- [Announcer] It is the best-selling book in history. No volume ever written has been more loved and quoted. And its words, sometimes simple and sometimes mysterious, should always be studied carefully. It is the Bible, the Word of God. Welcome to "Bible Answers Live," providing accurate and practical answers to all your Bible questions. This broadcast is a previously recorded episode. To receive any of the Bible resources mentioned in this broadcast, call 800-835-6747. Once again, that's 800-835-6747. Now here's your host from Amazing Facts International, Pastor Doug Batchelor.
- Hello, listening friends. Would you like to hear an amazing fact? Back in June 2005, Carolyn Smith from Salt Lake City in Utah made headlines after auctioning off her forehead as advertising space for $10,000. After a media circus, the online casino, goldenpalace.com, had a winning bid accepted and their casino logo was boldly tattooed on her cranium. The tattoo artist tried to talk her out of it, but Carolyn insisted. The strange stunt is more understandable when you realize Smith was trying to raise tuition money to send her son to a private school. Now, she may have been a desperate soccer mom trying to raise money for her school's education, but you know, Pastor Ross, the Bible talks about a woman in the Book of Revelation that has a whole paragraph on her forehead.
- That's right, Pastor Doug. Not just the name of a business, but really something very significant actually written on her forehead. Talks about Babylon the Great, the Mother of Harlots, and the abominations of the Earth. So that's quite a bit to fit on the forehead.
- You know, I remember a few years ago we actually produced a video called, "The Bride, the Beast and Babylon." And our friends can see that online. I think one of them, one of the YouTubes, has like 3,000,000 hits. But we actually had a model and we had someone paint in Hebrew characters, or maybe it was Greek, across her forehead that title so that she could replicate the woman that you see in Revelation. And they did a pretty good job but they had to write pretty small to get the whole thing there. Let me tell you what's on her forehead, friends. You can read this in Revelation 17:5 and 6. And on her forehead, speaking of this mysterious woman in Revelation 17, on her forehead a name was written: Mystery, Babylon the Great, the Mother of Harlots and Abominations of the Earth. That was written on her forehead. And I saw the woman who was drunk with the blood of the saints and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. And when I saw her, I marveled with great amazement. That's Revelation 17:5 and 6. So what does that mean? In the last days, we're going to see people going around and they've got 666 in their forehead, or they've got a seal of God in their forehead, or they've got Mother of Harlots in their forehead?
- Well, you know, Pastor Doug, it's interesting that like you mentioned, it's not just one symbol here. You just have the woman with Babylon, but the Bible speaks of the forehead, talks about the mark of the Beast being in the forehead, talks about the seal of God being in the forehead. And I think even the Old Testament talks about the law of God being in the forehead. And that's kind of led to some strange interpretations where you have the Orthodox Jews today even having little scrolls of the law and they put it in the box on the forehead. And I'm sure many of our listeners have seen that before.
- Yeah.
- But what does that all mean, having the law of God in the forehead or the mark of the Beast or the seal?
- Yeah. You know, it's very clearly a symbol. We're not going to see people going around in the last days. And Revelation says: The redeemed have their Father's name in their forehead. I think that's 7:14. And you can read in Ezekiel 9 it says that those that have this mark in their forehead are spared a destruction. So that's a good mark. You want that one. God put a mark on Cain. Doesn't say his forehead, but God marked Cain. But when you read in Deuteronomy 6, after God gives the 10 Commandments, He says, "Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one. "Thou shall love the Lord with all thy heart, mind, "soul, and strength. "And these words that I command you today "shall be in your heart." Now that's clearly a symbol, the word in our heart. He says, "You'll teach them diligently to your children. "You talk them when you lay down, when you rise up, "when you go out, when you come in." Says, "You will bind them for a sign on your hand "and they will be frontlets between your eyes." It actually uses that phrase four times in just Exodus and Deuteronomy saying: The law of God was to be in our hands, written in our hands and in our foreheads. Well, that's a symbol for in your actions and in your thoughts. So in Revelation, when it talks about a mark in the forehead or the hand, it's not talking about a literal mark. Now we've got a lesson I think that talks about that woman that has that paragraph in her forehead.
- That's right. It's an important symbol that we find in the Book of Revelation. And we do have a study guide. It's called, "The Other Woman," because in Revelation you have a description of two women, one in Revelation 12 and then this woman in Revelation 17. If you'd like to learn more about this Bible symbol, just call and ask. The number is 800-835-6747 and you can ask for offer number 178 or ask for it by name. It's called, "The Other Woman." It's part of the Amazing Fact study guide series. And if you've never gone through the study guide series, you can also ask for that on the call. Just say, "I'd like to enroll in "the free Amazing Facts Bible study series." You will be blessed. We'll send you the lessons in the mail. So, Pastor Doug, very great opportunity for folks to take advantage of that and they can do the whole series of lessons. Well, before we go to the phone lines, as we always do, we like to start with a word of prayer. So we'll do that now. Dear Father, we thank You for Your Word. We thank You for the opportunity for us to study and we always recognize that the Bible is Your book, written and inspired by the Holy Spirit, and so we do need the Spirit's guidance as we study. So pray Your blessing upon us here in the studio and be with those who are listening. We ask this in Jesus' name, amen.
- Amen.
- Our phone lines are open. If you have a Bible related question, the number to call is 800-463-7297. That's 800-GOD-SAYS, 800-463-7297. Our first caller that we have is Dylan listening from Nevada. Dylan, welcome to the program.
- [Dylan] Hi guys, I haven't talked to you in a while. Last time I believe I talked to you, I was talking about a suicide question because I had a close friend that I used to box with that he taught me. They were younger than me, they were brothers, and one of them committed suicide. You guys gave me a good answer. I just wanted your opinion because I kind of feel that I know this, but I just wanted your opinion. You guys are just awesome soldiers of Christ. And that was my question would be in Proverbs 26, I believe it was four, in verse five.
