Three mature followers of God

The context is the King has given Daniel's 3 godly friends the following ultimatum: bow down and worship a false god, or be thrown alive into an extremely hot furnace of blazing fire. The 3 friends' first response is definitely impressive as an example of following God in the face of such terrible persecution: "If it be so, 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." (Daniel 3:17) But I submit that their next response is a clearer and more mature example of what it means to know and follow God: "But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up." (Daniel 3:18)

Why is their second response a clearer/maturer expression of following God? I think it's because the second response shows that the three friends truly understand the nature of God. God is sovereign, and it is sometimes His will not to remove his children from suffering, even the kind of unimaginable suffering those three faced. After all, some saints have been "sawn in two." (Hebrews 11:37) God may have other purposes in mind. Our job as Christians is to follow the example of these three saints: God, I know you're powerful enough to deliver me from this suffering, but I also know that you may want to use my suffering to glorify your name in other ways. Lord, whatever happens, I trust you, and I will not compromise my faith in you. May your perfect will be done, and may you get all the glory.

Where is the ultimate human free will in this?

Ezekiel 36:27 (NASB): "'I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.'" All the major translations read essentially the same. This verse sounds like God's will is supreme over human will. If God wills us to obey, then we will obey. Contrary to what some may think, such behavior of God is the best example of love: causing someone to do good (i.e., to act in his/her best interests) when s/he would otherwise fail if left to his/her own devices.

What does it look like to trust and obey God?

Here's one example from the book of Ezekiel, chapter 24, in the Old Testament:

And the word of the LORD came to me saying,

16"Son of man, behold, I am about to take from you the desire of your eyes with a blow; but you shall not mourn and you shall not weep, and your tears shall not come.

17"Groan silently; make no mourning for the dead Bind on your turban and put your shoes on your feet, and do not cover your mustache and do not eat the bread of men."

18So I spoke to the people in the morning, and in the evening my wife died. And in the morning I did as I was commanded.

Ezekiel's obedience reminds me of some lyrics in a popular contemporary Christian song titled "Blessed Be Your Name." Here are those lyrics:

You give and take away

You give and take away

My heart will choose to say

Lord, blessed be Your name

Do I (want to) believe this?

"Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that good and bad come?" (Lamentations 3:38, ESV) The NKJV translates the text as follows: "Is it not from the mouth of the Most High That woe and well-being proceed?" The NIV says, "Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that both calamities and good things come?"

What does this verse mean? Does it mean all bad things, or just certain bad things? What could "from the mouth" mean, but that God is the ultimate cause of all reality?

Sharing the New Testament by Using the Old

I am reading through the Old Testament these days and I have been struck by how often and clearly I see the New Testament in it (or how I see the Old in the New:). For example, check out Jeremiah 2:22 (NASB): "Though you wash yourself with lye and use much soap, the stain of your guilt is still before me, declares the Lord God." I think the New Living Translation says it more effectively: "No amount of soap or lye can make you clean. You are stained with guilt that cannot be washed away. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken!"

Isaiah 64:6 (ESV) is similar to Jer. 2:22: "We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away." I like the imagery of "filthy rags" in the New King James Version: "But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, Have taken us away." It makes me think of how counter-productive it is to try to clean up a big mess with a dirty cloth; it only makes the problem worse.