Welcome to Delight in Grace. The Teaching Ministry of Rich Powell. Pastor of Grace Bible Church in Winston-Salem. In Daniel 2, 24-45, Daniel comes to the king who has demanded the impossible of his wise men. to interpret his dream.
but only after they tell him what the dream was in the first place. When Nebuchadnezzar asks if Daniel can tell both the dream and its meaning, Daniel points out that no man could, but that there is a God in heaven who can. See Nebuchadnezzar sought his answers and his power in the strength of man. But God reveals to him, through Daniel's interpretation of the dream, that man's kingdom is a vain struggle that will eventually fall. Only God's kingdom will stand.
Let's listen and remember that our God is the only one. Who can bring the peace? justice and righteousness that our world so desperately longs for. The title for today's message is The God of Heaven Will Set Up a Kingdom. The God of heaven will set up a kingdom.
Well, let's talk about where we've Been so far in the book of Daniel. In the year 605 BC, Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem. and sacked it and he took several heirs several royal heirs captive. Back to Babylon. Among them were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.
And as they went back to Babylon, the king put these four sharp, handsome, intelligent young men. Into The Royal Academy, to train for service for the king. They maintained faithfulness. To Jehovah God during that time, and that set them apart. God set them apart.
For this. And while they were still in that royal academy, Nebuchadnezzar had a dream. And it made him tremble. He was very upset about it. He did not know what the dream meant.
Now, he was surrounded with. Chaldeans. Astrologers. Magicians.
Soothsayers. These were all supposed to be wise men who consulted, who whom he could consult on the operation of his kingdom. And so he calls them and he says, I need to know what this dream is about, but in order to know that I can trust you, I need you to tell me the dream. That way I know I can trust you. And they say, Oh, Your Highness, live forever.
That's how they buttered their king up. May you live forever. We can't tell you what the dream is. Only the divine can do that. And Neb says, Yah, so Don't you worship gods?
I'm taking artistic liberties here. You understand that. That's what's going on. They said only the divine Can reveal what the dream was. If you tell us the dream, we might give you the interpretation.
But Neb said, that's not good enough. How do I know I can trust you? If you can't tell me what the dream is, how do I know I can trust you? with the interpretation of it. And so they could not.
And Nebuchadnezzar in his fury sends out a decree, kill all the wise men. They're shikesters. There's nothing genuine about what they're doing. And among those wise men Under that decree were Daniel, Hanani, Michael, and Azariah. And Ariok comes in.
And he says, guys, marching orders. We're headed out. to the gallows. And Daniel says, what's going on? What's the urgency about?
I says Neb's had a dream and his wise men can't tell him what it is.
So what does Daniel do? He goes back and he tells his friends. We need to pray. We need to seek the mercies of the living God. the God of heaven, And they did, they prayed, and God in His mercy revealed the dream to Daniel.
The Prophet Daniel. And so they thank God. If you look at verses 20 to 23, that is a hymn of praise, Daniel 2. A hymn of praise to the God of heaven who reveals secrets, the one who knows all things, who has no limit to his understanding. Because all of it is within his purpose.
And so Daniel says to Ariok, Stay the execution. Go tell the king I can tell him the interpretation of the dream. And Ariot goes to King Nebuchadnezzar and he says, O king, live forever. I have found a man. of the captives of Judah.
He's trying to take credit for it, you know. It's a good resume builder.
So Ariaka brings Daniel to King Nebuchadnezzar, and Nebuchadnezzar looks at young Daniel and he says. Can you tell me The dream. This was an excellent opportunity for Daniel to have a resume builder, wasn't it? Yes, O King, I can. What did Daniel say?
There is a God in heaven who reveals secrets. This is the God who made you. Yeah, but And he reveals secrets. Nab, your wise men could not. You asked of them a task that only the divine can reveal, and guess what?
They worship Non-gods. It was impossible task for them. But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets. He is the living God who communicates. and interacts with his creation.
And he communicates about his purpose. His plan and his people. We find that in verse thirty. But as for me, the secret has not been revealed to me, because I have more wisdom than any living anyone living. But for our sakes who make known the interpretation to the king, who's that?
