1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:02,440 I'll just give you kind of a highlight reel of what we've 2 00:00:02,600 --> 00:00:05,040 experienced so far in this book so you can feel all caught up. 3 00:00:05,560 --> 00:00:08,920 So, so far in our journey, we've seen how Daniel and his friends 4 00:00:09,160 --> 00:00:12,320 have been captured and taken into exile in Babylon. 5 00:00:12,880 --> 00:00:16,160 How God honors their faithfulness and even at times 6 00:00:16,160 --> 00:00:17,920 gives them favor with their captors. 7 00:00:18,440 --> 00:00:22,400 How Daniel receives from God this ability to interpret dreams 8 00:00:22,400 --> 00:00:25,680 and how Daniel uses that to save his life and the lives of 9 00:00:25,680 --> 00:00:28,840 others. And how God rescues Daniel's 10 00:00:28,840 --> 00:00:31,800 friends from death in a fiery furnace when they refuse to 11 00:00:31,800 --> 00:00:35,600 worship Babylon's idols. And we are not even in chapter 4 12 00:00:35,600 --> 00:00:40,360 yet, so a lot has happened. Suffice it to say that Daniel is 13 00:00:40,520 --> 00:00:43,360 a gnarly book, as we would say in Southern California. 14 00:00:43,680 --> 00:00:47,080 And hold tight, friends, because it's about to get even gnarlier. 15 00:00:47,480 --> 00:00:49,560 So today we're going to jump ahead to Daniel 5. 16 00:00:49,800 --> 00:00:52,920 Daniel Chapter 4 is kind of summarized within Daniel 5, so 17 00:00:52,920 --> 00:00:55,400 that'll be helpful. But at the center of this 18 00:00:55,400 --> 00:01:01,320 chapter is this strange and unnerving vision that gave rise 19 00:01:01,320 --> 00:01:04,160 to the phrase the writings on the wall. 20 00:01:04,920 --> 00:01:08,040 Now I grew up in the 90s in the early 2000s, so when I hear the 21 00:01:08,040 --> 00:01:11,280 writing's on the wall, I think of the album by Destiny's Child. 22 00:01:12,160 --> 00:01:15,440 If you don't know who Destiny's Child is, that was the girl 23 00:01:15,440 --> 00:01:17,360 group that gave us the gift of Beyoncé. 24 00:01:18,200 --> 00:01:21,000 And I actually own that album when I was a tween, which 25 00:01:21,000 --> 00:01:23,520 thinking about is maybe a problematic, but I never 26 00:01:23,520 --> 00:01:26,120 understood what the title meant until now. 27 00:01:26,680 --> 00:01:30,520 And the writings on the wall means that there are clear, 28 00:01:30,600 --> 00:01:34,960 unmistakable signs that failure or disaster is imminent. 29 00:01:35,480 --> 00:01:37,600 So it sounds ominous, right? But it fits the scene. 30 00:01:37,600 --> 00:01:41,640 In Daniel 5, we have this Babylonian king who is throwing 31 00:01:41,640 --> 00:01:44,280 like a debaucherous feast with his Lords and wives and 32 00:01:44,280 --> 00:01:49,760 concubines, when suddenly a disembodied hand appears and 33 00:01:49,760 --> 00:01:51,840 begins to write on the palace wall. 34 00:01:52,360 --> 00:01:56,120 And that writing on the wall turns out to be a dire warning 35 00:01:56,640 --> 00:02:00,280 that the arrogance and the idolatry of the king has finally 36 00:02:00,280 --> 00:02:03,440 caught up to him and God is about to bring an end to the 37 00:02:03,440 --> 00:02:08,160 Kingdom of Babylon. So, like the mysterious 38 00:02:08,160 --> 00:02:12,240 overtones of the story, I would say make it pretty engaging, but 39 00:02:12,240 --> 00:02:14,680 it might be kind of difficult to relate to. 40 00:02:14,680 --> 00:02:18,520 I mean, has anyone here ever, like, interpreted words written 41 00:02:18,520 --> 00:02:21,720 by a disembodied hand and like, predicted the imminent downfall 42 00:02:21,720 --> 00:02:23,400 of your oppressors? Anyone. 43 00:02:23,400 --> 00:02:27,320 No show of hands, no happy Mother's Day, by the way. 44 00:02:27,320 --> 00:02:29,920 I feel like this is a really good already you can feel you 45 00:02:29,920 --> 00:02:32,160 can feel the thematic vibes. No, we didn't choose something 46 00:02:32,160 --> 00:02:33,560 for Mother's Day. We just went straight to the 47 00:02:33,560 --> 00:02:38,400 next chapter in Daniel. But OK, so with as with many 48 00:02:38,400 --> 00:02:42,080 biblical prophecies, it can really help to take a step back 49 00:02:42,080 --> 00:02:46,200 from, you know, all the like Addams family vibes and to 50 00:02:46,200 --> 00:02:49,120 really look at the heart of the message and at the heart of the 51 00:02:49,120 --> 00:02:51,240 message. We discover some themes that 52 00:02:51,240 --> 00:02:55,200 might actually feel closer to home, like we see a challenge to 53 00:02:55,200 --> 00:02:59,000 the arrogant abuse of power. We see this exhortation to 54 00:02:59,000 --> 00:03:04,160 choose humility over our own egos, and we see a question of 55 00:03:04,160 --> 00:03:07,800 whether we will continue to build our selfish kingdoms or 56 00:03:07,800 --> 00:03:11,240 seek God's eternal Kingdom. So just some like light easy 57 00:03:11,240 --> 00:03:13,240 topics for us to dive into this morning. 58 00:03:13,240 --> 00:03:16,840 But before we dive in, let me just take a moment to pray for 59 00:03:16,840 --> 00:03:19,320 us that God would really speak to us through his word this 60 00:03:19,320 --> 00:03:25,240 morning. Lord God, we, we come before you 61 00:03:25,240 --> 00:03:30,240 grateful for your Word and also aware of all the ways in which 62 00:03:30,240 --> 00:03:33,560 it challenges us. We are grateful because it talks 63 00:03:33,560 --> 00:03:38,200 about things that are so relevant in our world today. 64 00:03:38,480 --> 00:03:40,360 And also, sometimes it talks about things that we're not 65 00:03:40,360 --> 00:03:43,480 currently thinking about, but that we really need to sit with, 66 00:03:43,480 --> 00:03:46,240 to be challenged by, to ruminate over, and to be asking the 67 00:03:46,240 --> 00:03:49,680 questions of how is it that you, God, are inviting us to live in 68 00:03:49,680 --> 00:03:50,920 this world? Who are you? 69 00:03:50,920 --> 00:03:53,200 What are you doing? And how are you inviting us to 70 00:03:53,200 --> 00:03:57,080 respond to what you were doing? And so we would come before you, 71 00:03:57,080 --> 00:04:00,240 God, and we ask that you would give us this morning humble 72 00:04:00,240 --> 00:04:06,000 hearts to receive your teaching, to be present to how your Spirit 73 00:04:06,000 --> 00:04:09,240 is speaking. And I think you got in 74 00:04:09,240 --> 00:04:13,600 particular that your word puts on full display your character. 75 00:04:13,680 --> 00:04:17,440 God, we are in awe of you. God, when we think about the 76 00:04:17,440 --> 00:04:20,440 brokenness in the world, when we think about the powers of this 77 00:04:20,440 --> 00:04:23,480 world who throughout so many centuries have repeated these 78 00:04:23,480 --> 00:04:26,080 patterns of violence and arrogance and corruption and 79 00:04:26,080 --> 00:04:29,520 brokenness, we thank you that you, Jesus, are good. 80 00:04:30,280 --> 00:04:32,520 We thank you that you are a God of grace. 