Party

[jmichaelwalls]

THE UNINVITED GUEST AT THE OFFICE PARTY
Daniel 5:1-6
Introduction: This was the party of all parties. There were all the
elements for what some people would call a good time. The right guests
were there. King Belshazzar knew he was in for a good time. There were a
thousand guests there.
Babylon was the party capital of all times. Archaeologists have excavated
much of ancient Babylon, uncovering banquet halls capable of seating
between 5,000 and 10,000 people at a time. Usually when you count guest
at parties or banquets in those days you usually only counted the men. He
had his most important men there that night. There may have been 2500 to
3000 people there which would include the guest escorts and bodyguards.
This was some party. King Belshazzar was already drunk. How can you tell?
Please look at verse two. It says, "whiles he tasted the wine". This is a
clear indication that he was intoxicated. Men and women who drink soon
find out that the decisions that they make are not usually rational ones.
He was having a great time or so he thought. In his drunkenness, he makes
the greatest mistake of his life. He calls for the vessels that had been
taken by Nebuchadnezzar from the Temple in Jerusalem. He uses the sacred
for the secular. He uses them to make a toast to the gods of their day.
He forgot or never cared to remember that there was the Lord God in
heaven that is the creator of all that those vessels had been dedicated.
Wine flowed freely. Wealth was on display. Women danced seductively for
entertainment. There is every reason to believe that this royal banquet
like many before and since, was little more than a drunken feast and
orgy.
The Bible has high standards for kings. Proverbs 16:12 states, "It is an
abomination to kings to commit wickedness: for the throne is established
in righteousness." He also spells out this truth in Proverbs 31:4, 5 that
says, "It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine;
nor for princes strong drink: Lest they drink, and forget the law, and
pervert the judgment of any of the afflicted."
The Bible is crystal clear about alcoholic beverages. In Proverbs 20:1 we
find these words "Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever
is deceived thereby is not wise." In other words, those who partake are
really dumb. Wine will come back to haunt you. The Bible says in Proverbs
23:29-35 "Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath
babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes? They
that tarry long at the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine. Look not
thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup,
when it moveth itself aright. At the last it biteth like a serpent, and
stingeth like an adder. Thine eyes shall behold strange women, and thine
heart shall utter perverse things. Yea, thou shalt be as he that lieth
down in the midst of the sea, or as he that lieth upon the top of a mast.
They have stricken me, shalt thou say, and I was not sick; they have
beaten me, and I felt it not: when shall I awake? I will seek it yet
again."
When I was much younger, I worked for the city of Petersburg, Virginia as
a police officer. I was a patrolman for twenty-five months. In that time
I wrote approximately four hundred traffic tickets which included ones
for driving under the influence. One man stands out in my mind. As we
were ready to leave the police station one midnight shift, a car drove by
going very slow but was on both sides of the road for the two blocks from
headquarters. Since that was my patrol division that night, I got in my
patrol car and stopped the man. He was an older man in his early sixties.
When I stopped him, he staggered out of his car. After doing the standard
field sobriety test, I placed him under arrest and took him back to
headquarters to blow in the breath analyzer. He was very cooperative up
to this time. Once he was in the room with the breath analyzer, he
refused the test and took a swing at the officer who was operating the
machine. Of course, he faced two additional charges now.
The day we went to court, he took the judgment of the judge without many
objections. After court, he came to other officer and I to apologize. I
guess I will never forget what he said. He said, "I am very sorry. I do
not know what came over me to take a swing at an officer. I am normally a
quiet man but the booze got the best of me." His statement summed up how
many feel when they are under the demon of booze.
As I said earlier, King Belshazzar forgot the God of heaven. But the God
of heaven had not forgotten Him. There is much reference to this in our
Bibles. These verses should be so engrained in our minds that they will
help us live like we ought.
Genesis 16:13
"And she called the name of the LORD that spake unto her, Thou God seest
me: for she said, Have I also here looked after him that seeth me?"
