Sunday, March 27, 2022 AM

Sunnyside Baptist Church

Subscribe

Download

Share

00

02:58

Alright, good morning everyone. The clock is counting down so it's my turn, time to start here.

03:06

Welcome to Sunnyside Baptist. We're glad to have everyone here this morning. We'll start off with a couple of announcements today.

03:13

Come back tonight for our evening worship service. That's going to be at 530 and then truth group is tonight for our young adults.

03:21

They'll meet in the fellowship hall for a meal and then time to learn together.

03:28

And then also looking ahead to this coming Wednesday, our meal at 545 together and then prayer for the adults and tag for the kids at 630.

03:38

There'll be a tag fellowship coming up on Sunday, May 22nd. So that's a little ways out but we want to give you guys plenty of time to invite maybe friends or family that you want to attend that usually during those tag we'll share part of what they've been learning in tag and there'll be some desserts with that.

03:56

That's following the evening service that Sunday, May 22nd. Michael just handed me an announcement regarding next

04:03

Sunday, Sunday school hour. We're going to have an opportunity to have Dr. Matzko.

04:09

Some of you were here last year or the year before when he came and spoke on science.

04:14

He's a science professor at Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina. And he's kind of making a tour around some of the local churches.

04:22

But we've got an opportunity if you want to bring your Sunday school class to the fellowship hall next

04:28

Sunday from grade school on up. We can all be together in the fellowship hall as he speaks and teaches us next

04:36

Sunday. Also Operation Christmas Child is still going on. So continue to give that.

04:41

You can drop those items out in the lobby of the church building. Any other announcements this morning?

04:52

All right. This week's fight or verse comes from Ephesians chapter four, verse 29 says no, let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up as fits the occasion that it may give grace to those who hear we're going to have a time to prepare our hearts for worship.

05:13

And then after that, dad will come up and open us in prayer. Almighty God, we bow before you this morning.

06:35

And like like Moses, we we would ask,

06:43

Lord, show us your glory. How grateful we are that you are a

06:55

God who is compassionate and full of mercy for you revealed your glory to Moses by recounting the splendor of your character, being a

07:16

God who is full of mercy, compassionate, abounding and steadfast love and faithfulness.

07:31

And, Lord, we we confess our inability many times to grasp exactly what that even means or looks like, though you explain it over and over again in your word.

07:44

We are like the disciples, often slow of heart. But while you told

07:56

Moses, no one can see my face and live, how grateful we are for what we read in John's gospel.

08:05

When it says that the word became flesh and dwelt among us and we have seen his glory, the glory of the glory of the only begotten of the father, full of grace and truth.

08:22

For, as John said, no one has ever seen God, the only God who is at the father's side.

08:29

He has made him known. And so, Lord, even as we pray.

08:36

Show us your glory. Thank you for revealing your glory in the face of Christ.

08:45

So, Lord Jesus, we look to you.

08:54

And may you stir our hearts this morning to worship, to praise, to giving you glory and honor and blessing for from you and through you and to you are all things.

09:21

To you, oh God. Be the glory forever and ever.

09:27

Amen. Good morning,

09:35

Sunnyside. Would you stand as we read the call of worship?

09:42

This comes from Psalm 77, 1 through 6. I cry aloud to God, aloud to God, and he will hear me.

10:02

In the day of my trouble, I seek the Lord in the night. My hand is stretched out without wearying.

10:12

My soul refuses to be comforted. When I remember God, I moan.

10:19

When I meditate, my spirit faints. Selah. You hold my eyelids open.

10:27

I am so troubled that I cannot speak. I consider the days of old, the years long ago.

10:35

I said, let me remember my song in the night.

10:41

Let me meditate in my heart. Then my spirit made a diligent search.

10:50

Our first song will be from your Psalter, 77a.

11:12

My voice to God, aloud I plead.

11:18

My voice to God, he will hear me. I sought the

11:25

Lord. I was distressed. I gave my outstretched hands no rest.

11:36

I roamed in calming light with thoughts of God.

11:53

My failing spirit, it faints with sighs.

12:06

It's lost. I may be faceless by my own.

12:13

The days of old, they make me numb.

12:19

The years that long ago. I thought their songs

12:29

I sang. And spirits turned for night.

12:38

Whoever will the Lord reject, can

12:46

I his favor not expect?

12:54

Forever, as his kindness seems, and easy from his word we haste.

13:07

Did God forget to show his grace?

13:14

Does wrath his mercy now replace?

13:21

When I read my thoughts, questions show that I may weakness need to know.

13:35

Almost I have the poignant hand that through the years will changeless stand.

13:55

All hail my voice to God, aloud I plead. All hail the power of Jesus' name.

