A Tale of Two Kingdoms

Open your bibles to our new book, to finished the Book of Romans. And now we are heading back to the Old Testament, and we are in the Book of Daniel. Daniel, chapter one. The Book of Daniel has much to say about living in the midst of turbulent times. It would be a fitting title for the Book of Daniel, would it not Hope in the midst of turbulent times? Whatever you have gone through, I guarantee it has not risen to the level. Of Daniel's despair. I guarantee you that your worst day was better than what Daniel experienced when he many of his countrymen were dragged off in chains to a foreign land. And yet the Book of Daniel's stands to give us hope in the midst of those turbulent times. Listen to this from one commentator over against the might of Babylon and the seeming superiority of her gods, two questions face exiled Jews. Is Israel's God truly God as compared with the Babylonian ones? And will God forgive the sin of his people and resume fellowship with them? The first question is answered in Daniel by his recounting of the might of Israel's God as he exercises his sovereignty over all human kingdoms. The kingdom theology of the Book of Daniel is an answer to the Exhau's concern over the uniqueness of Israel's God. The Book of Daniel also answers the second question. Not only is the theme of kingdom present, but also that of covenant. Covenant is present implicitly in the narrative sections of the book, with the infant on the distinctiveness of Daniel and his companions in their exilic setting. However, in chapters nine through eleven, the covenant theme appears explicitly. Is our God truly God? And will he forgive us and redeem us? Those are the questions, not just for Daniel, those are the questions for us. Is my God truly God? And in the light of my circumstances? Will he redeem me? Will He rescue me? Will it eventually be all right? If you have not asked those questions, you just haven't lived long enough. Amen. Those are the questions with which we all wrestle, and those are the questions that Daniel answers. Daniel is one of those books that we know about but only in part and We know about it only in part because most of us have only ventured to try to understand the first half of the book. Amen, and that badly because oftentimes when we go to the first half of the book, there's several ways that you can divide the Book of Daniel. There's two halves. There's the narrative half chapters one through six, and most of us know about the narrative halves. In chapters one through six. It's narrative, like forty percent of the Old Testament is narrative. And we get there and it's great. Of course, the way we deal with it is not so great because again we don't have a redemptive historic approach. We don't have a Christ's centered approach. So all we're left with is moralism. Daniel and his friends are great. Be like them, like your song. Dare to be a Daniel, dare to stand alone. That's the way we look at the Book of Daniel. It's moralism, pure and simple. Here's what they did that was good. Do that so that God will be pleased with you and that all may go well with you. We messed that up, and that's the easy half. The difficulty comes in the second half. In the apocalyptic section beginning at chapter seven, where there are all these dreams and visions that Daniel is interpreting, and for most of us we don't even bother reading through those. We just go get a good study Bible or something that will tell us what we're supposed to believe about the symbols. If you can't say amen, you ought to say ouch. Okay, we don't even wade through that, And of course, why should we wade through that, because after all, it really doesn't have any valuable, any value except for maybe to interpret some of the signs of the end times. Isn't it amazing that we're okay with that idea? That God gives a book and the Book of Daniels written probably somewhere around five thirty BC. Okay, some folks will put it later than that, and there's several reasons for that, but Daniel's probably dated somewhere around five thirty BC. The events in the Book of Daniel take place between six oh five and five point thirty seven BC. The book is written shortly thereafter around five third or completed shortly thereafter around five thirty. But isn't it interesting that we're okay with the idea that God would have a book of the Bible written and half of it is absolutely meaningless to all people in all times except those who happen to be here at the end. Really, is that what you think? Now? I know what's going on inside you right now, because inside you, right now you're going I know, I'm supposed to shake my head no to pastor vote right now because it just really sounds bad the way he put it. But before he said that, Yeah, So my answer is no, God did not give us a book that was without meaning or is without meaning for everyone except those who are alive at the end of the age. It had meaning for the exiles, and it has meaning for us. Every last bit of it has meaning for us. Not only can you divide it into two halves, but you can also divide it into two languages. This is unique about the Book of Daniel. Daniel chapter one through Dannuel, chapter two and verse four A is written in Hebrew. Daniel chapter two, verse four B through the end of Daniel