Series: When Cultures Collide
Topic: Luxury, Longevity, & Latitude
July 7, 2002
Daniel 4
"A feast is made for laughter,
And wine makes merry;
But money answers everything."
Ecclesiastes 10:19, NKJV
Oh the glory and splendor of wealth...
We are driven to awe and wonder as we look upon the lifestyles of the rich and famous.
Mansions
superior furniture
fabulous furnishings
immaculate decor
Cars
luxury, sporty
Yachts
We admire the life of luxury and ease. It drives our economy. We spend more out of dissatisfaction than need. Dissatisfaction drives our wants.
Our car is old–doesn’t work as good–get a new one (bigger, better)
Our clothes are out of style, worn, faded–get new clothes
The new T.V.’s have more features, better picture and sound–get a new one
Computer’s slow–get a new one
We buy beauty products-creams, lotions, pills, herbs, because we’re dissatisfied with our appearance.
Two of the most called for plastic surgeries, besides lipposuction, are boob jobs for women and pectoral jobs for men.
Luxury, longevity, and latitude are the three essentials to the American way of life.
We want luxury. We want the best life has to offer. We strive for longevity. We don’t want a long life where we grow old and feeble. We want a long, long youth– It’s almost maddening all the commercials inundating us on how we can look and feel younger. And we seek to broaden our latitude. Extending the reaches of our influence through pagers, e-mail, and cell phones.
Yet for all the wonder and enjoyment wealth has to offer...And wealth does offer great enjoyment. Wealth is not evil–Paul does not say, "money is the root of all evil." but rather, "the love of money." (1 Timothy 6:10)
"No one would have remembered the good Samaritan if he’d only had good intentions. He had money as well." -Margaret Thatcher
Even Jesus implies this when He says, "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into heaven." Because, he speaks this in the context of a rich man who refused to give up his wealth to be a disciple.
Having it means you’ve been blessed; loving it means you’ve been cursed.
And herein lies the dark side of wealth.
In their book, The Day America Told the Truth, James Patterson and Peter Kim reveal some shocking statistics about how far people in this country are willing to go for ten million.
Would abandon their entire family (25%)
Would abandon their church (25%)
Would become prostitutes for a week or more (23%)
Would give up their American citizenship (16%)
Would leave their spouses (16%)
Would withhold testimony and let a murderer go free (10%)
Would kill a stranger (7%)
Would put their children up for adoption (3%)
This morning we look at the life of a king who had acquired it all (living high on the hog as the greatest of men). He possessed all his heart dreamed of. But there was only one problem–His power and wealth got to his head. He got a big head.
I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at ease in my house and prospering in my palace. . .At the end of twelve months he was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, and the king 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?" While the words were still in the king’s mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, "O King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: The kingdom has departed from you, and you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field; and you shall be made to eat grass like an ox; and seven times shall pass over you, until you have learned that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will." Immediately the word was fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar. He was driven from among men, and ate grass like an ox, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven till his hair grew as long as eagles’ feathers, and his nails were like birds’ claws. Daniel 4:4, 29-33, RSV
Wealth can be an entrapping force but this morning I would like to share with you five (easy) steps to escape the consumer confidence syndrome/ the demise of King Nebuchadnezzar.
Five Steps To Escape The Consumer Confidence Syndrome
1. Be Mindful
"I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at ease in my house and prospering in my palace."(vs 4)
"at ease" "prospering" (RSV)
"living comfortably" (TEV)
Satiated with wealth
and the king 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 (RSV)
The king gloated over his wealth as though he was "the man"
[what are you going to wear, or eat] Jesus begs the question, "Can you make yourself taller, older, wiser by worrying about such things?"
Jeremiah 9:23-24 Thus says the LORD: "Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, let not the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches; but let him who glories glory in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practice steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth; for in these things I delight, says the LORD." (RSV)
David got in trouble because he sat idly by in the comfort of his home instead of benefitting the nation by expanding his borders.
The Lord has given us a purpose and a task and we are to keep working towards that goal–rather than to be at ease where we are at.
"I had a dream which made me afraid; as I lay in bed the fancies and the visions of my head alarmed me." Daniel 4:5 (RSV)
2. Be Realistic
King has a problem with his dreams-they run his life. For the second time he stops all operations of the empire just to figure out what the dream means.
He’s a dream chaser...
Maybe you’ve known a dream chaser–someone who always runs after than next fanciful thought that enters their head.
