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What a remarkable feat of timing! God has orchestrated the end of the Book of Daniel with the week just before what many would argue is the most important election in our nation’s history. This election even has the attention of the whole world! Daniel 12 is the “end” of the writings of Daniel, and it discusses the “end” of the prophetic time for Israel and the world. He even learns about those whose lives have come to an “end” under deadly oppression from the likes of Antiochus Epiphanes and Adolf Hitler. What happens at the end? What becomes of Israel? What about me, personally? How do I fit into the big picture? What about planet earth? How troubling will it be? What will knowing all of this do for me? How do I respond? Should we run around crazy looking for solutions? Should we build a wall around ourselves and wait for the end to come? Should we allow ourselves to be enveloped by fear? Will more knowledge and more science and more data save the human race? Listen in as we look at Daniel’s final message and try and understand God’s direction for our personal lives with this knowledge.
As we finish up Daniel chapter 11 I hope to encourage you that the historical focus will be much narrower. That means fewer names to deal with! I also find much more application in this second half of chapter eleven. If you look out into the distance, things that are farther away can be seen in less detail, while things that are closer can be seen more clearly and more detailed. Well, “close” and “far” are not relative to Daniel as he writes, but to where God’s focus is: on the Syrian king Antiochus Epiphanes. Let me explain. The angel revealed to Daniel almost no detail at all about the succession of Persian kings or about Alexander the Great. Some detail is given about the various kings and struggles between Syria (Seleucid Dynasty) and Egypt (Ptolameic Dynasty). The closer we get the focal point, the more detail we are provided. Now we have come to the focus: the nasty and wicked anti-semite king Antiochus Epiphanes. Why is he the focus and wny is so much detail given about him? Because he will act as a close (but not exact) example of what the final world ruler—Antichrist—will be like. In this section you will discover the origin of the saying, “draw a line in the sand.” Want the details? Listen in and find out!
How do you feel about history class? Do you remember “social studies” in school? Not your favorite class? It was not mine either. Memorize dates and events for the test and then forget it all after the test. Yuck! And then I got saved and became a follower of Jesus and started reading the Bible. History began to be much more interesting because it was related to a big, worldwide story that connected all the dots and gave me a context to plug all the facts into. Daniel chapters 10-12 are a single unit. Daniel 11 is the longest and most detailed prophecy in the Bible. It is so specific and so accurate that many have questioned if it could really have been written before the events happened. The person writing it must have already known what was going to happen because it is so precise! God is sovereign (has complete authority and freedom to act), and He is omniscient (knows everything). The Bible is clear that God “declares the end from the beginning” (Isaiah 46:10). This chapter is astounding and historical as you see the hand of God working through human history. At the center of all history is the Jewish people and the city of Jerusalem. We will talk about things past, things present, and the prophecy will take us into the future as well!
We are closing in on the end of our study in Daniel. Although there are three chapters left, they all connect around one grand and detailed vision that Daniel has. It is so precise in its historical accuracy that many believe it could not have been written by Daniel! The scope reaches into and even past our own time. For this study time we’ll look into chapter 10 and get the introduction to the vision. We get descriptive detail about the physical impact this event had on Daniel. His angelic experience might not climb the charts of the bestseller list if it was published today! Daniel is not the picture of people having strength and courage in the presence of angels. Daniel’s desire to understand was heard immediately and God responded immediately. But, for some reason Daniel sees no answer to this prayer for three weeks! Have you ever wondered why prayers don’t always receive an answer immediately? Have you ever felt like God was acting too slowly on your behalf? Have you been tempted to think that maybe He doesn’t care or didn’t listen? Hopefully Daniel 10 will change the way you think about prayer and what happens in the “heavenly realm” when you pray on earth. The reality may even surprise you!
Given the state of our world in 2020 and current events in America, I know many of you are paying close attention to prophecy—what does God’s word say about future things! Many are curious as to how the events taking place and what we see in America fit into God’s picture of the future of planet Earth. We have talked about much of this over the last number of weeks in previous chapters of Daniel. Well, Daniel 9:20-27 may just be the most important—and most debated—prophecy in the entire Bible. It is comprehensive, concise, and cryptic. It is God’s answer to Daniel’s prayer and it is known as Daniel’s “70 Weeks Prophecy”. The interesting thing to note is that if you want to be a really astute student of current events and the big picture of Bible prophecy, then get your eyes off of America and onto Israel! Despite our sentiments of America’s importance on the world stage, all of human history revolves around the past, present, and future of Israel—and her king, Jesus! What is that “big picture”? Where do you and I fit? What comes next? Good questions! You won’t want to miss this study of Daniels “70 weeks prophecy”. It’s the key to “understanding” everything.
