Will you please turn to the book of the prophet Daniel? Daniel 1. We read from verse 8.
And Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the king’s dainties, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself.
Now God made Daniel to find kindness and compassion in the sight of the prince of the eunuchs.
And the prince of the eunuchs said unto Daniel, I fear my lord the king, who hath appointed your food and your drink: for why should he see your faces worse liking than the youths which are of your own age? so would ye endanger my head with the king.
Then said Daniel to the steward, whom the prince of the eunuchs had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, Prove thy servants, I beseech thee, ten days; and let them give us pulse to eat, and water to drink.
Then let our countenances be looked upon before thee, and the countenance of the youths that eat of the king’s dainties; and as thou seest, deal with thy servants.
So he hearkened unto them in this matter, and proved them ten days.
And at the end of ten days their countenances appeared fairer, and they were fatter in flesh, than all the youths that did eat of the king’s dainties.
So the steward took away their dainties, and the wine that they should drink, and gave them pulse.
Now as for these four youths, God gave them knowledge and skill in all learning and wisdom: and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams.
And at the end of the days which the king had appointed for bringing them in, the prince of the eunuchs brought them in before Nebuchadnezzar.
And the king communed with them; and among them all was found none like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah: therefore stood they before the king.
And in every matter of wisdom and understanding, concerning which the king inquired of them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters that were in all his realm.
And Daniel continued even unto the first year of king Cyrus.
Daniel 2:44:
And in the days of those kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed, nor shall the sovereignty thereof be left to another people; but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.
Daniel 7:9:
I beheld till thrones were placed, and One that was ancient of days did sit: His raiment was white as snow, and the hair of His head like pure wool; His throne was fiery flames, and the wheels thereof burning fire.
A fiery stream issued and came forth from before Him: thousands of thousands ministered unto Him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.
I beheld at that time because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake; I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and he was given to be burned with fire.
And as for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away: yet their lives were prolonged for a season and a time.
I saw in the night-visions, and, behold, there came with the clouds of heaven One like unto a son of man, and He came even to the Ancient of days, and they brought Him near before Him.
And there was given Him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him: His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.
As for me, Daniel, my spirit was grieved in the midst of my body, and the visions of my head troubled me.
I came near unto one of them that stood by, and asked him the truth concerning all this. So he told me, and made me know the interpretation of the things.
These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, that shall arise out of the earth.
But the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever.
Shall we pray?
Lord, we have read Thy Word, and now we ask that Thou wilt open Thy Word to us and speak through Thy Word to our hearts. Draw us into Thy very thought and into Thy very purpose, that we may be one with Thee. May it all be to the praise of Thy glory. We ask in the name of our Lord Jesus. Amen.
These mornings we have been considering together the recovery work of God, as shown to us in the four major prophets. In Isaiah, we see that God is recovering everything to that eternal reality. This recovery work is done by none other than His own beloved Son, our Lord Jesus. He is the only Servant, the Servant of the Lord, for the recovery work of God.
In Jeremiah, we saw how God makes a recovery through grace by giving us a new covenant. It is in the new covenant of grace that a recovery is being done.
Then again, we see in Ezekiel that, in the recovery work of God, God is to recover His own house, that He may have a glorious church without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she may be presented to the Son to be His eternal bride.
Now this morning we would like to consider together recovery according to the prophet Daniel. The very name Daniel means, “God is Judge,” or, “God is my Judge.”
As a young man, most likely in his teens, Daniel was taken into captivity. Daniel belonged probably to the royal family, or at least to one of the noble families. In the third year of King Jehoiakim, he was taken with others as a hostage from Jerusalem to Babylon.
Now, as a teenager, it must have been a very traumatic experience, because he was uprooted not only from his own country but even from his own family. He was brought to a foreign land and trained to wait upon the great king.
How could we explain this young man? Evidently, he was brought up by very godly parents. The seed that was sown in his heart was not corrupted—not only in his own country, but even in a foreign country, in a foreign court. We find that he was not corrupted.
Daniel, as a young man, purposed in his heart not to be defiled. In other words, this young man purposed in his heart to keep himself pure for God. And God honored his purpose.
God opened the way for him. Humanly speaking, it was impossible, because he was not free; he was a hostage. But God honored his purpose, and the way was opened for him to be kept pure for God. Because of this, God gave him skill, great wisdom, and understanding in dreams and visions.
