S1: Well, do you have a question about the Bible? Do
S1: you ever wonder what we can know and understand about God?
S1: If so, you've come to the right place. Hello, friends.
S1: Welcome to Open Line with Doctor Michael Rydlewicz. He is
S1: moody Bible Institutes Brainiac, and this is Moody Radio's Bible
S1: study across America. He knows his Bible. And when you
S1: want to talk to him, you call our phone number,
S1: which is (877) 548-3675. But of course the voice is not
S1: Doctor Michael Rinderknecht, I'm Mike Fabares, I'm sitting in for
S1: doctor Reed Melnick, who is on Moody Bible Institute's Trip
S1: of Paul's Journeys, which is an amazing trip around the Mediterranean.
S1: And it is a fantastic trip. And yet for doctor, doctor,
S1: doctor Reed Melnick, he's the teacher. So you need to
S1: pray for him. Pray for him this morning because he's
S1: the he's the answer man. He's the instructor. He's the
S1: one who has all the information and he's the one
S1: who makes that trip fantastic. So pray that God would
S1: use him on that trip. He'll be back next week.
S1: But today I'm coming to you live across many of
S1: these stations of Moody Radio, and we are, as he
S1: often says, sitting around the proverbial kitchen table talking about
S1: the Bible. Whatever it is that you might have as
S1: a question regarding the Bible, God, the Christian life, something
S1: you're facing at church, in your family, whatever it is
S1: you want to think biblically about it, I'm going to
S1: do my best to help you. Mike Faber is is
S1: my name. As I said, I am the pastor of
S1: Compass Bible Church in Aliso Viejo, California. All also happened
S1: to be a graduate of Moody Bible Institute way back
S1: in the olden days. We had color photography back then,
S1: but it feels like the black and white days in
S1: my memory. Way back in the 80s, I was there
S1: at Moody Bible Institute, and I'm also one of the
S1: preachers here on Moody Radio. You'll hear me on the
S1: Focal Point radio program. We're shifting around our times just
S1: the last couple of weeks. So look us up on
S1: the Moody radio.org website and you can find out when
S1: we air on your station. I'm the author of several books,
S1: but a couple from Moody Publications. And I'll tell you what,
S1: Moody Publishing is doing a great job in this last
S1: book that I wrote for them is called envy a
S1: Big Problem you didn't Know You had, and I just
S1: wondered why they were bold enough to publish a book
S1: like that. And I'll tell you, I hope it's selling.
S1: I hope someone is buying it. Not because it's about money,
S1: because it isn't about that. It's about getting good materials
S1: in people's hands. But this particular book, I just thought,
S1: who's going to buy a book about sin? But I'll
S1: tell you what, if you're serious about your sanctification, you
S1: want to grow in your Christian life. I'll bet you
S1: haven't given much thought to envy. And if you have,
S1: you certainly need to buy the book. And if you haven't,
S1: we need to see how the insidious nature of envy
S1: kind of creeps into all that is going on in
S1: our lives. Well, anyway, as I said, our phone number
S1: that you can call and you can get on the
S1: air with me today, Mike Faber is sitting in for
S1: Doctor Michael Riedel. Nick, you can ask me a question.
S1: All you have to do is pick up your phones
S1: and call me at 87754836758775483675. Or you could send your
S1: question through our open line website. That's open line radio
S1: dot o r g open line radio.org. No spaces there.
S1: And just find that little form that says ask Michael
S1: a question and you click on that and you can
S1: write in your question to us. That's a great way
S1: to get Ahold of us here. Open line team we've
S1: got can't do this by myself. We've got Tierra who
S1: is our producer. We got Ryan there making all the
S1: dials work, making us sound good. And Anthony is the
S1: one you're going to talk to when you call us
S1: at 877548, three six, seven five. And he'll get some
S1: information for you, and he'll put you here on this
S1: board and we will get to questions. So I hope
S1: you've got, as doctor Ray Delic likes to say, your
S1: cup of coffee or your orange juice or your cornflakes
S1: or whatever it is you do in the morning to
S1: get your Saturday going and your Bible. That would be good,
S1: because we're going to study God's Word together and we're
S1: just going to go straight to the phone. So let's
S1: go to Dan in Scottsdale, Arizona, uh, listening on Wmbi online,
S1: which is awesome, which you can always do. You can
S1: always listen to Moody through the website. But Dan, today
S1: you're on the air with Mike Fabares. How can I help?
S2: Okay. My question is, what does our daily bread mean? Well,
S2: I thought it was three different things, like our food,
S2: our money, and the word of God.
S1: Okay, well, it can mean several things. I think when
S1: Jesus is teaching us to pray there in Matthew six,
S1: he's asking us to be reliant on God for all
S1: that we have. Right? As James chapter one says, every
S1: good thing. It comes from God. God is the giver
S1: of all good things. I think of John the Baptist,
S1: who says, a person can't receive even one thing unless
S1: it's given to him from heaven. John 327 and so
S1: when Jesus says, give that we're supposed to pray, here's
S1: the model prayer. Give us this day our daily bread.
S1: He's wanting us in our prayer life to be asking God,
S1: showing our reliance upon God by asking for our daily provision.
S1: And of course, we need more than bread, right? But
S1: I do think that idea is we need whatever we
S1: need right to get through our day. We need to
S1: be asking the Lord for it. As one pastor once said,
S1: you know what? If we only had the things we
S1: asked for? We need to be thinking about our prayer
S1: life regarding our daily provisions. Now it's used elsewhere. Of course,
S1: Jesus calls himself the Bread of life, and He Himself
S1: is our sustenance eternally. And so it can mean several things.
S1: But in the context of when we normally quote it
S1: daily bread, which is it's used in Matthew six and
S1: Luke 11 to describe our prayer life. It's just, it's
S1: it's just referring to our daily provisions. Dan, does that
S1: help you? I mean, there are several things that can mean.
