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♪ theme music ♪
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(Derek) Welcome to Hope Sabbath School,
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an in-depth, interactive study
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of the Word of God.
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I'm so excited about this series
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on the book of Daniel.
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We're moving now into Daniel, chapter 7,
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From the Stormy Sea
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to the Clouds of Heaven.
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It's an exciting message; it's good news
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for the saints of the Most High God,
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and I'm glad you're with us.
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If you've missed anything in this series,
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go to our website, hopetv.org/hopess,
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and you can watch the entire series
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plus other series of great Bible studies.
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We're glad you're part
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of the journey with us.
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We'll pray you'll be blessed today.
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And welcome to the team, a great series.
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(Team) Amen.
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(Derek) Unbelievable. Many of you
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may be well studied in the book of Daniel,
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but are you learning some new things?
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(Team) Yes.
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(Derek) I am learning new things,
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and I'm looking forward to today's study.
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We're glad you're part of our study, too.
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By the way, we have
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a chapter-by-chapter series
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of Bible studies on Daniel and Revelation
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because they combine together.
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If you go to our website
HopeBibleStudy.org,
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you can sign up and get
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a free series of Bible studies,
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Daniel and Revelation
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really connected together.
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Here are some emails from some
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of our Hope Sabbath School members
around the world.
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From the island of Haiti,
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thanks for writing, Sineus,
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"Hello, Hope Sabbath School team!"
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(Team) Hello!
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(Derek) "Thank you for the way
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you help me understand the Bible
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and teach it better."
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(Team) Amen.
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(Derek) "May the Lord bless you every day
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and give each one of us
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the gift of salvation."
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Well, Sineus writes
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from "the first black country
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independent in the world," he says.
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Well, thanks, we know you're proud
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of your beautiful island there
of Haiti, Sineus;
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thanks for writing to us.
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And we're glad you are
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not only learning the Word of God,
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but you're teaching
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the Word of God to others.
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Chinyama writes from Zambia.
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Lots of Hope Sabbath School members
in Zambia,
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and actually probably more than a million
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Hope Sabbath School members,
just in Zambia.
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"Greetings to the Hope
Sabbath School team."
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(Team) Greetings!
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(Derek) "I wish to express my gratitude
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for the great work
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God is doing through you.
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What intrigues me the most
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is the ethnic diversity of your team."
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Take a look at each other.
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Yes, we don't all look the same.
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"It really gives me great joy
to see people
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of different ethnic backgrounds
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mingling together without discrimination."
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(Team) Amen.
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(Derek) Amen! That's awesome, isn't it?
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"Your team demonstrates
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that we worship the same God
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regardless of the color of our skin."
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We might say, "Well, that's obvious."
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I mean, we're all part of God's family,
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but that is a message
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that we want to share, isn't it?
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We are a worldwide family.
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"I always download your videos every week,
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and they help me to understand
the Bible better.
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God bless you; may He
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lift up His countenance on you
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and give you His peace."
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Well, Chinyama, thanks
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for writing to us from Zambia.
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And we're encouraged
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to remember what's important,
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and that is to lift up Jesus and His love
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for every nation, kindred,
tongue and people.
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(Team) Amen.
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(Derek) Here is a precious note;
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this is a real note.
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This is a real note, not an email.
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It's sent from a donor couple
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in Washington in the United States;
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that's in the northwest part
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of the United States.
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It says, "I wrote to you,"
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one of the people of the couple,
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"I wrote to you by email sometime ago
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to express our gratitude for the blessings
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Hope Sabbath School is to us,
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an elderly couple.
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We have been watching
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for several months now
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and wanted to send a donation to help
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with the ministry of Hope Sabbath School.
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Each one of you shows the love of Jesus
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in your smiling face."
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(Team) Amen.
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(Derek) What do you say?
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Praise God, right? Praise God.
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"I wish we knew more
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about each one of you.
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May Hope Sabbath School
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keep blessing folks until Jesus comes,"
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and a gift of a thousand dollars
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to help the ministry
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of this global evangelistic media ministry
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called Hope Sabbath School.
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Thank you to you, wherever you are
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there in Washington, and to all
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of our donors from around the world.
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We're part of a great miracle of God.
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I think we've got one more note here,
actually two.
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One from John Morris,
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same last name as me,
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a Ugandan who is in South Sudan.
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"My name is John from South Sudan,
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but I grew up in Uganda.
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I've been watching Hope Sabbath School
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for two months now.
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I became a Seventh-day Adventist Christian
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about 11 years ago
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but never discovered the joy
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that Hope Sabbath School gives me.
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I have been truly blessed by this program.
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I grew up on a difficult path;
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14 of my 26 years I grew up
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without any parents
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or what you would call family.
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Hope Sabbath School has helped me
discover myself.
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(Team) Amen.
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(Derek) And what is his self?
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A precious child of God, right?
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"My country, South Sudan,
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needs these messages.
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May God bless you."
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Well, John, thanks for writing
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to us from South Sudan.
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Isn't that amazing?
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Two hundred and twelve countries now,
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I think, around the world
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are accessing programming
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through our new suite of apps.
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And, by the way, if you haven't downloaded
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our Hope Channel app, it's awesome!
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And you can choose different languages
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if you want to share with friends
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who speak other languages - truly amazing.
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One last note, from Nova Scotia in Canada,
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Laura writes, and Laura says,
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"Thank you for Hope Sabbath School.
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I'm so glad you're still teaching
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and hope that you'll be doing it
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for a long time to come.
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I learn so much from Hope Sabbath School,
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and I love the songs
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put together by your wife.
