Pastor Doug Batchelor: Hello friends, this is Doug Batchelor. How about an amazing fact. Have you ever longed for a quiet place away from the roar of traffic, blaring music and loud lawnmowers? Then you would enjoy the new anechoic chamber that Microsoft built in their audio lab. This room is so quiet that it makes a library reading room seem louder than a jumbo jet. The new chamber on the company's Redmond, Washington campus was recently verified by Guinness as being the quietest place in the entire world. Reaching an eardrum straining minus 20.3 decibels. The previous record was minus 13 decibels set at the Orfield Laboratories in Minneapolis.
That's amazingly close to the limit of how quiet things can be on our planet which is about minus 23 decibels and that represents the faint noise made by air molecules bouncing off one another. Of course, the only quieter place is space, where it's absolutely silent, but going to space is going to be cheating because there's no air there to carry the sound. The word anechoic means non-echoing or echo free, which is why anechoic chambers are lined with foam wedge-shaped sound absorbers that take any vibration in the air and dampen it. At Microsoft, the whole room is like a suspended and insulated vault, separated from the rest of the building so no external sound leaks in.
The result is a quietness that feels eerie and unnatural and you don't want a lot of quiet time on radio. After a while, in this room, you'll think your heartbeat sounds like distant thunder. Microsoft and others use the chamber like this to test sensitive equipment for noise levels and to provide a perfectly silent environment for testing and training computerized voice recognition. Did you know the Bible teaches that all people need a little quiet time? Stay with us friends, we're going to learn more as Amazing Facts brings you this edition of Bible Answers Live.
Speaker: Welcome to Bible Answers Live with author and evangelist Pastor Doug Batchelor. Is understanding God's word a challenge? Are there passages or Scripture that are a mystery to you? Maybe it's difficult to reconcile what you've read in the Bible to what you've always believed. If you have Bible related questions, stay tuned to get honest, practical answers straight from the word of God on Bible Answers Live. Bible Answers Live is a production of Amazing Facts Ministries dedicated to spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ to the entire world. Our lines are open, so call us now at 800-GOD-SAYS, that's 800-463-7297. Now, here's your host Pastor Doug Batchelor.
Pastor Doug: Welcome listening friends to Bible Answers Live. If you have a Bible question, we have lines open- quite a few actually. Call now, you have a good chance of getting your questions on tonight's broadcast. That number free phone call, 800-GOD-SAYS that's 800-463-7297. I'll give it to you one more time. If you'd like to call in with your Bible question, 800-463-7297. Lines are open. My name is Doug Batchelor.
John Ross: My name is John Ross. Good evening, listening friends and Pastor Doug. Welcome back from Michigan, where you were doing some meetings there for the last week or two.
Pastor Doug: It's good to be home.
Pastor John: Before we begin, let's start with a word of prayer. Dear Father, we thank you once again that we're able to take this time and open up the Bible and study together. We ask your blessing upon this program. Be with those who are listening, in Jesus' name. Amen.
Pastor Doug: Amen.
Pastor John: Well, Pastor, you opened the program by talking about a very quiet place. I've been in some deep caves and you can stand dead still and you think, this must be the quietest place but it's not. It's actually a man-made thing that's the quietest place.
Pastor Doug: It is and they say that if you're healthy- when you get old you hear a little ringing in your ears but when you're young and your hearing is good, you go into one of this chambers and it is so quiet. They say you cannot only hear your heartbeat, you can actually hear the fluids- your blood circulating through your body. You can hear your breathing and it's eerie. A matter of fact, people try and sleep in a room like that and it's just almost unnerving. It can make you even lose your balance because most people aren't aware that we do use a certain amount of our hearing to negotiate and move.
How we think it's all sight-based but it's not. Sub-consciously, our hearing helps us. You're in this room where there's absolutely no sound and you can get a little dizzy just from that. Quiet is also a good thing and we're living in an age where you're always hearing a car going by or a Harley-Davidson- you hear those a lot. There's radios and televisions and people always have their- I sometimes can hear the radio playing in someone else's iPods with their earbuds in, it's so loud. You long for quiet. You and I were talking before the show, we've got a cabin in the hills and I was up in the woods today and I just stood still in the woods, there was no wind, I couldn't hear the trees rustle, I thought this is peaceful.
The Bible says we need quiet in our lives. In Psalm 46:10, it says, "Be still and know that I am God." You remember when the Lord spoke to Elijah with a still- small voice, sometimes there's so much background noise we can't hear the voice of God. Jesus, one time when they were so busy taking care of the multitude and ministering and feeding and healing. It says- and by the way, this is Mark 6:31, "Then because so many people were coming and going that they did not have a chance to eat. He said to them, 'Come with me, by yourselves, to a quiet place and get some rest.'"
We need to come with Jesus to a quiet place. A lot of stress in the world today and it's important that people have just- sometimes a Sabbath for all the noise. We have a free offer that talks about how to find that relief and some peace in a world of stress. Why don't you tell us about that?
Pastor John: It's a book called From Stress to Joy. That's the free offer for this evening. Anybody interested, just give us a call on our resource line and we'll be happy to send that to you. The number is 800-835-6747, then you can ask for the book called From Stress to Joy. If you have a Bible question, our phone number here at the studio is 800-463-7297 with your Bible question. Well, Pastor Doug, let's go to the phone lines and our first caller this evening is Nancy listening from Florida. Nancy, welcome to the program.