S1: I mean, you and I can say we need the
S1: Word of God and it is like food to us.
S1: As Peter said, it's like our it's like a baby
S1: longing for milk. So I understand that it can be
S1: applied in different ways. But the phrase in the Bible,
S1: Daily Bread, which occurs one time, as I recall it,
S1: is all about our daily provisions. And we're supposed to
S1: be praying for that and showing our reliance upon the
S1: Lord because he's the giver of all good things. Dan,
S1: does that help?
S2: Thank you.
S1: Okay. All right. Let's go to Charlene now in Mississippi.
S1: You're on the air with Mike Fabares. How can I help?
S3: Thank you. I have a question concerning John. Chapter one,
S3: verse one. In the beginning was the word, and the
S3: word was with God, and the word was God. Please
S3: focus on the phrase. The word was God. What does
S3: that mean in the Greek? And what does that mean?
S1: Well, the word, if you look down in this passage
S1: in verse 14, it says, the word became flesh and
S1: dwelt among us. We have seen his glory, the glory
S1: of the only son from the father, full of grace
S1: and truth. So first we have to define what the
S1: word is, which in context is defined as God's Son,
S1: the second person of the Triune Godhead. And in the
S1: beginning of this, this prologue, here, it speaks of the word,
S1: the second person of the Godhead as being in the beginning,
S1: which is the idea of of an eternal God. I mean,
S1: that's what the word Yahweh, the proper name of God, means.
S1: He is the I am, he was, he is, he
S1: is to come. So the word right is defined that way.
S1: He was in the beginning. The word was with God.
S1: He's always been in fellowship with the triunity of God
S1: and the word. Of course, the second person of the Godhead.
S1: Though it was hard to see when he became flesh
S1: and dwelt among us, was in fact God in human form.
S1: As Paul said in Colossians, the fullness of deity dwelt
S1: in bodily form. So that's why I think that phrase
S1: is important. The word was God. And that's what we're
S1: just saying in a very poetic way. And of course,
S1: there are some Hellenistic and Greek philosophical overtones to the
S1: concept of word and a lot of commentaries. We'll talk
S1: about that. But the idea in this passage, as God
S1: is communicating to us, as it says in Hebrews chapter one,
S1: he's spoken in many portions in many ways throughout the
S1: Old Testament. But in these last days he has spoken
S1: to us in his Son. And as he comes early
S1: on and says, this is my beloved son, hear him,
S1: listen to him. So we're supposed to learn from the
S1: Lord Jesus Christ, who is eventually, obviously going to die
S1: on a cross three and a half years after his
S1: public ministry begins, and he is going to take away
S1: our sin. But this is trying to establish him as
S1: eternally existing, eternally existing in fellowship with God, right? He
S1: is God. That's how that last line is stated that
S1: he is God, that he is equal to co-equal. We
S1: say in theology to God. So in the beginning was
S1: the word. The word was with God, and the word
S1: was God. Are you still there?
S3: Oh, yes, I was listening. Okay, okay. Because I have
S3: friends that said in the beginning was the word, and
S3: the word was with God. It says, ho theos the God.
S3: And then when it says the word was God, it's
S3: just does not have a definite article in front of
S3: the word God. So I wanted to know what was
S3: the difference between putting a definite article before the word
S3: God and not having a definite article before the word God.
S1: Okay, if you look at the last penultimate word, the
S1: second to last word in verse one, the word was,
S1: do you see that there the past tense of the
S1: verb to be? When you have the verb to be
S1: in the Greek language, and anybody can tell you this,
S1: they take first year Greek grammar. You have to decide
S1: in in a sentence, syntactically, grammatically, what is the subject
S1: and what is the object. And to do that, to differentiate,
S1: you use what's called an anaethetus noun. And that's what's
S1: being said here. Is that the the object right is
S1: now without a, um, an article. So when it says
S1: the word was God, right? The word gets the article
S1: because it's trying to say it's not. God was the word.
S1: We wouldn't know how to say it. Because like when
S1: you answer the phone and they say, is this Charlene?
S1: And you say, it is me, that's not good English,
S1: you should say it is I, because the case of
S1: the noun is supposed to be in the subject case
S1: with the verb to be. It's like an equal sign. Well,
S1: if we don't know what the subject is, Greek distinguishes
S1: the two by putting the article in front of it.
S1: So the word right gets the article because it's showing
S1: that it is in the subject case, and because the
S1: object has to be in the subject case. In this case,
S1: Theos has to be in the subject case, it does
S1: not get the article. And I can just show you
S1: throughout the book of John there are several times the
S1: word theos for various grammatical reasons. There's about six different
S1: reasons that you don't have the article. You have an
S1: antithesis word theos. And clearly we're talking about the one
S1: and only God. We're not talking about gods. There's no
S1: mention of the plurality of a bunch of gods here
S1: in the book of John. There's obviously one theology in
S1: John that there's one God. So this is a grammatical feature,
S1: and it indicates what how you're supposed to read the sentence.
S1: We wouldn't know how to read the sentence in Greek
S1: unless you had an article in front of one of
S1: those two nouns, because they're supposed to be both of
S1: them in the subject case, and because in English we
S1: can just put the first one in the sentence to
S1: say which one is the subject. Greek does not work
S1: that way. Greek is not about word order as much
S1: as it's about showing us by the case of the
S1: noun where it belongs in the sentence. Now that may
S1: sound technical, and I understand that that's a little technical,
S1: but that's the answer. And a Jehovah Witness with a
S1: New World translation is going to say, no, this is
S1: the word. Jesus was just one of the gods. He
S1: wasn't really equal to God. Well, the whole book is
S1: about Jesus being equal to God. That's what it's all about.
