in the Lord, David, to come and share the word with us, and wanted to express a special gratitude on behalf of our congregation to the many years of service and ministry that you have given to many of the families in this church, and also to the friendship you've given to me. We're going to miss you, and we love... Why am I doing this? I should have had it written down and said, Brother Kent, would you read this? Would you please come and share the word with us? Know that we love you very much. Please take your Bibles and turn to the book of Daniel, chapter 11. Good to be with you this evening. Thank you for your warm welcome. Thank you for these kind words, Keith. Thank you for your prayers for us at this time of transition and for the church in Carlisle. I especially ask for your prayers for the church that God will provide for its needs It is 1963 since the last time Grace Baptist Church was without a full-time minister. It's almost as long as I've lived. So it's a big change not to have someone on staff. So please pray that God will provide for its long-term needs. Thank you Kent for reading this difficult passage of scripture and setting it in its context. It all begins really back in chapter 10 and there is a magnificent angel, chapter 10, verse 14, who has come to make Daniel understand certain things, specifically what is going to happen to his people in the latter days. For the vision, this is chapter 10, verse 14, is for days yet to come. Fast forward some 350 years. It's now the year 175 BC and Syria to the north has a new king and Kent mentioned his name earlier on, Antiochus Epiphanes or Antiochus the illustrious, and he is going to reign for 12 years. And for the people of God, these 12 years are going to be very difficult years indeed. And there are two basic reasons for that. One is the dreadful things that this Antiochus Epiphanes will do. He's going to make every effort to thoroughly paganize Israel's religion. He's going to abolish the daily sacrifices. He's going to defile the temple of God by erecting in it an image to the God Zeus. He's going to forbid the keeping of the Sabbath. He's going to forbid the reading of Scripture. He's going to forbid the circumcising of infants and all on pain of death. Under Antiochus Epiphanes, your choice is stark. Either turn your back on the religion of the old covenant or die. Which brings us to the second reason why The days of Antiochus Epiphanes are going to be peculiarly difficult years for the people of God. Many, under this pressure, are going to abandon the ancient faith. Verse 30 speaks about those who forsake the holy covenant. And in verse 32 it is said that he, that is the king, shall seduce with flattery those who violate the covenant. The people of God are not going to present to this man a united front. Through a combination of fear and flattery, he's going to win many of them over to his own side and they're going to forsake God's covenant. They're going to violate it. They're going to choose, in other words, to conform to this new pagan religion rather than pay the price for faithfulness to God. So there are difficult years ahead for the people of God. Years when it is going to seem as if everything is going to be lost. Everything good that God has given to them. But everything is not going to be lost. For one thing, Antiochus Epiphanes is not going to be around forever. 12 years. And then his history. Suddenly and in mysterious circumstances, he's gone. But there's another reason why everything is not lost during these 12 difficult years. Not everyone is going to be unfaithful. This evening's text, verse 32, speaks about people who will stand firm and take action. People, in other words, whom neither fear nor flattery are going to move. And in verse 33 the angel speaks about the wise among the people who shall make many understand, though for some days they shall stumble by sword and flame, by captivity and plunder. You remember earlier in this book these three heroic figures Daniel's three friends Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and how they were faithful even under threat of death. Well there are people like that in the days of Antiochus Epiphanes. People who will remain faithful to the Lord even though for many it's going to mean suffering and death. So there's the picture. Dark days unquestionably not completely dark. Things are never completely dark. God always has at least a remnant of faithful ones who stand firm, who do what is right, come what may. And this evening we're going to explore the secret of this. What is the secret of this constancy, this steadfastness in the days of Antiochus Epiphanes. What will enable us to stand firm in these days and not be ashamed of the gospel? Well the answer is right there before you in two words. Knowing God. Verse 32. He that is the king shall seduce with flattery those who violate the covenant. But the people who know their God shall stand firm and take action. Here is the great secret both of faithfulness and of fruitfulness in days when things are hard for us as believers, knowing God. If we know Him, then we too will stand firm and take action, not shrinking back, but remaining Christ faithful witnesses, bold for Him, even when it's tough. So our subject this evening is knowing God and how knowing Him keeps us standing firm and doing His will in the worst of days. I have six things to say about knowing God and the first and most basic thing of all is an intellectual thing. Knowing God means, first of all, knowing things about Him. Truth about God, facts about God, things that we grasp with our minds. Now, we're right down at the foundation here. There is much more to knowing God than knowing things about Him, and we will come to these things in a little while. But it's where we begin. It's where we begin when it's all about knowing people. We don't know people apart from knowing things about them. And so it is with God. I think of what Paul said when he was in Athens in Acts chapter 17. You remember how he's addressing these leading lights of the city, the Areopagus. You will remember perhaps how he begins. Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. But as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an author with this inscription to the unknown God. Now to those of us who know him, God is no unknown God. On the contrary, there is so much that we know about him. And principally, of course, because we have the scriptures of the Old and New Testaments. And in those scriptures, as full a revelation of himself as God thinks that we need. Many of you are sitting there with a Bible in your hands. It is the book that he has chosen to reveal himself to us in. And as we read and study this book, from the book of Genesis right all the way through to the book of Revelation, our knowledge of him grows and grows. We discover all kinds of things about him, don't we? Very first, that he is our creator, the one who in the beginning made the heavens and the earth, and ever since he has been its ruler and preserver. And of course, as you read from Genesis to Revelation, find all kinds of things about his character, what he's like, how he is righteous and wise and all-knowing and loving and able to do whatever he wishes and on and on and on we can go. He is no unknown God. He has given us a knowledge of himself and that knowledge is what lies at the foundation of this knowing Him of which this evening's text speaks. Now, as I said, and as you'll see, there is much more to knowing God than an intellectual grasp of truths about Him. But there's not less than that. This is where it all starts. With what God has revealed of Himself in creation and especially in Holy Scripture. And it's also how it continues. Knowing God, truly knowing Him, is never separate from knowledge of what He has revealed about Himself and what He will continue to reveal to us as life unfolds. So there's the first thing and the foundational thing knowing God. What is it? It's an intellectual thing. Secondly, it is a relational thing. And here we begin to get light on what can be a difficult question to answer. What is the difference between knowing things about God, truths about God, and actually knowing Him in the sense of our text. Here's one part of the answer, and it's a very big part. Knowing God is a relational thing, and you can see that in our text. The angel speaks about the people who know their God, and we mustn't miss the word their. Their God. There's a bond between them, a covenant bond. God has taken them to be his, he has given himself to them to be theirs. There is this very special relationship between them. Now you think about that in its application to yourself as a believer in Jesus. You go back to your list. To this long, long list of things that you know about God from creation and scripture. Now ask yourself this question. Who is this God about whom I know so much? And the answer is, the wonderful answer is this, the God who has taken me to be very specially his own. The God who in matchless grace has given himself to be mine. There's a bond, this covenant bond. We are his people. He is our God. God is not someone about whom we merely know things. This and this and this and this. There is a very special relationship between us. And it is that relationship that in turn explains our stability, our faithfulness, when times are dark. You think about a little child. And she's walking over pretty rough ground. And she trips. And she stumbles. And yet she doesn't fall. And here is why. Because she's got hold of her dad's hand and her dad has got hold of hers. It's what keeps her from falling. And that's exactly how it is with the covenant bond between ourselves and the God about whom we know so much. It's the secret of our stability in dark times. We, by his grace, are holding on to him, and he, in the same grace, is holding on to us. It's not just an intellectual thing, is it? A relational thing. Thirdly, it is an affectional thing. Now someone, after I preached this sermon in grace, challenged me as to whether that was a real word or not. But whether it's a real word or not is what I'm using tonight. An affectional thing. A relationship that involves the affections. Now, you see what we're doing, we're zeroing in. The kind of relationship that there is between our covenant God and the people who know him. What can we say about this relationship? Well, it is a relationship of love. And there's a clue to this in the word itself. The word know. You trace that through the Bible and you will find that over and over again it has overtones of intimacy, of love, It is said of Adam, for example, that he knew his wife Eve. It is the language of an intimate bond. More significantly, God can say through the prophet Amos to the people of Israel, you only have I known of all the families on earth. It's the language of a loving bond. No other people had the place in God's heart that the people of Israel had. We hear it again in Romans 8, who are said to be predestined to be conformed to the likeness of God's Son, those whom God foreknew, knew beforehand. And it's very important for us to note that the foreknowledge in question is a foreknowledge of persons. God is not saying, well, I know beforehand, what you're going to do. Well of course he does. But that's not Romans 8. It is people themselves who are foreknown. From before the dawn of time, from eternity itself, we have been in God's heart. That's what it means. The objects of his love are moved by that love. He predestines us. to be conformed to Jesus. And that is why we can say a third thing about knowing God. It's an affectional thing. To know Him is to love Him. Now think about that. It is possible to know plenty of things about God and to hate Him. And that is supremely the case with the devil and his demonic forces. They know all about God and yet they utterly loathe him. And there are people like that. I think of the atheist Richard Dawkins. Of course, he doesn't believe in this God, but this God in whom he doesn't believe, he certainly, utterly hates. But not if we know him. To know Him is to love Him. It's how God knows us, His people. He doesn't just know things about us, He knows us in the sense that He loves us. Paul in