The Writing on the Wall
Daniel • Sermon • Submitted
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· 17 viewsAs fathers, we have the responsibility to prepare and equip the next generation. When people don't learn from the past and are not equiped to handle the future, the next generation is destined to fall in the same ways. Pastor Bill gives us instruction on how to prepare the next generation for spiritual sucess.
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Introduction
In the early 1900’s a philosopher named George Santayana made this statement: Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.
Those that don’t learn from the past are destined to repeat it.
This phrase has morphed into “Those who don’t learn from the past are destined to repeat it.
One of the greatest gifts that we can give to our children is the wisdom of our experiences. How many times have we said to our kids, “I know what you’re thinking. I’ve been in your shoes. If you will just listen to my advise I can safe you some heartache.”
Do they listen? Most of the time, “No.”
We spend a lot of time teaching our children life lessons that we feel are important for their success in this world.
We make sure they get the best education and training so they can succeed in the work place.
But what about Spiritually. Do we spend the time teaching our kids the life lessons of walking in the Spirit, educating them and training them in the ways of the Lord?
I’m afraid, because we are not good at spiritual things, we neglect to teach our children the most important life lessons about God and his Kingdom.
We must be even more intentional about Spiritual life lessons as we are about the physical ones.
Last week we just read the decree from Nebuchadnezzar of the hard lesson he had to learn of humbling himself before God.
One would have hoped that his son and his grandson wouldn’t have to go through the same struggles because they had learned from the past.
Not so! 23 years after the decree of King Neb. His grandson Belshazzar is sitting on the thrown.
1 King Belshazzar made a great feast for a thousand of his lords and drank wine in front of the thousand.
2 Belshazzar, when he tasted the wine, commanded that the vessels of gold and of silver that Nebuchadnezzar his father had taken out of the temple in Jerusalem be brought, that the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines might drink from them.
3 Then they brought in the golden vessels that had been taken out of the temple, the house of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines drank from them.
4 They drank wine and praised the gods of gold and silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone.
When you don’t learn from the past you are destined to repeat it. And just like before, when one is lifted up in pride, God shows up.
5 Immediately the fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace, opposite the lampstand. And the king saw the hand as it wrote.
6 Then the king’s color changed, and his thoughts alarmed him; his limbs gave way, and his knees knocked together.
Dan 5:5
This was no dream like his grandfather. This was a hand writing on the wall for all to see. No question a message from a higher power, but one that he couldn’t interpret.
Lesson:
How do we guard our next generations from our past mistakes?
How do we set them up for Spiritual success?
In this passage I believe we find 3 easy steps that will set up the next generation for Spiritual success.
Teach the Spiritual Lessons of the Past.
Teach the Spiritual Lessons of the Past.
Teach the Spiritual Lessons of the Past.
Teach the Spiritual Lessons of the Past.
18 O king, the Most High God gave Nebuchadnezzar your father kingship and greatness and glory and majesty.
19 And because of the greatness that he gave him, all peoples, nations, and languages trembled and feared before him. Whom he would, he killed, and whom he would, he kept alive; whom he would, he raised up, and whom he would, he humbled.
20 But when his heart was lifted up and his spirit was hardened so that he dealt proudly, he was brought down from his kingly throne, and his glory was taken from him.
21 He was driven from among the children of mankind, and his mind was made like that of a beast, and his dwelling was with the wild donkeys. He was fed grass like an ox, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, until he knew that the Most High God rules the kingdom of mankind and sets over it whom he will.
22 And you his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, though you knew all this,
18 O king, the Most High God gave Nebuchadnezzar your father kingship and greatness and glory and majesty.
19 And because of the greatness that he gave him, all peoples, nations, and languages trembled and feared before him. Whom he would, he killed, and whom he would, he kept alive; whom he would, he raised up, and whom he would, he humbled.
20 But when his heart was lifted up and his spirit was hardened so that he dealt proudly, he was brought down from his kingly throne, and his glory was taken from him.
21 He was driven from among the children of mankind, and his mind was made like that of a beast, and his dwelling was with the wild donkeys. He was fed grass like an ox, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, until he knew that the Most High God rules the kingdom of mankind and sets over it whom he will.
22 And you his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, though you knew all this,
23 but you have lifted up yourself against the Lord of heaven. And the vessels of his house have been brought in before you, and you and your lords, your wives, and your concubines have drunk wine from them. And you have praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which do not see or hear or know, but the God in whose hand is your breath, and whose are all your ways, you have not honored.
Dan 5:18
A) Be open and honest about your struggle.
A) Be open and honest about your struggle.
Know the geogram of your family struggles.
How does your family deal with problems?
