Latest / Disciple Radio / The Land and the Book - The Battle for Heaven and Earth
Transcript
- 0:08S1: He was the most beautiful of all the angels and
- 0:11S1: the most exalted beneath God. Yet at some point he
- 0:14S1: determined to be exalted above God. And that's when the
- 0:17S1: battle began. What was it like when Lucifer fell? Coming up,
- 0:22S1: we'll take a biblical look at the battle for heaven
- 0:24S1: and earth. This is the land and the book with
- 0:27S1: Old Testament scholar and author doctor Charlie Dyer. I'm John Gager.
- 0:31S1: Trust your week's been going well, Charlie.
- 0:32S2: I've had a great week, John. Thanks for asking.
- 0:35S1: All right. Well, this month marks the third anniversary of
- 0:37S1: the October 7th attack on Israel. And these past few
- 0:40S1: years have seen a time of profound grief and hardship
- 0:43S1: for Israelis and Jewish people around the world. In addition
- 0:47S1: to the horrors of October 7th itself, the worldwide rise
- 0:50S1: in anti-Semitism we've been seeing has stunned, saddened all those
- 0:54S1: who love Israel. And as a response, our friends at
- 0:57S1: Life in Messiah have worked on a documentary called Shadows
- 1:00S1: of October Israel Under Siege. The film addresses hard questions
- 1:05S1: like where was God in the events of October 7th?
- 1:08S1: Why is antisemitism rising around the world? And how should
- 1:12S1: we move forward? Powerful testimony from survivors. Expert analysis. The
- 1:17S1: film investigates the events long term impact and spiritual implications
- 1:21S1: of the October 7th, 2023, attack on Israel.
- 1:25S2: Yeah, I've watched the film myself, and Shadows of October
- 1:27S2: forces viewers to confront the reality of anti-Semitism and its
- 1:31S2: impact on the Jewish people following the Hamas attack. You
- 1:35S2: experienced the hatred and the heartache, but also the hope
- 1:38S2: through the eyes of those who were there. The film
- 1:40S2: is currently available on streaming services. For details on how
- 1:44S2: you can watch it or arrange a screening for your church,
- 1:47S2: visit lifeline.org and click on the Moody Radio button. That's
- 1:51S2: life in messiah.org.
- 1:53S1: If you're new to the program, this opening segment is
- 1:56S1: connected with current events from the Middle East, stories that
- 1:59S1: have been unfolding the past few days. One unanticipated outcome
- 2:04S1: of the war in the Middle East has been a
- 2:05S1: revolution in the nature of warfare itself. From drones to
- 2:09S1: robots to artificial intelligence, what impact is all this having
- 2:13S1: on countries both in the Middle East and around the world?
- 2:16S2: Well, the good news, Jon, is that we're nowhere near
- 2:18S2: the droid armies from the Star Wars movies, but the
- 2:21S2: current conflicts have greatly accelerated the development and integration of
- 2:25S2: drones and robots into modern warfare. Drones have gone from
- 2:29S2: mail order cheap quadcopters or, at the other end, expensive,
- 2:33S2: remote controlled mini airplanes to mass produced fiber optic attack drones.
- 2:38S2: Russia launched over 100,000 drones in a single year against Ukraine,
- 2:42S2: and the Israeli Defense Forces are developing a dedicated military
- 2:46S2: branch for artificial intelligence and unmanned systems. Drones can loiter
- 2:51S2: over an area to provide eyes in the sky, launch
- 2:53S2: a missile or conduct its own suicide mission. Countries are
- 2:57S2: still trying to work out how to successfully stop drones,
- 3:00S2: but aerial drones are followed by autonomous, remotely operated ground
- 3:04S2: vehicles that can also perform reconnaissance, haul supplies, evacuate the wounded,
- 3:09S2: and even fight alongside humans. Artificial intelligence will help these
- 3:14S2: unmanned systems separate combatants from non-combatants and friend from foe
- 3:19S2: faster than a human, and they'll be able to plot
- 3:21S2: the best way across a battlefield using GPS, AI, and
- 3:25S2: up to the minute sensor data. Ukraine is now incorporating
- 3:28S2: AI with traditional weapon systems to help shoot down hypersonic
- 3:33S2: Russian drones. The impact of these new systems on conflicts
- 3:36S2: will continue to grow. Now, on the positive side, ground
- 3:39S2: robots could make life safer for those on the front
- 3:42S2: lines by allowing operators to control them from a safer
- 3:45S2: distance away. But there are dangers. It's impossible to anticipate
- 3:49S2: and program a ground robot for every possible eventuality. We
- 3:53S2: see the problem with self-driving cars on our relatively safe
- 3:57S2: and well-designed streets. What happens when you put an autonomous
- 4:00S2: armed vehicle in the chaos of a war zone, or
- 4:03S2: hand over life and death decisions to something employing AI?
- 4:07S2: The good news right now is that these key systems
- 4:09S2: are being debated by rational individuals, who are also working
- 4:12S2: to build an appropriate checks and balances to keep the
- 4:15S2: drones and droids from running amok. But anyone who's watched
- 4:19S2: a video of a self-driving taxi unexpectedly stopping in the
- 4:22S2: middle of a road when encountering standing water knows the
- 4:26S2: systems are far from perfect. I started with a movie reference,
- 4:29S2: so let me end with another from 2001 A Space Odyssey,
- 4:32S2: when Hal, the ship's computer, refuses to let Dave the Astronaut,
- 4:36S2: back inside. There are a lot of unknowns still facing
- 4:40S2: us as we move into this advance in warfare.
- 4:43S1: This is the land in the book from Moody Radio
- 4:45S1: with our host, Doctor Charlie Dyer. In 1710, Jonathan Swift
- 4:49S1: wrote falsehood flies and the truth comes limping after it,
- 4:54S1: a variation wrongly attributed to either Mark Twain or Winston Churchill.
- 4:58S1: Is that a lie can travel halfway around the world
- 5:02S1: while the truth is still putting on its shoes? But
- 5:05S1: apart from who said it first, you say this reality
- 5:07S1: has been proven true multiple times in Israel's war against Hamas.
- 5:12S1: What exactly do you mean?
- 5:13S2: Well, here are some of the charges that have been
- 5:15S2: made against Israel over the past few years that have
- 5:18S2: proven to be false. Israel is an apartheid state. Israel
- 5:21S2: is guilty of genocide. Israel uses artificial intelligence to select
- 5:26S2: targets while ignoring civilian casualties. Israel has deliberately targeted innocent
- 5:31S2: journalists in Gaza. Those statements have been repeated so often
- 5:34S2: they are accepted by many as true. But Israel has
- 5:37S2: carefully debunked each one using hard evidence. The problem is
- 5:41S2: that sifting through all the evidence can take months, while
- 5:44S2: the damage from the charges has already been made. For example,
- 5:47S2: a new academic study concluded that the charges of apartheid
- 5:50S2: and genocide are not true. There is racism in Israel
- 5:54S2: like in every other country of the world. But that's
- 5:57S2: not the same as apartheid, which is enforced racial segregation
- 6:01S2: and the 63,000 truckloads of food that Israel sent into Gaza,
- 6:05S2: almost £2,000 for every person there weakens the charge that
- 6:09S2: Israel attempted to commit genocide in Gaza through food deprivation.
