Verse by verse teaching - Daniel 5:13 "Is That You?"

Daniel chapter five this morning. Daniel chapter five. God willing will be expounding verse 13. The title of the message this morning is, Is That You? Is That You? Daniel chapter 5, verse 13. begins by saying, then was Daniel brought in before the king. Let's pray. Father, we thank you so much for your precious word. Thank you for these people here this morning, Lord. God, what a blessing they are to me. And Father, I thank you for the opportunity, Father, to share your word this morning. And I pray, Lord, you'll fill us with your Holy Spirit. You'll teach your word, enlighten eyes, give us the understanding we need. And we lean wholly on you and look to you this morning in Christ's precious name. Amen. Then was Daniel brought in before the king. And that was so the king could consult Daniel concerning that mysterious handwriting that we've looked at. that so deeply troubled him that was written upon the wall. And hopefully Daniel can give him the answers that he needs. Underscore the word Daniel. Daniel. Now underscore the words before the king Before the king. Daniel was brought in before the king. The most powerful man in the world at that time was needing Daniel's help. So here was Daniel. And remember who Daniel was. Daniel was a man taken captive by this very kingdom He was taken captive by this very kingdom, by the king of Babylon at that time, Nebuchadnezzar. And now the current king, King Belshazzar, needs his help What a strange turn of events. The king now needs help from the captive. Isn't that something? And church, this is the story of every believer in Jesus Christ. Every believer. Now listen to what the Bible says a pastor is supposed to do. If you're taking notes, write down your margin, 2 Timothy chapter 2. Verses 25 through 26. 2 Timothy chapter 2, verses 25 through 26, Paul says, in meekness Instructing those that oppose themselves. Boy, we could preach on that right now. In other words, some people are their own worst enemies. If God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth. Now pause right there just a moment Paul is telling Timothy that, Timothy, you need to be meek and in meekness and humility. You need to instruct people in the Word of God. You need to instruct people in the truth because there are people who oppose themselves. There are people who are their own worst enemies, and only the truth can set them free. Now, watch this second verse with me. If peradventure God will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth, and that they may recover themselves out of the snare. Of the devil. Let me tell you, as soon as a person, little boy or little girl, is born into this world, there is an unholy devil Who hates God, who hates God's creation, and who wants to condemn and destroy every soul he can. And that devil is out to set a snare for every little boy and little girl that's ever born that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil. Watch this now, who are taken, say that word with me, captive. Very good. By him, by the devil, at his will. Do you know what takes us captive? A lie. That's why he says, grant them repentance into the acknowledging of the truth that they may recover themselves. In other words, they've been opposing themselves They've been harming themselves. They got themselves in this snare, in this trap. They are taken captive by the devil. But if they'll acknowledge the truth, if they'll change their mind and acknowledge the truth, that truth can set them free. And instead of opposing themselves, they can now recover themselves. And get out of that snare. Thank God for the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ. But notice the devil takes them captive. When we are born into this world, we are born captives. Captives to sin, to Satan, and to death. You can't help but be a sinner. You can't help but die because of your sin. There's not a single person in this world that can escape sin and that can escape death. But by the grace of Jesus Christ. The only answer that man has to overcome that cemetery that we're all headed to And so understanding that we're taken captive by the devil, we now are in the book of Daniel And what is standing before the king? A captive. You see that? And if the captive is standing before the king of an opposing kingdom Who else is standing before this king? You are. And I am. Ultimately, one day Jesus would be standing before that opposing king. Do you remember what Jesus said right before he went to the cross? Now is the judgment of this world. Now shall the prince of this world, the prince, the one that takes them captive at his will, now shall the prince of this world be cast out. There was two opposing kingdoms right there at the cross. And by dying and overcoming the grave, dying for our sins and overcoming the grave, Jesus gave us the ability the truth of what he's done to set us free from being ensnared and captive by the devil. So Daniel's taken captive by a kingdom and now that kingdom was falling apart. Historically, we saw that that what's about to happen is as we get on further in this book. Is that Babylon is about to fall to Persia? All this took place, not just in the Bible, it took place in history. Babylon's about to fall to Persia. And here is Daniel, a captive, standing before the opposing kingdom, who has held him captive this whole time And Daniel is watching this opposing kingdom fall apart. Do you know what we are, folks? As we watch this troubled world, We are people who were taken captive by sin and death. But we're watching this kingdom fall apart. And one day there's going to be another kingdom coming and another king that's going to bring it in. That's Jesus. When he does, he's going to establish his kingdom here. We're not going to see all the craziness anymore. You're going to be able to see the world function as it was designed to function, as the Creator designed it to function. So right now, if you're watching Daniel stand before this king, you have to understand we're standing before this king. He's representing me and you Every member of the Church of Jesus Christ was once taken captive by the devil, and we will soon watch his kingdom fall apart. The future holds a strange turn of events for us. And the book of Daniel is a reflection of what lies ahead. Look back in Daniel 5. 