Why So Proud?

Daniel 4:1-5:12; Psalm 120; Proverbs 28:25-26

People are so…strange. We compare ourselves in every category: hairstyle, whiteness of teeth, build, wealth, intellect, stylishness, athleticism, etc. And even if we lose in every category but one, we take that one category, make it more important than all the rest, and try to convince everyone else that our pride is justified.

God hates pride.

Here’s a lesson that King Nebuchadnezzar, the Babylonian whose forces were powerful enough to overcome Judah and carry the Judeans into exile, learned from his own encounters with God about pride:

Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, because everything he does is right and all his ways are just. And those who walk in pride he is able to humble. – Daniel 4:37

What did it take for the man who was, at the time, king of kings, to learn this?

Immediately what had been said about Nebuchadnezzar was fulfilled. He was driven away from people and ate grass like cattle. His body was drenched with the dew of heaven until his hair grew like the feathers of an eagle and his nails like the claws of a bird. At the end of that time, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored. Then I praised the Most High; I honored and glorified him who lives forever. – Daniel 4:33-34a

If God can touch the human king of kings, what hope does any of us have of maintaining our pride?

Pray for humility--pray that God would allow you to see yourself as You are, as He sees you. And then praise Him that He loves you so much that He sent His Son to redeem You by His own death.

When have you realized that God is far more important than you are?