Hello friends, this is Doug Batchelor, how about an amazing fact? In many ways, the ocean represents the last frontier on earth. Seventy-five percent of the world’s surface and 97 percent of the water on the planet is found in the oceans, less than one percent of the world’s freshwater, and most of that is contained in glaciers and icecaps. The average depth of the ocean is about 2 1/2 miles, the deepest point being in the Marianas Trench about 6.8 miles down. By way of comparison, Mount Everest is only 5 1/2 miles high. The pressure at the deepest part of the ocean is over eight tons per square inch. Earth’s longest mountain range is the mid-ocean ridge, which stretches 46,000 miles around the globe winding from the Arctic Ocean to the Atlantic, skirting Africa, Asia and Australia, and crossing the Pacific to the west of North America.
It’s four times longer than the Andes, Rockies and Himalayas combined. Ninety percent of all volcanic activity occurs in the oceans. In 1993 scientists located the largest known concentration of active volcanoes on the sea floor in the South Pacific. This area, the size of New York State, hosts 1,133 volcanic cones and sea mounts. Two or three could be erupting at any moment. The highest tides in the world are at the Bay of Fundy, which separates New Brunswick from Nova Scotia. At some times of the year the difference between the high and the low tide is 53 feet, 6 inches, the equivalent of a three story building. The sea is also brimming with amazing life. Even though fishermen harvest over four million tons each year from the bays and the oceans, biologists estimate that approximately 2.5 million marine species have yet to be discovered and described.
The Bible tells us that there is another world soon to be discovered by those who love God. 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: We hope that you possess something to write with and you keep it close at hand because we’re going to be giving out some phone numbers and some web addresses that will be a real blessing to you in your personal and spiritual growth. If you would like to ask a Bible question tonight, then you can jot down this number. Right now there are lines open, but if you don’t get through try it again. It’s 1-800-GOD-SAYS, that’s 1-800-463-7297. Calling now is a good idea to get your question on tonight’s program. My name is Doug Batchelor.
Pastor Jëan Ross: My name is Jëan Ross. Pastor Doug, let’s start this program with prayer.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Please.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Dear Father, once more as we open up Your Word we ask for Your Holy Spirit to be with us, be with those listening. We ask that You’d also, in a special way, be with us in this studio as we look for Bible answers to the questions that come in. Thank You for this marvelous technology that makes this Bible study over the airways possible. We ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Amen.
Pastor Jëan Ross: You spoke about the oceans and the amazing facts that opened the program and indeed, the oceans, to go down to the depths of the oceans, it’s as challenging as going to Mars. It’s the last frontier, really, that man needs to go and so many things to explore and see that we haven’t even seen.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: So much of it hasn’t been seen. I know you were in the Caribbean not long ago doing some meetings and you had a chance to slip away and do a little snorkeling. For me, the closest that someone can be to heaven in this life is to be snorkeling or scuba diving around one of these beautiful coral reefs, and by the way you can’t do it in cold water. It’s got to be warm water or it doesn’t feel like heaven. But going around some of these reefs around the Pacific--places around like Guam and Palau and Pohnpei--and we were at the Great Barrier Reef a few years ago. The colors, the iridescent fish, the clouds going around you of these beautiful fish and the reflection of the light, and you’re like flying because you’re weightless basically. It’s like being in heaven.
Then you hear in the Bible where God says, “But as it is written," and by the way, this is 1st Corinthians 2, verses 9 and 10, "Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither has entered into the heart of man, the things that God has prepared for those that love Him. But God has revealed them to us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searches out things, yes, the deep things of God,” even like the deep things of the ocean. God has shown us some glimpses in His word of these wonderful things that He has prepared for those that love Him. Heaven is not just a "pie in the sky, by and by." It is a very real place. Jesus said He has gone to prepare these dwelling places for us, and then He says He’s going to create a new heaven and a new earth that will be more splendid and spectacular than the Edenic beauty back in the days of Adam and Eve. And people want to see that, it’s real.
Pastor Jëan Ross: What I’m looking forward to in the first creation, man was created on the sixth day, so He didn’t get to see God create everything else.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah.
Pastor Jëan Ross: But when God recreates we’re going to be there. We’re going to see Him...
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah, we’ll be with Him, that’s right.
Pastor Jëan Ross: ...create all of the beautiful things of the new earth, so that’s going to be exciting.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah, and you can read about that in Revelation Chapters 21 and 22. It’s so inspiring when you realize that, you know, everyone knows, if you’re honest, that this life is--virtually we’re all on a conveyor belt to the grave. I mean, you can speed the belt up by living poorly. You can slow the conveyor belt down, this assembly line, so to speak, by taking care of your health. There are things we can do to prolong our lives, but you can’t get off the conveyor belt. And Jesus may come while some of are still alive and we'll be transformed and caught up; but the real purpose for this life is to prepare for the one that will last forever. So many people don’t know about it. They don’t believe it. And here we are on the launching pad of eternity and people aren’t thinking about where we’re going.
Pastor Jëan Ross: That’s right.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: That’s really the purpose of life: what is beyond, what’s going to last?
Pastor Jëan Ross: This life is about preparing for the life to come. That’s really what’s important.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah, it’s so brief. I mean, compared to eternity, what is seventy years, ninety years? It’s nothing. But so many people live this life like this is it, and this is not it. This is preparation for that which is really it; and it’s the glory that God has prepared, the Presence of God. Some people might want to know a little more about heaven and we have something free that we’re going to offer tonight that will encourage everybody, and we hope they have a pencil handy.