This book of Daniel is very clearly divided into two parts. The first six chapters are historical, and the last six chapters are prophetic. You find that these two parts are actually very closely linked together. In the first part, we see Daniel; then, in the second part, we hear his prophecies.
As a matter of fact, his prophecies are so significant because they are backed up by his character.
Now we know that during the time of captivity, God was no longer addressed as the God of the heavens and of the earth. We know that God created the heavens and the earth. He was the God of the heavens as well as the God of the earth.
But during the time of captivity, God was no longer addressed as the God of the heavens and of the earth. Why? Because the people in whom His name was entrusted went into captivity. The temple was destroyed. There was no testimony of God upon this earth.
So during that period, God was addressed only as the God of the heavens, and not as the God of the earth. But that does not mean that God relinquished or gave up the earth. We know that God is still the God of the heavens and of the earth.
But on earth, it seemed as if He had no testimony, no vessel to represent Him and His name. But thank God, we find that in Daniel, even though Daniel was a hostage, he was in the Gentile court to be a testimony and a witness for God.
He testified that even though the world did not recognize God as the God of the earth, God still rules over the earth. The heavens do rule over the affairs of men.
Not only that, but the very presence of Daniel in the Gentile court served as a witness to the character of God: that God is righteous, God is holy, and God is God. You cannot violate His law.
In other words, God put this man in the Gentile world to be His witness and His testimony.
Daniel and his prophecies are closely related to the kingdom. As a matter of fact, the kingdom of God is a great theme in the Bible. You can see a thread from the very beginning of Genesis to the very end of Revelation: there is the kingdom of God.
Now, it is a subject which, unfortunately, has not received as much attention as it should. And unfortunately, when in recent years this matter of the kingdom has begun to catch our attention, many false concepts and errors have arisen to confuse and disgrace this whole matter of the kingdom.
Why? It is because, you remember, our Lord Jesus said that the gospel of the kingdom of the heavens must be preached to all the nations, and then the end will come. So, brothers and sisters, because the end is coming, the message of the kingdom has to be recovered.
The enemy knows this, so from the very beginning he has tried to confuse it, so that people dare not and will not hear about this matter of the kingdom. Therefore, brothers and sisters, we need, in these last days, to have a real understanding of the kingdom of God.
You remember our Lord Jesus. When He first began His ministry in Matthew 4, how did He begin? He said, “Repent ye; for the kingdom of the heavens is at hand.”
In Mark 1:14, we are told that our Lord Jesus began to preach the kingdom of God. He taught His disciples to pray:
Our Father who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy name.
Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done, as in heaven, so on earth.
He also taught His disciples, saying, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” Later, He told His disciples that the kingdom is taken by violence, and the violent take it by force.
Even when our Lord Jesus was before Pilate, Pilate asked Him, “Art Thou the King of the Jews?” He said, “Thou sayest it.” But, “My kingdom is not of this world.”
After our Lord Jesus was raised from the dead, He appeared to His disciples for forty days. During those forty days, as we find in Acts 1, the thing He taught His disciples was concerning the kingdom of God.
If you read the book of Acts, at Pentecost you find that the church took up this message of the kingdom. Peter’s message on the day of Pentecost was a kingdom message, because he concluded by saying, “Let all the house of Israel therefore know assuredly, that God hath made Him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom ye crucified.”
It was a message of the King, of the kingdom of God. Throughout the book of Acts, you find that the message of the kingdom was preached. For instance, in Acts 14, Paul and Barnabas came back to encourage the disciples and said that we must through many tribulations enter into the kingdom of God.
When you come to the end of the book of Acts, you find Paul in his rented house preaching the kingdom of God and teaching the things concerning the Lord Jesus with all boldness, unhindered.
So, in other words, you find that not only did our Lord Jesus preach the kingdom of God, but the early church’s message to the world was the kingdom of God.
Whenever the kingdom of God is preached, you find that the church has a strong testimony to the world. But whenever the kingdom is forgotten, then you find that the testimony of the church to the world is weak. So this matter of the kingdom of God is one important thing that God must recover.
Daniel was raised up by God to stand and to prophesy concerning the kingdom.
