MESSAGE

       FROM THE

    WORD

                                      THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD pt. 1

                                                          Daniel 2:1-29 

SERIES:  Daniel                                                                                                  Message # 4

            Many years ago, Mel Brooks made a movie spoof and entitled it, “The History of the World pt. 1”.  The movie was such a bomb that part 2 was never made.  The world is probably a better place for that reason.  We love history.  It is a place where we can find our roots and learn from those who walked before us.  It is where we can see great exploits of courage and terrible scenes of betrayal.  It is mostly a place where we can learn.

            One area of history we would like more information on is the future.  We love to talk about the future.  Hollywood made a series of films on this theme which made Michael J. Fox a star and entitled them “Back to the Future”.  Bookies are already laying odds on who will be the Republican and Democratic candidates for an election that is more than 21 months from now.  In the near future, odds will be given on who will win the next Super Bowl.  95% of our nation’s newspapers have astrological sections.  We love to go to a Chinese restaurant, break open the fortune cookie, and read our fortune.  Most cities have someone who has a sign out that claims to be able to read people’s future. 

            The only place you can turn to and receive a 100% accurate prediction on what is going to happen in the future is the Bible.  One of the reasons God gives us predictions is so that we can learn to trust Him.  That will only happen if His predictions come true.  If God made a prediction that failed to materialize, His reputation would be trashed.  It is only as His words are proven true that we can have faith in what He says that might not be provable. 

            The Bible is filled with many different types of predictions.  God told Sarah that she was going to have a baby.  There are hundreds of predictions concerning the birth, life and death of Jesus.  There were predictions that He made in His lifetime that were fulfilled before He went to the cross.  There are predictions about the church and what will happen leading up to the final days.  There are also predictions about the end of time. 

            When we discuss the issue of the end of the world, people have all sorts of responses.  If Pat Robertson went on his television show and said that unless people repented, the world will end in twenty years, he would be branded a kook and a religious wacko.  On the other hand, when Al Gore made a movie and said that unless people repented of their environmental sins the world would end soon, he was given Oscars and nominated for Nobel prizes.  That is the nature of our world.  When God speaks, there is opposition. 

            There is no book that more exemplifies this issue than does the book of Daniel.  No chapter in the book is more attacked than chapter 2.  The reason for this opposition is due primarily because of its incredible accuracy.  This is one of the reasons why it is important for us to study this passage and know what it says.  We will study this chapter in two sections.  Today, we will look at the dream itself.  Next week we will study the interpretation.

            FIRST, WE SEE THE RECURRING DREAM.  Many of you can remember that the film “TITANIC” was awarded the Academy Award for best picture.  In accepting his Oscar, director James Cameron shouted out, “I’m king of the world”.  People laughed because they knew it was a spoof.  Nebuchadnezzar did not laugh when he acted like the king of the world.  The reason for this attitude was pretty simple.  He was king of the world.  There was no kingdom like Babylon.  Its walls were more than 50 feet thick and hundreds of feet high.  It was the host to one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.  It was a great city and Nebuchadnezzar was the king of the world.  When you are the king of the world, nothing is supposed to bother you.  That is why you have servants and the like.  However, something was bugging Nebuchadnezzar.  We read                        DANIEL 2:1-3            There was no sleeping pill that could help him.  No hypnotist could calm him down.  God had a message for him and He was not going to let the king sleep.  It is interesting that Daniel stated that the king had “DREAMS”.  It is not easy to discern whether this means a variety of different types of dreams, or a single dream which he had on many occasions.  My guess would be that he had bits and pieces of this dream on many different occasions.  One night he might dream about one part of the beast.  On another night he might dream about another part of the beast.  Every night God tormented him with a different portion of this beast.  Finally, he had enough and he decided to do something about it.

            SECOND, WE SEE THE RIDICULOUS DEMAND.  Have you ever had someone give you a ridiculous demand?  During World War II, Gen. George Patton would often stop at a church to take time and pray for God’s blessings on the war effort.  As a military man, Patton would always begin his prayers by saying “Sir…”  After the Normandy invasion, the pivotal battle of the war became known as the Battle of the Bulge.  Through incorrect Intel, the Americans wrongly calculated the strength of the German army and nearly lost the war.  Patton wanted to advance and cut off the German tanks from their supply lines.  However, a major storm arose which prevented Patton’s forces from moving forward.  Gen. Patton went to his chief chaplain and ordered him to write a prayer to stop the rain.  The chaplain prayed, the rain stopped, Patton advanced and the battle was won when the superior German tanks ran out of fuel and had to surrender.