81 00:04:33,200 --> 00:04:35,840 We thank you that you are a God of steadfast love. 82 00:04:36,440 --> 00:04:39,200 We thank you that you are a God who invites us to become like 83 00:04:39,200 --> 00:04:41,840 you and to live differently in this world. 84 00:04:42,640 --> 00:04:44,800 And so this morning, God, I ask that you would just speak to 85 00:04:44,800 --> 00:04:51,280 each of us and bring us a deeper into that invitation to separate 86 00:04:51,280 --> 00:04:53,400 ourselves from the things of this world that are not of you, 87 00:04:53,400 --> 00:04:57,360 that are not like you, and to draw nearer to you that you 88 00:04:57,360 --> 00:04:59,560 would make us more like you through your word. 89 00:04:59,560 --> 00:05:01,760 By your Spirit. We thank you that you were able 90 00:05:01,760 --> 00:05:04,200 to do that. Jesus, we pray all that in your 91 00:05:04,200 --> 00:05:06,560 name, Amen. Amen. 92 00:05:07,440 --> 00:05:09,600 All right, So I don't think this is on your handout. 93 00:05:09,600 --> 00:05:11,440 So I'm just going to start summarizing the parts that we're 94 00:05:11,440 --> 00:05:13,200 missing. But at the beginning of Daniel 95 00:05:13,200 --> 00:05:17,000 chapter 5, we are just abruptly introduced this new king of 96 00:05:17,000 --> 00:05:20,000 Babylon named Belshazzar. So the book suggests that 97 00:05:20,000 --> 00:05:23,240 Belshazzar is either the son or like an immediate descendant of 98 00:05:23,240 --> 00:05:25,720 King Nebuchadnezzar, who is who we've been hanging out with in 99 00:05:25,720 --> 00:05:28,960 recent chapters. So we first meet Belshazzar as 100 00:05:28,960 --> 00:05:31,920 he is throwing like this extravagant party full of 101 00:05:31,920 --> 00:05:34,760 indulgence and lust and depravity. 102 00:05:35,320 --> 00:05:37,480 And then he figures, you know, what's a party without a little 103 00:05:37,480 --> 00:05:40,120 sacrilege? And so Belshazzar takes these 104 00:05:40,120 --> 00:05:43,120 golden cups that were looted from the temple in Jerusalem. 105 00:05:43,440 --> 00:05:45,240 So these cups are like holy vessels, right? 106 00:05:45,240 --> 00:05:47,760 They're, they're used by Israelite priests in their 107 00:05:47,760 --> 00:05:50,760 rites. But Belshazzar fills them with 108 00:05:50,760 --> 00:05:54,200 wine and offers up like a toast to his Pagan gods. 109 00:05:54,920 --> 00:05:58,040 So at first glance, it might seem like Belshazzar is just 110 00:05:58,040 --> 00:06:00,960 kind of like a party animal who has no reverence for the God of 111 00:06:00,960 --> 00:06:03,760 Israel. But historians note that it 112 00:06:03,760 --> 00:06:06,960 doesn't really make sense that Belshazzar would be throwing 113 00:06:06,960 --> 00:06:09,880 like a raucous feast at this particular moment in time 114 00:06:10,480 --> 00:06:12,720 because things are not going well for Babylon. 115 00:06:13,240 --> 00:06:16,400 They're no longer the biggest, baddest nation in all the land. 116 00:06:16,400 --> 00:06:18,960 They are an empire that is on the decline. 117 00:06:19,400 --> 00:06:22,160 And their enemies, the Medes and the Persians, are like on the 118 00:06:22,160 --> 00:06:24,480 rise. So at this point, the Medes and 119 00:06:24,480 --> 00:06:27,080 Persians have already conquered neighboring regions. 120 00:06:27,320 --> 00:06:30,920 So Babylon should be fully aware that their enemies are coming 121 00:06:30,920 --> 00:06:33,960 for them next and that they are likely not strong enough to 122 00:06:33,960 --> 00:06:37,960 stand up against them. So this wild feast that 123 00:06:37,960 --> 00:06:41,360 Belshazzar is throwing is probably like 1/3 denial that 124 00:06:41,360 --> 00:06:44,760 disaster is coming. Maybe like 1/3 political bravado 125 00:06:44,760 --> 00:06:47,400 because, you know, obviously they wouldn't be partying unless 126 00:06:47,400 --> 00:06:49,480 they were confident that they could defeat their enemies. 127 00:06:50,000 --> 00:06:52,720 And then maybe like 1/3 distraction to kind of keep the 128 00:06:52,720 --> 00:06:56,480 other nobles and Lords from realizing how bad things are or 129 00:06:56,480 --> 00:07:00,800 how scared Belshazzar really is. So that act of kind of drinking 130 00:07:00,800 --> 00:07:04,200 from these holy Israelite vessels probably falls under the 131 00:07:04,200 --> 00:07:06,440 category of political bravado. Like, you know, it's this 132 00:07:06,440 --> 00:07:09,800 attitude of we're not afraid of foreign nations and their gods. 133 00:07:10,000 --> 00:07:12,520 We've conquered our enemies in the past and we'll do it again. 134 00:07:13,600 --> 00:07:17,440 But instead, this act of arrogance is immediately met 135 00:07:17,440 --> 00:07:20,000 with a warning from the God that they've affronted. 136 00:07:20,600 --> 00:07:23,080 Belshazzar sees like that floating hand riding on the 137 00:07:23,080 --> 00:07:24,640 wall. And he's like, shook. 138 00:07:24,920 --> 00:07:27,960 Like the level of detail in the book about the King's reaction 139 00:07:27,960 --> 00:07:31,000 is like an underlying, like, all caps emphasis that Belshazzar is 140 00:07:31,000 --> 00:07:33,680 like, not OK. It says the King's color 141 00:07:33,680 --> 00:07:35,920 changed. And his thoughts alarmed him and 142 00:07:35,920 --> 00:07:38,120 his limbs gave way and his knees knocked together. 143 00:07:38,120 --> 00:07:40,680 Like, it sounds like a cartoon character, like he's reacting 144 00:07:40,680 --> 00:07:42,920 very strongly to what's happening here. 145 00:07:43,440 --> 00:07:46,880 But for some reason none of the wise men, the Babylonian wise 146 00:07:46,880 --> 00:07:50,640 men, can read or interpret the writing on the wall until 147 00:07:50,640 --> 00:07:54,480 someone says, wait, isn't one of the Jewish exiles gifted in 148 00:07:54,480 --> 00:07:56,880 interpreting visions? I think his name is Daniel. 149 00:07:57,360 --> 00:08:01,720 And so Daniel is fetched and he is able to read the four words 150 00:08:01,720 --> 00:08:04,040 that are written in ancient Aramaic on the wall. 151 00:08:04,520 --> 00:08:08,440 They say meanie, meanie, tackle, and Parson, which roughly 152 00:08:08,440 --> 00:08:12,720 translates to numbered, numbered, weighed and divided. 153 00:08:13,440 --> 00:08:16,920 God has numbered the days of the Kingdom of Babylon. 154 00:08:17,560 --> 00:08:21,560 The king has been weighed in the balances and been found wanting, 155 00:08:22,120 --> 00:08:25,600 and so Babylon will be divided and given over to its enemies. 156 00:08:25,600 --> 00:08:29,720 So this is like the centre point of the story, like the end of 157 00:08:29,720 --> 00:08:32,360 one ancient empire and the rise of a new power. 