Dr. Brown Answers Your Questions

The following program is recorded content created by the Truth Network.

Full lines are open. You've got questions. We've got answers.

Let's do it. It's time for the Line of Fire with your host, biblical scholar and cultural commentator, Dr. Michael Brown. Your voice for moral sanity and spiritual clarity. Call 866-34-TRUTH to get on the Line of Fire. And now here's your host, Dr. Michael Brown. Thanks, friends, for joining us on the Line of Fire.

This is Michael Brown. You've got questions. We've got answers. Any question on any subject that relates in any way to the Line of Fire broadcast or to anything I've written or said, or you've heard I've written or said, give me a call. 866-34-8784. That's 866-34-TRUTH. That is the number to call. Always we welcome those who differ with us, critics, skeptics, those with different perspectives. You are very welcome to call in.

Also, also, you still have time to vote for your favorite apologist. Okay. This is an all fun competition that proves nothing. Okay. It is it is online.

It's been every summer for a few years, maybe one year was skipped because of COVID. But young man put this put this together. And I don't know how many if it's 256 or 128 started with now. So I've I've so each time you compete against someone that people just vote on Twitter. And some of it is who's got a bigger Twitter following.

Some of it is who publicizes it more. But either way, it's been fun because you find out about all kinds of people you didn't know about different apologists that are out there different defenders to the face. So that's been really neat. I've gotten to meet some people through this here about people I didn't know about and then also hear from people and find out how our work is impacting them.

So that is a real blessing and joy. I made it to the finals again. The first time I made it to the finals, I lost to CS Lewis like take that any day man. That's an honor to lose to CS Lewis. He's he's long been gone from this world, but his work continues to speak and change lives to this moment.

I mean, God knows how many 10s of millions of people have been impacted through his writings and his legacy and then writings turned into movies Chronicles of Narnia and other things like that. But if you got a Twitter account, go over to my Twitter page. So Dr. Michael L. Brown, so the two L's there.

And if you scroll down, you'll you'll see a link where you can just click on that. And I'm up against classical theist. I don't know him at all. Been trying to find out more about him.

Don't know him at all. But interestingly enough, he must have some good Twitter contacts or network because he went search way ahead of me, like 75% of the vote versus 25 for me. So I've been having fun and I'm doing it for two serious reasons, though, in the midst of this. All right, I'm doing it for two serious reasons, which I'll tell you in a moment. So we're climbing back up now. We're we're up to it's now 54.6% to 45.4. So we're gaining ground. We got two days left. 1,888 votes in so far. So you got time to vote. But the serious part, the serious part in all this is that there are very few charismatic apologists that the vast majority of apologists are not charismatic, Pentecostal in their background. Or if they are, that's for many, for most, that's not a major part of their life or ministry.

So I want to use this. We get the victory to really and again, it's all for fun. It's all for fun. Like I said, it proves nothing. But if we get the victory here, what I want to do is is help encourage other charismatics to get involved and to say, yes, we believe in the power of the spirit. Yes, we understand that dynamic, but it's not mind or spirit, heart or mind, intellect or power. It's both.

It's both. So you may get radically saved. You may get radically born again. By the way, by the way, I've got a lot to share with you today, but Friday is caller driven. And many times when we start to show all five lines are lit up, it's hard to get through. We're waiting for your calls and then I'll start taking them. So this is a perfect time to call. We've got phone lines wide open 866-348-7884.

Sometimes folks wait till a little later when the phone lines clear, but it's a perfect time to call 866-344-TRUTH. So you may get saved through a radical encounter with God, right? You were lost in sin.

You were full of rebellion. You get radically, dramatically, beautifully, gloriously born again. And you're walking with Jesus and things are wonderful and you're experiencing God in your own life, maybe you're 15, 16 years old.

Now you're 18, you go off to college and you start getting bombarded from every angle with intellectual and moral attacks on the Bible and philosophical attacks on the Bible. And you start to struggle. You know that Jesus changed your life, but others say, well, I became a Hindu. I had this experience or, you know, I became, I used to be religious, but I'm not anymore and I had this experience that changed my life negatively. And you start to question and you find you're not so able to share your faith like you once were.

You're not so bold as you once were. And you realize, well, I need some answers. Well, often that's where apologetics comes in or you're talking to someone in your class and they won't even talk to you at all.