Daniel, Hannah, Mishel, and Azriah. before Hebrews. And that you may know the thoughts of your heart. The thoughts of his heart were what's going to happen. You want to know what's going to happen in the world, Neb?
Here it is. And this is coming from the one who's planned it all.
So When the king asked Daniel, can you tell me the interpretation of the dream? Daniel did not make it about Daniel. He made it about the God whom he serves. What a good challenge for us. Let us just be faithful with the gifts God gives us, not make it about us, but about the one we serve and worship.
And so here comes the dream. Daniel gives to Nebuchadnezzar The rundown of the dream. This is what it is: the dream about what would come to pass after this. In other words, This is world history. Because here we are two and a half millennia later.
And we can look back and see how Much of this dream has already been fulfilled. And so in this dream, Daniel tells Nebuchadnezzar: you saw a great monument. A great monument. And this monument represents what's going to happen after this.
So it's world history. And so, first of all, he gives them the description. And we have that description beginning in verse thirty one And it's a great image, an image of a man, a monarch most likely. looking like this. And he says, The splendor was excellent and stood before you, and its form was awesome.
So you can imagine it was massive. And in Nebuchadnezzar's dream, as he was dreaming, this massive monument appears made of precious metals. And it's just it rattles him. What is the meaning of this? In terms of what ends up happening to This monument.
But he says this monument had a head of gold. A golden head. And then, as you move down, then there were the arms and the chest of silver.
So it's not gold anymore, it's silver. And then you keep moving down and you move to the abdomen area. It says belly in there. It's mean abs, you know, and this is made of bronze. And you know, if he's going to have bronze abs, it's going to be a washboard, a nice tight six-pack right there, right?
And then after The bronze abs, you keep moving down, and you're now at the legs. And now these legs are made of iron. They're strong and powerful, and they crush other kingdoms. But there's two of them, two legs. And then after the legs, and it keeps getting more and more inferior, then after the legs, you have the feet, including the ten toes.
And they're made of a combination of clay and iron.
Now, you know, clay and iron don't mix.
So that means something.
Now we know That in the interpretation that these Parts of this monument represent kingdoms. Because before we get to the rest of the dream, let's interpret. what this monument stands for. And he begins in verse 36. This is the dream.
Now we will tell you the interpretation before the king. You, O king, are a king of kings. For the God of heaven has given you a kingdom. Power, strength, and glory. And he talks about all the splendor of the kingdom and the benefits of it.
You are this head of gold.
So the head of gold represents the Babylonian kingdom and Nebuchadnezzar as the leader, the head. Of that empire. He is the head of gold.
Now, I want you to notice something here. And this is In what Daniel said to him, it could be very easily missed because he said, Wait a minute, he called Nebuchadnezzar a king of kings. Notice he said a king of kings, not the king of kings. Because when he said after the when he said after A, king of kings but what does he mean by A king of kings? Nebuchadnezzar, you're at the top.
You're at the top of the food chain here when it comes to monarchs, okay? There's nobody else out there that compares to you with your splendor, your glory, your power, the centrality of power. The force of your army nobody matches. But then look what he says in verse 37: For the God of heaven has given you a kingdom, power, strength, and glory. What does that mean?
that there is one who is yet supreme over Nebuchadnezzar. There is only one. who can be sovereign. in the universe. And it's not nib.
He's going to learn this. He doesn't have a hold of it yet, but he's going to learn this. Because he is the one who utters the words. the Most High rules in the kingdom of men.
So the head of gold is Nebuchadnezzar, and then he says. Verse 39: After you shall arise another kingdom inferior to yours. And so you have the silver chest and arms, and we know from biblical history and from world history what empire ruled after Babylon, and that was the Medo-Persian Empire.
So you have the two arms representing the dual nature of this kingdom, the Medo-Persian Empire. the Medes and the Persians. A co-regency. And that was an inferior, so, in other words. Silver is not as precious as gold.
And then he says another, verse thirty nine, another, a third kingdom of bronze which shall rule over the all the earth.
