Sermons About Nebuchadnezzar
Pride Goes Before a Fall
Daniel 4:1-37 Pride is perhaps the utmost evil. It is the vice that inflicts the devil and is ultimately the sin that merited his fall from Heaven. Indeed, pride can be considered the root source of every sin. Even before Adam and Eve committed sin, Satan had already committed the sin of pride. Satan vividly demonstrated the meaning of pride through his desire to "make himself like The Most High." It was Satan's desire to be like God. In tonight's message, we see how the sovereign God of the universe humbled a very prideful ruler - King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, the world's greatest empire. This heavenly drama can be divided into five 'scenes': 1. The King's Declaration (vv. 1-3) 2. The King's Vision (vv. 4-18) 3. The King's Caution (vv. 19-27) 4. The King's Humiliation (vv. 28-33) 5. The King's Conversion (vv. 34-37) From these scenes, we learn that the essence of the sin of pride is the worship of ourselves, or the desire for self-worship over the worship of God. We also see that pride has only one motive and one end: self-glorification. Self-glorification deprives God of the glory that is due only Him. As such, there is no sin more offensive to God than pride. In contrast, Jesus shows us how those who humble themselves will be exalted and He demonstrated this ultimately through His willing death on the cross. But, all kings will one day be humbled when Jesus Christ returns, for He will put down and humble all the nations of this earth. God is able to humble those who walk in pride and He will do so. It is far better to humble yourself now, rather than be cut down in your pride by the God of the Most High, for if we humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God, He will lift us up!
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The Everlasting Kingdom
Daniel was a young Hebrew intellectual taken to Babylon when the Kingdom of Judah was conquered. He proved to be a man of great integrity as well as intellect.
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Sleepless In Babylon
Daniel 2:1-23 Most of us have had nightmares and know those who seem to have more of them than the rest of us. We also know that some people dream more vividly than others. Some people also believe that they can benefit from analyzing and interpreting their dreams. Such is the story of King Nebuchadnezzar's dream and his desire to understand its meaning. As we see, God sovereignly appointed Daniel to make the correct interpretation of the King's dream and communicate to him about what the future held for him. Daniel is the first apocalyptic book in the Old Testament, and as such, serves as the key to understanding God's future plans for the nation of Israel and the Gentiles. Chapter 2 marks the transfer of leadership from the Nation of Israel to the Gentiles during the rule of King Nebuchadnezzar. The Times of the Gentiles covers the conquering of Judah until the return of Jesus Christ. In tonight's message, Pastor Ramey outlines three of the six sections that make up the narrative of King Nebuchadnezzar's dream in Daniel 2: 1. The King was Perturbed (v. 1) 2. The Wise Men Were Pressured (vv. 2-13) 3. The Servants of God Prayed (vv. 14-23) Daniel's interpretation was a powerful example of how to conduct ourselves while living in a pagan world. We should remind ourselves that even in the midst of the frightening times that we live in, God is sovereign and in control.
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Set Apart In A Secular Society
Daniel 1:3-21 Daniel wasn't a prophet by profession, but an administrator in a pagan palace moonlighting as a prophet. In this context, it was Daniel's life that God used to model how the people of Israel were to live <in exile> in a secular society, while waiting for the coming of the Messiah. It was to make a name for Christ among the Gentiles. The key to Israel's usefulness to God was their holiness. God uses clean vessels to carry out His will and glorify His name. As such, the Israelites were called to stand out in a lost and dying world. We see from the history of the people of Israel that as long as they obeyed God, they would be blessed by Him and when they disobeyed God, He brought forth nations against them and consigned them to exile in faraway lands. During the time of Daniel, the Jews were exiled in Babylon for seventy years. It was in this setting that God used Daniel as a shining example of what it is like to stand out in a secular society. We see that we are to become different than the world - not like it. All facets of our lives should serve to make us distinct from the world, and less and less so over time. In tonight's message, Pastor Ramey delivers four encouragements found in verses 3-21 of Daniel 1 that show us how to live a courageous, uncompromising life so that God can use us to demonstrate His glory to the world. We are encouraged in that 1. God allows us to be in conditions of compromise (vv. 3-7) 2. God grants us the courage not to compromise (v. 8) 3. God honors our commitment to not compromise (vv. 9-16) 4. God uses us when we don't compromise (vv. 17-21) From these encouragements we see that if we lose our distinction, we lose our ability to impact the world as God intended. It is this radical difference that catches the attention of the world and magnifies the hopelessness of those who live without Christ. Each of these encouragements should motivate us to reject compromise - no matter what the cost. And, our God protects those who are committed to Him. Our great encouragement is knowing that the God of Daniel - the God of the Bible, is our God too! All of these
