May 7, 1997 Joni’s Bakeshop, Makati

Daniel 5, Let’s start with, we all know the story in chapter 5, itong king pinalitan niya si king Nubuchadnezzar then he had a dream then he went to his wise men, the wise men could not answer the dream and then tinawag niya ngayon si Daniel. Let’s start from v. 13. Daniel 5:13-16, Then Daniel was brought in before the king. The king spoke and said to Daniel, "Are you that Daniel who is one of the exiles from Judah, whom my father the king brought from Judah? [14] "Now I have heard about you that a spirit of the gods is in you, and that illumination, insight, and extraordinary wisdom have been found in you. [15] "Just now the wise men and the conjurers were brought in before me that they might read this inscription and make its interpretation known to me, but they could not declare the interpretation of the message. [16] "But I personally have heard about you, that you are able to give interpretations and solve difficult problems. Now if you are able to read the inscription and make its interpretation known to me, you will be clothed with purple and wear a necklace of gold around your neck, and you will have authority as the third ruler in the kingdom." Do you like that if that were offered to you? Many people are attracted by those kinds of things we will discuss that next week pero si Daniel na attract ba siya? Hinde.

Daniel 5:17-31

Then Daniel answered and said before the king, "Keep your gifts for yourself, or give your rewards to someone else; however, I will read the inscription to the king and make the interpretation known to him. [18] "O king, the Most High God granted sovereignty, grandeur, glory, and majesty to Nebuchadnezzar your father. [19] "And because of the grandeur which He bestowed on him, all the peoples, nations, and men of every language feared and trembled before him; whomever he wished he killed, and whomever he wished he spared alive; and whomever he wished he elevated, and whomever he wished he humbled. [20] "But when his heart was lifted up and his spirit became so proud that he behaved arrogantly, he was deposed from his royal throne, and his glory was taken away from him. [21] "He was also driven away from mankind, and his heart was made like that of beasts, and his dwelling place was with the wild donkeys. He was given grass to eat like cattle, and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven, until he recognized that the Most High God is ruler over the realm of mankind, and that He sets over it whomever He wishes. [22] "Yet you, his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, even though you knew all this, [23] but you have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven; and they have brought the vessels of His house before you, and you and your nobles, your wives and your concubines have been drinking wine from them; and you have praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which do not see, hear or understand. But the God in whose hand are your life-breath and your ways, you have not glorified. [24] "Then the hand was sent from Him, and this inscription was written out.

[25] "Now this is the inscription that was written out: 'MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.' [26] "This is the interpretation of the message: 'MENE'-- God has numbered your kingdom and put an end to it. [27] " 'TEKEL'-- you have been weighed on the scales and found deficient. [28] " 'PERES'-- your kingdom has been divided and given over to the Medes and Persians."

[29] Then Belshazzar gave orders, and they clothed Daniel with purple and put a necklace of gold around his neck, and issued a proclamation concerning him that he now had authority as the third ruler in the kingdom.

[30] That same night Belshazzar the Chaldean king was slain. [31] So Darius the Mede received the kingdom at about the age of sixty-two. So, in summary basically what happened is Belshazzar the king the son of king Nebuchadnezzar took over then he encountered Daniel because they were having a party group of thousand people entertainment and then biglang merong lumabas na kamay and then they all got scared and we would all be scared and the hand began to write this four words on the wall and si Daniel tinawag niya ininterpret yung mga words para sa kanya. Yun ang basic story but we just remain in the realm of stories the bible would be meaningless to all of us. Good way to look at principle is to look at God, is God in here in the latter half, what principle? That’s true God is in total control and we see that here, what else can we see about God, what did God do to Belshazzar that also did to Nebuchadnezzar? God humble them. In other words nung sinabi ni Daniel, Daniel basically reiterated Chapter 4, kinuwento niya what happened to his father; sabi niya Belshazzar look at what happened to your father do you know who gave him the glory? Look at v. 19, who gave king Nebuchadnezzar all the grand joy? God! God put him there. Do you know many times nakakalimutan natin lagi yun. If we are ever successful in some way shape or form then the automatic inkling that we have is to become proud, we will take credit for our success. What are some of the signs that we are proud? 1) When we depend solely on men’s wisdom and abilities and we exclude God. You know when we begin to make plans… then we become proud, you find that in James 2) When we disobey God, when we sin, when God says pay your tax and then you say no I refused; or God says don’t marry an unbeliever and you refused what do you do, you disobey God you become proud and then you not only sin, many of us but we disregard God’s rebuked. Then when we declare our independence versus God, when do we do that? we do it in two ways: 1) When we don’t give credit to Him 2) When we don’t acknowledge Him. Proverbs 3:5-6 says what? Trust in the Lord with all your heart do not lean on your own understanding and then acknowledge Him in all your ways and will make your path straight. It’s such a simple formula but many businessmen they don’t take it, they really do not take it, they fight all the way, they do their own… When God gives you, God gives you so much abundance and there is no regret, it is quite unfortunate when people begins to not be friends and to fight over silly things like money or who will get the sale, ridiculous!. Tonight we want to have a sequel to this a very important sequel because most of us matigas ang ating kokote. This is what God did to your father, he was driven away from mankind, his heart was made like that of beasts and his dwelling place was a wild donkeys, he was given grass to eat like cattle, his body was drench with the dew of heaven until the point were he recognized that the most high God is ruler over the realm that he sets over it whoever he wishes. Most of the time in your work, in your work place who is your god? either your boss or you. You know God is the one who will weigh us and part of his weighing is he decides what our punishment will be for king Nebuchadnezzar what did God do? God turn hin in…. to Belshazzar, his kingdom was taken away from him immediately. The same night in v. 30, That same night Belshazzar the Chaldean king was slain. What can we learn from this, you are the king and you think okay na okay ka na by the prophets let’s go to chapter 50, it was not only Daniel telling them this, this had come from a long way. Let’s read Jeremiah 50:1-3

The word which the LORD spoke concerning Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans, through Jeremiah the prophet:

[2] "Declare and proclaim among the nations.

