Wild-Eyed Hebrew Boys

This morning we are entering the second half of the book of Daniel, shifting from amazing stories to a series of crazy dreams and visions given by God, through Daniel, to the Hebrew people. As a prophet---one of God's spokesmen---Daniel is a member of a long line of people sent by God to speak on His behalf to His people and the world. The first vision is of four sea monsters, a white haired man, and a person called the Son of Man. Even Daniel is a bit confused by these images. For us to understand these writings, we need to take a step back and look at the role of the prophet in the Old Testament story. We will see that the prophets were a gift to God's people and, although their messages were hard and often ignored, they also came with a promise. And, in this promise, we will see how their message also challenges us and gives hope.