Through the Bible with Les Feldick
LESSON 1 * PART 1 * BOOK 81
THE SON GIVEN DOMINION AND A KINGDOM – 1
Daniel 7:9-14
Okay, good to see everybody in this afternoon. We realize many of you are here for the first time. Some are from out of the state, more than I can recognize individually. But we’re glad you’re here, and we trust the Lord will bless your time with us.
For those of you out in television, again we want to invite you to keep doing what you’re doing. Take your notes and study and learn to search the Scriptures on your own. Again, we always want to thank everyone for your prayers, your financial help, and most of all for your complimentary and encouraging letters. My, it helps doesn’t it, Mom, when we can read how the Word is blessing more and more hearts.
All right, now the first thing I’m going to have to explain, especially to my audience that has been with me all these years with that old music stand. I had a call and a fellow up in Minnesota wanted to know if he could make a pulpit for me, or a podium I guess he called it. I said, “No, not really. Because all of our mail says to never change a thing!” And that’s going to include my old music stand, even though it was getting pretty dilapidated and wasn’t mine. It belongs to the studio here.
But then he sent me a picture of it with a nice note, and he said if you’ll take it, I’ll deliver it. Well, what are you going to do? So, anyway, he brought it clear down from northern Minnesota and left it here at the studio for us. So we’re going to use it. But, if I get a lot of flack from my TV audience that they want the music stand back, then I’m going to have to give the podium to the station or someone who can use it.
Now, you know that’s the way our program has been set. I try to be communicable with my audience and tell you what takes place in the ministry. So this is the reason you see me behind a different podium.
Okay, we’re going to pick right up where we left off in our last program, which was a month ago now in our taping sessions—Daniel chapter 7 verse 9. Now, as I reviewed the programs, I know I did a lot of just reading verses in the first part of Daniel without much comment, because there was just no other way to do it. So I kind of apologize to my audience for that. But from here on, now, we’re going to be able to do a lot of what we normally do, comparing Scripture with Scripture. But with some of those chapters we covered in the last taping, we just couldn’t do that.
So here in Daniel chapter 7 we’re going to drop in at verse 9. And remember, in the first 8 verses of this chapter Daniel had a dream, a vision, in which he saw the progression of the same Gentile empires that Nebuchadnezzar saw in his dream. Where Nebuchadnezzar saw metals: gold, silver, brass, iron, and so forth; Daniel sees them pictured as beasts of prey. And remember, back there in the first part of the chapter, the first, which was Babylon, was picked as a lion. Then he comes up with the bear and then the leopard and then the Roman Empire was something beyond description. All right, so that was Daniel’s approach to these coming world empires.
Now again, let me emphasize, this is exactly why the scoffers have ridiculed Daniel as being a forgery. Because how could Daniel foretell these coming empires so explicitly and so correctly unless it had been written after the fact? Well, you see, the scoffer knows nothing of Holy Spirit inspiration. God knows the end from the beginning. And even as we are today 2,000 years removed from the time of Christ, yet we are exactly where Scripture says we would be.
So as we look back at our own past election, even from the believers’ point of view, we have to recognize that God puts these people in office. And even though we try to do what we have to do, yet we have to recognize that God is in Sovereign control. He knows the end from the beginning. So He could very readily show Daniel and Nebuchadnezzar the progress of these Gentile empires.
All right, after he finishes that dream of these coming world empires as we see them coming on the scene today, in that same dream, now, we pick up in verse 9.
Daniel 7:9
“I beheld (Or, he was a viewer of all these things in his vision.) until the thrones were cast down, (In other words, all these GentilSet featured imagee empires have come and gone, and they have now gone into the dustbin of eternal history.) and the Ancient of days did sit, (which is a reference to God the Father) whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne (See, now this speaks of the throne in Heaven, where we normally speak of God as being seated on the throne—God the Father. God the Son is not on the throne in Heaven. God the Father is. All right, so the Father’s–) throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire.”