- 6:13S2: The charge in the Nazi documentary that Israel used AI
- 6:17S2: to select targets while ignoring civilian casualties, was a false
- 6:21S2: picture of the military's target planning and strike process. No
- 6:25S2: strike was ever planned in which 500 civilians were expected
- 6:28S2: to be killed, nor did such a strike ever happen. Finally,
- 6:32S2: Israel posted a detailed chart with the names and terrorist
- 6:36S2: affiliations of 170 terrorists who were misrepresented as journalists when
- 6:41S2: killed by Israel. Their identities were verified using documentation published
- 6:46S2: by the terrorist organizations themselves or recovered in Gaza by
- 6:49S2: Israeli troops. All these charges are demonstrably false, but it
- 6:54S2: took time for the evidence to be compiled. Falsehood flies,
- 6:58S2: but eventually the truth does come limping after it. If
- 7:01S2: people are still willing to listen.
- 7:03S1: The media have been so focused on the Middle East
- 7:06S1: and Ukraine that they haven't kept up with events in
- 7:09S1: other key areas like Libya. What's been happening there that
- 7:12S1: we need to know about, Charlie?
- 7:14S2: Well, the two rival governments in Libya continue to spar
- 7:17S2: for control over the country and its oil wealth. The
- 7:20S2: UN recognized government in western Tripoli is run by the
- 7:23S2: Prime Minister, while the rival government in eastern Libya is
- 7:26S2: led by the parliament. The Libyan National Army and Field
- 7:30S2: Marshal Khalifa Haftar exercised control over the group in the East,
- 7:33S2: and his sons hold posts in that government. The West
- 7:37S2: and Turkey continue to back the government in Tripoli, while Egypt,
- 7:40S2: the UAE and Russia backed the government in eastern Libya. Now,
- 7:44S2: back in August, representatives from both sides agreed in principle
- 7:47S2: to a UN brokered proposal that would eventually lead to
- 7:50S2: a unified government. The mediator gave them one month to
- 7:54S2: approve it. The House of Representatives in the East approved
- 7:57S2: the agreement, but the High Court of State in the
- 7:59S2: West did not. Then, over several days in August, drones
- 8:03S2: attacked an oil storage facility in western Libya, destroying a
- 8:06S2: tank holding more than a million gallons of gasoline. Several
- 8:10S2: people were arrested after the attack and claimed they were
- 8:12S2: working for Saddam Haftar, Khalifa Haftar's son. As a result,
- 8:17S2: the plan to unify the two factions is in jeopardy.
- 8:19S2: It's even possible the Civil War will again resume, threatening
- 8:23S2: Libya's oil exports of 1.5 million barrels a day, and
- 8:27S2: oil makes up 65% of the country's gross domestic product.
- 8:31S2: A unified country, a stable economy and a reliable supply
- 8:35S2: of oil. That sounds like a good goal, but it's
- 8:38S2: been 15 years since gadhafi was overthrown, and it hasn't
- 8:41S2: happened yet.
- 8:43S1: Getting eyes to repair themselves by turning old cells back
- 8:47S1: into stem cells kind of sounds like something from science fiction, right?
- 8:51S1: But Israeli researchers have made a discovery that could one
- 8:54S1: day help restore vision for some people. What are the
- 8:58S1: details in this eye opening research from Amazing Israel?
- 9:02S2: Well, the corneas in our eyes keep themselves clear thanks
- 9:05S2: to a ring of limbal stem cells that sit along
- 9:07S2: each cornea's outer rim. They keep producing new cells that
- 9:10S2: travel inward to replace surface cells. These Israeli researchers discovered
- 9:15S2: that when the outer ring of stem cells is disturbed,
- 9:18S2: the mature stem cells in the cornea can reverse course
- 9:22S2: and become stem cells themselves. In fact, within 40 days,
- 9:25S2: the reverted cells were almost indistinguishable from the native stem cells.
- 9:29S2: This happens when macrophages, the immune cells that rush to
- 9:32S2: an injury, increase signaling molecules that nudge the mature cells
- 9:36S2: back into a stem cell state. Now, this continuing research
- 9:40S2: shows that it's possible that people who have lost cornea
- 9:43S2: stem cells to burns, infections, or disease could possibly be
- 9:47S2: treated and be able to have their sight restored. The
- 9:50S2: challenge next is to learn how to control that process
- 9:53S2: and use it for regenerative medicine. And we can just
- 9:56S2: cheer on these researchers at the Technion in Israel for
- 9:59S2: what they're trying to accomplish.
- 10:01S1: Thank you Charlie. I'll resist the urge to say this
- 10:04S1: segment went by in the blink of an eye. I
- 10:06S1: just won't even say it. Hey, what was it like
- 10:09S1: when Lucifer fell? Coming up, we're going to take a
- 10:12S1: biblical look at the battle for heaven and earth. Conversation
- 10:15S1: you don't want to miss. It's next here on the land.
- 10:18S1: And the book. He was the most beautiful of all
- 10:35S1: the angels and the most exalted beneath God. Yet at
- 10:38S1: some point he determined to be exalted above God. That's
- 10:43S1: when the battle began. What was it like when Lucifer fell?
- 10:46S1: How could he have convinced legions of angels, not just
- 10:49S1: a few, to follow him? Coming up, the battle for
- 10:53S1: heaven and earth. This is the land and the book
- 10:56S1: I'm John Gager, welcoming you to segment two. And let's
- 10:59S1: say hello to today's guests. First doctor Mark Yarbrough. Mark
- 11:02S1: is president of Dallas Theological Seminary and a professor in
- 11:06S1: the Bible Exposition department. He's the author of several books
- 11:09S1: and speaks extensively around the world. Doctor Yarbrough also leads
- 11:14S1: tours in Israel, Egypt, Turkey, Greece, Scotland and Germany. It's
- 11:18S1: a pleasure to welcome you back to the land on
- 11:20S1: the bookmark.
- 11:21S3: Always a joy to be with you always.
- 11:23S1: Hey, let's welcome Jerry B Jenkins, author of more than
- 11:26S1: 200 books, with sales of more than 73 million copies.
