Participants: James Rafferty & Ty Gibson
Series Code: DBOTB
Program Code: DBOTB000011A
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00:20 Hi friends and welcome to
00:22 Books of the Book! 00:23 We are studying the book of 00:25 Daniel and we are in Daniel 00:26 Chapter 10. 00:27 My name is James Rafferty and I am Ty Gibson 00:29 and thank you for joining us. 00:31 If you can have easy access 00:32 to a Bible open up to chapter 00:34 10 of Daniel. 00:35 James this is a chapter in the book of Daniel 00:39 that is just packed full of information that is 00:43 valuable and beautiful. 00:45 First thing we want to notice here in Daniel Chapter 10, 00:49 is that Daniel has an encounter with none other 00:54 than the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:56 You know is really interesting Ty when you look 00:58 at the Chapter, as a whole, 01:00 you do not see a lot of prophecy in here. 01:02 I remember when I used to study Daniel, 01:03 I used to think Daniel 10, 01:05 there's not a lot in there so I don't really 01:07 need to study that because I am into prophecy and I 01:10 want to understand end time events. 01:11 I want to see the beast, I want to understand what 01:13 they mean, and I would skip over Daniel 10. 01:16 It's like when I was a kid and my mom would say, 01:18 eat your vegetables. 01:20 I wanted to get them out of the way, 01:22 because I didn't like them, 01:23 and get to the good stuff on the plate. 01:26 Potatoes, gravy, and so Daniel 10 was like, 01:28 let's get this out of the way. 01:31 When I was a kid I realized, at lease later on in life, 01:34 that looking back the vegetables were the good stuff. 01:37 The vegetables were what nurtured and grew me, 01:40 made me strong. 01:41 That is the same with Daniel 10, 01:43 Daniel 10 is a the good stuff. 01:45 Why? Because Daniel 10 is where Daniel encounters Christ. 01:50 Daniel 10 is where we see a man in an experience of 01:54 sanctification and we learned what it feels like, 01:57 what you experience in sanctification. 02:00 It is informative to the Christian experience. 02:03 Daniel says in verse 2, he was mourning for 3 full weeks. 02:07 It says that he ate no pleasant food, no meat, no wine 02:11 came into his mouth nor did he anoint himself at all 02:15 till 3 whole weeks were fulfilled. 02:19 Then it opens before him, that Jesus 02:23 appears in glorious form. 02:25 This appearing of Jesus to Daniel is very striking and 02:31 similar to another appearance of Jesus to 02:34 John the Revelator in the book of Revelation. 02:37 First let's read the one here in chapter 10 of Daniel. 02:40 He says in verses 5 and 6, verse 5, "I lifted up my eyes" 02:44 "and looked and behold a certain man clothed in linen," 02:48 it says James, "who's waist was girded with gold," 02:51 then in verse 6, "his body was like beryl," 02:54 "he is face like the appearance of lightning," 02:57 this is important to highlight here. 02:59 "His eyes like torches of fire, his arms and his feet like" 03:03 "burnished or polished brass in color." 03:06 "The sound of his words were like the 03:08 "voice of a multitude." 03:10 What a vision! 03:11 It's incredible Ty, what we're looking at here is we are 03:14 looking at Daniel seeing a man who is identified as clothed 03:17 in linen, it's not Jesus yet in Daniel's mind. 03:20 He is not sure who this being is 03:22 But we know it's Jesus because 03:24 we can see the seven characteristics, 03:26 "the clothed in linen," 03:27 "the fine gold, the beryl," 03:29 "the appearance of lightning," 03:31 "the eyes as lamps of fire, 03:32 "arms and feet like colored polished brass," 03:35 "and the words of the multitude." 03:37 We see all these similar characteristics in the book of 03:40 Revelation, specifically in Revelation chapters 1 and 2. 03:44 In chapter 1 in Revelation beginning right here in 03:48 verse 13, John is in vision on the Lord's Day. 03:52 And he sees one "like the Son of Man, clothed with a" 03:55 "garment down to the foot, and girded about his waist" 03:59 "with a golden girdle." 04:01 "He is head and he is hair were white like wool," 04:03 "as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire;" 04:06 "and his feet like brass as if they burned in a furnace;" 04:09 "and his voice is as the sound of many waters." 04:12 And in Revelation 2:18 the same person which is the 04:14 Son of Man, in chapter 1, 04:16 is identified to the church Thyatira. 04:20 "these things saith the Son of God," 04:23 "who has eyes like to a flame of fire," 04:26 "and his feet like fine brass." 04:27 The Son of Man, another phrase for Jesus, 04:30 the Son of God, Jesus Himself, 04:31 it's the same certain person that is clothed in linen 04:36 that appears to Daniel. 04:37 The comparison is very clear. 04:39 It is a very striking comparison 04:41 and identification. 04:43 Jesus is the one who appears to 04:45 Daniel in Daniel Chapter 10. 