There’s no other mention of King Nebuchadnezzar in the book of Daniel. Over the last few days I’ve been writing about Pride, I’ve gotten some great comments, but here’s one that really made me think…
“Pride cometh before the fall” the Bible tells us and it’s definitely a mind set and behavior that can/will separate us from the will of GOD when it’s ignored and not surrendered to the LORD.
Humility is the key. Keeping ourselves low at the feet of Jesus and ever lifting Him up is essential. Pride shows its ugly head in many ways not just in the most obvious ways. People tend to view pride as one who boasts but it’s deeper than that.
Pride IS deeper. It comes from self-righteousness. Let’s look at what Jesus says in the Gospel of Luke:
“Two men went to the temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a despised tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer: I thank you, God, that I am not a sinner like everyone else. For I don’t cheat, I don’t sin, and I don’t commit adultery. I’m certainly not like that tax collector! I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my income.’
But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as He prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.’ I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” Luke 18: 10-14
Self-righteousness leads to pride. Sometimes it makes us believe we’re better than others. This results in the inability to learn anything from God. The tax collector’s prayer should be our prayer, because we all need God’s mercy every day. This is God’s warning not to let this type of pride cut us off from Him. Think about the people who witnessed everything Jesus did… they refused to believe, they rejected him, and they plotted his murder. They were so hardened that they preferred to reject God’s Son rather than to admit they were wrong. Beware of pride. If we allow it to grow, it can lead us to sin.
How about status seeking? Keeping up with the Jones’s…or wanting to be the Jones’s?
“After they arrived at Capernaum, and settled in a house, Jesus asked his disciples, ‘What were you discussing out on the road?’ But they didn’t answer, because they had been arguing about which of them was the greatest.” Mark 9: 34
It is not, I repeat, it is not wrong for believers to be industrious or ambitious, but when ambition pushes aside obedience and service, it becomes sin. In other words…If you feel God calling you to do something, and you refuse to do it because you have your own agenda, then you’re sinning.
Prejudice grows out of personal pride. To better explain this, I was led to the book of Esther. If you’re not familiar with the book of Esther, I’ll try to give a very brief summary…but it would be best to read it yourself in your quiet time with the Lord. The book of Esther tells of circumstances that probably took place very close to when Daniel was living. Remember King Nebby’s dream of the statue… The Medo-Persians defeated Babylon, and became the 2nd ruling kingdom of the world (Please remember that I am not a Biblical scholar, but I’ll try my best with the historical stuff.). The Jews in Persia had been a minority since their deportation from Israel. A Jew, named Mordecai had an official position among the Jewish captives that kept him around the king’s palace. There was also a man in the palace named Haman, who hated the Jews. Mordecai refused to bow to him, so Haman really wanted to destroy him. He became consumed with hatred towards Mordecai. Long story short…Haman’s hatred towards Mordecai caused him to construct a gallows to hang Mordecai on. Here’s the verse that speaks of what happens when pride turns to prejudice:
“Then Harbona, one of the kings eunuchs, said to the king, ‘Look! The gallows, fifty cubits high, which Haman made for Mordecai, who spoke good on the king’s behalf, is standing at the house of Haman.’
Then the king said, ‘Hang him on it!’
So they hanged Haman on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai.
Then the king’s wrath subsided.” Esther 7: 9-10
Haman was hung on the gallows that he set up for Mordecai! Proverbs 26:27 teaches that if you set a trap for others, you will get caught in it yourself. What happened to Haman shows the often violent results of setting any trap for others motivated by pride. Be warned, this can be a result from having personal pride.
There is so much God has to say about pride. That’s what we’re going to be looking at for the next few days…