Participants:
Series Code: TDYQA
Program Code: TDYQA210005A
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00:01 As you're well aware,
00:02 we're living in unprecedented times. 00:05 Join us now for Today special program. 00:12 I want to spend my life 00:18 Mending broken people 00:23 I want to spend my life 00:29 Removing pain 00:34 Lord, let my words 00:39 Heal a heart that hurts 00:44 I want to spend my life 00:50 Mending broken people 00:55 I want to spend my life 01:00 Mending broken people 01:15 Hello and welcome to another 3ABN Today, 01:17 Bible Q and A. 01:19 We're so glad that you have joined us today. 01:21 Thank you for being part of our family. 01:23 We wanna say thank you for your prayers 01:25 and financial support for the ministry of 3ABN. 01:28 And this program 3ABN Today, Bible Q and A, 01:31 question and answer is a relatively new program 01:34 and we have received 01:36 an incredible response here to 3ABN. 01:37 So thank you so much 01:39 for sending your questions in here to 3ABN. 01:43 And I wanna give the contact information 01:45 on how you can do that, 01:46 in case you're brand new to this program. 01:48 You're like, "Oh, I do have a Bible question." 01:51 Well, this is how you can do it. 01:52 You can send an email to us at bibleqa@3abn.org. 01:57 So that's email bibleqa@3abn.org. 02:03 You can just send us an email or if you like to text, 02:05 you've got a cell phone like I have here. 02:07 You can text in your questions to us as well. 02:10 That's (618) 228-3975. 02:14 It's there at the bottom of your screen. 02:15 But in case you're listening on radio, 02:17 it's (618) 228-3975. 02:21 My name is Greg Morikone, 02:23 and again we're so glad that you have joined us today, 02:25 and I'm joined here at 3ABN around this desk. 02:29 May I say by Pastor John Lomacang. 02:30 So glad that you're here with us today. 02:32 Always a blessing to get together 02:34 and answer Bible questions. 02:35 I love it. 02:36 I know that you're a student of the Word 02:38 but, Pastor, why does the Bible means something to you? 02:39 Because of the person that it reveals. 02:41 You know, you could read a book, 02:43 but if you don't know the author, 02:44 then it doesn't make sense. 02:45 Like a young lady 02:47 who was having dinner with a young man 02:48 and he asked, do you like to read? 02:50 And she said, I'm reading a very boring book. 02:51 And he said, I think I wrote that. 02:53 And then the next date they had, 02:54 she said, it's the best book she ever read. 02:57 The difference was she came to know the author. 02:59 And I think that 03:01 the Bible is not just a book of knowledge, 03:03 but it's a book of the revelation 03:04 of Jesus Christ. 03:05 And that's what makes the difference. 03:07 Amen. Wow. 03:08 Excellent illustration. Thank you for that, Pastor. 03:10 Praise the Lord. 03:11 Jason Bradley, it's good to have you here with us today 03:12 on Bible Q and A. 03:14 It's great to be here. 03:15 You know, it's always a blessing 03:16 to open God's Word. 03:18 People are hungry in the world 03:19 and they're sending in all of these questions. 03:20 And so it's just great 03:22 to be able to study it out together. 03:23 Amen. 03:25 And, Jason, real quick too, 03:26 because years ago you were not into the Word. 03:27 Yes. 03:29 But the word means something to you now. 03:30 God has done a transformation. 03:31 It does because, you know, in retrospect, 03:33 as I look at my life 03:35 I've just seen how God's hand has been over it through 03:39 the whole time, 03:40 even when I was out there in the world, 03:41 God had protected me. 03:43 So, yeah, I'm grateful. 03:44 And thank the Lord for a praying mother. 03:46 Amen. Thank God for a praying mom. 03:47 Amen. 03:49 And sitting right next to me is my dear wife, Jill. 03:50 So glad to have you here with us today. 03:52 Thank you so much, sweetheart. 03:53 I love the Word of God. 03:54 I love to open up and study the Word of God 03:56 and we love to share it with you, our 3ABN family. 03:59 So I'm looking forward to this program. 04:02 Amen. Yeah. 04:03 And thank you each one for being with us today, 04:05 being here with us today and thank you for joining us. 04:07 And again, 04:09 we have received so many questions here at 3ABN. 04:11 Just not that you're impatient, 04:13 but just your question will be answered. 04:16 We just received so many. 04:17 We have so much fun 04:18 going through all these questions, 04:20 but excellent questions. 04:21 And you all are students of the Word as well. 04:23 And it's just encouraging to open the Word of God. 04:25 We enjoy these Bible Q and A programs. 04:29 I want to read from 2 Timothy 2:15. 04:32 It says, 04:33 "Study to show thyself approved unto God, 04:37 a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, 04:39 rightly dividing the word of truth." 04:42 So do you have your Bible with you today? 04:46 Better get it. 04:47 Do you have a pen? I hope you do. 04:49 And maybe a piece of paper, 04:50 or if you're into the electronic age, 04:52 you want to take notes on your cell phone. 04:53 We hope that you do that today. 04:55 Take notes because this is rapid fire. 04:56 We try and answer these questions 04:58 in a matter of two to three minutes. 05:00 So it's happening really, really quickly. 05:02 But before we open the word of God, 05:04 let's go to Him in a word of prayer. 05:05 Jason Bradley, 05:06 why don't you open with a prayer for us? 05:08 Sure thing. 05:09 Dear heavenly Father, 05:11 we thank You for the privilege and opportunity 05:12 of studying Your Word. 05:14 And, Lord, we just ask for Your Holy Spirit 05:16 to guide us and to lead us into all truth 05:19 and to be with the viewers 05:21 and help their understanding of what's being shared today. 05:25 In Jesus' name we pray. 05:26 Amen. Amen. 05:28 Thank you. All right. 05:29 Our first question, 05:31 Pastor John, I'm gonna come to you. 05:32 Okay. 05:34 And this one, it's a great question. 05:35 Says, are Seventh-day Adventists a denomination 05:38 or a cult? 05:39 Okay. Let me give the short answer. 05:41 No, we are not a cult. 05:43 We are a denomination. 05:45 The nutshell of a definition of a cult 05:47 is a religion or movement 05:48 that does not look to Jesus as the means of salvation. 05:52 Or they look to a particular person 05:56 as the person of adoration, the person of veneration. 06:00 You have like the voodoo cult or satanic cult. 06:03 These are movements that do not include Christ 06:05 as the focal point. 06:06 We are very much a denomination, 06:09 but even bigger than that, 06:10 we are a movement, 06:12 a continually growing movement. 06:14 And we believe in salvation by grace, 06:16 through faith in Christ alone 06:18 and all of our beliefs, 06:21 every one of our 28 fundamentals 06:22 is founded on the Bible and the Bible only. 06:25 Amen. 06:26 We also believe that 06:27 eternal life is something 06:29 that comes through Christ alone. 06:30 We are not saved by our works. 06:32 We're saved by the work of Christ. 06:34 As John 17: 3 says, 06:35 "And this is eternal life 06:37 that they may know You, 06:39 the only true God 06:41 and Jesus Christ, whom You sent." 06:43 That is our foundation as a denomination. 06:45 Also we believe that 06:46 there's no other person or individual 06:49 ever in existence 06:50 that could bring salvation other than Christ. 