God will establish His kingdom through Christ. He had introduced and given insights to His kingdom with the first coming of Christ. There has been rise and fall of kingdoms and nations throughout the history, but the only kingdom that will stand to eternity is the kingdom of Christ. Luke 1:32,33 – He shall be great, and shall be called the son of the Highest; and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: and he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. The followings are discussed: Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream; Rise and Fall of Kingdoms, and Christ’s Enduring Kingdom.
Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream: The king’s dream and Daniel’s interpretation revealed divine mysteries (Daniel 2:1-30). The king called all his wise men and astrologers to either give an interpretation of the dream he did not discuss with anyone or to be killed if they couldn’t. None of them could do the task that was humanly impossible, but Daniel was a man of God and faith. He was wise but didn’t depend on his wisdom for interpretation of the dream. He sought God and the secret was revealed to him.
The dream was about the future; it described the kingdoms of the world that would rise and fall with happenings in them providing information about the coming kingdom of Christ at the close of human history. This spans Christ’s first coming, his redemptive work and his second coming to establish the kingdom of God. The statue in the dream described four kingdoms that would be formed and which would rule the world, starting from Babylon.
The kingdoms were described by the statue as follows – The Statue was made of various elements which value decreased but with increasing strength across its various divisions. The head was made of gold which represented the fame and splendour of Babylon. The last of the division, the legs and feet were made of iron, but the feet contained mixture of iron and clay, the materials that could not perfectly combine together.
Christ was introduced here as the rock that was not formed by human hand which struck and destroyed the statue, thus leaving it with no trace. Thereafter the rock grew to a mountain, filling the whole earth (Daniel 2:31-35).
The Rise and Fall of Kingdoms: Nebuchadnezzar was the first of the kingdoms. His dream described the kingdoms that would rise and dominate the earth. Gold of the statue described the splendour of his kingdom. Despite the fame and status of the kingdom it fell (Daniel 2:36-38).
It was succeeded by Medo-Persian Empire established by Cyrus which was symbolised by silver of the arm and chest, a less valuable metal (Daniel 2:39-43). This was also succeeded by the third empire, the Greek Empire which was described as the belly and thighs of brass of the statue. It was established by Alexander the Great in 330 BC. The empire was characterised by rebellion and resistance. It ruled, fell and crumbled in the end. The empire was succeeded by the Roman Empire - the legs of iron. This marked the extent of wickedness and harshness of the empire, crushing opposition without mercy. Yet it was inferior in splendor compared to Babylon.
All these kingdoms had what dignified them. The Babylon was dignified by idolatry and love of luxury. The Persian Empire was based on religion; Greek was based on human philosophy and the Roman Empire was based on social, cultural and governmental features of the West. Nebuchadnezzar's dream reveals that human kingdoms can never bring lasting peace no matter how well planned they are. The combination of iron and clay (non-stable structure) indicates the reason why the world cannot be united as a nation and people. There will always be tension as people struggle.
Christ's enduring kingdom: This kingdom will never fail nor be destroyed (Daniel 2:44&45). At the end of king Nebuchadnezzar's dream a large stone, cut without human hand was shot from a mountain and crushed the feet of the statue, reduced it to powder and swept it away. This describes the prevailing power and glory of Christ over human authority, strength, wealth, creativity, worship of ideas and accomplishments.
All earthly kingdoms will be replaced by Christ's kingdom - God's kingdom - kingdom that will never be destroyed (Daniel 7:13&14; Matthew 26:64). All nations will be represented and those who are redeemed by Christ will be part of the kingdom. Christ's triumph over kingdoms of the world will fulfil this prophesy ( Joel 3:9-15; Rev 14:7,8, 14-20; 19:18-21). The kingdom will be perfect and never to pass away.
All Christians are called to live worthy of Christ's kingdom. Our lives should reflect the nature of Christ. All people are called to live worthy of the word of God in order to partake of the eternal kingdom of Christ (1 Thessalonians 2:10-12; Hebrews 12:28). Lesson texts: Daniel 2:26-45; 1 Thessalonians 2:10-12; Hebrews 12:28.
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