HopeLives365

Mark Finley: And we say, "God, whatever You've said in Your word, I want to do it. I don't want to accept the traditions of men. I don't want to accept changes to Your word. I can't accept those changes, Lord. I want to be faithful to You."

Guest (Male): This is Hope Lives 365 with Pastor Mark Finley. Today's message, a study in the book of Daniel, week three, part three. Enjoy and remember you can always catch up with past messages and stay up to date with Hope Lives 365 and Pastor Mark by going to hopelives365.com. And now, Pastor Mark Finley.

Mark Finley: Welcome again to another Bible study on the book of Daniel. I’m so delighted that you have joined us. There have been a number of questions that have come in. We’ve journeyed through seven chapters in the book of Daniel, and this is actually part two of Daniel chapter 7. Daniel 7 is the first of the second section of the book of Daniel, in the prophetic section, and it is so comprehensive that we’re going to take two weeks to go through it.

But before we do that, we’re going to look at some of the questions that have come in. One of the first questions is: Does Pastor Finley have a list of end-time events in chronological order? Some time ago, I wrote a booklet on last-day events, and it’s called *Coming Events*. That takes you through all of the various last-day events that are going to break upon our world, and it does give you a chronological order of those events with some diagrams and charts.

Some people have asked me how I can get that booklet. Seminars Unlimited in Keene, Texas, handles it. So you just need to Google Seminars Unlimited, Keene, Texas, if you want this booklet, and they’ll tell you how to order. There will also be a phone number there that you can call. But that’s probably the best chart that I have or the best material on last-day events. On our YouTube channel, we’ll be doing a series on last-day events in the next few months, and that may be something that you will want to tune in on, and we’ll have charts and diagrams in there for you as well.

Here’s Mary-Anne: "Pastor Finley says in Daniel 3 that God is the priest. Why?" The vision in Daniel chapter 3 shows Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refusing to bow down to the golden image. They’re thrown into the fiery furnace. When Nebuchadnezzar looks into the fiery furnace, he says, "I saw one like the Son of God." The Son of God, of course, is Jesus. Jesus is the mighty deliverer.

What is a priest? The true priest, Jesus Christ, is the High Priest. That’s why we don't need priests on earth. In Hebrews chapter 4, it says, "Come boldly to the throne of grace, that you can find grace and help in the time of need," because Christ lives to make intercession for us. Hebrews 7:25. So Jesus is our priest. What is a priest? It's an intercessor. It's one that stands between us and death, representing us before the Father. So in the fiery furnace, Jesus comes as deliverer or as intercessor. He intercedes for Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and delivers them, so He can be called a priest.

Here is one from Africa: "What does the lampstand in Daniel 5 represent? It’s also captured in Revelation. What’s the meaning?" If you look at the ancient sanctuary, when you come into the court of the sanctuary, you have the altar of sacrifice where sacrifices were slain and blood was shed. Then you move into the holy place of the sanctuary. In the holy place of the sanctuary, in ancient Israel, there are three objects of furniture.

There is the table of showbread representing Christ, the bread of life, the one who said, "I am the bread of life." That represents our partaking of Christ's words. Jesus said, "The words that I speak to you, they are spirit, they are life." Jeremiah 15:16 says, "Thy words were found and I did eat them; they were joy and rejoicing to my soul." So the table of showbread with the bread represents the word of God. Jesus said, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God." That’s the table of showbread.

Then you come to the altar of incense representing our prayers that ascend like fragrant incense to God. Then you come to the candlestick. What does that represent? We eat the word of God and are nourished by it. We seek God in prayer and are strengthened so that our light will shine and we witness. So the lampstand represents believers who are filled with the word, who are praying, and who go out to witness for their neighbors.

In Daniel chapter 5, we see the lampstand taken from the sanctuary in Jerusalem, brought into the pagan banquet hall in Babylon. That lampstand represents Christ’s witness against them. So when you come to Revelation and you see the lampstand, of course, it represents the witness of the Holy Spirit. So in Daniel chapter 5, the witness of the Holy Spirit is witnessing against Babylon in that festive feast when judgment falls. In Revelation, the witness of the Holy Spirit witnesses to our hearts to convict us of sin, to lead us to righteousness. So the lampstand represents the light of Christ’s witness to us and the light of our witness to others.

