wasn't that beautiful? And really God has only just begun because we're praying for people to come here not to have just someone in the pew but to have people who are hungry for the word of God and thirsty to praise him. Now, in order that we might be able to have a continuity in the book of Daniel, we'll be reading the finality of Nebuchadnezzar. He has been king for 40 some years. He has before the scripture I read to you in the fourth chapter of Daniel verse 34, Daniel 434, he has been insane. He has been out in the fields like an animal. Eating grass like an ox God has knocked him down to as far you can go and now he suddenly We read these words in verse 34 At the end of the days that is the days of his insanity I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up my eyes unto heaven, and my understanding returned unto me. And I blessed the Most High, and I praised and I honored him that liveth forever and ever." This is the King of Babylon. Verse 35, all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing. And he that doeth according to his will in the armies of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth and none can stay his hand or say to him, what doest thou? At the same time, my reason returned unto me his insanity left and for the glory of my kingdom mine honor and brightness returned to me and my counselors and my lords sought at unto me and i was established in my kingdom and excellent and majesty was added to me Now, I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all whose works are true and his ways judgment. And those that walk in pride, he is able to ebase. Now the question comes among Bible scholars all the way back to Martin Luther and to many of Calvin and all of those men who started the so-called Protestant movement. They were different ones. Luther did not think this man was ever saved and neither did many of the others. But I believe he was, and here's my scripture from Jesus to prove it. I believe Nebuchadnezzar was saved and is in heaven. Now let me give you scripture. The enemies of Jesus were giving him a hard time. And so we'll look at the book of John. THE SIXTH CHAPTER, VERSE 43. WHAT ARE WE LOOKING FOR IN THESE VERSES? WE'RE LOOKING FOR SOMETHING SO SPECIAL. VERSE 43, THE SIXTH CHAPTER OF JOHN. JESUS THEREFORE ANSWERED AND SAID TO THEM, MURMUR NOT AMONG YOURSELVES. QUIT MUMBLING AROUND ABOUT WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT IT. YOU'RE JUST A BUNCH OF MUMBLERS. and there's too much mumbling and not enough of talking about Jesus, straight talk, plain talk, holy talk. Jesus therefore said to them, murmur not among yourselves, no man, that's exactly what it means, none. No man can come to me except my Father, which hath sent me draw him. And I will raise him up at the last day. As it is written in the prophets. He's quoting from Isaiah 54. He's quoting to them. As it is written in the prophets, they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard and hath learned of the Father comes to me. Not that any man has seen the Father save he which is of God, he has seen the Father. Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth on me hath everlasting life. Tonight, You're here, every one of you, because you believe in Jesus of Nazareth, the crucified resurrected soon coming savior. Now Nebuchadnezzar dies. And when we start the fifth chapter, it's really sad. The, and I cannot read this to you from the Bible, but what I have researched comes from the history that was written history. They had cylinders made out of clay and they would write certain letters on that clay and then they would harden it. And so we find that right after Nebuchadnezzar died, There are a large number of those who tried to take over the throne in Babylon. And they, it's really a sad story. They assassinated, they killed, there was nothing but blood running, trying to find out who could be able to take Nebuchadnezzar's place. Finally, they allowed a man named Belshazzar. And that's where we start in verse five. Belshazzar, the verse starts, verse one, the king made a great feast. Now he's doing this, I'm telling you ahead of time, He's doing this because he has totally lost the kingdom. He has built, they have built around Babylon, this town where they are, this city, and they built a huge wall, a wall that four chariots, it was wide enough, four chariots could go at once around it. They had stored food for about five to seven years. And they said, let the Medes and the Persian come and try to take this town. They can't do it because we're prepared and they'll be worn out. And Bill Shazard decides to have a big party. He made a great feast. getting their minds off of what's really happening. Because the Medes and the Persians, if you were to look over the wall, you could see them all around the city. He decides to throw a big party, a feast. And he made a feast to thousands of his lords, those who were his servants. AND HE DRANK WINE BEFORE THOUSANDS THERE WERE THOUSANDS OF THEM GATHERED INSIDE THE CITY THINKING THEY WERE SAFE THE CITY COULD NOT BE PENETRATING AND THEY HAD PLENTY OF WINE AND FOOD THEY HAD EVERYTHING TO LAST FOR A LONG TIME THEY COULD OUTLAST THE MEDES AND THE PERSIANS ACCORDING TO THEIR THINKING. WELL WHERE'S DANIEL? HE'S BEEN PUT OFF TO THE SIDE His advice is not being taken. He's been gone for a long time over to the side. And Belshazzar, while he tasted the wine, commanded to bring, and here's where he makes his final mistake. Bring the golden and silver vessels. which his