Deut. 13:18
"When thou shalt hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, to keep all
his commandments which I command thee this day, to do that which is right
in the eyes of the LORD thy God."
1 Kings 5:15
"Because David did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD, and
turned not aside from any thing that he commanded him all the days of his
life, save only in the matter of Uriah the Hittite."
2 Chronicles 16:9
"For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to
shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward
him. Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou
shalt have wars."
Proverbs 5:21
"For the ways of man are before the eyes of the LORD, and he pondereth
all his goings." Proverbs 15:3
"The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the
good."
1 Peter 3:12
"For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open
unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do
evil."
Hebrews 4:13
"Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all
things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to
do."
With this knowledge, you begin to live right since you have learned to
fear the Lord. Proverbs 1:7
"The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise
wisdom and instruction."
Part of the shame of this is the fact that Nebuchadnezzar had been warned
of this event in a dream that Daniel interpreted for him. I know that
Nebuchadnezzar had told his grandson of this dream and the interpretation
of it. But booze clouded his mind and good judgment.
God showed up. When God shows up, things happen. The Lord left a message
to Belshazzar written on the walls of the banquet hall. The message was
this: "MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN". These words mean literally,
"numbered, weighed, and dividers." This uninvited guest came and brought
a message of judgment.
Before going further, I want to say this. Many people this time of the
year forget to invite the Lord to their parties. Why? They do not want
Him to mess up their fun nor should I say their wickedness. I am a firm
believer that if the Lord is not invited then why should I show up? Or
they may tag the Lord on last in some cases. Listen to the songs of the
season. There are plenty of them singing the praises of Santa Claus. But
how many people will put a postscript at the end of their program about
Christ.
Christ is not to be a postscript but the major person in our lives. He
deserves this place. Why? He died for our sins. He created us. He
provides our very substance.
Let�s look at the message and how it affects our lives.
I. THE NATURE OF THE MESSAGE
Vs. 5-8
Over the years God has sent messages in various ways. It has been by
prophet, written form, visions, voices etc. (Today we don�t necessarily
need any divine messages since we have the complete Word of God.) But
this message was not from a prophet! Nor was it from a book. It was not a
voice! Not a vision! Look at it:
A. Message was unusual. Vs.5
"In the same hour came forth fingers of a man's hand, and wrote over
against the candlestick upon the plaister of the wall of the king's
palace: and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote."
There were no fire, lightening, and thunder but suddenly there, out of
the sleeve of the night, was a man's hand! This was NOT part of the
program.
B. Message was untimely. Vs. 1-5
They were partying! Vs. 4
"They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass,
of iron, of wood, and of stone."
Who were these gods? Psalm 115:4-8
"Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men's hands. They have
mouths, but they speak not: eyes have they, but they see not: They have
ears, but they hear not: noses have they, but they smell not: They have
hands, but they handle not: feet have they, but they walk not: neither
speak they through their throat. They that make them are like unto them;
so is every one that trusteth in them."
Isn't that just like God? His appearance is often so
untimely. He rains your parade so to speak or crashes party. I've walked
in on people drinking. Some try to hide it, some offer some. It is bad
enough to get caught in your sin by the preacher. It is far worse when
God catches it.
C. Message was unreadable.
Vs.8
"Then came in all the king's wise men, but they could not read the
writing, nor make known to the king the interpretation thereof." Nothing
more disturbing than to have a message and not be able to read it!"
It was a message from God. They needed the man of God. That's why God
calls preachers to expound word. We give the message from the Lord.
King Belshazzar was "greatly troubled" according to Vs. 9. It is proper
that it should trouble Him. He just seen the Lord and got a wake up call.
The Queen came and made a suggestion.
Vs.11-12
"There is a man in thy kingdom, in whom is the spirit of the holy gods;
and in the days of thy father light and understanding and wisdom, like
the wisdom of the gods, was found in him; whom the king Nebuchadnezzar
thy father, the king, I say, thy father, made master of the magicians,
astrologers, Chaldeans, and soothsayers; Forasmuch as an excellent
spirit, and knowledge, and understanding, interpreting of dreams, and
shewing of hard sentences, and dissolving of doubts, were found in the
same Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar: now let Daniel be called,
and he will shew the interpretation."
