Transcript

Welcome to Exploring the Word. We are in the Old Testament book of Isaiah

>> Bert Harper: The Bible.

>> Jeff Chamblee: It's the word of God. sharper than any two edged sword. This sacred book is living and active and contains all that's needed for life and godliness. Welcome to Exploring the Word. Merry Christmas.

>> Alex McFarland: Merry Christmas indeed. It's getting closer by the day. And this is exploring the Word. We are in the Old Testament book of Isaiah. We invite you to turn to Isaiah 22. Follow along as, Pastor Bert Harper and myself, we read and we study God's word. Then later on in the show, we'll take questions. So we want to hear from you. Later on in the show, we'll pick up the phones.

Tuesday is our day of prayer and we had some, some good prayers yesterday

And Bert, yesterday was special because on Tuesdays we kind of maximize on prayer. You know, we take a lot of Bible questions, but Tuesday is our day of prayer and we had some, some really good prayers. And I want to follow up with a praise report, if I may. As we were closing out the show yesterday, I mentioned, please pray for a friend in NewSong York City with, bone marrow cancer. His name is Ted. Well, so that was the last prayer request yesterday. And I just heard today he's out of icu. And his wife texted and said inexplicably last night he took this radical turn for the better.

>> Bert Harper: Amen.

>> Alex McFarland: And is out of icu. And they said through the night just a lot of great things regarding his vital signs. And Bert, I attribute that to everybody praying yesterday.

>> Bert Harper: Amen. Praise the Lord Prayer. Listen, we, need it. God loves to hear it and other people need it. And prayer is that, you know, it is the relationship that we express with our Lord that we have. And so praise the Lord for that. Alex. We heard from a lot of people. We had some needs and people have responded to some of those needs. the prayer that we heard that we prayed concerning Evie and people responding to that. So it's just been. Yesterday was a significant day on exploring the word, people, getting better people responding and helping others. So praise the Lord, Alex.

>> Alex McFarland: Amen. The Lord is so good.

Bertrand Russell: Isaiah is a 66 chapter book about Jesus

Well, we are in the book of Isaiah, which is in the old testament, a 66 chapter book. And, there's a lot in Isaiah that's about the coming of the Lord Jesus, but there's also a lot about the kingdoms being judged and also other, non Jewish nations being judged for their sin too. And so, Isaiah has this vision, that, he is, given to Eliakim the key of David. L E L I A K I M M. I'm going to assume it might be pronounced Eliakim but that's my southern country boy. Pronunciation of Hebrew words, Bert. But like in verse 20, it shall come to pass in that day that I will call my servant Eliakim M. The son of Hilkiah, and I will clothe him with thy robe and strengthen him with thy girdle, and will commit thy government into his hand. And he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah, and the key of the house of David, and will I, lay upon his shoulder. So he shall open and none shall shut. He shall shut, and none shall open. Now, listen to this wording in verse 23. And we might go back a bit, but. And I will fasten him as a nail in a sure place. so when God puts his hand on somebody, it's a sure thing, whether it's, God opening the way for a good leader or, God permitting, maybe a bad leader for a glorious throne in his father's house. And, Bert, have you ever had, like, a nail that you just couldn't remove almost?

>> Bert Harper: yes. And have to. In place of doing the hammer, claw hammer, you have to get out a crowbar, and then you have to put a wedge in between the end of the crowbar to get the nail out. Yes. I'm given the, experience of that, Alex.

>> Alex McFarland: Well, you know, I think about this, the wording there. Isn't that something? I will fasten him as a nail. that's pretty wild. And his name, Eliakim, they say it means like a pig or something, like in a firm place. And so he is given the, reign there, at least for a while. And you know that archaeologists have discovered, inscriptions referencing him that. Yeah, so he is given leadership there for a while. But, we're supposed to do what we're supposed to do. And there is a lot of responsibility on all of we human beings. But when I read this about how God raises him up, you know, there's just so much in this world, and this is a great comfort, by the way, that is simply in the hand of a sovereign God, you know, and we trust Him.

