The Last Word from Daniel - Part 1

Christian lady asked if you be reading through Daniel during your series. You've got encounter portions that were hard to understand. Well, you know that I am turning towards the durbar explains, but even then you himself understand everything you wrote.

But I is coming when it will be clear to understand. This is the missing the last word. Then, while this is putting a period behind all that we have been doing for these last several weeks really important information so I don't turn away just because it's the last chapter we have today and tomorrow and I will finish up our discussion of the book of Daniel in the proper way some for us to get into this lesson analysis. The last word from Daniel.

This is kind of like a postscript if you will, and I think you will understand that as we get started many weeks ago when we began to study this book.

I shared with you at the beginning of the series that the purpose of the book of Daniel needs to be clearly kept in mind throughout that what Daniel is trying to teach us by this Old Testament prophecy is that God is in control, that he is on the throne that nothing happens in the way of accident before God. The Scripture teaches that there is a God in heaven and that he is on the throne and kingdoms may rise and fall babbling comes and goes. The means come and go. The Persians come and go but the kingdom of God continues to abide throughout and while we look at the scene on this world and we see chaos everywhere and we see wars and rumors of wars. Sometimes we wonder if the whole thing is out of kilter and perhaps even if it's gotten away from God. Daniel would say to us as he's been saying consistently throughout every chapter, God is still in charge and he is on the throne and he will continue to rule in a sovereign way until the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our God. I really believe that what Daniel would have us understand, having completed the study of this prophecy is this that we have a great God is the God of God's he is the King of heaven, and he rule in the kingdoms of men.

There is a God in heaven since Daniel and he rule in the kingdoms of men throughout the book.

We have seen it from the beginning of the captivity of the people of the Jewish city with Daniel and his hostages when they were at the age of 14, all the way through the demise of Nebuchadnezzar and Bell Sasser and Darius, and Cyrus. Through it all we see God's in charge.

It looks at sometimes in the book is bad things are happening in the wicked are winning but we just keep studying and in a few chapters we discovered that God is been in charge all along and that he is had his hand upon the scene of this world. I really believe that if we gain nothing else from this book than a settled assurance that we have a sovereign God, it will have been well worth our time spent.

We need to have April perspective on life.

If we do not we will get caught up in all of the craziness that goes on in the evangelical world today trying to do the thing that God says he alone can do trying to get the kingdoms of this world in our hands and manipulate them our way and God is in charge and that's what he wants us to know and I really believe that one of the things that God used in the life of Daniel to keep him stabilized throughout all of the changes he watched his life was a clear understanding of the sovereignty of God, and the fact that God rules of the kingdoms of men.

That's what Daniel wants us to know what you know it's not just in babbling. It's not Justin the Medo Persian Empire. It's not Justin.

The Grecian Empire, which Daniel looked forward to and the Roman Empire, which he foretold, not just in the Egyptian and the Syrian kingdom, but God is teaching us now in these and chapters that God is also in charge of that kingdom. When the Antichrist will be upon this earth that he will be rolling and raining among men, God is still in charge at that time and he will superintend and watch over until ultimately, the reign of that evil man has come to a conclusion. And when God's time is finished. Not one day too long or one day to sue God will ring down the curtain on the program of Satan and his kingdom will be brought in. That's what he's telling us of the 10th through the 12th chapter in the great vision the last vision that God gave to Daniel in the fourth through the 13th verse, the last word from Daniel. I think it would be helpful. By way of introduction to these few verses to realize that Daniel confesses twice in this section of Scripture that there's a whole lot but God's been teaching him but he doesn't understand I don't know if that helps you, but that sure makes me feel better. There some things in this book I've wrestled with that. I don't understand yet and maybe I never will. But you know Daniel says that he heard what God said and he didn't understand it. Someone is blessed is the man who understands not is not afraid to confess it, I just discover something that kinda thrilled me and I will be irreverent when I say it, but you know Daniel didn't understand this book as well as we do not hear me. That's not heresy. I really believe Daniel had a less perfect understanding of the prophecies he wrote that you and I have today. Let me tell you why he didn't have the Olivet discourse from the lips of our Lord. When the Lord interprets much of the section that we study how many times we gone back and forth from Matthew to Daniel for Matthew to Daniel. Secondly, he didn't have John's writing of the book of Revelation. Anybody who knows anything about theology knows when you go to school and a seminary you often take a course in Daniel and Revelation because their hand in glove together and it's so difficult to know what Daniel is talking about. If you can't put in the information that's in the book of Revelation we have all that Daniel have some of the prophets, but he didn't have all of them. We have all the major prophets all the minor prophets we have our Lord's words in Matthew, the book of Revelation and we have Daniel and from that perspective we got a much better opportunity to understand this book than Daniel and you are still much of it. We do not understand.

