Today’s New Covenant nugget is from Daniel 3:20-21, 24-25
The king commanded certain mighty men of valor who were in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, and cast them into the burning fiery furnace. Then these men were bound in their coats, their trousers, their turbans, and their other garments, and were cast into the midst of the burning fiery furnace. Therefore, because the king’s command was urgent, and the furnace exceedingly hot, the flame of the fire killed those men who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego.
Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished; and he rose in haste and spoke, saying to his counselors, “Did we not cast three men bound into the midst of the fire?” They answered and said to the king, “True, O king.” “Look!” he answered, “I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.”
Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego were cast into a fiery furnace because they refused to bow to the kings idols… God delivered them through a mighty miracle. When all was said and done, they were promoted, rewarded and protected from any future persecution… the king said, “I make a decree that any people, nation, or language which speaks anything amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made an ash heap; because there is no other God who can deliver like this.”
Thank God for miracles when we really need them!
If you are going to live by faith, then you are going to need miracles. Some people think that if they walk on the path of life that Jesus provides, then that path will take them around danger and that they will avoid all challenges in life… the truth is that in MOST cases, the Lord takes us THROUGH danger and challenges, not around them.
Let’s look at a few miracles in the bible and learn how to get a miracle when we really need it.
MOSES’ MIRACLE…
The children of Israel experienced many miracles under the leadership of Moses… arguably the greatest miracle was the parting of the Red Sea.
The Lord delivered Israel and set them free from being slaves in Egypt; they left Egypt free, rich with all of the riches of Egypt ,and healthy… not one feeble one among them. The Lord led them on a journey that took them straight to the Red Sea, not around it. When they got to the sea, Pharoah became enraged and pursued them with a powerful army of thousands of skilled, trained fighters.
With the sea in front of them and the army behind them, they desperately needed a miracle. And the Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry to Me? Tell the children of Israel to go forward. Lift up your rod, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it. And the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea.” (Exodus 14:15-16)
The Lord used Moses’ rod to perform the miracle…
The Lord used Moses’ rod to perform the miracles that got them delivered from Egypt, and the Lord used Moses’ rod to perform many other mighty miracles… what was it about Moses’ rod?
After Moses’ encounter with God at the burning bush, the Lord asked Moses, “what is that you have in your hand?” – “A rod”, Moses replied… then the Lord told Moses to cast his rod onto the ground… as soon as Moses let go of what he had, what he had became a miracle… the rod turned into a snake. In Exodus 4:20, the rod is no longer called Moses’ rod, it’s called, ‘the rod of God’.
When Moses let go of what he had and gave it to the Lord, the Lord used what was given to Him to perform miracles. When we give what we have to the Lord, the Lord can turn something mundane into a miracle. When the little boy gave Jesus his lunch, the Lord placed His miracle working power on that lunch and fed thousands…
If you are in need of a miracle, the Lord may require you to let go of some things that are important to you, and to give them to the Him. It may be money, it may be something else, but know this, when we let go and give what is in our hands to the Lord, the Lord will take what we have given Him and use it to perform a miracle.
How do you get a miracle when you need one? Let go of what you are holding onto, and give it to the Lord! In the next few devotions we will continue to break down Sunday’s message into bite size pieces… take courage, our God is a miracle working God!
In His amazing love, Nick
