Tag Archives: receive

Does Pride Come Before the Fall?

God is able to humble those who walk in pride.

Written by GodLife on 25/06/2019

Series: Weekly Devotional

Tags: GodJusticePride


Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, for all his works are right and his ways are just; and those who walk in pride he is able to humble.

Daniel 4:37

A historian wrote, “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” One of the Bible’s best examples is found in the book of Daniel. Nebuchadnezzar, the ruler of a worldwide empire, had a dream that foretold God’s judgment upon him. He nevertheless ignored the dream and did exactly what he was warned not to do, taking credit for the empire and everything achieved by it. God’s judgment fell, just as promised. How could a situation like this work out to his benefit?

The dream that warned the king

With all he had going for him, King Nebuchadnezzar was stubborn and prideful. In the second chapter of the book of Daniel, he dreamed about a great statue symbolizing his kingdom and other future empires. Only Daniel could correctly interpret the dream, so he was promoted. The king offered praise to Daniel’s God: “‘Truly, your God is God of gods and Lord of kings, and a revealer of mysteries, for you have been able to reveal this mystery.’ Then the king gave Daniel high honors and many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon…” (Daniel 2:47–48). 

In the next chapter, the king built a giant statue and it was suspiciously similar to the dream’s statue. Whoever refused to worship the statue when certain music played would be burned alive in a furnace (Daniel 3:4-6). However, when God’s miracle delivered some faithful Hebrews from Nebuchadnezzar’s punishment, the king once again made a law: “Any people, nation, or language that speaks anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego shall be torn limb from limb, and their houses laid in ruins, for there is no other god who is able to rescue in this way” (Daniel 3:29).

Chapter four starts with some similarities: God gives the king another dream that only Daniel can interpret. This time, though, it’s all about Nebuchadnezzar himself. Daniel tells him it means for seven years he would lose his mind and his kingdom, acting like an animal and eating grass, until he genuinley recognized God’s rule (Daniel 4:25-27).

The forgetful, prideful outburst that cost him everything

A year passed and the king had obviously forgotten all of this. He said, “Is not this great Babylon, which I have built by my mighty power as a royal residence and for the glory of my majesty?” (Daniel 4:30). God’s judgment took place exactly as predicted. He lost his sanity and became unable to care for himself or feed himself.

The surprise blessing that made it all around the empire

After the seven-year-long judgment was complete, the king said, “…my reason returned to me… I …praised and honored him who lives forever …his kingdom endures from generation to generation; all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will …none can stay his hand or say to him, ‘What have you done?’” (Daniel 4:34-35). What an amazing confession!

What’s different about this chapter of Daniel is that it is written to “…all peoples, nations, and languages, that dwell in all the earth…” (Daniel 4:1). It’s written in a different language than the rest of the book as well. Most shockingly, it is written in the first person. This chapter is Nebuchadnezzar’s proclamation. It is an official state document translated into multiple languages and sent to the world, confessing his sin against God and the “signs and wonders the Most High has done for me” (Daniel 4:2). It is the king’s personal testimony explaining how he repented and came to know God as the one, true and living God.

The lesser-known part of my initial quote about the corrupting nature of power is, “Great men are almost always bad men.” What an ironic phrase! Why hasn’t that part of the quote become better known? Maybe because it shows us our habit of elevating people for the wrong things. Read through the Bible and identify important births and the stories of leaders. From the time Jesus was predicted, as the “offspring of woman” in Genesis 3:15, to Jesus’ tragic words about His people’s readiness to accept a future substitute “Messiah” instead of Him, who would “come in his own name” (John 5:43Daniel 11:36), people have looked to some of the most flawed people as heroes, saviors and leaders, and have always been disappointed.

Moses, the great leader, was left behind because of one fit of anger. Strongman Samson was shamed and blinded by his lust for a forbidden woman. King David stole a faithful servant’s wife and allowed the man to be killed in battle. Why weren’t these stories left out of the Bible? Because God will not put up with our tendency to idolize people.

Against the bleak backdrop of all these disappointments—the outright villains and even the heroes of the Bible—Jesus shines like a diamond! Take it from a former undisputed king of a worldwide empire: “all His works are right and His ways are just; and those who walk in pride He is able to humble” (Daniel 4:37).


Pray this week:

God, as your Word says, I have nothing I did not receive and so I have no reason to overestimate myself or boast as if I earned something. Train me to be clothed in humility so that you can work in my life. Through Jesus I pray this, amen.


Is it possible that pride is in the way of something God wants to do for you? Pride is a sin that’s hard to identify, let alone confess

Alan Zibluk Markethive Founding Member

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Alan Zibluk Markethive Founding Member

Receiving Blessings from God

The Receiving is the Blessing!

Written by Susan on 10/05/2016

Series: Weekly Devotional

Tags: BlessingsGodHoly Spirit


Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him.

Ephesians 1:3-4

God has already done it all!

If God has already provided all of His spiritual blessings for us, how do we get those blessings? Ephesians 1:3-4 and 2 Peter 1:3 say we have what we need already. “We have everything we need to live a life that pleases God. It was all given to us by God’s own power, when we learned that he had invited us to share in his wonderful goodness.” His provision is here – now. We need to understand and use the blessings He has provided. How do we do that?

How do we receive blessings from God?

You receive God’s blessings from His spirit. We must remember that spiritual blessings aren’t usually what we picture. The purpose of spiritual blessing are to make us “holy and blameless.” You have to know what pleases God before you can put His spiritual blessings into practice.

The “Fruit of the Spirit” is a great example of this: “God’s Spirit makes us loving, happy, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle, and self-controlled…” (Galatians 5:22-23I Corinthians 13:4-8a tells us “Love is patient, love is kind, and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails…” Do you want to love like that? You can! But it is not the fruit of your own heart. It is poured out by God’s Spirit. It is literally His fruit.

God’s Work, God’s Way

Think of it this way: if you own a business, paying all its expenses, you would not let your business sell a product people should not have. In the same way, God’s promised blessings are for living the life that pleases Him, not a life that opposes Him. Living by faith (1 John 5:4) means understanding what pleases God (Ephesians 5:10) and counting on Him to “hold back nothing good from those who walk in the way that is right.” (Psalm 84:11)


Pray this week:

Will you pray this week: Help me to begin to see Your provision of blessing in my area of greatest need. Make me able to see Your blessings in my life, and not lean on my perceptions.


Have you thanked God for His very specific presence in your life today? He is present, are you choosing Him over all else today?

Alan Zibluk Markethive Founding Member