• design of the story: 17/25/32 (1Pet. 5:5)
• a royal flashback
• testimony of God’s work: a dramatic transformation

• alarming dreams
• magnificent incompetence
• enter Daniel

• massive tree
• chopped down with stump remaining
• beast’s mind and stated purpose (Rom. 1:21-25)

• dismay and compassion of Daniel
• the tree: Nebuchadnezzar
• purpose of judgment and application: avoid/embrace

• misinterpretation of mercy
• message from heaven
• immediate fulfillment

• from pride to praise
• repetition and recognition
• the humble exalted
• implications for Israel (Isa. 6:13) and connection to Christ (Phil. 2: 5-11, 1 Pet. 2:24)

• Because God is absolutely in charge, constantly confess your utter dependence on Him.
• “bigness,” gospel humility, and the unlikely convert (“Jesus, I My Cross Have Taken” by H. Lyte)

• preceded by Nebuchadnezzar’s dream/interpretation in Daniel 2
• image raised (1), worship commanded (4) and consequence of non-compliance (6) (Jer. 29:22)

• malicious Chaldean charge
• repetition of command and consequence and report of non-compliance

• furious rage and summons: verification sought and opportunity for compliance given
• assumption of deity inability

• when words are unnecessary (Ex. 20:4-5)
• condition and capacity…but if not… (Isa. 43:2, Matt. 26:39)

• fury and face-change: heat turned up and men thrown in the furnace
• death of Nebuchadnezzar’s mighty men

• astonishment at a fourth unbound man: walking…and not hurt
• out of the fire with no singe, stain or smell

• blessing the God who delivers
• decree issued and the men promoted

• connection to Christ: Matt. 16:25, Col. 1:13-14, Heb. 2:14-15, 1 Pet. 4:12
• Because God is able to deliver His people in every circumstance, obey Him despite the consequences.
• “Fidelity to God before fraternity with men…” (Spurgeon)
• “When through fiery trials thy pathway shall lie, My grace, all sufficient, shall be thy supply…” (Keene)

• context of judgment/exile (1-3): Nebuchadnezzar, the Lord “gave” (Lev. 26, Isa. 39)
• deportation of “unblemished” youths (4): relocation
• rationing, re-educating and renaming (5-7)
• focus on Daniel yet greater focus on the God of Daniel
• parallels with the present (Heb. 11:13, 1 Pet. 2:11)

• resolve to avoid defilement of prescribed diet and its motivation (8)
• chief’s rejection of request (9-10): note “God gave…favor”
• steward’s acceptance of proposal (11-14)
• supernatural result (15-16)

• endowment with exceptional skills (17): note “God gave…”
• graduation elevation (18-20)
• preservation of a dependent life (21)
• connection to Christ: Luke 4:4, Phil. 2:5-11, 3:20

• While in “captivity,” nothing is more important than knowing the God in control of your past, present and future.
• “God suffers no man to be a loser by faithfulness, and more than makes up all that is surrendered for His sake.” (Maclaren)
• Treasure the truth of an unchanging, unlimited God. (Knowing God, J. I. Packer)
• “You are almighty, You are great and majestic, You are strong, invincible, And there’s no one like You…” (“Eres Todopoderoso,” D. Montero)

But man spoiled his chances by sinning
We trust that the story
Will end in God’s glory
But at present the other side’s winning. ” (J. Boice)

• unmoved
• installation
• “To be intimidated by the world is as spiritually fatal as being overly attracted to it.” (T. Keller)

• extent of reign
• expression of reign

• serve
• submit
• “There is no refuge from Him-only in Him.” (D. Kidner)
• Because of God’s installation and exaltation of His Son as ultimate Ruler, submit to Christ now.
• “O Worship the King” (Grant) and “This Is My Father’s World” (Babcock)

• Ezekiel: “God strengthens” in a context of judgment and exile

• hand and Spirit of the LORD
• prophetic vision of a valley full of dry bones drawing from an exilic “proverb” (37:11)

• the LORD’S question and Ezekiel’s response

♦ content and consequence

• NT/Christ connections: Jn. 11:25-26, 20:22; 1 Cor. 15:50-58

• Solely because of His sovereign and gracious intervention, trust the LORD to give life to the dead through His Word and Spirit.
• “Faith has the prerogative of seeing possibilities of life in what looks to sense hopeless death.” (Maclaren)
• “If we want revivals, we must revive our reverence for the Word of God.” (Spurgeon)
• “Mercy Walked In” (Mote) and “Breathe on Me” (McKinney)

• word and hand of the LORD (1:1-3), “Son of Man”
• with Daniel in days of Babylonian exile
• themes of retribution and restoration
• background on Tyre and Sidon

