“Even If He Doesn’t . . .”

“Even If He Doesn’t . . .”

If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God whom we serve is able to save us. He will rescue us from your power, Your Majesty. But even if he doesn’t . . . Daniel 3:17-18

THREE JEWISH ADMINISTRATORS IN BABYLON refused to bow down to Nebuchadnezzar’s golden statue. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were threatened with their lives for not worshiping the king’s image, but just as they could not eat foreign foods that violated God’s commands (Daniel 1:6-16), they could not honor a foreign god—or a king who wanted to be honored as one. So they made their stand and took their chances with the king’s threats.

These three men displayed a well-rounded faith—the kind that simultaneously holds belief in a certain outcome and trust in case of a different one. They boldly stated that God was able to save them and expected that he would. Yet they knew they had not been given a clear promise about surviving, and they trusted God anyway. Was this their time to be a testimony of salvation or of unwavering conviction even in death? Either way, their faith was a testimony, and either way, they knew God would take care of them. They believed he would save them but were prepared not to be saved.

That might seem like double-minded faith to us—like believing without really believing. But far from watering down their faith or hedging their bets, they were able to declare their absolute confidence in God while also trusting him regardless of the consequences. They added trust to their faith, insisting on believing in his goodness regardless of what happened.

When God gives you a specific promise with a clear outcome, it’s important to believe what he said. That becomes the substance of a faith that doesn’t hedge its bets. But when you are thrown into a situation without clear direction about what God wants to do, declare your faith anyway—faith for him to save, protect, deliver, heal, or whatever the situation demands, but also trust for him not to. Either way, you become a powerful testimony, and you can rest in the center of his will.

All God’s giants have been weak men who did great things for God because they believed God would be with them.