GOD’S ANSWER TO A SELF-MADE MAN
or
A MIND IS A TERRIBLE THING TO LOSE
by Ivan Maddox
Atlanta, GA
The self-made man is an American ideal. Stories of men and women who started from humble beginnings and worked, hacked and clawed their way to their dream bring thrills to our hearts, and remind us that nothing is impossible to the one who dreams big and works hard. They teach us that if we believe in ourselves, if we put our heart and our passion into our dreams, we can fly, we can reach the stars, we can make it to the top.
Yet this ideal poses a serious danger to those of us who are followers of Jesus Christ. God has not called us to put our trust in ourselves, but to put our trust in Him. The prophet Jeremiah warned of the dire consequences of misdirected trust.
Jeremiah 17:5-8
5 Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD.
6 For he shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited.
7 Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is.
8 For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.
God has pronounced a curse on the man who trusts in man. How much clearer can He get? Not only does God forbid us to trust in other men rather than in Him; He forbids us to trust ourselves rather than Him as well. This does not mean that we are not to be self-confident; rather, it means that He is to be the ultimate source of our supply, and all our plans, dreams, goals and methods must conform to His word and will.
Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon circa 600 BC, was an excellent example of a self-made man. Starting off as an obscure king of a second-rate nation, he carved out a great empire for himself. A mighty warrior, he was even more proud of his building achievements. It was he who turned the city of Babylon into a capitol worthy of his empire. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon, which he built for his wife, was one of the Seven Wonders of the World.
You would think that with all this under his belt, Nebuchadnezzar would have something to be proud of, something to pat himself on the back for. But this very natural pride in very real accomplishments proved to be his undoing. This story is told, in his own words, in Daniel 4. It began with a dream.
Daniel 4:1-18.
1 Nebuchadnezzar the king, unto all people, nations, and languages, that dwell in all the earth; Peace be multiplied unto you.
2 I thought it good to shew the signs and wonders that the high God hath wrought toward me.
3 How great are his signs! and how mighty are his wonders! his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his dominion is from generation to generation.
4 I Nebuchadnezzar was at rest in mine house, and flourishing in my palace:
5 I saw a dream which made me afraid, and the thoughts upon my bed and the visions of my head troubled me.
6 Therefore made I a decree to bring in all the wise men of Babylon before me, that they might make known unto me the interpretation of the dream.
7 Then came in the magicians, the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers: and I told the dream before them; but they did not make known unto me the interpretation thereof.
8 But at the last Daniel came in before me, whose name was Belteshazzar, according to the name of my God, and in whom is the spirit of the holy gods: and before him I told the dream, saying,
9 O Belteshazzar, master of the magicians, because I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in thee, and no secret troubleth thee, tell me the visions of my dream that I have seen, and the interpretation thereof.
10 Thus were the visions of mine head in my bed; I saw, and behold a tree in the midst of the earth, and the height thereof was great.
11 The tree grew, and was strong, and the height thereof reached unto heaven, and the sight thereof to the end of all the earth:
12 The leaves thereof were fair, and the fruit thereof much, and in it was meat for all: the beasts of the field had shadow under it, and the fowls of the heaven dwelt in the boughs thereof, and all flesh was fed of it.
13 I saw in the visions of my head upon my bed, and, behold, a watcher and an holy one came down from heaven;
14 He cried aloud, and said thus, Hew down the tree, and cut off his branches, shake off his leaves, and scatter his fruit: let the beasts get away from under it, and the fowls from his branches:
15 Nevertheless leave the stump of his roots in the earth, even with a band of iron and brass, in the tender grass of the field; and let it be wet with the dew of heaven, and let his portion be with the beasts in the grass of the earth:
16 Let his heart be changed from man's, and let a beast's heart be given unto him; and let seven times pass over him.
17 This matter is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy ones: to the intent that the living may know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and setteth up over it the basest of men.
18 This dream I king Nebuchadnezzar have seen. Now thou, O Belteshazzar, declare the interpretation thereof, forasmuch as all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to make known unto me the interpretation: but thou art able; for the spirit of the holy gods is in thee.
Today many Christians are satisfied to guess at the meanings of dreams, or to allow someone else to guess for them. Daniel did no such thing. He made it clear that the power to interpret dreams was not his, but God’s. Because of this, the interpretations he gave were clear and sure.
Daniel had interpreted dreams before for the king. But when Daniel heard this dream and received the interpretation from God, his reaction was startling.
Daniel 4:19.
19 Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, was astonied for one hour, and his thoughts troubled him. The king spake, and said, Belteshazzar, let not the dream, or the interpretation thereof, trouble thee. Belteshazzar answered and said, My lord, the dream be to them that hate thee, and the interpretation thereof to thine enemies.
The dream was a warning to Nebuchadnezzar from God. Daniel was clearly disturbed by the interpretation. After he interpreted the dream for the king, he gave him some excellent advice on how to avoid what had been foretold in the dream.
Daniel 4:20-27.
20 The tree that thou sawest, which grew, and was strong, whose height reached unto the heaven, and the sight thereof to all the earth;
21 Whose leaves were fair, and the fruit thereof much, and in it was meat for all; under which the beasts of the field dwelt, and upon whose branches the fowls of the heaven had their habitation:
22 It is thou, O king, that art grown and become strong: for thy greatness is grown, and reacheth unto heaven, and thy dominion to the end of the earth.
23 And whereas the king saw a watcher and an holy one coming down from heaven, and saying, Hew the tree down, and destroy it; yet leave the stump of the roots thereof in the earth, even with a band of iron and brass, in the tender grass of the field; and let it be wet with the dew of heaven, and let his portion be with the beasts of the field, till seven times pass over him;
24 This is the interpretation, O king, and this is the decree of the most High, which is come upon my lord the king:
25 That they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and they shall wet thee with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over thee, till thou know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will.