04:48 What is really powerful about this Ty, 04:50 you see a progression of Daniel's experience with God. 04:55 He begins by purposing in his 04:58 heart, Daniel Chapter 1. 04:59 Then he gets a vision through 05:01 Nebuchadnezzar, which is again given to him 05:03 and he interprets it. 05:05 Then he gets his own visions in Daniel 7 and onward. 05:08 Then Gabriel comes and visits him. 05:10 You see this progression taken place. 05:12 Now you get Daniel Chapter 10, and it is incredible, 05:16 now Jesus Himself, God Himself in the person of 05:20 Jesus Christ comes to visit Daniel. 05:23 Not an Angel, not a dream or a vision, 05:26 not someone else's dream or vision, but God Himself. 05:28 This is amazing and it's obvious that this 05:31 is overwhelming to him. 05:33 The vision of this glorious being in verses 5 and 6 05:37 overcomes Daniel and in verse 7 it says, 05:39 "he was filled with great terror and he fell upon" 05:43 "his hands and knees and upon his face." 05:46 It says in verse 8 "that he is comeliness," 05:49 an old English word for beauty, "was turned in him" 05:52 "into corruption." 05:54 In other words, Daniel began to realize his own 05:59 sinfulness in the presence of this One 06:03 who appears to him, Jesus Christ. 06:05 And Daniel was a man who could stand without fault 06:07 before his enemies. 06:09 Daniel is a man who is blameless before those 06:12 who were seeking to find fault with him. 06:13 Who is seeking to mudslinging in the political world. 06:16 Daniel is exemplifying here friends, 06:18 what sanctification looks like. 06:20 Sanctification, in the follower of Christ, 06:22 does not look like I am holier than you. 06:24 I'm better than you. I'm more righteous than you. 06:27 Sanctification is the appearance of meekness and humility. 06:31 So much so that when you come in contact with Christ, 06:34 the more you see of Christ the less grandeur, 06:37 the less righteousness, 06:38 the less goodness you see in yourself. 06:40 You feel like you have no strength, 06:41 you are not good, you are not righteous, 06:43 and while the other men fled, 06:45 who are with Daniel when this vision comes, 06:47 he himself retains no strength, 06:49 and he falls on his face as though he is dead. 06:52 In the first 9 it says that a deep sleep fell 06:55 upon him, as he laid there upon his face before 06:58 the Lord Jesus Christ. 07:00 Now Ty what is interesting about verse 9 is the 07:02 transition that is taking place. 07:04 He has no strength and it says there in verse 9, 07:07 "yet I heard the voice of his words:" 07:10 "and when I heard the voice of his words," 07:13 "then I was in a deep sleep," 07:15 Jesus says in Matthew 11:28, 07:17 "come unto me all Ye that labor" 07:19 "and are heavy laden and I will give you rest." 07:22 Daniel is terrified, the men are terrified, 07:25 he has no strength, no righteousness and yet 07:29 Jesus, when he speaks, when he speaks to him. 07:32 When God doesn't speak to us, when we don't feel God is 07:35 present with us. 07:36 We don't feel that God is communicating to us, 07:38 we can be overwhelmed with guilt and feel unworthy. 07:42 We can feel separated from God. 07:43 But God assures Daniel that he has His favor. 07:46 He speaks to him. 07:48 If you get in a tiff with your wife, 07:49 I know you never do. 07:50 My wife and I sometimes have what we call 07:52 these intense moments of fellowship. 07:54 When we get in a difference, the words stop. 07:57 There is a lack of communication and that 08:00 does not go well. 08:01 Daniel is in a situation where he is feeling like does 08:04 God love me? Does God except me? 08:06 Is He still there for me? 08:07 When he hears the words he gets the peace of God. 08:10 He comes and feels that God has accepted him. 08:13 He has the rest that Jesus promises us. 08:15 Then the angel Gabriel appears again in verse 10. 08:20 It says, "a hand touched me, which made me tremble" 08:25 "on my knees and on my palms of my hands." 08:29 And notice this James in verse 11, "and he said to me," 08:33 that's Gabriel speaking, "oh Daniel," 08:35 "a man greatly beloved, understand the words that I" 08:40 "speak to you and stand upright: for I have been sent to you." 08:44 And this is, I mean just think about this, he is filled 08:49 with terror, he is overcome, he is on his face, 08:53 and trembling and here's the message that Gabriel gives. 08:56 Gabriel says, Daniel God loves you greatly. 09:01 You are greatly beloved of God. 09:03 Stand on your feet we need to do some communicating here. 09:06 I have appeared not to cause you to tremble, and Jesus 09:09 didn't appear to cause you to tremble, but to assure you are 09:12 deeply loved by God. 09:15 That is the very time we need to be assured of God's love. 09:17 Friends, there are times in our lives when we feel like 09:20 we are no good, we are worthless, we have nothing in us 09:23 that commends us to God. 09:24 That is the very time that we need to know 09:26 that God loves us. 09:27 Because when God communicates that He loves in that time, 09:30 it is based on who He is and not based on who we are. 09:33 It is based upon His goodness, His righteousness, 09:36 not our goodness or our righteousness. 