Let's look at a couple more questions. Here’s Karen: "Pastor Finley, I’m enjoying your Daniel Bible study on YouTube. You shared that there are three things to note about each of the chapters in Daniel: What does the chapter say about God, my life, and end-time events? I got chapter 1, but I don't have chapters 2, 3, 4, and 5. Could you summarize?"

Sure, I'd be happy to, Karen. Chapter 2: You have the vision by Nebuchadnezzar of the image. God is revealed in chapter 2 as the one who knows the future. He’s the true Prophet. The practical application is if God can tell the future of the world for 2,500 years, I can put my life in His hands. He knows my future and I can trust Him. What does it say about end events? We need not fear about the future because that, too, is in the hands of God.

What about Daniel chapter 3? In Daniel chapter 3, what does it say about God? He’s the deliverer. What does it say about my life? If He can deliver Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, I can trust Him to deliver me. What does it say about end events? It says that when church and state unite and a false image to the beast is established, I can place my life in Christ's hands. He will be the mighty deliverer at end time.

What about chapter 4? In Daniel chapter 4, God is revealed as the true King of the universe. What does it say about my life? Nebuchadnezzar looked up, and when he looked toward heaven, his sanity was restored. What does it say about my life? That when I look to heaven, God restores my mental thinking processes as I acknowledge Him as King. As it says in Isaiah 45:22, "Look unto Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth." There’s no other savior but Jesus. Nebuchadnezzar found that out; we can find it out. What does it say about end events? Just like Nebuchadnezzar was established upon his throne at the end of his life, so we will sit on a throne with a royal robe around our shoulders, with a crown on our head. We will be priests and kings of God forever and ever.

Daniel 5: In Daniel chapter 5, we find a God of justice and judgment because the judgment falls upon Babylon in Belshazzar's banquet hall. He’s the God of justice and judgment. What does it say to our life? It says that every human being one day will face the judgment bar of God, and every human being must be prepared in Christ by grace to face that judgment bar. What does it say about end times? There’ll be a final judgment for the world, and this whole world will face the judgment.

What about Daniel 6? What does it say about God? It says that God is steadfast forever. Daniel is at the end of his life now in Daniel chapter 6. God is steadfast forever. He’ll never, ever let us down. What does it say about our life? Just as Daniel was the friend of God and God was the friend of Daniel, and just like God did not let Daniel down, He won't let us down. What does it say about end events? Last days, once again a decree will be passed. Once again God’s people will be faced with death. But once again God will deliver us from the mouths of our lions. He’s the mighty deliverer. Karen, I hope that helps to understand that. I know I’ve gone over it quite quickly.

Here’s Brian from Uganda concerning Daniel 6:24: "Could you please help me explain to me and understand the story of Achan? His entire family were put to death. How different is the story of Achan from that of Daniel? Does that mean Achan’s children participated in the sin of their father? And shed more light on the second commandment where God says that He’ll punish the children for the sins of their fathers."

Thanks for the question. It's amazing; people are watching from all over the world. Here’s a question from Uganda. In Daniel chapter 6, the reason the families were thrown into the lions' den is because they participated in that sin. They encouraged their husbands. These were adult children as well that were encouraging them. There was a rebellion against the true God in the whole family. That’s the same thing with the story of Achan. You have the whole family in rebellion.

Now, what about the second commandment? You have something quite different here, and let me read you the second commandment and explain to you what that’s talking about. Exodus 20:4: "You shall not make for yourself any carved image, or any likeness of anything that’s in heaven above or that’s in the earth beneath." So it's talking about idolatry. Then it says, "For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation."

What is this saying? It's not saying in this text that they will be punished for the sins of their fathers. It says visiting the iniquity. What does that mean? The decisions that parents make are passed down generation after generation to the third and fourth generation. Here you have the great law of heredity. You have the great law that if a parent, for example, lives a rebellious, godless life, let's suppose they’re a drinker, they predispose children toward drinking. Let's suppose they can't control their temper and they’re angry all the time. They can pass on genetic traits that predispose to that.

So the second commandment is saying look, it’s a warning against idolatry in ancient Israel, and these idol-worshippers pass down to their children their idol worship, and they pass it to theirs. What this is, is an appeal to us as parents to pass on positive traits to our children because they’re going to be passed on from next generation to next generation to next generation.