>> Bert Harper: Now, why was it him? It was him because something had happened to the predecessor, and, the predecessor failed. Now, I'm going to go way back to verse eight. And we finished up on this a little bit yesterday, but did not get to, talk about it much. In verse 8 of chapter 22, God removed the protection of Judah. In other words, they had been there. And I, remember 9, 11, when preachers. And I was One of them talking, has the protection of America been lifted, and now we're vulnerable. Cause all those airplanes that took down the buildings and all the things that were happening. And notice what it says in 8 through 11. It says, you looked in that day to the armor of the house of the forest. You looked somewhere else beside God. Look where they look to. It says also he in verse, nine, you gathered together the waters. And then verse 10, you numbered the houses of Jerusalem. In verse 11, you also made a reservoir between the two walls. Now they're setting up for a siege. the way the Assyrians wanted to take Jerusalem was by siege, by denying their water, denying their food. And they were preparing to get everything ready. But. But then look what it says in the latter part of verse 11. And I want to come in, and I think you will too. But you did not look to its Maker, nor did you have respect for him who fashioned it long ago. Now, what you want to do when you read this, and it's a good lesson, there's a good sermon in here as well. Notice in verse 8, this is what you look to in verse 11, is who you did not look to. So the question is, who are we looking to in America as a nation in a. I, would say in the church, who are we looking to? I remember, years ago. I've lived long enough to see churches take on fads or different things. I remember when they thought activity, buildings was the answer to everything. Now I like them. I, I do. And I appreciate them. I remember they. When the bus ministry started. Now, this is in the 60s, way back there, Alex, and out of Hammond, Indiana, Jack Hiles. Do you remember. Remember that name?

>> Alex McFarland: Oh, I do remember.

>> Bert Harper: Okay.

>> Alex McFarland: Yes.

>> Bert Harper: Great church and bus ministry all over Hammond and doing the work and everybody. Oh, this is what we need to do. I agree. When we find out something works, we want to join them. But you don't look to that. You look to the Lord God. In here, it says, we looked for the armor. We looked for the water. We looked for the number of the people that we could rely upon. We even built a reservoir so that we. The water would not run out. But you did not look to its maker, nor did you have respect for him who fashioned it long ago. Alex, the whole idea. Who are you looking unto? look unto me, all. You here, heavy laden. Turn to me. Look up on the bronze, serpent. Ah, in the wilderness, Alex. We look unto the Lord, don't we?

>> Alex McFarland: Well, we do. And you know, this will not be all that we Hear about Eliakim, because he's going to come back. In, Isaiah 37. See, there's this, Assyrian, entourage, you might say, that come, and the Assyrians, they say all these blasphemous words, and they're going to, you know, lay waste to the city of Jerusalem. And Eliakim tears his clothes in grief, and they seek guidance from Isaiah. And then Isaiah tells Eliakim and Hezekiah later on in 37, we'll get to it.

Alex Shibnah says he believes the wheels are turning for America's revival

There's a little bit of ground we have to traverse before that. But, in Isaiah 37, 6. 7, Isaiah says, quote, this is what the Lord says. Do not be afraid of what you have heard. Those words with which the underlings of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me. Listen, when he hears a certain report, I will make him want to return to his own country, and there I will have him cut down with the sword. you know, I don't want to, you know, take too much liberty with the text here, but, Bert, there have been throughout history, evil people that maligned, God and God's followers. And people have had, you know, evil designs about, you know, dominating and, you know, a secular vision for, you know, the future rather than God's word and God's truth. I had. Somebody asked me even today about, you know, what do you think about America? Will America go socialist? Will it go Sharia? And I said, listen, we got some serious things. And I don't minimize that. But I truly believe. I truly believe that the wheels are turning for a revival in America. A great awakening. And you know what? In a way, I was really thinking about how, you know, God told Hezekiah, Eliakim, Isaiah, do not be afraid of the threats of the Assyrians, because they're not going to prevail. Now. We need to pray and intercede. We need to witness. We need to walk with God. We need to try to get people under the sound of the gospel. There is a human responsibility in the struggle for the soul of a nation. But ultimately, Bert, I think that we need to be encouraged that, you know, we're not facing the Assyrians or the Philistines or anything like that. But there's always, sin, evil, immorality, wickedness. There's Sharia law. And I think we need to do our best, pray all that we can. Pray and do all that we can do. But ultimately, we know a sovereign God and his revealed truth and the light of the gospel and the name of Jesus ultimately will prevail Bert, would you agree?

>> Bert Harper: It will. What do we do in the meantime? We look unto him and I know I'm going back, but this is so important. I just felt like verse 12 and 13 says this. They said, look to the Lord your Maker. And in that day, the Lord God of hosts called. The Lord God called for weeping and for mourning, for boldness and for girding with sackcloth. In other words, mourning. like Nineveh, people saying, yes, I take responsibility. And this is what you were talking about, a revival. We take responsibility as a church, what we've done wrong, and we come back to the Lord. And in verse 13 it says, but instead, joy and gladness, slaying oxen, killing sheep, eating meat, drinking wine. Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die. In other words, you know, we're going to take advantage of it. Right now. We do not care about the next generation. We don't care about those. But those of us who are looking to God, praying for this awakening, what do we do? We admit those things that we've done wrong, that we've turned aside. We haven't done that which is right. And then we stay with God, trust God, and he's going to bring it about. in verse 14, then it was revealed in my healing by the Lord, hearing, by the Lord of hosts. Surely for this inquirer, there will be no atonement for you even to your death, says the Lord God of hosts. In other words, you don't want to go too far with God. Listen, so what do you do? You turn When, Alex, is it today?

