Vainglory

Introduction:

· “As long as you are proud, you cannot know God.”

· BUT: most have experienced “good” pride: – business success? Pride in our kids? Is that wrong?

THERE IS A FAR MORE SINISTER FORM OF PRIDE – THAT WE’LL CALL VAINGLORY – AND WE’LL SEE ITS DESTRUCTIVE POWER, THE REDEMPTIVE HOPE AND DISCIPLINES TO FIGHT AGAINST IT

I) The Destructive Power of Looking Down

A. Vainglory: An Ancient (But Misunderstood) Vice

i. A Reason to boast?

1. King N was one of history’s greatest kings: the hanging gardens;

2. He looks down on “the glory” of his kingdom (vv. 28-30)

3. Glory is excellence on display: Was this “glory” HIS SIN?

4. EXAMPLE: being excellent in your work? Living in a nice house?

5. NO: God gave these to him both before & after (vv. 36)

ii. Vainglory is our insatiable desire to be seen (vs. 30)

1. King N takes credit for what he built and how he did it because vainglory wants to be exulted, praised

2. EXAMPLES: two preachers – 1 who hears & 1 doesn’t applause

a.  Sometimes vainglory is rooted in insecurity: craving attention, so we post on social media, dominate conversations,

b. Sometimes it is rooted in pride: namedropping, humble-bragging…

B. The Dehumanizing Power of Vainglory (vv. 32-33)

i. From the Palace to the Pasture: God’s judgment humbles a king

1. King N is driven from everything he had and becomes like a beast

2. Judgment from God, likely illustrating the effects of VG

ii. Vainglory gives birth to dehumanizing sins

1. A morally “good” person wants to impress à hypocrisy

2. You want admiration: cheat à break rules à throw others under the bus  

NEBUCHADNEZZAR GOES THROUGH A HUMBLING THAT COMPLETEY TRANSFORMS HIM. WHAT HAPPENS?

II) The Redemptive Power of Looking Up

A. From looking down to looking up: N gives credit to God (vs. 34)

i. God is Eternal

1. The shift to 1st person suggests that King N has had a personal experience

2. From looking down on all to looking up to “Most High God”

3. God’s kingdom is from everlasting to everlasting (vv. 34)

4. The cure for vanity: “We glory in such temporal things.” Beauty, etc.

ii. God Is Glorious: “The Most High God”

1. God – not N – is worthy of the glory that N sought for himself

2. QUOTE: "One seeks glory from human beings...lifts up its head in its own glory" and the other says "to its God, 'thou art my glory, and the lifter up of mine head.

3. APPLICATION: Some of us need to evaluate what we glory in

B. Practices to fight this sin

i. Ask: Where do I want to be noticed?

1. Where do you seek attention

2. EXAMPLES: Online? The center of attention? Work/accomplishments

ii. What do you do with your silence?

1. QUOTE William Temple said that our idol is what we do with our silence

2. EXAMPLE: Standing in line at the grocery store; stuck in traffic, etc. what are you longing to hear?

i. Silence and solitude disconnect us from the voices we crave

1. These disciplines give us space from

2. APPLICATION: Fasting from social media; taking 15 minutes with your phone

3.

ii. Worship places us

Transition:

III) How to Reorient Our View

B. Reorienting Our Gaze: Looking Up at the Cross

i. The cross tells us the truth about us: We are fallen sinners!

1. The cross reveals the ugly honest truth – as much as we like to impress, We are fallen sinners deserving of death

2. As much as we gloss it over, or draw attention to ourselves…this is inescapable

ii. The cross tells us the truth about us: We are loved in Christ

1. A King who could have looked out at everything and rightfully said, “This is what I have built by my power as a royal residence…” but instead set it aside to be born into a barn

2. APPLICATION: Vainglory seeks approval…the cross says we have it!

Transition:

Conclusion

The Austrian burial ritual