- Is that where it says: Answer a fool according to his folly?
- Yeah, let me read that. I got the verse right here.
- Okay. Go ahead.
- It says: Do not answer a fool according to his folly, lest you also be like him. Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes.
- Yeah, Solomon is actually using a little bit of irony here. He's saying if you don't answer a fool, he's wise in his own eyes, he's smug and conceited and thinks he's correct because you didn't have an answer. But if you do answer him, then you sound like him by engaging in a silly question. And so what Solomon is saying is you can't win if you're in debate with a fool because if you take up the debate you sound foolish and if you don't take up the debate, he thinks he's right. So he said, "You just can't win."
- [Dylan] Correct.
- Does that make sense?
- [Dylan] I mean, so which one is it? What is your opinion? So don't say anything?
- He's using a little bit of kind of sanctified sarcasm there. He's saying, "If you're arguing with a fool," he says, "You're not going to get anywhere." It's like shoveling air. If you don't answer a fool, if he comes up with some ridiculous claim and you don't answer him, he thinks he's right. If you do answer him and you engage in a debate with a fool, you start sounding foolish. Someone said, "You know, "if you get into a wrestling match with a pig, "you just get dirty." You've heard that before. And the pig enjoys it. So it's just like one of those lose-lose situations is exactly what Solomon's saying. That's why he's got these two contrasting proverbs next to each other. He's just showing how futile it is to try and communicate, make sense to a fool.
- And you know, Solomon is not trying to give us guidance as to how we ought to respond to a fool. He's giving characteristics of a fool. So a fool is wise in his own thinking and if you engage with him, it doesn't really help much because then you look foolish. So how do you work with a fool? And I think that's the point that he's trying to illustrate is what foolishness is and what people do, what they look like when they are foolish. Thank you for your call, Dylan. We've got Anthony listening in New York. Anthony, you're on the air.
- [Anthony] Good evening, Pastors.
- Evening.
- [Anthony] Pastor Doug, I saw your team put out the country living video this past week and I-
- Oh yeah.
- [Anthony] I'd watched it before and I just decided to watch it again. It was a good reminder because we just moved out into the country last year and it's kind of cool because I'm doing some of the things like splitting wood and heating my house with it, you know? Some of the stuff I watched like three years ago when we read your book as well. So it was very valuable.
- Well, praise the Lord. It's a couple years old but they thought they'd resurrect it and post it again.
- [Anthony] For sure. Yeah, it was a good reminder.
- Good. How can we help you tonight?
- [Anthony] I just want to know how to reconcile two different verses because I firmly believe in the state of the part, the adoption of the state of the dead where the dead are asleep until Christ returns and resurrects them. But sometimes when people try to justify the opposite, that you go to Heaven right when you die, they use certain verses to justify it. So I just want to understand how to reconcile Mark 12:27 where it says: He is not the God of the dead but the God of the living. Ye therefore do greatly err. And that's in its own context. And then that was before Christ died and then after Christ died, Romans 14:9 says: For to this end Christ both died and rose and revived that He might be the Lord, both of the living, or both of the dead and the living. So I'm just trying to understand how to reconcile those two.
- Yeah, well good question. I don't think there's a conflict there. When Jesus talks to the Sadducees and He says that, "They err not knowing the scriptures "because God says, "'I'm the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.' "He's not the God of the dead but of the living." God would not say He is the God of someone or something that has lost all being, that they've become nothing, they've died and there's no future. Believers sleep. And when you're asleep you're very much alive. And so, but Jesus calls death a sleep. And so Paul is really addressing a different issue. Paul is saying he's talking about the resurrection, those that are in their graves, he's assuring people, "Don't worry, Jesus is the God of them "and He's also the God of those that are alive." And I think Paul even has a subtle secondary. He talks about people being dead in sin. God is the God of those who are dead in sin? He's the God of the dead who are waiting for the resurrection. "Good or evil, he's the God over all," Paul says. So I think he's really saying something different. That Jesus is the God of dead and living.
- I think part of the controversy that took place between Jesus and the Sadducees, the Sadducees didn't believe in a resurrection. So Christ is saying, "Well, God is not the God of the dead, "but the living," meaning that Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, they're going to be resurrected. Remember the Sadducees didn't believe in that.
- [Pastor Doug] Right.
- So he's not saying that, "There's no hope for the dead." But rather they will be resurrected, they will live again and God is aware of that. So the argument used there in Mark is really emphasizing the fact that there will be a resurrection and the righteous will rise again.
- Yep. Absolutely.
- All right, hope that helps, Anthony. We've got Maylene listening in Florida. Maylene, welcome to the program.
- [Maylene] Hello.
- Hi. There you are.
- [Maylene] My question is, are the people saved who had no opportunity to hear the gospel? Like people in China when Jesus was here and people now but don't have anybody bring the gospel to them?
- Well, first of all, anybody who is saved is saved by Jesus. The Bible tells us in Acts 4: There is no other name given among men whereby we must be saved. So anyone who's saved is saved by the mercy and the grace of Jesus and by His sacrifice in their behalf. Nobody works their way to Heaven. There will be some who walked in all the light that they had. Paul speaks in Romans 1 about the Gentiles who do the things that are in the law that's kind of written in their hearts. And so some people have listened to the voice of the Holy Spirit or maybe God spoken to them through angels and they've followed all they knew of God. And Jesus said, "Those that have done good "will come forth in the resurrection of life." They're not being saved by their works, they're still being saved by Christ, but they've had no other opportunity. And of course a lot of folks who are never going to hear the good news will be lost because nobody took them the news. And that's unfortunate. So can God save people who maybe didn't have a missionary go to Australia or South America or China? Yes, absolutely. One example would be you can see that God even had a prophet in Mesopotamia who was not an Israelite, his name was Balaam. And we presume there were others that were God's people. Now Balaam, he ended up making some bad mistakes but he was called the Prophet of God. Prior to that, God was speaking to him. And so ostensibly, God has got people that He's spoken to around the world, but His principle means of communication was through Israel, through the Word of God. But God is not limited so He cannot speak through angels or His Spirit, and some people have embraced God through what they had.
