Rick Heilman
January 28, 2024
Daniel chapter two teaches us how to face difficult circumstances of life in faith and conviction which allows us to live in such a way that brings glory to God today. It also prepares to face the future in knowledge that God is in control and he wants to reveal himself to us and the world around us.
Play Video
Play Audio
Joel 2:28 “And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and
daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will
see visions.”
Daniel 2:1-16 In the second year of his reign, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; his mind was
troubled and he could not sleep. 2 So the king summoned the magicians, enchanters,
sorcerers and astrologers[a] to tell him what he had dreamed. When they came in
and stood before the king, 3 he said to them, “I have had a dream that troubles me and I want to know
what it means.[b]” 4 Then the astrologers answered the king,[c] “May the king live forever!
Tell your servants the dream, and we will interpret it.” 5 The king replied to the
astrologers, “This is what I have firmly decided: If you do not tell me what my
dream was and interpret it, I will have you cut into pieces and your houses
turned into piles of rubble. 6 But if you tell me the dream and explain it, you
will receive from me gifts and rewards and great honor. So tell me the dream
and interpret it for me.” 7 Once more they replied, “Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we
will interpret it.” 8 Then the king answered, “I am certain that you are trying to gain time,
because you realize that this is what I have firmly decided: 9 If you do not tell me the
dream, there is only one penalty for you. You have conspired to tell me
misleading and wicked things, hoping the situation will change. So then, tell
me the dream, and I will know that you can interpret it for me.” 10 The astrologers answered
the king, “There is no one on earth who can do what the king asks! No king,
however great and mighty, has ever asked such a thing of any magician or
enchanter or astrologer. 11 What the king asks is too difficult. No one can reveal it to the king
except the gods, and they do not live among humans.” 12 This made the king so
angry and furious that he ordered the execution of all the wise men of Babylon.
13 So the decree was
issued to put the wise men to death, and men were sent to look for Daniel and
his friends to put them to death. 14 When Arioch, the commander of the king’s guard, had
gone out to put to death the wise men of Babylon, Daniel spoke to him with
wisdom and tact. 15 He asked the king’s officer, “Why did the king issue such a harsh
decree?” Arioch then explained the matter to Daniel. 16 At this, Daniel went in to
the king and asked for time, so that he might interpret the dream for him.
·
Walk In Faith - knowing we serve the God of the
impossible.
Daniel 2:17-18 Then Daniel returned to his house and explained the matter to his friends
Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. 18 He urged them to plead for mercy from the God of
heaven concerning this mystery, so that he and his friends might not be
executed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.
·
When the task is big, you don’t know the answer,
need wisdom - PRAY
·
Find a prayer Partner who will stand with you!
Daniel 2:19-29 During the night the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision. Then
Daniel praised the God of heaven 20 and said: “Praise be to the name of God for ever and
ever; wisdom and power are his. 21 He changes times and seasons; he deposes kings and
raises up others. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning. 22
He reveals deep and
hidden things; he knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with him.
23 I thank and
praise you, God of my ancestors: You have given me wisdom and power, you have
made known to me what we asked of you, you have made known to us the dream of
the king.” 24 Then
Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to execute the wise men of
Babylon, and said to him, “Do not execute the wise men of Babylon. Take me to
the king, and I will interpret his dream for him.” 25 Arioch took Daniel to the
king at once and said, “I have found a man among the exiles from Judah who can
tell the king what his dream means.” 26 The king asked Daniel (also called Belteshazzar),
“Are you able to tell me what I saw in my dream and interpret it?” 27 Daniel replied, “No wise
man, enchanter, magician or diviner can explain to the king the mystery he has
asked about, 28 but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries. He has shown King
Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in days to come. Your dream and the visions
that passed through your mind as you were lying in bed are these: 29 “As Your Majesty was lying
there, your mind turned to things to come, and the revealer of mysteries showed
you what is going to happen.
Isaiah 46:10 “I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is
still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I
please.’”
Daniel 2:30-36 As for me, this mystery has been revealed to me, not because I have
greater wisdom than anyone else alive, but so that Your Majesty may know the
interpretation and that you may understand what went through your mind.
31 “Your Majesty
looked, and there before you stood a large statue—an enormous, dazzling statue,
awesome in appearance. 32 The head of the statue was made of pure gold, its chest and arms of
silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, 33 its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and
partly of baked clay. 34 While you were watching, a rock was cut out, but not by human hands. It
struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and smashed them. 35 Then the iron, the clay,
the bronze, the silver and the gold were all broken to pieces and became like
chaff on a threshing floor in the summer. The wind swept them away without
leaving a trace. But the rock that struck the statue became a huge mountain and
filled the whole earth. 36 “This was the dream, and now we will interpret it to the king.
·
Statue First Slide without the nations by name-
Daniel 2:37-45 Your Majesty, you are the king of kings. The God of heaven has given you
dominion and power and might and glory; 38 in your hands he has placed all mankind and
the beasts of the field and the birds in the sky. Wherever they live, he has
made you ruler over them all. You are that head of gold. 39 “After you, another
kingdom will arise, inferior to yours. Next, a third kingdom, one of bronze,
will rule over the whole earth. 40 Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom, strong as
iron—for iron breaks and smashes everything—and as iron breaks things to
pieces, so it will crush and break all the others. 41 Just as you saw that the
feet and toes were partly of baked clay and partly of iron, so this will be a
divided kingdom; yet it will have some of the strength of iron in it, even as
you saw iron mixed with clay. 42 As the toes were partly iron and partly clay, so
this kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle. 43 And just as you saw the
iron mixed with baked clay, so the people will be a mixture and will not remain
united, any more than iron mixes with clay. 44 “In the time of those kings, the God of
heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left
to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end,
but it will itself endure forever. 45 This is the meaning of the vision of the rock cut
out of a mountain, but not by human hands—a rock that broke the iron, the
bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold to pieces. “The great God has shown
the king what will take place in the future. The dream is true and its
interpretation is trustworthy.”
·
Statue Second Slide with the nations by name-
Daniel 2:46-47 Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell prostrate before Daniel and paid him honor
and ordered that an offering and incense be presented to him. 47 The king said to Daniel,
“Surely your God is the God of gods and the Lord of kings and a revealer of
mysteries, for you were able to reveal this mystery.”
·
We exist to glorify God by being a loving
community where people are saved, set free, discipled, empowered, and sent out
to fulfill their God-given calling.
Daniel 2:48-49 Then the king placed Daniel in a high position and lavished many gifts on
him. He made him ruler over the entire province of Babylon and placed him in
charge of all its wise men. 49 Moreover, at Daniel’s request the king appointed
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego administrators over the province of Babylon,
while Daniel himself remained at the royal court.
·
Taking just eight prophecies concerning Christ,
Stoner found that the chance that any one man might have fulfilled all eight
prophecies is 1 in 10 to the 17th power. That would be 1 chance in
100,000,000,000,000,000.
·
Call or text YES to 321.574.6970 if you
have chosen to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior.