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The Land and the Book - Digital Amnesia · WPGM On Demand

0:08
S1: Why memorize the Bible? After all, you can look anything
0:11
S1: up on your phone or tablet, right? Well, that might
0:14
S1: be the prevailing thought of our times, but it can
0:18
S1: lead to a sense of digital amnesia. We're literally forgetting scripture.
0:23
S1: It's a problem we'll address coming up. Plus, we'll have
0:25
S1: all the headlines from the Middle East, including an analysis
0:29
S1: of Israel's election and more. We call this one our conversation,
0:33
S1: The Land and the book. And we'd sure love it
0:35
S1: if you joined us. I'm John Gallagher, and with me
0:38
S1: is the rather bleary eyed doctor, Charlie Dyer, who's put
0:42
S1: in some long hours tracking the election in Israel. AM
0:46
S1: I right there, Charlie?
0:47
S2: You are, John. Not only the initial night, but then
0:49
S2: the days following. Things kept changing and I'm just a
0:52
S2: news junkie. I love to follow it.
0:54
S1: All right. And we're grateful that you do, because you
0:56
S1: keep us up to date. So we'll get to that
0:59
S1: set of news, facts and the election update after this
1:03
S1: quick thought. Imagine sailing the Sea of Galilee, standing where
1:07
S1: David faced Goliath, floating in the Dead Sea, or walking
1:10
S1: the stone streets of Jerusalem's Old City. You read about
1:14
S1: these places, but in May 2027, our friends at Life
1:17
S1: and Messiah are inviting you to experience them for yourself.
1:21
S1: During this study trip, you'll walk through the places where
1:23
S1: the biblical story unfolded as familiar passages move from black
1:27
S1: and white into vivid color.
1:29
S2: Yeah, join Bible teachers Levi Hazen and Jared Hall, who
1:33
S2: will help connect the history, geography, archaeology, and Jewish context
1:37
S2: of the land to the Bible, along with a licensed
1:40
S2: Israeli tour guide. This will be more than just a
1:43
S2: journey to biblical sites. Along the way, you'll also experience
1:46
S2: the land through life in Messiah's mission of sharing God's
1:50
S2: heart for the Jewish people. If Israel has been on
1:53
S2: your heart and your bucket list, consider joining life in
1:56
S2: Messiah for this unforgettable journey together. The trip is May
2:00
S2: 1 to 14, 2027 and registration closes December 31st. See
2:06
S2: the land. Understand the story. Love the people. For more
2:10
S2: information and to register, go to. Life in messiah.org and
2:14
S2: then click on the moody radio icon. That's life in messiah.org.
2:20
S1: All right. Cue the drum roll. Israel's election is finally over.
2:25
S1: So who won and what happens next?
2:29
S2: Well, the votes are finally cast and counted, though the
2:32
S2: final tallies still took several days. Netanyahu's Likud party won
2:36
S2: the largest number of seats in the Knesset, and his
2:39
S2: traditional coalition received more seats than Eisenstadt's coalition partners. But
2:44
S2: the most important point is that neither bloc of parties
2:47
S2: secured enough seats to reach the magic number of 61 outright.
2:51
S2: The various Arab parties increased the number of seats they'll
2:54
S2: have in the Knesset, while the smaller upstart parties failed
2:58
S2: to pass the 3.25% threshold, losing their opportunity to exert influence.
3:04
S2: The major takeaway is that to form a government, all
3:07
S2: sides will need to break promises they said they would
3:11
S2: not cross. Right now, it seems like there are three options.
3:15
S2: The first is for the change bloc to either join
3:17
S2: with the Arab parties, or at least form a minority
3:20
S2: government dependent on the votes of the Arab parties to
3:24
S2: remain in power. Their goal would be to establish a
3:26
S2: new government to force Prime Minister Netanyahu out of office. Then,
3:30
S2: when the new government fails, which would likely happen quickly,
3:34
S2: a new prime minister would be in charge as they
3:36
S2: head back into elections. The second option would be for
3:40
S2: the leaders of the two major blocs to form a
3:43
S2: unity government, combining the more centrist Zionist parties and possibly
3:47
S2: excluding the religious parties and the far right and left parties.
3:51
S2: The sticking point here would be to determine who serves
3:55
S2: as prime Minister, and what issues would be left on
3:58
S2: and off the table for the new coalition. Plus, aligning
4:02
S2: with Netanyahu after condemning him for so long could force
4:05
S2: some politicians to pay a heavy political price with their constituents.
4:10
S2: The third option is just to admit failure and go
4:13
S2: through another round of elections, which is something few Israelis want.
4:18
S2: So here's what to watch for in the coming days.
4:20
S2: After consulting with all the political parties, President Herzog will
4:24
S2: nominate a candidate to try to form a government. Almost
4:27
S2: certainly it'll be Netanyahu or Eisenkot. That individual will then
4:31
S2: have 28 days to try to form a coalition, though
4:34
S2: he could request a 14 day extension if needed. If
4:38
S2: that fails, another individual could be given 28 days to
4:41
S2: try to form a coalition. And after that, then they
4:45
S2: would definitely head to new elections. Now, as I said
4:48
S2: at the beginning, for any new government to be formed,
4:50
S2: parties will need to back away from pledges and promises
4:54
S2: they made to their supporters. Those red lines will be eliminated.
4:57
S2: As someone said, the politicians now have to decide whether
5:01
S2: they're prepared to change their conditions, their partners or their promises.
5:06
S2: This next step could turn out to be just as
5:08
S2: difficult a struggle as the election itself, and in fact,
5:11
S2: maybe even more so.
5:13
S1: Charlie, how much of a factor has been the ongoing
5:16
S1: tension with Gaza? The the war with Iran played into
5:21
S1: the way things turned out for Netanyahu? What would your
5:23
S1: best guess be?
5:24
S2: Well, I think it's interesting. Gaza did not play as
5:26
S2: large a role because they tried to put him with
5:28
S2: the failure. Iran and the potential war coming up played
5:32
S2: a far more outsized role, especially with President Trump backing
5:36
S2: Netanyahu and saying he'd be prepared to to go to
5:39
S2: war with him.
5:40
S1: Well, with Israel's election in the rear view mirror and
5:43
S1: our midterm elections coming this week, is that conflict with
5:47
S1: Iran about to heat up? And why is Israel now
5:50
S1: concerned about a new conflict with the Palestinians inside their country.
5:55
S2: You know, President Trump has said he doesn't want to
5:57
S2: renew the conflict with Iran until after the US midterm elections.
