Episode 33: 1-3 John, Esther, and Daniel

Pastor Rodney and Pastor Christian unpack 1–3 John, Esther, and Daniel, highlighting the call to discern truth, walk in real faith, and stay faithful in a compromised culture. From confronting false teaching to trusting God in exile, this episode reminds us that God is always in control even when He feels silent.

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:10

Well, good day, everybody. I'm so glad that you have chosen to click in, check in with us here at North Bible Recap. And each and every week it is a wonderful opportunity and privilege for me and today it's Christian and uh to sit down and to be able to talk and to be able to share some things from God's Word that He's speaking to us and hopefully it encourages you. Christian, how about you?

SPEAKER_00 0:30

I'm excited to be here and opening the Word of God and going through some amazing books. We're gonna cover a lot of ground today. Uh, one thing I want to encourage you, this is a great supplement to our scripture reading plan. So make sure that you are doing the reading. If you don't do the reading, you can learn, still can learn a lot. But when you combine those two, you're gonna see the word of God differently.

SPEAKER_01 0:52

Yeah, and and I I love how you always say this is a supplement, this is not your source of food. And so, and that's very important because I remember one time I was talking to somebody, I said, Yeah, the Bible says this, and they started telling me what the Bible says, and I'm like, and I know that's the commentary. They're reading, they're reading to me the commentary about the scripture, yeah. And I'm like, and the commentary is great. What we're doing is giving commentary, yep, uh, and which is wonderful and awesome, and hopefully it supplements, it adds to, it layers upon what you're already getting. But it is not to take the place of your personal opening the word of God, reading what God and asking the Holy Spirit to speak to you, and and then also talking to others about it. Yes, yes, yes. So let's we're gonna we're gonna dive into uh the books one, two, and three, John, first, second, third John, and then we're gonna go Esther and we're gonna wrap up that from chapters five through 10. Uh, then we're gonna begin to bite off it. I'm praying for you on this one because uh it is the big one. Obviously, we cannot cover everything, but we're gonna cover some basic highlights, and uh, and that's the book of Daniel. And so we'll jump in the first about 12 chapters of that. Um, and then we'll look at Psalms, and that will be chapters 60 and 61 today. Okay, no Proverbs this week again.

SPEAKER_00 2:10

So um first, second, and third John. So these are three letters that uh John writes to the churches in Asia Minor. Uh, they are traditionally attributed to John the apostle, so he was the one that also wrote the gospel of John and also Revelations or Apocalypsis. There's been some uh the actually I don't know if in sp in the in the English Bible it says apocalypsis. In the Spanish Bible, it's either revelation or apocalypsis.

SPEAKER_01 2:40

It doesn't specifically say that in the well, the English Bibles that I've seen, but it that's what it means. Yeah, and so yeah. So another thing too is sometimes you hear us say and we'll revelations, it's actually revelation. Yeah, one revelation. Remember dad, when I first started preaching, I would say revelations a lot. Dad would always correct me. So, son, it's one revelation with a whole lot of story to it, but it's one revelation.

SPEAKER_00 3:03

So he was an eyewitness of Jesus. Um, and now this is very important for us, and and you will read it as you're doing the reading. Uh, you are gonna see this, that he is making sure that the lit the the hearers of this letter understand that he have heard, seen, and touch Jesus. Uh, part of this is because uh there is this group of people who are saying that Jesus wasn't real, that he actually that they that he didn't have a body like you and I. So this is why in the first the first verse it says, that which was from the beginning, and this is connection to even the book of Genesis, which we have heard. So you hear that we have heard, which we have seen with our own eyes, and which we have looked upon and have touched with our own hands concerning the word of life. So in the very first chapter and first verse, John is writing about that. This Jesus that we're talking about was real. We heard him, we've seen him, and we even touched him. So, very important for this are very important clues for us to understand why uh John is writing this. So it was written this letters uh in between 85 and 95 AD. So this is very, very late in his life. Um and the audience uh was uh uh house churches in the Ephesus area, so Asia Minor, probably in the book of Revelation, uh when when when um he's writing to the churches and give a specific area, it could have been this churches that he's also uh writing to. Uh so the there is a mixed group between Jewish and Gentile believers, and with that also mature and and and newer Christians. So in this house, churches, you have people who've been a believer for many, many years, and people who have just heard about the good news of Jesus. Now, some people have left the church because people were spreading false teaching, so a lot of these letters are fighting against false teaching, and this is because of Gnosticism. Um, and it it gnosticism view the body as low and spiritual things as very, very high. So that's why many people did not care about their bodies. This is why often Paul has to write, your temple is the the uh your body is a temple uh of the Holy Spirit, meaning like your body, your physical body is important. So now this um uh idea of Gnosticism that that the body doesn't doesn't mean anything, doesn't you don't care about it? Uh they all were concerned about the spiritual things. This is why John is writing, and he says, We have seen him, we have touched him. So helping them understand that the body matters.

SPEAKER_01 6:03

Well, it's just it's just tough for people, yeah. When you when you remove from uh um a generation, or even you weren't there, it is hard to believe that somebody rose from the dead. Yep. And so then they begin to justify, well, it was his spirit being, and that's what they were saying. There's just uh what but but no, it was important. That's why Jesus has so much evidence around his physical resurrection. It was so important that people saw the nails in his hands, yep, pierced side, uh, his feet, uh, to be able to that that the Bible would record him eating, yeah, and drinking, and that hugging people, holding people. That was very important. And John is really driving that home. No, no, it's important because if if this is in question, then our resurrection later on, yeah, after this life is in question. And and we want to he wants to make sure this is not the case.