- And of course we have another example, Pastor Doug, with the Wise Men that came at the birth of Jesus.
- [Pastor Doug] Yeah.
- They weren't Jews. So based upon what they understood, God was leading, guiding them. All right, well, thank you for your question Maylene. We've got Crystal listening in Michigan. Crystal, welcome to the program. Hi Cry-
- [Crystal] Hello?
- Yep, you're on the air.
- [Crystal] Hi. Hi, Pastors. So my question is, does God only hear the prayers of those who obey Him?
- Okay, now when you say, "Does God hear the prayers," let me just explain that they're different kinds of prayers. If a person is praying a prayer of repentance, of course it's a disobedient people that pray prayers of repentance, those prayers are always heard whenever you sincerely repent. Sometimes we'll offer God our shopping list and say, "Lord, we want X, Y, and Z." God doesn't guarantee He's going to answer that prayer. The Bible says that if we turn away our ear from hearing the law, our prayer is an abomination. Now, that doesn't mean we have to be sinless before God answers our prayers, or we'd all be in trouble. But we need to pray in the name of Jesus. We need to pray with a submissive heart, a willingness to obey. Where is it? In 1 John where it says: Whatever things we ask, we receive because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight. So there the New Testament apostle says, "There's a connection between whatever we ask. "We have confidence God's going to hear us "because we're surrendered to Him, "we're keeping His commandments."
- 1 John 3:22.
- There you go.
- Is the verse.
- So again though, that doesn't mean that He never hears the prayers of only the obedient. I was just today reading the story of Elijah when Elijah ran from Jezebel. God never told him to do that. He was sort of going the wrong way. And God had an angel took care of him and fed him, even though he was going the wrong way of his own. And so if God stopped providing for us, we'd all be done for.
- And of course, if somebody's sincerely praying and asking God for help to keep His commandments.
- [Pastor Doug] Yeah.
- That kind of prayer, God always hears.
- [Pastor Doug] Yes.
- If it's sincere. All right, next caller that we have is Richard listening in Texas. Richard, welcome to the program.
- [Richard] Hey, thank you guys. I have a quick question. I came across 1 Timothy 6:10 where it says: For the love of money is a root of all kind of evil. And I was wondering about this last part of the sentence where it says root of all kind of evil. And I mean of course in the beginning in our story we didn't have money. And then how I reconcile this with lust, wrath or sloth, for example?
- Yeah, of course there was evil before money. Money goes back pretty far. Money, paper money, is different from currency or valuables. That's what money is. I mean, money used to be the barter system and they used to trade gold and silver or valuables. When Sampson was going to pay a debt, he was offering clothing because that was a valuable bartering material. So it's really not just a paper money or something, but when he says, "Love of money," love of possessions, it's love of the power that money has, is the root. Greed. Jesus was sold for silver. You know, it's a sin that connects with many other sins.
- And I think the root of all evil, it's not just talking about an individual but I think it's society as a whole.
- [Pastor Doug] Yeah.
- There's so much wickedness promoted by the love of money. You think of crime, you think of just the terrible things just-
- [Pastor Doug] That's what gambling is.
- Political conflict, gamble.
- [Pastor Doug] Whatever.
- All motivated by possessions, and by power, by money. So I think that's the connection there.
- [Pastor Doug] Yeah.
- Okay, next caller that we have is Sherri listening in Kentucky. Sherri, welcome to the program.
- [Sherri] Hi.
- Yeah!
- [Sherri] I have a weird question. I've been reading the Bible like from cover to cover for years and I can't even count how many times I've done that, but I read the Old Testament and the New Testament. You know, I'll read two in the Old and two in the New. But I've done it so long that I don't feel like- I mean, I know the bible and all that, but when it says to search the scriptures to find yourself approved before the Lord.
- Mm-hmm.
- [Sherri] I don't know. I mean, I stopped. This time I stopped going all the way through and I'm only reading, like right now I'm in Proverbs and I'll read that all the way through. Do I just keep doing that? Or if I want to just read the Bible, do I just grab a story and just read it? I'm really lost in that. I don't understand, you know?
- [Pastor Doug] Well.
- [Sherri] Do you understand what I mean?
- I think I know what you're saying. The Bible is something like painting a bridge. I understand the Golden Gate bridge is so big and because it's there exposed to the wind and the salt water, that they are always painting the bridge. They never get done painting the bridge. And the bridge always looks good because they're always painting it. If they should stop painting the bridge, it would corrode and eventually rust and fall into the Bay. Reading the Bible, you may not know it, but it is changing you and it has changed you. Heaven forbid you could take a look at what you might be like if you had not been reading the Bible. The Bible tells us that as we read it, those principles that teach us about God and holiness has a sanctifying influence on our lives. And thy Word I've hid in my heart that I might not sin. So there's all different methods of reading the Bible. And how you should do that, I don't know, but I'm sure Pastor Ross could say the same. And I've been reading the Bible through for 30 years now and I'm always at some point. There's only one day a week I don't read the Bible and that's because it's usually the Sabbath I'm preparing a message so I don't do my regular Bible reading. And I also use the story in the Bible where the manna fell from Heaven six days a week. But none fell on Sabbath. So... And I just know so often the very thing I need for that day is what I read. So I don't know if that's answering what you're asking, Sherri.
