Anticipate God's Kingdom (Daniel 5)
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CPT: God judges evil kingdoms and gives control to whom he wants.
Purpose: The church needs to exalt Jesus and follow his leadership.
CPS: Live your life anticipating God’s kingdom.
Introduction
Christians should be people in anticipation. We should have a sense of expectation about our hope in Jesus. The Bible tells us that Jesus is coming again. We live in expectation of his return and anticipating his kingdom.
When I think of anticipation, I think of a joyful expectation. We know something is coming, and we are excited about it. As a kid, I remember anticipating Christmas, which by the way, is in 126 days. I would look forward to the gifts as the time shortened to Christmas. I was looking forward to new GI Joe toys or whatever else I wanted.
I know what Jesus meant when he said we should have faith like a child. I believe that I accepted Christ as a child because I had a sense of clarity about who Jesus was. He was God. I would hear the stories of Jesus coming again and stare up at the sky late at night, wondering if this would be the night that Jesus was coming again. When I got older, there were times that I was doing that again, but this time I was asking for a rapture because the rent was due.
We will be in Daniel 5, and where we are in Daniel, we are getting deeper into the prophetic side of this book. We will see the fulfillment of prophecy from one kingdom to another. Ultimately, the book of Daniel will point us to the coming of God's kingdom. How can we live with anticipation of God's kingdom? Let's look into this chapter.
Scripture Reading
1 King Belshazzar held a great feast for a thousand of his nobles and drank wine in their presence.
2 Under the influence of the wine, Belshazzar gave orders to bring in the gold and silver vessels that his predecessor Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple in Jerusalem, so that the king and his nobles, wives, and concubines could drink from them.
3 So they brought in the gold vessels that had been taken from the temple, the house of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his nobles, wives, and concubines drank from them.
4 They drank the wine and praised their gods made of gold and silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone.
5 At that moment the fingers of a man’s hand appeared and began writing on the plaster of the king’s palace wall next to the lampstand. As the king watched the hand that was writing,
6 his face turned pale, and his thoughts so terrified him that he soiled himself and his knees knocked together.
7 The king shouted to bring in the mediums, Chaldeans, and diviners. He said to these wise men of Babylon, “Whoever reads this inscription and gives me its interpretation will be clothed in purple, have a gold chain around his neck, and have the third highest position in the kingdom.”
8 So all the king’s wise men came in, but none could read the inscription or make its interpretation known to him.
9 Then King Belshazzar became even more terrified, his face turned pale, and his nobles were bewildered.
10 Because of the outcry of the king and his nobles, the queen came to the banquet hall. “May the king live forever,” she said. “Don’t let your thoughts terrify you or your face be pale.
11 There is a man in your kingdom who has a spirit of the holy gods in him. In the days of your predecessor he was found to have insight, intelligence, and wisdom like the wisdom of the gods. Your predecessor, King Nebuchadnezzar, appointed him chief of the magicians, mediums, Chaldeans, and diviners. Your own predecessor, the king,
12 did this because Daniel, the one the king named Belteshazzar, was found to have an extraordinary spirit, knowledge and intelligence, and the ability to interpret dreams, explain riddles, and solve problems. Therefore, summon Daniel, and he will give the interpretation.”
13 Then Daniel was brought before the king. The king said to him, “Are you Daniel, one of the Judean exiles that my predecessor the king brought from Judah?
14 I’ve heard that you have a spirit of the gods in you, and that insight, intelligence, and extraordinary wisdom are found in you.
15 Now the wise men and mediums were brought before me to read this inscription and make its interpretation known to me, but they could not give its interpretation.
16 However, I have heard about you that you can give interpretations and solve problems. Therefore, if you can read this inscription and give me its interpretation, you will be clothed in purple, have a gold chain around your neck, and have the third highest position in the kingdom.”
17 Then Daniel answered the king, “You may keep your gifts and give your rewards to someone else; however, I will read the inscription for the king and make the interpretation known to him.
18 Your Majesty, the Most High God gave sovereignty, greatness, glory, and majesty to your predecessor Nebuchadnezzar.
19 Because of the greatness he gave him, all peoples, nations, and languages were terrified and fearful of him. He killed anyone he wanted and kept alive anyone he wanted; he exalted anyone he wanted and humbled anyone he wanted.
20 But when his heart was exalted and his spirit became arrogant, he was deposed from his royal throne and his glory was taken from him.
