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It Is Written Canada

Chris Holland

Philosophy's Achilles Heel

The Question

Not By Chance

An Invitation to Inquire

Answers From Babylon

A King’s Dream and The Future

An Answer In the Fire

Evidence That Demands a Verdict

The Handwriting On the Wall

Hope In a Lion’s Den

The Daniel Cycle

Lions, Leopards and Bears ... Oh My!

The Evidence of a Master Plan

His Real Presence

He Has the Whole World in His Hands

Troubling News of Hope


It has stood the test of time. God's book, the Bible, still relevant in today's complex world. It is written sharing messages of hope around the world. Have you ever had a dream and not remembered its content? Or maybe you've had a dream, didn't get to the end, and went back to sleep to try to get to the end of the dream.

Today on It is Written, it is part 2 of the message, An Ancient King's Dream and the Future Foretold. And today's program, we will build upon what we started last week. Now you'll remember in last week's show that King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon had a dream. He knew the dream was important, but couldn't remember the dream, and of course, didn't know what it meant. And as we studied the story, we noted that Babylon's wise men, the soothsayers, the Chaldeans, the astrologers, they were not able to produce the dream or its interpretation.

This therefore demonstrated that The Babylonian gods themselves were not able to reveal the king's dream or provide the interpretation. The test was so difficult, as a matter of fact, that the wise men complained about it being an unfair test. And they failed that test, and they failed it miserably. The principles that can be extracted from that exercise can be summed up in this way. Only events that have an extremely low probability of fulfillment, like revealing the King's dream, strongly point to information that comes from a divine source.

This was the foundational principle that we outlined in last week's show. This week, we will utilize that principle to answer questions such as, how does God choose to reveal himself in a context where those who worship him claim contradictory things about him? Is objective, absolute truth possible? Or is it some kind of fairy tale? How do we know that the content of the Bible actually comes from a supernatural source?

What is the correct philosophy of history? And finally, is God a personal being that is involved in the affairs of men and women today? Or is he some impersonal, disconnected being? In order to answer those questions, we will go right to the dream and its interpretation. Now, as a reminder, here is the dream of Nebuchadnezzar as revealed by God to Daniel.

Remember, we're studying the book of Daniel, Daniel chapter 2, verses 31 to 35. You, O King, were watching, and behold, a great image. This great image, whose splendor was excellent, stood before you, and its form was awesome. This image's head was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay, you watched while a stone was cut without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay and broke them in pieces. Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed together and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors.

The wind carried them away so that no trace of them was found. And the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth. Can you imagine? Can you imagine Nebuchadnezzar sitting there and hearing the dream? I can just picture Nebuchadnezzar scooting to the front of his chair.

As Daniel shared the dream, he may have even said, yes, Daniel, that's it, that's the dream, that's what I saw. But you know, a dream without its interpretation, It really means nothing. And Daniel wasn't through. God not only gave him the dream, but God also gave him the interpretation. Let's read that interpretation in Daniel 2, verses 36 to 45.

This is the dream. Now we will tell you the interpretation of it before the king. You, O king, are king of kings, For the God of heaven has given you a kingdom, power, strength and glory. And wherever the children of men dwell, or the beasts of the field and the birds of the heaven, he has given them into your hand and has made you ruler over them all. You are this head of gold.

But after you shall arise another kingdom, inferior to yours. Then another, a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth. And the fourth kingdom shall be as strong as iron, inasmuch as iron breaks in pieces and shatters everything. And like iron that crushes, that kingdom will break in pieces and crush all the others. Whereas you saw the feet and toes partly of potter's clay and partly of iron, the kingdom shall be divided.

Yet the strength of the iron shall be in it, just as you saw the iron mixed with ceramic clay. And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly fragile. As you saw iron mixed with ceramic clay, They will mingle with the seed of men, but they will not adhere to 1 another, just as iron does not mix with clay. And in the days of these kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed, and the kingdom shall not be left to other people. It shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.

Inasmuch as you saw that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold. The great God has made known to the king what will come to pass after this. The dream is certain, and its interpretation is sure." Amazing. Nebuchadnezzar was given a vision that outlined the major powers surrounding Jerusalem. But were and are these things historically fulfilled and able to be verified?

As we look at Daniel's interpretation of the dream, it becomes evident that these metals of gold, silver, bronze, iron, and the iron mixed with clay, and finally the stone cut without hands, all of them refer to kingdoms. These kingdoms began in Daniel's day and end in the latter days. Now it is interesting to note that the medals decrease in value as you go from top to bottom of the statue, but increase in density and strength as you go down. Daniel began first by informing Nebuchadnezzar that the nation of Babylon of which he was king was represented by the head of gold. Daniel stated, you are this head of gold.

I'm sure that Nebuchadnezzar was happy to hear those words. And what a fitting description of gold symbolizing Babylon. However, despite the glorious nature of Babylon's kingdom, Daniel informed the king that Babylon would be conquered by an inferior kingdom, a kingdom depicted by silver. Now let me pause for just a moment. This very exercise also lends itself to a probability check.

