0:08

Hello, friends. Welcome to the second

0:10

hour of Open Line that Doctor Michael read only

0:13

Moody Radio Bible study across

0:15

America. I'm Mike Ray Donovan, I'm professor

0:17

of Jewish studies and Bible at Moody, as

0:20

well as the undergraduate dean. I'm

0:22

here today and every Saturday

0:25

trying to do my best to answer

0:27

your Bible questions. And

0:30

normally the bulk of the program

0:32

is your calls with your

0:34

questions about the Bible, God and

0:37

the spiritual life. But today it's all

0:39

mailbag all the time. So

0:41

the best way to be in touch is by going to our

0:43

website, Open Line Radio Talk. You

0:45

can post a question there. There's a link that

0:47

says Ask Michael a question and you

0:49

can ask right there and it'll come up in

0:51

a future mailbag. But today I'm

0:54

going to be answering the questions you've sent in.

0:56

And not just me. Eva Ray

0:58

Dolnick, who's an adjunct faculty

1:00

member at Moody Bible Institute as

1:02

well as a contributor to the Moody Bible Commentary

1:05

and Moody Handbook of Messianic Prophecy.

1:07

And she is also she happens to be my

1:09

wife, my favorite Bible teacher. She

1:12

and I study the Bible together all

1:14

the time. I'm glad you're here, Eva.

1:16

I'm so glad to be here. Yeah.

1:17

This way you can answer the Bible questions. You don't have to text

1:19

them. Yeah. That's that. That's what they say, which is

1:21

what you usually do. And then also

1:23

Tricia McMillan's here, she is the producer

1:26

of Open Line and the person who put the mailbag

1:28

together. Thank you so much, Trisha. Glad you're

1:30

here. I love these programs.

1:32

I love sitting around talking about the Bible. And

1:34

we were laughing the first hour about how

1:36

it took some time to get through those

1:38

questions. And the reason it took some

1:41

time was because we all talk about it. And

1:43

I guess that's the fun part. That's why it's the

1:45

Bible study across America.

1:46

Patricia hasn't just put questions together. She's a she's

1:48

a graduate of Moody Bible Institute.

1:49

I understand I am yeah.

1:51

And double graduate double.

1:53

Masters and masters right. Yeah.

1:55

That's right. Yeah. That's she knows stuff.

1:57

Yeah I love it. There were some times when people

1:59

call the program and we know that we're

2:01

not going to get that question on the air.

2:03

And Tricia will get on the line and answer their

2:05

question right with them off the air,

2:07

which I love it when you do that. Yeah.

2:10

When we have time, I try. Yeah.

2:12

So all right, we're going to go right back

2:14

to questions.

2:14

Yes. And some of these are very

2:16

unique ones that we've not had before. And so I'm really

2:18

excited to hear your answers to them. So

2:21

our first question is from Betsy in Florida.

2:23

She listens to R&B. When

2:25

I read Jesus answers to people's

2:27

questions in the Bible, it seems

2:29

like they don't match the question

2:32

is this because of the translation?

2:34

And so I wrote as one example,

2:36

um, the rich young ruler, which

2:39

I forgot to write down the actual

2:41

verse. So I'm going to flip here to mark

2:43

ten, um, where the

2:45

rich young ruler asked good teacher 17

2:47

right?

2:47

Yes.

2:48

Good teacher, what do I need to do to inherit

2:50

eternal life? And Jesus responds, why

2:52

do you call me good? Yeah. What? That's

2:55

not that wasn't the point of my question.

2:58

Um, and then he says, you know, you know,

3:00

all the commandments, but but it often seems

3:02

like Jesus, it's not just

3:04

here's what you do or yes

3:06

or no, you know, if it's a yes or no question,

3:09

it's a little more involved than that.

3:11

Yes. Why?

3:13

Uh, I think that the very point,

3:15

I mean, Jesus is good. So why

3:17

does he ask that question? Why do you call

3:19

me good? I think he's trying to diagnose

3:22

not just for himself, because obviously

3:24

he knows what's inside of us.

3:27

Even in these interactions. He knows what's in man.

3:29

It says at the end of John two, but

3:31

rather he is helping

3:33

the person think about why are

3:36

they? Why are you asking me this question?

3:38

What are you trying to do, just butter me up?

3:40

Do you really think I'm good? Do you understand

3:42

what I mean? Why do you call me good? Yeah, he's

3:44

kind of probing. What? That

3:46

which he knows about the person intuitively

3:49

or, I think, omniscient.

3:52

Yeah.

3:52

About us. Yeah. Uh, not intuition, but

3:54

omniscience. Uh, so that's

3:56

the one thing that he's doing. But

3:59

he often doesn't

4:01

give the answer that's expected.

4:04

I think that that's just

4:07

amazing. Uh, and it's

4:09

serves to show how unpredictable

4:12

the Messiah is. Uh, I've got

4:14

a book brewing that I want to write about that,

4:16

that when you look at how Jesus responds

4:19

to people, he always gives the

4:21

unpredictable, unexpected

4:23

answer. One of my favorite examples

4:25

of that is Luke 13.

4:28

And and the reason for that,

4:30

it is it's sort of an upside down view

4:33

of the problem of evil. And

4:36

the reason I say that. Is

4:39

it says in Luke 13. Uh,

4:42

some people came and reported to him about

4:44

the Galileans whose blood Pilate

4:46

had mixed with their sacrifices. So apparently

4:49

Pilate, at their Passover sacrifices, took

4:51

them, killed people, and mixed their blood with the

4:53

sacrifices they were offering. He

4:55

was a bad guy pilot, right? And

4:58

he responded. Do you think that

5:00

these Galileans were more sinful

5:02

men, sinful than all

5:04

Galileans, because they suffered these things?

5:07

What did we expect of the Messiah when

5:09

they came with that sympathy?

5:12

Oh, I'm so sorry.