If you are like me, I assume you are trying to make good decisions in a complex and complicated time. To make good decisions about life, we need information, and we are certainly inundated with information, right? There are “authoritative” voices on both sides of the election and on both sides of pandemic management, to name a few! The confusing thing is that both voices speak with authority and suggest a clear—although opposing—direction. Who should we believe? This may be more complicated than meets the eye. Spiritual life is no different. There are authoritative voices that can say opposing things about God’s plan and purposes. If you were hopeful spiritual things would be more clear, I’m sorry to disappoint you! There are prophets and there are false prophets. There are teachers and there are false teachers. There are sheep and there are also wolves dressed up as sheep. There are spiritual experiences and dreams and visions, and, well..let’s turn our attention to Daniel 9. Daniel chapter 9 opens a window for us to sit and listen and watch a man of God pray. This is the content of our passage today. But how does Daniel know what to pray for? How does he know how to pray and to what end? What informs his prayers? What if your prayer is motivated by the wrong information? What if the sermon you heard was exciting—but wrong? God’s will does not always fit neatly into our own plans or opinions. Listen in as we learn via a godly man’s prayer via Daniel chapter 9. If you haven’t already, read a companion passage that we refer to: Jeremiah chapters 25-29. Jeremiah’s letter to the exiles will give some additional background to what we look at in our message from Daniel 9. Listen in and see!
I am not sure if I feel more like a sports commentator or a Bible preacher! Why? Daniel has another vivid and descriptive vision. This time it’s the Bucks against the Rams with a surprise ending! This chapter, like Daniel chapter 7, is full of action. The ram seems unstoppable, but wait—out of nowhere comes a male goat (otherwise known as a “buck”)! He is moving at lightning speed and charging right at the unstoppable ram. The tension is high as the raging buck attacks the stronger ram! Who will survive the colossal collision? Who will be victorious? Now that you are on the edge of your seat, I can ask the more important questions. Who do the ram and the goat represent? What is the vision about? Why is this chapter so important, and why should you care? If you listen in, you will learn why so many doubt that Daniel was really written in the 6th century BC. I’ll give you a hint. The information in chapter 8 is so detailed and accurate that it is hard to believe he wrote it; and maybe more importantly: that he wrote it over 200 years before it happened. You will also learn the identity of the Bucks’ MVP (most vicious prince). Listen in and learn why you should have hope in dark times!
If you could know the future, would you want to? Before you answer, think about it. Maybe you would want to clarify your answer based on whether it’s a good or bad future! “Yes, if such and such is true…“—or “no, unless…” You get the idea. Now hash that out in your mind! If you could know the future of America, would you want to? What would you do with the information? Would it be comforting or would it be troubling? Would you tell people what you knew? Coming back to our context in the book of Daniel, our Jewish friend has just such a dilemma, and after tomorrow so will you. After we walk through Daniel chapter seven, you too will know what Daniel knew in the 6th century BC! This chapter outlines an overview of world power using very visually dramatic and descriptive language. You’ll notice as we move through the chapter that is basically parallels Daniel chapter 2. How does this information effect Daniel? What is the emotional response to the information God gives him? Listen in and find out! You can bet that Daniel’s vision is as relevant today as it was when God first opened his mind to see it.
If you play a little “word association” and say the word “Daniel“, the immediate response for many would be “lion’s den“. Chapter 6 is that well known Bible chapter that holds this famous story. People have heard of the story but many of them don’t really know the details. They don’t know about the new transitional government of the Medes and Persians or the new leadership structure. They don’t know about Daniel’s promotion or the political enemies he is making. Hey, so why did he get thrown in that lion’s den anyway? Why didn’t the lion’s eat him alive? For me, one of the coolest aspects was the real fondness the king had for Daniel. You know, if you have integrity, are trustworthy, and really seem to care about people, you find God’s blessing in your work and relationships. When you live a Spirit filled life of loyalty to God, mouths get miraculously shut! Listen in and see this miraculous story of God’s protection over His faithful servant Daniel!
