Matthew 24:14-16
14 This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come. 
15 "Therefore when you see the abomination of desolation which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand),
16 then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains.

Have you ever gotten into a discussion about the differences between major prophets versus minor prophets?  The distinction has more to do with the length of the book than the importance of the message.  The old Hebrew Bible is divided into three sections; the Law, the Prophets and the Writings.  As you can see above, Jesus refers to Daniel as a prophet in Matthew 24.  The old Hebrew Bible places Daniel inside the Writings and not inside the Prophets section.  Why?  It could be one of multiple reasons.  First, Daniel never refers to himself as a prophet in the book.  Second, Daniel never gave a public message to the nation of Israel like the other prophets did.  Regardless, Jesus called Daniel a prophet so I consider Daniel a prophet.

The book of Daniel is different from other pieces of scripture from a couple points of view.  First, it is written in two different languages.  Chapters 1 - 2:4a and chapters 8-12 are in Hebrew.  Chapters 2:4b-7:28 is in Aramaic.  Why the two languages?  If you consider the two messages from Daniel it all makes sense.  One message is in regards to God's plan for the Gentile nations.  Aramaic was the common language of the Gentiles so Chapters 2:4b-7:28 was specifically targeted toward the Gentiles.  Of course, the Hebrew text is targeted toward the Israelites.  Matthew was written with a focus on Jewish readers while Luke was written with a focus toward Gentiles.

Another division that makes Daniel unique is that the first six chapters are historical and the second six chapters are prophetic.  The second six prophetic chapters are classified as apocalyptic literature because it was received in a vision, uses symbols or signs and predicts future events.  Daniel gave the time frame for the coming Messiah to redeem mankind to God.
Open your bibles to . . . 

Daniel 9:1-3
1 In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of Median descent, who was made king over the kingdom of the Chaldeans- 
2 in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, observed in the books the number of the years which was revealed as the word of the Lord to Jeremiah the prophet for the completion of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years. 
3 So I gave my attention to the Lord God to seek Him by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth and ashes.

This is one of my favorite passages in the bible because one prophet is reading the writings of another prophet.  Jeremiah was a prophet from 627 b.c. to 586 b.c.  Daniel was written around fifty years after Jeremiah was done with ministry.  Daniel records events that took place from the time he was taken into captive in 605 b.c.  Daniel was reading the book of Jeremiah and experiencing the fulfillment of that prophecy in his life.
Open your bibles to . . . 

Jeremiah 25:3-11
3 "From the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, even to this day, these twenty-three years the word of the Lord has come to me, and I have spoken to you again and again, but you have not listened. 
4 And the Lord has sent to you all His servants the prophets again and again, but you have not listened nor inclined your ear to hear, 
5 saying, 'Turn now everyone from his evil way and from the evil of your deeds, and dwell on the land which the Lord has given to you and your forefathers forever and ever; 
6 and do not go after other gods to serve them and to worship them, and do not provoke Me to anger with the work of your hands, and I will do you no harm.' 
7 Yet you have not listened to Me," declares the Lord, "in order that you might provoke Me to anger with the work of your hands to your own harm. 
8 "Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, 'Because you have not obeyed My words, 
9 behold, I will send and take all the families of the north,' declares the Lord, 'and I will send to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, My servant, and will bring them against this land and against its inhabitants and against all these nations round about; and I will utterly destroy them and make them a horror and a hissing, and an everlasting desolation. 
10 Moreover, I will take from them the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones and the light of the lamp. 
11 This whole land will be a desolation and a horror, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon seventy years. 

This is what Daniel was reading.  Why seventy years?  Looking at Leviticus 25:3-5, Leviticus 26:33-35 and 2 Chronicles 36:20-21 you can see that the seventy years could be because the nation of Israel did not do as God had instructed.  God told Israel to let the land rest one year every seven years.  As a businessman I understand the apprehension from the Israelites.  Can you imagine just closing your doors for a year, but that is what God instructed Israel to do.  Why?  So God's hand could be shown in their lives when He took care of them. 

This is a good example for a Christian to rest in the grace of God.  Paul had a problem in life and Paul asked God to remove it, but God told Paul that His grace was sufficient for him.  God allowed life to be difficult for the Israelites so that they would trust in Him.  God will allow a Christian's life to be difficult so that Christian will trust in God to provide.  When I was in the military, we had a drill where we would put on our gas mask and walk inside a building filled with riot gas.  Each soldier would stand around with the mask on seeing the gas, but not experiencing the effects.  Then each soldier is instructed to remove his mask and breath in the riot gas.  Each soldier experiences a very miserable situation with runny nose, sore throat, blood shot eyes, etc.  This is done to make the soldier trust in the gas mask.  Wearing a gas mask is not comfortable, but if a soldier during combat does not trust in his mask he will die. 