>> Alex McFarland: Now seek the Lord while he may be found. And we don't know about tomorrow. We have no guarantee of tomorrow. But we have today right now, don't we?

>> Bert Harper: We really do. And in verses 15, 19, he gets to a leader that he built his own sepulcher high and lifted up. He said, I want to be remembered. He also says, I've got mighty men. but God says, no, that's not what's going to happen. I'm going to toss you like a ball into a large country. This guy, that Elokim took his place, Shibnah, he failed in doing his job. Here's what I'm saying as we go into the break. Let's not fail in doing our job, in proclaiming the Lord Jesus Christ is Lord and following him. We'll be back with more right after this break.

Preborn offers free ultrasounds to women in crisis

>> Jeff Chamblee: it's so easy to politicize abortion, but the reality is there's a precious life at stake. And that little life doesn't have a voice. All that little life has is a heartbeat. And it can be heard as early as is five weeks on ultrasound. That's where preborn steps in. Preborn is a voice for the little ones.

>> Alex McFarland: They do an ultrasound.

>> Bert Harper: And that's when everything changed.

>> Caroline: Because when I saw my baby and.

>> Alex McFarland: When I heard her heartbeat, that was it.

>> Jeff Chamblee: Preborn network of clinics offers free ultrasounds to women in crisis while showering them with God's love. This powerful combination doubles a baby's chance at life and has helped to rescue over 300,000 babies. To learn more about preborn's life saving work, call pound250 and say the key word baby. That's 250, baby. Or visit preborn.comafr all gifts are tax deductible.

Mary, did you know. This baby that you delivered will soon deliver you

>> Bert Harper: Mary, did you know. That your baby boy. Was one day walk on water. Mary, did you know.

>> Alex McFarland: That your baby.

>> Bert Harper: Boy. Will save our sons and daughters?

>> Alex McFarland: Did you know. That your baby.

>> Bert Harper: Boy has come to make you new? This child. That you've delivered will soon deliver you. Amen. One of the most powerful, lines in a song. This baby that you delivered will soon deliver you.

>> Alex McFarland: Amen.

>> Bert Harper: Love that song. Thank you. Brent knows I like it. He's over smiling. He knew he was getting it. And that's. And that's Martin Lowry who wrote it.

>> Alex McFarland: Yeah.

>> Bert Harper: And he was singing it. Okay, I knew that.

>> Alex McFarland: you know, that's one of the more modern, I say, recent Christmas songs. I guess it's been around about 30 years, you know, whereas many of our beloved Christmas songs have been around for 200 years. But Mary, did you know that really is a modern day Christmas classic, isn't it?

>> Bert Harper: It really is. And I, praise God.

Keith and Kristin Getty are going on a UK Christmas tour

Speaking of writers and singers, I know you know these people, Keith and Kristin Getty, you know, some of the best, writers and singers, they, they got in touch with us and wanted us to pray for them. And, we would have done this yesterday on day of prayer, but we didn't know about it. They are going on a United, Kingdomnomics Christmas tour. They're going to be singing and sharing in Glasgow, London and Belfast.

>> Alex McFarland: Oh, man.

>> Bert Harper: Yeah. And so there's going to be about 15,000 people that will be gathered in those three places and they're going to be. And they wanted us to pray that this would just start a revival in Britain as well. And, we're asking God to do that for them. They also said they're going to live stream their program on December 19th and it hopefully will reach more than 100 countries across the globe. And again, the gospel we should be shared in this. And then they're also launching a new hymnal there in the uk. I find that amazing. So it's filled with their, songs as well as others that they've gathered. And so we need to be praying for that tour that they're going on. Again, those places are Glasgow, London and Belfast. So, Alex, I know you, but right now they're in Washington, D.C. at the Museum, of the Bible. And they're doing, some evenings there in preparation to go to the uk. And now listen to this. It's not through yet. The Gettys, the Museum of the Bible. And also one of their partners in doing this is Voice of the Martyrs. I thought, when I heard that, I said, man, we partner with all of those. We do. We work with Voice of the Martyrs. We're partners with Museum, of the Bible and the Gettys. So let's just ask God to do a great work through their ministry there, doing this Christmas tour. Alex.

