Hello friends, this is Doug Batchelor. How about an amazing fact?
Can you imagine living 4 centuries? A team of scientists from Bangor University in the United Kingdom believe they have found an animal that did just that—a quahog clam. This creature has been living and growing on the seabed 260 feet down in the cold waters of the north coast of Iceland for around 400 years. When this animal was a juvenile, the King James Bible was still being translated, Shakespeare was writing Hamlet, and the pilgrims had not yet landed on Plymouth Rock.
According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the existing record for the longest lived animal belongs to a 220-year old quahog clam collected in 1982 from American waters. This record now appears to have been eclipsed by the latest specimen whose age is estimated at between 405 and 410 years by counting the annual growth lines in the shell. The Bangor scientists are Sclerochronologists who study the growth and age of clams using the annual growth lines in the shell, much the same way as Dendrochronologists study the growth of trees by looking at the tree rings.
The team analyze the shell growth histories to understand changes in the ocean linked to climate change. A detailed examination later confirmed that at 400-plus years, the clam had beaten the previous record by a massive 180 years. It’s very likely that even older individuals of the species are out there. Icelandic waters seem to provide the ideal conditions for very old clams.
So, why do these brainless clams live so long? The Bangor scientists are intrigued to find out and believed the clams have exceptionally effective defenses which hold back the destructive aging process that normally occurs. It is possible that an investigation of the tissues of these real life Methuselahs might help us to understand the process of aging. Did you know, the Bible also offers several practical tips to greatly lengthen your earthly lifespan? 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: Hello, listening friends! Welcome once again to Bible Answers Live and you have found your way to a live, international, interactive Bible study. If you have a Bible question, lines are open so pick up your phone. Call that toll-free number, one more time, it’s 800-GOD-SAYS. And that stands for 463-7297, if you want the actual numerical digits, 463-7297, toll-free, 800. And good chance you will get your call on tonight’s broadcast. We deal with Bible questions. If you have a question relating to the Word of God, we do our best to study the Bible resources we have here at our fingertips here in the studio. And we’ll seek and look for the answers together. My name is Doug Batchelor.
Pastor Jëan Ross: My name is Jëan Ross. Good evening, listening friends. And Pastor Doug, before we go to the phone lines, let’s start with prayer. Dear Lord, we thank You, again, that we’re able to gather together to study Your Word over the airwaves. We ask Your blessing upon this program. Be with those who are listening wherever they might be. Father, we pray that the Holy Spirit would open our minds to the truths of Scripture. For this, we ask, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.
Pastor Doug: Amen.
Pastor Jëan Ross: You opened the program by talking about a clam that lived for over 400 years. Now, I’ve heard about turtles, or tortoises, rather, that’s lived, well, over a hundred and almost 200 years.
Pastor Doug: I met one in Australia that was, I guess, the oldest. It was… the tortoise’s name, Harriet that had actually been collected by Darwin. And had… it went to England and made its way back to Australia and was… it was in the Australian zoo, but just passed away about a year and a half ago. 175-plus years.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Wow! But the clams got it beat by several hundred years.
Pastor Doug: Yeah. If they could talk and tell us what they experienced. But it probably wasn’t too exciting, they’re on the ocean floor.
Pastor Jëan Ross: [Laughing]
Pastor Doug: But they’re still intrigued by how there could be this creature in our day and age that live so long—the cells don’t break down and experience the same degeneration that other creatures have and they’re wondering if they can find some secret. Of course, eating clams has proven to be very bad for your health. Now, they’re wondering if maybe the clam knows something that they can pass on. It’s just too bad they don’t have a brain and they can’t tell us. But the Bible does give us secrets that not only will tell us how we can have eternal life. But even here in this world, God tells us things in His Word so we can have a longer, stronger life. In Amazing Facts, one of our most popular lessons is dealt with the study guide on what the Bible says about health called, “God’s Amazing Health Plan.” And we’d like to give that tonight to anybody that would simply like to ask for.
Pastor Jëan Ross: To receive the study guide, “God’s Free Health Plan,” Amazing Facts study guide, call the resource line. That’s 1-800-835-6747. Again, 1-800-835-6747. Ask for the study guide, “God’s Free Health Plan,” and we’ll be happy to send that out. You know, Pastor Doug, we have a brand new website also dedicated to the subject of what the Bible says with reference to health. It’s called, “Amazing Health.”
Pastor Doug: Yes. And that’s the… the website is simply amazinghealth.com. And if people go there, they’re going to find just a tremendous array of information on what the Bible says—everything from, you know, what the Bible says about the importance of exercise. People are surprised that the Bible addresses nutrition and that it addresses the benefits of sunlight, of water on the inside and out; how important rest is—the Bible really talks about these things. And you know, all of us would like to have the experience of Moses where you… he not only lived a long time, 120 years. But the Bible says when he was ready to die, he climbed the mountain and died, and his eye had not dimmed, and his natural force had not abated, his mind was clear.
You know, when the day does come when you’re going to die, it’d be nice if everything just sort of stop all at once. But because of the poor living habits of Moses, especially Americans, a lot of folks spend the last 30 years of their life dying. And that’s why our health system is in shambles. If everybody sort of fell over when they got to 95, you wouldn’t have the health system bankrupt right now. But there’s so much sickness because of, largely, the lifestyles. And I guess there’s a pond in there largely for lifestyle.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Well, you know, also Pastor Doug, talking about Moses, Caleb was one of the spies that went out and looked at the land and came back…
Pastor Doug: Right.
Pastor Jëan Ross: …and of course, he and Joshua entered into the Promised Land. And then, when the land was being conquered and divided up, Caleb said that he and his family—his tribe—would take on the giants of the land. And here is an old man leading his force into battle! So, he was still in good shape for being, you know, that old.
Pastor Doug: And he says he was 85 at that time. He says, “I am as strong now as I was when I left Egypt…”
Pastor Jëan Ross: That’s right.
Pastor Doug: “…for both going out and coming in for war.” So here’s a man, 85 years old, that’s ready to go to war with giants. And he won the war, actually.
Pastor Jëan Ross: That’s right.
