The Moment of Truth

I don’t know about you but I am an absolute sucker for, what I call, the “moment of truth” found in almost every action/adventure movie ever made. It is the moment in the movie when the hero/heroine must make the decision to “do” or “say” what is right and or choose to abandon the quest and walk away from the conflict in failure or defeat.

We all remember the final “trial” of William Wallace in Braveheart as he refuses to bow to the tyranny of the English empire and chooses torture rather then abandonment of the cause when he screams at the top of his lungs… FEEDOM!  Or when the falsely accused criminal, Andy Dufresne, successfully emerges from the sewer pipe of Shawshank prison with his arms raised in victory as the rain pours down from the sky. Or dare I say it, when the hard-fighting boxer from Philadelphia, Rocky Balboa, out lasts the Russian juggernaut, Ivan Drago, and lands the final blow that knocks out the seemingly unbeatable physical specimen.

These are the moments that stick in our thoughts and capture our imagination. These are times when we want to stand up and cheer for the character, who when facing overwhelming opposition, beats the odds, stays the course and becomes the hero! I have always looked at those moments with longing and wonder and internally questioned, do I had what it takes to do something like that?

I am reminded of a story from Daniel 3 that creates a moment like this in the lives of three young men, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego -- three young Hebrew men that are ripped from their homeland and community and transported directly into the heart of a new and foreign land and asked to be part of its administration. In the midst of this incredible culture shock God is there and watching over them. They are actually promoted to positions of leadership and have some prestige and standing with King Nebuchadnezzar. All of that is put to the test with the story many of us have heard since we were little…Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego and the fiery furnace.

What I want to focus on is their moment of truth. The king had created a large golden statue of himself and was requiring that ALL citizens bow down to this statue and worship. Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego were Hebrews and could not do such a thing, as it would be an abomination to God. When the time came and the ceremony began all the assembly bowed and began to worship this golden image except Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego. They must have stood out like a sore thumb - three men standing in the midst of a sea of prostrate citizens. The king’s anger raged and the trial of these young men began immediately. The punishment was death and there was no way to win this case as they had been seen by everyone present, including the king!

What has always amazed me about this story is not just their refusal to bow and worship the idol, but it is their words to king Nebuchadnezzar in verses 17 and 18 that blows my mind, 

“Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire;

and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But even if He does not, let be

know to you, O king, that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the

golden image that you have set up.” (Dan. 3:17-18)

Did you catch it? They stand in faith and boldness and say that God is able to rescue them from the fiery furnace. But in verse 18 they make and incredible statement of faith that blows everything else out of the water, “but even if He does not…we are not going to worship your golden image.” What a moment of truth!  This is putting-your-money-where-your-mouth-is, lived out to the fullest. Our God can save us, but even if He does not, we will not bow. Their faith was not in what God could do for them but was instead in God Himself. No strings attached.

            I am dramatically challenged by this statement because I know that many times in my life my faith is not necessarily in God but in what He can do for me. I pray because I know that He can do something and provide for a need or want. But what is being challenged here is what if He doesn’t? Will I still pray? Will I still have faith? Will I still believe? We will all have “moments of truth” in our own lives and sometimes more frequently then others. Will we have the boldness to stand for what is right, say what is right and do what is right even if our deliverance may not come?

            And although Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego were ultimately saved from the fiery furnace, they were not delivered from having to walk into the fiery furnace itself. They had to step into this room of fire and be fully engulfed in the flames that they had just witnessed kill the guards who led them there. They had to experience the king’s wrath in anger toward their defiance. Though they were ultimately delivered from harm and destruction, they were not delivered from the experience. Imagine the fear that must have gripped them as they walked to the furnace. Imagine the hope that must have left them when the king’s rage was targeted at them. Imagine the doubt that must have filled their hearts that God might not deliver them. But their faith was in God and they had resolved to “do” what honored God, no matter what the cost.

            I don’t know where you are in your story or “moment of truth” but what I do know is that God is there. Some of you are doubting His involvement or doubting whether you can do it. But allow me to encourage you and say unequivocally that He is there.

We desperately desire for God to deliver us out of the trials that we face, so we don’t have to deal with the struggles or the difficulties. However, it may be His desire to be with us in the midst of the trial, struggle or difficulty.

“Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astounded and stood up in haste; ‘Was it not

three men we cast bound into the midst of the fire?...Look I see four men loosed and walking about in the in the midst of the fire without harm, and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods.”  (Daniel 3:24-25)

The fourth men in the fire with them was Jesus!

When we have our “moment of truth” – will we choose to entrust our lives to God, no matter what the outcome?  We know this for sure - when we make the choice to stand for righteousness, when we choose faith in the midst of our trials, when we believe God will provide even when we don’t see the resource – we are never alone in that choice.  He WILL meet us, even if it’s right there in the fire.  Just as He did for three Hebrew boys.