21 He was driven away from people, his mind was like an animal’s, he lived with the wild donkeys, he was fed grass like cattle, and his body was drenched with dew from the sky until he acknowledged that the Most High God is ruler over human kingdoms and sets anyone he wants over them.
22 “But you his successor, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, even though you knew all this.
23 Instead, you have exalted yourself against the Lord of the heavens. The vessels from his house were brought to you, and as you and your nobles, wives, and concubines drank wine from them, you praised the gods made of silver and gold, bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which do not see or hear or understand. But you have not glorified the God who holds your life-breath in his hand and who controls the whole course of your life.
24 Therefore, he sent the hand, and this writing was inscribed.
25 “This is the writing that was inscribed: Mene, Mene, Tekel, and Parsin.
26 This is the interpretation of the message: ‘Mene’ means that God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end.
27 ‘Tekel’ means that you have been weighed on the balance and found deficient.
28 ‘Peres’ means that your kingdom has been divided and given to the Medes and Persians.”
29 Then Belshazzar gave an order, and they clothed Daniel in purple, placed a gold chain around his neck, and issued a proclamation concerning him that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom.
30 That very night Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans was killed,
31 and Darius the Mede received the kingdom at the age of sixty-two.
Pray
We learn about the fulfillment of God's promises in Daniel 5, which will ultimately point us to God's future kingdom. I think we can learn a few things about the coming of God's kingdom through the events of Daniel 5.
First,
God’s kingdom will come at an unexpected moment.
God’s kingdom will come at an unexpected moment.
State the point; Anchor the point; Validate the point; Explain the point
Text: Daniel 5:5; Ex. 31:18; Luke 11:20; Acts 1:6-7; Matt. 24:36-44; John 7:6
God appears to the king at a time he did not expect. People are impatient with God's timing, yet God's timing is perfect. Live with anticipation of God's kingdom.
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God’s appearance is sudden.
What strikes me about this story is how sudden it is. The king enjoys this great feast with a thousand of his highest nobles. He's drinking it up, laughing, and having a good time.
He's had a few drinks, and he remembers that there are these beautiful vessels that Nebuchadnezzar brought back with him after conquering Jerusalem. Well, you know he wants to flaunt his wealth in front of his guests. You see, they thought that their gods were the reason they had this great victory.
Daniel mentions later that the king had some knowledge of Nebuchadnezzar's dealing with the God of Israel. But at this moment, the king is ignoring all of those things. He takes these holy vessels from the temple, fills them up with wine, and uses them to impress all of his nobles with his wealth and power.
That's when the "all of a sudden" occurs. It says this in verse 5.
5 At that moment the fingers of a man’s hand appeared and began writing on the plaster of the king’s palace wall next to the lampstand. As the king watched the hand that was writing,
"At that moment." It's interesting how everything can change in a moment, especially when trying to do your own thing. You're focused on what you have going on, and life happens. Reality sort of hits you in the face.
Yet this reality was something the king wasn't planning. It says that "the fingers of a man's hand" started writing on the wall! The king is so scared that it's graphic. The king grows pale, soils himself, and starts panicking.
God's finger was bringing judgment against the king and the kingdom. What's important in this verse is the king's prior knowledge. Verse 22 says that the king knew what the God of Israel had done to Nebuchadnezzar.
Maybe for Belshazzar, he felt those were just stories, things that didn't need his attention. But here's the thing: God's power and judgment don't depend on whether you feel like paying attention to it.
This verse in Scripture isn't the first time we see God's finger writing something. God called Moses up to a mountain called Mount Sinai. It says this in Exodus 31:18.
18 When he finished speaking with Moses on Mount Sinai, he gave him the two tablets of the testimony, stone tablets inscribed by the finger of God.
Moses has been up there for a long time. Now, the people at the bottom got tired of waiting for Moses. They decided that the God of Israel didn't have power. They decided to do their own thing.
They built an idol that made them feel comfortable and started partying. It's a lot like what we see in Daniel 5. Then Moses shows up with the tablets inscribed by the finger of God, and there is a judgment upon the people of Israel.
People rebel against God’s power and timing.
People are impatient. But I think it's worse than that here. People like to deny God's power. They try to rationalize things in a way that restricts God's ability to do something.
You see this in Jesus' ministry. Jesus was driving out demons, but some in the crowd were trying to rationalize it. Jesus didn't fit into their preconceived notions of God. God didn't work with Jesus like they wanted God to work.