SPEAKER_00 6:55

And and understanding that it's important, like you said, for the resurrection, because without the resurrection, none of this matters. Yeah, it means nothing.

SPEAKER_01 7:03

Yeah, so that's what Paul talks about in another uh portion. Paul does, this is John we're talking about here, but he says, if if we have hope in this life only, and if it's all about now, then we're miserable. Yep, we're we're hopeless, we're helpless. We're it's it's not worth it.

SPEAKER_00 7:18

Um so John is uh writing to this problem and addressing this problem because people were denying that Jesus was fully human, and people still deny that today. Um, this is where some of the strong views uh throughout um this time. Um he's also confronting false teaching. In this letter, you see Paul, uh sorry, not Paul, John confronting this false teachers that are inside of the church. Um, he's also defining what real Christianity looks like. So it's this this whole this this this books, the themes are the true dructon, obedient living, and faithful devotion, and that God is greater than the spirit of the antichrist. So here's where we hear uh John talks about it, the spirit of the antichrist. So he's talking about yes, the spirit might have a lot of noise of the Antichrist, but guess what? Our God is bigger than the Antichrist, and that's what he is writing uh in this letter. Um, so I'm gonna kind of like cover all three of them. Uh 2 John, it's warning about supporting false teachers. Now, when you read 2nd uh John, um, which is one of the smallest letters.

SPEAKER_01 8:34

So actually, if you just a little information here is that um 2 John is the shortest Bible uh book of the Bible of all 66 by verses. But 3 John is the shortest by word count. So actually, I think uh 2 John, I'm not looking at right now, but I think it's 13 verses, and uh and then the book 3 John is 15 verses, and you gotta double check me on that. But 13 verses, 2nd John, and 3 John is 15 verses.

SPEAKER_00 9:07

There we go. Right.

SPEAKER_01 9:08

So, but 3 John is actually the shortest book in the Bible for word count.

SPEAKER_00 9:13

I think something important for us, not because a letter is short, does not mean that it's not important. Uh, I think this is a misconception that people have about the major prophets and the minor prophets. And often they think, well, the minor prophets are not as important as the major prophets because they were prophesying for a longer period of time or their prophecies uh uh matter more. No, the reality, and again, back then it was also word count. So this uh the major prophets will have a lot more chapters and verses in time that were some of us prophesying for more than 10, 20, 30 years, and some of the minor prophets not. So I just want to say that it's often when I even before I started really studying the Bible, I will say it's only one chapter. So I will read it as if it wasn't important, and I think that's something that I missed out a lot on Philemon. Pastor Sawyer was speaking on Philemon because it was one chapter. I just thought, oh, this this is just a something in there. No, they have a lot of uh things that they want to teach us now. Second John, uh, one of the issues in Second John is that people are welcoming uh these teachers that are going around preaching in these churches and they're welcoming into their house. Now, they're house churches, so this is very important, and this is why here at North Church, uh, if I suggest you, hey, we should bring Zo and so to preach. Uh, I remember what I what I told you, I think we should bring Manny Arango to preach. You had no relationship with Manny Arango, and even though you trust me, you don't know if you can bring someone that you don't have a relationship with, that you have never heard before. And I remember it was like a year or two before you actually invited him, but it wasn't until you met him, you heard what his message was about, then then you extended an invitation. The problem that is happening in 2 John is that they are saying that they come from from God and they're welcoming into their houses, and now they are bringing issues because they are teaching them things that are not truth, the things that the sound doctrine that they have heard. So in 2 John, that's the issue. They're welcoming people they should not welcome into the house. Now, 3 John is the opposite of that, because now they heard this and they don't want to welcome anybody in. And and John is writing in this third letter to let the church know, hey, you have to use wisdom, but you have to welcome this people in, uh, in into into and be hospitable to them. So that's kind of what's happening in 1 John, 2nd John, and 3rd John. A few things that I just want to highlight, and you can, Pastor, if you have anything that you want to add on to that too. Uh, but it's um 1 John uh chapter 1, verse 8 through 9. It's this section is dealing with sin, uh, and pretty much saying that we all have sin. Um, and the the thing that is important for us is like, what do we do with our sin? And John writes, we need to confess our sin. That's how you become sinless. You become sinless not by not really not sinning, because it is impossible. It's like when you do sin, what do you do? You confess, and this is why repenting and confessing is so important in our context of church. We have prayer, uh, every experience. It's an opportunity for people to repent, to confess, to to restore that, you know, the their their their spirit. Because if you sin, that doesn't mean you're out of the family of God. No, but if you continue the habit, which is what first John three, chapters eight through nine, because often I have uh I have read this and I'm like, wait, hold on. First, he said that we all have sin and we will sin, and then in third John is saying, like, wait, I'm not supposed to sin. How do I achieve this sinless life? Uh I I heard uh uh someone speaking on this, it says this is the great tension that we have to manage uh in our Christian walk because we will sin, but we cannot make a habit of our sin. When we if if if I have a continuous habit that I know is a sin, and I'm not even feel bad about it, then you I'm not walking this life how I'm supposed to. So this is my important one. He said first, when you sin, you confess. He says, But guess what? You're not gonna be able never not to be able to sin until we are in heaven. So, what is our response to it? We confess and we stop doing that, not created habit. And I think that's the issue that often uh Christians is well, I will never be able to overcome this sin. And uh that is not true. Uh, I think that I used to think that. I used to think like, oh, I'm never gonna be able to overcome lust. Well, guess what? I don't struggle with that as much as I did 10 years ago. So you can overcome those things when you confess and you bring it to light, which is that's what uh John writes about. It's coming out of from darkness into the light. Why? Because Jesus is the light.

