All Things Are Given by God

When we call ourselves Christians, we will usually acknowledge that God is in control. We admit that He is sovereign. But to what extent? What are the things that we say that God is sovereign over, but then we are anxious about?

We come back to King Neb. He has seen the power of God to reveal dreams, He has protected His servants through the fire.

God had a test for King Neb, a miraculous way to show the King, that God is in fact the one who is in control.

v.1-3

God’s Kingdom is Never Ending

Kingdom

This is to say that the rule of God as King is everlasting, it has no end.

He exercises providential care over all. He has in the past, He will be in the future. There is no end to it.

This should remind us of the kingdom of Jesus

Luke 1:32-33

Luke 1:32–33 ESV

32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

Dominion

This is to say that He is in control of what is going all the things happening.

God isn’t a monarch who has no power in His kingdom.

King Neb is admitting that it is under the authority of God that he is able to rule.

Would you say that everlasting has ended?

The same kingdom and authority that King Nebuchadnezzar had come to understand, is still being exercised.

The hand of God has not been shortened, His power has not diminished. The sovereign God is still in control of everything that is happening. Whether it is good or bad God will use it to accomplish His purpose.

You can almost hear king Neb singing “how great is our God!!”

What brought king Nebuchadnezzar to this point?

Why is he glorifying God.

v.4-5

King Neb describes a dream where he was this giant tree with fruit and shade for all. Birds came and nested and beasts came to live under it.

Then an holy one came down from heaven and commanded it to be cut down.

The stump was to be left and a band of iron and bronze was to be put around it.

Daniel lets King Nebuchadnezzar know that this is from God. God is going to take away his sanity and make him not even be able to live among men.

v.25-26

Until you know that the most high rules!

We see the goodness of God. God will restore the kingdom when he learns that God rules.

This is a warning given to king Neb. Just like God gives us warnings.

As a nation:

The two towers

Covid 19

Massive intense weather patterns.

Are these just events that take place or are these warnings given by God?

Personally:

Does the Holy Spirit speak to you through His word?

Do you have things happen, that you know were not a coincidence and God is trying to gently direct you?

12 months later, the king forgets about the warning.

v.28-31

King Nebuchadnezzar is Filled with Pride

The king looks at all he has and believes that it is by the strength of his hand that it has all come to pass.

He believes that it is all in His strength.

Look at how great of a kingdom I’ve built.

Look at how great my business is!

Look at how nice of a house, or a car I have.

Look at how great my kids behave.

When the glory is directed towards us, do we understand that these are points of pride?

Acts 17:28

Acts 17:28 ESV

28 for “ ‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said, “ ‘For we are indeed his offspring.’

Our very being, all that we are is within the sovereign hand of God.

God shows King Neb that everything he has, including his health and sanity is a gift.

Everything that we have, has been granted to us by the marvelous grace of God.

v.32

The Most High Rules

God blesses the king by removing his sanity.

This may not look like a blessing, but it was. By King Neb’s sanity being taken from him, he turned to God.

There are many things that we go through, things that are terrible. For some it takes being hit by a truck, for others being stabbed, for others severe alcoholism.

These things that are terrible that happen to us, God uses these to turn us to Him, to draw us closer to Him.

God doesn’t give the hardest battles to the toughest soldiers, He creates the toughest soldiers through life’s hardest battles. -Unknown

If our entire focus is on this world, then suffering here is devastating.

Our Lord is the king of an everlasting kingdom…and that isn’t of this world.

Our suffering in this world, should make us long for heaven.

v.37

Praise and Extol and Honor the King

Praise, Extol, Honor

He wasn’t demanding praises for himself anymore, the praises were for God.

He wasn’t lifting up his own name, it was God’s name.

He wasn’t glorifying his own name and his deeds. He was glorifying God.

King Neb had gone from a worshipper of himself to a worshipper of God.

What Does This Look Like For Us?

Moving from a point of pride, of self-honor to a point of honoring God?

v.27

Daniel tries to give advice. Be a good person. By doing this you will lengthen your prosperity.

This is advice we give. Be kind, love others, take care of the poor.

But this doesn’t help with sin.

We must see God for who He truly is.

Realize the Sovereignty of God.

It wasn’t until king Neb saw how great God is, that he truly began to praise God.

Praise comes from a heart that has been captivated by the awesome power of God!!

Have you studied God?

Have you realized the depth of your sin, and seen the unfailing love of God for you. Then stood in amazement at how great God is?

Have you realized that you were helpless to come to God? That it was by His sovereign love drawing you that you desired to know Him. When we realize this we see that salvation is completely from the LORD and we have no room to boast.

Have you seen how God has worked in your life to bring you to the point you are at today? Even sitting here in this pew is by providence.

The more we learn about God, the more we will stand in awe of who He is and what He has done.

When we know God, we will have confidence that He is still on the throne,

While it looks like things are out of control, behind the scenes there is a God who hasn’t surrendered His authority. -A.W. Tozer