Christians need to see themselves as soldiers in a spiritual war.  Christians need to trust in God to provide when life gets tough.  Do you think God will take care of you?
Open your bibles to . . . 

Daniel 3:16-18
16 Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego replied to the king, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to give you an answer concerning this matter. 
17 If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire; and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. 
18 But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up." 

The old King James bible has verse eighteen as; 18 But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.

"But if not".  These were the only words sent by the military commander from Dunkirk to his Britain allies.  The German Panzer Division was closing in on Dunkirk.  The 365,000 British and French infantry holding the position in May 1940 did not stand a chance against a tank division.  Deep in the Ardennes forest, the German tank division was ready to strike when the British commander got a message out to Britain with these three words "but if not".

This was a quote from Daniel 3:18 when King Nebuchadnezzar told Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego to fall down and worship the golden image or die in the fiery furnace.  They answered the king and said, God could deliver them, but if not . . .   These men were facing death, but they were standing on faith.  God could deliver, but if not ... they will not serve your idol. 

The British military responded to the message.  All civilian and commercial ships between 30 and 100 feet were ordered to report for a rescue mission.  850 civilian boats with civilian crews made multiple trips over nine days in and out of Dunkirk rescuing 338,226 troops.  Odd enough, the German tank force was ordered to stop outside of Dunkirk by Hitler against the wishes of the German General over the Panzer Division.

When I was a young man, I served in the military and we had a saying; Duty, Honor Country, State.  "But if not" is one of the most honorable phrases a man can say.  It shows a duty to his commander and his people.  Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego showed honor to God by keeping true to their duty to love the Lord their God with all their heart, with all their mind and with all their might.  Wow, that took guts to face death.  Not a quick death from being shot, but being burned alive in a furnace.

I try my best to avoid rabbit trails, but some trails are just too much fun to miss.  so, I would like to focus on duty and honor.

Duty; what duty do you have to the Lord your God?  To love Him.  Honor Him by how you walk in this life.

Matthew 22:37-40
37 And He said to him, " 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.' 
38 This is the great and foremost commandment. 
39 The second is like it, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' 
40 On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets."

Duty; what duty do you have to your wife?  To love her as Christ loved the church.  Honor her by how you treat her.

Ephesians 5:25-27
25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, 
26 so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 
27 that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless. 

Duty; what duty do you have to your children?  To teach them God's Word and live Christ for them to see.

Exodus 12:24-27
24 And you shall observe this event as an ordinance for you and your children forever. 
25 When you enter the land which the Lord will give you, as He has promised, you shall observe this rite. 
26 And when your children say to you, 'What does this rite mean to you?' 
27 you shall say, 'It is a Passover sacrifice to the Lord who passed over the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt when He smote the Egyptians, but spared our homes.'"  And the people bowed low and worshiped. 

2 Corinthians 12:14
Here for this third time I am ready to come to you, and I will not be a burden to you; for I do not seek what is yours, but you; for children are not responsible to save up for their parents, but parents for their children. 

Duty; what duty do you have for your parents?  To love and honor them right where they are at.

1 Timothy 5:1-4
1 Do not sharply rebuke an older man, but rather appeal to him as a father, to the younger men as brothers, 
2 the older women as mothers, and the younger women as sisters, in all purity.
3 Honor widows who are widows indeed; 
4 but if any widow has children or grandchildren, they must first learn to practice piety in regard to their own family and to make some return to their parents; for this is acceptable in the sight of God. 

Ephesians 6:1-4
1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 
2 Honor your father and mother (which is the first commandment with a promise), 
3 so that it may be well with you, and that you may live long on the earth. 
4 Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. 
 

Now back to Daniel. 
Open your bibles to . . .

Daniel 2:17-18
17 Then Daniel went to his house and informed his friends, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, about the matter, 
18 so that they might request compassion from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his friends would not be destroyed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.

I love the book of Daniel.  When I get depressed, I go to Daniel and God lifts me up like a Father loving His son.  As a parent, I want my kids safe, healthy, intelligent, successful, but the most important thing that I want my kids to have is a personal relationship with the Living God.  I want them saved, but as a Christian I know that I can not save them.  I can not even save myself.  All I can do is request compassion from the God of heaven concerning the mystery of the salvation of my boys.  That is my job as a parent.  When Daniel was faced with a life and death situation, he requested compassion from God.  When you pray, are you seeking God's compassion or are you just placing your order as if you were going through the drive-thru?  Self righteousness is a disease of the heart.  Self righteousness is sin.  Salvation is a God thing, not a man thing.  We must request compassion from the God of heaven concerning the mystery of salvation by the blood of Jesus. 

