In this sermon, the preacher focuses on the story of King Nebuchadnezzar and the three men who were thrown into the fiery furnace. He emphasizes the greatness and power of Nebuchadnezzar as a ruler. The preacher highlights the significance of hurting or criticizing a child of God, stating that it is like hurting God Himself. He also emphasizes the importance of having the Son of God, Jesus, with us in times of difficulty and suffering. The preacher encourages believers to stand firm in their faith and not to fear persecution, as the Son of God is always with them.

We find that matter in Daniel, the third chapter. I'll read verse twenty-four. Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished, and he rose in haste and spoke, saying to his counsellors, Did we not cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? They answered and said to the king, True, O king. Look, he answered, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God. Nebuchadnezzar was the king. He was probably the first and the last king to have such an empire like his. Remember, there's even that dream which was described about him, that head of gold, that described him. Ruling the whole known world. What type of a man are you, King Nebuchadnezzar? What was wrong with you? You having this dream interpreted for you by Daniel, that you were the head of gold, and then all the rest of the interpretation, so much so that you issued a decree that the whole empire was to worship the God of Daniel. Why didn't you? For he had said that the God of Daniel is the king. He's the Lord of Lords. Let the whole earth know it. But after just a few days, he had forgotten all that. After just a few days, along came some wicked counselors of his, leaders, and they advised him. They said, Oh, King, there are some Jews. who don't really fear you, and they still pray to another God, we suggest erecting a statue. And of course it was a statue in Nebuchadnezzar's image. Oh, what foolishness! He had already seen and been told of the destruction of that. But it's like people today, they make a decision, they say, I accept Jesus, after a few days they've forgotten it. And those advisors had a grudge, they had a hatred towards the Jews. They said, it's these Jews that are the problem, and these particular men. And then they arranged that furnace to be heated. That reminds me of a more topical issue. It is now known that it is on the lips of everybody, Saddam Hussein. Remember, Saddam Hussein is the king of Babylon, you could say. I mean it in the sense of the geography of the place. That is exactly where King Nebuchadnezzar was the ruler. There are many today who say that those wonderful gardens there of Eden were in that area. Why? Because Nebuchadnezzar was not like Saddam Hussein. He was a man of great wisdom. He was a man of great wisdom. He was a king. He was a king. He was a man of great wisdom. Just look at Saddam Hussein, he has that same hatred of the Jews. That is which King Nebuchadnezzar suffered from. He, in his Islamic Kingdom, was hating the Jews. There is so much spoken about Bush. Bush is a Christian. He got converted through the ministry of Billy Graham. and he writes clearly in his testimony how he got saved and today the main criticism of Bush is that he is in favor of the Jews and is sympathetic to the Jews and towards Christianity. That's us. Some don't know. They just automatically fight America. The one who is born again, he has a love of the gospel and the things of the Lord. I wish we could have a leader like that but there are many many who are viciously opposed to him. I'm not a politician but let me just speak the plain truth to you and that is that I must love and stand with those who love the gospel and the things of the Lord and those who don't it's a sad thing for them. In some postures. Some years ago there was a network Islamic meeting which declared that it was going to conquer the whole of Africa and convert it absolutely to Islam and it concerns me that we give them absolute liberty to build their religious institutions and their mosques in our countries but they do not do the same. They don't allow even one church to be built and the freedom for Christianity in their own countries. The Quran states very clearly that no Muslim should make a friend of a Christian or the Jew. In fact he is to take for granted that if he kills an infidel it is not he who has killed him, it is Allah himself but remember it's not we who say that but it is our Lord Jesus who said love your enemies. So here in the story we have King Nebuchadnezzar who was ruling over that empire in that same geographical spot where Saddam Hussein is today the dictator. And you know how it is part of Islamic doctrine to put strap bombs around you and to go and to do a suicide bombing to kill others and look at what happened in New York City. I've been in those twin towers I'm just thankful that I wasn't there when those Muslims blew them up because not that I'm afraid of death but I've had more opportunity to preach the gospel. That's why I'm thankful I would like to thank Bin Laden and all his terrorists that they didn't do that when I was there. Thank you to them because now I've still got the time to preach the gospel till my time is up then I can go home as well. And so some of the king's counsellors then came and said oh King Nebuchadnezzar there are some Jews who hate you and they do these evil things. Meantime they were just slaughtering these Jews and so it was arranged that the furnace should be heated seven times hotter. And he said bring them here. And he asked is it the truth that you despise me and you refuse to bow down to my idol? And so when they were brought before him they explained it's not that we despise your king but it's just our faith says thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and you shall bow down to no graven image. And he said what do you mean you're not