Know, Sir.

“As for you, O king, the most high God bestowed on your father Nebuchadnezzar a kingdom, greatness, honor, and majesty. Due to the greatness that he bestowed on him, all peoples, nations, and language groups were trembling with fear before him. He killed whom he wished, he spared whom he wished, he exalted whom he wished, and he brought low whom he wished. And when his mind became arrogant and his spirit filled with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and his honor was removed from him. He was driven from human society, his mind was changed to that of an animal, he lived with the wild donkeys, he was fed grass like oxen, and his body became damp with the dew of the sky, until he came to understand that the most high God rules over human kingdoms, and he appoints over them whomever he wishes. But you, his son Belshazzar, have not humbled yourself, although you knew all this. Instead, you have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven. You brought before you the vessels from his temple, and you and your nobles, together with your wives and concubines, drank wine from them. You praised the gods of silver, gold, bronze, iron, wood, and stone – gods that cannot see or hear or comprehend! But you have not glorified the God who has in his control your very breath and all your ways!” (Daniel 5:18-23, NET)

There’s an old saying: “When you know better, you do better.” Sadly, this was not true in the life of King Belshazzar. In this past Sunday’s sermon Pastor Andy noted that after Daniel spoke with Belshazzar, Belshazzar gave no indication of repentance. There was no apology, there were no tears, there was no plea for mercy. In fact, Belshazzar’s response to the prophetic word of destruction seemed to be quite odd: he bestowed gifts and praise on Daniel, and gave Daniel a high position in the kingdom (see Daniel 5:29). But King Belshazzar’s response was merely another indicator of the king’s habit of refusing to glorify God. I imagine that it must have broken Daniel’s heart to be the recipient of the king’s temporal praise, while the praises of the living God remained unspoken.

Well, that was a long time ago. But, what about us today? Have we learned from the mistakes of our elders? Have we been careful to admit our moments of wrongdoing? Have we expressed genuine repentance? Have we sought reconciliation with God? Are our days filled with the joy of proclaiming His greatness? Or, are we withholding our praise of God while pouring our devotion onto someone else?

My God, I repent over the idols have I set up and praised while neglecting to exalt Your great name! Have mercy on me.

Not On The Guest List.

Due to the noise caused by the king and his nobles, the queen mother then entered the banquet room. She said, “O king, live forever! Don’t be alarmed! Don’t be shaken! There is a man in your kingdom who has within him a spirit of the holy gods. In the days of your father, he proved to have insight, discernment, and wisdom like that of the gods. King Nebuchadnezzar your father appointed him chief of the magicians, astrologers, wise men, and diviners. Thus there was found in this man Daniel, whom the king renamed Belteshazzar, an extraordinary spirit, knowledge, and skill to interpret dreams, solve riddles, and decipher knotty problems. Now summon Daniel, and he will disclose the interpretation.” (Daniel 5:10-12, NET)

In this past Sunday’s sermon, Pastor Andy shared a point concerning the words of the queen mother recorded in Daniel 5:11. Our pastor noted: “There is a man in the kingdom. He is not at the party.”

Daniel was advanced in years. He had served faithfully under the rule of King Nebuchadnezzar, but by the rule of King Belshazzar Daniel was no longer found in the king’s court. However, Daniel’s reputation stood firm throughout the decades. In the time of crisis, the queen mother remembered him as a man of holy wisdom and insight.

King Belshazzar was surrounded by wise men, but their wisdom was not sufficient to decipher the writing on the wall. The king had to seek help from outside of his court. Things are not so different today. There are many men who can assert that there is prophetic handwriting on the walls of our communities, but few to present a divine interpretation of what is written.

An old hymn reinforced this idea of being a source of divine insight to our communities: “Standing by a purpose true, heeding God’s command: honor them, the faithful few. All hail to Daniel’s band. Dare to be a Daniel! Dare to stand alone, dare to have a purpose firm, and dare to make it known.” (Philip P. Bliss, 1873)

Where are we found? Are we at the party with the nobles? Are we in the company of those deemed to be wise, but who fail to provide holy wisdom and insight? Or are we living the life of Daniel: leading quiet lives in the kingdom of God, and waiting for Him to open opportunities for us to minister?

