Daniel 7:1-28; The Ancient of Days

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If you have a copy of God's Word, turn with me Daniel, chapter 7 this morning.

Daniel 7 · chapter mention

So go to the middle of youropen your Bible.

Up to the middle you should be around the book of Psalms.

Keep going forward towards the New Testament.

Past the book of Ezekiel, you'll find the book of Daniel.

Turn with me to Daniel 7.

We've been in a study through the book of Daniel this fall and this morning.

Just a heads up things are going to take an abrupt turn in our study when we move to Daniel, chapter 7.

Daniel 7 · chapter mention

The first half of the book of Daniel is stories that lots of you have heard since you were little Stories of the lion's den and the fiery furnace, amazing stories.

So the first half of the book of Daniel is narrative story.

Second half of the book of Daniel is known as apocalyptic literature, much like the book of Revelation, and that is just a fancy way to say this morning is things are about to get weird.

And so if you're visiting with us this morning, particularly if this is your first time, what an introduction.

Right, welcome to our church.

But seriously, I hope that that gives you, if you're visiting, gives you a little insight into who we are as a church.

We love the Bible.

We think very highly of the Bible.

We just simply preach through books of the Bible and lots of reasons we do that.

It's obviously God's Word for us, but it also keeps us from skipping things that we don't like or skipping things that are scary or make us uncomfortable, like Daniel, chapter 7 through chapter 12.

Daniel 7 · chapter mention

We believe that all scripture is breathed out by God and that even this crazy passage that we're going to read this morning is useful for us, that God gives us this to teach us and to change us and to make us more like him.

Before I read, let me say a word that I think would be helpful for us about apocalyptic literature.

In the Bible we hear apocalyptic literature or apocalypse that word and we immediately go to zombies perhaps, or doomsday, or we've got to crack some secret code and figure out what it has to do with current world events.

No, the word apocalypse just simply means to unveil.

It means to reveal.

It is a word that gives the image of pulling back the curtain in the theater and revealing what is really happening in the world and really happening in the throne room of God, and I think that's really important when we come to Daniel 7-12.

To remember that it's meant to reveal, not conceal, because we can think that it's meant to confuse us.

No, apocalyptic literature is meant to reveal truth about God and truth about the world.

It just does it in a different way.

We obviously get that through the letters of the Bible.

We get that through history and through poetry, things like Psalms.

Apocalyptic literature is meant to do the exact same thing to reveal the truth about God, reveal the truth about the world.

Except it does it through pictures and images in order to revive our imagination, capture our hearts and change our life.

And so this passage is meant to bless you this morning.

It's meant to encourage you, just like all of the Bible, and strengthen and nurture our faith.

So, with that in mind, follow along with me as I read.

We won't read the whole chapter, it's in your bulletin, it'll be on the screen behind me.

We'll read chapter 7, verses 1 through 14, this morning.

This is God's Word.

In the first year of Beshazzar, king of Babylon, daniel saw a dream and visions of his head as he lay in his bed.

Then he wrote down the dream and told the sum of the matter.

Daniel declared I saw in my vision by night and behold the four winds of the heaven were stirring up the great sea and the four beasts came up out of the sea and different from one another.

The first was like a lion and had eagle's wings, and then, as I looked, its wings were plucked off and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand on two feet like a man and the mind of a man was given to it.

And behold, another beast, a second one like a bear.

It was raised up on one side, it had three ribs in its mouth, between its teeth, and, it was told, arise, devour much flesh.

After this, I looked and behold another, like a leopard, had four wings of a bird on its back and the beast had four heads and dominion was given to it.

After this, I saw in the night visions and behold a fourth beast, terrifying and dreadful and exceedingly strong.

It had great iron teeth, it devoured and broke it in pieces and stamped what was left with its feet.

It was different from all the other beasts that were before it and it had ten horns.

I considered the horns and behold, there came up among them another horn, a little one, before which three of the first horns were plucked up by the roots.

And behold, in this horn were the eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth speaking great things.

As I looked, thrones were placed and the ancient of days took his seat and his clothing was white as snow and his hair of his head like pure wool.

His throne was fiery flames, its wheels were burning fire.

A stream of fire issued and came out before him.

A thousand thousand served him and 10,000 times 10,000 stood before him.

The court sat in judgment and the books were opened.

I looked and then, because of the sound of the great words that the horn was speaking, and as I looked, the beast was killed and its body destroyed and given over to burn with fire.