5:14

This is. Wait, wait. I know what your real

5:16

question is. Were they worse? And that's

5:18

why God allowed it to happen. Do you think they

5:21

were more sinful than you are? And

5:23

you're safe because. You're

5:25

not sinful. No, I

5:27

tell you, unless you repent,

5:29

you'll perish as well. And

5:32

then he says. Or the 18. Then Jesus

5:34

raises another problem of evil. This is not

5:36

human evil, but natural

5:38

evil. We would call it a tower. And Siloam

5:41

fell on them and killed them. Do you think they were more sinful

5:43

than all the other people who live in Jerusalem?

5:45

No, I tell you, unless you repent,

5:47

you will perish as well. And then he tells the story

5:50

of the barren fig tree, and why

5:52

it is that the barren fig tree gets to

5:55

not be destroyed right away,

5:57

which it should be, because

5:59

the farmer asked for patience

6:03

of the owner. Uh, he says,

6:06

you know, I know it's not producing anything,

6:08

but let me give it another year. I'll, I'll, I'll,

6:10

I'll put some food, plant food

6:13

around it. I'll fix it up and let's see if we can get

6:15

more fruit. It's. And and the decision

6:17

is made to let it go for another year.

6:20

Out of God, out of patience.

6:22

And what he is saying is the reason

6:24

everyone doesn't experience

6:26

evil is because God is being

6:28

patient. He's giving you time

6:31

to repent because if we all

6:33

got what we deserved, we'd be flashed

6:35

in an instant. We'd be gone. Uh,

6:38

and this is an utterly

6:40

unacceptable answer that

6:42

focuses on God's mercy

6:45

despite our evil, rather

6:47

than, yeah, those people were

6:49

bad, and that's why they got that. Do

6:51

you understand? It's just an upside down

6:54

answer and start studying

6:56

Jesus answers to questions. I'd

6:59

say 90% of the time he gives an upside down

7:01

answer.

7:02

Right? So these are they're not translation

7:04

issues as to why there doesn't

7:06

seem to be a question and then a response

7:08

that correlates to the question.

7:10

Yeah, it's a.

7:10

Messianic issue, okay. It's

7:12

when you're the Messiah, you know what people need to hear,

7:15

right? Yeah. That's uh, right.

7:17

I think I think that's it's one of my favorite

7:19

things as as I've studied the Gospels,

7:22

that's the thing that strikes me the most.

7:24

I mean, read the good Samaritan. Yeah.

7:26

The story. There's no such thing as a good Samaritan,

7:29

right? Right. And so when the Lord Jesus

7:31

gives the answer about the Good Samaritan.

7:34

What? That's not what we

7:36

expected to hear, right? Uh,

7:38

in the first century, there was no expectation

7:40

that there was one good Samaritan. And

7:43

the Lord Jesus tells that story. Who's the true

7:45

neighbor? So, yeah, it's

7:47

I love that. It's it's

7:49

there are so many things I love about the Lord Jesus,

7:52

but when I study these, I'm thinking.

7:55

Wow, this is just great. And as

7:57

a teacher, one of the things I've

7:59

tried to do is sometimes when

8:01

when students ask questions in class.

8:04

I try to answer, not the question that they're

8:06

asking as well. In

8:09

addition, I want to answer the question that

8:11

they're really asking the.

8:12

Question behind the question.

8:13

Question behind the question.

8:14

And I think you do that on Open line.

8:16

We'll talk about that sometimes off the air

8:19

that there's there's often a question

8:21

behind a question that we,

8:23

that we really want to know.

8:25

Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's what I do. Sometimes

8:28

I'll probe for it and sometimes I'll just answer it

8:30

I know. Right. Yeah. But that's, that's because

8:32

I, I've watched the model of the law and have

8:34

studied it.

8:35

Yeah. Yeah. Okay. Thank you for that

8:37

question Betsy. Our next question

8:40

is from George on Facebook.

8:42

And Matthew 20 1028.

8:44

Sorry, Matthew ten verse 28.

8:48

It says, don't fear those

8:50

who kill the body but are not

8:52

able to kill the soul. Rather, fear

8:54

him who is able to destroy both soul

8:57

and body in hell. What

8:59

does this mean? It

9:02

seems to say that the body and soul will be destroyed

9:05

in hell, and that those who go there won't

9:07

suffer for eternity. Is that what

9:09

it's saying? What is he trying to say?

9:11

The question here is about annihilation ism.

9:14

Uh, there are some people who teach

9:16

that eternal separation from God

9:18

is that those who are lost

9:21

will just be. After some time

9:23

of suffering, they'll be poof, gone,

9:26

annihilated, and then, and thereby

9:28

they are eternally separated

9:30

from God. Uh. I,

9:34

I, I, I

9:36

think that some people feel that's preferable.

9:40

Uh. I'm not sure,

9:42

but I what I would want to do is

9:44

stick to the text, what it's talking about when

9:46

it talks about destroy the soul

9:48

or. It that that's

9:51

talking about eternal, perpetual,

9:53

never ending destruction. It's

9:56

the forever process.

9:58

And. There's

10:01

a verse.

10:03

In that revelation 1411.

10:05

Sure. Um, that kind

10:08

of sort of speaks to that. Hang

10:10

on. Let me let me find revelation. Where is that? In

10:12

the Bible? Oh, it's near the end. Toward

10:14

the end. Yeah, yeah. Okay. Here. Hang on. All

10:18

right. 1411 says, and the smoke

10:21

of their torment goes up forever

10:23

and ever. Those who worship

10:26

the beast and his image. And whoever

10:28

receives the mark of his name. That's

10:30

sort of a picture of

10:33

what eternal torment

10:35

is right there at the end.

10:37

It never stops.

10:38

It's never stopping. It's not annihilation

10:40

ism, but it is perpetual suffering.

10:43

And and, you know, in Isaiah 56,

10:47

uh, I think that's interesting. This

10:49

is not just a New Testament concept.

10:52

It's also an Old Testament concept.

10:56

Uh, and also there's the verses that Lord Jesus says,

10:58

where, uh, where the worm

11:00

doesn't cease, you know, and it's

11:02

just that, that it's a forever ever thing.

