Daniel (2)

Daniel is dealing with universal truths

God decides, God provides everything people need to walk with Him

Pride is what ruins kingdoms

Kingdoms: Responsibilities/purposes

Pride degrades and causes division

Nebuchadnezzar’s first dream, paranoid about wise men.

Daniel 2:31–45 (NIV) Isaiah talks about the fall of Babylon to pride

31 “Your Majesty looked, and there before you stood a large statue—an enormous, dazzling statue, awesome in appearance. 32 The head of the statue was made of pure gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, 33 its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of baked clay. 34 While you were watching, a rock was cut out, but not by human hands. It struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and smashed them. 35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver and the gold were all broken to pieces and became like chaff on a threshing floor in the summer. The wind swept them away without leaving a trace. But the rock that struck the statue became a huge mountain and filled the whole earth. 36 “This was the dream, and now we will interpret it to the king. 37 Your Majesty, you are the king of kings. The God of heaven has given you dominion and power and might and glory; 38 in your hands he has placed all mankind and the beasts of the field and the birds in the sky. Wherever they live, he has made you ruler over them all. You are that head of gold. 39 “After you, another kingdom will arise, inferior to yours. Next, a third kingdom, one of bronze, will rule over the whole earth. 40 Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron—for iron breaks and smashes everything—and as iron breaks things to pieces, so it will crush and break all the others. 41 Just as you saw that the feet and toes were partly of baked clay and partly of iron, so this will be a divided kingdom; yet it will have some of the strength of iron in it, even as you saw iron mixed with clay. 42 As the toes were partly iron and partly clay, so this kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle. 43 And just as you saw the iron mixed with baked clay, so the people will be a mixture and will not remain united, any more than iron mixes with clay. 44 “In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever. 45 This is the meaning of the vision of the rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands—a rock that broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold to pieces. “The great God has shown the king what will take place in the future. The dream is true and its interpretation is trustworthy.”

Pride is a disease that starts small and festers. It’s like mold. It finds a little water behind a wall in the corner of an attic and it starts to grow.

Pride causes violence and rage

King Nebuchadnezzar sets up a image of gold and demands everyone worship it. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego won’t. Then they defy him to his face. He is so enraged he throws his most trusted advisors into a furnace, even killing his own men.

Daniel 3:16–19 (NIV)

16 Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. 17 If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. 18 But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” 19 Then Nebuchadnezzar was furious with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, and his attitude toward them changed. He ordered the furnace heated seven times hotter than usual

Have you ever lashed out at someone you love with hatred? Have you ever believed someone was against you when they’ve never done anything but be in your corner.

Pride causes more pride

King Nebuchadnezzar has another dream. It’s of a beautiful tree that provides fruit, shade, and a home for the animals around it. But an angel from heaven comes down and calls for the tree to be cut downs.

Daniel 4:20–32 (NIV)

20 The tree you saw, which grew large and strong, with its top touching the sky, visible to the whole earth, 21 with beautiful leaves and abundant fruit, providing food for all, giving shelter to the wild animals, and having nesting places in its branches for the birds—22 Your Majesty, you are that tree! You have become great and strong; your greatness has grown until it reaches the sky, and your dominion extends to distant parts of the earth. 23 “Your Majesty saw a holy one, a messenger, coming down from heaven and saying, ‘Cut down the tree and destroy it, but leave the stump, bound with iron and bronze, in the grass of the field, while its roots remain in the ground. Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven; let him live with the wild animals, until seven times pass by for him.’ 24 “This is the interpretation, Your Majesty, and this is the decree the Most High has issued against my lord the king: 25 You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like the ox and be drenched with the dew of heaven. Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes. 26 The command to leave the stump of the tree with its roots means that your kingdom will be restored to you when you acknowledge that Heaven rules. 27 Therefore, Your Majesty, be pleased to accept my advice: Renounce your sins by doing what is right, and your wickedness by being kind to the oppressed. It may be that then your prosperity will continue.” 28 All this happened to King Nebuchadnezzar. 29 Twelve months later, as the king was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, 30 he said, “Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?” 31 Even as the words were on his lips, a voice came from heaven, “This is what is decreed for you, King Nebuchadnezzar: Your royal authority has been taken from you. 32 You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like the ox. Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes.”