And for the rest of the beast, the dominion was taken away and their lives were prolonged for a season and a time.

I saw in the night visions and behold, with the clouds of heaven, there came one like a son of man and he came to the ancient of days and was presented before him and to him was given this is God's Word.

Let's pray.

I need lots of help this morning.

I always do, but especially with a passage like this one.

So let's pray and ask the Holy Spirit to come and help us this morning.

Let's pray together.

Father, I do need your help.

Would you help me to deliver this in a way that's clear and that your people are able to understand and help those who are listening?

I pray that you would take this word and put it in our hearts and encourage us.

This is meant.

It is sobering in lots of ways, but it's also deeply encouraging and I pray that we would walk out of here firmly focused on you.

Would you help us to do that in Jesus' name?

Amen.

Obviously lots going on in this passage, as you could tell from the reading of the passage, but please understand that, though this passage is weird and you could even say it's scary in lots of ways, I think it's important for us to come back to and to remember that, though it's weird and different and strange, the purpose and the message of this book has not changed.

Remember the purpose of Daniel is to show God's people we've talked about this for seven weeks how to live faithfully in Babylon.

This book is meant to teach us how to live faithfully in a culture where God is not known nor worships, how to live in a world you could say that is not our true home.

Same purpose, even when we get to a passage like this.

The only difference is is now Daniel is showing us that through not through stories, but through visions and pictures.

Notice over and over.

You probably picked up on it and kept saying I saw, I looked, I saw, I watched.

Starting in Daniel, chapter 7, daniel wants to give us a new way to see the world, and we're going to have to engage over the next several weeks.

Daniel 7 · chapter mention

We're going to have to lock in and it's going to be some hard work as we look at some of these passages, but if we can lock in and engage, daniel will give us a new way of seeing the world that will reframe the way we see God and his world.

It will give us and this is what it's meant to do a new set of glasses that will change the way we live and change the way we go through life.

This passage this morning is meant to teach us, or show us, how to live faithfully in God's world, and to do that, we see in this passage that we need to look around.

Number one, secondly, we need to look up and, lastly, we need to look ahead.

We need to look into the future, we need to look forward, look around, look up, look ahead.

That's our outline this morning.

Let's start with our first heading.

We need to look around and the first thing I want to point out in verse 1 is notice it was the first year of Belshazzar, king of Babylon, and I point that out because we are going backwards in the story and I think that's important just for you to know as you study this book is chapter 7 through 12 is happening at the same time as Daniel, 1 through 6.

Isaiah 7 · chapter mention

Daniel has this dream and this vision somewhere between Daniel chapter 4 and Daniel, chapter 5.

Daniel 4 · chapter mention Daniel 5 · chapter mention

And then in verses 2 through 8, follow along with me, look there in your Bible or in your bulletin this morning.

Let me mention a few things and point out a few things to make a note of.

First of all, you are meant to feel this passage.

That's part of apocalyptic literature.

It is meant to move us.

This is a nightmare.

This is really intense.

The passage tells us look at verse 15, verse 28,.

Daniel was not just alarmed, he was greatly alarmed and he was anxious.

And if you look at verse 28, his color changed.

I would say so.

When you have a dream like this one, also notice the waves in verse 2, are going in all directions.

I don't know when the last time you were at the beach, but the waves tend to go in one direction.

They tend to come in towards the shore, not here.

They're coming from all directions, which is a signal and represents absolute chaos.

In this scene, in this first vision.

Also, notice the beasts are coming up out of the sea.

In the ancient Near East, the sea is where the monsters lived.

It's where everything that opposed God lives.

The sea was seeking to undo and destroy the work of God, and so in the Bible, the sea represented chaos and evil and disorder.

Also, notice that the beasts are all beasts of prey.

They're all dangerous to people, they're all very strange and they're all.

Did you notice perversions of God's created order in Genesis, chapter 1.

Genesis 1 · chapter mention

And then the fourth beast you'll see stands out and Daniel seems to be somewhat obsessed with this fourth beast.

But the first three beasts, if you remember, were like something, like a bear, like a leper, like a lion.

And then you get to verse 7 and you see this fourth beast, and verse 7 says it's different, more horrifying than all the other beasts that come before it.

And a question that people are often obsessed with is who are these beasts?

And the dominant answer to that question.