11:04

But, uh. And

11:06

the fire never is quenched. But

11:09

in Isaiah, let's see

11:11

if I can actually find it in Isaiah

11:13

56. Uh, I

11:15

think it is it. Unless

11:17

I'm I'm wrong, I'm probably wrong. Uh,

11:20

but there's a verse that also

11:22

talks about it. I'm sorry. Isaiah

11:26

66. How's

11:28

that? Yeah.

11:28

That's. That sounds good.

11:30

That says, uh, they

11:32

will see the dead bodies of

11:34

the men who have rebelled against me, for

11:36

their worm will never die, their

11:39

fire will never go out, and

11:41

they will be a horror to all mankind.

11:44

Um, so, uh, it's not

11:46

just talking about their bodies there. It's talking about

11:48

perpetual, eternal separation

11:51

from God. Uh, Isaiah 5066,

11:54

verse 24. So,

11:58

uh, it's it's let me just I'm going to

12:01

try and pull this around. One of the most heartbreaking

12:03

things is that people who

12:05

were created to have

12:08

eternal fellowship with God are

12:11

because of sinfulness and rebellion against

12:13

God, are going to be separated

12:16

from him forever. And

12:18

I have seen too many followers

12:20

of Jesus, kind of. When they get mad at people who don't

12:22

know the Lord, they kind of gloat about this. You'll

12:24

see. Uh, right. But

12:27

this should be the most heartbreaking

12:31

thing that we've ever,

12:33

ever encountered in Scripture.

12:35

And it should be the great motivation.

12:38

That we're going to. Present

12:42

the good news of Messiah and how much

12:44

God loves people to everyone.

12:47

That's what I think is so crucial. This

12:49

should be not something that we ever are happy

12:51

about. This is only only

12:53

something that should motivate us to

12:56

let the love of God be known to people

12:58

so they will trust in him. We're going to come back

13:00

with more questions in just a moment. This

13:02

is open line. Stay right there.

13:08

The new year is all about getting our priorities

13:10

right. So Chosen People Ministries wants

13:12

to help us get our outreach goals in order.

13:15

That's why they're offering a booklet called

13:17

To the Jew First in the 21st century,

13:19

written by Doctor Al Mohler. This booklet

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reaffirms God's love for the Jewish people

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and shows why believers must continue to

13:26

present the Messiah, Jesus, to them. Doctor

13:28

Mohler says Jewish evangelism

13:31

is the clearest test case for faithfulness

13:33

to the gospel of the Lord Jesus, the Messiah

13:35

in this generation. For

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your free copy of To the Jew First in the

13:39

21st century, just go to the Open

13:42

Line website that's Open Line Radio

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org. Scroll down and you'll see the link

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that says A gift from Chosen People Ministries.

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Click on that and you'll be taken to a page

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where you can sign up for your own free copy of

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To the Jew First in the 21st

13:55

century. Some

13:59

people think the Bible is too complex to

14:01

read, but God never intended to

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frustrate us. If reading God's Word

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intimidates you, then I have a perfect

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resource. It's called living by the book

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or just go to open Line Radio. Org.

14:31

We're back I'm Michael Ray. And

14:33

joining me today is Trish McMillan. She

14:36

put together the mailbag. It's an all mailbag

14:38

all the time program.

14:40

And Tricia was concerned I couldn't answer

14:42

these questions. And so she also invited

14:44

Eva Ray Dolnick to

14:47

be here so that she could make sure that the

14:50

questions got answered appropriately. I'm glad

14:52

you're here, too, Eva.

14:53

So, yeah, there we go. Having a good time?

14:56

I love our Bible studies together, and

14:58

I love answering people's questions. So

15:00

our next one is from Kenneth in Illinois, listens

15:03

to Wbai. He is looking

15:05

at John 14 two,

15:08

which is when Jesus

15:10

says he's going to prepare a place for us

15:13

or for for them. Um,

15:15

and he says, I've been bothered for many years

15:17

by the translation because

15:19

there are two different translations

15:21

on this verse. One

15:23

says, if it were not so would

15:26

I have told you that I go to prepare a place

15:28

for you? This makes

15:30

sense to him, he says. The other

15:32

translations reverse. Take

15:34

away the question and make it a statement and kind

15:36

of reverse the meaning almost. And it says if it

15:38

were not so, I would have told you.

15:41

But there are a lot of statements that are not

15:43

so, and Jesus doesn't tell us those.

15:46

So which is the more accurate translation?

15:49

Well, I'm going to just read it to you. Okay.

15:51

Now just to clarify, this

15:53

is you translating the Greek on

15:56

the air. Yeah. Okay. That's it. Okay.

15:58

Uh, in my father's

16:00

house, there are many

16:03

rooms. Many people say

16:05

mansions, no rooms.

16:07

Maybe Athens is a nice idea. Yeah, it's.

16:09

Actually apartments to be clear dwelling

16:11

places. All right. Uh, and then

16:13

it says if it were not

16:15

so, then I

16:17

would have told you, for I

16:20

go to prepare a place for you. That's

16:22

it. Then I would have told you. That's all

16:25

I would have told you. So that's it. I'm reading

16:27

it.

16:27

But why would he go to the trouble of telling

16:29

you, hey, I'm going to make a place. Because if

16:31

I wasn't making a place, I would have told you. I wasn't making

16:33

you. Because he's.

16:34

He's the one that's been telling them all about eternal

16:36

life. And if I wasn't going

16:38

to do this, if you're going to be

16:41

hanging around, floating on the cloud with

16:43

your little, uh, harp,

16:45

I would have told you, but no, I'm actually

16:47

going to prepare a place for you. I'm not leaving

16:49

you behind not to bring you back

16:51

with me. I'm. I'm going to make a place

16:53

for you. That's why I'm going. AD.

16:55

Okay, so I would have told you what was

16:57

going to happen. Yeah, because

16:59

if it wasn't this other way. This way that

17:01

I have been telling you, I would have told you that.

17:03

Because I would have told you what was actually going to happen.

17:05

Yeah, yeah. That's okay. So I haven't been lying

17:07

to you this whole time. Exactly. Right. That's basically

17:10

what he's saying. Yeah. Okay. Well,

17:12

I hope that clears that up. Kenneth. Um,

17:14

when I saw your question, I was like, yeah, that's

17:16

a great question. Because even in my notes

17:19

in my Bible, it has a little,

17:21

um, footnote that says and some translations

17:24

say this. And so it is confusing. Yeah.

