The book of Daniel is an interesting book. Daniel wrote the words of the book that bears his name, five hundred years before the coming of Christ. And today, as we look at chapter seven, we see an interesting dream or vision that Daniel had. In Daniel's dream and visions, he saw four beasts, or four animals. I want you to hear and get a picture in your mind of these beasts, from these verses, right prior to our text.

"The first beast was like a lion and it had the wings of an eagle. The second beast looked like a bear. It had three ribs in its mouth, between its teeth. The third beast looked like a leopard. It had four wings like those of a bird. This beast had four heads. The fourth beast was terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth."

Those four beasts that Daniel saw were the rising and falling of four nations. Remember, Daniel wrote these words five hundred years before Christ came. He was looking into the future and foretelling what was going to happen. Today we have twenty-twenty vision, as we look back and see this prophecy fulfilled. Because, in fact, there were four nations that rose and fell, before Christ, our King, came. That first kingdom was the Babylonian Kingdom. It rose and it fell. The second kingdom was the Mede and Persian Kingdom. That kingdom also rose and it fell. The third kingdom was the Greek Kingdom, including that of Alexander the Great. It rose and it fell. The fourth kingdom of which Daniel speaks was the Roman Kingdom. That kingdom also rose and it fell.

Those kingdoms rose and fell and then came Christ, our King, onto the scene.

Today is Christ the King Sunday. In our worship today, through our prayers, through our hymns, and through our sermon text, we see how it is that Christ truly is our King. Other nations rise and fall, but Christ, our King, and His Kingdom endures forever.

Christ, our King, does what a king is supposed to do. He leads His people into battle. He leads us into battle against our fiercest enemies, the devil, the world, and our sinful flesh. And, He leads us into victory. He gives to us the freedom of living in His Kingdom.

Today, then, as we look at our text, I want to look at it in the light of what Jesus taught us, in the Lord's Prayer. The last phrase of the Lord's Prayer, Jesus teaches us,

"For thine is the Kingdom,

and the power,

and the glory."

In verse 13, from our text, Daniel says, (again going back to his vision and dreams), "In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a Son of Man."

Prior to this, he had seen four beasts, (again, the rising and falling of four kingdoms). But now, Daniel sees "one like a Son of Man." This is Jesus. Jesus, Himself, in the Gospels, while He was living, referred to Himself as the Son of Man.

Then, Daniel prophesied, "coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into His presence."

We confess this every time we say the Apostles Creed. As we acknowledge that Jesus ascended into Heaven, sits at the right hand of God, the Father, Almighty. From there He will come to judge the living and the dead.

Christ, our King, has fulfilled everything that He came to do. He died on the cross and paid for our sin. With His job accomplished, He ascended into Heaven in the clouds. He is sitting at the right hand of the Father, where He has all glory and power. And, He waits for the Day of Judgment, when He will come back to judge all people, both living and the dead.

And so, as we look at the words of the Lord's Prayer, "For thine is the Kingdom, and the power, and the glory," we can see them as words that God, the Father, speaks to His Son. And, we can see it as words that we, as His Church, speak to Christ, the King. God, our Father, says to Jesus, "for thine is the Kingdom, and the power, and the glory." That is what the first half of verse 14 is describing. It is as if God, the Father, is saying five hundred years before Jesus comes, "You have all authority. You have all glory. And, you have all sovereign power." Jesus acknowledged this, when His work was done. Right before He ascended into Heaven, Jesus looked at His disciples and said, "All authority has been given to me."

In our Epistle Lesson, we know that all glory and sovereign power is Jesus' too. As John says, "To Him be glory and power for ever and ever."

God recognized Jesus as His Son and as Christ, the King, two times when He said, "This is my beloved Son, with Him I am well pleased."

Not only are those words in the Lord's Prayer words that God, the Father, speaks to His Son, "For thine is the Kingdom, and the power, and the glory," but they are also words that we speak to Christ, our King.

"For thine is the Kingdom,

and the power,

and the glory."

Right now we are setting aside time to worship Christ, our King. Someday, when Judgment Day comes, all of the world will recognize Christ as the everlasting King. Other kingdoms rise and fall, but Christ's Kingdom does not.

Are you ready for that day? Are you ready for that day, when Christ, our King will come? In the verses leading up to our text for today, (it happens to be the Old Testament Lesson from last week), it sets the stage leading right up to the Day of Judgment, when it says, "Thrones were set in place, and the Ancient of Days took His seat. His clothing was as white as snow; the hair of His head was white like wool. His throne was flaming with fire, and its wheels were all ablaze. A river of fire was flowing, coming out from before Him. Thousands upon thousands attended Him; ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him. The court was seated, and the books were opened."

Are you ready for that day? Are you ready for the day when angels will usher you down the hall, around the corner, and into the throne room of Christ, our King? The book is open.

Inside that book all of our sins are laid out before Christ, our King. We should be terrified. We should be shaking in our boots, because we don't even deserve to stand in the presence of Christ, our King, because we are filthy and dirty on account of our sin.

And yet, it is a day that we don't need to be afraid of at all. We don't need to be afraid at all, because as our Epistle Lesson reminds us,

"To Him

who loves us

and has freed us from our sins

by His blood."

It is Christ, our King, who loves you. And He has freed you and He has freed me from our sin, by His blood. You see, Christ, our King, did not come to be served. Christ, our King, came to serve you! And, He rightly served you by living a perfect life, in our place, and by taking that perfect life, as a substitute to the cross. And there, taking on the full wrath that God was to meet out. He placed that upon Himself. And we are freed, freed from our sin, through the shedding of His blood.

Daniel, in his text, prophesied the rising and falling of four nations. In keeping with his prophesy, those nations rose and they fell. And also, in keeping with Daniel's prophesy, a Kingdom would come that would endure forever. That is the Kingdom of Christ, our King.

Are you ready for that day,

when He will come again,

in glory,

to judge the living and the dead?

Today, as we sit here, we can say, "Yes, most certainly true, because Christ, our King, loves us and He has freed us from our sin, through the shedding of His blood."

And so, as we close another church year, we recognize Christ, our King, and we say,

"For thine is the Kingdom,

and the power,

and the glory

forever, and ever.

Amen"