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She is so special," and I say Amen.
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(Team) Amen.
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(Derek) "I love listening
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for many years now,
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and I wish you could come
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and meet us in person.
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Well, God bless you and all
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Hope Sabbath School members
around the world."
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Well, Laura, thanks for writing to us
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from Nova Scotia in Canada.
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And we actually would like to sing
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a song with you right now.
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It's taken from the book of Daniel.
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By the way, these are all Scripture songs,
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so that means word for word
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taken from the Scriptures.
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If you open your New King James Version
of the Bible
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to Daniel 2, verses 20 to 23,
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you will see a prayer
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by the prophet Daniel.
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My wife put it to music.
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We're going to sing it right now.
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♪ music ♪
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(Derek) You might say, "That was
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a few minutes we took
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to just sing that song,"
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but it's right out of the text.
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And something happened to me, Jonathan,
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when I was singing the last part,
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"Blessed be the name of God,"
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like this wave of joy and gratitude
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just washed over me.
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It was like God caught me by surprise.
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"Blessed be the name of God." Amen?
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(Team) Amen.
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(Derek) "Forever and ever."
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We're studying a great prophecy
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from Daniel, chapter 7, today,
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and we just want to pray
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the Holy Spirit will guide us,
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From the Stormy Sea
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to the Clouds of Heaven.
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We invite you to pray with us.
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Father in Heaven, thank You so much.
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You're a great and awesome God.
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You know what is in the darkness,
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and light dwells with you.
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We thank You that You will
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give us wisdom even today
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by Your Holy Spirit
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as we study Your Holy Word.
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May lives around the world
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be blessed now and forever.
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We pray in the holy name of Jesus. Amen.
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(Team) Amen.
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(Derek) Go to Daniel, chapter 7, together
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as we begin our study.
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It's an amazing revelation.
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And remember, "All Scripture is given
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by inspiration of God."
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So this isn't just Daniel's words
about God,
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this is a revelation from God
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to the prophet Daniel.
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And, Rodney, would you
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begin our study today
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in Daniel, chapter 7,
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and whatever translation we have,
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we'll follow along with you,
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Daniel 7, the first seven verses.
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(Rodney) And I'm reading
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from the New King James Version:
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(Derek) I think I'd wake up
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in a cold sweat - whew!
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But notice verse 1.
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I want you to focus
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your attention on verse 1.
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What important insights do you see
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even in verse 1 that you think
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we should note before we
move on? Jonathan?
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(Jonathan) This is Belshazzar
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who was the grandson of Nebuchadnezzar,
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and so this is a new time
in the kingdom.
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And probably Daniel is wondering,
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like, "What is happening now?
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What is God doing?"
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And Nebuchadnezzar had gone
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through a bit of a conversion process
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of coming to know God, and now...
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(Derek) Actually a real conversion
process, right, eventually.
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(Jonathan) Exactly, yeah.
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And so now this new king is here,
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and maybe it's a message for this king.
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(Derek) So it's important
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to realize chronologically
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that chapter 7 comes
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before chapter 5, right?
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It's after chapter 4,
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where Nebuchadnezzar finally is converted;
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his grandson is now on the throne,
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but it's not yet the handwriting
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on the wall that we see in Daniel 5, okay?
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So...what would we say?
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Linking it to a historical event,
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is that significant, Brittany?
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"The first year of the reign of..."?
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(Team) Belshazzar.
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(Derek) What's the significance
of including that?
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I mean, why does that matter, anybody?
Yes, Stephanie?
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(Stephanie) It sets the time.
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(Derek) Yeah, it's real history, right?
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It's not like, "Well, I think
I had...," no, no.
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This is when it happened.
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What else do you notice
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in verse 1, though?
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I just noticed it while we were reading,
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that I think is rather significant.
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Anybody else, what do you see?
Yes, Travis.
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(Travis) There is more information
for this dream.
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(Derek) Ah, thank you!
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It says that he's going
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to write down the main facts.
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So, would you like to know
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what the rest of the story was?
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You'll have to wait
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until you get to the Kingdom
of Heaven, right,
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because he just writes down
the main facts.
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Apparently the things guided by...?
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(Team) The Holy Spirit.
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(Derek) ...the Holy Spirit of God,
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"Daniel, make sure you
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write down these main facts," okay?
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Now, let's talk about the dream itself.
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I don't know about you,
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but I think I would wake up with a sweat
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with these animals coming up.
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Why do you think God uses animals
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as symbols of kingdoms?
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In Daniel chapter 2 we had
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different metals, right,
on an image. Brittany.
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(Brittany) I think it goes back
to the history.
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When we look at archaeology,
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we find some of the same beasts
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used to represent those kingdoms.
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Like the lion with eagle's wings
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was used to represent Babylon.
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And we find that when we
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look back at the archaeology.
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So God was using something the people knew
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to help them understand.
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(Derek) Okay. Anybody else? Yeah, Nancy?
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(Nancy) It's also an excellent
teaching tool,
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because imagine if you have to describe
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what a lion is like (powerful),
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but when he says lion,
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you know it's powerful.
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When he says leopard, you know it's fast.
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(Derek) And what is a leopard
with extra wings,
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it's really fast, right?
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Because this is not, obviously,
a literal animal, is it?
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It's symbolism. Kenneth?
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(Kenneth) And also all through cultures
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throughout the history of the earth,
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kingdoms represent their kingdom
with an animal.
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(Derek) Okay, so we might ask
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Hope Sabbath School members,
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we might ask you to tell us what animal,
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and they might say,
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"Well, a horse for Mongolia,"
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or, "a bear for Russia."