17:26

To know which is the right.

17:28

Why did some put a question mark in there just to make

17:30

it seem make more sense?

17:32

For example, the translation I worked on,

17:34

which was the CSB once,

17:36

once it was all in, the editors

17:38

were reworking it and making sure everything was right.

17:40

They had an English stylist. Oh,

17:43

who makes sure that it's

17:45

I mean, it really says the same thing either

17:47

way, but making it

17:49

so that that's what they have. They always

17:51

have an English stylist trying to make sure that it's

17:53

understandable to the English reader.

17:55

Okay, to make to have the least amount of

17:57

confusion with what they're reading. Okay.

17:59

All right. So kind of related

18:01

to that, Nathan and Washington listens

18:04

to Columbia and wants to know where the kingdom of God

18:06

and the kingdom of heaven the same thing

18:08

or are they different? We have Jesus teaching about

18:11

both, um, in the

18:13

New Testament, in the Gospels. Are

18:15

they the same thing? Are they different things?

18:17

Well, uh, first of all,

18:20

there are there were

18:22

interpreters in the early 20th

18:25

century, in late 19th century,

18:27

that treated the kingdom of heaven

18:29

as it was used in the Gospel of

18:31

Matthew as something distinct

18:34

from the kingdom of God in

18:36

the other gospels. And

18:40

the problem with that is they don't understand

18:42

that Matthew has written to Jews, and

18:44

that Jewish people often used

18:46

a euphemism for the word

18:49

God, and the euphemism

18:51

that was commonly used was heaven.

18:54

Huh? Because that's God's abode.

18:57

So you can talk about where God is.

19:01

Uh, the kingdom of heaven and the Kingdom

19:03

of God are exactly the same thing.

19:06

Uh, does that make sense? Uh,

19:08

so.

19:09

Yes. So instead of saying his name.

19:11

Yes. Because he was the one who cannot be named.

19:14

Yeah. Okay. Yeah. So they would

19:16

say.

19:16

The ineffable name of God, the unpronounceable,

19:18

unspeakable name of the.

19:20

House that we talked about last hour.

19:22

Yeah. Then then what you do

19:24

is you say, uh, heaven,

19:26

heaven, the kingdom of heaven.

19:28

And you see, it's mostly in Matthew where the phrase

19:30

appears. Yeah. Because Matthew is a very Jewish

19:32

gospel. Yeah.

19:33

Writing to Jewish people. And so

19:35

Matthew is using the euphemism kingdom

19:37

of heaven. Now, what is the kingdom? The kingdom

19:40

is the rulership of God. And,

19:42

uh, what what that refers

19:45

to. Now there

19:47

is a sense where God is our ruler, our king,

19:49

right now. But very often

19:51

in Scripture when it talks about what the kingdom

19:53

of heaven will be like, it's

19:55

also a very Jewish idea, which

19:57

is the mouth of God. Uh,

20:00

when was that going to come? Evil? You should tell

20:02

us the kingdom,

20:04

the ultimate kingdom.

20:05

When Messiah comes and reigns on the throne of

20:07

David for a thousand years. Yeah. So?

20:09

So in a sense, we have the beginning

20:11

of it now.

20:12

It's now. Not yet. Yeah. That now,

20:14

not yet.

20:15

Yeah. Because he's reigning over a spiritually.

20:18

So the kingdom of heaven is among

20:20

us, right. But one day

20:23

he's going to be really among

20:25

us, ruling us at the kingdom of heaven or

20:27

the kingdom of God. Uh, when he

20:30

reigns from Jerusalem.

20:31

So is it a similar idea to sanctification

20:34

that we are sanctified? But we are. We

20:36

are still always in the process of being sanctified.

20:38

Yeah. It's it's it's the same way that the.

20:40

Same kind of idea.

20:41

There's a now lesser version,

20:44

but there will be a completed version

20:46

later. I see what you mean in terms of the kingdom.

20:48

Yeah, there's the present sanctification,

20:50

which is a process, and ultimate sanctification,

20:52

which is when we're glorified.

20:54

Okay. So in the same way, this this kingdom,

20:56

we are in the kingdom of

20:58

the kingdom of God, in his kingdom.

21:00

Obviously, he's reigning over. He's our king. Okay.

21:02

Right. But on the other.

21:03

Hand, ultimate. The

21:05

at the millennial reign. Yeah, the king.

21:07

The ultimate kingdom of God. Yeah, the.

21:09

The lion and the lamb are not lying down

21:11

together. There's no end of war now.

21:14

Right now. Yeah. Um, you know, death is common

21:16

now. Won't be common then.

21:18

Okay, so with this, thinking about

21:20

the kingdom of God,

21:22

is this part of

21:25

with this language or the kingdom of heaven?

21:27

Is this. Kind of

21:29

lumped. Not lumped. Is this kind of

21:31

connected to the the,

21:34

um. King,

21:36

the reigning ruling king that they

21:38

were expecting of the

21:40

Messiah. Yeah. So like his.

21:42

Lord Jesus deals with this. They expected the Messiah

21:44

to come and kick out

21:46

the Romans and establish peaceful reign

21:48

with Israel at the head of the nations. And

21:51

what the Lord Jesus says was

21:53

right now we've got a spiritual kingdom for

21:55

you. Okay. Uh, and you

21:57

can experience spiritual peace.

22:00

If you believe in the Messiah. I

22:02

will reign over you now. But

22:05

ultimately I'm going to return and

22:07

then I'm going to establish that kingdom

22:09

of peace on earth. Okay.

22:11

And so that that's what it is.

22:13

Okay. Yeah. All right. Thank you.

22:15

And I think that's a little bit of what why

22:18

Jesus is talking about in the,

22:20

in the least of favorite

22:23

promise to claim in John 1633

22:26

when he says these things that I have spoken to you,

22:28

so that in me you may have peace,

22:30

in the world you will have tribulation.

22:33

But but be encouraged.