Sometimes when we study the Bible we get depressed if we can't comprehend everything which you know in the book of first Peter and I just like free to turn over there by way of encouragement to your own soul, not just for this study, but for future studies as well. First Peter chapter 1 verses 10 through 12 we read some interesting words.

First Peter 110 to 12 it says, and I believe this is a description of a prophet like Daniel. It says of this salvation, the prophets have inquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, searching what, or what manner of time.

The spirit of Christ was in them was indicating when he testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. To them it was revealed that not to themselves but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who preach the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven things which the angels desire to look into what is he say he saying that when the prophets of old, wrote the Scriptures that bear their names, that a lot of times when they wrote that stuff down. They didn't understand what they were writing they would write under the inspiration of God, had people ask me this do you think that every word that was written in here was understood by the one who wrote it. Absolutely not.

This verse of Scripture says that the prophets studied their own writings to try to figure out what they meant. They didn't know that had some to do in the future.

They knew that had some to do with another time, not their generation with the time in the future, but they desire to look into the things they wrote to understand them and then the Scripture read even the Angels wish they knew, you know, folks were in pretty good company. When we say there are some things we don't know the Angels. The Old Testament prophets who wrote this computer said about Paul that he wrote some things that he couldn't grasp some really tough thing to understand. It's good to know that having spent all this time studying this book and we have somewhat of a grasp of it, that there still much we don't know and we don't have to feel depressed about that as long as our lack of knowledge is not the result of indolence and laziness on our part. The hidden things belonging to God, and there's much that we will never know.

That's the mystery of prophecy. Well, we come to the fourth verse of the 12 chapter and we notice first of all, the prophetic here the Lord is speaking to Daniel.

But you know, Daniel, shut up the words and seal the book until the time of the and many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase is a strange word for Daniel having been with him all these days and spent all this time getting this information in a book in a scroll and when he gets all the way to the end of the gods is says to not Daniel shut it up and seal it till the end of time, and I think if I were Daniel and I heard that at face value. It's a large human I've gone through all this work all the stuff down.

I recorded it all now you tell me I'm supposed to put a seal on it and nobody's allowed to read I nobody writes a book for no one to read. That's not exactly what the Lord had in mind. He was saying. Daniel close up the book until the time of the end. When is the time of the end. Let's make sure we understand that go back in chapter 11 verse 35 where we see that phrase mentioned and some of those of understanding shall fall to refine them, purge them and make them white until here's the phrase the time of the end because it is still appointed.

Notice verse 40 at the time of the end the King of the South still attacking what is that that's the great tribulation. We already studied that the phrase the time of the end is a reference to the end of the tribulation. Now God says to Daniel in chapter 12 in verse four, shut up the words of this book put the seal on them until the end of the tribulation.

And what God is saying is two things. Number one. Daniel is no more information. That's it. You got it all about telling you anymore, you have the last word.

For me it's all over I'll everything else. I want you to write put the.