            The king made just as ridiculous a demand as did Patton.  We read                 DANIEL 2:4-11           It is not a major request for the king to ask what was the interpretation of the dream.  However, to ask for them to tell the dream as well as the interpretation was a little much.  The magicians even stated, “NO GREAT KING OR RULER HAS ASKED ANYTHING LIKE THIS OF ANY MAGICIAN…”  All the magicians were asking was for the dream to be told.  They could then make up an interpretation.  Bible scholars are mixed as to whether Nebuchadnezzar remembered the dream.  My personal feeling is that he did not.  That is why he was so frightened.  He was scared to death, but he couldn’t remember why.

            The court officials must have thought he was joking at the beginning.  However, the king became more insistent and the magicians realized they were in trouble.  I’m going to assume from this that Nebuchadnezzar understood that he and the magicians had a little game going on.  He would have a dream, inform the magicians of the dream and they would make up a meaning to give him.  Everything was safe because no harm was being done.  However, in this situation he needed the real thing.  He did not want a convenient interpretation, he wanted the straight scoop.  In order to do that, he either couldn’t or wouldn’t give the dream.  The magicians said all sorts of nice things about the king, but it did no good.  The die had been cast.

            THIRD, WE SEE THE RIGHTEOUS DISCERNMENT.  One of the chief characteristics of wise people is they don’t panic when problems confront them.  When the king ordered all of the magicians and wise men to be executed, Daniel was one of those wise men.  When Nebuchadnezzar called for his soldiers to kill all of the advisers, that included Daniel. 

            We need to remember that Daniel had already spent three years at Babylon University learning all of the information available to the king.  At the end of chapter 1 we read VERSE 19          Daniel and his three friends were now a part of this inner circle of advisors to the king.  For whatever reason, Daniel was not in the king’s presence when he had this dream problem.  We read                    DANIEL 2:12-15          When word came to Daniel that he was to be executed, he inquired as to why this rash edict had been signed.  Daniel asked Arioch what the reasoning of the king was.  When Daniel heard the reasoning, he appealed to the king for a stay.

            FOURTH, WE SEE THE RESPONSE OF DANIEL.  What do you do when impossible situations arise in your life?  Most of us go crazy.  Daniel was a wise man and he didn’t panic.  Remember that our definition for wisdom is seeing life from God’s viewpoint.  Are you aware that God never panics?  God never sits on His throne and says, “Oh no, what do I do now”?  God is always in control and those who think like Him walk in the understanding that He has the answer to whatever the problem might be.  One word that will never be heard in Heaven is the word “OOPS”!

            Did you notice that Daniel’s first response was to communicate to the king that God would solve the problem.  We read              VERSE 16           Even when one is walking with the Lord, human authority is not removed.  Many Christians get into trouble at work because they communicate that because they are believers, they don’t need to listen to the boss.  Daniel did not do that.

            Did you notice that Daniel’s second step was to pray?  He not only prayed he also recruited prayer partners.  We read           VERSE 17, 18          John Maxwell states that one is to small a number for success.  Do you remember what Jesus did when He was in the Garden facing the cross?  He asked His disciples to pray with and for Him.  Every believer needs to be active in prayer.  Every believer also needs to recruit people to pray with them.  It is one of the reasons why our Women’s Ministries has Secret Prayer Partners.  We need to be praying with and for each other.

            Did you notice that his third response was to praise?  We read                VERSES 19-23               This is the nature of praise.  It is to exalt God as great.  This is the nature of worship.  It is not to get us pumped up, but to get God exalted.  When was the last time you praised God for a crisis in your life which gave God an opportunity to manifest His power to a disbelieving world?  The nature of praise is to tell others of the great works which God has performed.  The psalmist wrote              PSALM 145:4 This is the heart of praise and worship.

            LAST, WE SEE THE REVEALED DREAM.  This is really interesting.  In verse 16 we are told that Daniel went straight to the king to request time to discern the dream.  However, after God gave him the dream, Daniel took an interesting turn.  We read                 VERSE 24                   Why would he do that?  Why didn’t he just go straight to the king?  We are not told in the passage, but I think I know the answer.  In our last message we saw that one way we make a positive impact in our culture is by developing a gentle spirit.  In this chapter, Daniel lived out that gentle spirit.  When Daniel came to Arioch and asked why an execution had been called for, this powerful guard did not have to give him an answer.  All he needed to do was give him the side of his sword.  However, over the three years that Arioch had watched over Daniel, God had showed the prophet great favor.  It is obvious that Arioch understood this and I believe that he benefited from God’s favor on Daniel.  When God gave Daniel the interpretation, he went to Arioch and informed him what God had done.  I believe he did this knowing how the guard would react.  His read of the situation was exact and accurate.  We read      VERSE 25            When you don’t care who receives the credit of men, the favor of God will follow you wherever you go.  That is the heart of humility.

