Military Powerhouses

Of all these countries, however, the United States of America spends the most, taking up to 42% of the world's military expenditures. In other words, almost half of the world's military investment is made by one country. In fact, if you added up all the military budgets of Europe, China, Russia, Japan, the Middle East, Australia, East Asia, and Latin America, you would still have a sum less than what the United States spends on its armed forces.

For example, just in 2009, the United States spent $607 billion on the military; whereas the country in second place, China, spent only $85 billion. No wonder the United States remains, by far, the most powerfully armed nation on earth; and the world's only military superpower.

The book of Revelation chapter 13 identifies two beasts in the last days that will try to compel a uniform, international worship. It will certainly require a large military to enforce this. Stay with us friends. We're going to learn more as Amazing Facts brings you this edition of Bible Answers Live.

[PROGRAM INTRODUCTION]

PASTOR DOUG: Hello listening friends, and welcome once again to Bible Answers Live. This is my estimation one of the very best ways to use this medium of radio to talk about the Word of God. And if you have any Bible questions, you can participate in tonight's program.

We have lines open right now so pick up your phone and call that toll-free number. The acronym is 1-800-GOD-SAYS, or you can dial 1-800-463-7297 with your Bible questions. My name is Doug Batchelor. Pastor Jëan Ross, our co-host, is right now on an airplane for England; at least, he should be, because that's where I'm heading tomorrow.

As we told our friends last week, we're beginning, on Wednesday evening, a live broadcast from England called, Streams of Light. And we'll be broadcasting on television, on 3ABN, as well as Lifestyle Television, all over the world, as well as streaming on the Internet.

If you'd like to see more information on this, just simply go to amazingfacts.tv. You'll see the information on the Streams of Light program. We encourage you to tune into this live revival broadcast. But I wanted to be with you tonight; so I'm actually leaving one day later than Pastor Ross, so we could do tonight's program.

And before we go to the amazing fact and the questions for tonight, we're going to start with a word of prayer. Loving Father in heaven, we're very thankful once again to be able to come before You, and to seek Your face, and to seek to better know the truth. Be with us now as we meet to discuss the principles of the Word. We pray that the Spirit will be evident in both the questions that are asked, and especially the answers that are given. And ultimately, we pray that You are glorified and Your truth is exalted as a result. We pray in Jesus' name, amen.

Well friends, at the beginning of the program I talked a little bit about the military budget of the United States, which, it actually surprised me. I knew that we probably invested the most, but I didn't know it was so much more. Just take, for example, what I was sharing just this year, even with the financial, international meltdown that has been going on, America still has committed $607 billion on our military.

Whereas China, which is second place of all the countries in the world, only is putting in $85 billion. Now I wouldn't want to match forces man-for-man with China. They obviously have a bigger army, but America really invests heavily in the military technology. And the Bible tells us in the last days that there is going to be a superpower that will link together with a religious influence and compel international worship, on pains of not being able to buy or sell; that would be economic sanctions. And ultimately, on pain of death.

You can find reference to that in Revelation chapter 13, where it talks about this second beast that comes up out of the earth with two horns like a lamb, but he speaks like a dragon. I believe that beast is the United States of America. It starts out a lamb-like beast. A lamb in prophecy is a type of Christ, the lamb who takes away the sin of the world.

But a dragon in Revelation is consistently a diabolical symbol, meaning that this country that was built on Christian foundations is going to begin to speak like a dragon and legislate things that should not be. If you'd like to know more; and believe me friends, I love my country. I have no plans on moving right now, but I know what prophecy says.

But if you want to know more about what the Bible says about America in prophecy, you really need to just make this free phone call and ask for tonight's offer. That number now--this is the number for tonight's free offer, The USA in Bible Prophecy--is 1-800-835-6747. That's 1-800-835-6747.

And if you pulled out your pencil to write that down, also might want to write down amazingfacts.tv to get that information on our live broadcast from the London area; we'll be in England, called Streams of Light, begins on Wednesday evening. Well, it's evening in England. It will be broadcast on 3ABN, a couple of different broadcasts each day. And if you miss a program, you can download the programs at the amazingfacts.tv website.

Tell your friends as well. We all need revival. Well, we're going to go to the phones. We've got a few people who are patiently waiting already. Going to start out by talking with Mark who's calling from Knoxville, Tennessee, listening on WITA. Welcome Mark, you're on the air.

MARK: Yeah, do you believe it's possible for a person to believe that Christ might not return for thousands of years, and still be a Christian?

PASTOR DOUG: Well, I tell you what would be the dilemma for me is that, even no man knows the day or the hour, I would think that a person's reading of the Word is suspect. Now they may be a Christian; I wouldn't want to stand in judgment. But they couldn't be a Christian and still believe that the second coming was, maybe a millennia away.

But when Jesus said you'll see certain signs in the last days that are very profound, and we're seeing these signs; and even if a person were to, heaven forbid, lay the Bible aside, if you look at the evidence in the world today; the idea that, the way we're destroying the earth, and with the exponential explosion of technology and the weapons that we've devised, the idea that Christ wouldn't come for a thousand years is almost inconceivable.

MARK: Haven't we had signs for a long, long time? Like the greatest earthquake ever in history happened almost 500 years ago.

PASTOR DOUG: We haven't had signs, Mark, like we had...for instance, there has been no other time in the history of man, or, of course, people have gone into space, there has been no other time in the history of man where a man has had weapons that could destroy the entire planet. There has been no other time, except this generation, in the history of man where we've cut down half the vegetation.

I'm not an environmentalist, but it does say in Revelation 16 God will destroy those that destroy the earth, but we're doing that. And Christ said, "Except those days be shortened, no flesh would be saved." [Cross talk]

MARK: But that could be 50 years away.

PASTOR DOUG: Well you know, I don't want to get into setting dates. My personal opinion is it's this generation. I don't know what the date is. I think that the movie that's out right now about 2012 is highly suspect. It's based on the Mayan calendar. And I've been to Belize and talked to Mayans, and they're just laughing right now. It's a movie stunt. But there are hundreds of Mayan calendars.