6:01
S2: Of course, those elections are this coming Tuesday. Iran has
6:05
S2: said it's developed detailed plans to hit Gulf Underseas cables
6:08
S2: and military bases if the war resumes. There have also
6:12
S2: been intelligence reports that Iran has plans to try to
6:15
S2: kill American officials and other U.S. personnel should the conflict resume.
6:20
S2: The U.S. responded to those threats by reducing staff in
6:23
S2: five embassies in the region. There are also concerns that
6:26
S2: Iran has operatives even here in the United States and
6:29
S2: in Europe. Iran's threats are driven in part by desperation.
6:33
S2: Prior to the start of the previous war. They had
6:35
S2: pumped about 90 million barrels of oil and put them
6:38
S2: into floating oil reserves, loaded ships parked outside the region. Well,
6:43
S2: that reserve is now gone, with fewer than 1 million
6:46
S2: barrels estimated to be available for sale to China. Some
6:49
S2: of the payments from China are still being received. But
6:52
S2: in essence, 30 to 40% of Iran's revenue comes from
6:56
S2: that oil, and that income stream is now drying up.
6:59
S2: In addition, the U.S. Treasury Department has frozen $350 million
7:03
S2: in Iranian cryptocurrency assets in recent weeks. Iran will be
7:08
S2: hard pressed to repair any damage caused by U.S. or
7:11
S2: Israeli airstrikes. Now, a possible conflict between Israel and the
7:15
S2: Palestinians inside Israel is a matter of concern. Israelis are
7:19
S2: worried that a Hamas or Palestinian Authority led uprising could
7:23
S2: bring a Gaza like attack against major Israeli cities in
7:27
S2: the heart of the country. Government officials are saying Israel
7:30
S2: is preparing a comprehensive military operation to disarm the Palestinian
7:35
S2: Authority to prevent such an attack. Now, this arose after
7:39
S2: a terrorist attack in Hebron that killed two Israeli soldiers
7:43
S2: at a checkpoint. So while we're watching Iran, Israel has
7:47
S2: one eye on Iran and the other on a potential
7:49
S2: threat in their own backyard.
7:51
S1: This is the land and the book from Moody Radio.
7:54
S1: Our host, Doctor Charlie Dyer. I'm John Gager. Typos or
7:58
S1: evidence of changing language. Did ancient Greek scribes develop their
8:02
S1: own personal spelling rules, or were spelling differences in many
8:06
S1: manuscripts just typos and hey, why should it all matter?
8:10
S2: Yeah, those of us who are native English speakers, we
8:12
S2: know two things about our language. First, there are acceptable
8:15
S2: variations in the way some words are spelled depending on
8:18
S2: where you grew up. Do you spell gray with an
8:21
S2: A or an E? You know, is donut spelled DOUGH
8:25
S2: nut or DONUT and is OKAY or just with the
8:30
S2: letters O and k? But the second thing about our
8:33
S2: language is that everyone occasionally spells words incorrectly. Typos do happen,
8:38
S2: so it shouldn't come as a surprise that the same
8:41
S2: thing is showing up in other languages, including ancient Greek manuscripts.
8:45
S2: A rather complex article appeared in the Norwegian Journal of
8:49
S2: Greek and Latin Studies, showing that Greek scribes appear to
8:52
S2: have followed different spelling rules, even when recording the same sounds.
8:56
S2: These different spellings appeared during the same historical periods, though
9:00
S2: seldom in the same individual texts. Apparently, writers maintained their
9:05
S2: own way of spelling sounds, especially vowels. Now let me
9:08
S2: add here. This has nothing to do with the biblical text,
9:11
S2: certainly not the original manuscripts. The article is just showing
9:15
S2: what we know to be true in English was also
9:17
S2: true in Greek. The pronunciation of words changed over time,
9:20
S2: and part of the change in pronunciation also involved changes
9:24
S2: in spelling. And of course, this confusion was compounded when
9:27
S2: a scribe also occasionally misspelled a word. The key takeaway
9:31
S2: for us from this study is the importance of comparing
9:34
S2: ancient manuscripts of the Bible. A scribe could misspell a
9:37
S2: word just like we do. But when there are hundreds,
9:39
S2: even thousands of copies of the same work, scholars can
9:43
S2: compare them to spot the typos or words accidentally left out,
9:46
S2: or other mistakes that can creep in when copying something
9:50
S2: by hand. It reminds me of the great lengths God
9:52
S2: went through in order to make sure our Bibles are trustworthy.
9:56
S2: And they are.
9:58
S1: Well, an Israeli startup is using AI to speed up
10:01
S1: sign language translation. How does this latest innovation from amazing
10:04
S1: Israel work, Charlie?
10:06
S2: Well, the startup's called rylo RYLO and they're collaborating with
10:09
S2: Nvidia to make workstation conversion more accessible to deaf and
10:13
S2: hard of hearing individuals. They're using supercomputers to accelerate the training.
10:17
S2: But imagine watching news shows, live events, public transportation announcements,
10:22
S2: classroom lectures, and actually seeing the words translated into sign
10:26
S2: language in real time. Well, that's what the company is doing.
10:29
S2: And if people are interested, they can check it out@rylo.com.
10:33
S1: All right. And that's a look at current events coming up,
10:36
S1: digital amnesia, what it is and why it matters to you.
10:40
S1: Fascinating conversation. Next on the land and the book, our website,
10:43
S1: the land and the book.org. G. But land and the book.org.
11:05
S1: Why carry a paper Bible? I mean, you've got one
11:08
S1: on your tablet, right? Why memorize the Bible? You can
11:11
S1: look up anything on your phone. At least that seems
11:14
S1: to be the prevailing thought of our time. But it
11:17
S1: all adds up to a dangerous form of digital amnesia.
11:21
S1: But why should you care? We'll talk about it next.
11:24
S1: This is the land and the book. I'm John Gager,
11:27
S1: welcoming you to segment two. We're about to sit down
11:30
S1: with a favorite guest here on the program. But first,
11:33
S1: let's think about ways that we can be more intentional
11:35
S1: in sharing Jesus with a Jewish friend. Finding Yeshua in
11:40
S1: the Old Testament. Wouldn't you want your Jewish friend to
11:43
S1: find him there? Boy, that's my heart. And we're talking
11:45
S1: with Michael Riedel, who is the editor of The Moody
11:48
S1: Handbook of Messianic Prophecy. Some wisdom from you, Michael. What
11:51
S1: would you.
