“When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you.” (ISAIAH 43:2 ESV)
One of the most powerful events in history where the Lord showed His might and left the people in awe was the fires of the furnace formed by the armies as commanded by one of the greatest Kings of the Chaldean dynasty, reigning Babylon. King Nebuchadnezzar, when he called to burn three man in public, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego (Daniel 3) for they refused to worship and bow down to the image of gold, the god made by the King, in reverence to the one true God, the Heavenly Father. The three man stood to their faith in the Lord that He will deliver them, and even if they will not be rescued, still they will not bow down to their man made gods. So, the Lord protected them and they were not consumed despite the blazing fire, not even a single hair of them was burned.
This moved the people, even the King himself to the point of changing the decree where everyone who will not bow down to the one true God, the Heavenly Father, will be cut off. This story represents how the Lord rescued His people in the blazing oppression, and today, we can compare it to the oppressing schemes of the devil in oppressing God’s people through circumstances of wars, blinding us from the truth, deceives us with pleasures, depression, sickness and offers us with anything that can turn our hearts away from the Lord and can replace the Lord as the center of our lives.
But as Christ resurrected and the Lord Holy Spirit living in us, we are empowered to overcome every oppression by drawing closer to God, by living a life surrendered to Him anything that defiles us as we approach the throne of God’s grace through Christ every day. Remember, through Christ, there is freedom out of every oppression, and even to the point of physical death, but never our spirits that belong to God.
Only believe, keep our faith in Christ, in all seasons, in laughter and tears, remember that the pain of this world will never last, cling to God, and just like Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, never bow down to the modern-day idols, revere the Lord, find refuge in His presence and let His will be done in our lives.
