Sep 04, 2022 |Still

Go On Your Way

09.04.22 | Still

Go On Your Way

Noel Heikkinen

Daniel 11-12

The end times written about in Scripture can be weird and crazy to read. How do you think about end times prophecy? Pastor Noel Jesse Heikkinen reminds us that we believe in a God that knows what is going to happen, is in control, and lives within us. Our God has been, is, and will be the greatest strength in our lives; we can rest in Him. We can be still because God still is.

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“Daniel, you are a man treasured by God. Understand the words that I’m saying to you. Stand on your feet, for I have now been sent to you.” After he said this to me, I stood trembling. “Don’t be afraid, Daniel,” he said to me, “for from the first day that you purposed to understand and to humble yourself before your God, your prayers were heard. I have come because of your prayers.

Daniel 10:10-12
 

“But the prince of the kingdom of Persia opposed me for twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me after I had been left there with the kings of Persia. Now I have come to help you understand what will happen to your people in the last days, for the vision refers to those days.”

Daniel 10:13-14
 

While he was saying these words to me, I turned my face toward the ground and was speechless. Suddenly one with human likeness touched my lips. I opened my mouth and said to the one standing in front of me, “My lord, because of the vision, anguish overwhelms me and I am powerless. How can someone like me, your servant, speak with someone like you, my lord? Now I have no strength, and there is no breath in me.”

Daniel 10:15-17
 

Then the one with a human appearance touched me again and strengthened me. He said, “Don’t be afraid, you who are treasured by God. Peace to you; be very strong!” As he spoke to me, I was strengthened and said, “Let my lord speak, for you have strengthened me.”

Daniel 10:18-19
 

Now I will tell you the truth. “Three more kings will arise in Persia, and the fourth will be far richer than the others. By the power he gains through his riches, he will stir up everyone against the kingdom of Greece. Then a warrior king will arise; he will rule a vast realm and do whatever he wants. But as soon as he is established, his kingdom will be broken up and divided to the four winds of heaven, but not to his descendants; it will not be the same kingdom that he ruled, because his kingdom will be uprooted and will go to others besides them. “The king of the South will grow powerful, but one of his commanders will grow more powerful and will rule a kingdom greater than his. After some years they will form an alliance, and the daughter of the king of the South will go to the king of the North to seal the agreement. She will not retain power, and his strength will not endure. She will be given up, together with her entourage, her father, and the one who supported her during those times. In the place of the king of the South, one from her family will rise up, come against the army, and enter the fortress of the king of the North. He will take action against them and triumph. He will take even their gods captive to Egypt, with their metal images and their precious articles of silver and gold. For some years he will stay away from the king of the North

Daniel 11:2-8
 

  • 535-534BC – Daniel receives vision
  • 530BC – Cambyses becomes king
  • 522 – Pseudo-Smerdis becomes king
  • 521 – Darius | Hystaspes
  • Xerxes
  • 334-330 – Alexander the Great conquered Asia Minor, Syria, Egypt, Medo-Persian
  • 323 – Alexander the Great dies
  • Seleucus | Nicator
  • 304 – Ptolemy Soter becomes king of Egypt
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    Some of those who have insight will fall so that they may be refined, purified, and cleansed until the time of the end, for it will still come at the appointed time.

    Daniel 11:35
     

    “Then the king will do whatever he wants. He will exalt and magnify himself above every god, and he will say outrageous things against the God of gods. He will be successful until the time of wrath is completed, because what has been decreed will be accomplished.”

    Daniel 11:36
     

    “At the time of the end, the king of the South will engage him in battle, but the king of the North will storm against him with chariots, horsemen, and many ships. He will invade countries and sweep through them like a flood.”

    Daniel 11:40
     

    “This is what he said: ‘The fourth beast will be a fourth kingdom on the earth, different from all the other kingdoms. It will devour the whole earth, trample it down, and crush it.”

    Daniel 7:23
     

    But reports from the east and the north will terrify him, and he will go out with great fury to annihilate and completely destroy many. He will pitch his royal tents between the sea and the beautiful holy mountain, but he will meet his end with no one to help him.

    Daniel 11:44-45
     

    At that time Michael, the great prince who stands watch over your people, will rise up. There will be a time of distress such as never has occurred since nations came into being until that time. But at that time all your people who are found written in the book will escape. Many who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake, some to eternal life, and some to disgrace and eternal contempt.

    Daniel 12:1-2
     

    Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him: We ask you, brothers and sisters, not to be easily upset or troubled, either by a prophecy or by a message or by a letter supposedly from us, alleging that the day of the Lord has come. Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way. For that day will not come unless the apostasy comes first and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. He opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he sits in God’s temple, proclaiming that he himself is God.

    2 Thessalonians 2:1-4
     

    For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work, but the one now restraining will do so until he is out of the way

    2 Thessalonians 2:7
     

    but every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming; even now it is already in the world.

    1 John 4:3
     

    I heard but did not understand. So I asked, “My lord, what will be the outcome of these things?”

    Daniel 12:8
     

    He said, “Go on your way, Daniel, for the words are secret and sealed until the time of the end. Many will be purified, cleansed, and refined, but the wicked will act wickedly; none of the wicked will understand, but those who have insight will understand.

    Daniel 12:9-10
     

    1. What are some core beliefs of the Christian faith that seem “bananas” to you? How do you handle the questions and doubts you may naturally have about some of the supernatural truths of the Bible?
    2. Read Daniel 11:2-8. Does it surprise you to find out that each part of this section of Daniel’s prophecy has already been exactly manifested in world history? Why does this matter?
    3. From the book of Daniel, what realities (good & bad) do we know for certain about the future? Take some time to give thanks for the glorious eternal future that awaits those who trust in Jesus. Then, read II Thessalonians 2:1-4, and be reminded that it’s not wise to be too anxious or upset about some of the trials and troubles we know are coming.
    4. Consider our theme for this series: “Kingdoms rise, then they fall, but God’s character and power remain the same.” What difference does this make in our lives today? What has been the overall impact of our study of Daniel in your life?

    Youth