158 00:08:32,840 --> 00:08:36,520 So as we explore Daniel chapter 5, the major task ahead of us is 159 00:08:36,520 --> 00:08:40,200 to bring like this dramatic, otherworldly story down into our 160 00:08:40,200 --> 00:08:42,480 reality today. So to do that, we're going to 161 00:08:42,480 --> 00:08:46,040 focus on like 3 key lessons that we can learn from the 162 00:08:46,040 --> 00:08:50,600 Babylonians, tragic mistakes and from Daniel's courageous faith. 163 00:08:51,280 --> 00:08:54,840 So first, we need to know where real power comes from. 164 00:08:55,680 --> 00:08:58,520 Second, we need to humble our hearts. 165 00:08:59,240 --> 00:09:02,840 And 3rd, we need to choose the Kingdom that will last. 166 00:09:03,480 --> 00:09:08,000 So first, as followers of God, we need to know where real power 167 00:09:08,000 --> 00:09:11,040 comes from. So when Belshazzar calls Daniel 168 00:09:11,040 --> 00:09:12,560 in, he kind of starts by buttering him up. 169 00:09:12,560 --> 00:09:15,680 He's like, I have heard that the spirit of the gods is in you and 170 00:09:15,680 --> 00:09:18,400 that light and understanding and excellent wisdom are found in 171 00:09:18,400 --> 00:09:20,760 you. And in exchange for his service, 172 00:09:20,960 --> 00:09:23,600 Belshazzar offers Daniel 3 gifts. 173 00:09:23,880 --> 00:09:27,640 So purple clothing, which is like a symbol of high status, a 174 00:09:27,640 --> 00:09:31,440 chain of gold, which is like a token of wealth, and then the 175 00:09:31,440 --> 00:09:33,920 position of third ruler in the Kingdom. 176 00:09:34,200 --> 00:09:39,160 So significant influence, status, wealth and influence are 177 00:09:39,160 --> 00:09:42,120 what Babylon is built on, like what most empires have been 178 00:09:42,120 --> 00:09:44,240 built on. And so when King Belshazzar is 179 00:09:44,240 --> 00:09:46,360 desperate, like these are the rewards he offers. 180 00:09:46,360 --> 00:09:50,560 This is what he assumes anyone would want except for Daniel. 181 00:09:51,080 --> 00:09:55,640 Daniel says to the king, let your gifts be for yourself and 182 00:09:55,640 --> 00:09:59,560 give your rewards to another, which is kind of another way of 183 00:09:59,560 --> 00:10:02,480 saying you have nothing to offer me worth having. 184 00:10:02,920 --> 00:10:06,520 King Belshazzar, I'll speak this prophecy because God compels me 185 00:10:06,520 --> 00:10:09,520 to, but I can't be bought. Mic drop. 186 00:10:10,120 --> 00:10:13,560 Like it's a fierce reply, right? And it reveals a lot about 187 00:10:13,560 --> 00:10:16,800 Daniel's mindset. He sees through the illusion of 188 00:10:16,800 --> 00:10:21,000 worldly power because the secret of worldly power is that it is 189 00:10:21,000 --> 00:10:24,120 fragile. Babylon coming to power through 190 00:10:24,120 --> 00:10:25,920 violence. Like that's how it works for 191 00:10:25,920 --> 00:10:28,240 ancient monarchs. Like you'd conquer and oppress 192 00:10:28,240 --> 00:10:31,440 foreign nations, you'd like assassinate the existing rulers 193 00:10:31,440 --> 00:10:33,920 and take their place. But once you were in power, you 194 00:10:33,920 --> 00:10:36,720 had to just keep showing how formidable and fierce you were 195 00:10:36,920 --> 00:10:40,120 so that no like ambitious young whippersnappers would get any 196 00:10:40,120 --> 00:10:43,160 fancy ideas. But that explains why so many of 197 00:10:43,160 --> 00:10:45,280 the rulers that we see in scripture and throughout the 198 00:10:45,280 --> 00:10:49,880 history books are like deeply paranoid and even like quick to 199 00:10:49,880 --> 00:10:53,560 execute anyone who shows the smallest sign of dissidence. 200 00:10:54,280 --> 00:10:58,720 Their titles declare that they are powerful men, but their 201 00:10:58,720 --> 00:11:03,040 actions declare that they are controlled by fear, enslaved by 202 00:11:03,040 --> 00:11:07,600 self preservation, because on some level they know that their 203 00:11:07,600 --> 00:11:11,600 power depends on everyone around them giving their yes. 204 00:11:12,040 --> 00:11:14,800 Because nobody can build an empire alone, someone has to 205 00:11:14,800 --> 00:11:18,080 believe that it benefits them to keep the king on the throne. 206 00:11:18,680 --> 00:11:21,240 They might hope to share in his power or his protection. 207 00:11:21,560 --> 00:11:24,800 And so they give their yes, while others are maybe just 208 00:11:24,800 --> 00:11:28,000 trying to kind of stay small and stay out of the way to survive 209 00:11:28,000 --> 00:11:30,760 another day. And so even passively, they give 210 00:11:30,760 --> 00:11:33,640 their yes. But the powerful lesson in this 211 00:11:33,640 --> 00:11:38,480 story is that Daniel refuses to give his yes to this corrupt and 212 00:11:38,480 --> 00:11:42,480 idolatrous king. His integrity and his priorities 213 00:11:42,800 --> 00:11:45,720 cannot be swayed. Think about how extraordinary 214 00:11:45,720 --> 00:11:48,440 that is. Daniel is living in captivity, 215 00:11:49,160 --> 00:11:52,080 and yet he doesn't respond to King Belshazzar as if he has 216 00:11:52,080 --> 00:11:54,440 ultimate power. Essentially, he says, keep your 217 00:11:54,440 --> 00:11:56,160 gifts. I'm not interested. 218 00:11:56,760 --> 00:12:01,760 I serve a greater king church. We also live in a world that too 219 00:12:01,760 --> 00:12:03,880 often rewards arrogance and violence. 220 00:12:04,720 --> 00:12:07,360 But that doesn't mean that we have to give in or just like 221 00:12:07,360 --> 00:12:09,520 take what we can get and try to be content. 222 00:12:10,360 --> 00:12:14,600 We can decide that we answer to a higher power, that we don't 223 00:12:14,600 --> 00:12:19,480 give our yes to anyone but God. When I think of resisting with 224 00:12:19,480 --> 00:12:23,400 integrity, I think of the civil rights movement, the bus 225 00:12:23,400 --> 00:12:27,200 boycotts, the acts of civil disobedience that declared we 226 00:12:27,200 --> 00:12:30,640 will not give our yes to a system that denies basic human 227 00:12:30,640 --> 00:12:32,920 rights to an entire class of people. 228 00:12:33,960 --> 00:12:38,400 I think of survivors of sexual violence who insist on justice, 229 00:12:38,400 --> 00:12:42,520 even if it comes at a steep cost to themselves, but still they 230 00:12:42,520 --> 00:12:45,840 say we will not give our yes to a system that protects predators 231 00:12:46,160 --> 00:12:50,240 and silences our voices. Or I think of the many people of 232 00:12:50,240 --> 00:12:53,360 faith today who are pushing back when they see the name of Jesus 233 00:12:53,360 --> 00:12:55,960 being misrepresented. And these are not necessarily 234 00:12:55,960 --> 00:12:59,440 people who make headlines or who go viral, but instead they are 235 00:12:59,480 --> 00:13:03,040 not giving their yes to any of the ideologies of this world, 236 00:13:03,160 --> 00:13:06,920 but they are faithfully walking in the way of Jesus in their own 237 00:13:06,920 --> 00:13:10,360 communities. Church, we are also called to 238 00:13:10,360 --> 00:13:14,000 walk in the way of Jesus. Jesus doesn't negotiate with 239 00:13:14,000 --> 00:13:16,440 corrupt rulers. He did not feel the need to 240 00:13:16,440 --> 00:13:19,680 justify his faith when people slandered him or even threatened 241 00:13:19,680 --> 00:13:21,840 him. He did not even try to 242 00:13:21,840 --> 00:13:25,840 circumvent suffering when it came because his commitment to 243 00:13:25,840 --> 00:13:27,680 God led him straight to the cross. 