Title Don't Ignore Reality (Daniel 12:8-9)
Contents
Lesson 123 Do not ignore reality (Daniel 12:8-9)
12:8-9
I heard it, but did not understand it. I said, "My lord, what will be the end of all these things?" He said, "Go, Daniel, for these words will be kept and sealed up until the time of the end."
“I heard it and did not understand it.” Daniel heard many things from an angel in vision. Especially in the last week of the seventy weeks, I have heard that the Antichrist will appear. I have been told that the Antichrist will be a great power that will force people to worship him as if they were God. I have also heard that the King of the South will rise against the Antichrist, and the soldiers who will oppose the Antichrist will come from the east and the north, and the War of Armageddon will break out in Palestine. In the second half of the last week, I was also told that there would be great persecution and tribulation for the Jews. And I heard that at that time, the angel Michael, who was escorting the people of Israel, would rise. There will be great tribulation and persecution, but I have also heard that all those whose names are written in the book of life will be saved.
What was Daniel confessing when he heard all these things? “I heard it, but I did not understand it.” Of course, Daniel was an intellectual at the time. He was also a diligent searcher of the Word of God. He was a man who received wisdom and understanding from God while praying. Nevertheless, he confesses, frankly acknowledging his shortcomings, that he has not realized everything he has heard.
So what did Daniel do? "I said, My lord, what will be the end of all these things?" Daniel asked Jesus Christ, who appeared in the Old Testament, to teach him more, as in verse 7, "the one who is clothed in linen and is on the water."
What did Jesus say to Daniel at that time? Please see verse 9. "He said, Go, Daniel." It tells you to go to the real world. “Go back to what you do and live life to the fullest day to day.” This is what Jesus meant. Because the things Daniel saw in vision were not things that would soon come to pass in Daniel's day. It will happen in the distant future, at the end of the world, so Daniel wouldn't have to worry too much about it.
Jesus continued talking to Daniel. “For these words will be kept and sealed until the end.” The things to be done in the future were things to be done in the distant future, that is, at the end of the world. Daniel was told to keep a record of the visions he had received. Although Daniel at that time did not realize the things that would be done in the distant future, those living in the end times will realize these.
Please see 12:4.
“Daniel, keep these words and seal them up until the time of the end, for many will come and go quickly, and knowledge will increase.”
Although Daniel does not realize the distant future, he said that in the end times, knowledge of the end times will be increased as many people continue to diligently read the Word of God. Daniel did not realize it, and we who are living now do not understand it either, but as the end draws nearer, those living in those days will realize more and more knowledge about the end as they read the book of Daniel. “The words that God prophesied through Daniel refer to the events that are taking place in this age!” You will realize this. As more and more people come and go quickly and add knowledge, Jesus told Daniel to live faithfully and do the best in the present life without worrying in advance about the events of the end times. "Go, Daniel."
Today, we can learn a valuable lesson from this text. We can never ignore real life. Guys, what is one of the characteristics of heresy? It is ignoring reality. They are just counting the date when Jesus will come. In 1992, there was an organization called Dami Mission. We named it “Dami” Mission for short for “future to come.” They liked to quote Amos 3:7.
"The Sovereign LORD will do nothing without revealing his secrets to his servants the prophets."
They claimed that to them, the chosen people, God had already revealed the day when Jesus would return. They set the date of the second coming of Jesus on October 28, 1992. They deceived many people. The students, deceived by them, even refused to attend school. People who work have left their jobs. Their only concern was to welcome Jesus. They didn't even take care of their families. As a result, families were often scattered and broken up.
When the Dami Mission was making a lot of noise, Chongshin University invited a man named Jang-rim Lee, the head of the Dami Mission. After listening to his lecture, a student asked a question.
“If you do as you say, on October 28, 1992, you and your family will all be raptured in the air. I am the one who has a date set for my wedding in December. I can't afford one properly, but if you do as you say, the apartment you are living in will be empty without an owner, so are you willing to move your apartment in my name in advance? "
If you are really sure of what you are claiming, you should do so. But at that time, Jang-rim Lee's face turned red, so she could not answer and took off her tail. Their claims later turned out to be fraudulent. When the police searched his house, a huge amount of money was found there. In addition, many bonds were found in his bed. The expiration date was later than the date of Jesus' return, which they claimed. If the world ends on October 28, 1992, as he says, what good is a bond maturing after that? Dami Mission, a heretic, deceived innocent people in this way.
As such, one of the characteristics of heresy is that it continues to emphasize eschatological ideas while ignoring reality. That's wrong. What did Jesus tell us? “You are the light of the world and the salt of the world.” We have to shine in the reality we are in and fulfill the role of salt. Then, when Jesus comes again, we will be saved through our faith. Jesus said to Daniel. "Go." Although we don't know when that day will come, don't worry about it, go back to reality and fulfill the role of light and salt in your life. Everything the Lord has given us is important. So isn't there a saying like this? “Live as if today is your last, and work as if you will live forever.” Even if Jesus comes back without realizing it, we must be prepared to welcome Him without shame, but the mission given to us is to do our best as if we would live forever.
Whatever you do today, I pray in the name of Jesus that you and I, who are doing our best with the heart of glorifying God through that work, become all.