Nebuchadnezzar, the king, sent
to gather together the princes, the governors, and the captains,
. . . unto the dedication of the image which Nebuchadnezzar the king had
set up." "Then an herald cried aloud, To you it is commanded, O
people, nations, and languages, that at what time ye hear the sound of the
cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of music, ye
fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath set
up." {ST, May 6, 1897 par. 1}
"At that time certain Chaldeans came near,
and accused the Jews. They spake and said to the king Nebuchadnezzar, O king,
live forever. . . . There are certain Jews whom thou hast set over the affairs
of the province of Babylon, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego;
these men, O king, have not regarded thee; they serve not thy gods, nor worship
the golden image which thou hast set up." {ST, May 6, 1897 par. 2}
These men who thus accused the Hebrews had been saved from death by
Daniel's appeal to the king in their behalf, but they were envious of the three
Hebrews, and were desirous of hurting their influence; they therefore carried
the complaint to the king that these men had dared to disobey his commands.
{ST, May 6, 1897 par. 3}
The
thought that his slightest wish should not be respected at the dedication of
the image, filled the king with rage, and he commanded that the men be brought
before him. "Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego,
do not ye serve my gods, nor worship the golden image
which I have set up?" How short-lived is the exaltation bestowed by men!
How little dependence can be placed in them! These three men, once honored, and
intrusted with great responsibilities, are now the
objects of the wrath of a king whose will is law. Truly we can
not trust in princes. {ST, May 6, 1897 par. 4}
As
the three Hebrews stood before the king in their moral dignity, innocence, and
purity, he was convinced that they were superior to the men in his kingdom.
They had always been faithful in the performance of their duties, and he
decided that he would be gracious, and give them a second trial. "If ye be
ready," he said, "that at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet,
flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of music, ye fall
down and worship the image which I have made; well; but if ye worship not, ye
shall be cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace."
And then, with hand stretched upward in defiance, he asked, "And who is
that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?" {ST, May 6, 1897 par. 5}
His
senses were perverted by the prospect of his own greatness, and he seemed to
lose all knowledge of a monarch above all earthly kings. When his dream was
shown him by Daniel, he had acknowledged, "Of a truth it is, that your God
is a God of gods, and a Lord of kings;" but he now took all this back, and
sought to demonstrate before the representatives of the different nations, who
had assembled at the dedication of this image, that he, the king of Babylon,
was the greatest king in the universe, and that all must bow low to his supremacy,
and submit as slaves to his will. And all went well in the carrying out of this
arrangement till the disobedience of the Hebrew captives. {ST, May 6, 1897 par.
6}
With the furnace in sight, the captives answered the king's horrible
threat, saying: "O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in
this matter. If it be so, 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."
Their faith rose with the knowledge that God would be glorified in this
transaction, and with a firm, triumphant ring of implicit trust and confidence
in their voices, they said, "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." {ST, May 6, 1897 par. 7}
When the king saw that his will was not received as the will of God, he
was "full of fury," and the form of his visage was changed against
these men. Satanic attributes made his countenance appear as the countenance of
a demon; and with all the force he could command, he ordered that the furnace
be heated seven times hotter than its wont, and
commanded the most mighty men to bind the youth, and cast them into the
furnace. He felt that it required more than ordinary power to deal with these
noble men. His mind was strongly impressed that something unusual would
interpose in their behalf, and his strongest men were ordered to deal with them.{ST, May 6, 1897 par. 8}
The
king's command was urgent. He was anxious to punish the men who had dared to
exercise their will in opposition to his will; and without delay, with all
their clothing upon them, they were cast into the fire. "Therefore because
the king's commandment was urgent, and the furnace exceeding hot, the flame of
the fire slew those men that took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego." {ST,May
6, 1897 par. 9}
Surrounded by the officers of his government, by the Chaldeans, and by
distinguished and great men from many countries, the king, filled with Satanic fury, looked on the scene, waiting to see how soon
the men who had defied him would be utterly consumed. But his triumph suddenly
came to an end. He saw something that he thought must be an illusion. He turned
pale, and, shading his eyes with his hand, he directed his gaze to the furnace,
watching it with intense interest. All did not discern as quickly as did the
king the result of his cruel project. With alarm he asked his great men,
"Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire?"