06:52 Acts 4:12, 06:54 "Nor is there salvation in any other, 06:56 for as there is no other name under heaven, 06:58 given among men, 07:00 by which we must be saved." 07:02 A cult does not look to Jesus as the person of salvation. 07:06 They may say, 07:07 "He's a good man. 07:08 He's a prophet, He's a teacher." 07:10 But if He is not the means of salvation, 07:12 they could be a formation of a cult. 07:14 And also you have those who use Christianity, 07:16 but they twist it. 07:18 And they'll say, well, I believe in Christ. 07:19 However, like the Jim Jones cult, 07:22 David Koresh 07:23 and the Heaven's Gate cult, a lot of these, 07:25 they use Christianity to draw people, 07:28 but ultimately it's the person who gets the veneration. 07:30 It's the person 07:31 who is the means of their salvation 07:32 and we are not that. 07:34 It is Christ and Christ alone. 07:35 Amen. Amen. 07:37 Excellent. Yeah. Good answer. 07:39 Jill, I'm going to come to you on this one. 07:41 There's no name associated with this one. 07:43 It says, a good question though. 07:44 Can you forgive the devil? 07:48 That's a great question. 07:50 I'm gonna flip it on its head 07:51 and say, should we forgive the devil? 07:54 You know I like lists, so here's three points. 07:56 Point number one, 07:57 Satan is the originator of sin and evil in this world. 08:01 This is Christ Jesus 08:02 speaking to the Scribes and the Pharisees 08:04 in John 8:44, 08:06 "You are of your father, the devil 08:09 and the desires of your father you want to do." 08:12 He was a murderer from the beginning 08:14 and does not stand in the truth 08:15 because there's no truth in him. 08:17 When he speaks a lie, 08:18 he speaks from his own resources, 08:21 for he is a liar and the father of it. 08:23 Satan is a liar and the father of lies. 08:26 Satan is a murderer and the father of murder. 08:29 He is the originator of sin and evil in this world. 08:33 Point number two, 08:35 Christ came to destroy the works of the devil. 08:39 1 John 3:8, 08:41 "He who sins is of the devil, 08:43 for the devil has sinned from the beginning. 08:45 For this purpose, 08:46 the Son of God was manifested 08:48 that He might destroy the works of the devil." 08:52 So Christ came to destroy the works of the devil 08:55 and not just destroy his works. 08:58 He also came, point number three, 08:59 to destroy the devil himself. 09:02 Hebrews 2:14-15, 09:04 "In so much then 09:06 as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, 09:08 He Himself, that's Jesus, likewise partook of the same, 09:12 that through death 09:14 He might destroy him who had the power of death." 09:17 That is the devil. 09:19 "And release those who through fear of death 09:21 were all their lifetime subject to bondage." 09:23 So not only did Christ come 09:24 to destroy the works of the devil. 09:27 He came to destroy the devil himself. 09:29 We are called in Matthew 5, to love our enemies. 09:33 We are also called 09:35 to forgive those who have hurt us. 09:39 We are also called in Matthew Chapter 6 09:41 to forgive, so that we can be forgiven. 09:46 We are not called in the Word of God 09:47 to forgive the devil. 09:49 We are called to be wary of Satan, 09:51 for he is a roaring lion. 09:53 "We are called to do battle against Satan, " 09:55 Ephesians Chapter 6. 09:57 "We are called to resist him," 09:59 James Chapter 4, 10:01 but nowhere in scripture 10:02 do I see that we are called to forgive the devil. 10:05 Hmm. Excellent, yeah. Very good. 10:07 Thank you, Jill. 10:09 Jason Bradley, 10:10 this question doesn't have a name, 10:11 but it's a good one. 10:13 It says, "When Jesus comes back, 10:14 the dead in Christ will rise. 10:18 So are those dead in the grave now? 10:20 I think basically were the dead now, Jason. 10:22 It's a good question. Yes. 10:24 Those that are dead are resting in the grave. 10:27 But let's see 10:28 what the Word of God has to say about it. 10:30 So in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, 10:35 the Word of God says this, 10:36 "For the Lord Himself 10:37 will descend from heaven with a shout, 10:39 with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God 10:43 and the dead in Christ will rise first. 10:46 Then we who are alive and remain 10:48 shall be caught up together with them in the clouds 10:50 to meet the Lord in the air. 10:52 And thus, we shall always be with the Lord." 10:56 Ecclesiastes 9:5, 6 and 10, 11:01 "For the living know that they will die, 11:04 but the dead know nothing. 11:06 And they have no more reward, 11:08 for the memory of them is forgotten. 11:10 Also their love, 11:11 their hatred and their envy have now perished, 11:15 never more will they have a share 11:17 in anything done under the sun, 11:20 whatever your hand finds to do, 11:22 do it with your might, 11:24 for there is no work 11:26 or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave 11:31 where you are going." 11:33 Acts 2:29, 11:35 "Men and brethren, 11:37 let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David, 11:40 that he is both dead and buried. 11:44 And his tomb is with us to this day." 11:47 Also consider John 5:28-29, 11:52 "Do not marvel at this, 11:54 for the hour is coming 11:56 in which all who are in the graves 11:58 will hear His voice and come forth. 12:01 Those who have done good to the resurrection of life 12:04 and those who have done evil 12:05 to the resurrection of condemnation." 12:08 So yes, the dead are in the grave. 12:11 They're resting. That's right. Amen. 12:13 Excellent. Thank you. 12:14 You know, it's really incredible 12:16 how the Word of God, right? 12:17 Can just explain these questions that we have. 12:19 So thank you so much. 12:20 You're watching right now 3ABN Today, Bible Q and A. 12:23 You can send your questions via email at bibleqa@3abn.org, 12:28 or you can text your questions, (618) 228-3975. 12:33 Pastor John, 12:35 this comes from Frank in California. 12:37 And can you please explain Revelation 14:14-20? 12:43 Let me go ahead and read them. 12:44 I don't know if I'm gonna read that many verses, 12:46 but I think it's important to read it. 12:47 Okay. 12:48 Revelation 14:14, 12:50 "Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, 12:51 and on the cloud sat One like the Son of Man, 12:54 having on His head a golden crown, 12:56 and in His hand a sharp sickle." 12:58 Verse 15, 12:59 "And another angel came out of the temple, 13:01 crying with a loud voice to Him who sat on the cloud, 13:04 'Thrust in Your sickle and reap, 13:06 for the time has come for You to reap, 13:08 for the harvest of the earth is ripe." 13:10 Verse 16, 13:11 "So He who sat on the cloud 13:13 thrust in His sickle on the earth, 13:14 and the earth was reaped." 13:16 Verse 17, 13:18 "Then another angel came out of the temple 13:19 which is in heaven, 13:20 he also having a sharp sickle. 13:22 And another angel came out from the altar, " 13:25 that's verse 18, 13:26 "who had power over fire, 13:28 and he cried with a loud voice to him 13:29 who had the sharp sickle, saying, 13:32 'Thrust in your sickle 13:33 and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth, 13:37 for her grapes are fully ripe." 13:39 And verse 19, 13:40 "So the angel thrust his sickle into the earth 13:43 and gathered the vine of the earth, 13:46 and threw it into the great winepress 13:48 of the wrath of God. 13:49 And the winepress was trampled outside the city, 13:53 and blood came out of the winepress, 13:55 up to the horses' bridles, 13:57 for one thousand six hundred furlongs." 