The Vatican

We all know the most populated country in the world today is China. In fact, China’s 1.3 billion people is greater than the population of the entire world only a 150 years ago. On the other hand, the country with the smallest population is the Vatican! That’s right.

In 1929, under the terms of the Lateran Treaty, Vatican City, or Holy See, was established as an independent state of 109 acres within Rome. Less than 1,000 people live in the small country that’s governed by the Pope who has absolute executive, legislative, religious, and judicial powers. Furthermore, Vatican City has its own currency and postal system. They publish a daily newspaper, a monthly journal, and manage their own telephone and Internet service. It even has a small railroad station and a radio station. The famous Swiss Guards, service police, maintaining internal security and protection of the Pope. Yet, in spite of their tiny territory, even China fears this little country.

Stay with us, friends. We’re going to learn more as Amazing Facts brings you this edition of Bible Answers Live.

[PROGRAM INTRODUCTION]

Pastor Jëan Ross: Welcome to Bible Answers Live brought to you by Amazing Facts Ministries. Are you looking for a clear, concise answer to your most challenging Bible questions? Maybe you’re struggling to understand difficult passages of Scripture. If so, you’ve come to the right place. Join us now as we open God’s Word to discover His will and find honest, practical answers to your Bible-related questions. This broadcast is pre-recorded. If you have a Bible question, call us Sundays from 7 to 8 P.M. Pacific Standard Time at 800-GOD-SAYS. That’s 800-463-7297. Now, let’s join our host, author, speaker, and evangelist, Pastor Doug Batchelor.

Pastor Doug: Welcome, listening friends, to a fresh installment of Bible Answers Live. And if this is your first time tuning in, we’re glad that you’ve found the frequency. This is a live, international, interactive Bible study! And we’re delighted that you have tuned in. If you have Bible questions, we do have some lines open. Right now is a good time to pick up your telephone if you’d like to get your question on tonight’s broadcast. It’s a free phone call, and the number is 800-GOD-SAYS. That’s 800-463-7297. And my name is Doug Batchelor.

Pastor Jëan Ross: My name is Jëan Ross. Good evening, listening friends! I would also, Pastor Doug, like to introduce to our listeners someone who’s in the studio with us— one of the Amazing Facts evangelists, Eric Flickinger. He’s doing some meetings right here in the Sacramento area. Eric, welcome!

Eric Flickinger: Good evening! It’s good to be here this evening.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Good. Tell us a little bit, Eric, about what’s happening right now. I know some of our listeners are right here in the Sacramento area or in the Rocklin or Granite Bay area… Lumis. What’s happening right now?

Eric Flickinger: We’re having a live Bible prophecy seminar right now. It’s going on at the Sierra Elementary School. If you’d like to know more about the topics and the times for these meetings, you can go onto the Internet at prophecyseminars.com, and click on the…

Pastor Jëan Ross: Link that says Rocklin…

Eric Flickinger: …that leads to Rocklin there.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Absolutely!

Eric Flickinger: And it’ll tell you what’s coming up over the next few nights!

Pastor Jëan Ross: Superb, Eric. Friends, again, we’d really encourage you to take advantage of that— just some great Bible prophecy seminar taking place right here. Well, let’s begin our program with a word of prayer!

Pastor Doug: And Eric may help us answer questions tonight!

Pastor Jëan Ross: Oh, that’s right! Yeah!

Pastor Doug: He’s an expert in Bible prophecy, and things are happening these days.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Absolutely. Let’s start with prayer. Dear Father, once more, we thank You that we can gather together and open up Your Word. We recognize that in order to understand it correctly, we need the Holy Spirit’s guidance. So be with us this evening. Be with those who are listening and those who call in. For this we ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Pastor Doug: Amen!

Pastor Jëan Ross: You opened the program with an amazing fact about the smallest country in the world but has probably the largest influence in the world. Of course, we’re talking about the Vatican. And that’s particularly interesting today because as we speak, the Pope is on Shepherd 1 headed back to the Vatican from his United States visit.

Pastor Doug: Yes.

Pastor Jëan Ross: And it’s a tremendous success!

Pastor Doug: That’s right. I’m sure they believe it was a great success. And when he left, he said he was going on a mission to America. And based on what we’ve seen in the media, it was successful from their perspective. But not only was this a historic visit for a number of reasons. Of course, this was the Passover weekend. For the first time, the Pope went into a Jewish synagogue in America and met with Jewish leaders— met with 250 Evangelical, Orthodox, and Protestant leaders that gathered in a Catholic church, Saint Joseph Church, in New York City. But of course, the big masses that were conducted both in the nation’s capital, Washington D.C., and Yankee Stadium today, a number of very interesting things.

When you consider that the Pope, technically, he is just the leader of a denomination; but he gets the recognition of a head of state. A matter of fact, he was greeted with higher honors than a typical head of state— of a world power, for that matter. The President of the United States rarely goes to meet someone at the airport who is a visiting dignitary, but he did for the Pope. And so, they just really rolled out the carpet! And the United Nations General Assembly called a special meeting. They convened to be addressed by a Pastor! Now, would they do that for a Protestant Pastor or an Evangelical? Well, I don’t believe they ever have! So what is the difference here? I think nobody can deny that there is a difference in the Catholic Church. They are not just a very potent religious power; they are a political power.

And I think not only did we see some historic firsts— this was a historic weekend for that significance— but I think it was a prophetically significant weekend. I’m not sure that you’re hearing much about that, but just to introduce this, friends— and I don’t want to be unkind, I want to be careful to be respectful— but I just got to tell you in case you don’t know American history.

This country was largely founded not by conquistadors looking for gold— that’s for their self. This country, North America, was largely founded by people who were fleeing religious persecution in Europe, and largely a Protestant nation that felt a great deal of animosity and persecution that was coming from the Roman church. And so, my! Things have changed! And what’s more is I think many people don’t know. Most Christians don’t know that the scholars and the Protestant founders of the Great Reformation— let me name a few of them for you. Have you heard of the name Charles Spurgeon, John Wesley, Adam Clarke, Isaac Newton, Martin Luther, Cranmer, Tyndale, Wesley— I mentioned him, Huss, the writers of the Westminster Confession, the Baptist Confession. I mean I could go on and on and on. All believed that the Roman Catholic Church was the antichrist of Revelation chapter 1— the first… in Revelation 13, the first two or three verses. And so, when you know your church history, and you know your American history… wow, things have changed! The greetings.