She had heard of Daniel and how God was using him to interpret dreams and
visions. Daniel was sent for and promised a scarlet robe and chain of
gold, and the position of third ruler in the kingdom. Daniel said,
paraphrasing Vs. 17 "keep your gifts, and give the rewards to someone
else, but I'll interpret your message."
II. THE NEED OF THE MESSAGE
Vs. 18-24
A. Pride of life vs. 22
"And thou his son, O Belshazzar hast not
humbled thine heart, though thou knewest all this."
He hadn't learned a thing from the bad example and downfall of father. He
had knowingly disobeyed God! This will always get God's attention. When
you knowingly disobey God, it's like shaking your
fist in God's face. This is serious! But pride prevents us from doing the
right things.
B. Plunder of the temple vs. 23
".they have brought the vessels of His house before thee..."
These were vessels that had been taken from the temple in Jerusalem when
it fell. They had just one use. They were dedicated or sanctified for the
use of God�s House.
C. Pollution of the vessels vs. 23
"..and thou and thy lords and thy wives and thy concubines have drunk
wine in them."
They had defiled the holy and sacred. They had no respect for God or His
House. Not much change in today�s society is there?
What some churches will do in the Name of the Lord is disgraceful! They
have the same type music come into the church as the young people already
listen. They do it so they can reach the young people. It is better to be
small and right than trying to justify sinful behavior in the name of
God.
D. Praise of Idols Vs. 23
"thou hast praised the gods of gold,
silver, brass, wood, and stone."
People today live, eat, and breathe sports, their job, and their man made
idols and then give God the leftovers of their time, talent, and
treasures.
NOTING THE MESSAGE
Vs. 25-28
"And this is the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.
This is the interpretation of the thing: MENE; God hath numbered thy
kingdom, and finished it. TEKEL; Thou art weighed in the balances, and
art found wanting. PERES; Thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes
and Persians."
The end had come! You never know when that last day will come. He had
reached the height of success. He was going no further. The uninvited
guest was going to put an end to his sin.
Would be bad enough to have to stand before HIM suddenly, but much less
to be found short in the balance of God. He was not going to hear,
"you've done good job..."
His entire kingdom is given to someone else. He was leaving it all
behind! He took nothing with Him.
IV. NEGLECTING THE MESSAGE
But he did not believe the message. He did not repent or get right with
God. Why didn�t he believe God�s message? Look at the city of Babylon.
Like the builders of the "unsinkable" Titanic, Belshazzar believed that
his city was invincible. The city wall was 15 square miles, 300 feet
high, wide enough for four chariots to run abreast, and defended by more
than 100 towers. Food was stockpiled to withstand a siege for 20 years
and the Euphrates River flowed beneath the wall, cutting diagonally
across the city. There was also cultivatable land within the walls. He
did not believe God. His failure to act upon the message cost him and
many of those who were with him that night.
History records that while the king feasted, the Persian army completed a
channel they had dug for the Euphrates River. That night, they dammed the
main river course, diverting the river into its new channel. Persian
soldiers marched under the city walls on the "dry" riverbed. Finding the
city undefended, they opened the city gates and the city was taken almost
without bloodshed. Belshazzar was captured and executed, one of the few
casualties in the fall of the city. Cyrus, king of Persia kept most of
Babylon, but gave a portion to be ruled by Darius the Mede.
Belshazzar may not have believed God. Regardless God was and still is
true. Romans 3:4
"God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar"
Conclusion: When God shows up in your life, what will His message be for
you? Will you heed that message? Will you be found on the short of the
scales of God?

Pastor Mike Walls
Freedom Baptist Church Smithfield, NC
jmicha...@juno.com
Isaiah 41:10
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