At the end of the book. Secondly, Daniel. Make sure the book is preserved because it's going to come into great meeting at a time in the future we'll talk about that in just a moment. He says preserve the prophecy for another time that we talked about the fact that Daniel did not completely understand this book and I hope no one's here, who feels like we have now come to a perfect understanding of it. But you know what the Bible says there's coming a period of time when the understanding of the book of Daniel will be even greater than it is now with all the Bible scholars and students we have. When is that time in the time of the great tribulation. The Bible teaches us that at that particular time. This book is going to come alive, as it never has before. Notice what it says it says on till the time of the end. During that time, many shall run to and for all, and knowledge shall increase not just hold your place there for moment I've heard some great prophetic sermons on that phrase but go along this line. In the end times. You know it's the end time when there's a great increase in knowledge and in my minds eye see a chart with a little bit of knowledge here for the first several hundred years of civilization and that it keeps growing in you probably heard all the statistics that in the last 40 years we have acquired more knowledge than the history of the world. Up until that time. Knowledge has increased and then the last race as many shall run to and fro in the prophetic students like to say that means that there's going to be an increase of transportation supersonic jet select will be able to move fast. That's wonderful except that's not what it means and I just wiped out a whole section of prophecy for some of you folks but let me tell you what it means wherever this is found in the Bible. In this setting. It's a phrase which describes the determination on the part of people to come to an understanding of a body of truth. It says here that in the time of the end. Many are going to be running back and forth trying to understand what's going on trying to figure out what's happening in their world and are going to be running all over the place trying to discover what's going on and are going to find.

Ultimately, the answer to those questions in this book we been studied in the great tribulation.

I'm convinced the number one bestseller arts going to be the book of Daniel because it's the only book I know of that has anything to say about what's going to be happening there if you want to know what's going on and get some understanding of what you Daniel's prophecy and the Scripture says that during this period of time. We knows the tribulation. Men are going to be running all over the place searching out answers to why they're such great suffering and sorrow.

While the nations are against each other while so much bloodshed as all of the world to be running everywhere trying to find the answers searching back and forth in the going to come at last to this book and then her knowledge will increase.

Can you imagine I like to think about.

Can you imagine being in the tribulation. Thinking through the things we talked about from Revelation 6 to 19 when all of the judgments of God are being poured out upon this land, you don't know very much about spiritual things. All of a sudden you're just in the midst of the worst time you ever heard of you know anything about prophecy you just walked into that and I been telling you that the tribulation period is not just more trouble than we got. Now the tribulation period is unlike anything you can imagine, more trouble than the world has ever known in any of its most horrible and here's this innocent person who maybe doesn't know a great deal about the word of God. A great deal about spiritual things in their cast into the midst of this of the trying to figure it all out in the Scripture says the running everywhere.

Can someone tell me what's going on some is limited to this book. This is the writing of an old sage by the name of Daniel, he might help. Can you imagine the motivation for studying the book of Daniel, then I tell you what the going be some classes on Daniel in the tribulation like you never heard of in your life and they are going to be able to understand the book of Daniel like we have not ever understood because while there reading it. It's going to be lived out right in front of I think that's what the Lord is telling Daniel, he saying shut up the book ceiling at a time in the future. It's going to be understood and make sure that you keep in and preserve it for. There's going to be a day in the end when they run to and fro and there try to figure out what's going on now let's go secondly to the prophetic sequence that's the prophetic seal verses five through seven. Then I Daniel looked, and there stood two others, one on this riverbank and the other on that riverbank.

One set of the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river.

How long shall the full film of these wonders be and I heard the man clothed in linen was above the waters of the river when he held up his right hand in his left hand to heaven. He swore by him who lives forever, that it shall be for a time, times and half time when the power of the holy people has been completely shattered, all these things shall be finished. I remember when we began this section of Scripture at the front end of chapter 10 Daniel is standing next to the Tigris River member that is having this vision standing there by the Tigris River and this now takes us back to that vision. Daniel says as he standing there.

