The book of Daniel is an incredible story of faith and self-control by God’s devoted servant Daniel and his friends, but there is another person’s story woven through the book. The story of God’s pursuit of Nebuchadnezzar is filled with reminders and lessons for our lives; reminders of how no one is exempt from God’s perfect judgment or His unending mercy.
Key verses: Daniel 4:2, 4-8, 17, 19, 30-37, Romans 1:24-28, 29-32
1) There are many warnings that we can find in the story of Nebuchadnezzar. Let’s discuss how some of these warnings apply to our lives now.
a) Don’t assume that being at “ease” and “prospering” is a sign of success and God’s favor. Have there been times in your life when things seemed good and easy, so you excused behavior that you knew wasn’t pleasing to God? Have you ever looked down on others because your life felt settled and easy and theirs seemed difficult? Looking back, how was the enemy able to use that attitude to strain your relationship with God or other people?
b) When faced with a big decision or difficult circumstance, where do you turn first? Nebuchadnezzar was able to gather the best and brightest minds in his kingdom for advice and interpretation of his dream, and Daniel (God’s faithful servant) was the last person he asked. Think back to a time when you had a difficult decision or circumstance. Where did you go first? Why? Do you think you would have seen or handled the situation differently if you had taken it to the Lord first?
c) Don’t allow the culture around you to define your image of God. When the world feels like it's in total chaos (….right now), it is so easy to let God be defined by our fears or how we want Him to be handling things. How have you allowed your view of God to change during difficult times, or how has culture warped your view of who He is? How have you been able to remind yourself of his real attributes?
d) We have a real problem with God’s judgment in our culture, but it’s the truth that we need to hear. Why is God’s judgment such a difficult subject for our culture? Is it difficult for you? Why?
2) Nebuchadnezzar had to face God’s judgment in order to be humbled. His entire world was taken away in order for him to finally see who God is and why humility was so important. Have you had times in your life when the judgment of God seemed like it rocked your whole world? Looking back at that time, can you see God’s purpose for that time? Were you able to see it while you were in it? Why or why not?
3) Nebuchadnezzar fell victim to his own pride, and God allowed him to suffer until he was willing to humble himself, but thankfully, His mercy is endless. 1 Peter 5:5 says that God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Why do you think it took 7 “periods of time” for Nebuchadnezzar to humble himself? Have there been times that God’s mercy was available to you, but you were so stuck in your own pit of pride that you weren’t able to see it? Why is it so difficult to humble ourselves? Why do we need to feel right? How has your past experience of being right vs being humble taught you to look at future situations?