• picture of exalted position corresponding to self-deification
• flagged for excessive self-celebration (Prov. 3:34)
• connection to the Fall/garden (Gen. 3)
• specific denunciation and certain doom
• prophetic perfect: as good as done
• accompanying prophecy against Sidon
• repetition of “…they will know that I am the LORD”

• another repetition of “…they will know that I am the LORD”
• security for the scattered and scorned
• manifestation of holiness
• NT/Christ connections: Luke 19:10, Heb. 13:20-21, James 4:6. 1 Pet. 5:5

• In light of the LORD’S power and provision, resolve to pursue a posture of biblical humility.
• “Every departure from God’s path is a pitting of one’s will, and a backing of one’s judgment, against His; but the contempt which it spells is too irrational to acknowledge.” (D. Kidner on Prov. 14:2)
• “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross” (Watts)

• primary focus on Messiah and not the Magi or a madman
• not just the where, but the who

• hostility of Herod and distress of Jerusalem

• inquiry and the apparent indifference of religious leaders
• testimony and fulfillment of Micah 5:2 and a deceptive dispatch

• leveraging creation to point the Magi to Messiah (Isa. 60:1-3)

• joy, humility, generosity, obedience
• gifts that focus and foreshadow and a warning in a dream

• flight (13-15 , Hos. 11:1), children killed (16-18, Jer. 31:15), Nazareth (19-23)

• In light of God’s objective in and orchestration of the first Christmas, commit yourself to wondering worship.
• “The New Testament knows nothing of an incarnation that can be defined apart from its relationship to atonement.” (J. Denney)
• from “came and saw” to “go and tell” (Matt. 28:16-20)
• “O Worship the King…” (Grant)

• Who is like Yahweh?
• a third “now”: from a period of distress to a proclamation of hope

• prophetic address
• siege and summons

• divine address: but you…”house of bread” and “fruitful”
• “from Bethlehem…for Me”
• ruler over Israel: from David to a greater David (1 Sam. 16:1, Acts 2:25-36)
• back to Bethlehem and David’s “distant” days (2 Sam. 7:12-16)

• affliction (verse 3) precedes enjoyment (verse 2)
• the mother and brothers of Messiah (Rom. 8:29, Heb. 2:11-14)

• a standing Shepherd and His secured sheep and another “now” (Rev. 22:16)
• the LORD promotes His glory, keeps His promises, protects His people

• Because of the LORD’S promises and performance in Christ Jesus, worship the true King this Christmas.
• “Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus” (Wesley), “Once in Royal David’s City” (Alexander)
• “O Come, All Ye Faithful” (Wade)
• We need a King!

• prophecy during the reign of Josiah about 20 years before Jerusalem’s fall (1:1)
• from the reality of judgment to the reverberation of joy

• the humble and lowly rejoice and exult (2:3, 3:12)
• a triple invocation
• grounds for joy: judgments taken away, enemies cleared away, the LORD’S presence

• repetition of presence and a triple promise
• a Mighty Warrior who saves
• the glad God who rejoices
• He “will rest” or “be silent” in His love
• He will rejoice over them with loud singing
• elaboration of 3:18-20

• Mt. 21:4-9, Jn. 3:16, Lk. 15:11-32, Gal. 3:29, Eph. 2:8-10
• third Sunday of Advent: Joy in Immanuel (Mt. 1:22-23)
• “Nothing in fiction is so fantastic as this truth of incarnation.” (Packer)

• Because, having saved you, the LORD sings over you, rejoice in His presence and promises.
• The Warrior, whose righteous judgment scorches, offers mercy that saves and secures.
• Delight in the depth of God’s mercy.
• “If His mind is so set on you and His power so engaged for you…” (Simeon)
• “He comes to make his blessings known far as the curse is found…” (Watts)

• contextual connections: Romans 14 and 15:1-3
• Because Christ is the ultimate confirmation of God’s promises, you can have hope this Christmas-and forever!
• Why Christmas?

• because the Scriptures instruct us
• so that we might have hope
• through endurance and encouragement
• so that we may glorify God

• Christ serves on behalf of the truth of God
• Christ confirms the promises of God
• Gentiles are commanded to praise: 2 Sam. 22:50, Psa. 18:49, Deut. 32:43, Psa. 117:1
• a hope-laced prophecy: Isa. 11:10
• a prayer request: from hope to hope

• Bank on the basis of hope.
• Fuel your hope by feasting on the Word.
• Remember that Christmas is about hope-filled mercy.
• “…a thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices, for yonder breaks a new and glorious morn. Fall on your knees…” (J. S. Dwight)