father, and now in case you should get into a debate with some of the real brilliant Bible scholars, the word father here doesn't mean he was his direct father, but he was a descendant of Nebuchadnezzar. And silver vessels, which his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple in Jerusalem. which was in Jerusalem that the king and his princess and his wives, they had all their wives, they had their concubines and they begin to get drunker and drunk and drunk and drunk. They were celebrating the fact that they were safe inside the walls of the great city they had built. Then they brought the golden vessels that were taken out of the temple of the house of God, which was at Jerusalem. And the king and his princes and his wives and their concubines drank out of them. Every one of these vessels that Nebuchadnezzar had taken 40 something years ago, out of the temple of god in jerusalem every one of them had a symbolic meaning about jesus and some part of jesus personality and his gifts that he gave gives to hear those who worship him and they are going there saying but the God of the Jews is nobody. Look, we're gonna make fun of him. What's he gonna do about it? We're gonna show him that our gods are the true gods and their God, the God of the Jews is not the real God. And we're gonna prove it by drinking out of a holy vessels from the holy temple that was in Jerusalem. and they drank wine and praised the God of gold. Don't we dare do that? I get kind of amused and that shows how probably I got some kind of a screw loose. But I get amused when I hear them advertise MY SILVER. PARDON ME AND SOMEONE EXPLAIN THIS TO ME IF YOU CAN. DO I WANT A SAFE IN MY HOUSE FULL OF A BUNCH OF METAL AND JUST LEAVE IT THERE HOPING, HOPING THAT IT WILL GET WORTH MORE THAN I PAID FOR IT? NOW YOU MAY NOT AGREE WITH THIS BUT THAT'S OKAY. YOU HAVE EVERY RIGHT TO DISAGREE WITH ME. I'M NOBODY. I believe that, are you ready now? Now don't get mad at me, just pray for me. I believe that playing the stock market is no different than playing the machines at the casino. You are gambling that what you buy will become worth more and you'll make money out of it. Do you have any promise of that from God? No, the treasures you left were in heaven. That's the ones you know. They drank wine and they praised. Wee, they were having a big adoration service. They prayed to the God of gold and silver and even brass. AND EVEN IRON AND WHEN THEY WERE SO POOR THEY COULDN'T PRAISE ANYTHING ELSE THEY PRAISED WOOD AND STONE WELL GOD IS NOT GONNA PUT UP WITH THIS THEY'VE GOT THE HOLY VESSELS THERE THAT REPRESENT THE MESSIAH AND IN THE SAME HOUR CAME FORTH A FINGERS THE FINGERS OF A MAN'S HAND that rode over against the candlestick upon the plaster of the wall of the king's palace. And the king, he sobers up, he sees that hand, just a hand out here writing on the wall, not even an arm. And the king saw the part of the hand that wrote. And as the king's countenance was changed, that was sobering up. He was drunk as a whodowl, but he got sobered up. And his thoughts troubled him. That's not gonna do him any good. It doesn't do any good if your thoughts trouble you if you can't do anything about it. And so that the joints of his loins were loosed. Kind of reminds me of what happened to me on Sunday morning. It's all right to laugh at me, I need to be laughed at, I enjoy it. Then the king's countenance changed and his thoughts troubled him so that the joints of his loins were loosed and his knees smoked one against another. Yeah, fill up. You know, we can have a little fun at church. My God laughs. He laughs and I enjoy it. Holy laughter. The Bible teaches it's medicine. You can go out of here saying, the preacher dispensed medicine to us tonight. Boy, the government will be after me. Let's give a lot of medicine, good medicine. And the king cried aloud, bring my astrologers, bring my Chaldeans, bring my soothsayers. And the king spake. and said to the wise men, here's this bunch of hacks again, they still got them around. A woman told me today, I'll not go into the details, she was trying to have some kind of a relationship with the bureaucracy of government and someone told her, you're wasting your time. Don't try to argue with a bureaucrat. because they've got the jump on you. Turn them over to God. Turn them over to God. Don't try to win with a bureaucrat. He calls all his bureau. How many times is this? Have we read about this already? And they're all just as dumb as doornails. And the king spake and said to these wise men, Whosoever shall read the writing and show me the interpretation thereof, those writing on the wall, I'll clothe him with scarlet and have a chain of gold about his neck and I'll make him the third ruler in the kingdom. Then came all the king's wise men But guess what? You know already. But they could not read the writing, nor make known to the king the interpretation thereof. This has gone on forever. Don't you ever catch on that these people are nothing but just a bunch of hangers-oners? They're nothing. Then was the king Belshazzar greatly troubled. He now really gets sobered up. And his countenance, the way his face looked, was changed in him. And his lords were astonished. He must have turned from a healthy looking man into a zombie. Now the queen, now this is not his wife, it's an older woman, she remembers Daniel. Now the queen, by reason of words of the king and his lords, came to the banquet house, and the queen spake and said, O king, live forever. That was one of the