Daniel 2: Christ, the Rock from the Mountain of God

What does the 'Stone cut without hands' do in Daniel's vision? It smashes the image on the feet, shattering the entire thing to dust, then it grows into a mighty mountain which covers the whole Earth. It is Jesus Christ who will destroy the kingdoms of this world, not His followers. It is Christ's kingdom which will grow to an everlasting kingdom covering the entire Earth, not His followers' kingdom. To say that the Stone represents the followers of Christ is to remove Christ from the prophecy. It is to usurp for ourselves the glory and power that belong to Him alone. What self-exaltation, what self-righteousness, what self-centeredness! As one of my favorite preachers, Lyle Albrecht, said about why he hates the teaching that the last week (seven years) of the 70-week prophecy is applied to antichrist: "They take away the beautiful work of my Saviour, Jesus Christ and apply it to satan! How dare they!"

I will not remove Jesus Christ from the center of my theology which is taught so plainly in the Bible, and apply His work and His power and His glory to 'wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked' humans, relegating Christ to the background as some unseen force simply enabling humans to be the focus. I cannot, will not, remove Jesus Christ from my doctrines...for then they would all be in vain. In John 5:39, He Himself said, "You search the Scriptures for in them you think you have eternal life, but they are they which testify of Me."

What was the vision in Daniel 2 referring to? Kingdoms and their kings! Daniel says to Nebuchadnezzar in 2:38b-39a, "You are this head of gold! And after you shall arise another kingdom inferior to yours."

So we can see the Bible is clear that the materials in this vision refer to kingdoms and their King.

So how illogical and how much a wresting of Scripture would it be to suddenly change the rules for the last part of the vision and say now at this last part, the material no longer represents a King and His kingdom, but instead the Stone represents a small section of God's people which destroy the kingdoms of the world and then grow to cover it?

Brothers and sisters, I beg, implore and beseech you to never ever ever remove Christ from theology and doctrines which all point to Him and Him alone! To put ourselves in the place of God is to make the same mistake that was made in the very beginning. (Isaiah 14:12-15, Ezekiel 28:17)

Let us remember that we are but dust. Our lives, a vapor in the wind. God is the Almighty.

Here are some verses I compiled while studying the topic of Daniel 2 and whether the Stone cut without hands was indeed Jesus Christ, as Seventh-day Adventists believe, or the 144 thousand, as the Shepherd's Rod believes.

Shepherd's Rod doctrine on Daniel 2 hinges on the mountain always being a symbol of God's people and they give 2 verses to back that claim up, but look at all these verses calling Christ the Rock/Stone and referring to the mountain as the dwelling place/righteousness of God...

Jesus Christ the Rock/Stone:

Matthew 21:44, "And whoever falls on this stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder."

Psalm 118:22, "The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone."

Acts 4:11, "This is the ‘stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone.'"

Deuteronomy 32:4, "He is the Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he."

Matthew 7:24, "Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock" and again in Luke 6:47-48

1 Peter 2:4, "Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious"

Isaiah 26:4, "Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD, the LORD, is the Rock eternal"

Matthew 16:16-18, "Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it."

Daniel 2:34-35, "You watched while a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed together, and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors; the wind carried them away so that no trace of them was found. And the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth."

Daniel 2:45, "Inasmuch as you saw that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold—the great God has made known to the king what will come to pass after this. The dream is certain, and its interpretation is sure."

The Mountain as God's Dwelling Place/Righteousness:

Isaiah 14:13, "For you have said in your heart:
‘I will ascend into heaven,
I will exalt my throne above the stars of God;
I will also sit on the mount of the congregation
On the farthest sides of the north"

Exodus 15:17, "You will bring them in and plant them
In the mountain of Your inheritance,
In the place, O LORD, which You have made
For Your own dwelling,
The sanctuary, O Lord, which Your hands have established."

Ezekiel 28:16, "By the multitude of thy merchandise they have filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned: therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God: and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire."

Psalm 36:6, "Thy righteousness is like the great mountains; thy judgments are a great deep: O LORD, thou preservest man and beast."