>> Alex McFarland: Amen. Amen. let me pray for that right now. May I do that?

>> Bert Harper: You bet, brother. Go right ahead.

>> Alex McFarland: Let's pray. Father God, we lift up your name. And here at Christmas time, as we celebrate the incarnation, Lord, we give you glory. Thank you for coming down from heaven to earth, taking on a human body that you could go to the cross and pay our sin debt. And, Lord, some of history's most beloved music is the music of Christmas. And Lord, the Gettys arrange it and sing it so well. And Lord, their worship songs you have used. And they, they give you the glory. They're great friends and colleagues. Voice of the Martyrs. A great ministry that we've, walked alongside for a number of years as well. So, Father God, in the name of Jesus, I pray that you will ignite a revival in England and Scotland. Glasgow, Scotland. These historic parts of Europe. Lord, right now, the future of Europe, the future, the soul of the UK hangs in the balance as Islam has come in. And, throughout, England and Europe and France, there's Islam and then there's atheism. So, Father God, we pray as the Gettys and all of their team, they sing the songs of Christmas. They lift up Jesus through beautiful music, Lord, ignite a revival. May your Holy Spirit go forth. May souls be saved. May churches be restored. May Christians be inspired. And may the lost world hear of the Savior. We commit. We pray for safety. Lord, I pray for safety. Nothing but favor and your hand upon it we lift them up to you in Jesus name. Amen.

>> Bert Harper: Amen. Thank you Alex and appreciate Jim Stanley. Jim stays in contact with them and praise the Lord. Jim after some health issues is coming back strong and he's going to be on with Alex a lot during this Christmas season. And we appreciate Jim so much but Jim helps us with all these different ministries that AFR partners with. He's kind of the, the, the front guy on that team of, of helping us to navigate all the ministries that we're in contact with. So praise the Lord. So thank you Jim for sharing that.

Bert says leadership is fundamentally about service, isn't it

Alex, we already we've come to this. I wanted one more thing. In verse 19, again we started out with Eliakim who took the place of Shebna. Shebna. But notice what it says in verse 19 about Shebna. And then Elohim Eliakim comes on. So I will drive you out of your office and from your position he will pull you down. Now notice that what had he done, he had built up himself. He had built up the war chest there in verses 8 through 11. Then he had started building up himself of building a sepulcher for himself that even when he would be dead they would, you know, to be one of those markers that they would come and honor him in memorial. And he is a mighty man getting all the things. And God says I'm going to throw you in a large country and but that word I'll drive you out of your office and your position. He will pull you down. I want you to speak to this a minute and I will as well. The responsibility of leadership is pretty high, isn't it?

>> Alex McFarland: Well it really is. And let me say when leaders are not doing what they're supposed to do, which is to humbly obediently serve. You know Bert, one of the verses that I have always loved, it was one of, one of the very first Bible verses I learned as a, about a 21 year old new believer. But Mark 10:44, he who would be greatest among you would be the servant of all. And really you know, leadership, I've read this in John Maxwell books. I certainly see it in God's word is leadership, is fundamentally about service, isn't it?

>> Bert Harper: It is.

>> Alex McFarland: So Shebna wants to cut himself a big, high, highly visible tomb. So some someday people will, you know, go by the grave and venerate him. but God, you know, the Bible says pride goeth before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall. And I think we all need to be very humble. But I think this is fascinating. I've got to read this. And by the way, folks, Isaiah 23, a prophecy against Tyre. That's phenomenal. We've got to get there. But listen, Shebna is going to be big over everybody. But God says, look, I'm going to pull you down. He will surely violently turn and toss you like a ball into a large country. And what it really means is, God says, shebna, I'm going to throw you like a ball into this ravine. Now, the word there. Fascinating. You know, when you think of a ball, a baseball, you know, a softball, a tennis ball, that might sound kind of modern. The Hebrew word is, K A D U R Kadur. And you know what it meant? It meant, like, a ball.

>> Bert Harper: Yeah, it did. I was amazed at that. The verbiage there was so. I love the graphicness of this.

>> Alex McFarland: Humans have been throwing balls for thousands of years, I suppose, right?

>> Bert Harper: That's right. Notice what he's going to wind up with in verse 18. There you shall die, and there your glorious chariots. They're going to wind up in the same place. and the glorious chariots had two things, Alex. I think. See, what? I want you to run this by you. One was. Yeah, their protection. But the other one was, what did they do? Leaders would get in the lead chariot and they would decorate it so much, and then that guy would stand in the chariot with his clothing and, everything and everybody would pay homage to him. Now it's going to wind up in this pit.

