[This was a sermon delivered this morning at chapel at Valley Lutheran High School (vlhs.org)]
Then they brought in the golden vessels that had been taken out of the temple, the house of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines drank from them. 4 They drank wine and praised the gods of gold and silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone. 5 Immediately the fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace, opposite the lampstand. And the king saw the hand as it wrote. 6 Then the king’s color changed, and his thoughts alarmed him; his limbs gave way, and his knees knocked together. 7 The king called loudly to bring in the enchanters, the Chaldeans, and the astrologers. The king declared to the wise men of Babylon, “Whoever reads this writing, and shows me its interpretation, shall be clothed with purple and have a chain of gold around his neck and shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.” 8 Then all the king’s wise men came in, but they could not read the writing or make known to the king the interpretation. – Dan. 5:3-8 ESV
Introduction
This is the way I usually describe the book of Daniel. The first six chapters are a catechism for life as a faithful Jew in the midst of Babylon. The last six chapters are the ones that prove nobody understood the first six. Those last six are apocalyptic, and so the natural question is always “What does this mean?” And the shelves are full of books that don’t get it. Written by enchanters, Chaldeans, astrologers and the wise men of Babylon.
Text
Those first six chapters used to be staples of Sunday Schools everywhere. But those were the days when Sunday School was near universal and three out of four weeks. I’m old, so forgive me the nostalgia. Today I can’t assume that you’ve heard the story of “the writing on the wall”. You might have heard the phrase. And you might know that the writing means nothing good. But unless you’ve seen the best Heath Ledger movie – A Knight’s Tale – you don’t know what it means. (Even my references are old, sorry.) That handwriting itself is an interesting puzzle. That’s a rabbit hole you could go down for a day. What exactly was the writing that so puzzled all the King’s advisors?
I’ll leave that to you, because my interest today is in the run up. “They brought in the golden vessels that had been taken out of the temple, the house of God in Jerusalem…and drank from them. They drank wine and praised the gods of gold and silver, bronze, iron, wood and stone.”
I said that the first six chapters of Daniel are a catechism for faithful Jews in the midst of Babylon. As such they are also a catechism for Christians in the midst of this world. There is an iron progression in everything the world does. First the world blasphemes the real, the God who created. Belshazzar the Babylonian King – even though his great predecessor Nebuchadnezzar had proclaimed the wonders of Daniel’s God – Belshazzar thinks nothing more of that God’s sacred items than to get drunk and have an orgy. And why not, we conquered the Jews and took down their temple. Even if the man who did it would praise that God, ignore him, he’s old and dead.
So turned away from the creator to blasphemy, the World then worships the creation. “They praised the gods of gold and silver” and all the way down to humble stone. Idolatry takes many forms. The human heart is an idol factory. Oh we think we are much better than the ancients. We don’t build a temple or find a grotto and stick a statue in it and call it God. No, if you are old like me, you install on you wall the largest image creator you can, and 24/7 play the stories of the gods – whether of politics, or money or fate or love. If you are your age, you carry that talking image in your pockets. And we are all addicted to the feed, to knowing what is happening with the gods.
And the final step of the world – from blasphemy, to worshipping the creation, the final step is ignorance. “Then all the king’s wise men came in, but they could not read the writing or make know the interpretation.” The most important thing to know is written on the wall, and nobody can read. Nobody knows what it means. They can see the signs, but not understand them. They had given up the eternal for the temporal. And so their understanding was darkened.
Eventually the queen – who might be getting a dig in at her wastrel king – reminds him of Daniel and they call the faithful Jew in who is able to read the handwriting on the wall.
Application
What does this mean? That’s a good Lutheran question that you might recognize if you have memorized the Small Catechism. A good exercise even if you can call it up on your pocket device. Luther asks that question over and over and gives a short answer. What does this mean?
Let me offer up three things.
First, as Christian in the midst of this world, the opportunities to Blaspheme and Worship idols are ever present. Now being the King’s enchanter, Chaldean, astrologer or wise man might seem like the best thing. All your parents want you to succeed and success is usually defined in worldly terms. We don’t call them those things anymore. We might use words like the doctors, the economists, the technicians and the advisors. But the fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom. If your success is based on technique, there is always a new technique that you will not be able to read. The idols always offer technique. But the way of the LORD is wisdom. And only wisdom can discern the correct technique. Only wisdom brings our things old and things new from the treasury.
Second, as a Christian in the midst of this world, you don’t have to fear anything you study. It was all made by God and it was made for you to understand. Daniel was never afraid to be a faithful Jew in the midst of Babylon. Now being that faithful person might mean having to dedicate yourself to excellence. Daniel was always better than the rest. Excellence is always in short supply. It is always needed, even if it produces envy that might scheme to throw you into the lions den. But as much as the world might hate it, this world is God’s and he makes things work for his people. Study what you want. Dedicate yourself to excellence. Remember the LORD.
And last, but maybe most important. You are getting a chance here at Valley that Daniel never did. You are getting a chance to study under those who can help you answer “what does this mean?” You are studying with faithful teachers full of wisdom. Soak it up. Apply yourself to learning and excellence. I think you will find in life this chance you have is rare and fleeting. So seize the day. Don’t find yourself later puzzling out the writing on the wall. Because then it is too late.