- [Sherri] Yeah, it does. I do always learn something new when I'm reading it. I do. It's like every time I go through it, it's like I'm learning something different. I just don't want to be wrong.
- You know, one suggestion that I think of, I mean I've read a lot of the Bible and you read those same stories over and over again and there's value just in reading the Bible. But one of the things that's kind of fun to do is pick a passage of scripture and read it. But then also you might want to get a good concordance and dig a little bit deeper. Instead of just racing through the verse, look at the different words. I know one time I really got into it, I looked up where these same words in this particular verse was used elsewhere in the New Testament and it added all kinds of new insight in the actual meaning of that word when you look at it in that context. So you can read the Bible but then there's also value in actually studying the Bible. And that's where a good concordance or a good commentary can just bring a lot of things to light that you'd never thought of before you hadn't seen. That's maybe something to do as well.
- So hope that helps a little bit, Sherri. And you know, we have a book that talks about how you can be strengthened in your Bible study. It's called, "The Ultimate Resource."
- If you'd like to receive that, the number to call is 800-835-6747. The book is called, "The Ultimate Resource." We'll be happy to send it to anyone in the US and Canada and we'll send it to those of you on the US territories. Now if you're outside of the US or outside of Canada, you can still find the book by just simply going to amazingfacts.org and you can read it for free online. It's called, "The Ultimate Resource," and it's all about the Bible. I think you'll be blessed. Next caller that we have is Marvin in Canada. Marvin, welcome to the program.
- [Marvin] Hello guys. I'm happy to hear you.
- Yes!
- [Marvin] My question is about 2 Corinthians 3:6. And I just want to know if you can explain me more because I search by myself, I try to understand, but sometimes when Paul writes, it's sometimes difficult to understand.
- [Pastor Doug] Mm-hmm.
- [Marvin] So I just want to, if you can explain for me, 2 Corinthians 3:6.
- All right, I'll do my best. Let's read that for our friends. Paul is saying, he's talking about, the Spirit and not the letter. And he says here in verse six: Who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. And so if a person is focusing on just the exterior obedience of the law, that kills because there's no power in that. Jesus talked about the law that says do not commit adultery. And He said, "Now that's the letter of the law. "But the spirit of the law is do not look on a woman "or a man and lust in your heart." He said that would be the spirit. It's not just the action, it's the attitude. The letter of the law says, "Do not kill." The spirit of the law says, "Do not be angry with your brother or sister without cause "or you're guilty of murder." The letter of the law says, "Don't lie." The spirit of the law, Jesus said, "Let your yes be yes and your no be no "and do not swear by Heaven or anything else." And so Christ brought out that the true obedience is not just observing the action, it's an attitude in the heart. And He said, "That's where the real life comes from." Is that through love for God, we want Him to change our hearts so that we don't long for those things. We want to do His will.
- And when it comes to the apostles, especially Paul, Paul didn't have the permission, you might say, or the approval of the religious leaders, the Jewish religious leaders, because he didn't follow their traditions. He was motivated and guided by the Spirit of God. So when he went on his missionary activity, it wasn't as though he came with letters of recommendation from the religious counsel in Jerusalem.
- [Pastor Doug] Right.
- He came moved by the Spirit of God by that prophetic gift. And Paul does mention that, that God called him along with the other apostles to preach the gospel and to bring the law into context, the 10 Commandments and its relationship to the new covenant and not the traditions and the ceremonial law that the Jews are saying even the Gentile believers had to keep. And that was the point of controversy at the time.
- Yeah, so, so much of what Jesus said, He said, "Now don't think I've come to destroy the law of Moses "or the prophets. "I didn't come to destroy but fulfill." He said, "Not one jot or one tittle "will in any ways pass from the law until all is fulfilled." And so Christ really came to exalt and magnify the law, showing not just what the letter said but the spirit of it. What the law does on the inside. The old covenant is like the law written on stone. The new covenant is the law written in the heart.
- We actually have a study guide called "Written in Stone," and it's about the 10 Commandments, about the law of God, and we'll be happy to send that to anyone who calls and asks. That number again is 800-835-6747. And you can call and ask for this study guide called "Written in Stone." And what relationship does the law have to the new covenant? You'll be surprised if you've never studied out what the Bible says on this and we'll be happy to send it to you if you're in Canada or in North America. And as we mentioned before, if you're outside of North America, just go to the Amazing Facts website. Just amazingfacts.org.
- Amen. And I think they can even do pound 250 and get it on their mobile device.
- That's right.
- So. All right, listening friends, we just take a mid-program break. We're going to be coming back in just a few moments with more Bible questions. Don't go anywhere.
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- [Announcer] You're listening to "Bible Answers Live," where every question answered provides a clearer picture of God and His plan to save you. So what are you waiting for? Get practical answers about the Good Book for a better life today. This broadcast is a previously recorded episode. If you'd like answers to your Bible related questions on the air, please call us next Sunday between 7:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., Pacific Time. To receive any of the Bible resources mentioned in this evening's program, call 800-835-6747. Once again, that's 800-835-6747. Now let's rejoin our hosts for more "Bible Answers Live."
- Welcome back, listening friends, to "Bible Answers Live." And if you have tuned in somewhere along the way, this is a live international interactive Bible study. Interactive because we're inviting you to call in with your Bible questions. And if you have a Bible question, the number is simply 800-GOD-SAYS. That's 800-463-7297. I am Doug Batchelor.
- My name is Jean Ross. Good evening, friends. And we have a number of folks waiting online to take their question, so we're going to go straight to the phone lines. We got Mike listening in Arizona. Mike, welcome to the program.
- [Mike] Yes!
- Yeah.
- [Mike] My question is in Revelation 4:4, it talks about the 24 elders who sit on the throne or sit around the throne of God. Who are the 24 elders?