>> Alex McFarland: Well, it is. And, let me say, sometimes in circles of leadership, people think, you know, what is my legacy? What is my legacy? Or something like that. And I understand we all want to, you know, for God's. Excuse me, for God's glory, you know, leave a good memory. but, you know, I don't think that we're called to obsess about how we're gonna be remembered. I don't even. I don't think it's worth even thinking about. I think that we want to do all that we can do to make sure that Jesus is known. and, Bert, I'm not trying to sound spiritual or anything. I'm really not. but you and I have written some books. We've traveled and preached and praise God. All that matters is that Jesus name is known. John the Baptist had it right. He must increase, I must decrease. Who cares that anybody knows any of our names? But we want everybody to know the name of Jesus, don't we?

>> Bert Harper: We do at the name of Jesus. Every knee will bow, every tongue will confess that he is Lord. And, Alex, that's what we're to do. And that's what. Exploring the Word we exist.

Alex McFarland: The relationship between God and us is eternal

Our president, Tim Wildmon, he said we need something in the afternoon, just to lift up the word of God that Jesus Christ is Lord. And that's our responsibility. God's given us that, and we want to do it as real as we can with a servant spirit. And that's what it is. Verse 25. I know we read the rest of 2024, but verse 23 is talking about the nail or the peg, being secure. Listen to this. In day, says the Lord of hosts, the peg that is fastened in the secure place will be removed and be cut down and fall. And the burden was on it. It will be cut off, for the Lord has spoken it. In other words, no matter who you are as a human being, no matter what, our position that we have here upon earth is temporary. The relationship that we have with God is eternal. Now, Alex, that May. They may call you, Dr. Alex McFarland. They may call me Reverend Burt Harper. Guess what those titles mean. Very.

>> Alex McFarland: Not a lot.

>> Bert Harper: Not a lot. And I appreciate you getting you. Don't you hear me? Minimizing what it took to get your doctorate. I'm not doing that. But those titles. Listen, what is it? Somebody said you didn't have so many degrees you could open a Thermometer country, but it doesn't amount to anything if you're not serving God. And so, yes, those of you who are listening today, I just want you to know, talk to a pastor. He says, man, I pastor a very, very small church over in Arkansas. Man, I had a great conversation with him today. He may be listening. And I just want to tell you where God has planted you. Here. Shebna. God put him there, but he did not. He was more concerned about him than he was the Lord. But then when Eliakim came along, he put Lord first. And even putting him first, the position's going to be gone. And what's left is who you are, who you are with Christ. That's really. Is what you were saying, what matters, isn't it, Alex?

>> Alex McFarland: It is. And in verse 25, when, Eliakim's season concludes, you know, he was fastened like a nail, but he comes out. I don't see that he did anything bad, really.

>> Bert Harper: No, it's just. We have our time, don't we?

>> Alex McFarland: Yeah, exactly. And, you know, I got a lot of heroes. And we talk about this a lot, one of whom is like Billy Graham. I've read so many biographies of Billy Graham, and I. Just. How God used him is just miraculous, no doubt. And I've had some friends that worked with him, knew him, and over and over and over, I said, tell me about Billy Graham. They said, well, he was the single most humble person I ever knew. you know, Bert, I gotta tell you this. In Greensboro, North Carolina, at First Baptist Church, was the funeral of Vance Havner. and, folks, Vance Havner is one of our heroes.

>> Bert Harper: Amen.

>> Alex McFarland: An amazing evangelist. He's really the man that urged a very young Billy Graham to become an evangelist. And Billy Graham, I mean, I think right alongside the apostle Paul. Oh, my goodness. There's. I don't know, another human that preached to as many people like Billy Graham did. But Vance Havner was very much a mentor in his life. And when, Vance Havner's funeral was In Greensboro in 1986, Adrian Rogers was there. Charles Stanley was there. Jerry Falwell was there. there was a letter from. I think, President Carter had sent a letter acknowledging Vance Havner and so many people. And they said there was a reception, and everybody was there. And it was kind of a, you know, Adrian Rogers, and everybody's fawning over everybody. Well, over in the corner, just quietly by himself, was Billy Graham. And they said that, he was just so humble that he didn't jockey to get his picture taken or anything. And he was Billy Graham, for goodness sakes. You know, And I don't know if there's anything that I think we need to remember is that all that we have and all that we are is just a gift from the Lord. And our job is to lift up Jesus. We, Billy Graham had a brother. I'll say this. I'll throw it back to you. Mel Graham was, And we had him come speak at a men's breakfast back in the late 90s. Melvin Graham. And he would say this. This was kind of his tagline. He said, you know, billy Graham is my brother. He said, I'm just a nobody who wants to tell everybody about a. Somebody that could save anybody. Have you heard that burp?