S1: The son, though he didn't look like the second person
S1: of the Godhead because he's in humility, taking on human
S1: flesh so that he might represent us on the cross.
S1: He certainly was. And everything about the Bible is consistent
S1: in saying Jesus is co-equal with the Eternal Father and
S1: he was God. So I know you've heard that, and
S1: I know Jehovah's Witnesses will come to your door and
S1: tell you that. But unfortunately, even the guys that translated
S1: for the Jehovah's Witnesses, the New World Translation, they did
S1: not study Greek. They were two out of the three.
S1: I don't I don't even think took Greek classes. One
S1: took like an introductory class, and I think one of
S1: them bombed out of school. I forget, but they don't
S1: know the language. And so we trust the people that
S1: know the language. And I think anybody, after at least
S1: two semesters of Koine Greek or first century Greek, they're
S1: going to tell you, of course, we don't have an
S1: article in front of God, but it doesn't mean that
S1: we're supposed to read it as a plural. Does that help? Charlene?
S3: Oh, yes. Yes, it helps me to understand that, um,
S3: it's almost the now becomes almost an adjective. It describes
S3: what the word is. Correct. Right? Totally. God, he's totally godlike.
S3: He's fully God because God is saying to us without
S3: the article is describing exactly who the word is.
S1: Correct. And if we didn't have if we had two,
S1: which is against the rules of Greek grammar, if we
S1: had two articles, if it said the word and the god,
S1: we wouldn't know which one is supposed to be in
S1: the subject case in this phrase. And so that's why
S1: we have to have an article. And again, if you
S1: if you went through this and opened a Greek New Testament,
S1: you'd see there are plenty examples of an an arthurus
S1: or a word theos without the article. And so that's
S1: not unusual because there are several rules of grammar where
S1: you do not put it in and it doesn't make
S1: it a plural. Okay, I hope that helps. Thank you
S1: so much for the call. And the number is (877) 548-3675.
S1: And I hate to say, but I've lost connection here
S1: with the studio, so I'm running blind. But if you've
S1: got a call for me there, Anthony, and to hear a,
S1: I guess we'll go to break. Let's do that and
S1: we can fix our computer problems and we can make
S1: the rest of this show happened. I'm Mike Faber, sitting
S1: in for Doctor Michael Riedel. You're listening to Open Line
S1: on Moody Radio. The number (877) 548-3675. We'll be back right
S1: after this.
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S1: Well, welcome back to Open Line with Doctor Michael Riedel.
S1: I'm Mike Faber is sitting in and at that first
S1: answer sounded too technical. Don't worry. If your question is simple,
S1: I'd love to take it. I'd love to have you
S1: give us a call at (877) 548-3675, and we'll take your question.
S1: Let's get back to calls. Now, Robert, you're on the
S1: air with Mike Faber. How can I help?
S5: Hey. Howdy. Hey, my my question won't be as technical
S5: as the last one, but.
S1: Okay. All right. What you.
S5: Got? You know, um, uh, it seems like an apparent inconsistency.
S5: Reading revelation today, which I read 100,000 times, probably just
S5: popped out to me. Um, in the 14th chapter, 15
S5: through 17, John is talking about seeing an angel that, um,
S5: comes out of the temple, and he's saying various things.
S5: I think telling another angel to put the sickle into
S5: the earth. But then I remembered, I go over to
S5: revelation 21, it's 2122 where John says, there is no
S5: temple right in heaven, that God is the because of God.
S5: You don't really need an actual temple, so it seems
S5: like a bit of an inconsistency there. What do you think?
S6: Well, it's a.
S1: Play on words because in chapter 21, well, let's just
S1: go back to the concept of temple. Even in the
S1: book of Hebrews, the idea of an earthly temple like
S1: Solomon's temple or the tabernacle that Moses had built before
S1: that this is simply a representation of the heavenly realm.
S1: And the book of Hebrews talks about that. It's a
S1: reflection of the heavenly, the temple, the place where God lives. Okay.
S1: Now in revelation 21, we've gone through chapters six through
S1: 19 where all this is playing out on earth, and
S1: this discussion about this heavenly temple here, angel coming out.
S1: That's fine. A temple in heaven. But here it says
S1: in verse two, the holy city, the New Jerusalem, coming
S1: down out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for
S1: her husband. Here it comes, the ultimate dwelling place of
S1: the righteous of those who have been made and declared
S1: righteous by Christ. I heard a loud voice from the
S1: throne saying, behold, here's the key phrase the dwelling place
S1: of God is with man, okay? He will dwell with them,
S1: and they will be his people, and God himself will
S1: be with them as their God. That idea right there,
S1: the concept of God dwelling. I mean, you can just
S1: equate that with the temple. God's dwelling place is the
S1: temple in heaven, right? That's where God is in the
S1: earthly construction of a building was an example of that.
S1: Here is where a representation in Solomon knew God wasn't
S1: going to live there, right? God, you know, too big.
S1: You can't contain him in a building. But here's a
S1: picture of the heavenly abode of God on earth in Jerusalem.
S1: But now the dwelling place, the temple of God, is
S1: with man. The temple right where he dwells is here
S1: among them. So yes, there's no temple anymore, because God
S1: has come down to dwell with us on the new earth.
S1: And that city is itself because it's described as a cube.
S1: Later in this chapter, we understand that that is the
S1: representation of the cubed shape Holy of Holies. The very
S1: presence of God will be on earth and dwell among us.
S1: So the idea is it's sort of a play on
S1: words to say there's no temple because the temple becomes earth.
