WHO, ME?

                                         
                                              WHO, ME?

    In studying prophecy in Daniel and Revelation, we become accustomed to
an assortment of "bells and whistles" that make the scripture colorful and
interesting. Obviously, God has had a long range plan drawn up forever.
Everything that transpires from day to day now and in the future is part of
His plan. The same was true in the past. We have seen in the first few 
chapters of Daniel that God used the Jewish young men to introduce the
great king, Nebuchadnezzar, to the God in Heaven. This plan is still in effect,
and I'm puzzled by the comments and teaching I hear from many church
leaders,

    With that in mind, let's look at a key verse of scripture, Matt. 15:45, "that
you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the
evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust." God has
permitted Satan to move freely around earth until tribulation is finished. But,
God still controls the earth, and Christ His Son, will rule earth following
tribulation. People on earth have free will, and with Satan's coaching, most
would destroy the earth without God's judgment and Christ's return.

    God's plan clearly shows us He knew how mankind would behave and fall
victim to Satan's wiles. Scripture tells us in plain English, what is going to
happen, although not with specific dates. God's plan includes the entire world
with all the races, all the religions and all the nations. We can preach the 
gospel to all the world, but we can't make people accept Christ's offer of
salvation. In fact, we can't convince a majority of Americans, let alone people
who live in jungles or the remote areas.

    So, why do so many church leaders and media church leaders bemoan the
fact that America is "going down" because of morality and lost values, and we
are responsible for the tribulation and end of the present world? Does not the
above scripture tell us we (America and the remainder of the world) are all in
this prophecy together? The end times do not belong to America exclusively.
If every American and every Christian in America had "perfect" morals and
Godly ways, it would not make much of a dent in the world model.

    Now, then, why all this blame talk about specific sins and misleading
information about social issues? I believe its time to fall back on a bit of
intelligence from a comic strip--"We have met the enemy and it is us."
Many of these church leaders refer to general statements that are true,
but misrepresent scriptural facts. Most Christians know so little about
scripture, they don't ask questions or challenge general statements. They
join a lynch mob of emotionalism.

    For example, they claim homosexuality, abortion and same sex marriage
are "unpardonable" sins that will bring America down. They are wrong on
both counts. These sins are just that--sins, the same as murder, envy, lies
and the other sins. God does not condone them, but He tells us there is
only ONE unpardonable sin. See Matt. 12:31. "Therefore I say to you, every
sin and blasphemy  will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the
Spirit will not be forgiven men. Verse 32 makes it very clear all other sins
against God and Christ can be forgiven. 

    Let's begin this "blame game" with solid facts, which are not part of the
blame game nor the church leaders' claims. We go to the World Almanac,
with population numbers verified by the International Data Base, the U.S.
Department of Commerce, the World Factbook and the Central Intelligence
Agency. The current world population is almost 7 billion people. That's a
7 with nine zeros after it. Two nations-- China and India--have over one
billion people each. After them comes the United States, with just over
300 million, and Indonesia, with  nearly 250 million. You see that the
United States makes up a paltry 4 percent of the world population. Do
you really believe the end times is based on 4% of the world population?
Isn't God interested in the hijinks going on in 96 percent of the world?

    Do you honestly believe the actions of .96 of the world's people will be
ignored by God, and the end time will depend on the action of 4 percent
(America) of His creation? If all the Christians and Jews in the United States
lived perfectly moral lives, do you believe the end times wouldn't come? Do
you believe any of scripture except the propaganda expelled by many of the
church leaders? How many of these leaders count sins such as lying and
cheating the same as abortion or same sex marriage? All sins are equally
bad--scripture says so; refer to Matt. 12:31 again.

    I realize you don't want to disagree with the church leaders who preach
in church, television and radio that the sins I've mentioned above are the
reason America is immoral and leading the nosedive to the end times. Why 
do you suppose Christ didn't preach on these sins? Do you know the sins
he preached about and the warnings about following church leaders? Who
do you think set the wheels in motion to kill Christ? Christ referred to passages
in the Old Testament, and the Apostles referred to Christ's teaching.