SPEAKER_01 14:12

So good. And I love what you're talking about. You're you're talking about a progressive uh walk with Christ. You're talking about that salvation is not the end thing, uh, it is the beginning of, and that we continue to walk. So the Bible emphasizes we are saved and being saved. Yeah, we're in a process, we're in process. And I think when you're in the middle of something, it feels like I can never get out of this. And uh and then sometimes we get out of something and we're like we forget what it was like. Yeah, and so I think that um anybody who does anything worth doing, uh, it requires some hard work, intentionality, same way with our walk with Christ. Yep. Uh, we're not saved by our works, that is a gift of God by the works of Jesus Christ and what he paid. But when we walk in that salvation, we do work hard, yeah, we do be intentional so that we are progressively growing by giving ourselves to the word of God. And then sometimes I've I've woke up in different things like, oh, I used to struggle with that, I don't struggle with that as much anymore. Yeah, just like you said, there's areas of my life that I feel like that I I don't we never have complete victory in this flesh because this flesh can always, because if that then then we begin to think that pride can enter in, and then before pride opens up an opportunity for a fall. Yep. Uh, but it's it's but it's also reminding ourselves that I am progressing, I am stronger, I am um fighting this fight right. And and I and I'm seeing victories in my life, whether it's in your mental battles with anxiousness, worry, fears, lust, yeah, judgmental spirits, uh, your language, uh, how you react to people, um, all of those things. Uh God is working if we will give ourselves. Yeah, the problem is some people don't give themselves to the process. Yeah, you have to, that's where that life of surrender to the word of God, spirit of God, every day, every day, every day.

SPEAKER_00 16:07

This is what we need the people of God in our lives because you cannot do it by yourself. No, you know, you salvation is you confess and you believe it, but you never become who God created you to be by yourself. Yeah, it's impossible. I remember when I was in in Bible school, I think it was like 18, 19 years old, and I went to one of our professors' um offices, Dr. Terry Trammell. And I still remember this day because I think I went into his office because I one, I wanted to confess, but at the same time, I feel like I wanted to feel like shame and be like, Yeah, you're wrong. You need to do these things. And he just looked at me. I still remember this moment. I'm confessing something that I thought has like, God will never want me to be a preacher after he knows these things. Because that's how we feel about our sin. Like, God doesn't want to do anything with us. And he looked at me and said, That's what you're struggling with today. He says, 10 years from now, it won't be that sin. It might be something else. Yeah, he said, But what you need is the grace of God and give you grace when when you messed up, but confessing and going to people and inviting people in that journey. And it was a key moment, I would say, in my spiritual life. Because one, I went in there because I wanted to be like, I know what I'm doing is wrong, and I need somebody to tell me that I'm wrong. And he looked at me and he was just like, in your in your walk with God, things that are a struggle today might not be a struggle 10 years from now, but 10 years from now, you're gonna have something that you're gonna be struggling uh with. So, anyways, first, second, third John, dig in, study. If you have a if you have a uh study Bible like I do, I like reading some of those commentaries to help me understand, but moving on to Esther.

SPEAKER_01 17:43

So I'm gonna touch one more thing on first, second, third John. You mentioned this, and I thought it was very well said and good. How that um there there was a point where they were letting people come in, and then there was like the backlash of like maybe they had something go wrong, maybe some minister didn't do, but then they're like, no, they wouldn't let anybody in. Yep. And it's don't don't it's kind of the whiplash thing. And I deal with churches sometimes too, like they have pastor that you know messed up or whatever, and all of a sudden we begin to set rules in that church that like it's gonna hold the hands of the new pastor so that they can't function the way that they should be able to know. It is the same way with like if you go through a divorce, you may have been hurt, but you cannot carry the whiplash from that divorce into the new marriage because then your new relationship is gonna pay the price of that. No, there has to be forgiveness, there has to be wisdom, there has to be discernment, there has to be handling your relationship the way God has intended.

SPEAKER_00 18:43

So good. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 18:45

So let's go.

SPEAKER_00 18:46

So Esther, and one of the things that I'll I'll just recommend as an extra resource, the Bible project does an incredible job giving you an overview of every book that we're talking about. Uh well, I was watching the one on Esther, and it does great explaining kind of like chapter by chapter, kind of what's going on. So, Pastor Sawyer Sawyer and you did an incredible job explaining uh the beginning of the book, a little bit of the background. So, I'm not gonna touch on that if you have not listened to that episode. I'd recommend you to go listen to that one as well. So, we're gonna be covering chapter five through chapter 10. And here is when you know Esther is preparing the banquet for the king and Haman. Uh I think I'm saying it right, Haman. Yeah, Haman. So uh and she is preparing this banquet because Haman wants to kill the Jews, especially her uncle, uh Mordecai. And uh she's preparing this prepares this uh banquet, she hosts both of them, and then um Haman is drunk, goes outside and see Mordecai, and gets even more furious because he's not bowing down to him, he's not obeying him. Uh because the Jews they they they don't do that to any human or any king except Yahweh. So Haman gets upset, builds this like stick where he wants to like hang him.

SPEAKER_01 20:08

Um and pull that 75 feet in the air. 75 in the air is gonna hang him up from that height. And and the reason behind that is he wants everybody to see all across the city from the distance, Mordecai, this Jew that he hates greatly. And so these gonna annihilate all Jews. I want to point out something about that banquet though. When she called initially, I think that she was initially planning on doing and sharing the information, but I believe that there was a check in her spirit right then that said, uh, I don't know. Does that make sense? So because she didn't, because the king, maybe she was just preparing for the next one, but I think that maybe she was going to, but then I think the Holy Spirit probably checked her and said, just like, hey, now again, I'm reading into the story, then let's let's hold off on that. Yeah, and then you will see what happens uh after that in preparation for the next banquet and how God prepares the heart of the king. I know.