Now I’ve said it before. I get a little disturbed when people write books and try to explain Heaven. Because whenever they use Scripture to describe Heaven, they’re always using the description of the Kingdom, the 1,000 year reign. Listen! That is not Heaven. That’s merely the 1,000 year millennial reign of Christ on earth. And it takes a stretch to go into the eternal Heaven of the Heavens, because Scripture gives us no clue. All we know is it’s going to be glorious. But we do have a little bit of a picture of the throne room itself, which is certainly not all of Heaven. To get a little glimpse of that, turn back with me to Ezekiel.
And the reason I’m doing that is because of the word “wheels” in the verse I just read. “His throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire.” All right, now to pick that up, come back with me, like I said, to Ezekiel chapter 1. That’s where we have the description of these wheels. Got it? Ezekiel chapter 1 and, oh, let’s see, let’s come down to verse 4.
Ezekiel 1:4-5a
“And I looked, and, behold, a whirlwind came out of the north, a great cloud, and a fire infolding itself, and a brightness was about it, and out of the midst thereof as the color of amber, out of the midst of the fire. 5. Also out of the midst thereof came the likeness of four living creatures….” All right, now we have the description of these angelic beings and likenesses and so forth. But come all the way down to verse 16, and you find the word that brought me back here.
Ezekiel 1:16
“The appearance of the wheels and their work was like unto the color of a beryl: (That’s a gemstone.) and they four had one likeness: and their appearance and their work was as it were a wheel in the middle of a wheel.”
Now your imagination can picture that as well as mine. I had someone try to paint something like that one time and they sent it to me. But it’s just something that is beyond us. And the only reason I’m showing this, is because the word is used in Daniel and again in Ezekiel.
All right, we also have a picture of it to a degree back in Revelation. So if you’ll come back to Revelation with me for a moment, we get that same kind of a connotation of the fiery flames and so forth that are pictured in the heavenly part, the throne room in the Book of Revelation. And, oh, let me see, where do I have to go? I had one picked out. But come with me first to chapter 4. Revelation chapter 4 and drop in at verse 2 for sake of time.
Revelation 4:2-3
“And immediately I was in the Spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne. (The throne upon which God the Father is positioned.) 3. And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald. (Now see, we can’t imagine this. This is beyond human comprehension.) 4. And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment: and they had on their heads crowns of gold.” All right, now jump up to verse 6, and, remember, we’re comparing this with Ezekiel and Daniel.
Revelation 4:6
“And before the throne (That is this throne in the Heaven of the Heavens. Not the throne that Christ will sit on in Jerusalem. This is in the heavenlies.) And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal: and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four creatures (living beings) full of eyes before and behind.”
All right, I think that’s far enough for now in the Book of Revelation. So come back with me again to Daniel chapter 7. So always remember, that when it comes to describing the Heaven to which we are going, we can only go just so far. We just cannot comprehend the glory and the beauty of what we’re going to call our abode. Now I had one writer speculate from some little pieces of Scripture that there would be mountains and rivers and so forth. Well, maybe, maybe not. But all I know is it’s going to be so glorious that even the Apostle Paul was not permitted to describe it. That’s why the Lord put that pressure on him with the—what did He call it, “the thorn in the flesh,” in order to remind him to never share what he saw up in Glory.
Now if Paul wasn’t permitted to show it, who in the world has got the brass today to say that they’ve got the right? That’s the only reason that I can put on it—that it is so far beyond our human understanding that God knows that there is no use in trying to describe it. And that’s where we’ll leave it. It’s going to be glorious. It’s going to be fantastic beyond comprehension.
All right, now back to Daniel chapter 7 then, after the reference of the wheels as burning fire in verse 9, now verse 10.
Daniel 7:10a
“A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: (in other words, from the throne room) thousand thousands ministered unto him,…” Now you’re getting used to the word trillions, so you shouldn’t have any trouble with thousands. I’ve got to bring these things in once in a while, because I like to see people smile. You know, back when I was young, there was a famous senator from the state of Illinois, who I think at the time was probably a chairman of the finance committee, by the name of Everett Derkson. Remember him? Good man!
Everett Derkson was a good man. And I’ll never forget reading that one time as the committee was discussing the budget—you know what I’m talking about, don’t you? Everett Derkson says, “Now wait a minute, fellows. You’re talking millions and millions, then it won’t be long and it will be billions.” Well, poor ‘ol Everett wouldn’t have been able to take if he were to hear it today. Trillions. You know how much a trillion is? There’s no way of knowing, because I think I read a while back that there are less than a trillion seconds between now and the time of Christ. I mean, it’s just beyond us.
