Sheridan Lake Bible Church
SLBC Sunday March 15, 2026
  • His Mercy Is More
  • You Never Let Go
  • Approach My Soul

      • Ephesians 2:8–10KJV1900

  • 'Tis So Sweet To Trust In Jesus
  • The Steadfast Love
  • Leaning On The Everlasting Arms
  • Dusty Bibles
  • Let’s begin by going to the Lord in prayer.
    Gracious and loving Heavenly Father,
    We are honored to have in our hands Your Words, Your love letter to us. Father, may Your Word never collect dust on a book case or coffee table, may these divinely inspired Words take root in our lives in such a way that we would receive peace from You. That You would not find in us a people, a nation, or a generation, that is too busy to spend time in Your Word. That we would never be complacent for living a life in the light of Your way.
    And Father, right now, as we corporately look into these pages, we ask that You would speak to us in a powerful way.
    These things we pray, In Jesus Name, Amen
    Now, would you please turn in your copies of God’s Word to Daniel chapter 3. We will be reading verses 1-7 shortly, so please have these verses marked and ready for that time.
    As I have stated with each passage we have looked at this month, this mornings passage fits quiet well with our current worship theme of Sola Gratia, which makes clear that Salvation is by Grace Alone.
    In this morning’s passage, we will see God reach down and graciously provide His salvation to His faithful servants, even in the midst of a fiery furnace. But one of the things I find so compelling, as we look at this passage, is the bold proclamation of Hananiah, Misheal, and Azariah in the face of King Nebuchadnezzar, with a trip to the fiery furnace looming before them. Their expectation was that their gracious and sovereign God would provide salvation to them even in the flames, but look at what they proclaim in verse 18;
    Daniel 3:18 ESV
    …But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.
    This leads me to believe that their understanding of God’s salvation was that while it could include salvation from the flames of the fiery furnace, ultimately, they were far more concerned with salvation from the flames of hell.
    I believe that they also understood that God had a way of taking the tragedy’s one faces in life, and bring great glory to His Name. Such is the story of Maewyn Succat.
    Somewhere around 385 AD in the northern Roman colony of Britain, Calpurnius and Conchessa Succat celebrated the birth of a baby boy. They gave him the name Maewyn. Calpurnius was a leader in the local church and Maewyn’s grandfather, Potitus was a priest. Unfortunately at around the age of 13, Maewyn turned his back on the Christian faith of his family, in fact one historian notes he lived a wild life. Even so, it appears God had a specific purpose for him, and to accomplish this divine plan, God went to some pretty serious extremes.
    One day, when Maewyn was 16 years old, some raiders from Ireland kidnapped him and took him back to Ireland where he was placed in slavery. At the time Ireland was not a part of the Roman Empire and was considered a barbarian nation. For 6 years he was enslaved there. At some point in time his primary work as a slave was caring for his masters sheep. This required long cold days and nights, mostly alone. It was during this dark time in his life that he began to spend extensive times of praying, many days he prayed a hundred or more times a day. As a result he began to develop a relationship with the Triune God of Scripture.
    According to records, one night he had a vision, and in the vision he was told there was a ship ready to take him back home. So he hiked 200 miles to the coast where he boarded a ship that took him back home to Britain. However, as he headed back to Britain, he was now a changed young man, no longer a rebel, he had now surrendered his life to the Lord. He began to study for the ministry and led a parish in Britain for 20 years. That is until he reached the age of 48.
    Interestingly, the average age for men in the 5th century ended right around the age of 48, but God had a different plan for Maewyn. One night, his sleep was interrupted by another dream, similar in some ways to the dream Peter had in Acts 16:9, where God called Peter to go to the home of the Roman Centurion Cornelius. Keep in mind, not only was Cornelius a Gentile, on top of that he was a Roman Centurion. In some ways you could say he was twice or double an enemy of Peter. But Peter obeyed the command he was given in his vision and as a result, Cornelius surrendered his life to the Lord.
    In Maewyn’s dream, he heard voice with an Irish accent pleading; “We appeal to you, holy servant boy, to come and walk among us!”. Can you imagine being in Maewyn’s shoes? For 6 years the Irish had enslaved you, and now you have a vision calling you back to Ireland.
    Perhaps he turned to Genesis 50:20 and the biblical account of Joseph. Joseph had been sold into slavery that took him to Egypt. In chapter 50 he is face to face with the very ones who sold him into slavery, his own brothers. He was now 2nd in command in Egypt, which was the most powerful nation on the face of the earth. The life of his brothers rested in his hands and they feared the worse, had the roles been reversed, they would have had Joseph killed. Not Joseph, his response; Genesis 50:20
    Genesis 50:20 ESV
    As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.
    Maewyn followed the lead of Joseph, knowing that what Satan intended for evil, God could use to bring glory to His Name. He returned to Ireland, and God used him in an incredible way. We will learn more about him a little later.
    With that, would you please stand in honor of the reading of God’s Holy Word?
    Daniel 3:1–7 ESV
    King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold, whose height was sixty cubits and its breadth six cubits. He set it up on the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon. 2 Then King Nebuchadnezzar sent to gather the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the justices, the magistrates, and all the officials of the provinces to come to the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up. 3 Then the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the justices, the magistrates, and all the officials of the provinces gathered for the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up. And they stood before the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up. 4 And the herald proclaimed aloud, “You are commanded, O peoples, nations, and languages, 5 that when you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, you are to fall down and worship the golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up. 6 And whoever does not fall down and worship shall immediately be cast into a burning fiery furnace.” 7 Therefore, as soon as all the peoples heard the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, all the peoples, nations, and languages fell down and worshiped the golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.
