Good morning. It is wonderful to be with you this morning. We love this congregation and we are so thankful for the love that we have received from you over the years, including the past two months, as we've been back here in the United States. It truly is a privilege to be part of the body of Christ. We'll begin this morning in reading scripture with Daniel chapter 10, Daniel chapter 10 verses one through 11. That is also the text we will use for this morning's sermon. And after that, we'll switch to Ephesians chapter six. But first of all, Daniel chapter 10, reading from verse one through verse one of chapter 11. In the third year of Cyrus, king of Persia, a word was revealed to Daniel who was named Balthasar. And the word was true, and it was a great conflict. And he understood the word and had understanding of the vision. In those days, I, Daniel, was mourning for three weeks. I ate no delicacies, no meat or wine entered my mouth, nor did I anoint myself at all for the full three weeks. On the 24th day of the first month, as I was standing on the bank of the great river, that is, the Tigris, I lifted up my eyes and looked, and behold, a man clothed in linen with a belt of fine gold from Ufaz around his waist. His body was like barrel, his face like the appearance of lightning, his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and legs like the gleam of burnished bronze and the sound of his words like the sound of a multitude. And I, Daniel, alone saw the vision for the men who were with me did not see the vision, but a great trembling fell upon them and they fled to hide themselves. So I was left alone. and saw this great vision, and no strength was left in me. My radiant appearance was fearfully changed, and I retained no strength. Then I heard the sound of his words, and as I heard the sound of his words, I fell on my face in deep sleep with my face to the ground. And behold, a hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees, and he said to me, O Daniel, man greatly loved, understand the words that I speak to you, and stand upright, for now I have been sent to you. And when he had spoken these words, this word to me, I stood up trembling. And then he said to me, fear not, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand and humble yourself before your God, your words have been heard, and I have come because of your words. The prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me 21 days, but Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I was left there with the kings of Persia, and came to make you understand what is to happen to your people in the latter days, for the vision is for days yet to come. When he had spoken to me according to these words, I turned my face toward the ground and was mute. And behold, one in the likeness of the children of man touched my lips. And then I opened my mouth and spoke. I said to him who stood before me, oh my Lord, by reason of the vision, pains have come upon me and I retain no strength. How can my Lord's servant talk with my Lord? For now no strength remains in me and no breath is left in me. Again, one having the appearance of a man touched me and strengthened me. And he said, O man greatly loved, fear not. Peace be with you. Be strong and of good courage. And as he spoke to me, I was strengthened and said, let my Lord speak, for you have strengthened me. And then he said, do you know why I have come to you? But now I will return to fight against the prince of Persia. And when I go out, behold, the prince of Greece will come. But I will tell you what is inscribed in the book of truth. There is none who contends by my side against these except Michael, your prince. And as for me, in the first year of Darius the Mede, I stood up to confirm and strengthen him. And then we'll also read from Ephesians in the New Testament, the letter of the Apostle Paul to the church in Ephesus, chapter six, verses 10 through 20. Chapter 6, verse 10. Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand in the evil day and having done all to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth and having put on the breastplate of righteousness and as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances, take up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one, and take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit with all prayer and supplication, To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly as I ought to speak." Let's ask for the Lord's blessing on his word. We thank you, Father, for your eternal word. Help me to proclaim it powerfully, clearly, succinctly. Speak through me, Heavenly Father, and speak to each one of us as you work in our hearts. And we pray this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. In 1939, Great Britain declared war on Nazi Germany after it had invaded Western Poland. Right away, the British started taking necessary measures for their own survival. Cities like London were completely darkened at night. No lights were allowed in the cities at all. And it was a good thing because in 1940, Nazi planes bombed London 57 nights in a row. Imagine that. Many people, especially women and children, were evacuated to rural areas. And the British government introduced food rations, limiting people's purchase of meat, milk, cheese, eggs, tea, rice, and oatmeal. People were also restricted in buying clothes. soap, shoes, and fuel. All