14:02

Number 97 in your regular hymn book. It's a great song.

14:08

All hail the power. All hail the power of Jesus' name.

14:24

Let angels prostrate fall. Bring forth the royal diadem and crown him

14:36

Lord of all. Bring forth the royal diadem and crown him

14:49

Lord of all. A chosen seed of Israel's grace, he ransomed from the fall.

15:05

Hail him who slaved you by his grace, and crown him

15:12

Lord of all. Hail him who slaved you by his grace, and crown him

15:26

Lord of all. Let every kindred, every tribe, on this terrestrial pall

15:42

To him all majesty ascribe, and crown him

15:51

Lord of all. To him all majesty ascribe, and crown him

16:04

Lord of all. That with thunder's sacred throng we at his feet may fall,

16:30

We'll join the everlasting song, and crown him

16:38

Lord of all. We'll join the everlasting song, and crown him

16:54

Lord of all.

17:23

Hello. Please join me in reading Isaiah chapter 20, verses 1 through 6.

17:29

In the year that the commander -in -chief who was sent by Sargon, the king of Assyria, came to Ashdod and fought against it and captured it.

17:47

At that time the Lord spoke by Isaiah, the son of Amos, saying,

17:53

Go and loose the sackcloth from your waist and take off your sandals from your feet.

17:58

And he did so, walking naked and barefoot. Then the

18:04

Lord said, As my servant Isaiah has walked naked and barefoot for three years as a sign and a portent against Egypt and Cush, so shall the king of Assyria lead away the

18:20

Egyptian captives and the Cushite exiles, both the young and the old, naked and barefoot, with buttocks uncovered, and nakedness of Egypt.

18:31

Then they shall be dismayed and ashamed because of Cush their hope and of Egypt their boast.

18:40

And the inhabitants of this coastland will say in that day, Behold, this is what has happened to those in whom we hoped and to whom we fled for help to be delivered from the king of Assyria.

18:55

And we, how shall we escape? Please pray with me. Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for blessing me with the opportunity to read and share your word,

19:07

Lord. I pray that you will use today and the teaching of your word to bless this congregation and to reveal yourself to us,

19:17

Lord. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen. Please be seated.

19:24

Our next two songs, 188, At the Cross, and 16 from your

19:32

HMA, I Lay My Sins on Jesus. Alas, and did my

19:59

Saviour bleed, and did my Sovereign die?

20:07

Would He evoke that sacred death for sinners such as I?

20:18

At the cross, at the cross, where I first saw the light, and the burdens of my heart rolled away,

20:29

It was there by faith I received my sight, and now

20:36

I am happy all the day. Was it for crimes that I had done,

20:47

He groaned upon the tree? Amazing pity, praise unknown, and love beyond degree.

21:05

At the cross, at the cross, where I first saw the light, and the burdens of my heart rolled away,

21:17

It was there by faith I received my sight, and now

21:25

I am happy all the day. Well might the

21:33

Son in darkness hide, and shut

21:38

His glories in, When Christ the mighty

21:46

Maker died, for man the creature sinned.

21:54

At the cross, at the cross, where I first saw the light, and the burdens of my heart rolled away,

22:07

It was there by faith I received my sight, and now

22:15

I am happy all the day. But drops of grief can ne 'er repay the debt of love

22:31

I owe. Dear Lord, I give myself away, it is all that I can do.

22:47

At the cross, at the cross, where I first saw the light, and the burdens of my heart rolled away,

22:59

It was there by faith I received my sight, and now

23:08

I am happy all the day. Beneath the cross

23:18

I lay my sins on Jesus. On Jesus, the spotless

23:34

Lamb of God, He bears them all and frees us from the accursed load.

23:50

I bring my guilt to Jesus, to wash my crimson stains.

24:04

Why did His blood, most precious, still not a stain remain?

24:18

I lay my wants on Jesus, our fullness dwells in Him.

24:32

He heals all my diseases,

24:39

He does my soul redeem. I lay my griefs on Jesus, my burdens and my cares.

24:58

Here in hell I'll release us,

25:06

He all my sorrows shares.

25:16

I long to be like Jesus, strong, loving, lovely, mild.

25:31

I long to be like Jesus, the

25:39

Father's holy Child. I long to be with Jesus, amid the heavenly throng.

25:58

To sing with angels' praises, to learn the angels' songs.

27:02

How needy we are. Lord, we ask that You would help us today.

27:14

Help us to worship You. We ask that You would fill us with Your Holy Spirit.

27:21

That Your eternal, heavenly, royal, divine declarations of truth would resonate in our lives by the grace of Your Holy Spirit.

27:41

That You truly would find an amen in our hearts of Your will that has been settled forever in heaven.

