Northside Church - Sydney
EXPATS Week 6: The Lions in Dan's Den
He'll listen to another great message from Northside Community Church. Hey, I remember heading up to a friend's place and we were about to go and pull into their driveway and you know in those suburban neighborhoods as you do there's a stack of kids playing out there on the driveway and up there on the letterbox was this little guy about three or four in a Spiderman outfit and he's jumping off the letterbox and I got out of the car and I turned to Kristina and I said look Kristina it's Spiderman at which point he got his shirt and he lifted it above his head and he goes no that's me Jacob. And I thought this kid gets a Christian life because what we've been learning for the past six weeks is that we have two identities Paul says that our Philippians 3 20 that our citizenship is in heaven and yet we live for this earthly life in some sense God tells us that we are Spiderman but on the other side of it underneath we're just Jacob and that brings a real tension for us guys doesn't it it gives us a real tension when we're trying to live out that identity because well which way is it am I the Spiderman or the ordinary person do I live the godly life or the earthly life do I go to the party do I not go to the party do I hang out with the union mates do I not hang out with the union mates that's been the question we've been asking for the past six weeks and part of that identity that I want us to grasp and where when we leave this series tonight is that we're not Spiderman and women but we are expats for the kingdom of God dual citizenship citizens of heaven and citizens here on earth and so in the midst of that tension we've been asking seeking to answer the question how do we live a life of faith in a predominantly unbelieving world it's a tough life as a question Christian and we've been tracking through the book of Daniel looking at his example as to how we do that and tonight we come to one of the most famous stories in all of the Bible this is pervaded culture right from artistic works in the Louvre through to Katy Perry's latest song on iTunes it's a story of Daniel in the lion's den look at everyone start to look up iTunes and download Katy Perry I'll let you find that this week we're going to look at the story of Daniel in the den of the lions from verse chapter six of Daniel chapter six verses one through two sixteen at pleased arise to a point 120 satraps to rule throughout the kingdom with three administrators over them one of whom was Daniel and the satraps were made accountable to them so the king might not suffer loss now Daniel so distinguished himself amongst the administrators in the satraps by his exceptional qualities that the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom at this the administrators in the satraps tried to find grounds for charges against Daniel and his conduct of government affairs but they were unable to do so they could find no corruption in him because he was trustworthy and neither corrupt nor negligent finally these men said we will never find any basis for charges against this man Daniel unless it's got something to do with the law of his god so the administrators in the satraps went as a group to the king and said oh king Darius lived forever the royal administrators prefects satraps advisors and governors have all agreed that the king should issue an edict and enforce the degree that anyone who prays to any god or man during the next 30 days except to you king shall be thrown into the lions den now king issued a decree and put it in writing so that it cannot be altered in accordance with the laws of the Medes and the Persians which cannot be repealed so king Darius put the decree in writing now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened towards Jerusalem and three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed giving thanks to his god just as he had done before then these men went as a group and found Daniel praying and asking god for help and so they went to the king and spoke to him about his royal decree did you not publish a decree that during the next 30 days anyone who prays to any god or man except your uo king will be thrown into the lions den and the king answered the decree stands in accordance with the laws of the Medes and the Persians which cannot be repealed then they said to the king Daniel who is one of the exiles from Judah pays no attention to your king or to the decree you put in writing he still prays three times a day and when the king heard this he was greatly distressed he was determined to rescue Daniel and made every effort until sundown to save him and then the men went as a group to the king and said to him remember O king that according to the law of the Medes and the Persians no decree or edict that the king issues can be changed so the king gave the order and they bought Daniel and threw him into the lions den and the king said to Daniel may your god whom you serve continually rescue you it's the famous story we know that as Daniel goes down in the lions den that the king eagerly awaits the response the next morning to see what has happened to Daniel and he sees that Daniel is spared and yet another example of the way that god moves in a miraculous way in this book of Daniel and so what we've been looking at specifically in this series that is in what ways to Daniel live out the prophecy of Jeremiah chapter 29 verse 7 you see in the first week of this series we didn't even read from the book of Daniel because really we're looking at the broader structure of what was happening here and and as these Jewish people were exiled in this foreign land and the arts and the government and the education and every part of their society no longer was a god driven society they were left with the choice should we stay out to ourselves or should we become part of this foreign city and when they made that decision to stay and not be part of it Jeremiah the prophet heard this and he said that's ridiculous and he prophesies and he speaks on behalf the law and he says also seek the prosperity of the city to which