resources went to the military to defend the homeland. It was a time of great cooperation and sacrifice for the survival of the people and their country. People think and live differently during war. Seven years ago, Russia started a war in Eastern Ukraine. People from Lviv, in the west where we live, reacted right away. Some went to the east to fight, while others donated a surprisingly large amount of money to the Ukrainian army. Kids sold baked goods to raise money for soldiers and their families. Our daughter Juliet knows all about that. And residents of Lviv sent parcels of food and even armor to soldiers on the front lines. For several months during that time, people did not go to the theater or the movies. We were not in the mood for entertainment. We felt the special needs and the seriousness of those times. We were very concerned about the people who were defending Ukraine. That conflict is still ongoing today, but it is not as intense or urgent as it was back in 2014 and 2015. People think and live differently during war. The Bible tells us that there is an ongoing spiritual war which affects everything that happens around us. Are you aware of this? Do you think and live as if we are at war? Are you vulnerable to enemy attacks because you are not aware of the conflict that is constantly around you because you are not prepared for the war or because you do not know who the enemy is? Do you know how to live every day in the context of the epic spiritual battle? In Daniel 10, God reveals to the now elderly prophet, he's probably in his 80s at this point, some facts about the spiritual world and the great struggle that we are living in. So let's spend a few minutes together this morning thinking about this reality and its significance for our lives. The main idea we'll talk about this morning is that we are at war. Therefore, live accordingly. We are at war. Therefore, live accordingly. You might be saying to yourself, what is this missionary guy in the funny shirt talking about? Daniel chapter 10, spiritual warfare? This stuff doesn't affect my daily life. Well, hang on, stay with me as we'll consider four points about what we should and shouldn't do in light of this war. Hopefully this will become practical and applicable to you in the first place. Don't forget about the war. Daniel 10 to 12 are all about one vision that God gives to the prophet. Daniel chapter 10 is the introduction to the vision. In Daniel 11, we have the detailed vision itself. And Daniel chapter 12 is a climactic end of the vision and the final words. In verse one, we have a description of the whole vision of chapters 10 through 12. We read that this word or vision concerns a great conflict or a great struggle. And when we read chapters 10 to 12, it becomes clear that this vision is really about a great struggle. It's a great war. So what is this great conflict or war that we're reading about? Well, in chapter 11, it deals with a war between different human kings, in particular between two of the four Greek kingdoms that existed after Alexander the Great. The end of chapter 11, though, is most likely dealing with the Antichrist. But in chapter 10, verse 13, in our chapter, we read about a spiritual war between angelic forces. We read about the struggle also in verses 20 to 21. But now, says this messenger, I will return to fight against the prince of Persia. And when I go out, behold, the prince of Greece will come. But I will tell you what is inscribed in the book of truth. There is none who contends by my side against these except Michael, your prince. Daniel 10 is famous for slightly drawing aside the veil that hides the spiritual world from us. It shows us that there are spiritual forces, good and evil angels who are constantly battling each other. In various passages of Scripture, we read about the angels who rebelled against God. For example, we read the following description of warfare in heaven in Revelation chapter 12, one of my son's favorite passages because it talks about dragons and so on. Revelation 12, beginning at verse 3, it says, His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. Verse seven. Now war arose in heaven. Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon and the dragon and his angels fought back. But he was defeated and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down that ancient serpent who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world. He was thrown down to the earth and his angels were thrown down with him. So these verses, as you know, speak of the rebellion of Satan and some of the heavenly angels who were cast down to the earth, and they are at war with those angels who have remained faithful to God. We have many unanswered questions when we read such passages about the great spiritual war, but the Bible does explain some things about this war to us. We read, for example, that this spiritual struggle is closely connected with what is happening in our world here on earth. The rebellion of Adam and Eve against their good creator, for example, was caused by a snake, that is, Satan. We also read that a man named Job experienced the loss of all his children and possessions as a result of Satan's desire to prove to God that the faithful Job loved God only because of his good circumstances. And in the Gospel of John, we read that Satan had entered Judas when he betrayed Jesus. The heavenly messenger even reveals to