And people may not know that this was the almost universal belief of Protestant theologians for several hundred years! And it has basically been subdued and downplayed for the last 50 years or so. So, in America, that was, you know, it was really a stronghold of Protestantism. All of the Supreme Court judges were Protestants. Now, the majority of the Supreme Court justices are Catholic— only one Protestant that I know of. So, it’s just, things have just really changed. And I think that folks need to recognize that this was prophetically significant because not only did the Reformers believe that the first beast in Revelation 13: 1, 2, and 3 was speaking of the papacy; they also believed, many believed, that the second beast that arises in verse 11— “I saw another beast come about the earth”— is the United States of America. And I’m not trying to be anti-patriotic; I love my country. I’m not trying to be against Catholics; I went to Catholic school, growing up— lovely people, a lot of Catholics in heaven. I’m just telling you that these institutions, it says, are going to join together and form a final world confederacy of power that is going to compel worship. And we saw a coming together this weekend unlike any other.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Absolutely.

Pastor Doug: People may want to know more about that. I know what I just said may have stunned you a little bit, then you owe it to yourself to read the free offer we’re making available tonight. It’s free; you just need to ask.

Pastor Jëan Ross: And it is very important. The free offer is entitled, “The Beast, the Dragon, and the Woman,” dealing with Revelation chapter 13 and some of the things we’ve touched on Pastor Doug. To receive this free offer, call our resource line. That’s 1-800-835-6747. Again, that number is 1-800-835-6747. Ask for the offer, “The Beast, the Dragon, and the Woman.” And we will be happy to send that out to you. Well, we’re going to go to the phone lines now. And Pastor Doug, it looks like our first caller, Jim, is calling from Ohio… has a question related to the topic that we opened with. Jim, welcome to the program!

Jim: First of all, I would like to thank you for y our ministry, Pastor Doug. Last week, I just got your MAP Series. And excellent job! Excellent job! I’ve been watching you for years.

Pastor Doug: Praise the Lord!

Jim: And this is just kind of eerie because I have…

Pastor Doug: Can I interrupt you for just a second, Jim?

Jim: Yes, Sir.

Pastor Doug: For our friends that are listening, when Jim’s talking about the MAP Series, I don’t do seminars on geography; that’s an abbreviation for “Most Amazing Prophecies.” No. Yeah. “Most Amazing Prophecies”— that’s it. Yeah.

Jim: Highly recommended. I’ve been telling everybody.

Pastor Doug: Okay, thank you. I just wanted people to know what the MAP Series was.

Jim: Not a series of maps. You know, I’ve kind of been on my little kick here, and I’m curious as to where they have got that Peter was the first Pope. And if you could help me with that, any recommendations on any books that you think I should get. It’s just amazing that... I mean, I’m just so confused about where they come up with this. Well, if I’m correct, isn’t it Paul was the apostle that was appointed to Rome?

Pastor Doug: To the Gentiles. Well, both Peter and Paul went to Rome. But it comes from Matthew 16:18— that’s a statement that Jesus makes. And I don’t agree with their interpretation, but this is where it comes from. When Jesus asked the disciples, “Who do men say that I am?” they said, “Well, some say that you are Elijah or Jeremiah or John the Baptist or one of the prophets.” But then He says, “Who do you say that I am?” and Peter is the one who speaks up. And he says, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.” And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar Jonah, for flesh and blood did not reveal that to you but my Father in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter.” Now, that word “Peter” there, Peter’s name, means “Petros,” and that means a rolling stone, a rock that you could put on a sling and throw.

Jim: Pebble. Okay.

Pastor Doug: Right. “That you are Petros. And on this Petras, on this rock, I will build My church.” Well, our Roman Catholic friends say that the Lord said He’s building the church on Peter, and Peter’s the first Pope. That’s really a misinterpretation. What Jesus is saying was, “Peter, you may be a rolling stone, but on this rock of what you’ve uttered that I am the Messiah, I will build My church. On the truth that you’ve spoken, I will build My church.” Not on Peter, but on the truth that Jesus was the Messiah. So, a matter of fact, if you read on a little further in the same dialogue, He calls Peter “Satan.” He says, “Get thee behind Me, Satan!”

Pastor Jëan Ross: You know, another point on that, Pastor Doug, Peter himself never acknowledged to be the foundation of the church. A matter of fact, in Acts 4:11, Peter is preaching. And Peter is talking about Jesus and says, “This is the Stone which was set at naught of you builders,” speaking of the Jewish leaders, “which has become the head of the corner,” which, of course, is the foundation of the house, or the foundation of the church. And then, when Peter wrote the letter of 1 Peter on two occasions, he referred to Jesus, once again, as the Cornerstone, as the Chief Cornerstone, as the Rock upon which the church is built. So, Peter never acknowledged himself as the foundation of the church.

Jim: Is there any books that you would recommend about that? Because I have a little bit of an argument, and I’m going to let you go after this because I don’t want to hog up your time but…

Pastor Doug: That may be addressed in our free offer tonight.

Jim: Okay. I’m going to call. Thank you. Because, you know, I was just talking on the radio station. I made a comment about praying to the Virgin Mary, I said, who is dead, and the Bible’s specific. And a lady have called right after me and made a comment that, “We don’t pray to the Virgin Mary who’s just an intercessor,” and I just kind of… because I came from the Catholic church, and I’m just, you know, kind of shaking my head, so… but I got your…

Pastor Doug: Yeah. The free offer tonight will help. Have you been through the whole MAP Series yet?

Jim: Not yet, which one…

Pastor Doug: Well, I can’t tell sitting here, but I think one of the DVDs talks more in detail about your question.

Jim: I planned on watching this multiple times over. It’s just so helpful. It’s such a great thing to have and it’s highly recommended.

Pastor Doug: Well, bless your heart, Jim. Hey, I appreciate the question and the endorsement, also. Pastor Ross, any thought?

Pastor Jëan Ross: Yeah, for others listening, they’ve heard about this MAP Series. Isn’t it possible for a person to go online and actually view that series?

Pastor Doug: They can go to the website. Thank you for reminding me. They can view the whole thing for free, and don’t tell Jim that…

Pastor Jëan Ross: [Laughing]

Pastor Doug: …because it’s a lot higher quality [laughing]. But they can view the whole thing for free by going to “Most Amazing Prophecies.” You know, so many things are on YouTube now on the Internet; mostamazingprophecies (dot)… I think it’s “com.”

Pastor Jëan Ross: I think “.com” or “org.”

Pastor Doug: Either one will take you there. Yeah. They can watch the programs. Thanks again, Jim, I appreciate your question.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Our next caller is Larry, calling from Columbia, South Carolina. Larry, welcome to the program!