244 00:13:28,560 --> 00:13:30,800 Jesus only gave his yes to God the Father. 245 00:13:31,400 --> 00:13:34,720 And the path that he walked was not one of force and might and 246 00:13:34,720 --> 00:13:38,480 striving for victory. It was a path of humility and 247 00:13:38,480 --> 00:13:42,520 submission and self sacrifice and deathless love. 248 00:13:43,280 --> 00:13:46,600 And that is where true power is. I mean, I've never met anyone 249 00:13:46,600 --> 00:13:49,400 today who celebrates the power and glory of King Belshus heart 250 00:13:49,400 --> 00:13:52,000 of Babylon, right? Like most people don't even know 251 00:13:52,000 --> 00:13:55,320 his name. I know countless people who 252 00:13:55,320 --> 00:13:58,520 celebrate the power and the glory of Jesus because His power 253 00:13:58,880 --> 00:14:02,080 is one that lifts up the powerless, that heals the broken 254 00:14:02,080 --> 00:14:05,760 hearted, that cultivates mercy in a hurting world. 255 00:14:06,320 --> 00:14:08,720 And that is where real and lasting power lies. 256 00:14:08,840 --> 00:14:14,160 Jesus walks in true power, and the story of Daniel reminds us 257 00:14:14,160 --> 00:14:17,600 that at the end of the day, worldly power is ultimately an 258 00:14:17,600 --> 00:14:19,360 illusion. It's like that scene in The 259 00:14:19,360 --> 00:14:22,080 Wizard of Oz where Toto, like, pulls back the curtain and it 260 00:14:22,080 --> 00:14:24,600 turns out the mighty Wizard is like, just some guy with a smoke 261 00:14:24,600 --> 00:14:25,840 machine. You know? 262 00:14:25,840 --> 00:14:29,280 That's how Daniel can so confidently reject the King's 263 00:14:29,280 --> 00:14:31,160 rewards. He knows the offer is empty. 264 00:14:31,840 --> 00:14:34,880 Like Belshazzar can present Daniel with gifts today, but he 265 00:14:34,880 --> 00:14:38,680 can't promise him tomorrow. And within hours of their 266 00:14:38,680 --> 00:14:42,560 conversation, Belshazzar is killed by his rivals, and his 267 00:14:42,560 --> 00:14:46,000 promise of, like, status and wealth and influence becomes 268 00:14:46,000 --> 00:14:52,840 completely worthless. And still, I mean, I find it 269 00:14:53,120 --> 00:14:58,080 really inspiring how swiftly and confidently Daniel rejects the 270 00:14:58,080 --> 00:15:00,920 gifts of Babylon. Because this is easier said than 271 00:15:00,920 --> 00:15:05,400 done. As humans, we are also tempted 272 00:15:05,600 --> 00:15:08,560 by the promises of status and wealth and influence. 273 00:15:08,560 --> 00:15:10,600 You know, we want to be admired by others. 274 00:15:11,000 --> 00:15:13,320 We want material comfort and even luxury. 275 00:15:13,640 --> 00:15:15,720 We want to feel like we're in control of our environment and 276 00:15:15,720 --> 00:15:18,400 our relationships. But the more that we are willing 277 00:15:18,400 --> 00:15:21,960 to sacrifice to fulfill those desires, the more we slip into 278 00:15:21,960 --> 00:15:24,160 idolatry. And the one thing that the book 279 00:15:24,160 --> 00:15:28,000 of Daniel has really underscored for me is that idolatry can 280 00:15:28,000 --> 00:15:31,680 point to this desire for power. You know, if we start like, 281 00:15:31,680 --> 00:15:35,280 feeling unimportant or invisible, we crave the 282 00:15:35,280 --> 00:15:38,440 affirmation of others. So we desire status, you know, 283 00:15:38,440 --> 00:15:40,720 to have the power to shape how other people see us. 284 00:15:41,520 --> 00:15:44,640 Or maybe the discomfort and the anxiety and the unpredictability 285 00:15:44,640 --> 00:15:47,160 of this world starts to get to us. 286 00:15:47,160 --> 00:15:49,680 And so we desire wealth so that we have the power to get 287 00:15:49,680 --> 00:15:52,600 anything we want to kind of buy a sense of security or 288 00:15:52,600 --> 00:15:54,960 distraction, you know, from our existential angst. 289 00:15:55,920 --> 00:15:59,360 Or we resist the vulnerability of not being in control of other 290 00:15:59,360 --> 00:16:03,320 people, of our circumstances. So we desire influence, the 291 00:16:03,320 --> 00:16:06,040 power to persuade others to do what we want, to kind of make 292 00:16:06,040 --> 00:16:09,080 the world operate the way we think is best in every 293 00:16:09,080 --> 00:16:11,200 situation. We are being sold the illusion 294 00:16:11,200 --> 00:16:14,200 of power. And if we pursue them, these 295 00:16:14,200 --> 00:16:17,400 idols will disciple us in the way of selfishness. 296 00:16:17,960 --> 00:16:19,600 Or just think of Belshazzar as an example. 297 00:16:19,760 --> 00:16:23,800 Like enemy armies are at his doorstep and instead of taking 298 00:16:23,800 --> 00:16:27,400 action to protect his people, he throws a self indulgent party. 299 00:16:28,160 --> 00:16:31,160 He sacrifices his Kingdom to keep up appearances. 300 00:16:31,880 --> 00:16:34,440 He distracts himself from his own fear by like indulging in 301 00:16:34,440 --> 00:16:36,560 pleasure. His commitment to his own 302 00:16:36,560 --> 00:16:40,120 status, his own wealth, his own influence has made him deeply 303 00:16:40,320 --> 00:16:43,880 selfish. Now compare that to Jesus. 304 00:16:45,280 --> 00:16:49,360 Instead of seeking wealth, Jesus doesn't even seek a home to call 305 00:16:49,360 --> 00:16:52,040 his own. He goes wherever people need to 306 00:16:52,040 --> 00:16:53,680 hear the good news of God's Kingdom. 307 00:16:54,560 --> 00:16:58,480 Instead of seeking influence, Jesus uses his actual spiritual 308 00:16:58,480 --> 00:17:01,320 authority to bring people healing and freedom. 309 00:17:02,480 --> 00:17:06,760 Instead of seeking status, Jesus lays down his life to pay for 310 00:17:06,760 --> 00:17:09,560 our sins. Jesus doesn't offer us shallow 311 00:17:09,560 --> 00:17:13,800 gifts or temporary band aids. He invites us to find fullness 312 00:17:13,800 --> 00:17:18,640 of life in Him, to find true and lasting peace and faith in Him. 313 00:17:19,560 --> 00:17:23,079 Now God is the only one who doesn't have to strive and self 314 00:17:23,079 --> 00:17:27,440 protect to maintain His power. Because only God has actual 315 00:17:27,720 --> 00:17:30,880 power. And how does he use it to serve, 316 00:17:31,240 --> 00:17:36,600 to heal, to love and to save? And he will use your life if you 317 00:17:36,600 --> 00:17:40,920 give him your Yes, he will give. He will use your life to serve, 318 00:17:41,160 --> 00:17:45,400 to heal, to love and to save, to be a part of the better world 319 00:17:45,400 --> 00:17:49,360 that He is bringing about. S 1st, we need to understand 320 00:17:49,560 --> 00:17:53,800 where true power comes from. And secondly, Daniel's story 321 00:17:53,800 --> 00:17:57,200 warns US against the mistakes of King Belshazzar and instead 322 00:17:57,200 --> 00:18:01,400 calls us to humble our hearts. So before Daniel interprets the 323 00:18:01,400 --> 00:18:04,120 writing on the wall, he kind of gives a little history lesson. 