Bible Ballistics: BBs #198   Only One Way To Go???

“This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. 12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” Acts 4:11-12

Jesus is the only way to God. He said so and we must choose whether or not we believe Him! In fact that is ultimately the only question and answer that matters in this world.

“Then said Jesus unto his disciples,

If any man will come after me,

let him deny himself,

and take up his cross,

and follow me.

25 For whosoever will save his life

shall lose it:

and whosoever will lose his life for my sake

shall find it.

26 For

what is a man profited,

if he shall gain the whole world,

and lose his own soul?

or what shall a man give

in exchange for his soul?

27 For

the Son of man shall come

in the glory of his Father

with his angels;

and then

he shall reward every man

according to his works.”  Matthew 16:24-27

So the question isn’t “if” He is coming but when, and also will we be ready? Are you still trying to come to God YOUR way? Or have you bowed your knees before the only Lord of Creation? The One who is God, who with His Father and the Holy Spirit have provided a way of salvation for all. But only those who come to Him in repentance and faith will know the life that HE offers. What have you tried to give God in exchange for your soul? Money, popularity, time, good works, charitable actions, lip service? While those may be fine things, scripture tells us that none of that will, has nor can it ever purchase your soul from the penalty of sin! And we’ve all sinned! Only Jesus, through His death, burial and resurrection for sin, (See 1 Cor. 15:3-7+) paid the price that will deliver us from death and hell. What have you done with Him?

Jesus said:

“If any man will come after me,

let him deny himself,

and take up his cross,

and follow me”!

What does that mean? It simply means that I die to myself and hand over the reins of my life to Jesus, the one who paid the price for my sin. I allow Him to lead and direct my steps. I take up my cross every day and follow HIM where ever He leads me. And in that gesture there is a power beyond anything this world can comprehend! Because when I take up my cross—the very one who died on that cross for me, will walk with me from then on! He walks with me from within, through the power and presence of HIS Holy Spirit; and He walks before me, beside me, in front of me, and behind me, to guard and keep me in every way. You can count on Him today and every day because:

“The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and he delighteth in his way.” Psalm 37:23

Think about it—the God of the universe delights in His own children!!! And I am one! How about you? And who is a good man? Only those who have been washed in the blood of Jesus, and know His forgiveness for sins and have received new life, are made ‘good’ through His precious blood. Here are a couple of verses to take with you today:

“Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God. 21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” 2 Corinthians 5:20-21

“Giving thanks unto the Father,

which hath made us meet

to be partakers

of the inheritance

of the saints

in light:

13 Who hath delivered us

from the power of darkness,

and hath translated us

into the kingdom

of his dear Son:

14 In whom we have redemption

through his blood,

even the forgiveness of sins:”   Colossians 1:12-14

Have a blessed day and remember there is ONLY ONE WAY. And HE IS ON HIS WAY! Are you ready to meet HIM face to face? Please trust Him—He loves you and so do I!

Bible Ballistics: Our God Rules All!!! Vol. 6#20

As we continue with our look at Daniel chapter 7, we remember that this is the dream that Daniel received from God during the reign of Belshazzar.

“In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon Daniel had a dream and visions of his head upon his bed: then he wrote the dream, and told the sum of the matters.” Daniel 7:1

We saw last week that the dream was of 4 beasts:

The first beast was like a lion—

 The second beast was like a bear—

 The third beast was like a leopard—

 The forth was a dreadful and terrible beast—

Unlike al the rest

 With no description like anything we know.

 The fourth beast had 10 horns—

Then a little horn came up among the 10—

Now we can continue to see what Daniel received as the interpretation of this amazing dream, and make whatever conclusions we can from the text. We’ll lay it out in our diagraming format:

“I Daniel was grieved

in my spirit

in the midst of my body,

and the visions of my head troubled me.” Verse 15

Daniel was grieved and troubled in his spirit over the things he saw in the vision, and in his body he is feeling the distress and burden of this overwhelming vision. Daniel asks for understanding of the vision, in the vision, because he desires to know truth. This man who has stood for almost 70 years in public service with devotion and integrity always before his God, is now troubled by his own dream not someone else’s.