There's differing views on that question, but scholars tend to think that it represents just like in Daniel, chapter 2, with Nebuchadnezzar's statue, that they tend to represent Babylon, persia, greece and Rome.

Daniel 2 · chapter mention

And you might want us to get bogged down in that this morning, but we're not going to.

We're not going to get into the weeds trying to identify these different beasts.

Why?

Because it's not the point of the passage and Daniel doesn't really try to get into the weeds on identifying who these beasts are.

Because, you see, the point is not who the beasts are, but what the beasts represent.

And it's clear when you get to the end of this passage and when you look at a passage about beasts like Revelation, chapter 13, that the beasts represent the kingdoms of this world, kingdoms that are corrupt, kingdoms that oppose God and that are evil.

Revelation 13 · chapter mention

Let me say it in another way the beast represents institutions and systems that tempt you to compromise Think about the book of Daniel to compromise your loyalty to Jesus and to keep you away from him.

And I think it's really obvious to look at other parts of the world and see the oppression of regimes that are oppressing people and see very clearly, that is the work of the beast.

But what about in our context?

What might it look like?

Well, it's much more subtle.

The system of the beast is a system that says sure, you can have your faith, you can believe in Jesus, but keep it private.

Sure, you can have your faith and you can believe in Jesus, but don't bring it into the classroom and for sure don't mention it in a paper.

Or the system of the beast is a system that looks like filling your mind with materialistic advertising, so that you slowly and subtly begin to trust in your appearance, in your possessions, rather than really trusting in God.

Or the system of the beast is a system that elevates success and power and tells you that you can't take a day off, that tells you things like you will fall behind or someone else will get your job, you cannot afford to rest.

Or it looks like technology advancement.

Is technology good?

Absolutely, technology's great, but technology tends to pull us away from Jesus, doesn't it?

It tends to make us self-sufficient and very self-absorbed.

And so then the question is okay, so what are we supposed to take away from this vision of the beast?

Well, this message and this vision for God's people, then, and for us this morning, is buckle up.

That's really the message is brace yourself.

The fall of Babylon will not mean this is God's people.

Israel will not mean an end to your exile.

The point of this message and of this vision is that beastly kingdoms are going to rise and fall and terrorize you until Jesus comes back.

That that is going to be the pattern of human history.

That that is going to be the pattern of human history, that we will see governments and kingdoms of this world rise and fall until Jesus returns.

And then you might say okay, wait now.

I thought you said apocalyptic literature was supposed to be hopeful.

Well, apocalyptic literature in the Bible, yes, is hopeful, and we're going to get to that in just a moment.

But the apocalyptic literature also keeps it real and refuses to ignore the evil that has and will continue to be a part of human history.

Ralph Davis, a commentator, says this it is as if the writer invites us to incorporate the doctrine of total depravity into our politics.

And then he goes on and says the mantra of the kingdoms of this world seems to be summed up in verse 5, arise and devour much flesh.

See, this is a reality check.

And the message is don't be gullible, don't be naive, look around, see the world clearly.

Human history is beastly and it is full of winds and waves and all sorts of beasts, and we need not think a new regime, a new political party or president is going to come and take away all of our problems and end our exile.

Now, the point here is be faithful in the context in which God has placed us.

And God has placed us in this context, this context of beastly systems and kingdoms that oppose God, and it is in that place that God has called us to be faithful and to walk with Him and to be formed and to be shaped into the image of God.

Secondly, we need to look up, look at verse.

Not only do we need to look around, we need to look up.

Look at verse 9, and if you were reading through, it's very abrupt.

It's a very abrupt transition.

Daniel is seeing beasts and then suddenly he gets a vision of the throne room of God, and I think this is really important.

Hang with me here, let's lock in so that we can understand exactly what's happening.

It's important to understand these two visions the beast and the throne room are happening at the same time.

And so think about it this way.

Maybe you went to Buffalo Wild Wings yesterday to watch college football.

If not, imagine walking into Buffalo Wild Wings on a Saturday afternoon and there are several college football games on, and there's the main game that is on the big TV, the 80-inch screen, and then there seems to be a hundred smaller TVs all throughout the restaurant with lots of smaller games.

Daniel is seeing two visions on two TVs, and on the smaller TV he sees an image and the vision of the beast.

And then suddenly, on the big 80-inch screen, he sees this, starting in verse 9, the image of the throne room, the image of the Ancient of Days sitting on his throne.