    Christ knew that Proverbs explained clearly that God did not approve of
same sex marriage or homosexuality. The church of that day taught the laws
of the Old Testament, and these acts were sins. Sacrifices were the means for
abolition of sins. When we talk about these two "sins", most church people
place them in a category of filth. That may be true for homosexuality, but isn't
necessarily true for same sex marriage. If this union is platonic in nature, it is
sincere friendship and companionship. There is no sex involved. That is why
many people favor their eligibility to receive some of the benefits of regular 
marriage.These people are citizens, employed, and pay taxes. It is not our
place to pass judgment. Matt. 7:1 warns us, "Judge not, that you be not judged." 

    In our ministry we have counseled people who were homosexuals. We found
that many didn't want to be part of that lifestyle, and some were married. These
were not people who flaunted their lifestyle, and some wanted desperately to
be "normal". Usually something had happened in their early years that caused
them to reject the normal relationship. They need to be invited into scripture
study and the power of the Holy Spirit. The filth belongs to those who flaunt
that lifestyle.

    Now we come to the topic of abortion. A question for you: If a toddler or
young child is killed by a bolt of lightning, is it murder? If a child is killed when
a natural gas explosion destroys a house, is it murder? What happens to the
soul of the dead child? Christ didn't teach about abortion because the Old
Testament and Jewish religious instruction gave people the answer to the
preceding questions. For example, check out 2nd Sam. 12:22-23. David knew
the child would be in God's bosom and he would see him in heaven. That's
where children not yet of the age of accountability go when they die, unless
they are saved sooner. Murder is when a pregnant woman dies from an
easily curable medical problem because doctors refuse to abort a fetus that
dies anyway. This just recently happened in Ireland where abortions are
against that country's constitution. The religious right's hue and cry against
all abortions for any reason is led by--you guessed it--men, who never have
to carry a fetus.

    I've written about the major topics I'm hearing from many church leaders who
are placing the blame for America's leading role in bringing about the end time.
Certainly the immorality in America is a bad thing. Leaders need to read some
of the Gospels to discover what they should be talking about. You know--it's the
lessons Christ taught in person. Often they are parables I've heard butchered
by people who misinterpreted plain English to prove their desire. If church leaders
would teach the material prepared for them in scripture, we would have a much
more moral America. Instead, they are pushing flawed interpretations of subjects that
easily inflame people's emotions.

    A survey by Public Religion Research Institute reports that all faiths contacted
concerning the safety net subject--social security, medicare, etc.--indicated the
various faiths all want this safety net saved and protected; EXCEPT Christian
protestants, whose majority is white. This group includes the corporate executives
and highly paid professionals. A look at the blue/red political map shows us the
red states of the south and central plains/mountain area are the building blocks
for fiscal ultra conservatives. I challenge you to read the four gospels and find any
of Christ's teaching about NOT caring for our neighbors. Our neighbors in this
scenario are those who worked their entire lives to make a living, those who
shouldered guns to protect our nation, those with medical problems, widows and
widowers, orphans, and the disadvantaged. 

    THIS IS THE MORAL BASIS UPON WHICH AMERICA WILL BE JUDGED. IT
WILL NOT BE ON FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY EXCEPT THE WILD SPENDING
TO FINANCE TWO WARS AND PROVIDE TAX DOLLARS TO VIRTUALLY
EVERY NATION IN THE WORLD. We don't want to care for our own people,
but the religious right support all the foreign aid and unfounded wars. The gospel
tells us America will be judged according to HOW WE TREAT THE LEAST AMONG
US. America will not slow down the end times or preserve anything as long as we
continue to value money over Christ's teaching.

    If we are going to preach about a blame game, we should start with the church
and media people who are choosing emotional subjects to separate people in the
church. It is a fear tactic which makes some Christians feel not only good about
themselves, but also superior to other sinners. Not a one of them is any better or
superior to someone who has had an abortion or is involved with a same sex
marriage. We are all sinners, and God's very Word tells us the end times will
come--period--and America can't change God's plan one way or the other. Rather
than blame a small segment of our society for the ending, it would be profitable
for these leaders to actually learn some scripture so they would know what they
were talking about.