“16 I came near

unto one of them that stood by,

and asked him the truth of all this.

So he told me,

and made me know

the interpretation of the things.” Verse 16

Daniel approached one of the characters in his vision and simply asked to know the truth of the vision, and his request was granted. James reminds us that we often ask and don’t receive because we aren’t asking the right things, at the right time, or for the right reasons.

“Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. 3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. 4 Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.” James 4:2-4

Daniel was a man of God, with a heart after God, and a life that reflected his integrity and devotion to His God:

no matter the circumstances—

whether in obscurity or prominence—

whether in secret or in public—

whether popular or unpopular.

He was a friend of God—but he served humbly before those in the world. What about us? What do we seek after?

Truth or convenience?

Character or ease?

Intimacy with God or self-satisfaction?

Daniel was a man who wanted truth from his God. And he was willing to walk in it!

“These great beasts,

which are four,

are four kings,

which shall arise out of the earth.

18 But the saints of the most High

shall take the kingdom,

and possess the kingdom for ever,

even for ever and ever.” Verses 17-18

Daniel is given the overview of the entire vision/dream in a nutshell. The four beasts are four kings over the earth. The good news is they aren’t all there is—because Daniel is told that even with the frightful things that he sees in these beasts, they aren’t the final story because, “the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever”! We Win!!! But the focus of the vision seems to be on the fourth beast, so let’s press on, but before we do let’s briefly cover the first three beasts and compare them to chapter 2’s dream.

Lion—equates to the head of gold in chapter 2 and thus is Babylon. I would recommend that you make yourself a list of the things identifying the first beast—wings, plucked wings, stood, had the heart of a man (see chapter 4).

Bear—equates to the arms and breast of silver in chapter 2, and thus is Medo-Persia. Bear raised on one side—remember the Medo-Persians became the “Persian” Empire. The 3 ribs could be Babylon, Assyria and Egypt, and it devoured much.

Leopard—equates to the belly and thighs in chapter 2, and thus is the Greek Empire (which we’ll see more of next week). Notice the leopard had 4 wings and 4 heads. If you would a ‘flying leopard’, and Alexander the Great was known for the speed at which his army moved and conquered.

The Dreadful and Terrible Beast (we’ll call him the DT beast in our study)—was unlike all the others, yet he also parallels chapter 2 and is the legs of iron, and the feet and toes of iron and clay, the only kingdom which is unnamed specifically in the book of Daniel—although it is alluded to, and would be the Roman Empire, but a Roman Empire with two different faces, the first as legs of iron, and a latter day kingdom of iron and clay. And as chapter 2 told us “in the days of these kings” (referring to the 10 toes of the statue), then will,

“the God of heaven

set up a kingdom,

which shall never be destroyed:

and the kingdom shall not be left

to other people,

but it shall break in pieces

and consume all these kingdoms,

and it shall stand for ever.” (Dan. 2:44).

Here we see a parallel of the vision of chapter 7 about the beast and the ‘other’ horn. This also places this “revived Roman Empire”, the ten kings, and the “other horn” at the time in history when Christ shall return and establish HIS kingdom on this earth. But let’s continue with Daniel before we bring our conclusions together:

“Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast,

which was diverse from all the others,

exceeding dreadful,

whose teeth were of iron,

and his nails of brass;

which devoured,

brake in pieces,

and stamped the residue with his feet;

20 And of the ten horns

that were in his head,

and of the other

which came up,

and before whom three fell;

even of that horn

that had eyes,

and a mouth

that spake very great things,

whose look was more stout

than his fellows.” Verses 19-20

The fourth beast is: diverse, dreadful, teeth of iron, nails of brass, which devoured, broke in pieces, and stamped the other beasts (the residue) with his feet. Keep in mind the ‘feet’ that are mentioned here, it’s important when we go back and see the “feet and toes” of chapter 2. This beast also had ten horns in it’s head (while the statue in chapter 2 had 10 toes), then another horn arises, uproots three, and is described as having eyes and a mouth that spoke ‘great things’, and was ‘more stout than his fellows’. We see that the emphasis of this dream/vision is the fourth beast and the “other horn” that comes up after and among the ten. But the emphasis on this “other horn” doesn’t stop there:

“I beheld, and the same horn

made war with the saints,

and prevailed against them;

22 Until the Ancient of days came,

and judgment was given

to the saints of the most High;

and the time came

that the saints

possessed the kingdom.”   Verses 21-22

Here we have an important piece of information that we often overlook, in our eagerness to go on. We see here that this “other horn” that arises out of the ten horns of the 4^th beast comes at a time that must be at the time of the end, because he not only makes ‘war with the saints’ and “prevailed against them”, but the ‘kingdom of the saints’ will replace him. While we have had various times throughout history when men have come against the saints of God, both the Jews as a nation, and/or the church of Jesus Christ, here they are prevailed against until the “saints possessed the kingdom”!!! Now I don’t see any indication that we have at any point, to this time in history, yet “possessed the kingdom”! We are possessed by the KING but we don’t yet possess the kingdom in it’s glory! But we will—IN HIS TIME!!! But there’s more, so let’s press on as Daniel keeps looking:

“Thus he said,

The fourth beast shall be

the fourth kingdom upon earth,

which shall be diverse from all kingdoms,

and shall devour the whole earth,

and shall tread it down,

and break it in pieces.  

24 And the ten horns

out of this kingdom

are ten kings that shall arise:

and another shall rise

after them;

and he shall be diverse from the first,

and he shall subdue three kings.

25 And he shall speak great words

against the most High,

and shall wear out the saints

of the most High,

and think to change times and laws:

and they shall be given into his hand

until a time and times and the dividing of time.

26 But the judgment shall sit,

and they shall take away his dominion,

to consume and to destroy it unto the end.

27 And the kingdom and dominion,

and the greatness of the kingdom

under the whole heaven,

shall be given to the people

of the saints

of the most High,

whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,

and all dominions

shall serve and obey him.”     Verses 23-27

Now we find this “other horn” acting against God and His people. He will attempt to change times and laws—God’s sovereign control of all things—and destroy God’s people, both the Jews and Gentiles who believe in Jesus Christ the Son of God. BUT (verse 26) “the judgment shall sit”!!! The Lord Jesus and God Almighty, His Father, shall rule and reign. In other words this ‘horn’ will wreak havoc only until ‘his’ time is up and the Lord Jesus, that ‘stone cut out without hands’ will crush and overcome this wicked one. (See Dan. 2:44) Jesus IS the stone!!! His return will eliminate the competition, eventually in total!

I’d like to share just a couple of scriptures for you to ponder on this week—you decide who is who—Jesus will eliminate the imposter, whether you call him Anti-Christ, the man of sin, the son of perdition, that evil, or the “beast”:

“And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

9 Even him, (our ‘other horn’)

whose coming is after the working of Satan

with all power

and signs

and lying wonders,

10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness

in them that perish;

because they received not

the love of the truth,

that they might be saved.

11 And for this cause God

shall send them strong delusion,

that they should believe a lie:

12 That they all might be damned

who believed not the truth,

but had pleasure

in unrighteousness.”     2 Thessalonians 2:8-12

“And I stood upon the sand of the sea,

and saw a beast (our ‘other horn’)

rise up out of the sea,

having seven heads and ten horns,

and upon his horns ten crowns,

and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.

2 And the beast which I saw

was like unto a leopard,

and his feet were as the feet of a bear,

and his mouth as the mouth of a lion:

and the dragon gave him his power,

and his seat,

and great authority.

3 And I saw one of his heads

as it were wounded to death;

and his deadly wound was healed:

and all the world wondered after the beast.

4 And they worshipped the dragon

which gave power unto the beast:

and they worshipped the beast,

saying,

Who is like unto the beast?

who is able to make war with him?