So anyway, here we’ve got millions—a thousand thousands is a million. All right, not even a trillion – a million. Verse 10:
Daniel 7:10
“A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands (millions) ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand (That’s a hundred thousand in my understanding. Or is that a million? Anyway–) they stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.” Now, of course, that leaps up to the Great White Throne. Verse 11:
Daniel 7:11
“I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: (Now remember, we talked of the little horn up there in verse 8 in our last program.) I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame.”
Now remember who the beast is in Scripture? It’s the anti-Christ. All right, now keep your hand in Daniel. We’re going to go back to Revelation and see exactly how perfectly Daniel fits with the Book of Revelation.
All right, when we get to the end of the Tribulation, the anti-Christ has been holding forth for the previous seven years, and the False Prophet, the religious leader. And as I mentioned in our last taping, if you’re aware at all of what’s taking place in Christendom, it is that constant push of meeting after meeting after meeting to bring all the religions of the world under one head.
And that, of course, in the Tribulation will be the False Prophet. All right, so the False Prophet and the anti-Christ are men born of women, flesh and blood, but they have been satanically empowered. All right, now here’s their end even as Daniel showed it.
Revelation 19:20
“And the beast (the man anti-Christ) was taken, and with him the false prophet (The religious leader, whoever he is.) that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast,…(Now remember, that all goes back to those previous seven years of Tribulation. Remember all that? Back in the earlier chapters of Revelation. Now look at their doom. Look at their end.)…These both were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone.” All right, flip back to Daniel again just to make sure you get it all locked in, verse 11 again.
Daniel 7:11b-12
“…I beheld even until (the anti-Christ) the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame. 12. As concerning the rest of the beasts, (These are the cohorts with the man anti-Christ and with these Gentile empires.) they had their dominion taken away: yet their lives were prolonged for a season and time.” All right, now we’ll go down into verse 13:
Daniel 7:13a
“I saw in the night visions, (Now this is still Daniel continuing on with his dream, or vision, however you want to call it. Now in his next night vision–) and, behold, one like the Son of man…” That’s a reference, of course, from the Old Testament of God the Son as we know Him. As we’ve been teaching in the daily program lately in the Book of Hebrews—that would be God the Son, Jesus of Nazareth, the Creator God. All right, now he sees Him in this Old Testament dream.
Daniel 7:13b-14
“…came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, (Which again is a picture of God the Son coming before God the Father.) and they brought him near before him. 14. And there was given him dominion, (power, authority) and glory, and a kingdom, (And this kingdom will include–) that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion (or His rule, His government, His Kingship) is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.”
All right, now before I comment any further on that, let’s again jump up to Revelation, chapter 5. Revelation chapter 5 and you know you can’t study Daniel without studying Revelation or vise-a-versa. When we did the Book of Revelation way back in our little books—what, 10 through 14? That’s exactly what I did. I went back and forth between Daniel and Revelation. Well, now that we’re studying Daniel, we’ll have to do the same thing only the other way around. We’ll go from Daniel to Revelation. Now remember what Daniel just said—that he saw the Son of man coming with the clouds of heaven, and he came before the Ancient of days, and the father gave unto him dominion and glory and a kingdom. All right, now in Revelation chapter 5, then, we can pick it up right here in verse 1.
Revelation 5:1a
“And I saw in the right hand of him who sat on the throne (Now have you got the picture? God the Father was seated on the throne, at least positionally, and he has a book.) a book (or a scroll) written within and on the backside,…” Now you see, it had to be a scroll, because they didn’t make books back in those times. I don’t know why the translators used it at all. But a scroll and it was rolled up.
Now it stands to reason that if you unrolled that scroll, what you write will be on the inside when you roll it up. You can picture that. All right, then after it’s rolled up, if you want to put something on the outside, yes, you can write on the outside of the scroll. Now picture all that, because that’s the point. All the details of this scroll, which is really a mortgage on planet earth between God and Satan, all the details are written on the open side. But when it was rolled up and sealed, then you have information on the outer part of the scroll. Now reading on:
Revelation 5:2
“And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy (or who is able) to open the scroll, and to loose the seals thereof?” Now again, this was going back to antiquity. Maybe not long before Israel. But anyway, they already had the whole idea of buying and selling land and property with mortgages.