Pastor Doug: And of course, he was eating God’s food for 40 years in the wilderness.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Something to that. Friends, again, the website is called amazinghealth.com and there’s a magazine, which you can order right on the website that you can share with somebody else. You can read it yourself, “Secrets of Living a Healthy Long Life.”
Pastor Doug: That’s right.
Pastor Jëan Ross: We’re going to go to the phone lines. Glenn is calling from Stockton, California. Glenn, welcome to Bible Answers Live.
Glenn: Hello, good evening!
Pastor Doug: Evening, Glenn, and your question tonight?
Glenn: Yeah. I really am interested in the last day events and my question for Pastor Doug was, is Satan literally going to play a—I guess an impersonation in the last days—literally impersonate Christ. I mean, here on the earth, are we actually going to be able to see this unfold? Is this going to be real? And what’s the timeframe?
Pastor Doug: Well, yes. Satan, I believe, his masterpiece of deception is going to be to impersonate Christ. The big question people often grapple with is, will Lucifer—or the Devil or Satan—will he possess a person and use this person to manipulate his agenda? Or will he really appear as, you know, a… the Messiah or Christ, this allusion? It does say that there’s going to be men that will come in the name of Christ. And you can read that, of course, in Matthew 24:4, “Take heed that no men deceive you. For many will come in My name saying, ‘I am Christ,’ and deceive many.” I met someone, or probably met a couple, that have told me that they are Jesus in my life. That they’ve said, ‘I’m Jesus.’ But I think Satan’s masterpiece is going to be he will create some allusion where he actually tries to appear to be Christ.
Pastor Jëan Ross: 2 Corinthians 11:14 says, “Marvel not, for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.” So he can appear as a messenger from God and he can deceive many.
Pastor Doug: Yeah. I think his argument before God is going to be, “God, You came to earth and took on the form of a man to show what You believe. I want to appear to man to show what I believe.” And so, in the last days, he’s basically going to counterfeit Christ.
Pastor Jëan Ross: And you know, the stage has been set for that, Pastor Doug, just perfectly. You have everybody waiting for some type of Messiah…
Pastor Doug: That’s right.
Pastor Jëan Ross: ...of course, the Christians waiting for Jesus to come the second time. You’ve got the Jews still waiting for the Messiah…
Pastor Doug: Messiah.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Even the Muslims are looking for a coming of…
Pastor Doug: The Imam, yes.
Pastor Jëan Ross: …their Great Teacher. The Buddhists are waiting for another reincarnation.
Pastor Doug: The 5th Buddha they’re waiting for. And the Hindus are waiting for the reincarnation of Krishna. So yeah, the major religions of the world are all poised to embrace someone who would come and say, “I am Christ.”
Pastor Jëan Ross: Right.
Pastor Doug: But Jesus said, when He comes next time, He doesn’t come down—we go up.
Glenn: Right.
Pastor Doug: He said no, His feet won’t touch the ground. We are caught up to meet Him in the air. That’s why He said, “If they say, ‘Behold He’s in the desert,’ or if ‘He’s in secret chambers,’ believe it not. For when He comes, it’ll be like lightning shining from the east to the west.” Now, does that..? I don’t know if that answers your question, Glenn.
Glenn: Yeah, just the timeframe I was wondering. And we’re not sure the end here and I’m just wondering about a timeframe. What significant role to that place…
Pastor Doug: Boy...
Glenn: …up until the coming of Christ?
Pastor Doug: I just actually wrote a letter this last week. Anybody that… it’ll appear at the Amazing Facts website probably in a couple of weeks that deals especially with the timeframe for Satan impersonating Jesus. And as Pastor Ross just said, the scenarios of the world are everyone is looking for someone now. I personally think there’s going to be some other kind of natural or financial disaster…
Glenn: Right.
Pastor Doug: …and out of fear people around the world are going to be looking for—I don’t know if it’ll be a pandemic that, you know, Jesus said in last days there’ll be plagues.
Glenn: Yes.
Pastor Doug: And you know, if we have a pandemic like the black plague or like the flu of 1918 or got million… more people died during that plague than World War II killed. And that was 50 million! So if you have a plague like that sweeping the world, people become very religious very quickly…
Glenn: Yes.
Pastor Doug: …and if someone suddenly appears and says, “I can heal. I am the representative of God on earth,” they’ll embrace just about anyone to save them. So that is not far away.
Glenn: Yeah.
Pastor Doug: Hey, I appreciate your question, Glenn, and we do have a study guide that talks about the Antichrist; and that shares a little light on that subject.
Pastor Jëan Ross: The study guide is entitled, “Who is the Antichrist?” There is also another study guide that talks about the Second Coming of Christ and also about Satan’s…
Pastor Doug: That’s even better.
Pastor Jëan Ross: …yeah, impersonation of that. It’s called, “The Ultimate Deliverance.” So two study guides that you can ask for this evening. The number to call is 1-800-835-6747, that’s our resource line. You can ask for “The Ultimate Deliverance,” study guide on the Second Coming, and also the study guide entitled, “Who is the Antichrist?” Our next caller is Loretta and she’s calling from Savannah, Tennessee. Loretta, welcome to the program!
Pastor Doug: Loretta, you’re on the air!
Loretta: Hello?
Pastor Doug: Yes! Go ahead.
Loretta: Can you hear me?
Pastor Doug: Yes, Loretta, can you hear us?
Loretta: Okay.
Pastor Doug: Hi.
Loretta: I’ve got about 50 million questions but I’ll only ask one.
Pastor Doug: Alright.
Loretta: In 2 Timothy chapter 3, it talks about being “incontinent.” What does that mean?
Pastor Doug: 2 Timothy chapter 3. Let me go there real quick. What… any verse particularly you’re looking at?
Loretta: I think it maybe 5 and 7 or something. I’m not exactly sure.
Pastor Doug: Well, I’m looking here. You know that is a…
Loretta: I believe it is in 2 Timothy 3.
Pastor Doug: Yeah, I believe you, too. And I’ve heard the word right now and you know why I’m looking, is I want to find it. Pastor Ross will type that in for us. And I want to find it and then look at a cross reference with another translation because that’s a, I think, a King James word.
