DONE 210530 Daniel: Jesus is the Son of Man

OPENING SLIDE

Grand Canyon Analogy: Hopi Point, Bright Angel Trail, Colorado River etc

INTRODUCTION SLIDE

Today we are going to be in Daniel, the last book of the major prophets. The major prophets are called the major prophets because of the length of their books - not because their prophecies are any more or less true or important than other books of prophecy.

Go ahead, if you would, and open your Bibles to Daniel chapter 7. Daniel 7-12 is one of the most famous apocalyptic texts in the Bible. What's fascinating about Daniel 7 is that this text illuminates history at a very high level. In it we have what could be considered a panoramic picture of various kingdoms culminating with the consolidation all creation to Christ as King of Kings. MAIN POINT SLIDE

The main point that this sermon is meant to emphasize and that this text supports is that “Earthly kingdom's rise and fall but the reign of Christ over everything will never end, it cannot be destroyed and is one in which the believer takes part in.”

Let’s go to prayer before we begin.

PRAYER

Sovereignty

Grace

Revelation

SERMON Before we get into this fascinating text we need to understand that it is massively dependent upon the context to determine its correct meaning. So, here is the context. Daniel, whose name means “God is my judge,” was a very important man that lived at approximately the same time as the prophets Jeremiah and Ezekiel. As a young man he was exiled from Judea to Babylon in 605 B.C. and was trained by King Nebuchadnezzar’s officials to serve in the king’s court. CONTEXT SLIDE 1

He distinguished himself from those around him by his ability to see other peoples dreams and visions as well as the having the ability interpret them.

Perhaps the most significant interpretation took place relatively early in his career. If you will recall in Daniel chapter 2 King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream. He was so disturbed by it, that he demanded that his magicians, conjurers, sorcerers and Chaldaeans tell him not only the dream but its interpretation. He threatened them with death if they could not do both (Daniel 2:3-6).

Long story short they couldn't do this, nobody could tell King Nebuchadnezzar his dream and its interpretation and so all of these diviners were sentenced to death. What happened next was nothing short of amazing... Daniel prayed with his friends and received the dream and its interpretation which he communicated to the king - saving his own life and the life of his friends... The dream was a fascinating one. THE STATUE

God had chosen to reveal to King Nebuchadnezzar the broad sweeps of human history. King Nebuchadnezzar had been wondering that night what the future would hold (Daniel 2:29) and God showed him that his Kingdom was the peak or pinnacle of human kingdoms. Babylon was shown as the head of a massive statue and this head was made of gold. The statue had other familiar anatomical parts as well. A chest and arms, and a belly and thighs, legs and finally feet. These were comprised of various materials in descending value and represented future kingdoms...

The Head, which was Babylon was made from gold. The Chest and Arms of silver was the kingdom of the Medes and Persians. The belly of bronze was the kingdom of Greece and Rome were seen as the iron legs. The last kingdom is a “divided kingdom” made of both iron and clay which made up the feet. In the last part of the Nebuchadnezzar’s dream Daniel saw a large rock cut from a mountain and this rock demolished the statue.CONTEXT SLIDE 2

In our passage today in Daniel 7 we get more light on this divided kingdom as well as the stone cut from a mountain without human hands. We would expect to see this further explanation take place immediately afterwards in chapter 3 but the book of Daniel is not set in chronological order. Daniel 7 takes place 14 years before chapter 5 when another king, king Belshazzar saw the vision of the handwriting on the wall. It also takes place before Daniel was locked in the lion’s den in chapter 6.

This vision in chapter 7 stunned Daniel, because he was not simply interpreting another’s dream as previously, no, now he is experiencing the vision first hand and it was alarming to him probably for the same reason why King Nebuchadnezzar was so spooked by his dream in chapter 2. Human history did not go according to man’s expectations. The timelines were different than expected. Amazing human kingdoms would rise and fall and the last human kingdom would be an unholy admixture of humanity and the demonic.

Ultimately, all would be crushed and God would establish a kingdom that would never fail with Christ as its righteous King. MAIN POINT

Again the main point you need to get from this sermon is that “Earthly kingdoms rise and fall, but the reign of Christ over everything will never end, cannot be destroyed and is one which the Believer takes part in”

That is the larger context and the immediate context of our passage is this. It is approximately 550 B.C. and an older Daniel, in his mid-sixties is having a dream. Let’s begin in chapter 7 verse 1. SLIDE I.a.

