Read the Bible in a Year (17SEP19)

DAILY REMINDER – Today, September 17’s Bible reading is Daniel 7-9.

NEXT DAY REMINDER – Tomorrow, September 18’s Bible reading is Daniel 10-12. May God bless you with the reading of His WORD.

DANIEL MOMENT – (17SEP19) “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 7:2-3). Daniel had a vision where he saw four unique looking beasts. The first was a lion that had eagle wings which was later torn off, and he stood to his feet like a human being and was given the mind of a human. This beast represents Babylon which was strong as a lion for a while until its wings were clipped. The second beast was a bear that had three ribs in his mouth. This bear represents Medo-Persia and the three ribs represent Libya, Egypt, and Babylon. The third beast was a leopard which represents Greece. The last beast was a horrible looking creature with ten horns, but another horn with eyes, which spoke boastfully, uprooted the first three horns. This beast represents Rome and after its demise, ten other European countries came to power. Nevertheless, the Lord was going to take away the power of the fourth beast and His kingdom would have no end.

Prophets such as Daniel was shown things that would take place leading to the end times. We are now living in the last of the last days where we will see many of the prophecies spoken of in Ezekiel, Daniel and other prophetic books of the Bible come to past. These prophecies are not to scare us, but to warn us so that we will not be caught off guard. Although it seems that there are many horrific events that will take place the closer we get to the end, the Lord has given us hope for those who will endure to the end. The Bible says: “The one who is victorious will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out the name of that person from the book of life, but will acknowledge that name before my Father and his angels” (Revelation 3:5). Let’s be mindful to hold on to the end because Jesus is soon to return and everyone who remains steadfast in Him will receive a great reward. Something to ponder….

QUESTION OF THE DAY - (17SEP19) “In the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, understood from the Scriptures, according to the word of the Lord given to Jeremiah the prophet, that the desolation of Jerusalem would last seventy years. So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes” I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed…. (Daniel 9:2-3). Daniel had been reading the words of Jeremiah and had studied the Scriptures where God had given Moses commands regarding the way that His people were to behave and live their lives. This caused Daniel to go into prayer, confession, and intercession on behalf of himself and Israel for he knew they had sinned against God. As he was speaking, and Gabriel came to give him insight and revelation in things that would one day come. Gabriel gave Daniel a timeline from the time that the word would go out to rebuild Jerusalem till the time that Jesus died on the cross. Daniel was told that war would continue to the end and that a covenant would be reached for peace but broken midway. At the temple, there will be an end to sacrifices and offerings, which will precede the abomination that causes desolation.

Daniel had a heart for God and wanted to please him. He confessed his sins as well as that of the people. He felt a need to intercede on their behalf due to Israel’s great rebellion against the Lord which caused them to be in captivity. Yet, there is one important thing to pay attention to in this text, and that is while he was still speaking, the angel Gabriel came to give him insight into other matters. This lets us know that the Lord doesn’t need our prayers in order to know our hearts, but he WANTS our prayers as a line of communication between us and Him. Due to Daniel’s dedication, God not only answered his prayers but gave him insight into the future; therefore, what He did for Daniel, he will do the same for you. The Bible says: “Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear” (Isaiah 65:24). The Lord knows what we are going to say before we even open our mouths. He is waiting to communicate with us just as He sent Gabriel to communicate with Daniel. Whatever God does for one, He will do for another, for He has no respect of person. Always remember to talk to Jesus about everything in life because He already has the answer before we can say, “Amen.” Something to ponder….

DANIEL MOMENT – (17SEP19) “ I looked up, and there before me was a ram with two horns… the horns were long. One of the horns was longer than the other but grew up later.  I watched the ram as it charged toward the west and the north and the south. No animal could stand against it…. It did as it pleased and became great. As I was thinking about this, suddenly a goat with a prominent horn between its eyes came from the west, crossing the whole earth without touching the ground. It came toward the two-horned ram…and charged at it in great rage.  I saw it attack the ram furiously, striking the ram and shattering its two horns. The ram was powerless to stand against it; the goat knocked it to the ground and trampled on it, and none could rescue the ram from its power” (Daniel 7:3-7).

Daniel had yet another vision where he saw a ram with two horns – one being longer than the other. This animal represents the unity of Medo-Persia. Persia is represented by the longer of the two horns. This kingdom was so powerful that it was able to conquer Babylon. The goat represents Greece and the horn of this animal represents Alexander the Great. Greece conquered the Medes and Persians very swiftly. After Alexander died, four of his generals took over his providence. This prophecy goes into the 2300 days where the sacrifices would be opposed. The stone cut by non-human hands which was seen in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream will destroy the final kingdom. Daniel had seen things regarding the Great Tribulation, but he was told to seal it up because the time had not yet come.

There is a great tribulation coming like no one has witnessed before. All great kingdoms have fallen, but there will be the rise of the antichrist who will claim to have all the answers for the world’s problems. Most people will trust him, but for those who are spiritually discerning, they will see him for the beast that he is Nevertheless, we must hold fast in our faith to God because He has said that He will never leave us nor forsake us. The Bible says, “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). Something to ponder….