13 again. It says, and the king spake and said unto Daniel, art thou that Daniel, which art of the children of the captivity of Judah? Is that you, Daniel? The one who was taken captive from Judah? Are you one of the captives we took? It's funny how time and circumstances can change things, isn't it? Boy, it can. One day Daniel is being caught by enemy forces, drugged out of his homeland, taken to Babylon to be a servant? And the next thing you know, the nation who captured Daniel is now needing Daniel. When I was a young highway patrolman, had a family member in the hospital. And one of the nurses, when she learned that I was a highway patrolman, became very, very disrespectful toward me. It was quite uncomfortable. She took advantage of me being in her territory. at the hospital, needing her. And she began saying derogatory things toward me professionally I could have got her in trouble for it. But then again, who knows what kind of care your loved one's going to get after that? You just leave it alone. And she boasted to others in my presence about how she loved to drive fast in front of me. And she'd tell them, he's a high web trollman. I love to drive fast. I'm not sure why, but she seemed to get great pleasure out of annoying me and out of disrespecting my line of work. I guess she just didn't like law enforcement. About a week later, everyone's out of the hospital, and I was on routine patrol on US 79 just east of Jacksonville, when I clocked a car going over the speed limit, and you'll never guess who was driving. Yes, it was that Brady nurse, the nurse that was so rude to me in the hospital, and she was now in my territory. And I, not her, was in control. You should have seen the look on her face when she saw me walk up there and look at her. My goodness. She appeared deeply troubled. Very humiliated. Because she remembered how she behaved toward me. It had only been a few days. Like Daniel, time and circumstances had changed things. My family had been in her hands, but now she was in mine. Are you that Daniel who took my father, I'm sorry, who my father took captive Are you that trooper who I was so rude to? You see how things get turned around? How did you get here and I get here? As a Christian, when you find yourself in a demeaning and overpowering situation like Daniel, Here's my advice to you. Be a Daniel. And you trust that God will turn that situation around. I wasn't going to say this, but I know there's a lot of people, and I know if I don't say it, I'm going to have people come up to me after church asking what I did with that woman. I decided to display grace to her. I was very kind And I wrote her a warning. And when I gave her that warning, I think that did so much more than a ticket ever would. She looked like she could crawl under a door when she drove away. Like she knew she was wrong and I was the better man. Thank God he is merciful to us like that when we show ourselves. Remember, because the gospel ensures us that we shall be saved from our sins. It thereby also ensures us that we shall be saved from all of our enemies. You can't get delivered from your sins without also getting delivered from your enemies. Why? Because there was no enemy, so to speak, no effective enemy of man until there was sin. We were not subjected to any type of enemy. Yes, the devil tempted Adam and Eve. But he had no power over them, no ability to ensnare them, no ability to harm them until they yielded to that temptation. So, because we're guaranteed through the gospel to be completely delivered from our sins, the gospel therefore thereby ensures us that we will be completely delivered from all of our enemies. Luke chapter 1 Luke chapter 1 verse 68 through 71. Luke 1, 68 through 71. Here's what Zecharias prophesied. He said, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he had visited and redeemed his people. Now he's talking about The Lord Jesus that's being born and his son John the Baptist. He's talking about the fulfillment of the incarnation of the promised Savior. He says, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he hath visited and redeemed his people, and hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David. that is fulfilling those Davidic promises in the Old Testament as he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world began. Praise God, that's good right there, Brother Shepherd. That means God has given us a witness of Himself since the beginning of the world. Verse 71, that we should be saved from Our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us. You see, the gospel doesn't just end with Jesus' death and resurrection. I know when we look at uh we we we say that the gospel defined is that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, he was buried. He was raised again the third