fbpx

February 20, 2012

Daniel’s Response

  1. I Daniel was grieved in my spirit in the midst of my body, and the visions of my head troubled me.

  2. I came near unto one of them that stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me, and made me know the interpretation of the things.

  3. These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth.

  4. But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever.

  5. Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast, which was diverse from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails of brass; which devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet;

  6. And of the ten horns that were in his head, and of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows.

  7. I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them;

  8. Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom.

  9. Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.

  10. And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.

  11. And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.

  12. But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end.

  13. And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.

Daniel Is Confused


Daniel had no one to help him understand what he had been dreaming, so God provided a messenger to interpret the dream on His behalf-the angel Gabriel. The message of chapter two, Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, had been so clear and unified, whereas now his own dream was filled with diversity, the edges of his understanding ragged, all because he was dealing with four terrible, vile beasts-not an immense one-piece image of gold, silver, and bronze-but a diversity of four beasts acting out their beastly nature in fits of anger, violence, and conquest.


Then, suddenly, something exciting happens in verse 18 where the saints of the most High take the Kingdom. This is when Jesus Christ returns, and, as we have already stated, the stone smites the feet of the image, placing Christ and His saints in control. They are the ones who return with Jesus-individuals who missed the terrible seven-year period of Tribulation because they were called up in Revelation 4:1.


In Revelation 19:11-14, when Christ returns on that white horse, we discover that the armies in heaven follow Him-a picture of the Church returning to earth. Jude verse 14b says, “Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints.” They had no way of saying millions, billions, or trillions in the first century, so they used the term tens of thousands. But there is also the group of saints-the 144,000 Jewish messengers (Revelation 7:4-8)-who preached the gospel of the Kingdom (Matthew 24:14). You see, not only will many Jews be converted through mass, worldwide efforts of evangelism, but multitudes-yes, millions-of Gentiles will also be saved, many of whom are put to death for loving the Word of God. Revelation 20:4-5 speak of this treachery:

And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.

The saints are coming from heaven. Those who have died during the tribulation are then raised from the dead (Revelation 20:4). The Jews in Daniel 12:2 who “slept in the dust of the earth” also awaken, while Gentiles who died for their testimony also arise. Now we have saints from heaven, tribulation saints who were brought back from the dead, Jewish saints who also were resurrected, and saints who are still alive on earth at Christ’s return who somehow escaped the death penalty for rejecting the “mark of the beast” (Matthew 25:31-46; Revelation 13:15-18). They will all rule and reign with Jesus Christ, giving further credence to the passage, “If we suffer, we shall also reign with him” (2 Timothy 2:12a).


The European Community-Antichrist-and 666


While general concern may have reigned in Daniel’s mind regarding much of the dream, there seemed to be a special confusion regarding the fourth beast. Daniel had a reasonably adequate understanding of Babylon, the Medes and the Persians, and Greece, largely since they already existed within his own time frame. But this next beast-Rome-and the revived Roman Empire-would come centuries later, and he could not, in his day, know anything about this mystery without the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit concerning end-time events. This was the empire with the two legs and ten toes, and the animal with ten horns that was a composite of all the others.


Ten toes and ten horns. Try though he might, Daniel could not grasp their meaning. Yet now, twenty-five hundred years later, you and I are on the edge of watching such mysteries unfold as the European Union flexes its international muscles, preparing the world community for the advent of the Antichrist. During the terrible Tribulation hour, the Jewish people are primarily the saints against whom the Antichrist prevails. Jeremiah 30:7 says, “Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble.”


Jacob is another name for Israel (2 Kings 17:34). We find that when Satan is cast to earth he becomes extremely angry when he realizes his time is exceedingly short (Revelation 12:12). For this reason, he makes every attempt to obliterate the Jewish race (Revelation 12:13). He persecutes the woman who brought forth the man-child-that woman is the Jewish virgin, Mary. The Son that came from her is that man-child, and this Antichrist is trying to get rid of all those who came forth from her, as well as millions of Gentiles. Both groups find salvation during the Tribulation hour (Revelation 7:14). These are the ones who have come out of the Great Tribulation and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the lamb.


At this point of time the Antichrist will call himself God, and the false prophet sets up an image of him to worship. The Bible says in Revelation 13:15,

And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.”

He says, “Bow down and worship this image of me and take my mark ‘666’ or you will lose your head” (see Revelation 13:15-18; 20:4). This is that period of time when the Antichrist will prevail over the saints. But to reiterate the good news, the Lord Jesus Christ ultimately returns as King of Kings and Lord of Lords (Revelation 19:16) and defeats the Antichrist and his hoards (Revelation 19:19-21; Psalm 2:1-6).


Good news indeed! At that crucial moment in history, almighty God says, “How dare you think you can stand against me and my Son as I present Him to the world as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. You lose.., because I now set up my King upon the holy hill of Jerusalem!”


We will continue our study in Daniel in our next newsletter.



FROM THE HEART OF DR. REXELLA VAN IMPE

What’s In a Look?


The instant I saw her I knew she was special.


She was only about 5 years old, and her smile simply captivated my heart. Something about her moved me and compelled my attention.


It was the closing night of our crusade in Roanoke, Virginia, and after the service Dr. Van Impe and I were sitting on the edge of the platform, shaking hands and visiting with people.


A young couple came over to me and smiled up at me so sweetly. There was such a wonderful expression of the Lord on their faces. I leaned over and shook their hands and greeted them, but they didn’t say a word.