11:52
S3: Say? Well, it's not enough to point out that the
11:54
S3: Psalms say that Jesus died for us by crucifixion. Psalm 2216,
11:59
S3: but also that he was raised. It is crucial to
12:02
S3: see that the prophets foretold, and particularly the Book of
12:05
S3: Psalms foretold the Messiah would be raised from the dead
12:08
S3: in Psalm 1610. This is not talking about David. It says,
12:11
S3: for you will not abandon me to she'll. She'll is
12:14
S3: the place of the dead. That's all it really means
12:17
S3: in the Hebrew Bible. You will not allow your faithful
12:20
S3: one one of the most common terms for the Messiah
12:23
S3: to undergo decay. Not only will he not stay dead
12:28
S3: in Sheol, but he'll be raised before he actually undergoes
12:33
S3: any kind of decay, seize any kind of corruption, no
12:37
S3: bodily decay. And so it's saying just very rapidly, there
12:40
S3: will be a resurrection that will happen. And so right there,
12:43
S3: that was one of the key points. Peter mentions it
12:46
S3: in acts two and Paul mentions it in acts 13.
12:50
S3: I think this is one of the crucial Psalms that
12:52
S3: was pointed out that the Messiah not only would die
12:54
S3: for us, but that he would be raised from the dead.
12:57
S1: Finding Yeshua in the Old Testament a great tool to
13:00
S1: share with your friend as well. That's Doctor Michael Riedel,
13:03
S1: professor of Jewish Studies at Moody Bible Institute on the
13:06
S1: land and the book. Few people walking Our planet today
13:11
S1: have memorized as many books of the Bible. You heard
13:14
S1: that right. Books of the Bible as Tom Meyer. He's
13:17
S1: a professor at Shasta Bible College and graduate school in Redding, California.
13:22
S1: Tom's the author of numerous Bible commentaries and a guest
13:25
S1: speaker at churches and conferences where he dramatically recites entire
13:29
S1: books of the Bible from memory. Lucky for you and me.
13:32
S1: He also teaches believers how to memorize the Word of God.
13:36
S1: And over the years, Tom has been a very kind
13:39
S1: and patient Bible memory coach for me and I love
13:42
S1: the way he loves the Word of God. Hey, welcome
13:44
S1: back to the land and the book, Tom.
13:46
S4: Thank you. It's great to be here.
13:48
S1: So a moment ago, I tossed out that term digital amnesia.
13:51
S1: How do we define that?
13:53
S4: Well, it's the tendency to forget information that we trust
13:57
S4: a digital device will remember for us. So instead of
14:01
S4: remembering what the information is, the brain kind of adapts
14:05
S4: by remembering where to find it. And so because we
14:09
S4: expect to have that future access to information, our brain
14:14
S4: skips that deep mental processing that's required to build strong
14:20
S4: neural pathways to help us remember.
14:22
S1: Oh, when would you say this became a serious problem
14:25
S1: in America, Tom?
14:27
S4: Well, I guess they don't call it the Google effect
14:30
S4: for no reason. Um, I would say the last 20
14:33
S4: years or so. Right. Ever since, cell phones have been
14:36
S4: an inseparable part of many people's lives.
14:39
S1: Yeah. So what do we lose internally when we outsource
14:43
S1: our memory to digital devices instead of storing God's Word
14:47
S1: in our hearts.
14:49
S4: Oh man, there's a multitude of reasons, but just 1
14:53
S4: or 2 real quick. Number one, we cause this space
14:57
S4: between us and the text. We aren't as intimate as
15:00
S4: familiar with the text as we are when it's written
15:04
S4: on a piece of paper versus having it on the
15:06
S4: tablets of our heart. And because we always trust that
15:10
S4: we can have the Bible on our phone or have
15:12
S4: the Bible on our computer, we can get lazy, or
15:15
S4: we can get too comfortable with the fact that it'll
15:17
S4: always be there, and they'll never take my Bible away
15:20
S4: and they'll never take our phone away. And so I
15:22
S4: guess we're just relying too much on others to store
15:25
S4: the Word of God for us.
15:26
S1: Yeah. Digital amnesia. It's a problem we must address. Good
15:31
S1: thing we've got Tom Meyer in the studio with us.
15:33
S1: I'm John Gallagher, and you're listening to The Land and
15:36
S1: the book. Tom, I'm going to really, uh, mess with
15:38
S1: you here. I'm going to ask you to think of
15:40
S1: a scripture verse that in some way might just speak
15:43
S1: to this problem of digital amnesia. Anything come to mind?
15:47
S4: Well, sure. One from the Old Testament. I would think
15:51
S4: of Psalm 1199 through 11. Wherewithal. Or how shall a
15:55
S4: young man cleanse his way? Because that's what all of
15:57
S4: us who are listening want. We want to have a
15:59
S4: closer walk with thee. So how do we cleanse our way?
16:02
S4: By taking heed there to according to thy word, with
16:04
S4: my whole heart have I sought the. Oh, let me
16:07
S4: not wander from thy commandments. Then here's the famous line.
16:10
S4: That word have I hid in my heart that I
16:11
S4: might not sin against thee. And then in the New
16:14
S4: Testament we have that same idea, kind of repackaged as
16:18
S4: it were, and versus like, let the word of Christ
16:20
S4: dwell richly in you, so not richly on your phone
16:24
S4: or virtually on your book, on the shelf, but on
16:27
S4: the table of our heart.
16:28
S1: Yeah. Well, ancient biblical communities obviously relied heavily on oral tradition.
16:34
S1: Were they smarter than us? I mean, how did their
16:37
S1: capacity for memory compared to ours.
16:41
S4: Well, I don't think they were smarter than we are
16:43
S4: in some ways, but they certainly had a necessity to memorize. Josephus,
16:48
S4: the first century Jewish historian, says that by going up
16:51
S4: to the three high holy feasts every year in Jerusalem,
16:53
S4: that the Jews knew the Torah better than their name
16:57
S4: or i.e., they had it memorized. And then hundreds of
17:00
S4: years after that, Jerome, the church father, while he lived
17:03
S4: in Bethlehem, translating the scriptures into the Vulgate, he said
17:06
S4: at that time that the Jewish children in Bethlehem knew
17:09
S4: the word of God from A to Z, or able
17:12
S4: to Zechariah. He says better than their own name. So
17:15
S4: there was this necessity that like, if you want to
17:18
S4: know God and you got to know his word, you
17:20
S4: would have to memorize it.
17:22
S1: In many circles, Tom Meyer is known as the Bible
17:25
S1: Memory Man. He's a professor at Shasta Bible College and
17:28
S1: graduate school in Redding, California. It's great to have him
17:31
S1: with us today on the land and the book we're
17:33
S1: wrestling with, I think, a really important subject. What shift
17:36
S1: would you say happens in our relationship with Scripture when
17:39
S1: we move from simply reading it off a screen to
17:43
S1: memorizing it like the ancients did, as you've just said?