Rev. Walbear

DANIEL STUDY THREE

                                           DANIEL STUDY THREE

                                                            Prologue

    In the previous two studies of Daniel, we have followed the Jewish captives
to Babylon and through the first two chapters of that book. As we continue,
we'll see how God works to bring His glory and power to the understanding
of Nebuchadnezzar. We will also see how difficult it is for a man or woman
blessed with talent to keep from being overpowered by pride. That is Satan's
final point of attack to destroy the work possible through God's gifts. In this
study, we will also see a major and vital response that comes naturally to
all of us. See if you pick up this flaw in our understanding before I point it out.

                                                    Daniel Three

    Although the king now realizes and understands the power and glory of the
God in Heaven, he is, after all, human, and, like most successful people, takes
pride in his accomplishments. After all, Daniel's interpretation of the image
revealed that the king has the greatest kingdom ever on earth. How much better
can it get? While the king can accept the sovereignty of God over all, he still
needs to have the glory of his feat. Pride takes over, and he sets about making
a giant human image to represent him and impress the people. Although the
king recognizes the God in Heaven, the millions of people scattered in the
dozens of provinces still worship all kinds of gods and idols. This idol, because
of its size and structure of gold, will represent the greatness of the king and the
peoples' association of him as the idol.

     This idol was really impressive. It was from 90 to 100 feet tall, and composed
of gold. Think how much that would represent in dollars. It was likely on a pedestal,
making it even more impressive. The idol was placed in the midst of a vast, level
plain about six miles southeast of Babylon. There was lots of room for viewers, and
it was needed because the king made the unveiling of it a holiday with mandatory
attendance and worship. Follow along with me in chapter three.

    Called to the event were all the chief officials of all the kingdom's provinces, 
including governors, administrators, judges and counselors. There was an
organized musical program which included all types of instruments. The people
were commanded to fall down and worship the image upon hearing the music.
Anyone who failed to worship the image would be cast into a burning fiery
furnace.

    This was an opportunity for those displaced by the Jewish boys as leaders of
the king's council to get rid of these upstarts. The Chaldeans watched Daniel's
three friends, certain they would not bow to an idol. For some reason, Daniel was
not at the big event. In 3:8-12, these Chaldeans tattled to Nebuchadnezzar that
the Jewish boys didn't bow down. With the absolute power the king had, he was
not accustomed to having an order disobeyed, and he flew into a rage. The king
had the three boys brought to him and gave them a final chance to obey the
order of worship. Daniel 3:14-18 gives us the perfect example of being true to
God in the face of a horrible death. All they had to do was bow down. Would you 
defy the order? I frequently see Christians breaking God's directions and excusing
their actions because of self righteousness. 

    Up to this point in our study, we have seen Nebuchadnezzar become a believer
in the true God in Heaven because of description and interpretation of dreams. Now 
he will continue his education through physical belief. He orders the furnace fire to
be heated seven times hotter than usual. The boys told the king their God could not
only deliver them from harm, but He could also deliver them from the hand of the
king. Study Dan. 3:15-16 to see total faith at work. Oh, if only we all could count
on faith this strong! Of course, this only increased the rage of the king, if that were
possible.

    The king had mighty men of valour from his army bind the three Jews and throw
them into he furnace. The flames of the furnace were so fierce these soldiers were
burned to death. The Jews, bound, were thrown into the furnace.  Now the king
was introduced into the second phase of his learning about the God in Heaven.
Nebuchadnezzar saw four people moving about within the furnace and the flames.
He was astonished, because the three boys should have been burned alive. All
the fire did was burn off the bonds. There was no smell of smoke on the boys, and
not a hair on their head was singed.