27:55

That we would rejoice in Your truth. That we would praise

28:01

Your name. That we would love Your Son and worship

28:09

You in spirit and in truth today. Help us to commune with You.

28:17

We are in need of communing with You, our Maker. You have made us in Your image and You have made us for Your Word.

28:30

You have made us for Christ. And I pray that Your glory would be manifest in our lives today as You do

28:51

Your good in our lives. We ask for help now as we read

29:01

Your Word together. That You would give us the right understanding of the text.

29:08

That we would look at the passage today in light of who

29:14

Jesus is. And that by Your Holy Spirit we would be changed by it.

29:24

Helped by it. Not only informed, but conformed.

29:33

And it is for these many graces and mercies. And for many more that we seek.

29:40

We ask all these things in Jesus' name. Amen. Daniel is a book of riddles.

29:50

It is a book of riddles. And time and again in puzzling situations and in puzzling visions the answer to the riddle is the wisdom of Jesus Christ.

30:10

Whether facing life and death decisions regarding the state or interpreting complex dreams and visions.

30:23

These riddles are resolved in the light of who Jesus is. In the book of Daniel.

30:34

And we've been looking at visions now in the second half of the book of Daniel. A vision in chapter 7.

30:42

A vision in chapter 8. A vision in chapter 9. And now we come to the last vision of the book of Daniel which encompasses the last three chapters together.

30:56

We heard about the little horn of the fourth kingdom in chapter 7. The little horn of the third kingdom in chapter 8.

31:06

We've heard about 70 weeks of years in chapter 9. And now in chapters 10 through 12.

31:16

We hear a play -by -play commentary on world history events.

31:26

But not just any history. That which particularly concerns the future of Daniel's people.

31:35

As they anticipate the arrival of the Messiah. Especially in chapters 11 and 12.

31:46

We hear details of those 70 weeks of years.

31:53

How did the Persian Empire go down? What were the highlights of the

32:02

Greek Empire? And the many conflicts which destabilized it?

32:08

How did the fourth empire rise up to prominence? And how did all of these events concern

32:17

Daniel's people? Their mountain, their city, their sanctuary.

32:27

So this last vision of Daniel connects many dots.

32:33

Fills in many gaps. Spans from the latter years of the Persian Empire.

32:39

All the way to the destruction of Jerusalem during the Roman Empire. But the entirety of it reveals the sovereignty of God in the course of Jewish history.

32:53

And it comes under the heading given to us in our text. The heading of the latter days.

33:00

The latter days. So I'm going to read chapter 10 verses 1 through 11.

33:06

I invite you to stand if you're able to. As we read the word of the Lord together. The word of Christ through his spirit to his prophet

33:16

Daniel. In the third year of Cyrus, king of Persia, a message was revealed to Daniel.

33:24

Whose name was called Belteshazzar. The message was true, but the appointed time was long.

33:35

And he understood the message and had understanding of the vision. In those days,

33:41

I, Daniel, was mourning three full weeks. I ate no pleasant food. No meat or wine came into my mouth.

33:49

Nor did I anoint myself at all. Till three whole weeks were fulfilled. Now on the 24th day of the first month.

33:59

As I was by the side of the great river that is the Tigris. I lifted my eyes and looked and behold.

34:06

A certain man clothed in linen. Whose waist was girded with gold of Uphaz.

34:13

His body was like beryl. His face like the appearance of lightning. His eyes like torches of fire.

34:21

His arms and feet like burnished bronze in color. And the sound of his words like the voice of a multitude.

34:32

And I, Daniel, alone saw the vision. For the men who were with me did not see the vision.

34:38

But a great terror fell upon them. So that they fled to hide themselves.

34:44

Therefore, I was left alone when I saw this great vision. And no strength remained in me.

34:50

For my vigor was turned to frailty in me. And I retained no strength.

34:56

Yet I heard the sound of his words. And while I heard the sound of his words.

35:01

I was in a deep sleep on my face. With my face to the ground. Suddenly a hand touched me.

35:09

Which made me tremble on my knees. And on the palms of my hands. And he said to me, O Daniel.

35:14

Man greatly beloved. Understand the words that I speak to you. And stand upright.

35:21

For I have now been sent to you. While he was speaking this word to me. I stood trembling.

35:29

This is the word of the Lord. You may be seated. When we look at the emblems of the

35:46

Lord's Supper. The grape juice in the cup. Traditionally wine.

35:53

And we have the unleavened bread. These are elements that have long been.

36:00

At the heart of man's communion with God. We can think back all the way to.

36:10

The time when Abraham. Worshipped the Lord. At the city of Salem.

36:18

Ereshkulam. Later known as Jerusalem. And there he.

36:24

Worshipped the Lord. And Melchizedek. Who was a king of righteousness. And the priest of God most high.