Exodus 19:3, "And Moses went up to God, and the LORD called to him from the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel:"

Hebrews 12:22, "But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly"

Isaiah 24:23, "The moon will be abashed, the sun ashamed; for the LORD Almighty will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and before its elders, gloriously."

Isaiah 27:13, "And in that day a great trumpet will sound. Those who were perishing in Assyria and those who were exiled in Egypt will come and worship the LORD on the holy mountain in Jerusalem."

Psalm 68:15, "A mountain of God is the mountain of Bashan; A mountain of many peaks is the mountain of Bashan."

Psalm 68:16, "Why do you fume with envy, you mountains of many peaks? This is the mountain which God desires to dwell in; Yes, the LORD will dwell in it forever."

Exodus 3:1, "Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb."

Bible Prophecy Fulfilled - Over 2,500 Years of World History

Easy one...

Daniel chapter 2.

Daniel was one of the Hebrews who had been taken captive by the nation of Babylon and trained in Babylonian schools. Through God's provision he had become a respected wise man of Babylon, though he was only around 20 years old at the time the following story happened. Anyway...

One night the king of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar, had this very vivid dream and when he awoke he couldn't remember it, but he knew it was important so he called his magicians, astrologers and sorcerers together and asked them to tell him 1.) what his dream had been, and 2.) what its interpretation was.

Of course they couldn't do it. So they said, "Tell us the dream and we'll tell you the interpretation."

See, their job as "wise men" involved, among other things, listening to the king's dreams and making up some phony interpretations to please him.

So anyway, now they're in a bind so they tell him that they can't do it and the king realizes that he's been duped this entire time by these guys, so he makes a decree to kill all the wise men in Babylon. King Nebuchadnezzar had a bit of a violent temper...ask me if you want another example.

So this guy from the king's army, the captain of the guard, shows up at Daniel's door to kill him (because he was considered one of the wise men) and his three friends...and Daniel goes, "What happened?? What's with this harsh decree?" and the captain of the guard tells him what happened.

So Daniel asks to speak with the king, is granted an audience, and says to the king that if he'll give him time, he would be able to give him the dream and its interpretation. The king agrees.

So Daniel goes home and tells his three buddies what happened and they pray to God to reveal this dream so that they won't be slain. And that night, Daniel dreamed the same dream that the king had and was given its interpretation, and Daniel praised God!

So Daniel is called before the king and the king asks him if he's able to make known the dream and its interpretation, and Daniel says, "Your wise men, astrologers and magicians can't tell you this stuff...BUT there is a God in heaven that reveals secrets and makes known to the king what will be in the last days. God is showing you what is going to come to pass from here on. And it is because of God that this dream is revealed, not because of me or because I have any more wisdom than anyone else."

And Daniel recounts this dream which was of this big statue of a man, whose head was gold, arms and chest were silver, belly and thighs were bronze, legs were iron, and feet were iron mixed with clay. Then all of a sudden this big rock that was cut without hands flew down and struck the statue on the feet and shattered it...then the rock grew into a huge mountain that covered the whole earth.

So the king gets all excited and exclaims, "That's it! That was the dream!"

And he knows that if Daniel can tell him the dream that he dreamed, surely his interpretation can also be trusted. For sure.

So he tells the king, "God gave you this kingdom and all your power.

You are the head of gold.

Then after you is going to rise up a kingdom inferior to you, just like silver is inferior to gold,

then a third kingdom of brass,

and the fourth kingdom will be as strong as iron, and just like iron breaks and crushes all these other metals, this kingdom will crush everything else too.

Then just like the feet of iron mixed with clay, the fourth kingdom will be divided. Just like the toes were partly of iron and partly of clay, it will be partly strong and partly broken. And just like you saw iron mixed with clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men but they shall not adhere one to another, just as iron does not mix with clay.

And in the days of these kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom and the kingdom will last forever."

So the king is floored, and decides to make Daniel the governor over all the kingdom...and Daniel requested his three friends be put in charge too.

All this can be found in Daniel chapter 2. It's interesting because in the next chapter the king builds this huge statue of a man and makes it all of gold, instead of just the head...kinda hoping his kingdom would last forever. But anyway.