Pastor Jëan Ross: This is a little booklet entitled “Heaven: Is It For Real?” Written by Joe Crews. A beautiful book, describing the beauties that God is preparing for those that love Him. To receive this booklet, “Heaven: Is It For Real,” call the resource number, 1-800-835-6747. Ask for the book “Heaven: Is It For Real?” We have two questions that have come in via the internet. Let me just mention for those listening, if you would like to submit a question via the internet, you can go to the Amazing Facts' website. There is a link there that says Contact Us and there is a place that you can type your question and we’ll try and take the question on the air. This first question is, “What did Christ mean in Luke 23, verse 43 when He said to the thief on the cross, ‘Today you will be with me in paradise?’ Did the thief go to heaven that same day?”
Pastor Doug Batchelor: That’s a good question. We’ve had that periodically on the show. I don’t remember hearing it lately. Some people have read the statement where the thief says, “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.” And that of course is in Luke 23:42. Jesus quickly responds, “Verily I say unto thee, today you will be with Me in paradise,” and people say, “Well, obviously, that thief went to paradise with Jesus that day.” But there’s a problem, because when you get to the Gospel of John Jesus rises from the dead, Mary clings to His feet to worship Him--this is John 21--Jesus says, “Do not detain me; for I have not yet ascended to My Father” and the Father is in paradise, the Bible tells us. How could Jesus be in paradise that day with the thief when Jesus was not there yet Sunday morning?
Well, the best answer is, first of all, in the original Greek text, there is no punctuation. That was added by translators years later and punctuation is not necessarily inspired. The way that verse really ought to read is, Christ says, “Verily I say to thee today, thou shalt be with Me in paradise.” In other words, “I’m telling you today, today I’m making a promise. Today I don’t look like a king and I don’t look like a Lord.” This thief actually had a lot of faith because he says, “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.”
He didn’t look like He had a kingdom. He didn’t look like when He was being crucified He was a Lord; and yet he had enough faith to see beyond that. And He said, “I’m making a promise to you today. Even though today I look like a loser, you’re going to be with Me when I reign because you’ve expressed faith in Me today.” So it’s not that he was going to be there today. Christ is saying, “I’m making you a promise today,” and once we realize that everything is resolved.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Another interesting point is the thief didn’t expect to be in heaven that particular day; he said “Lord, remember me when You come,” a future event...
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yes, that’s exactly right, good point.
Pastor Jëan Ross: ...which is coming; so he wasn’t expecting his reward to be that very day.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: One more point is, biblically a day begins and ends at sundown and there’s no assurance that thief even died before sundown. The sun was almost down and they were trying to speed up their death. So if he died after sundown, it wasn’t that day [laughing].
Pastor Jëan Ross: That’s right.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: So there’s a number of problems if they don’t move that comma.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Okay. Our next question is a very interesting one. I don’t know if you’ve had this one before Pastor Doug, but it’s fascinating. Question is, “Is there rank in the Trinity? In other words, is the Father greater than the Son, is the Son greater than the Holy Spirit?”
Pastor Doug Batchelor: That is a good question and you always enter into answering these questions with reverence because God's ways are higher than our ways, like the heaven is higher than the earth. The Bible says He is past finding out. So when man begins to over-define God in some of these things that are somewhat mysterious, we need to do it with caution. But having said that, there does seem to be indication in the Bible that there is some order of authority. Just as a husband and wife can be perfectly equal in IQ and in many respects, there is a variation of authority; and even in some cases, the wife might be physically stronger than the husband.
But there is a biblical authority that is recognized and accepted. And it appears that Jesus recognizes and accepts the authority of the Father. For one thing you always hear the Father is the One who is doing the giving. He gives judgment to the Son; He gives authority: “The Father so loved the world, He gave the Son.” And, again, you can read John 5:36, “But I have a greater witness than that of John: for the works which the Father has given me to finish....” The Father gives the work to Jesus. Then, of course, if you go to John chapter 14 where you read in verse 28, Christ said, “You heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again to you. If you love me, you would rejoice of this, because I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I."
And even in the sequence when it says baptize in the name of first the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, it always seems the Holy Spirit is there to glorify Jesus and the Father. Jesus is always trying to glorify the Father and the Father, then, is reflecting glory back to the Son. But it appears that in the Godhead, that the Father is recognized or respected as the authority.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Okay. Well friends, thank you again for your questions.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Oh, by the way we’ve got--pardon me, but we have a book if someone wants…
Pastor Jëan Ross: That’s right.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: …to know more about that, it’s the book on the Trinity. We’ll send them a free copy of that if people want to know more.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Okay. That’s a booklet entitled “The Trinity” written by Pastor Doug. To receive that, call the resource number again, 1-800-835-6747 and ask for the book, “The Trinity." We’ll be happy to send that out to you. We’re going to go to the phone lines. Our first caller is Thomas calling from Toronto, Canada. Thomas, welcome to Bible Answers Live.
Thomas: Hi, good evening. Thank you very much for taking my call.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Thanks for your patience.
Thomas: Yes, I want to thank you for this is a-- we need more of these programs because they provide a great opportunity for people to read and know the Scriptures on their own, and provide a place to ask questions. I know I need to keep my question to the point. I’m going to try to just give you a few Scripture references, and then ask you my general question. First of all, I guess the question to say is, are angels immortal, which is the same nature as God, but they’re not God? And given the fact that they’re immortal, does that not mean, then, that they cannot sin and do not sin? And I guess to add to that would be the fact that is there really, then, a devil given the fact that if angels cannot sin--if I can just ask you these few verses, just for reference. Romans 6:23 says sin brings death; and Psalm 103:19-21 talks about how the angels do the commandments of God and do with pleasure, and it does also say all his hosts. In Psalm 104:4 it says God achieves all things by His Spirit power acting through the angels.