Enlisted?

While under the influence of the wine, Belshazzar issued an order to bring in the gold and silver vessels – the ones that Nebuchadnezzar his father had confiscated from the temple in Jerusalem – so that the king and his nobles, together with his wives and his concubines, could drink from them. So they brought the gold and silver vessels that had been confiscated from the temple, the house of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his nobles, together with his wives and concubines, drank from them. (Daniel 5:2-3)

“There are still some things that God calls holy.” –Pastor Andy Rubin

Alcohol is an agent famed for its ability to cause men to speak what is in their hearts. Under the influence of alcohol, King Belshazzar expressed his desire to use holy things for unholy purposes. In carrying out his desire, he enlisted assistance from other people: “So they brought the gold and silver vessels that had been confiscated from the temple…” (Daniel 5:3a) In the narrative, we are not told who constitutes “they”. Given the context and time, “they” may have been slaves, or servants, or personal assistants, or persons assigned to maintain the objects that had been taken from Jerusalem.

In this past Sunday’s sermon, Pastor Andy shared a warning with us (paraphrased here): Be careful who talks to you and asks you to do things: you might be setting yourself up for danger. The Lord of all creation still makes a distinction between the holy and the profane, and He calls us to do the same. To submit to the ungodly desires of others is to open ourselves to unholy actions, and to place ourselves under judgement for knowingly doing what is wrong in the sight of God.

Respect the holy.

Reject the profane.

Today, as we consider Belshazzar’s actions, let us ask ourselves: Am I one of the “they”, helping to carry out the ungodly desire of someone else? Am I a type of Belshazzar, coveting the use of holy things for unholy purposes while enlisting others to participate in sinful behaviors? Or am I, like Daniel, choosing to remain faithful to God without regard to the desires of men?

Post This.

"At that very moment the fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the royal palace wall, opposite the lampstand." (Daniel 5:5a)

"What belongs to God must remain exclusively His." (Pastor Andy Rubin)

There is no voice. But take a look at the wall...

Sometimes we assume that if God is not speaking, and if God has not sent some prophetic person to give us a warning concerning our lifestyle, then we are not being condemned. But as we consider our lives, our community, and our world, we must ask ourselves whether we are missing the message. While we are complacent in the face of not hearing a prophetic voice, we may be missing an equally prophetic warning: the handwriting of God.

In Daniel 5, the handwriting of God appeared in response to the king's use of holy things in an unholy way (see Daniel 5:1-6). The goblets from God's temple were set apart exclusively for use in God's service, but King Belshazzar turned them into common objects. God has given us modern-day "goblets" dedicated for service to Him alone: our voices and instruments, our bodies, our minds, our ministries. But, are we using these precious vessels for Him? Or have we opted to treat them as common?

In Daniel's time, and in ours, God has demonstrated zero tolerance for the misuse of that which was dedicated to Him. And, as we see in Daniel 5, God responds not just with His voice, but with His hand of judgement. On this past Sunday Pastor Andy asked an important series of questions: "Could it be that God is writing over the nation? Could it be that God is writing over our ministry? Could it be that God is writing over our community? He's not saying anything: He's just writing on His Facebook page, on the wall, next to the lampstand."

God is writing. Are you reading His posts?

Share This.

In yesterday's sermon, titled "God's Facebook Posting", Pastor Andy shared with us concerning the prophetic word of God in Daniel 5. Let's begin our week of reflections by reading that chapter in its entirety.