Proverb 17:24 A man of understanding sets his face toward wisdom, but the eyes of a fool are on the ends of the earth. (RSV)
Don Quixote-chasing after wind mills
Stop chasing the woulda, coulda, shoulda, oughta.
3. Be Vigilant
Therefore I made a decree that all the wise men of Babylon should be brought before me, that they might make known to me the interpretation of the dream. . . At last Daniel came in before me—he who was named Belteshazzar after the name of my god, and in whom is the spirit of the holy gods—and I told him the dream, saying, "O Belteshazzar, chief of the magicians, because I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in you and that no mystery is difficult for you, here is the dream which I saw; tell me its interpretation.". . . Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, was dismayed for a moment, and his thoughts alarmed him. The king said, "Belteshazzar, let not the dream or the interpretation alarm you." Belteshazzar answered, "My lord, may the dream be for those who hate you and its interpretation for your enemies!". . . this is the interpretation, O king: It is a decree of the Most High, which has come upon my lord the king, that you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field; you shall be made to eat grass like an ox, and you shall be wet with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over you, till you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men, and gives it to whom he will. Daniel 4:6, 8-9, 19, 24-25 (RSV)
King who was so upset because he had the dream doesn’t even grasp the gravity of the situation. Daniel understands. He gives the king the hardest lesson, "Wealth is fleeting!"
One day you’re a dot.commer, the next you’re a dot.gonner.
One day you’re a secretary at Enron with a fat 401(k), the next you’re jobless with 401 in change.
One day you’re celebrating in the comfort of your home, the next you’re digging through the rubble a tornado has left behind.
One day you’re buying the car of your dreams, the next you’re watching it float away in the currents of a flood.
Daniel knows what the king was soon to learn. "Wealth is fleeting"
Be vigilant. Be mindful of what’s going on around you. People who panic are vulnerable to spend what they don’t have.
"Therefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable to you; break off your sins by practicing righteousness, and your iniquities by showing mercy to the oppressed, that there may perhaps be a lengthening of your tranquillity." Daniel 4:27 (RSV)
4. Be Generous
John Wesley said, "Make all you can, save all you can, give all you can."
"Money is like manure. If you spread it around it does a lot of good. But if you pile it up in one place it stinks like hell." –Clint Murchison Jr.
Greed kills
Leo Tolstoy once wrote a story "How Much Does A Man Need". It was about a successful peasant farmer who was not satisfied with his lot. He wanted more of everything. One day he received a novel offer. For 1000 rubles, he could buy all the land he could walk around in a day. The only catch in the deal was that he had to be back at his starting point by sundown. Early the next morning he started out walking at a fast pace. By midday he was very tired, but he kept going, covering more and more ground. Well into the afternoon he realized that his greed had taken him far from the starting point. He quickened his pace and as the sun began to sink low in the sky, he began to run, knowing that if he did not make it back by sundown the opportunity to become an even bigger landholder would be lost. As the sun began to sink below the horizon he came within sight of the finish line. Gasping for breath, his heart pounding, he called upon every bit of strength left in his body and staggered across the line just before the sun disappeared. He immediately collapsed, blood streaming from his mouth. In a few minutes he was dead. Afterwards, his servants dug a grave. It was not much over six feet long and three feet wide.
[Bits & Pieces, November, 1991. Http://www.sermonillustrations.com.]
Indeed, how much does a man need?
John Lawrence writes, "If you want to be rich...GIVE!
If you want to be poor...GRASP!
If you want abundance...SCATTER!
If you want to be needy...HOARD!"
[Gray, Alice, Steve Stephens, & John Van Diest, comp. "Lists To Live By: The First Collection". (Multnomah Publishers: Sisters, OR, 1999). p. 194.]
5. Be Thankful
At the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and praised and honored him who lives for ever; for his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation; all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing; and he does according to his will in the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, "What [are you doing]?" At the same time my reason returned to me; and for the glory of my kingdom, my majesty and splendor returned to me. My counselors and my lords sought me, and I was established in my kingdom, and still more greatness was added to me. 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 abase. Daniel 4:34-37 (RSV)
The quickest way to break free from the consumer confidence trap.
It’s difficult to want a new vehicle, when I appreciate what I have.
It’s difficult to want a new home, when I’m glad I have one when others don’t
It’s impossible to be greedy and self-centered when I’m so thankful.
Closing: Be Thou My Vision (vss1-3)
Our world says, "Glory and gloat in what you have". But God calls us to appreciate a higher value.