I. 07:01-08 The Alarming Vision Begins

a. 07:01 The Setting of the Vision

1 In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon Daniel saw a dream and visions in his mind as he lay on his bed; then he wrote the dream down and related the following summary of it.

Daniel was so disturbed by this dream that he recorded the details of it. Daniel knew that this vision was not a normal nightmare. The details of the dream parallel the passage in Chapter 2 of Nebuchadnezzar’s Statue and we will see how intentionally he is going about to find out the details… He will say over and over again in chapter 7 “I was looking, I was looking, I was looking...” He knows this is divine revelation and he is very intentional about getting it right..verse 2 SLIDE I.b Here he sees the....

b. 07:02-07 The Four Great Beasts

2 Daniel said, “I was looking in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of heaven were stirring up the great sea.

3 “And four great beasts were coming up from the sea, different from one another.

The four winds of heaven - winds from the cardinal directions, stir up the great sea. The great sea is a metaphor for all the nations. This vision is indicative of events impacting all of humanity. Daniel saw something emerge from the sea. Four great beasts. These beasts proceed one after another, they are successive (SLOW DOWN - ENUNCIATE) not concurrent and they are big, abnormally so and they represent kingdoms of the earth. Again, this vision is to be interpreted in light of the vision about the statue. Kingdoms are in view here. Verse 4. BEAST SLIDE

4 “The first was like a lion and had the wings of an eagle. I kept looking until its wings were plucked, and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand on two feet like a man; a human mind also was given to it.

Let’s talk about this lion… So much of this book is interconnected that the more time I spend in it the more relationships I see. SPEAK SLOW.... This first great beast parallels the head of gold, which is Babylon in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream in Daniel 2, but it also echoes what took place in Daniel 4...

What happened in Daniel 4? Daniel is called by a proud King Nebuchadnezzar to interpret another dream that he had had. A dream about a tree, that was chopped down, because it exalted itself, it magnified itself… This chopped down tree was ultimately allowed to live. A year later the dream was fulfilled when King Nebuchadnezzar was humbled by losing his mind.

King Nebuchadnezzar was driven away from mankind and lived out in the open with the beasts of the field but was ultimately restored after 7 years… This parallels what we just read in verse 4. In verse 4 the king of beasts, the lion with the wings of the king of the birds - the eagle, the very peak of the peak royalty - think golden head here… The beast like a lion is humiliated but then made to stand erect and was given its mind. This is Babylon represented here but it is succeeded, followed by the kingdom of the Medes and Persians - the chest of silver. verse 5

5 “And behold, another beast, a second one, resembling a bear. And it was raised up on one side, and three ribs were in its mouth between its teeth; and thus they said to it, ‘Arise, devour much meat!’

This second great beast was the kingdoms of the Medes & Persians which conquered Babylon in 539 B.C. . The bear is raised up on one side because these two different kingdoms, the Medes and Persians, were not one kingdom, they were not equal they were not the same, but two different and commingled kingdoms. The Persian kingdom was greater than the Median kingdom. Cyrus, was the king of Persia that ultimately returned the Jews to Israel to build a temple to God there (Ezra 1:1-3) and Darius was the king of the Medes that took over Babylon from Belshazzar in Daniel 5:30-31 - in the vision of the handwriting on the wall. This vision of the bear corresponds to the chest of silver and the three ribs are likely the Medio Persian Empires greatest enemies Egypt, Lydia and Babylon. Which is why it is described as devouring “much meat...”

In verse 6 we see the kingdom of Greece that in Nebuchadnezzar’s statue was represented by the belly of bronze… Verse 6

6 “After this I kept looking, and behold, another one, like a leopard, which had on its back four wings of a bird; the beast also had four heads, and dominion was given to it.

Greece is represented here now and Greece’s most notable ruler was Alexander the Great who ruled during the 4th Century BC - in Bible lingo we would call this the inter-testamental period - meaning the gap of time between when the Old and New Testament. So after Babylon, after the Medes and Persians then Greece takes the scene...

