Running From the Daylight

Doug Batchelor: Hello, listening friends, would you like to hear an Amazing Fact? Well, it's no longer the stuff of Star Trek, Star Wars, and science fiction. In January 2024, the British Ministry of Defense announced that they successfully test fired a laser weapon to take out an aircraft. Laser directed energy weapons, or LDEWs, use an intense light beam to cut through their target, and they can strike at the speed of light. The range of the device called DragonFire is still classified, but the sophisticated laser cannon is so precise, it can hit a silver dollar from a mile away. This will be especially useful to defend against the increasing number of consumer drones that are being used, in warfare. The DragonFire laser is not only fast, accurate, and deadly, it's comparatively inexpensive to operate. For example, a typical Tomahawk cruise missile costs roughly $1.5 million, one missile. The DragonFire cannon can shoot down a target for roughly $13 in electricity. As I remember, Pastor Ross, the Bible says, "God's got a big laser that he's going to use at the Second Coming."

Jëan Ross: That's right. Pastor Doug, it's going to be a gloriously bright light, the Bible says. "For when He comes, the wicked are destroyed with the brightness of His coming."

Doug: Probably the verse that sounds the most laser-like is when you read in 2 Thessalonians 2, verse 8, "And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and--" notice--"destroy with the brightness of His coming." Something bright happening there. It's kind of like when the sons of Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, it says, "So fire went out from the Lord and devoured them." They went into the sanctuary, and, evidently they were drunk, and they brought in strange fire, and fire came down like a laser. And then you also have that verse in Hebrews 10:27 speaking of those that reject God's truth, it says, "But they can only look forward to fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation that will devour the adversaries," like those that are destroyed by the brightness of His coming. You know, I sometimes use the illustration that, if you go out at night with a flashlight in the woods, and you tip over a rock, you know, all of these creepy crawlies come out; they run from the light. But, if you set that light up out in the field, the moths come to the light. So some run from the light, and some go to the light. And, when Jesus comes, everybody's either a cockroach or a butterfly.

Jëan: That's right, Pastor Doug. Actually, Revelation chapter 6 describes that; it says, "The wicked turn at the rocks in the mountains. They say, 'Fall on us, hide us from the face of him who sits upon the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb!'" So they're wanting to hide from that glorious light appearing of Christ when He comes a second time. But, for the righteous, "They look up and say, 'This is our God. We've waited for Him. He will save us.'"

Doug: That's right. Well, you know, the Bible is clear about one thing. The world as we know it is not going to last, and everybody listening right now, even if you're in perfect health, you're terminal. These lives are short, and all of us will someday have our last night. And there is going to be a last night on earth. We need to be ready for the end. This life is to prepare for the life that lasts forever. And, if you'd like to know how to prepare, we've got a free offer.

Jëan: We do; it's a book; it's called "The Last Night on Earth." And this is a free offer for anyone that's watching or listening. All you need to do is call our resource phone line. That number is 800-835-6747. You can ask for the book; it's called "The Last Night on Earth." We'll be happy to send it to anyone if you're in the U.S. or in Canada. If you're outside of North America, you can just simply go to the website, just AmazingFacts.org. There's another way that you can get the free offer, and that is by dialing #250 on your smartphone, say Bible Answers Live, and then ask for the book by name, "The Last Night on Earth." And, you know, throughout the program, Pastor Doug, we're going to give some other great resources for people. And, once again, you want to keep those number, keep that number handy. You can call if you have a Bible question. Our phone line here to the studio is 1-800-463-7297. And our phone lines as they say are open. If you don't get through right away, just stay on there, and somebody will take your call as soon as possible.

Well, we're going to start with a word of prayer, and then we'll go to the phone lines. Dear Father, we are grateful once again for this time that You've given us to be able to open up the Bible and study. It is the most important book in the world. It reveals truth. And so we do pray for Your guidance as we study the Scriptures together in Jesus's name, Amen. The first caller that we have this evening is David, and he's listening in California. David, Welcome to Bible Answers Live!

David: Hi.

Doug: Hi, evening.

David: My question tonight is, how long will the tribulation last?

Doug: All right, good question. Now, when we talk about the tribulation, virtually all Christian denominations agree there is going to be a very severe tribulation of some sort prior to the Second Coming. Jesus said that, "Except those days be shortened, no flesh would be saved." He said, "For then shall be great tribulation." And, if you go to the end of the Book of Daniel, it says, "At that time," this is Daniel chapter 12, "Michael will stand up, the great prince that stands for the children of thy people: and there will be a time of trouble, such as there never has been since there was a nation even under the same time... and many that sleep in the dust of the earth will awake." So that's the resurrection. How long will this great tribulation be? Now, a lot of people listening right now, you probably heard reference to the seven years of tribulation. Actually, the phrase seven years of tribulation does not appear in the Bible. It's presumed, and, if I'm not mistaken, Pastor Ross, that concept is taken from the Book of Daniel 9 where they take the last week of the 490-year prophecy there, and they kind of hover it at the end of time, which, there's no other prophecy where you break off part of it and float it where you want. Some people think that it's seven years because there were seven days after Noah entered the ark, and he was sealed and shut inside, and the wicked were outside; their probation was closed. And they thought, you know, maybe that's where you can get seven years of tribulation. Others have thought that there'll be--And, by the way, there's two phases of the time of trouble. You might call one the small time of trouble. That's when you can't buy or sell. Then Revelation 13 says, ultimately, there is a death decree, and that's very intense; that's the seven last plagues. And it's hard to imagine the life on earth going on for seven years with the oceans being blood, boils, great heat. I mean, that seems like it's going to be a condensed period of time or more concentrated.

