S1: Hello, friends. Welcome to the second hour of Open Line
S1: with me, Michael Jelinek. I'm the professor of Jewish studies
S1: and Bible at Moody Bible Institute, also the academic dean
S1: in the undergraduate school. And this is Moody Radio's Bible
S1: study across America. We are together live sitting around the radio, kitchen,
S1: kitchen table, taking your questions about the Bible, God, and
S1: the spiritual life. If you have a question, now's a
S1: great time to call. The phone number is (877) 548-3675. Again (877) 548-3675.
S1: Before I was mentioning the team, I forgot to mention
S1: Merle Saint James, who's helping out with engineering today. And
S1: I want to make sure that we recognize him as well.
S1: Really appreciate him. And also time. Now go get your
S1: second cup of coffee, open your Bible because we're going
S1: to continue studying the scriptures together. Right now we're going
S1: to talk to Rodney in Springfield, Illinois, listening on Wluw. Jay,
S1: welcome to Open Line. Rodney, how can I help you today?
S2: Hi. Thank you. So going back a couple of weeks,
S2: you were in first Corinthians 14, I believe, and you
S2: were addressing the hot potato of speaking in tongues. And
S2: so my question is, should we, in our private devotions,
S2: in our private prayer, should we be consistently speaking in tongues?
S2: That's my question.
S1: Is that what you do?
S2: I do sometimes, yes.
S1: So not consistently but sometimes.
S2: Yeah. Not Not every time. Some. Sometimes I pray with understanding. Uh, only, uh,
S2: it just depends on really how much time that I have.
S2: You know, if I have a lot of time, then
S2: I'll spend some time praying in tongues. Um, because my
S2: understanding is that when do you.
S1: Interpret for yourself? When you when you do that and.
S3: No. No.
S1: Because that's what that verse actually means, where it says that, uh,
S1: people speak with understanding or pray with, uh, pray without understanding.
S1: And uh, and then with it basically says, what? Then
S1: I will pray with the spirit. I will also pray
S1: with my understanding. We think that sometimes that means I'll
S1: pray in tongues, and sometimes I'll pray with understanding. It
S1: doesn't mean that I will sing with the spirit, and
S1: I will also sing with my understanding. It's not options.
S1: It's both at the same time. Because how can you
S1: even say amen to yourself.
S4: Right? Yes.
S1: If you don't know what you're saying, you know.
S4: Correct.
S1: Yes. That's the point. Correct. The point of this is not.
S1: I've got two options. I'll choose a and sometimes I'll
S1: choose B. It's you've got two options both at every time.
S1: If the if you're going to you know, I think
S1: what Paul was saying to the Corinthians, if you're going
S1: to pray in tongues, then you better also understand what
S1: you're praying and have it have it understood by you
S1: so that.
S4: Okay.
S2: Yeah. Can I ask one more quick question?
S4: Sure.
S2: Isn't there another place where he says something like, um,
S2: the person who prays in a in a tongue edifies
S2: his spirit?
S1: Yeah. Yeah. Edifies himself.
S2: So what does that mean?
S1: Yeah, for the person who speaks in another language is
S1: not speaking to men, but to God. Since no one
S1: understands him, however, he. Uh. Right. Uh, yes. However he
S1: speaks mysteries. And then in verse four it says the
S1: person who speaks another language builds himself up. Or in
S1: the old version, edifies himself. But he who prophesies builds
S1: up the church. Now we say, see, you can edify.
S1: It's for self edification. Actually, if you read the context,
S1: the purpose of all gifts, if you go to first
S1: Corinthians 12 where he gives the gifts, what is the
S1: purpose of anyone getting any gift?
S4: Do you know the building up?
S2: Building up of the church?
S4: Exactly.
S1: The build up of the body.
S4: And so to.
S2: Maturity.
S1: Yeah, to build up the body. And so when he
S1: says the person who prophesies speaks to people for edification
S1: and encouragement and consolation. He says, when you prophesy, what
S1: you're doing is you're building up the church. And then
S1: he says, the person who speaks another language builds himself up.
S1: That's not a good thing. It defeats the purpose of
S1: the gift. What he is saying, this is my Michael
S1: Zelnick paraphrase. The person who speaks in another language without
S1: interpretation only builds himself up. He's just showing off.
S4: I've never looked.
S2: At it that way.
S4: But that's.
S2: Interesting.
S1: But he who prophesies builds up the church. What's the point?
S4: Yes.
S1: Of gifts to build up the church.
S4: Yes. Amen. See what? Uh.
S1: And so he would discourage again, uh, speaking in a
S1: language of prayer. If there is, I don't I'm. You know,
S1: you've heard from me, Rodney, that I don't get mad
S1: at people for believing in tongues, but I don't think
S1: that what people are doing today is the biblical, real
S1: languages of tongues. Uh, however, if it were, they would
S1: still be not a good thing just to show off
S1: and and and use your gift if you don't have
S1: interpretation because you're just showing off, you're just building yourself up.
S1: I understand that's not the purpose of the gifts of
S1: the spirit. The purpose of the gifts is to build
S1: up the body.
S4: Yeah I agree. So? So, yeah.
