7-9-2006
Integrity - Finishing Strong
Daniel 5:1-30
Pastor Don Jones
West Glendale Baptist Church
One of the hardest aspects of integrity is living life consistently. With all of the problems we face throughout our lives, it is no wonder many fail to act and react consistently in each situation. Today we are going to look at Daniel again. He is now approximately eighty years old. He would be considered a senior citizen in any society. But Daniel is again going to show us that he is a man of integrity by living his life according to his beliefs at eighty like he did in his teens.
Cue Slide - The Problems
The kingdom had changed. Daniel found himself in a world that had passed him by. At one time the head of all the magicians and sorcerers, it now seems he is almost forgotten. You might say he is like many of our seniors today. The world has changed, it has gotten faster in almost every way, it is seemingly more violent, people problems seem to be more extreme and the consequences more dire. While connectivity is available to everyone at anytime through the internet and cell phones, many feel unconnected and alone.
Daniel found himself in a similar position. He was still in a foreign land. God had not miraculously delivered him to Jerusalem. He was out of the loop, a Jew in Babylon. His position of authority had changed because he was not the first called on to handle the situation nor was he invited to the party. Tom Shraeder says, "The number one problem facing our seniors today is apathy", the unwillingness to get involved in a "new world".
Not only had Daniel’s position changed but the earthly kingdom of Babylon was in trouble. Belshazzar had assumed the authority of the king. The enemy was literally knocking at the gates of this massively fortified city. The city was strong but his kingdom was weak. Rather than seek God’s favor and repent of his ways he throws a party. This king was the epitome of pride. He was giving the annual kingdom banquet for all the nobility. Daniel 5:1 says,
King Belshazzar gave a great banquet for a thousand of his nobles and drank wine with them.
Not only was he prideful but he was sacrilegious as well. When the party had reached its peak of drunkenness he called for the temple goblets. Not just any goblets but the temple goblets used in the honoring of the Lord God. It was the ultimate in arrogance and pride. Indirectly he was placing himself above God and at the very least was thumbing his nose at God. And the goblets were used to honor the gods of gold and silver, of bronze, iron, wood and stone. Daniel 5:2-4 says,
While Belshazzar was drinking his wine, he gave orders to bring in the gold and silver goblets that Nebuchadnezzar his father had taken from the temple in Jerusalem, so that the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines might drink from them. So they brought in the gold goblets that had been taken from the temple of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines drank from them. As they drank the wine, they praised the gods of gold and silver, of bronze, iron, wood and stone.
Cue Slide - The Party’s Over
God miraculously stops the party at its high point of revelry. The Hebrew construct of the sentence indicates that at the very instant of drinking from the goblets and praising these false gods the finger appears to write on the wall. Daniel 5: 5-6 says,
Suddenly the fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall, near the lamp stand in the royal palace. The king watched the hand as it wrote. His face turned pale and he was so frightened that his knees knocked together and his legs gave way.
The party was over. The king that was so filled with pride and arrogance was now reduced to fear and trembling. Imagine, as drunk as they were, the fingers, not the whole hand but the fingers of God begin to write on the wall by the lamp stand. Belshazzar was literally changing colors and trembling before their eyes. So much fear, he lost control of his lower body according to the original Hebrew.
The king cries out for a solution to the writing. Verse 7 says,
The king called out for the enchanters, astrologers and diviners to be brought and said to these wise men of Babylon, “Whoever reads this writing and tells me what it means will be clothed in purple and have a gold chain placed around his neck, and he will be made the third highest ruler in the kingdom.”
Again, the "wise men" of Babylon cannot decipher the writing on the wall. They are at a loss. So desperate is the king that he offers a great reward. Whoever deciphers the writing will be clothed in royal colors and given the gold chain that was worn by those of rank and status. They will receive the position of third in command of the kingdom. Of course, the kingdom was about to change hands so it really wasn’t a great offer.
