♪ theme music ♪

(Derek) Welcome to Hope Sabbath School,

an in-depth, interactive study

of the Word of God.

I'm so excited about this series

on the book of <i>Daniel.</i>

We're moving now into Daniel, chapter 7,

<i>From the Stormy Sea</i>

<i>to the Clouds of Heaven.</i>

It's an exciting message; it's good news

for the saints of the Most High God,

and I'm glad you're with us.

If you've missed anything in this series,

go to our website, hopetv.org/hopess,

and you can watch the entire series

plus other series of great Bible studies.

We're glad you're part

of the journey with us.

We'll pray you'll be blessed today.

And welcome to the team, a great series.

(Team) Amen.

(Derek) Unbelievable. Many of you

may be well studied in the book of Daniel,

but are you learning some new things?

(Team) Yes.

(Derek) I am learning new things,

and I'm looking forward to today's study.

We're glad you're part of our study, too.

By the way, we have

a chapter-by-chapter series

of Bible studies on Daniel and Revelation

because they combine together.

If you go to our website
HopeBibleStudy.org,

you can sign up and get

a free series of Bible studies,

Daniel and Revelation

really connected together.

Here are some emails from some

of our Hope Sabbath School members
around the world.

From the island of Haiti,

thanks for writing, Sineus,

"Hello, Hope Sabbath School team!"

(Team) Hello!

(Derek) "Thank you for the way

you help me understand the Bible

and teach it better."

(Team) Amen.

(Derek) "May the Lord bless you every day

and give each one of us

the gift of salvation."

Well, Sineus writes

from "the first black country

independent in the world," he says.

Well, thanks, we know you're proud

of your beautiful island there
of Haiti, Sineus;

thanks for writing to us.

And we're glad you are

not only learning the Word of God,

but you're teaching

the Word of God to others.

Chinyama writes from Zambia.

Lots of Hope Sabbath School members
in Zambia,

and actually probably more than a million

Hope Sabbath School members,
just in Zambia.

"Greetings to the Hope
Sabbath School team."

(Team) Greetings!

(Derek) "I wish to express my gratitude

for the great work

God is doing through you.

What intrigues me the most

is the ethnic diversity of your team."

Take a look at each other.

Yes, we don't all look the same.

"It really gives me great joy
to see people

of different ethnic backgrounds

mingling together without discrimination."

(Team) Amen.

(Derek) Amen! That's awesome, isn't it?

"Your team demonstrates

that we worship the same God

regardless of the color of our skin."

We might say, "Well, that's obvious."

I mean, we're all part of God's family,

but that is a message

that we want to share, isn't it?

We are a worldwide family.

"I always download your videos every week,

and they help me to understand
the Bible better.

God bless you; may He

lift up His countenance on you

and give you His peace."

Well, Chinyama, thanks

for writing to us from Zambia.

And we're encouraged

to remember what's important,

and that is to lift up Jesus and His love

for every nation, kindred,
tongue and people.

(Team) Amen.

(Derek) Here is a precious note;

this is a real note.

This is a real note, not an email.

It's sent from a donor couple

in Washington in the United States;

that's in the northwest part

of the United States.

It says, "I wrote to you,"

one of the people of the couple,

"I wrote to you by email sometime ago

to express our gratitude for the blessings

Hope Sabbath School is to us,

an elderly couple.

We have been watching

for several months now

and wanted to send a donation to help

with the ministry of Hope Sabbath School.

Each one of you shows the love of Jesus

in your smiling face."

(Team) Amen.

(Derek) What do you say?

Praise God, right? Praise God.

"I wish we knew more

about each one of you.

May Hope Sabbath School

keep blessing folks until Jesus comes,"

and a gift of a thousand dollars

to help the ministry

of this global evangelistic media ministry

called Hope Sabbath School.

Thank you to you, wherever you are

there in Washington, and to all

of our donors from around the world.

We're part of a great miracle of God.

I think we've got one more note here,
actually two.

One from John Morris,

same last name as me,

a Ugandan who is in South Sudan.

"My name is John from South Sudan,

but I grew up in Uganda.

I've been watching Hope Sabbath School

for two months now.

I became a Seventh-day Adventist Christian

about 11 years ago

but never discovered the joy

that Hope Sabbath School gives me.