>> Bert Harper: I have. And they made a song of it. Now it's a song. That's one of the songs. When we come back to our Christmas After Christmas song, Bren, we want that song to be put on there as one of our intros. I love it.

AFA Action takes attacks on the Family seriously

So they took that term and turned it into a song. Alex, listen, if we start thinking of ourselves more highly than we ought, the power will depart quickly, won't it?

>> Alex McFarland: We don't want to be like Shebna. We want to be humble. Well, folks, the number is 8885-898840-88859. When we come back on the American Family Radio Network, we'll take your phone calls. So call in. We're back after this.

>> Jeff Chamblee: AFA Action takes attacks on the Family seriously. The enemies of the family constantly employ new tactics to try to sneak past our radar. They know if we stand together, their evil plans will fail. Your gift to AFA Action allows us to stay vigilant against their onslaught. And if you give the this month, you'll receive access to the Cultural Institute video When youn Faith is Illegal by Frank harbor on AFA Stream as our thanks. You can make your gift today@AFA action.net.

>> Alex McFarland: Savior. Gifted from heaven to a manger.

William from Illinois calls with a Bible question about hypocrisy in America

Welcome back to Exploring the Word. we're going to go to phone calls. The number, by the way, if you've got a Bible question, it's 888-589-8840. You know, we're always trying to, like, hear on air and amongst Brent and Bert and myself, we're always asking trivia questions tomorrow. maybe. Here's one. What does Isaiah, have in common with Ezekiel?

>> Bert Harper: Okay.

>> Alex McFarland: And it relates to chapter 23, by the way. Maybe we'll, we'll, talk about that tomorrow. But, Bert, are you ready to, go to the phone?

>> Bert Harper: I'm ready. And that number, 888-589-8840. We'd love to hear your Bible question today. Where to first, Alex?

>> Alex McFarland: We go to Illinois and we talk with William. William, thank you for calling and welcome to Exploring the Word.

>> Caroline: Thank you, brothers. Appreciate you.

>> Alex McFarland: And you as well, sir.

>> Caroline: I received Christ, 59 years ago at age 22, and I've been ready for my death ever since, the way I think. But on this hypocrisy this country's going through, like, thereafter, our president about a few drug heads down on boats, killing them, like it's some kind of big deal when they've got about so many abortions under their belt and so much pornography, along with STDs and the whole list of things that bunch does. I wish they'd look in the mirror with their hypocrisy and quit shining a spotlight on his little things that think that are so bad because it just is. Just Irritating. Thank you today, brothers.

>> Bert Harper: Bye. Okay, Williams. Alex. Hypocrisy, scripturally, when you look at it, you hypocrites, Jesus would call those Pharisees hypocrites. And, what give us a little bit of history about the hypocrite. Was it a play actor?

>> Alex McFarland: yeah, it was. It really meant false face, false faith. Yeah, yeah, like somebody with a mask on. And, you know, the Bible has a lot, a lot of verses to say about, you know, well, I think about in Matthew 15, where Jesus said, you know, Isaiah prophesied of you, this people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. hypocrisy. It's like, outwardly you're one thing, but inwardly you're something else. And that's not how we're to be, are we?

>> Bert Harper: We are not. So what? William? I agree. We're praying. We need to pray for our leaders, in a tremendous way. We really do. And I know you are. Appreciate you calling. Appreciate you listening. Where to next, Alex?

>> Alex McFarland: Amen.

Shell has two prayer requests for God regarding her granddaughter and great grandchildren

We're going to go to Mississippi. Shell. Shell, in Mississippi. Welcome to Exploring the Word.

>> Caroline: Thank you very much. I have two prayer requests. One is for a friend, Nancy, and her granddaughter and her great granddaughters. her granddaughter has made some poor choices, but she's trying to turn her life around. And now there's a contention about the. Great grandchildren, you know, being cared for by both parents. And I would like to ask for prayers for God's wisdom to, help with this situation that it turns out the very best for all of them. My other prayer request is for you, Bert and Alex, that people will pray for you guys so that you will continue to be with us and strengthened by God to carry on with what you do. Thank you very much. Have a great day.

>> Alex McFarland: Thank you so much. My goodness. Doesn't that touch your heart?

>> Bert Harper: It does, Alex. I, just do God, I'm going to do this real quickly. When you look at exploring the Word and Alex and Bert being on, did not start out that way. It started out Marvin Sanders, a great man. Just, I love him.

>> Alex McFarland: Brilliant man.