And here, Luke 20:35-36 talks about when immortality comes by the resurrection, that there won’t be any death because man will be equal unto the angels. And I guess then the other question, other point would be just about where does evil come from? Because I guess the obvious question comes if angels don’t rebel, then where did the evil come from? And it talks about in Isaiah 45, it says…
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well, you’re asking--we’d better tie it up here because you’re kind of all over the park.
Thomas: Okay.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: And what question specifically you wanted to ask about? Do angels have immortality, or…?
Thomas: No. Well, I think we agree angels are immortal, right? I mean, if the verse in Luke 20 says they can’t die because angels don’t die and we’re going to receive immortality as the righteous…
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well the fallen angels obviously are mortal. I mean, there’s a difference between the fallen angels and the unfallen angels.
Thomas: Why would there be a difference?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Because one group sinned. The Bible says in Revelation Chapter 12 there was a war in heaven and Satan and his angels were cast out.
Thomas: Okay.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: So those angels are going to be cast into the lake of fire, and it calls it the second death. But keep going, you said you had another aspect.
Thomas: No, I was just basically saying that if the conclusion is that the angels can’t die, therefore there can’t be a Satan, then the question comes where does evil come from? And I think it’s pretty clear from Scripture that in Isaiah it talks about how God is the author, right? God creates evil, He makes peace, He creates light, forms light, and creates the darkness.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah.
Thomas: And then when you look at the fact of Job when most people want, or do believe, that that was actually literally Satan doing those things to him, it quite clearly says in--well I say Micah 1st verse, I’ll say in Micah 1:12, it says, “Evil came down from the Lord unto the gates of Jerusalem.”
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well, let’s talk about the book of Job for a second. It says Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord and Satan smote Job with the boils, and Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord and brought the other calamities to his possessions. So, obviously--and it wasn’t God’s idea--Satan is the one who initiated that. God said, “Look, I’m going to allow you to test him that he might demonstrate." God often allows, sometimes, the devil to do certain things, but…
Thomas: Can I come back with the question on that just real quick?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Sure.
Thomas: Well then, just in taking that, and I know--and obviously, certainly, when you take everything so literally, it sounds obviously like that literal being was Satan; was of Satan in Job’s experience, there was a literal being. But when you look at Peter, when He tells Satan to get behind Him, literally Peter wasn’t Satan, but he was acting as an adversary against Jesus and the command that God gives what Jesus was about to perform at the time of His death.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: No, I would respectfully disagree with you. See, I believe that the devil does, in a very real way, work through people; and sometimes he can even work through those that we love and people close to you. And Satan was working through Peter to try to discourage Jesus from His mission. So when Jesus said, “Get thee behind me, Satan,” Jesus recognized the spirit that was behind what Peter was saying.
Pastor Jëan Ross: You know, another point is the Bible tells us that Jesus was tempted of the devil in the wilderness. If there is no devil and if God is the source of evil, which I don’t believe He is, did God tempt Himself?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: The Bible says God does not tempt anyone with evil, and He can’t be tempted.
Pastor Jëan Ross: That’s right; so the devil is very real and the Bible is quite clear on it. Let me just quickly mention the verse where you said God sends evil. The evil there is not the same type of evil that we think of as sin, but rather calamity or judgment.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah, the Lord allows calamity; even insurance companies call them acts of God. You know what I’d like to send Thomas is, we have our book, “Did God Create the Devil?” and it’s perfect for what your questions are and your study talks about the fallen angels, Thomas. If you’ll write down the resource number, we’ll send you a free copy of “Did God Create the Devil?”
Pastor Jëan Ross: It’s an Amazing Facts' study guide. It’s a great resource, 1-800-835-6747. “Did God create the Devil?” 1-800-835-6747. Thomas, thank you for your call. Our next caller is Toni calling from Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Welcome to the program.
Toni: Thank you, good evening.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Good evening.
Toni: Good evening. This question is coming from 1st Kings 18:46.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Okay.
Toni: I’m just wondering, are there other Scriptures to support the view that Elijah was given supernatural strength to run ahead of Ahab, guiding him into the entrance of the city Jezreel, and also that this was a gracious act of servant-hood to this wicked King Ahab?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Are there other verses that support that?
Toni: Yes.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well, there are other cases in the Bible where God gives supernatural strength to those that are doing His will. You, of course, have Samson.
Toni: Right.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: You have Moses on the mountain; for forty days and forty nights, he did not eat nor drink, but he was sustained by the power of God. Then later Elijah, when he fled from Jezebel, he was fed this angel food and it must have been really packed with vitamins because he went on the strength of that one meal forty days and forty nights into the wilderness. So, then you’ve got in Isaiah, and I can’t remember the verse, but they’ve even written a song about it, “They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They will mount up with wings as an eagle.” And so here Elijah, in 1st Kings 18, he is serving God and God gave him strength to run before the king.
Now, there is a symbolic meaning to this as well Toni. You remember where John the Baptist said that, “I am a voice in the wilderness”? He was running before the king to prepare his way. John the Baptist, in a similar way, was going before Jesus to prepare the way for the Lord. Ahab, even though he was a wicked king, he was the king of Israel and so it was a symbolic role.
Toni: Okay. So this was the question, was this a gracious act of servant-hood to this wicked king, because that’s what my interpretation is.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yes, and in spite of his frequent bad behavior, God always in the Bible teaches that they should respect those in authority. And God performed this miracle, the people turned back to God; and here Elijah was saying, “Look, I’m still going to recognize you as the king. Now the people have turned back to God. You set a good example by keeping them with the Lord. I will run before you. I will humble myself before you, Ahab, because I’ve already humiliated you, so I’m going to humble myself before you.” And he gave Ahab every opportunity to continue the revival, but he didn’t.
Toni: Okay.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: It’s a good question.
Toni: Alright. Thank you.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Thank you Toni.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Mitchell is listening on the internet calling from Van Nuys, California. I think you pronounce that that way. Welcome to the program Mitchell.