36:33

Came out. And he brought with him. Bread and wine. And there

36:39

Abraham gave tithes unto the Lord. And worshipped God together.

36:45

With Melchizedek. We can think of the Passover. Where God redeemed.

36:51

Israel up out of Egypt. Upon which the. Last Supper.

36:58

The meal that Christ shared with his disciples. How he based his meal with his disciples. Upon the

37:03

Passover. There again the bread. There again the drink. The feasting with God.

37:11

The eating with God. Moses and Aaron. Nadab and Abihu. And the 70 elders of God.

37:17

Going up the Mount Sinai. Where they saw the Lord God. And yet lived.

37:23

And they ate and they drank with him. God. Coming to Abraham.

37:30

Christ coming to Abraham. And Abraham. Seeking. To commune with God. Does what?

37:36

He says. If you will stay here. I will go and I will make a meal. And he brought forth a meal.

37:43

And they sat together. And communed around the meal. Time and again.

37:50

When we come together. And we look at the bread. And we look at the cup.

37:56

And we're thinking of a meal. About communion. Sitting together at the same table.

38:02

The same table. With one. With whom we have no right. In and of ourselves to sit.

38:11

But we come by his invitation. We come by his grace. We come by his favor.

38:18

We come by his mercy. And we may sit together with him. And commune with him.

38:24

And know that we are welcome. How often in human experience.

38:32

Do we know this to be true. That when someone is not in fellowship with us.

38:40

They have no place at our table. Not welcome to this table. Invitations are either given.

38:48

Or. Not given. To the family and extended family.

38:55

At those holiday meals. Because of issues of either. Fellowship or disfellowship.

39:03

We know this. Instinctively. Can I invite so and so. When so and so is also going to be there.

39:10

They don't have fellowship together. How can they sit at the same table together? We know this by experience.

39:17

But the scriptures tell us. That we are. We are invited to commune with God.

39:24

And eat together. In communion with Christ today. Daniel 10.

39:32

Daniel chapter 10 is all about. Daniel's encounter with the Lord. Daniel's encounter with Christ.

39:40

Can Daniel have communion with God? Upon what basis can he even be in the presence of Christ?

39:51

And Daniel's concerns. His mourning. His reasons for praying and so on.

39:58

A concern about communion. As God answers

40:07

Daniel's concerns. He begins to lay out the course of how history is going to go.

40:13

From beyond Daniel's days all the way to the latter days. Of Daniel's concern about his people.

40:20

God says here's how it's all going to fold out. But again at the heart of this whole prophesied vision.

40:30

Of how Jewish history is going to go. The concern again and again is this. How will

40:37

God dwell with man? How will God's people and God be in relationship?

40:46

Communion is the concern. Because this is not any kind of history.

40:56

In chapters 11 and 12. As we're going to see. It's not the history of Persia from centralized on their capital of Susa.

41:06

It's not the history of Greece. Focused upon their homeland of Macedonia. It is a survey of world history as centered from Jerusalem.

41:20

Centered from the holy mountain. And the fate of the holy sanctuary.

41:28

What does Persia have to do with Jerusalem? What does Greece have to do with Jerusalem? What does

41:33

Rome have to do with Jerusalem? And all attention is focused there. Because there God had declared to reveal his name.

41:40

And there God had placed his sanctuary. And there God had promised to reveal his son.

41:46

And the coming of the new covenant. A covenant in which communion would remain unbroken.

41:53

As the spirit of God himself would indwell his people.

41:59

So as we make our way forward in this rather large section of Daniel.

42:08

I want us to remember the focus of all of the details that we're going to see.

42:15

The unfolding of Jewish history. Jewish history is Jesus' glory.

42:22

Jesus' glory. Jewish history is Jesus' glory. And we're going to see that transpire throughout the last three chapters of Daniel.

42:33

Well Daniel has encountered God's revelation more than once in this book. He has interpreted a dream by Nebuchadnezzar.

42:43

A dream of four empires and one statue. That is conquered by Christ. Daniel has encountered

42:50

God's revelation in his own dream. Of four beasts that were fragile and temporary. And comparable though to the eternal dominion of Christ.

43:00

Daniel has encountered God's revelation in a vision by the river Euphrates. And Christ orders

43:06

Gabriel to tell Daniel what will happen to the onerous, blasphemous, Antiochus epiphanies.

43:12

But now Daniel encounters God's revelation. Christ himself the word.

43:18

And he sketches out the entire political future. Which has an impact on Jerusalem.

43:25

Beginning with the final days of the Persian Empire. And ending with the destruction of Jerusalem in A .D. 70.

43:31

Before we get there, chapter 10 focuses in on the encounter. What happened?

