Jump Start # 1764

Daniel 4:30 “The king reflected and said, ‘Is this not Babylon the great, which I myself have built as a royal residence by the might of my power and for the glory of my majesty?”

King Nebuchadnezzar had a serious problem. It effected his vision. It wasn’t an “eye” problem, but rather an “I” issue. Everywhere he looked, he saw himself. The great Babylon, he reflected was built by the great King. It was by his power, his insight, his vision that Babylon was great. The greatest king standing upon the greatest palace in the greatest kingdom of all the world. There was simply nothing greater than he was. Long before the boxer Ali declared, “I am the greatest,” Nebuchadnezzar was actually believing it about himself.

This common “I” infection discounts the help of others, eliminates the rest of the team and swells the head. I truly doubt that the king actually had a shovel and dug foundations for the palace and then, on his own, built the palace completely. He most likely had hired men, slaves and foremen to oversee the work. I also doubt that the king paid for the entire project out of his own pocket. Taxes from the citizens and tribute money from foreign nations amassed a large fortune so the king could fund the project. Truth being told, there were many hands involved in making Babylon powerful, impressive and great. The king was not a one man army. All of this talk about self did not credit the help of others. But the king also forgot that there was someone above him, someone greater than he was, and that was, and is, God. The Lord put Nebuchadnezzar in the position that he was in. He allowed the right people, the right times to all come together. Babylon was an instrument of God to punish Judah. Without God, Nebuchadnezzar may never had been king, and without God’s word, our passage today from Daniel, he would have long been lost in history and forgotten all together. Instead of thanking others, the king was patting himself on the back. Rather than being humble, his head swelled and he thought way too much of himself.

Nebuchadnezzar’s “I” infection is still contagious today. You hear it at home. You hear it at work. You hear it in politics. You even hear it at church. The hymn, “The great I AM,” is about God, not ourselves. “I” infections upset others. It makes them feel that their contributions and hard work was not noticed, appreciated or even needed. Too much of this “I” talk and some leave. They leave thinking, “They don’t need me there.” This “I” infection discounts the numerous things that God does for us. God who gives us life, opens doors for us and has gifted us with our talents and abilities, is the one that we ought to be thankful for. A mind that can see things and come up with ideas, be thankful for that. A mind that can express ideas and lead people, be thankful for. All of us have had a team of people in our lives that have helped us get to where we are today. Parents who were behind us and opened doors for us by paying our bills. Teachers who guided us. Brethren who gave us a chance. People who hired us. Sure it took hard work, persistent determination on our part, but don’t forget those around you and the One who is above you. Without all of that, we never had a chance.

Nebuchadnezzar’s “I” infection is nothing more than pride. Too much of self. Too much of ole’ Nebuchadnezzar in Nebuchadnezzar. Have you noticed a lot of folks just love to talk about themselves. I guess it’s their favorite topic. On and on they go, all about how they feel, what happened to them, and how wonderful or miserable their life is. The problem with pride is that it distorts things. It’s hard to see the picture when you are in the frame. It makes you bigger than what you really are and it makes others smaller than what they really are.

A walk through the book of Proverbs quickly reveals that God doesn’t think too highly of prideful people. The proud won’t listen to others. The proud will only do something if it is their idea. Quick to talk, quick to blame others, quick to steal the glory, often the glory that belongs to others, are the actions of the proud.

God took care of Nebuchadnezzar. For seven periods, the king lost his mind. He grazed in the fields like a cow. The great looked like an idiot. I don’t know if the seven periods represented seven years, but a day of that is enough for me. Today, we’d say, “he’s out of his mind.” Behind his back, folks would declare, “He’s nuts.” God lowered the king below human dignity. God pulled the rug out from this great king. The man who declared I did all of this, could do nothing about his present condition. Where was his great power now? God was always above Him. Now he came to see that.

The farmer in Luke 12 also had an “I” infection. He was planning to tear down his barns and build larger barns. Nothing wrong with that, except in the passage it is all about himself and nothing said about God. I will do this. Then I will enjoy this. I. I. I. Instead of taking his mind, God took his life. That night, he died. All his barns went to someone else. Now he stood alone before God.

You can’t impress God with who you are or what you have done. Do you think the engineers at NASA would be impressed with a paper airplane that you made? Do you think the folks at the art museum would be impressed with a stick figure picture you show up with? Do you think you can impress God? What moves God and what catches God’s eyes is faith. Jesus recognized it. He praised it. He noticed it. Faith in God. Trust, love and a heart that wants to follow God, that grabs God’s attention. Prayers to God. Obedience to God. Putting God first in your life. The Babylonian king didn’t have any of that. Sometimes we forget.

Those that don’t know God will thrive on pride. It’s all that they have. They will promote themselves. They will honor themselves. They will bow down to themselves. Don’t get caught up in that stuff. It’s all shallow and vain. Within a month after they die or retire, they are replaced. This is true of the CEO, the President of the United States, the MVP athlete, the coach, and even the preacher. We do our jobs the best we can recognizing that God has helped us, gifted us and given us a great opportunity. We realize that without a team of others all around us that we could never accomplish what we do. We need each other. We may not admit it, but we do. This is even true in the church. The heads of some preachers can get so large that they barely can fit it through the double doors. Put the preacher up in the sound booth, with all the buttons and lights, and most of us wouldn’t know the first thing about what to do. I still do not fully understand how you receive these Jump Starts every day. I write them and I send them to a place that sends them out. That’s all I know. Anything beyond that, and it hurts my head trying to understand. But I realize that I have a team of wonderful people that I can count upon that makes all of this happen. I have a congregation that happily funds what it takes to do this. And, I have a God who has given me a talent to see things and share them with others. He has put me in a place where all of this has come together.

Arrogance eliminates the need for others. Arrogance removes God from the picture. Too much of me and the picture is distorted.

What a contrast Daniel four presents to us. It begins with a king standing on top of the palace praising himself and it leads to a king down in the grass grazing like a cow. Thankfully, the king got it. His mind came back to him. The chapter ends with Nebuchadnezzar praising and honoring God, even recognizing that  “He is able to humble those who walk in pride.”

What will it take for you to give up the pride? When will your “I” infection clear up? The glory belongs to God.

Roger