day according to scriptures. A lot of times we pause it there. We say, well, that's the definition of the gospel. He goes on to say he was also seen of these other people, too. The gospel does not just end with the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It's not just the resurrection, it also includes his future return in judgment of this world. There would be no gospel. The death and resurrection of Christ would not have any meaning to us if it was not for his second coming, his judgment of this world, and the restoration of all things. In all four Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, Jesus spoke in those Gospels of his second coming and future judgment of this world. All four Gospels. The Romans were ruling the world politically when they crucified Jesus. But Jesus said in Matthew 25, 31, When the Son of Man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory. In other words, yes, the Romans are in charge now. Yes, because of the gospel, I am subjected under the Roman authority. I am being led to be crucified on a Roman cross. But when I come back, it's going to be me on the throne. Not Caesar. Not Pontius Pilate. Not the Sanhedrin court. When the high priest was in charge And asked Jesus if he was the Christ. He's trying Jesus. Jesus is on trial here. And he asked him. And Jesus answered in Mark. We've moved from Matthew. Now look in Mark. Mark chapter 14, verse 62. Jesus said, I am, and ye shall see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand of power and coming in the clouds of heaven. In other words, it's you in charge right now. It's I'm in your territory right now, but when I come back, when I come back, you're going to see me in power. Sitting on the right hand of power, coming in the clouds of heaven, I'm going to be coming in the power of God When the Sid and Hadrian council tried Jesus to condemn them to death in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 22, verse 69. Jesus told them, hereafter shall the Son of Man sit on the right hand of the power of God. What's he saying in each of these circumstances? He's saying There's going to be a turn of events here. You're not going to be the one in charge than I am When the chief rulers refused to confess Jesus as Christ because they didn't want to get kicked out of the synagogue. Jesus said in the Gospel of John, chapter 12, verse 48, He that rejecteth me and receiveth not my words hath one that judgeth him. The word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day. Like Daniel and the Babylonian kings, God will turn the tables on all of his enemies one day Jesus will be in charge. Jesus will be the judge. And when God turns the tables on his enemies He turns them on all our enemies. Do you know why Jesus became a man? You say, well, he came to die for the sins of man, and that's absolutely right, but that's not the only reason he became a man. He became a man so that he could take on our enemies. You see, by becoming a man Jesus' enemies as a man are our enemies. He took on humanity. And so everything that opposes him, the world, the flesh, the devil, everything that opposes him in this life. As a man opposes us. So when he turns the tables on the world Then what's going to happen is because had Jesus just stayed in heaven and been God, he would have never been subject to man. He would have never had to stand before unrighteous kings. He would have never been crucified. But Jesus, God The third person in the Trinity, the second person in the Trinity took on human flesh, became a man that he might take on our enemies. That by then turning the tables on our enemies, he turns the tables on the enemies of all mankind. So that as he gains the victory, we gain the victory. Does that make sense? As he overcomes as man, mankind overcomes in him. The future judgment of the enemies of God and his people are necessary for the eternal enjoyment of a world without sin. Speaking of Jesus' future reign on earth, the Bible says in 1 Corinthians chapter 15 verse 25, 1 Corinthians chapter 15, verse 25. For he must reign. That is, Jesus must come to earth and rule as king. Till he hath put all enemies under his feet. All Jesus is going to come back to a world where he's going to rule and place every enemy in subjection to him. Conquer them. So understand when Daniel stands before Belshazzar, all believers are standing before Belshazzar. Because we also are dwelling in the power of a heathenistic world system right now But Christ is going to turn the tables on this world when he comes again, and we will be the victors But not only will we be standing before Belshazzar. I'm sorry, not only are we standing before Belshazzar, but here in this text the Jewish nation is standing before Belshazzar. Daniel was a believer in the coming Savior, but Daniel was also a Jew. And so the Jewish nation is also standing before him. The king asked, Art thou that Daniel? Look back in your text, whom the king my father brought out of, underscore the word jewelry. Not jewelry, but jewelry. So underscore the first uh if you underscore uh jewelry, circle those first three letters. Tell me what you get You get Jew. Now go back to the previous phrase and underscore the first two letters of the word Judah. And tell me what you get. You get Jew again, don't you? Some of y'all are gonna say ju. So Jewry and Judah are the same word These are Chaldean words. This is a Chaldean word. And Juri and Judah are the same Chaldean word translated differently in each case. Into two different English words here in our Bible. And now you know why Israelites are called Jews. You see? They're called Jews because Jerusalem was in the kingdom of Judah. Also known as Jewry. Make sense? Now a worldly king Took those Jews out of Jewry. Listen carefully now. Daniel, a Jew. Who was taken from Judah, Jewry, is now standing before this worldly king who took him captive. So Daniel was taken out of Jewry by a worldly king. All of that, the tables are going to get reversed, and the Jews are going to go back to Judah through a heavenly king, a spiritual king. One day. And that's going to be Jesus. One of the Jews who prophesied while Daniel was in Babylon Daniel wasn't the only thing going on in Babylon. Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, they weren't the only hot item during this time. There was another prophet named Ezekiel during the same time period, also a Jew. And I want you to listen to what God through the prophet Ezekiel said he would do with the Jews in the future. Ezekiel chapter 39, verse 25 through 29. Therefore, thus saith the Lord God, now will I bring again the captivity of Jacob? Now, if he was with me in my Genesis Jesus class this morning, we saw where, when Jacob wrestled with God, the angel who was God, who was Christ, Jacob wrestled with Christ and wanted Christ to bless him. He did. Christ blessed him, changed his name to Israel. And God says, now will I bring again the captive of Jacob, Jacob being Israel The nation. And have mercy upon the whole house of Israel and will be jealous for my holy name What does that mean to be jealous for his holy name? If you'll remember when God took Israel out of Egypt, He brings them out, and boy, those rascals, they hadn't no more gotten out of Egypt, and they start messing up. It's frustrating to read It's supposed to be frustrating for us to read. It's supposed to make us realize how God feels about us when we keep messing up. But as you read it, there's one particular instance where God tells Moses, you know what? Stand back. I'm going to get rid of every one of them. You're a Jew. I'll fulfill my promise to Abraham through you. I'll raise up the nation through you, and I'll get rid of all them. Kind of like God did when he got rid of all the people except for no one in his family on the ark. You know what Moses said? No, Lord, don't do that. If you do that, People are going to start talking. They're going to say God was strong enough to get them out of Egypt. He wasn't strong enough to keep them once he got them out. Well, it has a lot of doctrine right there, folks. The God who saves you is the God who keeps you In other words, Moses was concerned about God's holy name and what people thought of him If he failed to preserve his people from Egypt to the promised land. But it doesn't just stop there. God listened to what Moses said. God wasn't needing to take Moses' advice. God was testing Moses and just as he always does, he already knows ahead of time what he's going to do. But here's the thing. God through Ezekiel is saying, I've still got to take care of my holy name. Do you see what people are doing today People are saying Israel has no business over there in that promised land. No business at all. That land doesn't belong to them, it belongs to the Palestinians. And they're lobbing bombs over there and they're they're trying their best to get them out of there. You have one nation that we're up against right now that said they want to wipe them off the map. I'm telling you right now that'll never happen. It'll never happen Because God will fulfill every promise, whether it's national, whether it's spiritual, that he ever made and all of his word. Why? For his name's sake. In the end, we're going to see Israel right back in that land. Oh, not like it is now. Not like it is where you got some there in New York, you got some over here, you got some over there, and and and and and the half, if not the majority of them are liberal and just as wicked as they were back in the Bible days. Man, we don't deny that. We don't deny that at all. The nation of Israel is not our role model. God made a promise. God's gonna keep it. And so he says right here through Ezekiel, because in the end, all these people right now that say They don't belong in that land? Let me tell you, in the end, God's going to have that last word. He's going to put them there, just like he promised. He told Abraham, to thee will I give it and to thy seed forever. And so now he says here through Ezekiel, I will bring again the captivity of Jacob and have mercy upon the whole house of Israel and will be jealous for my holy name. In other words, they'll say They'll see what I promised is going to come past. Verse 26, after that they have borne their shame. Now see that's what the Jews are doing now. They're bearing their shame. And all their trespasses whereby they have trespassed against me, when they dwelt safely in their land and none made them afraid. when I have brought them again from the people and gathered them out of their enemies' lands. Where did the Holocaust take place? Wasn't in the promised land, was it? What in the world were these people doing in Europe? Because God promised in the Old Testament, he said, Israel, here's what's going to happen. You're going to get in that promised land. You're going to disobey me. You're going to serve other gods, and I'm going to scatter you from that promised land all over the earth. But then he also made this promise. But when I get through scattering you all over all the place of the earth, in the end I'm going to bring you all back. And I'm going to put you there again. And