SPEAKER_00 20:58

So good that you mentioned that because it's so it's so true. I like calling that reading in between the lines. It's not there, but it could have happened that way.

SPEAKER_01 21:05

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 21:05

Um, and one of the things like when he leaves the first banquet, sees Mordecai, and then he's more furious, and then that night, and he says, I want him killed like tomorrow. I want him to get him killed. Then that night the king cannot sleep. He is having uh nightmares, and he just brings one of the servants and to read from the book of uh memorable. Let me see where I have it here. Um the book of the memorable deeds, and that's when they're reading, and they tell him the story of Mordecai that saved his life, and then he goes, Oh, I forgot about Mordecai. We need to honor him, we need to celebrate that. And then the next morning, when he's thinking about how do how do we celebrate Mordecai? What do we do? How do we honor him? I guess not celebrate, but honor him. And he says, Who is out there? and Haman is waiting. Outside. He says, Oh, bring him in. Haman comes in in the room and he says, How should the kings honor someone who the king wants to honor?

SPEAKER_01 22:10

This is so great. And probably Haman is thinking about himself. In fact, the Bible says he's thinking about, Oh, he's gonna honor me. Yeah, so he like throws out what he would want.

SPEAKER_00 22:17

And it's like you should put him on the royal robes, walk him around the the the big horse, have everyone the king's horse. The king's horse, yeah. Celebrate which Heyman is Heyman thing, he's just making his like making pretty much he's making his bed. But it's like he is thinking, like, oh, what would this is my opportunity?

SPEAKER_01 22:36

People would go around shouting, Great is this man, and he was supposed to do that.

SPEAKER_00 22:41

And I mean, he tells exactly what he wants, and he gets it, and he it's not what is not for him, and he says, Okay, great, we're gonna do that for Mordecai, and you're gonna take him. So, can you imagine that? Like, yeah, so then Haman is the one taking Mordecai. And in chapter seven, there's this shift, this shift in the whole story where Mordecai first is being persecuted, and now he's elevated into this, like what Haman wants, and not Mordecai becomes. Um, and um, so then that night they have the second banquet, and that's where Queen Esther shares Haman's plan to kill all the Jews and kill him. And this does not go well for the king. And what does the king do? Same thing that he wanted to do for Mordecai, Haman, meaning everything that Haman wanted to do to Mordecai, the king said, uh, put him on the stick, hang him. And um, now here's one of the issues in this story the decree of a king could not be could not be revoked. So a king cannot say, We're going to do this, and then you know what, change my mind, we're not gonna do that. So now, even though Haman is dead, the decree still stands. So, what happens next, it's it's it's incredible. The king tells Esther and Mordecai, here's what you guys, he gives a second decree and allows the Jews to destroy anybody who tries to kill them. And that's when we have kind of like towards the end of the book, where the Esther and uh Mordecai and their family, they actually go after Mordecai's uh family, and anybody who tried to kill them, they actually killed, and then the Jews are saved and can leave in the city. Uh something that that's very um important. I as I was doing some research to understand, Pastor, and if you have a little bit more knowledge of this, uh help me here. But sometimes the word of word God is not mentioned in there, and I just I read a couple of different things. Uh, we can see the hand of God throughout the entire book, but I think I I read something that said that uh the the even the name God wasn't mentioned because Queen Esther, and then they didn't live a life that was honorable to God, they they still participated on the things of the culture and things like that. But I think the point of the story is that God is faithful to his people, no matter even how we uh act, uh, and and God showed that faithfulness, protecting the Jews, even in a foreign land. So that's kind of the book of Esther.

SPEAKER_01 25:25

No, no, that that's great. Uh so the so the book of Esther, just to kind of touch base on what you said, is that uh while God is not mentioned, the name God Yahweh is not mentioned, you see his hand guiding, uh you see them turning toward God when they when Esther calls for a fast for three days. Well, what is that about? That fast is not just we're not gonna eat food, it was part of that, but it was an intention of redirecting our focus upon God and saying we're gonna call to God and we're sacrificing food so that we can bring God into this equation. So God's very much there, and and it's interesting. I've I've uh purim is the name of the festival that comes out of this as we celebrate. And it is it is an amazing time. I've I've been in Israel uh multiple times whenever um um whenever Purim Purim is purim is going on, and it's in March, and you you find it actually in the text. It talks about that, and it said this should be celebrated from here on out, and it is still celebrated to this day uh by the Jewish people worldwide. Yeah, and they stop and it becomes a festival. And whenever I was there, it's kind of like they all dressed up in um costumes and um they go around and they give out gifts and treats to people and honor the take care of the poor. And it just really is neat uh to be able to experience as families that they'll many of them will take off work and it's just closed down businesses, and it is a huge festive time, which I think is really cool to still practically see how they're celebrating what happened here with the story of Esther thousands of years later.

SPEAKER_00 27:08

Yeah. So good. Those those traditions are so good, and I think that this is where it's good and important. That's why we celebrate Easter, right? It's one of our traditions, that's why we celebrate Christmas. One thing that we celebrate in the Latino community is Three Kings Day. This is January 6th, and it's a representation of the nativity scene. If you're if you probably uh see a nativity scene in a Latino house, or if you go to a different country and you see a nativity scene during Christmas, it's that representation of when the wise men follow the star and saw Jesus, they brought gold, mirror, and myrrh.