Daniel 4 closed with Nebuchadnezzar recovering his mental health, being restored to his throne, and the reality of the Most High God who is sovereign over every earthly empire. Daniel 5 opens with a king named Belshazzar reigning over Babylon. What we know is that the saying, “The handwriting on the wall, has made its way into our modern culture as an idiom for “impending and unavoidable doom.” Maybe you didn’t know that saying comes directly from Daniel 5! In the midst of a Babylonian government drinking party and feast, Belshazzar expressed his pride and defiance toward the God who humbled Nebuchadnezzar. When a hand appeared and wrote a cryptic message on the wall, the party came to screeching halt! The DJ stopped the music and everyone froze in fear and astonishment. Is this really happening? What does it mean? Daniel, whose wisdom seems to have been forgotten or ignored, is called from the dugout to help. Here are some things to consider: If, according to history, the last King of Babylon is a guy named Nabonidus, then who is Belshazzar? Is the Bible wrong? What was the message on the wall? What did it mean? For answers to these questions and more, listen in to this study of Daniel chapter five. By the end of the chapter, the impenetrable Babylonian Empire, that head of Gold (ref: chapter 2), will have been replaced by the Medo-Persian Empire without even the smallest battle! Wow. Are you curious? I hope so!
As we close out Daniel chapter four, we watch as God puts the powerful and proud Nebuchadnezzar on display as an extreme example of pride and humility. He goes from the palace to the pasture—and back again! King Nebuchadnezzar had another unsettling dream about an enormous tree that gets cut down and stripped. Daniel is able to explain the dream in which the tree symbolized Nebuchadnezzar. Daniel ends with a warning and some Godly advice to the king. Now twelve months have passed and has the king taken the advice? Has he humbled himself? Nope. In fact, he is more delusional and self congratulatory than ever. Guess what? Class is in session and Nebuchadnezzar has been enrolled—like it or not—in Reality 101. For him, it’s a seven year course of seminary study to learn the lesson. To enter the program he had to be stripped of everything, just like the tree in his dream. I bet he would say it was worth it: the humiliation, the loss, the new perspective and revelation. Humility can really only be learned in the school of suffering. Nebuchadnezzar gets his seminary degree from Bovine University! He has a masters in the theology of God’s sovereignty! There is a remarkable ending to this incredible story. Listen in and see!
As we enter the much-anticipated fourth chapter of Daniel, sadly we are forced to break the chapter into two parts. We will look at verses 1-27 first, followed by the conclusion next time. Absent from chapter three and the fiery furnace, Daniel is back on the scene and gets another chance at dream interpretation for the king. Like before in chapter two, the dream is troubling and causes confusion. The last dream was of a giant mixed media statue that was destroyed by a stone. This time his dream involves an enormous, beautiful, fruitful tree. But a declaration is made that the tree should be cut down! What? Why would someone cut down a tree that is big and beautiful and fruitful? That seems wasteful, or even frivolous! What is the lesson, and how did this chapter influence the writing of our Constitution?? Oh my! Daniel chapter four is extremely important and relevant to the current events in our world. The more things change, the more they stay the same!
As we finish up chapter three we revisit one of the most well known of all the stories in the Bible: the fiery furnace. Last week we watched the story unfold: potentially thousands of Nebuchadnezzar’s government employees have been summoned to express their loyalty to Nebuchadnezzar under penalty of death in a fiery furnace. Just bow down when the Babylonian Anthem is played and everything is cool. But three monotheistic Jews couldn’t pretend, and now its show time. Our God can rescue us, but if not…. How dare they defy the sovereign ruler of that world? What comes next? What will God do? Will they suffer agonizingly in the furnace? Will they become a lesson to everyone that you dare not cross Nebuchadnezzar? I think that deep inside we really wonder if God can protect us or care for us. We expect God to keep us out of the furnace (trial) and if He doesn’t, he doesn’t love us or has failed us. In our minds, we do the “right thing” to get the result we expect from God. But God has a different plan and it is much more clear in this passage than anywhere else. God has grace and power and freedom for us that we can only experience in the furnace. No fire, no freedom. What an amazing story to consider; listen in and be ready to be challenged!