5 And there was given unto him a mouth

speaking great things

and blasphemies;

and power was given unto him

to continue forty and two months.”     Revelation 13:1-5

Do you see the similarities—the ‘horn’ is the beast of Revelation 13, the “wicked” of 2 Thessalonians 2, the ‘anti-Christ’ in 1^st and 2^nd John. This one who will stand against God in the last days, but who will be overcome by the Lamb of God upon His return in power and glory. If you’ll notice in our passage from Revelation 13, the beast is described in reverse order of the beasts that Daniel saw in Daniel 7—the leopard, the bear and the lion. Why in reverse? It’s a matter of timing—Daniel was in the kingdom of the lion/Babylon, so as he looked, he was looking forward to the bear, the leopard and the DT Beast. John, as he wrote the book of the Revelation was in the first part of the Roman Empire—the DT Beast—so he was looking back from the DT Beast and saw the leopard, the bear and the lion, just reverse of what Daniel saw—but both saw the same thing. Think about it.

Daniel closes by telling us that while God has given him this amazing picture of the future, it troubled Daniel to consider that the future for God’s people would include such suffering before the eternal kingdom would come in!

“Hitherto is the end of the matter. As for me Daniel, my cogitations much troubled me, and my countenance changed in me: but I kept the matter in my heart.” Verse 28

So in conclusion Daniel, in contrast to Nebuchadnezzar, saw the reality of the worldly kingdoms—the beastliness of man. Nebuchadnezzar was distracted by the glitter of gold; Daniel was disturbed by the reality of the battles that remained for the people of God. Are you still focused on the glitter of gold, or are you committed to the battle of God.

“Thou therefore endure hardness,

as a good soldier

of Jesus Christ.

4 No man that warreth

entangleth himself with the affairs of this life;

he may please him

who hath chosen him

to be a soldier.” 2 Timothy 2:3-4

What about you and me? Are we fighting the good fight or have we sold out to the enemy. What we will hear when our Lord calls us home or comes for His own?

“His lord said unto him,

Well done,

thou good and faithful servant:

thou hast been faithful over a few things,

I will make thee ruler over many things:

enter thou into the joy of thy lord.”   Matthew 25:21

Let’s recommit ourselves to faithful service, not lazy presumption. Even so Lord Jesus, come quickly!

 

 

Bible Ballistics: BBs #197       We Win!!!

We talked last time about the ‘Match Game’ and how our talk ought to be ‘matched’ by our walk, and today I’d like us to end the week with a bit of encouragement, because regardless of where you stand on the eschatological timeline of events—the most important thing to remember is that Jesus IS coming again, and we who are HIS WIN!!!

That’s about as comforting as it gets!!! Jesus has promised us eternal life, and abundant life right now. In fact Jesus Himself said:

“In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. 4 And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know. 5 Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way? 6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John 14:2-6

Jesus not only tells us He is coming for us, but that:

HE is preparing a place for us—

That where HE is now, we will be–

That we (all) can know the way—

Because HE IS the way, the truth, and the life!!!

Friends, we can take confidence in the power and sovereign control of our God—Father, Son and Holy Spirit!!! God reigns supreme and we win. We can take comfort in the reality that our God is in control—NOT the government—NOT the weathermen/women—NOT the Federal Reserve!!! And surely NOT the U.N.! Difficult days may be ahead but our God still reigns, take heart dear friends, We WIN!! But most victories are hard won, and we must remember that God’s Word says:

“Yea,

and all

that will live godly

in Christ Jesus

shall suffer persecution.”   2 Timothy 3:12

We join our Savior who suffered wrongfully, but yielded Himself to His Father’s will. We can do no less!!!

“For this is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully. 20 For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God. 21 For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:

22 Who did no sin,

neither was guile found in his mouth:

23 Who, when he was reviled,

reviled not again;

when he suffered,

he threatened not;

but committed himself

to him that judgeth righteously:

24 Who his own self

bare our sins

in his own body

on the tree,

that we,

being dead to sins,

should live unto righteousness:

by whose stripes ye were healed.