S1: Earth is where God is, and God is living here
S1: now on earth with us. And I would say, though,
S1: there's some debate about this, I would say specifically in
S1: the person of the glorified Lord Jesus Christ, the the
S1: glorified Christ that is seen by John on the island
S1: of Patmos in that vision in chapter one is the
S1: glorified state, not the humbled state of Jesus in his incarnation,
S1: but his glorified state, where we're going to have this
S1: beaming Christ, that's going to be the sunlight and the
S1: light of the whole world, and that one is going
S1: to live in the middle of this cube shaped city,
S1: which is the temple that now becomes the dwelling place
S1: and the jewel of the of the key capital city
S1: of the New Earth. So that's what's happening there in
S1: revelation 21. And that's why the temple ceases to be,
S1: because we don't need it anymore. God is going to
S1: live among men. And that's the great thing. No mediatorial
S1: work of a building or a priest, or in our case,
S1: as we look long distance, as Paul said through a
S1: glass dimly. Right, we're going to we're going to be
S1: face to face with him. And that's the reality of
S1: the temple coming to Earth. Does that help Robert?
S5: Maybe, maybe, maybe if I have thought it out a
S5: little bit further, I might have come to that. Yeah
S5: I see. Yeah. Right after I asked the question, I
S5: was thinking it could be talking about two different, uh,
S5: times or places. But, you know, in that, in that
S5: chapter 14, though, 214 revelation, it talks about those that, uh,
S5: have accepted the, the mark of the beast. They'll be
S5: tormented in hell, I guess. And and the holy angels
S5: and the lamb will watch that I think didn't seem
S5: like that. Something you would want to watch? Or be
S5: party to you their.
S1: Tribulation ever to come on the earth. That's what's going
S1: on there. In chapter 14. We still have heaven operational
S1: and often depicted as the dwelling place of God, being
S1: a heavenly temple, a spiritual temple. So that's what's going
S1: on there. Robert. Sorry we lost you. Call us back.
S1: We can finish that conversation if we can get you in.
S1: Let's go to Joy now on line four from Florida. Welcome, Joy.
S1: How can I help? You're on with Mike Fabares.
S7: Hi. I was in a Bible study this week, and
S7: one of the members in the study said that the
S7: Holy Spirit created the heavens and the earth. And I
S7: was like, wait a minute. I thought it was God.
S7: I mean, I understand the Trinity, but she's specifically dogmatically
S7: stated that. And I was like, where is that in Scripture?
S7: So that's my question. Okay.
S1: Chapter one of Genesis verse number two. Okay. God creates
S1: as a statement here in verse number one, God has
S1: created the heavens and the earth. And it says, the
S1: earth was without form and void, and darkness was over
S1: the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God
S1: was hovering over the face of the waters. And so
S1: this is the picture of the Holy Spirit kind of
S1: being the actual applied work of God on earth to
S1: make this happen. Now, all the members of the Trinity
S1: are described as being a part of creation. Think again
S1: of the passage we started the program with in John
S1: chapter one. We quoted verse one, but verse three says,
S1: all things were made through him the word. And without
S1: him without the word, without Jesus is not anything was
S1: made that has been made. Okay, so Jesus is an
S1: agent of creation. The Holy Spirit seems to be the
S1: application of God's creative work, and the father is the
S1: architect of creation. So we have in Scripture all three
S1: members of the Godhead involved in the creative act. And
S1: I think the tip comes from chapter one, verse two
S1: of Genesis, that the Spirit of God was over all
S1: of this when all these things started to be, there
S1: was an expanse, right of the atmosphere and the waters
S1: and the earth and all these things happened. And he's
S1: like the tool that God uses here. And again, he
S1: didn't need to do this. He could speak a word
S1: and it all just happens. But he does this to
S1: show us. We learn in the Mosaic Law, a pattern
S1: of work and rest, which we'd have no indication of
S1: unless God had made the world in six days and then,
S1: quote unquote, rested on the seventh. So God is showing
S1: us a form of working, creativity, exercising dominion, being productive,
S1: being creative, all those things God is doing by using
S1: all members of the Godhead father, architect, son, agent of creation,
S1: and then the spirit, the application of the work of
S1: building the world. All of that, I believe, is the
S1: separation of of tasks and the division of labor in
S1: the creative act so that God could then say to mankind,
S1: work for six days, make sure your body rests on
S1: the seventh. Later becomes in the Mosaic Law, a sign
S1: of the covenant between Israel and God. But here at
S1: the very beginning, it's just a pattern of knowing your
S1: batteries are going to run down after six days of work.
S1: You better rest on on a seventh day. You better
S1: have a pattern of work and rest. So I think
S1: that's where it comes from. Genesis chapter one, verse two,
S1: that the Spirit of God is involved in creation, and
S1: we know the son was involved as well as Colossians
S1: chapter one says, and Hebrews chapter one, and John chapter one.
S1: So Jesus is a creator in the sense that he
S1: is somehow this is how we like to say it
S1: in theology, the agent of creation, right? He's giving life
S1: to human beings, as it says in verse four of
S1: John one in him was the life, and that life
S1: was the light of men. So he comes and brings life.
S1: He breathes life into man. It says, God does that,
S1: but it's actually specifically the son who is providing this
S1: life to human beings. So all three persons of the Godhead.
S1: And Genesis one two is our key. Does that help Joy?
S7: Well, it does, but I'm still thinking, wait a minute.
S7: Did you say at any point that he was the creator? Well,
S7: he's involved. He was. He was the application of it.
S1: Yes. That's what I believe, the application of it. Because
S1: God is credited with creation. And God, you have to remember,
S1: is a triune being, right? He's a triune, triune being. Right.
S1: He's father, son, and Holy Spirit. So we know in
S1: shorthand we can say things like Hebrews chapter three, verse four.
S1: Every house is built by someone, and the builder of
S1: all things is God. So we know that God, the
S1: Triune God, is the builder of all things. But we
S1: learn in Scripture that the spirit had some work in
S1: it as he hovered over the face of the waters. Right.
