Daniel 10:1-11:1 (June 21, 2020, AM)
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Daniel has one more vision to tell us about.
The content of his final vision is found in chapters 11 and 12.
Chapter 10 is a prelude to that vision.
Chapter 10 is very important though as it gives us a unique glimpse into the relationship of prayer and Spiritual Warfare.
Much of what the Bible says about angels and demons can be found here.
Do me a favor.
Forget everything you have ever learned from Hollywood concerning angels and demons.
These days Hollywood pretty much serves as a Public Relations Firm for demons - not a very reliable source.
1 In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia a word was revealed to Daniel, who was named Belteshazzar. And the word was true, and it was a great conflict. And he understood the word and had understanding of the vision.
2 In those days I, Daniel, was mourning for three weeks.
3 I ate no delicacies, no meat or wine entered my mouth, nor did I anoint myself at all, for the full three weeks.
4 On the twenty-fourth day of the first month, as I was standing on the bank of the great river (that is, the Tigris)
5 I lifted up my eyes and looked, and behold, a man clothed in linen, with a belt of fine gold from Uphaz around his waist.
6 His body was like beryl, his face like the appearance of lightning, his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and legs like the gleam of burnished bronze, and the sound of his words like the sound of a multitude.
7 And I, Daniel, alone saw the vision, for the men who were with me did not see the vision, but a great trembling fell upon them, and they fled to hide themselves.
8 So I was left alone and saw this great vision, and no strength was left in me. My radiant appearance was fearfully changed, and I retained no strength.
9 Then I heard the sound of his words, and as I heard the sound of his words, I fell on my face in deep sleep with my face to the ground.
10 And behold, a hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees.
11 And he said to me, “O Daniel, man greatly loved, understand the words that I speak to you, and stand upright, for now I have been sent to you.” And when he had spoken this word to me, I stood up trembling.
12 Then he said to me, “Fear not, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand and humbled yourself before your God, your words have been heard, and I have come because of your words.
13 The prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days, but Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I was left there with the kings of Persia,
14 and came to make you understand what is to happen to your people in the latter days. For the vision is for days yet to come.”
15 When he had spoken to me according to these words, I turned my face toward the ground and was mute.
16 And behold, one in the likeness of the children of man touched my lips. Then I opened my mouth and spoke. I said to him who stood before me, “O my lord, by reason of the vision pains have come upon me, and I retain no strength.
17 How can my lord’s servant talk with my lord? For now no strength remains in me, and no breath is left in me.”
18 Again one having the appearance of a man touched me and strengthened me.
19 And he said, “O man greatly loved, fear not, peace be with you; be strong and of good courage.” And as he spoke to me, I was strengthened and said, “Let my lord speak, for you have strengthened me.”
20 Then he said, “Do you know why I have come to you? But now I will return to fight against the prince of Persia; and when I go out, behold, the prince of Greece will come.
21 But I will tell you what is inscribed in the book of truth: there is none who contends by my side against these except Michael, your prince.
1 “And as for me, in the first year of Darius the Mede, I stood up to confirm and strengthen him.
Who are the characters in this chapter?
Who are the characters in this chapter?
Daniel
Daniel
Notice with me again the humble, prayerful, faithful, old prophet.
In my Bible reading this week I came across this verse that reinforces what we know about the status of Daniel in God’s eyes.
13 “Son of man, when a land sins against me by acting faithlessly, and I stretch out my hand against it and break its supply of bread and send famine upon it, and cut off from it man and beast,
14 even if these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they would deliver but their own lives by their righteousness, declares the Lord God.
That is pretty elite company.
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In verse 2 we see that Daniel is mourning.
Why?
The temple in Israel began to be rebuilt, and then almost immediately work stopped because of opposition.
Why didn’t Daniel go back to Israel and try to do something to fix the problem?
He was probably in his mid eighties by this point, but he absolutely was doing something to fix the problem - he was praying.
I don’t think Daniel would have said, “I’m old, all I can do is pray.”
I think he would have said, “I serve the Almighty, Living God. I can pray!”
Daniel took prayer very seriously.