- All right, great question. You know, it doesn't specify exactly who they are. The first thing I'll mention is the number indicates that this is a position of leadership because in the Old Testament you had, I think there were like 24,000 soldiers that attended Solomon and there were like a set of 24 that served in the tabernacle that were leading the music. So you find a lot of 24s in 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Chronicles that were involved in leadership, either in the army in a rotation or in serving in the sanctuary. And of course, 144,000 is 12 times 12. Well, 12 times 12,000. But so who are these leaders around the throne? Some have wondered, "Well, are they some of the people "that were resurrected around Jerusalem in Matthew 27?" Or are they more like the people that you find in the Book of Job who, when it says, the sons of God came to present themselves to the Lord and Satan came also and God has got this heavenly meeting going on, it's not in Heaven. Satan's been cast out of Heaven. The Devil comes to this council representing the Earth. Some have wondered if these 24 elders represent leaders of unfallen worlds and they're called sons of God because, well, Adam was a leader of this world and he was called the son of God. He was created, he wasn't born. So I don't know. Pastor Ross, what do you think?
- Yeah. We got a verse here actually, Isaiah 24:23. It says this: The Moon will be disgraced and the Sun shall be ashamed for the Lord of Hosts will reign on Zion and in Jerusalem and before His elders gloriously. So it's interesting we have a reference here in the Old Testament. It's talking about the elders. Revelation 4 tells us there's 24 of them surrounding the throne. It could very well be that these are the representatives of the unfallen worlds, the sons of God that you read about in the Book of Job. And Satan came claiming to be the representative of Earth. And then you know the story with Job. So yeah, I think they are representatives of unfallen worlds.
- [Pastor Doug] Mm-hmm.
- It's interesting though. The reason I mentioned that is in Revelation 4, you have a picture of the heavenly throne room. Jesus does not appear until Revelation 5. And so the 24 elders are there in Heaven before Christ actually officially ascends to Heaven, and He begins His priestly work. Whereas those who are resurrected at the time of Christ's resurrection, they accompany Jesus to Heaven.
- That was a good point.
- They'll be waiting for Him in Heaven.
- Yeah.
- So it's maybe another reason why we think the 24 elders could be the representatives.
- Yep.
- Of these unfallen worlds.
- Heavenly leaders.
- All right, well, thank you Mike. We got Lois listening from New York.
- [Pastor Doug] Luis.
- Is it Luis?
- [Pastor Doug] Yeah.
- Luis, welcome to the program.
- [Luis] Goodnight Pastors. I hope you're all well.
- Evening.
- [Luis] My question is, does the Bible teach you how to preach? Not in the sense of like the preaching with our bodies, but like the preaching in a church? Does that make sense?
- Yeah. I think that the Bible first gives you examples of great preachers that you look at and it also tells you what their content was. So it's telling you what to preach. "You preach the Word," is what Paul says. And then you can look at the example of how Peter preached, how Philip preached, how Paul preached. And it's like Paul says to Timothy, "In season and out of season." You might preach to one person like Jesus sitting by a well or like Nicodemus at night, or you might preach to a multitude on the hillside. And it often starts small with your preaching experience and then it expands from there. But preaching is not, it doesn't have to be a complicated science. Preaching is basically a form of teaching. Now I'm not some people say preaching is when you're ranting and raving, yelling and screaming, jumping up and down and I'm not that kind of preacher. I like to teach more. And evangelism I think is a form of teaching too, where you're really appealing specifically that people accept Christ. You're sharing the good news. So being pastors and preaching is a gift of the Spirit that God gives.
- And you do have a few verses that speak about worshiping in Spirit and in truth. And I think that's true of preaching. You want to preach the truth but you want to preach in Spirit, meaning that you preach with conviction. One of the things that was said about Jesus is that He spake not as the scribes and Pharisees, but He spake with authority. In other words, Jesus believed that what He had to say was important and that it was the source of life, eternal life. So if you want to be a powerful preacher, you want to make sure that you believe what you are sharing and you are living what you're sharing. And then you can preach with Spirit and power and the truth of God's Word.
- We've known a lot of evangelists over the years and some of them didn't have a lot of formal training, but they were very successful because they were very sincere and enthusiastic. Who was it? John Wesley would say that he would pray that the Lord would baptize him in the kerosene of the Holy Spirit and then he'd set himself on fire and people would come and watch him burn.
- Yeah.
- Something like that.
- Right.
- So yeah.
- And there's power in conviction.
- Yeah.
- And power in preaching. Thank you for your call, Luis. We've got Steve listening in Canada. Steve, welcome to the program.
- [Steve] Good evening Pastors. Appreciate that you took my call, like always.
- [Pastor Doug] Mm-hmm.
- [Steve] I would like to know that Jesus, 40 days after resurrection here on Earth for Mary Magdala, Mary, the disciples, obviously, the Devil is not there anymore in the scripture because he's in the resurrected, sinless, like the fourth place of the new Jerusalem, the heavenly kingdom? Then the Devil is not part of it. That's why he's not there? That's why they don't speak about that because he had nothing to do in the eternal life anymore? He defeated the Devil and He resurrected. I assume that would be the answer, but I wondered what do you think? Thank you very much for your answer and God bless you.
- Well, just, I want to make sure I understand your question. You're saying the Devil did not appear anymore after the resurrection?
- To tempt Jesus, right? Is that the context you're mentioning?
- [Steve] Yes, yes, yes. Absolutely. Yes.
- Yeah.
- [Steve] When He resurrect, you know in the new body, after on the cross, after three days, that when He appeared, He appeared for His inside believers who believe, He wanted to show them that He's alive and some had doubt. But after the event on the mission to preach the truth the world, you know? With that scene, right?