17:47
S4: Sure. Well, in a sense, we own the text. You know,
17:50
S4: if it's in our heads, we can forget it. If
17:52
S4: it's in our hands, we can lose it. Or it
17:54
S4: could be stolen. But if it's in our hearts, we
17:58
S4: own it. And that ability to call up the Word
18:01
S4: of God hit it in your heart. It provides you
18:03
S4: with so many blessings that we can't have necessarily, if
18:07
S4: we rely on a written copy. We could have the
18:09
S4: mind of God within reach. No matter where you are
18:11
S4: and no matter what you're doing, you can have instant
18:13
S4: access to the heart, to the mind of God. It
18:16
S4: can provide you with words of comfort in times of need.
18:19
S4: It provides you your your weapon of choice. And it
18:23
S4: really gets to the crux of the matter, where it
18:27
S4: helps us to know him better, to know the power
18:29
S4: of his direction, to know the fellowship of his sufferings.
18:32
S4: When we're able just to dwell on those verses and
18:35
S4: mull them over again and again in our heart.
18:37
S1: Okay, so we've agreed that in antiquity, scripture was embodied
18:41
S1: and spoken aloud. How does memorization of Scripture turn reading
18:46
S1: the text into an active, transformative experience rather than just
18:50
S1: sort of a passive one?
18:52
S4: Exactly. Because you know how it is, friends. When we
18:55
S4: read something, it kind of goes just one ear and
18:57
S4: out the other, right? You know, it's just how it works.
18:59
S4: And so much information or data just goes through our
19:04
S4: ears and out the other ear every single day. So
19:06
S4: we struggle with, with that idea of clinging on to stuff.
19:11
S4: But to be able to, to have that word written
19:14
S4: on the table of our hearts, it provides us with
19:17
S4: every opportunity to know the mind of God, to know
19:21
S4: the heart of God, to know the will of God,
19:23
S4: to know the commandments of God, to to please God.
19:26
S4: And we know that God has no greater joy than
19:28
S4: that we walk in truth. Yeah. And having that word
19:31
S4: hidden in our hearts helps us and our kids and
19:33
S4: our grandkids do that.
19:34
S1: I'm sitting here listening to you, Tom, and I'm going,
19:37
S1: why do we not understand fully what we are missing
19:41
S1: out by not memorizing the Bible? Why do we give
19:44
S1: ourselves a free pass? Why do we. Why do we
19:46
S1: think we're okay when we're really not?
19:48
S4: Well, that's a good question. And I think what it
19:51
S4: boils down to is that we've never really been challenged.
19:55
S4: And I know most of our pastors do a really
19:57
S4: great job on Sundays. But I mean, when's the last
20:01
S4: time on Sunday you saw the pastor recite the book
20:03
S4: of Jonah from memory before he taught on it?
20:05
S1: Yeah.
20:06
S4: You see what I'm getting at? So it kind of
20:07
S4: starts from the top down, whether they're pastors or professors
20:11
S4: or parents even, you know, we need to see someone
20:14
S4: do it and we need to see someone explain to
20:16
S4: us the benefits that come from us. And finally, we
20:19
S4: need to see that it is attainable, that I can
20:21
S4: do this, I can do a verse a week, I
20:23
S4: can overcome, and I can have a closer walk with
20:26
S4: him by, by memorizing his word.
20:28
S1: Today in the land. In the book, we're talking about
20:30
S1: digital amnesia with professor Tom Meyer, the Bible memory man. Okay,
20:35
S1: let's get practical here, Tom. For someone whose brain is
20:38
S1: deeply wired for short attention spans, that would be me.
20:42
S1: And quick digital scrolling. What's the best entry point to
20:46
S1: begin memorizing scripture?
20:49
S4: Well, keep it simple, number one and start small. That
20:53
S4: is to say, we can do a verse a week, right?
20:56
S4: Like if I was to offer you $100 for every
20:59
S4: single verse you memorize in the next year. I mean,
21:02
S4: do you think your attitude or your ability to memorize
21:06
S4: would change?
21:06
S1: Yes it.
21:07
S4: Would. It would. But how much more valuable is the inherent, infallible,
21:12
S4: inspired word of God? And so I think that if
21:15
S4: we just do a verse a week and not necessarily
21:17
S4: scattered verses, I would recommend more like short psalms or
21:20
S4: chapters or something with a train of thought with a
21:23
S4: flow to it. Because I don't know, for me, it
21:25
S4: seems much easier to memorize those kind of scriptures than
21:29
S4: those scattered verses abroad.
21:30
S1: All right, let's go further to the ancient memory techniques
21:33
S1: that might have been useful to those who've gone before us.
21:37
S1: What did the ancients used for memorizing long passages of Scripture?
21:43
S4: Well, while I had the privilege of living in the
21:45
S4: Holy Land for a thousand days as a student and
21:47
S4: also as a missionary, I was able to really rub
21:51
S4: shoulders with Jews and Christians in the holy city that
21:55
S4: really take it seriously. That is memorization. And to make
21:59
S4: a long story short, you could boil it down to
22:01
S4: three different techniques that the ancients memorized that are still
22:05
S4: applicable to us today. Number one is reading aloud, and
22:09
S4: that's the key. We really don't read aloud, right? When
22:13
S4: we're at home, when we're in public, we just don't
22:15
S4: do it. But reading aloud really does by the our
22:18
S4: mouths have a memory, they really do. And by shaping
22:21
S4: those words and saying them over and over, it really
22:23
S4: does help the the text really get concrete in our heart.
22:27
S4: The second one is, which kind of dovetails a little
22:30
S4: bit into the first point is by hearing by hearing
22:32
S4: the Word of God. And in the most literal sense,
22:35
S4: we really don't hear his voice throughout the week because
22:39
S4: when we read the scriptures, we don't read them aloud.
22:41
S4: When we're in the car, we're usually not listening to
22:44
S4: The burden of Nineveh, the book of the vision of
22:46
S4: Nahum the night. You know, we just don't listen to
22:49
S4: Scripture in the car like we should. But to be
22:52
S4: able to hear it like that over and over again,
22:55
S4: that's a phenomenal way to go about doing it. And
22:57
S4: that's how we inspire, among other means, I should say,
23:00
S4: our children to memorize. When our kids go to bed
23:02
S4: at nighttime, we'll just put scripture on and let them
23:06
S4: hear it and let that wash over them. And then
23:09
S4: third and finally is to write it out. And if
23:12
S4: you can say it when you write it, then your
23:14
S4: eye and your mind and your hand and your ear
23:16
S4: and your mouth are all working together in unison. So
23:19
S4: it's reading aloud, hearing and writing or a hybrid combination
23:24
S4: of those.