Nancy: Good evening, pastors and God bless you and the call screeners also. My question is in reference to Genesis 9:13, where God gave us the rainbow. Now, I always picture it the colors in the sky and the arc but what I was told was that the bow was the sign of warfare and destruction. It points upwards but the rainbow, it's like that peace you mentioned, and the quiet after the storm, the rainbow is quiet and peaceful.
Pastor Doug: Right. Of course, the rainbow- the word bow means something that has an arc shape to it. An archer that would use a bow that was something that was a symbol of warfare and strength because it took a lot of strength to pull them back but the arc of light that we see following a rainstorm and where the prism effect takes over and you see the spectrum of all the colors that are broken down. It's something beautiful that God made and it's to be a promise.
Now, it never rained before the flood. They had never seen a rainbow. Now, you can create a rainbow with a garden hose on a sunny day. God said that when it occurs in nature like this it's- and they are sometimes spectacular, it's to be a reminder of His covenant that He will never again destroy the world with a flood. It's a positive thing.
Nancy: It really has nothing to do with the bow that the archer would use other than that shape, is that correct?
Pastor Doug: Yes, that's exactly right. There's no crossover there between the two.
Nancy: When God made- in Genesis when He made the earth, it was like something over us that we didn't need rain, we got water from the ground.
Pastor Doug: Well, the theory is, and I'm inclined to agree with it, that the whole world had a suspended envelope of water around the world and the Bible says that the waters below were separated from the waters above. But there's like this uniform ceiling of waters that people could see, the light would go through, but a cloudy day holds in moisture and it holds in the temperature. The whole planet had- it had a polarizing effect and the whole planet had a beautiful uniform temperature and that's why you can find fossils of Arctic tropical ferns up in the Arctic regions in North and Southern hemisphere, the whole world.
That's why there's these great oil deposits had a much more mild climate back before the flood. Appreciate your question, Nancy, about the rainbow, hope that helps a little bit.
Pastor John: Next call is Kevin. Kevin is listening from Alberta, Canada. Kevin welcome to the program.
Kevin: Hello.
Pastor Doug: Hi, Kevin. [crosstalk]
Kevin: Hi.I just got a question on the end times basically of how the wicked are judged and the good are judged because in the gospels it says, "He separates the good and the bad." Then in the revelation He says, He comes, we're caught up, the wicked are killed and then we’re in the Millennium, the wicked get resurrected and then they're torched and then the books are open. I'm confused basically with the sequence of how it all happens and in what order because I’m wondering one of the books open and one of the wicked goes to hell.
Pastor Doug: Well, good question. There's a verse in Romans 14:10 it says, "We will all stand before the judgment seat of God," and so everyone saved and lost faces a judgment, the judgment for the righteous takes place before the coming because God is giving rewards, when the Lord descends and the dead in Christ rise and those who are alive are transformed. We get a glorified bodies, we're caught up, we meet the Lord in the air. Some judgment has taken place already. That's why the Bible says judgment must begin at the house of God but there's a great white throne judgment that takes place at the end of the 1,000 years, that's where Jesus describes where the goats are separated from the sheep. [crosstalk] Go ahead.
Pastor John: When you read about in Revelation chapter 20, I know sometimes it's a little confusing when you look at that but Revelation 20 is not written necessarily in chronological order. There's a number of passages in Revelation which is written more topical. You'll also find in Revelation chapter 20 you have the New Jerusalem that's already on the earth but then you read in chapter 21 where John describes how he sees the New Jerusalem coming down from God out of heaven. Everything in Revelation 20 is not necessarily in chronological order. So when the books are open at the final judgment, you're right, there is a final judgment for the wicked at the end of that 1,000 year period.
Pastor Doug: Yes, and we do have a book that we'll be happy to send you a study guide that explains the judgment. It's really very good, it's called Case Closed and we'll send that to you free and it's got all these verses on the judgment that make it really clear just by pulling them all together.
Pastor John: The number to call for that is 800-835-6747 and the study guide is called Case Closed, talking about the judgment. You can also read that study guide online at the Amazing Facts website, amazingfacts.org. Our next caller is Sylvia listening from Sacramento. Sylvia, welcome to the program.
Sylvia: Thank you.
Pastor Doug: Hi.
Sylvia: My question is, which time period did Saul live in? Did he know Jesus? Because he talks about learning at the feet of Gamaliel. My question is- he know about the resurrection, he know about the crucifixion but did he live in the same time period as Jesus?
Pastor Doug: Yes, he did. Saul was probably somewhere between 25 and 30 when he went through his conversion experience that takes place around-- we know exactly when it was 34AD when Stephen was stoned or just shortly after that. Jesus died on the cross 31AD, Saul was probably 20, maybe 22, we don't know exactly how old he was but he did live contemporaneously with Jesus. He may have even seen Jesus at some point teaching in the temple because it says Christ taught daily in the temple.
Now, Saul was from Tarsus so it could be he was out of town. The Bible doesn't really say if he had ever encountered Jesus teaching. We know he had a great antipathy towards Jesus before he was converted and Christ appeared to him on the road to Damascus, but that is a good question I've wondered, did he ever personally hear Jesus teach or see him do a miracle, feeding the multitude or anything like that? Well, [chuckles] for all we know, he could have been at the crucifixion, there was a mob there.
Sylvia: Because it says that when Jesus appeared to him on the way to Damascus, he says it's the image of Jesus was imprinted in his mind, I’ll be right to say that. Anyway, thank you so much, I appreciate it. God bless you all.