- Yeah.
- [Steve] Yeah.
- Well, the Devil, of course, he's still alive and well as they say here on Planet Earth. And even after the resurrection, Satan personally still very involved in deceiving the world. You can read in Revelation 12, Satan has come down with great wrath because he knows his time is short. That's after the cross. And Paul warns us that we don't wrestle against flesh and blood, but principalities and power, Satan being that chief power. And I think Paul says in 2 Corinthians 11, "Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light." So the Devil's not omnipresent, you know? He focuses his attention on probably special objects of attack in the last days. But yeah, even after Jesus ascended, Satan has, I think, appeared at other times. I think Satan, Martin Luther says Satan appeared to him.
- That's right. You know, as far as Jesus goes though I think Christ overcame him at the cross.
- [Pastor Doug] Right.
- And Satan lost the battle with reference to Christ. Revelation 12 says: The man-child was caught up to God and to His throne. So that's talking about the resurrection and Christ ascending to Heaven. But then he turns his fury against the woman or the church. Of course, the Devil has been persecuting the church throughout the ages. But of course, when we get our glorified bodies and Jesus comes the second time, we are delivered from the Devil.
- [Pastor Doug] Yeah.
- And he can't tempt us anymore. All right. Next caller that we have is Kendy listening from Florida. Kendy, welcome to the program.
- [Kendy] Hi Pastors. How are you both?
- Hi. Good.
- So my quick question is, I've been putting a little bit difficult lately when praying sometime not only focusing but as far as who should we pray to as far as like should I pray to? You know, I believe it said: Pray to the Father, pray to your Father which is in Heaven in the name of Jesus. Could you clarify that a little bit and how to kind of like avoid or kind of like take away that spirit of confusion, I guess? I'd appreciate it. Thank you.
- Yeah. Typically in the Bible you'll find that they prayed to God the Father in the name of Christ. I'm speaking of New Testament times. They would pray to God directly in the Old Testament. But we know better in the New Testament that we're praying in the name of Christ because He's our mediator, He's the Messiah, the anointed. There are a couple of occasions where you see someone praying to Jesus. There's certainly nothing wrong or sinful. The only times I can think of is when Stephen is being stoned, he says, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." And so that's a prayer directed to Jesus. Then of course the New Testament, the last words in the New Testament, says: Even so, come Lord Jesus. It's an appeal to Jesus. And then it says, "Amen." So there may be other places I'm not thinking of, but generally they pray to the Father. But keep in mind Jesus is sometimes called, like in Isaiah, the Everlasting Father, because all things were made by Him.
- You know, sometimes the idea is that Jesus loves us and understands us a little better than the Father and so you want to pray to Jesus if you really want something. But Christ Himself said, "The Father loves you." And that you can come directly to the Father in the name of Jesus. But the Father loves the world so much that He gave His only begotten Son. You know, you get the idea that somehow the Father's the angry God, Jesus is the compassionate God. And so you want to try and get Him on your side. But you can go directly through Christ to the Father.
- [Pastor Doug] Right.
- Because of Christ's sacrifice and He accepts us.
- Yep. Good point.
- All right. Thank you for your call. We've got Philip listening in Florida as well. Philip, welcome to the program.
- [Philip] Hi. In Joshua 20:2 and 3, and they're dividing up the land that says they should set up cities of refuge so that somebody kills somebody accidentally, they could run to these cities of refuge before the avenger of blood catches them.
- [Pastor Doug] Right.
- [Philip] Who is the avenger of blood?
- Well, they use an example that two men are out in the woods, and it just uses one example that I know of, two men are out in the woods and they're chopping wood together and they're friends. And the ax head has not been secured to the ax. And while swinging the ax, the ax head flies off. I've had that experience before. Fortunately, nobody got hurt. But it flies off and a person is killed. In other words, there's an accidental killing. Well, the family shows up and they thought, "Oh, maybe you guys had an argument. "You killed our husband, our brother," whoever it is. The family is called the avenger of blood. And so when there's been an accidental murder, two men are out there and they're riding their oxcart and plowing and one man gets trampled and killed and someone says, "Oh, this was done deliberately "or it was negligent," and they want to take vengeance on the party who really, it was not premeditated, it was an accident. They are called the avenger of blood. They're the family that, usually it's a firstborn son, but they're the family that has the right to kill this person. I think there's a story where a woman of Tekoa brings an example to David. She had two sons fighting and one killed the other. And the family's now saying, "You got to turn over the guilty son so we can kill him." She said, "Oh please, I'm a widow. "You'll take my only son." So family members have the right then to execute someone who had been murdered. But if they get to a city of refuge, they were protected from the avenger of blood, the family leader of the offended party. I don't know. Hopefully that makes sense.
- There'd still be a trial that would take place, you know? It didn't mean that if somebody did it deliberately that they'd be off the hook. But they could go to the city of refuge, they'd have a trial and then it would determine their innocence or their guilt at that point. All right. Well, thank you for your call, Philip. We've got, let's see, Thomas is listening in Oklahoma. Thomas, welcome to the program.
- [Thomas] I want to know the Revelation 19:10 what's it mean? And I fell at his feet to worship him and he say unto me, "See that do not. "I am the fellow servant "and of the brother "so they have the testimony of Jesus. "Worship God for the testimony of Jesus is the Spirit "or the prophecy." What's it mean to testimony of Jesus in the Spirit or the prophecy?
- Okay, good question. If you look in Revelation 12:17, it says: The dragon, the Devil, was wroth with a woman. And he goes to make war with a remnant of her seed that keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus. The commandments and the testimony is a theme that runs through the Bible. It simply means the law and the prophets. The testimony of the prophets is what it's talking about. And if you look in, I think it's Isaiah 8:16, it says: Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples. And then if you look in Isaiah 8:20, it says: According to the law and the testimony, if they speak not according to this Word, there's no light in them. The last verses in the Old Testament: Remember the law of Moses. I send you Elijah, the prophet. The law and the prophets, the commandments and the testimony. So when it says the testimony of Jesus, the Spirit of prophecy or the Spirit that led the prophets, and so I was talking about the Word of God.