Larry: Well, thank you! I was enjoying listening to you guys. My question tonight deals a little bit with, I think in Proverbs, where it says, “As a man thinketh, so is he.” My question is on what people may nowadays call scientific self-hypnosis. And I know… well, I don’t know. My guess is the word “hypnosis” or “hypnotism” is not found in the Bible. But I was wondering if you could expound on any Bible principles dealing with self-hypnosis.

Pastor Doug: Well, you’re talking about two things— one is self-hypnosis, the other one is someone else, you know, mesmerizing a crowd. Now, the Bible does tell us in Acts about a sorcerer who seem to mesmerize the people of Samaria, and I think his name was Simon. But you’re talking, really, about self-hypnosis. You know, I think that as far as we can stay close to God’s original plan for man’s functioning and operating, that’s what we ought to go after. God did not expect Adam and Eve to go around the garden trying to, you know, recite things to themselves, to try to persuade themselves, or to self-induce or hypnotize themselves— there’s something unnatural about that. And God wants us to function as normal people, you know, living in a real world, not kind of in a self-induced state of hypnosis.

Pastor Jëan Ross: You know, that verse you’re referring to…

Larry: Well, where I’m coming from on this is I guess I go to saying this is for, you know, people do this like in the sports world to, so that…

Pastor Doug: They psyche themselves up. Yeah.

Larry: Yeah. You know, wherever they’re at, or in the business world so that they can have this positive mental attitude, you know, and just kind of instill that within their subconscious that’s guiding them, you know, throughout their daily decisions or throughout what they’re playing.

Pastor Doug: Well, yeah, I know exactly what you’re talking about, Larry. And it is true there is a power to faith that the world has recognized. Whenever Jesus healed someone, He never said, “My faith has made you whole.” He always said, “Your faith has made you whole.” And I believe it’s in Romans, it says, “God has dealt through all men a measure of faith.” And so, everyone has this faith, and sometimes, as you said, the sports world, the business world, they’ve taught people how to exploit that, and then they use that faith to, you know, try to succeed in sports or business or perform better.

But, you know, David talks about meditating on the Lord. It’s not faith in faith that saves us; it’s faith in God. It’s what’s where you direct that faith. And so it is appropriate for a Christian to be still, to meditate, to listen to the voice of God, to pray, and then have faith that their prayers that are in harmony with God’s will and His Word will be answered. But that’s different than I think sometimes the way people torture the truth of positive thinking.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Right.

Pastor Doug: And they do it really for selfish purposes.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Especially if you’re talking about hypnosis; it’s a dangerous thing in that you’re opening up your mind to really whatever’s out there.

Pastor Doug: Yeah, how… exactly. How does the devil tempt us? He uses our mind. So you’ve got be careful about not just sort of pulling the curtain back for the devil.

Pastor Jëan Ross: By the way, the verse that you referred to, Pastor Doug, is Acts 8:9 where it speaks concerning Simon, and he had this bewitching power over the people of Samaria.

Pastor Doug: Yup. Thank you, Larry. I appreciate your question, and that’s a unique one.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Our next caller is John, and he’s listening on the Internet from Bakersfield, California. John, you’re on the air.

John: Good evening, Pastors.

Pastor Doug: Evening!

John: And that was an interesting opening statement. I almost want to change my question. But there’s something that has been boggling my mind here about Uriah and David.

Pastor Doug: Yes.

John Uriah seemed like he was a noble character and made a sacrifice of a high end. And I was wondering if he is in heaven, how will he react with David with what happened?

Pastor Doug: Well, that is a good question. I thought the same thing. For our friends that are listening, you may not know the story. But David had a loyal soldier, one of his mighty men, who was Uriah the Hittite. David basically stole Uriah’s wife, Uriah didn’t know; and then he sends Uriah on a suicide mission, then Uriah dies fighting. He seems to have great faith in the Lord. We expect to see Uriah in heaven. Well, David then repents of his sin, and Bathsheba repents of her sin. God blesses them with a son named Solomon. And you know, hypothetically, you’re going to see David, Bathsheba, and Uriah in heaven. It’ll be a very interesting meeting. You know, I think they’re all going to be very thankful for the grace of God, but nonetheless, it would be interesting. I’ll give you one more, John that you didn’t ask for.

John: Sure.

Pastor Doug: The last thing that Stephen saw before he died was being stoned by the Apostle Paul, but he was Saul. So Stephen, he sees Saul throwing stones at him. Stephen’s in heaven, also they lead up Paul to heaven. He says, “Wait a second, he’s not supposed to be here. He killed me!” [Laughing] You know, so that’ll be another interesting meeting.

John: Very interesting.

Pastor Doug: So there’ll be a lot of surprise reunions in the kingdom. I heard a preacher say once there’ll be three big surprises— surprise number one is there’ll be some people there you never expected to see, surprise number two there’ll be some people missing you surely expected to see, and the third surprise is that you’re there. So, that’ll be a great day.

John: Interesting. I hope that I’ll be there.

Pastor Doug: Amen. And me, too. Alright, God bless, John. I appreciate your question.

John: Thank you.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Michelle is calling from Houston, Texas. Michelle, you’re on the air with Pastor Doug!

Michael: Actually, it’s Michael.

Pastor Jëan Ross: I’m sorry, Michael! I’ve got a little icon here with a little…

Pastor Doug: Spelling!

Pastor Jëan Ross: …pink dress on. You see over there? [Laughing]

Pastor Doug: [Laughing]

Pastor Jëan Ross: I’m glad it’s Michael. Michael, welcome to the program!

Michael: Thank you. My question was coming from Zechariah in chapters 1 to 7. It talks about… it begins with the eight visions that Zechariah had given, and it ends at 6:8. I’m only asking for a brief description of these eight visions. I’m not sure what they’re pertaining to.

Pastor Doug: Oh my. Well, you know, to be honest with you, Michael, it is going to be a challenge for us to give you a quick overview. Let me do my best.

Zechariah is one of the apocryphal prophets— or not apocryphal, sorry— apocalyptic prophets in that he has these visions that God is giving messages, and he’s seen images and beasts and things reenacted, you know. He, Ezekiel, Daniel, and John in Revelation have some of these three-dimensional visions like this. There were things there portrayed. All of the visions of Zechariah seemed to deal with the future of Israel, both the immediate future and especially the long-term future of the kingdom. Speaking about when ultimately they would have the final victory over their enemies.

