This mystery has not been revealed to me for any wisdom
residing in me more than in any other living man, but for
the purpose of making the interpretation known to the king,
and that you may understand the thoughts of your mind.
(Daniel 2:30)
Some people scoff at the intense interest given to end-time
prophecies. When the year 2000 rolled around, many people
were on edge. And maybe they've got a point. The times
we live in could make a person fearful. Think about the
social, moral, and economic problems that face people today.
Over 65 million people have contracted the AIDS virus (about
25 million having died from it), and about 5 million are
being added yearly to the total. That's one issue that
makes the world a little tense. Terrorism is another. And
people feel insecure when they hear about tampering with
the genetic makeup of plants and animals, or violating
the structure of atoms. And since roughly half of all marriages
end in divorce and growing numbers of couples don't even
bother making a commitment to stay together, people tend
to worry about the future of society.
The reality is, there never has been a time like this.
Even when a nation or empire was in decline, or verging
on moral collapse, there was always another society standing
by, ready to take over when it fell. This is the only time
in over 4000 years that a global civilization and a global
culture have been within man's reach. Within a generation,
the whole earth could very likely be united in a federation
of governments, much like the European Union is today.
And many people fear that when this coming civilization
falls, it's going to take everything down with it.
So there are good reasons why men are looking to Bible
prophecies for direction. People want to have something
secure and unchanging to put their confidence in. The world
is mutating much too fast for them to keep up, and they
have no assurance that most of the changes are for the
better. They want to know how it's all going to turn out,
and they've heard that the prophets in the Bible have been
right. Haven't many of their predictions already come true?
The Fall of the Statue
The prophet Daniel is a good example of a man whose words
are trustworthy. 2,600 years ago, he interpreted a dream
for a Babylonian king. The focus of the dream was a huge
statue with a gold head, a chest and arms of silver, a
bronze belly, iron legs, and feet and toes of iron mixed
with clay. From this dream he predicted a succession of
empires which would dominate the earth. And history has
proven him right. The Babylonian, Persian, Greek, and Roman
Empires followed one another, corresponding exactly to
the statue, especially the legs of iron, which depicted
the eastern and western halves of the Roman Empire. [1]
As for the feet and toes of iron mixed with clay, many
scholars have imagined that this would be a revival of
the Roman Empire in a modified form. Their speculations
carry weight, because Roman law and culture under-gird
all of Western civilization. The essence of Rome is like
a seed waiting to sprout. The West is obsessed with a united
world because they still remember the peace and prosperity
that the Roman Empire enjoyed in its heyday - the "Roman
Peace."
It is easy to see how the current movement toward world
unity will bring about the feet of iron mixed with clay,
ending with ten iron-and-clay toes. [2] Even
now, forces are at work to unify all the organized religions
for the purpose of making them a dominant political force
in the world. When the Ecumenical Movement succeeds, the
governments of all nations will see a need to incorporate
the influence of religion as a stabilizing force in society.
This mixture of the iron of government and the clay of
religion will resolve itself into a federation of ten world
leaders. Many people, even within Christianity, see this
much about Daniel's predictions. What they do not understand,
however, is the end of this vision.
The Mystery of the Stone
In the dream, a stone was mysteriously being hewn out
of a huge mountain. Without human hands it was chipped
away, little by little, until it broke free and plummeted
toward the statue, striking it on the feet. The iron and
clay mixture shattered, and the entire statue fell and
disintegrated. Then a mighty wind came up, blowing away
the dust, until no trace was left of the once-mighty statue.
Only the stone remained. Then, amazingly, that stone grew
into a huge mountain that filled the earth.
The fifth-century theologian Augustine claimed that this
stone was the Roman Catholic Church, and that it had already
become the mountain that filled the whole earth. [3] What
Augustine failed to consider, however, was that the Catholic
Church had not removed every trace of the Roman Empire,
but was instead preserving it. In fact, the Roman Church
was the beginning of the clay mixing with the iron, which
will become the one-world empire of the last days.
Daniel made it clear that the stone is not merely a religion,
but a kingdom. [4] And
it is not just any kingdom, but the Kingdom which
the God of heaven will set up in the days of "those kings" -- the
ten kings of the world federation represented by the toes
of the statue. This can only happen at one time in history - the
last days of this age. Obviously so, because when the Stone
Kingdom falls on the toes, it brings this age to an end.
The relentless progress toward religious and political
unity that is now driving the Western world shows that
we are clearly in the beginning stages of that federation
of kings. Once again, Daniel's interpretation of the dream
is proving trustworthy. So we must also be living at the
time when God is beginning to cut the stone out of the
mountain of the world.
Not Subversive
Daniel said that this Stone Kingdom will not be left for
another people. It will endure forever because it is completely
separate from the society of the end times. This is the
meaning of the stone being cut out of the mountain. Those
who make up this kingdom are hewn out of the world, not
by human effort, but by a divine act.