Guest (Male): We'll be right back with Pastor Mark Finley. We thank you for listening and hope you're enjoying today's message. Our mission is to attractively present the Christ-centered biblical truths of Scripture in a practical, relevant way to people around the world so that they may experience the abundant life that Christ offers and effectively share with confidence His life-changing truths with others. You can support this ministry and help us reach even more by going to hopelives365.com/donate. And now, back to Pastor Mark Finley.

Mark Finley: Last question for tonight. We’ve got a lot of questions. This is great. I love it. Here is Daniel from Mumbai. This is India. So we answered questions from the United States today, we answered questions from Uganda tonight, and now here’s one from India. "Daniel 7, verses 9 and 13 talk about the judgment. Now my question is, is it an investigative judgment or a final judgment?"

In Daniel chapter 7, it has to be the investigative judgment. Why? Or we would call that the pre-advent judgment. Daniel looks up into heaven. He sees this courtroom scene. He sees the angels around the scene. He sees the judgment set and the books opened. He sees the setting of thrones. This is the beginning of the judgment. This investigative, pre-advent judgment comes before the second coming of Christ where there is an execution of that judgment.

The Bible says in Revelation 22:11 and 12, "He that is righteous, let him be righteous still; he that is unrighteous, let him be unrighteous still; he that is holy, let him be holy still; he that is filthy, let him be filthy still." So there is the pronouncement of the close of human probation. Then it says in verse 12, "Behold, I come quickly." And every eye will see me. So here in Daniel 7, you have a judgment that determines who receives what reward when Christ comes.

And this judgment in heaven in Daniel 7 is revealing the beauty, the wonder, the glory of Christ, the marvelous nature of grace, the fact in Daniel 7 that Jesus has done everything He could to save every human being. In Revelation 14:7, it says, "The hour of God’s judgment is come." That’s before the execution of the judgment. So you have a two-phase judgment. You have the pre-advent judgment that takes place before the second coming of Christ, and then you have the executive judgment that takes place when Jesus comes and that is completed at the end of the millennium when the wicked are destroyed and you have the total annihilation of the wicked.

Thank you for your questions. Now if you have any questions you want to ask for next week, we’re going to put up an email address that you can write to us. You just simply email us at info@hopelives365.com. Questions next week: info@hopelives365.com.

Well, let’s pray then jump right into our topic for tonight. You ready to go? All right. Daniel chapter 7, second part. Let's go. Let's pray. Father in heaven, thank You with all of our hearts for the word of God. Thank You that the truth in that word inspires our hearts and encourages us. It prepares us for events that are coming upon the world. So tonight, we pray that You'd be with us as we study Your word, in Jesus' name. Amen.

What distinguishes God from all other false gods? How does God establish His authority in Scripture? Before we jump into the prophecy of Daniel 7, let's answer that question. Take your Bible if you have it and turn to Isaiah. We’re going to the book of Isaiah, chapter 46. Isaiah chapter 46, verses 8 and 9.

"Remember this and show yourselves men; recall to mind, O you transgressors. Remember the former things of old." Now God says, "For I am God, and there is none like Me. I am God, and there is none like Me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, saying, 'My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure.'"

What is it that distinguishes God from all false gods? What is it that sets Him apart? He knows the end from the beginning. He makes predictions in His word that are true. Bible prophecy does not guess; it knows. Amos, the third chapter and the seventh verse, reveals an amazing God because He knows the future as well as you and I can see before us in the present. Amos 3:7 says this: "Surely the Lord God does nothing, unless He reveals His secrets to His servants the prophets." Notice "surely." What does surely mean? Certainly, definitely, without a question. The Lord God will do nothing, but He reveals His secrets to His servants the prophets.

Jesus said in John chapter 12, "I've told you things before they come to pass, that when they come to pass, you might believe." What does prophecy do? Prophecy does two things. First, prophecy gives us confidence in the Bible and confidence in the God of the Bible because as we see prophecy coming to pass, we sense the truthfulness of the Bible, we sense the authenticity of the word of God, and we sense that God knows the future. So it gives us confidence in God and His word.

But secondly, when you study prophecy, it prepares you for events that will take place in this world that are an overwhelming surprise. So when we study Daniel chapter 7, we are studying a prophecy that establishes our confidence in God and a prophecy that will enable us to prepare for what's coming. Now remember last week we studied the Bible prophecy of Daniel chapter 7. Let me review that with you as we launch into our chapter today.