I've carried you into exile pray to the Lord for it because if it proppers prospers you too will prosper and so tonight what I want to do is just for application points to really summarize the ways in which Daniel lived out this prophecy and so the first thing that Daniel did and the first thing that we can do is expats faith expats in foreign land first and foremost is to seek the prosperity and the peace of the city now does the term wife swap mean anything to you guys if it does we need to have a little bit of a come to Jesus talk no it's a TV show it's a TV show that's uh that's on one of those fox tell channels or something it's so I'm pretty much the premise is this is that they take two different wives and they they swap them around and these wives that are to go into a different family and pretty much institute their rules and their way of life into this different family and often in these families they are worlds apart often some are very upright type families and other families are just uptight type families and they're pretty crazy and I remember one particular episode which I know Michael Thomas watched over and over and over again is about this particular lady and she was a believer and she came home from her wife swap and she loses it and because she was a Christian and she went to stay in a non-Christian house and she and she absolutely loses it and the kids say to her mom what is wrong what is wrong and she screams they're not Christian and she goes absolutely ballistic in in in the in the in the the lounge room there and she's she's hitting the cameraman and the sound people and that sort of stuff and he's and she's saying if if you were from the darkness you can get out of my house but if you if you believe in Jesus you can stay in my house like this if you believe in Jesus you can stay in my house loses it just look up God warrior on YouTube you'll see it or speak to Michael Thomas after the service hey sadly her approach can be the approach many churches around the world you know any of you from the darkness you get out of my house if you believe in Jesus and you can stay in my house and it's it's it's it's a fear you know it's it's it's a fear it's characterized by a life that is so terrified of the world around them but people terrified by the world around them that they just don't want to even engage and that's what Jeremiah was speaking into on God's behalf that choice to either go into the city of these unbelievers or to the choice to stay outside of the city as exiles and so Jeremiah breaks in and he says that's not God's plan you need to seek the prosperity of the city verse seven seek the process peace and the prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile pray to the Lord for it because if it prospers you too will be will prosper see what was amazing here that we learned this series that God's plan God planned for his people to be scattered into an unbelieving world in order to prosper it the God had a heart not just for his people but for this unbelieving world that doesn't even believe in him it's not that much different from us today and so in that sense in a good example of wife's swap it's a wife's wife's principle is that when you see someone go from a whole and a wholesome family into a family of absolute brokenness and at the end of these episodes you see the way that the kids are interacting with one another and there's dialogue over the dining room table for the first time in months and the chores are getting done for the first time in months simply because of the injection of this presence of this positive person into their family what God says to us is his wife's swap principle he says I want you guys for a season to move out of your normal family into a family full of brokenness and dysfunction through no fault of their own in order to be a positive presence to transform it are you with me seek the city guys is the first principle that we see from the life of Daniel throughout this whole book seek the city second one we see is excel at being excellent I know that sort of doesn't make sense grammatically but I'm just using it for dramatic effect excel at being excellence guys it's come to my attention that there is a deep conspiracy going on in our society at the moment with a particular program called the voice and this conspiracy goes like this today tonight has uncovered it I know I'm deeply troubled but apparently apparently God's church is deliberately training up very very very good singers in order to go into these programs like Australia's got talent and Australian Idol and the voice in order that they can reap all sorts of profits when they win the competitions it's a it's total conspiracy you can see that on today tonight Craig Bennett the reporter says is talking around that the likes of Hillsong are training some of their people for these sorts of competition it's big money spinner and even if they don't win they can wind up with incredible careers that benefit the church I'm serious now this is interesting because I thought I was thinking today I made this a revelation for the Holy Spirit but I reckon if Daniel was alive today he'd be on the voice that's the principle that I got out of all of this is he excelled at excellence if Daniel was alive today be on the voice verse three now Daniel so distinguished himself amongst the administrators in the satraps by his exceptional qualities that the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom you see the word exception he is hard to translate but it it literally meant because of the excellent spirit that was in him the word means excelling or surpassing and it's probably got to do with something to do with leadership Daniel excelled at being excellent and so in that sense Daniel diligently and purposefully used his God given talents to serve the society around him and guys see what the world needs Christian CEOs the world needs Christian actors and actresses the world needs Christian singers the world needs Christian managers then don't get me wrong I'm not saying that everyone has to be a manager or a CEO or be exceptional in society's