324 00:18:04,120 --> 00:18:08,360 He compares Belshazzar and his predecessor Nebuchadnezzar, and 325 00:18:08,360 --> 00:18:11,520 says that God gave Nebuchadnezzar sovereignty and 326 00:18:11,520 --> 00:18:13,800 greatness and glory and splendor. 327 00:18:14,480 --> 00:18:20,120 But when Nebuchadnezzar, when Nebuchadnezzar's heart became 328 00:18:20,120 --> 00:18:23,440 arrogant and hardened with pride, he was deposed from his 329 00:18:23,440 --> 00:18:27,760 royal throne and stripped of his glory until he acknowledged that 330 00:18:27,760 --> 00:18:31,120 the Most High God is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and 331 00:18:31,120 --> 00:18:34,200 sets over them anyone he wishes. That's what it says. 332 00:18:34,720 --> 00:18:36,560 So here's the icing on the prophetic cake. 333 00:18:37,800 --> 00:18:42,000 Daniel concludes that you, Belshazzar his son, have not 334 00:18:42,000 --> 00:18:44,760 humbled yourself though you knew all this. 335 00:18:45,360 --> 00:18:48,200 Instead, you have set yourself up against the Lord of Heaven. 336 00:18:48,680 --> 00:18:52,400 You praise the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, wood, stone 337 00:18:52,400 --> 00:18:55,840 and iron, which cannot see or hear or understand. 338 00:18:56,360 --> 00:18:59,600 But you did not honor the God who holds in his hand your life 339 00:18:59,760 --> 00:19:03,680 in all your ways. So Belshazzar has witnessed like 340 00:19:03,680 --> 00:19:07,320 a real life cautionary tale of what can happen when a ruler 341 00:19:07,320 --> 00:19:10,960 elevates himself above God, and yet he brazenly does the exact 342 00:19:11,040 --> 00:19:15,280 same thing. This is the height of hubris. 343 00:19:15,800 --> 00:19:18,920 This is the sign of a deeply fallen human ego. 344 00:19:19,280 --> 00:19:22,640 And you know, ego as we'll use it today is like that inflated 345 00:19:22,640 --> 00:19:27,160 sense of self, that false superiority, like a refusal to 346 00:19:27,160 --> 00:19:29,960 admit that anything might be wrong with us or like the way 347 00:19:29,960 --> 00:19:32,680 that we're living. When I think of the ego, I think 348 00:19:32,680 --> 00:19:35,760 of the Garden of Eden and the fall of humanity. 349 00:19:35,920 --> 00:19:38,680 Many of you will know the story how Adam and Eve lived in 350 00:19:38,680 --> 00:19:42,240 comfort and security and relational richness with God. 351 00:19:42,760 --> 00:19:45,000 And the one boundary that God set was that they were not 352 00:19:45,000 --> 00:19:48,280 permitted to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. 353 00:19:48,960 --> 00:19:52,160 And all was well until the serpent came along. 354 00:19:52,840 --> 00:19:56,080 And the voice of the serpent subtly pushes the word of God to 355 00:19:56,080 --> 00:20:00,400 the side when he says, did God actually say you shall not eat 356 00:20:00,400 --> 00:20:03,560 of any tree in the garden? And then the serpent shifts to 357 00:20:03,600 --> 00:20:06,240 directly contradicting the voice of God. 358 00:20:06,240 --> 00:20:10,440 He says you will not surely die. And finally, the serpent offers 359 00:20:10,640 --> 00:20:14,800 an alternate version of what is good and what is worth pursuing. 360 00:20:15,280 --> 00:20:18,080 He says God knows that when you eat of it, your eyes will be 361 00:20:18,080 --> 00:20:21,120 opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil. 362 00:20:22,160 --> 00:20:26,080 The voice of the ego follows a very similar pattern. 363 00:20:26,800 --> 00:20:29,960 It starts by subtly pushing God's word to the side. 364 00:20:29,960 --> 00:20:33,360 Did God actually say? And then if like no consequences 365 00:20:33,360 --> 00:20:36,800 seem to immediately appear, the ego gets bolder and begins to 366 00:20:36,800 --> 00:20:40,800 directly contradict God's word. And finally, when the ego 367 00:20:40,800 --> 00:20:44,080 becomes powerful enough, it gets to work building its own 368 00:20:44,080 --> 00:20:47,840 Kingdom, setting its own rules, defining good for itself. 369 00:20:49,040 --> 00:20:52,400 So we can even see this playing out in real time with King 370 00:20:52,400 --> 00:20:54,520 Belshazzar. Like, he knows the story of 371 00:20:54,520 --> 00:20:56,680 Nebuchadnezzar, but he pushes it to the side. 372 00:20:56,680 --> 00:20:58,200 Like, surely that won't happen to me. 373 00:20:58,960 --> 00:21:01,600 And then as the ego gains momentum, Belshazzar might 374 00:21:01,600 --> 00:21:04,080 think, like, how do we really know what happened anyway? 375 00:21:04,080 --> 00:21:06,280 Like, maybe the God of Israel had nothing to do with what 376 00:21:06,280 --> 00:21:09,040 happened. And as the ego gets more and 377 00:21:09,040 --> 00:21:12,720 more inflated, Belshazzar might say to himself, the God of 378 00:21:12,720 --> 00:21:15,000 Israel can't touch me. I'm too powerful. 379 00:21:15,400 --> 00:21:17,840 I'll drink with his holy vessels and toast my own gods, and 380 00:21:17,840 --> 00:21:20,400 nothing will come of it. But of course, he could not be 381 00:21:20,400 --> 00:21:23,720 more wrong. See, the ego is a tricky thing 382 00:21:24,120 --> 00:21:27,000 because it's subtle. Like, it's smooth, like the 383 00:21:27,000 --> 00:21:30,040 voice of the serpent. It builds the momentum slowly, 384 00:21:30,480 --> 00:21:33,240 kind of starts with an argument that sounds reasonable, and then 385 00:21:33,240 --> 00:21:36,680 it builds towards more and more selfishness and self-reliance. 386 00:21:37,120 --> 00:21:40,560 I'll give you an example of how this might look for someone who 387 00:21:40,560 --> 00:21:44,360 is not a Babylonian king. Maybe more relatable. 388 00:21:44,760 --> 00:21:51,640 So there was a time in my life when I was really frustrated 389 00:21:51,640 --> 00:21:53,720 with someone. Is that relatable so far? 390 00:21:53,720 --> 00:21:56,000 Have you guys ever been frustrated with someone? 391 00:21:56,040 --> 00:21:58,840 Yeah. Have you ever been frustrated 392 00:21:58,840 --> 00:22:02,480 with someone and started, like, rehearsing little stories about 393 00:22:02,480 --> 00:22:06,960 why you're right and they're wrong or that's hilarious? 394 00:22:06,960 --> 00:22:10,120 I heard I never, well, sarcasm in the audience keeping you guys 395 00:22:10,120 --> 00:22:13,760 lively. Have you ever started out, let's 396 00:22:13,760 --> 00:22:15,600 say you started out feeling hurt, right? 