Daniel and Zechariah Volume 1, week 6

Week 6: The Victory of the Overcomers 

 

Praise the Lord. Now we are at the last week for Crystallisation-Study of the book of Daniel. May all the lessons be helpful for your spiritual growth. May God sanctify us, so that we will be like Daniel and his companions, the overcomers who knew God's heart and dedicated themselves for His economy. 

 

There are 2 sections this weeks. Firstly, we are told to be the shining stars, like our Lord Jesus is. Secondly, we will learn from a victorious story of Daniel and his companions. 

 

 

We are to be shining stars 

 

Last week, the weather in Cardiff was so wonderful. On the way back from the meetings with brothers and sisters, I really enjoyed looking up to the clear sky. There were plenty of beautiful shining stars in it. What a wonderful picture I saw.  

 

And guess what! God calls us to be as beautiful as those stars. Specifically, God desires us to be like our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the Bright Morning Star. 

 

Those who are wise shall shine Like the brightness of the firmament, And those who turn many to righteousness Like the stars forever and ever. (Daniel 12:3 NKJV) 

 

I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things in the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star. (Revelation 22:16 NKJV) 

 

Yes, Jesus is the Star that was prophesied to come out of Jacob. (Numbers 24:17) And we, as His body, are called to be the duplication of the heavenly Christ as the living Star. And the job description of the stars is to shine so that many people will turn to righteousness, that is to lead them to the Way, our Lord Jesus (John 14:6). 

 

And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts (2 Peter 1:19 NKJV) 

 

The apostle Peter clearly tells us that this world is a dark place. That is why God needs His people to shine.  

 

This world is so dark. Because of God's love, Jesus, the One who created all things, became a Man to be the Light shining in this world. But sadly, the world did not comprehend this light. 

 

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. (John 1:1-4 NKJV) 

 

I like what Dr. Kenneth Boa once taught in his MP3 teaching on the book of John. He called this symptom of light phobia as "cockroach syndrome." It is a clear imagery for a Thai guy like me, because there are plenty of this tiny undesirable animal everywhere in Thailand. When I turned the light off, they would come out from everywhere, and would run happily on the floor. But whenever I turned the light on, they would run away, because they feared light. At worst, they would even climb my legs or fly toward me. What a terrifying story! 

 

Jesus is the Light of the world (John 8:12). But the world did not receive Him. Likewise, when we become the light of the world as He commands us to be (Matthew 5:14), we may be rejected or persecuted. Only the elects whose hearts have been quickened by the Holy Spirit will respond to this light. May we not lose heart. Just shine. Perhaps those whom we shine to may come to the true Source of Light, our Lord Jesus, and be saved. 

 

And how can we become shining stars? I want to confirm that God has never asked us to do what He has not already provided the things we need to accomplish it. God calls us to be stars, and He has already provided us the necessary things: the Bible (the prophetic word) and the Spirit. We need them both. The Bible is not enough. We also need the Holy Spirit, whom is given unto us by the last Adam (Jesus Christ) as the life-giving Spirit (1 Corinthians 15:45), to lead us. As the apostle Paul says, "the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life." (2 Corinthians 3:6 NKJV) 

 

May I mention a little bit about the Greek words for "the word." The constant word written in the Scripture is "logos." Yes, logos is important, and we should meditate it regularly. But Logos alone is not enough. We also need "rhema," which is the instant word applied to the situation we are facing. That is why we need the Author of the logos, the Holy Spirit, to guide us as to how to apply the logos, changing it to be rhema, in our daily living. This rhema is what Jesus says we are to live by it. 

 

"Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word (rhema) that proceeds from the mouth of God." (Mathew 4:4 NKJV) 

 

Now, when we have both the Bible and the Spirit with us, what are we waiting for? Let's shine today! 