And when we hear the Ancient of Days, we might think that this is describing a frail old man.

That's not what it means.

The title simply means that God has always been and that God has been around long before the beast.

Why?

Because he created the beast and he is a God of all wisdom and dignity.

Again, let me point out a couple of things.

Notice the Ancient of Days, notice his authority and control.

The Ancient of Days is holding court.

How is he holding court?

Look at verse 9,.

By sitting, I mean, think about this.

The winds are being stirred up in all directions and the beast is wreaking havoc all throughout the world and through the earth.

And God is not panicked at all, he's not wringing his hands, he's not like Daniel, his color has not changed, he is not greatly alarmed and he is not anxious, he is sitting down.

Verse 2, where are the winds coming from?

They're coming from heaven.

Why?

Well, showing us that even the waves and the wind and the chaos of the beast is under God's control.

Notice also here in this scene, god's judgment.

The fiery flames are coming from the throne, the books of judgment are being opened, and the thing that we are supposed to see here is that the fate of the world and the fate of your life is not decided by the beast, friends.

The fate of your life in this world is decided by the Ancient of Days.

He is in firm control, he rules by the book and he executes perfect justice.

Look at verses 11 and 12.

The beast is killed and thrown into the fire and the dominion of the rest of the beast is taken away to the fire, and the dominion of the rest of the beast is taken away, and then we see that the big screen becomes a split screen, so that we have the Ancient of Days on one side of this big 80-inch screen and we have now one like the Son of man on the other side of the screen.

Look at verse 13.

With the clouds of heaven came one like the Son of man, to whom was given dominion and glory and the kingdom.

Notice the coming in the clouds, the one coming.

It's not like the beast, not a perversion of the created order.

This is a man, a human being.

The beast came from below.

This one, this son of man, comes from above, on the clouds, just as God did in the Exodus, remember, coming by a cloud, by day, descending on the tabernacle in the most holy place of God.

He's obviously a king that is coming on the clouds because he has given a kingdom.

And so then the question okay, well, who is this son of man?

Well, it's Jesus.

How do we know?

Because he said so.

Because in Matthew, chapter 26,.

Matthew 26 · chapter mention

Isn't it amazing how the Bible starts to just put all the pieces together?

Because God said so.

The son of man was Jesus' favorite self-designation, it was the favorite way that he would refer to himself.

And in Matthew, chapter 26, jesus is before the high priest.

Matthew 26 · chapter mention

He's getting ready to go to a cross and the high priest says to him and asks him tell us if you're the Messiah, tell us if you are God in the flesh.

And you know what Jesus responds with Daniel, chapter 7.

Daniel 7 · chapter mention

He responds with Daniel, chapter 7 by saying you will see the Son of man, seated at the right hand of God, coming in the clouds.

Daniel 7 · chapter mention

And some say skeptics would say Jesus never really did claim to be God.

Oh yes, he did.

He does here and he does in lots of other places in the Gospels and then later, in Revelation, chapter 1, john sees a vision of Jesus, and you know what he sees.

Revelation 1 · chapter mention

In Revelation, chapter 1, john sees a vision of Jesus, and you know what he sees in Revelation, chapter 1?

Revelation 1 · chapter mention Revelation 1 · chapter mention

He sees this.

He sees Daniel, chapter 7.

Daniel 7 · chapter mention

He uses the exact same language that is used to describe the Ancient of Days, and John is so overwhelmed by the glory of Jesus that he hits the deck and he worships.

Here's the question for us this morning which screen are you watching?

Where is your focus this morning?

Is it on the big screen or is it on the small screen?

You see oftentimes our focus.

If we're honest, it's on the small screen.

It's on things like the loss and the pain and the suffering and the betrayal and things like hurricanes and division, and the list goes on.

And the small screen is often informed by the news outlets and talk shows and social media and our friends.

And if our focus is on the small screen I know because I struggle if our focus is on the small screen, it will eat us alive.

Our focus is on the small screen, it will eat us alive.

It will fill us with stress and worry and panic and fear.

You'll start to say things like God doesn't care about me, or God is not in control, he is asleep.

Or you'll start to say things like the chaos is actually ruling the world.

And Daniel's message to us this morning is look at the big screen, focus on the big screen.

It's the only way you're going to be able to live faithfully in Babylon.