So my belief is not based on that. It's based on the evidence Christ gives. He says, "When you see these things begin to come to pass, then lift up your head and know that your redemption draws near." We are seeing these signs.

And you know of another profound sign is, Mark, and I'll just add this and I'll probably need to move on to another call. The nation of Israel, the Jews themselves, are really a fascinating sign; because, here you've got a nation that has been dispossessed twice from their nation, from their own territory. Once, back in the days of Babylon, then they came back again. They remained a distinct people with their own language.

Then they were carried off again by the Romans and scattered around the world. And then in 1948, they reassembled, the same culture, same language, same religion, in their original land; that hasn't happened with any other country in the world, and yet the Lord said that it would happen to the Jews.

That, to me, is very compelling evidence for the truth of prophecy. Mark, we do have a lesson that deals more specifically with the signs that the Bible gives us of the second coming of Jesus. And we'll be happy to send you a copy of that. It's a lesson that deals with the ultimate deliverance--it's called, The Ultimate Deliverance.

And if you call the toll-free number, 1-800-835-6747, we'll be happy to send you a free copy of this lesson on the second coming. And it goes through some of the modern signs that that coming is near. Thank you for your call. We're going to go and talk next with Joel who is calling from San Antonio, Texas on the Internet. Joel, you're on the air.

JOEL: Hey Pastor, it's an honor to speak with you. Thank you for taking my call. I had a question about the young earth, the whole Genesis 1:1, "In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth." And it does seem to me...and I've heard you speak about this Biblically sound. And I've gotten this as a question back when I discussed that with people. They'll say um...and I'm curious to see what you'd have to say about that. That with the evidence that we have in the fossils that are in the mountains, I've heard you mention that, what is it, like, oysters and other sea life, is it a possibility that that could just be, over years, the bumping heads of the crust and it being uprooted? Are you following me, like--

[Cross talk]

PASTOR DOUG: Yeah, the tectonic plates of the world have lifted up--

JOEL: There you go.

PASTOR DOUG: --and you know, I should add Joel, that geologists, and archaeologists, and even evolutionists have done some incredible research and I agree with some research that they've done. What they've done is they've observed some things, they've got all this evidence; and then they can take a puzzle.

Since there is nobody that was alive 6,000 years ago, all we can do, really, since there's no written history beyond 4,000 years, we pretty much need to just look at what's in the ground and try and piece it together, like a jigsaw puzzle. And if anything is evolving, it is the science of evolution. Their theories change every few years.

But I do believe, and have believed, that the tectonic plates of the world went through major, massive shifting. What I disagree with is the time spans that they attribute to that. I think that there was absolutely catastrophic changes in the planet during the time of the flood. And that's when these mountain ranges were formed; and the oysters that had fossilized in the seabed were pushed up.

There's even a verse in the Bible where it talks about in the days of Peleg, the earth was divided. And there were still earthquakes and volcanoes and things going on shortly after the flood.

JOEL: So the evidence that the fact itself that the fossils are in the mountains, would you say that's a good, concrete evidence that the earth was flooded, or could it be explained away with this tectonic plates?

PASTOR DOUG: Well you know, I think the best evidence is, for the earth being flooded, is all the research paleontologists have done. For years they argued, "Well the dinosaurs died out slowly over millions of years." But every time they found dinosaurs, they were covered in mud; sometimes piles of them all swept up together. They finally looked at each other and said, "Look, we have to admit that some massive flood killed all the dinosaurs."

And so their next theory was an asteroid must have hit the earth and caused a tsunami that was global.

JOEL: Alright, and it was an instant, like, an instant global--

PASTOR DOUG: Yeah. So they already agreed that there was a universal flood of some sort. And they think that some asteroid hit where the Gulf of Mexico is and wiped out everything except the few mammal-like creatures that were at these higher elevations. But the fossil record is very clear. There was a catastrophic, global flood.

JOEL: Yup. Would you then say that from a beginning, dog-like animal that, in the span of 4,000-6,000 years, we got anywhere from the range of a Great Dane and a Chihuahua? Is that possible that that can happen in that short of time?

PASTOR DOUG: Well we know that. I forget what issue it is, but if you go to the National Geographic website, they show you all their covers. One of their covers a couple of years ago is titled, "From Wolf to Woof", like "woof, woof" for a dog. It shows a picture of a wolf-like dog on the cover next to a Chihuahua or some little amalgamated dog.

And they said that the DNA history is very exact; that all of the dogs that exist in the world today, all the different breeds and variety, can be traced back to two original wolf-like dogs. Well that's what Noah brought on the ark.

[Call breaks up]

PASTOR DOUG: Excuse me?

JOEL: [Call breaks up] possible in 6,000 years?

PASTOR DOUG: Yeah, oh absolutely. No question this can happen very rapidly. Let me just give you a quick example. Just since the 1700's, someone brought a handful of rabbits to Australia. It was a big mistake. They completely spread across the continent and a new variety of rabbit developed, because of the environment that they were breeding in and the small gene pool they had to work with.

So we've observed massive expansion and multiplication of species in a hundred years. Six thousand years is plenty of time for all the variety of dogs we have.

JOEL: Thank you very much.

PASTOR DOUG: Alright. Hey I appreciate that and good question Joel. Talking next with Sandra calling from Illinois, listening on WDQN. Welcome Sandra, you're on the air.

SANDRA: Hi Pastor, God bless and thank you, and I hope Streams of Light is truly awesome for everybody.

PASTOR DOUG: Well you pray for me. Pray for me as I prepare.

SANDRA: Okay I will. Can you tell me Bible texts for a very precious, sincere couple that they call Jesus "Yeshua Ha-Mashiach," and they're still doing the feast of tabernacles. And, I know Christ met and took care of all that; but I don't know how to explain it or even how to look up each word in the Bible to give them the text so that they know.

