Today on the verdict with Pastor John Monroe. Today we look at Nebuchadnezzar. The king. the great king of Babylon. Amen.
who puts himself at the very center of the universe. But proud Nebuchadnezzar, as we will learn, is heading for a fall. Welcome to The Verdict, the Bible teaching ministry of Pastor John Monroe. Do you struggle with pride? The Bible tells us that God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.
Today, on the verdict, we're learning about the dangers of having an arrogant and prideful heart. as we continue looking at the life of King Nebuchadnezzar and Daniel.
Now, here's Pastor John Monroe with today's message titled Prayer. tried before the fall. Today, we're continuing the story of a very proud man. a man who thought he was the greatest man, the most powerful man in the world. King Nebuchadnezzar, ruler of ancient Babylon.
Under his reign Babylon had become the superpower of the world. Nebuchadnezzar believed that no one was his equal. He was to be feared and even worshipped. What pride? What arrogance?
Isn't it easy to see pride in others, but yet often we fail to see it in ourselves? The Bible says God hates pride. When we put ourselves at the center of our world, we're displacing God. We destroy our relationship with others and ultimately destroy ourselves.
So today, We're going to learn the importance of humility before our great God. I'll ask you to open your Bibles to Daniel 4. I want us to think of three principles, three lessons from Daniel 4. which will help us deal with our Pride. The first.
Principle we learned from Daniel four is that God Judges. The proud. God judges the proud. Consider the pride of Nebuchadnezzar, neatly summarized in verse thirty. As the king is out for a walk, even after he's given the interpretation of the dream by Daniel, And he says, is not, as he looks at the great Babylon, he says, is not this great Babylon which I have built by my mighty power as a royal residence and for the glory of my majesty?
What pride? What arrogance look what I have done. He had ignored the divine warnings. He does not repent of his arrogance. His heart is hard.
And his pride. It's gonna lead. to a fall. He's turned from the voice of God. And he's going to learn.
that God Always. always hates pride. What was Satan's sin? pride. Our holy God always hates pride, and he now acts in judgment.
Verse thirty-one. The words of his arrogance, the words of his hubris were still in his mouth. There fell a voice from heaven, O King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken, the kingdom has departed from you, and you'll be driven from men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. And you shall be made to eat grass like an ox, and seven periods of time shall pass over you until you know. That the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will.
Immediately the word was fulfilled against Nebuchadnezzar. He was driven from among men, and ate grass like an ox, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hair grew as long as eagles' feathers, and his nails. were like Birds. Clause. Pride.
Before the fall. That's it. And in a moment. The whole of Nebuchadnezzar's life. has changed.
Paul is going to tell us in the New Testament that God is not mocked. What a man sows He reaps. And Superman now becomes subman. Yes, there is a medical illness where people think that they're animals. When Goody and I were newly married, they lived next door to us a family.
There's a little boy who, at least for some time, thought he was a dog. At first it was amusing, but then it didn't become Very amusing to the parents when he continued. to act. like a dog. Fortunately, his bark wasn't very loud.
We were next door to him. And Nebuchadnezzar now goes from supreme power to supreme Humiliation. The greatest man in the world loses his mind. and is reduced to eating grass. Like the beast.
of the field. What a humiliation. It seems as if God is saying to him, You wanted to live like an animal. You wanted to live as if there is no gods.
Now you can be an animal. You notice one of the things that pride does, and we see it graphically illustrated with Nebuchadnezzar, is that pride. isolates us. From human relationships. He's alone.
No human companion, he can't communicate with human beings. He's reduced. to being like an animal. Think of pride in your life. And your family.
in your work situation. in your relationships. Hasn't your pride often had have devastating effects. on your relationships. James tells us In James four.
Verse six James writes God opposes the proud. but gives grace to the humble. Submit yourself, therefore, to God, resist the devil, and he will flee from you. This is a very conflicting story, isn't it? When we're proud God.
is against us. God. is against us. One thing that God will never ever tolerate is pride. It's substituting self for God.