Galatians 4 speaks about being known by God. It's an affectionate thing. We're in His heart. And so is He in our heart. And that in turn sheds further light on the stability and courage of our text. Why is it that those who know their God stand firm in the face of fear and flattery? Why do they remain true when others capitulate? We love Him. And because we truly love Him, We remain faithful to him. We continue to serve him, even though it's hard. So the picture is building up this intellectual aspect. We know things about him. A relational thing. There's a bond between us. An affectional thing. What kind of a bond? A bond of love. Fourthly, It's an experiential thing, knowing God. We come back to this question that can puzzle us, this distinction between knowing things about God and actually knowing Him in the sense of our text. Well, here's another part of the answer to that question. Knowing Him is an experiential thing. We know Him in the sense that we have had personal experience of God. We have tested and tried Him, as it were, all these things that He has said about Himself, all these things that He has revealed. We're sure about them. And not just because we've read them in the Bible and believe the Bible to be the Word of God, but because they have been, as it were, put to the test. and we have personally proven their truth. And so we can say I know him as this and this and this and this because that is precisely the kind of God that he has been to me as I have lived out my Christian life. So let me give you some examples. How do we know him? Well we know him as a prayer hearing God. And you understand how? Because we have had rich personal experience of him in that very precious character. He has heard our prayers. We've asked him for this, we've asked him for that and he has granted us our wishes. It's what allows us to say Amen to the doctrine. Pastor Keith is preaching on God as a prayer-hearing God and He says to you, God is a prayer-hearing God and you say, Amen! Because that is the character in which you know Him from personal experience. For again, we know Him as a powerful God, an almighty God, a God for whom nothing is too hard, it's bound up with the first. Because we've asked him to do difficult things. Things in fact that for human beings are impossible. We've asked him for example to save us. That's impossible for human beings. And we've asked him to save others. And he's heard our prayers. And he has done the impossible thing. What has it given to us? It has given to us experiential knowledge of God as an almighty God. We know him in this character as a God who is mighty to save. And so we could go on. These are only two examples of many. Don't you know him as a kind and caring God? Because he has been kind and caring to you and to those for whom you have prayed. You know him as an all-wise God. Because you see how wisely He has ordered things in your lives. How much more wisely He has chosen for you than you would have chosen for yourself had it been left up to you. And then there is His faithfulness. We began our worship this morning in grace with that wonderful hymn, Great is Thy Faithfulness. It's a God who keeps His promises, whether it's to save or to help or to provide or to strengthen or to deliver. We know him to be a faithful God and it's not just because the Bible tells us that he's faithful and it's not just because we've heard stories of how he has been faithful to others. It's because we have had our own personal experience of that faithfulness. We know him in this precious character because he has been faithful to His Word to us. And that, in turn, is another reason why those who know their God stand firm and remain faithful in difficult times. They have proved Him, perhaps over many, many years, and it has given them such courage, such strength. know this God for whose cause they are suffering, for whose truth they are standing. We know that He's with us. We know that He's faithful. We know that His grace is sufficient. We know that He loves us and that He is committed to honouring those who honour Him. We know these things from experience. And what a help that is to God's people. when it comes to standing firm in difficult times. God's people know that they are not fools for labouring and suffering for a God like this. It's all going to be worth it. It's going to carry them through. They're absolutely sure of it because they know Him. They know Him as this great and glorious God. Fifthly, and this is maybe another made up word, it is a transformational thing. This knowing God is a transformational thing. First of all, the sad fact that people can tell you all about God and they are none the better for it. They learn their catechism, they memorize scripture, they can even teach others, they can preach sermons, and yet they're none the better for it. Sin still has them in its grip. They are yet to become holy in heart and in life. They have not yet come to be like this God about whom they know so much and about whom they can so confidently and intelligently speak. But it's altogether different for those who really know God. All these things that we've just been touching on this evening. Our knowledge of Him. And our relationship with Him. And our love for Him. And our experience of Him. And all these different dimensions. These things make us different. We cannot know God in the sense that we are thinking about this evening without becoming increasingly like him. It is a transformational thing. And of course it doesn't happen automatically and it doesn't happen evenly. Our intellect, for example, can be far in advance of our lives. We're not living out all that we know about our God. Or take this matter of experience. God brings you through a time in your life when in a wonderful way you prove his faithfulness to you and your personal knowledge of God as a faithful God comes on in leaps and bounds and yet it's not so very long afterwards until you're doubting and distrusting him all over again. That's what we're like, isn't it? So the transformation isn't automatic, and it isn't even. But by the blessing of God, by His