PASTOR DOUG: Well you know, one of the best things I could do for you; rather than try to give you a litany of Scriptures right now--

SANDRA: Okay

PASTOR DOUG: --is to send you a book that's already filled with them for free.

SANDRA: Oh okay.

PASTOR DOUG: Matter of fact, you could read it for free online. You don't even have to wait for me to send it.

SANDRA: Oh--Okay

PASTOR DOUG: It's a book written by Joe Crews called, Feast Days & Sabbaths. And I know there are a lot of dear Christians out there that are mixed up, and they think that it's somehow sacrilegious if we call Jesus "Jesus." They think we need to pronounce His name in Hebrew; so they've re-translated their Bibles where every time the word "Lord" appears, it's "Yahweh"--

[Simultaneous talking]

SANDRA: (Unintelligible) "Yahweh," yeah

PASTOR DOUG: --or, yeah, whenever it's "Jesus" it's "Yeshua." God never requires us to speak in any other language than our native tongue. I mean, He can give us the gift of tongues if He wants.

SANDRA: Right

PASTOR DOUG: So, you know, and those who think we need to keep these shadows of the feast days, it's really sad. The New Testament is very clear that these were ceremonial laws. This is exactly what Paul is talking about when he talks about the Sabbaths that were nailed to the cross. It was the annual, Jewish feast days. So, anyway, we'll send you a free copy of the book and uh--

SANDRA: Oh that's okay. I'll go online, and thank you so much.

PASTOR DOUG: Or go online. And when you go to the Amazing Facts website, just amazingfacts.org, we made it real simple. It says, "Free Stuff." When you click on "Free Stuff," it will say, "Sermon Books." Click on "Sermon Books" and you'll see the book, Feast Days & Sabbaths there.

SANDRA: Thanks Pastor, God bless.

PASTOR DOUG: Alright. God bless Sandra. And, of course, that's true for anybody out there listening. If you'd like to get a copy of that, then you can just request that. Going to speak next with Derek listening on the Internet calling from Minneapolis, Minnesota. Welcome Derek, you're on the air.

DEREK: Hi Pastor Doug. Thanks for taking my call.

PASTOR DOUG: Absolutely

DEREK: Okay. My question is about the Holy Spirit. How do you know when It's really talking to you? Let's say somebody, like, suffers from OCB and they hear these voices saying, "Oh do this, you know, and good things will happen to you." I mean...and then I was thinking about Abraham...I mean that was such a wacky...I mean, if (unintelligible)

[Cross talk]

PASTOR DOUG: When the voice told him to sacrifice his son, how did he know that was the Lord?

DEREK: Yeah

PASTOR DOUG: Yeah, that's a good question. The way I'd answer that is, when my wife calls me and I'm out of town, and she says, "Hi", I don't need her to even say a whole sentence. I am so familiar with her voice that, you know, one or two words and I've got her voice.

Abraham was in such constant communion with the Lord; and when the Lord had directed him all through his life, whether that direction came from getting up and leaving Er, or going down to Egypt or; he had a lot of guidance through his life.

When he received word from the Lord everything about all the evidence about his communication with God, the internal, the Spirit evidence; they didn't have a Bible back then so he couldn't pick up a Bible and say, "What does the Word say about this?" But just the frequency that God always spoke to him on, he knew the Lord was telling him to do this. And--

DEREK: Like, it was like a powerful experience? Like, he'd actually seen God and light, or was it just in his head?

PASTOR DOUG: Well, there were times that Abraham did see the Lord face to face. The Bible tells us that. He was the friend of God. God appeared to him once and He spoke to him as He spoke to a friend. So, on this occasion though, it says the Lord spoke to him. I don't know that he saw God when He asked him to take his son.

Now, you asked another question about how do you know it's not the spirit of the devil, or, how do you know if it's the Holy Spirit.

[Cross talk]

DEREK: Yeah, because I was thinking what if it's something, kind of, positive of...Let's say that, you know, somebody feels, "Oh, I should give every paycheck to the offering plate because, you know, the force has told me I should do that," and in reality it wouldn't really be? I mean, I guess a person could do that, but--

PASTOR DOUG: Well you know there are folks who, they're, either because of some chemical imbalance, or their conscious is hypersensitive, some people have confused their own impulses for, not only the Spirit of God, some have confused their own impulses for some, you know, "the devil is telling me to do this and that." It may not even be the devil.

Some people, psychologically, aren't balanced; and we've all run into that. So, a person needs to measure these impressions by the Word. There will never be a contradiction between the leading of the Spirit and the speaking of the Word. When you look in the Bible, God's Word is not going to ever say something contrary; and so God is always going to be very clear.

And then the Lord wants us to use common sense and good judgment; and sometimes if we're not sure, like Gideon. When God said, "Look, I want you to go fight a million people with 300 men," he said, "Lord, I've got to know this is You, because I don't want to kill all these people because I'm having these impressions. Do I know this is what You want?"

Now, of course, an angel appeared to Gideon where he could see the angel, but he threw that fleece out for the Lord. You know the story. Sometimes we--[Cross talk]

DEREK: Oh when it was, like, damp or something?

PASTOR DOUG: Yeah. He threw out a fleece twice. Once he said, "Let the dew be on the ground, but not on the fleece." He said, "Lord, I need to know that this isn't a coincidence. Now let the dew be on the fleece, and not on the ground." And God did exactly what he said two days in a row. And finally he said, "This is enough evidence," and he went into battle and he won.

DEREK: You think that's a good policy to have? Maybe that, kind of, question God when you're not sure?

PASTOR DOUG: That's a last resort. I don't think that we ought to be flipping coins and saying, "Now what do you want me to do." But, God does have examples in the Bible where sometimes the Apostles would cast lots, which is, you know, basically like throwing out a fleece or flipping a coin to try and find out who to pick or what to do.