S1: That's on earth. That's not in heaven. So the spirit
S1: was dispatched to this creative work of time and space,
S1: and somehow this, this sentient third person of the Godhead
S1: gets involved in it. The extent of that, I don't know.
S1: And even the relation between the members of the Trinity
S1: is debated. But we know the Holy Spirit was involved,
S1: the son was involved, and the father, of course, is
S1: clearly involved. And all three together, we can say in shorthand,
S1: God made the world so we can say the Holy
S1: Spirit is the creator. But I think we need to
S1: be more specific. And I said, he's the application of
S1: God's creative work in building the world in six days.
S1: So that's how I would put it. And that's just
S1: more of a careful statement. A more loose statement would say,
S1: I could say Jesus made the world. And that's true, right?
S1: But he's the agent of creation. Father is the architect
S1: of creation. The spirit is the application of God's creative work.
S1: And I hope that helps. Joy, that is complicated. But
S1: that's the way God is. It complicated being, that is
S1: for sure. I'm Doctor Mike Favara, sitting in for Doctor
S1: Michael Wright Melnick here on Moody Radio. We've got a
S1: great producer. Tegyra is making sure it all works. She's
S1: going to bring in the mailbag in a few minutes,
S1: and you're listening to Open Line on Moody Radio, and
S1: we'll be back right after this.
S4: We're so glad that Febc partners with Open Line with
S4: Doctor Michael Radonich, bringing the Febc mailbag every week. Learn
S4: how Far East Broadcasting Company is taking Christ to the
S4: world at febc. Org on their weekly podcast. Until all
S4: have heard with Ed Cannon, you'll hear stories of lives
S4: changed by Messiah all across the globe. Again, you can
S4: hear the podcast when you visit Dawg. That's fake dawg.
S1: Welcome back to Open Line. I'm doctor Mike Faber as
S1: I'm filling in for Doctor Michael Riedel today. He's out
S1: in the Mediterranean somewhere teaching about Paul's missionary journeys. What
S1: a great trip that must be. But we are in
S1: the mailbag segment. That's when we answer questions that you've
S1: sent us through the website. And joining me today. Tierra,
S1: how are you? It's mailbag time. Are you ready?
S8: I am doing very well, thank you. And yes, I
S8: am ready for the mailbag. How are you today, Mike?
S1: I'm doing okay. Yeah, I'm doing just fine. Great. I'm
S1: assuming our mailbag is full. We've got a lot of
S1: lot of questions. I'm assuming we.
S8: Do. We do. And we'll jump right in with Carlos
S8: from Florida. And Carlos tells us that he has accepted
S8: Jesus as his Lord and Savior, but he wants to
S8: know what will God judge us on on the day
S8: of judgment?
S6: Well, yeah.
S1: There are definitely two primary judgments that we should think about.
S1: One is the great White Throne judgment, and that is
S1: for non-Christians in revelation chapter 20. So if you have
S1: put your trust in Jesus Christ, if you're one of his.
S1: Right now you are a follower of Christ. You've repented
S1: of your sins. You've put your trust in Jesus. The
S1: good news is you don't have to be in that line.
S1: Anyone whose name is not written in the Lamb's Book
S1: of Life, it says, is in that line to be
S1: judged according to what they've done, according to what they knew,
S1: according to the responsibility they had. And so everyone's going
S1: to have a different judgment. But thank God, praise be
S1: to God that we will not be in that line.
S1: Romans chapter eight, verse one. There's no condemnation for those
S1: in Christ Jesus. And that line is for condemnation. So
S1: no great white throne. But there's another throne. It's the
S1: throne of Christ. It's called the Bema Seat of Christ
S1: in second Corinthians 510 and it says, we all must
S1: appear before the judgment seat of Christ. Now that particular
S1: picture is about us as Christians living out our Christian
S1: life and as it's put in first Corinthians three. Our decisions,
S1: our choices, our investment, our stewardship, our faithfulness. How we
S1: lived out our Christian life based on what the Lord
S1: has put before us in terms of talent and opportunity.
S1: All of that is going to be judged, and it's
S1: either going to be considered by Jesus Christ gold, silver
S1: and precious stones, something he thinks is laudable and affordable
S1: and something he is going to praise his servants for,
S1: or things that are wood, hay and straw, and those
S1: things are going to be burned up, they won't matter.
S1: So if you've lived your Christian life, say, for ten years,
S1: let's just think about that, right? Say, Carlos, you're living
S1: there in Florida and you've been a Christian for ten years, right?
S1: You may be doing several laudable things serving the Lord
S1: at your job, representing Christ, being salt and light in
S1: your neighborhood, maybe a church you're serving there faithfully. All
S1: those things are going to be rewarded. But maybe the
S1: things you've done that you think, oh, that was not good.
S1: I shouldn't have done that. I shouldn't have been involved
S1: in that. That was not appropriate for me as a
S1: child who got all those things, they're going to be
S1: burned up. They will not be a part of your judgment.
S1: And what we want is we want to hear well done,
S1: good and faithful servant. So we want to live faithfully
S1: and God is going to reward us accordingly. Some people
S1: think that we're going to get to heaven and everyone's
S1: going to have the same response from Jesus. But that's
S1: not true. Not all of us are going to hear,
S1: well done. Some of us are going to get perhaps
S1: a that was okay, and some of us are going
S1: to get man, that wasn't very good at all. And
S1: yet you trusted in me and come on in. All
S1: of us are going to bear fruit. But the question is,
S1: is it 30 fold, 60 fold or 100 fold? And
S1: we're going to be rewarded accordingly. So the word judgment
S1: is used in both. One is the judgment that you
S1: might consider a criminal getting, and the other is someone
S1: who might have made a chili for the county fair.