25 For ye were as sheep going astray;

but are now returned

unto the Shepherd and Bishop

of your souls.” 1 Peter 2:19-25

Jesus suffered for our salvation, how could we not expect to suffer for Him. And in these days of “Political Correctness” and “Hostility” toward Biblical principles, we should expect no less! But “how can this be encouraging”, you might ask? Well, we can take courage and encouragement in the victory that our Lord Jesus Christ bought at Calvary!!! We win, even though we may endure battle scars or even death for our Lord—WE WIN!!! And we can identify with Paul when he said:

“For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22 But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot not. 23 For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better: 24 Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you. 25 And having this confidence, I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith; 26 That your rejoicing may be more abundant in Jesus Christ for me by my coming to you again.” Philippians 1:21-26

So??? Rejoice “in Jesus Christ”!!! He is coming soon! And if you don’t know Him, then call on Him today. Is He standing at your heart’s door even now?

“Behold, I stand at the door, and knock:

if any man hear my voice,

and open the door,

I will come in to him,

and will sup with him,

and he with me.” Revelation 3:20

Then YOU WIN too!!!

Bible Ballistics: BBs #196       The Match Game???

Most of us remember playing the ‘Match Game’, or maybe you called it ‘Concentration’, the game where you matched the items whether it was a deck of cards, or a board game; the object of course was to match all the cards on the board one pair at a time. Well I think we who claim to be ‘Christians’ need to be doing a better job on the “Match” game. I’m talking about our “walk”–what we do, where we go, what we say, how we behave toward others–matching our “talk”—what we claim to believe with our lips. Jesus quoting Isaiah 29:13 warns us about the danger of having a “walk” that doesn’t match our “talk”:

“This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.” Matthew 15:8

Jesus goes on in to reveal the root of the problem, and it’s not just the “mouth”, it’s the heart. It’s not religious ceremony that stops defilement but a transformed heart.

“Do not ye yet understand, that whatsoever entereth in at the mouth goeth into the belly, and is cast out into the draught? 18 But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. 19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: 20 These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man.” Matthew 15:17-20

Jesus says it’s not what we eat, or even if we washed our hands (referring to ceremonial washing), because whatever we eat simply passes through the body and is discarded. Not pleasant dinner conversation, but truth, nonetheless. It’s what comes OUT of the mouth that defiles a man, woman, boy, or girl because the mouth reveals what is in the heart. So to walk the walk requires a heart that is set on Jesus. A transformed heart that the Holy Spirit possesses!

“Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. 4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born? 5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.” John 3:3-7

Born of God, by the Holy Spirit—you “must be born again”!

“But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: 13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” John 1:12-13

God the Father sent His Son to give us new life by His Holy Spirit who convicts us of sin and brings us to a place of repentance and faith in Christ Jesus alone, by faith alone, through grace alone! All because Jesus was willing to come and live in this body of flesh, to live a perfect sinless life and then to die for sins HE didn’t commit so we wouldn’t have to. That’s why He came! He came to live a life in flesh and die an unjust death on a cross because I sin!!! He paid a debt that HE didn’t owe, because we had a sin debt that would cost our death! He came to die, so we could LIVE!!!

“And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus: for he shall save his people from their sins.” Matthew 1:21

“For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Luke 19:10

“I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.” Luke 13:3 & 5

“But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world. 15 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature.” Galatians 6:14-15

“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17

It’s not what we claim to have, but what we receive through Jesus’ blood–NEW LIFE!!! A life that reflects the work that God has done within! A life that reflects the “NEW COVENANT” relationship with God—one that is fixed in our hearts, not in ceremony or rituals regardless of how lovely or seemingly meaningful they may be. What brings transformation to a life is the blood of Jesus applied to the heart, soul and mind of all who come to HIM in repentance and faith! And our life-style IS the evidence to the world of what JESUS has done within our hearts or what we don’t really possess.

“Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. 21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? 23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” Matthew 7:20-23

So??? Will you spend your life just “talking” about Him, or will you bow your knee before Him and be “born again” and walk in the power of His Spirit? If you know HIM, will you stop going your way, and yield to His work in your heart and mind? What is the measure and mark of a life—not what ‘goes into the mouth’—but what ‘comes out of it’? What does your “Match Game” reveal to the world?

“by their fruits ye shall know them”

What do your ‘fruits’ say to others? To God? It’s your choice—but remember there is a test at the end! And remember, if we belong to Jesus—HE is working in us at all times to fit us for glory:

“Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:” Philippians 1:6

And when we belong to Jesus, HE has a plan for our walk:

“For we are his workmanship,

created in Christ Jesus

unto good works,

which God hath before ordained

that we should walk in them.”   Ephesians 2:10

How’s your match going????? It IS eternally important!!!