DEREK: Oh okay

PASTOR DOUG: So but that, you know, like I said, that's a last resort. I don't recommend it; and you shouldn't be making big decisions by flipping a coin. Pray, ask for the guidance from His Word. The other thing when you're making big decisions is ask for Christian counsel. Speak to somebody, or people who are good Christians, and get their counsel; because the Bible says, "In the multitude of counsellors there is safety" [Proverbs 11:14].

And if you'd like, Derek, I'll send you a copy of my recent book, How to Know the Will of God. It just came out, How to Know the Will of God. If you call the toll-free number, 1-800-835-6747, we'll send you a free copy of that. Hey, thank you very much for your call, and I think I might have time for one more before I go to a break. And that's talking to George, listening on WMCA from Bronx, New York. George, you're on the air.

GEORGE: Yeah, how are you doing? Can you hear me?

PASTOR DOUG: Loud and clear.

GEORGE: Yeah Pastor Batchelor, I have a question right. A situation with Job, right?

PASTOR DOUG: Uh-huh

GEORGE: Did Satan talk to God to test Job's faith?

PASTOR DOUG: Well initially, God was the one who brought up Job, not Satan. God is the one who said to Satan, "Have you considered my servant, Job?"

GEORGE: Yeah. So my question is, does God talk to Satan to, like, test Christians' faith here on earth, or what?

PASTOR DOUG: Well yeah, in a sense. Of course, there's nowhere anyone can hide from God's presence. The Bible says, "Where can you flee from the Lord's presence?" You do have that story in the book of Zechariah where it says that Satan stands to accuse Joshua the high priest before the Lord. Now that's long after the book of Job.

Satan, in Revelation, is called--chapter 12--"the accuser of the brethren." So Satan is always...he takes prominent people that are working for the Lord, like Job was one of them, Joshua the high priest, even Paul. And whenever they fall or they fail, he likes to point his finger at them and say, "See? They say they love you, but look at what they're doing."

And so, Satan is always the accuser of the brethren; and the devil knows that God sees and hears him every time he speaks. I don't think Satan can go to the gates of heaven like he did in the book of Job, but he is perpetually the accuser of the brethren. Does that make sense for you?

GEORGE: Oh alright, thanks a lot.

PASTOR DOUG: Alright. Hey, thanks a lot for your question George. I'm going to see if I can squeeze in one more here. Going to talk with Martin calling from San Juan, Puerto Rico. Martin, you're on the air with Bible Answers Live.

MARTIN: Hello

PASTOR DOUG: Hi

MARTIN: Yes, this is Martin from Puerto Rico.

PASTOR DOUG: Yes sir, and you better turn your radio down. It might confuse you.

MARTIN: Oh

PASTOR DOUG: Alright, that's better. And your question?

MARTIN: Yeah well, I want to find out what does the Bible say about a different one. Because I have my cousin, you know, that two of them who are twins. And one of them is going through some problems with their mother. And sometimes, their mother will want to scold them and want to beat them with the hand, and that's not good.

PASTOR DOUG: Well, there's no question that God believes that we should discipline our children. You can read in Proverbs 13:24, "He that spares his rod hates his son: but he that loves him chastens him betimes." Now that doesn't mean you beat your children.

When a parent has to resort to some sort of corporal punishment, first of all, it should never, ever be done in anger; because God, when He punishes us, He measures it in a way where it's going to be redemptive. But if you've got little kids, and as they grow older, you know you've got to find other ways of disciplining them, aside from spanking them.

And if you're disciplining them and you're injuring them in any way, obviously, you're doing something wrong. But if you've got a little kid and you say, "Don't walk out into the street," a lot of people don't have fences around their house, and the kid just, kind of, you know, flips his head and walks back out in the street, you might need to paddle them on the posterior to get their attention.

You're not doing that because you're wanting to injure them, but you love them. Now, if parents become exasperated and angry and start to hit the children, that's not the way the Lord disciplines. Discipline should be given in love. Now does that make sense?

MARTIN: Yup, that makes a lot of sense.

PASTOR DOUG: So you should always be able to pray with your children when you discipline. You've got another--Proverbs chapter 22:15--this, of course, was written by

Solomon. "Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child." All kids do silly things and they push the envelope. But it says, "The rod of correction will drive it far from him."

Now when it says "rod" in the Bible, it doesn't mean you have a baseball bat. The rod was a figurative term that they used for discipline. It just meant discipline. It didn't mean you beat your children like you would a sheep, like a shepherd's staff. So some people have said, "Well, it says 'rod' there in the Bible." Well the rod is...Moses had a rod. The rod is all through the Bible. It represents authority and discipline. It doesn't mean you beat them with a bat.

And some people have abused those verses. So um, anyway, I hope that helps a little bit, Martin. And we appreciate your question. You know what? They're telling me we're just about time for a break. Yup, I thought I heard that music creeping up on us. Hey friends, we're not going away, we're just going to catch our breath here.

Matter of fact, you might want to grab a pencil because we're going to be giving you some valuable information immediately on the other side of the break. It's not too late to even pick up the telephone. Tell your friends to call in their Bible questions. We do have some lines open. So if you've got your Bible question and you want to get it into tonight's broadcast, dial that toll-free number, 1-800-GOD-SAYS, 1-800-463-7297.

Also, a lot more of what we offer you can find at the Amazing Facts website. It's sure easy to remember. Praise the Lord, we were able to register these websites way back when that first started happening. It's amazingfacts.com; .org; .tv; we're all there. Be right back.

[COMMERCIAL BREAK]

PASTOR DOUG: Welcome listening friends. If you have joined us somewhere along the way in our broadcast, this is Bible Answers Live. And it is a live, international, interactive Bible study. If you've got a Bible question, you can call that toll-free number, 1-800-GOD-SAYS.

That's an acronym for 1-800-463-7297; not to be confused with our resource line. We give out a separate phone number that's available 24-hours a day if you would like to find out more about some of the resources that we mentioned during this program. And, of course, there's always the website. It's simply, amazingfacts.org.