The book of Daniel is unique because it is a time line from the fall of Judah into eternity.  You must understand Daniel to start to comprehend the Book of Revelation by John.  Daniel records certain events in Israel's history found nowhere else in scripture.  Daniel bridges the gap between the Old Testament and the New Testament as he introduces the Messiah to mankind.  Daniel's description of the Messiah is so clear that a person must make a decision and choose to ignore Jesus as the Messiah. 

Open your bibles to . . . 

Daniel 2:36-45
36 "This was the dream; now we will tell its interpretation before the king. 
37 You, O king, are the king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given the kingdom, the power, the strength and the glory; 
38 and wherever the sons of men dwell, or the beasts of the field, or the birds of the sky, He has given them into your hand and has caused you to rule over them all. You are the head of gold. 
39 After you there will arise another kingdom inferior to you, then another third kingdom of bronze, which will rule over all the earth. 
40 Then there will be a fourth kingdom as strong as iron; inasmuch as iron crushes and shatters all things, so, like iron that breaks in pieces, it will crush and break all these in pieces. 
41 In that you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter's clay and partly of iron, it will be a divided kingdom; but it will have in it the toughness of iron, inasmuch as you saw the iron mixed with common clay. 
42 As the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of pottery, so some of the kingdom will be strong and part of it will be brittle. 
43 And in that you saw the iron mixed with common clay, they will combine with one another in the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, even as iron does not combine with pottery. 
44 In the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed, and that kingdom will not be left for another people; it will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, but it will itself endure forever. 
45 Inasmuch as you saw that a stone was cut out of the mountain without hands and that it crushed the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold, the great God has made known to the king what will take place in the future; so the dream is true and its interpretation is trustworthy." 

Open your bibles to . . . 

John 18:36-37
36 Jesus answered, "My kingdom is not of this world.  If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm." 
37 Therefore Pilate said to Him, "So You are a king?" Jesus answered, "You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth.  Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice."

Open your bibles to . . . 

John 12:27-36
27 "Now My soul has become troubled; and what shall I say, 'Father, save Me from this hour'?  But for this purpose I came to this hour.
28 Father, glorify Your name." Then a voice came out of heaven: "I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again." 
29 So the crowd of people who stood by and heard it were saying that it had thundered; others were saying, "An angel has spoken to Him." 
30 Jesus answered and said, "This voice has not come for My sake, but for your sakes.
31 Now judgment is upon this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out.
32 And I, if I am lifted up from the earth,will draw all men to Myself."
33 But He was saying this to indicate the kind of death by which He was to die. 
34 The crowd then answered Him, "We have heard out of the Law that the Christ is to remain forever; and how can You say, 'The Son of Man must be lifted up'? Who is this Son of Man?" 
35 So Jesus said to them, "For a little while longer the Light is among you.  Walk while you have the Light, so that darkness will not overtake you; he who walks in the darkness does not know where he goes.
36 While you have the Light,believe in the Light, so that you may become sons of Light."  These things Jesus spoke, and He went away and hid Himself from them. 

Open your bibles to . . . 

Daniel 2:30
But as for me, this mystery has not been revealed to me for any wisdom residing in me more than in any other living man, but for the purpose of making the interpretation known to the king, and that you may understand the thoughts of your mind. 

When I meet a new preacher who is just starting out in ministry, I like to show him/her this verse.  Some religious people have a natural tendency to raise themselves up above other people because they figured salvation out.  Salvation is a God thing and a mystery to man.  Man is only saved by God's grace reaching down into humanity and God opening that person's heart and mind.

The self-righteousness that leads to a man thinking that he is smart enough to figure out God's plan of salvation, is the same type of self-centeredness that leads a man into thinking that he is better than other people based upon his race or sex.  Church people are not immune to self-righteousness.  Think about why so many churches go on mission trips to other countries, but ignore people in our own cities.  Some people get a little bible knowledge and their egos expand beyond their own good.  They become the 'chosen' and everyone else needs to listen to them.  If you are not with their particular group, then you are lost regardless of your personal relationship with Jesus.  These people give you what I call the 'Heisman' which is a stiff arm.  In football when a runner holds his arm out to push off a tackler, that is a stiff arm.  The top college award is the Heisman Trophy which shows a runner with his arm extended.  Christians must humble themselves and walk as if they were saved by God's grace and not their religiousness.  We are all in the same boat, just born in sin. 

Open your bibles to . . . 