Jëan: There is a verse, actually, it's interesting. Revelation chapter 18, verse 8, we're talking about the seven last plagues. This is what the verse says, it says, "Therefore her plagues shall come in one day," and the her there he is referring to Babylon. This is the downfall of Babylon. We know that the plagues as described in the Book of Revelation begins with the sea turning to blood and all this, there's a painful sore, and then the sea turns to blood, and so on. But we know in Bible prophecy, one prophetic day is equal to one literal year. So that's led some scholars to feel that the seven last plagues will fall in about the period of a year because it says, "Her plague shall come in one day." That's Revelation 18, verse 8.

Doug: I can't even imagine a year like that. That'd be a bad year.

Jëan: It would be.

Doug: So don't worry about the time of trouble, friends. Just be faithful day by day is the key.

Jëan: And God promised to take care of His people during that time.

Doug: Now, we do have a book called "Anything But Secret!" And the last half of that book talks about the tribulation. And, if people would like a free copy of that, we have it.

Jëan: The number to call for that is 800-835-6747, and you can ask for the book. It's called "Anything But Secret!" It's one of the Amazing Facts study guides. But I think it's also actually, that's the book.

Doug: Sermon book, yeah.

Jëan: That's one of the books. 800-835-6747. You can dial #250 on your smartphone, and ask for the book as well. We have Anna listening in Oregon. Anna, welcome to the program.

Anna: Evening, pastors.

Doug: Evening.

Anna: My question is, what is the true meaning of speaking in tongues?

Doug: I'm glad you asked. I wish I had that question more often. It's just close to my heart because, when I first became a Christian, all of my friends I worship with were what we would call Charismatic Christians. And they practiced speaking what you would call speaking in tongues where, you know, they would ostensibly go into this Spirit-led trance where they would begin babbling and muttering. And they said this is a heavenly language and the heavenly prayer language. And I'd say, "What are you praying?" They said, "I don't know." Or someone might come along and translate for them. And, you know, that's a comparatively new phenomenon in Christianity. The speaking in tongues that you see in the Bible--First of all, you can read in Mark chapter 16 where Jesus said among the signs that His Spirit would fall upon them, it says, "They will speak with new tongues." The word tongues means languages. And you see, in Acts chapter 2, the fulfillment of that. When the Holy Spirit was poured out, there were Jews visiting from all over the Roman Empire on the day of Pentecost; they had come on a pilgrimage. And the Lord gave the 12 apostles, and others in the upper room, the supernatural ability to speak languages they did not formally know or study for the purpose of preaching the gospel to these visiting Jews. Other times in the early days of the church, people were given the the gift of tongues to speak in languages they did not know. See, at the Tower of Babel, God cursed man, and there was confusion they couldn't understand. At Pentecost, He reversed the curse and gave the disciples the ability to communicate the gospel in any language. But they were real languages of the world. It doesn't say that they just babbled or muttered. Paul says in f1 Corinthians 14, "Except you utter by the tongue words to be easy, easy to be understood, no one will know what you're saying." You're speaking into the air. Paul said, "I'd rather speak five words where, by my tongue, I might educate or teach someone than 10,000 in a language someone doesn't understand." So we got a gift book on it. I could say much more, but I'd launch into sermon number 36. So, better save that.

Jëan: That's right; that book is called "Understanding Tongues," and we'll be happy to send it to anyone who calls and asks. Again, the number is 800-835-6747. Or you can dial #250, ask for Bible Answers Live if you're going to use your phone, and say, I want the book called "Understanding Tongues," and we'll be happy to send it to anyone again in North America. If you're outside of the U.S., just go to our website, AmazingFacts.org. Next caller that we have is Ryan, and he's listening in New Mexico. Ryan, welcome to Bible Answers Live!

Ryan: Hello, how y'all doing today?

Doug: Doing good, thanks for calling.

Ryan: My question is, is keeping the Sabbath on the pagan Roman calendar, the Gregorian calendar seven day cycle? It only uses the sun. Is that actually sun worship? I mean, because it's only dealing with the sun, that seven day cycle. I think, you know, pagan Rome got that from the looney solar calendar, you know what I mean?

Doug: Yeah, you've got two calendars. When Jesus was born, Julius Caesar had already lived and died when Jesus was born. And they were using what they called the Julian Calendar. And, you know, the calendar names that we use, and even the names for the days of the week, we get most of that from the Romans. The Romans got some of it influenced by the Greeks, and you could even trace some of it back maybe to Babylon. But the days of the week, the day of the sun is Sunday, the day of the moon is Monday, so forth, you know. Wednesday was Odin's Day. Thursday, it was Thor's day. Saturday was Saturn day. In the Bible, they never used any of the Roman names. They use first day, second day, third day. Now, we know what the days of the week are. The Romans had a seven day week, and the Jews had a seven day week, and we all have a seven day week. The seven day week of the Romans; their first day of the Jews was what the Romans call Sunday, or we call Sunday. And, even in the Bible, we know Jesus rose the first day of the week. It's not sun worship if we're using a calendar for keeping appointments, about what time of year it is for planting or whatever. What are you going to call the months? Are you going to use the Jewish names for the months? But the calendar never affects the weekly cycle. Now, it doesn't matter whether you're using the Julian calendar--when they switched from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar--You can help me, Pastor Ross. You've done this meeting before. It was October 5, Thursday, 1582 I think. And then it went, the next day, went to October 15, Friday. So they went all the way from the 5th to the 15th. They dropped in when they switched from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar, but they went from Thursday to Friday. So, while they made a jump and a change in the calendar, it never affected the weekly cycle. Thursday was followed by Friday. Is that right?