S2: We don't see this really anymore, do we?
S1: Uh, well, I do see a lot of people who that. Well,
S1: they should, but the reason there isn't real interpretation is
S1: because everything that we and again, I, I God bless
S1: everyone who loves the Lord and believes that their tongues
S1: are legitimate. I am I'm not trying to get into
S1: an argument or a fight, but studies have been done
S1: on the modern tongues movement, where linguists who can break down, uh, everything.
S4: Yes.
S1: Uh, in a language and they can understand what a
S1: language is, right?
S4: Uh.
S1: I, I've taught with 3 or 4 different people in
S1: applied linguistics. We have a wonderful applied linguistics professor now
S1: who's translated the Bible into an Ethiopian, into an Ethiopian
S1: tribes mother tongue. Uh, he, uh, he's phenomenal linguists. Uh, now,
S1: I also in the past, I taught with a guy
S1: that did it with a Philippine, a Filipino tribe, translated
S1: the Bible for them. Then he comes and teaches our
S1: future Bible translators how to do linguistics. They can break
S1: down languages. It's just the most amazing thing. Anyway, linguists
S1: like that have studied modern tongues and they say it
S1: is just gibberish. They do not hold the qualities of language.
S1: The response given is, well, that's because it's a heavenly
S1: language where Paul says in Galatians one, if I speak
S1: with the tongues of men or of angels. Well, listen,
S1: you've got a Bible. Have you read the Bible? Sure. Well,
S1: what do you see when angels talk? Do they speak
S1: in gibberish?
S4: They speak in an understood language. Yeah, exactly.
S1: And, uh, in, in Galatians one, when Paul says, if anyone,
S1: if anyone preaches another gospel, let him be anathema. In
S1: other words, if someone distorts the true message, let him
S1: be anathema. Let him be accursed. And then he says,
S1: even an angel from heaven, if he speaks another gospel,
S1: let him be accursed. Well, angels don't preach the gospel.
S1: And secondly, angels from heaven would never distort the gospel.
S4: Right.
S1: So what is he doing there? He's using hyperbole, exaggeration,
S1: the very same thing that he does in first Corinthians
S1: 13 when he says, if I have every imaginable gift,
S1: even if there were a language of heaven, if I which,
S1: by the way, it would also a language of heaven
S1: would have the rules of language. But nevertheless, you know,
S1: even even if I did that, if I don't have love,
S1: I'm just a clanging bell. Right? So.
S4: Right.
S1: The point that he's making is hyperbole. He's not saying
S1: that there are there are special languages that are unintelligible
S1: and into linguistics because they're angelic speech. It's not what
S1: he's saying. He's he's using hyperbole there. And so I
S1: think it's really important to know that when the gift
S1: of tongues was first granted at Pentecost, what were they doing?
S1: They were speaking languages where people from those parts of
S1: the world understood them. They were real languages, and and
S1: God is certainly capable of doing that. I don't think
S1: he's doing it as a gift right now, but he's
S1: certainly capable of doing it as a miracle. I don't
S1: I believe God can do miracles, but right now it
S1: doesn't look like that's happening with the modern tongues movement.
S1: You know, some people point to Romans eight where it
S1: says that the Spirit of God intercedes for us. You
S1: know that that passage I'm talking about, don't you? Right. Uh,
S1: when with words beyond our ability to speak. You know that, right?
S1: And so people say that's what tongues is. Listen to
S1: the verse in the same way, the spirit also joins
S1: to help in our weakness, because we do not know
S1: what to pray for, as we should. Do you ever
S1: get to that point? It doesn't always happen, but there
S1: are times where we're so distraught. So at the end
S1: of our rope, we don't even know what to pray
S1: for anymore. At that time, what happens? The spirit himself
S1: intercedes for us. Now listen with unspoken groanings. Yeah. That
S1: means it's not spoken. It's not even tongues. It's it's
S1: it's intercession within heaven that doesn't even go through us.
S1: That's what that verse is talking about. So the whole.
S4: Yeah, I.
S1: Believe the whole theology and practice of devotional self edifying
S1: tongues is something that that could be, uh, that's just
S1: I don't think it's intended. It's not all that helpful.
S1: I don't believe it's helpful, uh, at all. And it
S1: can be harmful. When I first was a pastor, there
S1: was a dear woman in my congregation who. The problem
S1: that she had was that whenever she prayed because she
S1: prayed in tongues so much, she she came to me.
S1: She says I can't articulate. I start to pray and
S1: I immediately go into tongues. I can't ever articulate prayers.
S1: She became so dependent on tongues. And so what? You know,
S1: what am I going to do? I'm her pastor. You know,
S1: I didn't want to hurt her feelings or offend her,
S1: but I said, you do need to pray. And so
S1: she had to learn to pray again by writing out
S1: her prayers, because otherwise she couldn't speak them. So I
S1: think that let's let's master praying with understanding before we
S1: try to do anything else. How's that? That's what I
S1: would encourage.
S4: Oh yeah, I.
S2: Yes thank you. I yeah, I'm in a weird position
S2: because I've been around charismatics and Pentecostals and, uh, my
S2: whole life and always struggled with this.