things you always said to the king, that was kind of a greeting that you said to kings. Let not the thoughts trouble thee, nor let thy countenance be changed. then listen to verse 11 there is a man there's a man you've been put into mothballs for twenty-something years there's a man in thy kingdom of whom is the spirit of the holy gods and in the days of thy fathers light and understanding and wisdom, like the wisdom of the gods, was found in him, whom King Nebuchadnezzar, thy father the king, I say, thy father made master of this bunch of hacks, as you've been calling on these magicians, for as much as an excellent spirit and knowledge and understanding He can interpret dreams. He can show you the meaning of hard sentences and dissolve the doubts you have. We were found in Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar. Now Daniel is probably about 80 something years old now. Now let Daniel be called and he will show the interpretation. Then was Daniel brought before the king and the king spake and said to Daniel, Art thou that Daniel? I want to be sure I got the right one. Which are to the children of the captivity of Judah. Are you a Jewish captive Daniel? whom the king my father brought you out of Jewry, I have even heard of thee. He had heard about him, but hearing didn't get any further than right inside where the wax of his eardrums were. I have heard of thee, I hear that the spirit of the gods is in thee. Now he's still using the word little g-o-d-s. And that light and understanding and excellent wisdom is found in thee. Now the wise men, and he names all of a bunch of hacks again, they could not show the interpretation of the thing. And I have heard of thee, that thou canst make interpretation and dissolve doubts. Now if thou canst read the writing that maketh known to me the interpretation thereof, I'll clothe you with scarlet. I'll put a chain of gold on your neck and you shall be the third ruler in Babylon. Then Daniel answered. How sweet these words must have been. Oh God, let's hear these words. And Daniel said before the king, let thy gifts be to yourself, keep them yourself, put them back in your safe, and give thy reward to another. Give it away, I don't want it, I don't need it. Yet I will read the writing unto the king and make known to him the interpretation. Thou, O king, the most high God gave Nebuchadnezzar thy father a kingdom and majesty and glory and honor. And for the majesty that he gave him, all the people, nations and languages trembled and feared before him. whom he would slew, and whom he would keep alive, and whom he would set up, and whom he would put down. He had power, but when his heart was lifted up, and his mind hardened in pride, he was deposed from the kingly throne, and they took the glory from him. And he tells about how he was driven out insane, I'll not read those words, But now he's gonna talk to Belshazzar. Verse 22. And thou his son, O Belshazzar, hath not humbled thy heart, though thou knewest all this. You knew everything and you did not accept it. But you have litched yourself against the Lord God of heaven. and they have brought the vessels of the house before thee. You and your lords and your wives and concubines have drunk from them. And thou has praised the gods of silver and gold and brass and iron and wood and stone. They don't see, they don't hear, they don't know. And the God of whose hand thy breath is, And those are all thy ways hast thou not glorified. Then was the part of the hand sent forth to him. And this writing was written. This is the writing that was written. Mene, mene tekel yufshasen. This is the interpretation of the thing. meaning God has numbered thy kingdom and finished it. Tichel, thou art weighed in the balances and art found wanting. Pires, thy kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and the Persians. Then commanded Belshazzar, And they that clothed Daniel with scarlet and put, he thought, well, I think I can bribe this guy. I think I can stop this. So they put the scarlet and the chain of gold about his neck, made a proclamation concerning him, Daniel, that he should be the third ruler of the kingdom. And in that night, Belshazzar, the king of Chaldeans, slain and Darius the Mede took the kingdom being about three score and two years old he took the kingdom away from him now what did he say thou art weighed in the balances and found wanting You know, there's only one way you can balance it out, no matter if you're a Belshazzar or you're you or me. And that is on this side of the balances, and I purchased some of these in Athens, Greece when I was in Tripoli on a TDY. And on this side, you had a cup, and on this side, you had a cup, and you had a scale in the middle. Well, you see, you're like this. but when you put Jesus in, you balance. The only way you can be balanced is, and I'm asking you, I've really been burdened about this. Let's make this church the most Jesus church on the face of the earth. Let's fill our hearts and minds with Jesus, Jesus, Jesus. I like this song. Yes, not the one you got, don't worry about it. Jesus, oh how sweet the name. Jesus, every day the same. While we stand and sing this song, let the balance of Jesus fill the empty spot so you can leave here balanced. and not wait in the balances and found one. ♪ There is a place of quiet rest near to the heart of God ♪ A place where sin cannot molest near to the heart of God O Jesus, blessed Redeemer, sent from the heart of God. Hold us, who wait before Thee, near to the heart of God.