>> Bert Harper: Brilliant man in so many ways. And I come to afr to do other things. And it wasn't long after I was here, within two months, Marvin, was already. Cancer had already taken him out. And they just said, bert, how about you working with Alex? Alex and I never worked together, but God, Alex McFarland with his brilliant mind, his humility of servanthood, and pastor been at it 40 something years. Pastoring, preaching through the word of God. Shel, I just want to tell you, we want your prayers. We want to stay with the word of God. We want to stay that servant spirit that we were talking about. Alex, we want to do that. And with people's prayers and our response, God can do it. We always pray for Nancy as well. And man, he can straighten that out. And I believe he will.

>> Alex McFarland: Alex, Amen. you know, we often say this is kind of like a big nationwide Bible study or kind of, coast to coast Sunday school class. So, Shell, we are praying and I, thank you for that kind sentiment. May the Lord bless you. also in Illinois. Dan. back to Illinois. Dan, you're on.

>> Caroline: Thank you for taking my call. Both of you gentlemen have been a great blessing in my Christian walk. I appreciate you.

>> Alex McFarland: Hallelujah.

Dan: Paul circumcised Timothy because of Jews who were in those parts

>> Caroline: In Acts, chapter 16, Paul wanted Timothy to go with him. But Paul first circumcised Timothy because of the Jews who were in those parts, for they knew that Timothy's father was a Greek. Then In Galatians, chapter 2, Titus, a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised by the false brethren to spy out our liberty, which we have in Christ. But Paul did not yield to their requirement of circumcision. Paul publicly rebukes Peter for not eating with the gentiles, which he had previously done, fearing the party of the circumcision. My question is, was not Paul, in circumcising Timothy, also guilty of carrying the Jews?

>> Bert Harper: I will put it this way. Dan, I don't think you could. Now, Paul was not perfect. We know that. Very real, although we see so many things. Oh, wow, Great man. But I'm not sure this is wrong on this part. He knew the ministry that he was going to have with Paul in doing, because, we're talking about the other being a Greek. When the mother is a Jew, then the son, even if the father was a, gentile, was considered a Jewish. You know, Alex. So I think it was wise on Paul's part. Do you have a thought on this?

>> Alex McFarland: Yeah. And let me say this, that, what I'm about to say is a kind of a tiny little point, but I think it's a significant point point in the case, Acts 16:3, when Paul circumcised Timothy. And really Timothy was part of Paul's ministry team. That was not about Timothy getting saved. It was about Timothy not having some hindrance as they sought to reach unsaved Jews. Whereas, Paul's quibble with Peter in Galatians 2 was that they were m. Adding circumcision to the gospel. So in the. And I love the apostle Peter. And if you listen to this show much, you know, I'm the biggest fan of the apostle Peter you'll ever meet. But Peter kind of maybe was intimidated into doing some circumcision for people being saved. And that's not what salvation is. Paul was doing it just to make Timothy, maybe remove, any potential hindrance to the gospel among the Jews that we're trying to reach. Do you see that little nuance, Bert?

>> Bert Harper: I believe that's right. I do. And it's really not small in a way, Alex. It's strategic. And when you look at Paul and his plans for mission strategy, Nathan, my son and I do exploring missions, and we talk about mission strategies all the time. Yes. Jesus and Paul, were. We still. Okay. This is how you do it. And Paul was doing that, building his team with few hindrances. And I think it was that, Alex.

>> Alex McFarland: And in missions, the word is enculturation. It is not that we're compromising the gospel, but you want to be as palatable as you can be to the culture you're trying to reach.

>> Bert Harper: Amen.

>> Alex McFarland: Melanie, in Louisiana. Welcome to the program.

Melanie: I just started studying Isaiah recently

>> Caroline: Hey, Bert. Hey, Alex. How you guys doing?

>> Bert Harper: Doing well, doing well.

>> Caroline: Listen, I just started, studying Isaiah, just recently. And my question is, so I can get some context on the time period, would, it be better for me to go back and refer to first and second Kings or first and second Chronicles, just so I can kind of get an idea of what's happening when the prophet is speaking?

>> Bert Harper: Okay, that's not a bad idea. What you have, you have him when he is speaking. And you can go to Isaiah and see that. And what you have there is. He lists the kings that he served under. Go back into those passages. I would say, Melanie. And you could read the whole books, but pick those out, and I think it would aid you in understanding Isaiah and where he was coming from. Alex, would you say m. More than that, or would that, be.