S1: And what kind of judgment is he going to have? Well,
S1: it's going to be based on rewards. And the better
S1: the pot of chili, right? The greater the reward. So
S1: we want to live our Christian lives as good stewards. Tiara.
S1: That's what it's all about.
S8: That is a wonderful answer, Mike. thank you for that.
S8: And yes, we do all want to hear well done,
S8: good and faithful servant. Thank you. And I also have
S8: just a brief announcement. Moody Bible Institute and Chosen People
S8: Ministries is going to present a summit on opposing anti-Semitism,
S8: and that is going to be held right here on
S8: the Moody Bible Institute campus in Chicago on Saturday, November 9th, 2024.
S8: You can get more information on our website. Open Line radio.org.
S8: Thank you.
S1: Let me just say a word about that. Teairra. You know,
S1: there's no room for anti-Semitism among Christians, right? The Jewish people,
S1: though they are, as Romans 11 says, if they reject Christ,
S1: they may be enemies of the gospel. Right? But as
S1: it regards God's promise, his election, his covenant, they're beloved
S1: for the sake of the forefathers and the gifts and
S1: callings of God. It says there in that passage they're irrevocable,
S1: and one day they're going to be grafted back in
S1: to the great work of God through Jesus Christ. And
S1: it says in the last generation we're going to see
S1: a massive revival of of Jewish people coming to faith
S1: in Christ. So we know that they are a friend
S1: of God in the sense that they are God's chosen nation.
S1: And they threw that nation, have provided us Jesus Christ, right?
S1: We all trust in Him as Gentiles. But here's the
S1: good news, right? One day, even though they're resistant to
S1: the gospel, many of them now we're going to see
S1: the last generation turning to Christ. And we always, whoever's
S1: a friend of God ought to be a friend of ours.
S1: So that's an important reminder. And what a great conference
S1: this is going to be. And I know if Doctor
S1: Michael Riedel is a part of it, it's going to
S1: be great.
S8: Thank you. Yes, he is, along with doctor Mark Jobe
S8: and Carl Claussen and so many other gifted speakers. Thank you.
S8: And we'll go back to the mailbag. We have another
S8: question from Robin in Ohio who listens on Wtxf. Her
S8: question is my my husband told me Christ had a
S8: tattoo on his thigh based on revelations 1916. Is this
S8: a tattoo?
S6: Well, I don't know that.
S1: It's a tattoo, but it's certainly our words that are
S1: written right. King of kings and Lord of Lords. So
S1: it says it's written on his thigh. I don't know
S1: if there is. I always picture, like the motorcycle riders,
S1: you know, the old in the old days, the and
S1: probably still today, the motocross riders there in the dirt.
S1: They always have their their team name or some kind
S1: of advertisement there on the leathers of their thigh, and
S1: they can see it as they're seated on that motorcycle. Well,
S1: here he's pictured as mounted on this horse and it
S1: says there is written King of kings and Lord of Lords.
S1: I don't know that that's a tattoo, but I know
S1: that it's written there for them to read in that
S1: scene at the battle of Armageddon in Revelation 19. So
S1: I think we're left to see it, and it's going
S1: to be able we'll be able to see it. We're
S1: going to come back with him that day, and we'll
S1: be able to know whether that's some kind of permanent
S1: inscription or whether that's part of the clothing that he's wearing.
S1: But I can't tell you definitively unfortunately. But a great passage.
S8: Thank you for that response. And lastly, we have Pamela
S8: from Ohio who listens on Wtxf. Psalm 37 four says,
S8: take delight in the Lord, and he will give you
S8: the desires of your heart. Does this mean the Lord
S8: will give you what you want? Related to the desires
S8: of your heart, desires that you already have, or that
S8: he will implant the possibly new desires that you should
S8: have in your heart?
S6: What a great.
S1: Question, because some people do quote Psalm 37 four and
S1: they think, well, you know what? If I just pray
S1: to the Lord and kind of am happy with him,
S1: then whatever I want, I want to be the the
S1: best baseball player in the world. Well, then God's going
S1: to give me that, because that's my desire. I don't
S1: think that's what it's saying. So I think just as
S1: she said, as Pamela said, when you look at your
S1: heart as a Christian, you know this as you're following
S1: the Lord. God is implanting in your heart all kinds
S1: of desires that are good and some of my desires
S1: right to be the best salesman at the job, or,
S1: you know, to get promotions or to have a raise
S1: at work or to somehow have drive some really nice car.
S1: It may not be that God's will is that I'm,
S1: you know, I'm the best baseball player in the league, right?
S1: It may be that I just learn to be who
S1: God has made me to be. So what God is
S1: going to do, I think, is change our hearts. And
S1: I think prayer in general does that drawing near to
S1: the Lord does that. And Psalm 37 four says, here's
S1: the thing you should do. Delight yourself in the Lord.
S1: And in the end, I think what you'll realize is
S1: that the things that you desire as you walk with him, right?
S1: You're going to see those given to you. Well, the
S1: desires are given, and also the granting of those desires
S1: is given are given. Think of Paul in Second Corinthians
S1: chapter 12. Right. He had this thorn in the flesh,
S1: he calls it, but it was a chronic illness of
S1: some kind. Well, he prayed, he said he earnestly prayed
S1: that God would take it away. So that was his desire.
S1: Did God give him that? No. Did he delight in
S1: the Lord? Yes. But then God changed his heart and
S1: gave him. Think about this now. Gave him the ability
S1: to say with contentment, right? God's grace is sufficient. I'll
S1: delight in this now. I'll delight in weakness in this
S1: chronic illness that I have, because I know I can
S1: do all things through Christ who strengthens me. I know
S1: that God will get me through this life and use
S1: it for good. So God had to change his desire
S1: and then he was okay with that. Not only okay,
S1: he said, I'll delight in it, I'll boast in it.