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That's a good point.
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So, back to what Brittany was saying,
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we found archaeological evidence
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that would point, for example,
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to the winged lion for Babylon. Travis.
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(Travis) As we see these beasts,
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they're destroying and conquering
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and doing these things.
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And Jesus in the Bible
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is represented as a Lamb.
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So it kind of separates...
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Jesus gives Himself out of love,
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and these are conquering beasts.
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(Derek) But He's also a Lion
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of the tribe of Judah, right?
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So even there you've got...
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showing His sacrificial work,
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but also He is King of kings
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and Lord of lords, right?
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So, what parallels do you see
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between this vision, if you will,
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and the vision in chapter 2
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that was given to Nebuchadnezzar?
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Anybody, what parallels
do you see? Harold?
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(Harold) They were kind of given
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in the same order
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in terms of the succeeding kingdoms.
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Like the first will be Babylon,
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and as Brittany mentioned,
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there is archaeological evidence
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that there was a lion with wings
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in the palaces of Babylonian kings,
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so we can say, "Oh, we can
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make that correlation."
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(Derek) You've got, very simply, too,
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you've got the four precious metals,
right?
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Well, iron, I guess, was precious
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in that it was very strong,
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but gold, silver, bronze, and iron.
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And you've got these four animals.
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So you've got that parallel.
Yes, Travis?
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(Travis) The rock comes
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and destroys the image,
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and we see God setting up His Kingdom.
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Actually, it destroys five things.
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It destroys gold, it destroys silver,
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it destroys bronze,
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and then the steel and the clay.
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And we see five elements
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that get destroyed also
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in Daniel, chapter 7.
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We see the lion, the leopard,
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you know, the beasts,
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and then little horn that gets destroyed.
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(Derek) So we're going to get
a similar outcome.
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In fact, all of the prophecies
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go from present time
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to God's ultimate deliverance, right?
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So that historical development,
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which is what we call
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the historicist method of interpretation,
right?
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This is sequential. Yes, Rodney?
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(Rodney) You also see a correlation
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in verse 7 with the iron teeth.
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So there's a reference there.
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(Derek) Even the metal.
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(Rodney) Even the metal coming in, yes.
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(Derek) All right. Yes, Rick,
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and then I want to talk about...
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Because Travis alluded to the fact
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that there's new information
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starting in verse 8,
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which isn't in the revelation
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given in Daniel 2. Rick?
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(Rick) It's interesting that Daniel 2
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is given to Nebuchadnezzar,
the pagan king,
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and this one is given to Daniel himself.
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(Derek) Straight to the prophet.
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(Rick) And it does seem that God
wants to give.
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It's so important; He wants to give
a little extra information,
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and I think that's interesting to the king
he gives the metals and the golden statue,
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which we relate to the idol of a king,
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and he, of course, went and made one.
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But here Daniel is given, like, organic;
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the natural animals are the symbols,
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so it's kind of interesting.
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(Derek) Natural and yet composite,
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so, you know, go, "What's
a lion doing...?"
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It's not a real lion is it?
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It's a composite beast.
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Brittany, I'd like you to take us
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to verse 8 and verses 19 to 25, which talk
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now about another power Travis alluded to,
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a little horn, which is not mentioned
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at all in the revelation
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given in Daniel 2.
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(Brittany) I'll be reading
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from the New King James Version,
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Daniel, chapter 7, verse 8,
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and then 19 through 25:
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(Derek) Now, when the secrets
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of the book of Daniel began to be opened
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as Reformers, as they were called,
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began to study the Bible,
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which had been taken away,
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now being translated
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into their own languages
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at the risk of their own lives,
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they began to find a startling truth,
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and that is that the Christian church
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based in Rome, the papacy,
seemed to fulfill
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all of the identifying characteristics
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of this little horn power.
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Now, that's troubling,
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because it's their church, right?
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Take Martin Luther, for example,
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who was a monk, right?
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This is his church.
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So he's trying to call
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the church back to the Bible.
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But what were some
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of the identifying characteristics
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that pointed to this actually being
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not just another political power
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but a political-religious power
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that was doing great harm?
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Let's just take one at a time.
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Rodney, what would you start with?
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(Rodney) "He shall speak pompous words
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against the Most High."
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(Derek) So that could possibly be
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a pagan kingdom, right,
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that would speak against God.
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They've done it before.
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But certainly there is a religious element
to this power.
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What else, Rick?
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(Rick) It's interesting;
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it very specifically says
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this horn is different from the others.
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It says the others are kings,
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so this one can't be a king;
it's different.
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(Derek) It's different.
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There's something about this Little Horn
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that's different from the ones before.
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Now this has come
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out of the collapsed Roman Empire, right,
these ten horns.
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And then you've got this Little Horn.
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What else do you see? Travis?
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(Travis) I was just going to say
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we get a geographical location
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because the ten kings,
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we know that that was the Roman Empire.
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So we have a geographical location
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in the world where this little horn
is coming from.
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(Derek) Some people might,
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going back to Daniel 2,
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say, "Well, the image had ten toes."
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But, I mean, everybody has ten toes
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unless they're deformed.
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But this is very specific.
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These are ten horns,
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and these ten horns are ten kings.
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So it's not just, well,
-
everybody has ten horns, right?
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No it's very specific,
-
and then the little one that grows up.
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What else did you see?
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We've got a lot of information. Evelyn?
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(Evelyn) I guess we could say
it's a given
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that when a king comes to power
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they try to change laws
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and try to do everything in their favor.