What would be the probability of a foreign resident of a conquering kingdom informing the king that his kingdom would end. Now friends, I would say that that is very remote for anyone and a foreign national at that telling a king that his kingdom will end. Well, that usually would end on a very bad note for that individual. Yet Daniel does just that. Daniel calls this kingdom by name in Daniel 5.28.

He names this kingdom as the Medo-Persian Empire. Medo-Persia's rise to power is also an improbable event that we will cover at a later time. But just as silver is inferior to gold in terms of value, so the Medo-Persians would be an inferior kingdom to that of Babylon. Next, Daniel said that a kingdom of bronze would conquer the kingdom of silver. History tells us that the Medo-Persians did in fact fall and Greece would rise to power.

In fact, in an extremely unlikely turn of events, a young man from Macedonia would lead Greece to conquer the known world. Yet the dream continued by the bronze or brass of Greece giving way to a kingdom of iron. Once again, history demonstrates the accuracy of the interpreted dream. Just as Babylon and Medo-Persia fell, so Greece would give way to what historian James Cardinal Gibbons refers to as the Iron Monarchy of Rome. And yet in another interesting twist, this kingdom is not defeated.

It is not taken away. It's not conquered. Rather, the dream shares that it was divided, a mixture of iron and clay. And history points out that Rome actually never was defeated, but in fact, Rome simply divided. And this is what all happened in around the 5th century A.D.

The dream was clear that Rome would not be conquered, but divided. Daniel was clear. There would be no fifth world empire. This iron clay mixed kingdom symbolized a divided Rome. That divided Rome would eventually develop into the modern countries of Western Europe today.

But what makes the prophecy even more interesting is that the Bible says that these kingdoms would attempt to unite with 1 another. In order to accomplish this unity, history tells us that these nations would mingle their descendants together. In fact, it's fascinating to note that by the time of the First World War, nearly all of the ruling houses of Europe were related somehow. Charlemagne attempted to unite Europe into the Old Rome. Napoleon attempted it.

Hitler did as well. But all of these efforts to unite the old Roman Empire have been prevented by 7 words in Daniel's prophecy. They shall not cleave 1 to another. In fact, even in our modern day, the European Union has sought to unite most prominently with a common currency. However, even the Euro could not unite the old Roman Empire.

God gave a message and it was true. The methods of military, political, and economic unity, they all failed. This, friends, is just as the Bible predicted that they would fail. Next, Daniel informs us that a stone cut without hands would come and strike the image on its feet and usher in an eternal kingdom. Now this rock represents Jesus Christ and his return to reestablish the eternal principles of his kingdom which are based on the 10 Commandments.

The principles of the kingdoms of the world, represented by the medals in the dream, are in direct opposition to and in conflict with the eternal principles of God. And while the stone may not seemingly have any value, its value is found in this, that it is cut without hands. This means it's not of human origin. The metals are manufactured and shaped. The stone, it is of divine origin without any human influence.

As we look at this dream, as Nebuchadnezzar looked at this dream, there are only 2 explanations for it. 1, it is completely by chance. The other is that it was given by the God of heaven. Now let me ask you, how probable is it that by mere chance Daniel was able to outline exactly the number of kingdoms that would happen a thousand years after he lived? This was a chance.

It points to the God of heaven as the divine source of the information that we have in the book of Daniel and in the Old and New Testament scriptures. My dear friends, based on the evidence of probability, that stone cut without hands, which represents the second coming of Christ, is just as certain as the rise and fall of Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, Rome, and the division of Rome. How did Nebuchadnezzar react? Well, Let's read in Daniel 2, 46 and 47. Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face, prostrate before Daniel, and commanded that they should present an offering and incense to him.

The king answered Daniel and said, truly, your God is the God of gods, the Lord of kings and a revealer of secrets. Since you could reveal this secret, I want you to notice what the king did not say. He did not say, that was a good guess, Daniel. How did you do it? You know, the Babylonians were a highly mathematical people.

Yet the king did not ask Daniel for the formula he used or what logarithm he used. No. The king instinctively realized that there was only 1 answer. And that answer was, and it is today. Only the true God of heaven can do this.

The king could trust Daniel. He could trust the interpretation of the dream. Daniel's God passed the probability test. What about you, friend? What will we do?

The remarkable historical fulfillment of words that were written 2, 600 years ago, Attributing those things to chance? That just doesn't make sense. And to be frank, it's simply futile and dishonest to claim that this is all just a coincidence. Now as we continue to probe the book of Daniel for the next several weeks, there are many things that people try to attribute to coincidence. But we will see that none of this is just by chance.

We will find is that the symbols and concepts found in the Bible must be interpreted by the Bible itself. And when done that way, we'll see amazing things open before our eyes. Going to sources outside of the Bible as an authoritative source to explain what is in the Bible, well, that's like depending on the wise men of Babylon. They just won't have the answers here on It is Written, our only textbook is the Bible. So what about those questions we asked at the beginning of the show?