 

 

Some lessons from Daniel and his companions 

 

I'm sure most brothers and sisters who grew up in the church are so familiar with the stories in Daniel chapters 1-6. These are the stories of the overcomers, who were absolutely one with God in their victory over Satan's devices. May I pick up only one of them, the victory of Daniel's companions over the seduction of idol worship in Daniel 3. 

 

Daniel 3 tells us a story about Daniel's companions who denied to worship idol that the king Nebuchadnezzar set up. As a result, they were arrested. And the punishment was to be thrown into a blazing furnace. 

 

Their reply to the king is really impressive for me. They told the king that, "Our God can help us. Even if He will not help us, we will never worship your idol anyway." (paraphrased) Wow, what a spirit of martyrdom they have. This make me think, "If I were they, would I have enough faith to say like that?"  

 

If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up. (Daniel 3:17-18 NKJV) 

 

Reasonably, the king was very furious, and commanded that the furnace was heated seven times more. They were bound and thrown into the furnace. The fire was so strong that it killed the men who took Daniel's friends to the furnace. 

 

Praise the Lord. The Lord protected them. The king was so amazed to 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." (Daniel 3:25 NKJV) Yes, the excellent Christ Himself as the Son of Man came to His overcomers. Moreover, He transformed the bad situation to be a pleasant place to walk about! 

 

As believers, we are not immune to troubles or difficulties. Especially when we are the overcomers, we are likely to be persecuted in some way. The Lord says that surely we will have tribulation. But He also assures that we can have peace, because He has already overcome the world. 

 

These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world. (John 16:32-33 NKJV) 

 

And the story comforts me that even though God may not deliver me from the difficulties I face, He will transform the situations to be a pleasant place to walk about!  

 

The Lord is with us and in us. We can have peace and joy all the time, regardless of the circumstances. Why? Because we have Him and can enjoy Him all the time. 

 

Reference 

• The Holy Word for Morning Revival: Crystallisation Study of Daniel and Zechariah Volume 1, week 6. 
• Footnote of Matthew 4:4, Recovery Version. 

 

Thirayost Nimmanon 

 

Daniel and Zechariah Volume 1, week 5

Week 5: The Vision of God and His Universal Dominion of the Coming of the Son of Man to Receive a Kingdom and the Necessity of Spiritual Warfare to Bring In the Kingdom of God 

 

Last 2 weeks, we learned a lot about earthly kingdoms and the coming of Jesus to completely destroy them. This week, the scene moves to what is going to happen afterwards - God's universal dominion, and the coming of Christ as the Son of Man to receive dominion and kingdom. 

 

Vision of God's universal dominion and of the coming of the Son of Man to receive a kingdom

 

The vision that Daniel saw in Daniel 7:9-10 shows us how glorious and majestic the judgment day would be. 

 

I watched till thrones were put in place, And the Ancient of Days was seated; His garment was white as snow, And the hair of His head was like pure wool. His throne was a fiery flame, Its wheels a burning fire; A fiery stream issued And came forth from before Him. A thousand thousands ministered to Him; Ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him. The court was seated, And the books were opened. (Daniel 7:9-10 NKJV) 

 

God will judge justly. He is absolutely righteous, and He knows everything. No lawyer will be needed. No appeal will be necessary. I don't know how that can be, but I'm sure that no one will be able to say that God's judgment is not fair. Everyone will accept the judgment. 

 

Yes, our God is the God of grace. But in the same time, He is also the God of righteousness. The bible says that our God is a "consuming fire" (Hebrews 12:29), signifying His absolute righteousness. 

 

The books here echo what the apostle John explained in the book of revelation. 