How does your family deal with anger?
Do you have a history of divorce?
How does your family reconcile relationships?
Be intentional about breaking the cycle and curse of sin in your family by modeling and teaching the biblical way to handle these situations.
B) Equip them with the spiritual tools to overcome the family struggles.
B) Equip them with the spiritual tools to overcome the family struggles.
Teach them to Fear, and Honor God in the Present.
Teach them to Fear, and Honor God in the Present.
23 but you have lifted up yourself against the Lord of heaven. And the vessels of his house have been brought in before you, and you and your lords, your wives, and your concubines have drunk wine from them. And you have praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which do not see or hear or know, but the God in whose hand is your breath, and whose are all your ways, you have not honored.
A) Model a life of fear, honor, and humility before the Lord.
A) Model a life of fear, honor, and humility before the Lord.
To properly instruct, you must faithfully illustrate.
17 The Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do,
18 seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him?
19 For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice, so that the Lord may bring to Abraham what he has promised him.”
Gen 18:
You are the spiritual example your kids are going to follow.
Whose kingdom is the most important in your life?
What do you deem as important and valuable?
How important is your walk with God?
Where does God’s work fall in your rhythm of life?
B) Train them to respect the authority structure that God has established.
B) Train them to respect the authority structure that God has established.
Dan 5:
Teach them the Word of God for the Future.
Teach them the Word of God for the Future.
24 “Then from his presence the hand was sent, and this writing was inscribed.
25 And this is the writing that was inscribed: Mene, Mene, Tekel, and Parsin.
26 This is the interpretation of the matter: Mene, God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end;
27 Tekel, you have been weighed in the balances and found wanting;
28 Peres, your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.”
Dan 5:24-
A) Daniel knew what was coming because he was a student of God’s Word.
A) Daniel knew what was coming because he was a student of God’s Word.
God had revealed the person, plan, and the party that would befall Belshazzar.
The person: King of the Meads
11 “Sharpen the arrows! Take up the shields! The Lord has stirred up the spirit of the kings of the Medes, because his purpose concerning Babylon is to destroy it, for that is the vengeance of the Lord, the vengeance for his temple.
;
The Plan: Dry up the water source.
36 Therefore thus says the Lord: “Behold, I will plead your cause and take vengeance for you. I will dry up her sea and make her fountain dry,
37 and Babylon shall become a heap of ruins, the haunt of jackals, a horror and a hissing, without inhabitant.
Jer 51:
Cyrus the Persian, while the party was going on was rerouting the Euphrates river that ran under the walls of Babylon for their water supply. Once they turn the river they entered the city through the river bed.
The Party: Get everybody drunk.
57 I will make drunk her officials and her wise men, her governors, her commanders, and her warriors; they shall sleep a perpetual sleep and not wake, declares the King, whose name is the Lord of hosts.
Jer 51:
The writing on the wall was just a time stamp of the things to come.
B) Live your life in the light of God’s revelation and kingdom.
B) Live your life in the light of God’s revelation and kingdom.
We are just pilgrims here.
13 These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.
Daniel wasn’t concerned with the gifts from a failing kingdom.
But I have heard that you can give interpretations and solve problems. Now if you can read the writing and make known to me its interpretation, you shall be clothed with purple and have a chain of gold around your neck and shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.”
17 Then Daniel answered and said before the king, “Let your gifts be for yourself, and give your rewards to another. Nevertheless, I will read the writing to the king and make known to him the interpretation.
Dan 5:
29 Then Belshazzar gave the command, and Daniel was clothed with purple, a chain of gold was put around his neck, and a proclamation was made about him, that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom.
Dan 5:
Why are we so concerned with gifts from a failing kingdom.
10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.
11 Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness,
12 waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn!
13 But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.
We must be more concerned about our reward in heaven.
So Let’s Review
3 Steps to Prepare the Next Generation
Teach the spiritual lessons from the past.
Teach them to fear, and honor God in the present.
Teach them the Word of God for the future.
Action Steps:
Action Steps:
Model the Spiritual behavior you want for your children.
Model the Spiritual behavior you want for your children.
“Follow me as I follow Christ.”
Make the changes in your life that you want your kids to make.
Map out a Spiritual guide of principles that you want your kids to learn.
Map out a Spiritual guide of principles that you want your kids to learn.
I want them to walk by faith in the Lord.
I want them to be givers and not takers.
I want them to love God above all else.
Place the kids in a culture that models the spiritual lessons you’re trying to teach.
Place the kids in a culture that models the spiritual lessons you’re trying to teach.
Find godly people that your kids can observe.
Be intentional about the influences on your kids. The world is very intentional.