Pastor Jëan Ross: It’s 2 Timothy 3:3.
Pastor Doug: Okay. Let me go…
Pastor Jëan Ross: Talking about those at the end of time, “Without natural affectionate—or without natural affection—truce breakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those who are good.”
Pastor Doug: Yeah, in the New King James, it says, “Without self-control, brutal, despisers of good.” So “incontinent,” it sounds like those who have no self-control.
Loretta: Oh, okay.
Pastor Doug: The word… yeah, “continent” there would mean, like, “in control.” They’re without that.
Loretta: Okay. Well, thank you.
Pastor Doug: Alright. Thank you. Hey, we learned something together. Appreciate your question, Loretta.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Next caller is Michael, calling from Michigan. Michael, welcome to the program!
Michael: Hi, gentlemen. How you doing tonight?
Pastor Doug: Good! How are you, Michael?
Michael: Good, good! Yeah, my question has to do with the sin against the Holy Spirit—the unforgivable sin.
Pastor Doug: Yes.
Michael: I don’t know if it was Paul that stated that if someone committed it, don’t even bother praying for them. And I was always concerned about, you know, could you commit it unknowingly or exactly what it is, and would you comment on it?
Pastor Doug: Yeah. Well, of course, Jesus—in Matthew 12—is the One who first mentions all manner of sin and blasphemy will be forgiven a demand. But blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.
Michael: Right.
Pastor Doug: And I think you’re referring to what John says, “There is a sin that leads unto death.” And what would…
Pastor Jëan Ross: 1 John 5:16.
Pastor Doug: There you go. You want to read that for us, Pastor Ross?
Pastor Jëan Ross: Yes. “If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death, I do not say that thou should pray for it.” 1 John 5:16.
Pastor Doug: Okay. So your question is, you know, how do you know if you’ve committed it?
Michael: What… no, I was just wondering what it is. I mean, you know, how can you commit that sin? I mean, can you do it unknowingly? I mean, I would like to…
Pastor Doug: Yes. See, let me tell you as simply as I can what I believe the unpardonable sin is. It’s not murder, because there are murderers that will be in Heaven.
Michael: Right.
Pastor Doug: David was guilty of that as was Moses, technically. And it’s not adultery, it’s not even infanticide—as much as you would think that’s unforgivable, Manasseh made his children pass through the fire to pagan gods and God forgave him when he prayed in prison in Assyria. It is hard for us to imagine how merciful God is. So it’s not that it is a specific sin. It’s not like a sin of commission. This sin against the Holy Spirit is when we grieve away the Holy Spirit by refusing to listen. Probably a simple analogy would be when God tells us His will and we consistently refuse to hear His will, the volume of the Holy Spirit goes down. Have you ever played one of the old volume knobs? Not all appliances have them anymore, when you can keep turning the volume down, but eventually hear it go, “click.”
Michael: Right.
Pastor Doug: And you know it’s off.
Michael: Right.
Pastor Doug: Well, a lot of people do that over the course of their life. They are turning the volume down, they resist God’s Spirit. It’s like living by the railroad track. Pretty soon, they don’t hear the train anymore. But eventually, it goes “click.” And they lose their capacity to even repent of their sins so they can’t…
Michael: Is that where…
Pastor Doug: …be forgiven.
Michael: Like I say, where the hard wax is cold?
Pastor Doug: Yeah. Another term that the Bible uses is, “They sear their conscience with a hot iron.” They basically, you know, lose their conviction of sin and the desire to turn from their sins.
Michael: Okay.
Pastor Doug: They lose the capacity… for instance, the devil has committed the unpardonable sin.
Michael: Right.
Pastor Doug: There’s a couple of examples in the Bible—two or three I can name of individuals that apparently committed the unpardonable sin. One would be Judas, of course. When Jesus washed Judas’ feet, I think he still had the chance to repent and that he probably felt a struggle in his heart. But he braced himself against his conscience; he went out and he sold Jesus. It’s interesting that it says, “Satan entered him.” It’s like he had rejected Christ, he went out into the night and Satan entered him. Afterward, he hung himself. He couldn’t find any repentance or forgiveness after that.
Then you’ve got King Saul who, at one point, was filled with the Spirit and was on the right course but then he became proud, he resisted the counsel of God, and eventually, he got in trouble and he was trying to get some information because he was scared, for God wouldn’t speak to him anymore. He had grieved away the Holy Spirit. And he fell on his sword, he killed himself. So the sin against the Holy Spirit is sort of self-destruction by rejecting the Spirit of God.
Michael: Okay.
Pastor Doug: When God’s…
Michael: I thought he was somewhere along the line, like, backsliding?
Pastor Doug: Yeah. Well, it’s perpetual backsliding. We can keep backsliding to the point where there’s no recovery.
Michael: Okay. Okay, I thought it was just like some kind of like blaspheming word or something like that, that you know…
Pastor Doug: No. Well, for… you know, of course, that would be a sin. You don’t want to shake your fist at heaven and use His name in vain. But think about it, Jesus says in Matthew 12…
Michael: I know…
Pastor Doug: “All manner of sin and blasphemy will be forgiven.” He goes on to say, “You can speak a word against the Son and it’ll be forgiven.” So obviously, you know, if you could shake your fist and curse at Jesus and be forgiven, you could probably shake your fist and curse at the Holy Spirit and be forgiven. Blasphemy…
Michael: So in other words, in a…
Pastor Doug: Go ahead.
Michael: …in a nutshell… okay. In other words, in a nutshell, it’s just somebody that keeps rejecting, rejecting, rejecting until the point of, you know, until they die and, you know, they can’t be forgiven. Right?
Pastor Doug: That, in a nutshell, you’re right.
Pastor Jëan Ross: You know, when you look at the word “blasphemy” in the Bible, of course, Jesus says every sin will be forgiven except the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, the Bible defines blasphemy as “a person taking the place of the Holy Spirit.” or “a person taking the place of God.” When someone says, “You know, I’m not going to do what God says. I don’t need the conviction of the Holy Spirit. I can rely upon my own wisdom to figure out what’s right or wrong,” and they set aside the statements of God, they’re moving towards that precipice of the sin against the Holy Spirit. Another definition for blasphemy is where “a person claims the power to forgive sins.” So when a person justifies his own behavior and says, “Ah, no. That’s not sin. I know the Bible says that but I don’t have to worry about that,” they’re moving in the direction of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.