Jëan: Well, yeah, you said 1582.

Doug: What was it?

Jëan: Let's see. The change from the Julian to Gregorian calendar occurred 1582. Let me see. It doesn't give us the exact-- I'm looking this up.

Doug: I'm pretty sure about the October.

Jëan: Yeah, here it is. October 4 was followed by October 15 in 1582.

Doug: October 4,15. Yeah, they added 10 days. All right, I got that wrong. I said October 5, so, but Thursday was followed by Friday. So I don't know if that helps, Ryan, answer your question. But I don't consider it sun worship if, you know, it's the only calendar the world follows right now. And it dates back before the time of Christ. Jesus didn't follow a calendar. Jesus lived by the weekly cycle, as far as what day was Sabbath? That was the same seven days we keep now.

Jëan: And different languages use different names obviously for the days of the week. It is interesting, though, in a number of languages that the seventh day of the week that we call Saturday today is actually Sabado, if it's Spanish, or a number of other languages.

Doug: Subbota in Russian.

Jëan: That's right, which connects to the Hebrew. Yeah. Very interesting. Okay, next caller that we have is Wade listening in Minnesota. Wade, welcome to the program.

Wade: Yeah. Hi, Pastor Doug. I just wanted to say that your testimony is the most powerful I've ever heard.

Doug: Thank you.

Wade: I just wanted you to know that. But the question I have is about 2 Timothy 2:15 where the Apostle Paul talks about rightly dividing the Word of truth. Is he talking about studying the Bible dispensationally or what's he talking about there?

Doug: Well, I think Paul's comment, and this is, it says, "Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the Word of truth." Well, when you're teaching truth from the Scriptures, you don't want to use goofy comparisons like, you know, I heard a pastor say once, you know, you could find the verse that says Judas went out and hung himself. The Bible does say that, and then you can jump to a verse that says, go thou do likewise. Well, that's not rightly dividing the Word of truth, telling people that you're supposed to go hang yourself like Judas because you've patched together two Scriptures. You've not divided it rightly. So dividing it rightly means comparing Scriptures and themes with appropriate or similar Scriptures or themes to teach a point so that you're faithfully teaching things in context and staying with the essence of what the truth would be.

Jëan: You know, we have a book that's called "The Ultimate Resource," and it's all about the Bible. It talks about how to study the Bible. We'll be happy to send it to anyone who calls and asks. The number is 800-835-6747. Just ask once again for that book, it's called "The Ultimate Resource." It's all about the Bible. You can dial #250 on your smartphone, and say Bible Answers Live, and then ask for the book by name. Thank you, Wade. We've got Shannon listening in Georgia. Shannon, welcome to the program.

Shannon: Oh, thank you. My question is, Psalms 1 through 3, it mentions David fighting against an unknown group. And what I wanted to know is, if there's anywhere listed in the Bible that I can find out who these people were?

Doug: You said Psalms 1 through 3?

Shannon: Psalm 60.

Doug: Psalm 60, verses 1 through 3? Okay, and let me read that for our friends. "O God, you've cast us off; You have broken us down; You have been displeased; Oh, restore us again! You've made the earth to tremble; You've broken it; Heal its breaches, for it is shaking; You've shown Your people hard things; You have made us drink the wine of confusion." Now keep in mind David did not write all of the Psalms. He probably, I think he wrote 70 of them. If I'm not mistaken, Pastor Ross. Some were written by Asaph and some, maybe even Solomon, the Bible says, wrote some Psalms. When it says, you've made us drink the wine of confusion, it's interesting. It talks about the wine of Babylon in, is that Revelation 17, Pastor Ross? Babylon's made the nations drunk with—

Jëan: Drunk with wine, yep. Revelation 17.

Doug: And this could be an allusion to one of the many times the children of Israel were conquered, because of their unfaithfulness, by some surrounding nation. It doesn't say what that nation is. Oh, wait a second now; I take it back. It says--and I wasn't reading the preface to the Psalm, "A michtam of David. For teaching. When he fought against Mesopotamia and Syria of Zobah, and Joab returned and killed twelve thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt." Yeah, I remember that was when Joab fought one group, and he sent his brother Adonijah to fight the other group. They got kind of attacked from the north and the south at one time. And they looked like, I think David is kind of pleading here for victory. But they won that battle.

Jëan: They did. Yeah. All right. Very good. Well, thank you, Shannon. We've got Lee in Texas. Lee, welcome to the program.

Lee: Yes, sir. Good evening.

Doug: Evening.

Lee: My question for the night would be, what does it mean by the man of sin will takes his seat in the temple of God? Is that in Rome or is that in Jerusalem?

Doug: I think it's in Rome because, when it says that he sits in the temple of God showing himself that he is God-- Of course, there is no Hebrew temple now. But Jesus said, "Destroy this temple made with hands, and in three days I will make one without hands." And it says, He spoke of His Body. The church is called the Body of Christ. And the Bible says, we are living stones built up to a spiritual house. So, when you talk about someone sitting in the temple of God showing Himself that He is God, it's talking about someone sitting over the church saying they hold some divine position. And many Protestants believe that's speaking of what the Roman pontiff did.

