Sermon Tone Analysis

Daniel and his friends experienced a forced adventure when they were taken away to Babylon.

And every choice they made led to a specific consequence.

However, these men made choices based on their faith in God, and God blessed and preserved His faithful ones in a dangerous foreign land.

Today we have the same opportunity to decide to follow God and trust Him.

The vision in chapter 7 reveals the end of the story in which God wins.

And all who choose to follow Him may find the encouragement to remain faithful even when it means that they will suffer.

It is better to choose God’s way because He will divinely judge evil and cycles of oppression through Jesus Christ, our Savior.

We know how the story ends; therefore, we can confidently choose to remain with God.

A Different Kind of Story

We know the difference between a love letter and a medical report and that each is to be read differently.

You will quickly notice that Daniel 7 is different from the previous chapters.

The Bible contains different kinds of literature or writing styles.

The rest of the book of Daniel contains sections that fit within the Apocalyptic genre.

This style is different from the straightforward storytelling and legal decrees we have seen so far in Daniel.

Apocalyptic writing contains these characteristics:

Symbols and unreal creatures

Radical changes and tumultuous events

A dramatic climactic ending that is not pessimistic but full of joy and optimism

This style of literature typically seeks to communicate a big picture of what God is doing so that His people will remain faithful and confident.

Other examples of this type of writing are sections of Ezekiel and the book of Revelation.

The Challenge of Symbols

Apocalyptic writings often use symbolic language.

Because we are removed culturally and historically from the ancient world, we will have to work harder to capture the impact of the symbols.

The ancient people would have more easily recognized them.

Before we begin, let me offer some helpful advice.

Be careful not to get stuck in identifying every detail as if we were trying to decode a hidden message.

Be cautious about holding an interpretation of the symbols lightly.

Some people can be obsessed with insistence on the identity of the symbols.

Instead, we should focus on the bigger story and goal of apocalyptic writing, that God wins.

Recognize that the dramatic descriptions are meant to draw our attention to the great victory that comes from God alone.

His victory is a warning to those who choose to rebel and a blessed comfort those who trust.

We will look at the three concepts in Daniel’s vision: The Beasts, The Heavenly Court, and the Dominion of the Son of Man.

Three Parts of the Vision

Daniel describes four beasts that appear like animals but are deformations that represent corruption and rebellion toward God.

They arise out of the sea (a poetic, symbolic location in opposition to God, Psalm 18:15).

But the fourth beast is the most dramatic and destructive.

It has iron teeth symbolizing strength in devouring others.

And it has ten horns.

( Horns typically describe honor, godly or ungodly (1 Samuel 2:1) But there appears an eleventh little horn that turns out to be quite different.

This horn represents prideful rebellion against God.

Daniel’s vision then changes to a heavenly courtroom scene.

Seated in the place of judicial authority is the Ancient of Days which we should easily identify as God.

This title reminds us that God is eternal, in comparison to the temporary beasts, and He is full of wisdom and ready to release his fire of judgment.

The fourth beast and others are killed, but the little horn remains in rebellion for a time.

Daniel then sees the clouds reveal a son of man.

This term describes a unique person that has a human nature but receives dominion, glory, and the kingdom.

And all people will serve the King who inherits an everlasting kingdom.

Interpreting the Vision

We may find it odd that Daniel, who had a reputation for interpreting dreams, cannot fully understand this vision.

Thankfully an angelic type character enlightens Daniel.

But as Daniel hears the interpretation, a troubling element is added.

The little horn will make war against the saints of the Most High for a time.

But the heavenly court will judge this little horn, and the saints will receive the everlasting kingdom and serve God.

We should first recognize that this vision sounds a lot like the dream given to Nebuchadnezzar concerning the statue in Daniel 2. In that dream, we are told that the sections are kingdoms, and likewise, we are told that the beasts are four kings or kingdoms, but which ones are they?

Like before, we are not given their identities, neither are we told who the rebellious and deadly little horn is.

So what are we to make of the identity of the creatures?

I recommend that we tread carefully in taking a position in which we use to create divisions within Christianity.

Unfortunately, this already occurs, but let’s be brave and humble enough to admit that our best efforts on determining the identity may be wrong.

We will have to wait and see.

But we do know the identity of the main character and the big story.

Jesus is the Son of Man

We ought to recognize that although we may not assuredly know the identity of the various creatures, we do know the identity of Ancient of Days and Son of Man.

As previously stated, God is the Ancient of Days and the Most High.

Daniel and those who read this vision could only speculate and anticipate who the son of man would be.

But because we live after the incarnation and revelation of Jesus Christ, we can assuredly identify this as Jesus.

Let’s look at a section from the gospel.

Jesus uses this description of himself at least 30 times in the gospel of Matthew.

This title and description were more than a way to identify that he was human.

It was a way to point to the special priority He had in God’s plan concerning the Kingdom of God.

When Jesus used this, He called back to the description found in Daniel, thus identifying himself as the one who would receive the kingdom as the Christ, the Messiah.

How does the Son of Man receive the kingdom?

Jesus does this through the cross.

The cross is the pivotal point of God’s plan.

It is the thing that moves the battle from a seeming loss into a solid victory.

The death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus give us new life and bring us into a relationship with God.

Jesus is the one who brings victory.

But just like Daniel, we also await a future victory preceded by temporary suffering.

Comfort for the Suffering Saints

It may bother us to see that the little horn wages war against the saints of the Most High.

They suffer unjustly under the hands of evil people.

But as we learned last week, God may allow us to experience the challenge of suffering for our decision to place our trust in Him and obey.

This is what we see in the lives of those in this vision.

But God promises that whatever amount or level of suffering that they endure, it will be temporary.

It may even appear that they have lost and are fools for trusting in God, but the story is not over.

All who place their faith in God have the promise that we may suffer for a time, but God will overturn it.

And the victory is not won with politics, wealth, or military power.

God will supernaturally bring it all to an end.

God gave Daniel this vision during the reign of King Belshazzar, who exalted himself against God in chapter 5. His pride lasted for a time before God judged him, so too will any who place themselves as enemies of God.

They will receive their consequence.

And those who suffer under the hands of these sinful leaders find hope because God will vindicate his faithful ones and judge their oppressors.

Choose Your Own Adventure

What is your vision of God?

When we read the scripture, we may feel great inspiration.

But when we see our problems and troubles, we may quickly forget that God is greater.

We may not have the oppression of evil tyrants weighing down on us.

But some of us are overwhelmed by the heavy emotional weight of the day.

If we look to the news, we will find liars and a host of people trying to make sense of the problems by offering a solution that does not depend upon God.

It may seem that we can only sink deeper into doubt, depression, and discouragement.

But here is where we need to encourage ourselves with the Word of God.

We need to remind ourselves of the vision that says, "God is still in control!"