When we are proud, we are, in effect, saying, of course, most of us would never articulate it. That we want to be king. of our lives. We want to be in charge. We want to be in control.
We want not only to be important, we want everyone else to know how important we are, aren't we? We want to rule. And that's why God is always opposed. To the proud. And just as God in different ways spoke to Nebuchadnezzar, hasn't God in different ways spoken to you in the past?
You've clearly heard the word of God. A godly mother. I've spoken the word of God to you. in the kitchen. As my godly mother did.
And does when I go back. Explaining the truths of the Word of God to you. You've heard the Word of God. As your mother has taught you the Word of God, you realize this is the true Word of God, but you have ignored it. A friend, a Christian friend, has come along by your side and has gently and kindly but firmly admonished you regarding your attitude, regarding your conduct.
And you've heard the voice of God, but you've ignored it. You've sat at churches and heard the preaching of the word of God, and you have been convicted regarding the pride and the sin in your heart, but you've ignored the voice. God has spoken to you many, many times. He's spoken to you perhaps in an illness. He's spoken to you in an accident.
He's spoken to you in a crisis of life. And God has stopped you, as it were, right in your tracks. But you still continue to act in pride. And in that regard, you're like Nebuchadnezzar. You're presuming.
on the grace and the love and the patience of God. You're ignoring the voice of God, young man, young woman, older person. Isn't this right? You have been convicted by the word of God. As people have spoken to you.
And your heart. is still hard. Be warned. Nebuchadnezzar is telling us that God speaks once. Often God speaks twice.
But if we continue to ignore the warnings of God, judgment is coming. Peter in the New Testament tells us that God did not spare the angels when they sinned. God didn't spare the ancient world at the time of Noah when they sinned. God didn't spare the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah with all of their immorality in the book of Genesis, and God judged them. Do you think, do we think, do Americans think, that we somehow are different, that we can live and act as if there's no God?
And that God somehow is going to overlook our sin and our pride. You may be the most powerful. You may be the richest, you may be the wealthiest. But if you are proud, God is opposed to you. and there will be no escape.
From God's judgment. There's our first lesson. God judges the proud. Secondly, God. forgives The humble.
Aren't you glad the lesson doesn't stop with the first point? God forgives. The humble. And after that experience, Nebuchadnezzar has a humble heart. He now recognizes that there is one true and living God.
In chapter 3, after the deliverance of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from the fiery furnace, he had been impressed by God.
Now, at the end of. Daniel 4, he is converted to God. Once he looks to Babylon in his own greatness, now he looks to the great God in heaven and realizes he is nothing. Once he was proud and arrogant, now he's humble and contrite. He acknowledges, look at verse 34.
That God's is sovereign. At the end of The days, verse 34, I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven. It's a wise thing to do. And my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and praised and honored him who lives forever, for his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation. Yes, now you've got it, Nebuchadnezzar.
Your kingdom is going to fall, but God's kingdom rules. Forever, he is sovereign. Then he acknowledges verse 35 that he's a creation of God and insignificant. Yes, even you, Nebuchadnezzar, compared with God. Verse 35, all the inhabitants of the earth are counted as nothing.
And he does according to his will among the hosts of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth, and none can stay his hand or say to him, What have you done? Who are you to question God? He is the sovereign, almighty, all-wise God. Compared with him, Nebuchadnezzar, you are nothing, you're just a speck. Who do you think?
You are opposing. God. And then he acknowledges verse 37 that God's ways are right and just and that he was proud. Verse 37, Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the king of heaven, for all his works are right and his ways are just. Notice that?
God's ways are right. His works are right, his ways are just, and those who walk in pride. He's able to do what? He's able to humble. He's able to humble.