43:37

When did it happen? What happened to Daniel as he dealt with this revelation of God?

43:44

And the touch in which we see Christ comforting Daniel.

43:51

So this morning we begin to think about the timing. Notice verses 1 and 3 again. 1 through 3.

43:59

In the third year of Cyrus, king of Persia, a message was revealed to Daniel. Whose name was called Belteshazzar.

44:05

The message was true. But the appointed time was long. And he understood the message.

44:11

And had understanding of the vision. In those days I, Daniel, was mourning three full weeks.

44:17

I ate no pleasant food. No meat or wine came into my mouth. Nor did I anoint myself at all.

44:23

Till three whole weeks were fulfilled. In connection to verses 1 through 3 are also verses 12 through 14.

44:32

As Christ begins to explain some things to Daniel. Verse 12. And he said to me, do not fear

44:38

Daniel. For from the first day that you set your heart to understand. And humble yourself before your

44:45

God. Your words were heard. And I have come because of your words. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia.

44:52

Withstood me 21 days. And behold, Michael, one of the chief princes. Came to help me.

44:59

For I have been left alone there with the kings of Persia. Now I have come to make you understand.

45:05

What will happen to your people. In the latter days. For the vision refers to many days yet to come.

45:15

The first thing we need to recognize. Is that our concerns are limited. Our concerns are limited.

45:23

Daniel has lived a long, long time. To make it to the third year of King Cyrus.

45:31

Daniel is either in his very late 80's or early 90's. He's very old.

45:38

He lived a long life. And now we see Daniel engaging in a time of mourning and prayer.

45:46

Now normally when you're reading through the Bible. You see the name Cyrus. That usually is a positive feeling.

45:52

For those who read the Bible. Because God used King Cyrus. In special ways. To benefit his people.

45:59

And bring them back to their place. And rebuild the temple. So why is Daniel mourning?

46:05

I thought the reign of Cyrus was a good time. It was a good thing. But we learn from the book of Ezra.

46:12

That tens of thousands of exiles. Have returned to Jerusalem. By this time.

46:19

Cyrus in his very first year. Made the decree. That the exiles could go back.

46:25

And that he would fund. The restoration of the temple in Jerusalem.

46:30

From the royal treasury. But this is in the first year of King Cyrus.

46:37

When hope was running high. And preparations were being made. And the exodus was underway.

46:45

This is in the second year of King Cyrus. When the foundation of the temple. Was successfully laid.

46:52

And worship restarted there in Jerusalem. To great fanfare. And the joy of most of the people.

47:01

No. This is the third year of King Cyrus. And this is when the opposition.

47:09

Against the continuing building of the temple. The continuing restoration of the city.

47:14

This is when that opposition began. In earnest. The opposition began because Zerubbabel.

47:23

The governor in charge of the program. He refused to cooperate with the local pagans.

47:30

To synthesize the efforts of the saints. With those of the idolaters.

47:36

In the rebuilding of God's temple. Zerubbabel did not want to tank the project.

47:42

To bring in the pagan. Forms of worship. And once he refused to cooperate.

47:48

And to synthesize. Then the locals began to oppose them.

47:55

Verse chapter 4 of Ezra. Chapter 4 of Ezra verse 5. Tells us that these.

48:02

Pagans hired counselors. Against them to frustrate their purpose all the days.

48:10

Of King Cyrus of Persia. So by the. After the foundation has been laid in the second year.

48:18

Now. They're hiring attorneys. They've retained attorneys.

48:25

They're bringing lawsuits against the Jews. Taking it all the way to the higher courts in Persia.

48:34

To frustrate the work of rebuilding the temple. They did this all the days of Cyrus King of Persia.

48:42

Even into the reign of Darius King of Persia. This is not the Darius the

48:48

Mede. Of chapter 6. This is Darius King of Persia.

48:53

A later Darius. So where was Cyrus? Why wasn't he helping God's people?

48:59

Well he got busy with some wars and got distracted. So they were on their own. Having a tough time.

49:06

Now. Coming back to Daniel. It's the third year. Not the first.

49:11

Not the second. It's the third year. These are not happy times. For the people of God. Most of chapter 9 of Daniel.

49:22

Most of chapter 9 of Daniel. Is Daniel. Humbling himself. Wrestling with the

49:30

Lord in prayer. Seeking God's action to restore his people to their land.

49:37

That the temple will be rebuilt. That the worship of God will be restored. He gets a positive answer from the

49:44

Lord. How happy he must have been that first year of Cyrus. To see all this taking place.

49:50

Even the second year to here. The foundation of the temple has been laid. But now.

49:57

Now. This undersized project. The second temple was much smaller than the first.

50:07

With those who did go back. But of course not all the Jews did go back. It's completely off the rails.