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But what's interesting about this horn
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is that they're focused
-
on changing the Law of God.
-
So that's something very significant
-
about this Little Horn.
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They're specifically attacking
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God's people and God's Law.
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(Derek) "Times and laws."
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What Laws of God deal with time?
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(Team) The Sabbath, the fourth.
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(Derek) Certainly the fourth one does.
Any others?
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I suppose you could say
-
the fifth one with, you know,
-
you'll have a long life
-
if you honor your parents.
-
But really, "Remember the Sabbath day
to keep it holy.
-
Six days labor, but the..."?
-
...seventh day is the Sabbath.
-
And it must have been shocking to some
-
of these faithful followers of Jesus
-
as they studied the Scriptures
-
to say, "Well, that's exactly
-
what our Church...," right?
-
It's the Christian Church.
-
It's not a pagan religious organization.
-
They've changed times.
-
Are there other laws that they changed?
-
You say, "Well, doesn't one
-
of the commandments say
-
you should have no graven images
-
and bow down to them?
-
And yet their churches
-
were full of images, right?
-
They gave them Christian names, maybe,
-
but this must have been a painful study.
-
What else did you see here?
-
It's not just one or two things.
-
They began to see
-
other identifying characteristics.
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(Harold) Where it says
-
also that the Little Horn
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plucked out three horns out of the ten
-
that grew up out of the beast,
the fourth beast?
-
There were three horns.
-
So we have to look in history which horns
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because horns represents a king,
-
which is tied to a kingdom,
-
so in history this Little Horn
-
had to have plucked three nations,
or uprooted,
-
and they are not on the map anymore.
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(Derek) And you see that fulfilled
in history.
-
Now, what that tells me,
-
Rick said earlier it's different,
-
and it is because it's a religious power,
-
but apparently it has political
-
and military power, too.
-
You know, you can't pluck up kingdoms
-
just by going to church.
-
There's this kind of mixture
-
of political, military
-
and religious power. Travis?
-
(Travis) And these kingdoms -
-
the Heruli, the Ostrogoths,
and the Vandals,
-
they were the kingdoms
-
that were plucked out -
-
they were plucked out
-
for religious reasons as well.
-
So they weren't conquered
-
just because they wanted that area
-
and to move in and take over.
-
They were plucked out to make way
-
for the teachings of the church.
-
(Derek) So, what about persecuting,
Nicole?
-
They not only were a religious power,
-
but it says they persecuted,
-
not just pagan people
-
but the saints of the Most High.
-
Where do you see that
-
fulfilled in history,
-
persecuting the saints of the Most High?
-
Kenneth, do you want to...?
-
(Kenneth) During the time
of the Dark Ages
-
they were persecuting the faithful people
-
who would not go by the way.
-
It is very interesting to know
-
that this kingdom started
as a Little Horn
-
unlike the previous kings.
-
You know, you see a lion, you see this,
-
but this one came as a Little Horn.
-
So, like, initially you would
not even suspect.
-
But by the time it had become powerful...
-
(Derek) It doesn't stay little, does it?
-
What were some of the things
-
they might be persecuted for?
-
What does history tell us? Gladys?
-
(Gladys) The Waldenses was one
-
of the groups that were persecuted,
-
and they were persecuted
-
because they were focusing on the Bible.
-
They were reading the Bible
-
and teaching the Bible
-
and making it accessible for people
-
to understand the truth by themselves.
-
And the Church was not agreeing with that
-
because they were able
-
to control the people
-
by telling them what to believe.
-
So they were persecuted for the truth.
-
(Derek) Believing what the Bible taught,
-
I think of John Hus also,
-
who was martyred because he believed
-
that people should have the Bible
-
in their own language. Brittany?
-
(Brittany) I think about Martin Luther
-
and how he discovered what the Bible says,
-
that we're saved by grace through faith.
-
And the Church had a lot
-
of different things that people had to do
in order to earn salvation,
-
at least in their mind.
-
And so he was persecuted
for this teaching,
-
that you don't have to do
all these things.
-
You don't have to pay
-
for your sins to be forgiven.
-
You can go straight to God.
-
(Derek) And one of the big challenges...
-
By the way, let's be sensitive
-
because this must have been painful
-
to followers who are going,
-
"What's happened to my Church?" right?
-
And, of course, for Luther,
-
one of the great challenges
-
was this selling of indulgences,
-
that you could pay
-
and buy your way to Heaven.
-
And something stuck as he
-
read the Scripture
-
and said, "That's not right.
-
That's not how we're saved." Jonathan?
-
(Jonathan) Along those lines,
-
it almost seems like there is
-
a concerted effort to replace
-
some of the images of the sanctuary.
-
You kind of change, transform,
how prayer works.
-
Instead of going directly to God,
-
we go through another person.
-
Instead of having our forgiveness
directly from God,
-
it is mediated through the specific bread
you eat and these things.
-
So it completely transforms
this true worship,
-
which the next chapter talks about.
-
So, yeah, there's this huge persecution
-
for anyone who didn't abide by that.
-
(Derek) We've got to move on
-
to the judgment scene because we've got
-
definitely more information here,
don't we,
-
than we had in Daniel, chapter 2.
-
So let's go back now
-
to Daniel, chapter 7, verses 9 and 10,
-
where we see a judgment seat set.
-
Nicole, could you read that for us,
verses 9 and 10?
-
(Nicole) The New King James Version
-
of Daniel 7, verses 9 and 10, says:
-
(Derek) And back to verse 1,
-
he wrote the main facts.
-
What challenge do you think he had
-
trying to write a description
of this scene?