Proclaim it and lift up a standard.

Do not conceal it but say, 'Babylon has been captured,

Bel has been put to shame, Marduk has been shattered;

Her images have been put to shame, her idols have been shattered.'

[3] "For a nation has come up against her out of the north; it will make her land an object of horror, and there will be no inhabitant in it. Both man and beast have wandered off, they have gone away! Ang sabi ni God through the prophet Jeremiah, ideclare mo ito, iproclaim mo ito sa lahat ng nation, lift it up… sabi ni God, I am going to arouse and bring up against Babylon a whole of great nations from the land the north and they will draw up their battle lines against there from there she will be taken captive that Aros will be like an expert warrior who does not return empty handed. So God already predicted that. Jump to v. 23-27, Jeremiah 50:23-27

"How the hammer of the whole earth

Has been cut off and broken!

How Babylon has become

An object of horror among the nations!

[24] "I set a snare for you, and you were also caught, O Babylon,

While you yourself were not aware;

You have been found and also seized

Because you have engaged in conflict with the LORD."

[25] The LORD has opened His armory

And has brought forth the weapons of His indignation,

For it is a work of the Lord GOD of hosts

In the land of the Chaldeans.

[26] Come to her from the farthest border;

Open up her barns,

Pile her up like heaps

And utterly destroy her,

Let nothing be left to her.

[27] Put all her young bulls to the sword;

Let them go down to the slaughter!

Woe be upon them, for their day has come,

The time of their punishment.

You know God will execute judgment in his time. If you read the bible from Sodom and Gomorra, from the flood. Luke 12:40, "You too, be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not expect." You know you could be doing a lot of business, you could be making machinations for millions of pesos, whatever your preoccupation is, puede mong gawin yan and yet tomorrow Jesus could come, And the Lord said, "Who then is the faithful and sensible steward, whom his master will put in charge of his servants, to give them their rations at the proper time? [43] "Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes. [44] "Truly I say to you, that he will put him in charge of all his possessions. In other words God has given us some task to do, He has given us some commands if that slave says in his heart. He is distracted by flesh of the world. What will happen to him? Let’s read Luke 46, the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him, and at an hour he does not know, and will cut him in pieces, and assign him a place with the unbelievers. "And that slave who knew his master's will and did not get ready or act in accord with his will, shall receive many lashes, Second warning in terms of God’s judgment is found in Hebrews 13, a warning from God. v. 4, Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled; for fornicators and adulterers God will judge. A very, very strong warning, if you are committing adultery please stop, God will judge. The nice thing about God is God always gives us ample warning. God rarely condemns people immediately, if you are not hiding God’s warning, ilang beses nang sinasabi sa iyo ayaw ka pang makinig, please! And the last point we want to make, wherever you are on this scale, when God balances us will we always fall? Yes we will always fall of God’s expectation but do you know hinde naman yun ang importante ang importante which king Nebuchadnezzar and his son missed altogether is even if you are here as a sinner God always give you grace, no matter what you have done, no matter how bad you have been, God gives you grace. Ibig sabihin po nun’ when God tells you Hey! Stop doing this and then you pay attention to God and you take God’s grace God will be the one to make you okay, He will be the one to balance that. I know it, kasi ako I have done worst than any of you but I stand before you testifying that God’s grace is more than sufficient to change me and to bring me to heaven, it’s sufficient. If you are an adulterer, ex-adulterer like me it’s sufficient, if you are an ex-drunkard like me it’s sufficient, if you drink twelve coffee a day it’s sufficient to overcome, if you smoke five packs of cigarettes a day that your wife cannot stand you anymore it’s sufficient, if your wife hated you with every gusto and fiber in their body it’s still sufficient because God will change her no matter where you are I stand before you a witness of God. God’s grace not my own doing on my own I could be nothing, I could really do and accomplish nothing, with God’s grace everything is possible. You know what’s left. I just need to take a step, everyday I take a step and God gives me the grace, I say I put God first there are many things I could do, I play golf in a month and a half why? Because I put God first or whatever it is I missed millions in terms of business opportunity why? I put God first because I believe God’s word and or else God will add on to me even if I sleep God is working because other they will see. So, what should we do? if I were you make it a commitment to God, you say, you know I’m learning from Daniel that you are indeed the ruler, you are the boss, I am the busabus. God is the boss tayong lahat busabus. What should the busabus do? obey! Read the bible and then obey. I suggest to you put GOD first. Next week I will show you a formula from Daniel how we can all do this in a way that make sense in a very practical simple way, what has worked in my life I will share with all of you, you know if you follow that you will smiling because you will not have many lashes. For some of you who need to change your life I ask you trust God’s grace it is sufficient, don’t tell me it’s hard we know it’s hard but nothing is impossible with God. Let us pray.