I think before we go into this book of Daniel, it will probably be necessary for us to have an understanding of what the kingdom of God is.
The very word kingdom in the Scriptures is better translated as “sovereign rule.” Oftentimes, when we think of a kingdom, our first impression is probably a territory, a domain, or a sphere. That is the kingdom.
Now, of course, in the kingdom there is a concept of territory and domain. But according to the Word of God, the primary concept—or the emphasis—of the kingdom of God is more on sovereignty and rule.
In other words, when we think of the kingdom of God, the first thing that should arrest us is that God is the Sovereign of the universe. He is the King. He is the Sovereign.
He is not only the Maker of all creation, but He is putting His character into all that He has created. So the primary emphasis should be on the Sovereign, and then secondarily, on His rule.
God is the Creator, and as the Creator of the universe, He rules over His creation. The creation is His kingdom, and He puts His character into all that He has created.
From eternity to eternity, He is God. His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and His dominion is from generation to generation. According to the Psalmist, His kingdom is for all ages, and His dominion is throughout all generations.
In other words, after God created, the kingdom of God began. The kingdom of God began with His creation, and He ruled over creation. During that time, there was perfect harmony.
You remember when God laid the foundation of the earth. The angels—the sons of God—sang for joy. Here you find that God created the angels first, and when He laid the foundation of the earth, the angels sang for joy. They agreed that what God did was right. The whole universe was in harmony under God’s rule, in subjection to God.
But unfortunately, in prehistoric time, we know there was a rebellion. Lucifer rebelled against the authority of God, and because of this the harmony was destroyed. Lucifer was cast out of heaven.
Now we come to a stricter meaning of the kingdom of God. What is the kingdom of God? The kingdom of God is where God rules. Of course, He rules over all.
Even though Lucifer rebelled, and one-third of the angelic hosts followed in rebellion, even though the earth entered into void and was covered with water and darkness, brothers and sisters, in a broad sense God still rules over all.
In other words, Lucifer became Satan, the adversary of God; yet that adversary is still within God’s authority. Not because he took himself out, as it were, from God’s kingdom was he then outside of God’s authority. No. God, being God and the Sovereign of the universe, still rules over everything and all.
But in this stricter sense, we find that Lucifer set up his own kingdom of darkness in opposition to the kingdom of God.
So what is the kingdom of God? In the strictest sense, it is a domain under His rule, in which those who are in that domain give Him willing and voluntary submission and obedience, allowing Him to characterize them with His own character.
Because He is able to make this people, or this domain, express His own character, therefore this is considered as the kingdom of God.
Here, then, you find two different concepts of the kingdom of God in the Scriptures. On the one hand is a broad concept: God rules over all. Whether you obey or not, you are under His authority because He is your Creator.
Yet on the other hand, you find that what God is after—the kingdom that God is really seeking—is a domain in which all express the character of God. The book of Daniel deals with this latter, stricter concept.
In the book of Genesis, we find that God used six days to restore the ruined earth and to make it habitable. On the sixth day, He created man.
Now, the creation of man is the masterpiece of God. Not only was man the only one in all creation created in the image of God, but even the angels were not created in the image of God. They are of a higher order than men in creation, but man is especially created in the image of God.
As man was created, God gave him dominion over the fowls of the air, the beasts of the field, and the fishes of the sea. In other words, God gave the earth to man to rule for God, to subdue the whole earth back to the feet of God.
That was God’s purpose in creating man. You know, the purpose of man’s creation is even more marvelous than the creation of man, because God put a great purpose in the man He created. Man is to be used by Him to bring His kingdom back upon this earth.
Everything was to be subjected to the feet of God willingly and voluntarily, and God would express Himself again on earth as it is in heaven.
But unfortunately, Satan knew about this, so he came in and tempted man. Man fell into his hand. Instead of fulfilling what God had purposed for him to do, man allied himself with God’s enemy and, worse still, came under the power and authority of darkness in opposition to God.
So here you find God beginning the work of recovery. He is to recover His kingdom upon this earth.
Without going into all the history, let us just try to illustrate. God delivered a people out of Egypt, and He brought the children of Israel to Himself. At Mount Sinai, He declared to this people, “Now, if you keep My covenant and obey My commandments, you will be My people, and I will be your God. You will become a kingdom of priests.”