    In dealing with non believers and lukewarm Christians, the most difficult task for
a committed Christian is to explain the power of God. The "how do you know"
question is a tough one. For almost everyone, "seeing is believing" is a sort of
human law. We accept the "magic" of television transmission though we don't see
the waves; the same is true of radio and the internet. Yet, somehow (the Devil
knows) we have difficulty accepting spiritual movements. Even when we see
a spiritual miracle with our own eyes, we have skepticism. What's worse. we have
to deal with the doubts expressed by others who didn't see the activity. As time 
passes, more doubt seeps into our mind, and eventually we won't believe the
action we saw.

    That happened frequently to people in scripture, especially before Christ
arrived on the scene. It is happening today. I've had people who say they are
Christians tell me they don't believe in the Immaculate Conception or in the
resurrection. Yet, they claim they are Christians. God knew that Nebuchadnezzar
needed another lesson in His power, and this fiery furnace was the setting.
Required, besides the furnace, were three people with an unending belief in
God. With Daniel's three friends, He had the believers. These three relied
completely and totally on God's power and protection.

    Now the king saw the three Jews walking about in the furnace, paying no
heed to the flames or heat. He also saw a fourth figure. In Daniel 3:25. the king
exclaims, "I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not
hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God." This is an amazing comment
from the king because we are generations away from Christ's birth. Because he
is a man of superior intelligence and study, he may be referring to Isaiah 9:6. The
writing of the prophets was history, not only of Jews, but of kingdoms. Or, he
could be referring to an angel of the Lord. 

    He knew what he and others saw, and it was a miracle that clearly showed the
supreme power of the God of Israel. To him, this WAS seeing is believing. Yet, as
we shall see a bit later, he still needed to be reassured. This miracle caused the
king to make a decree (Daniel 3:29) to forbid anyone in the kingdom to speak
anything amiss against the God of the Jews. The three fire survivors were
promoted on the spot. How wonderful to have the strength of conviction Daniel
and his friends had. They had absolutely no doubt. They lived and placed their
lives in the hand of God.

    Friends, I pray you never have to be tested as these Jewish boys were. If you
are, how do you think you will fare? There is only one way to be prepared for
such a test, and that is by the study and complete acceptance of the Word of
God and enduring life through Christ's shed blood. You must devote your life
to Him. Christ devoted His life for us. We can do no less. In the next study, we
meet some of Daniel's friends in their home.

Rev. Walbear

SEAT AT THE GATE

                                                           SEAT AT THE GATE

    When  I heard the voice call out, "Hey, there, sinner!", I didn't have to look
around to see who he was talking to. I was the only person in earshot, so there
was no doubt about it. My ears perked up, because here was somebody
talking to me who obviously knew a great deal about me. He didn't know my
name, but he knew most of everything else. It was amazing I knew who the
voice was, because it was not familiar to me.

    Like Samuel, I responded because it was a voice you didn't ignore. There
was authority and strength in it. "You know full well I don't have much tolerance
and patience, but I'm a much gentler soul now," The voice continued. "I am
disturbed by the things I see people doing who claim they are followers of
my Master. The end times are approaching, and I see mostly failures by large
numbers who are recognized by my Master's Name. You know I was called the  son of thunder because I did have a troublesome temper. I was also known as "the Hammer". Christ was known as the Carpenter, but they called me the "hammer", behind my back, of course."

    "I've been "retired" for many years, but I believe there are some "hammers"
down there in Christianity who can contribute to the Gospel. You're one of the
blessed ones I have appointed to the Hammer Club. You adhere to scripture
and preach or write it as led by the Holy Spirit. You have my encouragement
to proceed to "nail" those that are transforming the very Word of God and the
Master's teaching from His shed blood, to weak wine. So... get at it. Time is
short and the cause is great. God bless!"

    Okay. You heard my marching orders. Usually the Holy Spirit leads me, and
I don't believe that will change. However, after listening to (you know who the son of thunder was, right?) I've been energized to go after the church leaders and others who are slowly taking Christians down the road of apostasy. Friends, this is one of the Devil's insidious strategies. By making only a slight change, and by justifying it through man's reasoning, we make a terrible mistake.

