Scripture Text (NRSV)
Daniel 7:1-3, 15-18
7:1 In the first year of King Belshazzar of Babylon, Daniel had a
dream and visions of his head as he lay in bed. Then he wrote down the
dream:
7:2 I, Daniel, saw in my vision by night the four winds of heaven
stirring up the great sea,
7:3 and four great beasts came up out of the sea, different from
one another.
7:15 As for me, Daniel, my spirit was troubled within me, and the
visions of my head terrified me.
7:16 I approached one of the attendants to ask him the truth
concerning all this. So he said that he would disclose to me the
interpretation of the matter:
7:17 "As for these four great beasts, four kings shall arise out of
the earth.
7:18 But the holy ones of the Most High shall receive the
kingdom and possess the kingdom forever--forever and ever."
Comments:
Here's a story about what NOT to do with this text!
My first year preaching this text came up again the Sunday before
election day. Then there was a heated presidential race. I saw (and
see) this text describing the political upheaval in the ancient world
and since we were in the midst of our own political turmoil I thought
it would be good to connect the two since the main idea is that in the
midst of this turmoil, God is in control. Whether the political system
is dictator, despot or democracy; God is in control. So far, so good.
I thought it would be effective to step away from the pulpit and give
my own take on the political race and then return to the pulpit to
express that whatever happens, whoever wins, God is in control. Well,
it was effective. I was almost thrown out of the church! I didn't
realize how one-sided the congregation (and community) was. We even
had a party chairman in the pews that Sunday (the OTHER party, of
course!) I remember telling my wife what I was going to do on the way
to church. She said, "I don't know if you ought to do that." Young and
stupid, I didn't listen. A friend in the pews said he tried to catch
my eye and "wave me off" (he's a retired Navy pilot) but I didn't get
it. Anyway, after talking to a few irate members, I wrote an open
letter to the congregation which apologized for allowing my personal
opinion "blow away" God's Truth. Things settled down a few weeks
later. One couple even returned to church-- five years later!!
Submitted for your approval, from the Highlight Zone
KenTucky
Dear KenTucky, How would you preach this text differently now?
Funny thing, Funny thing, funny thing,
I wouldn't preach it all that differently. If the congregation knew me
(and my political leanings) I might say something like, "you know
where I stand, but still, GOD IS IN CONTROL!" If they didn't know me,
I'd use some other illustration. The problem was that since I was new,
the people didn't know where I stood and my statement shocked them so,
they couldn't hear anything else. In the open letter I wrote something
like, "the 'bomb' of my position destroyed any expression of God's
truth. No preacher can allow himself to obscure God's message." If
they had known where I stood, they might not have been upset. Not too
upset, anyway. They did put up with me for another 5 1/2 years!
KenTucky
Dear KenTucky, I was hoping that would be your response. Sorry to be
so long checking back. Speedy
It is always difficult to know when our bias comes into the scenio
when we preach about local politics. Of course, there is no such thing
as an objective, subjective thought, however, with politic issues
aren't we called to reconcile and build bridges? It is a two-edged
sword, isn't it! On one hand we are called to preach the gospel of
healing and truth, and on the other hand we are called to lead and
guide (as did Paul) with the help of God's Holy Spirit. There is such
a tension between the two. I serve two congregations in Quebec and
there is very much two political minds. So how can the message speak
to both parties? It is All Saint's Day this Sunday. Will any of you be
using this text to lift up the communion of the Saints? I'd love to
hear your ideas. Wendy
Why do you suppose the lectionary gurus have left out the guts of the
vision (v. 4-14?) Too much violence? Too much confusion? Are they
trying to make it more palatable? Are they trying to make it easier to
preach from? I think I'm going to put it all back in, but does anyone
have any thoughts on why they felt it necessary to do this?
Jane in Lenox
Jane,
I've been meaning to ask and please excuse my geographical
ignorance... Where is Lenox?
Rick in Va
Dear Rick:
Lenox is in northwestern Massachsetts, about an hour southeast of
Albany, NY and about an hour and a half northeast of Hartford CT. It
is in the Berkshire Mountains (read: hills) just south of Pittsfield.
It's main claim to fame is that it is where Tanglewood is located, the
summer home of the Boston Symphony. It is also where Edith Wharton
wrote Ethan Fromm and is only a few minutes from where Melville wrote
Moby Dick. It's a lovley, well-heeled traditional New England resort
town. Y'all come visit anytime! Thus endeth the travelogue. Thanks be
to God!
Jane in you-know-where
After setting a quick historical pattern for the reading, I would next
center in on our fears that face us today. The issue of political
crises fades into comparison to our fears dealing with economics and
where our abliltiy to provide for ourselvs sets. Our natural fears
that seem to hound us and then move toward the freedom of God's grace
and mercy as we are dealing with problems that seem greater than
ourselves. We must make sure that people understand the saints of old
did not know they were saints, but they were people like us who
remained faithful to the task given to them. I will be centering in on
those victorious through the past, but their shared strenghth byway of
their memories for us to endure tomorrow and today. Images of
monsters, such as Daniel received, are great to remind us of the
terrors of the world, but let us not forget the promise of that 18th
verse, the kingdom forever and ever. Sermon title I am using is King
of Kings. By the way, I have had some interesting moments in the
pulpit as well, but being in my 34th year, there had to be moments. My
wife asked me once if I still had a certain sermon outline, I said
yes, she said, burn it! hahahah peace!
Jane,
Thanks for the geography (and history) lesson. Call me informed!
Rick
Daniel saw four great beasts. These beasts represent;
LION - The lion represents Babylon,
BEAR - The bear represents Medo-Persia
LEOPARD - The leopard represents the Greek Empire. The four heads on
this leopard represents the four generals that inherited the kingdom
from Alexander the Great. They are Lysimachus, Ptolemy, Cassander, and
Seleucid.)
TERRIBLE BEAST - This beast represents Roman Empire,
The Roman Empire is divided into 2 parts when the little horn is
introduced When the papal Roman Empire or Catholic Church takes power
