“But if not, let it be known unto thee, O King, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.”  Daniel 3:18  KJV

 “BUT IF NOT” – With these few words, the trapped soldiers inspired their entire nation in 1940!  They were part of the British Expeditionary Force, trapped on the beach at Dunkirk France by the German Army.  There were over 400,000 men huddled down on the beaches hoping for deliverance.  Many prayed and cried out to God.

What was it about these few words that were so inspirational?  It is doubtful if they would mean anything in today’s culture.  However, at that time, there were large numbers of people in England who knew their Bibles and understood the significance of these words.

They can be found in the Book of Daniel, chapter 3 verse 18 in the King James Version.  Listen:  “BUT IF NOT, let it be known unto thee, O King, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.”  What they had affirmatively stated just before was “Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He WILL deliver us out of thine hand…..BUT IF NOT…..”

 Incredible statement of faith!  They knew God could deliver them, they had complete faith regarding that…but if NOT, they were still going to trust HIM!  That is what those brave soldiers were saying!  We believe God can deliver us…but NO MATTER WHAT….we are going to trust Him anyway, even if we end up going through the fire!

The three men in Daniel’s time DID go through the fire, but guess what?  The king looked into the fiery furnace and saw “four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and the fourth is like the Son of God.”  Daniel 3:25  WOW!  Now, if we see those three men in heaven and ask them “what was the most amazing experience of their lives?” I’m sure they would tell us it was IN the fiery furnace because the Son of God came and walked with us IN IT!  Get that?

So, whether you are delivered or whether Jesus goes with you in the trial (whatever it may be), I hope you can say, “but if NOT”…you will NOT give up…you will NOT stop following Him…you will NOT stop praising Him.  Someday soon you will see the Son of God face to face and know He was with you all the time.

In the end, of those thousands of men trapped at Dunkirk, by God’s grace, over 340,000 were delivered.  A miracle?  Yes!!  The German tanks were stopped by rain.  The real miracle was the steadfast faith in the hearts of so many soldiers and those in small boats who rescued them.  Hang on friends!  He is WITH you!

Pastor Terry