Daniel allowed Arioch to receive the credit because he knew that God’s favor rested on him.  Daniel did not need the praise of the king.  Arioch did.  Daniel honored this pagan guard by allowing him to receive the credit from the king.  I also believe it was in acknowledgement of Arioch’s kindness to him.  If you want to have open opportunities to share Christ, be grateful to unbelievers when they show you kindness without using God talk.  They will notice.

            This is all history and we will see the interpretation of the dream next week.  Let me at this point make some applications from this event.  I have ten for you.

            First, God expects us to act with compassion towards unbelievers.  We read             PROV. 15:1          It is a powerful truth, that a humble believer will receive God’s blessings.  It is also true that a humble believer will receive a hearing from unbelievers.  A smug or caustic believer causes contempt in the heart of the unbeliever.  We read                  JAMES 4:6         Pride and arrogance turn people off, but compassion draws them to God.

            Second, God places us in impossible situations so that we will pray.  We pray the most sincerely when we run out of answers.  That is one of the reasons God puts us in difficult situations.  This is why Paul wrote              1 TIMOTHY 2:1, 2       What God wants from His children is for His children to pray first, in between, and last.

            Third, praise should always follow answered prayer.  One of the primary reasons God answers prayer is so that we will praise Him.  The psalmist wrote PSALM 107:8 Praise, even in the middle of difficulties is a powerful weapon against the enemy.

            Fourth, drastic times are always open doors for God to reveal his power.  Do you think that just maybe the Hebrew slaves took a deep breath when they were at the Red Sea and saw the Egyptians heading their way?  God specializes in solving impossible problems.  Bring yours to Him.

            Fifth, God may use unbelievers to deliver us from an impossible situation.  This is often a stumbling block for some believers.  Here is why God does this.  His goal is not only to bless you, but to save the unbeliever.  When the unbeliever realizes that they are in the middle of a “GOD MOMENT” they will do anything to remove themselves from that situation.  If you act arrogantly, that is the out they are looking for.  When you smile at them and simply say, “Isn’t God powerful” they have nowhere to go except to their knees.  When God moves, you don’t have to say anything to the unbeliever. God’s demonstration of power is evident to them.  Sit back, shut up, and let God do His thing.

            Sixth, unbelievers are not impressed by our piety, but they stand in awe of answered prayer.  We spend too much time trying to impress the ungodly about how wonderful we are.  There is nothing we can do to make that happen.  Besides, our goal is not to make them think we are great.  Our goal is to make God look great.  This is why one of the most powerful tools in our arsenal is to simply ask the unbelievers around us if we can pray for them.  Unless they are a belligerent atheist, they have some concerns over which they would like divine guidance.  When we pray for them, they see the answer.  You don’t have to say anything.

            Seventh, obedience in little areas opens up doors for God’s favor in big areas.  Daniel was obedient in keeping God’s laws when no one else did.  God rewarded that.  Our children need to learn how to stand against their peers when their friends stand against God.  This is why they need godly friends. 

            Eighth, God may allow torment in an unbeliever’s life so they will come to Him for answers.  Again, we often make the mistake of trying to solve our neighbor’s and our children’s problems for them.  It is those problems which God placed in their life so they would realize they need Him.  Learn to ask precise questions to discern what is going on in the other person’s life.  It is in asking precise questions that you communicate compassion and concern.  You can then share a specific passage with them and pray.  Then, leave them in God’s hands.

            Ninth, spiritual dynamics are a team effort.  No one is strong enough to stand alone.  Jesus called for people to be with Him.  Paul recruited a support group.  Moses, David, Peter, Barnabas and John all had people to carry the load.  You are not stronger than they were.  This is why being with God’s people every week is not an option.  We read                  HEBREWS 10:23-25                 Did you notice the power of encouragement and how it and fellowship are linked?  You need a support group.  You need to see joining in fellowship every Sunday as essential, not optional.

            Tenth, God’s favor follows your decision to give unbelievers the credit.  God’s favor is the only credit you need.  You might want the praise of man, but you don’t need it.  When you allow unbelievers to take the whole credit for what you did together, it creates in their hearts an “I owe him”.  That often results in open opportunities to share Christ when they would normally be closed.  When was the last time someone else took or received credit for something you did?  How did you respond?  Did you respond in humility or pride?  Remember, pride causes God’s favor to be removed.

            One of the primary reasons why God moves in the life of His people is so that unbelievers will experience His power.  Notice what occurred after Daniel met with the king.           Daniel 2:46-49        When your desire is to please God and bless your society, God reveals His glory to the culture and promotes His people to positions of honor. 

This message is from the teaching ministry of Glen Jackson, pastor of Faith Christian Church in Simi Valley, CA.