God's Growing Kingdom (Daniel 2)

King Nebuchadnezzar does not have the fruit of the Spirit. He does not have love, joy, peace, PATIENCE, KINDNESS, goodness, GENTLENESS, nor SELF-CONTROL. He is an impatient, uncontrolled, angry, and sever man. Makes for a great king, right?

The king has been having some dreams that are eating at him. They are causing him anxiety and he is having a hard time sleeping.  On this particular night, he has a really bad dream that shake him to his core. It really bothers him. Yet, he can’t remember it. He calls his entire entourage of wise men to come and help him. Who else could help him, besides the best and the brightest in the most powerful kingdom in the world? They arrive on the scene very confident. “Tell your servants the dream, and we will interpret it.” (Daniel 2:4, NIV). Yet, the king says they not only need to interpret the dream, but they need to TELL him the dream. He offers rewards for those who can accomplish this task and punishment for those who can’t. The wise men tell the king this is unreasonable. Only the god’s could accomplish such a feat. The king flies off the handle in a furious rage and decides to kill all of the wise men in Babylon. Kill ‘em all!

For some reason, Daniel and his friends are not at this fateful meeting. They didn’t have an opportunity to respond to the king’s demands. Yet, they are wise men in Babylon and are under the “chopping block.” They will be killed along with the rest of the wise men. Much like the first chapter, Daniel doesn’t freak out in panic or drop down in despair. He asks a question and takes action.  

Daniel approaches the king and asks for more time and, basically, promises the king he will return with the interpretation. In some ways, this was a risky move. He risked being killed as a result of approaching the raging king. Then, if he didn’t provide the interpretation, he would not only be killed, but probably slowly tortured for his inability to fulfill his promise. If Daniel did nothing, he would die. Yet, even many of his actions could result in death. However, Daniel promises the king that he will return with the content and interpretation of the king’s dream. How’s that going to work? He doesn’t know what the dream was? He wasn’t even there when the king initially called the wise men to interpret his dream. Daniel had a plan.

The king grants him the time he requested and Daniel heads straight home. He gathers his friends “He urged them to plead for mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that he and his friends might not be executed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.” (Daniel 2:18, NIV).  Daniel and his friends pray, fervently, like their lives were on the line—and they were. I also think it’s important to point out that this group is referred to by their Hebrew names. They are not praying to the gods of Babylon. They are praying to the God who created the universe. The God who is in control. The God who is still granting his people favor in the midst of exile.

“During the night the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision.” (Daniel 2:19, NIV). Once again, God proves himself faithful. God meets Daniel in a vision of the night, as a result of his prayers, and shows him the content and interpretation of the king’s dream. And Daniel lets loose with praise. “Then Daniel praised the God of heaven and said: “Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever; wisdom and power are his. He changes times and seasons; he sets up kings and deposes them. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning. He reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with him. I thank and praise you, O God of my fathers: You have given me wisdom and power, you have made known to me what we asked of you, you have made known to us the dream of the king.”” (Daniel 2:19–23, NIV). Daniel praises God because He is in control. God sets up and removes kings. God controls the seasons. God grants wisdom and favor. God knows everything that is going on—everything that is happening. God knows the king’s dream and reveals it to Daniel. So he praises God.

Then he is brought to the king in order to interpret the dream. Watch how he responds. “The king asked Daniel (also called Belteshazzar), “Are you able to tell me what I saw in my dream and interpret it?” Daniel replied, “No wise man, enchanter, magician or diviner can explain to the king the mystery he has asked about...” (Daniel 2:26–27, NIV). Daniel is helping the king see that all the tools of Babylon were unable to give him this answer. The schooling they offered. The gods they worshiped. None of it was able to help King Nebuchadnezzar with interpreting his dream. “...but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries. He has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in days to come. Your dream and the visions that passed through your mind as you lay on your bed are these:” (Daniel 2:28, NIV). All of the resources of Babylon were unable to help the king (that’s probably why he was so angry). The help came from the God of heaven—Daniel’s God—the God Daniel worshipped and followed.

Then Daniel tells the king his dream. He says, “You looked, O king, and there before you stood a large statue—an enormous, dazzling statue, awesome in appearance. The head of the statue was made of pure gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of baked clay. While you were watching, a rock was cut out, but not by human hands. It struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and smashed them. Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver and the gold were broken to pieces at the same time and became like chaff on a threshing-floor in the summer. The wind swept them away without leaving a trace. But the rock that struck the statue became a huge mountain and filled the whole earth.” (Daniel 2:31–35, NIV). Now, I want you to picture this image in your mind. A large statue. It has a head of gold, a chest of silver, middle and thighs made of bronze, it’s legs of iron, and it’s feet mixed iron and clay. Remember this is a “great image,” meaning it’s a big statue. It’s intimidating. It looks powerful. It makes you feel very small and insignificant. It causes you to be in awe.

In the dream, as the king was looking in awe upon this statue, a stone was cut out “not by human hands.” If the rock wasn’t cut by a human hand, how was it cut? Right, it was cut by God.  The stone is cut out by God and is hurled at the statue. It hits the statue in the feet and shatters them in to pieces, toppling the entire statue. It says they “were broken to pieces at the same time and became like chaff on a threshing-floor in the summer. The wind swept them away without leaving a trace.” (Daniel 2:35, NIV). If you don’t understand the word “chaff” think along the lines of dandelions. The white seeds of a dandelion are much like chaff, or at least give the same picture. The stone destroys the statue into pieces so small that they are blown away like dandelion seeds. Nothing left. BUT the stone was still there and it grew. It grew bigger and bigger until it filled the whole earth.