In other words, God delivered the children of Israel with the thought that, with this redeemed people, He might have a representation of His kingdom upon this earth.
But unfortunately, even though they entered into the promised land and, under David and Solomon, a kingdom was established, very soon they rejected God as their King. Their character was completely opposite to the character of God.
Because of this, brothers and sisters, you find that the nation of Israel was destroyed. They were taken into captivity. In God’s mind, when He called the children of Israel and made them a kingdom to represent the kingdom of God upon this earth, He said, “If you obey Me, you will become the head of the nations. But if you disobey Me, you will become the tail of the nations.”
So when Israel failed God concerning this matter of the kingdom of God, world authority, world power, and world dominion passed from the hands of the nation of Israel to the Gentiles.
In the book of Daniel, what you see is the history of the times of the Gentiles. The authority over this world, which God had given to the nation of Israel, was lost. It passed into the hands of the Gentiles, and Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, was the first one.
He was the first one to have the world empire. He had authority and dominion over the earth. The times of the Gentiles began with Nebuchadnezzar, and Daniel lived at the beginning of the transfer of that power.
Brothers and sisters, in a very real sense, we are living at the end of the times of the Gentiles.
As Daniel was serving Nebuchadnezzar, God gave Nebuchadnezzar a dream. In Daniel 2, Nebuchadnezzar dreamed a dream.
The next day, he called all his magicians, enchanters, and Chaldeans to him and said, “I dreamed a dream, and I was troubled. Tell me the dream and its interpretation, and I will greatly reward you.”
The magicians and Chaldeans said, “Tell us the dream, and we will give the interpretation.” But Nebuchadnezzar said, “No, you have to tell me the dream and the interpretation.” They said that no man had ever asked such a thing; only the gods could do that.
Now, we do not know whether Nebuchadnezzar really forgot his dream or not. We do not know. He may have forgotten, or he may still have remembered it, but he was very suspicious of his magicians. He knew that they would say, “You have to wait until the time comes.” So he was trying to find out the truth.
But, of course, we know that God gave Daniel the dream and the interpretation.
Now, I believe all of you here know Daniel 2. Nebuchadnezzar dreamed of an image of a majestic man. The head was gold; the breast and arms were silver; the belly and thighs were brass; the legs were iron; and the feet and toes were partly iron and partly clay.
It was a majestic image standing there. Then he saw a stone, not cut by hands, out of the mountain. The stone smote the feet, and the whole image collapsed and broke into pieces. It was blown away by the wind, and the stone began to grow and filled the whole earth.
Daniel interpreted that. Then, of course, it is interesting because, when you come to Daniel 7, you find that God gave Daniel a dream and a vision. It was a vision of four beasts and One like a son of man.
These two dreams are the same. To Nebuchadnezzar, world power, empire, and kingdom are like a majestic man. It is man’s kingdom—powerful and glorious. That is what we think of the kingdoms of this world.
But to God, the kingdoms of this world are like wild beasts. Nebuchadnezzar saw that image of man, but actually they are the same thing.
The golden head is Nebuchadnezzar. The silver breast and arms are the Medo-Persian Empire. The belly and thighs of brass are the Greek Empire. The two legs of iron are the Roman Empire. The feet and ten toes represent what is commonly called the revived Roman Empire. You may use any term you like, but that is what it is.
Then, among the beasts, you find a lion—Babylon; a bear—Medo-Persia; a leopard—Greece; and then an indescribable, almost unnamed beast, because it is a terrible beast. That is the Roman Empire and the revived Roman Empire.
Now, brothers and sisters, the interesting thing is this: when we consider Daniel 2 and Daniel 7, when we consider these dreams, probably we are fascinated, or our attention is completely occupied, with the image and with the beasts.
We almost forget the stone and the One like a son of man. We are more interested in the world empires, and we forget the kingdom of God.
Now let us remember: the emphasis should be on the stone and on the One like the Son of Man. Because all these kingdoms of the world will one day become the kingdom of our God and of His Christ. That is what God is working toward.
The times of the Gentiles extend from King Nebuchadnezzar until our day. We do not know, but it may be, according to Luke 21, that the times of the Gentiles will be terminated when Jerusalem is no longer trodden down by the Gentiles.