22:35

I have overcome the world.

22:37

Yeah, he's our king.

22:37

He's our king now.

22:39

Right. All right. Thank you for that question.

22:41

Nathan Randolph and South Carolina,

22:44

listen to the Good News Network. Um,

22:46

and says that Paul

22:49

appeals to Caesar in

22:51

acts because of his Roman citizenship.

22:54

The Jewish people bring Jesus before Pontius

22:56

Pilate. Um,

22:59

who was Roman, right.

23:01

Roman ruler. Um, okay. So was Jesus

23:03

a Roman citizen also? Pontius

23:06

Pilate gave his verdict that he found no laws

23:08

of Rome were broken by Jesus. What was

23:10

Paul born in Rome? I mean,

23:12

like, what's the difference between the two that he could claim

23:15

that could could any Jewish person under

23:17

this Roman jurisdiction that they were living in claim

23:19

that.

23:19

Only American and American would ask this

23:21

question because

23:24

we have birthright citizenship if

23:26

we're born in America. Yeah, we're

23:28

citizens of America, right? The

23:31

Roman Empire did not have birthright citizenship.

23:33

Okay.

23:33

Yeah. If you were born in the Roman Empire, it didn't give

23:35

you birthright citizenship.

23:36

Yeah. So then how was Paul a Roman

23:38

citizen?

23:39

Well, either. Probably his father

23:42

purchased it. Oh,

23:44

uh, you. There were certain things that you could do.

23:46

Remember when Paul says that he's a Roman citizen

23:49

citizen, and he says, uh,

23:52

you you purchased

23:54

your citizenship? I think he says to a centurion,

23:56

but I was born a citizen,

23:59

so probably his father purchased it.

24:01

And and Paul was born

24:03

into that because it is passed down

24:05

to your children. Okay. But, uh,

24:07

everyone is born in the Roman Empire.

24:10

Was not a citizen. Sometime

24:12

the emperors would grant soldiers

24:15

from other countries that joined

24:17

the Roman army citizenship as a

24:19

gift for, uh, you

24:21

know, they didn't get the GI Bill. What they got

24:23

was, was citizenship

24:26

and the privileges of that. So

24:28

he was under the Lord Jesus was

24:30

on the governance of Rome because

24:33

Rome was governing Judea. And that's

24:35

why he was brought to Pontius Pilate. Someone

24:38

would say governance, some would say oppression,

24:40

but nevertheless they were governing

24:42

authority in Judea. Um.

24:45

On the other hand, he was not a citizen,

24:48

so he could not have claimed. I

24:51

appeal to Caesar as Paul did.

24:53

Okay.

24:53

Uh, later on in the book of acts,

24:56

because he was. Paul could do that because he was a Roman

24:58

citizen. But the Lord Jesus was

25:00

just a he was Jewish from

25:02

Israel.

25:03

Okay? And had not purchased a Roman

25:05

citizenship.

25:06

And there were certain there were certain,

25:08

um, Roman cities, cities

25:10

that they had jurisdiction over where

25:12

the people who were from those cities had colonies.

25:15

Yeah. Colonies that had citizenship.

25:17

Yeah. Okay. Like Tarsus or like Philippi

25:20

there. I don't know.

25:21

If Tarsus was a was a colony, but

25:23

Philippi. Philippi.

25:24

Yeah. So, so.

25:26

But the the land of Israel was not was.

25:28

Not.

25:28

Okay. All right. Thank

25:31

you. That helpful. Yes.

25:32

Very. And Sherwin white Roman

25:34

citizenship and law I think. Yeah. Right.

25:37

Uh, is the name of the book. Anyway, uh,

25:40

we're going to come right back with more of your questions.

25:42

These are such great questions about the Lord Jesus.

25:44

Maybe we'll have more, I don't know, but the questions about

25:46

the Bible, God and the spiritual life. So don't go away.

25:49

This is Michael, Eva and Tricia answering

25:51

your questions. We'll be right back. We're

25:59

so glad that Facebook partners with

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26:38

today of Open Line. Uh, Eva

26:40

Ray Dolnick is here with me, and so is Trish

26:42

McMillan. And you have contributed

26:45

greatly by sending in all these questions.

26:47

And so we're going to try and get right back to it.

26:50

Tricia, what have we got next?

26:51

All right. David from Illinois listens to Wbai

26:54

and said, I recently heard about

26:56

a deliverance ministry and the main

26:58

scripture that they use to support the power

27:00

to cast out demons is from Mark 16

27:03

verse 17. Is

27:05

this verse speaking to all believers, or

27:08

was it just for certain believers?

27:10

Well, what Mark 16

27:12

verse 17 says,

27:15

uh, has to do with us casting out demons.

27:19

Now, before we do anything else, let me explain

27:21

what deliverance ministry is. It generally says

27:23

that when we keep on sinning,

27:25

it's because there are demons controlling

27:27

believers. The Bible says greater is he

27:30

who is in you than he is in the world. I

27:32

don't think that certainly

27:34

demons and Satan can have

27:36

influence, oppress,

27:39

attack believers, but

27:42

I do not believe they. It's

27:44

reasonable to cast demons

27:47

out of followers of Jesus

27:49

because, uh, God

27:52

possesses us, not demons. And

27:54

so, uh, the, the verse

27:56

that he's speaking of these signs will accompany

27:59

those who believe in my name.

28:01

They will drive out demons. Well, that doesn't

28:03

say whether it's in believers or not. Now, the problem with deliverance

28:06

ministry is it does say

28:08

that it

28:10

is driving demons out of followers

28:12

of Jesus. And so I think that's one problem.

28:14

Second issue is this

28:16

is an interesting passage because it is

28:19

part of the addendum,

28:21

so to speak, that some scribe

28:23

put on to the gospel of Mark. And

28:26

it's I don't believe it's part of the earliest

28:28

and best manuscripts. And

28:31

the footnote in mine, uh,

28:33

says in this bracketed area

28:36

it says verses nine through 20. Uh,

28:38

many manuscripts omit bracketed text.