Daniel that demonic commanders or princes are responsible for different countries, kingdoms, or empires. We read about the prince of Persia and the prince of Greece, the next world empire. These evil forces work through people to carry out their evil schemes. Could this explain to some extent why world rulers sometimes become so much more corrupt, selfish, or cruel when they come to power? It's not difficult to imagine that dark forces, at least in part, influence the brutal actions of people like Hitler, Stalin, Chairman Mao in China, or Idi Amin in Uganda. And we read that God's angels also support us and world rulers at various times. We see in chapters 10 and 12 that the Archangel Michael, who is called one of the chief princes, particularly cares for God's people. And in verse 1 of chapter 11 that we read at the end, the messenger who talks to Daniel tells him this. And as for me, in the first year of Darius the Mede, I stood up to confirm and strengthen him. And it's notable that this is the same year that Darius the Mede gave the Jews permission to return to and rebuild Jerusalem. We are living in the context of a great war. Our Heavenly Father teaches us in Scripture that we should expect various attacks and stand firm, guarding our faith and obedience to God. We're often quick to identify spiritual attack with times in our lives when things go really wrong. When we get sick, we get into accidents, when family members die. I remember when we were church planting in the city of Kiev several years ago, there were at least five members of our church planting team who were in the hospital within the span of two or three months. We looked at that and we said, this feels like spiritual attack. But we often don't pay the same kind of attention to spiritual attack during those times when we grow cold in our love for God, when we allow jealousy and dissatisfaction to grow in our hearts, when we judge and critique other Christians and encourage division in the church through what we say and do. were often unprepared and caught off guard by spiritual attacks of various kinds. Last week, we remembered, as a country, how on Tuesday morning, September 11, 2001, four passenger jets were hijacked by 19 Al-Qaeda terrorists. They were flown into the Twin Towers in New York City, the Pentagon, And the fourth plane intended for the White House or the U.S. Capitol crashed into a field in Pennsylvania after the brave passengers intervened. 2,977 people lost their lives that day, including 340 firefighters and 72 policemen. An inquiry by the U.S. Senate in 2002 determined that the FBI and CIA failed to use information available before the attacks, such as the whereabouts of known terrorists in the United States. I don't know if the attacks could have been averted altogether, but the fact is that we could have done much more to prevent or limit them. Al Qaeda caught the U.S. off guard. And as a result, the devastation was catastrophic. Don't forget about the war. God tells us clearly in the Bible that evil forces will attack his church through people who oppose the church, through particular temptations or problems, through division in the church itself, through false teaching, That's why we cannot relax. We cannot spiritually be asleep. There is a grand global conspiracy. We hear much about human conspiracies, different theories. My grandfather was a firm believer in a human conspiracy. Talk about the Illuminati, etc. I have a hard time believing in such conspiracies that are global, unified, secret, and that exist over many years and centuries. But the Bible does tell us that there is a demonic conspiracy. In his letter to the Church in Ephesus, the Apostle Paul writes that we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Paul speaks of truth, righteousness, the spread of the good news, faith, prayer as key parts of our spiritual armor in this battle. Let me give a couple of particular points of application for our situation today that flow out of this. This is a spiritual war. Evil spirits do work through people, but those people are not the enemy. We do not wrestle against flesh and blood. President Biden and his administration, Governor Pritzker, are not the enemy. We may not like them or agree with them in many instances, but they were appointed by God. Transgender pro-abortion Americans are not the enemy. They're the kind of people Jesus Christ would have spent time with, offering them forgiveness and a new way of life. And also, when political or medical issues bring division in the Church of Jesus Christ, then we are clearly losing battles in the spiritual war. Satan and his cohorts love to divide us. Divide and conquer. As Christians, we do not have to agree on everything, and we certainly will not this side of eternal life. But the church of Jesus Christ is much, much greater than questions about masks and vaccinations. These are not the questions that should be dividing us. And anyone who leads you to be suspicious of your brothers and sisters in Christ is leading you astray. They are servants of Satan. Remember, our enemy is Satan, and our savior is Jesus Christ. So don't forget about the real war. Be prepared for all sorts of attacks. In the second place, do not be afraid. In verses five to six, we read a description of this messenger who appears to Daniel. He is incredibly bright. He's big, he's strong, and he is scary. His face resembles lightning, and