So the Bible is clear the the starting point of this world-history timeline of kingdoms who would rule the then-known world is Babylon which is represented by the head of gold. And that Babylon would be conquered by another kingdom, and then that kingdom would be conquered by a third kingdom, and then that kingdom would be conquered by a fourth kingdom, and that the fourth kingdom WOULDN'T be conquered by a fifth kingdom, but instead would be divided up...and remember the ten toes, just stick that on a shelf in your mind, there will be more on that later.

Let's check history...

Babylon, head of gold, reigned from 605-539 BC, and was conquered by...?

Medo-Persia, chest and arms of silver, who reigned from 539-331 BC, and was conquered by...?

Greece, belly and thighs of brass, who reigned from 331-168 BC, and was conquered by...?

Rome, legs of iron, who reigned from 168 BC - 476 AD, and was conquered by...?

If the fourth world-empire had been conquered by a fifth, you could throw your Bibles in the garbage and say it was all fairy-tales...but it wasn't.

Any A-students out there? What happened to Rome? It disintegrated from within and was divided into smaller kingdoms. Through unparalleled luxury, political corruption and moral decay, Rome lost its stability and strength and became easy prey for the various Barbarian tribes that began invading the empire during the fourth century A.D.

By 476 AD, Rome had divided into ten parts, or tribes. They were:

The Alemanni (today's Germans)

The Franks (French)

The Saxons (English)

The Visigoths (Spanish)

The Burgundians (Swiss)

The Lombards (Italians)

The Suevi (Portugese)

and the Heruli, the Vandals, and the Ostrogoths (these three are now extinct, more on that later)

The current nations of Europe developed from these various tribes of the divided Roman empire.

Remember that part about mingling themselves with the seed of men but not adhering together just as iron won't mix with clay?

MANY rulers have tried to reunite Europe, often through royal marriages, you know? Like the princess of this country is wed to the prince of that country, etc etc...trying to reunite the nations of Europe by the mingling of seed...but it never worked.

Then there were the military conquests of men who tried to reunite the nations of Europe, men like Charlemagne, Charles V, Louis XIV, Napoleon Bonaparte (who reportedly was told of this prophecy and that he wouldn't succeed, and then threw the Bible across the room...it's said that after Waterloo he said, "God has been too much." or something like that), and more recently, Adolph Hitler.

Bible prophecy...unreal. It happened just like God said it would, and later the prophecy is given again in even MORE detail...so much so that it is seriously mind-blowing.

In that world time-line...where are we? We are living in the tips of the toes, at the veeeerrrryyyy bottom of the statue, the very end of the timeline, well into the days of divided Rome.

Remember what happened next?

The Rock came and struck the image on the feet (right where we are in time), shattering it into dust, and then the Rock grew into a huge mountain that covered the whole earth...who is the Rock? Who is coming back very soon to destroy the kingdoms of the earth and establish an everlasting kingdom? Christ is the Rock.

Just wait until you hear the NEXT prophecy!

Exposing Seventh-day Adventist Doctrines: the Divinity of Jesus Christ

Exposing Seventh-day Adventist Doctrines: The Sabbath

It Gets Better (For Adventists Too)

To my gay brothers and sisters...God loves you. He made you...He knew you before you were born. He has a special place in His heart for you and only you. He loves you as if you were the only person He has ever made. He watches over you, speaks to you, woos you and entreats you. He loves you so much that He became a man and suffered and died to take the punishment that justice requires of you.

Recently, there has been a group in the Seventh-day Adventist church who have joined hands with the rest of the world in promoting an "inclusive" philosophy towards homosexuality. That is the reason for this article.

God created this world as a lush, beautiful garden...a veritable paradise. When sin entered the world at the fall of Adam, that perfect creation was shattered. Sin spread like a cancer through every living creature and every plant, through every drop of water and every breath of air.

Many animals began to attack and devour one another and became venomous...many plants developed thorns and thistles and became poisonous...nothing, neither plant nor animal, was left unaffected.