50:15

This looks like one of the worst false starts of any kind of program. This does not look good.

50:23

This is problematic. No wonder Daniel. Is mourning.

50:30

These three weeks. He's mourning. His sorrow.

50:39

Is because. Of the lack. Of the temple. The lack of the progress of the worship of God in Jerusalem.

50:49

His concern is that of restoring communion. But it's not happening.

50:57

He's been praying for God to act. It looked like something was going to happen. And then now it looks like it's all falling apart.

51:06

So Daniel mourns. He has great sorrow. Now when we read

51:15

Daniel chapter 10. We discover. That Daniel's mourning and sorrow.

51:23

Ceased. Only upon. The arrival of Christ. In his direct presence.

51:30

Which then at first. Was terrifying. Before it was strengthening and comforting.

51:41

Daniel is mourning and in sorrow for three weeks. And when the answer arrives.

51:47

It's in the person of Christ himself. And the sorrow and the mourning of Daniel.

51:54

Turns into abject terror. Where he's shaking uncontrollably on the ground and cannot even talk.

52:03

Before. He is comforted and strengthened. We need to keep that big.

52:10

Story arc in mind. Sorrow.

52:20

Often afflicts. The believer. And what do we seek in our sorrows?

52:35

What do we seek in our mourning? What do we seek in our pain and our suffering?

52:42

We seek the nearness of God. The comfort of God. The answer of God. The relief.

52:48

The healing. The deliverance. Do we not? I'm thankful that in the way that God works.

53:01

In his. Delays in his answer to our concerns.

53:08

That. Prior to his answers. We are first shown.

53:16

And caused to learn the fear of the Lord. The fear of the Lord. If God is not worthy of fear.

53:27

He's not powerful to save. Until we realize just how much we are in his hands.

53:36

And we cannot take things into our own hands. But we are utterly in his hands.

53:45

God teaches us that. Amen. Before he comforts and he saves. He teaches us that he's worthy of fear.

53:55

That our faith is increased. That he is indeed powerful to save. Daniel is sorrowful.

54:04

He is mourning. For three weeks he is this way. Perhaps. Perhaps. We're not told.

54:10

Perhaps ever since he heard the news. Of how things were going badly. For his people. But when

54:18

Christ arrives. He tells Daniel. What has been going on these past three weeks. We discovered that the

54:26

Lord. Has been involved. Battling. Against his people's enemies.

54:33

We have a reference here to the. Prince of Persia. And alongside of that we have.

54:41

Michael being called a prince. We know Michael's an angel. It's called an archangel. So whatever the

54:49

Prince of Persia is. Must be on something of the same type of. Level as the prince called

54:56

Michael. And we hear that Christ has been engaged.

55:01

With the Prince of Persia. And. Michael the prince. Is now engaged.

55:07

And Christ has come to speak with. Daniel. That sounds weird. You'd be correct.

55:15

But without engaging in too much. Angelic speculation. We are to confess according to Ephesians.

55:21

Chapter 6 verse 12. That there are principalities. And powers. There are rulers of darkness.

55:28

And spiritual hosts of wickedness. In the heavenly places. That's what we're told.

55:36

And so we've discovered. That Ezra and Zerubbabel. And the team. Were not wrestling.

55:43

Merely against flesh and blood. When the local pagans.

55:49

Who opposed their work. Hired lawyers. To pursue lawsuits against their work.

55:57

Ezra, Zerubbabel and the team. Were not wrestling merely against flesh and blood. But there was a spiritual battle going on.

56:04

Daniel has only heard. Of the problems. In the third year of Cyrus.

56:11

He's only heard of the logistical issues. The political issues. And he's praying in sorrow about those things.

56:19

Whereas there is actually. He discovers. Upon the arrival of Christ. That there's been a spiritual battle going on.

56:27

That is far bigger. And far more concerning. Than what was going on. In the political and logistical side.

56:33

Our concerns are so limited. We see political issues.

56:39

And we're concerned. And rightly so. Logistical issues. We're concerned. Rightly so.

56:45

I'm concerned about my family relationships. I'm concerned about my finances. I'm concerned about my health.

56:51

I'm concerned about my loved ones. And I see these things right in front of me. But my concerns are so limited.

57:05

There was a spiritual battle going on. And Daniel didn't even know what was happening. And Christ shows up to tell him.

57:13

What was going on. And Christ is God's chosen victor in all these conflicts.

57:19

We don't understand God's timing of three weeks. We don't understand the involvement of this

57:25

Prince of Persia. And the Archangel of Michael. But what do we know? We know ultimately all these spiritual forces.

57:33

Suffered a devastating defeat through Christ's death, resurrection and ascension.