They're not even going to listen to you at all. But when you can answer some of their questions and respond to some of their objections, maybe as an atheist or someone else, maybe they'll listen and then they can have the experience in God. So again, it's both and it is both and so if we get this victory here in the apologetics tournament, we'll use it to encourage fellow Charismatics. Hey, let's let's deepen our apologetics. Some of you are really called to this. And then the priority of Jewish apologetics, as far as I can tell, as far as I can tell from everyone that's involved in this apologetics tournament, it's a large number. As best as I can tell, I'm the only one that majors in Jewish apologetics. Of course, cultural apologetics is a major part of a life calling, but the Jewish apologetics has been a heart and soul of what I've been engaged in for decades. So we want to encourage that.

We know there are efforts to see more of that, but we want to encourage it even more in the days ahead. Okay, before I go to the phones, let me go over to YouTube and we'll start with Blood Covenant. Why do Protestants not have communion every time they meet? That's a great question. The simple answer is there is no universal rule for all Protestants. There is not some always that, okay, if you're Protestant, you do this, you do this, you do this, you do this. So you may have Protestant churches that meet once a week. You might have ones that meet three days a week. You might have early morning prayer.

You might have late night prayer. You may have once a month extended worship services. You may have reading from the scripture and preaching from the scripture or just preaching from the scripture. So Protestant churches do things differently. And in the earliest church gatherings, from what we could tell, you would have a communal meal together. So you'd gather, you'd worship, you'd hear the word, and you'd have a communal meal. And in the midst of that communal meal would remember the Lord's death and resurrection through the elements of communion. It was not just a ritual one of my friends calls the Lord's snack. No, it was the Lord's Supper. There would be a gathering. That's where the Corinthians, some of them were rebuked in 1 Corinthians 11 because people showed up and they show up early, they eat all the bread, they drink the wine, they get drunk. So there was an actual meal that people would have together. So the idea of having it every time you gather, you could make a case for that as merely custom, but it's just not written in stone. So there are Protestant churches that will have communion weekly.

There are Protestant churches that have communion monthly. I don't think you can do too much, though, to be candid. All right, let's move over to the phones, starting with Stefan in Tibet, California. Welcome to the line of fire.

Hello, Dr. Brown. I am a great fan of yours. My question is, I struggle with same-sex interactions, and I believe in the Bible, I believe in everything that you say. My question is, how do you think I can overcome them? Well, Stefan, first, I'm so glad that you have the right perspective, which is that you, as a Jesus follower, struggle with same-sex attraction as opposed to letting that struggle define who you are. Instead of calling and saying, I'm gay, or I'm a gay Christian, where you've already now lost half the battle, but rather to say, I struggle with unwanted same-sex attraction. I first want you to know that your identity is in Jesus as a child of God, and forever and ever you'll be a son of God.

That's, excuse me, your primary identity. And then secondly, all of us struggle in one way or another where we have to deny ourselves. In this case, it's something very deep and fundamental in you. In other words, it's not just some very external thing that you struggle with here and there.

It feels like part of who you are, so you have to say, okay, this is their desires, attractions, they don't define me. What defines me is my relationship with God. And, like every other sinful tendency, there is victory in Jesus. And there are many people, some of whom I've known for many, many years, who found freedom. Some, it has been through a supernatural experience of God healing them deeply within, and they were changed. Others, it's been, excuse me, a process over a period of years where they grew and they got to the root of the issues through counseling, and they were freed. Others have just had a tremendous lessening of same-sex attraction. So, Stephan, have you ever reached out to Restored Hope Network and the resources they have available?

No, I have not. Okay, well, let me just give you two places I would encourage you to go. Check out ChangedMovement.com.

ChangedMovement. See the.com or.org, but you'll find it. Start reading the testimonies there. You may want to reach out to folks there based in California. ChangedMovement.com or RestoredHopeNetwork.org, all in one, RestoredHopeNetwork.org.

Read the testimonies, reach out for the resources there. And Stephan, stay on the line. If you don't have my book, Can You Be Gay and Christian?, I want to send that to you as a gift. So, stay on the line as soon as our call screen is free. He'll ask if you have the book.

If you don't, I want to send it to you as a gift. May the Lord be your strength. May you find transformation in Him. Stay right there. Thank you, my brother. It's the Line of Fire with your host, Dr. Michael Brown. Get on the Line of Fire by calling 866-34-TRUTH. Here again is Dr. Michael Brown. Welcome, welcome to the Line of Broadcast, Line of Fire broadcast, Michael Brown. Delighted to be with you.