This was not some casual pursuit for him.
Verse 3 tells us that he again was fasting, at least partially, and refraining from worldly comforts.
Why?
As an act of humility and grief.
Fasting does not in some magical way obligate God to answer you the way you want him to, but it does focus you and demonstrate your urgency and commitment.
The Pre-Incarnate Christ
The Pre-Incarnate Christ
“pre-incarnate” = before THE incarnation
Why do I think this is Christ rather than an angel?
One reason is the similarities between the one that is described here and John’s vision of Jesus in Revelation.
I want to show you these, not so much to convince you as to bless you by reading these descriptions side by side.
5 I lifted up my eyes and looked, and behold, a man clothed in linen, with a belt of fine gold from Uphaz around his waist.
6 His body was like beryl, his face like the appearance of lightning, his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and legs like the gleam of burnished bronze, and the sound of his words like the sound of a multitude.
7 And I, Daniel, alone saw the vision, for the men who were with me did not see the vision, but a great trembling fell upon them, and they fled to hide themselves.
8 So I was left alone and saw this great vision, and no strength was left in me. My radiant appearance was fearfully changed, and I retained no strength.
9 Then I heard the sound of his words, and as I heard the sound of his words, I fell on my face in deep sleep with my face to the ground.
12 Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands,
13 and in the midst of the lampstands one like a son of man, clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash around his chest.
14 The hairs of his head were white, like white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire,
15 his feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and his voice was like the roar of many waters.
16 In his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.
17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, “Fear not, I am the first and the last,
Daniel needed encouragement and Christ himself appeared to him.
The glory of our savior overwhelmed Daniel.
It overwhelmed even John who spent three years in his presence every single day!
Of course Jesus veiled the glory that is inherently his during his first coming.
One day believers will see him as he is and be transformed by it.
I am in no hurry because there is still a lot of stuff that I want to accomplish here, but what a glorious day that will be!
Christ is dressed like a priest and Heb. 7.25 tells us that “he always lives to make intercession” for the saints.
The glory radiating from his face was as bright as lightning.
At Jesus’ transfiguration, we read in Matt. 17.2 that “his face shown like the sun”
“His eyes like flaming torches” see through to the heart of every person.
His arms and legs like burnished bronze speak of his limitless strength.
and
His voice “like the sound of a multitude” speak of his authority.
Mt. 28.18 tells us that Jesus has been given all authority in heaven and on earth.
Jn 1.3 tells us that his voice called forth all of creation
and
Heb. 1.3 says that he upholds all things by the word of his power.
What a mighty God we serve!
Poor Daniel is entirely overcome - he is passed out and lying on his face.
?Do you see why it is so fitting for us to pray with humility?
Angels and Demons
Angels and Demons
10 And behold, a hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees.
11 And he said to me, “O Daniel, man greatly loved, understand the words that I speak to you, and stand upright, for now I have been sent to you.” And when he had spoken this word to me, I stood up trembling.
12 Then he said to me, “Fear not, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand and humbled yourself before your God, your words have been heard, and I have come because of your words.
Is this Gabriel?
Probably, but not sure because the text does not tell us.
This angel’s message is so encouraging!
He was talking to Daniel, not us, but I think we can see a truth that we can apply.
If God loves you
If you seek to understand him - his word and his will
and
If you humble yourself and pray
God will hear and answer you.
That brings up a big question...
Does God love you?
Some will say, “Of course God loves me - he loves everybody! - Haven’t you read Jn 3.16?
Yes, but I have also read passages like Ps. 5...
5 The boastful shall not stand before your eyes; you hate all evildoers.
6 You destroy those who speak lies; the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.
So, back to the question.
Does God love you?
If you are in Christ, he loves you.
He has adopted you, forgiven you, and sees you as having the righteousness and obedience of Jesus Christ.
If you want your prayers answered...
Make sure that you are in Christ.
That you are seeking to understand his word and his will - so you can follow and obey it.
That you pray with humility and reverence.
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Let’s go on to verses 13, and 20 - verse 1 of chapter 11.