14:01 In a nutshell, 14:02 these verses identified two groups. 14:05 The one that is described as 14:07 those who are the harvest of the earth is ripe. 14:11 Those are the ones 14:12 that will be gathered into God's kingdom. 14:14 These are the description. 14:16 The harvest is ripe. 14:17 Jesus said so many times, 14:19 the harvest is ripe, but the laborers are few. 14:21 So these are those that will be gathered in. 14:23 Why is the harvest ripe? 14:25 Because the harvest is ripe 14:26 when it is finally sealed with the latter rain. 14:29 That's when a harvest is ripe. 14:30 These have been sealed by the latter rain. 14:33 They are ripe for the coming of the Lord. 14:35 They will be saved, 14:36 but those who are in the second group 14:38 will experience the wrath of God. 14:40 Now it says, her grapes are fully ripe. 14:43 And you remember the song 14:44 where the grapes of wrath are stored. 14:46 Glory, glory, hallelujah. 14:48 That is in fact describing those 14:49 who will be a part of the destruction. 14:52 So these are the two groups that are talked about here. 14:54 Those who are ripe for salvation, 14:56 those who are ripe for destruction simply put. 15:00 Wow. Amen. 15:01 Excellent. Yeah. Thank you, Pastor John. 15:03 And thank you Frank, for sending in your question. 15:06 And I forgot when I mentioned the contact information. 15:08 We'd love to hear your name or your name, 15:10 we'd love to know it and where you're from, 15:12 maybe the country or the state that you're from. 15:13 So don't forget to add that to your email 15:15 or to your text message with your question. 15:17 Jason, coming to you. 15:19 What does it mean to be an overcomer? 15:22 Hmm. Good question. 15:23 That's a great question. 15:24 We'll start with the definition. 15:26 By definition 15:27 an overcomer is one who succeeds in dealing with 15:30 or gaining control of some problem or difficulty. 15:33 Now from a biblical standpoint, 15:34 an overcomer is one 15:36 who is successful in holding on to God, 15:38 no matter what, 15:39 and gaining the victory through Christ. 15:42 Romans 8:35-39, says, 15:45 "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? 15:49 Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, 15:52 or famine, or nakedness, or peril or sword? 15:56 As it is written: 15:57 'For your sake we are killed all day long. 16:00 We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.' 16:03 Yet in all these things, 16:05 we are more than conquerors through Him 16:08 who loved us. 16:09 For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, 16:12 nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, 16:15 nor things present, nor things to come, 16:18 nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing 16:22 shall be able to separate us from the love of God 16:25 which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." 16:28 An overcomer continues to press forward. 16:31 Philippians 3:13-14 says, 16:34 "Brethren, I do not count myself 16:36 to have apprehended, 16:38 but one thing I do, 16:39 forgetting those things which are behind 16:42 and reaching forward to those things 16:43 which are ahead, 16:45 I press toward the goal 16:47 for the prize of the upward call of God 16:50 in Christ Jesus." 16:51 And this passage sums it up. 16:53 1 John 5:4-5 says, 16:57 "For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. 17:01 And this is the victory 17:03 that has overcome the world, our faith, 17:06 who is he, who overcomes the world, 17:09 but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God." 17:12 Do you believe that Jesus is the Son of God? 17:15 I do. Hmm. 17:16 Amen. Thank you, Jason. 17:18 And that's, again another great question us coming. 17:20 Jill, this one comes from Gordon 17:23 and it doesn't say where he's from, 17:24 but Gordon asks, 17:25 "Do really poor people need to pay or give 17:30 tithes and offerings?" 17:31 Wow. 17:33 Thank you, Gordon, for that question. 17:34 The short answer is yes. 17:35 But I would say we don't pay tithe, 17:37 we return what is already God's. 17:40 Let's look at a couple of tithing principles. 17:43 The tithing principle is biblical. 17:45 It is not just Jewish. 17:47 Some people say it's Jewish 17:49 'cause it's established in the laws and ordinances, 17:51 but Abraham paid tithe. 17:53 You can look that up in Genesis Chapter 14. 17:56 The New Testament Church gave sacrificially 18:00 to support the work of the gospel 18:03 going forward. 18:04 We see that 18:06 the tithing principle is a command 18:07 that's in Malachi 3:8. 18:11 It says, "Will a man rob God, yet you have robbed me, 18:14 but you say, 18:16 in what way have we robbed you? 18:17 In tithes and offerings." 18:20 So the tithing principle is a command. 18:23 The tithing principle is also fair. 18:25 We're told in Deuteronomy 14:22, 18:28 that we are called to give one-tenth of all our increase. 18:31 In other words, 18:33 whether you're very, very poor or very, very rich, 18:36 you still give the same percentage wise. 18:40 If you only made a dollar today, 18:41 while you're going to give a dime, 18:43 if you made a million, 18:45 well, that would be a hundred thousand dollars. 18:47 But the principle, the percentage is the same. 18:50 The tithing principle is fair. 18:52 The tithing principle 18:53 also comes with a promise from God. 18:56 And I love this, especially if you're poor, 18:59 this is a precious promise. 19:00 Malachi 3:10, 19:03 "Bring all the tithes into the storehouse 19:06 that there may be food in my house, 19:07 and try me now in this as the Lord of hosts, 19:10 if I will not open up for you the windows of heaven 19:14 and pour out for you such a blessing, 19:16 that there will not be room enough to receive it." 19:19 What is that blessing? 19:20 Sometimes it's monetary blessings, 19:23 sometimes as in the children of Israel, 19:24 your sandals might not wear out 19:27 and your car might keep running, 19:29 but when you are faithful in returning that to God, 19:32 He will honor and bless you in return. 19:35 That's right. Yeah, absolutely. 19:37 Thank you so much. 19:39 This is kind of the fun part of Bible Q and A, 19:41 because we've been now 19:43 going for about four or five weeks now, 19:46 and we're getting some response 19:48 and I want to read one of those right now 19:50 from one of our earlier programs 19:51 and, Pastor John, this is for you. 19:53 So thank you for this follow-up 19:54 to one of the answers 19:56 or just maybe some clarification that you want. 19:57 This says, hi, Pastor John Lomacang, 19:59 you mentioned in the first Bible Q and A 20:02 according to Revelation 12:1, 20:05 the woman is the one 20:07 who gives birth to the male child 20:09 who rules all nations, et cetera. 20:11 My question is this. 20:13 May you please clarify for me 20:15 how the church, the woman 20:17 gave birth to Christ 20:19 and not Christ begat the church? 20:21 I was told that 20:22 I am teaching that 20:24 the church gave birth to Christ. 