    I could begin my reviewing the comments of several people who were interviewed by a newspaper. Asked about their feelings about Christmas, not one of them said a word about the birth of Christ. They talked about being with family, holiday feasts,  gifts and traveling. Not a single mention of Christ by any of them. I could sort of excuse them because they are excited about holiday and some things they look forward to all year. But, I won't!

    Now I get to the insidious strategy of the Devil accepted and passed on by the very people who are recognized and supposed to be leaders in the Christian church. They have used the Devil's careful packaging. They also are happy and think they are accomplishing a secondary goal. I'm talking about the Devil's assault on Christmas Several years ago my wife worked out of state,, so the farm and ministry was mostly my responsibility. I spent many hours working alone, with the radio as company. When the local Christian radio station played Christmas carols and music during the Christmas season, it was most welcome.

    Today this station continues playing Christmas music during the period leading up  to Christmas Day. There has been a subtle change, however. Now some segments of the musical selections have acquired a "sponsor". It is not hard core advertising, usually just a mention or credit that programing is being presented through the sponsorship of ABC furniture company or Harry's equipment repair. It's just the use of the commercial name and they don't entice you with a sales pitch. Sounds innocent enough until you carefully consider the Word of God and Christ's teaching.

    Where in scripture--either the Old or New Testament--can you find any type of example of "sponsorship" or advertising? Did Christ ever teach about commercial success or advertising? Oh, I hear the protests about teaching "abundant life", and that God wants us to have our wishes and prayers fulfilled. Christ taught that abundant life was obtained in heaven, not on earth. So, I ask again...where in scripture did Christ instruct us about sponsorship or advertising? I understand the church leaders stating it is a means to pay for the programming. But... must everything depend on a source of money? Of course, they say. It takes money to run every part of a ministry,  and use of money is a responsibility of a good Christian.

    On earth, money is a necessary commodity. I can't disagree with that. But, I don't believe in commercializing any aspect of Christianity. Christmas and Easter are so important to Christianity, they should stand alone. We've become so accepting of any type of commercialism that what it represents has become the driving force in our lives. For example, look at the replacement of the traditional holiday football bowl names from Orange, Rose or Sugar to XYZ Orange Bowl or QTU Sugar Bowl. Everything has to have a commercial sponsor.

     So what's the harm? The harm is that the Devil now has an inside track into the very heart of Christianity. If man can extract money for the simple repetition of any name--commercial or not--to justify Christianity, it will eventually be a necessity. It may take a while, but the money trail is never ending. Extracting money is humanistic, it is secular. Churches and ministries need to raise money. They need to be very careful how they go about it.

    Consider the numerous "big" ministries that found themselves in both money and leadership problems. These organizations realized great growth and had wide ranging outreaches for funds. People recognize money success, and when that can be coupled with America's obsession with growth, the formula for growth is being realized.

    A sponsor probably feels pretty good about helping to finance something like Christmas music. That's fine. But he could understand the real joy and contentment of a Christian by giving the sponsorship money anonymously. After all, God knows where the money comes from and heart of the giver.
    
    Church leaders bear the burden of placing sponsors for basic Christian worship activities into an enticement coupling giving with recognition. We see much teaching in the New Testament concerning the desire by those who are community and church leaders to have a special (or higher) standing due to financial standing or gain. 

    The "nail" for this hammer is that Christmas music, if it must be sponsored, should be sponsored anonymously, and both the sponsors and amount of donation should  be kept very private. The most important Christian dates are the target by church leaders and misled donors. You can't lower God, Christ and the Holy Spirit to the level of money.

    If you are a serious reader of the Old Testament, you know that a "seat at the gate" was a position for a community leader, usually a judge. Matters, both domestic and civil, were brought to these people for consideration. I will take this seat at the gate very seriously.