Jëan: John chapter 2, verse 19, Jesus said, "Destroy this temple, in three days I'll raise it up again." And, of course, He spoke not only of His Body, but He also spoke of the New Testament church. And there is no place really for any person to sit and rule in the temple that was in Jerusalem. Of course, it was a story in 70 AD. But, when you compare that to the church in, like you mentioned the city of Rome, yes, there is a king that actually rules from that church, from that cathedral, which was never the case as it related to Jerusalem and the temple there.

Doug: Yeah, the Jewish temple had no throne room.

Jëan: That's right.

Doug: It just had a place for the Ark. But you and I were in the Vatican.

Jëan: Right in the very heart of the church.

Doug: And there's a big place for the throne--there is a problem there--between two angels, that's right.

Jëan: Okay, well, thank you, Lee. We've got Robert listening in Washington. Robert, welcome to the program.

Robert: All right, good evening. Thank you for being here tonight.

Doug: Well, praise the Lord. We're glad that we can study the Word with our friends.

Robert: Yes. as you might see on your note, this is, it's a little bit different question than I had tonight. regarding the history slash Bible. I was discussing um the Second Coming, the signs of the Second Coming with a friend and regarding May 1780, the dark day and then the falling of the stars. And she was saying, telling me that, "Well, how do you know that May 1780 is a dark day?" I mean, she was saying, "Well, there's been many dark days, there's been many times that the stars fell from heaven. So how can you pinpoint these two dates?" Can you possibly help me with that?

Doug: Yeah, well, keep in mind that prophecy has a historical application. So Jesus wanting the church to know when His coming was near, He would give major signs in history. Now, in Matthew 24, He said that there would be great earthquakes, that the sun would turn dark, the moon would turn to blood, the stars would fall to heaven. Those things have happened on a historic timeline in a very significant way. I mean, you can go to the encyclopedia or even on Google, and, if you say, what was the day of the Great Star falling, it'll take you to, is it—

Jëan: 1833.

Doug: Yeah, I think it's May 1833. Abraham Lincoln even comments on that because he saw it. It was quite a significant event, and, when you talk about the dark day, that was something that's in the history books, and this is all happening, and then the Lisbon earthquake. That was maybe not the most intense, but it was one of the most widely felt earthquakes as far as its geography.

Jëan: That was 1755, the Lisbon earthquake. You know what else is interesting is the way Jesus mentions that there in Matthew 24, He talks about an earthquake, He talks about the sun becoming dark, the moon being as blood, and then the stars falling from heaven. And right around that time period, 1755, you have the Lisbon earthquake, which was felt they say on three continents, Africa, Europe, and even as far away as North America. And then you had the dark day, as we mentioned, in 17, when was that date, that came a little later, 1780? Then you have the Leonid meteor shower in 1833. And all of these are announcing the coming of a day of judgment. And we understand that to have taken place at the end of the 2300 days in 1844, according to Daniel 8:14. So these are significant events that point to a fulfillment of prophecy. And they understood that, even back in those times; there's many historical records of, when this day suddenly turned dark, people began to wonder, "Well, is this the end of the world?" And, when the stars fell, people were wondering, "Wow, is this a warning that God is giving?" So they understood the significance of these events.

Doug: Yeah. And then, of course, these things are going to happen again in quick succession at the Second Coming because, one thing that hasn't happened, it also says in the heavens will depart as a scroll and then they will see the sign of the Son of Man. So, not only did these things happen historically to kind of wake people up and tell us we're marching to the end, and, keep in mind, you know, a day with the Lord is like 1000 years. You look at the scope of Bible history, and it moves, you know, slowly for our lives. But, historically, we're nearing the end, but they're going to happen in quick succession right at the end of time also.

Jëan: Okay, thank you, Robert. We've got Will listening in Canada; Will, welcome to the program.

Will: Good evening, pastors.

Doug: Evening.

Will: So my question is in first 1 Samuel chapter 10, verse 10; does prophecy have a different meaning in this context?

Doug: Well, let me read this for our friends. First, you said 1 Samuel 10, verse 10? It says, "When they came to the hill, there was a group of prophets to meet him, and the Spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied among them." Well, the word prophesy there, it means he preached, the Spirit of God came over him, and he began to testify and preach and talk about the glory of God and praise God. And you see that happening in 1 Corinthians 14, Paul said it's better to prophesy than speak in tongues. And it says that the evangelist Philip had four daughters, which did prophesy. They didn't walk around foretelling the future. That means he had four daughters that also taught; they may have taught other women, but he had four daughters that were also involved in a teaching ministry. And so prophecy didn't mean, you know, Elijah was a prophet, but he didn't spend all his time talking about the future. Neither did John the Baptist. He said, "Repent." And so that's probably the kind of prophecy Saul, who had been a king, a Benjamite, Spirit of the Lord comes on him, and he begins to prophesy, which is something that the priests and the sons of the prophets normally did. Does that help answer that question?

Will: Yeah, thank you.

Doug: All right. Hey, thanks so much. You know, Pastor Ross, we're going to have a break in, oh, about 30 seconds here. So we don't want to take a call and cut people off short. Sometimes we'll start a call at the beginning of a break and take it at the end. But sometimes, when people sign on and off, they lose context. But, friends, we're going to go, probably get a drink of water. We want you to tell your friends that the best part of the program is still coming. And, don't forget, you can also be listening to and watching everything we do on the Amazing Facts YouTube channel. So don't go away. We'll be back in a moment.

Announcer: Stay tuned. Bible Answers Live will return shortly.

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Announcer: Jerusalem, the city of peace, has been a place of unending conflict for centuries. Many now believe that Jerusalem will soon take center stage again. But what does the Bible say? "The Fall and Rise of Jerusalem" presents the vital history you need to know about Jerusalem and its role in end time Bible prophecy. This Amazing Facts edition of the classic volume, "The Great Controversy," is the perfect sharing book. Get your copy at afbookstore.com. male 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 p.m. and 8 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.

