Wednesday: Daniel and God’s Eternal Kingdom
Daniel was not merely an interpreter of other men’s dreams, significant as that was in this context. In Daniel 7-12, he had his own visions, which revealed the future of great world superpowers. Daniel’s visions especially emphasized that, despite earthly rulers and their plans and machinations, God retains final control of nations. In the end, He and His final kingdom will triumph, and that triumph will be complete (see Daniel 2:44).
Image © Review & Herald Publishing from GoodSalt.com
Read Daniel 7:13-14. What is being described in these texts, and how does it relate to the idea of Christians taking the gospel to the world?
Whatever else those verses are talking about, the central issue is the establishment of God’s eternal kingdom, which doesn’t come until after the return of Jesus. And what factor did Jesus Himself say was important in regard to His return?
And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. So when you see standing in the holy place the abomination that causes desolation, spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand—then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains (Matthew 24:14-16 NIV).
Jesus’ prophecies of the end of the world in Matthew 24 are linked to Daniel’s prophecies. The abomination of desolation predicted by Daniel (Daniel 11:31; Daniel 12:11) was further explained and applied by Jesus to His own day and beyond. The point is that Jesus closely linked the book of Daniel to the end times, which, of course, isn’t surprising, because Daniel in many places does indeed point to the end times (Daniel 8:17, Daniel 8:19; Daniel 11:35; Daniel 12:4, Daniel 12:13). And, according to Jesus, the end doesn’t come until this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world (Matthew 24:14, NKJV).
The gospel is to be preached unto all the world, and only then will Jesus return. And we are the ones called to preach it. Some then argue that Jesus can’t return until we do our work. How are we to understand our role in the timing of Jesus’ return? Bring your answer to class on Sabbath.
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It doesn't seem to me that Jesus return is totally dependent on us, however we definitely have a role to play.
Although only a limited portion of the book of Daniel was sealed until the time of the end (Daniel 12:4) virtually all of the book presents lessons and patterns for those who live in the hour of judgment (Daniel 7:9-14; Revelation 14:6, 7) and anticipate the setting up of the eternal Kingdom (Daniel 2:44).
As the controversy between God and Satan continues we have come to live in a time of investigation in the courts of heaven. Heavenly beings are given access to the records of human activity for review (1 Corinthian 4:9). This is a period when Christ requires something special of those who profess to be His followers (Luke 9:23), as was required of Israel on the Day of Atonement (Leviticus 23:27-32).
Spiritual Israel is called upon to put a check on the appetite for the literal wine (Daniel 1:5, 8) and spiritual wine of Babylon (Revelation 14:8) and consider health reform (Daniel 1:12-16).
The remnant people are to avoid image and human worship in any form (Daniel 3:18; Revelation 14:9-11), reject all forms of pride (Daniel 4:30, 37), acknowledge their nothingness (Daniel 4:35), recognize the Most High as ruler over all mankind (Daniel 4:25) and remain boldly loyal to the Creator (Daniel 6:10-13).
Some Christians may be content to live ordinary lives, but the antitypical Day of Atonement calls for something uncommon. Otherwise there would be little need to announce it. Good news is heaven’s resources are made available to support anything God requires (Psalm 3:3). Only the humble and submissive may rightly represent Christ in the hour of judgment and inherit the eternal Kingdom.
Credit to Hugh Dalhouse for reminding us of where we stand in the Judgment hour. It is high time to honestly examine ourselves, afflict our souls and repent as did the ancient Israelites on the day of atonement as we the day approaching.
I notice in many churches today,(not only SDA)an irreverence for the house of God, little different from attending any other worldly function, we have indeed become the Laodicean church described in Rev.3:14-18. what does the Lord counsel us to do? - "buy from Me goold refined in the fire, that you may be rich: and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed:and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see. As many as I love I rebuke and chasten. therefore be zealous and repent" Rev.3:18-19.
Jesus is standing at each individuals heart door (not the door of the collective church)and knocking, are we that fast asleep that we can't hear?
It is high time for us to awake, take stock, for the midnight cry will ring out "the bridegroom comes!" Let us individually replenish our "oil" that we can see out the night.
Bless you all my brothers and sisters, be overcomers not compromisers.
Why did Jesus say that, "this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come?"
It cannot be because everyone needs to hear the Gospel before Jesus returns because there are people who are already dead who have never heard the Gospel. So why did Jesus make the universal proclamation of the Gospel a condition for His return?
Did Jesus say that His coming was conditional on the preaching of the gospel to all the world, or did He He say that the preaching of the gospel to all the world was a sign that He would come soon? Why do you think the way you do?
Inge, if A must/will happen before B, then whether A is a "condition" or a "sign" seems to be just word choice in my opinion. But I am simply questioning the common idea that Jesus made that statement because He wants everyone to get a chance to hear the gospel before He returns. This cannot be the reason. The reason? I don't know, but I know what it is not.
