Introduction
Sometimes we as Christians forget how great and powerful our God is. And it takes an unbeliever to call to our attention just how great our God is. Have you ever had a person you know who is not a Christian, ask you to pray for them? That is God showing you through an unbeliever His greatness. The unbeliever sees God’s greatness and we forgot it.
Last week, if you were here, Bro Greg preached a sermon about a man possessed by a Legion of demons. And in that passage of Scripture, the demons showed us just how great our God is.
Matthew 8:31 NKJV
31 So the demons begged Him, saying, “If You cast us out, permit us to go away into the herd of swine.”
The demons never questioned Jesus’ authority or power to cast them out of the man. The demons did not say if you can cast us out; they knew His authority over them. What they said if You chose to cast us out then send us to the swine. I want to make sure you understand these demons showed us just how great our God is.
And today, in Daniel Chapter 4, Nebuchadnezzar, an unbeliever, one who worshiped the gods of Bal and ruled Babylon with an iron fist, is going to show just how great our God is.
And what I want you to leave with today, is a sense of awe as to how great our God is. Let’s begin.
Scripture
Daniel 4:4–18 (NKJV)
4 I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at rest in my house, and flourishing in my palace. 5 I saw a dream which made me afraid, and the thoughts on my bed and the visions of my head troubled me. 6 Therefore I issued a decree to bring in all the wise men of Babylon before me, that they might make known to me the interpretation of the dream. 7 Then the magicians, the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers came in, and I told them the dream; but they did not make known to me its interpretation. 8 But at last Daniel came before me (his name is Belteshazzar, according to the name of my god; in him is the Spirit of the Holy God), and I told the dream before him, saying: 9 “Belteshazzar, chief of the magicians, because I know that the Spirit of the Holy God is in you, and no secret troubles you, explain to me the visions of my dream that I have seen, and its interpretation.
10 These were the visions of my head while on my bed:
I was looking, and behold,
A tree in the midst of the earth,
And its height was great.
11 The tree grew and became strong;
Its height reached to the heavens,
And it could be seen to the ends of all the earth.
12 Its leaves were lovely,
Its fruit abundant,
And in it was food for all.
The beasts of the field found shade under it,
The birds of the heavens dwelt in its branches,
And all flesh was fed from it.
13 “I saw in the visions of my head while on my bed, and there was a watcher, a holy one, coming down from heaven. 14 He cried aloud and said thus:
‘Chop down the tree and cut off its branches,
Strip off its leaves and scatter its fruit.
Let the beasts get out from under it,
And the birds from its branches.
15 Nevertheless leave the stump and roots in the earth,
Bound with a band of iron and bronze,
In the tender grass of the field.
Let it be wet with the dew of heaven,
And let him graze with the beasts
On the grass of the earth.
16 Let his heart be changed from that of a man,
Let him be given the heart of a beast,
And let seven times pass over him.
17 ‘This decision is by the decree of the watchers,
And the sentence by the word of the holy ones,
In order that the living may know
That the Most High rules in the kingdom of men,
Gives it to whomever He will,
And sets over it the lowest of men.’
18 “This dream I, King Nebuchadnezzar, have seen. Now you, Belteshazzar, declare its interpretation, since all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to make known to me the interpretation; but you are able, for the Spirit of the Holy God is in you.”
Point #1
Three times Nebuchadnezzar says about Daniel “for the spirit of the Holy God is in you.” Let me tell you, when you have the Spirit of the Holy God in you, you will always get what you need for the situation you are in and people who don’t even know God will notice how great our God is.
Three times in today’s passage of Scripture, Nebuchadnezzar marvels at the Spirit of God being in Daniel
8 in him is the Spirit of the Holy God
9 the Spirit of the Holy God is in you
18 for the Spirit of the Holy God is in you.”
Think about Daniel living in Babylon, a wicked city; ruled by Nebuchadnezzar who thought of himself as a god. God prepared the way for the eunuch to allow Daniel to follow the Jewish diet rather than the King’s diet for a period of ten days. At the end of the ten days Daniel was healthier than those on the King’s diet. Daniel received from God what he needed, and the eunuch saw how great our God is.
