Inanis_Vault/43-Talks/Public/20 - Is It Time for God to Rule the World/20 - Is It Time for God to Rule the World.md

[!question] MANKIND NEEDS BETTER RULERSHIP (4 min.) Is it time? - To Eat? For Bed? To Leave? - Time for Change? - What kind of change? Why do we need change?

[!question] Why do human governments fail to meet the needs of their subjects? (Pr 29:2)

[!help] Lets take a quick look a the state of the world.

• Covid-19 : 7.1 million confirmed deaths
• As of April 2026, 30 countries are experiencing active armed conflicts.
• According to the inflation calculator, cost of living has risen ~38% over the past ten years

---

Why? Mankind often looks to their leaders, the governments to fix these things, but often finds these same governments are the ones contributing to, or even causing these problems.

So, what gives? Why do human governments fail to meet the needs of their subjects?

[!question] Man has neither the right nor the ability to govern himself successfully This same issue has been plaguing mankind for the past 6000 years

Read (Jer 10:23)

• It does not belong to man to direct his own step, nonetheless others steps, nonetheless an entire countries worth of people's steps.

His efforts to do so have led to much injustice and suffering (Ec 8:9, 11)

So, what then? Is that the end of it? Are we doomed to a future of repeating failure?

[!question] The Bible foretells that God’s Kingdom will soon replace human rule (Da 2:44; 7:13, 14) Read Daniel 2:44

Focusing on this scripture for a second, what comes to mind when you hear the word "Kingdom?" -> King/Queen/Castle/Peasants -> Form of government.

Contrast God's Government with Mankinds Governments

• God can direct man's step
• Got has the power to solve the worlds problems
• Will not be destroyed, will crush all other governments
• On every point, God's Government will be better then man's attempts at government

When will God’s Kingdom begin ruling? Has it already started ruling? When will it take full control?

[!question] DANIEL CHAPTER 4​**—A PROPHETIC DREAM ABOUT RULERSHIP** (5 min.) To answer these questions, we're going to look at a prophecy in Daniel. We're going to study Daniel chapter 4 in depth, and see what information it holds that pertains to the questions we just asked.

[!question] Jehovah caused King Nebuchadnezzar to have a dream about rulership (Da 4:10-17)

• Read Daniel 4:4,5 - Sets the stage
• Next few verses he calls in the wise men of Babylon to interpret the dream, but nobody can. Nobody except for Daniel, a known servant of Jehovah.
• Read Daniel 4:10-17 - The dream

Right away we know the dream is not literal. A tree of such size can not exist. Also in verse 16 it states that the heart of the tree will change from a human to a beasts.

So, whats it mean?

[!question] God inspired Daniel to interpret the dream [Read key portions of Daniel 4:20-27] Notes Here

• The dream was initially fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar himself (Da 4:28-37; dp 82-94)
• The dream emphasizes that Jehovah God has the right to determine who will rule mankind

[!question] THE DREAM FORETELLS THE RULE OF GOD’S KINGDOM (16 min.) Notes Here

[!question] The prophecy has a larger fulfillment in connection with the establishment of God’s Kingdom (it-1 132-135)

[!question] What reason is there to suggest that the dream is more than just an interesting story about the humiliation of Nebuchadnezzar?

1. The dream was given at the time when God had just allowed his earthly kingdom to be overthrown
2. The person to whom the dream was given was the very one used by God to cut off rulership in Jerusalem
3. The theme of the dream is God’s right to rule over the entire “kingdom of mankind” (Da 4:17, 25, 32)
4. The dream’s context, the book of Daniel, repeatedly points forward to the rule of God’s Kingdom
5. Daniel’s prophecies would not be fully understood until “the time of the end” (Da 12:4, 8, 9)

---

In the larger fulfillment, the tree represents Jehovah’s rulership

[!help] For a period of time, Jehovah’s rulership had been represented by the Israelite kings who ruled in Jerusalem (1Ch 29:23)

• Jehovah promised David that one of his descendants would rule forever (2Sa 7:16)
• Ezekiel foretold that the earthly representation of God’s rulership would be cut off and that God would later appoint a new Ruler [Read Ezekiel 21:26, 27]
  • In 607 B.C.E., Jehovah used Nebuchadnezzar to destroy Jerusalem; this marked the beginning of the “seven times” during which God’s rulership would be interrupted (Da 4:16)
  • How long would this period last?

[!help] ** Jesus said that Jerusalem, representing God’s rulership, would “be trampled on . . . until the appointed times of the nations” were fulfilled (w06 7/15 6 ¶1-4)** [Read Luke 21:24]

• “The appointed times of the nations” are the same period as the “seven times” of Daniel chapter 4
• Jesus indicated that “the appointed times of the nations” were still ongoing during his earthly ministry, so the “seven times” could not be seven literal years counted from 607 B.C.E.
• “Seven times,” or seven Biblical years, are equal to 2,520 days (w06 7/15 7 ¶1-2)
  • Applying the rule of “a day for a year” and counting 2,520 years from 607 B.C.E. brings us to 1914 C.E. (Nu 14:34; Eze 4:6)
• In 1914, Jesus began ruling in heaven as the appointed King of God’s Kingdom
  • As a descendant of King David, Jesus is “the one who has the legal right” to rule (Eze 21:27; Lu 1:32, 33)

[!help] GOD’S KINGDOM WILL SOON TAKE FULL CONTROL (5 min.)

• Events since 1914 confirm that God’s Kingdom has been established (Mt 24:3, 7-14; w15 6/15 22-24 ¶12-14)
  • Jesus is now ruling “in the midst of [his] enemies,” and he will soon “complete his conquest” (Ps 110:2; Re 6:2)
• Rule by God’s Kingdom will bring blessings to obedient mankind (w14 10/1 5-7)
• Now is the time to take your stand in support of God’s Kingdom