Something exciting going on. Not only are we on the radio, we're on the television all over the country; but we have just added, very excited, the Discover Channel. Wednesday mornings at 7:00 Amazing Facts is on the Discover Channel. So if you'd go to our television log at our website, you'll see a button there, a tab, that says "Television," and it will tell you the log about what stations we're on; when for your area.

We're going to go back to the phones now. I think next we're talking to Becky; and Becky is calling from Scottsburg, Idaho, listening on 3ABN. Becky, you're on the air.

BECKY: Actually, it's Scottsburg, Indiana.

PASTOR DOUG: Oh I'm sorry.

BECKY: Oh no, that's alright Doug.

PASTOR DOUG: I'm actually innocent. The call operator typed in "Idaho." I just want to make sure that my record is clean in heaven.

BECKY: That's alright, you're fine.

PASTOR DOUG: Okay

BECKY: Okay now, I have a question for you; 1st Timothy chapter 4, I believe it's verse 4 and 5, says something about whatever you eat, or whatever, as long you as bless it--

PASTOR DOUG: Uh-huh

BECKY: --give thanksgiving that it's clean?

PASTOR DOUG: Yeah

BECKY: Well, my aunt has been questioning my mom and I, "See? that right there says it's okay to eat pork or whatever you want to eat. As long as you bless it before God, it's okay." What can we say to her to help her to see that that's not exactly what that's talking about?

PASTOR DOUG: Your aunt doesn't believe that really. I hear people use that. Let me read the verse for everybody. It's 1st Timothy chapter 4, and we'll start with verse 4. Well I better...you know what? I better back up a little bit and just start with the first verse here.

"Now the Spirit speaks expressly, that in the latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils. Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron; Forbidding to marry," okay right now, there's a big clue.

There's going to be a religious movement that would forbid people to marry. Well there are a few big denominations that forbid their priests and pastors to marry; "and commanding to abstain from meats, which God created to be received...." They're not saying that you can eat anything or not eat anything. They're commanding people not to eat things God says you CAN eat in His word.

For instance, there's one church that says on certain days of the week, like Friday, you can't eat fish, even if it's clean fish. Well the Word of God doesn't teach that. And then he goes on to say, "For every creature of God is good," and this is verse 4, "and nothing is to be refused, if it is received with thanksgiving: for it is sanctified by," notice, "the word of God." Alright, so that means the creatures that are sanctified by the Word.

Some animals are sanctified by the Word as clean, and some are not. So one criteria is, whatever you're going to eat better be sanctified first by the Word of God; and then it says, "and prayer."

BECKY: Ah-ha!

PASTOR DOUG: "...the word of God and prayer." So, who really believes? Does your aunt have children?

BECKY: Oh yeah.

PASTOR DOUG: Alright. Would she accept it if one of her kids getting ready for school--I don't know how old they are now, but at some point they go through those years--decides to make themselves breakfast. And they go into the freezer and they pull out chocolate ice cream. And they start scooping chocolate ice cream and you're watching.

Then they start putting marshmallow syrup on top of the chocolate ice cream, and some M&M sprinkles on there, and you're going, "Wait, wait, that's not a very good breakfast." But they said, "Don't worry mom, don't worry dad. I'm going to pray, and the Bible says whatever you pray over God is going to bless." You know, the Bible calls that mocking God.

What a man sows he's going to reap. And if we know something is high in cholesterol and we think we can just pray over it and all of a sudden it's not going to hurt us anymore, that's really irresponsible. And so, the idea that this verse means you pray over something and it doesn't matter what the Bible says, it doesn't matter what science says, you can eat anything that crawls across your plate, people don't believe that you can pray over a maggot and skunk sandwich and it's going to be clean.

So, you know, I really am surprised when I hear people use that excuse; "Well, the Bible says just pray over it."

BECKY: Yeah. But see, you brought out some good points that I never saw as I was looking through there; because I read over and over, and so did my mother. But you brought out some good points as to what it is actually saying there before and right afterwards--sanctified and stuff.

PASTOR DOUG: One of the main things Paul is dealing with in his writings about food had nothing to do with pork or chicken. It had to do with can you eat an animal that has been offered to a pagan god. Because in all the Roman empire, the butchers would always offer a pig, or chicken, or goat, or whatever it was, to some deity before they killed it and butchered it.

And so when you went to the Roman marketplace, Paul speaks about, "eat what is sold in the shambles, asking no questions for conscience sake." The "shambles" meant the flea market. And that's in the Bible. He says don't ask questions. In other words, if you're going to go buy a goat or sheep--they're clean animals--in the marketplace, don't ask, "Was this offered to Apollo? Was this offered to Mercury?" He says, "Don't ask about it. You pray over it and God will bless it."

It had nothing to do with the content of the meat, whether what kind of animals it was. It had to do with, was it offered to an idol. And that's really the big issue in the New Testament. None of the New Testament writers ate unclean food. Peter, when an unclean sheet came down in

Acts chapter 10, God said, "Arise and eat." He said, "No so, Lord; for I have never eaten anything common or unclean."

BECKY: Yeah

And three times the vision comes down. Peter never takes anything out of the sheet and eats it. He knows it means something else. Peter later said, describing that vision, "God has shown me," through the vision, "not to call any man unclean;" because the Jews thought the Gentiles were unclean.

BECKY: Right, okay.

PASTOR DOUG: So hey, we do have a lesson on what the Bible says about clean and unclean food; and we'll be happy to send you a copy of that and your aunt can look at it. It's a book called, Hogs and Other Hazards. Hogs and Other Hazards. I think you'll enjoy that by Joe Crews. Call the resource number, 1-800-835-6747, and we'll send that to you Becky. Okay. Time to talk with Vicky, calling from Grants Pass, Oregon. Vicky, you're on the air.

VICKY: Hi Pastor Doug, how are you this evening?

PASTOR DOUG: Very well, how about you?