So this third kingdom, which king which empire ruled after the Medo-Persian Empire?
Well, it was Greece. The Greek Empire. Alexander the Great And then another, you come to the two legs made of solid iron, which is very strong and crushes all those around. And what kingdom would that be? That's the kingdom of Rome.
The Roman Empire. Let me stop here for a minute. Here is some very, very important information about the veracity of Scripture, the historicity, the authority, the trustworthiness of Scripture. Daniel Lived and worked and wrote during the sixth century BC. And here he is.
Through God's revelation, prophesying about these kingdoms that came after him. Look at the accuracy. This is why In the nineteenth century, In German theological scholarship there arose those who believed that the book of Daniel could not have been written in the sixth century because it was way too accurate. They have a problem with predictive prophecy. If you have a problem with predictive prophecy, it means you have a problem with God.
He's not big enough. And this is where modern criticism started. And they said Daniel had to have been written sometime in the second century because he could not have known all this. True. But God does.
We'll revisit that again a little bit later on.
So after you have the Roman Empire represented by the iron legs, then you keep going south. And you have then the feet of mixed clay and iron. Clay and iron don't mix. This represents the nations. The era, the ages of empires with central power and authority are now past.
And you're at the feet of clay and iron, which speaks of strength, but it's a noncohesive strength. There is no central power. It is a divided strength. We live today in the era of these feet. How does that make you feel where the feet?
of this monument. We see the descending value of the precious metals that is inferior, and the inferiority of them can speak of possibly one of two things, one or two things. First of all, the degeneration of the human race, as sin over time, continues to have its effect upon man, in his heart, his mind, his soul, his intellect. The degeneration of man Even physically But also the inferiority of the of the metals can speak of the lesser central authority and organization in each of these kingdoms. As Gleason Archer says about the feet of clay and iron where we are now, he speaks of a weakness and confusion pointing to the approaching day of doom.
disunity resulting from the failure of a hopelessly divided society to achieve an integrated world order. They can coexist, but cannot combine into a strong and durable world order.
So here we are now in the time of the nations.
So now let's go back to the dream itself. We have the monument. And its components and what they are interpreted as. We see that in world history, at least all the way down to the legs.
Now if we've seen accuracy up to that point, Does it not follow? that the rest of it can be trusted.
Alright, so here we go now with the stoned. Verse thirty-four of Daniel two, you watched while a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet and clay feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces.
So it's a stone cut out without hands. That's the first description. And then the second description is that it struck the image on its feet. and it pulverized. He uses the word like chaff.
It blows it away like chaff. All these kingdoms come crumbling down into such tiny pieces that the wind blows it away and there's no trace of them left. And then this stone becomes a great mountain and fills the whole earth. This is the rest. of Nebuchadnezzar's dream.
Then Daniel continues with the interpretation of it. Verse forty four. And in the days of these kings, that is speaking of the times of the feet. mixed iron and clay, the nations That's where we are today. In the days of these kings, verse forty-four, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed.
So here's the interpretation. This stone, which is cut out without hands, means simply this. It is not man-made. Man did not form this kingdom. Listen to me.
You Nor I, nor any other human being. can bring a final Utopia upon this earth. Man can't do it. The best we can do is be a part of the kingdoms that are crushed. and are blown away.
And this stone Blows away all the other kingdoms. It is a stone not made with hands. It is not a man-made kingdom. And so the interpretation that it struck the image on its feet and pulverized the other kingdoms, what we have, is what we have described in Psalm 2. With which I began worship this morning.
Why do the nations rage and the people plot a vain thing? God from the heavens does what? He laughs. And he says, I have set up my king on my holy hill. I have the one who will rule.
He is my son. You are my son, today I have begotten you. He is of the tribe of Judah. He is the son of David. And he will set up a kingdom.
It says that king that stone became a great mountain and filled the whole earth. That's the translation in verse 44. The God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed. There is one who is going to rule over all the earth in a kingdom of righteousness that will never be destroyed. Isn't that good news?