-
(Nancy) He had nothing to compare it to.
-
(Derek) He had nothing to compare it to.
-
People say, "How many angels are there?
-
Ten thousand times ten thousand and..."
-
It's like, that's a lot of angels, right?
-
Tens of thousands of angels there,
-
and he's never seen
-
anything like this before.
-
This is clearly not talking
-
about an earthly kingdom, is it?
-
(Team) No.
-
(Derek) So, his mind is focused
-
on the heavenly Kingdom, this judgment.
-
If you could keep reading for us, Evelyn,
-
in verses 26 and 27 of the same chapter 7,
-
still talking about this judgment scene.
-
(Evelyn) And I'll be reading
-
from the New King James Version:
-
(Derek) If that's the only thing you got
-
from the study of the book of Daniel -
-
we want to go into greater depth -
-
is that there are these powers
-
that are not only contending
-
for position on Earth,
-
but actually persecuting
-
the people of God, but that God wins.
-
(Team) Yes.
-
(Derek) I mean, that's the big picture,
right?
-
And as someone said,
-
if God wins, then serve God, right?
-
Follow God because He wins.
-
That's important because we are
-
going to look at a lot more information.
-
We want to come to that reference
-
in the judgment scene
-
found in verses 13 and 14.
-
And I'm going to ask Kenneth
-
if you would read that for us
-
in Daniel 7:13-14.
-
(Kenneth) I'll be reading
-
from the New King James Version,
and it reads:
-
(Derek) Before we talk
-
about what this event is,
-
let's pick up that title, Son of Man,
-
"One like the Son of Man."
-
Can you think of that title
-
being used elsewhere? Rick?
-
(Rick) Yeah, definitely in the Gospels.
-
Jesus referred to Himself.
-
(Derek) Let's look at a few of those.
-
In fact, more than one time, right?
-
Maybe you could start, Rick,
-
in Matthew 8 and verse 20.
-
Someone else look up Matthew 9, verse 6,
-
and we'll look in Mark 13:24-27,
-
Luke 9:26, and those are
-
just a few that I wrote down.
-
Let's start in Matthew 8, verse 20.
-
(Rick) Sure, I'm reading
-
from the New King James Version,
-
Matthew 8, verse 20:
-
(Derek) Why does He
-
call Himself the Son of Man? Yes, Travis.
-
(Travis) Well, because He's
-
the incarnate Son of God.
-
So He took on humanity,
-
and He took on the sinful nature...
-
(Derek) He became a real human being.
-
(Travis) And could really be tempted.
-
(Derek) I love what it says
in John, chapter 1,
-
"In the beginning was the Word, the Word
was with God, the Word..."?
-
(Derek, Team) "...was God."
-
(Derek) And verse 14, "And the Word..."?
-
(Derek, Team) "...became flesh..."
-
(Derek) "...and dwelt among us,
and we..."?
-
(Derek, Team) "...beheld His glory..."
-
(Derek) "...the glory
-
as of the only begotten."
-
So He is fully Son of God,
-
but He's also Son of Man, all right?
-
What about Matthew, chapter 9,
-
and verse 6, Gladys?
-
(Gladys) I'll be reading
-
from the New International Version,
-
Matthew, chapter 9, verse 6:
-
(Derek) So, what do you learn there
-
about the Son of Man?
-
It's not just, "I'm going to call Myself
Son of Man."
-
(Gladys) He has authority.
-
(Derek) He's the Son of God, right?
-
This is what we call a messianic title,
Son of Man.
-
Look in Mark, chapter 13.
-
Brittany, do you have that?
-
Verses 24 through 27.
-
You know, it's exciting, isn't it,
-
to study the Bible.
-
And you say, "Ah, that's why
-
He's given this title, Son of Man."
-
(Brittany) I'll be reading
-
from the New King James Version,
-
Mark, chapter 13, verses 24 through 27:
-
(Derek) And that great event is the...?
-
(Team) Second Coming.
-
(Derek) Yeah, the glorious return
of Jesus.
-
We call it the Second Coming.
-
First Coming was when He
-
came as a baby, right,
-
and then grew up, ministered,
-
and died for our sins,
-
rose again, ascended to Heaven.
-
This is the second glorious coming,
-
and He calls Himself..."?
-
(Derek, Team) The Son of Man.
-
(Derek) One last reference,
-
Luke 9, verse 26, someone have that,
-
would read it for us?
-
Harold, Luke 9, verse 26.
-
(Harold) Yes, and I'll be reading
-
from the New King James Version,
Luke 9, verse 26:
-
(Derek) Son of Man, Son of God, right?
-
And that role is crucially important.
-
Travis, you alluded to it.
-
In 1 Timothy Paul tells us,
-
in chapter 2, verse 5,
-
the special work of the Son of Man.
-
It's why He's called Son of Man
-
and not just always referred
to as Son of God.
-
What is that special work?
-
Nancy, do you have that,
-
1 Timothy 2 and verse 5?
-
(Nancy) And I'm reading
-
from the New King James Version:
-
(Derek) And people say, "Oh,
-
it says He's just a man."
-
No, He's Son of Man and also...?
-
(Derek, Team) Son of God.
-
(Derek) And He is the Mediator.
-
Do you remember at the end of John 1
-
where it says He's like the ladder,
-
it connects Heaven and Earth, right,
-
angels going up and down.
-
That's a symbol, of course,
-
but He's connecting Heaven and Earth
-
so that we can find our way back to God.
-
I just say Amen; it's a beautiful picture
isn't it?