23:24
S1: Yeah. My pastor does that with his scripture verses. He
23:27
S1: writes them out on cards. I type them out and
23:30
S1: do a little layout in Photoshop with a little photo.
23:33
S1: So it's not the same as handwriting, but I do
23:35
S1: like that analog feel. What about Scripture memory apps though?
23:39
S1: Do they help us rebuild our attention spans, or do
23:41
S1: they ultimately contribute to the problem of digital amnesia?
23:46
S4: Well, I recommend them because let's not kid ourselves. I mean,
23:49
S4: we live in a wireless world, right? And there are
23:53
S4: many blessings and advantages that do come along with having
23:57
S4: this amazing technology that we have today. So yeah, there's
24:00
S4: numerous apps that are out there that are free that
24:03
S4: can help, especially those who are inclined to be on
24:05
S4: scrolling on their phones all the time to memorize God's word.
24:09
S1: Yeah. One of those that I use is Remember Me.
24:11
S1: And I know as you've said, there are zillions of
24:13
S1: them out there, but it has been helpful for me to. Well,
24:17
S1: if you could leave our listeners with one urgent reason,
24:19
S1: maybe two, why they should put down their phones and
24:22
S1: memorize just one verse of scripture this week. What would
24:25
S1: it be?
24:26
S4: Well, that's the million dollar question is why should I
24:29
S4: do it right? I have it printed. I have ten
24:31
S4: copies at home. I have it on my phone. Why
24:33
S4: should I memorize it when I'm not good at memorizing,
24:36
S4: so to speak? Number one is that God's Word is
24:39
S4: a treasure, and it's a treasure worth laying up in
24:42
S4: our hearts. And the blessings, the benefits, the dividends that
24:45
S4: come from God's Word hidden in our heart. They really
24:48
S4: are innumerable. Number one. And number two is it helps
24:52
S4: us to not worry, to not be caught up in
24:54
S4: the cares of the world, but to set our affections,
24:57
S4: our minds, our hearts on things above, and not on
24:59
S4: things of the earth. And then it makes us more
25:02
S4: like our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Let this mind
25:05
S4: be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. Well,
25:08
S4: what mind was in the Messiah? It was the Bible,
25:11
S4: the Tanakh, the Old Testament, and we can do it, friends.
25:14
S4: We can do one verse a week and you'll see
25:16
S4: the benefits, the blessings that come and your spiritual life
25:18
S4: from this exercise.
25:20
S1: Yeah, I think we we need to stop seeing it
25:21
S1: as a chore, a thing we should do good for us,
25:24
S1: like broccoli, but more like something that is tasty and
25:28
S1: has unbelievable dividends. I mean, to lay in bed at
25:31
S1: night and to be able to ponder, bring back, quote, scripture.
25:35
S1: That's a great way to go to sleep, I tell you.
25:37
S1: So Tom Meyer has some great tools for us as well,
25:40
S1: a link to him at our website, The Land and
25:43
S1: the book.org. Let's not get stuck in digital amnesia. Let's
25:47
S1: memorize the Word of God. Again, the land and the
25:50
S1: book dot ORG. Questions and answers from the Bible. Next.
25:54
S1: Right here. Imagine sailing the Sea of Galilee, standing where
26:10
S1: David faced Goliath, floating in the Dead Sea. Or walking
26:14
S1: on the stone streets of Jerusalem's Old City. You've read
26:17
S1: about these places? Sure, but in May of 2027, our
26:21
S1: friends at Life in Messiah are inviting you to experience
26:24
S1: them for yourself. During this study trip, you'll walk through
26:27
S1: the places where the biblical story unfolded as familiar passages
26:31
S1: moved from black and white into vivid color. Join Bible
26:34
S1: teachers Levi Hazon and Gerald Hall, who will help connect
26:37
S1: the history, geography, archaeology, and Jewish context of the land
26:41
S1: to the Bible, along with a licensed Israeli tour guide.
26:44
S1: This will be more than just a journey to biblical sites.
26:47
S1: Along the way, you'll also experience the land through life
26:50
S1: in Messiah's mission of sharing God's heart for the Jewish people.
26:54
S1: If Israel has been on your heart and your bucket list,
26:57
S1: consider joining life in Messiah for this unforgettable journey together.
27:01
S1: The trip is May 1 to 14, 2027. Registration closes
27:05
S1: December 31st. See the land. Understand the story. Love the people.
27:10
S1: For more information and to register, go to. Life in
27:13
S1: messiah.org and click on the moody radio icon. That's life
27:18
S1: in messiah.org. And now, ladies and gentlemen, would you join
27:23
S1: me in welcoming Doctor Gerald Peterman to the house. Well,
27:26
S1: the studio at least. Good to have you with us, brother.
27:29
S5: It's great to be here. Always fun.
27:30
S1: This is segment three. If you're new to the program.
27:32
S1: And Doctor Peterman, you have been teaching the Bible at
27:34
S1: the Moody Bible Institute since.
27:36
S5: Fall of 2002. Wow. It's great.
27:39
S1: 24 years still hanging in there, still meeting with students.
27:43
S1: And I just love your heart for the word and
27:45
S1: your energy as you as you share with us.
27:47
S5: Well, thanks be to God for that.
27:48
S1: Well, all right, let's get to our first question, this
27:50
S1: one from Hong. He says, I understand Samuel was a Levite.
27:54
S1: Was he descended from Aaron? If not, did Samuel actually
27:58
S1: perform sacrifices or were sacrifices performed through another priest with
28:02
S1: Samuel supervising? Since only priests descended from Aaron were supposed
28:07
S1: to perform sacrifices? Or was Samuel allowed to perform priestly
28:11
S1: duties by special dispensation from God, as appointed as prophet
28:15
S1: and judge of God?
28:17
S5: Well, great question. You know, as Hong points out, we
28:20
S5: go to the genealogy in one Chronicles six and we
28:23
S5: see that Samuel was a Levite. And so this made
28:27
S5: him kind of in the priestly family, if you will.
28:29
S5: But on the other hand, when you read your Old Testament,
28:32
S5: it's only the descendants of Aaron who are really allowed
28:36
S5: to make sacrifices. Go to the tabernacle, go in the
28:39
S5: holy place. And so the question becomes, why is Samuel
28:43
S5: offering sacrifices? I think this is an exception to the rule.