28:40

So, uh, that's what

28:42

I would say. However, one of the most

28:44

important lessons about. Deliverance

28:48

ministry. I find in the

28:50

book of Ephesians when

28:52

it talks about us being involved

28:54

in spiritual warfare. When

28:57

I look at that passage in Ephesians six,

29:00

it doesn't say that we are

29:02

to. Uh, cast

29:05

out demons. It says this is why you must

29:07

take up the full armor of God. So that

29:09

you may be able to resist

29:13

in the evil day. And then it even use

29:16

uses the word stand or stand against, which is

29:18

the same root as resist.

29:21

Uh, in this passage. And then,

29:23

uh, ever, ever.

29:26

What was that? Wait, wait, what was what was that Ephesians

29:28

passage for people to write down at home?

29:30

It's Ephesians chapter six,

29:32

verses 13 and following.

29:35

Yep. And then you've got

29:37

a verse for us too, don't you? I do, I do.

29:39

Um, in first Peter it

29:41

says that chapter five,

29:43

uh, first Peter, chapter five, verse

29:46

eight and nine, it says,

29:48

be sober. A

29:50

be of sober spirit beyond

29:52

the alert. Your adversary the devil

29:55

prowls around like a roaring lion,

29:57

seeking someone to devour. But

29:59

resist him, firm in your

30:01

faith, knowing that the same experience

30:03

suffering is being accomplished by

30:06

your brethren who are in the world.

30:08

So what are you supposed to do when when he seeks

30:10

to devour us?

30:11

It doesn't say cast out. What does it say? Resist.

30:13

Don't remove.

30:14

Resist, resist, resist. And.

30:16

And what are you supposed to be firm in your

30:18

faith?

30:18

But what's the key word though?

30:20

Resist.

30:21

And Tricia.

30:22

Yeah. James four seven says, therefore

30:24

submit to God, but resist

30:26

the devil and he will flee from you.

30:29

And then verse eight says, draw near

30:31

to God, and he will draw near to you.

30:33

Yeah, okay.

30:34

But resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

30:36

Exactly. So when we talk about

30:39

spiritual warfare. Ephesians six

30:41

first Peter five James four,

30:43

it's not remove the devil and

30:45

then you won't sin. What is it?

30:48

Resist, resist, resist.

30:50

Stand against. And

30:52

how do we resist? We resist with the Word of God.

30:55

We can even quote it. We

30:57

can resist.

30:58

Well, that's what Jesus did at his temptation.

31:00

Exactly. He quoted the word of God back.

31:02

And we can resist, uh,

31:04

by putting on the armor of God. Uh,

31:06

there are so many things we can do, but what we

31:09

can't do is we can't cast out

31:11

the flesh. But

31:14

we can resist the enemy. So

31:17

that's okay. By the way, I

31:19

just think that's one of the great lessons

31:22

that we. It's easy

31:24

to say, I was just going to cast out this demon, and

31:26

then I won't have the, you know, problem with

31:28

gluttony anymore. No, uh, go

31:30

on a diet. There we go. So.

31:34

Thank you for that question, David. Related

31:36

to this, Sharon wrote us on Facebook and

31:38

wanted to know what the reasoning behind the order

31:41

of putting on each piece of the armor

31:43

of God is in Ephesians six.

31:46

Um, she has prayed, starting head

31:48

to toe, but that doesn't seem

31:50

to be what the Bible is teaching. Can you

31:52

kind of go through what the. Is there a

31:54

reasoning behind the order in Ephesians

31:56

six verses 13? Well, I'm.

31:58

Not sure if the I can say that there's an

32:00

exact order, but I think when it says

32:02

put on the armor of God, wouldn't

32:05

you say it's much more of a practical lifestyle

32:08

than praying something on? We don't

32:10

pray on the armor. What we

32:12

do is, uh,

32:15

it says stand or, uh, the idea of

32:17

resist against stand, therefore,

32:20

with truth, like a

32:22

belt. So what we need

32:24

to do is live lives based on the truth.

32:27

And then, uh, righteousness,

32:31

like arm like armor

32:33

on your chest. We have to, uh,

32:35

I think, experience righteousness,

32:38

which would be justification

32:40

by faith in Jesus and then living

32:42

in accordance with that. Uh,

32:44

and have our feet. You can go through

32:46

it saddled with readiness of the gospel.

32:49

So we have to be ready to go and tell anyone

32:51

about Jesus. These

32:53

are lifestyle situations.

32:55

So often people think, if I just pray this,

32:57

that I'm safe in in

33:00

spiritual warfare. No, this

33:02

requires, uh, a lifestyle

33:05

that affects how we,

33:07

the way we live is how

33:09

we will be successful

33:11

in spiritual warfare.

33:13

Yeah. And I think it has to do just

33:15

exactly like you say that it is.

33:17

It is a lifestyle that allows

33:19

us to stand firm. I think that's that's

33:21

the big word that we see over here in this

33:23

in which.

33:24

Is related to the word resist.

33:25

Resist the word resist. Right. Um,

33:28

and I don't think that it's like you say, it's not like

33:30

a, it's not like a

33:33

code for how you should be, what you should do for

33:35

a second and third. I think these are all things

33:37

that should be done all the time.

33:38

Normal lifestyle, normal lifestyle. And what I

33:40

think is so funny is that people would

33:43

like. I think this is just my

33:45

nature. I'm not trying to criticize others.

33:47

I would like an easy answer to the issue

33:49

of sin. Yes, I

33:51

would like I would like it. Just, you know, if I

33:53

just.

33:54

Take this pill and you won't say any more, I

33:56

just.

33:56

Pray on this, this, these things and

33:58

I'll be I'll be good, you know. Mhm.

34:01

But this is talking about having a

34:03

transformed life which happens

34:05

through. Yeah. Prayer I think is

34:08

one of those spiritual disciplines but other

34:10

spiritual disciplines as well

34:12

that as we practice spiritual disciplines

34:15

God uses that so that we can live

34:17

a righteous life. Uh, as we

34:19

as we practice spiritual disciplines and

34:21

seek openings to share the gospel, we have

34:23

our feet shod with the gospel of peace.

34:26

So I think it's another thing that's interesting about this passage

34:28

is that it? It.