Alexander’s kingdom was lightning fast like a leopard while the four wings further the idea of lethal speed here. The four heads of the beast are his four generals that took over Alexander’s kingdom after he died and obviously, much more can be said about the parallels here but I am trying to cover the main ones.

In verse 7 we see the legs of Iron… initially described as Rome in Daniel 2 and then shown as the feet made of iron and clay - a mixture of human kingdoms with demonic influence.

7 “After this I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrifying and extremely strong; and it had large iron teeth. It devoured and crushed and trampled down the remainder with its feet; and it was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns.

It should be noted that at no point in time in Rome’s day did they have ten concurrent or simultaneous rulers. This is a future Empire that the world has not seen yet. If the first Rome was brutal and tyrannical this future manifestation will be the more so. If you would like to read more about this future kingdom please note in your margin to read Revelation 17. These ten horns are ten kings and they have one job… to transfer power to the little horn in verse 8 (Revelation 17:12-13). SLIDE I.c

c. 07:08 The Little Horn

8 “While I was contemplating the horns, behold, another horn, a little one, came up among them, and three of the first horns were pulled out by the roots before it; and behold, this horn possessed eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth uttering great boasts.

I have been emphasizing Daniel’s key phrase “I kept looking,” but here a different work is used - מִשְׂתַּכַּ֨ל - from a very uncommon root meaning “to contemplate.” Daniel is pondering on these 10 human kings when he sees a small horn, the antichrist, that doesn’t stay small, it gets bigger and uproots several of the previous horns. This little horn possesses features similar to mankind but it is excessively boastful - this is the antichrist that is against God in all things…

This is a dreadful and terrifying dream however, it is nothing compared to the vision of the Ancient of Days

In verses 9-12 Daniel sees God take the throne… SLIDE II.a

II. 07:09-12 The Ancient of Days Reigns Supreme

a. 07:09-10 Thrones and the Throne

9 “I kept looking Until thrones were set up, And the Ancient of Days took His seat; His vesture was like white snow And the hair of His head like pure wool. His throne was ablaze with flames, Its wheels were a burning fire.

This is a huge transition. We shift from a mouthy horn set on a terrifying beast to the Ancient of Days. God of eternity past, present and future. The great I AM, YHWH, the Self-Existent One. Here, Daniel sees God take His throne and He is described as perfectly pure and His throne is far more terrifying as it is ablaze with a fire that flows from it in judgment. He is true power and authority.... These great beasts, these kingdoms are seen as insignificant, small, bestial... and they are about to be judged... Verse 10

10 “A river of fire was flowing And coming out from before Him; Thousands upon thousands were attending Him, And myriads upon myriads (A MYRIAD IS TEN THOUSAND OR COUNTLESS) were standing before Him; The court sat, And the books were opened.

Court is now in session and the evidence is presented…

All of humanity will be judged… PAUSE All of humanity will be judged righteously. The books have within them recorded all thoughts and all actions and if salvation is scorned it is known. Judgment is the destination.

This fire pictured here as flowing from the throne just keeps on coming, perhaps it is by this river that the lake of fire is infinitely supplied with pain and torment… I don’t know. I do know that this punishment lasts forever. There is no ultimate annihilation, there is no point in time when “love wins” and all is forgiven, there are no slap-on-the-wrist punishments in God’s economy… If people scorn God’s precious Son there is nothing but everlasting pain waiting for them… Furthermore Jesus said in Matthew 25:41 that this place of punishment has been prepared and made specifically for the devil and his angels.

Sounds pretty horrible… sinners occupying a space designed to torment satan and his angels.... Folks, we were never meant for this. Humanity was made in God’s image for relationship with it’s Creator. Not to be tormented forever but that is what we will get if we reject Him.

Folks this is going to happen. It is repeated so often through the Bible that there is no way it cannot happen. For those that reject Christ there is a fountain of fire filling a lake that they will never escape but Revelation 22:1 tells us that a river of water also flows from this throne…

This river of water is described as crystal clear - not murky like the swamps surrounding Babylon - the tree of life is also there and it constantly bears fruit and is for the healing of the nations - those that have been called of God, believer’s, called out ones, the ἐκκλησία, the church. They will not be tortured… no, they will be healed, restored and the curse removed. Not because we were so great but because Jesus Christ is and believers get His righteousness credited to them because they believe.

