The Shadow of Death
Scripture Reading: Daniel 3:4-25
4 Then a herald cried aloud: “To you it is commanded, O peoples, nations, and languages, 5
that at the time you hear the sound of the horn, flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery, in symphony
with all kinds of music, you shall fall down and worship the gold image that King
Nebuchadnezzar has set up; 6 and whoever does not fall down and worship shall be cast
immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace.” 7 So at that time, when all the people
heard the sound of the horn, flute, harp, and lyre, in symphony with all kinds of music, all the
people, nations, and languages fell down and worshiped the gold image which King
Nebuchadnezzar had set up.
8 Therefore at that time certain Chaldeans came forward and accused the Jews. 9 They
spoke and said to King Nebuchadnezzar, “O king, live forever! 10 You, O king, have made a
decree that everyone who hears the sound of the horn, flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery, in
symphony with all kinds of music, shall fall down and worship the gold image; 11 and
whoever does not fall down and worship shall be cast into the midst of a burning fiery
furnace. 12 There are certain Jews whom you have set over the affairs of the province of
Babylon: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego; these men, O king, have not paid due regard
to you. They do not serve your gods or worship the gold image which you have set up.”
13 Then Nebuchadnezzar, in rage and fury, gave the command to bring Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abed-Nego. So they brought these men before the king. 14 Nebuchadnezzar spoke,
saying to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, that you do not serve my
gods or worship the gold image which I have set up? 15 Now if you are ready at the time you
hear the sound of the horn, flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery, in symphony with all kinds of music,
and you fall down and worship the image which I have made, good! But if you do not worship,
you shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god
who will deliver you from my hands?”
16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar,
we have no need to answer you in this matter. 17 If that is the case, our God whom we serve
is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O
king. 18 But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we
worship the gold image which you have set up.”
19 Then Nebuchadnezzar was full of fury, and the expression on his face changed toward
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. He spoke and commanded that they heat the furnace
seven times more than it was usually heated. 20 And he commanded certain mighty men of
valor who were in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, and cast them into
the burning fiery furnace. 21 Then these men were bound in their coats, their trousers, their
turbans, and their other garments, and were cast into the midst of the burning fiery furnace.
22 Therefore, because the king’s command was urgent, and the furnace exceedingly hot, the
flame of the fire killed those men who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. 23 And
these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, fell down bound into the midst of the
burning fiery furnace.
24 Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished; and he rose in haste and spoke, saying to his
counselors, “Did we not cast three men bound into the midst of the fire?”
They answered and said to the king, “True, O king.”
25 “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.”
The line had been drawn in the sand. The gauntlet had been laid down. Even
knew what they were expected to do and the knew what the penalty would be if they
did not comply. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego were put into a very difficult
position here. You can see that the Chaldeans were setting them up. They made
that clear when they pointed out to the king that they were not worshiping the
golden image. What is interesting to consider is that there must have been many
other Jews there that chose to go along to avoid the penalty. But we're not looking
at their choice today, we're looking at the choices of Daniel's friends.
The king is angry with them but I think he figures that he will just intimidate them and
they will worship the image. I mean, he's the king. He's quite used to getting what
he wants. He attempts to motivate them by fear to do what he wants. He seems
very authoritative but he gives them a second chance. He tells them to basically
get themselves ready for the next time the music plays so they can avoid being cast
into the fiery furnace but they gave him an answer he wasn't expecting. They were
like - we don't even have to go there because we will not be worship your gods or
the image so do what you've got to do. That made the king furious. They were
supposed to fear the horrible death that lay before them but they showed no regard
for that. They didn't fear death!
Psalm 23:4 - Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
They were most definitely in the valley of the shadow of death, but they had no fear
of the evil that was before them, because God was with them. That's what they told
the king. Sure our God can save us from the fiery furnace and your hand but even
if He doesn't we still won't serve your gods or worship the image. The fact that it is
the valley of the 'shadow' of death, says a lot. What is a shadow? Is it anything,
really, in and of itself? Does it contain an matter? Think about it. It has to have
some light source and something real to cast the shadow, but those are the things
that are real; not the shadow itself.
Amos 5:8 - He made the Pleiades and Orion;
He turns the shadow of death into morning
And makes the day dark as night;
He calls for the waters of the sea
And pours them out on the face of the earth;
The LORD is His name.
You see, the LORD Yahweh made Pleiades and Orion; the stars in the sky. He
made the waters of the seas and the day itself, but He did not create the shadows.
The shadows are merely a second hand result of real things that are created. A
shadow is really an illusion of sorts and can be a deception. A shadow can be a
good thing or something that causes fear. If you're waiting for someone to arrive,
seeing their shadow coming up the walkway can be a very good thing. But if you're
a kid in a bedroom, with the moonlight shining through the window and a big tree
blowing in the backyard, as shadow can be a frightening thing. Looking at a
shadow puppet on the wall, you can make all kinds of shadows; a bunny rabbit, a
dog, a man's face, or a monster. But the bottom line is that it's really just your
hands; that's all! Yeshua came to reveal that to us.