-
Now, this coming of the Son of Man,
-
it says with clouds.
-
Go back to Daniel with us,
-
to Daniel, chapter 7, verse 13.
-
He comes with clouds
-
to the Ancient of Days.
-
Is that talking about the Second Coming
-
of Jesus or another event?
-
I see some heads moving. Jonathan?
-
(Jonathan) I think it's pretty clear
-
that it's happening
-
in a specific time period, right,
-
kind of after you have this time
-
where the beast has said
-
these pompous words,
-
these things about the Most High.
-
And then there's this response
of the judgment,
-
and it's in the context
-
of that, that there is this coming
-
of the Son of Man before He comes
-
to receive His Kingdom.
-
So He receives something
-
in nature of the character and responding
-
to the pompous words,
-
but not the actual Second Coming
of Christ.
-
(Derek) And you're probably
-
going to tell us we need
-
to study Daniel, chapter 8 and 9
-
to see the rest of that story.
-
Travis, you want to add to that.
-
(Travis) We've got to remember, too,
-
that Daniel and Revelation both
-
are highly symbolic.
-
And so Jesus coming,
-
we see Him coming with the clouds.
-
We can get the interpretation
-
that clouds can mean angels.
-
So the Son of Man coming with angels
-
to the judgment scene.
-
(Derek) And, of course, He comes
-
in glory at the end in the clouds,
-
and it says with ten thousand
-
times ten thousand.
-
So those angels that we see
-
at the judgment scene
-
are going to come with Him
-
when He comes in glory.
-
It's going to be an amazing scene,
don't you think,
-
especially if we're...
-
(Gladys) The redeemed.
-
(Derek) Yeah, we've accepted Him
as our Savior,
-
and we go, "This is our God.
-
We've waited for Him,
-
and He will save us," right?
-
That's the prayer for each one, isn't it?
-
That we will welcome Him with joy.
-
(Derek) So, tell me some other Scriptures.
-
Jonathan, I think you're absolutely right,
-
that this is a judgment scene,
-
and the Son of Man,
-
who is none other than the Son of God
-
who became flesh, Jesus our Savior.
-
He has a key role in this judgment.
-
Is there any other Scripture
-
that would reinforce that, Brittany,
-
that Jesus, Son of Man, Son of God,
-
has an important role in the judgment?
-
(Brittany) There are many Scriptures
-
that talk about how He is our Judge,
-
He is our Advocate, He is our Witness.
-
And one of them is in John,
-
chapter 5, verse 22.
-
(Derek) Okay, let's take a look.
-
Actually, John 5 has quite a bit
-
about the end judgment
-
and about the resurrection
-
when Jesus comes, too.
-
Let's look at verse 22
-
of John, chapter 5, then.
-
(Brittany) I'll be reading
-
from the New King James Version,
-
John, chapter 5, verse 22:
-
(Derek) Why do you think that is?
-
Rick? I mean, the Father
-
could certainly do the judgment, right?
-
Father, Son and Holy Spirit, one God,
-
so why would the Father say...?
-
(Rick) I think because He's
the Son of Man.
-
He's walked in our shoes.
-
He can judge fairly.
-
He knows what it's like to be human.
-
(Derek) But don't you think
-
the Father could judge fairly, too?
-
So for whose benefit is it?
-
(Derek, Team) Ours.
-
(Derek) Because, and Brittany
-
alluded to this beautiful truth,
-
there's another verse in Scripture
-
that says He's not only our Judge,
-
but He's also our Advocate.
-
What is "Advocate"?
-
It's like our attorney, right?
-
Where is that verse found?
-
Anybody know where it's found?
-
(Stephanie) First John 2.
-
(Derek) First John, Stephanie, chapter 2?
-
Chapter 1 tells us, if we
-
confess our sins (1 John 1, verse 9),
-
He's faithful and just to...?
-
(Derek, Team) Forgive us.
-
(Derek) By the way, we need that
if we're going to stand
-
in the judgment, right?
-
We need forgiveness; we need a Savior.
-
But read for us 1 John 2 and verse 1.
-
Maybe verses 1 to 3, if you would,
Thank you.
-
(Stephanie) I'll be reading
-
from the King James Version:
-
(Derek) So, if He's the One
-
who makes the atonement
-
for the sins of the whole world,
-
does that mean, Evelyn,
-
that everyone can be saved?
-
(Evelyn) Yes.
-
(Derek) She said yes. Anybody agree
or disagree?
-
Everyone can be saved,
-
so why isn't everybody saved?
-
Because if I read the companion book
of Revelation,
-
there are people crying
-
for rocks to fall on them
-
rather than welcoming Jesus
with joy. Gladys?
-
(Gladys) Because you have to accept.
-
Salvation is a gift that has
-
already been paid for,
-
but you have to accept it
-
in order to receive it.
-
(Derek) I'm thinking of another verse
-
that says, "Everyone who calls
-
on the name of the Lord shall be saved."
-
Is it that simple? "Jesus, save me."
-
"Jesus, save me?" Jonathan?
-
(Jonathan) I'm thinking of John 3:19,
-
"This is the judgment,
-
light has come into the world,
-
but men have chosen darkness
rather than light."
-
So Christ came as this light
-
bringing these truths,
-
bringing this picture of a loving God
-
and of the reality of life lived out
-
according to God's pattern.
-
And we choose that or we reject it.
-
(Derek) And the tragic thing
-
that you quoted from John 3,
-
it says, "They loved darkness
rather than light,"
-
and Jesus is the light of the world!
-
They loved darkness,
-
and the ultimate personification
of darkness is...?