You see, it's true that God as opposed to the proud. But God always extends his grace. to the humble. In fact, Nebuchadnezzar verse 36 is restored to more greatness than prior to his humiliation. Verse 36, at the same time, my reason returned to me, and for the glory of my kingdom, my majesty and splendor returned to me.
My counselors and my Lord sought me, and I was established in my kingdom, and still more greatness was added to me, an evidence of the grace of God on this man who was so proud, but now. is humbled. How does Peter put it? In 1 Peter Chapter five, listen to his words. 1 Peter 5, verse 5, likewise, you who are younger.
Be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another. For God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Humble yourself, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, so that at the proper time. He may.
Exalt you. The way up is the way Done. In the kingdom of God, the way to be great. is to be the slave, the servant. Of all And in Mark chapter 10, where Jesus deals with this very subject, he explains that he is the perfect example.
He says to his disciples who wanted me to be so important, arguing who is the greatest, he says to them, listen, for even I, the Son of Man. did not come. to be served, but to serve. and to give my life a ransom. For many.
That ends all of the argument. The one who was the highest, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, became the lowest. Became a man, became a servant, became obedient to death, even death on a cross. No one went lower.
So that you and I Could be delivered from our pride, and our sin, and our pride could be forgiven. C. S. Lewis explains that Christian humility is not so much thinking less of yourself, it is thinking of yourself Less. As I speak this morning, perhaps some of you are experiencing some difficulty.
In life.
Some difficulty in marriage, some difficulty in your home.
Some difficulty in your relationship, some difficulty at work, some difficulty at ministry, some difficulty here in the church. Could it be? But the problem is your pride. Price. Pride.
For too long. You've blamed other people. You've been pointing the finger at your parents. The whole I b was brought up in. You've been pointing the finger at your husband, at your wife.
You've been pointing the finger at your boss, at your colleagues at work. But isn't it the case that central to the problem is you, your pride? And our pride has produced anger. Infrastructure. Today.
It's time. To humble yourself under the mighty hand of God. Today, it's time to stop making yourself the center of your universe. It's time to look up to the heavens, to look to the great God, and to listen to His Word. Peter says, Humble yourself under the mighty hand of God, so that.
At the proper time. That is, in God's timing, you may be exalted. Don't worry about being exalted. Humble yourself in God at the right time. In his own way.
Maybe. Exalt you. Isaiah sixty-six verse two. The Lord says, But to this is the one to whom I look. He who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word.
No, that's The kind of person that God is going to Yes.
Some of you today have wandered away from God. You've been putting yourself your pleasures, your ambitions, your sport. Your success at the center of your world. Will you humble yourself? Will you lift your eyes to heaven?
And God will give grace to you. He always gives grace to the broken, to the lonely, to the contrite, to the poor in. Spirit. That's it. God forgives the humble.
Thirdly, God alone reigns supremely. And eternally. God alone reigns supremely and eternally. This is the theme of Daniel. In fact, it's the great theme of the Bible.
Man's arrogant desire to be great. Our arrogant desire to be in charge will be overturned by God who reigns supremely and. eternally. Look at the end of verse 17. That the living may know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will, and sets over it the lowliest of men.
The end of verse Twenty-five. Till you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of heaven and gives it to whom He wills. The end of verse Thirty two. Until you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom He wills. These are the key verses in Daniel 4.
Who is in charge? Who's sovereign? Who's in control? Here is Daniel's answer. Verse 26: Heaven rules.
Do you understand that? That heaven is in charge, don't you? That heaven rules. That the Most High rules the kingdoms of men and gives it to whom he will. The heart of the king is in the hands of the Lord.
He turns it whatever he wants. God alone reigns. supremely and eternally. Man's kingdoms Like Babylon, Media, Persia, Greece, and Rome, all rise and fall. as do our own little individual kingdoms.
God and God alone is sovereign.
Sovereign over the most powerful, wealthiest man on the earth of his day, like Nebuchadnezzar. Don't think that you're so powerful, that you're so important, that God can't deal with you. Of course he can. He is the great God, heaven. Rules.
