Hello friends, this is Doug Batchelor. How about an amazing fact? Qin Shi Huang was the first emperor to unify greater China. During his rule about 250 B.C., he started work on what would eventually become the Great Wall of China, but Qin Shi Huang was also obsessed with eternity. He dispatched entire armies to search for the elixir of life that would allow him to live forever. Fearing they would be punished if they came back empty handed, most never returned.
Obsessed with eternity, the emperor even began working on his burial city when only 13 years old. He filled vast underground caverns around his tomb with a microcosm of his court. There are terracotta statues of musicians, troops of acrobats, strong men and more than 8,000 full sized terracotta soldiers and horses to guard his grave site, and most of it is still not excavated. No two of these are the same. It's believed to have taken 700,000 workers and craftsmen 38 years to complete.
Tragically, Qin Shi Huang died on an expedition searching for life preserving elixirs when he was just 49 years of age. It was evidently from mercury poisoning caused by drinking a bizarre metallic brew his doctors gave him to supposedly help him live longer. Did you know the Bible does talk about a secret fountain of youth? Stay with us friends. We're going to learn more as Amazing Facts brings you this edition of Bible Answers Live.
[PROGRAM INTRODUCTION]
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Hello listening friends, welcome to Bible Answers Live. Do you have a question about the Scriptures, the Bible, the Blessed Book, the Word of God? That's why this program exists. If you have any question, we don’t have all the answers, but we'll do our best to search the Word together and find out what God says.
And that's our phone number. Lines are open; it's 1-800-GOD-SAYS, 1-800-463-7297. I'll let you get a pencil and I’ll give it to you one more time, phone number to the studio with your Bible questions, 1-800-463-7297. Call now, and you've got a great chance of getting your question on tonight's broadcast. My name is Doug Batchelor.
Pastor Jëan Ross: My name is Jëan Ross. Good evening friends and Pastor Doug. Let's begin the program with prayer. Dear Father, once again we ask for Your blessing upon this program. We ask that You be with those who are listening wherever they might be, and we pray for wisdom as we search the Scriptures here in the studio. We recognize the Bible is Your Book and we need your leading in order to understand it, so be with us tonight. In Jesus' name, amen.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Amen
Pastor Jëan Ross: Well Pastor Doug, you opened the program by talking about a Chinese emperor who was obsessed with finding that fountain of eternal youth. He wanted to live forever, and he went to great lengths and involved all of his resources to that end, even building this whole army that was hidden underground.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: You know, it's sad when you think about, not only this emperor of china, but the Pharaohs, and so many world leaders that had that natural yearning everybody has, this longing to live. And he was trying to cover all his bases. He thought, "If there's a concoction I can drink and live longer in this life, if there's some way I can surround myself with these statues and idols that will animate in the next life as the Pharaoh’s often did...."
Whatever he could do, he wanted to do it. You think, "What if someone came back from one of those expeditions that he sent all his officials on and they said, 'You know, I found the fountain of youth. Sit down and let me tell you a story about how you can live forever.'" God came to the world. He took on the form of a man. He died for all of your sins. And though your body may die, you can have everlasting life. What if he had heard that story?
The Bible does talk about a fountain of youth, in that sense. Many people remember when Jesus, in the Gospel of John chapter 4, was talking to that woman at the well, that Samaritan woman who was yearning for something better. He said to her, John 4:13, "Whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never thirst; but the water that I give him will become in him a fountain of water, springing up into everlasting life."
The Bible does tell us there is a fountain of youth, and it comes from receiving the truth in the Word about Jesus, receiving Him as your personal Savior. In fact, the Bible closes with a promise in Revelation 22:17, "And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him who heareth say, Come. And let him who is athirst come. And whoever will, let him take the water of life freely." That means, friends, you don’t have to go on some long pilgrimage; you don’t need to build an elaborate mausoleum or an acropolis to protect yourself in the afterlife.
You can have everlasting life right now, and it comes from accepting Jesus into your life and giving Him control - surrendering your will, repent of your sins, confess them to God, He knows anyway; and then ask Him for that new heart. Maybe you'd like to know more about that. We have a free offer about how you can take those steps and inherit eternal life.
Pastor Jëan Ross: We have a book that we'll send to anyone who gives us a call and asks for it. The book is entitled, Three Steps to Heaven. If you'd call our resource line, the number is 1-800-835-6747, and ask for the book, Three Steps to Heaven, we’ll send that out to you. Probably the most important decision that anyone can ever make is to, as you said Pastor Doug, surrender one's life to Christ and ask Him to work within. So again, that number is, 1-800-835-6747. You can ask for the book, Three Steps to Heaven.
If you’re close to your computer, those of you who are listening, you can join us via the web. You can actually participate in this program via the streaming. We're actually streaming the program right here from the studio. Go to Live.AmazingFacts.org. Our first caller this evening is Craig and he's listening from Des Moines, Iowa. Craig, welcome to the program.
Craig: Yes, hello. I've called you folks a few times and I really appreciate your program and everything you’re doing with your ministry. I do have a question for either one of you tonight. In the Gospels it lists Jesus' brothers as James, Joseph, Simon and Jude. Some people are under the--this is some people's observation of it, or whatever. They’re saying that that James, possibly, wrote the book of James, and that Judas, one of His brothers named Judas, is actually Jude, who wrote the book of Jude. I was just wondering what you feel about that, if that's true or not?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well, you know I think that there is support for that. The James who wrote the book of James...
Pastor Jëan Ross: You know Craig, we're having a little audio challenge here; but let’s see, Pastor Doug, can you hear? I can't hear you. Craig, can you hear Pastor Doug speaking?
Craig: No, I couldn’t hear him very well at all.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Alright, so we might have a little technical challenge here. What we're going to do is just switch microphones so Pastor Doug will be able to give you an answer to that. Just hang on. Alright Pastor Doug, let's switch over.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Alright, are you there?
Craig: Yeah. I can hear you good now.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah, I guess I may have a bad wire in my microphone. I think that's the first time this has happened.
Craig: Well this is the first time I’ve seen you folks on streaming. It never used to work on my computer but now you have a different place to click on that works perfectly.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Oh good.
Craig: So now I’m watching you fumble around there for a little bit.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah, well we want to get you an answer. You know, the James who wrote the book of James is probably not the brother of John, because you look in Acts chapter 12, and it tells us that he was beheaded by King Herod. So it is likely that it is James, the brother of Jesus, who wrote the book of James.
Craig: No, that's what I meant. That's what I meant, was it James the brother of Jesus that probably wrote it?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah, probably. Then when you read the book of Jude, it says brother of our Lord, so, you know, it leads us to believe that this maybe Jude, not one of the apostles, but rather another brother of Jesus, or at least half brother.
Craig: Oh yeah. Yeah, that's what some people have been saying, so I didn’t know if you thought that too.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah
Craig: Because it kind of look like it does, you know what I mean?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: I think that's them, you’re on track.
Craig: Okay, sounds good. Oh, I had another question but I’ll give it to you another week. I'll let other people call in.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Alright, hey we appreciate it. We're going to switch headphones now.
Craig: Okay.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Bye, bye.
Craig: Nice Talking to you.
Pastor Jëan Ross: We're going to go to our next caller for this evening. We have Fred who is listening from Stamford, listening on WMCA. Fred, welcome to the Program
Fred: Yes, thank you. I was just wondering where or whoever came up with the idea that somebody would be speaking in tongues, that that would be of the devil? Was there any origination of idea on that?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well, speaking in tongues...
Pastor Jëan Ross: Let me see, we have our same technical challenges here, Pastor Doug, with the phone. While we work on the phone Fred, let me give you an answer to that. The idea of speaking in tongues, the first reference that we have of it is in the book of Acts, where the Holy Spirit is poured out upon those gathered in the Upper Room and God gives them the ability to speak with languages that they hadn’t previously learned.
The purpose of that was to communicate the Gospel, which they did. They communicated the Gospel to a large group of people that had gathered there in Jerusalem; and as a result, the Bible says thousands responded and they were eventually baptized. So, the gift of tongues is for the purpose of communicating the Gospel. There is, just like everything that God does, Satan comes up with some kind of a counterfeit.
So it shouldn’t surprise us that the devil is going to try and deceive people, with reference to what it really means to speak in tongues, what is the purpose of that gift. Are you there Fred?
Fred: Yeah, yes. I think that's a good thought.
Pastor Jëan Ross: You know, we have a book dealing with the subject and the number of Scripture references that's given. We'll send that to you for free. The book is entitled, Understanding Tongues. If you, or anyone wanting to learn more about the subject, would call our resource line, they would be able to send that to you. The number to call is 1-800-835-6747. That is our resource line.
Again, the number is 1-800-835-6747. Ask for the book, Understanding tongues, and we'll be happy to send that out to you. It deals with all of the New Testament passages that talk about the gift of tongues.
Fred: Okay, thank you.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: That help a little bit?
Fred: Yes
Pastor Jëan Ross: Alright. Thank you for your call Fred. We're going to go to our next caller. Michael is listening from West Orange in New Jersey. Michael, welcome to the program.
Michael: Pastor Doug, how are you?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Doing well, and how about you?
Michael: I've got two quick questions if I can. I’ve been studying pretty well, and the word "rapture" doesn’t seem to be in the Bible. Can you give me some passages in the Bible that refer to "rapture"?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well you know, of course the word "Bible" doesn’t appear in the Bible. There are a number of Bible terms that may be accurate terms; and just because they don’t appear in the Bible doesn’t mean that their truth is not there. You don’t find the word "Trinity" in the Bible, but the idea is there that God is composed of the three Tri-entities of God the Father, Son and Spirit.
"Rapture" means "to be caught up." We do not believe in the "secret rapture," but we do believe that the saints are going to be caught up when Jesus comes, it's just not a secret. And that you find in 1st Thessalonians chapter 4, when it says, "The Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up...."
So that's it, the catching up. And when Jesus comes in Matthew 24 and He sends His angels to the four corners of the earth, He gathers together His elect. That's when we're caught up. Now, one of the big questions is some people believe it's a secret rapture, that people are caught up and life goes on for seven more years; and other Christians believe that it's at the end of the tribulation that the rapture happens and it's not a secret.
That's the old, traditional view, and that's actually what we believe. We believe the Bible supports that the tribulation happens first, because it says, "He that endures to the end, the same will be saved." So it's after this tribulation, then the Lord comes, and we are caught up to meet Him in the air. But there's nothing secret about it. He said it's like lightening shining from one side of the heaven to the other, so....
Michael: Thank you.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: You know, we have a free book we can send you on that, and it's called, Anything But Secret.
Michael: There's another, second question I wanted to ask you Pastor.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: If it's real quick.
Michael: It is quick. There's a saying going around, and I’m newly saved, I’ve been hearing it, "Blessed, and highly favored." Is that anywhere in the Scriptures?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well, you find the phrase, "blessed" of course, and you find the phrase, "favored." I’m wondering if you find the phrase, "blessed and highly favored." I can’t think off the top of my head of where that would appear in the Bible...
Michael: So it's not in there?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: ...it wouldn’t be the first time I’m wrong. Not word for word. It does talk about those who are highly favored. I think that when the angel appeared to Mary, he talked about her being favored of God; and then many times, God spoke about individuals being blessed. Daniel was called "greatly beloved." But why are you asking that? What did you find Jëan?
Pastor Jëan Ross: Well, there are a few verses with references to the words "blessed" and "favored," and one is found in Deuteronomy chapter 33, verse 23. Let me read it. It says, "And of Naphtali he said, O Naphtali, satisfied with favor, and full with the blessing of the Lord."
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well there you go, that's close.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Deuteronomy 33:23, with reference to Naphtali.
Michael: Yeah. I just want to know about that exact, because I hear that exact quote from people. So I just wanted to know the legitimacy of it in the Scriptures.
Pastor Jëan Ross: And then just one other here, Luke chapter 1, verse 28. The angel came unto Mary and said, "Hail, thou that are highly favored, for the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou."
Pastor Doug Batchelor: That's one I was thinking of.
Michael: Amen
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Hope that helps a little bit Michael, appreciate your calling in.
Michael: Thank you Pastors.
Pastor Jëan Ross: The next caller is Dennis and he's listening from Minnesota. Dennis, welcome to the program.
Dennis: Thank you Pastor Doug and Pastor Jëan. My question is about dominion and ruling over the earth. Could you explain when that started? Who has dominion and who is ruling the earth and when the ruling of the earth started?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well, when God first made Adam there in the beginning, it says, "I have given you dominion over all of the cattle and the other creatures." Man was made in the image of God; and as God is the ruler of the infinite universe, to some extent, man was made the ruler of planet. But he was to be a servant leader. Man was to be a steward. He wasn’t to be a dictator or despot on the planet.
You know, back then he didn’t even kill and eat the animals they cared for. They named them, and they trained the vines, and they were really to love and to care for [sic]. All the animals adored man in the beginning. It was after sin that fear came in, and the animals became ravenous and man began to be ravenous about the animals. But dominion was given originally to Adam.
When Adam and Eve sinned, the devil basically said, "Look, dominion belongs to me now." Romans, I believe it's chapter 6, it says, "Whoever you obey that's whose servants you are." And when Adam and Eve chose to listen to the devil instead God, they sort of signed over the title of this planet to the enemy. They were kidnapped. The planet was kidnapped and Satan claimed this world as his.
That's why the devil said to Jesus, "If You fall down and worship me, I’ll give you this. You don’t need to die for it." And that's why even Christ referred to the devil as the prince of this world.
Dennis: Do we have power to resist the rule of Satan?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yes. Yeah, the gates of Hades will not prevail against us; and that means, through the power of Christ, we're able to go forth. It says we're more than victors. We're able to go forth and conquer for Christ, invading the devil's domain and territory.
Dennis: Does God take over the earth again and rule later?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Sure, blessed are the meek, they will inherit the earth; even the Lord's Prayer, it says, "...thy kingdom and thy power. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven," right? The kingdom of power will be God's forever and ever. So yes...
Dennis: Alright, I can’t wait!
Pastor Doug Batchelor: ...He's going to get dominion back and, boy, it can’t be soon enough for me. Hey, appreciate your call. Thank you very much Dennis.
Pastor Jëan Ross: We have Jerry who is listening from Medford, Oregon. Jerry, welcome to the program.
Jerry: Thank you Pastors Ross and Batchelor. My question pertains to Revelation 20 which, coincidentally, was the chapter you discussed on yesterday’s sermon. But as you know, chapter 20 in Revelation talks about Satan being bound for a thousand years and then, at the end of the thousand years, he's let loose for a period of time, and he deceives the whole nation. Now, chapter 12 is critical to my question, and if I could read it, it'll only take me a few seconds. "And I saw the dead, great and small alike, standing before the throne. The books were opened, and then another book was open, the book of the living. The dead were judged according to what they had done, as recorded in the books." And then at the very bottom, chapter 15, it says if your name wasn’t found in the book of the living, you're cast into the lake of fire. So my question is, as you know, the righteous are in the first resurrection, so why is the book of the dead being revisited at the end of the thousand years? Or, the book of the living, excuse me.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Alright. If you look at verse 5, Revelation 25--well first of all, it says, "The dead in Christ rise first," right? That's when Jesus comes, 1st Thessalonians chapter 4, the dead in Christ rise first. And then you read in verse 5 of Chapter 20, "The rest of the dead don’t live again till the 1,000 years are finished." If the dead in Christ rise first, the rest of the dead are going to be the wicked.
So, it's the wicked who rise at the end of the 1,000 years. That's the same time Satan is loosed. Following Satan's failed attempt to seize the New Jerusalem, you've got this Great White Throne Judgment, and that's when the books are opened. Everybody is present; the righteous on the side of favor, the wicked are outside the City.
That's where Jesus, like in Matthew 25, He separates the sheep from the goats so to speak; and that's your Great White Throne Judgment, where everyone is going to have the deeds of their life pass before them. When it talks about books, you know, I don’t know that the Lord has big old paper books with cardboard bindings in heaven, but there's some record that He has that's going to be open to everybody.
Jerry: Okay, but Revelation makes it very clear in chapter 20 that, "Blessed are those that are in the first resurrection, for the second death has no power over them."
Pastor Doug Batchelor: That's the righteous; the ones in the first resurrection are the righteous.
Jerry: Yeah, right. But again, for some reason this book is being revisited later.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well, they’re saved at this point. The final Judgment is really for the wicked; but everybody, if their name is in the book of life, it says they’re saved. That's what you’re reading. If they’re not found in the book of life, verse 15, everyone found in the book of life is in the City. Those are the ones who are judged according to their works, and they’re all punished according to what their works are.
Jerry: But then why would it be necessary to reopen this book?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: They need to know why they’re going to be getting the punishment that they get. Hey you know Jerry, we have a lesson that really explains this in great detail we'll be happy to send you for free. It's talking about the millennium.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Called, A Thousand Years of Peace. For anyone wanting to learn more about Revelation chapter 20, if you call our resource line, it's 1-800-835-6747, you can ask for the study guide, A Thousand Years of Peace. We'll be happy to send that to anyone who calls and asks for it. Our next caller is Darrell and he's listening in Florida, listening on the Internet. Darrell, welcome to the program.
Darrell: Good Evening Pastor Doug and Pastor Jëan Ross, how are you guys doing?
Pastor Jëan Ross: Good
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Doing well
Darrell: My question is, why do you suppose that God allowed Cain to live after he killed Abel? And the second part of that question kind of ties into it. God gave Cain this mark, and said that if anybody kills Cain, his punishment will be seven times greater. So, the second part of the question is what was the significance of that?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well first of all, the Lord does not force His creatures. He could have forced Adam and Eve not to eat from the forbidden tree. He could have vaporized the devil as soon as Satan began to rebel. And so the Lord allowed these things to happen because He gives freedom to His creatures. Abel, of course, he's going to have everlasting life. He'll be raised, he'll have a glorified body; and Cain is going to be judged for what he did.
Someone might ask, "Why does the Lord let some of these despots live so long?" People we hear about that do horrific things and they seem to survive for years, or be able to hide their deeds for years. God allows cause and effect to play out. He doesn’t force everybody. There are times that God will intervene and He just will strike someone with lightning, so to speak, like Ananias and Sapphira.
When they lied to the Holy Spirit, they both dropped dead. But, in most cases, God is very patient, even with sinners; even with those who hurt each other. Still there?
Darrell: Yeah, I’m just listening.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: The second part of your question, you're wondering about the curse that was placed on Cain?
Darrell: Right, the significance of. Not only did God not kill Cain, you know, He allowed him to live, but then He protected him by putting this mark on there.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well, let me take a stab at that. Why would God pronounce a curse on anyone who hurts Cain after Cain has murdered his brother? Of course, future generations that were going to come is what God is anticipating, because most people weren’t born at that point. The Lord said, "Vengeance is Mine," and I think that God wanted to set an example of that.
We need to trust God to pay back for personal fronts, that we don’t take those things into our own hands. God is saying, "Look, I’m going to deal with Cain," and He was just showing mercy. Cain seemed to be somewhat repentant; he said, "My punishment is more than I can bear." Actually, he's probably feeling more sorry for himself. But, hope that helps a little bit. You know, God just was very patient there at the beginning. He said, "My spirit will not always strive with man."
But God's spirit was very patient with people; even before the flood when it says, "Violence filled the earth and the thoughts of men's hearts were only evil continually," and that's Genesis 6. God still gave them another 120 years. So it's just a testimony to the patience of God. I appreciate question Darrell, and hope that helps a little bit. We've got time for one more before our break.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Our next caller is Germaine and she is listening on 690 AM from Toronto. Germaine, welcome to the program.
Germaine: Hi, my question tonight is when the Bible was first introduced to man? Because I read the Bible a lot, and I read somewhere in another book where Job was one of the first books of the Bible, but when Job was going through his suffering there was no Bible.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Right. Well I’ll tell you what, let me give you a quick answer because I think we’re going to get interrupted by the break. Back in the days of Job, they ended up keeping knowledge in their minds. They didn’t have things written down because they lived so long and their minds were so sharp. The Bible was written in segments, first part by Moses, then later added to by Joshua, and Samuel, and Ezra, and Nehemiah, and the Kings, and then the New Testament writers wrote subsequently.
The last book of the Bible was Revelation, written about 100 years after Jesus. So over a period of 1,500 years from Moses to John the apostle, the segments of the Bible were written; and Jesus, of course, recognized and inspired all of those books that were written prior to His life, what we now called the Old Testament. Those are the books that were written before the time of Christ. And then Peter, and Paul and the others, the things that they wrote, added to that Canon of Scripture that has been carefully recognized through history. Hey, thank you very much for your question. You're listening to Bible Answers Live.
Pastor Jëan Ross: You know Pastor Doug, we're coming up on our break here in just a few moments, but before we do we'd like to let all of our listening friends know that there is something special happening. Probably, well let's see, about two weeks from now you’re going to be in Tennessee. I’ll be there with you. You'll be doing a series entitled, Ultimate Purpose, a four-part series. Tell us about that.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yes! We’d like to invite anybody that might be in the--well anybody in North America can watch. It's going to be on Three Angels Broadcasting. That will begin October 11th through the 13th. There will be four presentations. You cannot be happy unless you understand where you came from, what you're doing here, and where you're going.
You can’t have happiness unless you've got good answers to those things. This program, especially for young college students, is going to address those primary, ultimate purposes of life and we invite you to tune in. It'll start at 7:00, October 11. It'll be on 3ABN and called, The Ultimate Purpose. Go to our website for more information.
[COMMERCIAL BREAK]
Pastor Doug Batchelor: We're back friends, and this is Bible Answers Live. You can listen or call in with your Bible question. If you've got a question regarding the Scriptures, pick up your phone and call 1-800--it's a free phone call--GOD-SAYS. That's 1-800-463-7297. We still have a couple of lines open and we invite you to call for the second half of our program. My name is Doug Batchelor.
Pastor Jëan Ross: My name is Jëan Ross. We're going to go straight to the phone lines. If you have a Bible-related question, we did give you the number. It's 1-800-463-7297. Our next Caller is George and he's listening from Pinedale, Wyoming. George, welcome to the program.
George: Thank you, good evening Pastors.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Good evening.
George: My question is aimed at Daniel chapter 12, verses 11 and 12 regarding the daily sacrifice and the abomination that makes it desolate.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Alright, for our friends--go ahead, I’ll let you finish your question.
George: Okay. Well, Daniel gives several time prophecies. I was wondering what is the daily sacrifice being taken away?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well of course, in the time of the Old Testament, the patriarchs would daily offer a sacrifice for their sins, or they might do it weekly; but they could plead for forgiveness because of the ongoing intercession of God on their behalf. It pointed forward to the time when Jesus would die for their sins. When the temple was finally built they did have a daily sacrifice.
You'll remember when Elijah was on mount Carmel, it said, "...about the time of the daily sacrifice," and they had a morning and an evening sacrifice that was made for the nation. This represented the ongoing forgiveness and atonement of Christ. Well, there was an effort during the Dark Ages to expunge, or to distort, or to corrupt, or veil from the people the ministry of Christ, the forgiveness that He offers. And so Daniel was looking ahead to a time when there's a conspiracy, it's safe to use that word, to interrupt the free grace that Jesus offers through His sacrifice and turn people to salvation by works.
You know, there's a whole prophecy. It covers the time of these 1,290- and 1,260-year prophecies. Daniel 12 has got three of the longest time prophecies in the Bible. It talks about 1,335; it talks about 1,290 and it talks about 1,260 and what those time periods represent [cross talk]. I'm sorry, go ahead.
George: Or, when did they even start? Since it was in the Dark Ages, there had to have been a starting period.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: You know, maybe it's not too soon for me to mention something Pastor Ross. Amazing Facts has had so many questions on Daniel and Revelation. We are just completing a magazine that we believe is going to be available for ordering in December. It's basically, The Prophecies of Daniel and Revelation, with charts that explain these very important prophecies and how they play out. I think that's going to be a big help to a lot people.
But it's difficult for me on the phone without being able to draw a little chart and show you when things start and end to explain this. I’ll just be very honest with you. Now we do have study guides that talk about these prophecies; and a starting point would be the prophecy that talks about God sets a date for the Judgment.
Pastor Jëan Ross: That, of course, deals with Daniel chapter 8, where it speaks about 2,300 days or years. To receive that study guide and understand these time prophecies in Daniel and Revelation, call our resource line. It's 1-800-835-6747. You can ask for the study guide, God Sets a Date for the Judgment, and we'll be happy to send that out to anybody who calls and asks for it. Our next caller is James and he is listening from New York. James, welcome to the program.
James: Thank you for having me and thank you for being there for us. More than one theologian has talked about the end of the church age before Christ returns. Is that something that's scriptural?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well, yes and no. Let me explain what I mean by that. There’s no statement that says "the end of the church age." The Bible does tell us in Revelation that there will be a great apostasy in the church. It doesn’t mean that there is no longer a church. It tells us that the real church sort of goes underground during that time.
You read about Babylon and her daughters in Revelation 17, and that's representing a counterfeit church, and daughters would represent all of the counterfeit churches that came out of her. But then you read in Revelation chapter 12 about this pure bride of Christ that is clothed with the sun and standing on the moon and has a crown of 12 stars, and this represents the true church of God; but you notice she has to flee into the wilderness because of this withering persecution that comes. So she kind of goes underground.
And so, as we near the end and the mark of the beast becomes the prevalent power in the world, God's true church, to some extent, is going to have to go underground. It's going to be greatly persecuted. It doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist anymore. I've heard some radio commentators and theologians say, "Don’t go to any church anymore. They are all organizations that are corrupt."
There's nothing really that says that. The only thing we're left with, if you don’t have an organized church, is you've got a disorganized church. So I think that God still does operate through His people, but you want to be part of a church that it biblically based on the Word of God.
Pastor Jëan Ross: We have a study guide dealing with this important subject, and it's entitled, The Bride of Christ, it's Revelation chapter 12. Again, for anyone who would like to learn this, just gives us a call on our resource line, we'll send it to you. It's 1-800-835-6747. You can ask for the book, The Bride of Christ. It's actually an Amazing Facts' study guide, and we'll send it out. Our next caller is Diana and she is listening in Los Angeles. Diana, welcome to the program.
Diana: Hi
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Hi, thanks for calling, and your question?
Diana: My question? My question is, why didn’t God just destroy Satan?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Okay, That's a good question. Now, if God had destroyed the devil, Satan, his name used to be Lucifer. If God had destroyed the devil as soon as the devil started to rebel and be mean and sin, all the other angels would have listened to God because they were afraid of Him, not because they loved Him.
The devil said some bad things about God; he said, "God isn’t fair," and, "God isn’t love." And if God then destroyed the devil right after he told all the other angels God isn’t fair and God isn’t love, the other angels would have thought, "Uh-oh, Lucifer is probably right. Look at how mean God was! He just killed him," and they would have then obeyed God because they were afraid.
God wants us to obey because we love Him, not because we're afraid of Him. So the Lord had to allow the devil to show what he was really like. Now you know, we've got a lesson. Its got pictures in it, too, that you'd really enjoy. It's called, "Did God Create the Devil?" Its got a picture of a little devil on the front and some fingers holding him up. "Did God Create the Devil?" If you'd like, we'll be happy to send you one of those okay?
Diana: Okay
Pastor Jëan Ross: Alright, the number to call for anyone wanting learn more about this is our resource line, which is 1-800-835-6747. Diana, you can ask for the study guide, "Did God Create the Devil?" and that will explain why God didn’t destroy Satan, or Lucifer, the minute he sinned. Our next caller is Mike and he is listening in Rockville, Maryland. Mike, Welcome to the program.
Mike: Hi, good evening Pastors
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Good evening.
Mike: My question is, I have a good friend who looks at Jesus' summary of the Commandments in Matthew 22 as the new covenant Commandants. In other words, where He says, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind and soul, and this is the first and greatest; and the second, love your neighbor as yourself." So what he does is these now, in his mind, replace the Ten Commandments. My question is are there texts that clearly show that this statement is now not sort of the new terms of the agreement, if you will, for a new covenant?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well for one thing, Jesus isn’t saying anything new. In both those verses when God says, "Love the Lord with all your heart," He's quoting from Deuteronomy chapter 6; and when He says, "Love your neighbor as yourself," He's quoting from Leviticus, I think it's 19, verse 18. So Christ is quoting Moses; so the idea of it being a new covenant, Moses said love the Lord and love your neighbor as yourself. So Jesus is just saying what Moses said, though 2,000 years earlier, is really a summary of the Ten Commandments.
Now, Paul said all the Commandments are summed up in loving the Lord and loving your neighbor. The first four of the Ten Commandments deal with our relationship with God. The Last six of the Ten Commandments deal with our relationship with our fellow man. The first four deal with the vertical relationship; the last six, the horizontal relationship.
And so, Christ was not saying, "Now that you keep this new covenant, it's okay to kill." Well, obviously, if you love your brother, you’re not going to kill him. "It's okay to worship idols." Well, obviously, if you love the Lord, you’re not going to pray to idols. You see what I’m saying? So, what part of the Commandment of the Ten would be replaced by the new covenant?
Mike: But, what verse is where Paul said the summary?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: In Galatians, I think it's in Galatians where Paul said, "All of the commandments are summed up in this: Love the Lord." And he says, "If there be any other commandment,..." Pastor Ross might be looking that up right now. I’m doing it too. I just can’t type and talk at the same time.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Galatians chapter 5, verse 14. "For all of the law is fulfilled in one word, even this; You shall love your neighbor as yourself." Galatians 5:14.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: There's one more I want to give you I looked up, it's Romans 13:9. "For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment...."
In other words, Paul says I’m not going to recite all of Ten. You know what they are. "...It is briefly comprehended or encompassed in this saying, Love your neighbor as yourself. Love works no ill to his neighbor: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law." In other words, if we love God, we're going to keep the first four Commandments; and if we love our fellow man, we'll keep the last six. The idea that we're under this new covenant and now it's okay to break the Ten Commandments, that's a contradiction.
Mike: Right. Well, the way he kind of, sort of rationalizes it is, you know, because he also accepts, I think it's Matthew 19, where they list some of the Commandments also; and, you know, loving God and loving your neighbor, you know, will keep you from killing and doing these things. And so, obviously, he's sort of trying to skirt the Fourth Commandment is, I think, probably the main thing. But...
Pastor Doug Batchelor: That's the typical culprit. But, even if you read in Matthew 19:17, or verse 18 in particular where He sums up some of the Commandments, He said, "You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, don’t steal, don’t bear false witness, honor your father and mother, and you'll love your neighbor as yourself."
Well Jesus also left out the Commandment there that says, "Don’t take the name of the Lord in vain." Is it okay now to break that? Because He didn’t mention all the Commandments in this verse doesn’t mean that the others are okay to break. He was just talking to this man and summing up some of the Ten Commandments and saying, "It's really summed up in loving your neighbor and loving the Lord." You know what I’m saying?
There's a book we've got, and it's really good, it’s actually a lesson. It's called, Written in Stone. That's one, and then we've got another one, "Does God's Grace Blot Out the Law?" That would be better, exactly dealing with the kind of arguments your running into. "Does God's Grace Blot Out the Law?"
Pastor Jëan Ross: The number to call is 1-800-835-6747, and the book is "Does God's Grace Blot Out the Law?" Again, 1-800-835-6747, that is our resource line, and you can ask for the book, "Does God's Grace Blot Out the Law?" Our next caller is Sarah and she's listening in Brooklyn, New York on WMCA. Sarah, welcome to the program.
Sarah: Welcome, welcome. I just want to say before I ask a very special question, 88 years old, Orthodox lady. I was baptized today.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Amen!
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Oh wonderful! Praise the Lord, and your question?
Sarah: My question is, in the Old Testament, when God commanded Abraham to, "Take your son, your only son, and I’ll tell you where;" so they go to the place, and then he prepares the fire and everything, and just as he's ready to hit his neck, an angel says, "Stop." And they look around, they found a lamb, and they sacrifice the lamb. My question is this, part A and B, wasn’t that Jesus?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: You mean Jesus who stopped Abraham from taking Isaac?
Sarah: No, wasn’t the lamb Jesus instead of Isaac?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: No. The lamb was actually a symbol of Christ. It was a real lamb that was stuck by his horns in a thicket, but that wasn’t actually Jesus himself. It says he found a ram caught in the thicket by the horns. I hope that helps a little bit.
Pastor Jëan Ross: You know, we can also see this in John chapter 1, verse 29, when Jesus came to be baptized by John. John pointed to Jesus and said, "Behold the Lamb of God, that takes away the sins of the world." So he was directing people's attention to Jesus and reminding them of the substitute that was made way back in the time of Abraham, where a sacrifice was made to atone for sin. And we see Jesus being the fulfillment of that object lesson that was given back to Abraham and Isaac.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yup, absolutely.
Sarah: Yes dear. Now, do you have any material that shows that behind the curtain, that Jesus is intermittently also in the Old Testament in this way that I just now described, that it was the symbol of Jesus?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well actually, I’m writing a book right now that is going to be out, hopefully, before the end of the year. It's, Christ in All the Bible. I take all these Bible stories...
Sarah: Oh, I've got the chills!
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah, you’re going to really enjoy that. I take all these Bible stories that talk about Jesus being behind the scenes, and how Christ is typified in Abraham, in David, in Joseph and many other Bible characters, and you'll enjoy that. Hey, thank you very much for your call Sarah and congratulations on your baptism.
Pastor Jëan Ross: And Sarah, you may want to just keep your eye on the Amazing Facts' website. I'm sure we'll be posting it online there when that book will be available. Christ in All the Bible.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yup, it will be, Christ in All the Bible. It'll be a subtitle for it.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Our next caller is Stewart. He's listening from Bridgeport, Connecticut. Stewart, welcome to the program.
Stewart: Hello Pastors. How are you?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Doing well. Your question?
Stewart: Okay, quick question from 2nd Corinthians 3, verse 6. It says, "Who also made us efficient as ministers of the new covenant; not the letter, but of the spirit: Letter kills, but the spirit gives life." My question is, what is the old covenant and what is the new covenant?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Alright. You'll find the old covenant both in the Old and the New Testament, and you'll find the new covenant in the Old and the New Testament. In Jeremiah 33, and you'll also find it in Hebrews chapter 8 I think, it says, "Behold, after these days I will make a covenant with the house of Israel." First notice Stewart, that God never makes the new covenant with Gentiles. It's made with the house of Israel.
He said, "I’ll make a new covenant with the house of Israel. I’ll write My law in their hearts." And so the new covenant is the law of God written in the hearts. The old covenant was the law of God engraved in stone. It's the same law, but it's written in a new place. In the old covenant, the people said, "All the Lord has said we will do."
"We will," the man is trying to do God's will. The new covenant, God said, "I will." It's based on the power of God, as opposed to the efforts of man. So no one is really saved under the old covenant. We're all saved under the new covenant. Pastor Ross, you were going to give that verse in Hebrews?
Pastor Jëan Ross: Yes, Hebrews chapter 8 and verse 10, where you had the apostle Paul quoting from the Old Testament passage.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Both Jeremiah and Ezekiel, yeah. Do you have another part of that Stewart?
Pastor Jëan Ross: Let me add one more thing to that. In Deuteronomy chapter 5, you can read this, 5:27. After the giving of the Ten Commandments, the children of Israel were filled with fear and they said to Moses, "You go talk to the Lord, and then whatever the Lord tells us through you, we will do." And in response to that, God says to Moses, "They have said well; but oh, that there was a heart within them, that they would love Me and keep My commandments."
So, the old covenant was based upon man's promises, as Paul highlights in Hebrews chapter 8, where the children of Israel said, "Everything that God wants us to do, we'll do it." And yet, God was trying to help Israel, as well as us today, to understand that the only way we can keep His law is if He works within us through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Stewart: So in a way, the old covenant, the people said they will do it; so is there, I mean, is that implying that God wasn’t giving them help in keeping the covenant, as opposed to the new covenant Christ helps us, or?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: A covenant, first of all, is an agreement. God basically said in the Ten Commandments, "Here is my will. My will is based on you loving Me and loving each other." The Ten Commandments is a summary of His will. When He gave the Ten Commandments, the people said, "All that the Lord has said, we will do," and then God basically said, "Alright, let's see how that goes."
Before Moses finished getting the Ten Commandments, they broke them. Do you remember that?
Stewart: Yeah.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Moses threw the tables down and the people showed that they were incapable in their own power of keeping God's law. And really, ever since then, God tried to emphasize as, Pastor Ross Just said. It says in Deuteronomy 5:29, "Oh, that there was such a heart in them, that they would fear Me and keep all of My commandments always, that it might be well with them."
God always knew it needed to be a change of heart. This is the born again experience. That's why Jesus said to Nicodemus, "Are you a teacher in Israel and you don’t know this, that you need to be born again?" They were ignorant of the basics, that the new covenant is a new heart, and that's even an Old Testament teaching. Jesus, of course, brought it to light; and it's through the power of His Spirit and His sacrifice that it really becomes a reality. Hey, we're going to try and take some other quick questions.
Pastor Jëan Ross: We do have an excellent book on that Pastor Doug. We don’t mention this too often, and Stewart, you'd probably be very interested in it. The book is entitled, Why the Old Covenant Failed. You can call our resource line. It's 1-800-835-6747.
You can ask for the book, Why the Old Covenant Failed, and it will give you a good Bible study on this important subject. Out next caller is David and he's listening from Georgia. David, welcome to the program.
David: How are you doing?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Doing well.
David: I have two questions for you
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Okay
David: The first question was about self-defense.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Alright
David: And I heard some people saying "turn the other cheek," and some others saying that martial arts provokes violence. And I heard another saying that if myself or a loved one is in immediate danger, I have a right to protect them.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well, I believe as a Christian, when Jesus talks about turning the other cheek, He doesn’t mean that--you know, when someone slaps you on the cheek, it's usually not a mortal wound. It's an argument.
David: Yes. Usually, basically, you don’t seek vengeance.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yes. We should be as forgiving and merciful as we can. But I don’t think that Jesus would stand by if, here He's blessing these children, and if some fiend would come along and try and club the children, I’m sure Jesus would get up and intervene and try to protect them.
David: Because I have two cousins of my own, one just turned three and another one is almost two; and right across the street from where I live at is the park. That's where I usually take them and I have to look after them.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: And you would want to protect them right?
David: If someone's trying to take them, I’m going to do whatever it takes.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah, of course. And I don’t think the Bible is saying that loving and forgiving your enemies means that you let your enemy abuse loved ones around you. There's a time in the Bible for what we call righteous indignation. Now, you had a second part of that question?
David: That's also why Christ told some of the disciples when He sent them off in pairs to carry swords with them?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well actually, He didn’t tell the disciples to arm themselves. He actually told Peter, "Put your sword away." Now, that doesn’t mean that I don’t think that a Christian has a right to own a weapon. I’m just saying Jesus didn't send out the disciples with swords. He told Peter to put the sword away. You had a second part of your question, because we're going to run out of time here in just a minute.
David: About women in the ministry.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Okay
David: My mom says that she doesn’t believe that women should be something like Bible school teachers and not behind the pulpit, and my argument to her was, "Well Deborah." My mom also quoted a part where Paul said women should be silent in the church and women should not be above the man.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Alright, well let me give you a real quick answer. We're going to run out of time for this segment. Every believer should be involved in some capacity of ministry. The Bible does designate there are distinctions of roles. You have women in the Bible that are serving as prophets; you've got women who are judges, and you mentioned Deborah.
There are women who are doing teaching. But what you don’t find in the Bible is women serving in the pastoral or priestly role. There's no example in the Bible of a woman serving in the capacity of an apostle, or a priest or a pastor. And so, those are distinctly male roles in the Bible, but that would not prevent a woman from being involved in evangelism, or giving Bible studies, or teaching.
Now, the passages that talk about a woman not teaching a man are really dealing with the women in the Corinthian church that were interrupting as Paul was teaching; and they weren’t respecting their husbands' right to ask questions, and so it was more of a local problem. But I don’t think it's a universal command that women are never to speak in a church because you have too many other examples where they did, under the influence of the Spirit, like Anna the prophetess.
By the way, I do have a book I’d be happy to send you for free, David, on that. It's simply called, Women in Ministry, written by yours truly. We'll send you a free copy. Just call that resource number.
Pastor Jëan Ross: The number to call is 1-800-835-6747, and ask for the book, Women in Ministry, and we’ll be happy to send that out to anybody who calls and asks for it.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Hey friends, we would love to hear from you. There's a lot more that we can offer you. It's at the Amazing Facts' website. That's an easy address. It's AmazingFacts.org. Contact us; and God willing, we'll see each other next week.
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