VICKY: Great. God is good! I have a question I need clarification on.

PASTOR DOUG: Okay

VICKY: Revelations 3:10, "Because thou has kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth."

PASTOR DOUG: Okay. In Revelation chapter 2 and 3, do you want me to dive in, or did you have something else about that?

VICKY: No, that was it.

PASTOR DOUG: Okay. In Revelation chapter 2 and 3, Jesus outlines the history of the church that they would go through in the prophecy of the seven churches.

VICKY: Okay

PASTOR DOUG: It starts out with the church at Ephesus, and it ends with the church of Laodicea. Just before you get to the last age of the church, it's the church of Laodicea, it talks about the church of Philadelphia, the church of brotherly love. And the Lord basically, is telling that church, "You know what? This age of the church is not going to have to go through the great tribulation, because you have kept My faith."

The age of the church of Philadelphia, it's going on through the time of, like, John Wesley and George Whitefield. There was a great revival of missionary work, Bible societies, missionaries were going around the world; and that was the age of brotherly love in the Christian church. They had come out of the Dark Ages back into the light of God's Word.

And so He said, "Look, you're not the generation of the church, you're not the age of the church that's going to go from the great trial that will come upon all the earth." He said, "I'll keep you from that.

VICKY: Oh okay. So we are in the Laodicea--

PASTOR DOUG: We're living in the last stage of the church, the age of Laodicea, that is going to be able to--

VICKY: Go through it.

PASTOR DOUG: --face it, yeah. But you know, we don't need to be afraid of the seven last plagues. The children of Israel were in Egypt when those 10 plagues fell on them. We're reading through this with our kids right now in worship. And it's wonderful how God preserved them through all of those plagues. Even though it struck the Egyptians, God's people were protected; the seven plagues in Revelation, God will protect us.

VICKY: Yes, okay. Thank you very much, and I really appreciate all your wonderful wealth of information that God has given you.

PASTOR DOUG: Well the more I study, the more I know I don't know; but I sure appreciate your confidence, Vicky, and God bless you. Hey, and you would really enjoy, I think, our Amazing Facts Bible study course. If you'd go to the website and just sign up there. You can go to bibleuninverse.com, bibleuninverse.com, and sign up for our free studies. Anybody listening can do that.

Talking next with Joan who's calling from New York, New York. That's where I used to live. Joan, listening on WMCA; and your question?

JOAN: Thank you Pastor Doug, thank you for taking my call. You just, you mentioned earlier that the second beast in Revelation 13 is the United States; and the Revelation 13 beast says that the second beast is a man. So I wanted to know who do you identify as the man in the second part of Revelation 13; and if whoever you identify, does his Hebrew name add up to six hundred and sixty-six? Because Revelations 13:18 says that his number is going to be six hundred and sixty-six. And if not, are there any kind or potential leaders anywhere in the world whose Hebrew name adds up to six hundred and sixty-six?

PASTOR DOUG: Wow, you've asked a lot of questions. I'll tell you what, I won't be able to answer all of them. I will try and cover some of that. But whatever I don't cover, please do request the free study we're offering tonight on the USA in Bible prophecy. We'll send it to you free, and nobody will come bang on your door and bother you.

And by the way, that number one more time is, 1-800-835-6747. Now you said the second beast is a man. I would respectfully disagree. I do believe the number is the number of a man that you find in the last part of chapter 13. But the beasts in the Bible that you find always represented political religious powers.

For instance, if you look where you first start seeing this in Daniel chapter 7, it talks about these beasts that come up out of the sea. And later, the angel comes and tells Daniel, "These beasts represent four kingdoms." And then when you read in Revelation 17 and it talks about this beast with seven heads and ten horns; and it says that, "These seven heads represent 10 kings, and the horns represent kings in the kingdoms." So, when you see these beasts, like, if we think of the bear, what country do you think of? You there Joan?

JOAN: Yes, I'm here.

PASTOR DOUG: When you say a bear, what country comes to your mind?

JOAN: Perhaps Russia?

PASTOR DOUG: Exactly, yeah. If you said an eagle, what country to you think of?

JOAN: United States

PASTOR DOUG: Alright. Beasts used to represent different kingdoms and powers. And so the second beast that comes up out of the earth, it's not a man coming up out of the earth. It's talking about a kingdom that would arise out of the land. And when the United States came into power, right about the time that the Roman power was loosing its influence in Europe, America was born as a country and people came here for religious freedom. It was born like a lamb; people seeking freedom, freedom of the Word of God.

But in the end, something happens. And we're in that transition right now. Will there be a man at the head of this beast? Yes, but the initial beast is speaking of a political power, see what I'm saying?

JOAN: Is the beast that is the United States, shouldn't the Hebrew name for the United States add up to six hundred and sixty-six?

[Cross talk]

PASTOR DOUG: Well, they...not--

JOAN: I think God, God has given specific pointers--

PASTOR DOUG: --not necessarily Hebrew.

JOAN: God has given us specific pointers that we should use to identify the beast so there would be no confusion whatsoever. And I think that, you know, based on the (unintelligible), I

sort of want to see six hundred and sixty-six. And, you know, since the Bible...since this part of the Bible was written in Hebrew, that I'm assuming that it would be the Hebrew name.

PASTOR DOUG: Well actually, this part of the Bible was written in Greek.

JOAN: Okay. So then it would be the Greek, you know--

PASTOR DOUG: There is a name--

JOAN: --and it states add up to six hundred and sixty-six.

PASTOR DOUG: There is a name that in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin, all three languages of the Bible--keep in mind--above the head of Jesus when He was crucified, they put His title in three languages. In three languages it said, "This is the King of the Jews," Hebrew, Greek, and Latin.

The Bible has largely been written in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin; of course, Hebrew and Aramaic. And so I'd like, by the way, let me give you a little amazing fact about 666. The Roman numerals, you remember Roman numerology?