28:47
S5: And also in the book of Samuel, we find out
28:51
S5: something early in the book, the Lord said to Samuel, behold,
28:56
S5: I'm about to do a thing in Israel. Everyone who
28:59
S5: hears it, their ears will tingle. On that day I
29:02
S5: will fulfill against Eli Ly. He's the priest in charge.
29:06
S5: I will fulfill against Eli all that I have spoken
29:08
S5: concerning his house from beginning to end. And I declare
29:12
S5: to him that I am about to punish his house
29:14
S5: forever for the iniquity he knew, because his sons were
29:18
S5: blaspheming God, and he did not restrain them. Therefore I
29:22
S5: swear to the house of Eli that the iniquity of
29:25
S5: Eli's house will not be atoned for. Samuel kind of
29:29
S5: grows up under Eli's leadership, but Samuel is the one
29:32
S5: doing the sacrifices. I think because God does allow a
29:36
S5: special dispensation, he's in the right family. He's the one
29:40
S5: who's holy and acceptable. Not like Eli. So I really
29:44
S5: appreciate Hank's question. I take it this is an exception
29:46
S5: to the rule.
29:47
S1: Hong, I hope that answer was helpful to you. I
29:50
S1: want to go to fast forwarding just a bit. The
29:52
S1: actual temple period when that temple was built and they
29:55
S1: were no longer sacrificing in a tabernacle, but a physical structure.
30:00
S1: Can you sort of outline for us what the various
30:03
S1: levels were? Not everybody could go everywhere on that temple site.
30:06
S5: Oh, that's absolutely right, John. There are several layers, if
30:08
S5: you will. There's a courtyard the Gentiles can go into.
30:12
S5: So they're allowed some level of worship, if you will.
30:15
S1: That's a big space too, and.
30:17
S5: That's a big space. And this space exists during the
30:19
S5: time of Paul. It's a huge space in the time
30:22
S5: of Paul. And then you go past the court of
30:24
S5: the Gentiles and we get into the Jewish portions where
30:27
S5: only those who are Jews can go there. And then
30:31
S5: you come in. I'm oversimplifying a little bit. Then you
30:34
S5: come into the court for the priests where they can go.
30:36
S5: And then you go a little bit further. Then you
30:38
S5: could come into the tent itself, and you can come
30:41
S5: to the external sacrificial altar. Then you could come to
30:45
S5: the holy place where you have the table with the
30:48
S5: showbread and the like. And then you would come into
30:49
S5: the Holy of Holies. And of course, only the high
30:52
S5: priest can go there and only once per year. So
30:55
S5: it's a very swift shortening or cutting way down, who
30:58
S5: can come in to what space.
31:00
S1: And what exactly was in the Holy of Holies? It
31:02
S1: wasn't much.
31:03
S5: It wasn't much. Um, you have basically just the ark. Yeah.
31:08
S5: It's incredible. Right. And what's the ark made of? It's
31:12
S5: like a big box. But on top of this box
31:14
S5: is a gold lid. And on top of the gold
31:16
S5: lid you have the cherubim whose wings are kind of
31:20
S5: clinging together almost. And that what is said about this space,
31:24
S5: what is said about this space? The Lord himself is
31:26
S5: enthroned between the cherubim or. There are times when in
31:31
S5: the book of numbers, the Lord is speaking to Moses,
31:34
S5: and the Lord says, I will speak to you from
31:37
S5: atop the mercy seat. So this is a place of
31:40
S5: God's special presence. This is a place of atonement. This
31:43
S5: is a place of revelation. It's just an amazing bit
31:46
S5: of can I call it furniture? That's it's far more
31:51
S5: than furniture, but it's amazing.
31:52
S1: But it seems to me that this this idea of layering,
31:55
S1: as you put it, or different levels would sort of
31:58
S1: instill in people a sense of the specialness, uniqueness, holiness
32:02
S1: of what they were engaged in.
32:03
S5: Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. And you're expected to cleanse yourself to
32:08
S5: come before God, and you're expected to be ready before
32:10
S5: you come before God. And the high priest goes there
32:13
S5: in terror of his life. If he's not ready to
32:15
S5: go into the presence of God.
32:16
S1: Yeah. All right. Now, I want to I want to
32:18
S1: make you just a little uncomfortable here. I'm going to
32:19
S1: push you against the wall just a bit.
32:21
S5: Now, please, please.
32:22
S1: Uh, people who who now say, okay, we're in the
32:24
S1: New Testament age. We don't really need that. Uh. We're good.
32:28
S1: This is grace. We can show up as we are,
32:30
S1: but is there not some sense in which we too,
32:32
S1: should prepare for worship?
32:35
S5: Uh, we should prepare for worship. We should be honest
32:39
S5: before God. We should have a clear conscience before God.
32:43
S5: We should engage in worship. We should engage in. We
32:46
S5: should engage in giving in a way where we have
32:49
S5: a pure heart. Let me give you one particular example.
32:52
S5: It's not exactly on our topic, but, um, in the
32:55
S5: early portion of acts, there's a couple, Ananias and Sapphira,
33:00
S5: allegedly a Christian couple. They sell some property and they
33:04
S5: say they're bringing the full amount and they give it
33:07
S5: to the church. Peter investigates this and they were lying.
33:11
S5: They weren't really ready for that level of worship because
33:14
S5: they were not honest. She dies. The wife and the
33:18
S5: husband both die because they lied in their worship toward God.
33:23
S5: So yes, I don't notice people 2026 dying regularly in church.
33:29
S5: But we should be careful. We should always be very
33:32
S5: careful when we approach a holy God and not do
33:35
S5: so flippantly.
33:37
S1: Yeah. So there is a sense in which there should
33:38
S1: be some preparation. We don't just roll in on Sunday morning, right?
33:41
S1: Not having given it zero thought.
33:43
S5: Prepare our hearts, engage in repentance. Ask what brother or
33:47
S5: sister might I need to talk to in church and
33:49
S5: confess something? Yeah, right. Paul talks about confessing before you
33:54
S5: come to partake of the Lord's Supper.
33:55
S1: This is the land in the book from Moody radio
33:57
S1: doctor Gerald Petermann in the studio. Let's get back to
34:00
S1: Elspeth's question in Ezra, what happened to the wives and
34:04
S1: children that the men got rid of? I think we
34:06
S1: need some context here.
34:08
S5: Oh, yes. Well, in Ezra ten, it's discovered that amongst
34:13
S5: Israelites who've come back from exile, and they've come back
34:17
S5: and they're rebuilding the temple. It's discovered that several Israelite
34:22
S5: men had married foreign women. Even some priests had done this.