Daniel 3 actually doesn’t involve Daniel at all! He is absent from the chapter. But his three friends are put in an awkward spot to resist public pressure—and even threats—to be true to their God. We often pray for safety, but there are times when our decision to be God serving people may actually put us in danger. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego make a statement that has resonated through the centuries with God’s people. It is as simple and clear and powerful today as it was when it was first uttered in Babylon. To whom do you offer ultimate allegiance? Remember: if you don’t stand for something, you will fall for anything—or anyone!
We left Daniel standing in the presence of the Nebuchadnezzar, having announced that he knows the dream and the interpretation. Can you feel the suspense? What was the dream? What does it mean? Daniel tells the king his dream and then tells him what it means. I don’t want to give away too much, but I can tell you the dream is of a magnificent, giant, stratified metal statue (idol). Statues like this would be very familiar to the idol worshippers of the day. The statue gives God a way to walk Nebuchadnezzar through the history of world dominating empires from their current time in history on into the future. There is a succession of “kingdoms” (empires) that all meet a common end as the statue ends up being hit by something like a meteor—a stone cut out without human involvement—which utterly destroys it! I know that you know we live in strange times. Many have a sense that things are not getting better, but getting worse. We also have a sense that things cannot go on like they are. Where does it end? What happens next? Trust me when I say you will not want to miss the next installment of our study in Daniel!
The chapter is just too long and too important to speed through. It is one of the most amazing prophetic passages in the whole Bible! The chapter starts with a very troubling dream. By the end of the chapter Daniel and the others have been promoted and the mighty king of the Babylonian empire is acknowledging Daniel’s God as the true God. This is the stuff we live for! The first 30 verses give the setup, and some important observations and contrasts. We continue to see Daniel shine in the middle of crisis after crisis. In the initial identity crisis Daniel holds to his convictions. The crisis now is a matter of life and death! Is Daniel freaking out? How does the world system operate to produce the crisis? How does Daniel respond to the crisis? Listen in and find out. As for the specific content of the dream and its interpretation—you’ll have to wait another week for that!
As we begin our study in the book of Daniel, I have had the opportunity to spend time pre-reading through the book and thinking about the man, Daniel; he’s an amazing guy! Humble, gentle, courageous, stable. He is uprooted from family and neighborhood and culture and thrust into a new life of servitude in a Godless nation, Babylon. How potentially traumatizing to a teenager! But instead of seeing bitterness, anger, depression, or indulgence, we see a young man who prospers in a remarkable way, helping to lead an empire without compromise of Godly conviction. In fact, Daniel wins the respect of four kings he serves under! Maybe Daniel’s influence is even behind the pilgrimage of the Magi coming from the East and following the Star of Bethlehem! How did Daniel beat the odds? How did he thrive when others would have shriveled? Think about the difference between “conviction” and “opinion”. Is there a difference? What is it? Are you a person of conviction or just opinion? How does this relate to Daniel 1? Listen in and see!
We are now bringing to conclusion our study in the Book of Galatians as we get a grip on Paul’s closing remarks. We have followed his argument and appeal to the young Christians in the region of Galatia— stand firmly in the freedom from religious performance that Christ brought, and walk in the Spirit! That’s a basic summary. Taking the pen from his scribe, he ends with a few pointed remarks about the troublemakers in the Galatian congregation. Their actions are connected to very impure motives. How does Paul know? They are just like he used to be. Paul lobs a well placed “truth bomb” just before he closes the letter. He reveals the truth about the thing that has mattered most to him and the thing that his whole life and identity are built on. Listen in for the gripping and powerful conclusion of Galatians and be challenged!
Have you spent too much time watching the news? Are Facebook posts driving you mad? Is politics polluting your joy? What’s the answer? Worship! The last chapter of Galatians is super practical and answers some important questions about Godly communities and healthy families! Grace and law couldn’t produce more different community dynamics! Paul explains that healthy, Godly, grace-based communities include people who can honestly and gently address sin, know their value is from God, understand consequences, and know actions speak louder than words. How do we address destructive behaviour without enforcing law and punishment? How do we avoid tribalism and division? How do we see the church make a real and lasting impact in the community? Listen in and see!