20:25 So, Pastor, that's a great follow-up. 20:27 Okay. 20:28 Well, the Bible uses the woman interchangeably. 20:31 But what is being talked about in Revelation Chapter 12, 20:33 Revelation is an overarching picture 20:36 of the great controversy 20:38 from the birth of Christ 20:39 to the very last war against the woman. 20:42 And in both cases, the word woman is used. 20:45 Well, why is Revelation 12:1 so significant? 20:48 It's because it goes right back. 20:50 Let's read Revelation 12:1. 20:52 It goes right back to 20:54 what happened when Mary gave birth to Jesus. 20:57 It says in Revelation 12:1-2, 20:59 "Now a great sign appeared in heaven. 21:01 A woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet 21:05 and on her head, a garland or crown of 12 stars, 21:08 then being with child 21:10 she cried out in labor and in pain to give birth." 21:13 When you follow the story of Jesus, 21:16 there was an edict by Herod 21:17 to kill children two years old and under. 21:20 That's right. 21:21 And thankfully 21:23 the Lord was not a part of that slaughter. 21:25 It was a terrible slaughter of children, 21:28 but this is what the Bible is talking about. 21:30 The woman that is described here 21:33 is the one that's being the focal point of the dragon. 21:36 So who's the dragon? Revelation 12:9, Satan. 21:38 So you find the dragon, Satan through Herod 21:42 tried to have Jesus killed when he was born. 21:45 That was a literal woman, Mary and Joseph, the father, 21:49 which was not the literal father, 21:50 as we know, 21:52 but so that's the literal application 21:53 of this verse. 21:54 The symbolic application of this verse 21:56 is the description that's given in the Bible. 21:59 In Ephesians 5:23, 22:01 the Bible uses the woman once again, 22:03 as a symbol of the church. 22:06 For the husband is the head of the wife 22:08 also as Christ is the head of the church, 22:10 and He is the savior of the body. 22:12 So you find here that symbolism, 22:14 Jesus is using the woman and the husband and the wife 22:18 as a symbol of Christ in the church. 22:20 And so, 22:21 this is that simple picture there 22:23 in Revelation Chapter 12, 22:25 the woman is in fact 22:27 the one that is the object of Satan's literal anger 22:32 when Mary gives birth 22:33 and the symbolic anger 22:36 when Revelation 12:17 talks about 22:38 the woman or the church. 22:39 So today the devil is not persecuting a woman, 22:43 he's persecuting the church 22:44 who keeps the commandments of God. 22:46 That's the simple and direct answer. 22:48 It's symbolic in reference to the church. 22:51 It's literal in reference to Mary 22:52 who gave birth to Christ. 22:54 Excellent. 22:55 Thank you, Pastor John. Yeah. 22:56 You know, it's just incredible. 22:58 God's given you a tremendous talent and gifts 22:59 and all of you here. 23:01 But yeah, thank you so much, Pastor John, 23:02 that's a good clarification to that. 23:03 You know, there's so much more to it too, 23:05 in Matthew 13 that Elijah give, 23:07 because the picture in Matthew Chapter 2 23:08 where Mary is running with Joseph to hide in Egypt. 23:12 But if you get a chance to read Matthew 2:13-15, 23:15 you'll see the literal application 23:18 of Mary running for her life. 23:19 Wow. 23:20 You know, this Bible Q and A, 23:22 I mean, it happens so fast 23:23 and it's like, we're on the set. 23:25 And literally, I mentioned after the first program, 23:26 it's like, I almost have to take a breath 23:28 partway through because it's just like rapid fire. 23:30 So we hope that you are taking notes today. 23:33 Thank you again for joining us. 23:34 You can send your questions into 3ABN at the email 23:37 that's at the bottom of your screen. 23:38 That's bibleqa@3abn.org, 23:42 or you can text your questions, (618) 228-3975. 23:46 Just for a little pause, 23:48 we all can kind of take a breath you at home. 23:49 I'm gonna just ask you this question. 23:50 This maybe, maybe a kind of a hard one, 23:53 but what is a favorite book of the Bible, Pastors, 23:55 one stick out to you that you really enjoy studying? 23:58 The Book of Philippians is one of my favorite books. 24:00 It is the champion's book. 24:02 It is the athlete's book. 24:03 It's the book that shows all the possibilities of Jesus. 24:07 And Paul is in this, 24:08 he's in this Olympic mode 24:10 where he is saying, 24:12 I can do all things through Christ 24:13 who strengthens me. 24:14 He who began a good work is gonna complete it. 24:17 He just continues to roll off. 24:19 Let this mind be in you, which is also in Christ Jesus. 24:22 I have not arrived yet, 24:24 but I'm pressing toward the goal. 24:25 He is in this athletic mindset. And I love it. 24:28 I've always said to people that are discouraged, 24:30 read the Book of Philippians 24:32 and you'll find the possibilities 24:33 available in Christ. 24:34 Amen. What about you, Jason? 24:36 What's your favorite book or one of your favorites? 24:37 It's hard to narrow it down to one favorite book, 24:39 but I like the gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, 24:41 because I get to learn more about Christ. 24:43 I get to see the parables and all of those things 24:46 and identify with also the prodigal son. 24:49 So, in that way, like those are my favorite. 24:52 Amen. Excellent. 24:53 What about you? 24:55 And then we'll go to the next question to you. 24:56 I would say Romans. You love Romans? 24:57 I love the Book of Romans 24:59 because when you read the Book of Romans, 25:00 you discover that we are all sold under sin, 25:02 whether you're Jew or Gentile, whether you know God or not, 25:04 we all have sinned. 25:06 And what a beautiful plan of salvation. 25:09 You see justification by faith and righteousness by faith. 25:12 We see the gift of the spirit and walking in obedience 25:15 and practical Christian living. 25:17 Romans has it all. I just love Romans. 25:19 Amen. 25:20 And I've got to join Jill on that. 25:21 Thank you. 25:23 I mean, if you just look at the Romans, 25:25 Revelation and Philippians. 25:27 The quick book, Philippians. Oh yeah. 25:29 Isaiah is the Bible in its totality. 25:31 It's amazing. Amen. 25:32 Quite a bit of stuff to enjoy in the Bible. 25:34 Oh, amen. That's right. 25:36 So we're enjoying the Bible today on 3ABN Today, 25:37 Bible Q and A. 25:39 This question comes from Julie from South Dakota. 25:41 And this one's for you, Jill. 25:42 Says, 25:44 "What exactly do we have to do to be born again?" 25:46 So turn with me. 25:48 Thank you for that question, Julie. 25:49 Turn with me to the Book of John. 25:51 We're going to John Chapter 3. 25:52 This is Nicodemus 25:53 who came to see Jesus by night. 25:55 And we see this principle of being born again. 25:57 Being born again is crucial for salvation. 26:01 John 3:3, 26:02 Jesus answered and said to him, 26:03 this is Jesus talking to Nicodemus. 26:06 "Most assuredly I say to you, unless one is born again, " 26:09 in the Greek, it means actually from above, 26:13 "he cannot see the kingdom of God." 26:16 And it reminds me of what Paul said in Ephesians 2. 26:18 You know, this passage, Ephesians 2, 4, and 5. 26:21 God who is rich in mercy because of His great love 26:24 with which He loved us. 26:26 Even when we were dead in trespasses and sins 26:30 made us alive together with Christ, 26:33 by grace you have been saved. 