Voice: Doreen
Today is Friday, 6th of November. The night has passed, and the day lies open before us; let us pray with one heart and mind.
Silence is kept.
As we rejoice in the gift of this new day,
may the light of your presence, O God,
set our hearts on fire with love for you;
now and for ever.
Amen.
Psalm 149
Praise the Lord!
Sing to the Lord a new song,
his praise in the assembly of the godly!
2 Let Israel be glad in his Maker;
let the children of Zion rejoice in their King!
3 Let them praise his name with dancing,
making melody to him with tambourine and lyre!
4 For the Lord takes pleasure in his people;
he adorns the humble with salvation.
5 Let the godly exult in glory;
let them sing for joy on their beds.
6 Let the high praises of God be in their throats
and two-edged swords in their hands,
7 to execute vengeance on the nations
and punishments on the peoples,
8 to bind their kings with chains
and their nobles with fetters of iron,
9 to execute on them the judgment written!
This is honor for all his godly ones.
Praise the Lord!
Glory to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit:
as It was in the beginning, is
now, and shall be forever. Amen.
Daniel 3:19-25
19Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with fury, and the expression of his face was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He ordered the furnace heated seven times more than it was usually heated. 20And he ordered some of the mighty men of his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and to cast them into the burning fiery furnace. 21Then these men were bound in their cloaks, their tunics, their hats, and their other garments, and they were thrown into the burning fiery furnace. 22Because the king’s order was urgent and the furnace overheated, the flame of the fire killed those men who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. 23And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell bound into the burning fiery furnace.
24Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished and rose up in haste. He declared to his counselors, “Did we not cast three men bound into the fire?” They answered and said to the king, “True, O king.” 25He answered and said, “But I see four men unbound, walking in the midst of the fire, and they are not hurt; and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods.”
This is the Word of the Lord
Thanks be to God
The Fourth Man
Some of us will have attended a cremation at Mandai. We know the solemnity of that final farewell. Now imagine the horror of three living people being thrown into a blazing furnace.
Three persons. Yet when the king looked again, he saw a fourth.
King Nebuchadnezzar had set up a golden image and commanded the people to worship it. His command brought royal power and religious allegiance together. To refuse was to challenge the king himself.
But Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego would not bow.
Who were they? They were Jewish exiles, companions of Daniel, taken from Judah to Babylon. At Daniel’s request, they had been appointed to oversee the affairs of the province of Babylon. They served the king, but their worship belonged to God. Now their positions and their lives were in jeopardy.
The king who could command an empire could not compel their worship.
He was furious. He ordered the furnace heated seven times hotter than usual and commanded some of his strongest soldiers to bind the three men and throw them in. The heat was so fierce that the soldiers carrying out his orders died.
Three faithful servants of God fell, bound, into the furnace.
Then Nebuchadnezzar rose in astonishment. Had they not thrown three bound men into the fire? Now he could see four men walking freely, unharmed. The fourth, he said, had the appearance of “a son of the gods.”
When the three men came out, those gathered around them saw that their hair was not singed, their clothes were unharmed, and they did not even smell of smoke. Nebuchadnezzar praised their God and granted them further advancement in Babylon.
The furnace intended to destroy them became the place where God’s saving power was revealed.
Jesus also uses the image of a fiery furnace in Matthew 13 to describe final judgement. There is a striking reversal: Nebuchadnezzar throws the faithful into his furnace, while God’s final judgement falls upon the wicked.
Yet faithful people still suffer. Some endure physical pain; others carry grief, betrayal, loneliness or anguish that no one else can see. We may feel trapped in circumstances from which there seems to be no escape. There are some pains in life which can be worse than being burned alive.
If you are enduring some fiery trials of life, remember, there is always a “fourth Man.”
Look to Him. Let Him hold your hand.
He was there with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. And He will be with you.
We end with the Collect for the Day from All Saints’ Day. We remember that there were past saints who died by the flames and yet remain faithful till the end.
Almighty God,
you have knit together your elect in one communion and fellowship i
n the mystical body of your Son Jesus Christ our Lord:
grant us grace so to follow your blessed saints in all virtuous and godly living that we may come to those inexpressible joys
that you have prepared for those who truly love you;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Be blessed by this song, Trust in Jesus by Chase Oaks Worship. Feel free to sing along.
Blessed Assurance, Jesus is mine
He’s been my fourth man in the fire, time after time
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood
And what He did for me on Calvary is more than enough
I trust in God, my Savior
The one who will never fail
He will never fail
I trust in God, my Savior
The one who will never fail
He will never fail
Perfect submission, all is at rest
I know the author of tomorrow has ordered my steps
So this is my story and this is my song
I’m praising my risen King and Savior all the day long
I trust in God, my Savior
The one who will never fail
He will never fail
I trust in God, my Savior
The one who will never fail
He will never fail
He didn’t fail you then
He won’t fail you now
I sought the Lord and He heard and He answered
I sought the Lord and He heard and He answered
I sought the Lord and He heard and He answered
That’s why I trust Him, that’s why I trust Him.
Link to today’s Morning Office
About This Daily Devotion
This weekday devotion is drawn from the Morning Office and is part of a project initiated by Revd Canon Terry Wong, with contributions from clergy and members across various parishes. Each entry includes selected readings from the appointed Psalm and another Scripture passage, accompanied by a reflection and prayer. An audio option is also available, often ending with a hymn or song. We encourage you to both read and listen. Unless otherwise stated, the reflections are written by Revd Wong.
Our aim is to help Anglicans engage more deeply with our rich liturgical tradition, while meeting the devotional needs of today’s believers. This project began on Ash Wednesday 2025 and is offered on weekdays only.
For feedback, please write to us at info@mpcc.org.sg. We also welcome donations to MPCC. Information on how you may give can be found in this link.
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