- Mm-hmm. You also have John who wrote the Book of Revelation. Obviously, he was a prophet. He had the gift of prophecy. And in John 1, he speaks about, actually verse two, speaking of himself, he bore witness of the Word of God and the testimony of Jesus to all things that he saw. So John had the spirit of prophecy and he refers to that as the testimony of Jesus. Jesus communicates to the prophets through the Spirit.
- [Pastor Doug] Yeah. Good point.
- And that's His will. That's His testimony that goes out.
- I never made that connection before. Thank you.
- Yeah, you're welcome.
- I learn. I'm glad I come to this program.
- You learn something new every time, right? We all do. Okay, well, thanks for your call, Thomas. Let's see, we got Carol listening in California. Carol, welcome to the program.
- [Carol] Yes. My question is going back to the lesson for Thursday, November 3. I just wanted to clarify regarding. It says here: Christ did not die just a natural death that every human being has to face. He died the second death. If you could just elaborate or explain further. What does it mean that He died the second death so that all those who accept Him will never have to experience it for themselves? I just want to have a better understanding.
- Yeah, thank you. And I think our question is referring to a lesson in what they call a Sabbath School Quarterly. It's a quarterly lesson. And so this is not a text of scripture, but the principle is true. And it's simply when you look in Revelation 20, it says: The wicked are cast in the Lake of Fire and this is the second death. The wicked face the death from which there is no resurrection. It is a hopeless, eternal death. And so of course they're cast in the Lake of Fire and everyone's punished according to what they deserve there. Jesus, when He went to the cross, He did not experience the death a person, a believer, has where they got hope and peace. Jesus was experiencing the death, the second death that the lost experience. And so He just had all the will, all the guilt and the shame of the whole world resting on His shoulders. He took that in our behalf so we don't have to experience the second death. So I think, again, I'm answering a question that's posed in the Sabbath School Quarterly. Some people call them Sunday School lessons, but we keep the Sabbath, so we call them Sabbath School Quarterlies. But it's not actually taken from scripture but the principles there.
- Mm-hmm. Now, there is a little difference between what Christ died and what the wicked die in that Jesus did rise from the dead.
- Right. They don't.
- But those who die the second death, there's no hope of a resurrection.
- No. Yeah. But when He was facing it, He felt the separation from God that the wicked feel.
- That's right. And bore our guilt.
- Yeah.
- All right. Well, thanks. Good question Carol. We've got Carla listening in Missouri. Carla, welcome to the program.
- [Carla] Hi.
- Hi.
- [Carla] I want to thank you Pastor Doug and Pastor Ross for all the Amazing Facts does for prisoners. My husband's been doing a prison ministry for over 20 years and about six years ago I was able to start going with him. And these guys get up like at five o'clock in the morning just to listen to Amazing Facts. But one of them had a question and I said, "I'm going to call 'Amazing Facts Answers Live' "and ask your question for you." And they were so excited.
- Oh good.
- So his question is, on the Day of Atonement, when the High Priest was in the Holy of Holies and everyone was supposed to be repentant, was everyone always repentant? And what happened? Or did it ever happen that everyone wasn't repentant and the High Priest died?
- Yeah. Well, I don't think it says anywhere that if there were some people that were not sincerely repenting, the High Priest would die. Because if you got a nation with a couple of million people, there's probably some that are not sincerely repenting. But he was to intercede for the people. And even like the intercession of Jesus now as our High Priest, there are some that are sincere, that are there by faith with Him, they're repenting of their sins and wanting victory. And there are some who are going through the motions. So because Jesus had a Judas in His group, Jesus didn't die because there was one person there that didn't believe. So I don't know if I said that right. But help me make sense.
- Yeah, just to add to that a little bit, Pastor Doug. It's interesting when you look at that, that on the Day of Atonement, if the High Priest didn't, before he went in representing the people, he'd have to do a sacrifice for himself. If the High Priest was harboring sin in his heart, there was the potential that he could be striked down.
- [Pastor Doug] Right.
- I don't think we have any record of that ever happening.
- Yeah, the closest is Eli. He kind of gets a judgment afterward.
- Yes. On his sons because of their wickedness.
- And then he dies when the ark is taken. But yeah, that's true. And then not only did they have to do a sacrifice for themselves, they had to wash, put on fresh garments, and so they had to go in like they were pure.
- [Pastor Ross] Mm-hmm.
- But I'm thinking about Zachariah when he was in the temple kind of interceding and he was struck dumb because he didn't believe the angel.
- That's right.
- And so, but you know, God's merciful.
- Yep. Absolutely. All right. Well, thank you Carla. Hope that helps. We've got Ken listening from California. Ken, welcome to the program.
- [Ken] Hello Pastors. Good to speak with you. My question concerns Isaiah 66:24. I know that fire comes down from Heaven to destroy Satan and his angels and those who followed him. But Isaiah 66:24 says that they will look upon the corpses of the men who have transgressed against God. And I'm confused as to how this coincides, the two pieces coincide together. Can you explain that for me?