26:34 You see, we were all in this dead place, 26:37 this dead state with our sins 26:40 and Christ made us alive again. 26:43 That in a nutshell is the born again process. 26:46 It is being transformed out of the kingdom of darkness 26:50 and being brought 26:51 into the kingdom of God's dear son. 26:54 So how does this process work? 26:55 Let's look at John 3:5, Jesus said, 26:58 "Assuredly, I say to you, 26:59 unless one is born of water and of the spirit, 27:03 he cannot enter the kingdom of God." 27:06 So the Holy Spirit, 27:07 we know that 27:09 the words that Christ speaks to us, 27:12 are spirit and life and the spirit gives life. 27:14 The flesh profits nothing. 27:16 So being born again 27:18 involves the work of the spirit. 27:20 I also believe it involves the work of the Word of God. 27:24 In Ephesians 5, 27:25 we see the washing of the water of the Word. 27:28 In 1 Peter 1, we are being born again, 27:31 not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible 27:34 through the Word of God, which lives and abides forever. 27:38 It's also an unseen process. 27:41 Jesus likened it to the wind in verse 7 and 8 27:43 in John Chapter 3. 27:45 "Do not marvel that I said to you, 27:47 you must be born again. 27:48 The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, 27:51 but you cannot tell 27:53 where it comes from and where it goes. 27:54 So was everyone who is born of the spirit." 27:58 We cannot see the wind, 28:00 but we could clearly see its effect. 28:02 We cannot see the spirit, 28:03 but we can see the effect of the spirit 28:06 on the heart. 28:07 So being born again involves the cross. 28:11 Nicodemus said, 28:12 "How can these things happen? How can this be?" 28:15 Jesus said, "The new birth flows out from Moses." 28:19 Remember the serpent was lifted up on the cross. 28:22 Jesus lifted up on the cross, accepting that by faith. 28:26 So we behold Jesus on the cross by faith. 28:29 We ask Him to forgive our sins, 28:31 accept Him into our heart by faith, 28:34 receive the gift of the Holy Spirit 28:37 and walk in newness of life. 28:39 Wow. Amen. 28:41 Excellent. Thank you so much. 28:42 And thank you, Julie, for that question. 28:43 We believe you're asking it for yourself. 28:45 So yeah, we'll be praying for you as well. 28:48 Jason, this is a great question. 28:50 It says, 28:51 "Is any church that worships on Saturday 28:53 okay in your estimation? 28:56 The short answer to that is no, 28:58 but instead of just going with my estimation, 29:01 let's look at God's Word. 29:02 All right. 29:03 So John 14:15 says, 29:06 "If you love Me, keep My commandments." 29:09 The Sabbath is not the only commandment. 29:12 So, you know, again, 29:13 if you love Me, keep My commandments. 29:15 One question that should be asked is 29:17 does the church that worships on Saturday, 29:19 the seventh day Sabbath keep all the commandments of God. 29:24 2 Timothy 3:16-17, 29:27 "All scripture is given by inspiration of God 29:31 and is profitable for doctrine for reproof, for correction, 29:35 for instruction and righteousness 29:37 that the man of God may be complete 29:40 thoroughly equipped for every good work." 29:42 Another question that should be asked is, 29:45 is the church's doctrine biblically sound. 29:50 Can it be proven through and through? 29:52 Just because the church worships on the Sabbath 29:55 does not automatically mean that it's okay. 29:58 For example, there are some churches 29:59 that may meet on Saturday 30:01 that don't believe that Jesus is the Son of God. 30:05 They believe He was a prophet or a good man. 30:07 Consider John 1:7-11, 30:11 "For many deceivers have gone out into the world 30:14 who do not confess Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. 30:18 This is a deceiver and an antichrist. 30:22 Look to yourselves, 30:23 that we do not lose those things 30:25 we worked for, 30:26 but that we may receive a full reward. 30:30 Whoever transgresses 30:31 and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ 30:35 does not have God. 30:36 He who abides in the doctrine of Christ 30:38 has both the Father and the Son. 30:40 If anyone comes to you 30:42 and does not bring this doctrine, 30:44 do not receive him into your house nor greet him, 30:46 for he who greets him shares in his evil deeds." 30:49 The church must line up with the teachings of Christ. 30:54 Good. Yeah. Excellent. 30:55 Amen. Thank you, Jason. 30:57 Yeah, and I liked it. 30:58 Not your estimation, 30:59 but answer from the Word of God. 31:01 So thank you. 31:02 Pastor John, 31:04 this comes from George in Texas. 31:05 His question is, 31:06 "Eve was deceived yet Adam wasn't. 31:10 He knew what would happen. 31:11 Adam knew what would happen. 31:13 Should he eat of the fruit? 31:14 So did he commit suicide because of his actions?" 31:18 Wow. I love this question. 31:20 I thought about it. The answer is no. 31:22 Adam did not commit suicide 31:24 by entering into sin any more 31:26 than we commit suicide by entering into sin. 31:30 Now, have you done anything wrong? 31:31 Are you still alive? 31:32 Well, you didn't commit suicide. 31:34 When the Bible said, you will surely die. 31:36 It was the eventual effect. 31:38 Death passed upon us. 31:41 The Bible says in Romans 5:12, 31:43 "Therefore just as through one man 31:46 sin entered the world and death through sin 31:50 and thus death spread to all men 31:52 because all sinned. 31:54 You might say to a baby, well, the baby just was born, 31:57 it's three days old. 31:58 Is it a sinner? 32:00 By nature, it is. 32:01 But it has not reached the point of accountability. 32:03 When that baby reaches the point of accountability 32:06 and begins to understand that 32:08 the difference between right and wrong, 32:10 then accountability now says, 32:12 are you going to stay on the path of death 32:14 or are you going to choose life? 32:16 And you find in the Bible, 32:17 the Bible never says choose death 32:19 because we already are in death. 32:22 We already are abiding in death. 32:23 All have sinned 32:24 and fallen short of the glory of God. 32:26 The wages of sin is death. 32:27 So Adam didn't commit suicide. 32:29 He just, now the nature that God had given to him 32:33 was now infected 32:34 and the end result would be death. 32:37 So did Adam commit suicide? No. 32:39 The Bible says Adam lived to 930 years and he died. 32:46 If we don't accept Christ, 32:47 however long our lives are, 32:49 we will also die. 32:50 It's not suicide. 32:52 It's the refusal to give up the very thing 32:54 that will condemn you to eventual death. 32:57 And unfortunately 32:58 without Christ, that is eternal loss. 33:01 Wow. Yeah. 33:02 Excellent answer, Pastor. 33:04 That's an interesting thought, you said infected, right? 33:05 Infected, that's right. Yeah. 33:07 That's excellent. 33:08 You know as in Adam all die. 33:09 So in Christ all shall be made alive, 33:11 1 Corinthians 15:22. 33:12 So the Lord as in Adam all die, 33:14 but Jesus says, 33:15 but in Christ all shall be made alive. 33:16 Amen. 33:18 Do you wanna get rid of that suicide pact? 33:19 Accept Christ. 33:21 There you go, Pastor. Amen. That's good. 33:23 Jason, this comes from Linda 33:25 and she lives in the state of Michigan, 33:28 just north of us a little bit. 33:29 And her question is, 33:31 "How are we supposed to tell young children to love Jesus? 