You see, the message is look up, fix your eyes on the throne room, see the Ancient of Days, see the Son of man, see everything in your life, in our country and the world through not the empty but the occupied throne of God.

Friends, things are not as they seem.

Remember, apocalyptic literature pulls back the curtain.

Daniel's pulling back the curtain and he's saying let me show you something, Let me show you the very throne room of God.

As one writer says, it might not take away your suffering, but it will give you sanity.

It might not take away your pain, but it will keep you from panic.

Which screen are you watching this morning?

Lastly, look ahead.

So now the big screen becomes multi-screen.

So now we have Ancient of Days, son of man, and then we see a last vision or scene of our future glory, vision or scene of our future glory.

In this last scene we have what is ahead of us if we belong to Jesus.

Look at verse 22, and following the fourth beast is terrible, is extremely evil, but the point is, the evil will come to an end and be destroyed.

Look at verse 17.

The saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom.

Or, as verse 27 says, the kingdom will be given to them and they will possess the kingdom forever and ever.

Friends, that's our hope.

That is our hope and comfort as we live in Babylon, as we live in this world.

It's not that one day we're going to die and escape all of this and go to heaven.

That's wonderful, but that's not our hope.

It's part of it.

But our hope is that Jesus, the Son of man, is going to come on the clouds and we are going to rise and he's going to usher in the new heavens and new earth and make this broken world right, and we are going to reign with him in glory.

A day is coming when Jesus the son of man will be revealed for who he really is, and it's not a crucified Lord, it will be an exalted king and if you are in Christ, who you really are will be revealed.

All of your sin and struggles will be gone and you will be with Him.

And this union in relationship that's often hard to describe and hard to understand and seems so mysterious will be a reality, because we will reign with Jesus forever and ever.

The beast will not win.

Jesus wins.

The Son of man, the Ancient of Days, wins.

This is your future, and what you believe about the future holds you up and sustains you in the present.

What we believe about the future that's why it's so important stains you in the present.

What we believe about the future that's why it's so important actually gives you strength and holds you up today, and the longer that I walk with Jesus, the more I realize that the key to walking faithfully in this world with Jesus is to look ahead.

It's to always be focusing on our future glory and to pull that truth into the present, and when we do that it gives us an extra measure of courage and sustains us for another day.

I'll close with this.

You've probably heard several stories like this over the past couple of weeks, but Hurricane Helene, there was a story about a father maybe you heard this that walked 30 miles to make it to his daughter's wedding and walk her down the aisle.

The state troopers told him do not not do this.

He did not listen.

He drove as far as he could from South Carolina to Johnson City, tennessee, until he could not go anymore.

And once he couldn't go anymore he got out and he walked through the entire night risking his life.

At one point he was stuck in the mud up to his knees and a backhoe that was doing some work almost hit him because they couldn't see him.

He was walking and he had this reflective flare and he almost got hit by a car and he had to start waving the flare so that they would see him.

And he makes it to the wedding Just in time to walk his daughter down the aisle and he gives her this reflective stake as a wedding gift to say I was kept safe on this trip by God.

That's a great story but, friends, it doesn't hold a candle to the gospel story.

Do you know that you have a God, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of man, who didn't just go through the floodwaters and debris and didn't go from South Carolina to Tennessee to get to you?

No, you have a God, the Lord Jesus, who went from heaven to earth and he suffered at the hands of the beast of this world and went to a cross, took the punishment that you deserve.

Why?

In order to present you blameless before the Ancient of Days, to present you blameless and to secure for you a future glory that will never pass away.

That is how much God loves you.

If you've got a God and a Father who loves you that much, he will keep you close, he will never let you go, he will never forsake you in this world.

And when we keep the gospel on the big screen, when we keep Jesus on the big screen, it actually allows us not just to hang on by a thread in Babylon or nearly survive, but to actually thrive in Babylon.

And so what do you say this week?

Instead of focusing on the small screen and being overwhelmed with hopelessness and despair and fear, what do you say?

We focus on the big screen, on the throne room of God, the ancient of days, the Son of man and our future glory.

Let's pray, father.

We live in a fallen world and I pray that, as we look around, you would give us eyes of faith that we wouldn't focus, that by faith, we would focus on the big screen and the fact that the throne room is not empty.

Would you also help us, holy Spirit, to pull our future glory and what we know about our future, to pull that into the present, so that it changes the way we live today?

Would you do this in Jesus' name, amen.