chapter seven is written in Aramaic. Then it goes back into Hebrew again. So three sections, two different languages, the Hebrew section, the Aramic body, and then the Hebrew closing of this letter. It's another way that you could divide it, but since we're not going to be reading Hebrew and Aramaic, we won't divide it that way. There's a third thing that you see here in the Aramaic section. There is a chiasm. Now we've talked about chiastic structures before. You know the structure kind of like a cross, if you will. There's a chiasm in the second section, the Arameic section, which is very important that it's written in the Arabic language and has a chiastic structure. And it is just the Aromatic Aramaic portion that has the chiastic structure. What is the chiasm? Now, again, we don't have a chart of here for you, so it's difficult for me to show you. So I will try. To walk it out for you and think about it going on a piece of paper like this, Okay, in and and out, but visualize it as I move. In chapter two, there's a dream of a statue representing four kingdoms. Chapter three there's worship of the golden statue or perish in a pit. Chapter four there's the judgment of King Nebuka Nezer. Now we're going to start the same thing in reverse. Chapter five, there's the judgment of Belshazzar. Chapter six, worship Darius or perish in a pit. Chapter seven, a dream of four b beasts who represent four kingdoms. Perfect chiastic structure, very rarely seen anywhere, but here in the Aramaic portion, there is a perfect chiasm, and there is a message there in that structure. We'll talk about that as our time goes on. But here in this section Daniel, chapter one, verses one through seven, we see, as I said, a tale of two kingdoms. Let's read this section together. In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim, king of Judah Nebkadneszar, king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem and besieged it. Let me just sort of put a footnote here. We'll just put a pin in it at this moment, because there are people who would say, we'll see there's already a problem, because the Bible contradicts itself, because Jeremiah says and it was in the fourth year of his reign, and here it says that it was in the third year of his reign. Just know this. Let me answer that as simply as I possibly can. Remember that Daniels in Babylon. He's using the Babylonian rendering of the reign of the king. Remember, Jeremiah is using a Palestinian rendering of the reign of the king for Daniel. The reign goes like this, there's the year of ascension where you become the king. The next year is your first year, the year after that your second, The year after that you're third. Palestinian rendering would be the year of your ascension is your first year. The you after that your second, You after that your third, You have to that your fourth. An example of this is if you've ever been over in Europe and you get on an elevator. Here in America, if you get on an elevator and you go up one floor, you're on the second floor. In many places in Europe you get on an elevator and you go up one floor and you're on the first floor. It could mess you up. Now, imagine hundreds of years from now, somebody finds documentation and there was an author in England who wrote about something that happened on the second floor, and an author in America who wrote about something that happened on the third floor. And the people say there's a contradiction here. It must not be true. That's the same thing here in Daniel chapter one and verse one. Okay, it's just a different rendering of how you start the first year of the rain. Verse two. And the Lord gave Jehoyakim, king of Judah, into the hand, I'm sorry, into his hand with some of the vessels of the House of God, and he brought them to the land of Shinar, to the house of his God, and placed the vessels in the treasury of his God. Then the king commanded Ashfanaz, his chief eunuch, to bring some of the people of Israel, both of the royal family and of the nobility, youths without blemish of good appearance, skillful in all wisdom, endowed with knowledge, understanding, learning, and competent, to stand in the King's palace and to teach them the literature and language of the Chaldeans. The King assigned them daily portions of the food that the King ate and of the wine that he drank. They were to be educated for three years, and at the end of that time they were to stand before the King. Among these were Daniel, Hannonayah, Michael, and Azariah of the tribe of Judah. Don't think for a minute that that's unimportant. They're in the midst of exile, and there's a book that's written basic. He says to the people of God, God is going to preserve his people in the midst of it. There's four characters that he picks out as the principal characters of the story, and they are all from the tribe of the Promised Seed, from whom the scepter is never going to depart. That's just, Amen, Holy you praise the Lord right there, just by itself, just that these four guys are from the tribe of Judah, and the chief of the eunuchs gave them names. Daniel he called Beltishazar and and I he called Shadrak, Michel he called Mishak, and Azaraiah he called. A bed Nago. There you have it, the Tale of two Kingdoms, and it's set up perfectly. First, in the Tale