It is said that Adam and Eve wept over the first fallen leaf as we weep today for the death of a child. These things were never meant to be. Death was never meant to be.

But it wasn't physical changes alone that came with the entrance of sin; there were spiritual changes taking place as well. Since that day, around 6,000 years ago, mankind has been slowly degrading both physically and spiritually. While Adam was said to be perhaps 15 feet tall or more, with a mind that was able to recall every sight, sound, touch, taste and feel that he had ever been exposed to...today men are lucky to stand even 6 feet, with minds that sometimes struggle to remember even such things as what we had for breakfast.

And while we have become more and more debased, our lusts have grown more and more perverse until now we see so much adultery, fornication and fetishes that it all seems normal. A man thinks nothing of going to a bar and bringing to bed whatever girl he strikes up a conversation with that night, oftentimes never to see her again. A woman thinks nothing of letting men use her in any vulgar way he pleases. Children now, often before puberty even begins, are engaging in sexual acts without batting an eye.

As this broken Earth has fallen further and further from it's former perfection, so too have we who inhabit it. We are all born with natures that are selfish, greedy and lustful...seeking to maximize our pleasure and minimize our discomfort. And the world just urges us on, encouraging us to be proud of who we are...to be ourselves.

But dear one, ourselves are wicked wicked things. That is what the world doesn't understand. We were made for greater things. We were made to be greater things. Pure and joyful and holy. We were made in the very image of our Creator!

We all struggle with sins...those sins which do so easily ensnare us...a man's lust to sleep with women outside of marriage, a woman's lust to sleep with men outside of marriage, a man's lust for men, a woman's lust for women...a lust for the riches and power of this world...a lust for food and drink...a pride deep within that says we know best. There are so many things we struggle with because we are a broken creation. But please know...it does get better.

The more we surrender to God and the more we decide to follow His will even though our hearts desire our own way, the more His Spirit comes in and comforts us. As we die to self, He begins living in us. And His light shines brighter and brighter until that perfect day when He shall make us brand new again...when this corruptible shall put on incorruption, and this mortal shall put on immortality. And God will wipe away every tear from our eyes; and there will be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

So please, my brothers and sisters...do not lose hope. Do not go to the right hand or to the left, but listen to that still small voice behind you saying, "This is the way, walk ye in it." Forsake self and be reborn, for if anyone is in Christ, they are a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

Take hold of Jesus' loving hand and let Him lead you all the way through the gates of heaven. Trust the promise of the One who said, "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." For He also said, "I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also."

God's great mercy be forever with you.
With Christ's Love,
Todd

Scripture References (almost in the order I used them):

John 3:16, Jeremiah 1:5, Ezekiel 33:11, Genesis 1:28-31, Genesis 3:18, Isaiah 51:6, Romans 8:22, Romans 5:12, Matthew 24:12, Jeremiah 17:9, Galatians 5:19-21, 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, 1 John 2:16, Isaiah 53:6, Ephesians 2:10, Revelation 4:11, Isaiah 45:18, 1 Peter 2:9, Genesis 1:26-27, Hebrews 12:1, Romans 1:27, John 14:16, 2 Corinthians 3:18, 1 Corinthians 15:31, Galatians 2:20, Proverbs 4:18, Job 11:17, 2 Peter 1:19, 1 Corinthians 15:53-54, John 3:3, Revelation 21:4, Proverbs 4:27, Isaiah 30:21, 2 Corinthians 5:17, John 16:33, John 14:2-3.

Non-Adventist Speakers

Recently there has been much controversy about the invitation of T.D. Jakes to speak at an Evangelism Council taking place this December, 2011, at Oakwood University. There is truly no need for this controversy.

First of all, this particular event has more than likely come under such scrutiny because of a very popular YouTube video where pastor T.D. Jakes attacks the Sabbath, which has placed him on the Seventh-day Adventist radar. But, truth be told, this event is not unique (aside from the controversy it has caused) because there are many non-Adventist speakers invited to churches, colleges and other Seventh-day Adventist institutions every year.