S3: So this.
S4: Helps. I appreciate.
S2: It so.
S4: Much.
S1: Well, thank you so much for your call. I really
S1: appreciate it, Rodney. And we're going to take a break here.
S1: And when we come back, we're going to be talking
S1: with you about your questions about the Bible, God and
S1: the spiritual life. So stick around. Don't leave. We're going
S1: to try and get to your question. Call (877) 548-3675. My
S1: name is Michael Ray Jellinek, and we're going to be
S1: right back with more of your questions right here on
S1: Moody Radio's Open Line. Welcome back to Open Line. I'm
S1: Michael Ray Dolnick. So glad that you're listening in today.
S1: We're having a great time around the word studying the scriptures. Uh, now, uh,
S1: autumn is here. And as soon as I. It's pretty
S1: crisp this morning where I am, uh, feels pretty cool.
S1: And it's immediately. You think it's. It's the fall. Time
S1: to learn about the Jewish fall, high holidays, the high
S1: Holy Days, we call them. And Chosen People Ministries is
S1: offering a free, very helpful booklet called Celebrate Israel's High
S1: Holy Days. Uh, the booklet explores all the fall Jewish
S1: holy days. That's the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, the
S1: Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur, and the Feast of Booths Sukkot.
S1: It's just a booklet, but it's really helpful. I'm sure
S1: you're going to like it. Uh, don't miss out. If
S1: you'd like a copy of that little booklet, just go
S1: to the Open Line website. That's open Line radio.org. Scroll down.
S1: There's a link there that says a free gift from
S1: Chosen People Ministries. Click on that and you'll be taken
S1: to a page where you can sign up for your
S1: own copy of Celebrate Israel's High Holy Day holidays. Now,
S1: I am so grateful that Chosen People Ministries has partnered
S1: with Open Line since the week I started, when it
S1: was just a local program. For the first six months,
S1: it was just in Chicago. Open line. And then when
S1: I went on the Moody stations and then on the whole,
S1: all the affiliates, I think we're up to about, uh,
S1: almost 300 affiliates now and really grateful for that. Uh,
S1: and chosen people who's been with us from the beginning,
S1: and now they are partnering with Moody Bible Institute for
S1: something that's really important to our legacy. Our legacy has
S1: always been to oppose anti-Semitism. During the 30s, Moody took
S1: a real clear stand in the Moody Magazine opposing anti-Semitism
S1: in the 70s, when neo-Nazis wanted to march in the
S1: Jewish suburb of Skokie of Chicago. Doctor Sweeting, the president
S1: of Moody, took out a full page ad, uh, opposing
S1: that march and standing with the Jewish community the same
S1: way today as we see anti-Semitism erupting all across the globe. Uh,
S1: hate for God's chosen people becoming normative. Well, Moody Bible
S1: Institute wants to help believers learn how to take the
S1: biblical stand in opposing this kind of hatred. And the
S1: way we're doing is we're having a summit, a one
S1: day conference opposing anti-Semitism. We're going to have special speakers
S1: like doctor Mark Jobe, president of Moody. I'll speak. So
S1: will Doctor Mitch Glazer, president of Chosen People Ministries, and
S1: also doctor Don Sweeting. George Sweeting's son, Don Sweeting, is
S1: the chancellor of Colorado Christian University, one of the most
S1: outspoken opponents of anti-Semitism across the nation. He speaks loudly
S1: and clearly and well about this, and there'll be special
S1: breakout sessions. What can we do as believers? What can
S1: we do as a church to stand against anti-Semitism? Please
S1: don't miss out. It's November 9th at Moody Bible Institute. Uh,
S1: you can go to our website, openline Line radio.org and
S1: click on the link there. At the top there's a
S1: banner that says The Summit on Opposing anti-Semitism. You can
S1: find out everything you need to know. You don't have
S1: to be from Chicago. You can come from all over
S1: the country. There's hotels in the area. Please join us.
S1: It's crucial to get as many believers there as possible
S1: to learn to stand against this satanic hatred of anti-Semitism.
S1: And we're going to talk to Luis Rafael right now
S1: in Orlando, Florida, listening on WGN. Welcome to Open Line.
S1: Luis Rafael, how can I help you today?
S5: Hi. Thank you for taking my call. Can you hear me? Well.
S6: Yeah.
S1: You sound great.
S7: Yeah.
S5: Beside the Lord Jesus Christ. I think we may have
S5: other things in common. Like, uh. I haven't been in
S5: Dallas Theological Seminary, but I've taken some courses, and I
S5: have been mentored for 15 years on separate occasions by doctor, uh,
S5: Albert Platt.
S1: Uh, Al sure, I know him.
S4: Yeah, sure I know.
S5: And, uh, Oscar Lopez.
S1: Yeah, sure. From Dallas Seminary. I know these guys.
S5: Yes, yes, they ministered to us, uh, Hispanic conferences in
S5: Keswick in new Jersey.
S4: Yeah, sure.
S1: I know. I've spoken at that Keswick Conference Center in
S1: the past.
S4: Yeah.
S5: Have you? Oh my word. I wish I would. I
S5: used to live in new Jersey. I live now in Florida.