of two Kingdoms, we see a tale of two kings. We see on the one hand, the king of Judah, Jehoiakim, and on the other hand, Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon. Now Johoikim was the son of Josiah he was an ungodly king. Listen to this in Tewod Kings, chapter twenty three, beginning verse thirty six. Johoikim was twenty five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Zebedah was Zebeda, the daughter of Pediah of Ruma. And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers had done in the days. In his days, Nebkadezer, king of Babylon, came up and Johikim became his servant for three years. He was an awful king. His father was a good king. He was an awful king. He was put on the throne by an Egyptian pharaoh named Nico as he attempted to exercise control over Syria Palestine. Think about these two major superpowers, Egypt in the south just. Below Israel, Babylon above Israel. They are fighting for dominance in the region, and the crossroads between the two is this little sliver of land and a small country called Israel. When Josiah was killed in battle, the people that had enthroned his son, Jehoah Has, who represented an anti Egyptian faction. This situation lasted for three months while Nika was busy in Haran. Nico basically deposed Jehoya has and sent him off as a captive in Egypt. Pro Egyptian Jehoiakim was then placed on the throne with the expectation that. He would be loyal to Egypt. Because they're all afraid of the Babylonians coming down from the north. The situation changed dramatically when nebukand Nezar gained control of that region following the Battle of Carcamish remember this one from your ancient history. There he put down the Egyptians for good and established their dominance in the region. The guy on the throne in Egypt when the Babylonians established established their dominance over the region and the Battle of Carcamission six' oh five by wiping out The egyptians Was Jehoya, kim who had been loyal to. The. Egyptians jehoiican played the role of Relooked babylonian vassal for several, years but After nemagandasia's failure to Invade egypt from six oh, one he again broke With Battle balon and sought to Support egypt and the. Rebellion this disloyalty proved fatal and led to The babylonian siege Of, jerusalem ultimately finishing them, off and that started in five ninety. Seven so there you get a little picture of the history of this that's basically summed up in this. Phrase in the third year of the reign Of Jehoia, kim king Of, Judah, nebuchadneza king Of, babylon came To jerusalem and besieged. It and the next verse you see that there are things that are carried. Off you assume that the king was probably carried off as. Well but note that in this tale of two, kings here's what you don't. See you don't see here is a godly king in a godly nation and a godless king and a godless, nation and they battle to see who's. Supreme, no you see a godless king in a godless nation who comes through wipes out a, region and a king who was faithful To god. Happens to be on the throne When god. Judges as people, see we love to sort of reduce The bible to good guys and bad. Guys it's not that, simple And one of the reasons is not that. Simple is they're all bad, guys, amen just like you AND i are all bad. Guys so if you want. To understand the difference between these two, kingdoms you don't necessarily just look it's the two. Kings there has to be something. Else not only is there a tale of two, kings but there's also a tale of two. Gods you see in the Ancient Near, east when you go to, battle you go and call upon Your. God this idea of these secular nation is like we have, today not so much in the Ancient Near. East in, fact that's very. Recent when you look at world, history the idea has always been that you call Upon god to go before you in. Battle you want to fight on the right side And god to be with you on your side as you go into. Battle and the Ancient Near, east if you defeated a, foe you always brought their gods with you as, captives just like their people are, captives because when you defeat their, gods you say to, them Our god is stronger than your. God you belong to. Us your god bows down to Our. God So nebukenazar comes in and doesn't just Take. Jehoyakin he goes to the temple and he takes away, artifacts making a statement about His god compared to The god Of, israel which would lead to the, dejection the further dejection of the people Of. Israel, remember they're not Reading, daniel they're living, it so they don't Have for, example verse, two and The lord Gave, hoyakin king Of, judah into his hand with some of the vessels of The house Of. God The lord gave him into his. Hands, folks The lord is doing. This god is sending his people away into. Exile god is allowing them to be wiped. Out god is allowing the nation to. Fall god is doing. This and if there is a message in The book Of, daniel that's the Message god is in. Control, see oftentimes we like to say That god is in control when things are going the way we want them to, go and all of a, sudden when things don't go the way we want them to, go our. First question is where Is? God? Why because according to our, theology When god is in control and doing what he's supposed to do and paying, attention he's making stuff happen the