You’ll notice there’s parallels also between the prophecies of Zechariah. For instance, in Zechariah 1:8, it says, “By night, I looked and I saw a man riding on a red horse,” and you go on. It seems like he’s having a parallel vision to the four horsemen of the Apocalypse that you see in Revelation. So there’s a lot of parallels between the Book of Revelation. If you really want to understand Zechariah and Daniel and Ezekiel, read Revelation and Jeremiah for that matter. A lot of parallels there.

Michael: Okay.

Pastor Doug: I don’t know if, you know… like I said, it’s hard. We try to budget about three minutes for each call; to fly over those visions in that time is going to be near impossible. So, that’s probably the best I could do in that short time, Michael.

Michael: Well, I appreciate the answer.

Pastor Doug: Alright. Thank you very much. You know, one more thing I might say is there are some excellent commentaries I have a lot of confidence in. If you go to, even on the Internet, Michael, if you go to E-sword, for instance, you can download a free Bible software program, and in there, they’ve got some of the great reformer theologians— Matthew Henry, Barnes, Adam Clarke— and you read their commentaries on Zechariah. And I might not agree with everything they say, but they’ve got some very good insights by comparing Scripture with Scripture. That’s the key, I think, to understand these prophecies. Here a little, there a little.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Okay! Derrick is listening on the Internet calling from Minnesota. Derrick, welcome to the program.

Derrick: I have a dire request. Do you think that a Pastor could do like a series on the Ten Commandments? Like step-by-step, like totally going onto each verse, kind of like how you did on the Lord’s Prayer, you know? You really, totally went in-depth. I just have that request. Is that possible?

Pastor Doug: Yeah! You know, I’ve thought of doing that before. I have done entire sermons on one of the Ten Commandments. You know, I’ve done whole sermons on the commandment, “Don’t steal.” I did a whole sermon on, “Do not commit adultery.” And I’ve done a whole sermon on the Sabbath Day. I’d like to sometimes just go through the whole ten, just march through them.

Derrick: That would be awesome. I would love it. That would be so great. I mean that would be amazing if you did. Thank you.

Pastor Doug: Well, I appreciate that.

Derrick: Okay. My question is how in the world will you really read the Bible to… I have like, a four and a five-year-old, and they’re great kids, you know. They’re really obedient, no discipline problems, but when it comes to the Bible, they just seem like they’re so bored with it. And even doing the Kid’s Bible, it seems so like shallow. I don’t know how in the world to really communicate like Biblical messages to children. And I know you have kids, and they seem pretty, you know, very focused.

Pastor Doug: Well, let me read you 1 Corinthians 13:11. Paul says, “When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child.” Children understand, I think, differently. And so, what you need to do is as an adult, take the Bible, and by the grace of God and through the Holy Spirit, filter it and simplify the stories of the Bible. I think the best thing that you can do for kids, they love stories! And you just tell them in your own words some of the amazing stories about the great heroes in the Bible. And you have to use your judgment to simplify them based on their age. A four-year-old will understand differently than a five and a six-year-old. And you’ll have two children the same that will have different levels of comprehension.

Pastor Jëan Ross: You know, I have children— a six-year-old, an eight-year-old, and a nine-year-old— and when we sit down and study the Bible, read the Bible together, it does take a little more work on our part to try and simplify the truths of Scripture. But then the questions the children ask us cause us to think. They ask questions that we haven’t thought of before. And so it’s a good experience not only for the children to learn, but it’s a good experience for the parents.

Pastor Doug: That’s right.

Pastor Jëan Ross: You don’t know what questions they’re going to ask, and sometimes they come up with some real good ones.

Derrick: Do you recommend like the real Bible or a Kids’ Bible?

Pastor Doug: Well, there are several Children Bibles out there, but, you know, you don’t use a Children’s Bible to teach deep theology. But they are good for getting the stories across, and I think it’s fine. I don’t know if you can still get them. Years ago, they had the Children’s Golden Bible, and they’re just simplified— the stories.

Derrick: Like, for example, like Noah’s story, I know that you mentioned that the animals represent the Gentiles. You’re going that depth to like, because in a way…

Pastor Doug: No. I would stay with the simple part on that. Eric, you got a thought?

Eric Flickinger: One thing that’s very helpful is kids are very visual. So if you can use something to kind of visually stimulate them. For example, you’re talking about Noah’s ark. If you have some stuffed animals to bring Noah’s ark alive, that sort of thing really helps kids to understand a lot easier.

Pastor Doug: Yeah, and they do this sometimes in the Children’s Divisions. They put felts up on the wall to help illustrate the stories. That’s right.

Pastor Jëan Ross: You know, I’m going to take it here, I can’t sit still here for too long, Pastor Doug, without taking advantage of this talking briefly about our Kids’ Evangelistic Program that’s coming this September.

Pastor Doug: I was hoping you’re going to say something. You know, I won’t stop you. [Laughing]

Pastor Jëan Ross: [Laughing] Yes, friends. Now, of course, it’s for children; I mean, five-year-olds are welcome to sit and watch, but it’s really geared for children between age eight and twelve years. And it’s a series. It’s going to be up-linked live on 3BM from Dallas, Texas.

Pastor Doug: September 12 through the 20^th, the program is called “Amazing Adventure.” And it’s a satellite evangelistic series especially for kids! And we’re writing a whole new set of lessons…

Pastor Jëan Ross: That’s right.

Pastor Doug: …just for the kids. So, we’re going to have a lot of images and pictures and creative messages. And we’re going to do, really, what you talked about, Derrick, which is we’re going to simplify these messages so that it reaches the young people at that age in their life where they’re really open to spiritual things.

And I hope I can tell our friends right now, if you’re interested in registering your church, or if you want to know more just as a home about “How can I participate in the ‘Amazing Adventure Satellite Evangelistic Series’ for young people?” then go to “amazingfactskids.org”—it shouldn’t be too hard to remember, “amazingfactskids,” it is “.org.”

Pastor Jëan Ross: I believe so.

Pastor Doug: That’s right. And there’s a place to register there. And also, if you just start out with Amazing Facts and go to the main, the mother ship website, you’ll find a whole plethora of resources there as well. We’ll be right back.

[COMMERCIAL BREAK]

Pastor Jëan Ross: Welcome back to Bible Answers Live with Pastor Doug Batchelor. This broadcast is pre-recorded. If you have a Bible-related question, you can call us from 7 to 8 P.M. Pacific Standard Time on Sundays and receive clear, honest answers directly from Scripture. Call 800-GOD-SAYS. That’s 800-463-7297. Now, please join us as we look to God’s Word for more Bible answers live with author and evangelist, Pastor Doug Batchelor.