- Yeah. Well, ultimately, first of all, let's assume the absurd. Let's assume this means that after God makes a new Earth and we go forth from the new Jerusalem, that we're going to be surrounded with a morgue of corpses that are being eaten by worms and smoldering with fire. Clearly that's not the Heaven anybody sees anywhere else in the Bible. If you look in Malachi, it says in Malachi 4: They shall go forth and tread upon the wicked for they are ashes under the souls of their feet. And of course, Jesus said, "Blessed are the meek, they will inherit the Earth." Christ is actually quoting the Old Testament when He says that. So I think that Isaiah uses a lot of poetic terms, especially in that last two chapters. He uses a lot of analogies. On the ashes of the wicked who have been consumed, the fire was not quenched and they have been eaten by worms. What happens when worms eat and completely consume something? It turns back into the elements of Earth. God is going to create a new Heavens and a new Earth. And you know, if we could see the history of all the soil underneath the farms, it would be pretty scary how that soil got there. But so I think he's just, it says: In the new world you're going to see, you're going to go out and you're going to look and say, "This is what became of those who persecuted God's people." But no, we're not going to sit on the walls of the new Jerusalem, eat popcorn and watch the wicked burn.
- Mm-hmm. I think also the reference there where it talks about the worm and the fires not quenched. You know, that has to do somewhat with the sort of the dump where they would throw refuge.
- [Pastor Doug] Gehenna.
- And it's illustrating the point that the wicked, they will be destroyed, they'll have no value, they'll never live again, they'll be considered as something you throw out as waste. Not that it's speaking specifically here about worms that live eternally gobbling on flesh, just like what you say. It's symbolic.
- Yeah. I think Christ refers to this when He talks about the punishment of the wicked. He says, "They'll be thrown to Gehenna." That was a Valley of Hinnom, which was the city dump outside Jerusalem. And He said, "Where the worm does not die.
- [Both] "And the fire's not quenched."
- So I think Christ is referring back to Isaiah 66.
- And just one more quick symbol on that. When it talks about the distraction of the wicked you read about in Revelation, it talks about calling the birds to come and they're going to have a great feast and they're going to feast on the flesh of the dead people. And even talks about horses and so on. Again, it's symbolic. It's talking about a great battle.
- [Pastor Doug] Yeah.
- And the army is defeated and it's talking about the wicked being utterly destroyed when that time comes.
- And I think we have a lesson that talks about "Is the Devil in Charge of Hell?"
- [Pastor Ross] Mm-hmm.
- And it goes into some of these verses that are difficult passages. For anybody out there, if you want to better understand what the Bible teaches on the subject of the punishment of the wicked, we have a lesson called, "Is the Devil in Charge of Hell?"
- The number to call for that is just 800-835-6747. And as Pastor Doug mentioned, the study guide is called, "Is the Devil in Charge of Hell?" And just filled with all kinds of wonderful Bible verses. You know, Pastor Doug, it's interesting. Hell is actually good news when you look at it from what the Bible says. It's not an eternal burning chamber where the wicked are going to suffer throughout all eternity, it is a destruction of the wicked. There is punishment, but it's good news in that God's going to create a new Heavens and a new Earth wherein dwells righteousness.
- It's an incinerator that purifies the Earth. And by the way, if you would like that lesson, you've got a mobile phone, you can just text us. I think they text pound 250 and you can get that lesson on, "Is the Devil in Charge of Hell?" Now Pastor Ross, as we've mentioned before, we kind of sign-off "Bible Answers Live" in two phases, sort of do it in stereo. We say goodbye to our friends listening on satellite. But for the rest, we're going to be back in just a moment to take your internet questions that have come in. Our two minutes rapid fire internet questions. Don't go anyway.
- [Announcer] Thank you for listening to today's broadcast. We hope you understand your Bible even better than before. "Bible Answers Live" is produced by Amazing Facts International, a faith-based ministry located in Granite Bay, California.
- Hello, friends. Welcome back to "Bible Answers Live." We thank you for your email questions that you've sent in. If you'd like to send us an email question, the email address is BALquestions@amazingfacts.org. Just BALquestions@amazingfacts.org. And Pastor Doug, we're going to see how many of these questions we can answer. So Holly from Michigan is asking, "Does God truly create some people to be saved? "And I guess by default some people to be lost?"
- Well, the Bible tells us that God is not willing that any should perish. And if God created some people and said, "I predetermined I'm going to make some creatures "and I'm going to make them so that they will sin "and they will be lost and then I'll punish them "for doing what I made them to do." Well, you think about that, that's kind of outrageous. It would almost make God an accomplice to sin that He's creating these people that have no option but to sin and then He's going to punish them for doing what they've been created to do. No. Folks I think are confusing some passages in the Bible. The Bible says God is not willing that any perish. Again, in Timothy, Paul says, "God who would have all men to be saved." And then the Bible closes with an invitation saying: Whosoever will, let him come and take the water of life freely. So people do have a choice to come and take that water of life.
- Okay, another question that we have. Renny's asking, "In Matthew 16:19, "it talks about the keys of the kingdom. "What are the keys of the kingdom?"
- Well, when we share the gospel, we are sharing the door to eternal life. So you're giving people the keys to get into that kingdom. Talks about Jesus has the key of David. And I think where is it? In Isaiah it says: And the key, the government was on his shoulder. They used to keep a key on their shoulder and that was a symbol of authority. So it's basically saying that you've got the avenue of truth with the keys.
- Which is the gospel.
- Right.
- Being preached. Okay, last question that we have here. Let's see. We've got Larry asking, "Are there unfallen worlds "and did they exist before the creation of Earth?"
- We know He has angels that He made before the world. But you can read in Hebrews, I believe it's in chapter two, the first verse, it says: God through Christ made the worlds, and it's plural there. And Revelation talks about all the creatures in Heaven that are praising Him. So we do believe there are unfallen, sinless worlds. Well friends, that uses our time up for this week. We're so glad that you tuned in. We pray that you will continue to support and pray for "Bible Answers Live" and Amazing Facts. And check out the website, amazingfacts.org.
- [Announcer] "Bible Answers Live," honest and accurate answers to your Bible questions.