>> Alex McFarland: Well, you know, there was Uzziah. That's mentioned early in the book. And after Uzziah, this is. I'm thinking about 735 B.C. jotham came after Uzziah. Then there was Ahaz. And then the last king mentioned, is. I, believe Hezekiah and second King. A lot of what goes on in. I would say the. The first to the middle of Isaiah is around about, like, second kings 20. You know, and then 40 through 66. The. The latter third of the book is really from about 700 to 680 BC. And, this would have been, Isaiah died during the time of Manasseh. now I gotta mention a book, and I know I mention a lot of books, but. Bert, I've got this book called the Bible Timeline. Have you ever seen that book?

>> Bert Harper: I have. And there's different ones that do that. You've got one, but there's others that do that as well. Go ahead.

>> Alex McFarland: Well, it's fascinating.

>> Bert Harper: Yes, it is.

>> Alex McFarland: To see what was going on. Not only other biblical history. Like, for instance, didn't. Wouldn't Nehemiah and Amos have been contemporaries close to it?

>> Bert Harper: I believe they would cross over for.

>> Alex McFarland: Sure and see, I didn't even know that till you and I were doing that book.

>> Bert Harper: I know.

>> Alex McFarland: A few months back.

>> Bert Harper: It's amazing.

>> Alex McFarland: so, yeah, Melanie, you're doing a good thing to study the, the events of the world that overlap the events of the Bible. I commend you. But again, folks, this book, and I love this book, it's called the Bible Timeline. And there are several similar books like that. Let's go to Texas Charlie in Texas. Charlie, welcome to Exploring the Word.

>> Caroline: Yeah, thank you, appreciate your time and, all that, you do.

Bird Harper: I categorically reject the idea of reincarnation

And, just, I have a general question. I subscribe to a magazine called, It's not a magazine, I'm sorry. It's a piper called the Epic Times. I don't know if you're familiar with it or not.

>> Bert Harper: yes, I am.

>> Caroline: You are. Okay. It has several interesting, articles in there. One that came up that caught my attention. Had to do with consciousness. And it, it related several stories and, about, people that had died. And they're, they're, they're. They came back in, in another birth from another person. And they would interview, Basically kids from 2 to 4 years old, and they would say, well, this is who I was previously. And. You know, and I had a lot before my life now. And they went back and documented much of what they said and proved pretty much that these people did have apparently another life somewhere else. And I thought, wow, that's interesting because it contradicts Christianity altogether because it's basically Hinduism.

>> Bert Harper: Charlie, we gonna. We have time so we can answer that. You've given us enough. Alex. it's not biblical for sure. Charlie's already said that.

>> Alex McFarland: I know. And, I'm not going to belabor this point because I want to get to the final call. But let me say I am aware of this. How there are times, ah, that, children claim to have been, you know, had another life or something like that. I think much of the time, and I've read a fair amount of psychological literature on this. I think a lot of times it's what's called suggestibility, that children with their vivid imagination, they take what they've heard from their parents and it's an imaginary, you know, world they create. but then there's this, Parents conflate it to imply more than the children have even said. And then there is, maybe even sometimes among adolescents, a spiritual component. And, you know, But I want to say this. I categorically, categorically reject the idea of reincarnation.

>> Bert Harper: Yes.

>> Alex McFarland: The Bible is very clear. In Hebrews 9. 27, it is appointed unto men once to die. Look, you are who you are. Nobody gets reincarnated and comes back. There's never been but one. Bird Harper, listeners, there's never been but one of you. So I think it's, at best, children's imagination and at worst, even some spiritual dynamic present. I want to try to get Susie in from North Carolina. Susie, quickly, if we could, and thank you.

>> Caroline: Yes, thank you guys, for your obedience and faithfulness. Real quick, I had to say that. quick question. Why do some Bible translations leave out Matthew chapter 17, verse 21?

>> Bert Harper: Okay.

>> Alex McFarland: Do you have that, Bert?

>> Bert Harper: Yeah, there are some, ancient manuscripts that you do not find that in some. And that's the whole idea. That could have been a graphic era. But the main ones are there. The ones that end. The ones that, like the King James was translated from, was there and Alex hit in the context of what's being said. It's not like it takes a U turn or anything either, is it?

>> Alex McFarland: yeah, this kind goes out only by prayer and fasting. See, that is also in Mark 9:26. So we know the Lord said it. but I believe it is canonical. I think it's. It's. Even if it weren't in Matthew 17:21, some. Some things are only achieved by prayer and fasting. It's all also in Mark. So, I think we're on good ground to accept that verse, Burt.

>> Bert Harper: I do, too. Hey, tomorrow we're going to be in Isaiah 23. It finishes up those judgments. but you don't want to miss it. I think we'll wind it up and so join us tomorrow.

>> Alex McFarland: The views and opinions expressed in this broadcast may not necessarily reflect those of the American Family association or American Family Radio.