Good Morning! - Daniel 7:19-22 - Daniel Wants to Know the Truth - 2009.12.15

Good Morning!

 

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,

 

broke in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet; 

 

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

 

spoke very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows. I beheld, and the same

 

horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them; 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 (Daniel 7:19-22). (The Parliament Chamber of the European Union where seat #666 remains vacant.)

 

Daniel wanted to know the truth. Everyone does not want to know the truth.  Some are content to hear what they want to hear.  In Jesus' day it was called "itching ears."  For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears (2Timothy 4:3);

 

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children (Hosea 4:6).

 

The down-spiraling of a nation's morality does not begin with the children. It begins with the parents of the children. Raising children has always been a challenge. I dare say that the present generation may be unequalled in its difficulty. In the verse above,  parents have rejected the Word of God and God "forgets their children." That's a terrible thought!

 

Daniel wanted to know the truth of the fourth beast. How much interest do you have in knowing anything about the fourth beast in our text? God rarely chases us down to say: "Don't forget to be interested in my Word!" Often times we come to grips with an issue when we are in pain and for the first time we say: "I wonder what's causing all this pain."  The same is true concerning the matters between us and God.

 

As I plod through these verses I am selfish. I want to know more about this for myself. As I study and write, things crystallize for me and I have something to take with me for the rest of my life. You are welcome to look over my shoulder. If Daniel the Prophet wanted to know the truth about the fourth beast, then the Daniel of Flat Rock would do well to know about the truth of the fourth beast.

 

Why is the fourth beast different from all the others? It is the last of the beasts. There is not a fifth beast. Out of this beast (the Roman Empire) comes ten horns of which three are destroyed and one horn is dominant. He is arrogant and aggressive against the saints. This occurs only after the little horn has displaced three horns and is fully developed. It is not now. It is coming. He will make war with the saints and for a while will prevail against them. I am reminded that in the Book of Acts the Apostle Peter preached in the power of the Holy Spirit and three thousand souls were saved. Stephen preached in the power of the Holy Spirit and received three thousand stones (figuratively speaking) and lost his life. Sometimes it looks like God is winning and sometimes it looks like He is losing. This brings up the question: "Why do the righteous suffer?" Like the case of Job we cannot always know why it is our lot to suffer for the moment. Four verses have helped me a lot:

 

… we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God (Acts 14:22).

 

And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together (Romans 8:17).

 

For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake (Philippians 1:29);

 

be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life (Revelation 2:10).

 

Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; The Ancient of days is none other than Christ. The judgment amounts to a declaration of the transfer of power. For Satan and his hordes, their time is up. From that point in time, the saints will prevail. This transfer of power is a very short contest and it's all over. Christ has come with His army to possess the earth. The angel told Mary that her son would reign upon the throne of David. This is a peek at how it's going to take place.

 

Memory Verses for this week:

But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a

dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife; for that

which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.  And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt

call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins (Matthew 1:20-21).

 

Digging Deeper

 

God reveals things and grows things in small increments. Joseph had been looking at Mary and God's work in her life and the more he looked, the less he understood. In the absence of clear directions from the Lord, the best of his mental faculties brought him no closer to a solution. Finally he thought it was best to err on the side of caution. He was afraid to marry this woman.  He must break away from her but in such a way that it would minimize the social damage to her and her family. But in God's own time he spoke to Joseph in a dream. As is often the case, His first words to him were: "fear not."

Our encounter with God is so often combined with the element of fear. When God takes the initiative it is usually through something different from the ordinary and that produces fear. That's a good attention getter. We are told to "be anxious for nothing." Be careful (anxious, worried) for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.  (7)  And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. (Phillipians 4:6-7).

 

To be removed from this mailing list, please click here. In the subject line type "remove."  ●To subscribe to this and other Encourager mailings, click here. In the subject line, type "subscribe." Please give your name and email address. ●Please set your spam system (contact list) to accept encourager@biblewalking.com. and  dan@dancarr.org.   ●Thank you for accepting our mail and passing it on. Picture from Google Search.

 

This article can also be viewed at www.bibleliving.blogspot.com.