If this remains true, then probably in 1967, when Jerusalem came out of the hands of the Gentiles and returned to the hands of Israel, that marked the end of the times of the Gentiles. So you find we are very close to the end.
Thank God, we know that even though this world empire seems to have existed for centuries and centuries, as if it will never end, we know that the time will come when the stone will smite the feet and the whole thing will disappear.
We know that the stone not cut by hands is our Lord Jesus, and His kingdom shall rule over this earth. Even in the last days, there will be a little horn out of the ten horns—the Antichrist. He will seem to have world dominion for a time.
But the Ancient of Days will set up His throne, and the beast will be destroyed. One like a son of man will come and receive from the Ancient of Days kingdom and dominion. His kingdom is everlasting; His dominion is forever.
God, through the book of Daniel, prophesied and told us what is going to happen: that the kingdom of God will come upon this earth. But Daniel does not tell us how, or on what basis. We have to go to the New Testament to understand that.
After the children of Israel were taken into Babylonian captivity, we see that the world power and authority which God had given to men, to the nation of Israel, was transferred to the hands of the Gentiles. There was no real representation of the kingdom of God upon the earth.
But when you open the New Testament, you have the good news. Why? Because you find that the Son of God came to this world to be a man, in order to recover the kingdom of God upon this earth. He had to come and become a man.
In this Man, Jesus, we see the kingdom of God in reality. If you read the life of our Lord Jesus, you find how He willingly and voluntarily submitted Himself to God. The character of God is fully manifested in Him.
In other words, He is the kingdom of God incarnate. The kingdom of God finally came in fullness in a Person called Jesus.
Because the kingdom of God came upon this earth, and because this earth was under the usurping rule of the enemy, a severe contest and conflict began. That is the reason why, before our Lord Jesus began His public ministry, He had to be led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the tempter.
Why? Because that battle had to be fought. Adam lost the battle in the garden of Eden, but the second Man, Christ, won that battle. Here you find Him representing and being the kingdom of God, and the kingdom of darkness represented by Satan. They came into conflict.
Satan could not find any foothold in that Man. The Lord said, “The prince of the world cometh: and he hath nothing in Me.” You find that the Father was everything to Him. No matter how He was tempted, He referred everything to the Father.
He was willing to be despised. He was willing to go to the cross. He was willing to lose everything, even His own life, but He must obey His Father. The kingdom of God was a reality in that Man.
Throughout His life, you find that He won the victory. The kingdom of God won the victory over the kingdom of darkness in that Man.
Then He did something more: He went to the cross. Now, brothers and sisters, when our Lord Jesus died on the cross, why did He die? So far as He was concerned, He did not need to die.
As a matter of fact, on the mount of transfiguration, when the kingdom of God was manifested in preview, that was the time He could have returned to heaven. But He came down. He went to Calvary. Why? It was for you and me.
There, on the cross, He defeated the enemy. He robbed the enemy of his power. He led principalities and authorities as His captives and made a public show of them by the cross.
In other words, He did it not for Himself. He had no need for it. He did it for us, His church.
Because of this, brothers and sisters, we are in His victory. He has translated us out of the power of darkness into the kingdom of the Son of His love.
He defeated the enemy not for Himself alone, but He defeated the enemy for us too. Therefore, the church ought to be a triumphant church. God’s people have the victory, because the very life we are given is a life that overcomes.
The kingdom is His.
Now, how did He overcome the enemy? He did not overcome the enemy by physical force. He overcame the enemy by spiritual force.
That is the reason why we who are here are not to win the kingdom by physical force. Our battle is not with flesh and blood. It is by being powerful before God.
It is very interesting. If you read Daniel, you find that the One like a son of man came to the Ancient of Days and received from Him the kingdom. Then it follows and says that the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever.
Here you find that the One like a son of man received from the Ancient of Days the kingdom, but with Him the saints of the Most High also receive the kingdom.
We are heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ. If we endure, we shall reign with Him.
Do you know that we are living in the time of the transfer of the kingdom from the world to Christ? Let me use an illustration.
You remember the story about David. Our brother has been teaching us on David. After Saul died, David was made king in Hebron over two tribes: Judah and Benjamin.
But you find that the son of Saul, Ish-bosheth, was made king over Israel, the rest of the tribes, in Mahanaim. So here you find two kings and two kingdoms existing at the same time.