Doug: Yes, thank you so much, Sylvia.
Pastor John: Our next caller is Lauren listening from- looks like Alabama. All right. I'm not sure on the abbreviations of the states here. [laughs] We’ve got Lauren, welcome to the program.
Lauren: Thank you, pastors, for your radio ministry.
Pastor Doug: Thank you.
Lauren: My question is regarding forgiveness. When somebody does something wrong to you then you'd ask the Lord to help you forgive them. If you still think about whatever happens to you that makes you feel angry, have you already forgiven that person or have you not?
Pastor Doug: Well, you can-- that's a great question. If someone hurts you and you choose to forgive them but you still remember what happened when you think about it, your blood wax is hot and you get upset, does that mean you didn't forgive them? No, it just means the devil is trying to get you to dwell on that mistake. You choose to forgive with your mind and then when the memories come back then you just ask the Lord to help you think about something else and say, "Lord, I'd forgiven this. Just like you've forgiven me." The Bible says, "Forgive as Christ forgave you."
People have hurt me, everyone listening has been hurt by somebody at some point in their life and I've made a decision to forgive those people. That doesn't mean I don't remember it and that doesn't mean that if for whatever reason when my mind wanders and as sometimes they do, you think about what happened it'll bring back bad memories. You’ve got to then consciously say, "Lord, I'm glad I've forgiven that. Thank you. Take these feelings away."
We frequently have to pray as believers that God is going to help adjust our thinking, that's a daily battle. Yes, if you've chosen to forgive and you pray and you tell them that you've forgiven them, it doesn't mean the memories and the feelings all evaporate.
Lauren: Okay, thank you so much.
Pastor Doug: Absolutely. I heard, Lauren, there's a great preacher named Martin Luther who said, “You cannot prevent the birds from flying over your head but you can prevent them from making a nest in your hair.” You may not be able to prevent memories coming and thoughts coming and going but don't dwell on them, don't let them make a nest in your thinking. I appreciate your call very much.
Pastor John: We've got Sean listening from Washington. Sean, welcome to the program.
Sean: Thank you very much gentlemen for taking my call. I'm a longtime listener, first-time caller.
Pastor Doug: Well, thank you for calling.
Sean: You're welcome. Okay, when does pride cross the line for being good pride and the bad pride and becoming one of the seven deadly sins? Are we not to take pride in our own accomplishments?
Pastor Doug: Yes, well the word pride sometimes in our culture takes on a couple of different meanings. The Bible says, “Do all things as unto the Lord.” If I do anything, I want to do something that is going to be honoring to God. You want to do something that's going to be quality and there's a sense of satisfaction that always comes when you do a job well and that's appropriate. God wants us to-- even in Ecclesiastes it says, “Rejoicing in the work of your hands.”
The Lord- and they says this is a lot of man you want to do something and enjoy it, rejoice in it, whether it's cooking a meal or building a house or whatever it is you do, you want to-- but that's different than being proud or thinking that you're better than somebody or gloating. The kind of pride that the devil had is he wanted to be better than God. He wanted to be better than others. It's a selfishness instead of a sense of wanting to do something well for the glory of God.
Sean: I do a repair job on my engine at work and if I [unintelligible 00:17:48] time better than the next mechanic that's- that'll be sin pride as opposed to I did a good job on this for the customer being good pride?
Pastor Doug: Yes, I would agree. As parents, you always want to say I'm proud of my children because the reason I say that is there several Scriptures that talk about a father and mother rejoicing and a wise son and a foolish son bringing shame. Whatever the opposite is of the foolish child that brings shame to the parents, you would have the good child or the wise child that makes rejoicing. We call that being proud of our children but there's some people who thinks,-- Spurgeon said, "Don't be proud of race or face or place," meaning your position that you're better than others or being egotistical, the kind of racism that someone might have or your looks, that's a vanity that's passing.
Those are the things that the devil fell in because of his beauty, because of his wisdom but it was competitive. Hope that helps a little bit, Sean, and I appreciate your call.
Pastor John: We have David listening from Sacramento. David, welcome to the program.
David: Thanks.
Pastor Doug: How can we help you tonight?
David: What does the verse mean that says, "Absent from the body but present with the Lord."?
Pastor Doug: Well, that means that when a person dies and assuming they're saved, Paul is talking to Christians when he writes that their next conscious thought is being in the presence of God and you can find where he talks about this in 2 Corinthians, matter of fact even in Colossians 2:5 says, “Though I am absent from you and body, I'm present with you in spirit.” He just means that I've written a letter and in my heart, I'm thinking of you and I'm with you. But when a believer dies their next conscious thought is the resurrection of the just and being in the presence of the Lord.
Hundred years might go by but they don't know it. They have no consciousness of time. For them, it’s almost instant. I think Paul is also even alluding to-- If we're not living in the flesh then we are living in the spirit. There's like you're walking in the presence of the Lord. There's almost like a spiritual analogy in that passage as well. Hey, hope that helps a little bit. Now, we do have a book we can offer that talks about absent from the body. We'll send you a free copy of that David if you'd like.
Pastor John: All you have to do is give us a call on our resource line, it's 800-835-6747. I'm thinking about the study guide pass that I got nothing to do. Do we have a book specifically on that title? We have a study guide called Are The Dead Really Dead?
Pastor Doug: Why don't we send that one?
Pastor John: It talks about that verse-
Pastor Doug: Yes.