Mitchell: Oh, thank you for taking my call. My question is what does it mean in the Bible when it says to do God’s will?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: What does it mean when it says in the Bible to do God’s will?
Mitchell: Yeah.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well, the will of God is expressed in the law of God. In Psalm 40, verse 8 it says, “Yea I love to do thy will, thy law is within my heart.” So on a very elementary level, doing, following, obeying the law of God is acting out the will of God. There are sometimes times when we really don’t know what to do. We need to submit to the Lord and say, “Lord, make Your will clear.” Even Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane, He said, “Not My will, Thy will be done.” And it’s often true that the will of the Lord sometimes conflicts with our natural selfish desires in nature. You know, we’ve actually got a book that talks about how to know the will of God.
Mitchell: Because part of my question is too, because me and my wife want to open a vegetarian restaurant. We don’t know if we should continue to pray about it and wait for a sign, or should we just go and do it, and hope that we’re doing God’s will?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well, that’s a good question. Sometimes when you’ve got good choices and you just don’t know if it’s the time for you to move forward, what you might do is say, “Alright, Lord, two ways we can do this. We can wait on You to open the door and give us some evidence, providential sign.” Or you could begin to move forward and say, “Alright, Lord, we’re going to take the first steps. If this is Your will, we pray that You’ll work miracles to substantiate that.”
Mitchell: Oh okay.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: It’s like when the children of Israel put their feet in the Jordan River then they got the miracle.
Mitchell: Okay.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: They had to move forward first. So, there are two ways. You can wait on the Lord. Sometimes it takes a little more faith to say, “I’m going to move forward and You can either shut the doors or bless.”
Mitchell: Okay.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: And sometimes God will shut the doors. If you’re praying as you go, He’ll let you know. God is real good about revealing His will, if we are willing to do whatever He reveals.
Mitchell: Okay. Thanks a lot.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Alright, good questions. Thank you, Mitchell.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Ezekiel is listening from Lake Placid, Florida. Ezekiel, welcome to the program.
Ezekiel: Hey thank you guys. How are you guys doing?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Good, and your question?
Ezekiel: Alright, yes, my question is, Doug, I was studying the 7,000 year theory in the Bible and, you know, I’ve come to the conclusion that we’re pretty much up like 6,000 years. It seems like Christ is right at the door...
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah.
Ezekiel: ...as we’re entering the restful 1,000 years. And my question is, it seems like--I was reading this book and it said something about that Christ will come in a Jubilee year. My question is, do you know when the next Jubilee year will be?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well, I tell you, that is a good question. First of all, I’m inclined to agree with the concept of the 6,000 year theory. Now no man knows the day or the hour, but it does seem that you've got roughly 6,000 years of the plan of salvation; 1,000 years the Bible says of the millennium when we rest and live and reign with the Lord. It seems like a pattern there and I don’t see how the world can last much longer.
Ezekiel: Yeah.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: But I can’t count how many studies people have sent me, trying to identify when the next Jubilee would be. It’s hard to pinpoint because I don’t even know if you can find two rabbis that agree on when the Jews last celebrated a Jubilee year. And sometimes people can go back and try and date it from the Exodus, but even the exact date for the Exodus, there are variations between four and ten years. You’ve probably seen some of these studies Pastor Ross. Everybody says, "This is the Jubilee year." "No, this is the Jubilee year." And there’s a lot of disagreement.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Right, right.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: I’ve already had people tell me two or three years ago that was the Jubilee year and…
Pastor Jëan Ross: I heard back in 1997, it was supposed to be the end of the 6,000 years and then they bumped it up to 2000 and tattering with Y2K...
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Y2K, yeah.
Pastor Jëan Ross: ...and something dramatic was going to happen; and, yeah, I think the Bible is quite clear on that and gives us the final word, “No man knows the day or the hour.”
Pastor Doug Batchelor: But we can know when it’s near.
Pastor Jëan Ross: That’s right.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: The Lord has given us signs. Jesus, in Matthew 24, Luke 21, Luke 17, Mark 13, gives us a lot of signs so we can know when that time is near, Ezekiel. You know, there is a book, I think we carry it at Amazing Facts. We can’t give it away because it’s not something we print, but I highly recommend it if you haven’t read it. It’s by a friend, G. Edward Reid. It’s called, “Even at the Door.” Have you heard of that Ezekiel?
Ezekiel: “Even at the Door,” no I haven’t.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: “Even at the Door.” Well, you actually said that in your opening question and it made me think of Dr. Reid’s book, but incredible book on the second coming, the 6,000 year theory, well documented with history and I’d recommend it. He’s updated it recently too, “Even at the Door.”
Ezekiel: Alright, thank you guys.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: You can just type it online and you’ll find it probably at Amazon.
Ezekiel: Alright, I appreciate that.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Alright, God bless.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Let’s see if we can get one more call in before the break. Ken is listening from Saskatchewan, Canada. Ken, welcome to the program.
Ken: Yes, thank you very much for taking my call. My question today is should we have interdenominational communions? I’m just wondering what your thoughts are on that.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Should people from different denominations come together? Well, to give you a quick answer because you hear the music for the break Ken. The Protestants would turn over in their graves years ago because the reason that many Protestants broke away from the Orthodox churches was over the subject of communion, or transubstantiation, the Mass. So some churches’ theology is so different that I would not recommend celebrating communion with those. John says if they do not preach this Gospel, do not bid them God speed. You want to make sure you’re in harmony with people, that you've got the same Gospel. Some churches they have communion with alcohol; you wouldn’t want to do it with them, so it varies.
Hey, listening friends we’re just taking a break right now. Get your pencil and write down AmazingFacts.com. A lot of these programs and archives and questions you’re hearing you can hear more of them for hours on end by going to the AmazingFacts.com website. We’ll be back in a moment.