Although the Bible is not a psychology book, it has much to say about the soul and the inner life of a human being. And when the Bible speaks about those subjects, it is profound. Galatians 5:16-26 is one of those passages! The BIG question Paul has to answer is this: “Without law, how do we deal with those nagging inner cravings and drives for forbidden or immoral things? Law is the best thing we have to control people’s behavior, right? And the answer to immorality is more laws, right? Paul says… WRONG! Law is all the world has to try to cope with the hurtful and hateful drives of human nature. Have you watched the news recently? If law worked, we wouldn’t need “law enforcement” and prisons. Prisons are full and over capacity and despite all of our sophisticated laws, humanity doesn’t seem to be improving. God has something far superior to law for managing—and transforming—human behavior. This is the subject that is central to our passage and I hope you will listen in and let your mind be challenged by the word of God! It might be a good time to invite someone to watch!
We are systematically making our way through Galatians 5 and will look at nine verses tomorrow: verses 7-15. The argument for the need for the church to have rules to govern behavior is that if people are told they are free, they will just indulge sin! “Pastor, people need rules and guilt and pressure or they will just do whatever they want!” one might say. Well….people who haven’t experienced real transformation might need rules and consequences to constrain behaviour, but the Spirit-filled believer has something much more powerful! Reading over and studying this passage you will find that this section outlines about ten or eleven reasons why legalism is unhealthy and inappropriate for the church! What controls our behaviour? Why is legalism so detrimental to a vibrant Christian life? Listen in and see what God has to say through Paul and we continue studying through this important book.
Galatians chapter five represents a transition from the first four chapters that were highly persuasive and theological regarding our relationship to God the Father. In chapter 5, Paul shows the Galatians what freedom really looks like and how truly free people really live by the Spirit and Love — not by law. In the discussion of “religious freedom”, Paul’s concern was the Christian would be free from legalistic religion and free to love people. Legalistic thinking had hindered their progress in Christ! What about you? Do you still hold on to the mindset—maybe subtly or not so subtly—that Christ is not enough? Do you feel obligated to tithe, read a certain Bible translation, wear certain clothes, worship on a certain day? What if you were to fail to do those things you consider essential? What would change? Your answers to these questions is essential to a solid understanding of genuine Christianity!
We will finish chapter 4 of Galatians in today’s message, and find yet another angle Paul takes in his attempt to rescue the people who are being coerced back into a rules-based, immature, slave-type relationship with God! His last approach is an “allegorical” look at a well known Old Testament account from Genesis. “But Pastor, it’s MOTHER’S DAY! Are you going to do a message about mothers?” Well, in fact the Lord has arranged an interesting passage that centers on not one, but two very important women (moms), their sons, and what their lives represent! Who are the women? Hagar and Sarah. Who are the sons? Isaac and Ishmael. What do their lives represent? To tell you that would be to spoil the message for tomorrow! But I think by now you might be able to guess — or you can read ahead and discover it for yourself!
Let’s be honest. There are times when we read the Bible and we say, “I wish I had a little more information!” Well, tomorrow’s study in Galatians 4:12-20 may just be one of those times! As Paul does, he has been “bringing the heat” and communicating his concern for the future of the people in Galatia. After having heard and embracing the grace of god, they are being brainwashed and trading the slavery of paganism for the slavery of legalism! In v 11, Paul is afraid that all of his hard work would have been for nothing if they effectively convert to Judaism from Christ! This next section is a little pause to get personal. Paul is not just a theologian. He is a pastor with a huge and loving heart! He is not distant, aloof, or superficial. He is personable, transparent, and genuine as the day is long. Now the part we wish we had more info about: Paul takes them back to when he first came to their region to share the news of Christ. He makes reference to the weakness of his body and what a trial that was for him. Was that a physical illness? Some say, NO! Was it an eye disease? Others say, YES! We know they understood the references perfectly, but they are a little obscure for us 2000 years later. But don’t you worry! There is plenty for us to discuss that we can be sure about!