I have been truly blessed by this program.

I grew up on a difficult path;

14 of my 26 years I grew up

without any parents

or what you would call family.

Hope Sabbath School has helped me
discover myself.

(Team) Amen.

(Derek) And what is his self?

A precious child of God, right?

"My country, South Sudan,

needs these messages.

May God bless you."

Well, John, thanks for writing

to us from South Sudan.

Isn't that amazing?

Two hundred and twelve countries now,

I think, around the world

are accessing programming

through our new suite of apps.

And, by the way, if you haven't downloaded

our Hope Channel app, it's awesome!

And you can choose different languages

if you want to share with friends

who speak other languages - truly amazing.

One last note, from Nova Scotia in Canada,

Laura writes, and Laura says,

"Thank you for Hope Sabbath School.

I'm so glad you're still teaching

and hope that you'll be doing it

for a long time to come.

I learn so much from Hope Sabbath School,

and I love the songs

put together by your wife.

She is so special," and I say Amen.

(Team) Amen.

(Derek) "I love listening

for many years now,

and I wish you could come

and meet us in person.

Well, God bless you and all

Hope Sabbath School members
around the world."

Well, Laura, thanks for writing to us

from Nova Scotia in Canada.

And we actually would like to sing

a song with you right now.

It's taken from the book of Daniel.

By the way, these are all Scripture songs,

so that means word for word

taken from the Scriptures.

If you open your New King James Version
of the Bible

to Daniel 2, verses 20 to 23,

you will see a prayer

by the prophet Daniel.

My wife put it to music.

We're going to sing it right now.

♪ music ♪

(Derek) You might say, "That was

a few minutes we took

to just sing that song,"

but it's right out of the text.

And something happened to me, Jonathan,

when I was singing the last part,

"Blessed be the name of God,"

like this wave of joy and gratitude

just washed over me.

It was like God caught me by surprise.

"Blessed be the name of God." Amen?

(Team) Amen.

(Derek) "Forever and ever."

We're studying a great prophecy

from Daniel, chapter 7, today,

and we just want to pray

the Holy Spirit will guide us,

<i>From the Stormy Sea</i>

<i>to the Clouds of Heaven.</i>

We invite you to pray with us.

Father in Heaven, thank You so much.

You're a great and awesome God.

You know what is in the darkness,

and light dwells with you.

We thank You that You will

give us wisdom even today

by Your Holy Spirit

as we study Your Holy Word.

May lives around the world

be blessed now and forever.

We pray in the holy name of Jesus. Amen.

(Team) Amen.

(Derek) Go to Daniel, chapter 7, together

as we begin our study.

It's an amazing revelation.

And remember, "All Scripture is given

by inspiration of God."

So this isn't just Daniel's words
about God,

this is a revelation from God

to the prophet Daniel.

And, Rodney, would you

begin our study today

in Daniel, chapter 7,

and whatever translation we have,

we'll follow along with you,

Daniel 7, the first seven verses.

(Rodney) And I'm reading

from the New King James Version:

(Derek) I think I'd wake up

in a cold sweat - whew!

But notice verse 1.

I want you to focus

your attention on verse 1.

What important insights do you see

even in verse 1 that you think

we should note before we
move on? Jonathan?

(Jonathan) This is Belshazzar

who was the grandson of Nebuchadnezzar,

and so this is a new time
in the kingdom.

And probably Daniel is wondering,

like, "What is happening now?

What is God doing?"

And Nebuchadnezzar had gone

through a bit of a conversion process

of coming to know God, and now...

(Derek) Actually a <i>real</i> conversion
process, right, eventually.

(Jonathan) Exactly, yeah.

And so now this new king is here,

and maybe it's a message for this king.

(Derek) So it's important

to realize chronologically

that chapter 7 comes

before chapter 5, right?

It's after chapter 4,

where Nebuchadnezzar finally is converted;

his grandson is now on the throne,

but it's not yet the handwriting

on the wall that we see in Daniel 5, okay?

So...what would we say?

Linking it to a historical event,

is that significant, Brittany?

"The first year of the reign of..."?

(Team) Belshazzar.

(Derek) What's the significance
of including that?