[COMMERCIAL BREAK]
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Welcome back listening friends. If you have just started tuning in, this is Bible Answers Live. Don’t change the dial. You’ll enjoy what you hear. This is a live, international, interactive Bible study program and you can call in with a Bible question. It’s a free phone call, and that number is 1-800-GOD-SAYS, 1-800-463-7397. What we do on the program is we try to take about three or four minutes to answer people’s questions, to get in as many as we can to disseminate as many seeds of truth as we can. But there’s only so much we can do in our one hour so we try to compensate by giving you websites where you can study on your own for hours on end after this program. So if you’ve got a pencil ready, what are some of popular websites that we’ve been sharing for good study resources Pastor Ross?
Pastor Jëan Ross: Well, of course the Amazing Facts' website is probably one of the best because there are so many resources you can actually...
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Brimming with information.
Pastor Jëan Ross: …you can hear Bible Answers Live programs in the past and frequently asked questions, but we have some others; HellTruth.com, is a good one.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Misunderstandings about the lake of fire in hell.
Pastor Jëan Ross: We just had a question dealing with that important subject. Sabbath Truth is another important website.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: A lot of Christians are asking about the Sabbath truth issue, that’s good.
Pastor Jëan Ross: And then, of course, we have the Prophecy Code website, it’s a great resource.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: People have heard about the Bible Code and the Da Vinci Code, but they should learn about the Prophecy Code, and that’s ProphecyCode.com.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Prophecy Code. And then there is also the 05 Revive that deals with some revivals.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Sometimes people want to hear just revival messages and they can hear them online there.
Pastor Jëan Ross: And then Most Amazing Prophecies. I didn’t want to forget that one. That's also a great website with lots of tremendous resources.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: MostAmazingProphecies.com. That’s right. That’s good.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Okay. Let’s go to the phone lines. Randolph is listening on KSKY from Shreveport, Louisiana. Welcome to the program.
Randolph: Yes. Hello Pastor Doug?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: You’re on the air. Yes sir.
Randolph: Good evening.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Good evening.
Randolph: My question is in reference to Paul’s letter to the Romans Chapter 8...
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yes.
Randolph: ...verses 38 and 39 where he says, “For I’m persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, powers, nor things present, nor things to come, neither height, nor depth, nor any creature shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus.” How can you contrast that to the fact that Saul, who was Israel’s first king who was once in God’s good grace and was anointed by God, ended up taking himself out of, I guess, salvation; or taking himself from under God’s good graces if nothing can separate us from the love of God? How was he able to do that?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well, God didn’t stop loving Saul.
Randolph: Okay.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: He was our heavenly Father with a broken heart when Saul basically grieved away the Holy Spirit, where he just would not listen anymore...
Randolph: Okay.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: ...if you know what I’m saying. But I believe Saul, King Saul, we’re talking about, committed the unpardonable sin; he ultimately fell on his own sword and took his life...
Randolph: Right.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: ...committed suicide like--even Judas. Jesus loved Judas. You can listen to the Lord speaking in the minor prophets. He talks about the tribe of Ephraim, like in Hosea, “How can I let you go? Can a woman forget her nursing child?” The Lord loves His people but look at the times in the Bible where He has had to allow His people to self-destruct because they just would not come to Him. He loved them. God is a loving father and nothing will separate us from His love, but He’s also a just king. And while He is a loving father, sometimes He must judge His disobedient children as a king.
Randolph: Okay. So is it fair to say that we can separate, basically ourselves, but we can’t separate Him, but we can move ourselves out from under His protection and under His guidance; but He is there, but we can, so to speak, pull ourselves away?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yes. To give you an example, there was an FBI agent whose son was guilty of murder and he confessed it to his father and the father didn’t--he was the only one with the evidence of a verbal confession. The boy could have gone free, and father said to his son in court he said, “Look, boy, I love you, but I also have to do the right thing and I know that you’re guilty of murder.” And he didn’t stop loving his son, but his son is on death row now.
Randolph: Right, how about that!
Pastor Doug Batchelor: And that’s kind of how the love of God is. I mean, God has to sometimes let us go, but He doesn’t stop loving us. So Paul is saying never doubt God’s love for you, but that’s never an excuse for us to live in rebellion.
Randolph: Okay.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Does that help?
Randolph: Yes, it helps a lot. And I’ve also enjoyed your teaching on Ecclesiastes. I’ve been watching the past couple of…
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Oh praise the Lord! You’ve been watching the programs huh?
Pastor Jëan Ross: Yes sir, yes sir. I’ve enjoyed it. They’re very helpful.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah, it's a deep book. Thank you so much.
Randolph: Thank you.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: God bless you Randolph.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Mary is listening on WMCA from Norwalk, Connecticut. Welcome to the program Mary.
Mary: Yes, hi. Thanks for taking my call. My question is regarding tithing.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yes ma’am.
Mary: I don’t see anywhere in the New Testament the mentioning a lot of tithe, ten percent of your income, so I would like you to elaborate on that for me please? I'll take my question off the air.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Okay, thank you Mary. We’ll do our best. There is actually a reference to New Testament tithe paying. You have, of course, in Matthew 23:23 where Jesus said, “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin”--these were herbs from their garden and they were paying little tithe out of their herb garden being very meticulous, and Jesus said, “You neglected the weightier matters of the law.” Weightier, it doesn’t mean the others don’t have weight, it means some things are weightier. The weightier matters were justice, mercy and faith. Then Jesus says, “These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.” In other words, don’t forget about tithe but don’t forget the weightier matters.