33:33 And then you are going to be persecuted, 33:36 you're going to be killed 33:37 because we're living in the end times? 33:39 Wow. 33:40 Heavy, heavy question. 33:42 That is. 33:43 Well, hello Linda. 33:44 That's definitely 33:46 a difficult conversation to have. 33:47 She probably has some children in her household 33:49 or maybe someone she knows. 33:50 Yeah, I believe it. I believe it. 33:52 You know, I think the first thing 33:53 that we should do is 33:54 introduce children to Christ 33:56 and show them His beautiful character. 33:59 You know, we don't start with the death part. 34:02 We just introduce them to Christ 34:05 and show them His character. 34:08 Also we want to make sure that 34:10 they develop a relationship with Him. 34:12 And Proverbs 22:6 says, 34:15 "Train up a child in the way he should go. 34:17 And when he is old, he will not depart from it." 34:20 The other thing we need to realize is that 34:22 not everyone is going to die. 34:24 I shared this passage earlier, 34:25 but it's also applicable to this situation. 34:28 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, 34:31 "For the Lord Himself 34:33 will descend from heaven with a shout, 34:34 with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God 34:37 and the dead in Christ will rise first. 34:40 Then we who are alive and remain 34:44 shall be caught up together with them in the clouds 34:46 to meet the Lord in the air. 34:48 And thus, we shall always be with the Lord." 34:50 So not everyone is going to die. 34:53 But in broaching the subject 34:55 of persecution and death with children, 34:56 we need to share 34:58 inspirational stories with them. 35:00 The three Hebrew boys 35:02 who were saved in the fiery trial. 35:05 You know, they chose to stand up for God. 35:08 Joseph, who was sold into captivity by his brothers 35:12 later imprisoned 35:13 and then ended up being the second in command in Egypt. 35:17 Daniel in the lions' den, 35:19 all of those stories, 35:21 we need to help them also understand 35:23 why persecution comes 35:25 and how important it is for them to stand for Christ, 35:28 no matter what. 35:29 We also need to explain to them 35:31 why they should not be afraid of what men can do. 35:34 Matthew 10:28 says, 35:37 "And do not fear those who kill the body 35:39 but cannot kill the soul, 35:41 but rather fear Him 35:42 who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell." 35:45 And finally, 35:46 we need to make sure that the message is age appropriate. 35:50 In other words, 35:52 is that child at an age 35:54 where he or she can comprehend a message 35:57 of this magnitude? 35:58 And I hope 36:00 this answer was helpful for you. 36:01 Excellent. Thank you, Jason, so much. 36:03 Now this next one comes from Sondy 36:06 and the question has a little bit of some sexuality. 36:11 So if you have maybe a really young child 36:12 in the house right now, 36:13 maybe you wanna get him occupied 36:15 somewhere else if you would so like. 36:16 But it's a really good question. 36:17 So we wanted to find an answer from the Word of God. 36:20 And this one is for you, Jill. 36:22 It says, 36:23 nowadays 36:25 people see masturbation as an act of satisfaction 36:28 or gratification 36:30 when asked whether it's a sin or not 36:32 they say, 36:33 "It isn't a sin. 36:35 The actual sexual intercourse is." 36:37 What does the Bible have to say about masturbation? 36:40 So that's a heavy-duty question. 36:42 Thank you, Sondy, for that question. 36:44 The Bible does not specifically address 36:46 the word masturbation, 36:48 but the concept is very clear in the Word of God. 36:51 I want to start by saying that 36:52 purity is not a line in the sand. 36:55 It's not saying 36:57 I will go this far and no farther. 36:59 And as long as I stayed back from that line, 37:01 I am pure. 37:02 Purity is a state of heart. 37:05 Let's look at Matthew, Jesus addressed this principle. 37:08 I would say that 37:10 anything that pulls us from Jesus, 37:13 anything that pollutes our heart with the lust 37:17 that is sin. 37:18 Matthew 6:27-28. 37:23 This is, of course, the Sermon on the Mount 37:24 and Jesus addressing this concept of. 37:27 The Pharisee thought, okay, we cannot commit adultery 37:30 or sexual intercourse outside of marriage, 37:33 but they never addressed this issue of lust, 37:36 but Jesus addressed it. 37:38 Matthew 6:27-28. 37:41 You have heard that it was said to those of old, 37:43 you shall not commit adultery. 37:45 But I say to you that 37:46 whoever looks at a woman to lust for her 37:50 has already committed adultery with her in his heart." 37:54 The physical act of adultery, yes, that is sin. 37:56 But the thoughts of lust that is sin as well. 38:01 Masturbation involves lust. 38:04 If you're involved in pornography, 38:06 that's usually connected with masturbation 38:08 and usually there would be lust involved 38:11 or sexual fantasies or thoughts. 38:14 The Word of God tells us in 1 Corinthians 6:18, 38:19 "Flee sexual immorality. 38:22 Every sin that a man does is outside the body, 38:25 but he who commits sexual immorality 38:28 sins against his own body. 38:31 Or do you not know 38:33 that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, 38:35 which is in you, 38:36 whom you have from God, you are not your own. 38:38 You are bought with a price, 38:40 therefore glorify God 38:41 in your body and in your spirit." 38:43 I just wanna say, 38:45 if you have slipped into the cauldron of lust, 38:48 the Lord can redeem, cleanse and forgive. 38:52 Hmm. Excellent. 38:53 Thank you so much, Jill, for that. 38:55 That's a heavy question, 38:56 but a great answer from the Word of God. 38:58 Pastor John, 39:00 this question comes from Travis, 39:01 from Washington State. 39:03 And the question is, 39:04 "What and when is Armageddon?" 39:07 Wow. I love that question. 39:08 That's a Revelation question 39:10 and Revelation is another book I like very much. 39:12 You know, Pastor, there seems to be so much out there, 39:13 whether it's in the film industry 39:15 and stuff, talking about Armageddon 39:16 and the end times and stuff. 39:18 So it's really good question. True. 39:20 Armageddon is such a theme that people look at. 39:23 When the Gulf War happened back in, 39:25 I think 19... 39:27 Sorry, yeah, somewhere in the past. 39:29 Okay. 39:30 When President Bush was president they said, 39:32 "Oh, a battle of Armageddon." 39:33 And it passed over 39:34 and we know the rest of the story. 39:36 But Armageddon is the final battle 39:38 between truth and error, 39:40 between light and darkness, between Christ and Satan. 39:43 And let me break it down into three categories. 39:45 Let's first go to Revelation Chapter 16. 39:48 And I'm going to take about 39:49 a few extra seconds on this, Greg. 39:50 Okay. That's okay. 39:52 Because this is important for people. 39:53 Revelation 16 introduces 39:54 the coalition forces of Armageddon. 39:56 I'll start with verse 13, Revelation 16:13, 39:59 "And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs 40:02 coming out of the mouth of the dragon, 40:03 out of the mouth of the beast, 40:05 out of the mouth of the false prophets, 40:07 for they are the spirits of demons." 