Pastor Doug: You know we’d like to do for you, Michael, is we have book that we’ll send you that has a lot more texts on this and it explains it really clear. It’s called, “Point of No Return,” by Joe Crews; “Point of No Return,” and anybody listening, if you’d like a free copy of “Point of No Return,” call the Amazing Facts resource line.
Pastor Jëan Ross: The number is 1-800-835-6747. Ask for the book, “The Point of No Return.” We’ll be happy to send that out. Again, 1-800-835-6747. Our next caller is Cindy, calling from Miami. Cindy, welcome to the program!
Cindy: Hello?
Pastor Doug: Hi, Cindy, you’re on the air! And your question. Are you there Cindy?
Cindy: Hello?
Pastor Doug: Yes, Cindy, you’re on the air. Can you hear us? It sounds like she’s hearing the delay. Let’s try it one more time. Cindy, can you hear us?
Cindy: Yes. Hello?
Pastor Doug: Yes, you’re on the air at Bible Answers Live.
Cindy: Oh, hi.
Pastor Doug: Hi, your question.
Cindy: Hi, yes. I have a question in regards to tithes. If I’m an educator and I am not going to be working over the summer and I have money saved up during the summer to pay bills, do I still need to be giving tithes?
Pastor Doug: Well, you don’t pay tithe on money you saved. You pay tithe on money when it comes in. In other words, the Bible says that it’s a “10th of your increase.” During the harvest—they were an agricultural society—you know, if they got 10 years of corn, they would dedicate one to the service of God in the temple for the priest to minister. And if you got a thousand, you’d dedicate a hundred. And so, tithe was 10% off the top of your increase. If you’ve got money that you saved, assume… presumably, you’ve already paid tithe on your increase. You don’t keep paying on your savings.
Cindy: Okay.
Pastor Doug: Maybe the interests of your savings but not your savings itself.
Cindy: Okay.
Pastor Doug: And God blesses the other 90% that you still have, makes it last a lot longer, when you pay tithe on the income.
Cindy: Okay. I can still give an offering, yeah?
Pastor Doug: Yeah. Well, of course, tithes and offerings are two different things. A tithe is a set amount that God designates for a purpose. It’s for the spread of the Gospel. And you can read about this in Malachi 3:8 where it talks, “Bring the tithes and offerings,” they are two different things. An offering can be, you know, it’s an amount that just as Paul says, “Let every man give as the Holy Spirit impresses him.” It’s not a fixed percentage, it’s just as you feel impressed by the Lord. It could be 50% and you can call it an offering. It’s whatever you want. See what I’m saying?
Cindy: Yes.
Pastor Doug: But tithes and offerings are different.
Cindy: Okay.
Pastor Jëan Ross: You know, we got a study guide dealing with the subject of finances—what the Bible says about tithes and offerings—it’s called, “In God We Trust.” And Cindy, if you’d call our resource line, 1-800-835-6747, ask for the study guide, “In God We Trust,” and we’ll be happy to send that out. Ralph is calling from Fairfield, Connecticut. Ralph, welcome to the program! Ralph, you there? Hello, Ralph?
Ralph: Hi.
Pastor Doug: Hi, you’re on the air, Ralph.
Ralph: Yeah. I just got a question regarding the New Testament commentary on women as pastors or bishops. Could you tell me what the Bible says about that?
Pastor Doug: Well, yes! There is no example in the Bible of a woman serving in the capacity of a Pastor, Priest, Apostle, Elder—that would be the same, Elder and Bishop are really the same word they’re interchangeable.
Ralph: Right.
Pastor Doug: There are women who are serving in the capacity of prophetess. And you do have women that were teaching and God, of course, was speaking through. But the role of the Pastor is kind of a patriarchal role and there’s no example in the Bible of a woman serving that way. Now, I know right now that’s politically not correct but the Bible, if you go by the way God gave it to us, it doesn’t follow the traditions of men. And I have a book I’ve written on that. I’ll be happy to send you a copy, Ralph, if you’d like one.
Ralph: Sure. Do you believe that, you know, we should maintain the biblical standards in today at this day and time?
Pastor Doug: Yeah. God doesn’t change. It says that… God says, “I’m the Lord, I change not,” and “Heaven and earth will pass away but His Word will not pass away.” And the principles that God outlined that men should be the priest leaders in their families and in the churches have not changed. And…
Ralph: Yeah. I see that in 1 Corinthians 11. And I, you know, I’ve been studying the Bible for 31 years so I just want to hear what you have to say about it as well.
Pastor Doug: Alright. Well, if you like a copy of the book, it’s called, “Women in Ministry,” and just came off the press, be happy to send you a copy. Just call the number and ask for it.
Pastor Jëan Ross: The number is 1-800-835-6747, 1-800-835-6747. And the book, “Women in Ministry.” We’d be happy to send that out. Well, we might have time for one more caller before we take our break. Robert is listening from Palm Springs, California. Robert, welcome to the program!
Pastor Doug: Robert, are you there?
Robert: Hello?
Pastor Doug: Yes, Robert. You’re on. Can you hear me?
Robert: Hello?
Pastor Doug: Yeah. We’re having some kind of problem tonight. Robert, can you hear me?
Robert: Yes, I can.
Pastor Doug: Alright. And your question tonight?
Robert: Yeah, Doug. I’m from Palm Springs, California.
Pastor Doug: I know the area.
Robert: I know you do [laughing]. My question is this—on Isaiah 58:13, it mentions of “From one Sabbath to another, all flesh will come and worship before me.” Now, I know that in the Bible, it says we’re going to be transformed into new bodies. Does this mean that in the new Heaven and earth, we’re going to be made back into flesh so that we can come to worship before? I’m confused here.
