Sermon on
Daniel and the Sanctuary
By Brian Pepper
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Over the years I have studied the Books of Daniel and
Revelation and I always find that there is something, new
and startling that comes to my attention each time. I have
repeatedly made this statement
that without a knowledge of the Sanctuary there is little
hope of ever understanding these two Books.
If I have ever made an understatement it is this one.
Today, we will line up this very important subject
and see where it will lead us.
Daniel 12:4 says, "But thou, 0
Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the Book, even to
the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and
knowledge shall be increased."
The only part of Daniel that was sealed was the part connected with the 2,300 days, not all of Daniel was
sealed.
Daniel 8:13
says, “How long shall be
the vision concerning the daily sacrifice and the
transgression of desolation to give both the sanctuary
and the host to be trodden under foot?"
In other words, "How long LORD are you going to allow
this apostasy to continue?"
In Revelation
chapter 10 the answer is given ”...that there should be time no longer."
(verse 6).
God says that He is going to delay no longer. The Hour
of His Judgment is come.
Daniel
chapter 8 climaxes with the Little Horn power
which comes into the Judgment.
Sanctuary is the Theme of Daniel
Daniel lived at a time when the Sanctuary was trodden
underfoot. At this time God’s people were captive in
Babylon.
You will find that theme of
Daniel 8:14 runs right
through the Book of Daniel.
Daniel had seen Babylon tread the Sanctuary down. He
knew what it was to be oppressed by a foreign power. He
knew what it was to be without the religious service
that had been so much a part of their way of life.
And so the theme of
Daniel 8:14 is the Sanctuary, and
this theme runs right through the Book of Daniel.
Daniel had seen Babylon tread down the Sanctuary. The
Sanctuary is the key message of the Book of Daniel.
Daniel 1:1,2 says, "In the third
year of the reign of Jehoiakim King of Judah came
Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon into Jerusalem, and
besieged it. And the LORD gave Jehoiakim king of Judah
into his hand with part of the vessels of the house of
GOD; which he carried into the land of Shinar
to the house of his god; and he brought the vessels into the treasure
house of his god."
The Book of Daniel opens with the Temple of God, with
Babylon and Jerusalem.
Both cities are present in
Daniel 8:14.
S tory
of Two Cities
The Bible is really the story of two cities starting
back with Cain and Abel, then all the way through, it is
Babylon and Jerusalem.
In Revelation John picks up the them - Babylon –
Jerusalem.
Significance of the Sanctuary
The Devil hates the Sanctuary because it shows God’s
character. That is why these offshoot groups arise from
time to time all claiming to have new Light on the
Sanctuary.
The Sanctuary is the centre of heavenly activities. It
reveals God, for in it is wrapped up the Plan of Salvation.
Satan longed to be able to dwell in the sides of the
North. He aspired to control the Councils of Heaven.
That is to rule the Universe of God.
He hates the Sanctuary because in it is centered the
Plan of Salvation, the very thing that has and will
eventually break his grip on this world.
So coming back to Daniel’s question, "How long LORD, how long before
you do something about it?"
God says, "Daniel, it is going to be quite a while, a
long period of time, but you can rest assured that all
will come right in the end."
So in Daniel chapter 1 the Sanctuary is introduced.
The Sanctuary Desecrated
In Daniel chapter 5 the sacred vessels are taken out of
the storeroom so that the drunken lords may drink to
their gods.
Chapter 5:5 says, "In the same
hour came forth fingers of a man's hand and wrote over
against the candle stick."
The same hour that the blasphemous lords drank out of
those sacred vessels the finger of God’s judgment wrote
those solemn words on the wall of the palace.
This is a solemn warning to the sacrilegious men and
women of our day. The writing is on the wall. There is a
Judgment coming to those who have taken Sacred Vessels
of the Word of God and profaning it.
Little do the sacrilegious of today realize that soon,
very soon,
their hour will come.
That night, the river Euphrates was dried up.
Once again in the Book of Revelation we have the drying
up of the Euphrates. It is a symbol of the end when Cyrus came from the east and dried up that river,
it was the end of Babylon.
Daniel 5:30 says, "In that night
was Belshazzar, the king of the Chaldeans slain.”
There is one thing we need to remember. That is, that
Daniel
chapter 5 is not only history but it is
prophetic.