Daniel 4:26-27
26 And in that it was commanded to leave the stump with the roots of the tree, your kingdom will be assured to you after you recognize that it is Heaven that rules. 
27 Therefore, O king, may my advice be pleasing to you: break away now from your sins by doing righteousness and from your iniquities by showing mercy to the poor, in case there may be a prolonging of your prosperity.' 

Listen up USA.  Break away now from the sins by doing righteousness and from your iniquities by showing mercy to the poor.  The Living God of Heaven rules and He will not allow the United States to prosper any longer if we continue to ignore Him.  I gave an oath to protect the constitution of the United States from enemies both foreign and domestic when I accepted my commission in the military.  My oath is to the principles established by the founding fathers in the constitution not the political party in office this week.

Our beloved USA is taxing the people at a rate that is beyond control.  People are not aware.  As an example, Americans pay between .40-.50 cents per gallon of gas in tax depending upon which part of the county you are in.  If you buy a house for $100,000, you pay property tax each year based upon a value the government decides upon.  If they say it is worth $500,000, then you pay 7% to them each year.  After five years, you have paid $100,000 in property taxes on real estate you only paid $100,000 to purchase.  In five more years you will have paid another $100,000 in taxes for the privilege of owning real estate in America.  Consider the tax on every dollar you spend from tax on a shirt purchased to income tax on your weekly pay.  This makes me think of Israel transferring from the time of the judges to a king.  God told them the king would demand 10%.  What percent of tax do you think you pay?  It is a mystery because tax is hidden in so many places.  From property tax to gas tax, it has been estimated that the average American pays between 30% - 59% which all depends upon your gross income, net income, inflation, medical care, etc. 

Open your bibles to . . . 

Daniel 5:21-23
21 He was also driven away from mankind, and his heart was made like that of beasts, and his dwelling place was with the wild donkeys. He was given grass to eat like cattle, and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven until he recognized that the Most High God is ruler over the realm of mankind and that He sets over it whomever He wishes. 
22 Yet you, his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, even though you knew all this, 
23 but you have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven; and they have brought the vessels of His house before you, and you and your nobles, your wives and your concubines have been drinking wine from them; and you have praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which do not see, hear or understand.  But the God in whose hand are your life-breath and all your ways, you have not glorified. 

Open your bibles to . . . 

Daniel 6:3-4
3 Then this Daniel began distinguishing himself among the commissioners and satraps because he possessed an extraordinary spirit, and the king planned to appoint him over the entire kingdom. 
4 Then the commissioners and satraps began trying to find a ground of accusation against Daniel in regard to government affairs; but they could find no ground of accusation or evidence of corruption, inasmuch as he was faithful, and no negligence or corruption was to be found in him. 

Open your bibles to . . . 

Daniel 6:10
Now when Daniel knew that the document was signed, he entered his house (now in his roof chamber he had windows open toward Jerusalem); and he continued kneeling on his knees three times a day, praying and giving thanks before his God, as he had been doing previously. 

Open your bibles to . . . 

Daniel 6:25-26
25 Then Darius the king wrote to all the peoples, nations and men of every language who were living in all the land: "May your peace abound! 
26 I make a decree that in all the dominion of my kingdom men are to fear and tremble before the God of Daniel; For He is the living God and enduring forever, And His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed, And His dominion will be forever.

Daniel 7:17-18
'These great beasts, which are four in number, are four kings who will arise from the earth.  But the saints of the Highest One will receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, for all ages to come.' 

Open your bibles to . . . 

Daniel 9:23-27
23 At the beginning of your supplications the command was issued, and I have come to tell you, for you are highly esteemed; so give heed to the message and gain understanding of the vision. 
24 "Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to make an end of sin, to make atonement for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy place.
25 So you are to know and discern that from the issuing of a decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince there will be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; it will be built again, with plaza and moat, even in times of distress. 
26 Then after the sixty-two weeks the Messiah will be cut off and have nothing, and the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary.  And its end will come with a flood; even to the end there will be war; desolations are determined. 
27 And he will make a firm covenant with the many for one week, but in the middle of the week he will put a stop to sacrifice and grain offering; and on the wing of abominations will come one who makes desolate, even until a complete destruction, one that is decreed, is poured out on the one who makes desolate." 

Weeks refers to a unit of measure and not a seven day week. 
Open your bibles to . . . 

Daniel 12:1-3
1 "Now at that time Michael, the great prince who stands guard over the sons of your people, will arise.  And there will be a time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time; and at that time your people, everyone who is found written in the book, will be rescued. 
2 Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt. 
3 Those who have insight will shine brightly like the brightness of the expanse of heaven, and those who lead the many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.