Pastor John: -and here's some great Bible, some other verses dealing with the subject. The number to call 800-835-6747. David, you can ask for the book or the study guide called Are The Dead Really Dead? A matter of fact, anybody else wanting to learn more, just give us a call and ask for that.
Pastor Doug: You know Pastor Ross I had a brain cramp. I was thinking of our book. It's not a bad book to send her in Halloween called Spirits Of The Dead.
Pastor John: Yes, that's a good one.
Pastor Doug: We also have that you can read for free at the amazingfacts.com website. David, appreciate your calling again.
Pastor John: We have Rob listening from California. Rob, welcome to the program.
Rob: Yes, hi.
Pastor Doug: Hi.
Pastor John: You're on the air.
Rob: Just a question here, as we see the violence in Israel and the Russian invasion there in Syria, what do you believe is the next sign in prophecy that we should be aware of? Do you believe China will also invade or be joining the net force to invade Israel? Just your feedback on that would be appreciated.
Pastor Doug: I personally don't really see that revelation is looking down and saying Russia's going to do this and then Turkey's going to do this and then China's going to do this and then you want to keep an eye on Syria. When I look through revelation I see that there are just a handful of powers that are mentioned. One of them would be the power of America believe it or not. Revelation 13, I think America is the second beast and that is mentioned. Then, I think that the power of the papacy which has been coming to America, I think that's prominent in prophecy.
I think there's going to be some kind of an international crisis where the religions of the world are going to press together, especially Christians from the different denominations and fractions are going to press together and form a confederacy out of fear. It could be we're seeing rising tensions between Muslims against Jews and Christians. I don't know Pastor Ross feels about that he spends a lot of time in Revelation. That to me I think is the next big thing we're going to see is, I don't know if it'll be triggered by a financial disaster or there'll be a natural disaster or it's going to be just these tensions that are happening in the nations.
We have a lesson that we can send you called America in Prophecy, Rob. It does go into more detail on this. We'll send that to you for free if you'd like.
Pastor John: The number to call 800-835-6747, you're going to ask the study guide called America in Prophecy. We'll be happy to send it to anybody who calls and asks. If you have a Bible question, our phone line here at the studio is 800-463-7297 with your Bible question. Again it's 800-463-7297. It's a good time to pick up your phone and give us a call. We have a few lines that are open. The next caller is Urias listening from New York, New York. Urias, welcome to the program.
Urias: Yes, hi. Listen, I have a question because I had a dream the other day. It's disturbing me because in the dream I was in hell. I had a playover me, it says detestable- not detestable, it saysabomination. I was abominable. I want to know, what's that all about.
Pastor Doug: I'm not real good at translating dreams so I probably can't claim to have the gift of Daniel or Joseph. If God could be speaking to you in a personal way and the word abomination in the Bible is one of the strongest words that's used. It's talking about something that is a foul odor in the nostrils of God. It's repulsive and it's the strongest term that God uses to show his displeasure with a nation or a person. God obviously-- if you did have a dream like that, He's probably just trying to get your attention. He's not doing it to condemn. He would send every warning the Bible would be because he wants to save and He loves us.
I would say that the Lord is calling you to completely surrender your life to Him because in the end there's really only going be two categories. There's going to be those that are saved, that will have eternal life and the glorious God's prepared, and those that are lost, that will be in the lake of fire and be judged. I appreciate your call and we do have a book we'll be happy to send you a free copy. It's called Three Steps to Heaven. It looks like your phone call had dropped off but hopefully, you're still listening. If you'd like a copy of that book just call our studio and ask for Three Steps to Heaven.
Pastor John: The number to call is 800-835-6747. You can ask for the book called Three Steps to Heaven. We'll be happy to send it to anybody who calls and asks. You can also read that book for free online at the Amazing Facts website. Just amazingfacts.org. Our next caller is Jim. Jim, you're listening in Houston, Texas. Jim, welcome to the program.
Jim: Hi, thank you for taking my call. My question is if I were witnessing to someone and they were sitting on the fence, is there a spiritual backup something along the effect of having them pray and telling them to ask God that they don't really know, they're not sure if they believe, but to ask God to reveal Himself to them. I think I read somewhere in the Bible something about God does not hear the prayers of the believers or something along those lines. I'm wondering if that would be okay for someone to say, "I don't really believe, I don't know what to believe. God, could you please reveal yourself to me if you really are God and let me know?"
Pastor Doug: That's really a good question, Jim, because there's a lot of sincere people out there. They've grown up, they've not been exposed to the Bible or Christianity, or maybe they grew up in another persuasion, different church, or religion. They want to know, they read the Bible but there's so many religions and they just want to know, is God real? I prayed that very prayer. I said, "Lord if you're there if you're real, please reveal yourself to me because I just want to know the truth." I think it's appropriate to pray that because there are Scriptures that say, "Draw near to God and He'll draw near to you." That's in James chapter four.
It says, "Ask and you'll receive and seek and you'll find," so when a person is seeking after God, it would seem to me that, that prayer would be indicating that. Anyway, I appreciate your call, Jim. I don't know if there's a lesson that fits in with that but I think that's an appropriate prayer to pray.
Pastor John: We do have a book, Pastor Doug, dealing with the Bible called The Ultimate Resource. Really, that's where it begins our evidence in God is found in Scripture in the study of the word. We'd be happy to send that to anybody who calls and asks.
Pastor Doug: Yes, just ask for the book The Ultimate Resource. Jim, we'll send it to you. Friends, you are listening to Bible Answers Live don't go away.