26 And whereas they commanded to leave the stump of the tree roots; thy kingdom shall be sure unto thee, after that thou shalt have known that the heavens do rule.
27 Wherefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee, and break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by shewing mercy to the poor; if it may be a lengthening of thy tranquillity.
God's warning was about a sin all too many of us don't take seriously: pride. God has made it very clear in scripture that He takes a dim view of man's pride.
Proverbs 6:16-19.
6:16 These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him:
6:17 A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood,
6:18 An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief,
6:19 A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.
In this passage, pride is the first item on the list of things that God hates. Yet most people regard pride as a virtue, not a sin. What exactly is pride?
Romans 12:3.
12:3 For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think [of himself] more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.
Pride, in a nutshell, is thinking more highly of one's self than one ought to think. But what's so bad about that? In man’s way of thinking, this should hardly register on the scale of sin, especially when compared to serious sins like rape or murder. But pride is much more serious than it looks. In essence, pride is a declaration of independence from God, and a decision that one does not need God. Pride puts self in the place of God.
Psalm 10:4.
10:4 The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek [after God]: God [is] not in all his thoughts.
Through Daniel, God was warning Nebuchadnezzar, ruler of Babylon and conqueror of nations, that no matter how great he became on earth, he was not in charge of things; nor did he set the rules for even his own life. Instead, he must understand that "the heavens do rule;" that is, that even the king of kings on earth is subject to God, and must submit himself to Him in obedience, or suffer His judgment.
Daniel gave Nebuchadnezzar some practical steps he could take in order to avoid this judgment. If the king would walk righteously, and show mercy to the poor, the judgment God had ordained for him might not come to pass.
Did Nebuchadnezzar heed this warning? There is no evidence in scripture that he acted on any of the things that Daniel had warned him about. Apparently, business went on as usual for Nebuchadnezzar. A year later, the judgment he had been warned about was unleashed.
Daniel 4:28-30.
28 All this came upon the king Nebuchadnezzar.
29 At the end of twelve months he walked in the palace of the kingdom of Babylon.
30 The king spake, and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honour of my majesty?
The event that triggered this judgment was a seemingly harmless statement made by the king. In spite of all his military triumphs, Nebuchadnezzar was more proud of his peacetime achievements than his military achievements. Nebuchadnezzar had undertaken an extensive building program in Babylon and in other major Babylonian cities. One day Nebuchadnezzar looked out over his vast achievements and said, in effect, "Look at what I’ve done by my own power, for my own glory."
That was it. He gave himself a congratulatory pat on the back. He admired his own work. He gave himself credit for his own work. He left God out.
It was at this moment of triumph that judgment was pronounced against him.
Daniel 4:31-33.
31 While the word was in the king's mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, saying, O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken; The kingdom is departed from thee.
32 And they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field: they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and seven times shall pass over thee, until thou know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will.
33 The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar: and he was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagles' feathers, and his nails like birds' claws.
The sentence against Nebuchadnezzar was incredibly appropriate. The source of his pride was his own ability, his own mind. The judgment given him was the loss of his sanity. The message God gave to him by means of this penalty was this: On your own, you don’t have the ability to keep yourself sane! You are totally dependent on God for the preservation of your mind.
Once judgment was passed against him, Nebuchadnezzar had no power to overcome it. His sentence was to last "seven times," or seven years. During that time, Nebuchadnezzar made no progress toward recovery. He no longer knew even that he was a man.
Eventually, a glimmer of understanding began to filter through to his mind. With what little sanity he had, Nebuchadnezzar made the decision to recognize and glorify God as God.
Daniel 4:34-35.
34 And at the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most High, and I praised and honoured him that liveth for ever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation:
35 And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?
This was the turning point in his situation. Once Nebuchadnezzar humbled himself before God, his sanity was miraculously restored.
Daniel 4:36.
36 At the same time my reason returned unto me; and for the glory of my kingdom, mine honour and brightness returned unto me; and my counsellors and my lords sought unto me; and I was established in my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added unto me.
That Nebuchadnezzar’s sanity was restored was a major miracle in and of itself; but for him to receive his kingdom back after having lost his sanity is even more amazing. Nebuchadnezzar had been the absolute ruler of a powerful Eastern empire. Intrigue and political infighting are the order of the day in such kingdoms. Yet Nebuchadnezzar’s empire was preserved for him in spite of his infirmity. Perhaps the high position that Daniel held in the province of Babylon had something to do with this.
Daniel 4:37.
37 Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase.
The record ends with Nebuchadnezzar giving glory to God, and recognizing His ability to judge and put down those who exalt themselves in pride.
Those of us who belong to God need to take heed of this. We are warned in the New Testament that God resists the proud.
James 4:6-7.
6 But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.
7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
We need to note that these warnings were not issued to the world, but to those who belong to Christ. It is possible for those of us who have been redeemed by Christ to put ourselves in a position where, instead of receiving grace or favor from God, we receive active resistance or hindrance from Him.
Walking in humility doesn’t mean giving up our self-respect. It does mean, first and foremost, submitting ourselves to God. In addition to this, it means submitting ourselves to one another.
I Peter 5:5.
5 Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all [of you] be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.
This submission to each other is not absolute. Only as people walk and speak in agreement with God’s word are we to submit ourselves to them. Our ultimate submission is always to be to God.
Let’s not be hard-headed, like Nebuchadnezzar, and have to find out the hard way what it means to have God resist you. Let’s voluntarily submit ourselves to God, and remain on the receiving end of His grace, not His judgment.