34:27
S5: Now this is against the law. You're supposed to marry
34:30
S5: other Jewish women. Many of them had married foreign women.
34:34
S5: And so and it said, you read Ezra ten. It's
34:37
S5: decided together that the men will divorce their wives and
34:41
S5: send them away. I know it sounds creepy. I know
34:44
S5: it sounds really sad what happened to them. We don't
34:47
S5: know the answer to this question. What happened to them?
34:50
S5: At least we have no hint in Ezra. But now
34:54
S5: we keep reading and we read Nehemiah. Something similar happens
34:57
S5: some decades later, and we come to Nehemiah 13. That
35:01
S5: describes a similar crisis where Nehemiah confronted men who had
35:05
S5: married foreign women, women from Ashdod, we're told, Amnon and Moab. Oh, well,
35:13
S5: these territories, they're right on the border of Israel, right?
35:16
S5: Right on the border of Israel. They're all around. And
35:18
S5: so here's what could have happened. I don't know. The
35:21
S5: text doesn't say exactly, but those lands are so close
35:24
S5: that these women and children can walk for a day
35:26
S5: or 2 or 3 and get back to their extended family, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins,
35:31
S5: and so have a family to get integrated back into.
35:34
S1: Frederick takes us to another question in the book of Ezra,
35:37
S1: chapter ten, verse 25 starts by saying, Moreover of Israel.
35:41
S1: Is he talking about tribes other than Judah and Benjamin?
35:45
S5: Actually, I appreciate this question, but Judah and Benjamin are
35:49
S5: not mentioned in this passage. As we mentioned, Ezra ten,
35:54
S5: some priests, some descendants of Aaron Levi, had married foreign women.
35:58
S5: And so we're told descendants of Aaron had married them,
36:02
S5: descendants of Levi had married them. And then he says further,
36:05
S5: and some Israelites had married them. I take it then,
36:08
S5: the Israelites are just people from any other tribe. Other
36:11
S5: tribes aren't mentioned specifically, just Eren and Levi. The rest is, moreover,
36:15
S5: of Israel. That's just the rest of Israelite tribes.
36:18
S1: Well, you and I have had this great conversation, Doctor
36:20
S1: Gerald Peterman, but there are listeners saying, how can I
36:23
S1: get in on this? How can I get my Bible
36:25
S1: question answered? It's easy. All it takes is an email
36:28
S1: to the land and the book@moody.edu. That's it. The land
36:34
S1: and the book@moody.edu. Give Doctor Peterman a few days, maybe
36:40
S1: a week. Even if he's being crushed by classroom deadlines,
36:43
S1: he'll get an answer to you. And we'll get your
36:44
S1: question on the broadcast in the future. The land and
36:47
S1: the book@moody.edu. Charlie Dyer is next. Last words are important words.
37:07
S1: Welcome back to the land. In the book, I'm John
37:09
S1: Gager and Charlie, you've been in the middle of a
37:11
S1: series called The Final Words of Jesus for your devotional segment,
37:14
S1: I think about Jesus. And if we were to say
37:17
S1: what were his final words, you could probably go a
37:19
S1: number of different places, right?
37:20
S2: Oh, that's exactly right, John.
37:22
S1: And yet you have chosen a very specific place and
37:25
S1: a very specific passage. We're going to look at that
37:27
S1: after we take in this testimony from someone who's been
37:30
S1: to Israel themselves and shares this thought with you and me.
37:37
S6: Hi. I'm calling from Spokane, Washington, and I just wanted
37:41
S6: to comment that I did go to Israel and took
37:45
S6: a Holy Land tour about four years ago, and it
37:48
S6: was life changing for me to put everything in perspective
37:53
S6: as far as the Bible went. So it really made
37:56
S6: an impact on me. And I would suggest that anyone
38:00
S6: that could by any means get over there and go
38:03
S6: through that, it would change your life forever.
38:06
S7: I went to Israel in 1983. Uh, I've taught Sunday
38:10
S7: school now for probably close to 30 years or more.
38:13
S7: But going to the Holy Land, uh, made such an
38:18
S7: impact on my life. Now, when I'm teaching or when
38:21
S7: I'm reading the Word of God, I can see the
38:24
S7: areas that I saw back that long ago and just
38:27
S7: made it more dear to my heart.
38:30
S1: Charlie, I'm looking forward to your devotional. I'll get out
38:32
S1: of the way and let you have at it.
38:34
S2: Ah, thanks. Well, we're in the middle of this three
38:36
S2: part series focusing on some of the most memorable final
38:39
S2: words from the Bible. You know, a person's final words
38:41
S2: are often their most significant and profound. Like cherished possessions.
38:45
S2: They they want to pass along to loved ones. Last
38:48
S2: week we looked at the final words of David, and
38:50
S2: this week I want to focus on the final words
38:52
S2: of Jesus. Now, you might think we're heading to the
38:54
S2: Mount of Olives near Bethany, but actually we're on our
38:57
S2: way to Galilee. Jesus ascended to heaven from the Mount
39:00
S2: of Olives, but he spent much of the time between
39:03
S2: his resurrection and ascension in Galilee with his disciples. After
39:07
S2: initially appearing to the 11 disciples in Jerusalem. Matthew says
39:11
S2: Jesus told them to go to Galilee to meet him
39:13
S2: at the mountain which he had designated. Now we're not
39:15
S2: told which mountain Jesus had chosen for this place of meeting.
39:19
S2: Two mountains in northern Israel played prominent roles early in
39:22
S2: Matthew's Gospel, the Mount of Beatitudes and the Mount of Transfiguration. Since,
39:27
S2: according to John 21, Peter was waiting by the Sea
39:30
S2: of Galilee, I tend to think the mountain to which
39:32
S2: Jesus sent them was the Mount of Beatitudes, the spot
39:35
S2: where he had first gathered the disciples to teach them.