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You're listening to Bible Answers Live with Pastor Doug Batchelor. If you have a Bible related question, call us now to receive clear honest answers directly from Scripture. We have a few lines open. Please give us a call. The phone number to the studio is 800- GOD-SAYS, that's 800-463-7297.
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Pastor Doug: We're back. We are live and we have lines open if you have a Bible question. This is Bible Answer Live. If you joined us along the way, welcome. It's a live, international interactive Bible study. The phone number if you have a Bible question is 800-GOD-SAYS, 800-463-7297. I'm Doug Batchelor.
Pastor John: My name is John Ross and [unintelligible 00:29:59] we're ready to go to the phone lines. Our next caller is Frank and he's listening from Virginia Beach. Frank, welcome to the program.
Frank: Thank you. Hi, my name is Frank, I'm a first-time caller.
Pastor Doug: Appreciate you calling.
Frank: My question is, I know it's a lot of non-believers or scientists- I guess their weapon at hand to prove the Bible wrong is the age of the world compared to what the Bibles states. I was wondering, if they're not factoring in the great flood of the earth's age, is this fair to say that they accurately determine the age of the world if they're not determining the great flood.
Pastor Doug: First of all, we're really talking about a couple of different things. When they're talking about the age of the earth, the science that they use to measure the age of the earth, how do you prove that that's true? It is very difficult to say- we actually went back in time 3 million or 3 billion years and sure enough, this is an accurate measurement. All they can do is look at how their formulas work based on today's environment.
To say that God couldn't make the world with some built-in age. If we believe that God can miraculously create the world then let me give you an example I'm rambling. When God made Adam, was Adam made a baby or was Adam made a full-grown man?
Frank: Man.
Pastor Doug: You know how you buy a computer, when you get it from the factory it's already got some installed software ready. It's called plug and play. You plug it in it's up and running. Adam was made in the perfect age, whatever that was, 25, 30 years old I don't know but he was in his prime. He didn't have to learn to walk. He already he had a belly button, even though he wasn't born or I'm guessing he did like we all do.
The trees that lived in the garden of Eden had rings in them though today the rings are the result of years. God made full grown trees that probably had rings in them. When he makes the world and there are some built in age or the appearance of it, that could be, they're measurements of how old that was would be useless unless they could really use time travel and send someone back.
A lot of the methods that they're using, Frank, to date the earth are very very dubious and they've been tested and they've dated some rocks from one volcano and they said, 15 million years and they date another volcano that we know is only 50 years old in New Finland and it will date millions of years old. The dating science is a very sloppy science. They were saying that the ice cores in Greenland were hundreds of thousands of years because of all the layers and then this World War Two airplanes called the Lost Squadron landed in the ice up there. Got buried for 50 years and they found them over 200 feet down with thousands of layers of ice. They weren't thousands of years old, they were 50 years old.
There's some real problems in the science. It's the greatest conspiracy. I don't believe in a lot of conspiracies, but I tell you the dating method that's used by evolutionists to me seems like the most biased example of science I've ever seen. I don't know, I just did a little rant there, Frank, I hope that helps?
Frank: Actually, it does help.
Pastor Doug: We have a study that we can send you that talks about When Evolution Flunked the Science Test, and we'll be happy to send that to you for free if you call the number.
Pastor John: The number to call 800-835-6747 and the book you can ask for is When Evolution Flunked the Science Test. Intriguing title and a great book. When Evolution Flunked the Science Test, we'll send it to anybody for free, just give us a call, 800-835-6747. Our phone number here to the studio with your Bible question is 800-463-7297. Our next caller is Mercedes listening from Brooklyn, New York. Mercedes, welcome to the program.
Mercedes: Hi.
Pastor Doug: Hi, thanks for calling. Yes, you're on the air.
Mercedes: I'm a first-time caller, thanks for taking my call. My question has to do with the tithe and offering. Besides Malachi 3, what else has [inaudible 00:34:46] any other prove me offering beside Malachi 3.
Pastor Doug: There are other passages that talk about tithe. Let me give you one. If you go back to the story of Jacob. When Jacob left home because he got on the wrong side of Esau. They thought he was going to murder him. Jacob had a dream of a ladder. God appeared to him in his dream and Jacob made a vow and he said, "Lord, if-" He put God to the test. He said, "If you'll take care of me and watch over me and bring me back again, a tenth, that means a tithe of all that you give me I'll return to you.
He left. He went over the Jordan river, went to Babylonia Harran. He was there 21 more years. He came back and he had great abundance. He was extremely wealthy at that point and he gave a tenth of it back to the Lord. He actually gave to his brother who was the head of a clan back then but he sacrificed a tenth of all he had. He proved the Lord, he tested the Lord and God answered his prayer and gave him great abundance. There are other examples, is that what you're wondering?
Mercedes: I meant in the reverse order. Where God is saying to us, do this and prove me.
Pastor Doug: Yes, in other words, pay your tithe first and then see if I don't open the windows of heaven.
Mercedes: Right. Is there any other text for any other type of offering?
Pastor Doug: Of something besides tithe?
Mercedes: Yes, where God is telling us.
Pastor Doug: In Hosea, he says prove me. He says, "The house of God is in ruins but you run to your own houses and you're putting your money in pockets with holes." You might look that up for us, Pastor Ross. He said, "If you will start working on building up my house, I will then open the heavens and I will send rain and I will then bless you and make a note of it. I want you to prove me," and you read the whole passage there where Hosea is talking about the house of God and rebuilding it. He's just calling the whole nation to give him a chance to prove that he'll bless them.
