Daniel 11 River

       Let’s continue  with Daniel 4:13.

 [I saw in the visions of my head upon my bed, and, behold, a watcher and an holy one came down from heaven; ¹⁴ He cried aloud, and said thus, Hew down the tree, and cut off his branches, shake off his leaves, and scatter his fruit: let the beasts get away from under it, and the fowls from his branches: ¹⁵ Nevertheless leave the stump of his roots in the earth, even with a band of iron and brass, in the tender grass of the field; and let it be wet with the dew of heaven, and let his portion be with the beasts in the grass of the earth: ¹⁶ Let his heart be changed from man’s, and let a beast’s heart be given unto him; and let seven times pass over him. This matter is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy ones: to the intent that the living may know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and setteth up over it the basest of men. ¹⁸ This dream I king Nebuchadnezzar have seen. Now thou, O Belteshazzar, declare the interpretation thereof, forasmuch as all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to make known unto me the interpretation: but thou art able; for the spirit of the holy gods is in thee. ‘(Dan. 4:13-18)]

 As we saw yesterday, this Nebuchadnezzar acknowledged that the God served by Daniel and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego was the greatest God, but he still said that he served his god. What is it? You don’t see any of the other gods. Today, many gods hide behind materials. It hides behind the lusts of the flesh. Hidden behind the  lust of the eye and behind the pride of  life. Those gods are also invisible. Even Jesus Christ, God our Lord, is invisible. Now, look. Someone who worships those other invisible gods. Oh, look at the Muslims, for example. It’s a serpent god named “Allah,” but he’s an invisible god. But when they believed in hm, the god gave them such faith that they could lay down their lives like nothing. After all, if God our Lord Jesus Christ , the true God, really we believes in His Son Jesus Christ, who came in the flesh, what power does He not give us? That power is the power of faith. You don’t know how sad it is when you see this. How many people really give their lives for the Lord. Even in the old days of the Japanese occupation, some people did not worship the shrine but offered their bodies as a living sacrifice and left.  How about 625 Korean War? How about now. There  are so many churches and so many people buzzing about it. It’s a human collective. How many people really know Jesus Christ? Do you believe it? The Saviour, the true God, who is God, is God who can deliver you out from any place. But those who worship the Devil or other gods are being deceived. They believe in this trick that even if they die or give up their lives, they can live in heaven forever. But our God is never to deceive us. I am the way, the truth, and the life. they don’t believe it when he says this. Why. Still worshipping other gods. They call on the name of the Lord, but they’re actually serving money. They come to church to pray, but in the end, they are worshipping another god. They are praying to another god. So do not say like Gentiles. Don’t repeat in vain. Don’t keep praying, this is what the Gentiles do. It is done by people who do not know God. It is done by a person who worships another god. God gave a chance to a man like Nebuchadnezzar. He gives you a chance too. He gives everyone a chance. Why? Because God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son. Even before that, God wants everyone to understand. Even though this man is being used by God for a short time. He dids’t know who he is because he is being used. He knows that it is  his ability to rule the  heavens and the earth and the whole world. That’s why God sent out a watchman through a dream and told us the words of today’s text. God wanted him to be enlightened. He didn’t realize it though. We  live in times like him. It is only through God’s word that judgment will come. The Lord is coming. There is no turning back when we talk about it like this. As it is, he  is serving his god. In the book of Ezekiel, we read that in the old temple, the people and the priests were serving Tammuz. They wept because of Tammuz. Isn’t that the god of material? They were crying because of it. Why do people come to church today? They cry for money, and  for their children, and because of various troubles, but not in order to fulfill the Lord’s will Jesus said how many times have I done this, as if I wanted you to be taken me as a hen for a chick, crying looking at Jerusalem. But you did not listen to me. Towards the daughters of Jerusalem, he said, do not weep for me, but weep for you and your children. We must not shed tears carelessly. Guys, have you seen Muslims shed tears? I haven’t seen any tears shed by these people. They are  like soldiers. They are like an army. They are the army of the devil. But Christians are supposed to be Christ’s army, but have you ever seen people who are really like an army? If they are in a little trouble, they are heart breaking not to know what to do being falling in temptation deceived by the devil. They are still worshipping other gods.