See, they had crafted and formed an idea of God in their mind that did things according to their own will. To try and rationalize Jesus, they accused Jesus of driving out demons by Satan. Listen in Luke 11:20 to how Jesus responds to those in the crowd denying God's power in Jesus.
20 If I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
God's power in Jesus was the finger of God, a judgment upon their hearts. The kingdom of God was upon them. He says a few verses later in verse 23, "Anyone who is not with me is against me."
People are impatient with God’s timetable.
It's not only God's power. People are impatient with God's timing. I grew up hearing many pastors speak about Jesus coming again. I've listened to it for years.
There have been abuses. In New York in 2011, a radio preacher said that Jesus was coming on a particular date that year. He invested a bunch of money advertising it around the city. The date came and went. Nothing happened. No rapture. Nothing.
People get impatient with God. You even see this in the disciples. They start to ask Jesus about the kingdom. When is it happening? Look at Acts 1:6.
6 So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, are you restoring the kingdom to Israel at this time?”
7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority.
Jesus does not deny that God is restoring the kingdom to Israel, only that it is not up to man to determine the time. Only God has the authority to set his timetable.
Jesus describes his second coming as something sudden. Luke at Matthew 24:43-44.
43 But know this: If the homeowner had known what time the thief was coming, he would have stayed alert and not let his house be broken into.
44 This is why you are also to be ready, because the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.
It is not up to Christians to force God's timetable. Instead, Christians are to be ready. Look at what Jesus says about timing in John 7:6.
6 Jesus told them, “My time has not yet arrived, but your time is always at hand.
For people, any time is a good time. Thank God, the Lord is wiser than man. Thank God the Lord waited long enough to save a sinner like me. When will Jesus return? At the perfect time. We're impatient. We want him to come at any time. But God's timing is perfect. He and his kingdom will arrive at the right time.
Heading: Expectations - Martin Luther said this,
Christian Quotations Second Coming Of
Christ designed that the day of his coming should be hid from us, that being in suspense, we might be as it were upon the watch.
The best thing to know about the timing of his coming is that he wants us to be ready. Live with anticipation of his return, and be ready when he arrives.
God’s kingdom will come at an unexpected moment.
Second,
God’s kingdom brings judgment and exposes the hidden things.
God’s kingdom brings judgment and exposes the hidden things.
State the point; Anchor the point; Validate the point; Explain the point
Text: Dan. 5:22-24; 26-27; Mark 4:21-25; Matt. 25:31-33; Rev. 14:6-7
God's intervening with the king brought judgment against his heart and judgment for the kingdom. The second coming of Jesus and his kingdom will bring God's judgment to the world. We are all responsible before God.
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God’s judgment against the king’s heart.
God's intervening here at this moment brings judgment both on the king and his kingdom. For King Belshazzar, God's judgment is against his heart. Daniel brings this out in verses 22 to 24.
22 “But you his successor, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, even though you knew all this.
23 Instead, you have exalted yourself against the Lord of the heavens. The vessels from his house were brought to you, and as you and your nobles, wives, and concubines drank wine from them, you praised the gods made of silver and gold, bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which do not see or hear or understand. But you have not glorified the God who holds your life-breath in his hand and who controls the whole course of your life.
24 Therefore, he sent the hand, and this writing was inscribed.
The king has failed to humble his heart before God. What's important is that the king had prior knowledge about God. He knew all the God of Israel had done to Nebuchadnezzar, which should have impacted him. But instead, the king thought much about himself and not enough about God.
It says he exalted himself above God. How often do people do that? People consider themselves the most important and justify actions based on their wants, not God.
The king's actions remind us of the importance of remembering who gets the glory in our life. God holds our life breath in his hand. He controls the course of our life, and yet we act as if it's all up to us. We like to pretend like it was all us. Yet, who gives us talents and abilities? Who provides us with a heartbeat, a mind to think, and eyes to see? Remember who has the power and who gets the glory for the goodness in your life.
The writing on the wall has specific items against the king and his heart. Look at verse 27.
27 ‘Tekel’ means that you have been weighed on the balance and found deficient.
The word for Tekel there sounds like the word for "weighed." The king is deficient before God. His spiritual and moral stance is not up to God's standard.
Now, you might ask, isn't that the same for all of us? It certainly is. If God measured all our deeds on the scale, we would all be deficient before God.