It is fundamental for us to understand that when we consider the ultimate questions of life, we should only trust information that comes from sources that pass the probability test. We are discovering time and time again only the Old and New Testament scriptures can pass such a test. How does God choose to reveal himself then in a context where those who worship him claim contradictory things about him? It is very simple. God has invited us to test him.

We call this the probability test. Here in Daniel 2, guessing the contents of the dream was impossible. Daniel's revelation of the dream given to him by God provided the king with irrefutable evidence that Daniel's God is the true God. Today Many religions and philosophical documents claim that their writings are inspired and authoritative even though their statements about God contradict 1 another. What shall we trust?

It is the Bible that can be trusted. Daniel chapter 2 mentions specific events that occurred over a 2600 year period of time and history has confirmed every detail. It would in fact be easier to guess the contents of a dream than to successfully predict 2, 600 years of human history. This is the method that God uses in order to reveal himself in a world where Many claim contradictory things about him. The probability test is the method that God uses in order to give honest seekers, honest inquirers of truth, the confident that his word reveals him to be the true God.

That also answers another question. How do we know whether objective, absolute truth is authentic or whether it's just a fairy tale? Let's take the second coming of Christ as a test case. Postmodern philosophy claims that this is just a personal belief of Christians. Yet, since postmoderns claim that objective truth is impossible, they would take the position that the second coming of Christ is simply a fairy tale.

However, evidence would suggest otherwise. Daniel 2 successfully predicted the rise and fall of Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome. It predicted the division of Rome and no fifth empire coming. It also predicted that attempts would be made to reunify the old empire and throughout history they would fail. Once again, on the basis of probability of each of these events being successfully predicted, we can be sure that the next event is absolutely certain.

And that next event in the dream is the second coming of Jesus Christ. This dream reveals the truth of the matter. How do we know that the content of the Bible actually comes from a supernatural source? The contents of this dream, its interpretation, and historical fulfillment point to a supernatural source. Human guesswork, wisdom, and imagination are all impossible.

The only rational explanation is that the source of the information arose from God who communicated it to the prophet. This dream also argues for what is the correct philosophy or understanding of history. God is a personal being and he's involved in the affairs of human beings like you and me. Unlike the wise men of Daniel's time who believed that the gods did not dwell with flesh, Against the Platonic, Aristotelian view that history constitutes merely a shadow of reality. Against the higher critical view of history in which God is unalterably bound to the laws of nature.

Against the evolutionary view of history in which God himself has been evolving through the natural processes of history, against the Marxist view of dialectical materialism, which is the basis and bedrock of communism. No, Daniel 2 demonstrates that God is actively involved in human history, culminating in what the Bible refers to as the second coming of Jesus Christ. We can be sure It is as certain as the rise and fall of Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece and Rome. God interacts with people today by hearing and answering prayer. Daniel trusted God.

He tested God. We too can trust God. He's passed the test. He has revealed the future. That future is a restored kingdom, restored to His perfect ways, where we can dwell forever.

Don't you want to be a part? You can trust Him. That is for certain. Oh Lord, all my regrets and all my acclaim, the joy and the pain, I'm making them yours. Lord, I offer my life to you.

Everything I've been through, use it for your glory. Lord, I offer my days to you, lifting my praise to you as a pleasing sacrifice. Lord, I offer You my life. Things in the past, things yet unseen, Wishes and dreams that are yet to come true. All of my hopes and all of my plans, my heart and my hand are lifted to You.

Lord, I offer my life to you. Everything I've been through. Use it for your glory. Lord, I offer my days to you, lifting my praise to you. As a pleasing sacrifice, Lord, I offer you my life.

Lord, I offer you my life. My life. For today's offer, I would like to offer for free the Focus on Prophecy lessons. Now in addition to that, for any size donation, I'd like to offer a portion of the Philosophies Achilles Heel series, the 2 parts, An Ancient King's Dream and The Future Foretold. Here's the information that you need to receive today's offers.

To request today's offer, just log on to www.itiswrittencanada.ca. If you prefer, you may call toll-free at 1-888-CALL-IIW. Or, if you wish, you may write to us at It Is Written, Box 2010, Oshawa, Ontario, L1H 7V4. Friends I hope you enjoyed today's program. I want to invite you to like us on our Facebook page at www.facebook.com forward slash ItIsWrittenCanada and there you can receive updates about the ministry, inspirational quotes and links to our archived programs.

Join us again next week as we continue this series and find certainty in God's Word. Until then, remember, it is written, man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. ♪♪ ♪♪

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Series

Philosophy's Achilles Heel

A King’s Dream and The Future

Parent Series

Sponsor

Recorded

Other Teachings in Series

The Question

Not By Chance

An Invitation to Inquire

Answers From Babylon

A King’s Dream and The Future

An Answer In the Fire

Evidence That Demands a Verdict

The Handwriting On the Wall

Hope In a Lion’s Den

The Daniel Cycle

Lions, Leopards and Bears ... Oh My!

The Evidence of a Master Plan

His Real Presence

He Has the Whole World in His Hands

Troubling News of Hope

Sound Doctrine