grace, it happens. What we learn about Him, the relationship that we have with Him, our love for Him, our expanding experience of Him, All of these things in the hands of God change us. By His blessing, they make us different. We become more and more like the God whom we have come to know and love. And once again, that brings us to our text. You come to know Him better and better. and by His blessing you become more and more like Him. What does it make you? Well it makes you, and we're thinking about dark and difficult times, it makes you more discerning of truth and error. It makes you more determined to stand firm. It makes you more deaf to flattery, more proof against fear. more courageous in the face of danger, more ready, if needs be, to pay the ultimate price for him. Someone was telling me today that this is a very special anniversary, 1555, and I write 16th of October, 1555, two great men in England paid the ultimate price Hugh Latimer and Nicholas Ridley. You've heard of Latimer, you've heard of Ridley. Play the man. This day we will light a candle. And here we are. And that candle is still burning. What was the secret of that? They knew their gods. The rich, deep, personal experience of them. And it made such a difference. that they were able to go to the stake, imagine, and to be burnt alive and not give in. All of which is to say, I say to the young people, I say to all of you, there is no better preparation for dark and difficult days than just to know God. We don't know what's ahead of us. It all seems to be growingly dark. What will help us to stand firm as Christians in the next 10, 15, 20 years in America? Whatever it brings, knowing God. There's just nothing like it, knowing Him. And that being so, we give thanks for everything that God does to expand our knowledge of Him, to deepen it. And you know how He does that, how He blesses our trials to us. Marvelously how he overrules our very sins to teach us the knowledge of himself. How he uses what we learn of him and experience of him to make us increasingly like him. Knowing God is the great key to standing firm in a world that so hates the Saviour. One more thing and then I'm done. Knowing God, what is it? Well, we thought about it. It's an intellectual thing. A relational thing. It's an affectional thing. It's an experiential thing. It is a transformational thing. And one last thing. It is an inexhaustible thing. For there is no getting to the end of God. There will be things to learn about him. Always there will be scope for our love for him to grow. Always there will be things that we have yet to experience about him. And these natures that we have, these marvellous human natures fashioned in his likeness, they will always be capable of taking a deeper and fuller, impressed, of the character of the nature of God himself. In fact, so much is that the case, that we're really only beginning to know God. I think of that mathematical illustration where you imagine a circle of light and around it darkness. And the wider the diameter of light, the larger is the circumference of darkness, the more we know, the more we discover that we have yet to know. In fact, those who know God most, was it Isaac Newton, who in response to someone saying to him that all the things that he discovered felt as if he was just at the edge of the ocean, picking up a few pebbles here and there. It was because he had discovered so much that he realised how much there was to discover. And the more we know God, the more we realise how little we know him, the more we realise how much more there is to know. And that is why eternity, which is a very, very long time, is not going to be remotely boring. because we will have more and more to experience and to discover of our inexhaustible God. And that in turn is a great encouragement to stand firm, to persevere in faithfulness to him no matter what, because you see what's ahead. I think of, we sing at the end of Newton's hymn, Amazing Grace, when we've been there 10,000 years, bright shining as the sun. How do you think it's going to look? We've passed through difficult times. We're passing through difficult times. How is it going to look 10,000 years into the future? Well, it's going to seem a very small amount of time indeed. and a very small price to pay for our faithfulness. While we are 10,000 years in, a whole universe has opened up for us of God and his greatness and his glory. You take that as an incentive to press on. You young people who are about to profess your faith or have professed your faith, it's going to be a tough world for you to live in. But look beyond to the inexhaustibleness of this God whom you have come to know and love. the greatness of eternity, exploring God in his ways, his works, his marvelous character, his revelation in Jesus Christ. Knowing God, may God so work in us by his grace that we will come to know him more and more. Let's pray together. Holy Father, we thank you that you are no unknown God to us. We thank you for what you have taught us about yourself. We go outside and we see how the heavens declare the glory of God, and the skies proclaim your handiwork, and you have stamped yourself upon the creation. We learn of you just by looking. and then this marvellous book from which we've been reading this evening and the revelation that you have given of yourself and that and yet to every believer in Jesus you have taken us so much deeper you've bound us to yourself you've given us grace to love you you've opened your heart to us you've shown us yourself you've proved yourself over and over again. We know you and we love you and we pray that that will only deepen as the days and the weeks and the months and the years go by. We pray that for the boys and girls and young people here. May they know this God and all these senses that we've been thinking about this evening. That however dark it may be for them and difficult in this country or anywhere else, they may stand firm and not be moved. but be bold in their witness and do what you have called them to do as faithful servants of Jesus Christ. Help us all, we pray, for Jesus' sake. Amen.