eyes but what I want to say tonight is one of the best ways that you can be an expat for God a kingdom influencer is by constantly carrying around you with you inside of you an attitude or a spirit of excellence like Daniel why the ground said this this morning it's one of his core values is our senior pastor in this church but why do you think we are so on about excellence in this place because it's part of how God uses people with their God given gifts to influence the world around them carry this spirit of excellence in the very depths of all you're doing and one of the misconceptions too is also that in God's eyes if you're going to be exceptional in the things of God then you have to be one of those spiritual powerhouses like a grey magnum that if you if you are going to excel and you are going to be the model Christian then of course you'll start somewhere in the corporate world and then you'll graduate one day into ministry hey guys but but look at look at look at Daniel's look at Daniel's example how many times did Daniel step into these situations where he went in and interpreted a Nebuchadnezzar's dream and then he goes to Belch's and and interprets the writing on the wall Daniel had the gifts to be a full-time prophet like Ezekiel and Jeremiah and the rest of the boys in the Bible he had the same gifts that these guys had to be a minister and yet Daniel chose to have a secular worldly job and therefore he expressed his commitment to the kingdom of God to help open and break open the justice of God in the world around him not by being in ministry or professional minister minister but working in every day job and being done good at it and so Daniel's a great example and a way to tell us that the church must never say that you've made it spiritually if you've become a minister it's not how God works it's to God calls his people simply to carry an attitude of excellence in whatever they do and so it doesn't matter if you're a janitor or the world's next hotshot CEO it's about carrying that spirit of excellence in order to serve God in this way look it's the voice principle right if if you're a good singer sing your heart out it's not a conspiracy just if you do as a Christian can you just make sure in your Grammy speech if you do come from this church that you thank God and Northside Community Church for all their support or you know you wear a cross necklace or something like that or if you know you're walking down the hallway and there's a long shot of you you sort of got to give God a fist pump like that you know that's how good voice expats work but the guys here's what I want to ask you tonight look if I said to you tonight that that your work or your workplace or your family or the place that you spend the most amount of time this week could be and is the very means by which God is going to break his message into the world how would that change the way you wake up tomorrow morning how would it change how you feel when you turn the computer on at your open plan desk how would it change when you're thinking about I'm going to take that extra hour and a half a lunch or not because the boss is not going to be see me and I don't really don't give a rats what the boss thinks it's not about what the boss thinks it's about caring and attitude of excellence so seek the city and then be then excel at being excellent gaining worldly influence for God's purposes now I'm sure you're hearing that going oh yes Sam but if I gain worldly influence aren't I going to become like those non-christians glad you asked that's why Daniel the third thing with the principle we learned from in throughout this whole book was that Daniel cultivated his character verse four to five at this he administered straters and the satraps tried to find grounds for charges against Daniel and his conduct of government affairs but they were unable to do so if I was gee I'd work in a reference to Craig Thompson somewhere here but that's not the night um they could find no corruption in him because he was trustworthy and neither corrupt nor negligent and finally these men said we'll never find any basis for the charges against this man Daniel unless it's got something to do to do with the law of his god and so it goes on to say that they they all agreed that the king should issue this edict enforcer decree that anyone who prays to god or man during the next 30 days except a uo king shall be thrown into the lion's den you hear this they find it incredible that the only way that these guys could could trap Daniel was to use a legal trip a trap knowing that he wouldn't jeopardize his personal integrity or his devotion to his god man what sort of character is that that they have to sort of rewrite the rules and the lords knowing full world that all that Daniel had to do was just shut the window for 30 days most of us and particularly boys have just moved out of home you keep the window shut for 30 days all the time it doesn't smell too good but but can you see the balance that Daniel had in his life that on one hand Daniel assimilated into his world he excelled at being excellent but his character was so distinct from the world that he copped it and why were these guys so hostile what was this you know was it a bit of it was a bit of racial taunt you know remember earlier on the guys had to go at Shadrach Meshach and Abednego because they said these Jewish boys are getting up to no good it was there was some racism there was a political posturing did they want to get ahead of Daniel was a just old-fashioned jealousy you know a fourth answer to this could be that the satraps and the administrators were hostile because they knew that their own hearts and their own lives were going to be exposed by the incredible character that Daniel had you know these guys were taking bribes I'm making their living off bribes not that much different from governments around the world today and so you know as long as Daniel was just like them right he was a safe character because he knew that he would just be as flip-flopping and as corrupt as them but if the incorruptible Daniel was about to become the