But before we get to our Savior we still need to see how God judges this little horn… Verse 11 SLIDE II.b

b. 07:11-12 The Beast and Its Horn Judged

11 “Then I kept looking because of the sound of the boastful words which the horn was speaking; I kept looking until the beast was slain, and its body was destroyed and given to the burning fire. 12 “As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but an extension of life was granted to them for an appointed period of time.

Revelation 19:20 sheds more light on this scene and tells us who and what this is about…

Revelation 19:20 | And the beast was seized, and with him the false prophet who performed the signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image; these two were thrown alive into the lake of fire which burns with brimstone.

The Ancient of Days will not tolerate this self-exalting horn, or the beasts… they will all fall in judgment…

We have already seen two big scenes but now we will see our third, our dear One, The Son of Man… SLIDE III.a

III. 07:13-14 Behold, the Son of Man!

a. 07:13 The Son of Man Approaches the Ancient of Days!

13 “I kept looking in the night visions, And behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming, And He came up to the Ancient of Days And was presented before Him.

Can I nerd out here a bit…? This scene of the Son of Man being presented to the Ancient of Days is fascinating because of how and when Jesus mentioned it in the Synoptic Gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke… Do you recall when Jesus was being examined by the high priest prior to His crucifixion. He used this idea of the Son of Man with the Ancient of Days as a claim to Deity and also as a threat... The high priest demanded, “Tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God...” and Jesus replied, “You have said it yourself; nevertheless I tell you, hereafter you will see THE SON OF MAN SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF POWER, and COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN.”

The high priest thought he had come up with a convenient expedient way to get rid of a rival religious nuisance but he was dealing with the beloved and all powerful Son of Man… Jesus uses this self designation more than any other, over 100 times… well over the paltry 4 times Jesus was recorded in John as calling Himself the Son of God...Matt 24.30

Matt 26.64 This is a threat

Mark 13.26

Mark 14.62 This is a threat

Luke 21.27

Rev 1.7

Rev 1.13

Rev 14.14

Interesting that Jesus calls Himself the Son of Man more than any other self-designation+100 times in the gospels

He intentionally associates Himself with this title… He knows that this is speaking about Him… turn with me to Matthew 16:13-16... What does our Lord ask His disciples here in verse 13

Matthew 16:13–16 | Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He was asking His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Jesus is the Son of Man, and lets hear what He is entitled to in verse 14… He is entitled to READ TITLE SLIDE III.b

b. 07:14 Give Him Glory and Unending Sovereignty!

14 “And to Him (THE SON OF MAN HERE) was given dominion, Glory and a kingdom, That all the peoples, nations and men of every language Might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion Which will not pass away; And His kingdom is one Which will not be destroyed.

It doesn’t matter that satan had offered it to Him in Luke 4:1-13... He was always going to get it. Why? Because it had been planned this way. Jesus is not just the child of Mary, human, the Son of Man, He is also God. Not 50/50, not alternating between aspects, He is GodMan - eternal, sovereign and this had been planned before it had ever commenced.

Well, I have sought to interpret this passage as we went along but now we are going to hear the text interpret itself in the last half of the passage… Starting in verse 15 we will hear the vision summarized and interpreted as I wrap up this message… SLIDE IV.a

IV. 07:15-28 Daniel's Vision Interpreted

a. 07:15-18 The Interpretation Summarized

15 “As for me, Daniel, my spirit was distressed within me, and the visions in my mind kept alarming me.

16 “I approached one of those who were standing by and began asking him the exact meaning of all this. So he told me and made known to me the interpretation of these things:

17 ‘These great beasts, which are four in number, are four kings who will arise from the earth.

18 ‘But the saints of the Highest One will receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, for all ages to come.’ SLIDE IV.b

b. 07:19-22 The Truth Concerning the Beast and the Ancient of Days

19 “Then I desired to know the exact meaning of the fourth beast, which was different from all the others, exceedingly dreadful, with its teeth of iron and its claws of bronze, and which devoured, crushed and trampled down the remainder with its feet,

20 and the meaning of the ten horns that were on its head and the other horn which came up, and before which three of them fell, namely, that horn which had eyes and a mouth uttering great boasts and which was larger in appearance than its associates.

