MY SERVANT NEBUCHADNEZZAR

 

MY SERVANT NEBUCHADNEZZAR So now I have placed all these lands under the authority of My servant Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. I have even made the beasts of the field subject to him. Jeremiah 27:6 The first time I read this Bible verse, I was surprised. Nebuchadnezzar served the god Marduk and didn't know anything about the Hebrew God. How could he be a servant of the LORD? He was a warrior and a cruel leader who terrorized the nations he captured: he wasn't a good man, and yet God said Nebuchadnezzar was his servant! Nebuchadnezzar stirred up the entire Middle East and reshaped countries, hierarchy, education and financial systems, architecture, leadership concepts and entire cultures. God used Nebuchadnezzar II to shake up the known world and initiate a new future. Samson is another Bible personality with sketchy character. He was a womanizer. He had a bad temper. He was vengeful. He was cruel to animals. And yet, the Bible tells us that Samson was chosen by God before he was ever conceived in his mother's womb, to become a great deliverer for the Jewish people. Both of these men had outsized egos. They were exceedingly proud of their abilities, and believed their strength came from their own power. But God is able to humble those who walk in pride. Nebuchadnezzar and Samson both acknowledged the LORD God before they died, and bowed to His sovereignty. They acknowledged where their extraordinary gifts came from. God used Nebuchadnezzar and Samson to accomplish His purposes, even though they weren't good men. Even when we don't like the leaders that God puts over us, there is no misstep on His part. God raises up leaders, and God takes them down. It is even possible that God gives us what we deserve because of our disobedience. If we want improvement in our country's leaders, then improvement must begin with us. When we turn our hearts toward God, and pray: He can change our country and its leaders. This is one of His promises: If My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land. 2 Chronicles 7:14