Daniel 5 (NET Bible)

King Belshazzar prepared a great banquet for a thousand of his nobles, and he was drinking wine in front of them all. While under the influence of the wine, Belshazzar issued an order to bring in the gold and silver vessels – the ones that Nebuchadnezzar his father had confiscated from the temple in Jerusalem – so that the king and his nobles, together with his wives and his concubines, could drink from them. So they brought the gold and silver vessels that had been confiscated from the temple, the house of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his nobles, together with his wives and concubines, drank from them. As they drank wine, they praised the gods of gold and silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone.

At that very moment the fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the royal palace wall, opposite the lampstand. The king was watching the back of the hand that was writing. Then all the color drained from the king’s face and he became alarmed. The joints of his hips gave way, and his knees began knocking together. The king called out loudly to summon the astrologers, wise men, and diviners. The king proclaimed to the wise men of Babylon that anyone who could read this inscription and disclose its interpretation would be clothed in purple and have a golden collar placed on his neck and be third ruler in the kingdom.

So all the king’s wise men came in, but they were unable to read the writing or to make known its interpretation to the king. Then King Belshazzar was very terrified, and he was visibly shaken. His nobles were completely dumbfounded.

Due to the noise caused by the king and his nobles, the queen mother then entered the banquet room. She said, “O king, live forever! Don’t be alarmed! Don’t be shaken! There is a man in your kingdom who has within him a spirit of the holy gods. In the days of your father, he proved to have insight, discernment, and wisdom like that of the gods. King Nebuchadnezzar your father appointed him chief of the magicians, astrologers, wise men, and diviners. Thus there was found in this man Daniel, whom the king renamed Belteshazzar, an extraordinary spirit, knowledge, and skill to interpret dreams, solve riddles, and decipher knotty problems. Now summon Daniel, and he will disclose the interpretation.”

So Daniel was brought in before the king. The king said to Daniel, “Are you that Daniel who is one of the captives of Judah, whom my father the king brought from Judah? I have heard about you, how there is a spirit of the gods in you, and how you have insight, discernment, and extraordinary wisdom. Now the wise men and astrologers were brought before me to read this writing and make known to me its interpretation. But they were unable to disclose the interpretation of the message. However, I have heard that you are able to provide interpretations and to decipher knotty problems. Now if you are able to read this writing and make known to me its interpretation, you will wear purple and have a golden collar around your neck and be third ruler in the kingdom.”

But Daniel replied to the king, “Keep your gifts, and give your rewards to someone else! However, I will read the writing for the king and make known its interpretation. As for you, O king, the most high God bestowed on your father Nebuchadnezzar a kingdom, greatness, honor, and majesty. Due to the greatness that he bestowed on him, all peoples, nations, and language groups were trembling with fear before him. He killed whom he wished, he spared whom he wished, he exalted whom he wished, and he brought low whom he wished. And when his mind became arrogant and his spirit filled with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and his honor was removed from him. He was driven from human society, his mind was changed to that of an animal, he lived with the wild donkeys, he was fed grass like oxen, and his body became damp with the dew of the sky, until he came to understand that the most high God rules over human kingdoms, and he appoints over them whomever he wishes.

“But you, his son Belshazzar, have not humbled yourself, although you knew all this. Instead, you have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven. You brought before you the vessels from his temple, and you and your nobles, together with your wives and concubines, drank wine from them. You praised the gods of silver, gold, bronze, iron, wood, and stone – gods that cannot see or hear or comprehend! But you have not glorified the God who has in his control your very breath and all your ways! Therefore the palm of a hand was sent from him, and this writing was inscribed.

“This is the writing that was inscribed: MENE, MENE, TEQEL, and PHARSIN. This is the interpretation of the words: As for mene – God has numbered your kingdom’s days and brought it to an end. As for teqel – you are weighed on the balances and found to be lacking. As for peres – your kingdom is divided and given over to the Medes and Persians.”

Then, on Belshazzar’s orders, Daniel was clothed in purple, a golden collar was placed around his neck, and he was proclaimed third ruler in the kingdom. And in that very night Belshazzar, the Babylonian king, was killed. So Darius the Mede took control of the kingdom when he was about sixty-two years old.