Pastor Doug: If you have just joined us, you’re listening to Bible Answers Live. And if you have a Bible question, you can still call in. The number is 800-GOD-SAYS. That’s 800-463-7297. And we’re in the studio. My name is Doug Batchelor.

Pastor Jëan Ross: My name is Jëan Ross.

Eric Flickinger: And I’m Eric Flickinger.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Now, you might be wondering about that new voice. If you weren’t here at the beginning of the program, Eric Flickinger is one of the Amazing Facts evangelists, got a very good knowledge of the Bible, does prophecies seven hours across the country, and even in different parts of the world.

Eric Flickinger: That’s correct.

Pastor Jëan Ross: So, we’re glad that you’re here with us tonight, Eric.

Eric Flickinger: Good to be here.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Alright, we’re going to go to the phone lines then. Our next caller is Ordain calling from Orlando, Florida. Ordain, welcome to the program.

Ordain: Thank you. My question is… hello?

Pastor Doug: Yes. We’re here.

Ordain: My question is when the Lord Jesus Christ come back, will everyone speak the same language?

Pastor Doug: Alright. When Jesus comes back, will everybody speak the same language in heaven? We have reason to believe they will, and I say that because if we read in Genesis 11, it tells us that when man did something out of harmony with God’s will, the Lord then confounded or scrambled the languages. So the curse on the languages— and that’s where we get the word “Babel” or “babbling” or “Babylon,” they couldn’t understood each other, therefore the name of it was called “Babel”— that will be reversed in heaven because we are in God’s will, we are being blessed, and so that interruption of communication will be gone.

And so I think we don’t know what exactly the language of Canaan will be. Probably whatever language Adam and Eve spoke in the garden before the Tower of Babel is what we’ll speak once again in the kingdom! And we know we’ll see God face to face. We’ll be able to speak to Him then with probably more words on our vocabulary than now.

Ordain: So everyone will be speaking the same language?

Pastor Doug: I believe they will.

Ordain: Okay. Thank you very much.

Pastor Doug: Alright. And you know, while, if you’re still listening, Ordain, we have a book that talks about the gift of tongues, and if you’d like to know more about that, it goes into the languages a little bit. And just call Amazing Facts’ resource number and ask for the book on the gift of tongues.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Alright. The number again is 1-800-835-6747, and Pastor Doug, is the book just called… is it “Captured by Tongues?”

Pastor Doug: Well, we’ve got one by Joe Crews called, “The Gift of Tongues,” and I wrote a book called, “Captured by Tongues,” and then there’s an article called, “The Tower of Babel.” They can go to the Amazing Facts website and look under the magazine articles that are archived there. I wrote a whole article on the Tower of Babel.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Okay. Great! Let’s go to the phone lines again. Conrad is calling from WMCA from Brooklyn, New York! Conrad, you’re on the air.

Conrad: Yes, good evening.

Pastor Doug: Evening!

Conrad: My question is on the Bible and dinosaurs. What is its take on it?

Pastor Doug: Well, the Bible does tell us that, you know, there are all kinds of creatures that God made in the beginning— not all of them are named. We can see from fossil evidence that there were lots of different creatures that are now extinct— many of them bigger. Not only were there great reptiles— and that’s where we get the word for dinosaurs like “Thunder Lizards,” these great big thundering lizards— but there were great mammals that are extinct. They had beavers and mastodons and saber-tooth tigers and moose and giant sloths that are about four times bigger than anything in the world today that were mammals. So, after the Flood, a lot of animals and a lot of species were rendered extinct. We just… we seriously disagree with the dating methods that some biologists used to date the dinosaurs to millions and billions of years ago— well, millions, not billions. So, yeah, they existed. I think God made them, and I think that the Lord tried to preserve all that could not survive in the waters on the ark.

Pastor Jëan Ross: You know, there is an interesting verse that you read in Job 40:15.

Pastor Doug: Leviathan.

Pastor Jëan Ross: You’ve got Leviathan, but there’s another one.

Eric Flickinger: Behemoth.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Behemoth.

Pastor Doug: Yeah.

Pastor Jëan Ross: And let me just read a quick description of it. It says that “he eats grass as an ox, his strength is in his loins—in his legs, his force is in his belly, his mouth…” oh, “he moveth his tail like a cedar tree, his sinews are stones wrapped together, his bones are strong as brass.” So here is this huge animal that has a tail like a cedar tree that eats grass.

Pastor Doug: That wouldn’t be a mastodon.

Pastor Jëan Ross: And that wouldn’t be an elephant.

Pastor Doug: Yeah.

Pastor Jëan Ross: So it’s some animal that we don’t have today.

Pastor Doug: So, yeah, there are a lot of scholars that have speculated about the Leviathan, I think, lived in the sea…

Pastor Jëan Ross: Lived in the sea.

Pastor Doug: …and the Behemoth; so they think maybe one was a pre-historic sea creature and one was a pre-historic or an extinct dinosaur, a land creature. Don’t know, Conrad... you know, one thing I’ll tell you that is interesting, and this brings us back to our offer for tonight about the dragon. All around the world, Conrad, there are legends in every country of flying dragons or even fire-breathing dragons. And most legends are based in some truth. And now, with the fossil record, we know there were great flying reptiles— the pterodactyls and pterodactyls. And when it says fire-breathing… You know, there is a beetle that combines two chemicals in its tail and ejects basically a fire-hot substance. You know, some have said that, from the bones of dinosaurs, it’s entirely possible there were some dinosaurs that could somehow combine chemicals and blast them out. So, who knows? There may have been some truth to that. Very interesting.

Conrad: Okay.

Pastor Doug: Thank you, Conrad. I appreciate your question!

Pastor Jëan Ross: Nathan is listening on the Internet from Texas. Nathan, welcome to the program.

Nathan: Hello. Can you hear me?

Pastor Doug: Yes, loud and clear, Nathan. And your question?

Nathan: Thank you. Thank you for taking my call. Nice to talk to you, Doug, Ross, Eric. My question is does the Bible—I’ve asked many preachers this before, but they pretty much didn’t know how to answer— does the Bible say anything about the UFO phenomenon? Is it related to the occult?

Pastor Doug: Well, first of all, I’m a pilot, and I’ll tell you a quick story. I was flying cross-country with my wife one time, and we spotted a UFO. I got the attention of the guys in the studio when I said that.