S1: So I think delighting yourself in the Lord is the
S1: key thing we can hold tightly on to. And then saying, God,
S1: give me the right desires and then grant those desires.
S1: But sometimes our desires need to change.
S8: That's very good. Thank you. So we are shaped and
S8: molded to be more like Christ. And as that happens,
S8: our desires change to represent who he is and what
S8: he's doing in our lives. That's right, that's right.
S6: Well, that was.
S1: That was the mailbag. Today, when we have run out
S1: of time, that sure went fast. But I appreciate it. Teairra,
S1: that's a great thing for you to write in to us.
S1: If you do have a question, you can go to
S1: our website and see that. Openline. Org, this is Moody Radio.
S1: The numbers (877) 548-3675. That's the number to call after the break.
S1: And we're going to have a great time with more
S1: of your questions coming up right after this.
S4: When autumn rolls around, people are always interested in the
S4: Jewish fall holy days. That's why Chosen People Ministries is
S4: offering a free booklet, Celebrate Israel's High Holidays. This booklet
S4: explores the fall Jewish high holidays of Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur,
S4: and Sukkot. Don't miss out, just go to the Open
S4: Line website. Open line radio.org. Scroll down and click on
S4: the link that says A free gift from Chosen People
S4: Ministries that will take you to a page where you
S4: can sign up for your very own copy of Celebrate
S4: Israel's High Holidays.
S1: Welcome back to Open Line. My name is Mike Fabares.
S1: I'm the pastor of Compass Bible Church in Aliso Viejo. Also,
S1: the voice you hear on Focalpoint radio here on Moody Network.
S1: And I'm filling in for Doctor Michael Readerlink, who's out
S1: teaching all about the book of acts on the Mediterranean.
S1: And he's helping people understand the geography and the reality
S1: of the historicity of the book of acts in the Bible.
S1: What a great trip. What a privilege for those that
S1: are on it. I'm so glad to be sitting in
S1: and filling in for Doctor Michael Riedel. Nick, if you
S1: have a question about the Bible or the Christian life,
S1: give me a call (877) 548-3675. We've got tons of questions
S1: here lined up. So let's go to line six. Gary,
S1: you're on the air with Mike Fabares. How can I help?
S6: Hi, Mike. I just want.
S9: To say I love the show.
S6: Oh, good. Fantastic.
S9: My question my question is, I. I just found out
S9: the other day that my brother doesn't believe there's a heaven. Now.
S9: I think he believes in God, but I don't think
S9: he doesn't believe that there's a heaven. How can I
S9: convince him that there is one?
S6: Wow, that is.
S1: A good question. And you know, when it comes to
S1: the question of the afterlife, I think what we have
S1: to remember is that God is a God who has
S1: always implanted within the heart a stamp of eternity. And
S1: we've got to remember that, and we've got to remember
S1: that God has always left himself a witness in the
S1: reality of who we are as human beings. And in fact,
S1: we should be telling people that if we read the
S1: Word of God, we can see in it so many
S1: things that comport with what we what we understand. Can
S1: you hear me? You're still there.
S9: I can hear you.
S6: Okay.
S9: My brother's right here with me, too. Oh.
S6: Okay. Yeah, well, we'll put.
S1: You want to put him on for a second? Let
S1: me ask him a couple of questions.
S9: Yeah, he's right here.
S6: Okay. Hey, tell tell.
S1: Tell me why it is that you doubt what God's
S1: Word says about the afterlife. Why would you doubt what
S1: what the Lord tells us?
S6: I have a core belief system that's based on something
S6: I see, smell, touch or feel. And just because somebody
S6: tells me something doesn't necessarily make me believe it.
S1: Okay, but you believe in justice. Right? You do believe
S1: in justice, and you can't see that there's nothing tangible.
S1: You can't see it. You can't. Your five senses can't
S1: see justice.
S6: As far as. What do you mean?
S1: Well, if someone does something, someone steals your car today, right?
S1: You think there should be justice, right? If he says,
S1: I got your car, I'm going to keep it. Your
S1: sense of justice would be. I think that there should
S1: be some penalty for that. And he'd say, no, I
S1: got away with it. I took your car. It's fine.
S1: There's no justice. And when you call the cops, you
S1: want them to do what is just. Well, that's not
S1: a thing, right? There's nothing temporal about it. There's nothing
S1: you can taste, touch, smell. You just can't. Right. This is.
S1: This is a concept and the concept of justice or
S1: love or any number of things. The virtues that I
S1: think all of us know are true. They come from
S1: the invisible God who's created us in his image. And
S1: those are the kinds of things that you insist upon,
S1: but you insist upon them without seeing any of them. Right?
S1: You understand this to be a reality, not because of
S1: anything in the tangible world, but because this is the
S1: way God has made you. And according to Ecclesiastes, God
S1: says he's also made you to put this eternity, this
S1: sense of eternity in your heart. And so there are
S1: realities that we want to deny because we think they're irrelevant.
S1: I don't want to think about the afterlife. It's irrelevant
S1: to my life today. But justice, which is also an
S1: invisible reality. You say, well, I want justice. I'm going
S1: to apply this sense of what fairness is and what
S1: makes sense as a good and rational response. See, in
S1: the jungle, the the monkeys, you know, the giraffes, the gorillas, whatever.
S1: They don't have justice. They don't care about justice. It's
S1: dog eat dog out there because they're not made in
S1: the image of God. But we believe in concepts of
S1: virtue and beauty and love and justice, and these things
S1: come from us being made in the image of God.
