Daniel 2:44 And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever
What is your money worth compared to what it was worth a year ago? Can you buy the same amount of fuel, milk, and bread you could buy with that money a year ago? I don’t know, probably not. I wonder if the money you have is enough for the coming world and economy. When I say the coming world, I don’t just mean eternity, the world after this world, but I also mean the economy in the next five years. Now I am not gloom and doom, but I know what the last few years have been, and I wonder if what we have now is enough for what we will experience.
What are you giving your children that money cannot buy and conquerors cannot take? Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon was a conqueror. He had an enormous fortune, yet he could not answer basic questions he had in life. He had a troubling dream, so he called in his magicians, astrologers, and sorcerers, and he demanded of them what the dream was and what it meant. He basically said, “If you tell me, I’ll make you rich. If you don’t tell me, then I’ll make you dead.”
Daniel was a Hebrew captive. He had lost his money, family, and home, yet Daniel 2 reminds us of something the entire book of Daniel seems to set forth when it says, “And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed… It shall stand forever.” Babylon and the Medo-Persian Empire came and went. God endures and His kingdom is forever.
So, back to the question of what your money is going to be worth in the future. The only inheritance that will matter in the coming economy is God Himself. I’ve heard frequently for a number of years now that gold has never been worth anything, and that is true. Yet, gold does not have intrinsic value. You can’t eat it. If there is not someone to buy my gold, then it no longer has any utility unless I make something out of it.
So, there is a sense that no matter what you have and how many children you may be influencing, the only inheritance that will matter in the economy in five years or in eternity is God Himself. I’m not saying that money doesn’t matter. I’m saying that money is not enough. Only God is enough.
In Daniel 2, when presented with the options they had, the wise men essentially said to the king, “Only the gods can give you an answer that you ask for and they don’t dwell with people.” That is in contrast to the One to whom Daniel and his friend appealed. He is called “the God of Heaven.” He is not just the God of Babylon, the God of Israel, or the God of America. He is the God of Heaven and eternity. His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom.
In verse 47 God is given another title. The king says to Daniel, “Of a truth it is, that your God is a God of gods, and a Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets.” So, He is a God of gods, but He is also your God personally. I Timothy 6 tells us, “Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches.” I cannot think of a word better describing riches than uncertain. The verse continues, “Nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy.” So, it is God that provides and gives us things we can enjoy, but we are not to obsess over the gifts. We are to realize with gratitude the Giver. The only inheritance that will matter in the coming economy is God Himself.