The way I understand it, of course tithe is also mentioned in Hebrews and everything that Paul says there about it he never says it’s no longer in effect. Whenever Paul mentions circumcision, he does say that circumcision is nothing, uncircumcision is nothing; but nowhere does any New Testament writer say that about tithe. So it’s safe to assume that tithe is, at least, intact. The way we read the New Testament is the New Testament Christians went way beyond tithe. You read in Acts chapter 5, they were selling their property and liquidating. No man said that aught that he had was his own, but everyone shared everything in common. They were giving much more than ten percent. So an elementary starting point for New Testament Christians would be the tithing principal, which is ten percent of your income.
The Bible hasn’t reversed it. It was not part of the Levitical law. Tithe goes back even before that, to Abraham and Jacob. They paid tithe. So we assume it’s still intact, as a very minimum. If we’re going to follow the real New Testament teaching, well they were giving a lot more than ten percent back then.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Another thought Pastor Doug, in the Old Testament tithing was to support the sanctuary and the services associated with them, the priests, and so on. In the New Testament Jesus said as He ascended, “The Gospel is to go to all the world,” and so tithing in the New Testament is where we start because the task is so much greater than it was in the Old Testament. Now people had to go to all the world.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: That’s right. Instead of just the local priests in Jerusalem, it was the whole world.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Not just for Israel.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah. We have a lesson for Mary or anyone else on that subject.
Pastor Jëan Ross: It’s an Amazing Facts' study guide entitled “In God We Trust” and it deals with the whole subject of tithing, New Testament Christians, do we have to pay tithe. To receive the study guide just call the resource number, 1-800-835-6747, and ask for the study guide “In God We Trust” and we’ll be happy to send that out to you. Our next caller is Jonathan calling from Huntsville Alabama, listening on WOCG. Jonathan, welcome to the program.
Jonathan: Thank you so much. I was thinking about what you were saying about the world and how beautiful it is, even though sin has taken away a lot of the beauty. It is still awesome to look at the sunsets and to see all the wonderful things God has given us.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Amen.
Jonathan: I was pleased to hear you say that you also believe that a day begins when the sun sets.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yes.
Jonathan: Okay, so my question comes up, what day is the Sabbath on? Because from the beginning, it was on the seventh day. That’s when God rested, but most of the world has chosen to be on the first day and I’m just trying to clear up what day is the Sabbath?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well, this is one of the truths that has been obscured over the history. There is no Scripture in the Bible where God says, “I am changing the Sabbath from the seventh day to another day.”
Jonathan: Okay.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: A lot of people have tried to create a reference, and there really is no reference. So God’s original plan was He blessed the seventh day. They kept it, of course, in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve. Moses and the church in the Old Testament kept it. Jesus in the New Testament, it’s very obvious that He kept it. He said that in the synagogue as His custom was He went to read the Scriptures on the Sabbath. The apostles kept it in the book of Acts. It says in the new earth, "...from one new moon to another," this is Isaiah 66:23, "from one Sabbath to another, shall all flesh come and worship before me.” It’s safe to assume it’s one of the Ten Commandments, the only Commandment that begins with the word “Remember.” God hasn’t changed it.
So the very fact that God’s word doesn’t change and Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever, that Commandment of the Ten Commandments has not changed. It is still the seventh day.
Jonathan: Amen.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: The seventh day is what we would call in our culture Saturday.
Jonathan: Amen, okay.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: By the way, we have that website we just mentioned a minute ago called SabbathTruth.com. It’s one of the more popular websites with good references and Scripture on this, and history too. Pastor Ross?
Pastor Jëan Ross: Jonathan, you also spoke about the day beginning at sunset, and probably important to note then that the Sabbath, of course, is the seventh day of the week, but that would then beginning at sunset the sixth day. So Friday evening Sabbath would start, and that would extend all the way through till Saturday evening, from sunset to sunset. That would be the Sabbath time. We have an Amazing Facts' study guide that deals with the Sabbath truth. It’s called “The Lost Day of History.” To receive that all you’ll need to do is call the resource number. It’s 1-800-835-6747, and Jonathan or anyone else listening, you can call that number and ask for “The Lost Day of History.” Great study guide.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: That’s right.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Alright, our next caller is Ellie and she is calling on the cell phone. She is traveling so she’s not quite sure where she is. Ellie, welcome to the program.
Ellie: Hello. I want to ask, what is your view of the rapture?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Alright, very good question Ellie, and hopefully you’ll be able to catch this because sometimes cell service jumps in and out. The word “rapture” is not in the Bible per se. The teaching of being "caught up," that’s where you get the word, “I was in rapt adoration.” It means "to be caught away with power." That is based on the verse in 1st Thessalonians chapter 4 where it says the Lord will descend from heaven, and the voice of the archangel, the dead in Christ will rise, we who are alive and remain will be "caught up" to meet him in the air. So the word "rapture," to be "caught up" and meet the Lord in the air, that teaching is in the Bible. What is not in the Bible is one of the popular versions of that. That is the idea of a secret rapture. There’s nothing secret about it. The Bible tells us that when the Lord comes as a thief, life does not go on for another seven years.
If you read in 2nd Peter chapter 3, verse 10, “The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in which the heavens pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth and the things that are in it are burned up.” So it’s kind of the left behind teaching that has been popularized. It's really not biblical that life goes on for seven years after the rapture. Do the saints get caught up? Yes. Does life go on for seven more years? No. The tribulation does not happen after the rapture. We’re in that group of Christians that believes the tribulation happens before the rapture. Were you able to hear that Ellie?
Ellie: Yes.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: We had to turn you down because we’re getting some hiss on your cell phone. Does that make sense?
Ellie: Yes.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Alright. Hey, thank you very much. And by the way, I don’t know if you’ll be able to remember this, but we have a study guide on the second coming and we’ll be happy to send you a copy of that. Right now I’m drawing a blank on what the title was.