going to bow down to my image? They said yes but because we serve God and should he want us to die we will die should he not he will rescue us. Nebuchadnezzar was so furious and he ordered that the furnace should be heated seven times hotter than it was. He called his men and he said bind them hands and feet throw them into the fiery furnace. And so they were taken to be thrown in but the flames of the fire were so enormous that they leapt out everywhere. So intense was the heat all over that even the very men who threw these victims into the fire were themselves burned to cinders. They could see those flames and those flames were so hot that they killed those that threw these people into the fire. You see when you touch a child of God when you hurt a child of God you're putting your finger into God's eye. You are hurting that which is precious if you want to criticize then why don't you criticize yourself if you want to burn in anger against somebody how about doing it against what you are and the things in your life but be careful lest you hurt and gossip and wound the next person you only will meet with the flames of hell. And so they threw them in and then while they were in the furnace Nebuchadnezzar said open so that I might look inside. He shouted in disbelief to his men and said I thought that we only threw three men inside but behold I see four and the fourth looks like the Son of God and he had said it in the way he looks like the Son of the Gods. It was Jesus and they were able to walk in liberty. When one of our people then said to Namosa but you're suffering so you with these sores it's you are suffering and like Job she said no Job's was a far worse condition I have the Son of God near me. Isn't this marvelous? When a child of God goes through suffering and goes through anguish and difficulty the Son of God is with him and Stephen as he was being martyred and the stones were being thrown at him he said he looked up and he said I see the Son of Son of God standing at the right Is there a child of God suffering and in the fire know that the Son of God is right there with you in your suffering alongside you and it's the Lord Jesus also said that when they speak scandalous things about you for my name's sake then jump for joy rejoice because great is your reward in heaven Don't flee from difficulty and from persecution the Lord Jesus his closeness is at is at the most leader of the Salvation Army is known to have bewailed the fact that in the early days of the Salvation Army they were persecuted and even stoned by the audience and they had a terrible name they were despised but now instead of the stones being thrown at them flowers are thrown and he said and along with it we've lost the power and then he called Shadrach Meshach and Abednego come here but whom and out they came he called all the set-traps and administrators and governors I'm a set-trap, I'm a governor, I'm a curse. These were the, what was that? called all these leaders around and they beheld with astonishment and noticed that they didn't even have the smell of smoke upon them neither was a hair of their heads touched Nebuchadnezzar spoke saying blessed be the God of Shadrach Meshach and Abednego who sent his angel and delivered his servants who trusted in him and they have frustrated the king's word and yielded their bodies that they should not serve nor worship any God except their own God. Mother of Moses you have done well in allowing your child to serve the Lord you would have had eternal regrets should your child have just gone its own way if you had stopped it and then it went into its own now today Moses is in heaven with her crown in heaven thank God and as I thank God for her in that even in her young state she was able to answer her young people maybe it won't need the Lord Jesus Christ to do the judging and pointing out things on the day of judgment he could simply call Nomus and say you come and you speak what you knew and you can be condemned to hell he hasn't got converted let him get converted today he needs to make things right with the Lord let him do it he was only made a half job half a confession let him truly repent and truly make right his sins get into the dip like into a cow dip get right into it be submerged that all the ticks that are on you might fall away don't be a Christian and don't be a Christian and don't be a Christian and don't be a Christian and don't be a Christian and so I remember going to a home where there was a dog full of ticks I said remove those ticks from the dog so to remove those ticks from you if you're getting into the dip then get in head first then the rest of you will be easily submerged remember when you stand before the Lord you want to have the shepherd with you you want to have the king with you the Son of God can be if you go alone and you're ashamed of the Lord you deny him he will say well I deny you too I just think there were only three and begged in Babylon who were not willing to bow the rest of the crowd every single one of them bowed the whole world was caught up with this are you gonna go just with the majority you say well it's the will of the majority if you go along with the majority that's the broadway the Lord said most will go to hell if you go with the crowd that's where you'll go with a go to to hell the Lord said majority that most go the way of the broadway few are they who are saved always stick to those who the few those who are on the narrow way and then even if you completely alone you have the majority with you you have God don't ever go with the crowd on the broadway because remember this message remains the same even at the end even at your funeral this is the same message let us bow and pray we thank you Lord that we could hear your word thank you Shadrach Meshach and Abednego they were not afraid of the majority or of the the power of the King help us make us Lord to be like them amen amen