Bible In One Year-Day 227 (Thursday, August 15, 2013)

Commentary: Daniel4-6. Let’s start from the verses as follows;

Daniel 4:25-26 “… till thou know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will. … thy kingdom shall be sure unto thee, after that thou shalt have known that the heavens do rule.”

These extracts actually points deep things which should be part of our knowledge of God; God rules over the kingdoms of the world and we MUST know that. The king was highly exalted by God but lacked the knowledge of the truth behind his elevation. God had to make him know it. The manner was that he would go through some moments of rejection (i.e. driven away from human society) and to be accepted only by wild animals; eating, sleeping amongst and living with them. This would linger until he learned that his kingdom was because heaven backed him up and not his effort (“after that thou shalt have known …”). If anyone could prayerfully read Nebuchadnezzar’s predicament, such will fear God beyond mere hearing of the messages of preachers. Pride had taken over his heart which became sin to him. Daniel interpreted God’s warning or intentions (dreams) to him and gave the king advice on what to do just to help him;

Daniel 4:27 “Wherefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee, and break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by shewing mercy to the poor; if it may be a lengthening of thy tranquillity.”

After this scenario, the king still walked about for a year without changing his ways; what a gracious God we have. Unfortunately, God’s judgment fell upon him and his heart became that of a beast suitable to adapt to a new life with the animals.

Daniel 5:20 “But when his heart was lifted up, and his mind hardened in pride, he was deposed from his kingly throne, and they took his glory from him:”

Eventually he gave God His due respect.

Daniel 4:37 “Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase.”

The first thing that came into him was that pride must be dealt with.

Unfortunately, his son, King Belshazzar, also had a proud heart despite his knowledge of what his father went through in the hand of God.

Daniel 5:22 “And thou his son, O Belshazzar, hast not humbled thine heart, though thou knewest all this;”

He took all the vessels in the house of God and used them to praise idols; an insult on God. The judgment of God was written on the wall with the finger of God against him and that very night it was executed.

Daniel 5:30 “In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain.”

Pride is a great sin before the Lord. It becomes more dangerous if it is hidden, i.e. not known to you. Such manifests at the peak of breakthroughs or great accomplishments. People with pride seek for recognition among folks; this actually leads to people lying about statuses, positions and accomplishments. Pride brings rivalry and leads into unholy competitions. It is the power behind bitterness, rancor, hatred and unnecessary strife. It sponsors self-promotion and despises others making the person feel more important than others. It could manifest at any level of life. We need to recognize it and quickly deal with it before it destroys us. God cannot stay with anyone with pride as a garment.

Proverbs 4:23 “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.”

Let us seek for the old path where we could find rest. Let us listen to the trumpet’s sound, wherewith we could escape the calamity to come. Our reading for today is Daniel7-9. Keep the fire of burning and alive.

Pastor Supo Abayode

+1-302-230-6792

Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries

Delaware, USA