- 11:31S1: He wrote the Left Behind series and novels to accompany
- 11:34S1: the chosen TV series created by his son, Dallas Jenkins. Jerry's,
- 11:38S1: a moody grad, served on the moody board for 18 years,
- 11:42S1: seven of those as chairman. He teaches writing online to
- 11:45S1: the Jerry Jenkins Writers Guild. He's kind and generous as
- 11:49S1: a friend, but don't ever try to compete with him.
- 11:52S1: Solving Wheel of Fortune puzzles. He destroyed me last time
- 11:55S1: we were together. Good to have you back on the program, Jerry.
- 11:59S4: Always great to be with you, John. Thanks.
- 12:01S1: The two of you guys have done something rather daring.
- 12:04S1: You have tried to envision what might have taken place
- 12:06S1: in the heavens before there was earth. Let me start
- 12:09S1: with you, Mark. Talk to the skeptic who says, hey,
- 12:12S1: aren't you guys just going a little too far with
- 12:15S1: that sanctified imagination of yours? Are we even on safe
- 12:18S1: ground with such conjecture?
- 12:20S3: Well, I'll tell you what. That's a great question. We
- 12:23S3: are asked that a lot, and both Jerry and I
- 12:27S3: obviously firmly hold to the fact that the Bible is
- 12:30S3: the Word of God, the inspired, inerrant, authoritative word of
- 12:32S3: God that God has spoken. And God chose to use
- 12:37S3: some language, style of language, narrative literature, which invites the
- 12:42S3: reader into the story. We're supposed to be there in
- 12:45S3: the Garden of Eden. We're supposed to watch creation as
- 12:48S3: everything unfolded. So there is an invitation, it seems, in
- 12:52S3: the Scripture itself to imagine what it must have been like.
- 12:55S3: And that's all we're doing. So we stick to the
- 12:58S3: storyline in regard to what God has said and as
- 13:01S3: it relates to other areas, we open up and say,
- 13:04S3: would it have been something? Could it have been something
- 13:07S3: like this?
- 13:08S1: Yeah, and I love what you've done. Let me say
- 13:10S1: that at the outset. I found the book at all times,
- 13:13S1: not only respectful but thoroughly biblical. And Jerry, you've written
- 13:16S1: so many books, most of them fiction. What was the
- 13:19S1: biggest challenge for you in crafting this story?
- 13:23S4: Well, I think that is the biggest challenge is, is
- 13:26S4: staying true to the scripture, which, you know, I count
- 13:29S4: on Mark for that. I've never been, you know, mistaken
- 13:31S4: for a theologian or a scholar. I'm just a storyteller.
- 13:35S4: And so this was Mark's idea. He, he creates the
- 13:39S4: bones of it. And, and then I get it and
- 13:42S4: just try to turn it into novel form. And you're right,
- 13:45S4: people do ask all the time, are you adding to
- 13:48S4: or taking away from, you know, scripture? And, you know,
- 13:51S4: we believe that that admonition is for the gospel. You
- 13:54S4: don't take away or add to anything from the gospel
- 13:57S4: as far as speculating on what the Bible says and
- 14:01S4: how it might have all taken place. I think pastors
- 14:04S4: do this every week in the pulpit. They say, imagine
- 14:06S4: yourself there. Can you see somebody you know at the
- 14:09S4: edge of the crowd thinking this or wondering this or
- 14:11S4: saying this? And I think that's all we're doing. We're
- 14:15S4: doing that in written form. And that's the challenge, but
- 14:18S4: it's also the fun of it.
- 14:19S1: Did you ever wonder what might have taken place in
- 14:22S1: the heavens before the earth was created? That's what we're
- 14:25S1: grappling with today through the creativity of Jerry Jenkins and
- 14:28S1: Mark Yarbrough, who have written The Battle for Heaven and earth.
- 14:32S1: You know, it's easy to envision the angelic realm shaken
- 14:35S1: to the core when Lucifer, the most beautiful and exalted
- 14:39S1: of all questions the authority of God Himself. What begins
- 14:42S1: as subtle pride soon ignites into open rebellion. Mark, that
- 14:47S1: sounds to me like lesson one from this story. Pride
- 14:50S1: is so deadly because it takes us to places we
- 14:53S1: never dared. We dreamed we'd go. Your thoughts?
- 14:56S3: Yeah, you're exactly right. And you know, we take this
- 14:59S3: right out of scripture. It's not like we're making this up.
- 15:03S3: There's two very important passages that talk about this area
- 15:06S3: of the fall of Satan in Isaiah chapter 14, Ezekiel
- 15:10S3: chapter 28. And the word that you used, pride is
- 15:14S3: so important. It says this. It is in reference specifically
- 15:17S3: to the king of tyre, but it is implying the
- 15:21S3: force behind this king of tyre. And in reference to Satan,
- 15:24S3: it says, in the pride of your heart you said,
- 15:28S3: I am a God. I sit on the throne of
- 15:31S3: a God in the heart of the seas. And later
- 15:35S3: the Lord speaking says, you were the model of perfection,
- 15:38S3: full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden,
- 15:41S3: the garden of God. And so this issue of pride
- 15:45S3: is right there. And that's exactly what caused the fall. Lucifer.
- 15:48S3: Satan began to look at himself and incredible beauty that
- 15:52S3: God had made. And he began to think I should
- 15:54S3: be worshiped just like God. And what we see in
- 15:58S3: Lucifer is ultimately what he longs to see in those
- 16:02S3: that he leads astray. He wants the area of pride
- 16:05S3: to be prevalent in their lives, as well as opposed
- 16:08S3: to worshiping God. MM.
- 16:10S1: Let me read a quick excerpt from the book. An
- 16:11S1: angel here is commenting. Lucifer had rebelled. Part of heaven
- 16:15S1: was in an uproar. The Almighty's right to rule had
- 16:19S1: been challenged. However, the Almighty still reigns and I find
- 16:23S1: great comfort in that jury. My reaction is, I find
- 16:27S1: great comfort in that too. To me, that's an essential
- 16:30S1: takeaway from this book. I wasn't necessarily expecting comfort from
- 16:33S1: this novel, but I certainly found it. What about you?
- 16:36S1: Was that your reaction too?
- 16:37S4: Well, it was, and I was surprised at how much
- 16:41S4: I could identify with the angels. That sounds really strange.
- 16:45S4: I think sometimes when we take a non theological look
- 16:47S4: at the angels, we think they're just these heavenly beings.
- 16:50S4: Maybe they have halos, they fly around. We're seeing that
- 16:54S4: angels have no free will. They have the ability to choose.
