TWO LETTERS FROM BABYLON

Pastor Maselo Mosomane

Daniel 3:28-30

“Then Nebuchadnezzar said,

Praise to the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego!

He sent his angel to rescue His servants who trusted in Him.

They defied the king’s command and were willing to die

Rather than serve or worship any god except their own God.

Therefore, I make this decree:

If any people, whatever their race or nation or language,

Speak a word against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego,

They will be torn limb from limb,

And their houses will be turned into heaps of rubble.

There is no other god who can rescue like this!”

Daniel 6:25-27

“The King Darius wrote:

To all peoples, nations, and languages that dwell in all the earth:

Peace be multiplied to you.

I make a decree that in every dominion of my kingdom

Men must tremble and fear before the God of Daniel

For He is the living God, and steadfast forever;

His kingdom is the one which shall not be destroyed, and

His dominion shall endure to the end.

He delivers and rescues, and

He works signs and wonders in heaven and on earth,

Who has delivered Daniel from the power of the lions.

These two letters come from Babylon and are addressed to specific audience; namely, “all people, race, nations, languages that dwell in all the earth.” They are addressed to people and governments – worship communities included. They are written to individuals walking down the streets of world class city and sewerage-soaked narrow streets in the ghettos and townships at the doorsteps of cities and towns alike. They are written to poverty-stricken individuals down the meandering dusty roads of insignificant villages all over the face of the earth.

Though the letters are two, the message is one. Though the authors are two, the message remains one. Empires and eras may differ but the message does not. Though the audience may change and differ from yesterday, today and tomorrow; the message still seek audience from every generation. It has been packaged and interpreted in almost all the know languages of the world. It is spoken across the planet through airwaves and every modern form of communication system or media network.

OH NATIONS OF THE WORLD; HEAR THE MESSAGE!

God is one - there is no other god. People may be numerous, nations may be many but God is one. Nations may have their own deity and nickname them gods but that will not make them God. There is no other god. It doesn’t matter how or what you believe. There is only one God. He ordered that people should all come to Him through His Son Jesus Christ. He said that day when John baptized Jesus; “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” Mister little “g” god, you are not God. There is only one God; His name is Jehovah and His Son is Jesus Christ.

God is the living God - He is not dead. Though nations may have their own divinities; they are not alive but dead. For instance; ancestors are playing a significant role in African religion; I know. But they are dead and not alive. That’s why they are worshiped at the graveyard. Graveyards are places of the dead all over the world; this is common knowledge no one pays for. If ancestors were gods; let them rise up and live.

Jesus rose again and took upon His body and lived again. Yes, He took upon His body. That’s why He said to Thomas; “reach your finger here, and look at My hands, and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.” John 20:27 Jesus took up His body and lived again. He was not a ghost or just an imaginary presence.  He rose from the dead and, for forty days He was seen by many. He was finally seen by more than five hundred people at a time. Hence we confess with our mouths the LORD JESUS and believe in our hearts that GOD HAS RAISED HIM FROM THE DEAD. Jesus is alive!

Fear God – the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. In order to be democratically aligned and ballot friendly, governments come up with policies that propagate inclusivity. They defy the only True God and bringing Him to the same table with idols. When they celebrate or inaugurate something, they call upon all the deities of the world – God included. They neither fear God nor revere Him. They promote all sorts of abominations in the name of CULTURE. We all know that every nation has its own culture, but, with the same breath, let it be known that all cultures of the world are man-made. Man made them and man changes them when it suits him. But God is not man-made and He does not change. GOD IS SELF-EXISTENT

Oh people of the world know that you were created in the image of God. You were fearfully and wonderfully made; God made you upright. Why do you sought for many ways to destroy yourself? Why do you despise God

Fear the Lord;

a.    Do not speak a word against God

b.   For His kingdom is the one which shall not be destroyed

c.    His dominion shall endure to the end

d.   He delivers and rescue

e.   He works signs and wonders in heaven and on earth