What is the kingdoms of earth
like? What the world sees about the earthly kingdoms is quite different from
what God sees. The world sees that the kingdoms of earth are promising and
getting better if we fix some errors and mistakes in the midst. And some see
that the kingdoms of earth are gloomy and doomed to destruction caused by food
shortage, population explosion, wars, pollutions, global warming, and so on.
Prophet Daniel saw a vision in which the kingdoms of earth were seen as the
beasts. That’s what God sees the kingdoms of earth. He was told what’s going to
happen in the end times. The man of lawlessness will be coming for the eternal destruction
and condemnation. The Ancient of Days has been sitting in the throne until the
man of perdition is subjected to him. This must be happened before the coming
of the Lord Jesus Christ as King and Lord. The devil must be condemned and
judged and subjected to the Lord and the eternal kingdom will be revealed.
“In the first year of
Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream, and visions passed through his
mind as he was lying in bed. He wrote down the substance of his dream. Daniel
said: ‘In my vision at night I looked, and there before me were the four winds
of heaven churning up the great sea. Four great beasts, each different from the
others, came up out of the sea.’” (Daniel 7:1-3)
Beast is a nonhumane animal,
especially a large or dangerous four-footed one. It is the symbol of cruelty,
ferociousness, fierceness, brutality, and wildness. It is wild and untamable.
Look around the world what is really going on. Wars, fights, killings, bombings,
stabbings, stealing, abuses, massacres, genocides, revolts, rebels, revenges,
perverts, sodomies, adulteries, fornications, pornographies, homosexuals, human
trafficking, sex slaveries, labor slaveries, deceptions, religious hypocrisies,
money laundering and racketeering, and all kinds of wicked things are happening
every day in our midst.
In Daniel’s vision, the
kingdoms rose and fell one at a time. Kingdom like a lion, kingdom like a bear,
and kingdom like a leopard came to power and disappeared and crumbled one by
one. Earthly kingdoms are temporal, fleeting, passing, transient, and
momentary. Yet another kingdom rose as a fourth beast, terrifying and
frightening and very powerful which was different from all the former beasts
with ten horns. This is the antichrist.
“After that, in my vision at
night I looked, and there before me was a fourth beast—terrifying and
frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured
its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all
the former beasts, and it had ten horns. While I was thinking about the horns,
there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up among them; and
three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had eyes like the
eyes of a human being and a mouth that spoke boastfully.” (Daniel 7:7-8)
Then, a logical question it
shall be asked is where God is in the midst of earthly kingdoms. Daniel saw the
Ancient of Days in the vision who took his seat. Daniel saw God who took his
seat and whose throne was flaming with fire and its wheels were all ablaze. The
court was seated and the books were opened, the books of the mystery of
mankind. There was an immovable and unshakable throne in heaven where the
Ancient of Days took his seat. Seating is the symbol of resting. God is in
control in the course of history from the beginning to the end.
As I looked, “thrones were set
in place, and the Ancient of Days took his seat. His clothing was as white as
snow; the hair of his head was white like wool. His throne was flaming with
fire, and its wheels were all ablaze. A river of fire was flowing, coming out
from before him. Thousands upon thousands attended him; ten thousand times ten
thousand stood before him. The court was seated, and the books were opened.”
(Daniel 7:9-10)
The fourth kingdom will arise
at the end times by the power of the devil. This kingdom is different from all
other kingdoms and has power to uproot the previous three kingdoms. The devil
will be emerged above the surface for a little and condemned and destroyed eternally.
The beast will speak boastfully only for a time for the Lord will terminate his
power from the face of the earth permanently and establish his eternal kingdom
and reign in justice and righteousness. His kingdom will be an everlasting
kingdom and all rulers, authorities, principalities, powers will bow down and
worship and obey him.
“Then I continued to watch
because of the boastful words the horn was speaking. I kept looking until the
beast was slain and its body destroyed and thrown into the blazing fire. (The
other beasts had been stripped of their authority, but were allowed to live for
a period of time.) In my vision at night I looked, and there 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 nations and peoples 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.” (Daniel 7:11-14)
Before our Lord established his
eternal kingdom with the given authority, glory, and sovereign power by the
Father, he must destroy the fourth beast and throw in the blazing fire. Then
all nations and peoples of every language will worship the Lord Jesus Christ
forever for his dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away and
his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed. Apostle Peter encouraged the
saints not to lose heart because God gave them a living hope in the kingdom of
God which is imperishable, enduring, and lasting forever.
“Praise be to the God and
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth
into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and
into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is
kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the
coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.” (1
Peter 1:3-5)
The appearance of the fourth
kingdom is the beginning of the end times which our Lord Jesus calls great
tribulation, unequaled from the beginning of time until now and never to be
equaled again. This is the day the man of lawlessness will appear and proclaim
that he is God. But the appearance of the man of perdition is not for
flourishing but for eternal destruction.
“For then there will be great
distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be
equaled again.” (Matthew 24:21)
“Don’t let anyone deceive you
in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man
of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. He will oppose and
will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that
he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God.” (2
Thessalonians 2:3-4)
But the man of lawlessness will
not only appear in time with terrifying, frightening, and powerful force and
might but also is at work in our midst. Apostle Paul wrote to the saints in
Thessalonica about the coming of the lawless man who is already at work through
deceiving the people who are perishing. The devil is a liar and the father of
lies. He is a murderer from the beginning. He deceived the woman in the Garden
and has been deceiving the people who are belong to the kingdom of darkness and
trying to deceive even the elect.
“Don’t you remember that when I
was with you I used to tell you these things? And now you know what is holding
him back, so that he may be revealed at the proper time. For the secret power
of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will
continue to do so till he is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one
will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his
mouth and destroy by the splendor of his coming. The coming of the lawless one
will be in accordance with how Satan works. He will use all sorts of displays
of power through signs and wonders that serve the lie, and all the ways that
wickedness deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused
to love the truth and so be saved. For this reason God sends them a powerful
delusion so that they will believe the lie and so that all will be condemned
who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness.” (2
Thessalonians 2:5-12)
Daniel was exhausted and
troubled at the revelation of the vision. Even the mighty prophet was deeply
troubled by the thoughts of the end times and his face turned pale. This is the
mystery of humanity kept and hidden in secret until the time set by the Father
comes.
“This is the end of the matter.
I, Daniel, was deeply troubled by my thoughts, and my face turned pale, but I
kept the matter to myself.” (Daniel 7:28)
Our God and the Lord Jesus
Christ runs the course of history and will be fulfilled everything in accordance
with the Scripture. The people perish because they love the lie and refused to
love the truth and so be saved. This is a test for everyone whether keep on believing
in the Lord Jesus Christ or not. Those who obey the truth shall be saved.
October 20, 2015
©2015 David Lee Ministries - All rights
reserved.
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