S5: I lost my wife in 2022 of Covid. Oh. I'm sorry. Uh, yeah.
S5: I've been ministering in Hispanic bilingual congregations for 18 years now.
S5: I'm in Florida. No congregation. Just, uh, you know, getting
S5: in some time. Uh, and I don't want to. I
S5: want to kind of, like, fine tune my position as Calvinist. Uh,
S5: you know, I think I'm a Calvinist. I don't want
S5: to be hyper Calvinist. Uh, and I may have some
S5: Armenian on me, because I believe that we can use
S5: our free will to say no to the Lord and
S5: reject the gospel. So I don't know what you take
S5: on that.
S1: So let's see, do I? What I think you'd like
S1: me to explain out Arminianism versus Calvinism. Is that what
S1: you're asking?
S5: Yeah. In general terms, yes. Yes I. Okay. If I. Okay.
S1: So I you know or if you're asking I really
S1: believe that the Lord uh, uh, chooses you read Ephesians one.
S1: It says that believers are elect before the foundation of
S1: the world. So I really do believe in election. Uh,
S1: I do believe the Bible predestines us. Uh, the Bible
S1: teaches the Lord predestines us. It says that he foreknows
S1: us to foreknow doesn't mean just to know who will believe,
S1: but he knows in advance. Uh, enters into a relationship
S1: with us in advance. That's what it means. Uh, but
S1: before time. And so the Lord is sovereign. On the
S1: other hand, the Bible teaches that people have to believe.
S1: And there is a responsibility. What I find about Calvinism
S1: is it seeks to explain it on the election side
S1: without emphasizing the the responsibility of the person to believe.
S1: The Arminian side tends to emphasize the responsibility of the
S1: person to respond to the gospel, to believe, but then
S1: finds ways to get around the idea of election. Uh,
S1: and I live with it. Sort of. I learned this in,
S1: you know, I was a Bible college student back in
S1: 1974 or 5, and I read a book called evangelism
S1: and the Sovereignty of God by J.I. Packer, who's a Calvinist.
S1: And Packer argues that trying to resolve sovereignty and human
S1: responsibility is sort of it's impossible. He calls it an antinomy. Uh,
S1: an apparent contradiction, not really a contradiction in the mind
S1: of God. It makes perfect sense in our comprehension ability.
S1: We can't understand it, he says. It's sort of like
S1: you see these two. I think the illustration uses two
S1: pipes that you might see running along the wall, and
S1: then it enters into the wall, and only behind the
S1: wall do the two pipes join together and fit together
S1: in the same way. Uh, I believe when we're here
S1: in this life, uh, with our finite minds, we can't
S1: grasp it. We just can't grasp it. But on the
S1: other hand, in the mind of God, the two work
S1: together perfectly. They make perfect sense, you know, In Isaiah 55,
S1: it says this, uh, and this is how I resolve it.
S1: I just believe both, uh, I fall more on the
S1: side of Calvinism on the issue of security. I believe
S1: in the perseverance of the Savior. He holds on to us.
S1: But here's what Isaiah 55 says. My thoughts are not
S1: your thoughts. My ways are not your ways are not
S1: my ways. This is the Lord's declaration as as heaven
S1: is higher than earth, so are my ways and my thoughts. Uh,
S1: so are my ways higher than your ways and my
S1: thoughts than your thoughts. So here's the deal. Uh, it's
S1: it is a seeming contradiction and apparent contradiction. But in
S1: the mind of God, it's not. And I just live
S1: with them both. And, uh, you know, I may not
S1: be the best theologian because theologians love to explain everything.
S1: There's a great theologian by the name of John Feinberg.
S1: He wrote a book that explains how these two things
S1: work together. And I tried to read it, and John's
S1: just too smart for me. I couldn't understand it. So
S1: I'm just going to live with my mind being two
S1: to finite. So I hope that helps you lose weight too.
S5: I'm quite sure we have a human has a responsibility
S5: to respond. I just don't want to. I've written about
S5: 4000 words, uh, argument with Doctor Gary Hedrick, who I
S5: support from messianic perspective in Texas. Uh, and uh, uh,
S5: I my, my take was, well.
S1: You know, you know, Luis, Luis Rafael. The thing is I,
S1: I'm not I don't want to argue with anyone about it.
S1: I'll tell you why. I, I believe that there's a
S1: human responsibility to respond to the gospel. When I preach
S1: the gospel, I invite people to believe, and I act
S1: as if it's all up to me. But I pray,
S1: and I really do believe this, that no one would
S1: ever respond if the Holy Spirit didn't open their heart,
S1: you know? Uh, that's that's what I think. And I
S1: think someone, I think just hung up. But they were
S1: they were calling the next caller I was about to
S1: take was calling about the verse that says, as many
S1: were appointed for eternal life. This is acts 13, uh,
S1: where it says, uh, as many as were appointed to
S1: eternal life believed. Uh, it's uh, verse 48, when the
S1: Gentiles heard this, they rejoiced and glorified the Lord, and
S1: all who had been appointed to eternal life believed. Uh,
S1: did is there a human responsibility to believe? Yeah, it's
S1: right there. But how did they believe the Holy Spirit
S1: opened their eyes? It says in acts 16, the Lord
S1: opened Lydia's heart. And that's. That's the only way, I
S1: don't think, in our own we'd ever believe. But the
S1: Lord opens our hearts, and that's how we respond. So, uh,
S1: I think you agree with me about that, don't you?