SPEAKER_01 27:43

Yeah, gold frankincense and myr. Frankincense. Sorry, yeah. I just follow those deals you don't say it in the order that I'm like, like what about that? Gold frankincense myrrh. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 27:51

So um you receive those gifts, and that's one tradition that I tell keep telling my wife. We need to keep this tradition and celebrating, and every year we forget. Because in here we don't we over there, it's like it's a holiday, so you don't work over here, it's like, oh, today was three kings A and I forgot to do something with my family. But it's important that you have those traditions, and and we see that in scripture that celebrating of those things. So that's the book of Esther.

SPEAKER_01 28:17

So in the book of Esther, just to kind of remember, um, uh still to this day, uh it's celebrated by being read aloud in synagogues, in open forums, uh with families. And so this is just something to consider. If you want to just kind of take these days and celebrate sometime next year, put it on your calendar, you can actually participate with what's happening with the Jewish people around the world. Uh it's giving of gifts to friends, uh, it is giving to the poor, an act of charity. It is a celebratory meal of gathering with friends, and just of it's meant to be a time of laughter and celebration. One thing I love about the Jewish people is that um there was a lot of mourning and fasting, but there was lots of festivals that are about just celebrating, just enjoying life.

SPEAKER_00 29:01

Good, good, good, good. Now, the book of Daniel, and this one is um there is so much in the book of Daniel. Um, so I am not even going to do justice to explain all of the things. Uh, a couple of resources for you would be watch the Bible recap. Uh sorry, not the Bible recap, the Bible project, uh, Dr. Manny Orango, the department, he has a great takes on this. Uh, if you listen to Terry Lee Cabell as well, these are good for you to hear a little bit more if you're interested in knowing.

SPEAKER_01 29:36

I would I would really encourage everybody listening to Danny, excuse me, Manny Urango's on Revelation. Oh, okay. That's where I I I grew up with a um uh with a teaching and a mindset and understanding revelation uh that um not completely wrong, but maybe misfocused in some areas. And um I really uh I think that he he does a good job and he's drawn from resources that uh I highly respect. And so I would really encourage you, Dr. Manoringo has a great, great, great thoughts on Revelation.

SPEAKER_00 30:10

So uh the book of Daniel, uh, you're gonna see uh kind of like two different things that are happening. Uh, you have a narrative, you have a story, and then you have some apocalyptic visions and things that are gonna happen in the future. Actually, uh, I'm gonna be reading to you here in chapter seven in just a moment, like where Jesus quotes Daniel, and this is key to why he is killed and crucified. So uh a little bit of an overview over Daniel. Daniel is set during the Babylonian exile. I believe this is in 2 Kings, maybe chapter 24. I think 2nd Kings or 1st King, one of the two, uh chapter 24, where you can read actually this story happening in the in the in the Kings. Um, so it is 605 BC. Uh Nabucchines II uh conquers Jerusalem. Now, this is very, very, very, very important in their Jewish history because one, they were prophesied that this was gonna happen, and 605, it's when it happened. So, this is the I believe this is sixth century, is what it's known. So, they lose their land, they lose their temple, so they are exiled from from from Jerusalem, and they lose uh their king. So, uh now this raises a question. It's like, is God still in control, even when his people are in a foreign land? And the book of Daniel answers that question. I have it here with a loud yes. You see it in this story that even though they are slaves, pretty much, they are God is still protecting and God is still in control, even in the difficulties that they that they face in there. So uh the authorship, so there is a traditional view. Uh, by traditional view, we mean like what most people accept uh as uh who is the author and is Daniel written in the sixth century. There is a critical view that this is what most scholars believe, and I just wanted to share with you. Um, but it says uh that some people believe it was written in the second century, so later, later on, and this had to do a lot with the prophecies that are written in it. Um but because Jesus quotes Daniel, it just shows us it was Daniel who wrote it, it is the prophecies of Daniel, because Jesus will not quote something that he will have not agree uh with. So uh, so um the language is very important for us to understand in the book of Daniel. So that book of Daniel is the one of the only books in the entire Bible that is written in two different languages. So you have Hebrew at chapter one, and then chapter eight through twelve, and then Aramaic in chapter two through chapter seven. Now, this is very important, and I I got this information for actually listening to the department, Manny Renko, where Pastor Manny was talking about how even on how the author wrote the book, it's showing you the plan of God for his people. That it starts in Hebrew, then because of their exile, they are it's written in Aramaic, which is the foreign language that they learn in that land, but it ends back in the Hebrew language. It's showing you the author is showing you that even on how he's writing this, he's showing you that even though you are in exile, I am gonna deliver you again. Yes, so you it's it's all those like clues that you can get uh when you understand the context of some of these books. So uh the purpose of the book is that Daniel is written, it's uh it's written to encourage God's people living in a very hostile culture. Nabucchinet, Babylon, and you probably maybe you have it, but Babylonians, I mean, they were brutal. These were people who will go to places, kill, abuse people. It was not a peaceful environment. And what the the purpose of this book is bringing the God's people hope in that culture that God is still in control, so that God is still faithful. Um, even when the culture of the culture around us um is compromised. I think this is something very important because the Bible says that we are we're part of this world, but we're not of this world. So even for us today, it gives us hope where our culture could be a mess, the world could be a mess, but we're not we're God is still in control, and we live here, but we're not from here, and that's something that we always need to remember. Uh so uh the core purpose is that God uh to stay faithful even when the pressures of the cultures are compromised. Uh, trust God even when he feels silent. I think this is something that often when we don't hear God's word, we get desperate, and then we just act like, well, if God is not gonna answer, I'm just gonna do these things. God was silent for 400 years in the Old Testament, and when God is silent, we still need to trust Him. Uh something that I uh one of the guys uh in our in my discipleship group says, you know, I treat God often as my genie bottle. But I just I just rub and I ask for what I think and what I ask. And and I think often in our in our walk with God, we do that. Which like we treat God in prayer as like this is what I need, this is what I need. And yes, God cares about your needs, uh, but God not always is gonna answer how you and I want Him to answer. So this whole book is to tell them, you know, uh trust in God even when He's silent, and remember that God rules uh even when pagan kingdoms are winning. So even sometimes we can see that the world outside outside world, uh uh countries or armies are doing things that we don't understand, and guys like all of those things can be happening, I'm still in control, and they're not only hearing this, they're actually living it. Uh uh also very important to know that um Nebuchadnezzar he doesn't take all the Israelites into Babylon, he takes like the elite ones, he takes people of status, people who who were very skillful. Uh so um he didn't bring everyone into Babylon. So uh chapter one through chapter six, this is a story narrative, and then chapter seven through chapter twelve of the visions, the apocalyptic uh visions. Um anything you want to say before I go in? I know I've talked a lot.