Pastor Doug: Yeah, quick answer would be yes. You can hear the music coming behind us but you said Isaiah 58:13. I think you’re talking about Isaiah 66, it’s where it says, “From one Sabbath to another.” Isaiah 58:13 also talks about the Sabbath. Yes, we will have real bodies in the Kingdom. It says we’re going to plant vineyards and eat the fruit of them. Adam and Eve were real and when God restores us to paradise and we eat from that tree of life, we’re not going to be spirits. When Jesus rose from the dead, He said, “I am real.” He ate in front of them. He said, “Touch Me. Feel Me. A spirit does not have flesh and bone as you see that I have.” And that was in the Gospel of John chapter 21, I believe. Anyway, friends, we’re going to take a break here in just a moment. We’ve got some important announcements. Make sure—take a pencil, write down amazingfacts.com. You’ll find a lot more there.
[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: We’re back, listening friends. And I expect some have joined us along the way. This is Bible Answers Live. It’s a live, international, interactive Bible study and we do have some phone lines open. And if you want to pick up you phone and give us a call, it’s a toll free phone call—800-463-7297. I almost gave you the resource number. That’s a different number that we give if you’re calling in about some of the free resources. But to get your question on the program tonight, that number is 800-GOD-SAYS, is the acronym. That’s 463-7297, and I’m still Doug Batchelor.
Pastor Jëan Ross: And I’m still Jëan Ross. Well, Pastor Doug, we may go straight to the phone lines. Loretta is calling from Savannah, Tennessee. Loretta, welcome again to the program!
Loretta: Yes. Thank you, Pastors, again. They suggest that I’d call back if I had a second question. I think it was last week, a young man called asking about the mark of the beast and I understand that in Revelation 13, we often think of just the mark of the beast when they’re actually two beasts.
Pastor Doug: Right.
Loretta: Now, the first beast—how do you determine who the first beast is and who is the first beast, if you can tell me? I can’t utilize your written material.
Pastor Doug: Well, that’s too bad that you can’t. You mean, even if you call us, we can’t mail it to you, huh?
Loretta: Correct.
Pastor Doug: Okay. Are you able to listen to a CD?
Loretta: Yes.
Pastor Doug: Well, that’s another option as you might be able to go to the Amazing Facts website and get the CD on the subject of who is the beast. As a matter of fact, I think you can even listen to it. Yes, you can, if you go to the prophecy code website, you can listen.
Pastor Jëan Ross: We’ve got that new website, 666 Truth.
Pastor Doug: Oh, yeah. That’s right.
Loretta: My computer is in the hospital.
Pastor Doug: Oh, alright. Well, you jot it down somewhere and… but I’m going to give you a quick… a quicker rundown and always shocks people. I hesitate to say it on the air because, you know, we got like 3 minutes per phone call.
Loretta: Yes.
Pastor Doug: And just it’s basically, you drop a bombshell and then you go to the next call. But, here it is friends, bombshell! The 2 great beast heads for Christianity in the world are in Europe with Catholicism and in America with Protestantism. The Catholic Church is the first beast that you find in Revelation chapter 13, the United States is the second beast. Protestants and Catholics are going to join together and form a confederacy that is going to embrace some unbiblical teachings and they’re going to force people to obey these laws that conflict with the law of God. Ultimately, they won’t be able to buy or sell—they won’t be able to buy or sell and ultimately, there will be a death penalty. So that is a quick overview. Now, that’s not condemning Protestants—I’m a Protestant. It’s not condemning Catholics—I went to Catholic school. But there are some teachings that are unbiblical teachings that have found their way in most of the churches that are called Babylon. And a lot of godly, good people out there but let’s face it! With all these different denominations, Loretta, we must know that they can’t all be right when they contradict each other so much.
Loretta: Correct.
Pastor Doug: So there’s some strange on the range teachings out there. And God is wanting His people to get back to the Word. In the same way that Nebuchadnezzar told everyone to bow down to the image or they would be killed, they had to choose, “Are we going to obey the commandments of God or the commandments of men?” And when they decided to obey the commandments of God, they went to the fiery furnace but God delivered them. That scenario is going to be repeated in the last days. Revelation has a lot of echoes of Daniel. So that’s a quick overview and… but if you do go to the website called 666truth.com or the Amazing Facts website where we have study guides—prophecy code website—and we’ve got a website called bibleprophecy.com that I think they can listen or watch the programs.
Pastor Jëan Ross: We’ve also got a study guide dealing with the subject of the mark of the beast. You might want to get it…
Pastor Doug: Now, Loretta might not be able to read that but others…
Pastor Jëan Ross: …I’m thinking there’s probably a lot of people now going, “Wow, I never heard that before! Let me study it further,” so to get this, call our resource line, 1-800-835-6747. You can ask for the study guide, “The Mark of the Beast.” You can go to the Amazing Facts website to the library section. You can read, you can even hear sermons dealing with the subject…
Pastor Doug: Yeah, “The Beast, The Dragon, and The Woman,” carries this. Let me just tie off that thought, Pastor Ross. I didn’t just share anything novel and this is not something that my church happens to believe. What I just shared about that interpretation of prophecy is hundreds of years old. It’s what, you know, virtually all the Bible scholars and theologians used to believe and it’s become politically incorrect and unpopular.
Pastor Jëan Ross: That’s why we have Protestant churches today.
Pastor Doug: That’s right.
Pastor Jëan Ross: For those prophecies. Alright, next caller is Chris and he is calling from Brooklyn, New York. Chris, can you hear us?
Chris: Yes.
Pastor Doug: And your question tonight?
Chris: Yes, Pastor Doug Batchelor, I want to know, why does Jesus have holes in His hands?
Pastor Doug: Well, when Jesus was crucified and He rose to life again, God perfectly restored Him when He came back to life but the Lord deliberately allowed the scars in Jesus’ hands and His feet to remain so that, through all eternity, no one would ever question His love again the way Lucifer did when he rebelled. And so Jesus, when rose from the dead, He still had the prints of the nails and the scars in His hands. He still had evidently scar in His side, I assume. He still had the scars in His feet to show us about His love for us.
Now, in the Bible, when it says “in your hand,” that means in your actions; “in your feet” means in your direction, where you go with your life; and by your heart—“by your side” means in your heart. That’s where God took the rib from Adam. The Lord is telling us that if we love Him, we’ll love Him with our hands, and our feet, and our heart. And of course, Jesus had a crown of thorns on His head, and we’ll love Him with our thoughts. And so that’s… it’s a symbol of that, Chris.