Ray, I believe that the preaching of the Gospel is a commission, and His servants/witnesses will be doing just that. It will be their highest purpose in this life. It will be their desire to tell any who will listen, and they will do it with the hope of saving the lost and in this work they will be sanctified. This is how the invitation is to be given. (Matt 22:9,10, Rev 14:4,5; 22:17)
To me unless there is a miracle there is no way everyone in the world is going to hear the gospel and if it happens it won't be solely by human effort. Certainly to a certain extent the gospel will go to the ends of the world but I keep thinking of, "When they persecute you in this city, flee to another. For assuredly, I say to you, you will not have gone through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes" (Matt 10:23).
"Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect" (Matt 24:44). This verse tells me that we will be witnessing while thinking that there is more work to be done while probation is already closed and that will discomfort some people for sure.
Matthew 24:14 simply informs the spirit that Christianity should be engaged in before the end would have made its appearance. Christianity will not be gazing upward, nor in any other direction idly, but Christianity is a missionary movement, before the establishment of the Kingdom of Glory.
1844, the time shown when the Son of Man came before the Ancient of days to be given a kingdom, was a long time ago. Between 8-10 generations. Jesus said one generation would see this all come to pass. The other half of Daniel's prophecy (The Revelation) tells us that the command is to "hold the four winds" until the "servants of God" have been sealed. So clearly, the delay is the wait for sealed servants. Servants do not compromise or vacillate in their allegiance. Like Daniel they serve "continually".
The Promises of Jesus are to "him that overcomes".
I believe the message is clear to understand.
"Then I saw another angel coming up from the east, having the seal of the living God. He called out in a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm the land and the sea: 3 “Do not harm the land or the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God.” 4 Then I heard the number of those who were sealed: 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel." Revelation 7:2-4
This verse shows us what is holding the four winds to completely destroy the Earth is not the global preaching of the Gospel but the sealment of God´s People. It´s time for us to get prepared! It´s time to be sealed!
Though the Lord, in His mercy, may delay His coming, this coming will not depend entirely upon our readiness, because I believe that He will not wait perpetually for the foolish virgins to get ready. There is bound to be the 2 categories of wise and foolish virgins.
On the other hand, revival and reform in all aspects of our life is paramount for our faithfulness to the Lord in the last days. Diet reform is of particular import, if we know that meat eating and unbalanced diet impair our spiritual and mental strength which we need to be able to withstand the coming persecutions.
Lucien,
Please don't tell me that eating Biblically clean meat will impair my spiritual strength as that claim is made nowhere in the Bible and it mocks our Creator who ate meat on a regular basis when He walked the earth.
Sadly, I see many vegetarians who are obscenely obese and will die prematurely not from eating meat, but from eating sugar and from lack of exercise. Moreover, the vast majority of earth’s population lacks varieties of available food and doesn’t have the option to shop at Whole Foods. Go on a mission trip to a third world country and you will see that people would literally die from starvation if they didn't eat meat. Vegetarianism will not earn us salvation and THAT is Biblical.
As Adventists, we must be very careful not to come across as self-righteous when in fact, we are all sinners in need of a Savior.
Blessings…
Sieg, I agree with your general observations that vegetarianism is the not ultimate solution - especially when the same people will not pay attention to other health principles. And, of course, we do not become more "righteous" by our food choices.
But I wonder about your observations regarding third world countries. I cannot think of a situation where people would not be better off by learning to grow their own vegetables. The "varieties of available foods" are in the control of people who decide to grow their own food - something that can be done on a small city lot or on the roof.
In fact, at the GC session in San Antonio, I saw a video presentation where people in Africa were taught how to grow their own food and how much it improved their situation.
It is, of course, true, that if people do not grow their own food and thus have no available plant foods, they will starve without eating what is available. That would be true even if the only available food were pork.
We have an interesting situation with the Masai's in Africa - people who live off the blood of their cattle. Our Adventist missionaries saw no way for them to survive if they did not continue to drink blood - a practice strictly forbidden not only in the Old Testament but also in the New Testament. Before teaching them that drinking blood is forbidden in the Bible, it was necessary to teach them how to grow their own food. While this may seem simple enough on the surface, that demands a total change in lifestyle - from that nomadic herding to settling in one place in order to look after their gardens.
The only place I can think of where local people might be forced to subsist on flesh foods (specifically fish) would be in the far North, where the tundra is perpetually frozen. But even there, vegetation is available in the summer and some crops can be grown and preserved for the winter.
You make excellent points Inge but appear to underestimate the extent of the problem. I worry that we who live in Western nations make the arrogant assumption that "let them eat cake." On a mission trip last year, we built a church in a swamp, a literal swamp. There were vegetables available for locals to buy but many had no money to buy them. Many locals lived in abject poverty with little more than a canvas over their heads to shelter them from rain. Some of the more fortunate lived in one-room homes with seven or more family members. They certainly had no land or other means with which to grow their own food.