21 “I kept looking, and that horn was waging war with the saints and overpowering them

22 until the Ancient of Days came and judgment was passed in favor of the saints of the Highest One, and the time arrived when the saints took possession of the kingdom.

SLIDE IV.c

c. 07:23-27 An In-Depth Explanation

23 “Thus he said: ‘The fourth beast will be a fourth kingdom on the earth, which will be different from all the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth and tread it down and crush it.

24 ‘As for the ten horns, out of this kingdom ten kings will arise; and another will arise after them, and he will be different from the previous ones and will subdue three kings.

25 ‘He will speak out against the Most High and wear down the saints of the Highest One, and he will intend to make alterations in times and in law; and they will be given into his hand for a time, times, and half a time.

Is the Most High the Ancient of Days or the Son of Man?

3.5 years Daniel 9:27 / Daniel 4:16, Daniel 4:23-25 Daniel 4:32

likely this is the final 3.5 years before Christ’s return to the earth

26 ‘But the court will sit for judgment, and his dominion will be taken away, annihilated and destroyed forever.

27 ‘Then the sovereignty, the dominion and the greatness of all the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be given to the people of the saints of the Highest One; His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all the dominions will serve and obey Him.’ SLIDE IV.d

d. 07:28 The Alarming Vision Ends App Pt

28 “At this point the revelation ended. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts were greatly alarming me and my face grew pale, but I kept the matter to myself.”

Daniel was spooked, alarmed, upset at the details that were revealed to him. He saw that kingdoms would rise and fall, the people of God would face tribulation multiple times over and persecution and history has born that out and yet we are closer to completion of God’s redemptive plan that he was. Application point

I think we should be encouraged from this passage - for two reasons… This passage was set in a context of Babylonian captivity - the Golden Head and major kingdoms would rise after it - Medio-Persia, Greece, Rome and this final terrifying kingdom… But we are nearer to seeing this plan completed than Daniel was so I think the application point that I want to pull out of this is to take heart.

Take heart that history has validated the veracity and accuracy of the divine revelation given to Daniel.

But we can also take heart that those that trust in the Son of Man can know that His redemption is effective, enough to save us from the righteous wrath of the Ancient of Days.... Hebrews 12:25 says

Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe (Hebrews 12:25)

Daniel saw an incredible panorama of human history and he saw the big picture… He saw terrifying kingdoms coming, he saw persecution and tribulation but he also saw the Son of Man take possession of all the earth and that His saints would rule with Him.

Conclusion

I hope we leave today encouraged. Trouble will come in our lives, that isn’t new… it happened throughout Daniel’s life but those that trust in God and His sovereign plan can have hope now, in a time of hopelessness. The world may seem crazy and out of control and it is but the Ancient of Days has never lost control and will ultimately judge all the injustice that has ever taken place… Remember as we leave today that Christ is coming again, take heart… Romans 13:11-12 for now salvation is nearer to us than when we believed... The night is almost gone, and the day is near.

Please stand and I will close in prayer...

SUMMARY PRAYER

G

FINAL SONG

As a final note next week we will be studying

Where’s Jesus

He is the Son of Man Daniel 7:13-14

Daniel 7:13–14 NASB95

“I kept looking in the night visions, And behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming, And He came up to the Ancient of Days And was presented before Him. “And to Him was given dominion, Glory and a kingdom, That all the peoples, nations and men of every language Might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion Which will not pass away; And His kingdom is one Which will not be destroyed.

Matthew 26:65-66

Matthew 26:65–66 NASB95

Then the high priest tore his robes and said, “He has blasphemed! What further need do we have of witnesses? Behold, you have now heard the blasphemy; what do you think?” They answered, “He deserves death!”

Matthew 24:15 NASB95

“Therefore when you see the abomination of desolation which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand),

MAY JUST SUMMARIZE JOHNS WORDS IF I GO START GOING OVER 6K WORDS… In Revelation 20:11-15 we read

11 Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them. 12 And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds. 13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them; and they were judged, every one of them according to their deeds. 14 Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. 15 And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

The fourth beast will succeed where hitler, alexander the great, Genghis khan failed