Pastor Jëan Ross: You know, in Zechariah 13:6, we have this beautiful verse talking about the scars in the hands of Jesus. “And one shall say unto Him, ‘What are those wounds in thy hands?’ Then He shall answer, ‘These are the wounds which I received in the house of My friends.’”
Pastor Doug: That’s right. Yeah, good point. So does that help a little bit, Chris?
Chris: Yes.
Pastor Doug: Alright.
Chris: Can I ask you another question?
Pastor Doug: Okay, is that a quick one?
Kris: How come I can’t see image? How come I can’t see my dreams?
Pastor Doug: How come you can’t see your dreams?
Kris: Yeah.
Pastor Doug: Well, that sounds like a harder question. What do you mean you can’t see them? How come you can’t see them afterwards?
Kris: Yeah, I don’t see them at all.
Pastor Doug: Well, you know, there’s a part of your brain that deals with dreams. And when you wake up, it closes down pretty quick. Now, you’re about 11 years old; I’ve got a 13-year old, just turned… what is he, 12 now? He turns 13 in about a month, and I woke him up yesterday and I said, “Real quick, Nathan. What are you dreaming?” And he was able to tell me what he was dreaming when I woke him up and asked him. But if you wait 15 minutes, you can’t remember it because that part of your brain sort of shuts down. It’s like Nebuchadnezzar, after he had that dream a little while later, he said, “The thing is gone from me. I can’t remember it.” Alright, who’s next, Pastor Ross?
Pastor Jëan Ross: Next caller is Mark and he is calling from Knoxville, Tennessee. Mark, welcome to the program!
Mark: Yeah, I’m calling about the blasphemy challenge and Pastor’s wager. And I was wondering if those are blasphemy against the Holy Ghost. I hear and I also want to know why people do this. It’s when someone gets on YouTube or in public or whatever, and denies the Holy Ghost on purpose or dares God to strike him dead, and it’s usually atheists who do this. And I want to know, why would the atheists do something they know as dangerous? And is that the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost?
Pastor Doug: Well, I would not say that even if an atheist dares the Lord like that, that automatically means that they’re lost. And the reason is from personal experience. I was an atheist. And I remember saying to my friends at summer camp, “You know, you’re dumb if you believe in God. If there is a God, let Him strike me dead right now. See? There’s no God!” Stuff like that.
Mark: It’s not because an atheist wants to go to hell?
Pastor Doug: Well, no. I don’t think anyone, if they knew about the Lake of Fire, they wouldn’t want to go. But there’s a story real quick where Robert Ingersoll who was a very famous, articulate atheist. He was at a public meeting and he said, “You know, if there’s a God, I’m daring God to strike me dead right here.” And he said as a matter of fact, “Since He’s God, 5 minutes should be enough. I’m going to give Him 5 minutes.” And he was standing there and everybody’s tapping their foot getting very nervous until after 5 minutes went by, wondering if a lightning bolt would come out because he blasphemed God somehow. And after the program, a minister said, “Did he really think he was going to wear out God’s patience with him in 5 minutes?” God is extremely loving and patient. And these atheists that are daring God, that’s like a parent… you know, when a child loses their temper and they dare their parents to, “I just dare you to beat me to death.” Of course, I’m not going to do that. You know what I’m saying?
Mark: Even if God is…
Pastor Doug: Parents might have the authority and be big enough to do it but if they love their children, even their disobedient children, they’re not going to do it just to prove a point.
Mark: Even though God is a God of wrath?
Pastor Doug: Well, there is a limit. As a matter of fact, you know, there are of course cases where God has said enough is enough. And…
Mark: But He’s not quick to…
Pastor Doug: He’s very slow to anger. That’s what… when God revealed Himself to Moses, it said, “He’s slow to anger, He’s long-suffering to us,” for God is so patient; it’s phenomenal. Look at Jesus. All of the abuse…
Mark: Now, someone getting on YouTube and saying there is no Holy Ghost, would that be the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost?
Pastor Doug: Well, there’s certainly blaspheme in God but I wouldn’t say that they could never be forgiven. Because there are other atheists through history that have published things and later, repented and God evidently forgave them. They became devote Christians. So, that’s what I mean. You can’t wear out God’s patience with one event by just waking up someday and saying, “I’m going to put out on YouTube there is no God!”
Mark: What about saying there’s no… since it’s referring specifically to the Holy Ghost, if you used those two words, does that automatically put you in the unpardonable state?
Pastor Doug: No, I don’t think that it does, Mark. That’s what I’m saying. Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, Jesus was not saying that there were two words you’re going to say and then you’ve reached the point of no return. As though you could just dare everybody in the world to say those two words and they’re now automatically forever lost. God is much more patient than that and He doesn’t make it that easy to be lost.
Pastor Jëan Ross: You know, when a person commits the unpardonable sin, it’s not so much God turning away from them but it’s them turning away from God.
Pastor Doug: It’s perpetually their turning away from God. You know Mark, you would also, if you haven’t already done it, please send for the book, “Point of No Return,” and we’ll send it… give you free copy, if you just call.
Pastor Jëan Ross: 1-800-835-6747. Ask for the book, “Point of No Return.” Ree is listening from WMCA from Bronx, New York. Ree, welcome to the program!
Ree: Hi, good evening. My question is in regards to whether this would be more of a traditional function in the church or biblical. Some churches do not want their parishioners to walk down the middle isle when they go to the bathroom or things like that. And I’m just wondering if this is like actually biblical or is this just something a traditional church would want?
Pastor Doug: You know, it’s… and I’m a Pastor, Pastor Ross is a Pastor. I think that it comes from a practical truth that… there’s nothing in the Bible that says, “Avoid the middle isle.” There were places in the Bible that only the high priest could enter and, you know, going in the sanctuary were sort of a direct line through the one door, past the altar, past the lamp where through the Holy Place, only the priest sent could walk in through the middle of the veil into the Holy of holies. But in our day and age, it’s really more of a practical issue. When we’re in the presence of God and the churches engaged in their worship service, you don’t want to do anything to distract people from hearing. And so you want to be as discreet and unobtrusive as possible if you need to excuse yourself.