Doug: Welcome back, listening friends, to Bible Answers Live. We know there's some that have joined along the way. This is a live international interactive Bible study. We are not only streaming on the Internet and Facebook and YouTube, but we're on about 300 radio stations, satellite radio, and all you have to do is call in with your Bible questions, and we'll do our best to take as many calls as we can. Sometimes I think folks might think, "Well, I wanted a longer answer," but we see the line of people waiting. We try and budget about three minutes, get as many calls as we can, and just to teach the Word of God. If you want to call in with a question, it's 800-GODSAYS, that's 800-463-7297. I am Doug Bachelor.

Jëan: My name is John Ross, and we have Ian listening from-- no, actually it's Ivan, I think, from Mexico. Let's see. I don't know. Are you there?

Ivan: Good evening, pastors.

Doug: Evening.

Ivan: Yes. Good evening, pastors. How are you doing? Thank you for taking my call.

Doug: Good, thanks for calling.

Ivan: I have a question. I wanted to, I had a question in regards to the deliverance of evil spirits. How do we go about getting delivered by, from those things?

Doug: Yeah, well, the--of course, Jesus casts out spirits, and, so, by turning to the Lord and asking for deliverance. It helps if you go to Christian friends, you know, I mean, if you're the person you're talking about, you might be thinking about someone else. You go to Christian friends, and you can gather and pray. Now, if the person that is tormented, they may choose to come themself, like the demoniac in Mark chapter 5; he came to Jesus; Jesus cast out the evil spirits. Turn your life over to Him through the proclamation of the Word--Jesus basically sets us free--and through prayer. And so, you know, sometimes the disciples would pray over somebody, and the evil spirits would leave them. And, you know, it might be a battle that goes on for a while. Even Jesus, it says He cast seven devils out of Mary Magdalene. And it seems to indicate that seven times she kind of slid back. So it's coming through the turning to the Lord, through the reading and the proclamation of the Word, and through prayer.

Jëan: And, if there is something in your life that you know is out of harmony with the will of God, maybe there's movies or books, talking about the occult, or maybe, you know, there's things in your house that should not be there that gives a foothold to the devil, to an evil spirit. We want to get rid of that as well. So do everything we can do in our power. But, ultimately, deliverance does come through prayer. And, like Pastor Doug says, the Bible says, where two or three are gathered together in my name, that's where I will be. So, get Godly friends or church members, and unite in prayer, and ask God to do something that, you know, you can't do for yourself.

Doug: That's right.

Jëan: Okay, thank you. Next caller that we have is Rebecca. Rebecca is listening in Washington. Rebecca, welcome to the program.

Rebecca: Hi. Thank you so much, pastors. I appreciate being here.

Doug: Yes, how can we help you?

Rebecca: Hi, Pastor Doug. I sent you The Ice Maiden's Kiss. Thank you for sending me that devotional.

Doug: Oh, ok, thank you. Good, good, I remember that.

Rebecca: Yeah, yeah, and I just wanted to ask about, in Proverbs, there's a lot of references to wisdom as "she" and "her," and I've been asked by other people, you know, not believers, why that is, and if Solomon is referencing the Holy Spirit? And, if so, why would he be referencing as "she" and "her?" Proverbs 4, 5 through 9, and then again down in 13.

Doug: Well, he does both. So you're right, in Proverbs 4 and in 5, it says, you know, "wisdom cries out." But you go to Proverbs chapter 8, and here it not only says, "She cries out by the gates," but then you get down a little later, and it says, "He was with me in the beginning of His ways." And so I think the reason it's going back and forth is because it's trying to talk about a love relationship, that we are to love wisdom. And so it kind of compares it to a marriage, you want to be married to it.

Jëan: And things that are of great value, talks about wisdom is better than rubies, better than gold, talks about, you know, this wisdom is described as a woman or it's described as a wise man. So there's different phrases that's used, different symbols that's used to illustrate the importance of wisdom, which ultimately comes through the Holy Spirit.

Doug: Yep. Yeah, I'm also looking again in Proverbs 8, it says, "I wisdom dwell with prudence, and the counselor's mind, by me kings reign." So, you know, I think Solomon probably is drawing on every beautiful analogy he can think of in talking about wisdom as something precious.

Jëan: Okay, thank you. We've got Guy listening in Arizona. Guy, welcome to the program.

Guy: Thank you for taking my call. I appreciate it.

Doug: Yes, sir.

Guy: Years ago when I got out of the military, I was going to college and met a young lady from Tehran, Iran. We got married, and she bore me three children, one boy and then a set of twin boys. And, all through our relationship, we weren't compatible. I slept in another bedroom. She wouldn't she wouldn't have nothing to do with me. And then she worked for her brother in a bar. So we got separated, and I was upset. And then I learned that, I got a call that she had sent my children, took my children to Tehran, Iran. I was outraged, and I cursed out the Holy Spirit. Since then I've repented, and I've asked for forgiveness for that stupid action because I was outraged. And, I'm wondering, have I been forgiven?

Doug: Okay, so you got very upset, and you verbally cursed against the Holy Spirit. And you wonder if, if you repent of that, can you be forgiven? Yes, that is not blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. There are people who are in a stage of grief where they have a great deal of anger. Maybe they've lost a loved one, and they say very reckless things. It sounds like you were going through a personal crisis. And, then, you know, they weren't really in their right minds; they're very angry. Sometimes the devil gets a hold of us, and we say things we should never say. Can God forgive you? If you sincerely repent, He will absolutely forgive you.