Isaiah 9:2 - The people who walked in darkness
Have seen a great light;
Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death,
Upon them a light has shined.
For someone who is surrounded by darkness, a shadow can be terrifying. If you're
in a dark room and there's a little bit of light coming in through a doorway, it is very
easy to be deceived by what you're seeing. Or on a cloudy night with only a little
moonlight trickling through, it can be very difficult to navigate your way through. But
when the light in room turns on or when the sum comes out, you can see your way
clear. Yeshua is the great Light that has come into the picture to take away that
shadow of death. Since the fall in the garden, the enemy has been deceiving us
with shadows and most effectively with the shadow of death. How many people do
things they would never consider doing because they fear death? Many things are
done because of fear of death either directly or indirectly. A father who wants to
make sure his children have enough food to eat so they will not starve, may
overwork himself and participate in underhanded dealing to secure what he thinks
is a future for his children. What he may not recognize is that because he's not
around to help discipline and guide them, they may end up falling prey to something
much more sinister.
Yeshua is that all-encompassing Light that takes away all the shadows. If you have
a lamp on in the corner of the room, though the room may be full of light, there will
still be shadows. They only way to chase away the shadows for good is to have
light all around you so there will be no place for the shadow to fall. That's what a
compete knowledge of Messiah is for us; He is that Light all around us. You know
that darkness is really just the absence of light. But though Yeshua has come to be
our Light in the darkness, unfortunately most have become so accustomed to
darkness that the light hurts their eyes.
John 3:19-21
19 And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved
darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For everyone practicing evil
hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. 21 But he
who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have
been done in God.”
So they squint and back away and see the light as a bad thing but this is just more
deception from the enemy. If they would just take time to let the their eyes become
accustomed to the light, they would realize that being in the light is a much better
place to be. Death has been the thing the enemy has used to motivate us by fear
since the garden. But that should not be a motivation again.
Isaiah 25:8 - He will swallow up death forever,
And the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces;
The rebuke of His people
He will take away from all the earth;
For the LORD has spoken.
Our God has swallowed up death forever! As Yeshua walked and talked and ate
with His disciples after His resurrection, He was literally living proof to them that
death, which they had all feared was really nothing to be feared. It's like when a
parent turns on the light in the room and shows their frightened child that the
shadow that seemed so scary, is really just a tree outside blowing in the wind.
While the parent is there they feel safe and protected but once that parent is gone
and the light is off again, they have to remember what is true and stand firm in that
truth or they will be frightened again.
John 12:35-36
35 Then Jesus said to them, “A little while longer the light is with you. Walk while you have
the light, lest darkness overtake you; he who walks in darkness does not know where he is
going. 36 While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.”
These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them.
The Light is now hidden from our natural eyes, so many have returned to the fear
that comes from being in the darkness surrounded by shadows. Just like many
children become frightened again even though they know that the shadow isn't real
and that it's just the tree outside, many believers are still being frightened and
motivated by fear of the shadow of death. But there is no need to be afraid. Psalm
27:1 - The LORD is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The LORD is the
strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid? This is why it is so important for us to
walk in the Spirit because in the Spirit, the Light of Jesus is still bright. It's only
when our focus comes off Him and onto the things of this world that the darkness
returns. We are to light to the world to help lead them out of darkness to the true
source of our light.
Matthew 5:14-16
14 “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do they
light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in
the house. 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and
glorify your Father in heaven.
We have to remember that the light still hurts the eyes of those who are living in
darkness. Not so that we try to hide our light under a basket but so we understand
their reactions to us. Sometimes the thing that drives an unbeliever farther away is
not the light, but our human reactions to them. What would our reaction be to a
prostitute or a rapist or a satan worshipper? Sometimes it's not the things you say
but it can even be body language they can definitely show someone what you really
feel about them. You know there have probably been times when you could tell that
someone didn't like you even when they had never really said anything, but you
could just tell. We have to remember whose light we are reflecting so we don't let
our own human opinions get in the way of that great Light.
I Corinthians 15:54-55
54 So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality,
then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.”
55 “ O Death, where is your sting?
O Hades, where is your victory?”
Indeed He has won the victory over death so that it should have no more sting for
us as believers. We should know that death is nothing to be feared. Let us be like
Daniel's three Hebrew friends who were not motivated to do wrong by the fear of
death. Let us recognize when something is trying to motivate us by fear so we can
reject it and move forward in the power and strength of our Lord and Savior. Let us
see the shadow of death and just keep on walking with our heads held high
because we know that Yahweh is with us and that death is but a shadow.