In
Daniel 8:14 the assurance is given that GOD will
intervene, that in 1844 the Daily would be restored.
Revelation 14:6 says, "And I saw
another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the
everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the
earth, and to every nation and kindred, and tongue, and
people."
Today the Everlasting Truth is being proclaimed that
Christ is the great High priest of the Heavenly
sanctuary.
The wicked powers of Babylon, both physical and
spiritual, took away the Everlasting Truth.
The early Books of Daniel give us the Key to what
follows. And so we have Babylon interfering with the
Sanctuary by
taking away some of the Sacred Vessels.
In chapter 1 we have the Sanctuary desecrated, Daniel
and his companions taken captive. Right through the Book
to the 9th chapter the Sanctuary is prominent. In
Chapter 11 you have the Kings who were
concerned with the Sanctuary, especially the King of the
North.
Verse 44 says, "But tidings out
the east and out the north shall trouble him: therefore
he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and
utterly to make away many." (God's people)
Deliverance
The vital question as far as God’s people are concerned
‘Who shall be able to deliver you?’ And how wonderful
God has provided the answer.
Daniel 12:1 (latter half) says,
“… and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every
one that shall be found written in the book."
We have already noticed that the theme of the Book of
Daniel is the Sanctuary.
‘Deliver you’ is the keyword of the Book "Who shall be
able to deliver you?”
Deliverance was very important as far as Daniel and his
Three companions were concerned. But deliverance for
God’s people was and is of the utmost importance.
Chapter 3:15 says, “… who is
that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?" The answer is in the
12th chapter “… at that time thy people shall
be delivered.”
The day is coming and it is coming soon when, like
Daniel and the three Hebrews, we will go through the
experience of deliverance. How important it is that
God’s people realize
that deliverance will come.
Practical Application of Daniel
Daniel 8:14 has a practical application for it points
forward
not only to cleansing of the Sanctuary and how important
that is, but to the time when the host (God’s people)
shall be delivered.
Remember this, that the history recorded in the early
chapters of Daniel are very important to we who are
living today. There was no compromise with Daniel and
his three companions whether the test was that of what
he ate or drank, or a matter of principle in religious
issues.
God is putting it into the hearts of men and women to
study the Books of Daniel and Revelation and through
that study there will come a revival.
People today are wanting to know these things and how
wonderful it is that we can help them. Daniel’s Book is
not just a simple narrative, it has a complex theme that
runs right through the Book.
In the background there is that mastermind of evil, the
Devil. As you know, the meaning of Devil is ‘slanderer’
or ‘accuser’.
He not only slanders God but the brethren as well. He
slandered God before the whole universe. So there must
be a justification.
Revealing the Character of God
It is because of Satan’s continual efforts that the
inhabitants of this earth are unable to see the true
Character of God.
The earth is in darkness through a misapprehension of
God, because Satan has blinded men’s minds. They are
unable to see God’s true character.
Even the angels were unable to see God as He really is.
It was not until Satan revealed his evil intentions,
that the angels began to see that God is love. It was at the Cross that Satan revealed himself, as a
cold blooded tyrant. But at the End, at the very last,
not only will God’s character be exalted, but his
people will have similar characters.
Revelation 14:5 says, "And in their mouth was found no
guile: for they are without fault before the throne of
GOD."
Judgment given to the Saints
It says that that the judgment will be given to the
saints of the Most High. Why does GOD do this? It is not
enough that God should be Just or should appear just,
but that His people be convinced of this as well. And as
they take part the Judgment they will know for certain,
that He is.
Job’s experience is really a little picture of this.
Job started off as a Just man, but the slanderer came
along and smeared his character. But in the end Job was
justified, proving to be all that God said he was.
Blasphemy
Now let us come back to the Sanctuary.
Revelation 13:6 says, "And he opened his mouth in
blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his
tabernacle and them that dwell in heaven.”
As we have already discovered the Sanctuary was a
central theme in the Books of Daniel and Revelation.
Very early in the Book of Revelation we are introduced
to the Sanctuary. We have a picture of Christ walking
among the Golden Candlesticks.
You will notice that when Satan blasphemes God’s name he
does it in many ways.
In
chapter 13:6. it says,
-
he blasphemes against God
-
he blasphemes His name
-
he blasphemes His temple or the Sanctuary.