 This tree is cut down finally. This tree is Nebuchadnezzar. It’s a giant tree. The branches are cut off, the leaves are falling, and the fruit is gone. Not only that, but all the beasts and birds are gone, which is a sign of the end times of the earth. A huge tree that houses all the peoples of the earth. But the command to cut it down is falling from a holy one in the text now.  Once upon a time,  before the Exodus, when Pharaoh didn’t let go of the Israelites,  there was a locust plague among the  10 plagues, right? The locusts covered the whole earth. And when the  ground was darkened and hail was left behind, they ate all the vegetables and all the fruits on the trees. Throughout the land of Egypt, there was nothing green left of the trees or the vegetables of the fields. Pharao is the type of the Antichrist. In the future, the Antichrist will persecute and kill the Israelites like that. This kind of history happens again during the Great Tribulation. Hail falls, hailstones the size of bowling bowls fall, and bloody hailstones fall, and all of these things as the 10 plagues of Egypt in the ancient time. Egypt is a preview of what will happen to the  armies of the Antichrist who are persecuting the Israelites during the seven-year tribulation. Now, here is the Watchman and the Holy One. The Watchman, a holy man, did this, but we don’t know who it is. Some people say angels, but a holy one is holy one. Oh, we just need to know him as a watchman. A watchman from heaven. The watchman is the watchman. We just need to know as much as it is revealed in the Bible. Now, here in verse 16 it says, “ Let his heart be changed from man’s, and let a beast’s heart be given unto him; and let seven times pass over him.”

 That’s the number seven. Seven is a number. It’s God’s number. It’s a perfect number. If you look at the scale, Do re mi Fa sola si. Seven. Then, after seven, eighth. Another octave goes up, and it goes on forever. If you go for the  eighth time, it will go on forever. God created the heavens and the earth for six days and rested in the seventh day. After the seventh day, the eighth goes forever. The Apostle Paul told  somewhere in the Bible on the seventh day, which is what the  Apostle Paul understood in the Holy Spirit, and the seventh day is the end of the  sixth thousand years of human history, and now, on the seventh day, in the  seventh millennium, Jesus Christ will come to this earth and cut down this giant tree, the  giant tree of the antichrist, and wipe out all the wicked people on the earth, all those  who do not believe in Him, and in the end, only God’s people will fill the earth. Seventh day. God is waiting for the seventh day, and the seventh day is almost there.

After all, the time of the tribulation is seven years and seven times. We’re talking about seven times. So, whenever the number seven comes up, we have to pay attention and look at it. Therefore, we  can see that the seven times mean the  seven years  that coincide with the Great Tribulation. If you look here, this King Nebuchadnezzar is like a beast, like an ox. Would it be  seven days? Seven weeks? So we see in the Bible that the seven times mean the  seven-year tribulation, and in the  end, God showed Nebuchadnezzar the end times, and later in the book of Daniel, He gives Daniel a preview of what will happen in the great tribulation. And since it was still a long way off, God told him to seal it. Eventually, the seal was opened to the Apostle John. That’s why the book of Daniel and the book of Revelation are connected each other. He showed it to Daniel, and because he fulfilled his mission well, you can now sleep in the earth and shall stand in thy lot at end of the days. He’s done his job. Although he suffered, he went into the lions’ den, and he almost died many times, but let him know in advance, and now that there is that time, let him rest well, and when time comes, he will wake up again, and come back to life, and enjoy it with him. This is what he said. We are. In the 70 or 80 years of our lives, how much we have walked with the Lord, how much we have believed in the Lord’s work. All that  Daniel has done is his faith in God. What did Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego do? He may have done the work of Babylon at that time, but what did Daniel dis? There is only one thing that was faith. What is faith? Faith means believing that the Lord will save me when I die raising us after we die. That’s the faith, folks. This faith is God’s work. If you keep this faith, you’re doing God’s work. Even if the person is sitting in a wheelchair and cannot do anything, if he is dumb and  deaf and unable to do anything, but he has faith and is still praying and thanking the Lord, then he is doing God’s work. No matter how big the church  and how much fame they have, those who do not have faith are not doing God’s work, but their own work. They are doing their own honour. Jesus said that it is God’s  work to believe in him whom God has sent.  It ‘s in the Bible, but they don’t believe it. They think they have to do Something to be done. Saying, oh, I have to do the Lord’s work,  I have to do missions, I have to do  something, but I don’t do it. It’s not God’s work. When we believe in Him, He uses us. It’s all done by self-belief. And self-confidence