Rev. Walbear

DANIEL--STUDY TWO

                                               DANIEL--STUDY TWO

                                                          Prologue
    Before moving into the second message in the study of prophecy as given
us in Daniel and the New Testament, we need to review some ground rules.
As a Christian minister-teacher I base these messages on scripture, usually
giving several verses as background. Too many times I read or hear someone
stating a point of view based on a single verse of scripture. Usually the meaning
they convey is far from accurate. When God or Christ tells us something
extremely important, the message can be found in several places of scripture.
You need to cross reference. When information concerning subjects such as
history and culture is given, that information comes from history and reference
material. The cultures of the past, such as Babylon, kept very accurate and
complete histories.
    We see some amazing things happening in Daniel, and of course, in the
experiences in the New Testament. We call them miracles because they often
defy science and can only be explained as spiritual. If you cannot accept these
miracles, your Christian commitment is not solid. I'm not judging your salvation
or degree of commitment, because I'm not a judge. That is up to you and God.
I will only say that you either believe all, or you do not have a firm commitment.
If you have access to a Catholic bible, I urge you to read the books not included
in our Protestant bibles. Of special interest are the Books of Maccabees, which
covered an important period of the Chosen's history.
    As you read and study Daniel, remember there is usually more to the story of
a miracle than clearly appears at first reading.

                                     DANIEL II

    As we noted in the first study, God is accomplishing two major things with this
captivity of the Jews. He is judging their nation which has wandered away from
God's direction. The first wave of captives taken to Babylon includes the Jewish
cream of the crop--princes, leaders and learned teachers. Many of these were
not backsliders, but devout followers of God and the Law. Nebuchadnezzar was
a very intelligent man and wanted to gain knowledge and fruit of experience from
these gifted Jews. He was the leader of the greatest empire in the world, both then
and now. There was a time of peace while he reigned as God's anointed.

    Daniel and his three friends arranged a deal with the king about eating Jewish
food rather than Babylon food. It was a defiance of the king's directive, and could 
have meant death. This was a test of faith. Could you do this? The Jewish young
men were in better condition at the completion of this test, and thus found favor
with the king. This period of captivity was a major part of God's long range plan
to offer salvation to mankind, while at the same time starting the clock to measure
days until the rapture and end time. There is actually not one whit of reason to
try and arrive at a specific date for the "end" because Christ tells us in Matt. 24:36,
"But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My
Father only." Makes you wonder why all these biblical scholars and "teachers" try
to predict a day, doesn't it? In the New Testament, Christ tells us to look at the
conditions in the world to get an idea of the end times. If He doesn't know, how can
we even think we can figure out the answer?

    Now God's plan to bring the king into an understanding that God rules the world
and our universe continues. We come to the first test of God's ability to solve a
life or death problem with a miracle. This is the actual beginning of the king's
religious education. Nebuchadnezzar had a dream that none of his wise men or
magicians could solve. The king made it impossible for them because he wouldn't
disclose the dream, and wanted both the dream and interpretation. This they could
not do. When they tell the king (Dan. 2:11) "It is a difficult thing that the king requests,
and there is no other who can tell it to the king except the gods, whose dwelling is
not with flesh." The king was infuriated and decreed that all wise men and magicians
should be slain. This group now included Daniel and his three friends. I pray you are
following along with me by reading scripture as we proceed. This is where  the king
gets his first understanding that the God of the Jews is the supreme being and
the God in Heaven.

    It wasn't any easier for God to convince Nebuchadnezzar that the Jewish God is
the supreme being than it is today, even with professing Christians. I have heard some
good teachers and pastors say the days of miracles and visions has ended. That is not
true, and neither has the day of prophecy ended. If you look at prophecy, you will see
that the prophets usually had bad news for the people because of their conduct. The
exception was the forecast of Christ's birth. I know of churches where people are giving
prophecies every week. God does not mass produce prophecies, and this is another
example of Satan being allowed into worship. I have also had teachers tell me nobody
has visions any more. I direct you to Acts 2:17, "And it shall come to pass in the last
days, says God, That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your
daughters shall prophecy; Your young men shall see visions, Your old men shall
dream dreams." If you want more of a guarantee, check out 2 Cor. 12:1, and Joel 2:28.
God does not make isolated statements. This is why I warn you not to accept single
verses of scripture from anyone who has a personal agenda. Always ask for other
scripture to back up the isolated claim.