Pastor Jëan Ross: [Laughing]

Pastor Doug: And we flew towards it because I’m a curious soul. It was a red flying spaceship that was stationary shining out there. And we flew closer and closer and I thought, “Man, what is this? I’m getting my camera out here. I see a UFO. I’m going to have to change my theology.” Got a little closer, and you know what it was, if someone had a party and they let go one of this big, mylar balloons, it was one of these balloons that had the kind of the metallic surface skin, and it was up there about 10,000 feet floating around. I thought I had a UFO. And the sun was hitting it; it looked different. When I got closer I realized, “It’s a balloon!”

So, a lot of things that had been spotted that someone says, “It was a UFO,” when they investigate it, they find that it was an allusion created by reflections, the windshield, by clouds, by all kinds of interesting phenomenon can create Unidentified Flying Object, at least. You think it’s a UFO. Sometimes, I’ve seen airplanes I thought I spotted a UFO another time. I said this would be a short story. And I got closer and closer and saw some plane was flying with all his landing lights on, and it looked like a UFO because of the angle.

So your eyes play tricks on you up in the sky. And I don’t believe that our planet is being visited by unfallen worlds because, according to the Bible, other than angels that come down, our planet is quarantined right now. We’ve got a contagious disease called “sin” down here, and outside of the hospital staff, that would be the Chief Physician, Jesus, and the attending nurses are the angels. Nobody else is getting involved in this planet until our disease is taken care of. So I don’t believe we’re being visited by other planets right now that are unfallen.

Nathan: So does that mean that these, many of these UFO abductions and cults, it is related to spiritualism?

Pastor Doug: Yeah. It’s either… they’re either allusions that a person misunderstands— someone might be self-deluded— or it could be diabolical intervention.

Nathan: Because I’ve always thought of that because the New Age, there’s many Eastern religions, they say that UFOs come to help us.

Pastor Doug: Oh yeah.

Nathan: But at the same time, you hear many stories about abductions where they stick needles in your eyes…

Pastor Doug: Yeah, well they… Yeah. I think the next time we’re going to get a visit from space, it’s going to be Jesus.

Nathan: Oh, I hope so.

Pastor Doug: Yeah. It says we will be caught up to meet Him in the skies. Yeah, I appreciate that, Nathan. You’re not the only one who wonders about that. Good question.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Our next caller is Ethlyn, listening on WMCA from New York, New York. Ethlyn, welcome to the program!

Ethlyn: Ethlyn. Good evening, Pastors.

Pastor Doug: Evening!

Ethlyn: Okay. My question is when Jesus went to the cross, did He put away His divinity and went to the cross as a mere man?

Pastor Doug: Good question. Well, I believe the answer would be yes, and here’s why—Christ suffered as we would suffer. In other words, He did not have the Father’s assistance through His suffering. That’s why He said, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” He was separated from God as the sinner is separated from God. Now, in another sense, so only Jesus could bear the sins of the whole world, so, you know, only in the shoulders of God the Son could you rest the weight of the sins of the whole world. It would have crushed you and me and any human. But He did suffer in a human body. And He laid aside His divinity when He came to this world— at least, the Omnipresence part of His divinity. I don’t know, did that make sense, Ethlyn?

Ethlyn: Yes, I get to understand that He did not lay aside, He only grow weak with humanity.

Pastor Doug: Well, what I said is He laid aside the omnipresent dimension; in other words, God is omnipresent— He can be everywhere at once. Jesus, when He took on a man’s form, He could not do that. That’s why Christ told the disciples, “It’s expedient for you that I go to heaven that I might send the Holy Spirit.” But He was separated from the Father. It is something of a mystery because Jesus was a 100% man and yet He is a 100% God. When they first came to arrest Him and they said, “We’re looking for Jesus,” He said, “I am He.” Well, at that point, divinity flashed out of Him and they all fell backwards. You remember?

Ethlyn: Yes.

Pastor Doug: We read about that in the Gospel of John. So, but, you know, once He resigned Himself to His sufferings, He used none of His divinity to deliver Himself.

Ethlyn: Okay.

Pastor Doug: So in that sense, He laid aside His divinity. He didn’t use any supernatural ability to relieve the suffering or to deliver Himself.

Ethlyn: Okay.

Pastor Doug: See what I’m saying?

Ethlyn: Yes.

Pastor Doug: He didn’t use His God-powers. Well, I hope that helps a little bit, and…

Ethlyn: Okay.

Pastor Doug: …I appreciate your question, Ethlyn. God bless you.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Okay. Glenn is listening on KFHL from Bakersfield, California. Glenn, you’re on the air. Glenn, you there?

Glenn: Hello?

Pastor Doug: Hi, Glenn! You’re on. Your question?

Glenn: Hi! Yeah. My question is it possible to live a sinless life after you’ve been baptized and given your heart to Jesus?

Pastor Doug: Is it possible with God? How much is possible with God?

Glenn: All things.

Pastor Doug: Alright. There’s your answer.

Glenn: Okay.

Pastor Doug: Do most people do it? No. Is it possible? Yes, because with God, all things are possible.

Glenn: Okay. Well, thank you.

Pastor Doug: I want to get the other pastors to weigh in on that. There, what do you think? Does that make sense?

Pastor Jëan Ross: Let me read a verse. It says, speaking of Christ, “Now unto Him that is able to keep you from falling and present you faultless.” And that’s good news. Christ is able to keep us from falling.

Pastor Doug: That’s right.

Eric Flickinger: “I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.”

Pastor Doug: That’s right. Another good one. Yeah. Otherwise, if Christ is our example and if we follow a sinless Lord, then we have a sinless example. And a Christian is described to be like Jesus Who was perfect. So, hope that helps a little bit. By the way, we do have a book that’s called, “Is it Possible to Live without Sinning?” and that really addresses that subject.

Eric Flickinger: Many Christians kind of resign themselves to the idea that, “Well, I’m going to fall. I’m going to sin,” and so forth, but when we resign ourselves to that opinion, we kind of give the devil the upper hand. Like the devil’s strong enough to make us sin, but God’s not strong enough to help us from it.

Pastor Doug: That’s right. You need to make up your mind, “I’m going to have the victory through Christ,” and don’t set yourself up for failure.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Yeah, we can probably talk quite a bit on the subject. Of course, we need to recognize that Christ is the Source of strength; that’s not us, but it’s Christ. And exercising a living moment by moment faith in Him is the secret to success. Let me give you that resource number, Glenn; it’s 1-800-835-6747. For anyone listening, the book is entitled, “Is it Possible…”

Pastor Doug: “…to Live without Sinning?”