397 00:22:16,400 --> 00:22:20,080 But then you get angry, Angry maybe that the person isn't 398 00:22:20,080 --> 00:22:21,320 fixing the fact that you're hurt. 399 00:22:21,720 --> 00:22:24,680 So then you start blaming them and resenting them to the point 400 00:22:24,680 --> 00:22:27,200 where you actually become hardened against them, where it 401 00:22:27,200 --> 00:22:29,680 even changes how you treat them and how much grace you're 402 00:22:29,680 --> 00:22:33,440 willing to extend to them. So that was what was happening 403 00:22:33,440 --> 00:22:36,240 in my heart. In my situation, I felt that I 404 00:22:36,240 --> 00:22:39,240 had done something kind for someone and that their response 405 00:22:39,240 --> 00:22:42,200 was ungrateful and even a little cold. 406 00:22:42,840 --> 00:22:45,800 And in my heart, I started making up like little stories 407 00:22:46,200 --> 00:22:48,800 that justified my being cold in return. 408 00:22:49,880 --> 00:22:54,960 Because the the ego feeds on self justification. 409 00:22:55,200 --> 00:22:58,240 Like it starts whispering things like you deserve better. 410 00:22:58,840 --> 00:23:00,640 You just stop being so nice. If it's not going to be 411 00:23:00,640 --> 00:23:03,360 reciprocated, you should leave them on red and see how they 412 00:23:03,360 --> 00:23:06,720 like that. Fortunately, that internal 413 00:23:06,720 --> 00:23:09,120 dialogue did not last long because the Holy Spirit was not 414 00:23:09,120 --> 00:23:12,040 having it. So God, that's what happens when 415 00:23:12,040 --> 00:23:14,280 you like pray for wisdom about something is like sometimes God 416 00:23:14,280 --> 00:23:15,880 just comes down with the hammer of conviction. 417 00:23:15,880 --> 00:23:18,080 You're like, oh I see what I'm doing. 418 00:23:18,080 --> 00:23:21,320 And in this situation I feel like God revealed to me that 419 00:23:21,320 --> 00:23:25,160 what I was actually doing is my ego was giving me permission to 420 00:23:25,160 --> 00:23:30,560 withhold love from someone and that my friends, is not the way 421 00:23:30,800 --> 00:23:34,280 of Jesus. So instead of extending grace 422 00:23:34,520 --> 00:23:38,720 and even seeking repair, it justified the the grudge that I 423 00:23:38,720 --> 00:23:41,440 was holding. Instead of seeking the good of 424 00:23:41,440 --> 00:23:44,760 the other person, I had structured a sound argument as 425 00:23:44,760 --> 00:23:48,760 to why I shouldn't have to. And maybe this seems like a 426 00:23:48,760 --> 00:23:51,720 fairly tame example compared to like, the big problems in 427 00:23:51,720 --> 00:23:54,120 society. But a little platform for the 428 00:23:54,120 --> 00:23:57,720 ego is all that it takes. A little leaven leavens the 429 00:23:57,720 --> 00:24:01,960 whole lump. Like justifying our selfishness 430 00:24:01,960 --> 00:24:04,960 and our resentment, rationalizing our resistance to 431 00:24:04,960 --> 00:24:10,360 loving others is our downfall. Listening to our egos is how we 432 00:24:10,360 --> 00:24:12,440 got the broken world that we're living in today. 433 00:24:13,320 --> 00:24:18,160 So how do we resist? Like, how do we recognize the 434 00:24:18,160 --> 00:24:22,880 voice of the ego and silence it? Well, I'm going to propose today 435 00:24:23,160 --> 00:24:28,160 that the antidote to ego is worship, specifically of Jesus. 436 00:24:28,800 --> 00:24:32,600 We need to flip the hierarchy so that our opinion of our own 437 00:24:32,600 --> 00:24:36,680 greatness, our own rightness, is lowered and God is elevated to 438 00:24:36,680 --> 00:24:38,760 the highest position in our hearts. 439 00:24:39,240 --> 00:24:40,960 Because the ego wants to worship itself. 440 00:24:41,640 --> 00:24:44,920 The ego longs for power, and so it'll build alliances with 441 00:24:44,920 --> 00:24:47,280 anything that will help it to secure power. 442 00:24:47,440 --> 00:24:51,760 So to resist, we have to choose to lay our power down at the 443 00:24:51,760 --> 00:24:54,960 feet of Jesus, and Jesus even models this for us. 444 00:24:55,080 --> 00:24:57,760 Like during his earthly life, he was continually submitting 445 00:24:57,760 --> 00:25:01,080 himself to God the Father before he chose the 12 apostles. 446 00:25:01,080 --> 00:25:04,920 He spent all night in prayer before going to the cross again. 447 00:25:04,920 --> 00:25:08,560 He was labouring all night in prayer, like wrestling with the 448 00:25:08,560 --> 00:25:12,160 hard path that lay before him and then surrendering to God's 449 00:25:12,160 --> 00:25:14,760 plan. Jesus walked in beautiful 450 00:25:14,840 --> 00:25:19,080 humility. Philippians 2538 says that Jesus 451 00:25:19,360 --> 00:25:22,840 being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God 452 00:25:22,840 --> 00:25:25,360 something to used to his own advantage. 453 00:25:25,760 --> 00:25:29,800 Rather he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a 454 00:25:29,800 --> 00:25:32,760 servant. He humbled himself by becoming 455 00:25:32,760 --> 00:25:36,640 obedient to death, even death on a cross. 456 00:25:37,480 --> 00:25:41,240 If that last sentence is insane, he humbled himself by becoming 457 00:25:41,240 --> 00:25:44,840 obedient to death. And maybe another way to look at 458 00:25:44,840 --> 00:25:48,160 it is Jesus did not seek full satisfaction in this life. 459 00:25:49,120 --> 00:25:53,200 He thought full satisfaction in doing God's will and in building 460 00:25:53,200 --> 00:25:58,000 towards an eternal Kingdom. So Jesus is modeling the path 461 00:25:58,000 --> 00:26:01,840 that we are invited to take, where instead of building like 462 00:26:02,080 --> 00:26:05,240 little fragile kingdoms to support the whims of our egos, 463 00:26:05,360 --> 00:26:09,440 we are invited to delay our egos down to give our allegiance to 464 00:26:09,440 --> 00:26:14,400 the true and eternal King. I attended a prayer meeting this 465 00:26:14,400 --> 00:26:16,960 week with some folks across several different churches in 466 00:26:16,960 --> 00:26:19,120 the Boston area. And just being there, I was 467 00:26:19,120 --> 00:26:20,880 thinking. It really reminded me how being 468 00:26:20,880 --> 00:26:24,560 in a room with other people who are really focused on seeking 469 00:26:24,560 --> 00:26:29,360 God's will feels freeing. Like there's like a lightness to 470 00:26:29,360 --> 00:26:32,800 surrendering to God, which is so different than the feeling of 471 00:26:32,800 --> 00:26:35,360 giving in to our egos. Like there's like a tension in 472 00:26:35,360 --> 00:26:38,200 like a striving when we're operating in our egos. 473 00:26:38,400 --> 00:26:40,160 Because again, the ego is self protective. 