S5: Yes, yes. Well, yes. We're in the same. In the same,
S5: you know, same lines. Yeah. Yes.
S1: Yeah. That's it. It's so, uh, it's so difficult. And
S1: let me just encourage you, uh, do you ever pray
S1: for people who don't know the Lord to come to
S1: know the Lord?
S5: Yes.
S1: Yeah, I keep doing that, too. There's only one verse
S1: in the Bible that has that, you know, in Romans
S1: ten one, my heart's desire and prayer to God for
S1: Israel is they might be saved. That's the only place
S1: where it talks about praying for the lost. Uh, but
S1: we should pray for the lost that God would open
S1: their hearts. And on the other hand, uh. And that's
S1: because we believe in a sovereign God. And yet, when
S1: we talk to people who don't know the Lord, what
S1: do we do? We invite them to believe. We press
S1: them to believe. We do whatever we can to encourage
S1: them to believe. So I always say, I share the
S1: gospel like an Arminian and I pray like a Calvinist
S1: and somehow that seems to work. I really do believe that. Hey, Luis. Rafael,
S1: thanks for your call. We're going to come back with
S1: the mailbag in just a moment, so don't go away.
S1: Trish is dragging it in right now. This is open
S1: line with Michael Zelnick. We're back. This is open line
S1: with Michael Dolnick. And I am so grateful to the
S1: Far Eastern Broadcasting Company for partnering with Moody Radio and
S1: Open Line to bring you the Febc mailbag every week.
S1: They are faithful and not just faithful in bringing the
S1: Febc mailbag, but also faithful in bringing the good news
S1: to people through their media ministry. It's an outstanding ministry.
S1: I love this organization. They not only have media going
S1: out to people, radio and things broadcasts, but also individuals
S1: that will follow up and and give a personal touch
S1: to follow up the gospel and lead people to faith
S1: and disciple them. It's an outstanding organization. You can check
S1: out their podcast by going to their website febc. Org
S1: and click on the podcast called Until All Have Heard
S1: featuring Ed Cannon. I think you're going to love that.
S1: That's f e b c.org and Tricia McMillan is here
S1: with me right now. So glad you're here, Tricia. So
S1: have you taken a look at our current resource?
S8: Um, not not since we've started using it.
S1: Okay. But I know we used it as, uh, we
S1: actually interviewed Jim when he, when the book first came
S1: out and talked about it on air. And I'm so
S1: glad we get to have the this book 14 Fresh
S1: Ways to Enjoy the Bible as our resource and you.
S1: Can you guess why I like this so much as
S1: a resource?
S8: Uh, I'm guessing because it's giving you ways to read
S8: the Bible.
S9: Yeah, exactly.
S1: It's it's just a great little synopsis of ways to
S1: read the scriptures and anything that I could do to
S1: get people to get more out of their Bible reading,
S1: I'm thrilled with. Uh, I said last hour, I kind
S1: of wish I had written a book by Michael Block.
S1: I kind of wish I wrote this book to, I
S1: got to say, because this is exactly how I feel,
S1: you know, about people just need to have some clues
S1: about what to look for when they're reading the Bible.
S1: And it's not a Bible study methods book so much as, hey,
S1: when you read, read it this way. Look for like
S1: one areas. Look for repetition, repetition of concept, repetition of words.
S1: And he goes through all the things that we look
S1: for because that's usually what the passage is emphasizing, and
S1: he just talks about different things to look for. It
S1: is a great book. Jim Coakley wrote it 14 Fresh
S1: Ways to Enjoy Your Bible, and it is our current resource.
S1: If you give a gift of any size, we want
S1: to say thank you. We appreciate you so much, and
S1: we'd like to send you this book as a way
S1: to say thank you. And so check out 14 Fresh
S1: Ways to Enjoy the Bible. You can give by going
S1: to our website openline radio.org. Or you can call (888) 644-7122
S1: and and make sure you ask for Jim Coakley's wonderful
S1: award winning book, 14 Fresh Ways to Enjoy the Bible.
S1: And Tricia. Yes, you need to have a look at
S1: this book. You're going to love it. You're going to
S1: I can't wait. You know what? You teach all these
S1: women's Bible studies. This is a book you should lead
S1: women through. This is a great book.
S8: I have it in my office. I will need to
S8: get it. I just haven't looked at it for this month. Yeah.
S1: Yep, yep. But it's a great book, I love it.
S1: I just reread it because of of using it as
S1: a resource and I, I, I loved it more the
S1: second time than I did the first.
S10: Oh, good.
S8: So it was a fresh read too. Yeah. Yeah. The
S8: second time. So you can keep going back to it,
S8: which are the kinds of resources that we like that
S8: they continue to help you even after you've read it
S8: the first time.
S10: Yep, yep. It's great. Fantastic.
S1: So, anyway, uh, we got the mailbag.