highest official in the land versus one to three then the officials entire way of life was under threat this is this his character alone was a threat to their way of life and so when they realized that he actually wasn't like them and he was so distinct although he excelled at their Babylonian ways they were going to be shown up here's the principle darkness hates the light and only hear Jesus talking about that all the time we see it in John's gospel all the time the darkness hates the light Daniel's incorruptible unbridable character was both so separate and distinct from the corruption of the systems around him but that's what caused the hostility in the first place now here's the interesting thing I don't think he just chose to be that way when the heat started to happen like it by this point now remember chapter one Daniel's just a young boy he's almost a teenager by now he's 88 years old this is what his third king that he's in the guys 88 what about the hip when he got thrown into the den I mean but what's amazing is that that these guys could devise a decree that they knew with certainty that Daniel would not turn away or disobey the life that he had with his god how you know what you know what that's saying to us it's saying that Daniel had developed a character like that long before he ever got to the situation and how do you develop a character like that that's simple a trellis if you don't know what a trellis is I'm going to tell you because I now consider myself a gardening guru I've got a lemon tree out the back and I've also got a passion fruit vine which I'm just loving at the moment and um and so I've been tending to this passion fruit vine and for weeks the darn thing just would not grow along the line of the fence I've had this ugly fence the whole time it's shocking I know it's terrible life stuff and um and so in order to get this thing to grow properly I looked up Wikipedia as you do if you need gardening tips my grandma used to have books and handwritten notes I just look up Wikipedia and you have to develop this thing called a trellis and it's just basically a couple of hooks in the back of the fence and a really taught wire in which I now begin to hang my passion fruit vine over the trellis and it now begins to follow the shape in which I've put that particular line are you with me good good because you can grow your own passion fruit vine once we're done but here's the thing the passion fruit wouldn't grow the way that it would flourish the most and produce the most fruit unless I'd given it some form of guidance and so what it means for you tonight is how are you cultivating your character in that sense in other words which trellis you were attaching yourself to which guidelines which what wire rope is it the way of the world or is it the way of God and you see Daniel Daniel wasn't just some flimsy little you know shoot that was popping up on on the wall of kingdom rise here he was a bustling out of control thick rooted passion fruit vine that had grown into the very shape of his god right from the days when he was a teenager there was no way he was going to move in this stuff he's your character the same tonight if it's not it's okay my vine still has not grown across the fence yet but every day I look at it it grows a little bit more and a little bit more and I line it up with my window just to make sure it is growing but I can rest assured whenever I see that line there that it that's the shape that it's going to continue to take and so it is with the growth of your own character night it's it's as slow and as progressive as a passion fruit vine you just got to attach yourself to the right trellis that's what Daniel did cultivate your character finally we see that Daniel not and not only cultivated his character but he served humanity's city for the sake of God's city he did that through the window I know it sounds stupid he did it through he opened his window how do you serve the the city throughout your window let's have a listen here verse 10 and when Daniel learned that the decree had been published he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened towards Jerusalem and three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed giving thanks to his God just as he'd done before now you have to gain some perspective on what this and paint let me try and paint the picture here for you in this sense but you got to remember that Jerusalem had been ransacked right in the times of Bel Shazar as Graham was preaching his message they went and took all the most wonderful beautiful goblets out of the temple and they were using them as their party cups disposable cups Jerusalem has been ransacked and so this scene that we've got here is almost it's almost like the mayor of Dubai praying out the window of the 163rd floor of the Burj Khalifa hotel and while staring to the bomb streets of Baghdad you know Babylon the Tigris river and all the river that you can hear Daniel talk about in his book was in modern-day Iraq it's probably not far off that imagery that here he was he was at the very top of the society he was looking at the window yearning for the bomb streets of Baghdad and here's a question why would it defeated second rate no name city be the focus of Daniel's devotion over the most powerful and incredible city in the world a world a city that he had you know as his oyster he looked his actions through the window are saying that this city and this world wasn't everything to him in other words what i'm trying to say to tonight that's why the reasoning went straight to his window and prayed is what Daniel was saying is that the real death for him was not in the lion's den but it was in his separation from his god Daniel understood what the real death was and that's why he went straight up and he showed these guys that in both his prayer life and his ethical life that worldly parent status wasn't the important things it didn't matter that he was on the 163rd floor it doesn't matter and to them it was foreign and it was crazy but it was a great declaration of the reason why he does all this good stuff now it's it's not