40:09 Verse 14, 40:10 "Performing signs, 40:12 which go out to the kings of the earth 40:13 and of the whole world 40:14 to gather them to the battle 40:16 of that great day of God Almighty." 40:17 That's the battle of Armageddon, 40:19 the battle of the great day of God Almighty. 40:21 Now let's look at the object, 40:24 the reason why Satan is wanting to have this battle. 40:28 Revelation 12:17, 40:30 "And the dragon was enraged with the woman 40:32 and went to make war with the rest of her offspring, 40:35 who keep the commandments of God 40:36 and have the testimony of Jesus." 40:38 Not only does he hate Christ, 40:40 but after Jesus left, 40:42 he couldn't fight against Christ. 40:44 So he's now angry with the woman 40:46 who is obedient to the commandments of God. 40:48 Can I put a pin right here? 40:50 If the commandments of God is being avoided 40:52 in the denomination you worship, 40:53 you are not a threat to the devil. 40:55 Now the danger is, 40:57 you'll be with him on his team in the battle of Armageddon 41:00 against those who keep the commandments of God. 41:03 That's very solemn and very sober. 41:05 So if you honor the commandments of God, 41:07 you are on God's side. 41:08 Let's look at the outcome of the battle, 41:10 Revelation 19. 41:11 This is the outcome of the battle of Armageddon. 41:13 Revelation 19:11, 41:16 "Now I saw heaven open and behold, a white horse, 41:19 and he who sat on him was called faithful and true. 41:22 And in righteousness, he judges and make war." 41:25 Verse 14, 41:26 "The armies in heaven 41:27 clothed in fine linen white and clean 41:29 followed him on white horses." 41:31 And here's the outcome, verse 19 and 20, 41:33 "And I saw the beast, 41:34 the kings of the earth and their armies 41:36 gathered together to make war against him 41:37 who sat on the horse and against his army." 41:40 And verse 20. 41:41 This is where Jesus comes out victorious. 41:44 "Then the beast was captured, and with him, the false prophet 41:47 who worked signs in his presence 41:49 by which he deceived those 41:50 who received the mark of the beast, 41:52 and those who worshiped his image. 41:53 These two were cast alive 41:55 into the lake of fire and brimstone." 41:57 So the nutshell is, 41:59 the battle is the last push against light and darkness, 42:02 Christ and Satan, good and evil, 42:04 but Jesus wins. 42:05 Amen. Amen. 42:06 Yes. Thank you, Pastor. That's important. 42:08 Yes. 42:09 Jason, this question comes from Vanessa from Trinidad 42:14 and she says, 42:15 "My family will normally say stuff like this. 42:18 "I'll call you after your Sabbath. 42:21 I did not come because it was your Sabbath." 42:24 Basically the Sabbath is referred to as my Sabbath, 42:28 but I always tell them that it is the Lord's Sabbath 42:30 and should be kept holy by all. 42:33 Am I wrong in my response? 42:35 Or did I leave out anything?" 42:36 Hmm. 42:38 First off, Vanessa, 42:39 I'd just like to say that I love Trinidad. 42:40 I love doubles, I love roti. 42:42 I love all of that, 42:43 but now we're going to get to your question. 42:45 All right. 42:46 I think that you responded in the right way, 42:48 but I would recommend that you share with them 42:50 reasons from Scripture as to why you believe that 42:55 the Sabbath is the right day 42:56 that the seventh day Sabbath still applies. 42:59 So let's go back to the basics. 43:00 Genesis 2:2-3 says, 43:03 "And on the seventh day, God ended his work, 43:06 which he had done. 43:07 And he rested on the seventh day 43:09 from all His work, which he had done. 43:11 Then God blessed the seventh day 43:13 and sanctified it 43:14 because in it, He rested from all His work, 43:17 which God had created and made." 43:20 Now Exodus 20:8-11, 43:23 "Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy." 43:25 We're in the fourth commandment here. 43:27 "Six days you shall labor and do all your work. 43:30 But the seventh day 43:31 is the Sabbath of the Lord your God, 43:33 in it you shall do no work. 43:35 You nor your son, nor your daughter, 43:37 nor your male servant, nor your female servant, 43:40 nor your cattle, nor your stranger 43:44 who is within your gates, 43:45 for in six days 43:46 the Lord made the heavens and the earth, 43:49 the sea, and all that is in them 43:51 and rested the seventh day. 43:52 Therefore, the Lord blessed the Sabbath day 43:55 and hollowed it." 43:56 Isaiah 58:13-14, 43:59 "If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath, 44:02 from doing your own pleasure on my holy day 44:04 and call the Sabbath a delight the holy day of the Lord, 44:08 honorable and shall honor him 44:11 not doing your own ways nor finding your own pleasure, 44:14 nor speaking your own words. 44:16 Then you shall delight yourself in the Lord. 44:19 And I will cause you to ride on the high hills of the earth 44:22 and feed you with the heritage of Jacob, your father, 44:26 the mouth of the Lord has spoken." 44:28 One thing that always fascinated me was 44:31 when the Israelites were gathering manna. 44:35 They had six days that they could gather manna. 44:37 On each day 44:39 they were only supposed to gather 44:40 what they were going to use that day. 44:42 On the sixth day, 44:44 they were to gathered double the portion 44:47 in preparation for the Sabbath. 44:49 That was the only time 44:50 in which the excess did not spoil. 44:53 The Sabbath is special 44:55 and share those reasons with your family. 44:57 Amen. Excellent. Thank you, Jason. 44:58 Absolutely, Jill and I know we love the Sabbath day. 45:01 It's a delight. 45:02 This question comes from Cynthia, 45:04 and this is for you, Jill. 45:06 It says, 45:07 "Can or does Satan put actual thoughts 45:09 into our minds? 45:11 I've always heard, he cannot read our minds, 45:14 but can he put 45:15 some sinful thought into our minds 45:18 when he tempts us with something? 45:20 Is he putting that thought or temptation into our minds?" 45:23 Again, this question comes from Cynthia. 45:25 Thank you so much for that question, Cynthia. 45:27 Before I answer it, I just want to jump back. 45:29 I gave the wrong reference in the previous question. 45:33 So the reference I said was Matthew 6. 45:35 It should be Matthew 5:27-28. 45:38 This was Jesus referencing adultery. 45:41 So that would be Matthew 5:27-28. 45:44 Now on to Cynthia's question, 45:46 let's look at a couple of principles 45:47 pertaining to temptation. 45:48 Principle number one, 45:50 temptation does not come from God. 45:52 We're going to James. 45:53 James 1:13, 45:56 "Let no one say when he is tempted. 45:58 I am tempted by God, 46:00 for God cannot be tempted by evil, 46:03 nor does He Himself tempt anyone. 46:06 Principle number two, 46:07 temptation itself is not sin. 46:12 James 1:14-15, 46:15 "Each one when he is tempted 46:16 is drawn away by his own desires 46:18 and enticed. 46:20 Then when desire has conceived, 46:22 it gives birth to sin and sin when it is full grown, 46:27 brings forth death." 46:28 You know I heard the illustration once 46:30 "You cannot stop the birds from flying overhead, 46:32 but you can clearly stop them 46:34 from making a nest in your hair." 46:37 What does that mean? 46:38 The thought and the temptation, 46:40 the passing desire is not sin. 46:43 It's when we nurture it. It's when we dwell on it. 46:46 It's when we act on it. 46:48 That's when it leads to sin. 46:51 Principle number three, 46:53 Satan cannot read our minds, 46:56 but he definitely can see our actions. 