No Way Out

Good morning! I hope your week is off to a great start.

In each of our lives we come to points of deep crisis and trial. These points take us to our “limits” and most often far beyond those limits. These times come in all shapes and sizes…financial hardship, relationship difficulties, critical health issues and teenage rebellion to name a few.

At times like these we often find ourselves crying out to God for some relief. We may question why He doesn’t simply remove us from the situation or make the situation go away? The longer these situations go on the more desperate we often become.

Using the backdrop of these points of crisis and trial we have the opportunity to see something about God’s activity in our lives. Let me share a few examples with you from scripture:

Daniel 3:19-22 (NLT)
Nebuchadnezzar was so furious with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego that his face became distorted with rage. He commanded that the furnace be heated seven times hotter than usual. [20] Then he ordered some of the strongest men of his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and throw them into the blazing furnace. [21] So they tied them up and threw them into the furnace, fully clothed. [22] And because the king, in his anger, had demanded such a hot fire in the furnace, the flames leaped out and killed the soldiers as they threw the three men in!

Daniel 6:16-17 (NLT)
So at last the king gave orders for Daniel to be arrested and thrown into the den of lions. The king said to him, “May your God, whom you worship continually, rescue you.” [17] A stone was brought and placed over the mouth of the den. The king sealed the stone with his own royal seal and the seals of his nobles, so that no one could rescue Daniel from the lions.

Luke 22:39-44 (NLT)
Then, accompanied by the disciples, Jesus left the upstairs room and went as usual to the Mount of Olives. [40] There he told them, “Pray that you will not be overcome by temptation.”
[41] He walked away, about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, [42] “Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will, not mine.” [43] Then an angel from heaven appeared and strengthened him. [44] He prayed more fervently, and he was in such agony of spirit that his sweat fell to the ground like great drops of blood.

Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego would not bow to the idol that King Nebuchadnezzar had built. Their commitment to honor God left them in the face of peril and certain death. Daniel had refused to forfeit his devotion to God, even in the face of a royal decree. Daniel also found himself at a place of personal peril. Jesus would soon be handed over to His enemies. He prayed for God to remove the coming pain of torture and crucifixion, but above all He was resolved that God’s will be done.

In each of these situations the road led to a place of apparent ruin and death. There was no hope of escape. No opportunity to go back and make different choices. The outcomes were already set in motion, but wait…the outcomes of each of these events is much different than anyone would have guessed. Take a look:

Daniel 3:24-27 (NLT)
But suddenly, as he was watching, Nebuchadnezzar jumped up in amazement and exclaimed to his advisers, “Didn’t we tie up three men and throw them into the furnace?”
“Yes,” they said, “we did indeed, Your Majesty.”
[25] “Look!” Nebuchadnezzar shouted. “I see four men, unbound, walking around in the fire. They aren’t even hurt by the flames! And the fourth looks like a divine being!”
[26] Then Nebuchadnezzar came as close as he could to the door of the flaming furnace and shouted: “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!” So Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego stepped out of the fire. [27] Then the princes, prefects, governors, and advisers crowded around them and saw that the fire had not touched them. Not a hair on their heads was singed, and their clothing was not scorched. They didn’t even smell of smoke!

Daniel 6:19-23 (NLT)
Very early the next morning, the king hurried out to the lions’ den. [20] When he got there, he called out in anguish, “Daniel, servant of the living God! Was your God, whom you worship continually, able to rescue you from the lions?”
[21] Daniel answered, “Long live the king! [22] My God sent his angel to shut the lions’ mouths so that they would not hurt me, for I have been found innocent in his sight. And I have not wronged you, Your Majesty.”
[23] The king was overjoyed and ordered that Daniel be lifted from the den. Not a scratch was found on him because he had trusted in his God.

Luke 24:1-7 (NLT)
But very early on Sunday morning the women came to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. [2] They found that the stone covering the entrance had been rolled aside. [3] So they went in, but they couldn’t find the body of the Lord Jesus. [4] They were puzzled, trying to think what could have happened to it. Suddenly, two men appeared to them, clothed in dazzling robes. [5] The women were terrified and bowed low before them. Then the men asked, “Why are you looking in a tomb for someone who is alive? [6] He isn’t here! He has risen from the dead! Don’t you remember what he told you back in Galilee, [7] that the Son of Man must be betrayed into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, and that he would rise again the third day?”

Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego walked out of the fire unsigned and without even the smell of smoke. Daniel exited the lions den without as much as a bite mark or claw mark. Jesus stepped forth from a sealed tomb, death could not hold Him.

So what is the point of all of these examples? More often than not, God doesn’t remove the source of your crisis, nor does He take you above it. God’s glory is best revealed by taking you through it. You become stronger and your faith is much deeper, because you have gone to the depths of despair and found God waiting there for you.

Psalm 34:19 (NLT)
The righteous face many troubles,
but the Lord rescues them from each and every one.

Until next Monday may God’s riches blessings be yours this week.

Carl