a hundred and sixty third floor but and we we got a great little homemade PDF that came around the other week it was called the Gleeb community news and on the front of that newspaper was the just the the community news a secular paper there and that's under stuff was a story about a bunch of volunteers who give up their Saturday one Saturday and every month and they're only ever deterred by a little bit of rain it said but it says they come in and they whip a snip and they mow grass and they talk to people and they help run a barbecue and they're attached with this place called Northside Community Church and I think anyone that reads that thinks why would why would anyone give up their Saturday to come and whip a snip now I'm not here to you know the blower and trumpets tonight guys I really I really do that but they the guys and the team that go and serve at Hope Street there are the perfect example of the way that we can serve humanity's city for the sake of god city we don't do it because we're trying to feel good about ourselves or make ourselves better but we do it because we're praying out the window we believe that there is a god and a holy city and a wonderful city that we're one day destined for and we want the rest of the world to be destined for that but if it means just serving it whip a snip ring then that's what we'll do we'll be ready to answer the question at any turn why why would you turn up on a Saturday morning just a whip a snipper it was the Daniel principle serve humanity's city for the sake of god city so that's it well it's not really it I could come up with a more crafted conclusion for you if you'd like but before we go there's there's a really really wrong way to read this story because remember this is the story that's been on if you're of a particular generation every flannel graph in uh in sunday school this is the story that's been on every overhead projector if I want to get a little bit younger this is a story that one day will be in an ipad app or part of the veggie tales um this is a story that we know so well and there's a there's a wrong way to read this verse 23 it says the king was overjoyed and gave orders to to lift Daniel out of the den and when Daniel was lifted from the den no wound was found on him because he trusted in his god now I was taught it in sunday school was just trust god and if I just trust god and I to use the examples tonight seek the city and excel at excellence and be a person of integrity and serve the city for god city and god will rescue me from the lions now that's absolutely the wrong way to read this because Daniel suffers the hostility from the world around him not in spite of these principles but because of these principles it was it was because Daniel was so deeply involved in his society and so exceptionally competent and such a man of character and integrity and so openly committed to the exclusive lord of the bible that he was thrown into the den that was the very reason why he was in there and so what it says to us tonight guys is that rejection of Christians by the world around us is going to be inevitable in some respects and so there's a good litmus test for us here tonight i'm going to ask you are you experiencing suffering and hostility from the world around you as a christian because if you're not it's going to mean one of two things it's going to mean you're either playing it too nice that is you've assimilated you just look like everyone else or you're too scared you've separated those christians you're thinking is that it couldn't you be a bit more positive tonight is that it come on there's a bit of an anti-climax and that's that's exactly what i want you to think tonight because Daniel is a bit of an anti-climax for me in that sense it's sort of like you know that movie how to lose a guy in ten days you know when you know when kate has to sort of you know it gives him up and it's all over and you know movies are always like that you've always got to have a part of the story where someone you know it's not quite the end story you know what i'm saying there's got to be some meeting in the airport and there's got to be a romantic kiss and you know there's got to be that tension of driving out to the airport and that sort of stuff and and that's exactly what the book of Daniel is guys because Daniel is not the whole story you see years later there would be someone just like Daniel someone who was attacked by high officials people in power who are often the most offended by the goodness and the godliness around them you know years later there would be someone who like Daniel would be hated without a cause years later there would be someone who like Daniel was condemned by law in a miscarriage of justice this is Luke 23 22 for the third time he spoke to them this is pilot why what crime is this man committed or i found i found in him no grounds for the death penalty therefore i'll have you even punished and then release him but with loud shouts they insistently demanded that he be crucified and their shouts prevailed you know there was someone like Daniel who in spite of the injustice around him didn't protest didn't kick up a big stink didn't cause a ruckus and yet years later there'd be someone like Daniel guys who who when he was sealed to his death and a stone rolled over the top of him like it was with Daniel in verse 17 and there was someone like Daniel who also had enemies who thought that this would be the last time we'll ever see this guy again and there was someone that when the stone over his grave was rolled away he came forth out you see where i'm getting out the answer's always jesus isn't it well guys can you see where i'm going the book of Daniel's in any climax because it's not the whole story you see the stories and the miracles of god in the old testament were never there just for the sake of it the miracles of god are never there just for the sake of it you don't see the the disciples walking around going you want me to make that mountain erupt there we go awesome it's cool the miracles of the bar will never work that way right guys the miracles and the