Jëan: You know, we have a book, Pastor Doug; it's called, "What is the Unpardonable Sin?" And I think you'd enjoy that guide. It'll help clarify what the Bible means when it talks about blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. Just call and ask for it, and we'll send it to you; it's 800-835-6747, that is our free offer. Or you can dial #250 on your smartphone, say Bible Answers Live, and then ask for the book, "What is the Unpardonable Sin?" And we'll send that to you. We've got Jason listening in Washington. Jason, welcome to the program.

Jason: Hi, thank you. My question is, is it ever okay to threaten someone with violence if they're doing something like insulting your mother or wife or, and this would be a man doing it, or they're contacting them when they've asked them not to?

Doug: No, I don't think it's ever--Now, I want to make a distinction here. If you or your family are physically threatened, you might need to do something physical to protect them. But, even if someone--you know, Jesus said, if someone just gets angry and strikes you on the right cheek, you can offer him the other. Now, He's not talking about a boxing match; He's saying someone gets mad and swings at you. But, because of words spoken, I don't think Christians should react with violence on any occasion. You look at how Jesus, He got buffeted, and He bore it patiently. You know, people are going to mock you. Jesus said, pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, love your enemies, overcome evil with good. He doesn't want us to overcome evil with evil. And so, no, I don't think you should resort to violence when someone says something rude or unkind or even insulting.

Jëan: That's right. All right, very good, thank you. We've got Tee listening in Virginia. Tee, welcome to the program.

Tee: Thank you, and good evening. And just really quickly, you all, your ministry is amazing, and I thank God for you all every single day.

Doug: Oh, well, thank you.

Tee: You're welcome. My question is, is it adultery for Christians to do the sign of the cross?

Doug: Yeah, we know that, a lot of our Catholic brethren, there may be some other churches that you'll see them cross themselves at the end of a prayer or, you know, at some moment of crisis. And there's nothing in the Bible that tells us to do that. That is something that I think kind of grew out of a pagan tradition. You know, I don't think we ought to be doing it as Christians because there's so many pagan trappings to those things, and I don't know, Pastor Ross, I can't think of any Bible example of a person making a physical sign of the cross or going through any kind of spiritual gesture or signs—

Jëan: Yeah, we have no record of any of that until, like you say, the middle ages where some pagan ideas began to make its way into Christianity, and some of these remnants of doing certain things or saying certain prayers, that was introduced into the church. And I think that's where making the sign of the cross came from as well.

Doug: And you get into some of the secret societies, and they give special secret hand gestures and things. I can't think of an example. I mean, the only thing in the Bible, it says they lifted their hands in prayer.

Jëan: Yep, and you know, there are examples in the Bible where they bowed in prayer, and they closed their eyes in prayer, and, you know, that would be Biblical, but making a sign of the cross prior to praying or ending, that's not Biblical.

Doug: Anyway, thank you, appreciate that, Tee, and thanks for the encouragement.

Jëan: We've got Steve listening in Oregon. Steve, welcome to the program.

Steve: Hello. Thank you so much for taking my call. Say, when did the Bible get divided into verses, and punctuation was added, and by who, like, which institution? Do you recommended one of your Amazing Facts publications or website?

Doug: I don't think they happened at the same time. I think that the division of chapters and verses was a separate event to when the translators went through and added English punctuation. Now you realize of course, punctuation in different languages is all going to be different. So, because Greek had no punctuation, they had to decide where you would put the comma and the period. Hebrew had a different kind of punctuation, that their whole structure was different. They actually read from right to left. So the translation of the two, from Greek and from Hebrew, was different and happened at different times. The Hebrew Old Testament was translated to English before. I believe that, Wycliffe got to the New Testament. And I don't know if he was one of the first ones to add punctuation coming from—

Jëan: Yes, somewhat. But, as far as the most known, I guess punctuation wasn't until the 1550s, just before the printing of the Geneva Bible, which was in 1560. And that's when more punctuation was added. And I think it was at that point as well where they began to clarify different passages with verses so they would be easier for people to find if they're reading it together. So it really took hold when the printing press began to print and people were translating more and more stuff into English.

Doug: There you have it. I hope that helps a little.

Jëan: You know, we do the book. it's called "The Ultimate Resource," and it's all about the Bible, and it'll give you a lot more information about the history of the Bible, how to study the Bible. The number to call for that is 80o-835-6747, and just ask for that book, it's called "The Ultimate Resource." Next caller that we have is Steve, listening in Canada. Steve, welcome to Bible Answers Live.

Steve: Hello.

Doug: Hi. How can I help? Yes, you're on.

Steve: Good evening. My question. Well, I'm somewhat confused as to the author of the Book of Romans because, in Romans, 16, verse 22, it says--because I always thought that Paul wrote Romans. But, in Romans 16, verse 22, says, "I, Tertius, who wrote this epistle, greet you in the Lord."

Doug: Mm-hm. Well, yeah, Tertius was the scribe, but the dictation and the message is coming directly from Paul because, you go into the first--Paul had problems with his eyes, evidently. He talks about a thorn in his side. And, of course, he was struck blind when he first saw the Lord. But you look in the first verse in the book of Romans, says, "Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated..." So it's a message from Paul. Paul was, I think he was in jail a lot of the time, and he also dictated things to scribes. Sometimes Paul would dictate a letter, and he'd say, "I'm signing this in my own hand." So it would be, he would authorize it. And he said, you know, "Behold with what large characters I'm writing." He wrote very big. Paul, when he was being tried by the high priest, he called him a whited wall. And the guard said, "You're going to say that to the high priest?" And he's squinting and going, "I didn't know it was the high priest." He couldn't see. So I think that It's just telling us that Tertius was the scribe, secretary who wrote it out, and he sends a little greeting at the end in his own hand.