S10: Here we do.
S1: Okay, here we go.
S8: All right, our first question is from Kim in Washington
S8: state listens to KMBC. What does faith look like? So
S8: more specifically, looking through the Old Testament, there are battles
S8: and cities and the followers of God forged weapons and
S8: built walls for protection. But in some of the battles. So.
S8: So they fought some of the battles themselves. But in
S8: some of the battles, God did all the work. Was
S8: he pleased by that preparation? And then she's kind of
S8: relating it to financial like. Should we be preparing for
S8: the worst and just trust that God will meet all
S8: our needs? What does that faith look like in that
S8: preparation versus how it actually plays out?
S1: Well, my wife Eva has a little plaque that she
S1: got in Israel and she has over her desk. It
S1: says Trust God, but tie up your camel. So, uh,
S1: I think, you know, when you look at, for example,
S1: people say, I knew someone that didn't save any money,
S1: so I'm never going to save because I'm trusting God
S1: for my retirement. And, uh, well, I read the book
S1: of Proverbs and it talks about the ant stores food
S1: in summer so he can eat in winter. Right? That's
S1: something that God built by instinct. And it's a lesson
S1: for us to learn from, to start early and prepare. So, uh, yes,
S1: we should trust God. Uh, you know, we don't know
S1: what the future holds there. Might. You know, I actually
S1: have a retirement fund, and it, uh. but I do
S1: know that that whole thing can collapse. The entire economy
S1: might collapse. And I have to trust God. You know,
S1: I don't think it will, but I. I have to
S1: trust God for that, that he's going to take care
S1: of me whether my savings do or not. But I
S1: do have a responsibility to save. Same thing. You know,
S1: God knows the day of my death. He knows when
S1: I'm going to die. That doesn't mean I should go
S1: out and eat everything bad for me. You know, live
S1: on potato chips and, uh, you know, just because God
S1: knows the day of my death doesn't mean I shouldn't
S1: eat healthy. You know, uh, that that there's a responsibility
S1: we have that God has ordained healthy eating, retirement plans,
S1: safe saving, uh, protection, for example, like she mentions in
S1: the Old Testament. Uh, that's all part of what God uses, uh, To, uh,
S1: to protect people, to fulfill his purposes for them. Uh,
S1: I think the only time when God was not happy
S1: with that was like, for example, when Asa, uh, made, uh, associations,
S1: alliances that he should not have made. Uh, God tells
S1: Israel at other times, don't rely on Egypt to protect you.
S1: It's like a reed that will pierce your hand if
S1: you rely on it or it'll break. Uh, so sometimes
S1: it has to do with are we relying on God
S1: or we're relying on allies in war? And that that
S1: would be something that would be problematic. But otherwise doesn't
S1: mean that Israel wasn't supposed to have walled cities or make, make, protect,
S1: take protective action.
S10: So so it's.
S8: Almost make make responsible decisions About whatever that is about
S8: your food, about your finances, about even going, how you're
S8: getting to work on it, you know? Um, but trust
S8: God ultimately through that, as opposed to it's all up
S8: to me, I have to do this, and I'm going
S8: to live making my decisions as if that's the only
S8: thing that's going to protect me. Like the only. I
S8: am fully reliant on how my retirement fund does. And
S8: if it all falls through, then my life is over. No,
S8: you're doing that knowing that ultimately God will provide for
S8: you and he. And one of.
S10: The ways he.
S1: Does, he uses your retirement fund to do that, right?
S1: You know, uh, the the other thing, you know, it's
S1: like I used to tell my kids, you know, I
S1: trust God to protect you, but, you know, here we are.
S1: We live in the city. Don't walk out. You know,
S1: when when they, you know, were 18 and older, Don't
S1: go out in the middle of the night. You know,
S1: when do bad things happen in the city? At 2 a.m.,
S1: you know, go to bed. You know, that's.
S10: You still look both.
S8: Ways before crossing the street.
S1: Exactly.
S10: Okay. Yeah.
S8: Okay. Well. Thank you. I hope that helps. Kim to
S8: to give you a little bit more on what that
S8: faith in God looks like.
S10: Yeah.
S8: While still making responsible decisions.
S10: Yeah.
S1: Just just remember, whatever's plaque says trust God, but tie
S1: up your camel.
S10: That's it.
S8: All right. So I gotta get me a camel. No.
S1: Yeah, but you know where it was? Where we went
S1: and rode camels. Do you remember riding camels when we
S1: went to Israel?
S10: No.
S1: Uh. Or maybe that we skipped it that day.
S10: That you were. I think we skipped the trip with camels. Yeah.
S1: There was a problem that day that you came with us,
S1: but we went to this, uh, it's called Abraham's tent. Okay. And, uh,
S1: they have a gift shop, and they had a they
S1: have camel rides, and they you have, like, an Abrahamic
S1: kind of meal.
S10: Okay.
S1: And then, uh, and then they had this sign that said,
S1: Trust God, but tie up your camel. Even said, I
S1: like that.
S10: And she just got.
S1: It's over her.
S10: Desk. Very nice. It's a good principle. Yeah.