I was at a service this week and I was just amazed at the people that were sort of getting up and down right in the heart of a very important message. It’s just kind of like, you know, they’re kind of wandering in and out and it was distracting people around that were trying to tune in to the important message that was being given. And my wife and I commented afterward that, you know, we were just surprised by… it’s like people at a baseball game running after hotdog right in the middle of a sermon. I don’t know what they were doing but just they’re all getting up and down. People should be, you know, once you enter into the worship service, unless it’s an emergency—a baby crying or you know…
Ree: Right.
Pastor Doug: …a doctor’s cellphone goes off and he’s got an emergency—people ought to sit tight. Going down the middle isle is usually more distracting and that’s why some churches say, you know, try and exit on the trenches if you have to. That’s, I think, where it comes from.
Ree: Right. Okay, great because that’s what I thought as well. But, like, I’m just trying to figure out what will be the best choice for me like if I was, you know, with a child I was trying to take to the bathroom, what exactly are like… and people are trying to come through the isle, I would be better.
Pastor Doug: I know exactly… and people—most people are understanding. You know, I hear babies crying in my church every week and it doesn’t bother me because I had a whole liter of kids myself. And people understand that. You know, kids are learning when they’re little to control themselves and that’s why it’s a good idea for mothers sometimes to sit near the edge where they can make a discreet exit if they’ve got a little one that’s, you know, still learning to sit still.
Ree: Thank you very much.
Pastor Doug: Appreciate that. Good question!
Pastor Jëan Ross: Daniel is listening on the Internet from Montreal, Quebec. Daniel, welcome to the program!
Daniel: Thank you. I like to know… well, good evening, Pastor Doug and Jëan. I’d like to know about the Sunday law. I keep on hearing about the Sunday law and I don’t find anything in the Bible about it. Could you comment on this, please?
Pastor Doug: Alright, for our friends that are wondering, when the US was established—and is also true in Canada, you’re calling from Quebec—a lot of the pilgrims, it’s interesting, they were fleeing from religious persecution in Europe. But one of the first things that some of them did is they established laws about working on Sunday. They thought, “If God’s going to bless our new country, then we’ve got to keep the Sabbath.” They believe that Sunday was the Sabbath, and so they made laws saying that if you’re doing certain things on Sunday you’re not supposed to do that you could be punished or put in the stocks. And it’s interesting that both in Canada and in the United States, there are still, virtually every State, has some form of Sunday laws still on the books. Very few of them are enforced, kind of like the marijuana laws in California [laughing]. They’re not enforced either but they’re still on the books.
Pastor Jëan Ross: They’re actually called “blue laws.”
Pastor Doug: Yeah, that’s right.
Pastor Jëan Ross: If you look them up on the Internet, you can read by state what are some of the blue laws—some of the strangest stuff. Laws that have been on the books from, you know, over a hundred years.
Pastor Doug: Yeah. Well, you know, there are, in Texas—I think it’s in Texas—there are some laws where it says, you know, you can go to the store and buy a head of lettuce but you can’t buy a hammer.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Yeah.
Pastor Doug: And some stores, you can buy—in the same store, there’s some things you can buy and you can’t buy and… but no one really enforces it.
Pastor Jëan Ross: I remembered Missouri, well, even now, you can’t buy cars on Sunday.
Pastor Doug: Oh, really? Yeah, I didn’t know that. But, you know, there’s another prophecy about, will there be Sunday law enforcement…
Daniel: That’s right.
Pastor Doug: …in the future? And I’m inclined to think that as people panic in the last days and either through, you know, amount in economic catastrophe or, like I said, some flu pandemic or war—who knows what. Christ says it might be a natural disaster. People are going to become very religious in the last days. We know that, Daniel, because it says everyone’s going to be compelled to worship. So suddenly, everyone’s going to get very religious. Something’s going to happen.
Daniel: Right.
Pastor Doug: And in connection with that, they’re going to have a day of worship. Does that make sense?
Daniel: That make sense, yeah.
Pastor Doug: And that’s why a lot of Bible prophecy students believe those Sunday laws will be resurrected. But they’re pretty much in the background now. I don’t very… rarely do I hear of anybody that’s been fined or penalized because of violating one of the old blue laws.
Pastor Jëan Ross: And you know, these blue laws—these Sunday laws—are not just in the United States or in Canada but even in Europe. There are these laws.
Pastor Doug: And they’re much more severe in European countries. I heard Croatia’s really cracking down.
Pastor Jëan Ross: And not be… not being able to buy on a Sunday.
Pastor Doug: Yeah.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Well, thank you for you call, Daniel. We appreciate it. Our next caller is…
Pastor Doug: Oh, by the way, Daniel, we have a book we’ll send you. It’s called, “When Sunday was Three Days Late,” if you like a free copy of that.
Pastor Jëan Ross: That’s a great book. 1-800-835-36… 3747, “When Sunday was Three Days Late.” Our next caller is LJ, listening on WDEF from Knoxville, Tennessee. LJ, welcome to the program!
LJ: Hello, how you doing?
Pastor Doug: Good! How can we help you tonight?
LJ: Okay, basically, one is a question and one is a statement more or less. The book of Judges, Debra—you had made a comment that… you’ve made a comment that there was no women creatures or… that you’ve seen of or what have you. Debra, if I’m not mistaken, was a judge. And my second was, I can’t remember where it was in the Scriptures that Paul came into a town and he had heard the Gospel was being preached and he was surprised. And the thing that surprised him was, other than the fact that the Gospel was being preached, there were two women going around preaching the Word of God and the Gospel and being saved. And I suggest… I’m at work so go ahead and answer that question and thank you very much. May God bless you!
Pastor Doug: Alright. Thank you, LJ. Yeah, no contest on the subject of whether or not Debra was a judge and a prophetess. And I said in my earlier statement that God does speak through women. Women can teach and preach. I have no problem with that. The issue was, can a woman be a Pastor? A lot of people can preach. Children have done preaching before. And so for the Lord to speak through men, women, children, there’s no problem with that. The Lord does that. Jesus said, “On the mouths of babes He has perfected praise.” But as far as being ordained as a Pastor, Debra was not a priest. She was not an Apostle and she was not an Elder, because she was a judge of Israel. That’s a different capacity, that’s sort of an administrative position.