stories of god always provided a glimpse of who this god was and what he was doing and so there are two final things you need to know tonight if you're going to be an effective expat for god first of all it's how are god saves and that's what he saves for you know firstly quickly and lastly how are god saves you know again that same question why didn't god just send an earthquake or something why didn't he strike the guys down before he got thrown into the den and then in verse 19 to 22 it says at the first light of dawn the king comes out he says when he comes near to the den he says Daniel the servant of the living god has your god saved you and there's a pause and then he hears from on the other side of it oh king lived forever my god sent his angel there's that done angel again there's the same one from the furnace keeps popping up in the book of Daniel you know if it is Jesus he's doing one heck of a lot of preseason training don't you reckon he's been through the furnace and now he's into the lion's den friend do you feel like you're in the lion's den tonight because what what this story was saying whites in any climaxes saying is because there's there's a real Daniel the real Daniel went into the real lion's den and that was Jesus Christ you know and a Christian is just someone who believes that the real Daniel the ultimate Daniel went into the lion's den for them and therefore the only lions that can kill you in this life the lions of sin and of death have already been taken care of and so if you feel like you're in the den tonight friend I just want to tell you when you place your faith in Jesus Christ you can have confidence that your smaller and less fierce dens are going to be made bearable because this is how the god of the bible saves he won't necessarily save you from your circumstances but he'll save you in your circumstances that's how he saves but also we see the story of Daniel also shows us what he saves us for you know there's a great painting if you look it up you'll see it on the net by Breton Riviere you know either the picture his depiction of Daniel in the lion's den and speaking to king de ryeth and Daniel just stands there calmly with his arms behind his back and the lions are just wandering around outside around Daniel in the den behind him and it's just a scene of peace and serenity and total control guys the imagery is everything here the imagery of this story is everything here because it gives us a glimpse at what god is doing you see in the Old Testament the destructive power of a lion was metaphorically expressed the disharmony and the discord and the falling apart of our universe and so that image and what the biblical writer was doing here you know was giving us a glimpse of the hope that every Christian has of the hope that we see written by the prophet in Isaiah where it says the wolf will live with the lamb and the leopard will lie down with the goat the calf and the lion and the yurling together and a little child will lead them guys here's what we need to get tonight as a big picture the whole book of Daniel is that what God saves us for is not just forgiveness of sin and to help you not feel guilty in life but it's for this the imagery of Daniel in the lion's den was showing us that a god who can give man a brief glimpse of total control over his creation is that god is going to rehab and restore the heavens and the earth and things will all be put back as how it was meant to be and the god tame in the lions for Daniel was just a glimpse of the fruit the future that every one of us here tonight who calls themselves a Christian hopes in it means friend if you have had something taken away from him in this life through pain or disability or through grief or through uncertainty the god god is going to make that new he's going to rehab and restore everything the way it was meant to be the Christian future the Christian hope is this that the chaos of creation will be restored again so that the lion and the goat the calf and the lion and the yurling will all sit together with a little child so in that sense guys it was never it was never Daniel in the lion's den but it was the lions in Daniel's den the whole book of Daniel has been that this incredible kingdom this kingdom of god has been breaking into this world not when Jesus Christ turned up on the scene but from the very beginning of time and friends this kingdom is coming this kingdom's coming Daniel has this vision a bit later on in just a few chapters on from this story says in my vision at night I looked and therefore before me was one like a son of man coming with the clouds of heaven he approached the ancient of days and was led into his presence he was given authority glory and sovereign power all people's nations and men of every language worshiped him his dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed does it sound familiar? Matthew 28 and then the 11 disciples went to Galilee to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go and when they saw him they worshiped him but some doubted and then Jesus came to them and said all authority in heaven on earth has been given to me and therefore go and make disciples of all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything I've commanded you and surely I am with you to the very end of the age Daniel lived as an expat with one slightly less thing that you and I as believers here tonight have and then is an understanding of the presence and the reality of the kingdom of God in Jesus Christ the ultimate Daniel this kingdom's coming and so it means for us guys that there is a God who's not hostile but his heart breaks for an unbelieving whole he's not like that lady who yells at the people of darkness God so loved the world that he gave his only son and he scaddies these people amongst it in order to prosper it and exiled people of faith expats kingdom expats if you will who are called to proclaim in both word and action to an unbelieving world around us each and every day through lives and words that his kingdom has come that his kingdom is coming and make all things new if you'll just believe