You see, what we have as we look at history. As God has revealed to us in His Word, He had the original man and woman in the garden, and God said to them, Be fruitful and multiply. He says, I give you dominion over the earth. And what did they do with that dominion? They relinquished it.
They relinquished it to the one who deceived them. And that's why John says, 1 John 5:19, the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one. It's why he's called the prince of the power of the air. That's why, when he was tempting Jesus, he said, Fall down, and I will give you all these kingdoms. Man relinquished his God-given dominion of the earth.
And ever since, in every attempt he has made, To gain dominion over the earth he has failed. All kingdoms Fall. All kingdoms. Fall. But Christ The stone will restore the creation to his righteous.
Rule.
Now, based on that, when it says the stone grew and filled the whole earth. We don't see that today, do we?
Now, we see characteristics of it, but we don't see that stone, that kingdom filling the whole earth. This is yet. Future. This has not happened yet. This is what is described in Revelation 11:15.
And when you see this verse, you're going to start humming a tune. I know it. I know you are. Revelation 11, 15, the kingdoms of this world have become The kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ. You're humming, aren't you?
I can just see it. And he shall reign. Forever. Endeavor. That's the stone.
That's the stone. It is yet future when the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever. That is a future kingdom yet to come.
However, We are citizens of that kingdom. We will reign in that kingdom. We who are in Christ. Look what Paul says in Ephesians 1.10, in the dispensation of the fullness of the times, he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth in him. When it's all said and done, at the end of the day, at the end of time.
Christ is supreme. In all other kingdoms, every trace of all other kingdoms. has vanished. And so, instead of the divisive, oppressive failure of human kingdoms and failed attempts at order and utopia, there is now established a universal spiritual order in which humankind can find fulfillment. of its ultimate desires for righteousness.
Justice. peace, happiness, freedom from sin and guilt. and a restored relationship to God. An order in which He is king. All that In Nebuchadnezzar's dream.
And Daniel gives him the interpretation of it. And I love what he says at the end of verse 45. The dream is certain. and its interpretation is sure. This is it, Neb.
This is what's going to happen. This is world history. This is the times of the Gentiles until the stone. comes And crushes all Gentile kingdoms, and then the Messiah. Reigns.
Don't you think that probably at that point Daniel was just itching to say that Messiah is? My people.
So, what?
So what? The God of heaven will set up a kingdom.
which shall never be destroyed.
So What does that mean for us today? That's a future kingdom. It hasn't happened yet. It's going to happen someday, but here we are today, the feet of the iron and clay, and there's all this division and weakness and Nobody can get along. Everybody's posturing their own strength.
So what does this mean for us? I want you to consider something when it talks about the kingdom in the New Testament. We recognize that this kingdom, the fulfillment of this dream, is yet future, when the stone actually hits the image and crushes it and sets up a kingdom and becomes a mountain. That's future. That hasn't happened yet.
But because the dream and its interpretation was so incredibly accurate all the way down to the legs, then we can trust God to know that the feet are going to happen. And that stone is going to happen.
So what does that mean for us? Three texts from Paul's writings when he's writing to the Gentiles, Colossians chapter 1 in verse 13, he has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love. That has happened. You and me. We who are in Christ have been conveyed, transferred into the kingdom of the Son of his love.
Here's what that means: that stone. That crushes and pulverizes all human kingdoms and then becomes a great kingdom that fills the whole earth. You and I, in Christ, we belong to that. We belong to that. Romans 14:17, For the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
The kingdom of God is not things measurable, material, and measurable. The kingdom of God is righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. And listen white. Paul says to the Thessalonian church, 1 Thessalonians 2, he says, Walk worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory. We in Christ are citizens of this kingdom.
It is a future kingdom which will literally be established on the earth with Christ reigning on the throne, and we will reign with him. But today we are citizens of that kingdom. Three points in conclusion today. the nature of that kingdom.
So this is the so what for us. It is a future kingdom of which you and I are citizens, which means that here and now we're not home. We don't belong here. We are here on mission and with a purpose, but we're aliens and strangers. We don't belong here.