        Verse 16 [Let his heart be changed from man’s, and let a beast’s heart be given unto him;.”  Bythe point of psychology point of view, there is a disease called Nanguang. it’s kind of delirium. However, there is a disease that causes humans to think that they are some kind of wolf or lion-like beast when they are enchanted. That’s what Satan does. And then people actually have their foreheads peeled off, their eyes raised and so on.  Look at Lady Gaga. When she  possessed by Satan, she get horns on her head because she thinks so. That’s what Satan is doing. That’s why there are so many mental illnesses these days. That’s a lot to say. It’s self-delusion. There are too many psychopaths among Christians. Psychopath mentally, they mistake themselves for something and become arrogant. That’s  why Satan still makes people like beasts in many ways. In fact, if we look at a person who lives in the jungle, his face becomes like a beast. Once upon a time  , there was a wolf boy, right? That’s what actually happened. This is what Nebuchadnezzar actually did. This is in God’s  word, so we have to believe it, right? Now, as we have read in verses 17 and  18, it is the  Most High God who rules over the kingdom of men.  Nebuchadnezzar was the king of the whole world at that time, but he didn’t realize it.  So God taught him that through a dream. God gives it to whomever wants it. The President of the  United States, the President of South Korea, God gives it to whomever He wants. In fact, the best thing to do in the election campaign is to bow the knee to God. Even if they don’t believe it. If they know the Bible, they will really know, saying oh, this is what God gives to those whom want it, and God doesn’t give it to the people when they want it, or it doesn’t  give it to them because of their popularity. Anyone who knows this can do that. But they don’t know. That’s why they’re campaigning with money. So likewise, Nebuchadnezzar thought he was smug. People admire his power, because  God has given him that power, they don’t know this, and God wanted  to tell the world what is going to happen through this person. God was trying to give people the referee’s message, but who can tell this? They didn’t know at all. So, by the  law of justice, God gave the devil the authority to rule the earth for a short time, right? God gave it. Why? Because man has sinned. Those who have sinned become slaves to sin, so they become slaves of the devil, who has the power of sin and death. This is God’s law. Since God has done this since then, from the time of man’s sinning, what God said to the devil? The seed of the woman shall bruise your head, and you will bruise the heel of the seed of the woman. What is this?. God proclaimed  the gospel. Now I’m going to kill you. My son will come and kill you. I will overcome you by taking away all sins and by resurrection. When my son comes, you’re done. That’s why God has been working for six days that is six thousand years. He’s  still working until the end. Therefore, those who are doing the Lord’s work must eventually have this faith and lead even one more person to the Lord and preach the gospel of grace.  That’s why God teaches us that He gives this to whoever wants it. The Antichrist realizes this. Before going to the lake of fire. By then, it was too late. Nebuchadnezzar was too late. That is why today’s text also says, “ This dream I king Nebuchadnezzar have seen. Now thou, O Belteshazzar, declare the interpretation thereof,” And what did he say before that? [ the demand by the word of the holy ones: to the intent that the living may know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and setteth up over it the basest of men .]

So the watchman came and told him, “This is what happened.” What does this mean? He didn’t realize it.

If you look at Romans  13:1,” it’s  something we know very well. [Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.”

 Folks, this is not what the Apostle Paul was thinking. That’s what today’s text says. He was  talking about what he learned from reading the Bible. Therefore, the New Testament is that records all the words in the Old Testament and what we understand through the Holy Spirit. So if we don’t know the Old Testament, we can’t understand the New Testament. Now Nebuchadnezzar is the great ruler of the Babylonian Empire. But did God do that? That’s why he’s not a big man or a great man in the eyes of a great God. God used him for a while. The Devil is being used now. He is just a ruler for a short time while he lived. He was set it up for a while. In fact, Nebuchadnezzar is a lowly man in God’s eyes. Lifting up the lowly man made him proud. That’s how it happened. We’re all lowly people. In the book of Job. Job was so. Everyone was born like a wild donkey. Wild donkey. It’s not even just a donkey. What did we learn in elementary school? Donkey. We learned to be a  donkey who doesn’t obey, right? That donkey is not like a house donkey, but like a wild donkey