47:00 He's made a lifetime, 47:02 thousands of years 47:03 of studying human behavior and actions. 47:07 He studied human character 47:08 and he knows how we will respond 47:10 in certain temptations 47:12 or where our weak places are. 47:16 Satan, principle number four, 47:18 is deceptive and beguiling. 47:20 2 Corinthians 11:3, 47:22 "I fear somehow 47:23 as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness." 47:27 So your minds may be corrupted 47:29 from the simplicity that is in Christ. 47:31 So what does he use? 47:33 He can put thoughts in our mind. 47:34 He can use other people to put thoughts in our mind. 47:38 He can impress us with certain feelings 47:40 or emotions or words, any of those things. 47:43 But the good thing is that Christ is stronger 47:46 and we do not have to give into those temptations 47:49 because He won the victory for us 47:51 and He wants to live in us and give us victory. 47:54 Excellent. Thank you very much. Amen. 47:57 Well, I tell you, the time has gone by in a hurry. 47:59 So we've got a few remaining questions, 48:02 but we don't have time to go around to each one. 48:03 So we'll just put them out here on the table, 48:05 so to speak. 48:06 And each one of you may comment or answer 48:08 how you wish or maybe just one person. 48:10 Great questions still. 48:11 This one is referring to Daniel 12. 48:14 No name associated with this one, 48:16 but it's a good question. 48:17 "In Daniel 12, 48:19 it speaks of knowledge being increased. 48:21 Is this literal figurative, spiritual or all three?" 48:27 All three. All three. 48:28 Nutshell of it. 48:30 Someone's... 48:31 I think Danny said this once, He said, 48:32 "Do you know that 48:34 the knowledge to create the supercomputer 48:35 existed in the Garden of Eden. 48:36 People just did not know 48:38 what to do with all the elements." 48:39 And so the mind, 48:41 they were way smarter then, than we are now. 48:43 Think about it. 48:44 There was no sin, 48:45 but knowledge has increased on every level, 48:48 internet, intellectual, media, scriptural. 48:52 There is no excuse for people being in ignorance nowadays. 48:54 That's why the Lord says times of ignorance, 48:56 God winked at, 48:58 but now he's commanding all men everywhere to repent. 49:01 So nobody's gonna be lost 49:02 because there was not information. 49:04 It's like saying, 49:05 I can't find my way to this address. 49:06 And they say, 49:08 "Do you have a map?" No. 49:09 "Do you have a GPS?" No. 49:11 And now we can say, "Do you have a cell phone?" 49:12 That's all right. We could. 49:13 Knowledge has definitely increased. 49:15 Amen. Anyone else? 49:16 He covered it. Yeah. 49:17 That's perfect. 49:19 So this is a good question. This comes from Esther. 49:21 "How can I biblically explain 49:23 how bad secular music is to a Christian?" 49:27 So this is from Esther. 49:29 Well, I would say, you know, 49:30 first look at 1 Corinthians 10:31, 49:33 "Therefore, whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, 49:36 do all to the glory of God. 49:38 So the question then becomes, 49:40 how does this secular music bring honor and glory to God? 49:43 And where does it point you? 49:45 Because I know that some of the music 49:47 that I used to listen to, 49:48 it glorified the use of narcotics, 49:50 the sale of narcotics, alcohol, promiscuity, 49:53 all of those things. 49:54 That's what the message 49:56 that's in some of the secular music is doing. 49:59 So where is it leading you? 50:01 Also, even with Christian music and stuff like that, 50:04 you have to be aware of the type of music 50:06 that you listen to there too, 50:07 because again, where is it leading you? 50:10 Is it making you want to dance 50:12 or is it making you want to praise the Lord 50:14 or is it making you want to crowd surf? 50:17 What is the, you know, where is it leading you to? 50:20 So that would be the question that I would pose to them. 50:23 I love that, Jay. 50:24 I was thinking of tagging along with that, 50:26 it's Philippians 4:8. 50:28 To me, that's the litmus test for music 50:30 what you already brought out. 50:31 Philippians 4:8, 50:33 "Finally, brethren, whatever things are true. 50:34 Is it true? Is it noble? 50:36 Is it just? Is it pure? 50:38 Is it lovely? Is it of good report? 50:41 Those are the things 50:42 that we are to meditate and dwell on." 50:43 Those are the things that we are to listen. 50:45 We know that God created music. 50:47 Clearly we're called to proclaim praises to God, 50:50 but is, does it line up with what the Word of God says? 50:53 And also having been a disc jockey before, 50:56 music is a very deceptive thing 50:59 because you could put wonderful lyrics, 51:01 but the music will start getting you back to, 51:03 "hey." 51:05 Am I right Jay, 51:06 where you used to feel that? 51:08 So here's the key. 51:09 And this is something 51:10 that the Lord really brought me out 51:12 when it comes to Christian music. 51:14 One of the reasons 51:15 why the Hebrews did not bow 51:16 on the plain of Dura in Babylon, 51:18 when they were told, 51:20 when the music plays to bow, 51:22 the reason why they did not bow 51:24 is not because of the instruments, 51:27 because when music leads you to bow at the wrong altar, 51:31 it ceases to be worshiped to the true God. 51:33 So watch out for the lyrics because there are some songs, 51:37 I know there's one Christian song 51:38 that says tonight, tonight, I want to see you tonight. 51:41 Well, in my secular understanding 51:42 that will be, 51:44 you want me to come over to your house? 51:45 What does that have to do with Christ? 51:46 So watch out, 51:48 even Christian artists have lyrics 51:50 that are so suggestive and crossover, 51:52 that it makes a person whose mind is not pure 51:55 think opposite than thinking about Christ. 51:57 Yeah. Excellent. Yeah. Thank you so much. 51:59 I know that music can be a touchy thing, 52:00 but really is it bringing me to Christ 52:02 or is it not? 52:04 This hour has gone by in an incredible hurry. 52:07 And we, again, just want to encourage you 52:09 to open the Word of God yourself, 52:12 to study what we've talked about here today, 52:14 because God has things for you too. 52:15 And thank you for sending in your questions. 52:17 Where are we going to do right now 52:19 is actually take a really quick break. 52:21 Then we'll be right back with some closing comments. 52:25 If you're enjoying our 3ABN Bible Q and A, 52:28 then tell your friends. 52:29 Each Monday, we'll bring you a fresh program 52:32 answering the Bible questions you send us 52:34 and we'll use God's holy word to shed light on those texts 52:37 that seem difficult to understand. 52:39 If you would like your questions answered 52:41 on an upcoming program, 52:42 just email them to us. 52:44 Our email address is bibleqa@3abn.org. 52:49 That's bibleqa@3abn.org. 52:53 You can also text us your questions 52:55 by sending them to (618) 228-3975. 53:00 That number again is (618) 228-3975. 53:05 Be sure to include your name and where you live 53:08 and then watch 3ABN Bible Q and A |
Revised 2022-06-21