We're citizens of this kingdom. First point, number one, it's the ultimate kingdom. It's the ultimate kingdom. Which means the principles and values of this kingdom are what matter most today. Not the principles, not the priorities and values of the lower kingdom.
We don't operate necessarily according to the The principles and the values of the kingdom in which we are ambassadors of this kingdom. That's why you look back at Matthew chapter five, the Beatitudes, Christ. Describes the character of those who are citizens of this kingdom. The Beatitudes. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God.
Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. What are the meek? It's not talking about weak. Meek does not mean. Weak.
Meekness assumes strength, and meekness is the opposite of arrogance. Arrogance says, I need you to recognize and affirm my importance. Meekness says, I don't need you to recognize and affirm my importance. It's like Francatiska Battistelli's song. I think that's who it is.
I'm famous in my father's eyes. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. These are the principles and the values of that kingdom. the pure in heart.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall what? Be filled, you will be satisfied. We don't look to this earth here and now for our satisfaction. We look for that time for our ultimate satisfaction. And we move in that direction with that in view.
So what does that mean for me if this is the ultimate kingdom? The principles and values of this kingdom are what matter most. then I should be purposeful. I should be per I should live purposefully. and do justly do according to the principles and values and priorities of this kingdom.
Here and now, as a sojourner, as an alien, as a stranger. Secondly, It is a powerful kingdom. It is the ultimate kingdom, and it is a very powerful kingdom. It is a kingdom in which righteousness overrides evil. Entirely.
I like what the writer of Hebrews says. He says, we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken. Not even the iron, not even the bronze abs, not even the chest and arms of silver, not the head of gold. This kingdom cannot be shaken. It will endure forever.
And here is the truth for you and me today: that the power of this kingdom is at work in the church today, because you and I are citizens of that kingdom. We belong to this kingdom. On this earth, we are pilgrims, aliens, strangers, sojourners. Those are all biblical terms, but our citizenship. is with the Lord.
So, if that is true, if this is a powerful kingdom and we're receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, then what does that mean for me? I should be joyful. Be joyful. and love mercy. Because in this kingdom, righteousness overrides evil.
I should be joyful in love mercy. Thirdly, lastly, It is an inevitable kingdom. An inevitable kingdom. The Creator Redeemer has planned and foretold. He will do it.
It's like what Isaiah says. in Isaiah forty six, eleven. Remember the critics I was talking about before? They choose not to believe in predictive prophecy. Daniel could not have been written in the sixth century.
It had to have been written in the second century, which, by the way, has a fallacy in it because the Roman Empire didn't even exist yet in the second century. Hello? The Lord says in Isaiah 46, 11, Indeed, I have spoken it. I will also bring it to pass. I have purposed it.
I will also do it. That's pretty straightforward. Any questions about that? It's pretty clear, isn't it? God purposes, God plans, God does.
You see, Nebuchadnezzar could make plans, but he could never guarantee that they would actually happen. God does. And so if it is an inevitable kingdom. Then what does that mean for me? I should be confident.
and walk humbly with my God. Because he will reign. And as the writer of Hebrews says in 12:28, therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace. by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. Let us have grace by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.
Let me give you the Rich Powell translation of that, okay? There's only one opinion that counts.
So live confidently in his pleasure for his glory. That's almost inspired. Is it that in the middle of the morning? There's a kingdom coming, folks. You and I are.
citizens of that kingdom. Let's live in the power. the principles and the priorities of that kingdom. Let's remember that on this earth, in this life, we are but sojourners. We're only living in tents.
I want to close this morning with an adaptation of Micah six eight. Micah six eight So let's read this responsibly. This is kingdom resolve. And I want to repeat this several times. Here on out.
Kingdom Resolved. Let's read this responsibly. You read the bold. He has shown you, O mortal. That's the NIV translation.
He has shown you, O mortal, what is good, and what does the Lord require of you? This message titled The God of Sunday justly and love mercy on January 18th as we walk at Grace Bible Church. The series in Daniel, the Most High rules in the kingdom of man, continues here at www.delightandgrace.com. on Mondays.