his eyes, we read, are like fire. And the voice of this heavenly messenger sounds like a huge crowd of people speaking at the same time. Who is he? Many believe that this is Jesus Christ himself because there's a description of Jesus in Revelation chapter one that sounds a lot like this. However, we read in verse 13 that this heavenly envoy fought against the Prince of Persia for 21 days until the Archangel Michael came to help him. Well, if Jesus Christ himself fought against a demonic overlord, then the fight would end immediately. No evil forces stand before Jesus Christ. Because of this, we understand that it is an angel who appears to Daniel. We read that the people who accompanied Daniel do not see the heavenly messenger, but they do not hear his voice. But in his presence, they tremble and hide. And Daniel himself trembles before the angel like a leaf in the wind. His appearance changes, probably becomes deathly pale. He loses all his strength. Daniel cannot get a word out, and he passes out into a deep sleep. This is how people react when they see a heavenly warrior, because they are not chubby and cute. If angels frighten people and Daniel so much with their appearance, then imagine the paralyzing fear when you see God himself. However, the angel tells Daniel that he does not need to fear, neither the angel himself nor the vision. This mighty heavenly warrior touches Daniel to calm the prophet, lift him up, and strengthen him. He picks Daniel up the way you or I might pick up a sleeping puppy, and he gently sets him down on his hands and knees. And the angel says to Daniel, fear not, Daniel. Fear not, be strong and of good courage. And these words remind us of God's words to Joshua. He was about to lead the nation of Israel in the war against the Canaanites. Have I not commanded you, be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. I remember how 24 years ago, I read these words to myself over and over as I was sitting at the airport in Frankfurt on my way to help plant a church in Ukraine for the first time. What are you afraid of today? There are many things that scare us. Kids, perhaps you are afraid of the dark. Adults, maybe you're afraid of losing your job. Maybe you fear change. or failure, sickness, loneliness, old age. Perhaps you fear death. In the U.S., some people fear the huge shifts in the general culture. There are people who change their genders and teach children that this is okay. There's a complete rejection of any kind of truth. at least as far as faith in God is concerned. There's a growing animosity toward those who profess to love Jesus Christ. In Ukraine, on the other hand, many people are afraid of Russia invading all of Ukraine and taking away people's freedom, identity, and heritage. And sometimes we are afraid of our real enemy, evil spirits and demons who conspire against us and are so much stronger than any human military. However, God assures us in Romans 8, beyond any doubt, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus, our Lord. If we rely on Jesus Christ for our forgiveness and eternal life, if God is our Heavenly Father who has loved us with an eternal love, then we have no reason at all to be afraid of anything or anybody. God himself is fighting for us. He sends his angels to protect us. In verse 21, an angel tells Daniel about the book of truth in which God's plans are written. God has long ago decided everything that needs to happen in this world in human history. His single plan for the universe is the very best for us. Nothing and no one, no conspiracy can change his plan, his decree. Therefore, brothers and sisters, do not be afraid. Do not fear anyone but God alone. In the third place, pray. We read in verses two to three that this angel appears to Daniel when the prophet has been mourning and fasting for three weeks. It's not a complete fast, which is unusual in scripture, but a partial one. We read that Daniel refuses for a while certain delicacies, meat and wine. And why is Daniel fasting? We know that two years before, in the first year of the reign of Cyrus the Great, the Persian emperor ordered the return of the Jews to Israel. At that time, 50,000 people returned home after about 70 years of exile. It was a very joyful moment that Daniel had prayed for. We read about that in chapter nine. However, later it became known that other nations living in Israel at the time strongly opposed the Israelites so that they could not rebuild the destroyed city of Jerusalem. We don't know much about this in the United States, but you have probably already seen photos of the destruction of various European cities in World War II. Lviv, where we live, somehow did not suffer any destruction, but other cities such as Dresden, Kiev and Warsaw were demolished. Perhaps you remember shocking scenes at the end of the movie A Pianist, which show the complete destruction of Warsaw. Only one small block of the old city remains today. Jerusalem had also been completely destroyed by the Babylonians after three separate invasions. And now those Jews who have returned to Jerusalem cannot rebuild the city of God. So this is likely why Daniel is fasting and praying to God. And if Daniel chapter 11 verse 1 suggests that the Persian emperor's permission for Israelites to return home was somehow caused by the actions of this angel who is speaking to Daniel, then we could also infer that the people who hinder the