474 00:26:40,480 --> 00:26:44,000 It has to like posture itself against others to like defend 475 00:26:44,000 --> 00:26:47,560 it's logic because it doesn't have the benefit of resting in 476 00:26:47,560 --> 00:26:52,040 God's truth and God's way. The path of the ego is tempting, 477 00:26:52,360 --> 00:26:54,920 but if you walk it long enough, you'll discover that it's 478 00:26:54,920 --> 00:27:00,080 burdensome. But worship unburdens our souls 479 00:27:00,480 --> 00:27:04,560 and opens us up to receive the fullness of joy and peace that 480 00:27:04,560 --> 00:27:09,480 can only come from God's Spirit. So God's invitation to us is to 481 00:27:09,480 --> 00:27:12,400 humble our hearts and to receive him as our King. 482 00:27:13,480 --> 00:27:17,360 And finally we reach the interpretation of the writing on 483 00:27:17,360 --> 00:27:19,200 the wall. So in verse 25 it says this is 484 00:27:19,200 --> 00:27:20,480 the inscription that was written. 485 00:27:20,880 --> 00:27:25,000 Meanie, meanie tackle Parson. Here is what these words mean. 486 00:27:25,560 --> 00:27:29,440 Meanie God has numbered the days of your reign and brought it to 487 00:27:29,440 --> 00:27:32,200 an end. Tackle You have been weighed on 488 00:27:32,200 --> 00:27:35,400 the scales and found wanting. Periods. 489 00:27:35,600 --> 00:27:39,280 Your Kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians. 490 00:27:39,720 --> 00:27:43,240 And then in verse 30, that very night Belshazzar, king of the 491 00:27:43,240 --> 00:27:47,760 Babylonians was slain and Darius the Mede took over the Kingdom 492 00:27:48,640 --> 00:27:50,600 again. This is an example of how 493 00:27:50,600 --> 00:27:55,280 fragile worldly power really is. And it kind of feels symbolic 494 00:27:55,280 --> 00:27:58,120 that the entire reign of King Belshazzar can be just 495 00:27:58,120 --> 00:28:00,920 summarized in a single chapter. Like he appears suddenly at the 496 00:28:00,920 --> 00:28:03,560 start of chapter 5, and by the end of the chapter, he's gone, 497 00:28:03,680 --> 00:28:05,320 like blinked twice and it's all over. 498 00:28:05,760 --> 00:28:07,160 The writing on the wall is clear. 499 00:28:07,320 --> 00:28:10,880 The Kingdom of God will outlive the Kingdom of the ego every 500 00:28:10,880 --> 00:28:13,160 time. And the lesson that's really 501 00:28:13,160 --> 00:28:16,000 been standing out to me as we've studied the book of Daniel is 502 00:28:16,000 --> 00:28:20,000 that empires rise and fall, but as followers of God, the calling 503 00:28:20,000 --> 00:28:23,760 on our lives remains the same. Like no matter our external 504 00:28:23,760 --> 00:28:27,080 circumstances, we're facing the same challenge to decide what 505 00:28:27,080 --> 00:28:29,360 kind of Kingdom we are building towards. 506 00:28:30,120 --> 00:28:33,440 And both today and throughout church history, there have been 507 00:28:33,440 --> 00:28:36,720 people who believed that it's our job to make the Kingdom of 508 00:28:36,720 --> 00:28:39,920 God common earth. And so they'll try to do it by 509 00:28:39,920 --> 00:28:43,400 force, by trying to conform the world around them to whatever 510 00:28:43,400 --> 00:28:45,400 they think a Christian society ought to look like. 511 00:28:45,880 --> 00:28:50,240 That's how we got the Crusades. My question is, when do we see 512 00:28:50,240 --> 00:28:53,240 Jesus doing that? Like when do we see Jesus 513 00:28:53,240 --> 00:28:56,800 leading by force? When do we see Jesus persecuting 514 00:28:56,800 --> 00:28:59,960 those who disagree with him? When do we see Jesus even acting 515 00:28:59,960 --> 00:29:02,360 concerned about his platform or his power? 516 00:29:03,160 --> 00:29:06,400 The radical countercultural thing about the ministry of 517 00:29:06,560 --> 00:29:11,480 Jesus is that it was humble, it was relational, it met people in 518 00:29:11,480 --> 00:29:15,360 deep places of pain and brokenness with transformative 519 00:29:15,440 --> 00:29:17,760 power. And that's the reason that the 520 00:29:17,760 --> 00:29:21,920 Kingdom of God can still flourish in exile, in captivity, 521 00:29:22,040 --> 00:29:25,120 when external circumstances are at their most dire. 522 00:29:25,360 --> 00:29:28,240 It's because the Kingdom of God is about the transformation of 523 00:29:28,240 --> 00:29:31,520 the human heart. And so it flourishes when people 524 00:29:31,520 --> 00:29:35,120 choose worship over ego. It flourishes when people choose 525 00:29:35,120 --> 00:29:38,280 truth and justice over compromise and conformity. 526 00:29:38,600 --> 00:29:41,600 It flourishes when people choose sacrificial love over self 527 00:29:41,600 --> 00:29:44,280 preservation. That is the power that Jesus 528 00:29:44,280 --> 00:29:46,200 offers us. No matter what challenges we 529 00:29:46,200 --> 00:29:50,120 face, we always have the option to choose faith and to trust God 530 00:29:50,120 --> 00:29:53,320 for the outcome. There's this great story in the 531 00:29:53,320 --> 00:29:56,520 book of Acts where Paul and Silas, who are evangelists and 532 00:29:56,520 --> 00:29:59,360 church planners, they're thrown into prison basically because 533 00:29:59,520 --> 00:30:01,960 they liberated a slave girl who is possessed by a demon. 534 00:30:02,120 --> 00:30:05,280 So they're imprisoned, and Paul and Silas are praying and 535 00:30:05,280 --> 00:30:08,440 singing hymns to God in the middle of the night. 536 00:30:08,720 --> 00:30:11,120 And the other prisoners are all listening to them, when suddenly 537 00:30:11,280 --> 00:30:14,080 there's this big earthquake and the whole prison is shaken and 538 00:30:14,080 --> 00:30:16,440 the doors fly open and everyone's chains are undone. 539 00:30:16,960 --> 00:30:20,920 And their jailer responds by falling down before Paul and 540 00:30:20,920 --> 00:30:25,000 Silas, trembling with fear. And he says, Sirs, what must I 541 00:30:25,000 --> 00:30:28,040 do to be saved? And of course they tell him 542 00:30:28,040 --> 00:30:32,280 about Jesus, and the man and his family are baptized that very 543 00:30:32,280 --> 00:30:34,920 night. This is the Kingdom of God on 544 00:30:34,920 --> 00:30:37,760 full display in this story. You would think that the chains 545 00:30:37,760 --> 00:30:40,560 had power, that the prison Doras had power, that the jailer had 546 00:30:40,560 --> 00:30:42,000 power. You would think that the Roman 547 00:30:42,000 --> 00:30:44,960 Empire would be the ones to get the final say on Paul and 548 00:30:44,960 --> 00:30:47,440 Silas's fate. You might even wonder why God 549 00:30:47,440 --> 00:30:49,640 would bring these two faithful men into this desperate 550 00:30:49,640 --> 00:30:51,920 situation where they're imprisoned literally for doing 551 00:30:51,920 --> 00:30:54,800 good. But in the most unexpected way, 552 00:30:54,800 --> 00:30:56,880 God is actually answering their prayers. 