Pastor Jëan Ross: And you know, if you’ve got the gift of prophecy—and of course, the Bible does speak of prophetess or prophets were women—they would have to share their prophecy and often, they do it publicly before a group of people. They would preach, they would share, they would open the Word, they would teach.
Pastor Doug: So, and by the way, also if you like a copy of that book we mentioned earlier, “Women in Ministry,” what the Bible says about that, we’ll be happy to send it to you. I think it’s a very balanced and biblical view on that.
Pastor Jëan Ross: The number, 1-800-835-6747. Ask for the book, “Women in Ministry.” Barry is listening on WMCA from Long Beach, New Jersey. Barry, welcome to the program!
Barry: Good night.
Pastor Doug: Evening! And your question.
Barry: I heard you made some quotations from Isaiah stating about, “I’m the Lord, I change not.” I’m wondering what way God did not change?
Pastor Doug: In what ways does God not change?
Barry: Sure.
Pastor Doug: Well, first of all, His Word does not change because Jesus said, “Heaven and earth will pass away but my Word will not pass away.” In Hebrews—I think it’s chapter 13, Pastor Ross—“Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today and forever.” Christ is referred to as a rock. A rock is enduring and unchanging.
Pastor Jëan Ross: That’s Hebrews 13:8.
Pastor Doug: And so the character of God is always the same. The way that God feels about the sinner does not change and way that God feels about sin does not change. And so you know, the Lord is very consistent all through time and… does this help answer what you’re asking?
Barry: I wonder if His name does not change either.
Pastor Doug: God’s name?
Barry: Right.
Pastor Doug: Well, the Lord reveals Himself a number of ways in the Bible through different names. And He is the same depending on what the event was on earth. Sometimes He would reveal Himself as the El Shaddai or the Jehovah, you know. God had a number of names that He would use to convey aspects of His character, His unchanging character. It’s like a person who’s walking around and looking at a diamond. The diamond is not moving but the people walking around the diamond are looking at it from different angles and they see different ways the light reflects off the facets of that diamond. Well, God is like that. As we look at God through history, He reveals different aspects of His character and sometimes He uses different names to do that.
Pastor Jëan Ross: And of course, back in Bible times, you can read especially in the Old Testament, the names of individuals had far more significance than names today. I mean, we call someone John or Mary. We’re not even aware what the actual meaning of the name is, but…
Pastor Doug: Usually it’s “grandma had the name.”
Pastor Jëan Ross: That’s right. But back in Bible times, for example, Jacob. Look at what that means and how that tied in with his character and who he was.
Pastor Doug: The whole story. You know, you’re in luck, Barry. We just came out with the book called, “The Name of God.” And we will send you a free copy if you ask for it. It’s called, “The Name of God.” And we got to get that in our list, I just remembered, Pastor Ross. It just came off…
Pastor Jëan Ross: 1-800-835-6747, and brand new book called, “The Name of God.” Claire is listening on WMCA from Brooklyn, New York. Claire, welcome to the program!
Claire: Yes. Yes, good…
Pastor Doug: Evening!
Claire: I’d like to know if God does speak… still speaks to people today as He did with Moses and Samuel and those other prophets.
Pastor Doug: I believe it’s rare but I certainly believe He has the power to do that and I’ve met people before that say they audibly heard God speak to them and they said, “Well now, I couldn’t tell you whether it was the voice of God or the voice of an angel. But I heard an audible voice.” And I think that even after Jesus ascended to Heaven, He spoke audibly to Paul.” He spoke to John the Apostle. So, you know, I don’t think God’s power is limited. Unfortunately, a lot of people who probably claim to hear the voice of God—I’m not sure what they’re hearing—there’s just all kinds of people who are making claims out there, “God told me this” and “God told me that.” And then you hear what they’re saying and it sounds ludicrous. So you wonder if they’re hearing it from the Lord or from the other side. But I do think God does also still speak to people today.
Claire: Yes, I think so, too. And I know He will tell people the right thing not anything bad.
Pastor Doug: That’s right. God—you can trust Him that He will. You know, it’s the way I understand it is the better we know the Lord, the more dialed in to His frequency of the Holy Spirit we are, the more we will hear Him speak to us in our hearts and minds and, perhaps, even audibly. So it’s just a question of being tuned in. Pastor Ross, do we have time for one more question maybe?
Pastor Jëan Ross: Yes. Our next caller is Mario and he is calling from Florida. Mario, welcome to the program!
Mario: Hello.
Pastor Doug: Hi, how can we help you tonight?
Mario: Yeah, I have a question about the famine that was in Israel. I think it’s either 1 Kings or 2 Kings?
Pastor Doug: 2 Kings Chapter 6.
Mario: Yeah. What happened was the people was so hungry that they resulted to eating donkey.
Pastor Doug: Yes.
Mario: And in that passage, there’s no… there’s nowhere where it says that God was mad or fierce about it. And I don’t think, you know, being that they had nothing to eat, you know... my question, I guess is this—if somebody is really hungry and they don’t find any other food to eat but the unclean food, is it a sin to do that—to eat the unclean food like the donkey or pig or whatever?
Pastor Doug: Well, you know, I think God is very compassionate and merciful if a person is starving to death that they may do things they normally wouldn’t do. But I still believe it’s wrong. The example of Jesus in the Bible is when He was starving, He would not use His power to satisfy His hunger if it meant sinning. When Daniel wanted to eat, he said, “Look, I’d rather eat nothing than to eat the forbidden food that the king was providing.” So that’s the ideal that God has. You know, Mario, I wish I had more time. You would also appreciate our free offer tonight on “God’s Free Health Plan” that we’ll send if you call the resource number, 800-835-6747.
Listening friends, you can tell that the crescendo of the music behind us is letting us know our time is up. But we love to hear from you. Program doesn’t need to end. Go to amazingfacts.com and we’ll talk later. Bye-bye.
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