Daniel begins his interpretation saying, “You, O king, are the king of kings. The God of heaven has given you dominion and power and might and glory; in your hands he has placed mankind and the beasts of the field and the birds of the air. Wherever they live, he has made you ruler over them all. You are that head of gold.” (Daniel 2:37–38, NIV). Did you hear it again? God is GIVING something. Daniel reminds Nebuchadnezzar that the only reason he had this kingdom was because God had given it to him. Pretty bold isn’t it? Can you imagine yourself doing that? If you were captured and forced to interpret a dream for the leader of some conquering country, would you start out this way, saying, “The only reason you’re in the position you’re in is because my God has given it to you”? As you will see, this is the overarching theme of Daniel. God is in control.

So, we see that Nebuchadnezzar is the head of gold, meaning he is a mighty, glorious king. The silver is represented by another kingdom, the bronze by another, and so on and so forth. Each section of this magnificent statue is representing another kingdom. Some people make this more difficult than it needs to be, but it’s relatively easy to see which kingdom is represented by each metal. If Babylon is the gold, then Medo-Persia is the Silver. They were the next major kingdom that conquered Babylon. Next, the bronze, would be the kingdom of Greece (think Alexander the Great). Then the Iron legs and feet would be Rome. Four powerful kingdoms, kingdoms that people look at in awe—much like the statue. Kingdoms that, basically, ruled the world at one point. Kingdoms that were intimidating to those around them. Kingdoms that made people feel small.

But there’s a stone—a stone cut out by the hand of God. Daniel says, “In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure for ever. This is the meaning of the vision of the rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands—a rock that broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold to pieces. The great God has shown the king what will take place in the future. The dream is true and the interpretation is trustworthy.” (Daniel 2:44–45, NIV).

In the time of Rome, God will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed—a kingdom that will destroy all other kingdoms. Although all of these human kingdoms are intimidating and powerful, God will destroy them and set up his kingdom. These kingdoms don’t stand a chance.

Can you imagine that comfort that brought God’s people in the midst of exile? They were trapped in exile by a powerful kingdom--a kingdom that makes them feel small and weak. Then, God shows them that he is the one who raises up kings and removes them. He is the one who establishes and destroys kingdoms. He also promises that one day the kingdom of Babylon is going to fall, another powerful kingdom is going to fall, another one after that, etc… Then, one day, he will set up his kingdom and it will NEVER fall. It will last forever. It will grow and grow and grow until it fills the entire earth.

Sound familiar yet? This is the kingdom that Jesus established. Jesus came into the world during the Roman Empire. Jesus came into world “not made by human hands” but by God’s hand. Jesus came into the world proclaiming the kingdom. Jesus’ life on earth begins and ends with the kingdom. When Gabriel announces that Mary is pregnant he says, “You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.” (Luke 1:31–33, NIV). In Christ, this vision was fulfilled. That’s why, in the Great Commission, Jesus said, “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”” (Matthew 28:18–20, NIV). Jesus has all authority because he is now King over all of creation. Right now, he is seated at the right hand of God, ruling and reigning over his kingdom—a kingdom that will never end.

As Christians are members of this kingdom. That means a couple different things. First, it means that we don’t put out trust in any human kingdom. They will all fall someday. I’m sorry to burst your bubble, but the United States is going to fall someday. It will not last forever. If you put your trust—your hope—in the United States of America, you will be disappointed. You will be hoping in something that will one day fall—be destroyed. Our hope is in an everlasting kingdom—the kingdom of heaven. That is the only kingdom that will never end—the only kingdom we can truly put our trust in, the only kingdom that will never let us down. Right now, on earth, it may be hard to see this kingdom but it’s here and it’s growing.

It’s also important to understand that this kingdom is a stone. It’s a simple stone. It’s pretty ordinary looking on the outside--pretty bland. It’s not spectacular like gold and silver and bronze. It doesn’t seem as strong or powerful as iron. I even like to think of it as unintimidating--like a small stone--like the stone that David used to take down the large Goliath (pretty similar imagery isn’t it? A small stone taking down a large intimidating opponent). But the stone is powerful and it’s growing. It will continue to grow until one day the kingdom of heaven fills the earth. I think we often want to make the kingdom of God flashy and glittery, make it look intimidating and powerful in the world’s eyes. We aren’t satisfied with the simply, ordinary kingdom of God. Yet, God has revealed to us that what the world sees as simple, ordinary, and unintimidating, He has made beautiful and powerful. This simply, ordinary, and unintimidating kingdom will destroy and outlast every other human kingdom.

Finally, it is important to understand that we are members--citizens--of the kingdom of God. Daniel was not a member of the Babylonian kingdom. He was a member of the kingdom of God. We are not members of an American kingdom. We are members of the kingdom of God. We live our lives accordingly. We live our lives following/serving our king. That does not mean we have no other allegiances in this world--like to our nation--but it does mean that our allegiance to Jesus is HIGHER than our allegiance to this country. Jesus is our King. We are under His rule and reign. It affects how we think. It affects how we live. It affects how we act. It affects how we do everything because NOW we do everything for King Jesus. We work our daily jobs for King Jesus. We parent our children for King Jesus. We shop and buy groceries for King Jesus. We interact with our neighbors for King Jesus. Every aspect of our lives is reoriented around the reality that Jesus is King and we are citizens in His kingdom. May our lives begin to reflect that reality!