34:31

It's so many of these different items are

34:34

quotations from the book of Isaiah. Oh

34:36

yeah. I think that is very interesting too, because

34:38

it shows that, you know, all the Bible is important,

34:41

all the Bible is applicable. We need to

34:43

spend time in it to get to know him in order

34:45

to stand firm.

34:46

I think sometimes Paul was reading Isaiah when

34:48

he.

34:48

Wrote that I wonder too.

34:49

So anyway, uh,

34:51

but yeah, that's that's I think the key

34:53

I've heard many people say just pray on the armor of God.

34:55

Well, you can do it. It's not going to help. What

34:57

you have to do is live the armor of God.

35:00

And that comes with, uh,

35:03

practicing spiritual disciplines.

35:04

All right. Thank you for that.

35:06

Yeah. Let's take a break. All right. Uh, we're going to come

35:08

back with more of your questions

35:11

in just a moment. Uh,

35:14

this is an open line. It's an old

35:16

mailbag program, so you can't call today,

35:19

but either right here, she's answering questions

35:21

Trish is asking and also answering

35:23

questions. Appreciate that. Uh, and

35:25

I'm going to be right back on Michael you're

35:28

listening to overnight. We're all going to be back so

35:30

don't go away. Welcome

35:45

back to Open Line. Trish McMillan is

35:47

here with me I'm Michael Redlich and Trish

35:49

is asking the questions you've sent in.

35:51

Eva Redlich is here as well

35:53

answering questions with me. She

35:55

is my my

35:57

ultimate kitchen table partner okay.

36:00

Because we study the Bible together, sometimes

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36:15

think that's what the whole idea that we have

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37:11

All right. Our next question is actually

37:13

I'm combining two questions, one from Kristen

37:15

and Tennessee, one from Gordon in Florida,

37:18

who are both trying to

37:20

talk with friends about

37:22

their faith. And their

37:24

friends are raising concerns

37:26

and saying that the Bible is untrustworthy

37:29

because it's been edited so many times

37:31

that you can't trust what it says, or

37:33

that they've made up stuff after the

37:35

fact that's been put into the Bible.

37:37

Um, how could they respond

37:40

to this? And are there any resources

37:42

you would recommend that would help assess the accuracy

37:44

of the Bible to show that inerrancy

37:46

and that it's trustworthy? Um.

37:48

Well, I would just say even as like,

37:51

she's so big on history

37:54

and geography and yeah.

37:57

I think that's one of the reasons that we

37:59

can have real confidence in our faith is because

38:01

it is based in time

38:04

and history, geography. But

38:06

as far as the manuscripts themselves, the

38:08

reliability of the manuscripts, I'll just talk about

38:10

the Old Testament for just a minute. Michael can maybe

38:12

pick it up on the new. But I think one of the

38:14

greatest evidences for the reliability

38:16

and accuracy of the scriptures as we have it,

38:18

was the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls,

38:21

and they were discovered in 1947

38:24

by Qumran, by the Dead Sea. And

38:27

those manuscripts that would have been hidden

38:29

there before the Roman

38:32

destruction of Jerusalem in 70

38:34

A.D. these manuscripts date back

38:36

to, say, 200 um

38:39

B.C., B.C., 200 years

38:41

before the Messiah came. They

38:44

are virtually the manuscripts that have been

38:46

found in translated word for word,

38:48

for the documents that we have

38:50

in our Bibles today. They're

38:52

there very little difference. And before.

38:54

That.

38:54

The earliest.

38:55

The Old Testament was like.

38:57

About about 1100 A.D..

38:58

About a thousand, let's say. So. So

39:00

threw back the manuscripts more

39:02

than a thousand years, and they're still the.

39:05

Same, and they were the same.

39:06

So there was an interruption that was happening.

39:08

Now, you could find there's a textual variant,

39:10

this or that, but that's the great thing.

39:13

One of the reason why the New Testament, I

39:15

could say is accurate is that we have

39:17

so many manuscripts. Right?

39:19

And with all these manuscripts

39:21

you can see the variants, but even

39:23

when there's a variant, it's so

39:26

textual criticism, it only affects less

39:28

than 1% of the New Testament

39:31

in terms of anything. And even

39:33

then it's so easy. So it might be

39:35

something about it might say our or

39:37

your. And they are used synonymously

39:40

that a good bit of the differences.

39:42

And then there are things when

39:44

we look at those manuscripts, if

39:46

I sent you ten notes

39:49

written by ten students and they all say

39:51

Happy Birthday, Trisha Um-Hmm, and

39:54

each one spells Happy birthday

39:57

wrong, but in a different way. Okay,

39:59

we still know what the original

40:01

note that they copied said, which was

40:03

happy birthday, happy birthday and that's

40:05

what we have. We have so many variants

40:08

with the New Testament, so many manuscripts,

40:10

when we put them all together, uh, we know what this

40:13

original was. So it is

40:15

accurate and strong.

40:17

Yeah. If there are two, two books that you want to think about

40:19

that you might want to pick up and read for yourself.

40:21

It's, um, one is

40:23

seven Reasons Why We Can Trust the Bible

40:25

by Doctor Erwin Luther, published by

40:27

Moody Press. And if you want to go, publishers,

40:30

Moody Publishers. I'm living in the past and,

40:32

uh, and also Josh McDowell's

40:35

book on evidence that a man's a verdict has

40:37

a very strong presentation of the reliability

40:39

of the New Testament and Old Testament text, the.

40:41

New evidence that demands a.

40:42

Verdict. Evidence because that's a revised

40:45

version, right? Okay. The new evidence

40:47

that demands a verdict by Josh McDowell

40:49

and seven reasons why we can trust

40:51

the Bible by Irwin. Loser. Mhm. Okay.

40:55

All right. Thank you for that. Our next question is

40:57

kind of related. Um, James

40:59

in South Carolina says Paul

41:01

states to Timothy that all Scripture

41:03

is given by the inspiration of God.

41:06

But it seems he could have only been referring

41:08

to the Old Testament. Right?