39:38
S2: In writing about that event, Matthew said, everyone was amazed
39:41
S2: because he was teaching them as one having authority. But
39:45
S2: the authority that was only implicit at the start of
39:48
S2: Jesus's ministry is now stated very explicitly. All authority has
39:53
S2: been given to me in heaven and on earth. The
39:55
S2: word for authority has the idea of official right or power,
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S2: and Jesus declares that God the Father has now given
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S2: him the authoritative right to rule. Perhaps the disciples thought
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S2: Jesus allusion to the prophecy in Daniel seven and behold,
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S2: with the clouds of heaven, one like a son of
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S2: man was coming. And he came up to the Ancient
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S2: of days, and was presented before him, and to him
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S2: was given dominion, glory, and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations,
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S2: and men of every language might serve him. His dominion
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S2: is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away, and
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S2: his kingdom is one which will not be destroyed. Jesus
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S2: had fulfilled the purpose for his first coming. He died
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S2: to pay the penalty for our sins. Now he was
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S2: giving his disciples a new set of commands in preparation
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S2: for his second coming. Go, therefore, and make disciples of
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S2: all nations. Jesus's final challenge to his followers, his final command,
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S2: is to make disciples worldwide. Jesus had initially sent his
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S2: disciples only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
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S2: Now the disciples are to take the good news to
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S2: all the world. Now, in our English Bibles, it looks
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S2: like Jesus gave two commands where to go and where
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S2: we're to make disciples. But in Greek, only the word
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S2: for make disciples is an imperative command. The word for
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S2: go is a participle. As a result, some believe Jesus
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S2: is simply telling his followers to disciple people wherever they
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S2: happen to be going. But that limited meaning misses the point.
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S2: Jesus said they were to be making disciples of all
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S2: the nations. The word for nations is ethnos, from which
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S2: we get our word ethnic. It focuses on people, groups, races,
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S2: and nations. Jesus's point is that he wants his disciples
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S2: to be taking his message to all the nations. Jesus
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S2: wants the focus of his followers to be worldwide, to
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S2: look beyond their own individual comfort zones. But while his
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S2: final words have a worldwide focus, don't miss the primary point.
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S2: The imperative. The command Jesus gives his followers is to
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S2: make disciples. Just as Jesus had taught these disciples to
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S2: become followers of him, so he now commands them to
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S2: go out and reproduce their lives in others. But how
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S2: does one produce disciples? Jesus explains how this is done.
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S2: It first involves baptizing them in the name of the
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S2: father and the son and the Holy Spirit. Baptism involves acceptance, identification,
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S2: and association. Those baptized by John the Baptist were showing
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S2: their acceptance of his message and their submission to it.
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S2: The first step in making disciples is to help individuals
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S2: accept and identify with the name singular of the father, son,
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S2: and Holy Spirit. One name but three persons. The first
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S2: step of faith is publicly acknowledging and identifying with the
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S2: person and work of Jesus and his role in the Trinity.
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S2: But discipleship goes beyond that initial moment of faith and
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S2: public identification. It also involves teaching them to observe all
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S2: that I commanded you to be a disciple ultimately involves
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S2: being a follower of Jesus in all we do, and
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S2: in that sense, becoming a disciple is a lifelong task.
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S2: As we learn how to follow Jesus and grow closer
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S2: in our walk with him, we're then able to help
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S2: others learn how to follow more closely as well. Paul
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S2: followed Jesus command as he discipled young Timothy. And then
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S2: when Paul neared the end of his life, he called
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S2: on Timothy to do the same. The things which you
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S2: have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses,
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S2: entrust these to faithful men who will be able to
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S2: teach others also. Discipleship is the process of producing followers
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S2: of Jesus from generation to generation. Imagine being on the
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S2: hillside with Jesus that day. Perhaps you thought back to
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S2: the first time you sat on this hillside with him.
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S2: You looked out on the Sea of Galilee and remember
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S2: the amazing events that took place on and around that
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S2: special lake. Or maybe your thoughts go back to events
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S2: from just a few weeks ago, when you fled from Gethsemane.
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S2: At the very moment the one standing before you now
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S2: needed you most. And that's when the old doubts and
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S2: fears start to surface. I failed Jesus once before. If
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S2: he's getting ready to leave, how can I be sure
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S2: I won't fail again? And that's when Jesus adds a
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S2: final phrase in his closing words to his disciples. And lo,
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S2: I am with you always, even to the end of
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S2: the age. Jesus would soon be heading to heaven, but
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S2: he now promised to be spiritually present with them even
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S2: after he had departed physically. We know this was fulfilled,
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S2: at least in part, through the sending of the Holy Spirit,
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S2: the third Person of the Trinity, to be our comforter
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S2: and enabler. Jesus final promise is that he won't abandon
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S2: his followers. It will soon be time to return to Jerusalem,
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S2: where Jesus will ascend to heaven from the Mount of Olives.
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S2: But as we get ready to walk down the mountainside,
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S2: what lessons can we take with us from our time
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S2: here in Galilee with him? What is it that we're
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S2: to learn from his final words to his disciples? I
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S2: think the most important lesson is remembering the assignment Jesus
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S2: has given to all of us. Our mission is to
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S2: make disciples. That involves helping people understand, acknowledge and identify
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S2: with the Triune God of the Bible, especially the person
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S2: and work of God the Son. But our mission doesn't
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S2: end once someone has come to faith. It also involves
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S2: an ongoing ministry of teaching others the Word of God,
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S2: so they can know how to follow along the path
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S2: of obedience. We're also trying to follow. Nor does this
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S2: process end until followers can be found across the face
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S2: of the globe in all the earth. It sounds intimidating
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S2: until we remember Jesus has promised to walk alongside us
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S2: on that pathway. The task is easier when we remember
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S2: that he said he'll be with us always, even unto
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S2: the end of the age.
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S1: You know, Charlie, I can't help but think, as somebody
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S1: is listening to you talking about followers of Jesus, they're saying,
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S1: I'm sort of on the sidelines. I'm not really a follower.
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S1: How do I become a follower of Jesus, Charlie?
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S2: Well, the first step is acknowledging what Jesus has said
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S2: about himself. He is the Son of God. He came
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S2: to earth. He died to pay the penalty for your sins.
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S2: The person who says, I'm a sinner, I know it,
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S2: and I know Jesus died for me. I want to
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S2: place my life in his hands. I want to submit
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S2: to his authority. Now. Jesus saved me because of what
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S2: you've done, not because of anything I've done. That's step one.
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S2: And then they can begin the process of discipleship.
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S1: We'd love to email with you and hear about your
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S1: spiritual journey to pray with you, encourage you. Connect with
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S1: us at the land and the book@moody.edu. The land and
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S1: the book@moody.edu. We're happy to email back and forth with you,
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S1: pray with you to receive Jesus the Land and the book@moody.edu.
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S1: Our time is gone, but we thank you for hanging
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S1: out with us today. We thank the management of this
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S1: station for carrying our program. Our producer is Dan Anderson,
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S1: our host, Charlie Dyer. I'm John Yeager, the land and
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S1: the book is a production of Moody Radio, a Ministry
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S1: of Moody Bible Institute.