SPEAKER_01 36:42

No, yeah, yeah. Just just you you're you're you're you're about to dive into the stories, and which is you know, it's what most people grow up in Sunday school, those people as kids grow up hearing these stories, fantastic stories. Yep. Uh, but I just always want to remind us that these four characters specifically, Daniel, who is the author of this book, at least is what who we believe it is, by what Jesus said, and then uh Shadrach, Meshach, and Abidnego. That those four individuals become key characters. But we let me challenge young people that maybe listen to this. They were most likely taken captive, most likely parents and family members killed or left behind, and they were hauled off thousands of miles away to a foreign land as teenagers, forced to learn, uh, and maybe even younger than that, but forced to learn a new language, forced to be educated by a godless society, forced, but yet these four men are an incredible example of fortitude, of faith in God, of refusing to bow to this world. And and and now there comes incredible stories of how they held on to the while they were still having to learn a different language, still surrounded by the the gods of Babylon, which were crazy, um, they still stayed faithful to the God of Israel. And and the resolve in their stories, whether that be, you know, the Lions Dan story, whether that be, you know, um the fiery furnace story, uh, those are amazing stories. And um, but may we not forget God still calling young people who will stand the ground and hold on to faith and refuse to bow their knee to this world and to live different and not to just conform to this world but be transformed by the power of Christ Jesus. And I just love that.

SPEAKER_00 38:43

And I know that I got interrupt, but that was that just I think that you you just you touch on something very important because often we think I'm just a simple man, nothing I do really will have that big of an impact. That's why sometimes we don't speak up, that's why sometimes we don't do uh we just we just think like, well, I'm just gonna be like the culture because who am I to change my school? Who am I to change my city? Who am I? I'm glad they didn't think that way because we are reading thousands and thousands of years later of their story because they believe and trust God. Um, and it's something they they that you were just referring to too, like how they were changed into a godless society where uh Nebuchadnezzar is forcing them to worship other gods, even their names, you know. We know them as uh uh Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, right? And those were their Babylonian names because King Nebuchadnezzar changed their names because he's trying to change their identity, but their names we find them in chapter 2, verse 17, and it was Hananias, Meshael, and Azariah. I think I'm saying saying them right. Uh, maybe probably not, honestly.

SPEAKER_01 39:58

But that's as good of a guess for me. I'm I'm not gonna be the expert there, okay?

SPEAKER_00 40:03

Because those were their Hebrew names, but we know them as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, those were their Babylonian names, which it shows us like how the king just tried to strip their language, strip their identity, and he wanted them to associate themselves with the gods of Babylon. And I'm just so glad that you know, chapter three, um, we have um the golden image and the fiery furnace where they say, No, I know that's what this culture is teaching us to do, but we're not going to sit bow down to this image, and because of it, they suffer the consequences. But sometimes we think we're suffering the consequences, but really what we are experiencing is is God's protection, God's provision, and by our obedience, other people can meet God because it's not popular to obey God in our 21st century, 2026 world as Christians, and often we just don't say anything, uh, we're not loud about I I it's it's it's crazy to me how often I meet uh someone at an office and someone that I know works there. And I'm talking to it's happened to when Natalie was going into her uh one of the high high-risk appointments, uh young lady from our church was going there, uh, goes to our church as a Christian. And then when the doctor comes in, I was just telling him where I where we're going to church and say, Oh, where so and so goes to church. And he was like, Oh, I I didn't know they they went to church, right? And it's sometimes we just feel like I cannot say something because then he can affect like be bold about your faith wherever it will put you.

SPEAKER_01 41:46

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 41:47

We read this story, and because of their faith, then Nebuchadnezzar goes, everyone is gonna worship this God, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 41:54

So good. Yeah, I I love this, I love this. Uh the book of Daniel is so encouraging, so challenging, uh, so uh speaks to what God will do through you if you just obey. And I so thank you for sharing that.

SPEAKER_00 42:12

Then uh the book goes into um some of the prophecies that are happening. Now, Daniel, God gives Daniel this ability to interpret dreams to the king, and he does that. And as you read, uh, that wasn't just Daniel for being special, that was Daniel using someone who was sorry, God using Daniel, someone who was willing to obey his commands, and God wants to use you. All you what I need to do is to obey. But if we don't, if we don't obey with the little things, how are we gonna obey with the big things? So true that often people say, Well, that's not that big of a deal, but that's how you show God that He can trust you with more. It's by obeying Him and today. So one uh and and we can close after this, but chapter uh seven, I want to read this right here. Uh, this is the Son of Man is given dominion. It's kind of what the ESV Bible has it. It says this it says, I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven, there came one like a son of man. This is referring to Jesus. He says, and he came, he came to the uh came to the ancient of days, and was presented before him, and to him was given dominion and glory, and a kingdom that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed. This is what Jesus quotes in Mark chapter 14, verse 63. And when he quotes this, this is when the Pharisees. Like tore their clothes and say it calls blasphemy because they knew exactly what prophecy he was confessing that he was fulfilling in that moment, and they're like, because they didn't want to accept Jesus as their Lord as their Messiah, and Jesus is quoting that the Daniel prophesied in Daniel chapter 7. It is the one that is before you, and the high priest could not handle that before. And because of that, it's that I mean for many reasons, but because he says that is why he so hundreds of years later, that prophecy was fulfilled.