Mercedes: All right. Thank you very much.
Pastor Doug: All right. Thank you.
Pastor John: The verse you're referring to there is Haggai chapter one, verse six.
Pastor Doug: Yes, not Hosea. I knew that wasn't right. Haggai. Thank you very much. Thanks, Mercedes, appreciate that. By the way, we do have a lesson that's got a lot of promises. If you're still listening, Mercedes, it's called In God We Trust.
Pastor John: The number to call for our free study guide called In God We Trust is 800-835-6747 and we'll be happy to send that to Mercedes or anybody who calls and asks.
Pastor Doug: Pastor Ross, this time of year, everywhere you drive, you can't help but notice that they've got scary things happening and eerie things and there's zombies and people are asking lots of questions about haunting and ghosts and Halloween and they might not know that Amazing Facts, we get so many questions on ghosts. It's one of the most- I can understand it- [crosstalk]
Pastor John: Especially this time of the year.
Pastor Doug: We have a website that answers a lot of these questions and it's called ghosttruth.com. Ghost truth and the reason I'm telling you-- I know we're preaching to the choir right now but you may have some friends that wonder about that or they're scared of ghosts. I hear people say they don't want to move in that house because someone died in that house. Just send them to the website and let them find out what does the Bible say about ghosts and I think they'll find some peace and relief in that. It's a good educational tool, ghosttruth.com. Just wanted to throw that little commercial in.
Pastor John: Next caller is David listening from Michigan. David, welcome to the program.
David: Hey, thanks for taking my call.
Pastor Doug: Yes, how can we help you?
David: I just wanted to see if you could explain the Trinity? Your take on that?
Pastor Doug: Sure. The word trinity, you're not actually going to find it in the Bible. There's nothing wrong with the word, it's why we got a tricycle, has three wheels. Trinity is the three persons in the Godhead. The Bible does talk about the Godhead and it speaks of the divine nature of three entities. Three separate persons. One being the Father, the other the son or Jesus, and the third the Holy spirit. Sometimes the Holy Ghost is an archaic way of saying it but it's the same thing.
Jesus said, "Go baptize in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost." At the baptism of Jesus, God the Father is in heaven, he says, this is my beloved son, God the Spirit comes down like a dove and there you got God the son. God became a man in Jesus. Jesus is divine. Some people say, well, I have no problem believing in Jesus, but wasn't he created? Well, the Bible says, all things that were made, were made by him.
Again, he's from everlasting to everlasting. He's without beginning or end. And so Christ is eternal just as God is. He laid aside his divine power when he became a human. Obviously, when Jesus was a baby he did not have all of the wisdom of the cosmos swirling around in his little baby head. He lived as a human depending on the Father and as he grew with the Father, revealed to him what his mission was and gave him the power for each day. That's why when Jesus was born it says-- the angel said his name will be called Emmanuel which means God with us. Unto us a child is born, unto us, a son is given, his name is called the wonderful counselor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father.
I could go on and on. There's a lot of verses that talk about the divine nature of Jesus. Most people don't have a problem believing in the Father, but there are three entities. What is it First John where it says there are three to bear witness in heaven?
Pastor John: Yes, we have a book called The Trinity is it Biblical? We’re happy to send you a copy of that to David or anybody wanting to study this subject further. The number is 800-835-6747, you can ask for the book called Is The Trinity Biblical?
Pastor Doug: You don't have to wait for the book, David. If you're wanting you can even go right to the Amazing Facts website and you could type in Trinity and you can download the PDF of that book for free.
Pastor John: The next call is Reed listening from Peoria, Illinois. Reed, welcome to the program.
Reed: Hey, good morning- good evening. How are you guys doing today?
Pastor Doug: Doing well, thanks for calling.
Reed: Excellent. My wife and I have a question in regards to-- when it comes to praying. When we pray, should we be praying to Jesus? Should we be praying to the Father? As I hear both at different churches, but we're just curious with what your view may be as to should we be always praying in and asking for the father to be doing the works that we need? Or should be praying for Jesus? Where do we put them when it comes to-- when you're seeking? It's a confusing question but–
Pastor Doug: No.
Reed: Just curious, maybe you could answer some of that.
Pastor Doug: That's really a good question. A lot of people wonder-- we pray, we address God. How do we address him? Typically in the Bible, in the New Testament, of course, Jesus said, when you pray, pray in this manner. He didn't really ever say repeat this prayer, Our Father and we pray to the Father. Christ said that if you ask anything in my name, that's why you often hear people say in Christ's name we ask or in Jesus name. There is one place I can think of and I don't remember the verse. I think it's Acts Chapter 7, where Stephen is praying and he says, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. That's one prayer made directly to Jesus but mostly, of course, Paul has his vision he talks to Jesus directly. It's not quite a prayer.
Pastor John: Yes, you’re referring to Acts 7:59.
Pastor Doug: Yes. Most of the prayers they are praying to God for Christ's sake. I don't think it's inappropriate. We often teach children to pray to Jesus and they find it very personal to do that. If you want to be technical most of the prayers in the Bible are addressed to the Father. No prayers are addressed to the Spirit that I know of. That's a good question. We have a book on prayer we'll be happy to send you a free copy if you'd like that Reed.
Reed: That'd be great, thank you. Is Pastor Doug, is it Batchelor? Is that your last name?