- 16:59S4: And I think this comes as a surprise to Michael
- 17:03S4: and to Gabriel and to their friend. We invent a
- 17:05S4: friend for them that they bounce things off of. And
- 17:08S4: I found myself actually identifying with them, saying, having questions
- 17:12S4: for God, saying you knew this was coming. You knew
- 17:15S4: that Lucifer would do this and become Satan, and yet
- 17:17S4: you allowed it. What's the purpose for that? And then
- 17:21S4: to hear God explain, a lot of this will will
- 17:24S4: come into clarity later. But he still reigns. And that's
- 17:28S4: the whole thing. I mean, I think what Mark gave
- 17:30S4: me was this whole setup that this is really a
- 17:34S4: challenge to who gets to rule heaven and eventually earth
- 17:38S4: as well. And the angels have the same questions we do.
- 17:41S4: So we want readers to come away with this saying
- 17:44S4: they're asking the same questions I am, and I'm looking
- 17:46S4: forward to the answers.
- 17:48S1: It was all peace and perfection until the most beautiful
- 17:51S1: and exalted angel of them all rebelled. Ultimately, it led
- 17:55S1: to the battle for heaven and earth. That's the book
- 17:57S1: co-written by Jerry Jenkins and Mark Yarbrough. They join us
- 18:00S1: today on the land and the book. And as we know,
- 18:04S1: Lucifer didn't wage war alone. He took legions with him. Mark,
- 18:08S1: how could that many angels be either that dissatisfied or
- 18:12S1: that gullible?
- 18:13S3: Well, we don't ultimately know, but we know it happened.
- 18:16S3: Scripture references that up to a third of the heavenly
- 18:21S3: host rebelled with him. So what we imagined is that
- 18:25S3: there was a process, a grooming process, if you will,
- 18:29S3: of this dissatisfaction that was taking place within Lucifer's own heart. Right.
- 18:34S3: And as he began to talk with others. In that
- 18:37S3: big moment when he rebelled, they chose to go with him. Which,
- 18:40S3: by the way, in the novel, it was a shock
- 18:43S3: to the rest of the angels. How could this type
- 18:45S3: of discord have occurred? But once it happens, the heavenly
- 18:50S3: battle was on.
- 18:51S1: Jerry, how did you establish the limits of contemporary dialogue
- 18:55S1: used in the book? There's a scene in which one
- 18:57S1: angel threatens another who says, bring it. There's got to
- 19:00S1: be a balance between sounding like Shakespeare versus the latest
- 19:04S1: Marvel superhero movie. What's your what's your grid here?
- 19:08S4: That's a challenge for any kind of biblical writing. I
- 19:12S4: faced the same thing when I'm writing novels to go
- 19:14S4: along with The chosen. You know, sometimes people will criticize
- 19:18S4: and say, you know, they wouldn't have used the phrase
- 19:20S4: bring it back then. And we say, well, they wouldn't
- 19:23S4: have used the word the either. You know, so they
- 19:25S4: must have had some corresponding phrase that they use. So
- 19:31S4: we try not to be too anachronistic where it sounds like,
- 19:34S4: you know, hipsters talking today, but they would have had
- 19:38S4: ways to express themselves the way we do. And so
- 19:41S4: that's what we go for, sort of that middle ground.
- 19:43S1: Yeah. Well, not that my vote counts, but I think
- 19:45S1: you did a great job. I want to read another excerpt.
- 19:48S1: Lucifer stepped to the edge of the golden rock. I
- 19:51S1: am Lucifer. Feel my pain. I will rule. And to
- 19:55S1: anyone who doubts me. You will be among the damage.
- 19:59S1: When I establish my own dominion over the ruins of heaven. Boy,
- 20:02S1: that line just sent shivers down my spine as I
- 20:05S1: read it. Mark, how do you react?
- 20:07S3: Well, I tell you what, one of the things that
- 20:09S3: Jerry and I talked about all the time, John, was
- 20:11S3: we actually think we understand Lucifer too well. Seriously. I mean,
- 20:16S3: when we were doing some of the writing from his
- 20:17S3: point of view, I think that heart of evil, that bitterness,
- 20:23S3: you know, we've all been touched by it. Unfortunately, as sinners,
- 20:26S3: we we all have experienced some of that and have
- 20:31S3: been led astray by that. And so as we would
- 20:34S3: write from his point of view, I mean, he is
- 20:36S3: the epitome of wickedness and evil. He's where it came from.
- 20:40S3: And so we wanted him to just be as evil
- 20:42S3: as Scripture itself has him be. So that issue of
- 20:46S3: pride that you already talked about, I mean, he just
- 20:48S3: stood up there and he just exalts himself. Uh, he
- 20:52S3: wants himself to be worshiped. And anybody that's going to
- 20:55S3: stand in his way, he's just going to plow over him.
- 20:58S3: And in the book, he does that.
- 20:59S4: And if I can jump in there, um, you know,
- 21:02S4: sometimes we read these passages or we create these passages
- 21:05S4: and we might think, I would never be that bold.
- 21:08S4: And then I think of times in my life where
- 21:10S4: I say, you know, if I were God, I would
- 21:12S4: have done it this way. And I think, do you
- 21:15S4: hear what you just said? You're basically sounding like Lucifer.
- 21:19S4: If I were God, I would do it this way.
- 21:21S4: Let me let me take charge here. And so we
- 21:24S4: can be just as prideful as he for sure.
- 21:26S1: For me, one of the most satisfying sections is the
- 21:29S1: extended conversations and scenes that take place with Adam and Eve.
- 21:33S1: I feel like it lasts. Somebody has helped me get
- 21:36S1: to know them as they might have been. Those are
- 21:38S1: just precious. Um. I was also struck by the fact
- 21:41S1: that the serpent in the story might have had a
- 21:44S1: previous relationship with Adam and Eve. All of which makes
- 21:47S1: the choice to eat that forbidden fruit all that much
- 21:49S1: more agonizing. Mark, was it your intent to make us
- 21:52S1: wrestle with this scene?
- 21:54S3: Oh, it sure was. And that excites me to hear
- 21:57S3: you say that. And I really mean that because we
- 22:00S3: really wanted. Look, Adam and Eve to be as human.
- 22:03S3: I'm going to phrase it that way, right? I think
- 22:05S3: sometimes we forget there were people in the Garden of Eden.
- 22:08S3: They had this incredible freedom. And so what would have
- 22:12S3: led to this rebellion? You know, for them to not
- 22:15S3: adhere to God's command. And so we tried to establish
- 22:19S3: this little developing, ongoing relationship. How would Lucifer have, you know,
- 22:25S3: subtly started bringing areas into the dialogue that would have
- 22:30S3: made them pause and think about moving away from God's Word.
- 22:35S3: And so we brought certain issues, as you know, in
- 22:38S3: the book, into play that would have had an emotional
- 22:41S3: draw to them. And one of the things that I
- 22:43S3: love specifically, there's a dialogue that takes place between Lucifer
- 22:48S3: and SA, right? His general and he's like, the first
- 22:52S3: thing we've got to do is we need to divide
- 22:55S3: the husband and wife. We need to separate them and
- 22:58S3: get one of them thinking separately from the other so
- 23:01S3: that there can be a division there. I love that
- 23:04S3: little subtle play in there and how true that is
- 23:07S3: of even the marriage relationship today, for sure.