Pride is blinding

Nebuchadnezzar’s son is having a party and his cups just aren’t shiny enough. He takes the cups that belonged to God. A hand appears and writes curses on the wall.

Daniel 5:18–23 (NIV)

18 “Your Majesty, the Most High God gave your father Nebuchadnezzar sovereignty and greatness and glory and splendor. 19 Because of the high position he gave him, all the nations and peoples of every language dreaded and feared him. Those the king wanted to put to death, he put to death; those he wanted to spare, he spared; those he wanted to promote, he promoted; and those he wanted to humble, he humbled. 20 But when his heart became arrogant and hardened with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and stripped of his glory. 21 He was driven away from people and given the mind of an animal; he lived with the wild donkeys and ate grass like the ox; and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven, until he acknowledged that the Most High God is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and sets over them anyone he wishes. 22 “But you, Belshazzar, his son, have not humbled yourself, though you knew all this. 23 Instead, you have set yourself up against the Lord of heaven. You had the goblets from his temple brought to you, and you and your nobles, your wives and your concubines drank wine from them. You praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or understand. But you did not honor the God who holds in his hand your life and all your ways.

Pride pits us against the ones we love

There were important people who wanted to get rid of Daniel because of his relationship with king Darius. They couldn’t find anything wrong with Daniel, so these officials decided to use Darius’s pride to do it. They said, Darius don’t you think we should have a “all about Darius” month? Darius said, that’s a great idea! So for 30 days people couldn’t worship or pray to anyone but Darius. So Daniel immediately goes and prays to the true God and is thrown in the lions den for it. God shuts up the lion’s mouth and instead the other officials are eaten.

Daniel 6:15–23 (NIV)

15 Then the men went as a group to King Darius and said to him, “Remember, Your Majesty, that according to the law of the Medes and Persians no decree or edict that the king issues can be changed.” 16 So the king gave the order, and they brought Daniel and threw him into the lions’ den. The king said to Daniel, “May your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you!” 17 A stone was brought and placed over the mouth of the den, and the king sealed it with his own signet ring and with the rings of his nobles, so that Daniel’s situation might not be changed. 18 Then the king returned to his palace and spent the night without eating and without any entertainment being brought to him. And he could not sleep. 19 At the first light of dawn, the king got up and hurried to the lions’ den. 20 When he came near the den, he called to Daniel in an anguished voice, “Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to rescue you from the lions?” 21 Daniel answered, “May the king live forever! 22 My God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me, because I was found innocent in his sight. Nor have I ever done any wrong before you, Your Majesty.” 23 The king was overjoyed and gave orders to lift Daniel out of the den. And when Daniel was lifted from the den, no wound was found on him, because he had trusted in his God.

What is pride?

So if pride is this terrible poison that’s so easily hidden in our lives, that’s so deadly that it would tear apart families slowly and steadily, how do we identify it?

Humility is the opposite of pride: Humility is not thinking less of yourself but thinking of your self less.

King Nebuchadnezzar set up a golden image of himself, but God called Nebuchadnezzar the king of kings and gave him a dream of himself as the golden head. Nebuchadnezzar’s sin was demanding worship.

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego told the king, we don’t answer to you we answer to God. That’s what was unacceptable to the king.

The king said in his heart, “Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?”

Darius’s month of worship was about making much of himself.

The question that serves as the test strip to our hearts is this:

Who am I doing this for?

Bible study example

Action

The more you choose yourself instead of others the more pride is going to grow in the walls of your life. It’s going to poison you and your closest relationships. You’re going to end up paranoid, blind, angry, and alone. And it all starts with just a little phrase, “Why shouldn’t I make this about me.” Don’t I do enough for everyone else. Don’t I consider other people enough? Why shouldn’t I make this hour, day, month, year - about me? That’s the spore of the most poisonous and destructive thing in your life.