Sermon by: Denise Baxley
Date: May 27, 2007
Scripture Reading: Daniel 3:4-25
4 Then a herald cried aloud: “To you it is commanded, O peoples, nations, and languages, 5
that at the time you hear the sound of the horn, flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery, in symphony
with all kinds of music, you shall fall down and worship the gold image that King
Nebuchadnezzar has set up; 6 and whoever does not fall down and worship shall be cast
immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace.” 7 So at that time, when all the people
heard the sound of the horn, flute, harp, and lyre, in symphony with all kinds of music, all the
people, nations, and languages fell down and worshiped the gold image which King
Nebuchadnezzar had set up.
8 Therefore at that time certain Chaldeans came forward and accused the Jews. 9 They
spoke and said to King Nebuchadnezzar, “O king, live forever! 10 You, O king, have made a
decree that everyone who hears the sound of the horn, flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery, in
symphony with all kinds of music, shall fall down and worship the gold image; 11 and
whoever does not fall down and worship shall be cast into the midst of a burning fiery
furnace. 12 There are certain Jews whom you have set over the affairs of the province of
Babylon: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego; these men, O king, have not paid due regard
to you. They do not serve your gods or worship the gold image which you have set up.”
13 Then Nebuchadnezzar, in rage and fury, gave the command to bring Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abed-Nego. So they brought these men before the king. 14 Nebuchadnezzar spoke,
saying to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, that you do not serve my
gods or worship the gold image which I have set up? 15 Now if you are ready at the time you
hear the sound of the horn, flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery, in symphony with all kinds of music,
and you fall down and worship the image which I have made, good! But if you do not worship,
you shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god
who will deliver you from my hands?”
16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar,
we have no need to answer you in this matter. 17 If that is the case, our God whom we serve
is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O
king. 18 But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we
worship the gold image which you have set up.”
19 Then Nebuchadnezzar was full of fury, and the expression on his face changed toward
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. He spoke and commanded that they heat the furnace
seven times more than it was usually heated. 20 And he commanded certain mighty men of
valor who were in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, and cast them into
the burning fiery furnace. 21 Then these men were bound in their coats, their trousers, their
turbans, and their other garments, and were cast into the midst of the burning fiery furnace.
22 Therefore, because the king’s command was urgent, and the furnace exceedingly hot, the
flame of the fire killed those men who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. 23 And
these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, fell down bound into the midst of the
burning fiery furnace.
24 Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished; and he rose in haste and spoke, saying to his
counselors, “Did we not cast three men bound into the midst of the fire?”
They answered and said to the king, “True, O king.”
25 “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.”
The line had been drawn in the sand. The gauntlet had been laid down. Even
knew what they were expected to do and the knew what the penalty would be if they
did not comply. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego were put into a very difficult
position here. You can see that the Chaldeans were setting them up. They made
that clear when they pointed out to the king that they were not worshiping the
golden image. What is interesting to consider is that there must have been many
other Jews there that chose to go along to avoid the penalty. But we're not looking
at their choice today, we're looking at the choices of Daniel's friends.
The king is angry with them but I think he figures that he will just intimidate them and
they will worship the image. I mean, he's the king. He's quite used to getting what
he wants. He attempts to motivate them by fear to do what he wants. He seems
very authoritative but he gives them a second chance. He tells them to basically
get themselves ready for the next time the music plays so they can avoid being cast
into the fiery furnace but they gave him an answer he wasn't expecting. They were
like - we don't even have to go there because we will not be worship your gods or
the image so do what you've got to do. That made the king furious. They were
supposed to fear the horrible death that lay before them but they showed no regard
for that. They didn't fear death!
Psalm 23:4 - Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
They were most definitely in the valley of the shadow of death, but they had no fear
of the evil that was before them, because God was with them. That's what they told
the king. Sure our God can save us from the fiery furnace and your hand but even
if He doesn't we still won't serve your gods or worship the image. The fact that it is
the valley of the 'shadow' of death, says a lot. What is a shadow? Is it anything,
really, in and of itself? Does it contain an matter? Think about it. It has to have
some light source and something real to cast the shadow, but those are the things
that are real; not the shadow itself.
Amos 5:8 - He made the Pleiades and Orion;
He turns the shadow of death into morning
And makes the day dark as night;
He calls for the waters of the sea
And pours them out on the face of the earth;
The LORD is His name.
You see, the LORD Yahweh made Pleiades and Orion; the stars in the sky. He
made the waters of the seas and the day itself, but He did not create the shadows.
The shadows are merely a second hand result of real things that are created. A
shadow is really an illusion of sorts and can be a deception. A shadow can be a
good thing or something that causes fear. If you're waiting for someone to arrive,
seeing their shadow coming up the walkway can be a very good thing. But if you're
a kid in a bedroom, with the moonlight shining through the window and a big tree
blowing in the backyard, as shadow can be a frightening thing. Looking at a
shadow puppet on the wall, you can make all kinds of shadows; a bunny rabbit, a
dog, a man's face, or a monster. But the bottom line is that it's really just your
hands; that's all! Yeshua came to reveal that to us.