S1: So we have to look to the God who made
S1: us and say, God, tell us about the future, which
S1: may seem irrelevant after we die. And God says it's
S1: not irrelevant because there's two realities you're either going to
S1: be punished for your sins and justice will be held
S1: on you, or you're going to be rewarded, and you're
S1: going to have a reward based on what Jesus Christ
S1: has done for you. So there's a million things if
S1: you start looking in your life. And I would I
S1: would want you to do this. How many things do
S1: you do and insist upon that you can't see, you
S1: can't touch, you can't taste, you can't smell it. These
S1: are realities that all of us live by, and we
S1: insist upon them because we're not a bunch of animals
S1: in the jungle. We're beings made in the image of God.
S1: And we seek these higher ideals that are not subject
S1: to the natural world, but we insist upon them because
S1: they have bearing on our lives. Now, Jesus says, what
S1: has bearing on your life when you die is where
S1: you're going to end up. And there's a heaven and
S1: there's a hell, and you need to understand which one
S1: you need to to be in. Which I think should
S1: be an obvious answer. And the only way to get there,
S1: as it says, as Jesus himself says, who rose from
S1: the dead historically proved inaccurate, is you better put your
S1: trust in me. There's no other name under heaven given
S1: among men by which we must be saved, and you
S1: must be saved, or you're going to incur the judgment
S1: of all of your sins by the God who made you.
S1: And when you say, I shouldn't be judged, he's going
S1: to say, well, you threw your whole life, wanted people
S1: to be judged when they did, what was wrong? And
S1: you thought this wasn't a real reality for the afterlife.
S1: I also told you about the afterlife, that death wasn't
S1: the end of your existence. It's just the end of
S1: your time here on this planet. When I gave you
S1: time to repent of your sins and put your trust
S1: in me. So I would encourage you to read the
S1: Bible and look very carefully at yourself, and to know
S1: that you do not operate just on what you can touch, taste,
S1: feel and hear. There's plenty of things that you are
S1: expecting because you're a civilized human being made in the
S1: image of God and to say, well, we just evolved
S1: into that. I'm going to say, well, where did we
S1: get all that? Where did we get all of these
S1: things that are what we call in philosophy and in theology,
S1: things that are transcendent. They transcend the natural world, and
S1: these are the things we look to in God's Word.
S1: He reveals to us and tells us where they come from.
S1: And he says, one day you'll answer to me. So
S1: I'd ask you please, to look very carefully at your
S1: own life. If you live just by your five senses, right,
S1: then we would be living in a jungle. And unfortunately,
S1: some people are wanting to live that way. And that's
S1: what's making our cities and streets so uninhabitable. But that
S1: is not the way God made us to live. And
S1: the Bible is going to give us a roadmap. Any
S1: last word on that before I let you go?
S9: Uh, no thank you. That was very helpful.
S6: Okay. Well, I.
S1: Hope it does. And I think all of us need
S1: to consider eternity. We can't just think about the here
S1: and now. It's like people that just think about today,
S1: they don't think about the future in this life. Well,
S1: think about the ultimate future. What happens when your life
S1: is over? You breathe your last and your spirit escapes
S1: your body. Your body ceases to be animated. Right. Think
S1: about that. You want to talk about scientific? Let's put
S1: a body under a microscope and say, okay, here is
S1: a body. All the cells are there, right? It's supposed
S1: to be alive, but it ceases to be alive. What
S1: is life itself, even that principle of life? Even the atheists,
S1: like Dennett tried to work hard to say, well, what
S1: is the idea of human consciousness? And he couldn't describe it.
S1: He tried hard to describe it. And most people come
S1: to a dead end. What's the difference between a living
S1: body and a dead body? Well, life. Well, what is life?
S1: What is the principle of life? What is it? We
S1: don't even know what it is because it is not
S1: of the five senses. And so I could go on,
S1: but I certainly want to refire my computers here, because
S1: I've got a break and I need a break here
S1: at this point to refire, unless you got a call
S1: for me because I'm running blind. All my system is
S1: down here. Okay. Let's go. John, in line ten, I
S1: can't see, but I'll trust you'll tell me when the
S1: break is coming up. John, let's talk to you. You're
S1: on the air with Mike Fabares. How can I help?
S10: Hey, Mike Fabares. Everybody there behind the scenes, I love y'all.
S10: It's all so wonderful for me. Uh, God's presence and
S10: just being in a Christian mind. Uh, I'm just so
S10: good thing is just so wonderful that I can hear
S10: God talking through you today. But anyway, my question, uh,
S10: really is, is, is I'd like to pick your brain
S10: to expound on how wonderful it's going to be. Like,
S10: I can't even wrap my mind around it. How heaven. Uh,
S10: Jesus is going to reign. It's just so wonderful. Good
S10: news of how everything turns back and everything as we
S10: know as Christians. But so much is done. He's done
S10: in my life. God's real. He's done wonderful things. Uh,
S10: he can explain everything, uh, all in just the short time.
S10: It's just too wonderful. But the whole heaven how we're
S10: going to be with Jesus. Your perspective, Brandi?
S6: All right. Sure.
S1: Well, we've got a break coming up, but I will
S1: point you not only to revelation 21 and 22, but
S1: after the break, I'm going to talk a little bit
S1: about Isaiah 65. We've got a long break here coming
S1: up because it's at the top of the hour. But
S1: I certainly want you to stay tuned because I'm going
S1: to talk about just exactly John, what you said another
S1: hour of open lines coming up on most of these stations.
S1: You can go to the website. Always hear us there.
S1: Open line radio.org. Open Line Radio with Doctor Michael Riedel
S1: is a production of Moody Radio, which is a ministry
S1: of the Moody Bible Institute. My name is Mike Favara,
S1: sitting in for doctor Ray Dolnick, and I'm going to
S1: be back with you for another hour right after this.