way he AND i agree it ought to. Happen but if he's not a agreeing with, me then he's slumbering or sleeping or falling. Down on the. Job and we kind of, go you know, What, GOD i know you're busy and, everything but can you fix this because this is not how my life is supposed to. Go let's look first internally and then externally to see the hand Of god on all. This look at chapter two and verse, eight And god Gave daniel favor and compassion in the sight of the chief. Eunuchs chief of The, Eunuchs i'm. Sorry chapter, one verse. Eight chapter, one verse. Seventeen as for these four, Youths god gave them learning and skill in all literature and, wisdom And daniel had understanding and visions and. Dreams chapter, two verse. Eleven the thing that the king asks is, difficult and no one can show it to the king except the, gods whose dwelling is not with. Flesh, then in chapter, two beginning of verse, Twenty daniel Praises god forgiving. Him what these men have already said only comes From. God chapter, two verse twenty. Eight but there is A god in heaven who reveals, mysteries and he has made known To King Nebecon, nezer what will be in the latter? Days look at chapter, two verse forty. Four and in the days of those, kings The god of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be, destroyed nor shall the kingdom be left to another. People look down with. Me at the end of verse forty, FIVE a Great god has made known to the king what shall be after? This look at verse forty. Seven the king answered and said To, daniel truly Your god Is god of gods and lord, kings and the revealer of. Mysteries for you have been able to reveal this. Mystery let's go to chapter three and look beginning of verse. Seventeen if this be, so Our god whom we, serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery, furnace and he will deliver us out of your, hand O, king go down to verse twenty. Five he, answered and, said BUT i see four men unbound walking in the midst of the, fire and they are not. Hurt and the appearance of the fourth is like the son of the. Gods go down to verse twenty. Eight Nebukon nezer answered and, said blessed be The god Of Shadrack mishak And, abitdnigo who has sent his angel and delivered his servants who trusted in. Him now let's go to chapter four and, look beginning in verse thirty, four this is Nebukon nezer after his seven years of what we would call. Schizophrenia at the end of the, DAYS I nebuchadnizzar lifted my eyes to, heaven and my reason returned to. Me AND i blessed the Most high and praised and honored him who lives, forever for his dominion as an everlasting, dominion and his kingdom endures from generation to. Generation all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as. Nothing and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the, earth and none can stay his hand or. Say to, him what have you? Done, yes this is a tale of two, gods but only one of them Is. God nebicannessa's gods Not. God and throughout this what do we see That god is in? Control but here's the. Question If god is in, control why Or, Daniel, Shadrack, Me Shaka betnigo and all the other young men taken away castrated. And it made to serve a pagan. King why. For that we go outside the judgment Of god Against Israel habaccic one. FIVE i went TO i did an event a while, Back this is several years, ago and it was A missions, conference and they had as their. Theme their theme was beyond, belief and it came From habaccic one. Five, again theme of the conference is beyond, belief and their theme versus a back at one. Five look among the nations and, see wonder and be, Astounded FOR i am doing a work in your days that you would not believe even if someone told. You, Wow Missions, conference beyond. Belief look among the, Nations i'm doing something that you wouldn't believe even if someone told. You and so they wanted me to preach from a back at one five at The missions. Conference small. PROBLEM i kept. Reading listen to six through. Eleven for, behold what's the thing That god is doing that you wouldn't believe even if somebody told. You look among the, nations there's something happened and that you wouldn't believe even if somebody told. You for, BEHOLD i am raising up The. Chaldeans There's, babylon that bitter and hasty nation who march through the breath of the, earth to seize dwellings not their. Own they are dreaded and. Fearsome their justice and dignity go forth from. Themselves their horses are swifter than, leopards more fierce than the evening. Wolves their horsemen pressed proudly on their horsemen come From. Afar they fly like an, eagle swift to. Devour they all come for, violence all their faces. Forward they gather captaives like. Sand at the, king they scoff at the, rulers they, Laugh they laugh at every, fortress for they pile up earth and take. It then they sweep by like the wind and go on guilty men whose own might is Their? God what's the thing That god's doing that you wouldn't? Believe i'm going to bring a wicked king to judge my. People but wait a, Minute, god where are your? People how are you going to use a godless nation to punish your? People is there another godly? One find me a godly, one And i'll use. Them, oh you. Can't, Okay here come The. Babylonians jeremiah five point. Fifteen, BEHOLD i am bringing