SPEAKER_01 44:38

The word of God is not boring, it's brilliant. Yes, yes, it is uh, and there is so much uh treasure in this book to unearth, but you've got to dive into it, you've got to dig. And it is a book worth giving your whole life to study, to waking up every day, and don't just use it as like, oh, I'll get my youth version verse of the day. I mean, it's better than nothing, but that's not what it's meant meant for. It's not just open your Bible and just like I'm gonna read this one psalm or this one proverb. No, give yourself um to the diligent study of the word of God and discussing it, learning about it, hearing, just like you're listening right now. You're you're giving yourself to the process of learning more, and it is so worth it.

SPEAKER_00 45:30

The rest of the book is about revelations and visions that are gonna happen, prophecies. Uh, one thing that you know, I think it goes with this, and actually with what I read and and said about, I think it was 2nd uh John, where it talks about the Antichrist, and here we see like visions and revelations of the future. Something I learned through Manny's study on revelations that I just think it was just so great. Uh, one of the things that they he said in the in the Automat platform, he said, every generation is gonna face an antichrist, it's gonna face a beast, it's gonna face something that we will even consider an antichrist. Uh it says, and every generation will have to overcome it. But it's not us, it's God is the one that is in control, and we see that you know in the book of Daniel, we see that in first, second, and third John, because the hope is God is in control. Doesn't matter what's going on, we do need to be wise. He says, But we in our world today, we might say, Well, this is the antichrist, or this is like the reality is like every generation, you know, uh, Hitler was a form of an antichrist.

SPEAKER_01 46:40

Here's the thing the devil does not know when Jesus is coming back, but he always has somebody ready.

SPEAKER_00 46:44

Yep, yep.

SPEAKER_01 46:46

Uh, for that, for that tribulation time, whatever your your belief on that, he's always having the spirit of antichrist, has always been in the world, will always be in the world. Yep. And there will come a time that there will be an antichrist. Yep. Yep. It will step up and fill that void. Yep. Um, and some people believe it's the church absence that's going to fill that void with the Antichrist. And there's a lot of they don't have time to dive into all that. There's a lot of different thoughts uh on exactly end times. And I'm I'm very careful on saying this is exactly it. Here's what I do know that I'm saying is exactly Jesus is coming again.

SPEAKER_00 47:22

Yep.

SPEAKER_01 47:23

And Jesus said, be ready. Be ready. I have some of my thoughts, and I kind of, but then sometimes I've changed my thoughts on some things my on end time theology. Uh, but but just know that everybody in Christian agrees to this one thought. Jesus said he's coming back, he will come back. It will be sudden, it'll be soon, it'll be on his own timetable, uh, or God the Father, and then we just got to be ready.

SPEAKER_00 47:51

Uh correct me if I'm wrong, and I I probably am wrong, but I feel like often I I'm not really worried about knowing where the end times are. Because I'm like, it could be tomorrow or it could be in a thousand years, but it's going to happen. Whether it happens today or it happens in a thousand years, my the end of my life is coming, and I'm supposed to live that way. So it's like I don't share the gospel because the time the end times are coming. No, I'm sharing the gospel because I might not be here tomorrow.

SPEAKER_01 48:21

Yes. And then also the people you're sharing the gospel might not be here tomorrow. Because that's what we live for. That's why the Bible says today is the day of salvation. We can only live in today. That's why our past is in our past. It needs to be given to Christ, asked for forgiveness, covered by the blood, so that He does our future we cannot live in tomorrow. That's why the Bible says, Don't worry about tomorrow because you can't control tomorrow. But in today, in this moment, let's live for Jesus. Let's share because he's coming back for each one of us. Yep. And there will be a time he comes back for the whole church, the whole church. But he's coming back for all of us at some point. Yep. And so be ready. Yeah. Excellent. Good. Okay, let's let's dive into Psalms. We only got two uh chapters in Psalms, and that's Psalm 60 and 61. I just want to, both of these Psalms are written by David, okay? Uh and again, 150 Psalms, uh chapters in the book of Psalms, and um 71 to 70, it's open for debate, uh, but uh something like that are written by David. Uh but again, all of them are influenced by David, okay. And so 60, uh just run touch base. Uh he's coming back from battle. A lot of times these songs would, I'm sure you can imagine the intensity of war. I I I used to play with my son, whatever he was a teenager and play paintball. And I don't know if that's still a thing or not, but but then it was. And and we go play, and I remember just like I get kind of like jittery playing paintball. I mean, those things would come pretty hard and sting. Yeah, they'd sting pretty good, and you just like you feel that energy I couldn't imagine in real warfare. And so David and his men were constantly uh going to war. And here they're coming back uh after having fought against a ram and also um having killed 12,000 Edomites in the valley of Salt. Um, and then it's interesting. I don't know where this maybe maybe you know this tune. It says, This is to be sung, chapter 60, uh, to the song sung to the tune of quote, Lily of the Testimony. Have you heard that song? No, maybe Crystal has. Crystal had me have to ask for Lily of the Testimony. So, whatever that was, that audience of then would know what it's it's about. Uh whether that's been lost, I'm sure it has. But anyway, to me, the last two verses, three verses are really speak to this chapter in chapter 60, and also speaks to a lot of the Psalms and also speaks to our lives. Because David is wrestling, he's being very vulnerable and honest with God. He says this in verse 10. Have you rejected us, oh God? Will you no longer march with our armies? Oh, please help us against our enemies. For all human help is useless. So he's calling God, like, where are you? Are you gonna help us? What do you know? And then human help, I can all these guys around me are they're not what I need is an answer to this. And then he says in verse number 12, with God's help, we will do mighty things. For we will trample down our foes. And I just encourage you, let that be when you're feeling frustration, when you're calling out to God, when you're like, Where is God? Was it's okay. God handles that, God invites that, but then let it turn after you spill out to God, turn and realize He's gonna make a way where there seems to be no way. That's so good. He's gonna get me through this. We're somehow gonna come through this, whether it be a financial battle, a health battle, um, whatever it is, we win in Jesus.