Pastor Jëan Ross: “Rescue from Above.”
Pastor Doug Batchelor: “Rescue from Above.” Thank you very much. Yeah, “Rescue from above.”
Pastor Jëan Ross: We've got the new titles on our study guides. This one is “Rescue from Above.” It deals with the second coming. Call 1-800-835-6747 and ask for the study guide “Rescue from Above.” You know Pastor Doug, that idea that Jesus comes and then people are raptured out and then life goes on for seven years, it’s dangerous in that it gives the person the idea that they don’t haveto get their life ready now; they can wait until Jesus comes.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Second chance...
Pastor Jëan Ross: A second chance...
Pastor Doug Batchelor: ...a false hope.
Pastor Jëan Ross: ...after the second coming.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah, it’s very dangerous. And it’s built on the premise that God loves us too much to let the church experience any tribulation so He’s going to take the church out of the world before the tribulation. But the Bible just does not teach that. Paul says, “It is through tribulation we enter the kingdom of God.” When God saved Noah it was through the storm, not from it. Daniel was saved through the lion’s den. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were saved through the fire. The children of Israel were in Egypt during the plagues but He preserved them.
Pastor Jëan Ross: That’s right, He took care of them.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: And then they were caught away after the plagues. So we’re going to be caught away after that seven last plagues.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Alright, Ed is calling from Fresno, California listening on KARM. Ed, welcome to the program.
Ed: Thank you. Thanks for taking my call. My question is about Deuteronomy 6:4.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yes.
Ed: The, “Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one.” I believe the Jewish people believed that there was just God the Father and that was it. And when Christ was asked what the greatest commandment was, He reiterated Deuteronomy 6:4. He seemed to be verifying that there is only one.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yes.
Ed: And I don’t understand how that translates into a triune Godhead.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah, there’s really no problem. First of all, in the Garden of Eden when God creates the world, God says, “Let Us,” it’s very clear in every version, “Let Us make man in Our image.” In the Jewish mind--and I am Jewish--in the Jewish mind, "one" did not always mean numerical quantity. "One" meant "unity." That’s why Jesus said, “A man will leave his father and mother and cleave unto his wife and they become one flesh.” When Jesus prayed about the disciples He said, "Father, I pray that they might be one, as You and I are one."
Ed: Whereas one, as in the same mind and deed and nature?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah. See, the pagans believed in all these different gods. They had a god of the bushes; and the god of the river; and the god of the sun; and the god of the trees and the earth. When Moses said, “Hear, O Israel: the LORD our God is one,” they don’t divide up the territory where one god is over this and one god is over that. Our God is one united God. That’s what he was saying.
Ed: Okay, because I just keep reading through. I mean, just like in John 17:3, “Now this is eternal life, that they may know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.” Also, "There is only one mediator between God and men, the man Jesus Christ." Not the "God Jesus Christ."
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well, that’s true because when Jesus came to our earth, it tells us in Colossians that He laid aside His divinity and took on the form of a man, this is the incarnation. But there’s no question that Jesus is God because, for one thing, when He rose from the dead Thomas said, “My Lord and My God.” Look at the definitions of God in the Bible. We’re told only to worship God; and yet the Bible says they worshiped Jesus. The Bible says God created the heavens and the earth. And then you read in John Chapter 1 all things that were made were made by Him, meaning Jesus. So, if God created the heavens the earth and it says all things were made by Jesus, well it’s, you know, if A equals B, then it’s still true.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Well in John chapter 1, that reference you spoke is, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” It’s very clear.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Was God, yeah.
Pastor Jëan Ross: And the Word became flesh; the Word being Jesus.
Ed: But God also worked through the prophets and many miracles were happening, but they weren’t God either.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well, they never claimed divinity, but Jesus did. See, Jesus actually received worship. When He rose from the dead He said, “All hail,” and they knelt down and they worshiped Him.
Ed: Well, yes, like in Daniel 7:13, One like the son of man coming on the clouds--just like in Revelation--and he approached the Ancient of days. He was led to His Presence and was given authority [tape skips 0:48:22] sovereign power of peoples, nations and languages worshiped him.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah. Well I don’t know if you heard our opening question in tonight’s program. Someone was asking from the internet about is there a varying authority between the Father, Son and Spirit? We said, yes it appears there is, but are they all meeting the criteria of God? God being all knowing; matter of fact, one of the definitions of God is in 1st Kings 8:39 where it says, “God only knows the thoughts of man’s hearts.” And over and over through the ministry of Jesus, He knew what people were thinking. And it says…
Ed: True. God the Father gave that knowledge to Him, but doesn’t it also--in the day, the hour not known, not even the angels, nor the son but only the Father knows the time? That would not [tape skips 0:49:08]
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Say that again? I’m sorry, I didn’t catch the question.
Ed: Okay. In the end of days, I forget the exact Scripture where it's at, it says, “The day and the hour will not be known, not even the angels, nor the son…"
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah, Matthew 24.
Ed: "...but only the Father."
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah, well Jesus knows now. When He was in his earthly state, He wasn’t walking around with the cosmos swirling in His brain. He laid aside-- that’s what Colossians is telling us--when He came to earth He laid aside great dimensions of His divinity that He might live as a man among men. When Jesus was a baby, growing up, He wasn’t walking around with this great knowledge in His mind. But that didn’t deny that He was God. He had laid aside a lot of that to be a man. That was one of the great miracles of love, the condescension of Jesus.