There was the kingdom of David, and there was still the kingdom of Saul continuing on. The Bible says that the time was prolonged; it was a long time. It was not immediately after Saul died that the kingdom of Saul disappeared. It continued for some time, while the kingdom of David was there.
David was king in Hebron for seven and a half years. The Bible says that the house of David became stronger and stronger, and the house of Saul became weaker and weaker, until finally the transfer was made.
When the transfer was made, it was very interesting. Our brother already mentioned that in 1 Chronicles 12. When David was in Hebron, people began to come to David—people equipped with military skill. They came to David to help transfer the kingdom from Saul to David.
Now, brothers and sisters, we are in this hour. Our David is already King. The kingdom of God has already come upon this earth, but the power of darkness seems to continue on. That is the house of Saul. It still continues, but it is becoming weaker and weaker, while the kingdom of God is getting stronger and stronger.
But in the transfer, He needs a people with military skill—not physical, of course, but spiritual; spiritually skillful—to help our David transfer the kingdom to Him. These are the overcomers of the church.
On Calvary’s cross, the battle was won. The decisive battle was won. But then, as in a military campaign, you still have sporadic fighting going on. You still have battles here and there, and we are in the job of mopping up. That is our job.
But how are we going to do that work, or finish that work, to transfer the kingdom? Not by physical force, but by spiritual force.
In other words, as our brother has mentioned and emphasized throughout the meetings, we must have kingdom character. God needs a people who have kingdom character.
With that kind of character, they will be able to help our David transfer the kingdoms of the world to become the kingdom of our God and of His Christ.
How important it is. We are living in the most exciting and critical time. How we need to give ourselves wholly to God and let Him put His character in us.
We are His kingdom here and there upon this earth.
Sometimes I use another illustration. We are on this earth as foreign settlements. Probably you do not understand this very much, but we originally came from China.
Now, in Christ there is no Chinese, no American, no British, no Israelite. But humanly speaking, we who came from China understand this very much.
After the Opium War, China was defeated by foreign powers. So the foreign powers demanded trade, and they established certain seaports and trade ports. In these trade ports, they had their settlements—foreign settlements, French settlements, French concessions, international concessions.
In Chinese territory, they set up concessions and settlements. In these settlements, the settlements were ruled by foreign powers. They had their own courts and their own laws. If you committed a crime, you were not judged by Chinese law; you were judged by the foreign law in those settlements.
In other words, there was extraterritorial jurisdiction. Of course, it was unfair. It is not a good illustration, but anyway, you find these settlements there. Those who lived in the settlements were not subject to the authority and rule of the government of China. They subjected themselves only to the rule of the foreign power that had the settlement.
Now, brothers and sisters, in a very real sense, we Christians whom God has put here and there are these foreign settlements. The Lord has come. Our Lord has come and won the victory.
In other words, He has put His feet upon this earth, and then He began to plant His settlements all over this world. In these settlements, the power of darkness does not rule. It is the authority of God. It is God who rules.
In these settlements, we express the kingdom character, not the character of this world. These settlements begin to enlarge and enlarge, and grow and grow in spiritual power, until finally, as you find in Revelation 12, the man-child is caught up to heaven.
He will go through the air, the headquarters of the enemy, and Satan will be thrown down from the air upon this earth. This is the way the transfer is being done.
Brothers and sisters, how important it is that we have kingdom character. It is this character that is a spiritual force to destroy the power of darkness and transfer the kingdom to our Christ.
May the Lord help us. Shall we pray?
Dear Heavenly Father, our hearts do rejoice, knowing that the time is very short, knowing that Thy kingdom shall be publicly manifested upon this earth.
Oh, how we pray that Thy beloved Son, as Son of Man, having won the victory, and Thou having called us to follow Thee, we may be a people who willingly, obediently, and voluntarily give ourselves to Thee and allow Thee to build Thy character in us.
May we be a true representation of Thy kingdom upon this earth, that we may be able to be of help in transferring the kingdom to Thee. Oh, how we praise Thee for this high honor and great responsibility.
Lord, we are inadequate. We just look to Thee, because our confidence is in Thee, knowing that Thy grace is sufficient for us. So keep us and be with us to the very end. In the name of our Lord Jesus. Amen.