We were born like that. It’s because we are the people without countermeasure. Isn’t the nature of people like wild asses? They’re lowly. But when we believe in Jesus Christ, He has made us truly holy people, children of God. That’s why He gave us the Word to tame us. I’m going to study the book of Job after the book of  Daniel, but I don’t know how many words of truth there are in the book of Job. I  don’t know how much time it will take to read the book of Job. What did Pilate say before Jesus Christ? Do you not know that I have the authority to crucify you and to release you? He said that before God. He did not know that God had given him the authority to become such a governor. Isn’t it the same with politicians today? What did the Lord say?  verse 11  says, “  Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above: therefore he that delivered me unto thee hath the greater sin.”  If Heavenly Father doesn’t give you authority, you can’t do this. Because I have to die, God has given you authority for a short time. Then, Pilate didn’t say that is is the authority from Caesar. Why? The same is true these days. All politicians are always anxious. This is what someone gave him the power. He doesn’t deserve it actually. If we look at his life, he really doesn’t deserve the people to elect him as a president or a king.  And then it all ends up being miserable afterwards. The ending isn’t very good, is it? Everyone. Why? God set it up, but he didn’t know it, and he did it recklessly, so the end was not good. Once upon a time, there was a certain country in  Africa, and I happened to hear a broadcast made by the elected president. In his inaugural address, I was amazed. He said, Oh, these are God’s people. Give me wisdom. He prayed like this. That’s what Solomon did back in the day. Not only that. In the old days, the emperors of China, when they became emperors, said, Emperor in heaven, these people  are your people. I prayed for wisdom to govern them well. That’s why there  are 80 million Christians in China.  If you look at Chinese characters, you don’t know how many words of God are contained. But we’re going to do missions there, right? There are 80 million underground church believers there. There are more believers than combined believers in North and South Korea. That Nebuchadnezzar didn’t know that his power from above. So he thought he had taken control of himself. Isn’t it the same with politicians these days?  So what do they do when they are elected president?  They do festivals.

They celebrate themselves. United States is in such a state of devastation in the eastern part of the country, millions of people are devastated because they don’t have electricity, and they are thinking about whether or not to  postpone the presidential election, and they decided to keep going on it, but I wonder who will celebrate when the president is elected or not. Millions are in an uproar right now. I wonder if they will vote. A big variable has happened right now. Now, in verse 17, we read [ This matter is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy one.] The decree is not excusable. Let’s look at Psalm 2. [ Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?² The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord, and against his anointed, saying,³ Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us..]

God has given us authority, but let’s cut it off. Let’s  do it on our own.

[He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision.]  mocking Nebuchadnezzar right now. [Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure. ⁶ Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. ⁷ I will declare the decree: the Lord hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. ⁸ Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession.⁹ Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel. ¹⁰ Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth.¹¹ Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him. “

 Who is he? Jesus Christ. Trust him. Trust until you die. What does give then? He gives us the crown of life. That’s what it’s  like to be a king. The royal priests will come to this very earth to rule with the Lord. People who really give their whole bodies as living sacrifices on this earth. Oh, the Lord died for us, and if you want to die, you must die. Isn’t it?It’s  not obvious. If He didn’t die for us, I don’t know. But He died for us. Did He die when we were sinners,  not even when we were good? What do we have to say. I don’t have anything to say. Look at the Muslims. They die with  a suicide bomb. Is this easy, folks? You  have to think about it. God is telling you to understand.Nowadays, Christians are tempted for a few pennies  and abandoned God for a few pennies, right? They don’t come to listen to God because of a few pennies. To make a little more money. When the Word is proclaimed, we have to be alert that morning. Ah today It’s church day, and  somehow I have to pray to God because I can’t be late.  Please allow me to go 1 hour before church. That’s it. But because I don’t pray and stay still, I can’t because I’m being dragged away. Here in the pulpit, the Word is being proclaimed, right now. That’s the way it is  with the people in the church here. Even if you can’t come in now, you have to listen to the Word. Those who want to come here but can’t come should listen. Those who don’t listen. Now, by the edict of the watchmen. God is declaring an edict,.It’s a  watchman from heaven, isn’t it? They are clearly related to God, and they don’t even know that they are God Himself. Why? From  the Scriptures, I will proclaim an edict at that time. That’s what  Heavenly Father does. I will pronounce an edict. Isn’t it? You can  come to proclaim the edict yourself, or you can send whom. That’s what Watchmen is all about. An edict is a tremendous thing. Decree. This is inexcusable. When God decrees an edict. The laws of the world cannot be changed by anyone. God’s Word is an edict for everything. No one can change it. God’s Word is given to believe. I’m not asking you to  judge. A lot of people judge the words. Where are these words?  It’s not a big deal. Here  in  verse 18 [ for the spirit of the holy gods is in thee.], in fact, there was the Holy Spirit. When it comes to the Spirit of the God, the first letter s is lowercase. In Old Testament times, before God the Holy Spirit was revealed. That’s why Small Sprit came out. I  don’t know at the time. I  don’t know the Holy Spirit. You  don’t know who he is. In Old Testament times, the Spirit of God was manifested by the power of God. It manifested itself in the ability to do some activities. Jehovah’s  Witnesses believe that the holy spirit is an active power. These people are Old Testament people. They’re self-proclaimed Jews. They  don’t know grace. That’s why it’s called activity. The Lord said that the Holy Spirit,  the Comforter, is coming. THE HOLY SPIRIT SAID THAT  THERE WAS A GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT AFTER PENTECOST, THAT  THERE WERE THREE PERSONS, THE FATHER, THE SON, AND THE HOLY SPIRIT, THREE PERSONS. GOD HEAD did. God  did it because God was a Godhead. Three are one. We can’t know this without the Holy Spirit. In fact, there is only one God. He is the only God. That’s all Jews know. It looks like one, folks. If you rotate three colors, it will appear as one. If you rotate the three primary colors, it appears as a single white color. That’s a natural revelation. It looks like one person, but it’s three. If you just stand, it’s three. When you’re working, you look like one, right? Therefore, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit worked in the Old  Testament to destroy sin and death in order to destroy the devil, and the Lord worked when the Son came, and the Holy Spirit worked after the Son went away.