Pastor Doug: Yes. But it's spelled a little different. It's B-A-T.
Reed: Okay.
Pastor Doug: Batchelor, yes.
Reed: Okay, well, thank you for your time and we appreciate your time today. Thank you so much.
Pastor Doug: Absolutely.
Pastor John: The name of the book is Teach Us To Pray. The number to call is 800-835-6747. That is the resource line and you can ask for the book called Teach Us To Pray. You can read it for free online at the Amazing Facts web site, amazingfacts.org. We have Travis listening from Missouri. Travis, welcome to the program.
Travis: Yes.
Pastor Doug: Hi, Travis, you're on the air.
Travis: Okay, can you hear me?
Pastor Doug: I can now. Hug your phone.
Travis: Okay. I really appreciate hearing about the Lost Squadron, my little boy took home a book about that [inaudible 00:44:29] here.
Pastor Doug: That's fascinating isn't it?
Travis: Yes it is and I wondered how many layers of ice put there, but anyway that's not my question. My question has to do with what Jesus said in Matthew 24:15 about abomination and desolation spoken of by Daniel, the prophet. First, let the reader understand. Well, I have been trying to understand this for years. I have heard so many explanations of what the abomination and desolation is, but--
Pastor Doug: Would you like me to take a stab at it?
Travis: Yes, sir.
Pastor Doug: All right. Part of the key to understanding that verse is reading the next verse. He says, “when you see the abomination when you see standing in the holy place, the abomination that causes desolation spoken of by Daniel. Let the reader understand then let those who are in Judea flee into the mountains. Let no one on his housetop even go down take anything out of his house.” Now, everything Jesus says in Matthew 24 is dual in nature. There's a double meaning in his statements. First, he's talking about the destruction of Jerusalem and a great persecution that came on the Jews about 70 AD. They were surrounded by the Romans. They desolated the temple. They destroyed it.
The Roman power which persecuted, of course, they persecuted Christians. They crucified Jesus. They were that abomination that desolated. Daniel speaks of the prince that would come in Daniel Chapter 9 it would overwhelm the city with a flood and meaning that's term-- that means with an army. That happened in 70 AD. That is the first part of the abomination of desolation. The second part of what Jesus says in Matthew 24, he's talking about the signs of his coming in the end of the world.
There's going to be another beast power that is going to mirror what happened to the Roman power and that they’re going to persecute God's people. Just as the Christians had to flee from Jerusalem back in 70 AD, we may have to flee into the hills in the last days because they're going to make laws that if we don't worship the beast we can't buy or sell.
Pastor John: If you want a parallel passage with that, again, the key in understanding the abomination of desolation in Matthew 24 is the next verse which says, “Let those who be in Judea flee to the mountains.” There's a parallel passage that you find in Luke 21:20 where it really makes it clear and verse 20 says, “but, when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies then know that its desolation is near. Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.”
Then it goes on to quote the same passage that you read in Matthew 24. In Matthew 24 the wording is the abomination of desolation, but in Luke's Gospel it says, “when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies then know that the desolation is near.” Putting those two together you have the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel, the prophet, that's referring to the destruction that came upon Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 AD.
Pastor Doug: We have a book on it. The title of the book is called The Abomination of Desolation. We'll be happy to send that to you, it's written by our friend Gary Gibbs, he did a great job. Travis, if you call the resource line or you even go-- right, you can go tonight to Amazing Facts, amazingfacts.org or amazingfacts.com either one will take you there. To go to our free library, you got to poke around you'll see we got a free library and you can download the PDF and read it tonight.
Pastor John: The number to call 800-835-6747. You can ask for the book called The Abomination of Desolation, 800- 835-6745. Our next caller is Jason listening here in California. Jason, welcome to the program.
Jason: Yes, hello, hi. Thank you, Pastor, thanks for taking my phone call. I’ve been blessed with a family of non-believers so I try to answer their questions when they come. One question I had from my brother was if Jesus was born from a virgin. How was she married to Joseph? I couldn’t answer that question, without consummating their marriage.
Pastor Doug: Yes. It says in the Bible very specifically and Pastor Ross will look it up because I forget. I always get my Matthew stories of the birth and my Luke stories mixed up. It says very clearly that he accepted Mary as his wife but he did not know her and that's biblical terminology meaning intimate relations. He didn't-- not know her until after the child was born. You have that?
Pastor John: Yes, Matthew 1:18. It says, “Now, the birth of Jesus was on this wise when as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph before they came together she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.”
Pastor Doug: Yes, but then he took her as his wife and he says he did not know her until after the child was born and that's further down I think in the same chapter. If they'll accept the Bible that's what it says.
Jason: Okay, but trying to convey that to a non-believer you’re being naive and this is something that is usually done pretty early on in a marriage. I didn’t have an answer. [laughs]
Pastor Doug: It says that when she was found to be with child they weren't married yet they were engaged. It says they were betrothed then that means that they had made a covenant. They were engaged to get married but the ceremony had not happened yet. She was found to be pregnant before they had the marriage ceremony. In the Jewish culture as with our culture, they were not to consummate the marriage until after the ceremony. It's just like Jacob, he was actually engaged to Rachel for seven years before they had the ceremony.
Pastor John: Well, here's the verse that you’re referring to specifically, it's Matthew 1:25, well let me start in verse 24, it says, “Then Joseph been raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him and he took unto him his wife, knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son and he called his name Jesus.” That’s verse 25.