He looks up and on one side of the river is an angel and on the other side of the river is another angel and he looks at again, there is the man clothed in linen, who hovers over the river get that picture in your mind an angel here and an angel here in the man clothed in linen, who I personally believe now is the son of God. He's hovering over the river.

Daniel says is these two angels appear on the horizon that the man clothed in linen is above the river and that the Angels began to ask questions that probably Daniel wanted to ask what they beat them to the punch. It says I looked in there stood two others on this riverbank and one angel said to the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river. How long shall the fulfillment of these wonders be remember when I said that the angels desire to look into the prophetic scheme. Here's an evidence of their asking questions they don't understand they don't have the prophecy charts we have and there try to figure out how this all fits together.

So one of the angel standing on one side of the bank of the river looks up to the Lord.

This Old Testament, Christophe, and he and he says how long will it be until these things are fulfilled in the question we have is what things the things that relate to the great tribulation. How long will these things go on now go back to chapter 10 verse five.

I lifted my eyes and looked, and behold, a certain man clothed in linen, whose waist was girded with the gold of you fats. That's the same person whose hovering above the river when we study the 10th chapter. I was struggling with the identity of that man, but I've come to understand now that were in the 12 chapters that it must be the Lord for who else would be. Angel seek information from.

If they did not seek information from the Lord of glory.

So here's an Old Testament picture of the Lord Jesus is the fountain of truth concerning the future. Who was the man clothed in linen.

It must be Christ and what is the question that is asked how long will it be for these wonders to transpire. The Angels had a if I just say this for moment the Angels had a vested interest in the answer to that question know what they're doing. Through all this time there in angelic warfare with demons and I think the Angels are saying hello to go on with this. We would like to get out would like to be discharged. We get tired of fighting with the name is Lauren.

How much longer is this thing to go on and so they're asking this question now to go back to the seventh chapter and verse 25.

You're going to find out.

And remember that this is already been given by way of information, I just want to remind you of chapter 7 verse 25 and he says here, he shall speak pompous words against the most high, he shall persecute the saints of the most high, and shall intend to change times and law. Then the saints shall be given into his hand for how long.

For a time and times and half time. No go back to chapter 12. Stay with me now will get lost. The angel is asking the Lord how long is this period of great tribulation going to go on.

How long are you going to let this go on and the Lord says in answer to that question. Verse seven that it shall be for a time and times and I have a timeout review with me for a moment the time of the great tribulation begins in the middle part of the seven years at the beginning of the last 3 1/2 years.

The great tribulation begins. Because of the covenant being broken with the Jewish people by the antichrist, so the Lord is answering this question.

How long is the great tribulation with Alaska. Here's his answer. It shall be for a time.

That's one year and times. That's plural. That's two years wanted to is 3 1/2 the time. How long is that 3 1/2 years. God says to the angel of the great tribulation is going to last for 3 1/2 years. That's exactly what he said back in the seventh chapter because he's consistent. Now notice and when the power of the holy people has been completely shattered, all these things shall be finished. What is that mean the Lord said to the angel, the great tribulation is the last for 3 1/2 years and during that time, the people of the Jews there power is going to be shattered. They are going to be in decimated people to thirds of the Jews are to be wiped out. The rebellious, disobedient Jews who refuse to embrace the Lord Jesus as the Messiah are going to be destroyed and when the tribulation period is only one word of the Jews alive the end of the. And that's why the Scripture says, and so all Israel shall be saved because the only ones left are those who embrace the Messiah. Now the Lord said to the angel you want to know when will the fulfillment of these things being let me tell you this for the last 3 1/2 years and is going to go on until the only people have been shattered in the holy place decimated well tomorrow we finish up the book of Daniel, tomorrow we talk about the last word from Daniel and we talk about Daniel for the last time more information on Dr. David Jeremiah series. The handwriting on the wall, please visit our website where we offer to freeways help you stay connected monthly magazine Turning Points and email devotional.

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