If not for Jesus, the handwriting on the wall would be against all of us. We are all deficient before God.
God’s judgment against the entire kingdom.
The judgment against the king is also a judgment against the kingdom. Remember how the king was leading his kingdom? He led all of his nobles to sin against the God of heaven.
They all participated in drinking from the sacred vessels. They all participated in worshipping the idols of Babylon. Through his leadership, he led his kingdom to its judgment. Look at verse 26.
26 This is the interpretation of the message: ‘Mene’ means that God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end.
The deficiencies of the king led to the shortcomings of the kingdom. God's judgment is against the king and the entire kingdom.
When leaders exalt themselves and make themselves the most important, their leadership can take down entire organizations. Why? Because people will follow their leader over a cliff.
Godly leadership needs a leader who submits to Christ. Why is that? Because God will not share his throne. There is only one leader, and his name is Jesus.
God’s judgment exposes the hidden things.
When this judgment against the king and his kingdom comes, it comes in a place and time that could be considered hidden.
They were in a private location. The king and his nobles were in Babylon, away from Israel and their God. They were in the privacy of the king's palace and dining with friends.
This story of God's intervention against the Babylonian king reminds us there is nothing hidden from God. God knows our hearts and our deeds. Jesus spoke about this in Mark 4:21.
21 He also said to them, “Is a lamp brought in to be put under a basket or under a bed? Isn’t it to be put on a lampstand?
22 For there is nothing hidden that will not be revealed, and nothing concealed that will not be brought to light.
23 If anyone has ears to hear, let him listen.”
24 And he said to them, “Pay attention to what you hear. By the measure you use, it will be measured to you—and more will be added to you.
25 For whoever has, more will be given to him, and whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.”
Filler.
The king did not pay attention to what he heard about his predecessor.
Jesus’ second coming will bring judgment
God's intervention in human history brings judgment. When God shows up to the king and his nobles, it brings judgment upon the king and his nobles.
In Jesus' first coming, the Son of God took on humanity's judgment on the cross. In his second coming, the return of Christ brings judgment to the world. Look at Matthew 25:31.
31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne.
32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate them one from another, just as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on the left.
In Matthew 25, you see the return of Jesus as the Messiah King, established over his kingdom. The nations gather before the king. Jesus knows his people, and there is nothing hidden from his sight. He knows those who are his.
The book of Revelation tells us of God's judgment on the world during the Tribulation. The Tribulation leads up to the return of Christ and the establishment of his kingdom on earth.
Look at a description of God's judgment in Revelation 14:6.
6 Then I saw another angel flying high overhead, with the eternal gospel to announce to the inhabitants of the earth—to every nation, tribe, language, and people.
7 He spoke with a loud voice: “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship the one who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water.”
Fear God and give him glory. Worship the one who made heaven and earth. This sounds like Daniel before the king. The king did not exalt the one who has his life breath in his hand.
God’s judgment exposes the truth that we are all responsible before God, and we all need his mercy in our life.
Heading: Responsible before God - What does it mean to be responsible? Every four years, we hold someone accountable for their actions—we vote for a president as a nation. Whatever your politics are, you have a sense of expectation about what that president will do. You hold him responsible for the privilege and gift of that office.
In the same way, God created us and gave us life. There is an expectation of how we should live before him. When the Spirit of God uses the good news of Jesus in our lives, God exposes the need within us for Jesus. We need his righteousness to be ready for his kingdom.
God’s kingdom will come at an unexpected moment.
God’s kingdom brings judgment and exposes the hidden things.
Transition
God’s kingdom is the fulfillment of God’s promises to his people.
God’s kingdom is the fulfillment of God’s promises to his people.
State the point; Anchor the point; Validate the point; Explain the point
Text: Dan. 5:28, 30-31; Dan. 2:39; Jer. 51:11; Is. 55:10-11; Acts 28:30-31; Matt. 24:14; Rev. 1:1-3
The events of Daniel 5 show that God knows the future and is faithful to his promises. The kingdom of God is near.
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God fulfills the prophecy of the next kingdom.
Daniel 5 is a fulfillment of prophecy. The kingdom of Babylon is falling. Look at verse 28.
28 ‘Peres’ means that your kingdom has been divided and given to the Medes and Persians.”
In verse 30:
30 That very night Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans was killed,
31 and Darius the Mede received the kingdom at the age of sixty-two.