Pastor Doug: Yes, he went through the ceremony to save her face because if she came up having a baby and they weren't married yet it was going to ruin her reputation. As soon as it was discovered she was pregnant, he took her as his wife so that people wouldn't ask him any questions but he didn't know her intimately until sometime after Jesus was born.
Jason: Thank you so much, Pastor.
Pastor Doug: Yes, I heard an amazing fact. I wanted to save it for another program, I hope I can still use it but they've got a couple of cases where snakes that have been isolated for years have given birth with no-- they call them virgin births. This snake that's been in the zoo for eight years isolated in an aquarium by itself and twice its head had laid eggs and their eggs have hatched and no male was anywhere around. [laughs] I don't know, people believe it can happen with a snake, why don't they think it could happen when God says it's a miracle?
Pastor John: Our next caller is Alma, listening in Nebraska. Alma, we’ve got about three minutes and your question.
Alma: Okay. I'll make it very quickly, in a nutshell here. Jesus expired on the cross at 3:00 PM, that's the ninth hour according to Scriptures and he said he would be as Jonah was in the belly of the whale [unintelligible 00:52:05]. The son of man will be in the heart of the earth, first, I'd like to know how do you define heart of the earth? I believe there's a great possibility that he rose at 3:00 PM?
Pastor Doug: All right. Well, first of all, we know that Jesus died on a Friday but when you read that verse in Matthew 12 where it says three days and three nights. It is not talking about the tomb because Jesus was not in the tomb three days and three nights. He's talking about when he would begin suffering for the sins of the world which began Thursday night at the last supper in the garden when he was betrayed, the mob began to beat him that night when he was arrested and he paid the penalty for our sins for three days and three nights in his suffering, in his burial.
He rose Sunday morning, you got Thursday night, Friday night, Saturday night, over those three days and three nights, Christ was in the heart of the earth meaning he was in the clutches of the world and paying the penalty for death or for sin just as Jonah was captured.
Pastor John: We have a book called The Sign of Jonah and it actually builds in this very verse and we'll be happy to send this to Alma or anybody who calls and asks. The number is 800- 835-6747 and you can ask for the book called The Sign of Jonah. Very, fascinating study.
Pastor Doug: Yes and a lot of people ask that question because it seems very explicit, three days and three nights and then they do the math. Well, does that mean heart of the earth, is that the tomb? When we say, "Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven," we don't mean in the tomb. Not every time you find in earth in the Bible does it mean the tomb. A matter of fact there's no other place in the Bible where those terms are used to describe the tomb. Thank you very much, Alma. I appreciate your call.
Friends, we just probably won't be able to do another caller just this tonight with the time we've got left but I hope you'll endure to the end as I just share with you how much we appreciate your tuning in. We like to hear from you. A lot of people are listening for years and we've just never heard from you. You can go to the website which is amazingfacts.org, drop us a line, say hey. Enjoy the program, it's been a blessing and if you want to do something to keep us on this station, we are only supported by listeners like you and it means so much.
Lord's been blessing for years through you, we pray that you'll be part of that miracle. God bless you friends and we look forward to studying his word with you again next week. Remember, Jesus is the truth that will set you free.
Speaker: This has been a pre-recorded broadcast of Bible Answers Live, a production of Amazing Facts Ministries. If you would like to order the materials mentioned on this broadcast call 800-835-6747 from 8:00 AM to midnight Eastern Standard Time, that's 800-835-6747. If you've missed an episode of Bible Answers Live, you can find it on our website, amazingfacts.org. You'll also find our online sale catalog of books, tapes and other materials as well as numerous free resources on nearly every Bible topic, putting the answers to your Bible questions right at your fingertips.
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Speaker 3: I grew up in a church-going family. We were at every meeting. I sang in four of the choirs there, I directed three, very involved, very active. It almost seems like busy work sometimes. I went to Sunday school, I knew about God. I knew about Jesus but I didn't have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. My senior year in high school, I got the news that my father had been murdered. I played it off well, no one really saw that I was struggling with it. It just really felt like there was a hole that needed to be filled and I tried to fill it with drugs, with alcohol, with partying. After college, I just stopped going to church altogether.
One day, on a Sunday, because I didn't feel like going to church with my mom, I thought I should get a little bit of work. She had the satellite system hooked up and I'm flipping through channels and then the logo pops across Amazing Facts Presents, I've listened to a lot of different ministers but this was the first time that he's actually saying something where I had to grab my Bible to actually pick it up and I've never heard this before. Let me look through and find this. I went through all the historicals, I went through all the study guides and I just couldn't get enough. Then the Sabbath came up and he's going through the appeal and I'm just going, “Lord, I hear you, I have to go to church.”
I show up. It was funny I didn't feel like I was going to be judged, anything judgmental, anything. I walked in the door and I just felt at home but there's still a problem. I'm still partying, I was still going out to the bars at this time I was selling cocaine to pay my rent. Sixteen days later I find myself in a life-or-death situation, I just came back from a liquor store and I grabbed a bottle of vodka and there I am high of cocaine with my Bible in hand trying to do a Bible study and I heard an audible voice, "Just look at yourself," and I did and I was like, "What am I doing?"
I got on my knees and I said, "Lord if you do not take this away from me now, I'm going to kill myself. I was going to continue this lifestyle and I was going to end up overdosing having a heart attack whatever it was. You have to take this away. All of it." And that day, he lifted all of it away from me. It was all gone. When God does something in your life, he does it complete.
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