He rules supremely and eternally. And the fall of Babylon the Great, as we saw last week in Revelation 18, inspires the great hallelujah chorus of Revelation 19. Hallelujah. Salvation and glory and power belong to our gods. Hallelujah.
For the Lord our God, the Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and exalt and give. Who's the glory? Him. The glory.
That's it. Jesus Christ, his King of kings and Lord of Lords. And he reigns and rules supremely. And Eternally. Heaven.
Rules. The great medieval Theologian says The root of pride is found to consist in man not being in some way subject to God and His rule. That's it. When we're not subject to God and when we're not subject to God's rule, we are proud. You're living.
Your life as if you were in charge. Doing it your way? Independent of God And you think you're in control of your life. And when something happens in life, if you're like me, you want to fix it, you want to fix something. in your life and in the life of those whom you love, but often We're faced with the situation, I cannot fix this.
This is out of my control. Isn't it great to know? That there is a God in heaven. He looks down. and says to me, John, I'm your God.
And I rule. And I reign. And I love you. And I have you in my hand. Will you trust me?
And to understand once again that this hand which is sovereign is also a hand of great, great Love. You see, when we are proud, we're restless, we're worried, we're untrusting, we're frantic, we're competitive, we're defensive, we're isolated, we're insecure, and we're away from God, and isn't that why our Lord Jesus says, come unto me. All ye who labor, and are heavy laden, and I will give you Rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me, for I am Gentle. and lowly in heart.
Isn't that magnificent that the Lord of glory describes himself as lowly, as humble in heart? And as you come to me, he says, you'll find rest for your souls, for my yoke is easy. And my burden. There's lights. Today Will you come?
And will you bow before him? Will you trust him? Will you learn of him? Will you humble yourself at the foot of the cross, turning from your sin, turning from your pride? Realizing that God and God alone is in charge, and would we have it any other way?
And in the storms of life and in the darkness, we come to Christ. And we find rest. For our souls. For his joke is easy. And this burden.
is light. Will you bow? Today, before the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Why? because he alone reigns and rules supremely.
And eternal. This is the verdict featuring the Bible teaching of Pastor John Monroe. There's still more to hear when John returns in just a moment, so stay with us. From matters of truth and identity, to the subjects of love and grace, our world seems more confused than ever. but to find truth and certainty about who we are and find peace, we must turn our attention away from the world and look to the Word of God.
To help you do that, John wrote a booklet titled Eternal Security, Finding Certainty in a Chaotic World. Through this special resource, John shares his personal testimony, along with a careful examination of Scripture, to offer us clarity on matters of eternity. Get your copy today by visiting our website at theverdict.org. While you're there, consider making an investment in this Bible teaching ministry. Whether it's $5, $50, or more, your gift today helps cover the cost of sharing these gospel messages to listeners around the world.
And if you haven't already, be sure to subscribe to the Verdict Podcast, featuring John's weekly podcast exclusive called Avizandam. It's available wherever you get your podcasts, or simply go to our website. Again, that's theverdict.org. The verdict is a ministry of Calvary Church in South Charlotte. We're located on the corner of Highway 51 and Ray Road.
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Now, here's Pastor John Monroe.
Well, what's your verdict? The Bible says that God is opposed to the proud but gives grace to the humble. Do you struggle with pride? Stop trying to oppose God. Stop exalting yourself.
Humble yourself today at the foot of the cross of Christ. Jesus comes to save us, to forgive the pride in our lives, to give us eternal life. Trust Christ. Put Him at the center of your life. And don't forget to join me next time as we continue our study in Daniel and learn more of the ancient story of the writing on the wall.
Thanks for joining us today on The Verdict. I'm Michelle Davies. Today's program with Pastor John Monroe was produced and sponsored by Calvary Church in Charlotte, North Carolina.
