Best Friend Forever

Jean Ross: Hello, friends. How about an amazing fact. Jack was a black retriever who lived in Swansea, Wales, in the 1930s. One day in 1931, the dog spotted a 12-year-old boy swimming in the River Tawe near the city docks, but the boy was struggling against a strong tide and couldn't keep his head above the water. Realizing the boy's predicament, Jack jumped into the water, swam over to the drowning boy, and pulled him to safety. Jack then made it his duty to patrol the harbor and the river looking for people who had accidentally fallen from the docks or who had gotten themselves into trouble while swimming in the river. Shortly after his rescue, Jack saw a person who had fallen from the docks who didn't know how to swim. The dog jumped into the water, grabbed the drowning man by his coat, and pulled him to safety. After this rescue, the local council awarded him a silver collar. The dog became the town's self-appointed lifeguard and was always ready to come to the rescue of those who found themselves in trouble. In addition to saving people, Jack also saved two other dogs from drowning that had fallen off the city docks and didn't know how they were to find their way out. All in all, get this. Jack is credited for saving at least 27 people from drowning. This friendly canine became a local celebrity and a hero. And after he died in 1937, a memorial was erected in his honor in the town of Swansea. The inscription on the monument says, "Never had mankind more a faithful friend than thou whose oft thy life did lend to save some human soul from death." Did you know, friends, that the Bible says that "Jesus is a friend that sticks closer than a brother"? That's Proverbs chapter 8, verse 24. And in John chapter 15, verse 13, Jesus said, "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends."

You see, friends, Jesus is both our best friend and our Savior. If you'd like to learn more about this great plan of redemption, if you perhaps don't know Jesus as your best friend, and you'd like to get to know Him more, we have a free gift that we'd be happy to send you. It's one of our study guides here at "Amazing Facts" and it's called "Saved from Certain Death," and all you'll need to do in order to receive that is to call the number 800-835-6747. That is our free offer line and ask for that study guide. It's called "Saved from Certain Death." We'll be happy to send it to you here in North America. If you're outside of the US, just go to our website at AmazingFacts.org and you'll be able to read it there as well. And my name is Jean Ross. Pastor Doug Batchelor is out this evening, but working the phones is Pastor Alden and we are delighted that he's here, kind of helping answer Bible questions and working the phones for us. So welcome, Pastor Alden.

Alden Ho: Good evening. It's exciting to be here.

Jean: All right, well, thank you for joining us here. Why don't we begin with a Word of prayer? And then we'll go to our Bible questions.

Alden: Heavenly Father, we thank You for the opportunity that we have to be able to come and answer questions through this program. We ask for the Holy Spirit's guidance as we maneuver through the Bible with all these different questions. Continue to lead us, guide us, convict us of the truths we hear. We pray all these things in Jesus's name, amen.

Jean: Amen. You know, Pastor Alden, it's always exciting to read stories and there's a lot of them, we just picked one, but there are many stories about animals, particularly dogs and dolphins, for some reason, that have saved the lives of people. They seem to have this instinct that they can recognize when someone's in trouble and they're able to come to their rescue. And many of them have, you know, they've risked their own lives to save, you know, the life of a human being. Well, of course, I think this instinct to save and this concern for others is really something that God has placed in the heart, not only of man, but of some of the animals it seems, and it's a reflection of God's great love for us.

Alden: Amen.

Jean: The Bible says, "For God so loved the world that He gave--He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." And as you mentioned at the beginning of the program, we've got a free gift that we would love to send people. If you're wondering about how you can be saved, or maybe you just need to be reminded of the good news of salvation, you want to read the study guide. It's called "Saved from Certain Death." Now, Pastor Alden, I know you've got some phone lines there. What number do people call, again, if they want to get the free offer?

Alden: That number is 1-800-835-6747. Jean: Very good. Thank you. Also, if people want to get it via a digital download, there is a text number we have for them. Alden: They can text, if they're in the United States or one of the territories or Canada, they can text #250. And--but if they're outside, then you would have to go to our website, which is AmazingFacts.org.

Jean: Excellent. Thank you very much. All right, well, I think we are ready for our Bible questions. So, who's our first caller this evening?

Alden: Our first caller is Brittany and she has a question regarding the feast days. Jean: Hi, Brittany. Welcome to "Bible Answers Live." You're on the air.

Brittany: Yeah, my question is, are Christians supposed to keep the feast days?

Jean: All right, are Christians supposed to keep the feasts? Well, in the Old Testament, you know, this is a common question that people have. In the Old Testament, there are four different types of law that you can read about in the Old Testament. The one is the moral law, that is the Ten Commandments. And of course, the Bible tells us that sin is the transgression of the law. And what law is that? Well, that's the Ten Commandment law. The first four have to do with our relationship with God. The last six have to do with our relationship to our fellow man.

But in addition to that law, we call that the moral law, there are three other sets of law found in the Old Testament. The other one is what we call the civil laws. The civil laws were the ones that governed the nation of Israel under theocracy, meaning that God was their King and God was communicating His will to the people through the high priest. And that whole system, of course, we don't have a theocracy today, but the principles that were laid out there, countries that follow those principles, they typically are blessed and there is law and order in that country. Another set of laws that we see in the Old Testament is what we call the health laws. And the health laws gave practical principles on how a person could be healthy. And not only does it talk about what you should eat and what you shouldn't eat, but also gave practical principles on washing your clothes, staying clean, washing your hands, especially if you touch something that is dead, certain animals or certain fungi that was even seen in the home or in dishes, how that had to be dealt with. So there were practical health principles that we read about in the Bible. Many of those principles we actually follow today. But they that--right there in the Word of God.

Then the next category, the last category of law, is what we call the ceremonial laws. Now, the ceremonial laws were given to point to Jesus. Part of the ceremonial law included the sacrificial system. Jesus is the Lamb that takes away the sins of the world. That came to an end when Jesus died on the cross. In addition to the sacrificial system and the Levitical priesthood and the sanctuary and its services, there were also certain what we call festivals, or feasts, that were connected with that ceremonial law that were given to Moses at Mount Sinai.

For example, the Passover. The Passover began after the children of Israel left Egypt. And they all pointed to Christ or to His ministry or to His work. Actually, today, we believe, Pastor Alden, that we're living in the antitypical Day of Atonement. One of those days was the Day of Atonement, or the day of Yom Kippur there in the Hebrew, and we believe that the type of that has met its antitype and we're living in this special time, the cleansing, the judgment that was illustrated in the Bible. So we do no longer--no longer do we need to keep the specific days. But there are principles, I think, relevant in the feast. This, of course, is separate from the 7th day Sabbath, which is actually part of the moral law. It's not part of the ceremonial law. All right, thank you, Brittany.

Alden: You know, years ago, Pastor Joe Crews wrote a booklet and if she would like to ask for it, if you ask for "Feast Days and Sabbath," you can get this free offer and you can call 1-800-835-6747 for that.

Jean: All right, thank you. Yes, get the book. If you want to learn more about the feast days and how they relate to us as Christians today, take a look at that book, 800-835-6747. And the book is called "Feast Days--"

Alden: "--And the Sabbath."

Jean: "Feast Days and Sabbaths." All right, excellent. Thank you.

Alden: We have Larry calling in from Oregon first time and Larry's got a question about pride.

Jean: Hi, Larry, welcome to the program.

Larry: Good evening, pastors.

Jean: Yeah, thanks for calling.

Larry: Yes, thank you. Got a question on 1 John 2:16. "Lust of the flesh and lust of the eyes" is pretty self-explanatory, but I'm having a little issue on pride of life, in comparing Mark 7:22 with this. Where do you cross from an acceptable pride, to a sinful pride?

Jean: All right, very good. Well, when it comes to pride in general, typically the word "pride" has a negative connotation to it. It's usually self-exaltation and we're not to promote ourselves. We don't need to try and make ourselves look better than others. Often, pride is associated with pushing somebody else down to try and elevate us higher than them. However, value, having a value, recognizing our value, in the eyes of God is different. God wants us to realize that we are precious in His sight. Jesus died to save us. So the Christian should have a clear understanding of his value, but it's not just his value, it's the value of everyone else because Jesus died for the whole world. So we are not better than anyone else. However, seeing that such a price is being paid for us, we ought to want to live a life that brings honor and glory to God, in all that we do. So, yes, pride is one of those sins. You know, that was the sin that really led Lucifer in the beginning and the whole rebellion. And of course, pride is still a very dangerous thing today. It sort of governs our world in areas of entertainment, in politics, in sports. Pride is often the motivating factor for why people do what they do. And as a Christian, we need to be careful of that because, you know, selfishness or pride, that is the carnal mind. That's the carnal heart. We say--we want to say, "Lord, make me humble. Help me to recognize my value in Your sight, but keep me humble."

Alden: We've got to remember, it's not about us, it's about Him.

Jean: That's right.

Alden: So the moment it becomes about us, we're going down.

Jean: You know, I'm thinking of that verse, Pastor Alden, maybe you can look it up, where it says, "Jesus made Himself of no reputation, but He humbled Himself and He took upon Himself the form of a servant." Now, of course, Jesus, one with the Father, gave back the Scepter of the universe at His Father's hand, came to this sin-polluted planet, humbled Himself. He didn't come to the palace of the King. He was born in a manger and Jesus came to give an example of living a humble life, the King of kings, and to die as an atoning sacrifice for us. So it's a beautiful illustration of what true humility and kindness is. All right, who do we have next?

Alden: We have Shane calling from Arizona and he's got a question about Adam and Eve.

Jean: All right, Shane. Welcome to the program.

Shane: Oh, hi. I know that the square symbolizes Adam's rib. I know that Adam and Eve manufactured aprons. Is Adam and Eve the first introduction of artificial synthetic technological light on earth?

Jean: Okay, well, yeah, that's a good question. You know, when it comes to Adam and Eve, you know the story, you read it there in Genesis chapter 3 where Adam and Eve had this-- God created this beautiful garden, created Adam and Eve. God was the one who first performed a surgery. The Bible says that God put Adam to sleep and took a rib from his side. And with the rib, God created Eve and brought Eve to Adam. But after they sinned, we find that they went and hid themselves from the presence of the Lord and they made artificial clothing. Now, they might have been clothed, and we think the Bible gives us evidence for this. They might have been clothed in a garment of light. The Bible says that we're created in God's image. And Psalms tells us that God covers Himself with light as a garment. So we believe Adam and Eve were clothed in these beautiful garments of light. They lost that light after they sinned. And then they realized their shame and their nakedness, a symbol of their guilt, and they made aprons of these fig leaves. And of course, then, Jesus came and He made coats of skin. But that required the sacrifice or the death of a lamb and that was prefigure of Christ and what Jesus would do, so we could be clothed with His righteousness. So the first record that we have of clothing making, you might say, in the Bible? Yeah, goes back to Adam and Eve and they were trying to just hide their guilt and shame. And I think a lot of what people are doing today still, just in the things that are being made, the technologies and all of the things. There's some good things in technology and advances in medicine and all the rest of it. But some of it is used for bad purposes: to hide guilt. So we will need to confess our sins, ask God to forgive us.

Alden: It's also interesting when you look at what--they covered themselves. When Admin Eve sinned, they realized that they sinned, they covered themselves with leaves, fig leaves, but that was not enough for modesty. So God had to cover them a little bit more. So the coats of skin, right? Jean: And you know, there's a lesson in that for us. Christ's righteousness covers us from head to toe, you might say. We need to be completely clothed in Christ's robe of righteousness, none of our self-righteousness, but His righteousness. And then also interesting throughout scripture then, fig leaves, or the fig tree, is often associated with man's attempts to save himself. That's why Jesus cursed the fig tree. You read about that in the Gospels. All right, who do we have next?

Alden: Gary is calling from Illinois and he's got a question regarding the law.

Jean: Hi, Gary, welcome to the program.

Gary: Hi, is this right? When the law was given, it was Ten Commandments in the book of Moses. Commandments carved in stone, while book of Moses was written in the book. Commandments placed in ark of the covenant while book of Moses is not. And that's why the law that we're not under is book of Moses. Is that right?

Jean: Yeah, you're right on there. So when it came to the Ten Commandments, you'll remember the account. The Bible says that God called Moses up onto the mount and gave him, the first time, ten commandments written on tables of stone. But then, as you remember, the children of Israel rebelled right after this. And when Moses came down off the mount, because the people were breaking the ten commandments that he had just received from God, he threw down the Ten Commandments and they broke and then God said, "All right, now, you carve some stone and then come up and I will write the Ten Commandments on it," so there was a second plate of stones, after the Ten Commandments were carved by the finger of God on these tablets of stone, they were placed then in the ark of the covenant.

Now, in addition to being in the ark, the Ten Commandments are inside the ark, there was also a rod that was eventually placed there, that budded, representing that God had chosen Aaron and his family to be the priests. And then there was also a pot of manna that was placed in the ark, a symbol of God sustaining the children of Israel and bringing them up out of slavery, out of Egypt, and leading them to the Promised Land.

Then in addition to the Ten Commandments, there were, as we mentioned before, some of the statutes. We spoke about the ceremonial law. These things were all written, even how they were to deal with property and inheritance and marriage and all kinds of social things were written down, part of what's called the law of Moses and that was placed on the side of the ark. Now, the law of Moses, Paul tells us in the New Testament, that was contrary to the Gentiles because there were some specifications in the law. For example, if you were not a Jew, if you were not circumcised, you couldn't come into a certain area surrounding the temple itself, even in the days of Jesus. There was a mark in the courtyard. And if you were a Gentile and you stepped over that mark, you could be killed. And Paul says that was the law contrary to us, meaning contrary to the Gentiles. But Christ did away with that, having nailed that to the cross.

So the ceremonial law met its fulfillment in the death of Jesus. Then Paul says, "Now he who has faith in Jesus, he is the seed of Abraham." So it doesn't matter what, you know, your nationality might be or what your genes are, your family inheritance. If you have faith in Jesus, you're Abraham's seed, heirs according to the promise. That's good news.

Alden: We have a free offer on that: Lesson 6, called "Written in Stone."

Jean: Thank you. A great lesson, absolutely.

Alden: And they can get that if they call 1-800-835-6747.

Jean: Okay, great. Again, it's called, "Written in Stone." It's one of our Amazing Facts study guides and, you know, friends, we'll just take a moment to mention this. If you have not yet taken advantage of the "Amazing Facts" study guide series, it's a whole set of Bible lessons, it is great. You can do it online. We can actually send it to you through the mail. You can fill in the answer sheet, send it back. So those of you who have not yet gone through the "Amazing Facts" study guide series, just ask for that when you call, and they'll be able to sign you up, it's free, take advantage of it. Who do we have next?

Alden: We have Jerry calling from Texas and he's got a question regarding Dorcas.

Jean: Hi, Jerry. Welcome to "Bible Answers Live."

Jerry: Hey, thanks, guys. My question tonight is how long was Dorcas sleeping before Peter raised her up? Because they had to send from Joppa those two individuals to Lydda to bring Peter. How long was she sleeping, approximately?

Jean: Yes, you know, back in those Bible--back in Bible times, when somebody died, you couldn't have the body around long, especially in that climate in that area. So maybe when she start--when she became very sick and she started failing in health, maybe word began to spread that, you know, she doesn't have too much time and maybe the family and the friends need to, need to get close. Verse 38 of Acts, chapter 9, says, "Since Lydia, or Lydda, was near Joppa, and the disciples had heard that Peter was there, they sent two men to him, imploring him that he would come without delay." So it appears that it wasn't too far away from where Peter was. I would imagine within a day's journey, at least, Peter was able to get over there. You couldn't keep a body open for more than probably a day, day and a half, 2 days at the most. So it was in a short period of time.

Alden: I know with the Hindus they have, I think 8 hours and they have to burn the body at that point.

Jean: Right, because it's so hot, especially in that climate. All right, thank you. Who do we have next?

Alden: Well, we have Lee in Texas, once again, and has a question regarding the Sabbath.

Jean: Hi, Lee, welcome to the program.

Lee: Yes, my question is, when we're supposed to--when God comes back on the--on the new heaven and new earth, how will you mind--and we do keep the Sabbath on the new earth, how are we supposed to be able to keep something like that when there's no passage of time?

Jean: Okay, good question. Well, first of all, when the earth is made new, now, let me just back up a little bit to share with you the context here of what we're talking about. In the book of Revelation, Revelation chapter 20, you have a description of what we call the 1000 years of the millennium. What marks the beginning of that 1000 years is the Second Coming of Christ. So Jesus comes, the dead in Christ are resurrected, the living righteous are changed in a moment, and the living righteous are caught up along with those who are resurrected and we go with Jesus to heaven for 1000 years. The wicked are destroyed with the brightness of Christ's coming and the devil and his angels are chained, so to speak, on the earth, referred to as the bottomless pit, during those 1000 years.

At the end of the 1000 years, the New Jerusalem, this is Revelation chapter 21. The New Jerusalem comes down out of heaven. It's at that point that Jesus will then set His feet on the Mount of Olives. And this is in Zechariah, the book of Zechariah, and the mountain will open up and form a great valley, and the New Jerusalem will come to rest right there in that valley. There is what's called the Great White Throne Judgment that then takes place. All the wicked are resurrected. They're outside the New Jerusalem, the righteous are inside the city. There is the final judgment and then the wicked mount their attack upon the New Jerusalem. This is Revelation chapter 20, and fire comes down and devours them. And then after the fire does its work of purifying the earth, both of the devil, his angels and the wicked, then the Bible says, "God creates a new heavens and a new earth wherein dwells righteousness."

Now, when the earth is recreated, it'll still be turning. It'll be a glorified earth, but we'll still have days, we'll still have nights, because the Bible tells us in Isaiah chapter 66, verse 23: "'And it shall come to pass,'" speaking about that time, "'that from one new moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, all flesh shall come and worship before Me,' says the Lord." So in the earth made new, we will still have days. The Bible does tell us, though, that in the New Jerusalem itself, there is no need for the sun because the glory of God fills the New Jerusalem with light. But outside of the New Jerusalem, yes, you'll still have the weekly cycle. You'll also have the moon traveling around the earth because it talks about months. And somebody asked--somebody once asked, "Why do we go up into the New Jerusalem on a monthly basis?" Well, the Bible also says that the tree of life inside the New Jerusalem bears 12 kinds of fruit, a different kind of fruit every month. So maybe we journey to the New Jerusalem to taste that month's fruit from the tree of life. But that's what the Bible says. So no, the Sabbath will be kept in the earth made new. The Bible is very clear on that.

Alden: We have that Bible study on "The Colossal City in Space."

Jean: That's right. All about the New Jerusalem, about heaven, and we'll be happy to send that to anyone who calls and ask. The study guide is called "A Colossal City in Space." And how do we get that lesson?

Alden: They can call 1-800-835-6747. Ask for "The Colossal City in Space."

Jean: Also, I think they can text.

Alden: They can text, that's correct, #250 in the United States, US territories, and Canada. But if not, go to our website, AmazingFacts.org, and you can ask for it there.

Jean: All right, thank you. Maybe we've got time for one more before the break, Pastor Alden. Who do we have?

Alden: This is right up your alley. This is Jose from Texas talking about a 70-week prophecy.

Jean: Okay, great, hi, Jose. Welcome to the program.

Jose: Evening, pastors. How y'all guys doing?

Jean: Doing well, thank you.

Jose: I would like to know in Daniel 9, verse 26, where that timeline falls within the 70-week prophecy.

Jean: Okay, yeah, let me read it for you. For those who are listening and we might have to give a little background. It says, "And after 62 weeks, Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; and the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary, and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and till the end war and desolations are determined." So, are you wondering if that 62-week time period is part of the 70 weeks? Jose: Yes. Jean: Yes, it is. So in the previous verse, it says from the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem, verse 25, "Know therefore and understand that from the going forth of the command to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until Messiah the prince, there shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks."

So, you have a total of 70 weeks; 70 weeks consists of 490 days. There are 360 days in a Hebrew year. So, you got a total of 490 days. Within that 400 and--every day equals a year. So, it's really a time period of 490 years, otherwise known as the 70 weeks. And within that 70-week period, it's divided up into smaller sections. In verse 26, it says: "After the 62 weeks." So, you have the first 7 weeks and the first 7 weeks or 49 years brought you to a point after the decree was given in 457 BC when they were able to finish building the wall surrounding Jerusalem. And then you go forward another 62 weeks. That actually brings you to the end of that 69th week: 483 years. What event happened? It says the anointing of Messiah, the Prince. That was the baptism of Jesus, and that occurred in 27 AD so the starting point is 457 BC. The baptism of Jesus is 27 AD. Then it goes on to the next verse and it says, "In the middle of the week, He shall bring an end to the sacrifice and offerings." Jesus died in 31 AD. He died on the cross, brought an end to the sacrifices and the offerings.

The second part of verse 25, you might be wondering about, it says, "and the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary." "The people of the prince that is to come," is a reference to the Romans and this is under Titus. This event occurred in 70 AD. The Romans came and destroyed the Jerusalem, they destroyed the temple. So the first part of verse 25 is talking about Jesus, Messiah, the prince. The second part of the verse is talking about the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. You can also read about that in Matthew 24 as well as in Luke, where it talks about when you see armies surrounding the city, then you know that its desolation is near. So that is a great study. One of my favorite passages right here, highlighting Christ. It was written some 500 years before the events actually took place. So, it's just an amazing time prophecy. Very specific. Tells you when Jesus was to be baptized, when He was to be crucified and when the probationary time for the nation of Israel was to end in 34 AD. We have a study guide. You can look that up. It's called "Right on Time," and it's all about the 70-week Bible prophecy.

Well, friends, don't go away. We got another half an hour of Bible questions. We'll be back in just a moment.

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Jean: Hello, friends, and welcome back to "Bible Answers Live." This is a live, interactive international Bible study. We want to welcome those who are joining us, not only here in North America, but, Pastor Alden, we got people watching on YouTube, on Facebook, on Amazing Facts TV. And I believe it's being rebroadcast on some other networks and more than 200, I think 250 now, land-based radio stations carry "Bible Answers Live." So if you're listening to this program, welcome. If you're watching on YouTube or Facebook, welcome. My name is Jean Ross. Pastor Doug Batchelor is away this weekend, but God willing, he'll be back next week, but helping me here on "Bible Answers Live" is Pastor Alden, and Pastor Alden, you're doing a great job. He's not new to doing Bible questions, he's been a pastor for many years, answered a lot of Bible questions, so we are grateful to have him here. All right, who is our next caller?

Alden: Well, we have Steve. Steve's in Oregon. He's got a question regarding the Second Coming and what happens when Jesus comes.

Jean: All right, let's see if we can get Steve. Steve, welcome to the program.

Steve: All right, thank you for taking my call. Prior to the 1,000-year millennium, when Jesus will return, scripture says, "Every eye will see Him." Back in the last millennium, I was in the Navy assigned to a nuclear submarine for months at a time under sea without surfacing, as are today's sailors in the sub duty. How will they see Him coming in the sky, being submerged under tons and tons of water?

Jean: Boy, you know, Steve, that is a great question. That's the first time I've heard that. You know, often people ask how will everybody see Jesus when they come? I've never heard somebody ask, what about those in a submarine? Of course, you're right. It will be different. But I think there's going to be so many natural disasters, the sea is going to be in upheavals, there's going to be earthquakes, there's going to be so much going on at that time, maybe these submarines are going to surface at the time. You know, I don't know for sure, but the Bible does say that at some point everyone will see Him. Now, of course, there are going to be people in the submarine who are quite possibly saved. We don't know, you know, who's going to be saved and who's going to be lost at the end. But God's still going to be able to save them even though they're in the submarine. But I don't know, we'll have to wait and see.

You know, what about the blind people? Will they see Jesus coming? Well, we know those who are saved, of course, they are changed in a moment in a twinkling of an eye, and they get these immortal bodies, they won't be blind anymore. But what about the wicked? So, I think the Bible there in Revelation chapter 1, verse 7, he's talking in general terms, meaning that everyone that can see, will see Jesus when He comes again.

Alden: The world's also going to be in great upheaval at that time. So, I don't know how many submarines are going to be below water--in the water during that time period because it's going to be pretty chaotic.

Jean: The Bible says there's great earthquakes, entire islands, inhabited islands, disappear. So, it'll be very different than what we know now. But that's a good question. Yeah, we'll have to wait and see. Thank you, Steve.

Alden: We have Nicole in Michigan. She's got a question about what we can eat.

Jean: Hi, Nicole. You're on "Bible Answers Live."

Nicole: Hi, pastors. How are you?

Jean: Doing well, thanks.

Nicole: Good, I have a question about Genesis 9, verse 3, when it talks about, when Noah and his family came out--came out of the ark and the Bible says that they can eat everything that came out of the ark. Now, I know that we're--the unclean thing, we're not supposed to eat unclean meats. But why does that text say that? What exactly is it saying?

Jean: The good question. Well, let me read it for those who might not have their Bibles in front of them. I think you're thinking of Genesis 9, verse 1. It says that "God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them: 'Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth.'" This is after the flood; they're coming out of the ark. "'And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be on every beast of the earth and on every bird of the air, on all that moves upon the earth, and upon all the fish of the sea. They are given into your hand.'" Verse 3 says, "'Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given you all things, even as the green herbs.'"

Now, when it says "every living thing shall be food for you," it's the rest of scripture that helps us understand what exactly with reference to the living thing is God referring to. The first thing we need to recognize that before the flood, we were introduced to clean and unclean animals, because when it came to Noah and the flood, there were animals coming under the ark. You had the sevens of the clean and you had two of the unclean, the sacrificial system had already been established long before the flood. It's actually established with Adam and Eve right there after they sinned. And it was clear they knew what was clean and unclean because only clean animals could be offered as a sacrifice. So the distinction between clean and unclean was always there.

Unclean animals were never considered food, at least not by God's people, for sure. It didn't even enter their mind. It's like us today, there are certain animals that we would never consider as being food. In some places you go in the world, they can eat just about anything that moves across your plate. But you know, in other cultures, we say, "No, that's not food." So it's not stated in the verse, you got to read some of the other passages of scripture. But it's clear that Noah understood that when He's talking about the animals that he could eat, it had to be clean animals because the next verse gives further instructions, says, "You shall not eat the blood." So he understood something about the health principles as it related to the clean and the unclean animals, especially in connection with the sacrificial.

Alden: Even at the end of verse 3, it says, "I've given you all things, even as the green herbs." So, can you eat all of the herbs? Well, pretty much. I mean, I wouldn't want to pull a Nebuchadnezzar and eat the grass or anything like that.

Jean: There's probably some herbs it's not good to eat or some plants, some are poisonous. So even having to say, yeah, you can eat everything that grows, sort of thing. Well, obviously that doesn't mean you can eat everything that grows. There are some things you don't want to eat. That same principle would apply even to the animals. All right, we do have a study guide. It's called "God's Free Health Plan." It talks about what the Bible says, some principles that we can follow to be healthy and so take advantage of that. It's "God's Free Health Plan." The number is 800-835-6747 and, Pastor Alden, if they want to get a digital download of that, what do they text?

Alden: You can text #250 in the United States and the US territories and Canada. If not, go to AmazingFacts.org and we will send that to you.

Jean: Okay, thank you. Who do we have next?

Alden: We have May in Washington--Wisconsin, who's got a question regarding false prophets.

Jean: Hi, May. You're on "Bible Answers Live."

May: Hi, isn't it true that the Bible states in Revelation that the false prophet is really actually a man and not a nation?

Jean: Yes, yes. Now, when it comes to Bible prophecy, there are two things we need to bear in mind. A king often would represent a nation. So I'm actually doing a lesson right now in Daniel chapter 11, we're doing it with the church, and it talks about the king of the North and the king of the South. And there are times when it refers to a specific king, but it can also refer to the nation that the king represents. Now the false prophet that we read about in the book of Revelation, it is an individual that represents a power. It is a religious political power in the last days. It is also a movement that takes place in a nation and, to be really honest and specific, we're talking about an entity called Babylon, that's referred to as the false prophet, and it arises, for the most part, in the United States. It is a counterfeit form of worship that takes the churches by storm.

You know, Pastor Alden, I think that's beginning to happen even now where people are putting their trust in experience, religious experience, instead of in the Bible. And they are trusting how they feel or what a pastor is saying, or the music or something else instead of "What does the Bible say?" And this is a counterfeit system and it's going to rise, but it's going to have prominent leaders that will actually push both protestantism or apostate protestantism, aspects of that with Catholicism and it'll come together, with the United States at the end. So it's a deep study. There's a lot in there. But yeah, the false prophet represents a movement. It represents people in that movement, but it's more than just a person. It's a movement.

Alden: The challenging thing is sometimes we get so caught up in this that we have our own ideologies and we're used to "what I think, what I feel," rather than what God says. And so, we have to kind of level everything and say, "What does God say?" because whatever God says, we have to take that as truth, no matter what anybody else says.

Jean: Well, you know, in the time of the Reformation, during the time of Martin Luther, the controversy was "Who has final authority? Is it the church through its traditions or is it the Bible?" Martin Luther said, "No, it's the Bible." Bible has final authority. In other words, the church needs to be tested by the Bible, doctrines have to be tested by the Bible. In the last days, there is an effort to put final authority not in the Bible, but now in experience that a person might have. So, either way, the devil's goal is to get people to trust in something else than what the Bible says.

Alden: Sola scriptura.

Jean: That was the cry of the protestant Reformation. All right, great question. Thank you, May.

Alden: Okay, we have Geo calling from Washington, first time calling, and he's got a question in regards to coveting and stealing.

Jean: Hi Geo, welcome to the program.

Geo: Hi, good evening, pastors. Yeah, so, as you said, I have a question on the Ten Commandments, and the Ten Commandments seem so perfect, but the last one seems a bit out of place. And I know it sounds strange but hear me out. When Jesus elaborated on the commandments, which was in Matthew somewhere, He said something like being angry with your brother is murder in your heart, and lusting over a woman is adultery in your heart, because it's the same thing in your mind, right? So, isn't coveting just stealing in your heart? So, it seems slightly redundant.

Jean: Yes, well, that's a good point. You know, if you look at all of the last six of the commandments that have to do with our relationship with our fellow man, it's almost impossible to break any of those last six without first breaking the tenth. For example, murder. It probably begins with some form of covetousness, which is the tenth commandment. Adultery begins with some form of covetousness. Stealing begins with some form of covetousness. Lying, yeah, it's probably something you're trying to cover up. You're not being honest. So, the tenth commandment sort of summarizes the motivation behind all of the others. It's the only commandment amongst the last six that have to do with your actual heart, with your thoughts, with your-- with your intents. And I think that's why it's such an important commandment. All of the commandments hinge on a heart experience because it's possible to keep the letter of the law, in other words, and this is what Jesus was saying, you know, "You've heard it say of old, you shall not kill. But I say if you're angry with your brother without a cause, you're guilty of committing murder in your heart."

So Jesus is saying it's not just about the letter of the law, it's about the spirit of the law. Now, there might be some who say, "Well, you know, I keep the spirit of the law. So I don't have to keep the letter of the law." But how can you keep the spirit of the law that says, "Thy shall not be angry with your brother without a cause, and yet murder him"? You can't. So if you're going to keep the spirit of the law, you're also going to keep the letter of the law. And if you're going to keep the spirit of the law, you're going to keep the tenth commandment that says thou shall not covet. So the last commandment is really the one that talks about the motivation behind all of those last six commandments. Does that make sense, Geo?

Geo: Yeah, it does.

Jean: Okay, thanks so much for your call. Yeah, absolutely. Who do we have next?

Alden: Well, we have David calling from California. He's got a question regarding turning the other cheek.

Jean: Hi, David. Welcome.

David: Hi, thank you for accepting my question. Yeah, so, the Bible talks about turning the other cheek and so, as a Christian, does that mean that we don't have a right to defend ourselves from physical harm or sexual harm?

Jean: Okay, first of all, no, it doesn't mean that we need to just, you know, go with whatever comes our way. That specific command has to do with interpersonal relationships, meaning one with another. There are other laws that we find in the Old Testament, for example, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. That represents justice. And those are the laws that were to govern the nation. So those are the civil laws that govern the nation. And there's nothing wrong in a government holding criminals accountable for their bad behavior and there's nothing wrong in us reporting a criminal who is doing something wrong and hurting somebody else. It's perfectly fine for us to say, "You know what, this person is a problem." Matter of fact, we should do that, you know, when we can. But when it says, "Turn the other cheek," it's talking about holding resentment and anger towards another person, especially if that person recognizes that they've hurt you and they've asked for forgiveness. You need to let it go, you need to try and forgive it. You say, "Lord, help me to forgive." Sometimes, yeah, we might have to keep quiet if somebody says something and just say, you know, "I'm not even going to cause a fuss. I'm not going to stir it up." But that doesn't mean that we need to place ourselves in danger. That, you know, Jesus said, "If you're persecuted in one city, flee to the other."

So, there's nothing wrong in doing what you have to do to protect yourself. And if you know of other people that are being abused or hurt or in a dangerous situation, I think the first thing we want to do is help them get out of that situation. So, the Bible is not endorsing somebody to suffer, especially if they're suffering physical abuse or, you know, serious emotional abuse. You can separate yourself from that situation. You're not violating that commandment that says, "Turn the other cheek." Does that--does that help, David?

David: Yes, thank you very much, Pastor.

Jean: All right. Thanks for your call. Who do we have next?

Alden: We have Glenn in Ohio. He's got a question in regard to one of the prophecies in Zechariah.

Jean: Hi, Glenn. Welcome.

Glenn: Good evening. Thank you for taking my call. Yeah, my question concerns prophecies in Zechariah chapter 5 and chapter 6. In chapter 5, Zechariah said he saw a flying scroll and then it goes on and gives dimensions and descriptions, but it talks about three women sitting in the lead line flew, the lead line ephah, and it doesn't make much sense. I've heard people stumble and stumble over that, what the women stand for. But if you vowel point the word "isha" in Hebrew and make it say asha, we now have fire instead of women in those lead line ephahs, and it's a perfect description of the scud missile and the F-4 tomcat fighter, the F-4 Phantom. And I just wonder, and then the other one is Zechariah chapter 6, starting in verse 1, a perfect description of the attack on the Twin Towers. And I never hear people talk about those things. But is it possible that these things are prophecies fulfilled in the current events?

Jean: Well, yes, I think there are prophecies. If you read through Zechariah, there are very descriptive prophecies relating to certain acts of judgment and they culminate near the judgment of the end. Now, could they refer to more than what the symbol might mention? Perhaps, you know, there are different ideas, or suggestions. But if we're going to let the Bible interpret itself, then we need to ask ourselves, well, in Bible prophecy, what does a woman represent? Or in Bible prophecy, what do these horses, a red horse and a black horse, as you read, what do they represent? Now, much of the imagery that you find here in Zechariah is actually used by John in the writing of the book of Revelation. In Revelation when he opens up the seals, there is this white horse that he's seen galloping and then a red horse then a pale horse and then a black horse. And it represents different time periods of Christian history, different things that were taking place. A woman, of course, in the Bible represents a church.

So we first and foremost, need to look at those symbols and see how do they fit into what's happening in our world. Also, we need to recognize that Zechariah is not only talking about things, you know, in 2024 but he's referring to things that have occurred throughout history, especially as we get closer and closer to the end, closer to our time. So, I'm a little reluctant to just say, "Well, this specific symbol here represents this specific event in history," unless there is a lot of different passages of scripture that make that very clear. Was the Twin Tower attack significant? I think it was. And here's why in just a nutshell. It's interesting that Islam is mentioned in the book of Revelation. You actually have the fifth and the sixth trumpet describes the rise of Islam during the time of Muhammad and then during the time of the Ottoman Turks. And it seems there's quite a bit of very description of this power rising up. And I think it is interesting, you read a little bit of Daniel chapter 11, some suggest that maybe at the end of chapter 11, the king of the South might have some reference to some of the Islamic nations. I mean, some of that's still in the future.

So, we're going to have to wait and see how all of these come together. But to take it too far literal, I think we need to be careful. We don't want to get--we don't want to get confused and go down the wrong path. There are a broader prophetic application for these different aspects. And Zechariah is a very detailed prophecy. So we don't have time to get into all the details of it. But great question.

Alden: We'll go to Lin over in Arizona. She's got a question regarding Daniel chapter 8.

Jean: Hi, Lin. Welcome to the program.

Lin Moore: Hey, Pastor Jean Ross. Yeah, my name is Lin Moore in Phoenix. I'm a member of the Camelback Church, Pastor John's church. Yeah, I just got a quick question. In Daniel chapter 8, why was the goat facing westward, eastward, and southward? And what was Shushan? Why was he facing Shushan? Why is that, Pastor?

Jean: Okay, yeah, let me talk about that. I'm glad you noticed that. Sometimes people miss those little minutiae of prophecy. For those who are listening, Daniel chapter 8 describes powers using animals. For example, a ram is first described in Daniel chapter 8, that has two horns, the one higher than the other. That represents the kingdom of Medo Persia. And then there is a goat that is seen, and the goat rises up towards the east and towards the south and towards the north, meaning that this power, Greece, would come from the west, which it did in relationship to Persia.

So, the reason when it talks about not touching the earth and it's coming, it's coming from the west, Greece and Alexander the Great came up from the west, Persia was--Persia's sort of Iran, the Middle East, the Mediterranean area, Mesopotamia. And so that's why the goat came from the west, moving to the east. Whereas Persia rose up from the east and moved to the west. Good question. Thank you. Who do we have next?

Alden: We have Robert calling from Washington. Robert, you got a question regarding the sealed book of Isaiah?

Robert: Hi, Pastor Ross.

Jean: Hello.

Robert: Good day. Good to hear from you again.

Jean: Yeah, thanks for calling.

Robert: You're welcome. I know I've got a short time. Isaiah 29, I believe it's verse 11, talks about a sealed book and sometimes the denomination wants to claim that as their book that was invented by a man a while ago. But then, I wonder, you know, I thought, "Well, maybe it's Daniel because Daniel is a sealed book in the Bible." But then verse 4 talks about it being from the voice of a medium or something, it says. So, I'm guessing it's not Daniel. So, who--so what is the sealed book?

Jean: So, this is a prophecy that Isaiah is making and he's referring to the people, this would be the people of Israel, who did not receive the words of the prophecy. It was to them, a sealed book, not meaning that the book per se was sealed, but the prophetic message was sealed because if you read a little earlier, verse 9, it says, "Pause and wonder!" This is Isaiah 29, verse 9. "Blind yourselves and be blind! For they are drunk, but not with wine; they stagger, but not with intoxicating drink. The Lord has poured out on you the spirit of deep sleep, and has closed your eyes, namely, the prophets; and has covered your heads, namely, the seers."

So, at the time because of a rejection of doing right, rejecting God's commandments, the people didn't understand the prophecies. Isaiah is prophesying. He was about 150 years, well, but a little less, maybe 100 years before the Babylonian captivity and judgment is coming upon Jerusalem, and the people seemed oblivious to that. They seem to be walking around as one who is blind or those who are intoxicated. And Isaiah is saying judgment is coming. And then Jeremiah who is the next prophet who was actually there when Jerusalem was conquered by Nebuchadnezzar, he was also warning the people, but it seemed to be a sealed book. The prophecy, just, they didn't receive it, because they had rejected, they rejected doing the will of God. All right, maybe time for one more.

Alden: We have Chelsea. She's got a question in Florida regarding hellfire.

Jean: Hi, Chelsea. Welcome to the program.

Chelsea: Hi, how are you both?

Jean: Good, thank you.

Chelsea: Yeah, so my question basically is about Revelation 20, verse 10. Right now, I'm studying with a group of friends, who kind of grew up believing that hellfire is an actual eternal burning place. But we're studying and also, you know, using "Amazing Facts" study guide, which has been really helpful. But when we got to Revelation 20, verse 10, I actually got a little stumped on it too because the last part of the verse says, basically saying the devil, the beast, and the false prophet shall be tormented day and night, forever and ever. So, they're thinking because this is, you know, in the Bible that it's taken literally to mean that they're actually tormented forever, like—

Jean: Let me say something about that. That's a good question. You know, there are some passages, especially in the book of Revelation, where it talks about forever. Now, we need to read "forever" in its context. In the Bible, the word "forever" is used as long as life shall last. It does not mean eternal-- not always, depends on the context. So, in this context that's speaking about the devil and his angels are cast into the lake of fire, they are tormented forever, meaning as long as they live. Now, it doesn't mean they're going to live eternally. They're not going to live forever, but their torment will last as long as their life lasts. Why do we know that? Because after the fire does its work, it says they will be turned to ashes and then God creates a new earth wherein dwells righteousness. So, they're not going to burn forever. But it does appear from the verse that the devil and the wicked will at least suffer a day and a night because it says their torment will be day and night forever, meaning until they die. So, the punishment will at least extend a day and a night, maybe more. We don't know. The Bible doesn't say. Everyone at the end will be rewarded according to or judged according to their deeds. The devil, he bears the responsibility for all the-- that we see in the world, ultimately. So, he will be judged accordingly. So, the phrase "forever" doesn't always mean eternal. It means as long as life lasts.

Alden: Or consumed until it's all gone.

Jean: Until it's--there's nothing left.

Alden: It's like a forever fireplace. But when the wood's gone, it's--it's gone.

Jean: It's gone. Doesn't burn anymore, right? It's accomplished its purpose. Well, friends, we want to thank you again for calling, those who have called in. I'm looking at the clock. We probably don't have time for another call. But as we mentioned before, this is a weekly international, interactive Bible study and we would welcome you to come and give us a call next week, if we didn't get to you this week.

Also, want to remind you if you haven't visit the "Amazing Facts" website recently, take a look. Just AmazingFacts.org, or dot com. It is jam-packed with great resources. You can click on the tab that says "Study with us" and you can learn so much more. Now for those of you who are not on satellite radio, stand by because we're going to be coming back with some of your email questions. So don't go away too far. We'll be right back in just a moment.

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.

Jean: Hello, friends, and welcome back. We just got about 2 minutes, 2 1/2 minutes. We're going to take some of your email questions and, Pastor Alden, who do people--or how do people get our--get their questions emailed to us? What's that email address?

Alden: Well, they can email us at BALquestions@amazingfacts.org.

Jean: We made it as easy as it could, right? BALquestions.org. And who do we have?

Alden: Well, the first question is "Matthew chapter 15:17 and 20 seems to imply that 'all meat is good to eat, because what goes in the mouth doesn't defile.' Can you explain why it does not mean that?"

Jean: Well, here is a story, just to give you a little bit of a background. The religious leaders and the Pharisees were accusing or condemning the disciples because they were eating with hands that had not been washed. So, the issue in question wasn't about what is, you know, clean or unclean foods. The issue was eating food with unwashed hands. They were traveling, they grabbed something, and they ate it, and they were making a big deal about it. They said this was a sin. And Jesus is saying, "Listen, it's not--it's not what goes in," and He's not talking about what you eat. He's talking about eating with unwashed hands. He says, "It's not that that's important. It's what comes out of the heart," all right? So here is not a statement just turning over and saying, "Well, you can eat anything you want. You're not going to get sick." Remember, the health principles are there because God wants us to be healthy. That's the prime purpose.

Alden: Rosalind from Anguilla has a very good question. She asked, "Will God answer prayers if I don't pay tithe?"

Jean: Will God answer prayers if you don't pay tithe? Well, you know, the Bible does give a blessing, especially a financial blessing, for those who are faithful in trusting God and giving and returning one-tenth. That is the tithe. It's one-tenth. And you know, I know so many stories of people who, you know, stepped out in faith and said, "I'm going to trust the Lord. I'm going to pay a tithe," and God blessed them. Not always financially, but there was a blessing, whether it was health or with relationships. And so yes, if we want God's blessing and we want Him to answer those prayers, well, let's be faithful. If the Holy Spirit is convicting us of something that we need to change, we need to make the change.

Alden: Here's a quick one here: "Why doesn't God ask the shoes to be removed when He encountered Abraham and Balaam like He did with Joshua and Moses?"

Jean: Yeah, that's a good question. You know, it seems that back in Bible times, to remove your shoes was an act of reverence. You were standing on holy ground, and when God appeared to Moses, said, "Take the sandals off your feet." Part of the reason why that was said was that because God was identifying who He was to Moses, so there'd be no doubt that this is a divine being. This is God communicating with him. Same thing when God said to Joshua, "Take the sandals off your feet," He was identifying who He was. And so, taking the sandals off the feet when God asked for it, He was identifying who He is as a person.

Well, friends, that is it for this week's edition of "Bible Answers Live." We are so glad that you joined us. We look forward next week when we'll be back to answer more of your Bible questions. God bless.

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