    May the Lord add His blessings to the reading of His Word, please be seated.
    To begin with in this mornings passage we see 3 young men;
    Confronting the Call to Conform. Vs. 1-7
    Right now, I’d like to ask you to use your imagination for a moment. You are in the midst of thousands of people out on a huge valley plain. Before all of you is an idol 90 ft tall and 9 feet wide. You have been told that when you hear all the instruments begin to play you are to bow down with everyone else and worship that idol.
    Now at that point it would be easy for you to rationalize in your minds;
    “I know, I will bow before the idol, but I won’t worship it, I’ll worship God. I mean what good am I to God if I’m dead!”
    Earlier this morning, we looked at the life of Maewyn Succot, who returned to the country where he served as a slave for 6 years. Well when the church of Rome and the people of Britain knew he was going to return to Ireland, they gave him very specific instructions on how he was to reach the people of Ireland. The instructions were clear, he was to do things in Ireland exactly how things were done in the rest of the Roman Empire. Which meant before he could evangelize there, he had to Romanize them. He was to, in their words “civilize” the people. Teach them Roman rules and customs and once the people committed to adhering to these customs, then he could begin the process of evangelizing the people.
    It would have been easy for Maewyn to conform to the requirement he was given, but he knew this approach would’t work in Ireland. You see, because of his time there as a slave, he had a solid understanding of the people of Ireland. He used his knowledge of Ireland, their customs, their beliefs, their way of life, and used that knowledge to reach the people of Ireland with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
    For close to 30 years he served the Lord there, and when all was said and done, his impact for Christ can only be measured by God Himself, Maewyn lost count of how many he’d baptized, but some historians place the number as high as 120,000 individuals. He also established 200 or more churches in Ireland. He served until his death, which most believe occured on March 17th, 461 AD.
    Did I mention that before he returned to Ireland his name was changed to Patricus, you and I know him as Saint Patrick. His impact for Christ was such that now all of Ireland has established a national holiday celebrating his life and ministry, virtually everything shuts down in celebration of Saint Patricks day!
    Had Saint Patrick conformed to the standards set by the leaders above him, we would have likely never heard of him.
    By the way, the religious leaders of Jesus day hated Him because he didn’t conform to their way of doing things.
    I have learned something through my time in God’s Word, as well as working for 19 years in Corporate America, not conforming to the world around you can bring with it challenging circumstances.
    Which leads us to the next set of verses. Daniel 3:8-12
    Daniel 3:8–18 ESV
    Therefore at that time certain Chaldeans came forward and maliciously accused the Jews. 9 They declared to King Nebuchadnezzar, “O king, live forever! 10 You, O king, have made a decree, that every man who hears the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, shall fall down and worship the golden image. 11 And whoever does not fall down and worship shall be cast into a burning fiery furnace. 12 There are certain Jews whom you have appointed over the affairs of the province of Babylon: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These men, O king, pay no attention to you; they do not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”
    When you and I commit to doing things God’s way, things do not always go smoothly for us. It certainly didn’t for these 3 young Hebrews.
    Look at verse 8. “Therefore at that time certain Chaldeans came forward and maliciously accused the Jews”.
    What did they do in their maliciousness? “They declared to King Nebuchadnezzar, …. There are certain Jews whom you have appointed over the affairs of the province of Babylon: (who) pay no attention to you; they do not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.” ”
    But reading on we see;
    Fearless Faith Under Fire. Vs. 8-18
    At the outset we see our arch enemy, Satan, bringing accusations against these young men from some of the other advisors in the Babylonian empire. Men who were, politically, under Hananiah, Azariah and Misheal.
    By the way, if you go back to chapter 2, you will remember that in chapter 2, Daniel and these 3 were instrumental in some of these men not being torn limb from limb and killed. Yet here we see jealousy getting the best of them, bringing about a desire to see these 3 thrown into a fiery furnace!
    A quick lesson for us,
    Resist the temptation to let jealousy of others control you.
    Let’s read on and I will highlight things to you as we read.
    Daniel 3:13–18 ESV
    Then Nebuchadnezzar in furious rage commanded that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought. So they brought these men before the king. 14 Nebuchadnezzar answered and said to them, “Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the golden image that I have set up? 15 Now if you are ready when you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, to fall down and worship the image that I have made, well and good. But if you do not worship, you shall immediately be cast into a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who will deliver you out of my hands?” 16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. 17 If this be so, our God Whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. 18 But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”