That’s when I saw her — their beautiful little daughter with a cherub face and an angelic smile that wrapped itself around my heart. I motioned to her with my finger and she came up on the platform and stood in front of me.


As I looked into her eyes, suddenly I realized that she couldn’t talk — both she and her parents were without speech. So with the little bit of sign language I know, I asked, “Do you love Jesus?”


And she signed back — not only with her hands, but with her eyes and her heart — “YES… OH, YES!”


I was so moved… so overcome with emotion that I also was mute for a long moment. There was something in her look that spoke volumes. Somehow I realized that this child knew the Lord in a way that few people ever will. She had an inner relationship with Christ so real and powerful that His radiance glowed in her face and His joy flowed out of her tender young life to touch everyone around her.


I looked down into the faces of the child’s mother and father and saw their love and pride. And I also saw that they had that special look. One glance… and people could tell they had been with Jesus.


Because I couldn’t understand the meaning of all their signs, I was unable to converse very much with them. But I had no doubt that they were able to speak to Christ, perhaps in a much deeper and more meaningful way than most of us do.


And they had taught their daughter well, and had led her to know Jesus. Somehow I was absolutely convinced that she had been on Christ’s lap often, even as little ones were centuries ago.


Do you have “the look”?


What do people see when they look at us? Can they tell at a glance that we’ve been in the presence of the Lord?


I love the beautiful Old Testament account of how Moses went up to the mountain to meet with God and to receive the Ten Commandments. When he came back down into the camp of the Israelites, his countenance shone — the light that emanated from his being told all the people at a glance that he had been with Jehovah God.


Some time ago, a local television program featured a man who was talking about how to have the look that was right for you. He was stressing the importance of choosing just the right makeup, hairstyle, clothing colors, etc.


I believe that this is important. But as I watched that program, I was struck with the thought that even if we make the outer person look his or her best, without the abiding presence of the Lord within, we can never achieve the look that sets us apart from the world.


What does it matter if people can look at me and say, “My, doesn’t she have an up-to-date look — her make-up, her hair, her clothes, her grooming are just impeccable!” If they do not see beyond the outer shell, how real is my Christian testimony?


For all believers, one of our greatest joys should be having people see Jesus in us — sensing that there is something different about us without our saying a word.


The look of love


Not long ago, I had a beautiful, blessed experience. I was trying on a dress in a shop when the girl who was assisting me began to talk, and in minutes she was pouring out her heart to me. She told me her problems and asked for advice and help. After I counseled with her concerning her personal need, I proceeded to explain God’s plan of salvation and her greatest need of all — to accept Christ. So we were praying, and she opened her heart to the Lord. Later, when I asked why she came to me for help, she said, “There was just something about you — a certain look that touched me.”


What’s in a look?


God help us to be so filled with His presence and so overflowing with His love that we have our Lord’s look — the look of love.



CHANGED LIVES-one at a time

Thank you for taking on the whole armor of God and bravely marching forth in the name of Almighty God to bear witness to the saving grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.  We are, indeed, fighting a battle for the lost of this world…and time in quickly running out.  I’m sick to death of preachers watering down the gospel with “feel good” theology, the apostasy of the prosperity theology (as if God were an ATM machine), church music that resembles a drug-induced rock concert, and attempts to take God completely out of His own word in order not to offend His enemies.  This isn’t a fairy tale…it’s a REAL WAR.  The forces of evil are flexing their muscles ever stronger….but, good news, I have read the last chapter of God’s magnificent Word…..JESUS WINS!!!!


You and Mrs. Van Impe will continue to receive my support…as we march together into the war for Jesus.


Beverly S.

 

Dear Dr. and Mrs. Van Impe:


I just wanted to thank you for having the podcasts available for download. My 90 year old mother is currently in a retirement facility in Waco, Texas. Prior to living there this past August, she lived alone in her duplex and would get up early on Sunday morning, 7:00 a.m. and watch your program. Now she has no way to watch your program as they are not allowed to have TV’s in their rooms. Now I can take my computer when I visit her (400 miles away) and give her this gift of seeing your program while I am there.


May God bless you and Mrs. Van Impe richly.


Sincerely


S. B.



HIGHLIGHTED PRODUCT OFFERS

Addictions


Astonishing prophetic revelations about our cultural collapse!


Rampant addictions; a sign of the times? Now you’ll understand how God’s Word previews the bondage of alcoholism and drugs, tobacco, pornography, gambling, and more that we see all around us today as a sign of the soon return of the Savior and the approaching Tribulation.


In this insightful video, Drs. Jack and Rexella Van Impe also reveal hope for you or a loved one who is struggling with a life-controlling addiction, through the power of Jesus Christ. Learn about the biblical perspective on substance abuse – the roots of addiction – how to overcome addictions as notorious as alcoholism or as overlooked as gossip, lying or cursing.

 


Christianity Seduced


Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils I Timothy 4:1


But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived. II Timothy 3:13


Will everyone be in Heaven? Are there many paths to follow to get there? Can anyone get to Heaven without the Lord Jesus Christ? In this world of Political Correctness the answers are shocking. The very foundations of Christianity are under attack.


Drs. Jack & Rexella Van Impe meet these attacks head on in this fascinating new video Christianity Seduced. They stand for Biblical Correctness – “let God be true, but every man a liar…” (Romans 3:4). In this amazing study you will discover that the New Age teaching is nothing new but has been around since Satan first spoke in the Garden of Eden.