The Christ in Prophecy Journal

The Mighty Angels of Daniel 8: The Alexander Tragedy

MP3: The Mighty Angels of Daniel 8
Hosts: Nathan Jones & Vic Batista

The Alexander Tragedy

Vic Batista: How fascinating to look at the visions in the book of Daniel chapters 2, 7 and 8 and then look at history — they’re both tied together! The visions Daniel had and the Angel Gabriel interpreted make perfect sense once we read their historical fulfillment. After being amazed by Daniel’s prophecies, who wouldn’t want to take some time to study Bible prophecy? All Christians should become good students in the light of the wonders of God’s prophetic word. We’ll become so excited once we see how all these events start coming together.

And what a story! To think we’ve got this incredibly powerful conqueror — Alexander the Great — who seemed poised to rule the known world at the time, and then a bug bites him and he is dead at 32.

Nathan Jones: Yes, and ironically with no heir. Alexander did all that labor conquering the known world, but he left no heir to take over his kingdom and enjoy the fruits of his conquest. Alexander’s demise shows me just how important it is as Christians that we live our lives for God, for our good works are stored up as eternal treasures in Heaven. Alexander the Great left a tremendous historical legacy, but he left nothing of eternal value behind. He didn’t even leave a family behind. All that conquering at such a young age, and he was left with nothing. Alexander the Great’s story is so tragic and so very sad.

Vic Batista: Today we spend so much of our time trying to climb the corporate ladder, and often don’t take the proper time for our families, or to serve the Lord in our churches. We should periodically ask ourselves, “In the end, what am I going to leave behind? If all my treasures are just here in this world, what am I going to offer the Lord?

Nathan Jones: Wonderful questions! Our treasures should be stored up in heaven. We store treasures by doing good works in the Lord’s name, by sharing the Gospel with people, and by helping those in need. Be a good Christian example. Live your life holy and worthy of God. Those are the eternal rewards that are stored up for us in Heaven.

Sure, you could become super successful like Alexander was here on earth. You could become a CEO of a Fortune 500 or a president of a country. You could amass all the money, fame, and power there is, but what good will it do you when you’re dead? What happens if you arrive in Heaven and there’s no eternal rewards stored for you up there? Usually what people do is when they die they leave an inheritance to their bumbling children who just waste it anyway. Or, here in Daniel, Alexander’s four squabbling generals inherit his kingdom and achieve nothing more than to break up the power of his empire. So, it is very important that we live our lives with an eternal perspective.

What happens if you arrive in #Heaven and there's no eternal rewards stored there? Click To Tweet

Vic Batista: Yes, excellent point! That eternal perspective begins with a relationship with Jesus Christ. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life and no man comes to the faith but through me” (John 14:6). And, the Bible teaches us, “That God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him will not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). Our concern should always focus on our own and other people’s eternal destiny.

Nathan Jones: To begin that right relationship with Jesus Christ, we first need to understand that there is nobody who is righteous, no not one. We are all sinners who need to repent of our rebellion against Jesus Christ. Once we repent of our sins, we then need to accept Jesus and His salvation. God loved us so much that He sent His Son to die on the cross so that there would be salvation. When was ask for forgiveness of our sins, and ask Jesus to be our Savior, He promises to wipe our slate clean. Our sins are forgiven, and we can stand before God holy and forgiven. We become inheritors of the kingdom of God, both here on this earth and in eternity with God.

Vic Batista: And I encourage people to continue to pray. God reveals wonderful insights when we pray.

Nathan Jones: He does. It is very important that we continually develop a strong prayer life. A lot of people don’t think there is power in prayer, and so they don’t bother with it.

I think of my own wife and wonder if I treated my wife like most people treat God if she would stay with me. What if I never paid any attention to her, or never talked to her, and only thought about her occasionally, or only came to her when I wanted something? Well, that marriage between us would be pretty bad, right? Rather, what we want is to foster a healthy relationship with God, and that involves a strong prayer life.

So, don’t let Alexander the Great’s tragedy become your own. Be dedicated to the Lord, live a holy life, and give God the time and attention that He deserves by reading the Bible, praying, and by doing good works. Just like any relationship, our relationship with God needs to be strengthened by a time commitment.

Our relationship with #God needs to be strengthened by a time commitment. Click To Tweet

In the eleventh segment of this series on the mighty angels of Daniel, we’ll move on to the prophecies the Angel Gabriel will reveal in Daniel 9.

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Dr. Nathan E. Jones

As the Internet Evangelist at Lamb & Lion Ministries, Nathan reaches out to the over 4.5 billion people accessible over the Internet with the Good News of Jesus Christ. He also co-hosts the ministry's television program Christ in Prophecy and podcast The Truth Will Set You Free.

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