S8: Um, our next question comes from Young Minds. Um, Trudy
S8: is in New York, listens online, and she said, are
S8: there any verses in the Bible that talk about when
S8: animals became carnivores? Our middle school Sunday school class has
S8: been debating their thoughts and they haven't we haven't found
S8: a specific scripture, something that was after Adam and Eve
S8: sinned in the garden, and others think it was after
S8: the flood. Does the Bible tell us?
S1: It doesn't say when they became carnivores. Carnivores, carnivores, however. Uh,
S1: I'll give you my clue. Okay. Um, it says, uh,
S1: the Wolf and the lamb. This is about the messianic kingdom.
S1: There'll be a change in the animals. It says at
S1: that time the wolf and the lamb will feed together,
S1: and the lion will eat straw like the ox. So
S1: it is saying, in the messianic kingdom, when Jesus is
S1: reigning on the earth and we have the new millennial
S1: kind of experience, uh, animals will go back to what
S1: they were originally, which was herbivores rather than carnivores.
S10: Where is that verse?
S1: Isaiah 6525.
S10: Okay.
S1: Uh, now everything won't change because the serpent's food will
S1: still be dust. Because that's he's going to be. That's
S1: one of the ways that that the serpent is now
S1: more cursed than all the other animals. But it seems
S1: to me that the wolf and the lamb becoming carnivores
S1: was part of their fall, the fall of humanity in
S1: the garden. And it will be restored when the they'll
S1: be restored to herbivores when we come to the kingdom.
S10: Okay. Okay.
S8: So if it was a result of the fall, that
S8: means then on the Ark, they would have had to
S8: make special provisions for the carnivores, um, to keep them
S8: away from the other animals that they would have eaten.
S6: Yeah, they might have.
S1: You know, I, uh, my, my, uh, although, you know,
S1: I have to say this, I know dogs that would
S1: normally want to chase a cat.
S10: Mhm.
S1: Some don't.
S10: You know. Yeah.
S1: So yeah. I don't know what, what happened at the, uh,
S1: on the Ark. I'm not going to worry about it.
S8: So those things that send us down these. But what
S8: about that aren't really that important. But we do wonder.
S10: Yeah, I.
S8: Do wonder about.
S10: Them.
S6: This this is the.
S1: Most important lesson. God didn't give us the Bible to
S1: satisfy our curiosity, but to transform our lives. And this
S1: is one of the. This is one of those questions.
S1: I'm not going to change my life.
S10: Right? Right. Yeah.
S8: Because it'll change. It'll change in the messianic kingdom. Yeah.
S8: And until then, this is what it is.
S10: They are. It is what it is. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
S10: All right. So.
S1: Listen. My dogs. Yeah. They'll eat.
S10: Anything. So there we go.
S1: Even plastic.
S10: Oh. Oh, that's not good. No. I think we should
S10: take a break here. Okay. Come back. All right. I'll
S10: take some more questions.
S1: Hey, Tricia. Thanks for bringing the questions together. I really
S1: appreciate it. And thanks for sending them in. You can
S1: always go to Openline radio.org. Click on the link that
S1: says Ask Michael a question. You can send your question
S1: in that way. We're going to come right back with
S1: more of your questions in just a moment. This is
S1: open line with Tricia McMillan and me, Michael Dolnick.
UU: Be right back.
S1: Welcome back to Open Line. I'm Michael Ray Dolnick. I
S1: have a kind of a funny story about my friend
S1: William Washington. Uh, he. Doctor William Washington is the dean
S1: of student life at Moody. We were out to lunch
S1: one day, and we ran into some people, and the
S1: woman heard my voice and recognized me from the radio.
S1: This woman that was at the same restaurant we were at.
S1: And so she said, oh, you're Michael Dolnick from Open Line.
S1: And I said, yeah. And she said, I listen all
S1: the time. And she called her husband over who was
S1: talking to someone else, and she said, This is Michael
S1: Dolnick from Open Line. He said, oh yeah, I listen
S1: all the time. He says, and this is the funny part.
S1: He says, uh, William and he says, but he mentions
S1: the name of another professor at Moody and says, I
S1: like him better. I said, well, I do too. So,
S1: you know, we're in the same boat. But William laughed
S1: at me. He says, you may like him better, but
S1: are you a kitchen table partner? That's what he looked
S1: at him. He said, if you listen every week, you
S1: should be a kitchen table partner. And so. That's what
S1: I thought was funny. William will never miss an opportunity
S1: to ask people. He kind of embarrasses me sometimes. Are
S1: you a kitchen table partner? Every time you meet someone
S1: that listens to Open Line? But I appreciate his heart.
S1: And the reason why he does that is he knows
S1: how important it is to partner with Open Line. It
S1: helps keep us on the air every week when you
S1: give every month. And so I appreciate it when people
S1: have done that. I appreciate everyone that listens. Actually, we
S1: started on this program. I thought it would be the
S1: only one listening every week. But there are people who
S1: listen every week. And if the Lord's used this in
S1: your life in some way to help you grow, understand
S1: the scriptures better. Learn to read them in a more
S1: effective way. If you're growing through this and you would
S1: like to become a kitchen table partner to help keep
S1: us on the air, we would so appreciate it. The
S1: way to do that is by calling (888) 644-7122, or perhaps
S1: go online open line radio.org. You can sign up there.