    The evil plot of these jealous leaders worked, because we read in verse 13; “Then Nebuchadnezzar in furious rage commanded that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought.” before him.
    Once there we see “Nebuchadnezzar answered and said to them, “Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the golden image that I have set up? ”
    Interestingly, as furious as he was, he was willing to give them another chance, “Now if you are ready when you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, to fall down and worship the image that I have made, well and good.”
    I kinda wonder if the next thing he said was sort of like a burr in their saddle. Don’t forget, they had already seen the Hand of their great God rescue them on more than one occasion.
    The king went on to say, “And who is the god who will deliver you out of my hands?”
    In my very vivid imagination I picture one of them raising their hand;
    “I know, I know, our God is the God!”
    Of course they didn’t do that, but they weren’t too far off!
    “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. 17 If this be so, our God Whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. 18 But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.””
    What incredible faith! “our God Whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace”
    Yet not wanting to presume their desires onto the God of the universe they go on, “But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”
    From here we move on to Daniel 3:19-27
    Where we see;
    Divine Deliverance Demonstrated. Vs. 19-27
    Again, as I read these verses, I will highlight some things to you.
    Daniel 3:19–27 ESV
    Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with fury, and the expression of his face was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He ordered the furnace heated seven times more than it was usually heated. 20 And he ordered some of the mighty men of his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and to cast them into the burning fiery furnace. 21 Then these men were bound in their cloaks, their tunics, their hats, and their other garments, and they were thrown into the burning fiery furnace. 22 Because the king’s order was urgent and the furnace overheated, the flame of the fire killed those men who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. 23 And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell bound into the burning fiery furnace. 24 Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished and rose up in haste. He declared to his counselors, “Did we not cast three men bound into the fire?” They answered and said to the king, “True, O king.” 25 He answered and said, “But I see four men unbound, walking in the midst of the fire, and they are not hurt; and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods.” 26 Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the door of the burning fiery furnace; he declared, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out, and come here!” Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out from the fire. 27 And the satraps, the prefects, the governors, and the king’s counselors gathered together and saw that the fire had not had any power over the bodies of those men. The hair of their heads was not singed, their cloaks were not harmed, and no smell of fire had come upon them.
    The next thing we come to in this morning’s passage is;
    Glorifying God in Triumph. Vs. 28-30
    Again, as I read this passage I will highlight some things to you.
    Daniel 3:28–30 ESV
    Nebuchadnezzar answered and said, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, Who has sent his angel and delivered His servants, who trusted in Him, and set aside the king’s command, and yielded up their bodies rather than serve and worship any god except their own God. 29 Therefore I make a decree: Any people, nation, or language that speaks anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego shall be torn limb from limb, and their houses laid in ruins, for there is no other god who is able to rescue in this way.” 30 Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the province of Babylon.
    Now as we close this morning, I want us to consider some important truths we need to take hold of, if we are to live lives that are pleasing to God, which opens the door for Him to accomplish great things in and through our lives. We’ve already looked at them, I just want to remind us of what we have already looked at.
    Hardships, Tough Times & Tragedies are a Part of Life. What we do when faced with those times is entirely up to us. We will all be;
    Confronted the Calls to Conform to a world that has no room for God. It will not be easy to stand firm and refuse to conform. Next, it is increasingly becoming clear that our;
    Faith will come Under Fire. In your schools, in your family, in your community, in your work place. Your faith will come under fire. If we want to honor God, even in the face of your faith being under fire, we need to;
    Resist the temptation to succumb to that fire. If you look back at Daniel 1, verse 8, what do we see Daniel do? (He resolved in his heart that He would honor God against all costs.) We need to do the same thing. That resolve begins this morning, even as we close in prayer. The more we make that resolved effort, the more we will see;
    Divine Deliverance Demonstrated. God Himself will give you strength as you trust and depend on Him. And lastly, as He does give us strength, your job is to;
    Glorifying God in Triumph. Give all the glory to Him.
    One last thing as we close. While we see King Nebuchadnezzar acknowledge and honor God verbally, we do not see him surrender his life to God. Which becomes very clear in chapter 4.
    Which leads me to the last important truth we must understand;
    7. It is not enough to make an emotional decision to trust in Christ. We must come to the point of total surrender to Him. It is when we do this that we will begin to see Him work through us, to change us, and bring glory to His Name.
    Let’ close our time this morning in prayer.

      • Daniel 3:18KJV1900

      • Genesis 50:20KJV1900

      • Daniel 3:1–7KJV1900

      • Daniel 3:8–12KJV1900

      • Daniel 3:8–12KJV1900

      • Daniel 3:13–18KJV1900

      • Daniel 3:19–27KJV1900

      • Daniel 3:28–30KJV1900

  • In Times Like These
  • May the Lord
Sheridan Lake Bible Church
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