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Preaching Daniel at Harderwyk - Daniel 9 - November 15, 2020

Resources For Daniel 9 From Each Harderwyk Preacher

Pastor Aaron VanderVeen - WaterShed Preacher

From NIV Application Commentary by Tremper Longman

Daniel 9:11–14 -  In the next section of his prayer, Daniel draws a direct connection between the sin of the people and their present suffering. We cited above two of the curses Daniel has in mind, but there are more (see Deut. 27–28). Between the Law of Moses and the Prophets, God’s people had no excuse. They knew what the consequences of their actions would be. But somehow they rationalized it. Perhaps they grew presumptuous because of God’s long patience with them. They would sin without immediate punishment, so they began to doubt that God would really follow through with his threats. Jeremiah 7:1–29, the so-called “temple sermon” of Jeremiah, charges Israel with presumption because of the presence of the temple in the city. They wrongly reasoned that if God’s residence was the temple, there would be no way that an enemy, even one as mighty as Babylon, could defeat their city. They were safe as long as God lived in Jerusalem, and since the temple was immovable, they were safe forever.

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Daniel has prayed for forgiveness and restoration, and Gabriel now communicates the heavenly answer by reinterpreting the seventy years as seventy “sevens.” During this period six actions will be completed: (1) the finishing of transgression, (2) the end of sin, (3) the atonement of the wicked, (4) the bringing in of everlasting righteousness, (5) the sealing up of vision and prophecy, and (6) the anointing of the most holy (v. 24). The accomplishment of these six actions certainly sounds like an answer to Daniel’s prayer, but they are being pushed off to the future (the force of the seventy “sevens” to be explained below). They are, in the words of J. J. Collins, an “eschatological ideal.”

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At the heart of Daniel’s prayer stands one of the most potent and pervasive theological themes of the Old Testament: the covenant. 

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Obeying the law has never been the route to establish a relationship with God. In the Old Testament, this is recognized by the fact that God rescued the Israelites from Egypt before giving them the law on Mount Sinai. The New Testament, particularly Paul, is clear that our salvation does not result from our obedience to the law (Gal. 3:10–11)

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At the heart of the Christian religion stands repentance. It is not that our faith results from repentance, but repentance flows from faith in a God who forgives. 


Pastor Bill Lindner - Celebration Preacher

Understanding the Seventy Weeks in Daniel 9 - CLICK HERE to see the study notes on Daniel 9:24-27 from the ESV Study Bible.

Especially now that we are into the second section of Daniel - the dreams and visions section - I have had a number of people ask me about the theological perspective called "Dispensationalism" and it's reading of these chapters related to dispensational teaching on the Secret Rapture of the Church, the Anti-Christ and the Great Tribulation.

Dispensationalism has a very wide impact in the United States.  In conservative churches like I have pastored, it is often present, but more "caught" from the surroundings than "taught" by the church.   I've studied it, had friends who are convinced by it, sung songs based on it, and the like.  To be honest though, at this point in my life, I'm not convinced for a wide variety of reasons that I would be happy to talk with anyone about.

In my preaching, I aim to stay focused on what I take to be the central message of all Scripture: The Gospel of God's Grace.  So I don't invest a lot of sermon time in various interpretative schemes like Dispensationalism.  In the interest of fairness and knowledge, we have provided the above link to what is written in the Study Notes on Daniel 9:24-27 from the ESV Study Bible.  It does a fair representation of the different schools of thought on this passage, including the Dispensationalist perspective.  As always, please take the step to get in touch with me through the Harderwyk office if you think I am wrong, have missed something or have misrepresented something.  I'm happy to listen.

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