Around two thousand five hundred years ago, in the ancient Kingdom of Babylon, the grandson of Nebuchadnezzar decided to throw a party with a thousand of his noble guests. They drank wine from the gold and silver goblets that King Nebuchadnezzar had taken from God's temple in Jerusalem. They desecrated these sacred vessels by drinking wine in honor of the gods of gold, silver, bronze, iron, wood and stone. While these people were celebrating in honor of their pagan gods, a human hand appeared and began writing on the plaster wall. The king watched with so much terror that his knees began knocking. The words were MENE, MENE, TEKEL, PARSIN. Daniel, the prophet of God who had been taken into captivity along with his fellow countrymen, was called upon to give the meaning of these words. "This is what these words mean: Mene: God has numbered the days of your reign and brought it to an end. Tekel: You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting. Peres: Your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians." (Daniel 5:26 – 28 NIV) Speaking about King Nebuchadnezzar, Daniel said "God gave your father Nebuchadnezzar sovereignty and greatness and glory and splendor. Because of the high position he gave him, all the peoples and nations and men of every language dreaded and feared him. Those the king wanted to put to death, he put to death; those he wanted to spare, he spared; those he wanted to promote, he promoted; and those he wanted to humble, he humbled. But when his heart became arrogant and hardened with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and stripped of his glory. He was driven away from people and given the mind of an animal; he lived with the wild donkeys and ate grass like cattle; and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven, until he acknowledged that the Most High God is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and sets over them anyone he wishes." (Daniel 5 NIV) Nebuchadnezzar later confessed faith in the King of heaven! News bulletins are buzzing at this time over the recent capture and interrogation of Saddam Hussein. Saddam once boasted that he was restoring the Babylonian kingdom. From what we learn in the news, he treated his own citizens and neighboring countries contemptuously. Just like the ancient king of Babylon, Saddam was brought down to his knees, and his "kingdom" is being turned over to others. Let us who believe in the King of heaven, pray fervently and work tirelessly to insure that the rulers of nations remember the source of their strength. We have a long tradition in America of honoring God by placing the inscription on our money: In God We Trust. Our lawmakers also thought it appropriate to include in our Pledge of Allegiance the phrase UNDER GOD. From the earliest days of our founding by settlers from Europe, we have been blessed with leaders who had the wisdom to make laws that protect the rights of believers to worship according to the dictates of our conscience. At the same time, we are blessed to live in a country where the "king" does not show preference for one religion over the other. Believers are free to worship according to the way we understand God's instructions. The government does not choose our church leaders for us. We are free to evangelize among Jewish believers, followers of Mohammed, any other beliefs, or among non-believers. These people are also free to attempt to persuade us to follow their particular doctrines. What a wonderful country where we can freely debate religious teaching and make our own choices, or choose not to be religious! God help us to continue being vigilant and make sure that no segment of our society, especially the modern "secular" movement does not take away these freedoms of conscience that have been given to us by the King of Heaven. True religion has no fear of open debate. Every citizen of the world has the right to hear the truth which is able to give freedom from slavery to sin. Have you accepted the amazing salvation that is offered to you by the gift of God's love? Receive Jesus Christ as your Savior by confessing that faith, repenting of your sins, and obeying the commandments of our Lord Jesus Christ. You are invited to attend the services of the Church of Christ at the corner of 3rd and E Streets. Please write to me with any questions or comments at P.O. Box 186, Cedar Key, FL 32625 or dgbinkley@aol.com. Or you may also request to receive the daily WORD OF THE DAY by e-mail. Check out our web site at www.cedarkeychurchofchrist.com. | 