JOAN: Yes

PASTOR DOUG: When you add up all the Roman numerals, there are only six of them. You've got I, V, X, D, C. You add up all the Roman numerals, it comes to 666. You see what I'm saying?

JOAN: Okay

PASTOR DOUG: Like D is 500; M is 1,000, that's where you get the word "millennium;" C--that's where you get "century"--C is 100; the V is 5; X is 10; and the I is one. You add those up and you find out what that comes to. And by the way, that was the counting system for the Roman empire. Add up their main decimals, and it comes up to 666. There are a lot of things.

Matter of fact, there's a website I'd like to encourage you to go to. It's simply called, 666truth. If you or anybody goes there, we're going to tell you about what that number means and what the name is, okay?

JOAN: Okay

PASTOR DOUG: And I'll send you that study guide on America in Prophecy. If, when you call, you'll also ask for the study guide on the Mark of the Beast, that's more specifically what you're asking. Hey, I thank you very much for your question Joan. We're going to try and get a few more in here and talk to Barrett? Is that how you say that? Listening from San Diego, California on KPRZ. Is that--

BARRETT: Hi Pastor Doug

PASTOR DOUG: Hi, how are you doing? Is that Brett?

BARRETT: Alright. I wanted to concur with the earlier caller, Mike or Mark, that said he thinks Christ might not be returning for several millennia.

PASTOR DOUG: Okay

BARRETT: I agree with him. I can give sound reasons why. I'm sitting here trying to find the verse in the Bible. I couldn't find it, where Jesus said it will be as in the days of Noah--

PASTOR DOUG: Yeah, in Matthew 24, Luke chapter 17, and you can look in Mark 13. There are three places where He alludes to the days of Noah and the days of Lot.

[Cross talk]

BARRETT: I was just looking in Mark where He said it will be the beginning of birth pangs. Well, the birth pangs of a woman, they start to increase and then they subside. And then they [recording skips] more intensely, and then they subside. And they do this over and over until the baby is born.

PASTOR DOUG: Right

BARRETT: Well, that's why so many generations think Christ is returning real soon because the birth pangs increase, but then they subside. And we're watching increasing birth pangs right now globally, because the world, the first generation to see the global polarization against Christianity, simultaneously globally. So that's very exciting. That's a major birth pang. But Jesus said it will be as in the days of Noah and, Pastor Doug, in the days of Noah, there were millions of people that were six, seven, eight, and nine hundred years old. So some of the more recent interpretations of the passages where Jesus said that, are that medical science will have advanced so that lifespans last for centuries. And there will be people that are six, seven, eight, and nine hundred years old--

PASTOR DOUG: Well now when--

BARRETT: --when Christ returns.

PASTOR DOUG: --We need to read the verse in context. By the way, let me tell you, that verse is Matthew 24, verse 37 and 38. And when Christ refers to "the days of Noah," He's talking about moral conditions. If you read in Genesis it says, "In the days of Noah, the thoughts of men's hearts were only evil continually," and there was violence in the land.

And then He talks about the days of Lot. And in the days of Lot, they were not living 900 years. In the days of Lot, there was great moral decadence. Not only was there rampant homosexuality, that was obvious from conditions there; but there was just a lot of idle worldliness.

And so when you look at the violence, the moral degradation; and then Jesus said in the days of Noah and Lot, when the end came, it was a sudden surprise. He's emphasizing that it'll be like a thief, it'll be a surprise. He's not saying people are going to start living 900 years again before He comes back.

BARRETT: No, but there will...that's what...that was...the general lifespans were centuries then. That's where we get these bones that look like they're Neanderthal. But also, the world is going to be saying, "Where is His appearing?" and nobody's saying that. Everybody's expecting Him to return.

PASTOR DOUG: Now wait a second. I just came back from Australia and people, they're all laughing. They're scoffing exactly like Peter said saying, chapter 3 of 2nd Peter, "Where is the promise of his coming?"

BARRETT: Well--

PASTOR DOUG: A lot of people in the world, most of the people in the world are, kind of, saying, "Oh He's not coming soon." That sounds like what this is what you're saying too.

BARRETT: He could return, yes. He could return before we're finished talking; but all the disciples thought He was going to return in their generation. And every generation since then has thought that. I think that we will know the season; and I really don't think He's going to return now. I think that uh--

PASTOR DOUG: Now you heard what I said to the other caller but--

BARRETT: Yes, yes, yes

PASTOR DOUG: --that there are some things in this generation no other generation could come near claiming. You know for six thousand years of man's history, the most dangerous things they had were spears, and swords, and bows, and arrows.

BARRETT: Yeah

PASTOR DOUG: And now you look at the devastating weapons, and the chemical weapons, and the biological weapons, and the--

BARRETT: Well when you read Revelation, the book of Revelation, the whole planet is clearly, consciously, and astutely against Jesus Christ Himself in the Person.

PASTOR DOUG: Well you know what? I--

BARRETT: That's not...the world is deceived right now. They don't even believe Jesus Christ--[Cross talk]

PASTOR DOUG: When the people receive the mark of the beast, they are going to think they're serving God. Christ said the hour is coming when those who serve you will think they're serving God. So, those who worship the beast, he's not going to say, "You know, let's join the church of the devil." Those that worship the beast, they're going to think they're joining God.

BARRETT: Well I pray I'm wrong. I do pray I'm wrong regularly.

PASTOR DOUG: Well I think that you can be pretty confident that the Lord is coming soon and--

BARRETT: I pray so.

PASTOR DOUG: --most of the world is uh, I think, rejecting the truth on these things. Hey, thank you for your question Barrett; and again, we'll be happy to send you that study guide talking about The Ultimate Deliverance, where it deals with modern signs of the second coming.

Anybody that would like to read that, you'd really appreciate it. I'm going to talk next with Malik, listening to WMCA, calling from New York City. Did I get your name right?

MALIK: It's Malik.

PASTOR DOUG: Malik okay. And your question tonight?