Jëan: All right, thank you, Steve. Again, you might like that book called, "The Ultimate Resource," talks about the Bible, number to call for that is 800-835-6747. Jennifer is listening in New York. Jennifer. Welcome to Bible Answers live.

Jennifer: Thank you. Good evening. And God bless you, pastors.

Doug: Thank you.

Jennifer: In Genesis 19, we read there where Lot was in Sodom, and the angels came to him. He said they wanted to rape the guys, the angels, and Lot said he will send out two of his, his two daughters who knew no man, they were virgins. But, in verse 14, we really read where Lot went out to speak to his sons-in-laws who were married to his daughters. So my question is, if they were married, how could they be, could have been virgins at the time?

Doug: Lot evidently had other daughters. Some of them were married. It doesn't tell us if it was two or three. It uses the plural. So he had other daughters that were married. And it's interesting that, just the contrast between Lot and Noah, I don't know if you've ever done that. Noah had sons, and he saved his family. Lot had daughters, and they got, they married off. And Noah separated and stayed with the Lord, and Lot went down to the wrong city. And just an interesting contrast. But, yeah, it's just basically talking about the daughters that were married, and the two youngest that were not married were virgins.

Jëan: And the ones who were married, apparently, they were destroyed. His wife and his two daughters that were taken out.

Doug: It specifically mentions his sons-in-law, that mocked, they thought he was mocking.

Jëan: All right, thank you, Jennifer. We've got Kimberly in Nevada. Kimberly. Welcome to the program.

Kimberly: Hello.

Doug: Hi.

Kimberly: Hi. My question is also from Genesis. First of all, thank you for taking my call. But, so, in chapter 15, verses 9 and 10, when Abraham is making the covenant, and it talks about the ram, the heifer, and the birds, my question is, what is the significance of the birds, and why were the birds not split in half?

Doug: Yeah, well, typically the larger offerings were dissected. The birds were so small that, you know, when, sometimes when they butchered the bigger animals, they would divide it up, and they would dissect them like that. The birds were so small, it was like one per person. They just, they didn't divide them up. And so I think that's the main reason, and, even when they were drying meat, sometimes they dried in the sun, you know, bigger sections. It takes longer to dry; they split it up so it'll dry more quickly. A little bird, you could just hang it up, and it would dry, just salt it like the fish. So, yeah, they didn't divide them. But they took the offerings from the poorest, is what the birds offered, to the richest, which would have been the heifer, and a goat kind of in between.

Jëan: Okay, thank you. We've got Chris listening in Alabama. Chris. Welcome to the program.

Chris: Yes, thank you. I just want to get right straight to it. The Jacob married the two sisters. Has anybody ever thought that they might have been twins?

Doug: No, because Laban, well, someone may have thought it, but Laban specifically says, we never marry the younger before the older. It always talks about Rachel being younger, and Leah being older, never says they were twins. I think it would have mentioned that, especially since it does mention that Jacob was a twin, and Perez and Zerah were twins. But, yeah, I think that there, it delineates that Rachel was the younger.

Jëan: All right, thank you, Chris. We've got Greg in California. Greg, welcome to Bible Answers Live.

Greg: Good evening, pastors. Thank you for taking my call.

Doug: Yes.

Greg: Are you born of the Spirit at the moment you accept Christ as your Savior, and, if not, when are you born of the Spirit?

Doug: Yeah. Well, I think, definitely, when you accept Jesus. it's usually the Holy Spirit working in your heart that leads you to repentance. So the Spirit is working in your heart to just even bring you to the point of repentance and turning to God. And, when you turn and give your life to the Lord, I think the Holy Spirit begins working in your heart. Definitely at baptism because then you surrendered and obeyed, and you've made that commitment because it says, repent, be baptized, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. And even Jesus, at His baptism, He came out of the water. But you've got Cornelius in Acts chapter 10, he's baptized with the Holy Spirit before he's baptized with water. So you can definitely have the Holy Spirit. And I think most people are born again before they ever get baptized in the Spirit. That's what leads them to repent and to become, have a new heart. So, what do you think, Pastor Ross?

Jëan: Absolutely. You know, Jesus said, It's like the blowing of the wind. You might not be able to give a specific moment, but it's the Holy Spirit that works. The Bible says, It's the goodness of God that leads us to repentance, repentance to be born of the Holy Spirit. You know, we might not always be able to point to an exact moment. Some people can, very dramatic conversion experience, but, for others, it's a gradual drawing to the Lord. Alright, thank you. Next caller that we have is Robert in Michigan. Robert. Welcome to Bible Answers Live.

Robert: Thank you for taking my call. My question involves two verses in the Bible. Matthew 12:36 where it says, "But every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment." And then another verse is in Romans 14:10, where it says, "For we all shall stand before the judgment seat of Christ." And so I wonder how literal this is? And, in that context, if it is literal, when will the redeemed person ever give account for anything? Because aren't they covered by Jesus?