"True, O king," was the reply. With a voice trembling with
excitement, he cried, "Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of
the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of
God." {ST, May 6, 1897 par. 10}
How
did this heathen king know what the Son of God was like? Through their
steadfast adherence to right principles, the Hebrew captives had been called to
fill positions of trust in the courts of Babylon. They were tempted by others
to be untrue, in order to gain advantages; but they were faithful in all their
business transactions. In life and character they represented the truth; and
when they were asked a reason for their course of action, they gave it without
hesitation. Plainly and in simplicity they presented the living principles of
the truth, and thus those around them were made acquainted with the Source of
their strength. In this way the king of Babylon became acquainted with the form
of the Son of God. {ST, May 6, 1897 par. 11}
With feelings of deep humiliation and remorse, the king stood as near
the blazing furnace as he dared, and in a clear, loud voice called out,
"Ye servants of the most high God, come forth,
and come hither." They obeyed the voice of the king, and came forth
unhurt, without even the smell of fire upon them. {ST, May 6, 1897 par. 12}
The
fact that these youth came forth from the fire having received no harm, save
only that their fetters had been burned away, was beyond the comprehension of
the wise men, and made a decided change in the sentiments of the people. The
tidings of this wonderful deliverance were carried to many countries by the
representatives of the different nations. Thus God was glorified by the
faithfulness of his children. {ST, May 6, 1897 par. 13}
History will be repeated. False religion will be exalted. The first day
of the week, a common working day, possessing no sanctity whatever, will be set
up as was the image at Babylon. All nations and tongues and peoples will be
commanded to worship this spurious sabbath.
This is Satan's plan to make of no account the day instituted by God, and given
to the world as a memorial of creation. {ST, May 6, 1897 par. 14}
The
decree enforcing the worship of this day is to go forth to all
the world. In a limited degree, it has already gone forth. In several
places the civil power is speaking with the voice of a dragon, just as the
heathen king spoke to the Hebrew captives. {ST, May 6, 1897 par. 15}
Trial and persecution will come to all who, in obedience to the Word of
God, refuse to worship this false sabbath.
Force is the last resort of every false religion. At first it tries attraction,
as the king of Babylon tried the power of music and outward show. If these
attractions, invented by men inspired by Satan, failed to make men worship the
image, the hungry flames of the furnace were ready to consume them. So it will
be now. The Papacy has exercised her power to compel men to obey her, and she
will continue to do so. We need the same spirit that was manifested by God's
servants in the conflict with paganism. Giving an account of the treatment of
the Christians by the emperor of Rome, Tertullian says, "We are thrown to
the wild beasts to make us recant; we are burned in the flames; we are
condemned to prisons and to mines; we are banished to islands,--such as
Patmos,--and all have failed." So it was in the case of the three Hebrew
worthies; their eye was single to the glory of God; their souls were steadfast;
the power of the truth held them firmly to their allegiance to God. It is in
the power of God alone that we shall be enabled to be loyal to him. {ST, May 6,
1897par. 16}
"If ye love me," said Christ, "keep my
commandments." "He that hath my commandments, and keepeth
them, he it is that loveth me; and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him,
and will manifest myself to him." And has not Christ manifested himself to
his faithful children? Did he not walk in the furnace with the captives who
refused to yield to the golden image one tittle of
the reverence which belonged to God? Did he not manifest himself to John,
banished to the Isle of Patmos for his faithfulness? Have not those who have
been persecuted for righteousness' sake, who, tho
they have been compelled to suffer, have refused to worship the institution of
the Papacy, realized the presence of the divine Comforter in their lonely
prisons? {ST, May 6, 1897 par. 17}
The
commandments of finite, sinful men are to sink into insignificance beside the
Word of the eternal God. Truth is to be obeyed at any cost, even tho gaping prisons, chain-gangs, and banishment stare us in
the face. If you are loyal and true, that God who walked with the three Hebrew
children in the fiery furnace, who protected Daniel in the lions' den, who
manifested himself to John on the lonely island, will go with you wherever you
go. His abiding presence will comfort and sustain you; and you will realize the
fulfilment of the promise, "If a man love me, he will keep my words; and
my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with
him."
Mrs. E. G. White.
{ST, May 6, 1897 par. 18}