553 00:30:57,320 --> 00:31:00,120 They were preaching the Gospel, longing for people to come to 554 00:31:00,120 --> 00:31:02,480 know Jesus and to be saved. And God brings them right where 555 00:31:02,480 --> 00:31:06,720 they need to be, into a jail cell so that they can proclaim 556 00:31:06,720 --> 00:31:08,960 the good nose of Jesus to their own jailer. 557 00:31:10,480 --> 00:31:13,440 Daniel and his friends are in exile, so you would think 558 00:31:13,440 --> 00:31:16,200 Babylon has all the power. You would think Daniel shouldn't 559 00:31:16,200 --> 00:31:18,760 speak so boldly to the king or he might be executed. 560 00:31:19,360 --> 00:31:21,960 You would think that God's Word can't breakthrough in a place 561 00:31:21,960 --> 00:31:25,160 like this. But God works through Daniel and 562 00:31:25,160 --> 00:31:27,360 his friends to put his glory on display. 563 00:31:27,360 --> 00:31:31,000 And when needed, he even speaks directly through extraordinary 564 00:31:31,000 --> 00:31:34,520 visions and dreams to show that he is present and at work. 565 00:31:35,520 --> 00:31:38,640 Because the things that we see as limits, these external limits 566 00:31:39,000 --> 00:31:43,280 are not limits for God. The worldly powers that we see 567 00:31:43,280 --> 00:31:46,280 as in control are blips in the history book. 568 00:31:46,920 --> 00:31:48,920 But the Kingdom of God will last forever. 569 00:31:49,440 --> 00:31:51,880 And that means that the Kingdom work that God does through our 570 00:31:51,880 --> 00:31:56,240 lives will last forever. So what are you building towards 571 00:31:56,880 --> 00:32:00,120 in your life right now? You don't need a flashy job or 572 00:32:00,120 --> 00:32:03,160 ministry or a big platform to make an impact. 573 00:32:03,960 --> 00:32:07,280 You don't need status or wealth or worldly authority. 574 00:32:08,360 --> 00:32:11,640 You need faith. The kind of faith that humbly 575 00:32:11,640 --> 00:32:15,200 submits to God's plans. The kind of faith that sees 576 00:32:15,200 --> 00:32:18,920 beyond external circumstances to the invisible Kingdom that God 577 00:32:18,920 --> 00:32:22,000 is building all around us. The kind of faith that faces 578 00:32:22,000 --> 00:32:24,280 every challenge the world can throw at you. 579 00:32:24,480 --> 00:32:29,440 With this response, God is able. God is able to save us from the 580 00:32:29,440 --> 00:32:32,080 fiery furnace. God is able to preserve our 581 00:32:32,080 --> 00:32:34,760 souls. God is able to bring corrupt 582 00:32:34,760 --> 00:32:37,320 leaders to justice, whether in this life or the next. 583 00:32:37,840 --> 00:32:40,360 God is able to disrupt the momentum of evil. 584 00:32:41,040 --> 00:32:44,240 God is able to work through our lives for good, even in exile. 585 00:32:44,920 --> 00:32:49,320 God is able to bring his Kingdom to earth as it is in heaven. 586 00:32:49,960 --> 00:32:52,480 God is able. Where do you need that phrase 587 00:32:52,480 --> 00:32:54,680 today? Where do you need to counter 588 00:32:54,880 --> 00:32:58,880 your fears, or the lives of the serpent, or the force of your 589 00:32:58,880 --> 00:33:02,400 own ego? With these words, God is able. 590 00:33:03,800 --> 00:33:07,760 So as we close, I'm going to read just a list of different 591 00:33:07,760 --> 00:33:10,000 ways you might fill in the blank behind those words. 592 00:33:10,000 --> 00:33:13,960 God is able. So just listen, let the phrases 593 00:33:13,960 --> 00:33:16,280 wash over you, and just notice if one stands out. 594 00:33:17,120 --> 00:33:21,840 And if it does, lift that up as a prayer to God, and we'll trust 595 00:33:21,840 --> 00:33:24,560 that the Holy Spirit can speak what each of us needs to hear 596 00:33:24,560 --> 00:33:29,720 this morning. God is able to heal. 597 00:33:31,360 --> 00:33:37,440 God is able to rescue. God is able to change you, to 598 00:33:37,440 --> 00:33:39,960 give you a new heart and a new spirit. 599 00:33:41,720 --> 00:33:45,200 God is able to cover your darkest sins with his redeeming 600 00:33:45,200 --> 00:33:49,520 love. God is able to take what man 601 00:33:49,520 --> 00:33:51,920 meant for evil and use it for good. 602 00:33:53,960 --> 00:33:57,840 God is able to restore the years that the locusts have eaten. 603 00:33:59,960 --> 00:34:03,480 God is able to transform your current suffering through the 604 00:34:03,480 --> 00:34:09,239 glory of His cross. God is able to use your life to 605 00:34:09,239 --> 00:34:15,400 bring others into eternal life. God is able to save and redeem 606 00:34:16,000 --> 00:34:21,199 in the places you cannot reach. God is able to keep His 607 00:34:21,199 --> 00:34:24,400 promises. Let me pray for us. 608 00:34:25,280 --> 00:34:27,800 Lord God, we thank you that you are able. 609 00:34:30,360 --> 00:34:33,520 Jesus, we're so grateful that it is not down to us or our own 610 00:34:33,520 --> 00:34:37,239 abilities or our own power. God, we are thankful that the 611 00:34:37,239 --> 00:34:42,360 power is with you, God, and you are building towards a lasting 612 00:34:42,360 --> 00:34:45,920 eternal Kingdom. God, we pray that you would help 613 00:34:45,920 --> 00:34:50,679 us to take the things that we grieve, the things that we are 614 00:34:50,679 --> 00:34:54,480 maybe angry about, the injustices that we see, the 615 00:34:54,480 --> 00:34:57,120 things that feel like obstacles in our own lives, the things 616 00:34:57,120 --> 00:35:00,480 that weigh us down. We thank you that we were 617 00:35:00,480 --> 00:35:03,320 invited to lay all of these things down at your feet and ask 618 00:35:03,320 --> 00:35:08,120 you to work. God, would you give us the gift 619 00:35:09,040 --> 00:35:12,840 of greater faith? Jesus, a faith that would help 620 00:35:12,840 --> 00:35:17,160 us to lay down our pride, to lay down our idea of how things 621 00:35:17,400 --> 00:35:21,320 should go, what things should look like, and to really trust 622 00:35:21,320 --> 00:35:26,280 in your plan and your ways. God, and the kind of faith that 623 00:35:26,280 --> 00:35:29,280 makes us hold. The kind of faith that enables 624 00:35:29,280 --> 00:35:32,920 us to keep singing hymns and praises from a jail cell. 625 00:35:33,800 --> 00:35:36,360 The kind of faith that enables us to speak truth to power what 626 00:35:36,360 --> 00:35:39,920 we're called upon to do it. The kind of faith that enables 627 00:35:39,960 --> 00:35:44,680 us to live humbly and faithfully every single day in obscurity. 628 00:35:45,400 --> 00:35:48,640 God, whatever invitation is before us this morning, we pray 629 00:35:48,640 --> 00:35:52,240 that you would give us the faith to say yes to you, to say yes to 630 00:35:52,240 --> 00:35:55,160 you, and to continue to walk in Your ways. 631 00:35:56,880 --> 00:35:58,560 Thank you, Jesus, for being present to us. 632 00:35:59,360 --> 00:36:01,560 Thank you for the gift of your love and your forgiveness. 633 00:36:03,360 --> 00:36:05,000 We pray that all in your name, Amen.