And then it ends. The work of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit comes to an end. You need to know this. Time is running out again. So, in fact, Nebuchadnezzar was wiser then than the theologians of today. God gave it to you. That’s why we need to know this. The Apostle Paul did, right?  He called [those whom He knew beforehand, and justified those whom He called], justifying them because they  believed in Jesus Christ,  and [glorifying those who justified] and allowing them to enter the kingdom of God. In the Holy Spirit. You’re in the body of Christ, right? It’s in the Lord, isn’t it?  Even the devils Call those who know beforehand. You love money, come to me. I’ll  give you the money. We believe in an invisible God. Can your money save you from death? But I think all you need is money, people. I know if you’re healthy, everything works, right? I know it’s all about honor. This is being deceived. Satan also calls people. Call me to know in advance. Our Lord also calls those who knew. That’s why we believe in the invisible Lord. How do we believe? Jesus I didn’t even see. How do you believe in God? Heavenly Father whom I have never seen. He is a Spirit, but I can’t see him. We believe in Jesus Christ because He called us. I don’t know how subtle this is. Think about it, folks. That’s weird, right? How do I understand what a young man is saying? When I asked, I don’t know. It’s  like a miracle. Yes. Actually, this is the correct answer. I don’t know. It’s  like a miracle. God does it.

      Let’s pray. Thank you, Lord, for knowing our hearts, knowing us who were born on this  earth like wild donkeys in the sight of God, knowing us in advance, calling us to cry, visiting us, knowing that Jesus Christ is God, believing in us, and  forgiving us all our sins, the Holy Spirit came into us and made us born again, and we who were born into the world were born again in the kingdom of God. Therefore, now that our  citizenship is in heaven, we thank You for guiding us to put the word of God, the law of heaven, into our bodies every morning like vessels of earthenware. Therefore, we give thanks to the Holy Spirit that Jesus Christ, the Word, is  doing this work in us, so that the image of Christ is done in us until the coming of the Lord. May all those who belong to this church be blessed to receive this blessing of being transformed into the image of the Lord when the  Word becomes flesh and takes off this decaying body, and when  we put off our mortal body, and bestow the same blessing on the many saints who hear it on the Internet. Father, the  day of your coming,

Help us not to forget that command to strive to gather together as the day draws nearer. Father, help us to all be  able to have a glorious encounter at your coming, by gathering together, listening to the Word, praying, and fellowship, whether we get the time or not. Send forth especially many young people so that everyone, from young children to the elderly, can hear, so that they may understand the Gospel as they expound the book of Romans. There are many people who do not know the gospel and are only going to the end of time. Father, it was not a foundation. I couldn’t sew the first button. There are so many people who do not understand the gospel of grace and preach another gospel. Father, through the book of Romans, help many people to understand the true gospel and to become all who do not doubt you and trust in you to the end. I thank you and pray in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.