God is free to do what He pleases and it is for our good.

God Is Free To Do As He Pleases

Daniel 4:35

My testimony-

1)      I had plans to do evil.

2)      God had plans to protect me from evil.

3)      God sovereignly accomplished his will in my life.

4)      I am glad he did so. I  now see his goodness in what he did.

Story of Daniel/key points

v.1-2–Nebuchadnezzar besieges Jerusalem because the Lord gave the king of Judah into his hand

v.3-21–Daniel is a Hebrew youth taken captive who would not defile himself with the kings food and drink and God granted Daniel favor and compassion in the sight of the commander of the official and God gave the Hebrew youths knowledge and intillegence in every branch of literature and wisdom; Daniel even understood all kinds of visions and dreams

Chapter 2-Nebuchadnezzar has dreams and God grants Daniel the interpretation of the dreams. Verses 20-23 Daniel confesses the sovereignty of God as he blesses the Lord

Chapter 3-Nebuchadnezzar makes a 90 foot tall idol and commands everyone to fall down and worship it. Who ever does not comply will be thrown into a fiery furnace

Charges are brought against Daniel and his companions because they will  not worship the golden image.  They profess God’s sovereign ability to deliver them from the kings fiery furnace if he so  wishes. (verses 17-18)

Nebuchadnezzar gets really mad (filled with wrath) and heats furnace 7 times hotter then casts the youths into the fire. The youths are protected and delivered from the kings plan of destruction.

God shows that he is sovereign over the fire, life, death and the king.

The end result is that Nebuchadnezzar threatens to destroy anyone who blasphemes against Daniel’s God and declares that they will be torn apart and he confesses that no one compares to Daniel’s God.

Chapter 4-Nebuchadnezzar tells his testimony to all peoples, nations, and men of every language.  Verses 2&3 are his thesis.

Verses 4-18 he tells of a vision he had.

In verses 19-27 Daniel interprets the vision and in verses 28-37 the vision is fulfilled.

The key points of the vision are

1) The king has become great

2) He will now lose his mind and be driven away from all people

3) He will eat grass for 7 years until he reckognizes that God rules him and has given him everything he has (v.25-26)

We will  now read Daniel 4:34-37 and then we will  focus in on verse 35

All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, but he does according to his will in the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of  the earth; and no one can ward off his hand or say to him, “what have you done?”

All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, but he does according to his will in the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth-

Point 1) no one in heaven or on earth compares to him

He has no equal no rival. All of creation is nothing compared to him.

A)    Listen to God speak about himself in Isaiah 40:17-25.

King Nebuchadnezzar acknowledged that no one compares to Daniel’s God. “God of Gods”

B)    Also in Isaiah 46:5,9-10.

No one is equal to God! Not even the devil. The devil serves God and fulfills his purposes.

Nebuchadnezzar prior to his humbling encounter with the God most high believed that he was the mightiest and ruled over all. Now his confession is “I am nothing and he is everything.”

From the highest ranking angel to the highest king to the poorest person, no one compares to our God.

And no one can ward off his hand.

Point 2) no one in heaven or on earth can stop him

To ward off means to strike against, no one is able to stop God from accomplishing his will.

Nebuchadnezzar had to surrender to the truth that God is sovereign and cannot be stopped.

A)    Isaiah 14:27 says “for the Lord of host has planned, and who can frustrate it? And as for his stretched-out hand, who can turn it back?”

God’s plans cannot be frustrated (stopped) and no one has the power to stop him.

B)    2 Chronicles 20:6-7 says “O Lord the God of our fathers, are you not God in the heavens? And are you not ruler over all the kingdoms of the nations? Powerand might are in your hand so that no one can stand against you.  Did you not our God, drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people israel and give it to the descendants of abraham your friend forever?”

God rules over all, no one can stand against him, he drives people out of lands in order to fulfill his sovereign purposes. He cannot be stopped.

No one can say to him “what have you done?”

Point 3) no one in heaven or on earth can question him

Nebuchadnezzar knew that he could not question God even when he had brought such devestating things upon him. The kings testimony was this “I praise honor and exalt the king of heaven, for all his works are true and his ways just, and he is able to humble those who walk in pride.”

A)    Because he is the creator-Isaiah 45:9-“woe to the one who quarrels with his maker-an earthenware vessel among the vessels of the earth! Will the clay say to the potter, ‘what are you doing?”

B)    His ways are perfect-Nebuchadnezzar confessed “all his works are true and his ways just…”

Psalm 145:17 expresses this: “The Lord is righteous in all his ways and kind in all his deeds.”

It was a right thing for the Lord.

Application

1)      Surrender to God’s sovereignty over our trials.

A)    Trials are God given-just as God brought trials upon Nebuchadnezzar and also job so he will bring them upon us to accomplish his will in our lives because he loves us. Therefore we can consider it all joy when we encounter various trials, knowing that God brings good things out of our trials such as endurance etc.

2)      Remember that God is perfect and righteous in all his ways therefore you can trust him in all things.

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