Doug: The Bible says that all are judged, and that means everybody, and, even the redeemed, they're being judged to show, were they redeemed? You know, did they surrender their lives to the Lord? Did they have the fruits of the Spirit? Did they, you know, follow up on their commitment? Now keep in mind for our friends listening. Jesus said that you'll give an account in the judgment for every idle word you spoke. For one thing, that means we need to be careful of what we say. But everybody here is doomed, if there's no mercy, because everybody has said things they shouldn't say. So, we have to trust in the Lord's mercy or nobody's going to have any hope. And Paul is just warning us that there is a day where everybody gives an account. Now, for those that have repented and turned from their sins, we are covered, and we are under the blood of Jesus, and we are pardoned by His grace. Otherwise, we may as well just turn off the electricity right now and go home. This program would be useless. It's only God's grace that gives us any hope.

Jëan: You know, there's a verse that we read in 1 Timothy chapter 5, verse 24 where, Paul says, "Some men's sins are clearly evident, preceding them to judgment. But those of some men follow later." Meaning that, if we confess our sins, yes, they precede us to judgment, but those sins are blotted out. Our names are retained in the Lamb's Book of Life. But, if we get it to the judgment and we haven't confessed our sins, our sins follow us, so to speak, and our names end up getting blotted out of the Lamb's Book of Life. So you want to send your sins beforehand to the judgment, that they can be blotted out.

Doug: Good point, great verse.

Jëan: Okay. Thank you. Next caller that we have is Neil, listening in California, or Nell. Nell, welcome to the program.

Nell: Hi, thank you for taking my call. I have a question. Should Christians invest in like say like the S&P 500 considering that there might be companies in there that, you know, provide items that Christians would not take part of? How should a Christian invest?

Doug: Yeah, that is a good question. You know, at some point, every Christian needs to realize that, you may invest in a bank. When you put your money in a bank, you are basically investing in the bank because they take your money. They don't sit on it in a safe somewhere. They take your money, and they invest in a broad spectrum of stocks. You're not responsible for that. You're just, you know, putting your money in the bank, and even Jesus recommends that. For example, I don't want to support a tobacco or alcohol industry, but, let's face it, every time you go to Walmart or any supermarket, they sell these things that a Christian shouldn't use. Well, I can't let that, I can't torture my conscience because of everything that a supermarket might sell. I'd never find a supermarket to shop at. And so, when you make an investment, if you buy a mutual fund, fortunately, now there are some where you could say, I want to buy they call them, the, a sin free or an ethical fund. There are some funds that do not invest in the entertainment or the tobacco companies, but I wouldn't say that a person should feel concerned about investing in like the NASDAQ or the S&P. That's just a broad, it's like having your money in a bank. It's kind of a broad fund. I don't think we should speculate or gamble. Some people are trading every day; it's almost like gambling. But the Lord tells us that we should be wise in our investment. Don't bury our talent. Otherwise He's going to say we're lazy servants, said you should have at least put it in the bank so I'd get my interest. I hope that makes some sense, Nell. Thank you. Yeah, we're surrounded as Christians with these moral dilemmas all the time, Pastor Ross, where we've got to just pray that God gives us wisdom. We make good judgment. But we also have to be able to negotiate our way through this world.

For our listening friends, we sign off in two stages. We say farewell first to those listening on satellite and thank you for tuning in. For the rest, if you stay by, we're coming back in a moment with our online rapid fire Bible questions. God bless to the rest.

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Jëan: Hello, friends, and welcome back to Bible Answers Live. For those of you who stayed by, we're going to take some of your email questions. If you'd like to send us an email question, the email address is BALquestions@amazingfacts.org. Pastor Doug, Glenda is asking, why did God say that eating swine's flesh is an abomination? Is it spiritual or symbolic?

Doug: Well, both. For one thing, pigs are scavengers, and our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit. You never brought an unclean animal into the temple. Secondarily, it, so there's a command that they are unclean as food as well. Because they are scavengers, it was never God's plan for us to eat any meat. A man was made to be a vegetarian in the Garden of Eden. And he finally said, "Look, if you're going to eat meat, they must be classified in the clean category." And pigs are called pigs because they're pigs. They're an abomination. You shouldn't eat them. They might make nice pets, like dogs, but don't eat dogs either.

Jëan: All right, Cathy is asking, can you please explain what it means in the Bible when it refers to Jesus as the son of David? Isn't He the son of God?

Doug: Yeah. Well, He's both. Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit, but He also, His mother was a human, and both Mary and Joseph came from the line of David. God made a promise to David in, I think it's 1 Chronicles chapter 17, that through his descendants, the Messiah would come, the Savior would be a son of David. And every Jew knew that; when Jesus came, they called him the son of David. They were basically saying, "You're the Messiah."

Jëan: All right. Diane is asking, what does it mean to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord?

Doug: Yeah. And that's coming to us from 1 Corinthians, is a chapter 5, and you can start with verse 6, "So we are always confident, knowing that while we're at home in the body, we're absent from the Lord. For we walk by faith and not by sight. We're confident. Yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and present with the Lord." Well, when a believer dies, their next conscious thought is the resurrection, and they'll be in the presence of the Lord. But, until the resurrection, like Lazarus, Jesus said, "He's asleep." We sleep a dreamless sleep. For our loved ones that die, we can be praising God for their benefit because we know their next conscious thought is a resurrection. But it hasn't happened. Paul is also doing a, what you call, like a double entendre here in that he's saying, "If you live in the Spirit, and you're absent from the body, the flesh, you're walking with the Lord." So he's also doing a play on words here as well.

I don't know, now, 17 seconds; I can't do another question. Listening friends, check out our Amazing Facts website, a lot of things going on and coming up, AmazingFacts.org. God willing, we'll study His Word with you again next week.

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