- 23:10S1: As I read the book, I came away with a
- 23:12S1: strong sense of the father heart of God. Clearly, he's
- 23:16S1: shown as omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent. But we also see his
- 23:20S1: reluctance to sever relationships, to judge harshly. Jerry, your thoughts?
- 23:25S4: Yeah, I find that I can really identify with both
- 23:28S4: Adam and Eve. And I'm thinking, you know, when I
- 23:31S4: see people in general life today who seem to have
- 23:34S4: it all, maybe they're movie stars or they're they're rich
- 23:37S4: musicians or something, and then they turn to drugs or
- 23:40S4: alcohol or something and ruin it. And I, and I,
- 23:43S4: I like to think I wouldn't do that. I would
- 23:45S4: steward all those resources and really be great at it
- 23:48S4: when I know the truth. If I'm in that garden,
- 23:51S4: I'm eating that fruit before Eve is I mean, I'm
- 23:54S4: going over there saying I can at least smell it.
- 23:56S4: I can at least lick the the cover of it,
- 23:58S4: can't I? And before you know it, I'm chowing down
- 24:01S4: on that. But I think that we can identify with
- 24:05S4: Adam and Eve in their respect and love and admiration
- 24:09S4: for God, and then how they feel when they've severed
- 24:13S4: that relationship. It's devastating. It's heartbreaking.
- 24:15S1: Yeah. The battle for heaven and earth, you will come
- 24:19S1: away challenged, stretched, and more in love with God than ever.
- 24:23S1: I have to recommend it. It's just a great read.
- 24:25S1: Check it out. A link at our website. The land
- 24:28S1: and the book dot o g Mark. I understand there's
- 24:31S1: some interesting companion features that we need to be aware
- 24:34S1: of with the release of this book.
- 24:35S3: You bet. Yeah. On the website The Battle for Heaven
- 24:38S3: and earth book.com, there's going to be a whole bunch
- 24:41S3: of information. Bible studies for small groups for semester long
- 24:46S3: type classes. In the back of the novel, there's a
- 24:49S3: QR code that leads you to this resource page. On
- 24:52S3: the website, there's teaching videos. Jerry and I have already
- 24:55S3: recorded those. They're going to be available hitting a a
- 24:58S3: sundry of topics. There actually are about 21 different videos
- 25:02S3: that we've recorded teaching videos of why we wrote it
- 25:04S3: the way we did. I explained biblical passages in the
- 25:08S3: novel itself. As you saw, there are ten songs that
- 25:12S3: have been recorded. Their lyrics are actually in the novel.
- 25:16S3: You'll be able to get those songs and to hear
- 25:19S3: those songs. They've been recorded by my artist friends that came.
- 25:23S3: In fact, I just got back from Nashville and those
- 25:26S3: songs are highly produced. So all of this material, we're
- 25:29S3: trying to build an ecosystem that, by God's grace, is
- 25:32S3: going to move to other novels. We hope to do
- 25:35S3: the entire Bible this way and to tell the greatest
- 25:38S3: story ever told, which is the story of Scripture.
- 25:41S1: Thanks so much for your time, guys.
- 25:43S3: Sure. Appreciate it.
- 25:44S4: Thanks, John.
- 25:45S1: All right. Mark Yarbrough and Jerry Jenkins today on the
- 25:47S1: land in the book. Check out the battle for Heaven
- 25:49S1: and earth. And stick with us as we take a
- 25:51S1: fresh look at your Bible questions next. On the land
- 25:54S1: and the book. Not every question we have about the
- 26:09S1: Bible has an answer this side of heaven, but many,
- 26:12S1: if not most, really do. And exploring those questions, your
- 26:16S1: questions is what this next segment is all about. Hey,
- 26:19S1: welcome back to the land and the book from Moody Radio.
- 26:22S1: I'm John Gieger. Always very excited to sit down with
- 26:25S1: a very enthusiastic doctor, Gerald Peterman. How's your day going?
- 26:29S5: Oh, so happy to be here.
- 26:30S1: Yeah, and it shows too. Good, good. Ladies and gentlemen,
- 26:33S1: a bright orange shirt, a bright, shiny countenance. He's ready
- 26:37S1: to tackle just about anything you can throw his way.
- 26:39S1: We're going to let him have a shot at that.
- 26:41S1: In a special edition of the Q and A segment
- 26:43S1: we're calling wrestling with Romans. All questions today focused on
- 26:48S1: the book of Romans, specifically chapter eight. First, though, a
- 26:51S1: quick thought. This month marks the third anniversary of the
- 26:54S1: October 7th attack on Israel. These past few years have
- 26:57S1: been a time of profound grief and hardship for Israelis
- 27:01S1: and for Jewish people around the world. In addition to
- 27:04S1: the horrors of October 7th itself, the worldwide rise in
- 27:07S1: anti-Semitism has stunned and saddened all those who love Israel. Well,
- 27:13S1: as a response, our friends at Life in Messiah have
- 27:15S1: been working on a documentary called Shadows of October Israel
- 27:19S1: Under Siege. The film addresses the hard questions of where
- 27:23S1: was God in the events of October 7th. Why is
- 27:26S1: antisemitism rising around the world and how should we move forward?
- 27:31S1: Through powerful testimony from survivors alongside expert analysis. Shadows of
- 27:36S1: October investigates the events long term impact and spiritual implications
- 27:42S1: of the October 7th, 2023, attack on Israel.
- 27:45S2: Yeah, I've watched the film myself, John and Shadows of
- 27:47S2: October forces viewers to confront the reality of anti-Semitism and
- 27:52S2: its impact on the Jewish people following the Hamas attack
- 27:55S2: on October 7th. You experienced the hatred, the heartache, and
- 27:59S2: the hope through the eyes of those who were there.
- 28:02S2: This film is currently available on streaming services. For details
- 28:06S2: on how you can watch the film or arrange a
- 28:08S2: screening for your church, visit Life in messiah.org and click
- 28:12S2: on the Moody radio button. That's Life in messiah.org.
- 28:17S1: All right. Thank you, Charlie. Let's get back to our
- 28:19S1: segments Focus Bible questions and answers today. Those questions all
- 28:23S1: focused on the eighth chapter of Romans. Let's dig in.
- 28:27S1: Verse 12 says, so then, brothers and sisters, meaning he's
- 28:30S1: writing to believers. But the next verse says, if you
- 28:33S1: are living according to the flesh, you must die. Now
- 28:36S1: if the audience for this verse is born again, folks,
- 28:39S1: what does that statement mean? If you are living according
- 28:41S1: to the flesh, you must die. Wouldn't you describe, for example, Jerry,
- 28:44S1: my sinful moments as living according to the flesh?