Daniel 8 and the Book of Revelation
The whole Book of Revelation is an enlargement of Daniel
chapter 8. Behind the whole thing is the conflict, the
Great Controversy between Christ and Satan.
Revelation 11:1,2 says, "And
there was given me a reed like unto a rod; and the angel
stood saying Rise, and measure the temple of God and the
altar, and them that worship therein, but the court
which is without the temple leave it out, and measure it
not: for it is given
unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot
forty and two months."
These chapters are all based on
Daniel 8:14. Daniel
begins as a captive in Babylon, and he deals with the
monarchs that have much to do with the Sanctuary.
In
Daniel 8, he stresses the Sanctuary being trodden
down. Moving on to Revelation you find John in
captivity, a
prisoner of Babylon. Revelation takes up immediately
where Daniel leaves off. For John sees Jesus Christ
walking among the Golden Candlesticks dressed in
priestly garments.
Then in
Revelation 13 we are introduced to the Power who
would:
-
blaspheme against God
-
blaspheme His name
-
blaspheme His tabernacle and them that dwell in heaven.
This blasphemous power would not only do this but would
force men and women to worship by threat of a boycott
and the death penalty.
So once again we are faced with the question, is God
able to deliver?
Daniel 12:1 (latter half) says,
“... and at that time thy people shall be delivered,
every one that shall be found written in the book."
Understanding
Understand is another key word of the Book of Daniel.
Daniel 8:17 says, “...
understand, O son of man;
for at the time of the end shall be the vision."
It was very important that Daniel should understand this
matter. But it is of far greater importance that we who
are living so close to the End should understand these
prophecies.
In
Matthew 24 Jeus said, "Whoso readeth let him understand."
The Lord is calling the attention of the whole Church to
the prophecies of Daniel. In
Daniel 12:10 we are told, “... but the wise shall
understand.”
It is the wise person who makes a real effort to
understand these prophecies, unfortunately some despair of
ever understanding. Many do not even make an effort to try
and understand. But we are told
“... but the wise shall understand.”
Considering the times in which we live and how close the
end is, it is very important that we take our Lord’s advice "Whoso readeth let him understand."
or Daniel’s "… but the wise shall
understand."
Daniel
really did not understand the whole thing but he had the
general idea of it and could build up on that.
Understanding and Deliverance
Understand and Deliverance. These two keywords are vital
to us today. They are the answer to the statement in
Daniel 3:15, " ... and who is that
GOD that shall deliver you out of my hands?”
Daniel 12:1 says, “... at that
time thy people shall be delivered, every one that
shall be found written in the Book.”
Without doubt we are going to pass through very difficult
times. The Bible says that it will be “... a time of
trouble such as never was since there was a nation even to
that same time ..."
There is one thing we can be assured of and (that is) that
God will give deliverance just as He gave deliverance back
in Daniel’s day.
In
Jeremiah 51:6, "Flee out of the
midst of Babylon, and deliver every man his soul be not
cut off in her iniquity for this is the time of the LORD's
vengeance; He will render unto her a recompence."
God's Spirit to be Withdrawn
The warning goes out. As the churches are clamoring for
unity that will lead them closer to Rome, God urges the
faithful to flee from her. Little does the man of the
world realize that it is through God’s mercy that the
cruel power of the evil one is held in check. However when
every ray of light has been rejected and every warning
despised or unheeded, then the Spirit of God will be
finally withdrawn, and there will be no protection from
the malice and hatred of Satan. Then there will be no
safety anywhere. For the Bible tells us that Babylon
becomes the stronghold of devils.
Envy, hatred, strife, rebellion, murder, is no longer kept
in check.
There will be no restraint. Even friends and relatives
will betray each other. All this is just around the
corner.
A Revival Needed
So today as never before there is a need of revival. There
is a revival on the way.
Joel 2:28 says,
"And it shall come to pass afterwards that I will pour out
my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters
shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your
young men shall see visions; And also upon the servants
and upon the handmaids in those days, will I pour out my
Spirit.”
Verse 32
says, “And it shall come to pass,
that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be
delivered.”
It is a revival that will bring deliverance. The Latter
Rain will take the people of God through the period of
trial that lies ahead. When the great crisis comes God’s
people will receive Divine power to face the issue. That
is, if we have been wise enough to understand.
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