Deut 4:20
Enduring the Furnace
Moses began a farewell speech in \\#Deut 1:1\\. It will continue to
\\#Deut 4:40\\. In that speech, Moses will recount Israel’s history,
a large portion of it being his time as leader. I only want to read
one verse from this section of Scriptures, but we will read several
others passages.
Deut 4:20 But the LORD hath taken you, and
brought you forth out of the iron furnace, even
out of Egypt, to be unto him a people of
inheritance, as ye are this day.
Moses is referring to the time Israel spent in Egypt as the "iron
furnace." People do not belong in furnaces. People get toasted in
furnaces. They hurt; they cry; they are burnt; and they die.
Such is what happened to Israel in Egypt. They were there for 430
years \\#Ex 12:40\\ and while not all of their time there was in the
furnace, much of it was.
Why? Were they out of the will of God being in Egypt? No.
1.They went to Egypt because God told them to go.
Gen 46:1 And Israel took his journey with all
that he had, and came to Beersheba, and offered
sacrifices unto the God of his father Isaac.
2 And God spake unto Israel in the visions of
the night, and said, Jacob, Jacob. And he said,
Here am I.
3 And he said, I am God, the God of thy father:
fear not to go down into Egypt; for I will there
make of thee a great nation:
4 I will go down with thee into Egypt; and I
will also surely bring thee up again: and Joseph
shall put his hand upon thine eyes.
a. I will not say that Israel did right all of the time that
they were in Egypt because they did not.
b. But they were NOT out of God’s will to be there because
God sent them.
2. In fact, God told them they would be afflicted LONG before
they ever went to Egypt.
Ge 15:13 And he said unto Abram, Know of a
surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in
a land that is not theirs, and shall serve
them; and they shall afflict them four hundred
years;
a. This was about 200 years before they went into Egypt.
b. Making 630 years before they came out of Egypt.
So get this, God lead Israel into the iron furnace. We not only have
this occasion. We have many others like it.
\\#Dan 3:13-26\\
\\#Matt 14:22-33\\
So God lead His people into the fiery furnace. Why? There are many
reasons but two stand out as the more important.
I. The more important reasons
A. For God’s glory
1. Everything that God does, He does to bring glory to
Himself.
2. You can fight that truth all you want, but you will never
change it.
a. God desires to be glorified in your life.
b. God deserves to be glorified in your life.
c. And God will be glorified in your life.
3. What does "for His glory" mean?
a. It means God allows us to go through the fiery
furnace to show His power and goodness.
b. That leads to another question. "How does my going
through pain, suffering, and difficulty display
either God’s power or His goodness?
c. It can only be done in two ways:
(1) If God sustains you.
(2) If God delivers you.
d. This is the beauty of being in the furnace.
(1) The only way God can be glorified by letting you
be in it, is to get you back out of it and to
take care of you while you are in it.
(2) So that fact that you are in the furnace
guarantees that God is help you through the
furnace!
(3) That is why there are such great promises in the
Bible.
1Co 10:13 There hath no temptation taken you but
such as is common to man: but God is faithful,
who will not suffer you to be tempted above that
ye are able; but will with the temptation also
make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear
it.
Php 4:19 But my God shall supply all your need
according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
Ro 8:28 And we know that all things work
together for good to them that love God, to them
who are the called according to his purpose.
Ro 8:11 But if the Spirit of him that raised up
Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised
up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your
mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in
you.
2Co 4:17 For our light affliction, which is but
for a moment, worketh for us a far more
exceeding and eternal weight of glory;
e. Understand that I am not saying and God did not
promise that your time in the furnace would be easy.
(1) It is a furnace!
(2) You likely will…
(a) …not know how long you will be there.
(b) …not have pleasure while you are there.
(c) …not be able to figure how God will
deliver you.
(b) But He will sustain and deliver you!
f. God will make these promises come true in your life
IF…
(1) You love God and are called to His purposes.
(2) The wise philosopher of the 20th century, John
Wayne, said, "Life is hard. It is even harder
if you are stupid."
(3) Some people are lead into the fiery furnace by
God. Some jump in.
(a) In fact, some go get the kettle, build the
fire, and then jump in.
(b) Some even screw the lid on while they are in
it.
(4) If that is you, you’d better turn to God.
B. To demonstrate our faith.
1. I noticed that Jesus rebuked His disciples for their lack
of faith.
Matt 14:31 And immediately Jesus stretched forth
his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O
thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?
2. No such rebuke is recorded for Shadrach, Meshach, and
Abednego.
a. Why not?
b. Because they had strong faith while in the furnace.
Dan 3:16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego,
answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar,
we are not careful to answer thee in this matter.
17 If it be so, our God whom we serve is able
to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and
he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king.
18 But if not, be it known unto thee, O king,
that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the
golden image which thou hast set up.
3. These three did not have faith in their earthly
deliverance. What did they have faith in?
a. That God was able.
b. That God was worth it.
4. Such faith bring glory to God.
a. Our confidence tells the world the same thing.
(1) God is able.
(2) God is worth it.
b. Even if God does NOT grant the earthly deliverance.
(1) Remember, Christians can not lose.
(2) If there is not earthly deliverance, there will
be an even greater heavenly reward.
II. There are other reasons of great importance as well.
A. God leads us into the furnace to purge the dross.
Mal 3:3 And he shall sit as a refiner and
purifier of silver: and he shall purify the
sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver,
that they may offer unto the LORD an offering
in righteousness.
Zec 13:9 And I will bring the third part
through the fire, and will refine them as silver
is refined, and will try them as gold is tried:
they shall call on my name, and I will hear them:
I will say, It is my people: and they shall say,
The LORD is my God.
1. A furnaces main purpose is to melt metals.
a. Metal can then be purged, shaped, and strengthened.
b. Elements boil at different points but they are all hot.
(1) Sulfur (not a metal) 833 degrees Fahrenheit
(2) Zinc - 1664 degrees Fahrenheit
(3) Lead - 3164
(4) Sliver - 4013
(5) Copper - 4653
(6) Gold - 5084
c. Once metal boils, the impurities will rise the top
where it can be skimmed off.
d. Those impurities are called dross.
2. For people the purging effect of the furnace only works if
you let it.
a. If you will learn in the burn, you can be purged from
the dross.
b. Some will not let their furnaces experiences make
them better, only bitter.
(1) They won’t take responsibility for their own
foolishness.
(2) Get ready for a long time in the furnace.
c. The same people wonder why things are the way they are
in their lives.
B. Training for ministry
2Co 1:4 Who comforteth us in all our
tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them
which are in any trouble, by the comfort
wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.
C. Testing for our knowledge, our testimony, our rewards.
1Co 3:13 Every man’s work shall be made
manifest: for the day shall declare it, because
it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall
try every man’s work of what sort it is.
Ps 17:3 Thou hast proved mine heart; thou hast
visited me in the night; thou hast tried me, and
shalt find nothing; I am purposed that my mouth
shall not transgress.
D. To chasten us
De 8:5 Thou shalt also consider in thine heart,
that, as a man chasteneth his son, so the LORD
thy God chasteneth thee.
Job 33:19 He is chastened also with pain upon
his bed, and the multitude of his bones with
strong pain:
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