You know, if I trip on words that I say over and over, I know exactly what I do because I'm three sentences ahead and deciding which direction I'm going to go. So, live in the moment. Live in the now. We've got a phone line open if you'd like to call in.

866-348-7884. Just remember to order your copy of The Political Seduction of the Church. I did not write this book to be popular. I did not write this book to make money.

I did not write this book to gain followers. In fact, many will be offended by what I've written, but I'm sure it's true. I'm sure it's right. And I'm sure if those who are offended will take it in, they'll be helped.

They'll be blessed. And I wrote this book as someone who voted for Donald Trump twice, and if I could go back in time based on what I knew then, I would have voted for him twice. Alright? So, this is not some never-Trumper. This is not some always-Trumper. This is an always-Jesus person saying if we can recognize mistakes that we made as a church, even those who didn't vote for Trump, the battle, the division, the hatred, the...

So ugly! What happened to us? We can do better. So go to the website, AskDrBrown.org.

You can get your signed, numbered, advanced copies. We just sent out a bunch more today. Alright, let us go over to Andy in Utah. Welcome to the Line of Fire. Thanks for calling. Hello? Yes, you're on the air. Oh, thanks for taking my call, Dr. Brown. Sure.

I enjoy your radio broadcast, and I appreciate the insight and the respect that you have on issues of life. Hey, I know you've had the previous discussions about the U.S. as a nation and where we're going. I couldn't help but think about that, some of those discussions, and I saw some parallels between the U.S. and Israel. You don't mind me just mentioning a few of them.

No, go ahead. One was, Abraham was a person, but we had a group of people, the Pilgrims, and they were led to a new land. Both were established as God-centered nations. We were, both were meant to be self-governing. Both were meant to be world leaders and influencers.

And also, both were asked to help evangelize the world. So I see a lot of commonalities between our country as when we were established and Israel when they were established as a country. Yeah, Andy, I think those are great observations, and we definitely have been blessed to grow to the superpower that we became in such a short period of time. The world influence that we've had is really largely unprecedented. I remember reading in a book by Michael Medved about American exceptionalism, and as you look at the world map over a period of a thousand years, long periods of time, you see a little shift here, a little shift there.

And then suddenly, with the rise of America, this dramatic shift in the world in so many ways. And obviously, I do not believe that God made a covenant with America the way he made with Abraham and Israel. That's where people make a mistake, but I absolutely agree that there are striking parallels and that the principle of to whom much is given, much is required applies here. And, you know, as an example, I don't believe, as I said, that God made a covenant with America the way he made with Israel, and that there is that same blessing-curse relationship to that same degree. However, to the extent that we say we have Judeo-Christian roots, our Constitution, our Declaration of Independence, the roots ultimately go back to the Bible, the more that we hammer this, the more that we're saying we're accountable, we're accountable, we're accountable. So, we're also accountable for the blessings, for the prosperity, for the amount of what we consume.

Yeah, go ahead, go ahead. Well, I would agree with you that I know we have countless blessings. I also realize, again, most people have made the comment that, hey, the U.S. is really not mentioned anywhere like in Revelation, and we don't have that covenant with God like Israel did.

However, just like in Romans 13 where God establishes all government, maybe I'm wrong, but I can't think of another country or nation over history that was established as a, you know, specifically as a Christian nation like the U.S. for one point, and the second thing, God purposed it. So, for me, that's reason for hope. Now, how does it end? We don't know as far as the country.

Where do we end up, you know, 50, 100, 200 years from now? But I think there's reason for hope because God has purpose, or had a purpose when he established the U.S. Yeah, and Andy, the other thing that I think about, and I appreciate the observations, the other thing I think about is that so many of God's people in America are burdened to pray for revival. That so many of us feel that it's not over, that God could bring great repentance and change before the nation collapses in on itself or divides itself in a way that it is no longer the United States of America. So, as long as the burden is there, we're going to pray, and look, I wrote the book Saving a Sick America about five years ago, and when I wrote it, it came out of a prayer time one morning, and I just felt this gentle kind of whisper.

It was just an impression rather than a shaking thing. I wrote a book on the fall and rise of America, and I thought, no, no, on the rise and fall of America, yet I felt distinctly, no, no, fall and rise, there's still hope. So thank you for the call. 866-348-7884.

Let us go to Jules in Canada. Yes. Welcome to the line of fire. Yes, thank you. I'm really grateful you have an opportunity, I have an opportunity to talk to you. And I thank you earlier today on Twitter, you liked one of my tweets, and I really appreciate that. Oh, great. Nice to meet you, then, by phone. Yes, I just want to mention something. I feel like I'm all alone. I'm trying to get everyone to understand, if you're a Christian, you need a Hebraic perspective on understanding Christianity.

