Daniel Lesson 6 - Fairhaven Baptist Church

Daniel

Lesson 6

Text: Daniel 2:41-49

Intro: Last study we looked at the first four kingdoms of the interpretation of the dream. The Babylonian empire, the Medo-Persian empire, the Grecian empire, and the Roman empire, We briefly discussed the fifth one, being the last days empire of Iron and clay mixed. We even looked at the possibilities of the territories that made up the 10 nation alliance against Israel. But at the end of all that, there was a rock cut out, without hands, and it smote/ struck the statue, and destroyed it, scattering the pieces into the wind. Then that rock became a great mountain. So this study, we will focus on the rock and the mountain. What they are, when, and the implications to you and me.

Nothing New In the World,
1. Old Testament of New Testament Doctrine,
  1. Daniel was also a Prophetic book,
    1. not just historical,
      - the dream is a good example to us, we see the dream for us today as historical, at least for the most part.
      - The empires represented in it have come and gone, the Persian, the Greek, the Roman empire, all history….. However,’
    2. For Daniel, the current empire was the Babylonian empire,
      - so the head was current, the rest of the body was prophetic.
      - Daniel explained it, but it was still prophecy to Nebuchadnezzar,
        
        so there was some imagination that Nebuchadnezzar had to utilize in order to understand what Daniel revealed to him.
    3. The same is true for us,
      - just as Nebuchadnezzar could understand the “head of gold” part and wonder of the prophecy parts, so do we see the whole body down to the feet as history, and are left to wander about the feet and the rock.
        
        That being said, we can search the scriptures for more evidence about the meaning, and the application of these things.
  2. Early Teachings of Jesus’ second coming,
    1. Jude 1:14&15 “And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, 15 To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.”
      - it goes on, but we can see that even in the time of Enoch, the preaching of the second coming was there.
    2. Ecclesiastes 1:9 “The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.”
      - The Jewish people reject the New Testament, and there are some Christians that Do not study the Old Testament,
        
        but they are not separate books, they are a continuation of one another.
        
        We do not find things in the New Testament that were not spoken of in the Old. And it is difficult, if not impossible to understand the Old without the illumination of the New.
2. The Millennial Kingdom, and Important Doctrine,
  1. this is what is being spoken of by Daniel.
    1. So let’s look a the Prophecy:
    2. First, the stone cut out without hands,
      - why do we think the “without hands” was included here?
        
        To emphasizes that it was not of man’s doings.
        
        This was going to be a “supernatural” work.
      - The stone is a clear reference to Jesus,
        
        one of the defining aspects of Jesus’ birth was the fact that man had nothing to do with it,
        
        He was born of a virgin, with no human father.
        
        Isaiah 7:14 “Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel”
        
        we see the fulfillment of this in Matthew 1:18-25,
    3. now this is a sticky point,
      - in the image if Nebuchadnezzar, each empire was clearly delinted,
        
        the gold stopped and the silver began, the silver stopped, and the bronze….
        
        in History, these empires did not occupy the same space at the same time.
        
        When the Persians cam in, the Babylonians went out.
        
        But the last two exist simultaneously,’
        
        the rock as it is formed, exist before it strikes the feet.
        
        The Kingdom of Heaven began before the image was destroyed. However, the kingdoms were not dispersed until it struck them.
  2. So Let us look at the Kingdom,
    1. J.R. Graves wrote that there are four things necessary for a “kingdom” to exist:
      - First, a King, Second, Subjects, Third, Laws, and Forth territory.
    2. Jesus (King of Kings) left such subjects to share His Standards with the world,
    3. What is a Millennial?
      - Simply put it is 1000 years.
      - We call it a millennial reign because of:
        
        Revelation 20:1-3 “And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. 2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, 3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season. ”
        
        there is the millennial,
        
        What happened just before this,
        
        Revelation 19 records the final battle, and the second coming of the Lord.
    4. Fulfillment of Prophesy,
      - II Thessalonians 2:8-12 “ And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: 9 Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, 10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: 12 That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. ”
      - See Old Testament references: Psalm 37:20; 46:6-8; 110:5&6, Isaiah 13:6-9; 24:1-6; 66:15&16, Jeremiah 4:23-27; 25:33; Malachi 4:1-3
      - See New Testament References: Matthew 13:47-50 & Luke 17:29&30
        
        to mention a few.
    5. We should also mention that this Millennial Kingdom is a continuation of the covenants of the Lord with mankind.
      - The Abrahamic covenant,- He promised Abraham a people and a Messiah
        
        Genesis 12 – 17
      - The Palestinian Covenant- Promised Moses a Land
        
        Deuteronomy 29&30
      - The Davidic Covenant- David’s seed would reign over Israel
        
        II Samuel 7; I Chronicle 17:11-14; II Chronicle 6:16
      - The New Covenant- Salvation through the shed blood of Jesus
    6. So it is in this reign that Jesus will set on the throne of David, and rule, as mentioned in the dream
  3. Jesus rules,
    1. Revelation 19:15&16 “And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. 16 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”
      - the rock strikes the nations, they are dispersed, Jesus sets on His throne, and rules over them.
3. Nebuchadnezzar’s Response,
  1. He Worshiped Daniel, Not God,
    1. vs.46 reveals a great deal about Nebuchadnezzar.
      - Later on, I think he may get saved, but as of now, I don’t think so.
      - He worshiped Daniel, but then refereed to “Your God” in vs.47
  2. He Promoted Daniel,
    1. he gave Daniel gifts and power
    2. Made Him ruler over many,
      - Matthew 25:23 “His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.”
  3. Daniels request,
    1. Promote my friends,
    2. He also made two other request, 1:8 not to defile himself, and 2:16-18 when he asked for time, and not to destroy the wise men yet.
    3. Philippians 4:6 “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.”