- 28:48S5: Mhm. Good question. Uh, Romans has Christians as its audience. Yes.
- 28:52S5: Paul says in Romans one, I'm writing to saints in Rome.
- 28:56S5: That is, those who are born again. He calls them
- 28:58S5: brothers and sisters. But no, I wouldn't take a sinful
- 29:04S5: moment as living according to the flesh. In Romans eight,
- 29:07S5: Paul talks about two lifestyles, if you will, living according
- 29:11S5: to the flesh and living according to the spirit. Those
- 29:13S5: are characteristics of the life. No person who lives according
- 29:17S5: to the flesh is evil all the time, and no
- 29:20S5: one who walks by the spirit does it perfectly all
- 29:21S5: the time. So a moment of loss is not walking
- 29:26S5: according to the flesh. Now, why does he say, if
- 29:29S5: you live according to the flesh, you will die? Because
- 29:31S5: if living according to the flesh is the characteristic of
- 29:34S5: your life, you don't know God. And what's the end
- 29:38S5: of that separation from God forever?
- 29:41S1: Okay, let's go on. I'm assuming Paul's phrase, those who
- 29:45S1: are in the spirit is equivalent to saying those who
- 29:48S1: are born again. If that's true, what are we to
- 29:50S1: make of verse five in Romans eight that claims those
- 29:53S1: who are according to the flesh set their minds on
- 29:56S1: the things of the flesh. To be honest, I have
- 29:58S1: to confess, Jerry, my mind is sometimes set on the
- 30:01S1: things of the flesh. What are we to make of
- 30:03S1: all this?
- 30:04S5: Another really good question. Um. I understand why translations go
- 30:09S5: with mind set on the ones who have their mind
- 30:12S5: set on the flesh, the ones who have their minds
- 30:14S5: set on the spirit. I would translate that differently. Let's
- 30:17S5: think about what we mean when we say the mind
- 30:20S5: set on the flesh. We mean the mind is in
- 30:23S5: some independent third position. And you can just put it
- 30:26S5: on the flesh and they be independent and you just
- 30:29S5: put it on the spirit. No, that's not where Paul's going.
- 30:31S5: He's talking about two characteristic mindsets. The mindset on the
- 30:36S5: spirit is the Christian's mindset. The mindset on the flesh
- 30:39S5: is the non-Christians mindset. So again, a sometimes does not
- 30:46S5: mark a lifestyle. So I would talk to this listener
- 30:49S5: and say, confess the sometimes, but then believe that God
- 30:52S5: is working in you. Now, sometimes it's not an exception
- 30:56S5: to being a Christian.
- 30:57S1: We're wrestling with Romans today on the land and the
- 31:00S1: book Romans chapter eight. Doctor Gerald Peterman of the Moody
- 31:03S1: Faculty in the chair. As always, answering our questions. By
- 31:06S1: the way, if you happen to have a question of
- 31:08S1: your own, you're welcome to be part of this dialogue.
- 31:11S1: Email us at the land and the book@moody.edu. The land
- 31:17S1: and the At moody.edu. Back to Romans eight, verse six.
- 31:22S1: What is the meaning of the phrase for the mind
- 31:25S1: set on the flesh is death, physical death, spiritual death?
- 31:29S5: Let's go back to Genesis. Shall we go back to
- 31:31S5: Genesis three? Genesis two. Actually, the command comes from God.
- 31:36S5: Don't eat from the tree in the midst of the garden.
- 31:38S5: The day you eat of it, you will die. We
- 31:40S5: keep reading what happens? They eat and then what? They
- 31:45S5: die at least three different ways. They are ashamed of
- 31:48S5: who they are, even though they are gloriously made in
- 31:51S5: God's image. They're blaming each other, right? So now they're
- 31:55S5: separated from each other, and then God cast them out.
- 31:59S5: So when he casts them out, that separation from God,
- 32:01S5: that is death, the mindset of the flesh, that is
- 32:06S5: the way the flesh thinks, the way the flesh thinks
- 32:09S5: is separation from God. That is the mindset of the
- 32:13S5: flesh is death. It's like living life on earth, dead
- 32:17S5: to God and spiritual things. In contrast, life in the
- 32:21S5: spirit is truly life with God. Paul calls it peace
- 32:25S5: and joy that is living in the presence of God.
- 32:29S5: And the third death they experience hundreds of years later,
- 32:32S5: they die physically.
- 32:34S1: Is it possible for someone who is born again to
- 32:36S1: be hostile toward God? Romans eight, verse seven says, the
- 32:40S1: mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God. So
- 32:43S1: what about those moments again, when my motives and actions
- 32:45S1: and words are set on my flesh? AM I not
- 32:48S1: in those moments hostile toward God?
- 32:50S5: Oh, well, perhaps at that moment there is something you
- 32:54S5: might call hostility. But I don't think that's Paul's primary consideration.
- 32:58S5: I think his primary consideration is the person who lives
- 33:02S5: according to the flesh. That perspective is hostility. But do
- 33:07S5: we sometimes, in a moment of weakness, right. Turn away,
- 33:11S5: do something incredibly stupid? I hope I'm not the only one.
- 33:14S5: And that's certainly a time, then, to confess how we
- 33:18S5: have hurt God or hurt ourselves or hurt other people.
- 33:22S5: But what I wouldn't want us to do is think
- 33:24S5: I am hostile and then live our life like that. Right.
- 33:27S5: I'd say confess it and move on.
- 33:29S1: Romans 817 almost seems to imply suffering as a prerequisite
- 33:34S1: for being an heir of God. It says if children,
- 33:37S1: heirs also heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ,
- 33:40S1: if indeed we suffer with him, so that we may
- 33:44S1: also be glorified with him. Please explain.
- 33:46S5: Yes, many have found this verse challenging. Let me back
- 33:49S5: up for just a moment and talk about conditional statements
- 33:53S5: like when we make an if then statement. This is
- 33:57S5: commonly called a conditional statement. Let me give you one.
- 34:00S5: I get on the ladder that's in my garage. If
- 34:02S5: I get on my ladder, I feel nervous. Why is that?
- 34:06S5: Because I have an irrational fear of heights. And this
- 34:09S5: is true. And you can see how it's cause and effect.
- 34:13S5: If I get on the ladder cause effect, I feel nervous,
- 34:16S5: but there are other ways of speaking using. If. Then.
- 34:19S5: How about this? If you are listening to our program,
- 34:22S5: you turned on your radio. Mhm. But wait, listening to
- 34:25S5: the program doesn't cause you to turn on the radio.