against you a nation From, AFAR o house Of. Israel declares The. Lord it is an enduring. Nation it is an ancient, nation a nation whose language you do not, know nor can you understand what they. Say we could go on and on and on and. On they're here because of wickedness and. Sin they're here because of kings Like. Jehoyican they're here because of. Idolatry here's the. Irony they serve the One true And Living, god and for whatever, reason they keep going after other. Gods And god, says you want to go after other. GODS i can arrange That, god we want a king so that we can be like the other. Nations, really you want to be like the other. NATIONS i can arrange that they were wicked And god judged. Them remember those two. Questions the first, question is Our god Really? God that's the first. Question is Our god Really? God the answer is, yes and he proves that even in the midst of the most horrible circumstances have you ever been? There is Our god Really? GOD i know you've asked that. Question i've prayed with some of you as you've asked that. Question why is this? Happening If god is Really? God but understand the theology on the other, side of that. Question here's the theology on the other side of that. Question If god's Really, god then bad stuff shouldn't happen to people who belong to. Him, really the, spotless sinless lamb Of god was crushed and killed by The father for The father's, Glory but you shouldn't experience bad. Stuff who do you think you? Are do you have any idea what you? Deserve do you have any idea what justice would look like in your life today based on what you, thought said and did on? Yesterday have you any? Idea we still live in a fallen. World god owes us. Nothing he is sovereign over all. Things and LIKE i, said the last TIME i, checked the death rate was one per. Person itoates us, All it wates us. All the question is Our? God? Truly? God is not answered by your. Circumstances daniel screams that to, us is Our god Really? God? Really you're asking that question Because memchanisa has got all these guys and they can't figure out his? Dreams who Can god's people? Can? Really you're asking If god's Really? God they throw us in the fiery furnace and we didn't, burn and we weren't alone by the, way and you're asking if Our god is Really? God are you? Serious? Really they Threw daniel in a lion's den with lions who were, hungry and they did not eat. Him, really is Our god Really? God yes he. Is, yes he is. The creator and sustainer of the, universe and nothing catches him by. Surprise and he will even turn your trials into a. Testimony this is the only thing that keeps us from spiraling out of control when difficulties. Come, Amen, yes Our god Is. God. Yave THOUGH i walked through the valley of The shadow Of, death you are with. Me there's also the action Of demaganeza Against, daniel as we see this battle Against god even in their. Names look at what he does at the, end be getting verse. Six among these Were, Daniel, Hannanaiah, Michael, azariah or the tribe Of. Judah the chief of The, eunuchs gave them. Names daniel he Called. Belshazzar Now daniel's name means my judge Is, god don and L dan judge l From, elohem my judge Is. God This beltizar means something akin to the protector of the. King hannanayah's. Name, again you see ya in There hannanayah's name Means yahweh has shown. Grace they changed his name To. Shadrack it's a combination Of, aku A sumerian Or elamite moon. God aku is Gracious, mishah which is very similar To, micah who is What god. Is micah is who is Like, god Michaelh. Miichhau they changed his name To meshak or Mesa, aku who is What aku is As arayah, again you See yahweh, There, mishall you see El eloheim As. Aaryah you hear Yah yahweh, again it Means yahweh has. Helped they changed his name To abidnigo or Abed, nigo servant of the God. Nebo all four of these young men have names that speak to who their god. Is all for these young men are renamed to speak to who babylons gods. Are, yet interestingly, enough as you go through this, book, Though daniel was, renamed and even when he's, forgotten The, queen when she sees the handwriting on the, wall does not, say, HEY i remember a guy Named. Beltishesar he should be about eighty years. Old, now she, says how About Daniel Amen, Hallelujah praise The. Lord how About. Daniel here's what's so ironic about. This their names are changed in order to strip them of their god given. Identity and if you say to the Average Christian, Hannahayah, michael And, azariah they don't know who you're talking, about you have to Say, Shadrack, misha and abidd the. Go we still allow their identity to be robbed from. Them not only is this a tale of two kings and two, gods but it's a tale of two. Cultures look at verses three through. Five then the king Commanded ashphan as is chief, unit to bring some of the people Of, israel both of the royal family and of the. Nobility that's very. Important of the royal family and the nobility. Youths so we know they're of the royal. Family we know they're of the, nobility youth without, blemish good, appearance skillful in all, wisdom endowed with, knowledge understanding and, learning competent to stand in the king's. Palace so at least eight things about these guys very. Important this is not. Random this is not. Random he