In Daniel chapter 7, Daniel goes to sleep. And as he does, he has this amazing dream. In that dream, he dreams of four beasts that rise up out of the sea. What does the sea represent? We looked at it last week. You know, Revelation 17:15, the sea represents peoples, nations, tongues. Then he saw four beasts come up out of the sea. What do beasts represent according to Daniel 7, verses 17 and 23? They represent kingdoms. So four beasts coming up out of the sea represent four kingdoms that would rise. Do you remember that from last week?

Then he describes these four beasts, these four kingdoms. Now in the book of Daniel, the prophet always begins where Daniel is. So Daniel is living in Babylon. The first king that rises, the first kingdom that rises is Babylon, described as a lion with eagle's wings. We saw that last week. We noticed then in archaeology, a lion with eagle's wings was on the walls of Babylon. The lion, the king of the beast; the eagle, the chief of the birds, represents Babylon, this nation that ruled the world from 605 to 539 BC.

But then Babylon falls. Another power rises, the bear, right after Babylon, with three ribs in its mouth, raised itself up on one side. What does that represent? Bible says another kingdom's going to rise after Babylon, right after it. A bear with three ribs in its mouth? What kingdom overthrew Babylon? It was the Medes and the Persians. The bear, two legs, raising itself up on one side: Persia dominating over the Medes.

But what about these three ribs? When Medo-Persia conquered Babylon, it conquered Babylon, it conquered Lydia, and it conquered Egypt—the three ribs. So the bear raising itself up on one side: Persia dominating Media. Three ribs: Babylon, Lydia, Egypt.

But Medo-Persia wouldn't rule forever, from 539 to 331. And in 331, the Greeks overcame the Medo-Persians. What do you know about the Greeks? Who is the ruler of the Greeks? You know it, Alexander the Great, right? And how old was he when he conquered the world? 33 years old. He conquered the world rapidly. If you want to describe rapid conquest, what beast would you use? A leopard or cheetah. And what would you do if you want to describe rapid, rapid conquest? You'd put wings on your cheetah, right?

Exactly what God did. So you have the third beast, the leopard-like beast with wings, representing Alexander the Great. But how many heads does it have? Four. What happened to Alexander the Great? He died at 33 years old. What happened then? Four generals—Cassander, Lysimachus, Seleucus, Ptolemy—divided up his kingdom and ruled. The four heads: the four different generals.

And then you have another beast that rises. This is where we want to jump into the scene tonight. Daniel chapter 7, we’re looking at verse 7. Fourth beast in succession: Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece. What nation overthrew Greece? You know it, don't you? Rome. Now let's look here: Pagan Rome, verse 7 of Daniel 7.

"After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong. It had huge iron teeth; it was devouring, breaking in pieces, and trampling the residue with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns."

Now notice this beast is different. The Roman Empire is not overthrown by a fifth world-ruling power. How is it different? It has ten horns. Rome was divided into the ten divisions of Rome. The barbarian tribes came down from the north: the Alemanni, the Anglo-Saxons, the Franks, the Heruli, the Visigoths, the Ostrogoths. They carved up the empire. So Rome was not conquered by a fifth world-ruling empire, but rather the ten divisions of the Roman Empire took place.

Guest (Male): You've been listening to Hope Lives 365 with Pastor Mark Finley. We hope you've enjoyed today's message and remind you that you can find more in our many ministry resources at hopelives365.com. And you can support this ministry by going to hopelives365.com/donate. And now, a final thought from Pastor Mark.

Mark Finley: I love the way James Russell Lowell put it: "Truth forever on the scaffold, wrong forever on the throne, yet that scaffold sways the future, and behind the dim unknown standeth God within the shadow, keeping watch above His own."

What joy it is to know that Christ protects us in our trials of life. His church has been persecuted down through the ages. We read of the persecution of the Waldenses in the Middle Ages, the persecution of the Reformers in the Middle Ages, John Huss burned at the stake. We find Luther and the Reformers oppressed and imprisoned at times, but yet God protects His church.

What did Jesus say in Matthew chapter 16? What did Jesus say? Here in Matthew the 16th chapter, Jesus speaks and He says in Matthew 16, verse 18: "I say to you, Peter, hear this rock and I'm going to build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it." What Jesus meant when He said, "Peter, you’re the rock," He was saying, "Peter, the statement you’ve made is rock solid. I’m Christ." The statement you’ve made, Peter, is rock solid. "I am the living Christ." The rock that the church was built upon is Jesus Christ.