Introduction: If you are reading this, it means that you are
still with me in this study, even though it has been hard
work to trudge through some of the details of Daniel’s
prophecies. Last week I promised you that we would discover
this week why it makes any difference, as a practical
matter, whether the “Little Horn” of Daniel 7 & 8 is
Antiochus or Rome. Why should we care as Christians? What
does it matter to modern people? Let’s jump in and discover
why this issue brings us to the heart of the gospel and the
proof of your faith!
- The Target of the Little Horn
- Read Daniel 8:9-12. What is being attacked by the
“Little Horn?” (We previously discovered that on a
very basic level, it destroyed the Jewish sanctuary
in 70 A.D.) - What else is being attacked? ( Daniel 8:10
tells us that it reached into heaven and threw
“some of the starry host down to the ground.”) - What does that bring to mind? (Read
Revelation 12:3-4 and Revelation 12:7-9.
This is a picture of Satan bringing a
third of the angels down to earth with him
when he loses his fight against God.) - What kind of animal is depicted here?
(A dragon with ten horns.) - What kind of animal is pictured in
Daniel 7:19-20? (Something that could
pass as a dragon with ten horns.) - Let’s go back and read Daniel 8:11-12 again.
What else does this Little Horn do? Who is the
“Prince of the Host?” (The Prince of the Host
has to be Jesus. This Little Horn thinks it is
a replacement for Jesus. Further, this attack
on Jesus involves the sanctuary.) - Read Daniel 8:13-14. What sanctuary did we
previously discuss was being reconsecrated
(cleansed) here? (Because of the timing(our
conclusion that the 2,300 days was symbolic and
meant 2,300 years), this has to refer to the
sanctuary in heaven.) - Sanctuary Activities
- Hebrews 9:1-5 gives us a description of the Holy
and Most Holy rooms of the Jewish sanctuary here on
earth. Continue by reading Hebrews 9:6-10. What was
the purpose of the Jewish sanctuary and its
sacrificial system? (It is “an illustration for the
present time.”) - Are you part of the “present time?”
- What is being illustrated for you (us)? (1.
The “way into the Most Holy Place” had not
been “disclosed” as long as the Jewish
sanctuary on earth was in existence. 2. Until
the time of the “new order” the conscience of
the people was not really being cleared.) - Can you summarize these two points in one
sentence? (The Jewish sanctuary on earth
was a symbol, but not the reality, for the
way to forgiveness of sin.) - Read Hebrews 9:11-14. What is the “present time”
reality for the forgiveness of sin, and where does
that reality take place? (The good news for the
present time is that Jesus is the real sacrifice
and the real High Priest and the real work of
forgiveness of sin is being done in the original
sanctuary which is in heaven.) - Read Hebrews 9:15. What is the “new covenant?”
(That Jesus was the perfect “sacrificial lamb”
because He lived a perfect life, and His death on
the cross, if accepted by us as the substitute
sacrifice for our sins, truly wipes away our sins.
It takes away your sins – all of them!) - Friend, do you want that? Real forgiveness of all
of your sins? - Why the Antiochus Question Matters
- Remember that we have learned that the Little Horn
of Daniel 7 and 8 attacks the sanctuary (Daniel
8:11-12), attacks God ( Daniel 7:25; Daniel 8:10-11,
25) and attacks God’s people ( Daniel 7:21; Daniel
8:12, 25). If the Little Horn of Daniel 7 and 8 is
Antiochus Ephiphanes, a minor Seleucide King who
ruled eleven years from 175-164 B.C., what
sanctuary did he attack?(The sanctuary on earth.) - If the Little Horn is Antiochus, how important
is that to us today? (It is not important at
all. It is a footnote about a minor figure in
history.) - If the Little Horn is Rome (as I believe) in
both its pagan and papal phases, how important
is that to us today? (“Rome” is still with
us.) - Let me repeat again that many of my most
important religious liberty cases involved the
defense of Catholics. I love the fact that the
Catholic Church stands strong against abortion
and other moral evils. But, the Catholic
Church has a serious flaw in its theology when
it comes to the issue of Christ our Mediator
in the Heavenly Sanctuary. What is that flaw?
(I think it is fair to say that the idea of
confessing your sins to men, the idea of
viewing Mary as your mediator, is an attack on
the role of Jesus as our mediating High Priest
in the sanctuary in heaven. Rome also has a
sad history of persecuting the saints.) - The Little Horn is obviously symbolic. If it
symbolizes a power that attacks God, His
people, and the role of Jesus our Sacrifice,
High Priest and Mediator in the heavenly
sanctuary, are there any other powers today
that qualify as “little horns?” (Any religious
belief that undercuts righteousness by faith,
that undercuts the forgiveness of sin by faith
in Christ alone, that describes a different
path to heaven than through Jesus our High
Priest, is a Little Horn power!) - Can you name a few? (Islam, all of the
“works” religions of the East, Judaism
without a Messiah – these all describe
ways to salvation without Jesus. They all
miss salvation by grace alone. Indeed,
there are a lot of members of churches
which teach grace who unfortunately
believe that they are saved by their
works. If you believe you are saved by
your works, you stand under the banner of
the Little Horn because your belief is an
attack on the mediating work of Jesus.) - What about modern humanism? Does that fit
within the symbolism of the Little Horn?
(Absolutely. The “faith” of the secular
humanist is that they are god. There is no
god higher than the person. They are
entitled to make their own judgments on
what is right and what is wrong. They have
little tolerance for Bible-believing
Christians. Is this not an “attack” on
God, righteousness by faith, and the
saints?) - We have previously determined in this series of
lessons that “running the numbers” from Daniel’s
prophecies using the day = a year symbolism
predicts that Jesus is the Messiah, predicts His
death, predicts the spread of the gospel to
Gentiles and predicts the destruction of the Jewish
sanctuary on earth. We also ran these numbers and
found that they ended in 1844 or, possibly, some
time later. Read Hebrews 9:23. Was the sanctuary
in heaven purified? (This verse says it was
“necessary,” using “better sacrifices.”) - Read Hebrews 9:24-26. When does Jesus enter
the sanctuary in heaven to do away with our
sins? (“At the end of the ages.”) - Read Hebrews 9:27-28. What follows Jesus doing
away with our sin? (He comes again to take us
to heaven with Him.) - Friend, the message of the Little Horn and its
attack on the sanctuary is a message for today –
not some dusty footnote in history. The saints
today are surrounded on all sides by belief systems
that are an assault on righteousness by grace
alone. The “1844” message is that we are saved by
faith alone. Jesus is working on our behalf in the
sanctuary in heaven. Jesus has a judgment, from
which we can only be saved by faith in Him. When He
finishes that judgment, He will “appear a second
time” to “bring salvation to those who are waiting
for Him.” ( Hebrews 9:28) Are you among those
waiting for Him? Or, are you allied with the
Little Horn: the religious philosophy that
salvation comes some other way than through Christ
alone? - Next week: The Pre-Advent Judgment.
