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God
Raises up the Humble and Brings Down the Prideful
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[Daniel
4:37]
Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven,
because everything he does is right and all his ways are just. And those who
walk in pride he is able to humble.
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3
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Nebuchadnezzar, King
of Babylon, who brought down Judah was well-known as a huge conqueror and as
an outrageous man as well. One day, when this King Nebuchadnezzar was living
peacefully in his palace, he had a dream which completely changed the rest of
his life.
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4
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He saw a beautiful
and solid tree in his dream. The tree grew bigger and bigger and finally it
became huge enough to cover the sky. The branches were also abundant with
lots of fruit that were as appetizing as the largeness of the tree. A lot of
wild animals found shelter under the shade of the tree and many birds built
their nests on the thick branches of the tree.
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5
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At that moment,
sacred messengers of heaven came down and shouted loudly over the tree.
"Cut down this tree and trim off its branches! Chase out all the wild
animals and birds out of its branches and shade. Leave only the stump and its
roots and bound it with iron and bronze! He will live with wild animals among
the plants of the earth. His mind will change from that of a man to the mind
of an animal, till seven times pass by for him!"
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King Nebuchadnezzar
woke up from his dream and felt afraid.
The king called Daniel, a man of God to explain his dream.
The king asked Daniel to interpret what his dream meant.
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Daniel realized that
it was a dream from God and was perplexed for a time. The king noticed it and
said. "Daniel, do not hesitate and just tell me as it is. Daniel
answered, "My lord, I wish that the meaning of this dream would be upon
your enemies!"
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8
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Daniel
began to interpret the dream.
"The
strong and big tree you saw in your dream is you, Your Majesty. Therefore,
the decree of the Most High has been given to you, my lord. You will be
driven away from people and will live with the wild animals. You will eat
grass like the cattle and be drenched with the dew of heaven."
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The interpretation of
Daniel continued.
"Like this, seven times will pass by for you until you accept that the
Most High rules over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone that fits
the will of the Most High. The command to leave the stump of the tree with
its roots means that your kingdom will be restored to you when you accept
that God rules over the world."
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After finishing his
interpretation, Daniel sincerely advised the king. "My lord, repent of
your sins and starting doing what is right and give to the poor! If you do
so, your prosperity may continue." So, Nebuchadnezzar realized that it
had been a special dream and he fell into deep thought.
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Then,
one day after twelve months from that day, the king was peacefully walking on
the roof of the royal palace of Babylon. Upon looking down on the huge
kingdom of Babylon, the king spoke loudly out of arrogance.
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The words were still
on the king's lips when a voice came from heaven, "This is what is
decreed for you, King Nebuchadnezzar: Your royal authority has been taken
from you. You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild
animals; you will eat grass like cattle. Seven times will pass by for you
until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of
men and gives them to anyone he wishes."
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Those
words were fulfilled to King Nebuchadnezzar at that very moment. He was
driven away from people, ate grass like cattle, drenched with the dew of
heaven, his hair grew like the feathers of an eagle and his nails grew like
the claws of a bird. A glorious king changed to an animal in an instance. He
had to live that way until the time God had set for him.
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When it reached the time
God had set for him, King Nebuchadnezzar looked up to the sky with awe. At
that moment, his mind was restored. He got his kingdom back and finally, he
praised the Most High God. He gave all of the praises to God alone.
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After coming back,
Nebuchadnezzar proclaimed to the whole kingdom like this. "Now I,
Nebuchadnezzar praise the King of heaven and glorify only him! How great are
his signs!! How mighty his wonders!! His kingdom is an eternal kingdom, his
dominion endures from generation to generation!"
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Through dreams, God
made King Nebuchadnezzar realize how bad his pride was and by fulfilling the
dream, God taught Nebuchadnezzar the glory of God which is higher than
anything in this world. Even King Nebuchadnezzar who had ruled over the whole
world, when God took it away from him, he lived a miserable life.
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Friends, what do you
think of God?
How can we face God the right way as believers of Jesus?
The Bible teaches that God hates arrogant people.
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We, as children of
God, should always have humble hearts and offer praise and glorify God our
Father, the only one rightly to be praised. Let us work hard to become real
children of God who know how to respect God anytime and anywhere.
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(You can change the conclusion of this sermon best suiting
to your listeners of this sermon. We want to make it clear that the provided
conclusion is only a sample conclusion provided by CTM.)
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