I mean, why does that matter, anybody?
Yes, Stephanie?

(Stephanie) It sets the time.

(Derek) Yeah, it's real history, right?

It's not like, "Well, I think
I had...," no, no.

This is when it happened.

What else do you notice

in verse 1, though?

I just noticed it while we were reading,

that I think is rather significant.

Anybody else, what do you see?
Yes, Travis.

(Travis) There is more information
for this dream.

(Derek) Ah, thank you!

It says that he's going

to write down the main facts.

So, would you like to know

what the rest of the story was?

You'll have to wait

until you get to the Kingdom
of Heaven, right,

because he just writes down
the main facts.

Apparently the things guided by...?

(Team) The Holy Spirit.

(Derek) ...the Holy Spirit of God,

"Daniel, make sure you

write down these main facts," okay?

Now, let's talk about the dream itself.

I don't know about you,

but I think I would wake up with a sweat

with these animals coming up.

Why do you think God uses animals

as symbols of kingdoms?

In Daniel chapter 2 we had

different metals, right,
on an image. Brittany.

(Brittany) I think it goes back
to the history.

When we look at archaeology,

we find some of the same beasts

used to represent those kingdoms.

Like the lion with eagle's wings

was used to represent Babylon.

And we find that when we

look back at the archaeology.

So God was using something the people knew

to help them understand.

(Derek) Okay. Anybody else? Yeah, Nancy?

(Nancy) It's also an excellent
teaching tool,

because imagine if you have to describe

what a lion is like (powerful),

but when he says lion,

you know it's powerful.

When he says leopard, you know it's fast.

(Derek) And what is a leopard
with extra wings,

it's really fast, right?

Because this is not, obviously,
a literal animal, is it?

It's symbolism. Kenneth?

(Kenneth) And also all through cultures

throughout the history of the earth,

kingdoms represent their kingdom
with an animal.

(Derek) Okay, so we might ask

Hope Sabbath School members,

we might ask you to tell us what animal,

and they might say,

"Well, a horse for Mongolia,"

or, "a bear for Russia."

That's a good point.

So, back to what Brittany was saying,

we found archaeological evidence

that would point, for example,

to the winged lion for Babylon. Travis.

(Travis) As we see these beasts,

they're destroying and conquering

and doing these things.

And Jesus in the Bible

is represented as a Lamb.

So it kind of separates...

Jesus gives Himself out of love,

and these are conquering beasts.

(Derek) But He's also a Lion

of the tribe of Judah, right?

So even there you've got...

showing His sacrificial work,

but also He is King of kings

and Lord of lords, right?

So, what parallels do you see

between this vision, if you will,

and the vision in chapter 2

that was given to Nebuchadnezzar?

Anybody, what parallels
do you see? Harold?

(Harold) They were kind of given

in the same order

in terms of the succeeding kingdoms.

Like the first will be Babylon,

and as Brittany mentioned,

there is archaeological evidence

that there was a lion with wings

in the palaces of Babylonian kings,

so we can say, "Oh, we can

make that correlation."

(Derek) You've got, very simply, too,

you've got the four precious metals,
right?

Well, iron, I guess, was precious

in that it was very strong,

but gold, silver, bronze, and iron.

And you've got these four animals.

So you've got that parallel.
Yes, Travis?

(Travis) The rock comes

and destroys the image,

and we see God setting up His Kingdom.

Actually, it destroys five things.

It destroys gold, it destroys silver,

it destroys bronze,

and then the steel and the clay.

And we see five elements

that get destroyed also

in Daniel, chapter 7.

We see the lion, the leopard,

you know, the beasts,

and then little horn that gets destroyed.

(Derek) So we're going to get
a similar outcome.

In fact, all of the prophecies

go from present time

to God's ultimate deliverance, right?

So that historical development,

which is what we call

the historicist method of interpretation,
right?

This is sequential. Yes, Rodney?

(Rodney) You also see a correlation

in verse 7 with the iron teeth.

So there's a reference there.

(Derek) Even the metal.

(Rodney) Even the metal coming in, yes.

(Derek) All right. Yes, Rick,

and then I want to talk about...

Because Travis alluded to the fact

that there's new information

starting in verse 8,

which isn't in the revelation

given in Daniel 2. Rick?

