FBC Daily Devotional – Dec. 8. 2020

Faith Baptist Church

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and having a good week thus far. Things are moving along smoothly in your home, in your life.

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Often when I pray for church family, every day there's several who come up on my prayer list.

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I often pray that the Lord would prosper them and that they would be in good health. That's a biblical prayer.

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Well, I hope that's the case for you today. Do you know any proud, arrogant people?

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Silly question, isn't it? Just watch the news or whatever. Yeah, the world is full of them.

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And one of the important lessons that I came across recently is in reading

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Daniel chapter 4 with King Nebuchadnezzar. He had become quite a proud guy.

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Back in chapter 2 of Daniel, he had a dream. And in that dream, he saw this vision of a fantastic statue, huge thing.

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And it had a head of gold and then different components and the rest of the way down the statue's body.

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And he wanted to know what the interpretation of this thing was. Well, Daniel was able to give him the interpretation.

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And he told him each component in the body of this statue as it changes from gold down to the feet of clay and so forth are different kingdoms that will come up through history to come, through time to come.

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And Daniel said to Nebuchadnezzar, But you, O king, are that head of gold.

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You're the head of gold. Well, that went to Nebuchadnezzar's head, to be sure.

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Because the next thing you know, he's building a huge statue out of gold. And he's demanding that everybody bow down and worship that statue.

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That's where the fiery furnace thing comes into play with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.

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They were all told to bow down to that statue, and they wouldn't do it, so they ended up in the furnace. Well, of course, the Lord brought them out.

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But then you come to chapter 4. And in chapter 4, Nebuchadnezzar has another dream.

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This dream is troubling to him, and he calls all his magicians, his soothsayers, etc.,

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to come in and give him the answer, the interpretation of this dream. None of them can do it. Daniel does.

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And this time, the dream, there's this huge tree, a massive tree, and it's protecting and sheltering so many and providing food and everything else for so many.

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And the interpretation is that Nebuchadnezzar is that tree. But the dream goes on.

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The tree gets cut down at its very base and is left out to the elements.

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And Daniel says, you're that tree. You're going to be cut down.

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And he explains why. He says, this decision is by the word of the Holy Ones, to the end that the living may know that the

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Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will and sets it over the lowliest of men.

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So here's Nebuchadnezzar, got all proud and arrogant, puffed up with his greatness, the greatness of his kingdom.

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He's the head of gold, and no one will ever measure up to him. But he failed to realize that it is

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God who gave him that kingdom. It's God who put him in that position for that particular time to fulfill

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God's particular purposes. He didn't see that. He failed to see that.

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And he got proud and arrogant and lifted up because of it. Well, here's the thing. It doesn't matter how great or powerful or influential or successful a person may be.

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That goes to his head, and he becomes proud. The Lord God is able to take all of that away from him, take it all out from under his feet in a heartbeat, in a moment.

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He's way up here today, and he's groveling in the dust tomorrow.

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Nebuchadnezzar's story illustrates that because it goes on to say after he had that dream, that's exactly what happened.

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He went crazy. He went insane, and they stuck him out in a pasture, and he's eating grass with the wild beasts.

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Don't know exactly what happened to him and how it happened, but out he went. And he was out there for quite some time in this exile until he finally came to a place of utter humility and dependence upon the

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God of heaven. So when you come to the rest of chapter 4, you move on into the rest of chapter 4,

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Nebuchadnezzar explains, this is exactly what happened to me. In fact, Nebuchadnezzar's the one that's writing chapter 4. He says, this is exactly what's happened to me.

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I had this dream. Daniel told me an interpretation of it. It came to pass, and lo and behold,

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I was out there eating grass with the cows. I was a mess until I came to realize this.

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And here's what he says at the end of chapter 4. At the end of the days, I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my reason returned to me.

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And I blessed the Most High and praised and honored him who lives forever, for his dominion is an everlasting dominion.

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Aha, what did he learn? Mine isn't. And his kingdom endures from generation to generation.

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Mine will not. I think Nebuchadnezzar came to realize that there will come a kingdom after his.

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This head of gold is going to give way to another kingdom after his. But not true with God, not true with the

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Most High. He goes on to say, all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing.

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And he does according to his will among the hosts of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth.

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And none can stay his hand or say to him, what have you done? At the same time, my reason returned to me, and for the glory of my kingdom, my majesty and splendor returned to me.

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My counselors and my Lord sought me, and I was established in my kingdom, and still more greatness was added unto me.

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But Nebuchadnezzar realized it wasn't because of him. He says, now

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I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, for all his works are right and his ways are just, and those who walk in pride he is able to humble.

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So when you get really frustrated with the proud and the arrogant of this world who want to express their greatness and come across as if they are all that, just remember that those who walk in pride he is able to humble.

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And may that fact, may that truth, well understood in the believing heart, may that give us a sense of humility before our

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God, that no matter what comes our way, no matter what degree of success or prosperity or influence or whatever, no matter what comes our way, always to realize this is a gift from my

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God, this is the grace of my God. I must not become proud or he will indeed humble me.

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So our Father and our God, deliver us from the pride of an arrogant heart. May we always express our dependence and trust in you and realize that all that we have, we have from you.

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All that we are is because of you. Oh Lord, give us that sense of humility, we pray in Jesus' name and for his sake.