Bible Ballistics: Location, Location, Location? Vol. 6#19

We’ve all heard the old “Real Estate” adage, “What’s important in buying or selling Real Estate (property)? It’s ‘Location’, ‘Location’, ‘Location’! In other words, the important thing is LOCATION, where it’s located! What does that have to do with Bible study? Well, more than you might think, because the most important thing in Bible study is “CONTEXT”, or “Location”!!! Where is it in the scripture, who wrote it, who was it written to, what is the immediate context of the passage, what kind of literature it is (or what kind of writing: history, narrative, doctrine, poetry, prophecy or a combination of several of these things)? So we must remember that in Bible study, we must, must, must know that “CONTEXT IS KING”. Keep it in its ‘LOCATION’ and let scripture interpret scripture, for we must keep all of scripture in the context of the ‘Whole Counsel of God’!

I’ve belabored this point because we are about to embark on a great adventure into the second half of the book of Daniel. And to do that with integrity we must look at each of the last 6 chapters by keeping them in their immediate context, in their historical context, and in their perspective as it relates to and connects with the whole Word of God, particularly the whole counsel of scriptural prophecy. I just ask that we understand and remember that scripture NEVER contradicts scripture. If there is a seeming contradiction, we must realize and agree/admit that we either don’t understand the passage fully (which is true for a lot of scripture), we don’t have all the information yet, or that God is simply not ready to reveal a particular portion of scripture to us at a particular time. Apart from the revealing work of the Holy Spirit we cannot clearly comprehend the truth/truths of God’s Word!!! So with that said, let’s jump into Daniel 7!

“In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon Daniel had a dream and visions of his head upon his bed: then he wrote the dream, and told the sum of the matters. 2 Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea. 3 And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another. 4 The first was like a lion, and had eagle’s wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man’s heart was given to it. 5 And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up itself on one side, and it had three ribs in the mouth of it between the teeth of it: and they said thus unto it, Arise, devour much flesh. 6 After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; the beast had also four heads; and dominion was given to it. 7 After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns. 8 I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things. 9 I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire. 10 A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened. 11 I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame. 12 As concerning the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away: yet their lives were prolonged for a season and time. 13 I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. 14 And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.” Daniel 7:1-14

We see that the book of Daniel has 2 major divisions: first, chapters 1-6, which are a chronological account of events in the life of Daniel and his friends. These 6 chapters are in chronological order and take Daniel from the reign of Nebuchadnezzar and his conquering of Judah and Jerusalem to the reign of the co-rulers of the Medo-Persian Empire that conquered Babylon, Cyrus the Persian and Darius the Mede. In these chapters, Daniel interpreted no less than 3 dreams and/or visions that were experienced by the pagan kings of Babylon. Daniel did not have the dreams himself, but rather interpreted the dreams that were sent from God to Nebuchadnezzar of the statue and the tree, and the vision of the hand that wrote on the wall which Belshazzar saw on that last night of his life and kingdom.

The second division begins with chapter 7, where we once again have a chronological account of Daniel’s life and dreams, but not in a continuing chronology from chapter 6. As you look at verse one today’s passage you notice that our second division backs up to the realm of Belshazzar. If you remember when we looked at chapter 5, I mentioned that while Daniel was still in the “Civil Service” of Babylon, he was apparently not in the high position of leadership that he held under King Nebuchadnezzar. It would seem that Daniel had a bit more time on his hands than in earlier days, and we also know that Daniel has served for almost 70 years, probably in his 80’s, and God has a different task for him now. He will now receive from God, some of the most significant prophecies in all of scripture. In fact, you might call these prophecies of Daniel the ‘backbone’ in the skeleton of all Biblical prophecy. Upon these prophecies of Daniel hang every other prophecy in scripture, from Genesis to the Revelation!