57:39

Colossians 2 .15 says, Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them triumphing over them in it.

57:50

Christ is the victor. Our concerns are so limited.

58:03

Third year of Cyrus is a rough time. Rough time for the rebuilding project. What other timing do we see in the text?

58:13

Well, Christ says to Daniel, Look, the answer I'm giving to you pertains many days ahead.

58:24

Many days ahead. Verse 14, Now I have come to make you understand what will happen to your people in the latter days.

58:32

For the vision refers to many days yet to come. Daniel is concerned with the days right now. The issues right now.

58:42

Christ comes with an answer dealing with days far off. God's answer will deal at length with the political tumult to come, which will center around Daniel's people.

58:54

Daniel's mountain, city and temple. All the very most important upheavals, which will affect

58:59

Daniel's people in many, many days to come. Now, I want you to think about this. Having shown

59:06

Daniel that these political upheavals are actually spiritual in nature.

59:14

Daniel, your people are having problems in this Persian Empire. I'm going to take care of that.

59:21

I am taking care of that. In fact, we read later on in Daniel chapter 10, that having dealt with the kings of Persia, then

59:30

Jesus turns His attention to deal with those of Greece. He's going to deal with them. In the whole history of Persia, Christ is the one who dealt with them in that way.

59:44

The ups and downs, the backs and forths, the intrigues, the falling out, all of it. Who was behind all of that, orchestrating that?

59:50

That was Christ. What about the kingdom of Greece? What about Alexander's success?

59:56

What about the split up of his kingdom? What about the fallout between the Ptolemies and the Seleucids, and all the drama that fell out there?

01:00:04

Christ was in charge of that. He was governing that as well. So, Christ comes to Daniel and says, and gives assurance to Daniel, that He's the one who's taking care of it all.

01:00:23

And isn't it assured to Daniel that this is the case, when by His personal manifestation to Daniel, Daniel knows the power of Christ first, in his fear and in his trembling, and then

01:00:34

Christ gives assurances to Daniel that he need not be in terror, and He gives him comfort.

01:00:45

How essential would it be for the people of God, the old covenant people of God, one generation speaking unto the next, encouraging them in the things of the

01:00:56

Lord, that as they live through the rest of the Persian empire, through all of the

01:01:02

Greek empire, into the Roman era, how important would it be from generation to generation, for them to look at one another and say, all of this is being arranged by God.

01:01:13

How important would that be? Or, would they look at world news, shake their head and say, well, that's just terrible.

01:01:27

That's just terrible. Do we really think that the conflicts of our age today, are unfolding outside of Christ's sovereign reign?

01:01:41

Do we look at world history as secularists, as atheists? Do we look at the unfolding of conflict upon the world stage, and make the assumptions of atheists, oh, that's just how things happen.

01:01:58

Or, do we do so as believers, and we see that Christ is sovereign.

01:02:09

Daniel is mourning for three weeks over the problems of his people. God assures Daniel he's been addressing the problem the entire time.

01:02:17

And, by the way, there are a cascade of difficulties ahead, Daniel. You think this is bad.

01:02:26

Wow, we've got a lot of bad stuff coming up. Now, those thoughts may topple the scales of Daniel's anxiety, but they don't budge the scales of God's sovereignty.

01:02:42

Daniel has a limited concern for the current crisis, but that must be placed against the greater scope of God's planned history for the

01:02:51

Jews, a history which resolves as a mantle of glory settled upon the shoulders of Christ.

01:02:58

God's timing is perfect. God's timing is perfect. God's timing in our lives is always perfect.

01:03:06

God's timing in a trial, in sorrow and in grief, in war and in scarcity, in answering prayer and in providing comfort and relief,

01:03:16

His timing is perfect. His timing with Daniel was right on the dot. His timing with us is perfect.

01:03:23

Ecclesiastes 3, verse 1 says, To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven.

01:03:29

God has arranged it to be so. What if our grief and mourning come unexpectedly?

01:03:38

What if our sorrows are extended longer than we feel we can bear? What if God delays

01:03:44

His answers? What if the good and the true and the beautiful we desire and pray for, what if these are not even answered in our generation?

01:03:56

Is God still good? Is His timing still perfect?

01:04:03

Daniel had to mourn for three weeks for His answer, but that didn't make the answer bad. Though the word that God brought to Daniel had to do with generations far distant from Him in time, the word was still true.

01:04:16

We read, the message was true, but the appointed time was long. The message is true no matter how many generations stand between the giving of the message and the reading of the message.

01:04:32

The word of God is true no matter how long it takes for it to come to pass. Psalm 33, verses 10 -11,

01:04:39

The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing. He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect.

01:04:46

The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of His heart to all generations.

01:04:55

And how gracious was it of God to give Daniel a clear prophetic expectation.

