The story of the Fourth Man in the Fire in Daniel 3 is instructive of how Christians should respond to pressures to surrender their faith and the rewards that God will bestow for resisting them.
The Revs. Don Caywood, James Cosentino and Mark Roossinck agree that the fourth man who appeared in the fiery furnace with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego was the pre-incarnate Jesus Christ or Jesus before he came to earth in the form of a human being.
“The major thing is that all of us are tested in life,” said the Rev. Caywood, pastor of Odessa Christian Faith Center. “Jesus is obviously that fourth man. He is there with us every day because Hebrews 13:5 says he will never leave us or forsake us.
“He will aid us and eventually deliver us.”
The story is one of Caywood’s favorites, he said, because it shows the power of faith.
“Hebrews 11:6 tells us that without faith it is impossible to please God,” he said, adding that Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego knew what the consequences would be when they refused to worship the 90-foot-tall golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar had built.
“They were ready for whatever tests came into their lives,” Caywood said.
He said there is an earlier appearance of Jesus in Genesis 18 where three men visit Abraham on their way to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah.
“One of those men is Jesus, who stayed there to minister to Abraham while the angels went on,” Caywood said. “The major takeaway is that if we trust God he will keep us safe and deliver us no matter what we face or what we go through.
“We are a spirit being. We have a soul and live in a body. We can’t yield to the emotions and negative things. We have to be strong in the faith or the flesh, the carnal mind, is going to find us.”
The Rev. Cosentino, the former pastor of Greenwood Baptist Church who now leads the First Baptist Church in Socorro, N.M., said the fourth man “was more than an angel, it was God himself who was present with them in the furnace and proving his faithfulness to his people.
“God is going to remain with them even in trials and persecution,” he said. “People around the world face death for standing up for their faith in Christ, knowing that upon physical death they immediately come into the presence of God.”
Citing Philippians 1:21, Cosentino said, “To live is Christ and to die is gain.
“Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego told Nebuchadnezzar, ‘We will not serve your god or bow down to the image you have set up.’
“We may face persecution and personal rejection. People may laugh at us and we might lose reputation in the community. One day that persecution might lead to us facing death, but we have to remember that God will have the final say.”
The Rev. Roossinck, pastor of Westover Baptist Church, said Jesus’ example should be inspirational.
“Even if we do die on earth, we have the security of Christ, who died in place of us,” Roossinck said. “The Lord God is the one to be worshipped, not an earthly king.
“No matter what an earthly king does to people, God is over that. He rules and reigns not only over that king but all the kings of the earth. He is the ultimate king in that position of authority over all things.”
Roossinck said an earthly king can be a man or something else that people worship like themselves or their material possessions.
“We as Christians need to be pro-active toward God and build our faith now before we get to that point where we are going to be pressured,” he said.