-
(Derek, Team) Satan.
-
(Derek) And his kingdom,
-
It's startling that people would love
-
darkness rather than love light.
Yes, Rodney?
-
(Rodney) I'm just delighted
-
that we have this hope in Jesus.
-
We have an advocate, and that's why we do
-
Hope Sabbath School.
-
We want the world to know
-
that you, too, can be saved.
-
It's an amazing promise from Jesus.
-
(Derek) From every nation,
-
kindred, tongue and people.
-
Yes, even from Great Britain,
-
where I come from, right?
-
Praise God! There is no on excluded
-
who calls upon the name
of the Lord, right? Rick?
-
(Rick) And we saw it even in Daniel
-
with Nebuchadnezzar, a king
-
that was so full of himself,
-
and, "Look at this great kingdom."
-
And God, in His love, humbled him,
-
and all he had to do was look to heaven,
-
and God saved him; it's amazing...
-
(Derek) I think we'll have
-
some surprises when we get
-
to the Kingdom of Heaven.
-
One of my favorite preachers once said
-
the first surprise is that we made it
-
by the grace of God.
-
But there'll be some people
-
that we say, "Really?"
-
Of course, the Bible tells us
-
about the repentance of Nebuchadnezzar.
-
It tells us about the repentance
-
of a thief dying on a cross next to Jesus.
-
But there may be some stories
not recorded,
-
and we're like, "How did YOU get here?!"
-
And what's the answer?
-
(Team) By the grace of God.
-
(Derek) "The same way you did,
-
by the grace of God."
-
So, let's take a look, then,
-
at this judgment, which is not
-
only a judgment against
-
the Little Horn power
-
and all that confederation
-
that is opposing God,
-
but it's a judgment in favor
-
of the saints of the Most High.
-
Let's go to Daniel, chapter 7,
-
and let's take a look first
-
at verse 21 and 25.
-
And I'm going to ask Rodney
-
if you'd read that for us.
-
Verse 21 and 25, and I'm
-
only passing over it
-
because the middle part
-
talks about in favor of the saints.
-
(Rick) And I'm reading
-
from the New King James Version:
-
(Derek) Now, if that's the only Scripture,
Nicole, we had,
-
that would be what?
-
Devastating, yeah, it would be
-
more than depressing, right?
-
But the fact that a judgment is coming,
-
what does that do for us?
-
(Team Member) Gives us hope.
-
(Derek) Gives us hope.
-
(Evelyn) Shows us that God is fair.
-
(Derek) Shows us that God is fair.
-
By the way, to this same power,
-
you read Revelation (we should study
-
both books together, right),
-
"Come out of her..."?
-
(Derek, Team) "...My people."
-
(Derek) And that's what the Reformation
-
and the ongoing Reformation is all about.
-
We're not throwing rocks.
-
We're just saying, while there's
still time,
-
hear the appeal of God
-
to follow the Word of God
-
rather than the traditions
of people, right,
-
which may sound religious,
-
but are they based
-
on the clear teaching
-
of the Word of God?
-
And the most fundamental teaching
-
is how we're saved, right?
-
Are we saved by religious works,
by paying money?
-
Are we saved by the amazing grace of God
-
who loves us? Rodney?
-
(Rodney) It means it's time for us
-
to get to know this Jesus,
-
not about Him but to get to know Him,
-
to have that deep connected relationship
with Him
-
because He's our Advocate,
-
and it's time for us to prepare.
-
(Derek) So let's go
-
to verses 21 and 22, 27,
-
and then I'll drop back to verse 18
-
because there are several
-
that talk about the judgment
-
in favor of the saints.
-
And, Nancy, would you read that for us?
-
Verses 21, 22, 27 and then back
in verse 18.
-
(Nancy) Okay, so I'm reading
-
from the New King James Version:
-
And now 27:
-
And 18:
-
(Derek) Did you get it?
-
There are people being persecuted today
-
for being faithful to the Word of God.
-
Some of them are being persecuted,
-
I'm sure, by pagan or secular powers.
-
But, by the way, even pagan
-
or secular powers have
-
a religious perspective,
-
even if it's that, "I'm God,
-
and there's nobody else," right?
-
So they have a perspective.
-
What important message
-
does the book of Daniel, chapter 7, bring
-
for those who may even today,
-
maybe some watching today in secret
-
on their app, you know
-
on their smartphone, watching,
-
and they're going, "This is really bad."
-
You know, "We are suffering
-
just because we want to follow the Bible,
-
and we want to be followers of Jesus."
Yes, Gladys?
-
(Gladys) We read the end of the story,
and God wins.
-
(Derek) God wins?
-
(Gladys) God wins.
-
(Derek) And the Kingdom?
-
(Gladys) The Kingdom will be
-
of His people forever and ever.
-
His Kingdom will never be destroyed.
-
(Derek) And how many
-
does He want in that Kingdom?
-
(Team) All of us!
-
(Derek) Yeah, unless you think,
-
"Oh, you're being elitist," no.
-
He wants all of them there, right,
-
who will choose to accept
His salvation. Harold?
-
(Harold) I just want, if it's possible,
-
to read a verse from 2 Peter,
-
chapter 3, verses 8 and 9,
-
regarding God's longsuffering.
-
(Derek) It's a beautiful passage.
-
Why don't you take us there.
-
What translation of the Bible do you have?
-
(Harold) I have the New
King James Version.
-
(Derek) And 2 Peter, chapter 3,
verses 8 and 9.
-
Right after that it says,
-
"But the day of the Lord will come,
-
and the elements are going
-
to melt with fervent heat."