Many groups are forming today, taking their cues from
such prophecies as Daniel and the book of Revelation. They
are taking steps to isolate themselves from the corruption
they see in society, and even to arm themselves for a conflict
with the emerging one-world order. The FBI estimates that
there are hundreds of such private armies in the United
States alone. These survivalist groups think that by stockpiling
weapons and supplies, they can make it through the collapse
of the present society and take over. But what they do
not see is that, contrary to prophecy, they are trying
to cut themselves out of the mountain with human
hands.
Such alternative societies are based on reactions to the
current culture, hatred of other races or religions, and
even insane plans to force a confrontation with the "antichrist
government." But their efforts will prove to be futile.
Those who are subversive will be surrounded and disarmed,
or perhaps even destroyed. And others will be assimilated
back into society - as many have been already. A movement
based on mere reactions to moral decline will not stand.
Subversive or reactionary groups cannot overthrow the current
order because they are still connected to its source. They
are still controlled by the same spirits that control the
society that they are reacting to. The whole world lies
in the power of the evil one. [5] So
the only society that will be able to endure is one that
comes out from under the control of the evil spiritual
forces that work in the unseen realm.
This is how the Stone
Kingdom will bring an end to the kingdoms of this world - not
through subversive activity against those kingdoms, but
through overcoming the evil spiritual forces that control
them. Those in the Stone Kingdom have been given power
over the unclean spirits that stir up fear and hatred and
greed and pride and every kind of selfish desire and self-centered
thought.
The Radical Solution to Sin 
The Stone Kingdom does something truly radical. It lays
the axe to the root that has caused the downfall of every
civilization since the beginning. That root is self-life.
Self-life is the true meaning of the often-misunderstood
word sin . Those who choose to follow the King
of this kingdom choose to put self to death. This is called repenting .
When they repent, their King lavishes on them a costly
gift called forgiveness . Forgiveness causes something
supernatural to spring up in their souls -- love .
This love is not just a good feeling, it is a good motive .
This supernatural love causes them to do good things - kind
things - that shine brightly to those around them. And
those who see what they are doing start to appreciate the
God who made them. They start to believe that the Creator
is good and kind and wants to help them out of the predicament
they are in.
The prophet Isaiah predicted that this kingdom would take
the form of the restored tribes of Jacob . He
said it would be a light to the nations, and would carry
God's salvation to the end of the earth. [6] This
is what Messiah was referring to when He predicted that
the good news of the kingdom would be proclaimed to set
the evidence before all the nations, and then the end would
be able to come. [7] He
also said that when this nation produced the fruit of the
coming age, then the government of that age would be turned
over to them. Then He added, "...on whomever this stone falls
it will scatter him like dust." [8] This
is a clear reference to the Stone Kingdom in Daniel's prophecy.
These tribes of Jacob will be standing on an unshakable
foundation. The God of heaven will give them a way of life
that does not pass away, a way of life that can be passed
on from generation to generation. This is what eternal
life is. It is not just a religious belief about going
to heaven after you die. Eternal life is the life that
will fill the earth like a mountain in the next age. It
will be raised up in this age like a stone cut out of the
world.
As the restored tribes of Jacob live in obedience to the
commands of the Messiah, they will demonstrate the life
that Israel was always meant to live. They will exhibit
a culture that does not come from the world around them
and is not a reaction to it. Their way of doing business,
their art and music, and the festivals that celebrate their
dependence on their Creator will be given to them from
above and will have a radically different quality from
the culture that surrounds them. [9] Every
part of their life will be focused toward the goal of being
worthy to be that Stone Kingdom.
Even their obedience to the divine command that Israel
should let their land rest one year out of every seven [10] - a
command which Israel of old never
obeyed [11] - will
prepare them to live a life that does not depend on buying,
selling, planting, or harvesting. [12] And
they will be able thus to endure in the wilderness for
the 1260 days [13] until
the Jubilee, when Messiah returns and the whole earth is
delivered back to its rightful Owner. [14]
This then is the message of the prophets for the end times.
Daniel, Isaiah, and our Master Yahshua all point to the
one life, the one culture, the one kingdom that will survive.
If men derive any other message from the prophets and use
it as an excuse for pursuing a course of their own invention,
their plans will perish. It does not matter if they react
militantly against the governments of this world or try
to influence and dominate those governments, their agenda
will perish. Only those whose life is based on love, who
live the demonstration of the coming age, will endure.
Whoever is truly looking to the prophets for direction -- for
a way out of the destruction and corruption of today -- will
only find it in this unshakable kingdom. [15]
[1] Daniel 2:36-40
[2] Daniel 2:41-43
[3] Augustine, In
Answer to the Letters of Petilian, Book 2, Chapter
38, paragraph 90
[4] Daniel 2:44-45
[5] 1 John 5:19
[6] Isaiah 49:6
[7] Matthew 24:14
[8] Matthew 21:43-44
[9] Colossians 2:16-17
[10] Leviticus 25:1-10
[11] 2 Chronicles 36:21
[12] Revelation 13:17
[13] Revelation 12:6,14
[14] Revelation 11:15;
Isaiah 61:2; Luke 4:19
[15] Hebrews 12:28-29
