The Destruction of Pride // Dr. Jeff Warren
Channel: Park Cities Baptist Church
Date: 28/06/2020

Daniel 4
Central Truth: Pride is the gateway sin and, if not confronted, will destroy our lives. Sin is self-destructive, and it is born out of pride- the idea that I know better than God (Genesis 3, Psalm 8, etc.). Like King Nebuchadnezzar, pride can destroy us, even after have seen God’s power, have come to believe in Him, and proclaimed His power. Pride is an ever-present enemy, waiting got pounce. A key truth (through all the prophetic images in Daniel): When human kingdom’s rebel against God they become like violent beasts. And it first happens personally.

Key Passages: We will look at the King’s proclamation of belief in 4:3 and show the main truth he needed to learn throughout his reign (and never did): 17 The sentence is by the decree of the watchers, the decision by the word of the holy ones, to the end that the living may know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will and sets over it the lowliest of men.’ And again, in 4:25, 32 – “Until you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom He will.” God is sovereign over the kingdoms of this world and every leader (all of us) must know that He is the One who has placed us in positions of influence. We are instruments of His truth and peace. “The king's heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord; He turns it wherever He will.” Proverbs 21:1

Nebuchadnezzar was one of the most successful emperors ever – in a world that was much more cutthroat, much nastier, and much more difficult than ours. The CEO’s and rulers of our day would have struggled mightily to be as powerful and magnificent as he. We often take pride in our ability to control and manipulate our environments, surroundings, and only turn to God when we need him. This is a great week to talk about how we use our achievements, escapes, luxuries, and things to mitigate the pain we feel as we live as exiles. We then end up running after diversions to escape culture, instead of leaning into culture with the Gospel in order to be an ambassador for Christ. This is both caused by and leads to more pride in the ways that we handle change, accomplishment, and power in the “new normal.” This is a week to focus on the sovereignty of God who is over all rulers and powers of the world, even when, at times, it seems He isn’t.