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Tested by Fire - Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego
Daniel 3 John Huss (1372 - 1415) was a religious thinker and reformer who initiated a religious movement based on the ideas of John Wycliffe. The Catholic Church did not condone such uprisings, and Huss was excommunicated in 1411, condemned by the Council of Constance, and burned at the stake as a martyr. Huss died in defense of God's Word. Where are the men and women of the convictions of John Huss today? What would your response be if your life was on the line in defense of God and our Lord Jesus Christ? Tonight, Pastor Tyson delivers a message from Chapter 3 of Daniel that will encourage our hearts and challenge our resolve in the face of persecution. Six principles that will help us face persecution: 1. Prepare for Persecution (vv. 1-7) 2. Don't be Surprised by the Trial (vv. 8-12) 3. Always be Ready to Give a Defense (vv. 13-18) 4. Expect Repercussions (vv. 19-23) 5. Hope in a Deliverance (vv. 24-27) 6. Exhalt the Glory of God (vv. 28-30) Rest assured, persecution will come to us all, but hopefully these six principles will help us to endure the persecution. And, in the process, we should remember that when we live through persecution we serve as examples to those around us. Martin Luther is one such benefactor. He was inspired by the example set by John Huss and his eventual martyrdom. Are you ready to give a defense for the hope that is within you?
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Daniel 2:1-49
Q. How do I speak up for God in a pagan world? How can we remain effective as Christians, avoiding being sucked into the world's ways? A. By knowing where to draw the line! When Daniel is faced with execution along with the other wise men of Babylon, he looks to God for mercy and to Nebuchadnezzar for time. God displays to Nebuchadnezzar His sovereignty over time and creation by accurately relating the detail of his dream and by revealing the far distant future to him. A future where all earthly powers are eventually destroyed by the eternal Kingdom of Jesus Christ. God shows that He is in overall control on a scale not usually recognised by men. God's kingdom however is not 'in the future', it is parallel and sometimes, as for Nebuchadnezzar, it breaks into this world. God placed Daniel and his friends in Nebuchadnezzar's court, protected them when necessary and through them demonstrated His sovereignty to Nebuchadnezzar. There is a God in Heaven who knows all things, is in total control and who reveals mysteries. Can you think of a safer place to put yourself?
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Daniel 1:1-21
Our Holiday Bible Club this summer will follow Daniel and his friends on their Babylon Adventure, so we're going to spend the next few weeks getting to grips with the book of Daniel. The events take place at a time when Gods people have separated into the Northern and Southern Kingdoms, but both have been disobedient to God. The Northern Kingdom has already suffered Gods wrath at the hands of the Assyrians. Now it's the turn of the Southern Kingdom as Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar, the regional superpower, brings unstoppable might to bear, even walking into Gods temple in Jerusalem and walking off with his plunder. Where was God in all this? What were Gods people to think... was God still there? Was He dead? Was He just a delusion? Not only was God not dead, he was in control all along, even though the people couldn't see it. In the same way, when we feel as though God has abandoned us, we can have faith that He's still there and still the only thing that really matters. We need to keep telling ourselves - Our God reigns! Our God reigns! It's as true now as it was for Daniel and his friends. As Daniel shows us, we should not shut ourselves away in a Christian bunker, but engage with the world while staying loyal to our King, knowing when to say no to those things that might weaken that bond. Don't eat at the enemy's table! Daniel's faith eventually bore the fruit of his captors conversion. If we live as God wants us to we will eventually be proved to have been right! Vindicated!
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Copouts or Allouts
4 Types of People: • Copouts – People with no goals who never commit. • Holdouts – People who don’t know if they can reach their goals, so they are afraid to commit. • Dropouts – People who start toward a goal but quit when the going gets tough. • Allouts – People who set goals, commit to them, and pay the price to reach them.
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