THE BLAZING FURNACE by Tony Manley

“So these men, wearing their robes, trousers, turbans and other clothes, WERE BOUND and thrown into the blazing furnace. “Dan. 3:21

“and these three men, FIRMLY TIED, fell into the blazing furnace.” Dan. 3:23

“The blazing furnace”- hot, deadly, painful, and a place I never choose on my own!  When I am dealing with “the blazing furnace” of life – whatever or whoever that looks like - I too, find myself “bound” and “firmly tied.” Verse 21 –“thrown into” and verse 23 –“fell into” tell us these boys were put there without their consent.  Isn’t that another aspect of my “blazing furnace?” I find I usually didn’t ask for this!  Not to mention, I can be guilty of calling on my deadly default buddies –deserve and entitle - to help make my case! 

I do love the courage and conviction of these Hebrew boys – true heroes of the faith. I love the detailed description of the before, during, and after of “the blazing furnace.” But the detail that has always intrigued me most – “there was no smell of fire on them.”(Dan. 3:27)  Wow! I know all the details are miraculous -NOTHING WAS BURNED, but how does a person not have even the smell of a fire on them? I take great pride in my sense of smell. I am quick to notice fragrance and stench. Truly, smell is a big deal in my life.

BUT just this week, after all the years of loving the detail about the lack of fire smell, God showed me a more timely truth for this season of my life. The boys went into “the blazing furnace” “bound/firmly tied” but came out “unbound” (Dan. 3:25).  Something did get burned – THE THING THAT BOUND THEM WAS REMOVED – GONE when they came out of “the blazing furnace!” “The blazing furnace” was actually the place/tool God used to free them and to reveal His greatest work – freedom! Freedom came in “the blazing furnace.”

The times I have experienced the most freedom with the Holy Spirit have followed acts of obedience, and I would dare say more often than not, there was a “blazing furnace” involved. I know God is plainly, loudly, and intensely taking me through “Freedom 101” with Him as my teacher. My desire is to live life in and out of “the blazing furnace” “unbound” just like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.