    Daniel is the key person in God's plan for the future of earth, and he is given the
dream and interpretation after telling the king nobody has to be slain (Dan 2:14-19).
I'm going to quote Daniels' prayer of Thanksgiving here, even though it takes up
quite a bit of space. When we seek answers and receive them, we need to give
proper thanks. (Dan. 2:20-23) "Daniel answered and said: 'Blessed be the name
of God forever and ever, For wisdom and might are His, and He changes the times
and the seasons; He removes kings and raises up kings; He gives wisdom to the
wise And knowledge to those who have understanding. He reveals deep and secret
things; He knows what is in the darkness, And light dwells with Him.'" The key of this
prayer for you is "knowledge to those who have understanding". My messages on
"Understanding" may be helpful to you.

    Now to this dream, which is the foundation of all prophecy. It is interesting to note
that all except the last part of the dream has become history. The last part, however,
is God's way of telling us something without us really understanding what He is saying.
This dream, plus the Words of Christ and the Apostles in the New Testament complete
prophecy. Consider the chaos if we did understand this prophecy down to the day and
hour. The period between now and then is our time to prepare and answer to His
directions. We need to study because we face His judgment and will either fail or
pass. For those who don't pass this test--and this is for Christians because we know
the unsaved can't be marked "pass"--there will be extra homework during the tribulation.

    Nebuchadnezzar's dream was of an image. The head was of gold and represented
the "king of kings", a king with the greatest empire on earth. (Follow along with your bible
as we go through Dan. 2:31-45). This was Nebuchadnezzar. His kingdom would be
followed by another great kingdom, represented by chest and arms of silver. This referred
to the Media-Persian Empire, which was similar in size to Babylon, but was not governed
as smoothly. As Daniel tells the king about his dream, Daniel is careful to make certain
the interpretation comes from the God in Heaven, not Daniel or man. The second great
kingdom is followed by a third, represented by belly and thighs of bronze. This was the
era of world control by Greece. The fourth great kingdom is represented by legs of iron,
and feet partly of iron and partly of clay. Note that the first three metals are considered for
their value, Iron is measured by its strength, and clay, fashioned into objects, also may
be measured by strength.

    We next see a stone cut out without hands which strikes the feet of iron and clay,
breaking them into pieces. Then the iron, clay, bronze, silver and gold are crushed
together and become like chaff from the threshing floor, and the wind carries them
away. No further trace of them is found, and the stone that broke the image becomes
a great mountain and fills the whole earth. It is not difficult to understand that the stone
that destroyed the image is Jesus Christ, and the mountain that fills the entire earth is
Christ's kingdom. The problem biblical scholars have had is understanding the full
meaning of the feet and toes. There has been much speculation, but that's all it is--
speculation. The toes could represent former nations of the Holy Roman Empire,
but that at best is only a guess. God intends to keep the final details His secret.

    The important thing to remember from this dream is that the king finally gets an
understanding of the supreme power of the God in Heaven. This is the completion
of the first step in bringing the entire world the Word of God. This is also a major
step ti bringing all of Babylon under the leadership of Daniel and his three friends.
The king is so impressed, the Jewish boys are given control of government. Note
this is the second time God has used a Jewish boy to preserve people--Joseph was
the dream interpreter in Egypt. I could give examples of God's use of dreams and
visions apart from scripture, but this would be of little value. You already are either
interested in these spiritual happenings or you don't believe in them. There have
always been fakes, and there are many, many fakes and apostates today. One of my
messages titled "How Do You Know" deals with your relationship with the Holy Spirit.

    Dreams and visions are alive today--refer to the scripture quoted herein. Scripture
is not hit or miss. It is forever. I still hear leaders and church people lamenting they lost
the election and we are doomed. I gave God's direction about submitting to government
from Romans 13 in the New Testament, and now we'll see the same directive in Daniel,
4:17. It is the God in Heaven who rules and places His choice at the head of nations
and governments. Until people understand and accept God's directive, they will continue
to bring judgment on us. We are told in both the Old and New Testaments, mankind is
stubborn and selfish for his own ways. In the next message we'll see another test and
perhaps discover another way God gives us answers.

Rev. Walbear