09:38 So this speaks powerful truths to those of us who are 09:42 followers of the Lord because as we progress in our 09:46 Christian experience we can begin to think that 09:50 we are accepted of God because of how good or holier, 09:55 righteous or obedient we have become in our 09:58 Christian experience. 09:59 Daniel is sharing with us right here in Daniel 10 10:02 that it is still not based on our goodness, 10:04 it's based on God's love to us. 10:06 Man, he stands up James, and we go at the latter part 10:10 of verse 11 and he is still trembling. 10:12 Gabriel told him, you are greatly beloved, stand up 10:16 you do not need to be terrified, stand before me, 10:20 I need to share with you now concerning 10:23 the vision that you had. 10:24 He says to him, don't be afraid, in verse 12. 10:28 He has to keep assuring Daniel. 10:31 Daniel doesn't become nonchalant in Gabriel's presence 10:34 He doesn't take on an attitude of ill-reverence he is 10:37 still trembling and yet the angel is trying 10:39 to assure him. 10:41 I don't know if this is true or not James, 10:42 because I haven't taken the time to count these in 10:45 Scripture, but in verse 12 where it says fear not, 10:48 or do not fear, someone has said that this is the 10:51 most often repeated phrase in Scripture. 10:54 Every time a human being has an encounter with God, 10:57 or an angel sent from God, the message is 10:59 don't be afraid, fear not. 11:02 That is an appropriate message because God wants to assure 11:05 us in His presence, He wants to communicate with us. 11:09 You see that repeated whenever an angel visits or comes, 11:13 because the brightness and 11:15 the glory and the goodness and 11:17 the love of God contrasts 11:18 with who we are with our 11:20 unrighteousness, with our lack of goodness, 11:22 does cause fear, a natural fear. 11:24 I have never had such an encounter, 11:27 but I know that just in 11:29 searching the Scriptures 11:31 and having encounters heart 11:33 to heart with the Savior and learning about God sometimes 11:38 has just bowed me down with a sense of unworthiness. 11:42 Not because God is pressing a sense of unworthiness 11:45 upon me, but because God is holy. 11:47 God is good, God is righteous, God is love and 11:52 everything that I see in Him causes me to see in 11:55 myself those things that are out of harmony with Him. 11:58 He does not leave me there, He wants to lift me up so 12:01 that I had the privilege of becoming more 12:03 and more like Him in character 12:05 so that the contrast becomes less distinct. 12:08 Absolutely so in that sense every one of us has had that 12:11 encounter who have pursued after God and sought to follow God. 12:15 We all have encountered Him in such a way that causes 12:18 us to tremble unto fear. 12:19 We all need this message, fear not. 12:22 It is a beautiful message as we tremble before the Lord. 12:25 It is a beautiful assurance to us that we need 12:27 over and over again. 12:28 As we move on here look at how Daniel gradually gains 12:34 more strength and more courage. 12:35 He first of all is trembling and then 12:37 falls into a sleep. 12:39 He's resting Christ and then there are the words 12:42 that bring that experience, that rest to Him 12:44 the words he hears spoken. 12:45 He awakens and is touched that caused him to get to his 12:49 hands and knees and then he is touched again and he 12:53 stands upon his feet still trembling. 12:55 You see a progression here that is taking place. 12:58 Friends we cannot make one move toward God. 13:01 We cannot stand in His presence. 13:03 We can't even bow in His presence. 13:05 We cannot rise to our feet, we cannot move toward Him 13:09 without His divine intervention. 13:12 Without Him coming to us. 13:13 Without Him touching us and without Him speaking to us, 13:15 there is no goodness or righteousness in us. 13:18 God is consistently reassuring us that He loves us 13:22 and in that He is pursuing us. 13:26 It is the divine initiative of God toward us 13:30 that draws us to Him. 13:31 Jesus said this, He said in John chapter 12:32. 13:36 "If I be lifted up, I will draw all men unto me." 13:41 That is God's plan, that is what God is seeking to do. 13:44 Here the book of Daniel chapter 10 we see God working 13:48 to draw each one of us unto Himself. 13:50 Now we have a huge insight into this controversy that is 13:56 coming up in Daniel chapter 10, so don't go away. 13:58 Because we are going to be right back! |
Revised 2022-11-14