Pastor Jëan Ross: You know, there is a mystery with that. Paul speaks about the mystery of the Incarnation of Christ, God becoming a man. We can’t fully grasp that, but we can accept that by faith because that’s what the Word says. Christ was with the Father, He’s one with God, He receives worship. There’s lots of evidence that points to that.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: You know Ed, we’ve offered a book a little earlier tonight. I really encourage you to get that, it’s called “The Trinity: Is it Biblical?” I’m just stuck on going with what the Bible says. I know there are questions; they're valid questions. But when you stack up the evidence for the definitions of who God is and then the definitions of Jesus, Jesus continually fulfills those. There’s only one Savior and it tells us that He is God, and then it calls Jesus the only Savior, so they keep matching up.
Pastor Jëan Ross: The book again is, “The Trinity: Is it Biblical?” To get it, just call the resource number…
Pastor Doug Batchelor: It’s free.
Pastor Jëan Ross: 1-800-835-6747.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Matter of fact, we’ll take 50 percent off for you tonight.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Give you a real good deal.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Alright, Rick is…
Pastor Doug Batchelor: We’ll probably have to send you money to take it [laughing]. Is that how that works?
Pastor Jëan Ross: [Laughing] Rick is listening on KPRZ from San Diego, California. Rick, welcome to the program.
Rick: Yes, thanks for taking my question.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: And your question?
Rick: And what it is, it's in Deuteronomy, I’m sorry I’m going to [Unintelligible] the Bible, 14, it tells you what you shall eat, what you shall not eat.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah, Deuteronomy 14?
Rick: Yes. And then in Romans 14:14 Paul says, “I know, I am convinced by the Lord Jesus, that there is nothing unclean of itself.” Well, what is the discrepancy there?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yes, well if you read the context, Paul is not talking about foods being unclean as far, as whether it’s pork or shrimp. Paul was talking about animals that had been sacrificed in pagan temples. See, all through the Roman Empire Rick, the butcher houses were done in the presence of idols. All of the butchers would butcher in the presence--I’m talking about the Romans and the Greeks--of pagan idols. The Jews had a real problem. They said, “How can we eat these meats that have been offered to pagan gods because maybe we’re supporting what they’re doing?” So many Jews were boycotting eating the meat sold in the shambles. Paul talks about “don’t ask any questions if you something in the shambles for conscience sake.”
So this whole discourse in Romans 14 dealing with “...he that is weak eats only herbs...” had nothing to do with clean or unclean meats or vegetarianism. It had to do with eating food that had been offered to idols.
Rick: Okay. Thank you.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Thank you very much Rick.
Pastor Jëan Ross: Harry is listening on the internet from Sunrise, Florida. Harry, welcome to the program.
Harry: Yes, good afternoon Pastor Ross and Pastor Doug.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yes.
Harry: I have a question. Is Matthew 24 mixed with future and past events because when I read verse 29…
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah.
Harry: …it says that, “Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of heaven shall be shaken.” Did not the sun and the moon darken at around 1800 or 1900?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yes. When you read Matthew 24 Harry, this is such a deep chapter, it’s the discourse of Jesus on signs of several things. He talked about the destruction of Jerusalem. He talked about signs of His coming and the end of the world. And some of these prophecies have a dual application. Many of the events that preceded the destruction of Jerusalem also will happen just before His second coming. Immediately prior to the second coming you’ll see the sun go dark and the moon will turn to blood, the stars will fall from heaven, the heavens will depart as a scroll. But historically, there was a day when the sun went dark; and the stars in 1833, I believe it was, appeared to fall.
Harry: Yeah.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: They called it a meteor shower unequal to anything else in history. People thought the stars were falling from heaven. So historically people have seen these things, and then the moon came up looking like blood after the dark day. Historically, they’ve seen these things happen over a span of years but you’ll probably see them happen in quick succession before the second coming.
Harry: Oh, they will happen again?
Pastor Jëan Ross: Just another thought on that tribulation here, and Pastor Doug is mentioning a possible dual application, I think that’s correct. On the one hand, you have the tribulation that takes place just before Jesus comes, where the seven last plagues are poured out. But during the dark ages there is a period of time of persecution for those who have been honest to the word of God. That was a period of tribulation for them.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: 1,260 years of great persecution, tribulation.
Pastor Jëan Ross: And at the ending of that, that’s where you have the dark day, that’s where the stars from heaven fell in 1833 and so on. So that tribulation could be understood as relating to the end just before Jesus comes, but also during the dark ages.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: That’s right.
Harry: Okay. Thank you.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: We have a lesson on the second coming that we mentioned. I think some of the signs that you’ve mentioned are in there. Ooh, can we get another question in two minutes?
Pastor Jëan Ross: Well, let’s try. Leon is calling from Los Angeles listening on the internet. Leon, welcome to the program.
Leon: Yes, good evening Pastor Doug and Pastor Ross. I have a quick question.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Okay.
Leon: In 1st John it talks about, 1st John chapter 5, verses 16 and 17, about there is a sin unto death and there is a sin not unto death.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yes.
Leon: And then in Romans it says about the wages of sin is death.
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Yeah.
Leon: What is the difference there?
Pastor Doug Batchelor: Well, the wages of all sin un-repented of, is death. John is referring to that there is a sin that you--I’m not saying you should pray for it--and that would be the unpardonable sin. Those who have grieved away the Spirit, who have denied the faith, who have turned their back on the Lord and become enemies of the cross--sometimes when a person has just hardened their heart against the Gospel, there’s not much you can do at that point. So they’re dealing with two different issues. Paul is speaking in general terms, “All have sinned and come short of the glory.” John, I think, is speaking about more specifically those who have committed the unpardonable sin. I hope that helps a little bit Leon. I had to give you a kind of a crash answer there as we near the end of the program, good question though.
Listening friends don’t forget to check out the websites. This program can go on much longer if you take advantage of the excellent study resources you’ll find at AmazingFacts.org. Also, check out the MostAmazingProphecies.com website. Listen to some of the videos of the Bible study presentations from prophecy.
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