Today in chapter 7, we find Daniel in the rule of Belshazzar, and he records for us the first dream that God sends to him. We’ll simply cover the elements of the dream today and then next week we’ll jump into the interpretation that Daniel receives and how it fits into the other prophetic scriptures that we want to consider!

“Daniel had a dream

and visions of his head upon his bed:

then he wrote the dream,

and told the sum of the matters.”

Daniel had this dream and he recorded it for us, yet Daniel was troubled by what he saw. He understood the words he heard but not the significance of what this dream would mean in the future:

“Hitherto is the end of the matter.

As for me Daniel,

my cogitations much troubled me,

and my countenance changed in me:

but I kept the matter in my heart.”   Daniel 7:28

So let’s take a look at the dream. I encourage you to make a list of all you learn about each beast in your own study this week, and then we’ll see how scripture unfolds next week. I’ll just list the major things from the passage above:

The four winds of heaven stirring up the sea—

Four diverse beasts come up out of the sea—

       The first-Like a lion–

              w/eagles wings-

plucked-

then lifted up—

made to stand up as a man—

given a man’s heart.

 A second-Like a bear—

 raised on one side—

 three ribs in it’s mouth—

 told to arise & devour/much flesh.

After this another—Like a leopard—

w/four wings of a fowl on it’s back—

 and four heads—

 dominion given to it.

After this a fourth—(unlike)

 dreadful and terrible—

 exceedingly strong—

 great iron teeth—

 it: devoured–

 broke in pieces—

 and stamped the residue with/feet—

  diverse from all/beasts before it—

  had ten horns—

  the ten horns—

 a little horn comes up—

 3 torn/roots up by the little horn—

 eyes like a man—

 mouth speaking great things.

Then Daniel beheld and:

the thrones were cast down (what thrones?)—

the Ancient of Days sits—

garment white as snow—

hair pure as wool—

HIS throne like a fiery flame—

HIS wheels as burning fire—

a fiery stream from before Him—

thousands minister to Him—

 millions stand before Him—

the judgment was set—

 the books were opened.

 Then Daniel beheld (like looking back?):

  the voice of the horn spoke—

 the beast was slain (which one?)—

 his body destroyed—

 given to the burning flame.

  the rest of the beasts—

  had their dominion taken away—

 lives prolonged for a season and time.

  Then Daniel beheld:

 One like the Son of man—

 came with clouds of heaven—

 came to the Ancient of Days—

 brought near to Him—

 given dominion—

 and glory—

 and a kingdom—

 That: all peoples–

and languages—

should serve HIM—

 His dominion:

 Is an everlasting dominion–

which shall NOT pass away—

will NOT be destroyed.

Whoa??? Is that a boat-load or what? A great deal of information, and I pray that you will ponder this week on what you observe in these verses. Pray as you read over them and ask God for understanding. We will see what the interpretation reveals to Daniel and to us next week, so please remember to keep the verses in their natural and normal context. Also don’t’ forget the historical relevance of where Daniel is, how he got there; who’s Word declared the circumstances that Daniel has endured.

In closing, where are you living? What difficulties are you facing? Is your God able to deliver YOU, or see YOU through the valley you may be in? We have observed in Daniel, a determination to faithfulness, a man whose confidence is in his God, not shaken in his circumstances! May we not forget that this man who is now in his later years, set his mind on God in his youth and has faithfully served his God through every valley and mountain experience of his long tenure in Babylon. Can the same be said of us? I pray that we will learn from Daniel how to reflect the character of our God.

“But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself.” Daniel 1:8

A young man devoted to his God, knowledgeable of and dependent on Him! How about you? Do you know HIM? Are you depending on God or self? It’s your choice!!!

“Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven.

20 Daniel answered and said,

Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever:

for wisdom and might are his:

21 And he changeth the times and the seasons:

he removeth kings,

and setteth up kings:

he giveth wisdom unto the wise,

and knowledge to them that know understanding:

22 He revealeth the deep and secret things:

he knoweth what is in the darkness,

      and the light dwelleth with him.

23 I thank thee, and praise thee, O thou God of my fathers, who hast given me wisdom and might, and hast made known unto me now what we desired of thee: for thou hast now made known unto us the king’s matter.” Daniel 2:19-23