(Rick) It's interesting that Daniel 2

is given to Nebuchadnezzar,
the pagan king,

and this one is given to Daniel himself.

(Derek) Straight to the prophet.

(Rick) And it does seem that God
wants to give.

It's so important; He wants to give
a little extra information,

and I think that's interesting to the king
he gives the metals and the golden statue,

which we relate to the idol of a king,

and he, of course, went and made one.

But here Daniel is given, like, organic;

the natural animals are the symbols,

so it's kind of interesting.

(Derek) Natural and yet composite,

so, you know, go, "What's
a lion doing...?"

It's not a real lion is it?

It's a composite beast.

Brittany, I'd like you to take us

to verse 8 and verses 19 to 25, which talk

now about another power Travis alluded to,

a little horn, which is not mentioned

at all in the revelation

given in Daniel 2.

(Brittany) I'll be reading

from the New King James Version,

Daniel, chapter 7, verse 8,

and then 19 through 25:

(Derek) Now, when the secrets

of the book of Daniel began to be opened

as Reformers, as they were called,

began to study the Bible,

which had been taken away,

now being translated

into their own languages

at the risk of their own lives,

they began to find a startling truth,

and that is that the Christian church

based in Rome, the papacy,
seemed to fulfill

all of the identifying characteristics

of this little horn power.

Now, that's troubling,

because it's their church, right?

Take Martin Luther, for example,

who was a monk, right?

This is his church.

So he's trying to call

the church back to the Bible.

But what were some

of the identifying characteristics

that pointed to this actually being

not just another political power

but a political-religious power

that was doing great harm?

Let's just take one at a time.

Rodney, what would you start with?

(Rodney) "He shall speak pompous words

against the Most High."

(Derek) So that could possibly be

a pagan kingdom, right,

that would speak against God.

They've done it before.

But certainly there is a religious element
to this power.

What else, Rick?

(Rick) It's interesting;

it very specifically says

this horn is different from the others.

It says the others are kings,

so this one can't be a king;
it's different.

(Derek) It's different.

There's something about this Little Horn

that's different from the ones before.

Now this has come

out of the collapsed Roman Empire, right,
these ten horns.

And then you've got this Little Horn.

What else do you see? Travis?

(Travis) I was just going to say

we get a geographical location

because the ten kings,

we know that that was the Roman Empire.

So we have a geographical location

in the world where this little horn
is coming from.

(Derek) Some people might,

going back to Daniel 2,

say, "Well, the image had ten toes."

But, I mean, everybody has ten toes

unless they're deformed.

But this is very specific.

These are ten horns,

and these ten horns are ten kings.

So it's not just, well,

everybody has ten horns, right?

No it's very specific,

and then the little one that grows up.

What else did you see?

We've got a lot of information. Evelyn?

(Evelyn) I guess we could say
it's a given

that when a king comes to power

they try to change laws

and try to do everything in their favor.

But what's interesting about this horn

is that they're focused

on changing the Law of God.

So that's something very significant

about this Little Horn.

They're specifically attacking

God's people and God's Law.

(Derek) "Times and laws."

What Laws of God deal with time?

(Team) The Sabbath, the fourth.

(Derek) Certainly the fourth one does.
Any others?

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.

(Harold) Where it says

also that the Little Horn

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

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.

(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,

"Do not lay this sin against them,"

or to their charge, right?

So he was like Jesus saying,

"Father forgive them;

they don't know what they do."
Yes, Travis?

(Travis) I think of the story of Jonah.

Jonah gets thrown off the ship,

the seas calm down,

and whole ship becomes converted.

God just can work through troubles...

(Derek) We hope the ship was converted.

But maybe some were; we don't know.

They certainly saw the power of God

working in difficult situations.

I want to talk to you,

Hope Sabbath School family.

Maybe you're going through

a time of persecution,

not just difficult but <i>persecution.</i>

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

to accept His salvation and to be ready

for that glorious appearing

of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ.

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.

In Jesus' name. Amen.

(Team) Amen.

(Derek) Thanks for joining us

for Hope Sabbath School.

Someone needs to hear about a God

who loves them with an everlasting love,

so go out and share that good news

with those around you.

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