- 34:28S5: But listening the program lets us know that you did.
- 34:31S5: So that's another condition, which I would call evidence. You're listening. Inference.
- 34:36S5: You turned it on. That's where Paul is going in
- 34:39S5: Romans eight. That is, if we suffer with Christ, that is,
- 34:43S5: we obey him. Others reject us. Others persecute us. Others
- 34:47S5: slander us. If we suffer with Christ, then what do
- 34:50S5: we demonstrate? We demonstrate that we belong to him. We
- 34:54S5: demonstrate that we are his. So this is not an
- 34:57S5: if then conditional, right? It's an evidence inference conditional. Let
- 35:02S5: me give you one more. Jesus says. John 15, you
- 35:07S5: are my friends if you do what I command you. Yeah.
- 35:11S5: This certainly does not mean if you obey my commands
- 35:14S5: long enough, you become my friend. No, no, no. But
- 35:17S5: obeying my commands demonstrates that you are my friend. It's
- 35:21S5: a very different kind of conditional.
- 35:22S6: All right.
- 35:23S1: Got time for one more? We're going to go to
- 35:25S1: verse 38 of Romans eight. How would you define the
- 35:27S1: word powers used there? How was that different than principalities
- 35:32S1: used earlier in that verse?
- 35:34S5: Oh, yes. Really good. Let's talk about principalities. Paul's term
- 35:37S5: is arch. This refers to some kind of ruler or
- 35:40S5: some kind of authority. I think in this context, it's
- 35:43S5: an evil spiritual being. See Ephesians 612. See Colossians 215,
- 35:50S5: and even the NIV in here in Romans translates this term,
- 35:53S5: not principalities, but demons. Now, Paul's term for powers comes
- 35:58S5: from the Greek word dunamis, which very often in the
- 36:00S5: New Testament means some sort of miracle. Although again, here
- 36:04S5: I think the primary reference is to some evil spiritual
- 36:08S5: beings who might threaten us. But thanks be to God,
- 36:11S5: they do not. And that same word appears with that
- 36:15S5: sense in first Peter 322. First Corinthians 1524.
- 36:19S1: Today on the land in the book, we've been wrestling
- 36:22S1: with Romans. But what are you wrestling with? What passage
- 36:25S1: has you puzzled? We would sure welcome your question at
- 36:28S1: the land and the book@moody.edu. Doctor Gerald Peterman will get
- 36:33S1: you an answer in just a few days. The land
- 36:35S1: and the book@moody.edu. Charlie Dyer is back with his devotional next.
- 36:54S1: We do appreciate your company here at the land and
- 36:56S1: the book. And by the way, you ever got a
- 36:58S1: thought you want to share with us? Maybe an idea,
- 37:01S1: perhaps a Bible question you'd like answered. You do it
- 37:04S1: all with one simple email address. It's the land and
- 37:07S1: the book@moody.edu. The land and the book@moody.edu. It's going to
- 37:15S1: take a listen to a great devotional from Charlie Dyer.
- 37:18S1: After we take in this Holy Land experience, check out
- 37:20S1: this testimony from somebody who's traveled to the Holy Land.
- 37:27S7: I've had the privilege of being in the Holy Land
- 37:31S7: for a week now, and I think the thing that
- 37:33S7: has impressed me most is the extraordinary history of this
- 37:38S7: country and the diversity that exists as a result of
- 37:44S7: that history is probably the most complex situation that I
- 37:49S7: have ever witnessed or experienced in my now 65 plus years.
- 37:56S8: Everything was wonderful about this trip. Such a treat to
- 37:59S8: have a small group of people to walk the steps
- 38:01S8: of Jesus, especially at the Sea of Galilee. It was
- 38:06S8: such a treat to see the distances between the spots
- 38:11S8: where we read in Scripture. Jesus walked and talked and
- 38:14S8: lived his life affecting people. I wanted to know how
- 38:18S8: far apart things were. How big was the Sea of Galilee?
- 38:22S8: How far away were the towns where he walked? Everything
- 38:26S8: was just so exciting to see the places and the
- 38:29S8: spots where Jesus walked and where we learned scripture. Seeing
- 38:33S8: it through our tour guide, Charlie Dyer's eyes brought little
- 38:37S8: phrases in the word to life.
- 38:41S1: All right, Charlie, I'm looking forward to a visit with
- 38:43S1: Paul and some thoughts on prayer. We'll let you have
- 38:46S1: at it.
- 38:47S2: Oh. Thanks, John. Yeah. We're coming to the third and
- 38:49S2: final message in this three part series that I titled
- 38:52S2: prayers of the Bible. A look at some of the
- 38:54S2: unique prayers found in God's Word. And today's study takes
- 38:57S2: us from Jesus's words on the Mount of Beatitudes to Rome,
- 39:01S2: the center of the world at the time of the
- 39:03S2: New Testament. But watch where you're walking. Rome's a pretty
- 39:07S2: up to date city when it comes to running water
- 39:09S2: and a sewer system. But all the horses, oxen and
- 39:13S2: donkeys traveling the streets still leave behind surprises for distracted pedestrians.
- 39:18S2: And occasionally people throw empty chamber pots out their windows
- 39:22S2: right onto the street. Well, we made it all the
- 39:25S2: way to our destination. This ordinary looking house holds a
- 39:29S2: very extraordinary prayer warrior. We can go right on in
- 39:33S2: because I know he's home. You might say he's homebound,
- 39:36S2: but it's not by choice. He's under house arrest, shackled
- 39:40S2: to a Roman soldier. Hear those clanking chains. Oh! That's him.
- 39:44S2: So let's go in and meet the Apostle Paul. The
- 39:47S2: room is rather plain, but very functional. A writing table
- 39:50S2: sits beside a window that opens to an inner courtyard.
- 39:54S2: At the desk sits a young man with a papyrus
- 39:56S2: scroll spread out before him. He's writing furiously, and several
- 40:00S2: columns of the scroll are already filled. Off to his
- 40:04S2: right stands the Apostle Paul, with a long chain stretching
- 40:07S2: out behind. As he walks around, it scrapes along the floor.
- 40:11S2: The other end of the chain is fastened to a
- 40:13S2: Roman soldier sitting on a cot. The soldier rises as
- 40:17S2: we enter his hand, instinctively reaching for the hilt of
- 40:20S2: his sword. But after sizing us up and deciding we're
- 40:23S2: not a threat to him or his prisoner, his hand
- 40:27S2: returns to his side and he sits back down. His
- 40:29S2: sudden movement did cause Paul to stop speaking and turn
- 40:32S2: our way. Oh, my friends, welcome. Shalom. Thank you for coming.