-
So, this final judgment,
-
the end of all things,
-
and then, of course
-
verse 13 of that chapter,
-
a new heavens and a new earth
-
where righteousness dwells.
-
I love that because there are places now
-
where righteousness
-
is not dwelling, right?
-
But you're reading verses 8
-
and 9 of 2 Peter 3.
-
(Harold) Correct, and it reads:
-
(Derek) So, the mercy of God
-
wanting everyone to repent.
-
And repentance means what?
-
What does that mean?
-
It doesn't mean paying money, right?
-
(Gladys) Turning back to God.
-
(Derek) Turning toward God,
-
away from darkness to...?
-
(Team) Light.
-
(Derek) The light of Jesus, right?
Repentance.
-
Now, the Apostle Paul,
-
maybe he read the book of Daniel
-
about the saints of the Most High
-
and the persecution.
-
Even in his day in the pagan Roman Empire,
-
there was persecution, right?
-
(Team) Yes.
-
(Derek) What were some things
that he suffered
-
just for being a follower of Jesus?
-
(Gladys) He was flogged, stoned.
-
(Derek) Left for dead, yes, imprisoned.
-
Yeah, he was...what do you call it
-
when everywhere you go they persecute you?
-
(Team) A fugitive.
-
(Derek) He was like a fugitive,
-
but everywhere he went
-
he told people about Jesus, right?
-
So he had experienced a lot
-
of hardship in his own life.
-
And yet I want you to notice
-
his testimony in the book of Romans,
-
chapter 8, verses 35 and 37 to 39,
-
because apparently he didn't say,
-
he did not say, hear me carefully,
-
"God must not love me
-
because I'm suffering here."
-
He had a hope, like Rodney mentioned,
-
that was beyond his present journey,
right?
-
So let's take a look.
-
Gladys, could you read for us?
-
Romans, chapter 8, let's look at verse 35
-
and then 37 to 39.
-
(Gladys) I'm reading
-
from the New International Version,
-
Romans, chapter 8, verse 35,
-
and then 37 through 39:
-
(Derek) I imagine him getting excited
-
as he's saying, "Not this
-
or this or this," you know.
-
Nothing can separate us,
-
and he had experienced
-
some of those hardships, hadn't he?
-
Now, in that same chapter of Romans,
-
he tells us a mystery in verse 28.
-
Stephanie, could you read that for us?
-
It's a mystery, and I want you
-
to apply that to what we've learned
-
about what the saints
-
of the Most High God are going through
-
in the prophecy of Daniel 7.
-
(Stephanie) and I'll be reading
-
from the King James Version,
-
Romans 8, verse 28:
-
(Derek) So, let's go back, Rick.
-
Let's go back; you mentioned
-
about Shadrach, Meshach,
-
and Abed-Nego, Daniel 3.
-
What good did God bring
-
out of that bad situation?
-
What's the first obvious thing He did?
-
(Rick) The first obvious thing
-
is He showed up in their persecution,
in their challenge,
-
and I love that point.
-
But then, of course, He's a witness.
-
I mean, He used these people
-
being persecuted to be a witness,
-
and others were converted.
-
(Derek) We know at least one,
-
King Nebuchadnezzar.
-
It took a little while and seven years
-
crawling around in the field, but yes.
-
So God worked good
-
out of that situation.
-
Can you think of any other narratives
-
where a person's persecution
-
led to something good,
-
even though what happened
wasn't good? Brittany?
-
(Brittany) I think of Stephen
being stoned
-
and how Saul, who then became Paul,
-
later was converted,
-
and I believe it was partly
-
because of Stephen's testimony
and his witness.
-
(Derek) I have no doubt
-
it was a key part of that, wasn't it?
-
Because one of the last things
-
that Stephen says is,
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"Do not lay this sin against them,"
-
or to their charge, right?
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So he was like Jesus saying,
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"Father forgive them;
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they don't know what they do."
Yes, Travis?
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(Travis) I think of the story of Jonah.
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Jonah gets thrown off the ship,
-
the seas calm down,
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and whole ship becomes converted.
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God just can work through troubles...
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(Derek) We hope the ship was converted.
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But maybe some were; we don't know.
-
They certainly saw the power of God
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working in difficult situations.
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I want to talk to you,
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Hope Sabbath School family.
-
Maybe you're going through
-
a time of persecution,
-
not just difficult but persecution.
-
And I want to assure you
-
from the book of Daniel, chapter 7,
-
that God is with you in this time.
-
In fact, He not only wants to save you
-
that you may inherit His Kingdom,
-
He wants to work good even in the midst
-
of this bad situation.
-
Isn't He a great and awesome God?
-
And we have discovered
-
that He's calling all,
-
even those who maybe have found themselves
-
in systems that have
-
taken a stance against God.
-
He's calling us all
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to accept His salvation and to be ready
-
for that glorious appearing
-
of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ.
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Let's pray that we can experience
-
that salvation even today.
-
Father in Heaven, thank You
-
for the powerful prophecy
-
in Daniel, chapter 7,
-
and the assurance that You
-
work out Your purpose
-
to call all to salvation,
-
desiring that everyone would accept.
-
We know not everyone will,
-
but thank You that we had
-
a choice to accept,
-
and others will have a choice as well,
-
even from the message today.
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In Jesus' name. Amen.
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(Team) Amen.
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(Derek) Thanks for joining us
-
for Hope Sabbath School.
-
Someone needs to hear about a God
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who loves them with an everlasting love,
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so go out and share that good news
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with those around you.
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♪ theme music ♪