Pastor Jëan Ross: “…to Live without Sinning?” just call 1-800…

Pastor Doug: Provoking title!

Pastor Jëan Ross: …835-6747, and we’d be happy to send that out to you. Nancy is listening from… on WMCA from New York, New York. Nancy, welcome to the program!

Nancy: Thank you. Good evening, Pastor Doug!

Pastor Doug: Evening!

Nancy: Yeah, I have a question. If you could explain, please explain the meaning of the text in Amos 5:18-20. It talks about “the day of the Lord will be darkness and not light.”

Pastor Doug: Well, I’ll do my best. In Amos 5:18, “Woe unto you that desire the day of the Lord. To what end is it for you? The day of the Lord is darkness and not light.” Back in the days of Amos, they were looking forward to the Messiah coming and to saving them from their national enemies they had around them. But they weren’t interested in holiness. And Amos was saying, “You want the day of the Lord and the Messiah to come to vindicate you from your enemies, but if you’re not living a godly life, it’s not going to be good news for you when the day of the Lord comes.” That’s why Jesus says when the Lord comes, “then they will see the sign of the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven, and all the tribes of the earth will mourn the day of darkness for them.” Why? Because the majority of people… “Wide is the way that leads to destruction!”

Pastor Jëan Ross: Also, Pastor Doug, you know, this reference that we just looked at has a particular application to Christ’s first coming into the Jewish nation. You read in John 1:1, speaking of the Word, “The Word was with God…” and so on. Then it says, “And the light shined in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.” So Christ came with truth, but the Jewish nation did not receive it.

Pastor Doug: Good point. That’s a good point.

Nancy: Yeah.

Pastor Doug: Yeah. When He did finally come the first time, it was darkness for them; it was seemed obscure.

Pastor Jëan Ross: That’s right.

Pastor Doug: They did not understand it.

Nancy: So, actually, this text has to do with the first coming, not really related to the second coming?

Pastor Doug: Well, this would be an example, in my opinion, where it’s a dual application; it’s not only talking about the first coming but the second coming of the day of the Lord for them, if they’re not saved, it is darkness. And keep in mind, Nancy, everybody who has ever lived is going to experience the Day of the Lord. It’s going to either be when Jesus literally comes or when they’re resurrected in the First Resurrection or they’re resurrected in the Second Resurrection, but everybody is going to have their Day of the Lord. That’s why Amos said, “Prepare to meet your God!” Everyone needs to prepare to meet their God. They’re going to have their day. For most of the world, it’s a day of darkness because they just lived selfishly.

Nancy: I see.

Pastor Doug: I hope that helps a little! Don’t be discouraged. It could be… it doesn’t… now, don’t forget, what is it Paul says— is it 1 or 2 Thessalonians? “You are not children of the night that that day should overtake you as a thief; you are children of the day.” So for God’s children, it’s not a day of darkness. Remember what that verse is? Pastor Ross is looking it up real quick. I know it’s in…

Nancy: 1 Thessalonians what?

Pastor Jëan Ross: 5:5.

Pastor Doug: 1 Thessalonians 5:5.

Nancy: Alright.

Pastor Doug: Thank you, Nancy. I appreciate your question.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Hector is listening on the Internet from Connecticut. Hector, welcome to the program!

Hector: Oh, thank you! Thank you. My question is in regards to discussion, to argument… not argument, but debate mostly.

Pastor Doug: Yes.

Hector: I know that Jesus actually debated with the Pharisees… also Paul, he debated with the Greeks. And I’m saddened because I feel like my members or my Pastors of my church running away from every time they have to defend their theology. By the way, we are of the same faith, Pastor Doug.

Pastor Doug: Okay. Well, you know, there’s two extremes you can go when it comes to discussing. If a person gets involved in a debate and it’s just a platform for argument, and nobody is open to truth, then, you know, you wonder how much good it is. I often have… there are other radio speakers, I ran into one a couple of months ago. He’s got a radio program like this, and I said, “Brother, if you ever have any questions, you give me a call. I’d be happy to talk about them with you.” The reason I want to do that is I don’t really expect him to change his point of view, but others will be listening, and I want to reach them.

And the reason that Jesus debated with the scribes and the Pharisees— it was usually in a public forum; others were listening. I’ve been in Christian debates with other religious leaders when there are others listening. And you’re hoping that people will recognize the truth. And, you know, I also want to keep my mind and heart open; I don’t know everything. And so, when you engage in these discussions where you’re defending different doctrines, you know what, the Bible says, “As iron sharpens iron…” Sometimes, I’ve gotten into passionate discussions with friends of mine, and both of us are sharpened by it in our theology.

Hector: Absolutely. But that’s exactly what I meant. I mean, it’s more for the benefit of the public, because you don’t want to have a debate in private for what reason. But mainly, I see that many of our Pastors nowadays, every time they are invited by other denominations, it’s commonly because of your theology, “Let’s see if what you’re saying is the truth,” they renegade and perceive, “No, there’s nothing going to be… there’s nothing beneficial.”

Pastor Doug: I’ve done it. I’ve been invited on TV to debate with two or three other ministers. You know, they’re friendly discussions, but will bring up a subject we vastly disagree upon, and you can do it in a Christian way. I enjoy those opportunities because I think that the truth is easy to defend.

Hector: [Laughing] You’re one of the rare ones, Pastor [laughing]. You’re one of the rare ones.

Pastor Doug: I’m just loud, that’s what it is.

Hector: [Laughing] Thank you for the answer. I mean, I just would like to see… I believe that we’re living in the end of times even with everything that is happening right now— the economy…

Pastor Doug: Oh yeah.

Hector: …the visit of the Pope. All these things to me is like “Aargh…”

Pastor Doug: Yeah, well, we need to speak up. Someone needs to…

Hector: We’re right there. Someone needs to speak up.

Pastor Doug: We need to give the trumpet a certain sound. I had a friend who said, “This isn’t the end of the world, but you can see it from here.” [Laughing] So we’re getting close. Thanks, Hector. Appreciate your question.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Jessica is listening on the Internet from California. Jessica, welcome to the program!

Jessica: Hi, Pastor Ross!

Pastor Doug: Evening!

Jessica: Good evening, Pastor Doug! Can you hear me?

Pastor Doug: Yes, loud and clear.

Jessica: Yeah. Just a follow-up about that question a while ago when it says in the Bible, and you always say that, Pastor Doug, that if Jesus will come, all eyes would see Him. Is that the first time or the second… after the millennium?