this time it's going to be for good. Never to scatter you again. Why? How? Are they going to be better people than their parents? No. Because in the end, they're going to recognize Christ. And they will be made new creature in him. Jesus is going to come reign on this earth In Jerusalem. Now watch. Verse 27, when I have brought them again from the people and gathered them out of their enemies' lands. and am sanctified in them in the sight of many nations. What does he mean, sanctified in them? If God took the nation of Israel out, And all they did was end up blaspheming his name, breaking his covenants, and then going astray What a flop that would be. But in the end, they're going to come back to God. They're going to come back to that land And they're going to end up sanctifying his name. Where before they have been. blaspheming through their through their lifestyle. They've been harming his holy name. Verse 28, then shall they know that I am the Lord their God. Which caused them to be led into captivity among the heathen? How did they get in Europe? How did they get in New York? They don't belong there. How do they get spread across the world? and hated. There's not a person in this in this room, in this nation, that does not know the word antisemitism Why? Because God scattered them throughout the land of all their enemies, he says in In the end, you're going to know I'm the one that drove you out of Egypt out of Israel. And in the end, I'm going to be sanctified in the sight of many nations. They're going to see I kept my promise just like I told them. Verse 28, then shall they know that I am the Lord their God, which caused them to be led into captivity among the heathen, that means the different nations. But I have gathered them unto their own land and have left none of them anymore there. In other words, he's going to take everyone back from the nations where he scattered them. He's going to bring them right back to the place he promised them. Verse 29, neither will I hide my face any more from them, as he is right now. For I have poured out my spirit upon the house of Israel, saith the Lord God. Which Israel? The Israel that he scattered. That he's bringing back. He's going to pour his spirit out and he's going to sanctify his name. Now, church, this hasn't happened yet, but it will. God is going to gather every Jew from the places He scattered them in this world due to their sin against Him. He's going to pour out His Spirit upon them that they will know that he is their God and he will not hide his face anymore from them and I am looking forward to that day. One day the world will look at Jesus The world would look at Jesus just as Belshazzar looked at Daniel. The world's going to look at Jesus and say, is that you on your throne? You who was once despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, is that you, Jesus One day the world will look at the church. Is that you? You people who are glorified now in Jesus Christ, who we once mocked, who we once burned at the stake, He who we once fed to lions, who we once imprisoned and slew. Is that you, church? Who are now seated with him in heavenly places and glorified forever. And church, one day the world will also look at Israel. They're gonna say, is that you, Israel? Is that you now resting in the land that God promised? Who we once burned in the ovens? who he once hated with great indignation and said that land didn't belong to. Is that you? And one day the devil will look at all of us who believe on Jesus and say, is that them whom I once Tempted and tortured and overpowered them and took them captive at my will? Is that them? Yes, because of the gospel, that's us. And one day we all, when those tables are turned, will look at the devil And there's going to be this great turn of events, and Isaiah chapter 14, verse 16b says, we will look at the devil and say, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble? That did shake kingdoms? You mean that? You mean the head that Christ has completely stomped the head of? And totally defeat. You mean that was the one who caused us so much trouble and reached so much havoc in this world? Just look at him now. He's nothing. But boy, when they look at us, look at them now, they've got everything. God fulfilled every single promise He made. Not one will be left undone. There is coming a great turn of events when we, the saints of all ages, shall like Daniel See the kingdom of our enemies fall. And that's what Daniel is about to do. And we'll get forward, we'll get into that as we move forward into our text, Lord willing. next week. Church, aren't you glad you have a Bible? I am so glad I have a Bible. I don't have to wonder what's happened. I don't have to wonder what to do. I don't have to wonder what's going happen in the future Father, we thank you so much for your precious word and for these precious people. Thank you for the inevitable. Unbreakable assurance of our coming victory in Jesus Christ. We may look weak and captive and subject like Daniel now. But Lord, Jesus is coming. And when Jesus comes again, that means the Son of Man will come again. And the Son of Man will be sitting at the right hand of power and clouds and great glory. And that means all of mankind who believed in him as their Savior will be glorified as well. Thank you, Father, that we can rest assured that no matter what happens today, No matter who we may stand before today in subjection to, one day, Father, we will stand over them, and all of our enemies in Christ will be under our feet. In his precious name we pray. Amen.