Faithfully Humble
Daniel: Living Faithfully • Sermon • Submitted
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Human Tendency Towards Pride
Human Tendency Towards Pride
Growing up we hear these messages
Hard work pays off
You control your future
establish your self
financial security is important
You’ve earned it
QUESTION: What other ‘scripts’ or sayings did you grow up hearing?
After hearing these statements its plausible/natural to come into an understanding that our current place in life is a result of my hard work.
QUESTION: What anecdotal scripts did you hear to combat pride?
QUESTION: When you see someone who boasts of their personal accomplishments what thoughts come to your mind in response?
Life will give them a dose of reality and be their ultimate teacher!
Sharing: Can anyone share a time when they were humbled after not heeding the warnings?
Everyone gets warnings in life to course correct…How we respond is a function of pride and humility which are two ends of the continuum
Pride and King Neb
Pride and King Neb
Read a little out of order today.
Start with the vision/dream of King Neb
Read Daniel 4:10-18 (Dream)
Summarize the dream
QUESTION: What stuck out to you in the dream?
Read Daniel 4:19-26 (Interpretation of the dream)
Key Point: If we believe that it was our ability that brought us success, we will also believe that our security is by our efforts as well.
25 that you be driven away from mankind and your dwelling place be with the beasts of the field, and you be given grass to eat like cattle and be drenched with the dew of heaven; and seven periods of time will pass over you, until you recognize that the Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind and bestows it on whomever He wishes.
Difficult to admit that we are not really in charge…we may know this mentally/theoretically, but it is not always translated in our actions
always adding one more thing on
going the extra mile to get ahead because without my effort nothing will happen
unable to detach from work as if everything will collapse if i’m not there
we struggle to trust others to carry things forward
We don’t empower/equip others thinking we are the only ones who can do it right
Perpetually living like this, slowly brings on the belief that it is by my efforts things are what they are…and I must keep it going
Key Point: Sound advice is never easy and goes against the grain of our learned behavior.
27 ‘Therefore, O king, may my advice be pleasing to you: break away now from your sins by doing righteousness and from your iniquities by showing mercy to the poor, in case there may be a prolonging of your prosperity.’
This is a total change in the philosophy of how King Neb was ruling
The power of Almsgiving
Old Testament XIII: Ezekiel, Daniel Remedy Suited to the Wound
. THEODORET OF CYR: Having foretold the future in this way, [Daniel] offers exhortation and excellent advice and applies a remedy suited to the wound … “compassion for the poor.” In this he implies the insatiable cruelty with which [Nebuchadnezzar] treated his subjects. Do you wish, he asks, to receive lovingkindness? Give evidence of it to those who share the same nature as you; this is the way you will persuade the judge to cancel his threat and leave it unfulfilled. COMMENTARY ON DANIEL 4.26, 27.17
King Neb was clearly disturbed by the dream knowing that it had significant meaning. Instead of forgetting the dream he followed his inner ‘hunch’/gut feeling and pursued an interpretation.
We are similar in that we all experience in different ways that something in life is a miss, the road we are on is off and leading us in a wrong direction. How we respond matters
We bury our concerns and press on…’I’ll deal with the consequences when they come’
We seek advice, but when the advice is difficult, we continue in our ways thinking the road of change is harder than the potential benefit
The rich young ruler Luke 18:18-30
We humbly seek God’s graces to change
God is longsuffering
God is longsuffering
Read Daniel 4:28-33
Call and response to repentance
All of us are called to repent…but it is an active process and if not pursued we bring upon ourselves a consequence.
Each consequence is delivered out of the wisdom and love of God who desires that all come into the knowledge of Him.
Punishing each kid uniquely
Theodore of Cyr: The text then conveys also the span of divine longsuffering: after the passage of twelve months the threat in the prophecy reached its factual conclusion. Though given such a length of time to repent, he failed to meet the deadline for repentance; it would be of him that blessed Paul spoke, “Do you despise the riches of his kindness, forbearance and longsuffering? Are you unaware that the kindness of God leads you to repentance? In your hard and impenitent heart, however, you are storing up wrath for yourselves on the day of wrath, revelation and right judgment by God, who will render to everyone according to each one’s works: eternal life to those who by perseverance in good works seek glory and honor and immortality, while anger and wrath will come to those who in self-seeking do not obey the truth but obey iniquity. There will be tribulation and distress for every person guilty of evildoing.” Romans 2:4-9
Key Point: God can break the hardest of hearts
34 “But at the end of that period, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven 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. 35 “All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, But He does according to His will in the host of heaven And among the inhabitants of earth; And no one can ward off His hand Or say to Him, ‘What have You done?’ 36 “At that time my reason returned to me. And my majesty and splendor were restored to me for the glory of my kingdom, and my counselors and my nobles began seeking me out; so I was reestablished in my sovereignty, and surpassing greatness was added to me.
To God be the Glory
To God be the Glory
After learning his lessons King Neb writes to all about his experience.
Read Daniel 4:1-3
Daniel Chapter 4 is more or less a letter/story of King Neb declaring the greatness of God and God’s superior kingdom and dominion.
Our own humbling life lessons lead us to declare the Glory of God in different ways.
That his provisions are by His Grace (Humility) NOT my work (Pride)
His ways, though difficult, are the right way to walk and He continually warns us to return (Repent) to Him
Imagine the number of changed relationships if individuals would take on mercy, compassion, forgiveness and almsgiving.
The hard lessons we learn always lead us to give glory to God