Cue slide - The Proclamation
Daniel was a man of integrity. Even though he was in his eighties and semi-retired, God was going to use him in a powerful way to touch the life of the king and his nobles. His reputation was preceding him. The queen remembered his past victories. Verses 11-12 say,
There is a man in your kingdom who has the spirit of the holy gods in him. In the time of your father he was found to have insight and intelligence and wisdom like that of the gods. King Nebuchadnezzar your father—your father the king, I say—appointed him chief of the magicians, enchanters, astrologers and diviners. This man Daniel, whom the king called Belteshazzar, was found to have a keen mind and knowledge and understanding, and also the ability to interpret dreams, explain riddles and solve difficult problems. Call for Daniel, and he will tell you what the writing means.
Daniel again was called in to interpret the writing where other had failed. Much like king Nebuchadnezzar’s last prophecy, this one also contained bad news for the king.
Daniel begins with a relevant history lesson concerning king Nebuchadnezzar and Almighty God. He reminded the king that the lesson he was going to learn was not about him but about God.
This was one of those great moments, one that Daniel had earned by being faithful to God all those years. He was still a great man of integrity. Robert Shank says, "If you stick around and stick with it long enough you’ll win the right to be heard." Daniel had spent his life telling people not what they wanted to hear, but what they didn’t want to hear. He never "tickled their ears". He had the character qualities of perseverance and consistency which are essential to a life of integrity. Daniel tells the king in verses 22-23,
But you his son, O Belshazzar, have not humbled yourself, though you knew all this. Instead, you have set yourself up against the Lord of heaven. You had the goblets from his temple brought to you, and you and your nobles, your wives and your concubines drank wine from them. You praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or understand. But you did not honor the God who holds in his hand your life and all your ways.
Cue slide - The Prophecy
The writing on the wall was about to be interpreted. This prideful king was to receive the message from God’s humble and faithful servant. God’s message was short but not sweet. It says in verse 25,
“This is the inscription that was written:
MENE, MENE, TEKEL, PARSIN
Daniel proceeds to give him the bad news in verses 26-29.
“This is what these words mean: Mene: God has numbered the days of your reign and brought it to an end. Tekel: You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting. Peres: Your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.
The king was to die and his kingdom divided. Daniel faithfully delivers the news. We live in a society that says "don’t make waves", be politically correct". These mantras of modern society come at a high price. The price tag is the truth. Daniel made waves and definitely did not care about being politically correct. He gave the truth even though it could have cost him his very life. He was again a person of integrity.
Cue slide - The Price
The king gave Daniel the reward. Verse 29 tells us of Daniel’s earthly reward. It says,
Then at Belshazzar’s command, Daniel was clothed in purple, a gold chain was placed around his neck, and he was proclaimed the third highest ruler in the kingdom.
Daniel again was promoted because of his faithfulness to God. Belshazzar’s reward was quite different. He had lived his life arrogantly. He had ignored the Most High God even though his father had proclaimed His greatness. He chose to rebel and sin instead of repent and obey. The result was death. Verse 30 proclaims his end.
That very night Belshazzar, king of the Babylonians, was slain, and Darius the Mede took over the kingdom, at the age of sixty-two.
The New Testament tells us of the spiritual consequence of rebellion against God. Romans 6:23 says,
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Daniel didn’t start being a man of integrity at 80. He was the same at eighty as he was at sixteen, twenty, thirty, fifty, and so forth. He lived his life according to God’s principles from the start.
Do you want to be a person of integrity today? It is never too late to start. You need to begin by acknowledging the Lord. Receive him today as your Lord. Begin to follow Him in your life by doing His will.
Outline
Finishing Strong 7-9-2006
Daniel 5:1-30 WGBC
I. The Problems
Babylon was failing
City was strong but kingdom weak
Belshazzar assumed the throne
II. The Party’s Over
Belshazzar threw a party
The finger appears and writes
King is terrified
Reward offered
III. The Proclamation
Daniel is called at 80 yrs. old
Gives a history lesson
IV. The Prophecy
Mene, Mene, Tekel, Parsin
Bad news delivered
V. The Price
Daniel is rewarded
Belshazzar dies
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Rms. 6:23