reconstruction of Jerusalem are acting under the influence of evil spirits. And how can such actions against God's people be resisted and stopped? Through prayer. In fact, the angel tells Daniel about the effectiveness of his prayers in verses 12 and 13. He says, from the first day that you set your heart to understand and humbled yourself before your God, your words have been heard, and I have come because of your words. The prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me 21 days, but Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I was left there with the kings of Persia. So the coming of this angel to Daniel is an answer to Daniel's prayers. And it seems that because of Daniel's prayer, Michael came to help this angel in his battle against these demon kings of Persia. The apostle James writes that the prayer of a righteous person has great power. At the end of his famous passage about spiritual warfare and spiritual armor that we read this morning, the Apostle Paul repeatedly tells the church to pray at all times in the spirit with all prayer and supplication and to keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints. In 1991, when a coalition of Western countries attacked Iraq after it had invaded Kuwait, many of you will remember those events, Iraqi commanders had a very serious problem. They completely lost contact with their superiors. As a result, they did not know where the enemy was or even where their own troops were. And you remember how that ended for them. Prayer is our connection with our commander during the war. If you truly understand that we are living in a time of spiritual warfare, then you will pray fervently. Do you lack strength? Do you want more wisdom? Do you struggle with resisting temptation? Are you swallowed up by loneliness or depression? Do you want the Church of Christ to grow around the world, in Ukraine, in Afghanistan? Pray to your Heavenly Father. And in the fourth place, yes, there's a fourth point, but it'll be brief. Remember that you are precious in God's eyes. Remember that you are precious in God's eyes. The angel twice calms a very frightened Daniel with a phrase we also read in chapter nine, telling him that he is greatly loved. The Hebrew word used here is, in fact, very strong. It has the same root as the word to crave. In verse three, this same word refers to the delicacies that Daniel was not eating. And in other passages of the Old Testament, this same word describes someone's precious things, his jewels or his treasure. So the creator of heaven and earth assures Daniel that he is God's treasure. God loves him infinitely. Why does God value Daniel so much? He was a unique and special man, wasn't he? He and Joseph are unique in the Old Testament as major characters whose sins and shortcomings are not told to us. They're great examples to us. So does God love Daniel because he fasts, prays, and obeys God? Has Daniel somehow earned God's love? Did his relative goodness cause God to fall in love with Daniel? Is Daniel more beloved by God than the stubborn, disobedient, self-righteous Jonah? Or than the Apostle Paul, who ferociously persecuted the Church of Christ? Is God's love for us based on what we do? Does God love pastors and missionaries more than school teachers, homemakers, students, and salesmen? Daniel had no standing before God based on his own goodness. He also struggled with sinful thoughts, attitudes, words, and actions. He could never make himself worthy of the love of a holy creator. After all, God's limitless love for Daniel, Jonah, David, Peter, the apostle Paul, and for us comes only from him and not from anything we do. Daniel was also a sinful man, but God assures him that he is incredibly precious in God's sight. And each of you, brothers and sisters, who relies on Jesus Christ for forgiveness and life is infinitely valuable to the Most High God. He says to us in Romans 5, 8, God demonstrates his own love for us in this while we were still sinners. Christ died for us. Drawing on his own experience with Jesus Christ, with whom he spent three years, the Apostle John wrote the following words about this idea. He said, see what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God. And so we are. And as Zephaniah 3, the prophet says, the Lord your God is with you, the mighty warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you. In his love, he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing. God loved us so much out of his own grace that he gave his precious son for us. He bought us with the blood of Jesus Christ. as how precious we are to our Heavenly Father. Jesus Christ is the one who fights for us in the ultimate spiritual battle. He is stronger than all the dark forces. He can destroy all the demons with just one word. And even so, he overcame sin, Satan, and death, not by his razor-sharp, double-edged sword, but by letting himself be cut on the cross. Satan caused the death of the Son of God, but with his voluntary sacrifice, Jesus became our victor. Brothers and sisters, this is a time of great war. We are living in the middle of a war, in the midst of a war, and therefore live accordingly. Do not forget about the war. You do so at your own peril. Our enemy is Satan. Our Savior is Jesus Christ. Fear none but God alone. Pray. Stay awake and pray. Be alert and pray. And remember every day that you are immeasurably precious in the eyes of God. Amen.