Daniel's book shows a buildup from Nebuchadnezzar's dream in Daniel 2. The book of Daniel leads us through prophecies of different kingdoms.
In Nebuchadnezzar's dream, he saw a statue with a gold head. The gold of the figure was a representation of the kingdom of Babylon. Beneath the gold was a chest and arms of silver. Daniel talks about that part of the statue in Daniel 2:39.
39 “After you, there will arise another kingdom, inferior to yours, and then another, a third kingdom, of bronze, which will rule the whole earth.
Daniel 5 fulfills that prophecy. The Medes and Persians conquered the Babylonians, but they were an inferior kingdom. They never had the central control that Babylon had.
God prophesied that the Medes would conquer the Babylonians in Isaiah and Jeremiah. Jeremiah's prophecy is interesting because of its specificity. Jeremiah mentions a sin against the temple years before the events of Daniel 5. Look at Jeremiah 51:11.
11 Sharpen the arrows! Fill the quivers! The Lord has roused the spirit of the kings of the Medes because his plan is aimed at Babylon to destroy her, for it is the Lord’s vengeance, vengeance for his temple.
What does all of this mean? It means that God has all things in control. He is not shocked by what is happening. More, he is in control of the future.
God is faithful to his promises.
It also means that God is faithful to his promises. He means what he says. Isaiah spoke about the faithfulness of God's promises in his word. Look at Isaiah 55:10.
10 For just as rain and snow fall from heaven and do not return there without saturating the earth and making it germinate and sprout, and providing seed to sow and food to eat,
11 so my word that comes from my mouth will not return to me empty, but it will accomplish what I please and will prosper in what I send it to do.”
God means what he says. What does that mean for us in Daniel 5? God's prophecies are accurate. Babylon is overtaken by an inferior kingdom, just like he said in Daniel 2.
God is accurate in the rest of the prophecy of Daniel 2. The gold head of the statue is Babylon. The silver is the Medes and the Persians. The next part of the statue prophesied Greece, and the next part predicted the Romans.
Where does that leave us in the prophecy? It doesn't end with the Romans. It ends with the kingdom of God.
God’s kingdom is near.
Which leaves us with, what is the kingdom of God? I believe the kingdom of God is both a now and a not yet. Jesus made clear pronouncements of the arrival of the kingdom of God at his first coming.
There are other statements of the kingdom of God as not yet, such as Jesus' answer to the apostle's question in Acts 1. We also read the description of Jesus sitting on his throne at his second coming.
What is interesting about the kingdom of God is how central it is to the teaching of Jesus. The end of Acts stood out to me, where we read about the activities of Paul in Rome. It says in Acts 28:30:
30 Paul stayed two whole years in his own rented house. And he welcomed all who visited him,
31 proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance.
Paul proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught people about Jesus. The Lord says this in Matthew 24:14:
14 This good news of the kingdom will be proclaimed in all the world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
People have preached the good news of Jesus for 2,000 years, and it has grown as a testimony to all nations. On God's timeline, the end is closer today than it was then.
The Bible tells us that the time is near. It says this at the beginning of the book of Revelation.
1 The revelation of Jesus Christ that God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John,
2 who testified to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, whatever he saw.
3 Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear the words of this prophecy and keep what is written in it, because the time is near.
Jesus is coming again. His second coming is soon. When the Lord comes, he comes in judgment and will rule and reign in his kingdom.
Yet the doors to the kingdom of God are open today. Jesus opened the doors to his kingdom at the cross. The Bible says that you can be a part of the kingdom of God through faith in Jesus. I don't know about you, but Jesus is my king. Trust in Jesus today while there is still time.
Conclusion
God’s kingdom will come at an unexpected moment.
God’s kingdom brings judgment and exposes the hidden things.
God’s kingdom is the fulfillment of God’s promises to his people.
Conclude
Have you heard the message today and realized that you need Jesus? Are you ready to put your faith in Jesus? We want to pray with you, and celebrate your new life. Please see one of our pastors after the service.
Blanks: an unexpected moment; judgment; exposes; hidden things; fulfillment; promises; his people.
Prayer
Last Song
Doxology
24 “May the Lord bless you and protect you;
25 may the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you;
26 may the Lord look with favor on you and give you peace.” ’
24 Now to him who is able to protect you from stumbling and to make you stand in the presence of his glory, without blemish and with great joy,
25 to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority before all time, now and forever. Amen.
You are dismissed. Have a great week in the Lord!