wants specific people From israel for specific. Task what is that? Task and teach them the literature and language of The. Chaldeans the king assigned them a daily portion of the food that the king ate and of the wine that he. Drank we're going to change their, Names we're going to change their, learning and we're going to change their. Diet they were to be educated for three, years and at the end of the time they were to stand before the king listen to this From George. Schwab they used were expected to eat new, foods were given new, names and forced to learn the culture Of. Babylon they were being systematically indoctrinated and distance from Their israelite. Heritage at the end of the, process they would no longer Be, jews But. Babylonians they would have new. Identities that was the. Goal that was the, goal to destroy their. Identities how do we destroy their identities. Through? Education you? Know the great. Irony the great irony is. That people run to this passage of scripture in order to justify Sending christian children to government, schools when the fact of the matter is this text teaches us that if you want to destroy someone's, identity you have to re educate. Them there are some myths About daniel that are important in this regard number, one there's a myth That daniel and his friends were very small. Boys in, fact often referred to as the three grew boys like their little, kids you, know eight nineteen years old or. So, secondly That daniel and his friends gained their knowledge from The. Babylonians that's why they were so, brilliant because they learned The babylonian stuff better than other people. Did they did better in their. Education, Thirdly daniel and his friends represent the ideal ie we should be willing to send our children to The babylonians of our day so that they can gain knowledge and status within the context Of babylonian. Culture here's the. Reality number, One daniel and his friends were young men between fifteen and twenty years. Old, Secondly daniel and his friends had gained their knowledge from The covenant community In. Israel listen to the requirements, again. He, says. Beginning at verse, three the king Commanded ashmand as his Chief, unich to bring some of the people Of, israel both of the royal family and of the. Nobility so, first their families were. Important he wanted them to have a certain family background so that they could be useful to. Him, secondly youths without. Blemish he wanted them to be of good, appearance so there's no, defects and they're very, attractive skillful in all. Wisdom why because they've already completed their education by the ages of fifteen to. Twenty they're already very well, educated and they've demonstrated the fact that they're skillful at all. Knowledge not only were they educated in The covenant community Of, israel but they were the best and brightest at the end of Their israeli, education endowed with, knowledge understanding and, learning and competent to stand in the king's. Place this means that they were sharp young men who already demonstrated the kind of not just skill and, intelligence but also the kind of demeanor and personal presence that made them capable to stand before the king long before they learned their First babylonian. Word you, see. The message here in this clash of cultures is not that we run to The babylonians to gain their knowledge so that we can be elevated in their. Culture, no the fact of the matter is the message is the. Opposite when we understand Who god, Is god is the one who makes us, knowledgeable, skillful and. Wise the fear of The lord is the beginning of, wisdom not just downloading. Information the fear of The lord is the beginning of. Wisdom what we see here is not just the superiority of their, gods but the superiority of their, culture because it is ordered By. God so much so that we'll see next week that when they finish their, training the young men are ten times. Better why because they really picked up on That babylonian. Stuff, so, folks this is the. Occult they're learning the. Occult they're learning occultic. Practices and note also that when it comes down to it and the king needs somebody to do what these guys were trained to, do nobody can do. It daniel does not come back and. Serve the king because he learned occultic practices better than the people of the. Occult he goes back and prays To. God he doesn't even do what they taught him to. Do, so far from. Being a picture that would encourage us to embrace The babylonian culture and to see ourselves as part of The babylonian, kingdom this is a picture that says you don't need The, Babylonians they need. You god is. Enough you, see when we find ourselves outnumbered and we find ourselves in pressure, situations we have a tendency to turn to whatever's. Close the fact of the matter, Is daniel says to all of, us or you turn as To. God there's two. Questions remember those. Questions number, one he is Our, god Truly. God, secondly will he and really can he redeem? Us the answer to both of those is a resounding. Yes but hear. This daniel and his friends died. Slaves they did not die in a Rebuilt jerusalem and a Reconstituted, israel holding their hands up high and victorious Before Almighty. God and yet Their god is Still. God daniel and his friends