 

And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. (Revelations 22:10 NKJV) 

 

Praise be to our Lord Jesus Christ. While we were sinners and His enemies, He died for us all. And now, we have been adopted to be His children since we received Him and believed in His name. (John 1:12) Our names have been recorded in the book of life already. We need not to fear the judgment at all, because of the Lord's wonderful promise that, "whoever believes in Him (Jesus) should not perish but have everlasting life." (John 3:16 NKJV) and "There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit."  (Romans 8:1 NKJV) 

 

Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!  O what a foretaste of glory divine!  Heir of salvation, purchase of God,  born of his Spirit, washed in his blood. (Fanny J. Crosby, hymn "Blessed Assurance") 

 

Let's sing together: 

 

This is my story, this is my song,  praising my Savior all the day long;  this is my story, this is my song,  praising my Savior all the day long.  (Fanny J. Crosby, hymn "Blessed Assurance") 

 

The next scene that we are going to be amazed at is the coming of Christ as the Son of Man. 

 

I was watching in the night visions, And behold, One like the Son of Man, Coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, And they brought Him near before Him.  Then 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 the one Which shall not be destroyed. (Daniel 7:13-14 NKJV) 

 

Obviously, the Son of Man signifies our Lord Jesus. This is the favourite title that Jesus used for Himself. He used it 88 times in the New Testament. With humility, He identified Himself with us. He died at the cross, resurrected, and ascended to heaven. His work of redemption then was accomplished. Now He is before the throne of God to receive dominion and glory and kingdom. His dominion shall never end or pass away, and His kingdom shall never be destroyed. Christ is coming back to destroy the entire human governments, and rule over the entire world. 

 

One interesting point I got from the message is that the church is truly mysterious. No one throughout the history since the world was created ever knew about it, until it was revealed in the New Testament through the apostles. The age of church, or the age of mystery, was not mentioned at all in any vision that Daniel saw.  

 

To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ,  and to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God who created all things through Jesus Christ; to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places, according to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through faith in Him. (Ephesians 3:8-12 NKJV) 

 

The church is no little thing. It manifests the wisdom of God. It is created according to the eternal purpose that He accomplished in our Lord Jesus Christ. It is so wonderful that we can come to enjoy the church life. We are a part of His body. We are a part of the fellowship of the mystery! 

 

 

The necessity of spiritual warfare to bring in the kingdom of God 

 

Next, the messages move to another important issue: spiritual warfare. There are many things happening behind the scene that we cannot see with our eyes, but they are real. This war is so active that we should not ignore. 

 

In Daniel 10:12-13, we can see clearly how active the spiritual warfare is. 

 

Then he [the angelic messenger] said to me, "Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; and behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia." (Daniel 10:12-13 NKJV) 

  

While we are serving the Lord, we are not dealing with the things we see. We are fighting with the power of darkness behind them. That is why it is necessary to pray.  

 

The church is called to engage in this spiritual warfare. It is our big responsibility to continue the warfare that Christ fought on earth. "The church, as the body of Christ, is His propagation, continuing His stand and work to fight against God's enemy."  (The Collected Works of Watchman Nee, vol. 44, p. 777)  And the more we realise the importance of this warfare, the more we will pray. We need to pray ourselves into God, by praying as the Lord teaches us. 

 

Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. (Matthew 6:9-10 NJKV) 

 

Prayer is so important because the kingdom cannot come if the church do not pray. And "genuine prayer is a joint labour with God to bring His kingdom to the earth and to carry out His will on earth; hence, prayer is nothing less than a spiritual battle. Prayer overturns the power of darkness and opens the way for God's will to be executed on earth." (The Collected Works of Watchman Nee, vol. 44, p. 781)  

 

Some people may be fearful when they hear about the spiritual warfare. But I would like to encourage you all that we don't have to fear. We know exactly that God is much greater than Satan. And He, the Triune God, is in us.   

 

One has said that Satan is not a rival of God. Why? Because he is just a rival of the archangel Michael. Moreover, he will be defeated even by the archangel Michael.  

 

And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. (Revelations 12:7-9 NKJV) 

 

God in us is much greater than Satan! So why should we fear him? Praise the Lord! 

 

Reference 

• The Holy Word for Morning Revival: Crystallisation Study of Daniel and Zechariah Volume 1, week 5. 

 

Thirayost Nimmanon