13 The prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days, but Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I was left there with the kings of Persia,
20 Then he said, “Do you know why I have come to you? But now I will return to fight against the prince of Persia; and when I go out, behold, the prince of Greece will come.
21 But I will tell you what is inscribed in the book of truth: there is none who contends by my side against these except Michael, your prince.
1 “And as for me, in the first year of Darius the Mede, I stood up to confirm and strengthen him.
The prince of the kingdom of Persia is a demon who is strategically placed to work with and through the government and the people of Persia.
But also to hinder, in any and every way possible, the kingdom of God.
He is powerful enough that he could mess with, even delay this angel.
This angel had to call in reinforcements - or really one reinforcement named Michael.
Michael, we are told in Jude 1:9, is an archangel.
He is given charge of the people and the nation of Israel.
We see that implied in Dan. 10.21 that we just read when Michael is called “your prince.”
We are told explicitly in ...
1 “At that time shall arise Michael, the great prince who has charge of your people. And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never has been since there was a nation till that time. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone whose name shall be found written in the book.
Can Satan and all his demons threaten the power and rule of God?
Absolutely not.
But remember that we have been saying that God often accomplishes things through means other than his direct power?
Angels faithfully serve God and fight on his behalf.
Their service and valor bring glory to God.
Michael is quite the servant!
7 Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back,
8 but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven.
9 And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.
There is a spiritual war raging around us that we are unaware of on a daily basis.
Daniel’s prayer triggered a spiritual altercation.
We do not need to become preoccupied with spiritual warfare, but we should become preoccupied with understanding the word and will of God and with prayer.
We have no idea of all the things that will result from our prayers.
I would guess there is a demonic prince of Washington, D. C.
I don’t need to focus on him, but I need to pray fervently for our government!
There will be spiritual battles as we launch our new campus.
I won’t be pretending to see the unseen and praying any demons out of the neighborhood, but I will be praying that we can reach the people in the Highlands and beyond.
What will the unseen spiritual battle look like?
I don’t know.
You don’t know.
But we know there will be one and that we should be fasting, humbling ourselves and praying!
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Angels do battle for the sake of the saints and the glory of God.
What else do they do?
They worship God.
But we see another job in Dan. 10.14-19 and that is that they minister to the people of God.
14 and came to make you understand what is to happen to your people in the latter days. For the vision is for days yet to come.”
15 When he had spoken to me according to these words, I turned my face toward the ground and was mute.
16 And behold, one in the likeness of the children of man touched my lips. Then I opened my mouth and spoke. I said to him who stood before me, “O my lord, by reason of the vision pains have come upon me, and I retain no strength.
17 How can my lord’s servant talk with my lord? For now no strength remains in me, and no breath is left in me.”
18 Again one having the appearance of a man touched me and strengthened me.
19 And he said, “O man greatly loved, fear not, peace be with you; be strong and of good courage.” And as he spoke to me, I was strengthened and said, “Let my lord speak, for you have strengthened me.”
This angel helped Daniel gain spiritual understanding and strengthened him.
How much of that is the purview of angels and how much is the purview of the Holy Spirit?
I do not know, but I will take spiritual understanding and strengthening from whomever the Lord uses to impart it to me.
I know I need it and I pray for it.
I know that several of you pray for me daily.
I cannot tell you how much that means to me!
Please never stop!
I want us to do big, eternal things to advance the kingdom of God.
We cannot do that without spiritual understand and strengthening for the spiritual battles to come.
Is there an angel assigned to Jones Co. churches?
If there is I’ll bet he wonders why we do not pray more so that we might accomplish more.
Let’s pray more and accomplish more.
Let’s pray keeping in mind...
4 For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds.
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I may not sound very baptist when I speak of spiritual warfare.
but
We all need to be very much aware of it.
More aware than most of us are.
I am not going to go around ordering demons off the property.
I don’t have anything to say to demons.
But
Let’s have a lot to say to the commander and chief of the hosts of heaven!
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Gospel
The invitation is for
1. help with understanding the gospel and appropriating the salvation that Jesus offers
2. church membership
3. prayer