…2. THE SECOND FINGER OF GOD WROTE JUDGMENT. – Daniel 5:1-30 (READ)
A. IT IS A TERRIFYING THING TO FALL INTO JUDGMENT AT THE HANDS OF THE LIVING GOD. (Verses 6 & 9)
You might say that King Belshazzar was partying hardy until he read the handwriting on the wall and then the party was suddenly over! “His face turned pale and he was so frightened that his knees knocked together and his legs gave way.” He became “terrified and his face grew more pale.” He had mocked God and broken one of His laws – “Thou shalt have no other God’s before me.” “Yeah, bring in the gold goblets from the temple of the God in Jerusalem and fill them up. And as they drunk themselves into a stupor “they praised the gods of gold and silver, or bronze, iron, wood and stone.” In so doing, Belshazzar mocked the one true God and brought judgment upon himself.
You cannot mess around with the one true God. The writer of Hebrews put it this way:
Hebrews 10:31 – “It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”
You can mock gods of gold and silver, bronze, iron, wood and stone because they’re dead anyway. But if you mock the living God you bring judgment upon yourself.
There are people all around us who mock the one true and living God every day by the way they are living. Taking His Holy name in vain. Living in immorality – sleeping around, committing adultery. Drinking themselves into a drunken stupor every weekend. Taking the things of God lightly as if they aren’t true. Making fun of the Bible, of church, of Christians. Acting like they can do anything they want with no consequences. Arrogant in their sin.
Brethren hear me , if you’re living in arrogance and rebellion and you had to stand before Almighty God today to give an account for the way you’ve been living “your face would turn pale, and your knees would begin to knock from fright until your legs collapsed underneath you!” Sin is not, never has been and never will be a joke to God. If you stand before Him and your sin has never been covered by the shed blood of Christ, it will be terrifying! Hear me today, don’t walk in pride and arrogance before God as if He can’t touch you and you can do whatever you feel like doing. One day you’ll stand before Him to give an account.
You can’t mock God and get by with it.
B. THERE WILL ALWAYS BE PEOPLE WHO TRY TO “SUGAR-COAT” OR DOWNPLAY THE JUDGMENT OF GOD. (Verse 23)
Belshazzar did not realize the serious nature of what he asked for or he would never have requested those gold goblets from Jerusalem be brought in to him. Daniel told him, “…you have set yourself up against the Lord of heaven. You honored all these false gods but you dishonored the God who holds in his hand your life and all your ways.”
Then he went on to tell King Belshazzar what the handwriting on the wall meant.
Your days are numbered.
You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting.
You have lost your kingdom.
He had to have been shocked when he realized the drastic outcome of his sin. Likewise, if you and I go on willfully sinning with no interest in repentance or in calling upon the mercy of God, we will be shocked with the drastic outcome of our sin.
Romans 6:23 – “The wages of sin is death…”
Hebrews 9:27 – “It is appointed unto man once to die and after that the judgment.” …