01:05:00

He and His people. He says the appointed time is long. He did not leave

01:05:06

His servant to doubt the time frame of the prophecy's fulfillment. When God says it'll be short, it'll be short.

01:05:12

When He says it'll be long, it'll be long. God's word is also, we see, permanent.

01:05:19

Permanent. The word of God is true no matter how old or how long we wait for the promises to come about.

01:05:28

Why is God's word permanent and true forever? Because Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

01:05:39

God's word is permanent because Christ is enthroned. He will never be shaken, thus

01:05:46

His word will never be shaken. Daniel's getting kind of shaky in this chapter. Christ isn't.

01:05:54

The rebuilding project is getting a little shaky. But God's grace isn't. The future of Israel, especially during the time of the

01:06:02

Grecian Empire, that looks pretty shaky, but God's promises aren't. And even as God tells

01:06:08

Daniel how Israel's security is going to remain under assault for many generations to come, always on the edge of disaster, time and again,

01:06:18

He assures Daniel that all that God has planned for Israel will come to pass and the

01:06:23

Messiah is not going to fail. It's not going to fail. So what is our response? Our response is to be praised.

01:06:30

We are to praise. Daniel is very near the end of his life.

01:06:38

But the revelation given to him extends for generations and generations beyond him. Isn't that the same situation as the psalmist?

01:06:47

Psalm 71, verses 17 and 18. O God, you have taught me from my youth, and to this day

01:06:53

I declare your wondrous works. Now also, when I am old and gray -headed, O God, do not forsake me, until I declare your strength to this generation, your power to everyone who is to come.

01:07:11

The word of God endures forever. Or are we temporary?

01:07:19

Now, some of you are gray -headed. But what does our generation need to hear?

01:07:28

God's word is true. He always keeps His promises. He will be glorifying.

01:07:35

You just watch and see. You may not see it, but the generation you're talking to will, because God is true.

01:07:47

We need to trust in the Lord's timing and goodness. We need to declare God's strength to this generation, so that the truth of His power will be handed down to the next and to the next.

01:07:59

And what are three weeks of sorrow in light of twelve generations of God's sovereign deliverance?

01:08:07

What are three weeks of sorrow in light of twelve generations? Let us not be weary and discouraged.

01:08:15

God's delay in our now is to be measured against His timing throughout all of redemptive history.

01:08:29

Daniel had to wait to commune with his Lord. We do not.

01:08:36

Praise the Lord. We may commune with Him daily in this blessed new covenant.

01:08:44

Daniel measured the weeks of his sorrow by what he refused to eat and drink.

01:08:50

But we should not fail, even in our sorrows, to refuse the comfort of this meal.

01:08:58

We come and mark what we are able to eat and commune with our

01:09:04

Lord, our Shepherd, our Savior. Let's pray. Father, I thank You for Your word.

01:09:10

I thank You for our time in Daniel today. Lord, we can relate to Daniel, his sorrows, his misery, his needing a word from You.

01:09:24

We thank You that You have given us a sure word in Your Son, Jesus Christ. And we thank

01:09:32

You that we may commune with You today. And I pray that You would bless our communion with You.

01:09:42

And I pray that You would strengthen those who are weak, and that You would comfort those who are sorrowing, and that You would help us to know the goodness of Your presence.

01:09:53

And we pray these things in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. That Jesus died on the cross, even though He didn't have to.

01:10:16

But He chose that. He could have called 10 ,000 angels. They bowed the hands of Jesus in the garden where He prayed.

01:10:35

They led Him through the streets in shame.

01:10:42

They spat upon the Savior, so pure and free from sin.

01:10:52

They said, crucify Him, He's to blame.

01:11:01

Upon His precious head, they placed a crown of thorns.

01:11:09

They laughed and said, behold the King. They struck

01:11:19

Him, and they cursed Him, and they mocked

01:11:24

His holy name. All alone,

01:11:30

He suffered everything. He could have called 10 ,000 angels to destroy the world and set men free.

01:11:57

He could have called 10 ,000 angels, but He died alone for you and me.

01:12:26

They nailed Him to the cross.

01:12:32

His mother stood close by. He said, woman, behold thy son.

01:12:45

He cried, I thirst for water. But He gave

01:12:52

Him none to drink. Then the sinful work of man was done.

01:13:04

To the howling mob He yielded. He did not for mercy cry.

01:13:13

The cross, the shame, He took alone.

01:13:22

And when He cried, it's finished, He gave

01:13:29

Himself to die. God's wondrous plan, salvation was done.

01:13:40

He could have called 10 ,000 angels to destroy the world and set

01:14:01

Him free. He could have called 10 ,000 angels, but He died alone for you and me.