S1: And every other week we'll send you a Bible study moment.
S1: It's a special audio Bible study designed exclusively for our
S1: kitchen table partners. And really grateful for all of you
S1: who have decided to become kitchen table partners, and even
S1: those of you who are considering it really, really appreciate
S1: you and I hope you will decide to join in
S1: this program. And now we're going to talk to Heather
S1: in Campton Hills, Illinois, listening on Wmbi. Welcome to Open Line. Heather,
S1: how can I help you today?
S11: Hi. Um, my my question for you today is from
S11: the Book of Judges, and it is about, um, just, uh,
S11: jephthah's vow. So my husband and I are both in
S11: agreement that unfortunately, he did follow through and he did
S11: offer his daughter because she was the first thing that
S11: came out of his house as a burnt offering. We
S11: have a friend who thinks differently and says that he
S11: thinks that she went to mourn her virginity and just like,
S11: lived out the rest of her days, maybe as a
S11: nun or something.
S10: You know, a nun.
S1: Oh, yeah. Right.
S4: Okay.
S11: But it says it does say right there that when
S11: she returned after the two months that he did to
S11: her as he vowed. Yeah.
S1: So let's talk about his vow. Okay. Verse 30. Verse 31. Okay.
S1: It says whatever comes out of the door is. This
S1: is Jephthah's vow.
S10: Of.
S1: My house to greet me when I return in peace
S1: from the ammonites will belong to the Lord. And my
S1: version says, and I will offer it as a burnt offering. But, uh,
S1: the the same word could be translated, or I will
S1: offer it as a burnt offering. So the vow does
S1: not require a burnt offering. Uh, the the other, uh,
S1: aspect of this, you know, when, when she does this,
S1: when she, you know, she comes out and greets her father. Uh,
S1: it says, uh, that that or I will that one
S1: will belong to Lord. In numbers eight, it talks about
S1: the Levites belong to me. Numbers 814 and when you
S1: look here at this, I will I will either offer
S1: it as a burnt offering, or they will belong to
S1: the Lord. That's the idea. And and in the book
S1: of Psalms it talks about, you know, can I finish
S1: Heather for a minute before you, before you engage with me?
S1: Hang on a second, okay? One it's or not. And two, it's, uh,
S1: the the idea is that one of the options is
S1: they will belong to the Lord, which is a term
S1: that's used for the Levites and three, uh, in the Psalms,
S1: it talks about the women, the the young virgins that
S1: served in the Tabernacle and by serving in the Tabernacle,
S1: they belong to the Lord. They were virgins that did that.
S1: And then you read judges 11 and what happens in
S1: judges 11? She she mourns not her upcoming death, but
S1: she mourns her virginity. This is especially sad for Jephthah
S1: because he doesn't have any other children, and he he
S1: won't have any, uh, heirs other than her, and his
S1: his line won't go on. So she mourned her virginity.
S1: You'd think if he was going to kill her, she'd
S1: have something more serious to worry about. So he kept
S1: the vow he had made about her. And she was.
S1: She never knew a man. So when it says he
S1: kept the vow. What happened? Not that he killed her,
S1: but she never knew a man. She never was intimate
S1: with a man. And that's how it was. Okay. How's that?
S1: Does that help at all? Heather?
S4: Pardon me?
S11: It does, because it does help a lot. Because we thought.
S11: How could you make such a vow? You know, who
S11: do you think's going to come out of your house? Yeah, well,
S11: the first thing.
S1: They they did have, uh, they did have, believe it
S1: or not, they had little goats and things like that
S1: that went into the tents. And, uh, so it it it, uh,
S1: I've been in a Bedouin tent, uh, Bedouin encampment, encampment
S1: in the Sinai desert. Uh, and I was amazed, uh,
S1: sitting there with there were these little goats hanging around
S1: with me and, uh, and I'm like, oh, my, this
S1: this is just a different thing than I expected. But
S1: I think that wasn't that different back in the, in
S1: the day, uh, that they actually had little animals within
S1: the tents with them at times. Okay. Okay.
S11: That makes a lot more sense.
S10: Thank you.
S1: Well, thank you so much for your call. I really
S1: appreciate it. And wow, I can't believe it. That's the
S1: program for the week. Thanks everyone for listening. I so
S1: appreciate it. And especially thanks of you. To you who
S1: called or wrote and asked your questions, you make this
S1: program possible. And also thanks to our team there today,
S1: Trish McMillan for producing tiara for answering the phones, Chris,
S1: for doing all that engineering. Chris Seeger, I really appreciate it.
S1: Merle also for learning and being part of that. So
S1: glad for all of you that work on the Open
S1: Line team and all of you who are listening as
S1: part of the team, really appreciate that. Keep in touch
S1: with us by going to our website, Open Line radio.org.
S1: That page is everything you need all the links and
S1: resources you want. Keep reading the Bible. We'll talk about
S1: it next week. Open line with Doctor Michael Ray Dolnick
S1: is a production of Moody Radio, a ministry of Moody
S1: Bible Institute.