Isaiah 9:2 - The people who walked in darkness
Have seen a great light;
Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death,
Upon them a light has shined.
For someone who is surrounded by darkness, a shadow can be terrifying. If you're
in a dark room and there's a little bit of light coming in through a doorway, it is very
easy to be deceived by what you're seeing. Or on a cloudy night with only a little
moonlight trickling through, it can be very difficult to navigate your way through. But
when the light in room turns on or when the sum comes out, you can see your way
clear. Yeshua is the great Light that has come into the picture to take away that
shadow of death. Since the fall in the garden, the enemy has been deceiving us
with shadows and most effectively with the shadow of death. How many people do
things they would never consider doing because they fear death? Many things are
done because of fear of death either directly or indirectly. A father who wants to
make sure his children have enough food to eat so they will not starve, may
overwork himself and participate in underhanded dealing to secure what he thinks
is a future for his children. What he may not recognize is that because he's not
around to help discipline and guide them, they may end up falling prey to something
much more sinister.
Yeshua is that all-encompassing Light that takes away all the shadows. If you have
a lamp on in the corner of the room, though the room may be full of light, there will
still be shadows. They only way to chase away the shadows for good is to have
light all around you so there will be no place for the shadow to fall. That's what a
compete knowledge of Messiah is for us; He is that Light all around us. You know
that darkness is really just the absence of light. But though Yeshua has come to be
our Light in the darkness, unfortunately most have become so accustomed to
darkness that the light hurts their eyes.
John 3:19-21
19 And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved
darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For everyone practicing evil
hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. 21 But he
who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have
been done in God.”
So they squint and back away and see the light as a bad thing but this is just more
deception from the enemy. If they would just take time to let the their eyes become
accustomed to the light, they would realize that being in the light is a much better
place to be. Death has been the thing the enemy has used to motivate us by fear
since the garden. But that should not be a motivation again.
Isaiah 25:8 - He will swallow up death forever,
And the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces;
The rebuke of His people
He will take away from all the earth;
For the LORD has spoken.
Our God has swallowed up death forever! As Yeshua walked and talked and ate
with His disciples after His resurrection, He was literally living proof to them that
death, which they had all feared was really nothing to be feared. It's like when a
parent turns on the light in the room and shows their frightened child that the
shadow that seemed so scary, is really just a tree outside blowing in the wind.
While the parent is there they feel safe and protected but once that parent is gone
and the light is off again, they have to remember what is true and stand firm in that
truth or they will be frightened again.
John 12:35-36
35 Then Jesus said to them, “A little while longer the light is with you. Walk while you have
the light, lest darkness overtake you; he who walks in darkness does not know where he is
going. 36 While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.”
These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them.
The Light is now hidden from our natural eyes, so many have returned to the fear
that comes from being in the darkness surrounded by shadows. Just like many
children become frightened again even though they know that the shadow isn't real
and that it's just the tree outside, many believers are still being frightened and
motivated by fear of the shadow of death. But there is no need to be afraid. Psalm
27:1 - The LORD is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The LORD is the
strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid? This is why it is so important for us to
walk in the Spirit because in the Spirit, the Light of Jesus is still bright. It's only
when our focus comes off Him and onto the things of this world that the darkness
returns. We are to light to the world to help lead them out of darkness to the true
source of our light.
Matthew 5:14-16
14 “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do they
light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in
the house. 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and
glorify your Father in heaven.
We have to remember that the light still hurts the eyes of those who are living in
darkness. Not so that we try to hide our light under a basket but so we understand
their reactions to us. Sometimes the thing that drives an unbeliever farther away is
not the light, but our human reactions to them. What would our reaction be to a
prostitute or a rapist or a satan worshipper? Sometimes it's not the things you say
but it can even be body language they can definitely show someone what you really
feel about them. You know there have probably been times when you could tell that
someone didn't like you even when they had never really said anything, but you
could just tell. We have to remember whose light we are reflecting so we don't let
our own human opinions get in the way of that great Light.
I Corinthians 15:54-55
54 So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality,
then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.”
55 “ O Death, where is your sting?
O Hades, where is your victory?”
Indeed He has won the victory over death so that it should have no more sting for
us as believers. We should know that death is nothing to be feared. Let us be like
Daniel's three Hebrew friends who were not motivated to do wrong by the fear of
death. Let us recognize when something is trying to motivate us by fear so we can
reject it and move forward in the power and strength of our Lord and Savior. Let us
see the shadow of death and just keep on walking with our heads held high
because we know that Yahweh is with us and that death is but a shadow.
Sermon by: Denise Baxley
Date: May 27, 2007