When Nebuchadnezzar was bent on killing all the wise men of Babylon for not being able to give the dream and its interpretation, it was God who granted Daniel an appearance before the king to request more time and it was God who turned the heart of the king to allow Daniel that extra time.
When Daniel and his friends got together for prayer that very night God showed up to Daniel in a vision and gave Daniel what he asked for- the dream and its interpretation.
You ought to be shouting because God will always give you what you need for the situation that you are in. If you are a child of God, that is a promise from God. Now make sure you understand that God gives you what you need; He does not always give you what you want.
I am sure if I asked Daniel what he wanted most of all it would be to return to his homeland-Israel. But God did not give him that- Daniel will eventually die in Babylon. But God gave Daniel what he needed at the time he needed it in the place that he was. And He does the same for us.
Point #2
King Nebuchadnezzar says about Daniel’s God that he “rules in the kingdom of men.” Let me tell you, you ought to stand in awe that our God rules over everyone who rules over us. That’s how great our God is.
Daniel 4:17 (NKJV)
17 ...In order that the living may know
That the Most High rules in the kingdom of men,
King Nebuchadnezzar may be ruler over Babylon. And Babylon was the most powerful nation of that time. But make no mistake about it. Our God rules over King Nebuchadnezzar. That’s how great our God is. He is the ultimate authority over all things.
Let me give you some additional prove that God is over all things.
Colossians 1:15–17 “15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. 17 And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.”
Because King Nebuchadnezzar knows that he is not the ultimate authority that someone could come in an seize his kingdom (and that eventually happens with the Medes and Persians), he has to rule by fear and intimation.
What did Nebuchadnezzar do when the wise men of Babylon could not come up with the dream and the interpretation. He ordered the captain of the guards to kill all the wise men.
When everyone went out to see the ninety-foot statue of King Nebuchadnezzar, the intimation was bow down to the statue or be thrown in the fiery furnace.
You might work for someone who runs his or her business out of a fear or by intimidation but that should tell you they are very insecure.
How great is our God? Jesus does not rule from fear or intimidation. He doesn’t have to. There is no higher authority, He is it, so He can rule out of grace, mercy and love.
Think about your own life, how has God ruled in your heart. He has bestowed grace, mercy and love on us.
In Daniel’s life, He ruled with mercy, when Daniel asked the king for an extension of time, the King granted it. That was mercy.
When Daniel went home, and He had three fellow Israelites to pray with him that was God’s love for Daniel in action.
And when God appeared to Daniel with the answer to the dream that was grace. It was going to spare the lives of all the Babylonian wise men.
Our God is awesome. He rules in our life with grace, mercy and love. He can do that because
Point #3
King Nebuchadnezzar says that Daniel’s God rules over the world that cannot be seen by our naked eye. Let me tell you. God ruling over that unseen world, ought to give you and me great comfort. That’s how great our God is.
Daniel 4:13 (NKJV)
13 “I saw in the visions of my head while on my bed, and there was a watcher, a holy one, coming down from heaven.
In Daniel’s dream, a watcher, a holy one, most likely an angel was sent from heaven where Daniel’s God dwells with a message.
Nebuchadnezzar reminds us that there is a world outside of what we can see but let’s be honest we quickly forgot about. But our God, He rules in that world just like He rules in our world. Paul says our struggles are not against flesh and blood. Let me read you the Scripture.
Ephesians 6:12 (NKJV)
12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.
But rejoice our God rules that unseen world. Remember the devil had to ask permission from God to sift Job like wheat.
Last week in Greg’s sermon, the demons had to ask permission before they could go into the swine. Our God rules the unseen world. Amen.
Conclusion
If an unbeliever like King Nebuchadnezzar can tell us how great our God is, shouldn’t the born-again Christians be talking about how great our God is to others. Are you talking about the greatness of our God to others?