Pastor Doug: Well, obviously, when Jesus comes the first time, when it says, “Every eye will see Him,” it’s speaking of every eye alive on the world. And some have said, “Well, how is the whole world going to see Him at the same time?” It does not say “at the same time” in the verse. It just means that day everyone will see Him as He sweeps around the circle of the earth and the saints are caught up to meet Him in the air. When He descends from Heaven, the wicked are not resurrected until the end of the 1,000 years, and that’s— what is it, Eric— Revelation 20:5, I think? And at that time, they’ll see Him when they’re resurrected, but it won’t be the same time that the righteous in the city— they’ve already been seeing Him for a 1,000 years. So as we’ve said earlier, everybody’s going to have their Day of the Lord when they all see Him.

Jessica: Yeah.

Pastor Doug: Some will see Him come at the end of the 1,000 years— the wicked.

Jessica: Yeah, it confuses me because of it is “all eyes,” means that the dead in Christ will see Him, right?

Pastor Doug: Well, the verse you’re referring to where it says, “Every eye will see Him”— I think that’s Revelation chapter 1…

Eric: Verse 7

Pastor Doug: …verse 7, that’s talking about the second coming.

Jessica: Okay. It doesn’t refer to the first coming then? That “all eyes…”

Pastor Doug: No, that’s referring to when He comes next, everyone alive will see Him. It’s not a secret coming.

Jessica: Yeah, it’s not so clear thought so that’s why I’ve been confused when, because I know I heard also from one of the Pastors that there’s also a third resurrection… something like that?

Pastor Doug: Well, the third resurrection… the only person that’s got a third resurrection is somebody who is resurrected and then they die and they’re lost— they’re in the special resurrection like Caiaphas, and then they die at the Second Coming, and then they’re raised again for judgment at the end of the 1,000 years. Is that the way you understand it?

Jessica: Yeah. That’s what I… yeah.

Pastor Doug: Those are rare exceptions, Jessica, and… but, yeah, that’s true. There’ll be some like Jesus said to Caiaphas, “Hereafter, you’ll see the Son of Man coming on the right hand of power.” He’s going to be raised to see the Second Coming. I appreciate your question. Let’s see if we can get a couple more, Pastor Ross.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Alright. Bee is listening on KFIA from Essex, California. Bee, welcome to the program.

Bee: Good evening, Pastors.

Pastor Doug: Evening!

Bee: [clears throat] Excuse me, I have a cold. I have a conflicting-of-my-spirit question. My daughter wants to get married on the Sabbath, and I need to know where in the Bible I can find the answers to whether I am biblically able to attend her wedding or not biblically able to attend.

Pastor Doug: Well, that is a challenging question. Well, let’s look at this two ways. If you’re a Bible Christian, you generally don’t want to plan a wedding on the Sabbath, because there’s so much preparation and work connected with a wedding.

Bee: Correct.

Pastor Doug: You know, as Pastors, we’ve seen a lot of them, and it is a lot of work that goes into it. That’s not good for a day of rest. But what if you have someone that doesn’t believe in the Sabbath and they’re getting married on that day? Well, if you’ve got family, of course, marriage is sacred; you would want to support your family members. I’ve actually been to attend the wedding of friends before that were on the Sabbath. They were not believers. I wanted to support them. I was there for the sacred part, and when they went into the reception, and it started getting, you know, out of hand, I just excused myself because it’s not in harmony with Christian Sabbath-keeping.

So those can be difficult, especially when it’s close family, as you said, children. I think for years to come, you’re going to want to have a relationship with your children. I think you ought to show them your love and support. And, you know, do your best to be there and you may not be there for all of it but we will pray God gives you wisdom, okay?

Bee: Okay. Is there anything in the Bible that I can read up on that?

Pastor Doug: Yup. I’ll tell you real quick. Jesus says, “If any man loves a father, son, mother…”

Pastor Jëan Ross: Daughter.

Pastor Doug: “…more than Me, they’re not worthy of Me.” So make sure your love for Christ is supreme and also show your love for your family.

Pastor Jëan Ross: And as Pastor Doug mentioned, there is nothing wrong with attending a wedding on the Sabbath; it’s a holy occasion. But it’s what comes afterwards that often is a challenge.

Pastor Doug: Yeah, when they pull out the cork…

Pastor Jëan Ross: That’s right.

Pastor Doug: …and the dancing and the music often can be… gets a little reckless. I appreciate that. I hope that helps a little, Bee.

Pastor Jëan Ross: Next caller is Eric listening on KCSH from Washington. Eric, welcome to the program.

Eric: Hi! Good evening, gentlemen!

Pastor Doug: Evening!

Eric: I appreciate your show. The question I’ve got, my daughter and I have actually been studying together and the question she rose to me, of course, we are to keep the Ten Commandments and we are to… or we do not keep the, you know, sacrifice of animals anymore, of course, because of Jesus’ death. But there are, you know, other regulations or—I don’t know if you want to call them rituals—or God-given directives. One specific would be head-covering. And what, you know, what does it say about that? I haven’t been able to give her a good answer as far as why that’s been done away with or it hasn’t been done away with? You know, she’s studying the Bible to try to find out, you know, how to follow God.

Pastor Doug: Well, you know, I think a key in the chapter in 1 Corinthians 11, where it talks about the covering of the head— there’s really only one chapter that deals with that. And Paul says in verse 16, “If any man seems to be contentious, we have no such custom, neither the churches of God.” Now, the very fact that Paul mentions the word “custom,” I think he’s dealing with customs of respect. The interesting thing is that if you go into a Jewish church today, you need to cover your head. If you go into a Christian church with your baseball cap on, it’s considered disrespectful. Well, if I go to a Jewish church, I’m putting on my yamaca. If I go into a Christian church, I’m taking off my hat. So it’s a custom of respect. And so, you know, you want to show respect.

In Bible times, especially, a woman showed humility and respect by covering her head when she was in a place of worship, especially if she was going to be praying in public. And I still see parts of the world today where Orthodox churches, the ladies cover their heads up.

We’ve run out of time, Eric. I hope I’ve got enough of an answer in there that it’ll help you a little bit. I want to thank again Eric Flickinger for joining us tonight. Didn’t give him much chance to say anything…

Eric Flickinger: Maybe another time.

Pastor Doug: Well, yeah. We’ll have to have you back.

God bless you, friends! Remember that we’re totally self-supporting. We’d love to hear from you! Go to the website, amazingfacts.org and you can send Bible questions and contact us there. Mostly, remember, it’s all about Jesus. He is the Truth that will set you free!

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