41:10

So based on that, he's

41:12

in the New Testament because otherwise it's a source quoting

41:15

a source. But why do we assume then,

41:17

that the New Testament is inspired?

41:20

Um, and then do we have evidence that

41:22

God guided the hands when selecting

41:24

the canon? So when when determining

41:26

which books went into the Bible, how

41:29

do we know that? That's.

41:30

Well, one of the things that that

41:33

one of my favorite verses in

41:35

First Peter is

41:38

where Peter talks about Paul's

41:40

writings and

41:42

what he says. Let's

41:45

see second.

41:46

Peter three.

41:46

Second Peter three. Yeah. Verse

41:48

16. Uh, he says

41:52

um.

41:54

About, uh.

41:55

Just as our dear brother Paul has written to you

41:57

according to the wisdom given to

41:59

him. He speaks about

42:01

these things in all his letters,

42:03

in which there are some matters that are

42:06

hard to understand. Well,

42:08

yeah, I've read Romans. There are things

42:10

in there. Uh,

42:12

the untaught and unstable

42:14

twist them to their own

42:16

destruction, as they

42:18

also do with the rest

42:21

of the scriptures. So what is Peter

42:23

doing with Paul's writings?

42:25

He's equating them with

42:27

the rest of the scriptures. So

42:29

here we have a very early, uh,

42:32

epistle by the Apostle Peter,

42:34

and he recognizes the Apostle

42:36

Paul's writings as Scripture.

42:39

And so, no, when

42:41

Paul says all scriptures inspired, whether he was just

42:43

mainly talking about the Old Testament or

42:45

not. Uh, that's one thing.

42:47

But he also is included

42:50

in Scripture himself

42:52

by the Apostle Paul. Uh,

42:55

Peter, uh, Apostle Peter. Right.

42:57

So, uh, I

42:59

think that is one of the things that

43:01

it's really important to see that the whole

43:03

New Testament was considered inspired.

43:06

Uh, and.

43:07

Yes, and also like really early

43:10

in this, in this very chapter for the

43:12

first couple of verses of Second Peter

43:14

three says, this is now, beloved, the second

43:16

letter I am writing to you, in which I am stirring

43:18

up your sincere mind by

43:20

way of a reminder that you should remember

43:23

the words spoken beforehand by the

43:25

holy prophets. That'd be like the Old

43:27

Testament, right? And the commandment

43:29

of the Lord and Savior spoken by your

43:31

apostles. So it's linking

43:34

the the

43:36

reliability and scriptural nature

43:38

of the Old and New Testament. Yeah.

43:40

And then Paul writes, this is kind of interesting

43:42

because in first Timothy, uh,

43:45

second Timothy 316, we've got that.

43:47

He's talking about the Old Testament. But in first Timothy

43:50

518 he says,

43:52

uh, for the Scripture says,

43:55

do not muzzle an ox while it's treading

43:57

out the grain. That's actually Deuteronomy

44:00

25, for it's from the Torah.

44:02

And.

44:04

The workers worthy of his wages. That's

44:07

Luke ten seven Hmhm. So

44:09

what Paul is saying, the Scripture says,

44:12

what does he include both Old Testament

44:14

and New Testament? So

44:18

that's important.

44:19

All right. And then what? Um, how

44:21

do we know? Do we have evidence that when

44:23

selecting the canon and the books that belong

44:25

in there, that God was guiding

44:28

the hands that did that?

44:29

Well, it just seems to me.

44:31

How do you know when a book is in the cannon is

44:33

if it's inspired. And when

44:36

the books were written, they were immediately received

44:38

by the churches as inspired scripture.

44:41

And that's what what it was. So that by the

44:43

time you come to the late fourth century, when

44:45

Athanasius gives his Easter letter,

44:47

he is not determining the canon.

44:49

He is recognizing what has been the cannon.

44:51

You can see it, by the way, the Church

44:53

Fathers have quoted the scriptures and they recognize

44:55

the New Testament. They quote virtually every New Testament

44:58

book as Scripture. Okay.

45:00

Let me just say, I encourage you to pick up,

45:02

um, Pastor Luther's book

45:05

on the seven reasons why we can trust the Bible

45:08

and understand what he's saying there.

45:10

And don't look to Dan Brown in The Da Vinci

45:12

Code for the

45:15

origin of the canon or any of that, because

45:17

Dan Brown, The Da Vinci Code completely, completely

45:19

wrong.

45:20

Um. All right. Thank you. Yeah.

45:22

Well.

45:23

Do you want to try and squeeze this?

45:25

I'll answer so.

45:26

Quick. Okay. Sharon in Indiana

45:28

wants to say she appreciates the program. Matthew

45:30

121 Joseph is directed

45:32

to name the baby Jesus.

45:35

Um, and it cites Isaiah where

45:37

the name they're supposed to name him is Emmanuel.

45:39

Why do we address him as Jesus instead of

45:41

Emmanuel?

45:43

Well, uh, Emmanuel was

45:45

a thrown title, just like in second Samuel

45:47

1224, Solomon

45:49

was given the throne title of Jedediah

45:51

or Friend of God. So

45:53

that is

45:56

is why Emmanuel is

45:58

a throne title, but Jesus is the personal name

46:00

that he was to give. But let me just say, Jesus

46:02

says the Messiah is still Emmanuel,

46:04

not just at Christmas time. He is always

46:06

God with us if we put our trust in him, if

46:08

we believe that he died for our sins and rose again,

46:11

he will be Messiah in

46:13

us. He will live in us and never

46:15

leave us. That's the good news,

46:17

isn't it? Well, we're going to take

46:20

a say goodbye now that. Can't

46:22

believe, uh, the program is over. But

46:24

it is, uh, keep in touch with Open line.

46:26

First of all. Thanks, Eva. Thanks, Trish, for for

46:28

joining me for this day. And also

46:30

check out our website. Open Line

46:32

Radio has all the links you're looking for.

46:35

Keep reading the Bible. We'll talk

46:37

about it next week. Open line

46:39

with Doctor Michael Redlich is a production

46:41

of Moody Radio, a ministry

46:43

of Moody Bible Institute. See you next

46:46

week.