- 40:37S2: What brings you to my room, Paul? We're here to
- 40:40S2: talk with you about prayer. We know you're a man
- 40:43S2: of prayer, and we're hoping that you could share with
- 40:45S2: us some of the lessons you've learned on prayer. Indeed
- 40:49S2: I can, and you've come at just the right moment.
- 40:52S2: I just recorded my prayer for the church at Ephesus.
- 40:55S2: Let me share what I wrote. Paul bends down to
- 40:58S2: look at the words the young man has written on
- 41:00S2: the scroll. Let's see. Ah, here's the section I wanted
- 41:05S2: the church to know that I'm constantly praying for them.
- 41:08S2: And as I pray, I'm thanking God for the faith
- 41:10S2: they have in Jesus and the love they show for
- 41:13S2: each other. Love God and love your neighbor. Jesus told
- 41:17S2: us that was the essence of all God's commands, and
- 41:20S2: I wanted this church to know that my prayer for
- 41:22S2: them begins with my being thankful for all God is
- 41:25S2: doing in their lives. I always start my prayers thanking
- 41:29S2: God for what he's doing, but then I usually follow
- 41:31S2: with some very specific requests. Here's what I've been praying
- 41:35S2: for for this church. I'm asking God to give them
- 41:38S2: a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge
- 41:41S2: of him, and that the eyes of their heart may
- 41:44S2: be enlightened. I realize my words might sound strange. Not
- 41:48S2: the kind of thing you might normally pray, but what
- 41:50S2: I'm asking God to do is to give them the
- 41:53S2: ability to know him more intimately. To give them spiritual
- 41:57S2: insight into who he is and what he's like. You see,
- 42:01S2: the more deeply you know God, the more fully you
- 42:04S2: will understand life. But I'm not done with my prayer.
- 42:07S2: I want them to know God. But I'm asking this
- 42:10S2: for a very specific reason. In fact, I have three reasons.
- 42:14S2: I want them to know God more intimately. See the
- 42:16S2: next two words right here. Istar. I think in your
- 42:21S2: language you would translate that in order that you might
- 42:24S2: skip over that small phrase, but don't. That's the purpose
- 42:27S2: for why I'm praying that they come to know God.
- 42:31S2: And if you look carefully at what my friend here
- 42:33S2: just wrote down, you can see these three reasons. First,
- 42:37S2: I want them to become intimately familiar with God so
- 42:40S2: they can know the hope of his calling. Hope isn't
- 42:43S2: just wishful thinking that something will happen. It's a confident expectation.
- 42:49S2: The more they come to know God, the more they'll
- 42:51S2: realize that he will finish the work he started in
- 42:54S2: their lives. God doesn't abandon any of his children. There
- 42:58S2: are no orphans in his family. The second reason I
- 43:01S2: want them to know God more intimately is so they
- 43:04S2: can realize the riches of the glory of his inheritance
- 43:07S2: in the saints. I'm not talking about our inheritance in God,
- 43:12S2: but about his inheritance in us. We are valuable to him.
- 43:17S2: You are a child of the king, and the king
- 43:19S2: takes great delight in all his children. And finally, my
- 43:23S2: prayer is that these dear people will come to know
- 43:26S2: God more intimately, so they can experience the surpassing greatness
- 43:30S2: of his power toward us who believe. Too many people
- 43:33S2: go through life overwhelmed by big problems because their view
- 43:37S2: of God is too small. When you realize the awesome
- 43:40S2: power of God, it puts every one of life's problems
- 43:44S2: in perspective. I had to pile up every word I
- 43:47S2: know just to begin to explain the greatness of God's power.
- 43:51S2: I see that word you translate as surpassing greatness. It's superbolan.
- 43:56S2: You get the word hyperbole from it. Imagine how powerful
- 43:59S2: you think the God of the universe really is, and
- 44:02S2: then realize that God is even greater than that. How
- 44:05S2: great is he? He raised his Son from the dead
- 44:08S2: and placed the entire universe under his authority. Paul stops
- 44:13S2: and looks deeply into our eyes, my friend. Too many
- 44:18S2: people make small prayers to a small God. They ask
- 44:22S2: for trinkets and baubles as they go through life spiritually impoverished.
- 44:28S2: So my prayer for all of us is that God
- 44:30S2: will give us wisdom and insight into his character. To
- 44:34S2: come to a place where we deeply and intimately know him,
- 44:38S2: to realize how much he loves us, how precious we
- 44:42S2: are to him, and how great the power is that
- 44:44S2: he has made available to us as his children. That's
- 44:48S2: my focus in prayer, as we thank Paul for his
- 44:53S2: time and turn to leave. He shouts one last word
- 44:56S2: of encouragement. Remember, the bigger your understanding of God, The
- 45:02S2: smaller your problems and his words help us put the
- 45:06S2: focus of our prayers into a new perspective.
- 45:09S1: Thank you Charlie. You know, for many, many people, this
- 45:12S1: fourth and final segment is their favorite. And a lot
- 45:15S1: of times it's helpful for me at least, to hear
- 45:16S1: it all again. The good news is you can hear
- 45:18S1: not just this devotional, but the entire program at our website,
- 45:22S1: The Land and thebook.org, the land and the book.org, which
- 45:28S1: does take me to a quick plug for our podcast, Charlie.
- 45:31S1: We talk about it a lot. But an amazing amount
- 45:34S1: of people have yet to take advantage of this podcast.
- 45:36S1: Talk about its impact, its ease, and where people can
- 45:39S1: get it.
- 45:40S2: You know, I think the word ease there is exactly
- 45:42S2: the one. Rather than having to be at a certain
- 45:45S2: spot at a certain time to hear the program, they
- 45:48S2: can access it anytime when it fits their schedule or
- 45:51S2: if they have some extra minutes and just want to
- 45:54S2: listen to the devotional again or the current events again,
- 45:57S2: they can listen to that segment. It provides that level
- 46:01S2: of access and ease right at their fingertips, at their
- 46:05S2: computer or on their smartphone.
- 46:07S1: All right. And you'll find that podcast at our website again,
- 46:09S1: the land and the book.org, the land and the book.org,
- 46:15S1: where we've always got posted information about our guests past,
- 46:17S1: present and future and all kinds of other good stuff
- 46:20S1: as well. The land and the book.org. If you've got
- 46:25S1: a Bible question you want to get to us have
- 46:27S1: answered on this program. And by the way, you also
- 46:29S1: get a personal email back with that answer. And don't
- 46:32S1: hesitate to email us at the land and the book@moody.edu,
- 46:38S1: the land and the book@moody.edu. It's been a full program,
- 46:43S1: as always, and we say thanks to our host, Doctor
- 46:46S1: Charlie Dyer, our producer Dan Anderson. I'm John Gager The Land,
- 46:50S1: and the book is a production of Moody Radio, a
- 46:52S1: Ministry of Moody Bible Institute.