You know, I think a lot of us have got the idea that this is all a modern day phenomenon. No, it isn’t. They had mortgages clear back at the time of Ruth. You remember that. How Boaz had to pay the price of redemption to get the inheritance back. So that’s nothing new. So the Scripture is right in line with what everybody understood—that when you signed a mortgage, it was detailed, rolled up, and sealed with the things that mattered first on the outside.
Now, it’s the same principle that we’ve got today. If you’re really on top of things and you’re buying a piece of property that is mortgaged, you won’t take the person’s word for how much the mortgage is. What do you do? Either you or your real estate agent or the attorney—where are they going to go? The courthouse. You go into the recorder and you ask if you can see the copy of this mortgage of the property that you’re buying. Well, what’s the purpose? So that you know exactly the financial situation of that piece of property or you’ll get taken. It was the same way back in antiquity. Those details were all written on a mortgage and sealed. Same way with this spiritual mortgage—God made a mortgage with Satan when Satan picked up dominion of planet earth.
Now when did Satan pick up dominion of planet earth? Well, when Adam fell. It was Adam’s dominion. He was to have control of the whole planet. Everybody thinks just that little Garden of Eden. No, Adam had dominion of the whole planet. And when he disobeyed God, he dropped the ball. Who picked it up? Satan did. All right, but Satan didn’t just pick it up and glibly go his way. God set up a mortgage, in so many words, and that mortgage is going to demand payment before, once again, it becomes God’s dominion.
All right, now that’s the whole picture of mortgages through Scripture. It is to get us ready for this scenario in Heaven in Revelation 5. We’ve got a mortgage. Details. Sealed. But on the outside are certain details pertinent for the immediate. All right, now verse 5 and I’m going to run out of time if I don’t hurry.
Revelation 5:5
“And one of the elders (up there in Glory) saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, (Who’s that? That’s Jesus Christ.) the Root of David, hath prevailed (He has maintained His ability–) to open the scroll, and to loose the seven seals thereof.” In other words, make time or make it ready to pay off.
Revelation 5:6-7
“And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, (In other words, a reference again to Christ’s crucifixion, His death as the true atonement.) having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth. 7. And he (God the Son, the Lamb of God) came and took the scroll out of the right hand of him who sat upon the throne.”
Revelation 5:8-9a
“And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of the saints. 9. And they sang a new song,…” Why? It’s the beginning of the end of the curse of planet earth. God is now ready to pay off Satan in full and take back once again that which He had one time owned and controlled and then lost because of Adam. Now verse 9:
Revelation 5:9
“And they sang a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book,…” Now remember what made Him worthy? His death, burial, and His resurrection. Now, I’m going to keep hammering away at resurrection, because I had a phone call early this morning before we left. The guy said (just like I’ve mentioned over and over), “Why do so many people talk about Christ’s death, and they totally ignore the resurrection?”
And I’m afraid we’re all aware of that. But listen, the work of the Cross was not complete without the resurrection. He had to be raised from the dead in order to continue the whole unfolding of God’s plan for the Ages. Don’t ever discount the resurrection as part of the plan of salvation. All right, so here it is again.
Revelation 5:9-10
“And they sang a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; 10. And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.”
Now you’ve always got to remember that John is a Jew, and the whole Book of Revelation is directed primarily to Israel. So don’t put us in here. This is not Church Age language. This is all God dealing with Israel. Verse 12, this picks up the resurrection.
Revelation 5:12a
“Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power,…” Now that’s where I have to stop a moment. Where was His power exercised? At the resurrection. Resurrection power!
Revelation 5:12b-13
“…to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing. 13. And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, (They are all under His dominion now once again.) heard I saying, Blessing, and honor, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.” And this is the whole concept, then, of the end-time scenario—because of what Christ accomplished on the Cross with His death, His shed blood, His burial, AND HIS RESURRECTION.