UNICEF estimates that in 2015 one person will die from starvation every 3.6 seconds and that “usually it is a child under the age of 5.” Unfortunately, the solution isn't as simple as growing their own food. It is all too easy for western nations to turn a blind eye to this tragedy and this is particularly shameful given our abundance and excess (much of which is wasted or discarded). Our Lord is watching as many of us simply ignore this reality and fail to realize that we will be held accountable for “passing on the other side” (Luke 10:31-32).
Sadly, the idea that those who are starving should “grow your own food” is akin to recommending that the robbed Jewish man “put some bandages on those wounds and don’t forget the antiseptic” (Luke 10:30-37).
Sieg, if we teach people to help themselves, teach them to trust and obey God who can supply every need, the "impossible" can take place as God has promised. "Ask and you will receive" is a promise of God who doesn't lie. I have heard people who tell how God provided the ways and means to grow their own food. They believed His promises and asked in faith. He can do that for anyone anywhere.
You say vegetables were available, so someone was able to grow them. God has a thousand ways to provide where we can't seem to find one. Do we teach them about this God?
Sieg, I'm curious where the people you refer to got meat to eat if they could not afford plant foods. In most places meat is more expensive than plant foods, partly because it takes a minimum of 10 times the area of land to produce animal protein compared to vegetable protein.
Was the swamp green or without vegetation? To my knowledge, most swamps contain edible greens and roots. Perhaps the people have lost the knowledge their ancestors had about the local edibles?
I'm not trying to say the people *must* be vegetarian, but I'm concerned about spreading the idea that flesh foods are more economical for poor areas of the world than plant foods, since the opposite is generally the case.
Inge, people from poverty stricken nations do grow and eat vegetables. This simply isn’t sufficient to prevent starvation. Moreover, they do not purchase their meat at supermarkets. Their “flesh food” is hunted, fished or raised, although not in the traditional sense. Chickens roam the countryside and eat whatever they can find. Fish are free and plentiful from the sea. Even the pigs eat from the ocean at low tide and roam around the countryside eating anything they can find.
I’m also not saying that poor people “must” be meat eaters or that they shouldn’t eat vegetables. I’m just saying that if the solution to world hunger was as simple as planting a garden, one person wouldn’t be dying from starvation every 4 seconds.
Another point I was making is the danger of judging others because they do not eat like us, dress like us or worship like us.
Finally, the issue that is a “salvation issue” concerns our tendency to “pass on the other side” when, as God’s children, we are responsible for each other and on this point, we are utterly failing (see Acts 2:44-45) .
Robert, where in the Bible are we told to teach others to help themselves? Are you implying that the millions of people who die from starvation each year are without faith? If so, isn’t that a bit presumptuous? I would suggest that the bigger problem isn’t their faith but ours inasmuch as if we were faithful we would love our neighbor as ourselves and do more to share our abundance with others (Matthew 25:31-46).
Sieg, we are discussing this from a Bible perspective, and our mandate as God's witnesses is clearly defined throughout scripture. Study the commission of Christ to the Church in every place it is mentioned and you will see "where in the Bible" we are instructed to teach others how to better their lives through faith in the promises of God and the resulting actions of faith. This won't happen overnight, or during a "touch'n go" mission effort. Study the Testimonies to the Church on mission efforts and how they are supposed to be managed. Read the counsels given through prophets and apostles on this subject as well. Don't the Proverbs point out the cause of hunger and lack?
Anyone willing to act in faith will be blessed.
Actually, the solution to world hunger is as simple as planting a garden, many gardens, and in many places this has been proven. God will lead every soul willing to trust and obey. God has set before us an ideal, and if we follow it, He will bless. Again, this takes time to accomplish in some areas and won't happen overnight.
The word of God indeed its preaching every where look free to air chanels are many that is one of the signs of times and its up to you and me to choose which way to follow, if you say indeed there some others who never heard about it now its our duty to rise up and tell them that time its near for the son of God to come. Our fellow friends did there work not only preaching in the church building no
doubting jesus's words about the gospel reaching every nation before the end ,i dont understand tyler are you trying to say jesus made a mistake or what? please help me understand /to me it will seem like the accuser/satan may put all these doubts in our minds to make you believe that there is no hope but i tell you brother i believe every word the son of man says he is the creator the maker of all the universe if he said the gospel will reach every nation it will it does not mean every one will take the offer but they will hear it whether by the willing servants (me and you )or by whatever means this gospel shall be preached to all nations before jesus returns
Sieg,thank you for the observations. I live in a third world country and the situation is not as desperate.We grow our own food and living on a plant based diet is actually practical. I believe Inge has given us a good approach to reaching out to communities heavily on a flesh diet
Hugh Dalhouse's point is true and pertinent especially to us living in the Anti typical Day of Atonement. You could check out this quote from the book Counsels on Food and Diet by E G White.“Among those who are waiting for the coming of the Lord, meat eating will eventually be done away; flesh will cease to form a part of their diet.”