MALIK: Well I have a nephew. He's about eight years old now and he's starting to become a little bit more familiar with the Bible and everything; and, you know, he asked me a question. He understands the power that God has and everything. But he's trying to figure out...I guess...he put it in his words, "How can God let evil happen?"

PASTOR DOUG: Oh hey, I'm glad you asked that question.

MALIK: You know, so I'm trying to, basically, explain that to him.

PASTOR DOUG: Is he listening right now?

MALIK: No he's not, but I'll definitely give him the--

PASTOR DOUG: You'll pass it on to him?

MALIK: Yeah

PASTOR DOUG: Alright. Well first of all, God makes His intelligent creatures free with a free will. He wants us to love Him, but you cannot force love. And so God even makes creatures that might choose not to love Him. Unfortunately, among the highest and most powerful of God's creatures was an angel called Lucifer that rebelled.

And when he rebelled, God could have zapped him with lightning; but God doesn't want us to serve Him because He's going to destroy us if we don't listen. He wants us to serve Him because we love Him.

MALIK: Um-hmm

PASTOR DOUG: And so God allowed this angel to roam through the universe and try to recruit other angels, which he did; one-third of the angels. He basically gives them freedom, like in America. People have freedom to say what kind of government they want. They have freedom to talk about the different candidates. There's freedom of speech.

MALIK: Yes, of course.

PASTOR DOUG: And so, this angel went through the universe, and he not only recruited one-third of the other angels; it says this in Revelation chapter 12, but he found planet earth. Adam and Eve decided to listen to the devil when he said, "Eat from this forbidden tree," and God said, "Don't eat from it." And basically, they surrendered the dominion of our world to Lucifer. So the Lord is brokenhearted that this planet really is in rebellion. That's why there is evil in this world.

MALIK: Um-hmm

PASTOR DOUG: Now we have a DVD Amazing Facts worked on for about two years called, Cosmic Conflict.

MALIK: Uh-huh

PASTOR DOUG: If you just go to the website, you can watch the trailer on that. It's cosmicconflict.org

MALIK: Okay, cosmic conflict.

PASTOR DOUG: And you can even go to YouTube and I think it'll show you the trailer right there. Just cosmic--

MALIK: Okay

PASTOR DOUG: --Type in "cosmic conflict" into Google or Yahoo, and it'll take you there. It's a DVD. It's about 42 minutes. It goes through the whole story of why this rebellion happened. How old is your nephew?

MALIK: He's...well he'll be eight in a month.

PASTOR DOUG: Perfect. He'll understand it. Hey we're going to have to run to another call before we get out of time, okay? I appreciate your question Malik.

MALIK: Okay, I appreciate it.

PASTOR DOUG: Alright. Talking next with Dale, and we'll just maybe have a couple more minutes. Dale, you have a quick question?

DALE: Yes sir. How are you? I think your Biblical knowledge is impeccable.

PASTOR DOUG: Well I've got a lot to learn, but thank you.

DALE: (chuckles) My question is, if a Christian has a problem with a certain sin, let's say for instance, sexual sins, and he repented, and went back to the problem that he had, or she had, or whatever the case may be. And this time the Christian decided, "Hey I'm repenting for real this time. I want to turn around." Will God, which I believe He will, but will God forgive the Christian? And if so, will God still allow the consequence of the sin to occur, even though he or she has been forgiven? I guess the question is, how many times will God forgive a Christian?

PASTOR DOUG: Alright. Well you did ask a question also about consequences. David, who we would call a Christian, in other words, he believed in Christ, he's a prophet. He fell in that area of sexual temptation; as did Samson; and as did Solomon. And we expect to see all three of them in heaven, according to Hebrews chapter 11. But there were consequences in all three cases for their messing up.

DALE: Okay

PASTOR DOUG: It hurt them, it hurt their families, and it hurt the Lord. Now, you know, there are varying degrees of sin. And sometimes, young people get where they shouldn't be; and Paul talks about fleeing, 2nd Timothy 2:22: "Flee youthful lusts: follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart.

When people are living with sexual impurity, they don't feel right. They feel impure; and it hinders their prayers and they know it. And so there are consequences for every sin. But will He forgive? Of course He will. If God only forgives sins that we repent of one time and we're never allowed to ask a second time, we're all in hot water; because, yeah, everybody struggles with a variety of temptations, whether it's overeating--

DALE: Right

PASTOR DOUG: --I don't know how many times I fell in that area, to gossiping and, I mean, there are all kinds of sin. We need to pray that God will sanctify us and we see growth. But if a person gets discouraged when they sin and, I don't want to under-emphasize. Some sins are much more severe. Obviously, sexual sin, there's generally someone else involved; and you're hurting them and yourself.

DALE: Exactly

PASTOR DOUG: And so uh, you know, that's a little different from overeating. I didn't want to--[Cross talk]

DALE: Right, right, right, right, right.

PASTOR DOUG: But, of course, God, if a person genuinely repents, God does forgive.

DALE: Okay, alright.

PASTOR DOUG: But the consequences don't always evaporate.

DALE: Okay, okay

PASTOR DOUG: Hey, I appreciate it Dale. I hope that helps a little bit. And they're telling me I got one minute friends. I won't do that to anybody. If you did not get your call in tonight, forgive me, and, by God's grace, we'll do this again in a couple of weeks. I will be in England through this weekend. And we'd appreciate your tuning in to the Streams of Light program.

Once again, if you want to find out more about that, simply go to amazingfacts dot, listen now, dot tv, amazingfacts.tv. You'll see all the information on the Streams of Light program. And be praying for Pastor Doug and Pastor Ross while we're there. We'll be broadcasting around the world on both, 3 Angels Broadcasting and on Lifestyle Television, as well as streaming on the Internet.

So everybody can participate. If the times don't work for you the first time, go to the amazingfacts.tv website and you'll be able to download the revival meetings. Well friends, we've loved spending this time with you. God bless. Remember, Jesus is the truth that will set you free.

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