I hope we can begin to regain some of that momentum as we roll back into Galatians, picking up where we left off at the beginning of chapter 4! It’s been a few weeks so we’ll catch up a bit with a brief review at the start! For now, the question I want you to think about is: “How many different relational terms are used to describe our relationship with God? For instance, we are the bride of Christ. That’s one. Can you think of others? Is there one that you tend to think about most often? In Galatians 4, Paul uses some super important relationship illustrations that may be deeply impactful— maybe even liberating—to you, especially if you have come from a very “rules oriented” church background. The bottom line question is, “When it comes to your relationship to God, do you feel more like a slave or a son (daughter)? Do you even know the difference? Why is the difference important? Oh my….wait until you see what comes next!
This week we pick back up in Paul’s letter to the churches of Galatia. We will be back finishing up the bulk of chapter three, and I think you will be encouraged and enlightened by it! We have spent a lot of time discussing “the law“—those regulations and rituals and stipulations that govern behavior and relationships. Paul has been pretty negative about the law in favor of the Spirit and grace. He’s all about Abraham and ignoring Moses! This inevitably brings up some really important questions; questions Paul will address in this next section. What questions? If it has always been by faith, then why did God bother to give the Law! What purpose does the Law serve if not to demonstrate our righteousness by keeping it? If you continue to struggle with feeling like love is something you and others have to earn, then you cannot miss this! If you wonder how a person is supposed to live if they can’t turn to the rulebook for directions, then listen in to this important message about God’s grace.
This week we are stepping out of Galatians and into the book of 1 John for communion Sunday. The whole book is phenomenally honest about the difference between what we say and what we really do. Here is what I do know: life is hard and this world is not our home. There are global fears and family anxieties. How are we supposed to survive? How can a person find hope or peace in uncertain times? Listen in to this special message from 1 John on our community Sunday and be encouraged through worship and God’s word.
Feedback from the past several weeks suggests that many are being impacted by the truths of Galatians and many are sensing the Lord working through this study, and specifically on the topic of the grace of God. We will continue to wrap our heads around law, grace, and the experience of Abraham. We can study about grace, talk about grace, and even know about God’s grace, but how do you know when you really “get it”? How do you know when you begin to LIVE grace. Has grace invaded your mind so that it affects your relationships, marriage, parenting, and work life? In Galatians 3:11, Paul states that “the just shall live by faith”. That statement shows up four times in the Bible! I bet you would like to know where, right? Well, for that you will have to listen in to this week’s message. However, I will remind you that Paul only had the Old Testament at his disposal and that is where Paul quotes it from! It’s a pretty obscure and short OT book with an interesting context. Are you curious? Then listen in and see and learn more as we dig into the depths of God’s grace in this letter to the Galatians!
This week we open our Bibles to Galatians 3 and read along as Paul continues to battle against a gospel that claims blessing from God is a reward for good behavior. After giving them the reason for his letter in the first chapter, Paul has spent a good deal of ink describing his own personal experience with God’s message of grace. In chapter three, he will ask them to consider their own experience of Christianity! Do remember when God came crashing into your life! Do you remember what life was like then? Do you remember how it felt? Remember, Paul is appealing to the non-Jews who have become “spellbound” by traditional Judaism and tempted to turn to rule-keeping to try to earn God’s blessing! Have you ever had a bad day, difficult circumstance, or painful period, and during it you have wondered, “What have I done wrong? Maybe I should have prayed more, or tithed more, or served more!” Have you felt guilty like it was something you did or didn’t do that brought on adversity from God? For this and many other reasons you will want to listen in with an open heart and curious mind as we jump into this next chapter of Paul’s letter.
We continue making our way through Galatians as we learn to see Christianity clearly. The end of chapter two recounts a situation that divided the thriving church in Antioch. Paul publicly confronts Peter about being a hypocrite! Have you ever been confronted publicly? How did you feel? Talk about socially challenging and awkward! Although we will talk a little about confrontation and hypocrisy, this is not the gist or the purpose for Paul to include this information in his letter. Then what is the gist? Listen in to hear the details of Paul’s purpose and intent for this story! But for now, we get one of the great and defining verses of the New Testament in Paul’s lecture to Peter. Galatians 2:20 is worth memorizing. In that one sentence Paul lays out the Christian life apart from the law. With one swoosh of the pen, Paul reveals the way he thinks about his past and his present life and even includes the deep motives of his heart!