SPEAKER_00 52:08

You will have those battles.

SPEAKER_01 52:10

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 52:10

I think I think what is um very encouraging is like King David was is known as the greatest king of Israel, besides Jesus. And you we can read that he had this anxiety moment where he was like, Where are you, Lord? And it just shows like this is part of the journey. But because God is silent doesn't mean that he's not there present. Because you know, we we just read Joshua a couple of weeks ago, and every battle that they God gave them every place that they give it, and God will do that to you too. Things like whenever you feel because I I just heard you speaking, and I was like, Oh, how many times have I just questioned God and wonder? And God has never been unfaithful, it just doesn't happen at my speed or how I want him to do it. But I love that David, we we can read his humanity, where he's like, Where are you, Lord?

SPEAKER_01 53:04

Yeah, no, and then chapter 61. Um, the heading, I always love reading the headings because it gives like insight. Don't skip over those for the choir director, a psalm of David, to be accompanied by stringed instruments. And so every once in a while, I I don't I won't do this on the podcast, uh, but uh sometimes when I hear this, I'll kind of put these as I'm reading to song, my own song. It might not be so pretty. Uh and I've in fact actually I was with and um if the uh Freedom House ladies hear this, I was with them recently and and uh on on a Tuesday morning teaching to them, but they have a time of worship and singing, and they are just they are belting it out, they are singing to the top of their lungs. And to be honest with you, it wasn't too pretty, but at the same time, it was the most beautiful sound. Yeah, because these ladies were singing out of their pain, the hurt, their uh freedom now that they were experiencing, and it was the most beautiful thing. So I I encourage you, sometimes I will just begin to turn these into what they were initially written. Yep, yep, songs, and so but I'm gonna read, I'm gonna read this chapter and just give a couple thoughts on it. Um start at the top. Oh God, listen to my cry, hear my prayer. From the ends of the earth I cry to you for help. When my heart is overwhelmed, lead me to the towering rock of safety. For you are my safe refuge, a fortress where my enemies cannot reach me. Let me live forever in your sanctuary, safe beneath the shelter of your wings. For you have heard my vows, O God. You have given me an inheritance reserved for those who fear your name, and many years up to the life of the king. May his years span the generations. Okay, he's speaking to a future coming king at that time, who is Christ. May he reign under God's protection forever. May your unfailing love and faithfulness watch over him. Then I will sing to your name forever, as I will fulfill my vows each day. To me, it's just such a beautiful, beautiful example of what our lives should reflect. And I just I just love reading.

SPEAKER_00 55:37

I I love that you say like uh to read them as what they are intended, like they're their songs. I just kind of like just did a quick search on what are some of the songs that we sing today that are actually come straight from the songs. Uh Graves into Garden, it's from Psalm 30. Uh Do It Again, which is an elevation song from Psalm 77, O come to the altar, Psalm 51. Uh most of the popular songs we think that it is this band who are no, that's what they're doing, they're just singing the psalms. Yeah, that the song The Blessing, which we have sang many times in our church, that is actually Aaron's blessing to the God's blessing through Aaron to the children of God. So it's I don't when you said that it just kind of like, oh, I don't know the songs that we sing are actually from the Psalms.

SPEAKER_01 56:29

So good. So good. So chapter number 61 is just a crime um for refuge and stability. It is a cry out to God and just beautiful, beautiful, beautiful uh message. And I don't want time to break down the whole chapter, but just let me say kind of an overview of this is when life overwhelms you, God invites you into a higher place of security, of intimacy, and of consistent worship where he will reveal himself to you. All right. So good. Very good. Hey, thank you very much.

SPEAKER_00 57:02

Yep. Anything you want to say to our audience? I just want to remind everyone that Mother's Day is coming around the corner. Depends on what you're listening to. It if you listen to this when it comes out, we're just two weeks from from Mother's Day. Uh invite people, invite your family, invite uh people to hear the gospel. It's one of those days, especially in the United States, that it's Christmas, Easter, and Mother's Day, the three biggest uh uh easiest times to invite somebody to church.

SPEAKER_01 57:28

And again, I would just we you hear this from us. We preach from our reading plan every single weekend. Uh, students, our students do too. All across the board, we are talking. Many of our groups, not all of our groups, many of them have different topics and things, and uh the but but many of them are also uh following along our reading plan, discussing and talking. There's something beautiful about that as a church. We're all saying the same things, we're reading the same stuff, we're talking about it, and I'll be unpacking it this weekend. I will be actually covering third John. And so we're gonna look at the third book of John and we're gonna dive into it. And we'll we'll we'll kind of also grab some stuff from 1 John, 2 John 2, but 3 John. Okay? Yep. So great. Hey, look forward to seeing you next time on North Bible weekend.