Small Group Questions:

1. Who is the most humble person you know? What makes them humble?
2. Do you think it’s possible for someone not to be prideful at all? Why or why not?
3. How do you think pride affects our worship?
4. Do you think Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego made the right decision not to bow down to the statue? Do you think it would have been the right decision even if they did not get saved? Why or why not?
5. When are you most susceptible to letting pride creep in?
6. How do you think God’s presence challenges our pride?
7. What is one way this week that we can aim to surrender our pride and pursue humility in God’s presence this week?

THE MAIN POINT

God’s presence judges pride

THE BIBLE

Daniel 3

THE CONTEXT

In the previous chapter, Nebuchadnezzar received a dream which was interpreted by Daniel, and ultimately led to Daniel’s promotion in his court. The dream in question depicted a statue made of various materials. The head is made of gold, its chest and arms of silver, its middle and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, and its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. In the king’s dream, a rock was cut out by a hand that was not human, struck the statue’s feet, and broke them into pieces. Then the iron, clay, bronze, silver, and gold were broken into pieces to be swept up by the wind, and not a trace of these materials was left. The rock remained and became a great mountain that filled the whole earth. Daniel explains this dream to Nebuchadnezzar, saying that he and his kingdom are the head of gold, but after his kingdom would come a smaller, less powerful kingdom, and then would come another kingdom smaller and less powerful than that one, followed by a fourth kingdom as strong as iron. This last kingdom, however, shall be divided (symbolized by the mix of iron and clay), and part of it will be strong (as symbolized by the iron) while the other part will be brittle (as symbolized by the clay). In other words, Daniel tells Nebuchadnezzar that his dream meant that his kingdom would not last forever, but eventually it would fall, just like all the other kingdoms following it (Daniel 2:31-45)

In chapter 3, Nebuchadnezzar builds a statue of pure gold. There is an obvious link between the statue he builds and the one from his dream. One important difference remains: The statue built by the king is only made of gold. In doing so, Nebuchadnezzar defies God by proclaiming that his kingdom and greatness would last forever. Here, Nebuchadnezzar’s pride is on full display.

Whether this statue was an image of Nebuchadnezzar himself, of an animal representing a god, or of any other being or object serving to represent a god, one thing was certain: disrespecting the image was seen as disrespecting Nebuchadnezzar himself.

Since the Babylonians were polytheistic, the purpose of the gathering at the statue was probably not to worship one idol as a supreme god. A refusal to yield homage to the gods of the kingdom was regarded as an act of hostility against the kingdom and its king. In Nebuchadnezzar’s mind, acknowledging that the gods of the kingdom were more powerful than their own national god was something everyone of his subjects could do. In his mind, Nebuchadnezzar demanded nothing from a religious point of view. To him, therefore, the refusal of the Jews appeared as opposition to the greatness of his kingdom. After all, according to Mesopotamian thinking, Nebuchadnezzar’s gods were responsible for his success; therefore, to disregard them was the same as rejecting Nebuchadnezzar himself.

THE CORE

As you prepare the core of the message using personal story and questions, keep in mind these points:

• Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego knew exactly what the consequence was for not bending the knee to this golden statue. Their attitude before the king and their refusal to his extension of grace if they would just bow down to the statue reveal their faith. To them, the idea of turning from God to idols was worse than death. Their resolve over this test of their faith showed that their devotion was to God over self-preservation. They knew that if God spared them from the furnace, then he would deliver them from death; and if God did not spare them from the fire, he would deliver them through death.
• Nebuchadnezzar, in heating the furnace as hot as it could be, thought he was in complete control of these men’s fate. After all, his soldiers – who did not even enter the furnace – died from its heat as they threw the three men inside. These men were destined to die. Yet, in protecting them, God reveals – somewhat ironically, since Nebuchadnezzar had just said that no one would be able to rescue them – that he can protect his servants far more and far better than the most powerful king on earth could ever dream of protecting his servants.
• In this chapter, we see that God’s presence with his people serves as a judgment of Nebuchadnezzar’s pride over his kingdom and power. As he sees a fourth person with “the appearance of a son of man” in the fire with the 3 Israelites, he has no choice but to acknowledge the supremacy of God and humble himself under his might.

THE APPLICATION

• When we experience God, we cannot continue in our human pride. His presence convicts us of our pride and leads to humility. While we may sometimes adopt the same mindset as Nebuchadnezzar and think we are in control, the reality is that God is the only one who is in control.
• God is worthy of worship. No matter what. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego declared that even if God did not save them from the fiery furnace, they would still only bow to him. Our devotion to God is not based on what he can do for us, but rather on who he is. What he chooses to do flows from who he is, and whether he protects us or not, he is still worthy of our worship, praise, faithfulness, and dedication.