Secondly, God has given extremely clear and unambiguous light about this subject through His prophet, Ellen White. So, without further ado, God's thoughts on the matter at hand:

"If God has any new light to communicate, He will let His chosen and beloved understand it, without their going to have their minds enlightened by hearing those who are in darkness and error.

I was shown the necessity of those who believe that we are having the last message of mercy, being separate from those who are daily imbibing new errors. I saw that neither young nor old should attend their meetings; for it is wrong to thus encourage them while they teach error that is a deadly poison to the soul and teach for doctrines the commandments of men. The influence of such gatherings is not good.

If God has delivered us from such darkness and error, we should stand fast in the liberty wherewith He has set us free and rejoice in the truth. God is displeased with us when we go to listen to error, without being obliged to go; for unless He sends us to those meetings where error is forced home to the people by the power of the will, He will not keep us. The angels cease their watchful care over us, and we are left to the buffetings of the enemy, to be darkened and weakened by him and the power of his evil angels; and the light around us becomes contaminated with the darkness." - Early Writings, pp. 124, 125.

The Little Sticks Story

By: Rob Peralta

Perhaps one of the most dramatic and lesson-filled stories in God's word occurred in the book of Numbers. I call it "The Little Sticks Story." It has important truths and lessons we can learn. God has it there FOR A REASON. It is the observant, humble, learning servant that will gain wisdom when he studies this story. God places truths like little gold nuggets, and if we dig a little we'll find them and be joyful to know His word and truth. Let us look at this BIG AND IMPORTANT LESSON.

Our story begins in Numbers 15:22 to 15:31. The Lord tell His people through Moses and Aaron that if they sin (break His Commandments) there shall be two ways to deal with it: the "ignorant" sin would be forgiven with atonement. The "Blatant" or "Presumptuous" sin would not be forgiven, these people boldly decide to break His Law and therefore should be "cut off."

We must stop here for a moment and reassess what the situation was with these people (in their relationship with God). God had performed GREAT feats and wonders IN THEIR EYESIGHT, they saw Him in action. He left little doubt as to His closeness to them. The cloud during the day, the fire during the night. He now wanted "accountability" from them. So He made sure they KNEW just what sin meant. He was in effect warning them by basically saying "I AM YOUR GOD, THE GREAT I AM, PLEASE LISTEN TO ME."

To continue, we read in Numbers 15:32-34, "And while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man that gathered sticks on the Sabbath day. And they that found him gathering sticks brought him unto Moses and Aaron and unto all the congregation. And they put him in a ward because it was not declared what should be done to him." Let's look at this part more in depth.

We know that the Lord had previously declared that His Laws were holy and to be obeyed. They were not the "10 suggestions." He declared "presumptuous" sin was very serious and the offender must be "cut off." So the Lord left ALL without excuse. This man no doubt had a family and being in the desert (cold nights) probably was running low on firewood and wanted to provide for his family. But here is the big issue. This man's thinking and lack of fear of God, led him to think, "The Lord will understand, He knows we will suffer tonight if I don't get these sticks. He is compassionate." How many are thinking along THESE SAME LINES TODAY? The Lord will let this or that slide. He'll understand my circumstances. I can break these Commandments under the right circumstances.

Stop and think about something for a moment. Why do you think the Lord is so concerned that we keep His Sabbath Holy? I think there is a clear answer in His word. We, being HIS PEOPLE, are sanctified by keeping His Sabbath! (Exodus 31:13) "..My Sabbaths you shall keep (holy), for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that YOU MAY KNOW that I am the Lord WHO SANCTIFIES YOU." Each Sabbath we keep we get a little holier!

Then the story ends with the Lord declaring the man must die. Like I said it's a dramatic story but a important lesson to learn. In (Malachi 3:6) we read "For I am the Lord, I change not." That means He's the same as when this story took place. His Laws remain just that --His Laws.

So let's learn the lesson here. Our "little sticks" can do us real harm if we think we can be presumptuous and think that our Lord doesn't mean what He says and say what He means. Be strong my brothers and sisters, He wants NOTHING MORE than to embrace you and call you His own in His kingdom. But there is a requirement. In Christ's love, Rob