were, Castrated they did not have children to be the next generation to go and change the, culture and yet Their god Is. God daniel and his friends served not just The babylonian, king. But also The meds and The. Persians they were slaves to, everybody and yet Their god Is. God and they learned something that you AND i need to. Learn regardless of where you find, yourself the most important thing is that you identify yourself with the covenant community Of god's redeemed people who just happens to live wherever you. Live that's who we. Are is this not a picture of who we are As? Christians we are, Redeemed we find ourselves In. Christ and yet there is a world. Out, there the kingdoms of this world out, there that is absolutely at odds with, us absolutely against, us absolutely opposed to, us always seemingly finding new ways to try to oppress us and oppose. Us and when that, happens all of us need to remember number, one Our god Is, god and number, two Our god will redeem us regardless of the. Circumstances and that does not have to mean. That everything looks the way we think it ought to. Look is it okay If god redeems you in the midst of slavery and leaves you in? Slavery if it's, not you don't understand the. Gospel is it okay That god redeems you in the midst of bondage and leaves you in the midst of that, bondage never to get you. Out if the answer is, no you don't understand what it means to be. Redeemed is it okay That god redeems you as a single and never gives you a? Spouse if the answer is, no you don't understand. Redemption is it okay That god redeems you in a bad marriage and you spend the rest of your life in that bad marriage and it never gets. Better if your answer is, no you do not understand. Redemption it okay That god redeems you in the midst of a culture that has absolutely gone astray and in your lifetime never writes the. Ship if the answer is, no you do not understand. Redemption is it all right That god redeems you and doesn't save every one of your? Kids if the answer is, no you do not understand. Redemption is it alright That god redeems you and you never ever become wealthy or healthy or. Prosperous if the answer is, no you do not understand. Redemption is it okay That god redeems you and yet you're sick in your body and or your. Mind if your answer, no that's not. Okay then you don't understand redemption because you think That god has created you For. Babylon that's Not daniel's. Message daniel's message Is god has me In, babylon but he didn't create me For. Babylon what did he create? Me for here is the, beauty AND i don't want to step on chapter two before we get to chapter. Two BUT i cannot imagine what it felt like For daniel to stand there and Interpret nebukanezer's. Dream nobody would tell him what the dream was or what it. Meant daniel goes and he, prays and he comes back and again in the midst of, captivity we'll deal with it in more, detail but for, now just listen to. This they're in. Captivity, daniel he's. Gone Here's, daniel who basically by this point, says country's, gone being burned with. Fire i'm not gonna have any. Children my line is gonna be. Gone it's over for. Me and they're teaching me these occultic. PRACTICES i got. Nothing But, daniel who has the ability to interpret, dreams all of a sudden gets a. Call our lives are in. Danger why because the king had a dream and we can't. Interpret he won't even tell us what it. Is he goes To god and he. Prays and not only Does daniel get the dream and its interpretation so that he can stay, alive but here's what he gets to say To Nebucan nezar there's four. Kingdoms you're number. One you don't. Last number two's. Coming they're gonna wipe you. Out they're not gonna. Last number three's, coming and they're gonna wipe out number. Two but they're not gonna. Last why because there is a kingdom coming that is going to stand. Forever not only Is god going to get my people out of, here but my king will reign supreme overall of heaven and over all of the. EARTH i may not ever see, it But i'm standing here to tell You, king you won't. Either but the difference between you and me is, that even in the midst of, CAPTIVITY i am part of the kingdom that will never. Die even in the midst of, captivity all you have to hope for is that you don't see the other army marching to take. Over i've already experienced, that And i'm still. Here but WHAT i have to hope for is that there is a day coming when The king Of kings and The lord of lords will vindicate. Himself. MAN i, mean maybe you were a slave, now But i'm his son. Forever so do with me as you, Must But i'm gonna be. Okay that's What daniel teaches. Us not you just be a good little boy and try really hard and be like. That that's Not daniel's. Message daniel's message is if you're a good little boy and you study, hard and you're attractive and articulate and, Intelligent god may send an army to come and destroy, you kill your, family carry you off to a foreign, land castrate you so that you never have a future or a, family and then teach you occultic practices and have you spend the rest of your. Days in a land that's not your. Own that's What daniel got for being a, good, smart hard studying little. Boy he didn't have, kids but he's got a book in The. Bible though he is, dead. Yet he. Speaks let's. Pray