You need to regraft it into the Hebraic roots, but there's a balance. Now, there's Twitter spaces out there, and I don't want to get into the specifics, but they are telling everyone that Shabbat started on Saturday morning at 6 a.m., and Shabbat ends at 6 a.m. on a Sunday morning. So 6 a.m. Saturday morning, and I'm thinking, where is this coming from? Because if I check my Hebraic roots, evening, morning, evening, morning, from dusk to dusk. So I'm asking you, and I know maybe this is something new to you, but these are people that are, they're Jewish roots, they're back into the real realities of understanding the Hebraic, understanding of Scripture, but they're saying there's mistakes in the Old Testament, and they've been manipulated, and they're saying that no, no, it's not evening, morning, it's morning, evening, morning, evening.

Have you ever heard of, have you ever come across that situation? I'm perplexed. You're actually, okay, there, aside from the degree that Christians are required to keep a seventh-day Sabbath with a specific time in mind, we put that aside for the moment here, and just the specific question. The idea that there are mistakes in the Old Testament, this is right from the beginning, all the way through, this is presupposed and in Jewish life to this moment, you know, wherever you live, you just get online, or in the old days, just you look at the newspaper if you're a Jewish person, and it'll tell you the Sabbath starts here at the exact minute, based on sunset, and then ends here based on sunsets here from dusk to dusk. So, no, I've, honestly, it never ceases to amaze me how many bizarre teachings are out there and what kind of weird errors are out there, but, no, the idea that there are mistakes in the Bible, that it started, it was actually morning, evening rather than evening, morning is complete nonsense. I don't even know where someone would get this idea. You know, if they wanted to try to say, well, there's a new Sabbath since Jesus rose and he rose in the morning, so we start in the morning, and they want to try to argue that on other grounds, which, of course, is not a scriptural argument to make, but that, at least, I know where they're coming from, so this is beyond bizarre to me.

Yeah, like I said, I'm not talking about keeping Shabbat, that's not the issue I was getting across. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But, like, for example, I have a, this is just my best guess, when I think about Jesus rising from the grave, I think of a Saturday night. That's my best guess, because I think of evening, morning, so I'm just saying there's, like I said, I'm all alone here to talk to Michael Brown, and I know you're a very busy man, but I would love, if you could ever come on our Twitter space once every two months, we would love to, my brother. No, I appreciate that, Jules, and trust me, I would love to be in dialogue, debate, discussion with people 24-7, but even jumping in once a year in certain places is not feasible because of the demands on our time, but thanks.

I have no reason not to think of Jesus rising early in the morning Sunday, I think that's pretty explicit, but in any case, never ceases to amaze me how people come up with weird ideas and doctrines. So, Jules, thanks for the very kind words, and thanks for letting us know. Alright, 866-348-7884, we've got some phone lines open if you want to call.

We'll grab some YouTube questions too, so if you're ever on YouTube, go ahead and post. It's The Line of Fire with your host, Dr. Michael Brown. Get on the line of fire by calling 866-344-TRUTH.

Here again, it's Dr. Michael Brown. Thanks for joining us on The Line of Fire. You've got questions, we've got answers. 866-348-7884, be sure to sign up to get our emails to keep you posted on my latest articles, latest videos, updates on our Israel trip, updates on new publications, resources we have for you. Ask Dr. Brown, ASKDRBrown.org, just click to receive the emails, and we'll put you on our welcome tour, tell you more about my own background from LSD to PhD, how our ministry can serve you, as well as send you a free mini-ebook on how to pray for America. Alright, back to the phones, we go to Tim in Raleigh, North Carolina. Welcome to The Line of Fire.

Hey, Dr. Brown. First off, thanks for saying my call, and I appreciate your ministry and all that you do. My question for you is regarding Jezebel. This is 2 Kings 9, verse 30. It says, When Jehu came to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it, and she painted her eyes and adorned her head and looked out of the window. Just hoping if you could elaborate on that action. To me, when I read that, it makes me think of like a last-ditch effort to seduce. Is that what that is? Could you maybe just elaborate on the significance of Jezebel painting your eyes, adorning yourself, and looking out of the window?

Yeah, exactly what you said. Even though she's an older woman at this point, she's obviously still a seductress. She's still up to her old ways. And when we talk about a woman being a Jezebel, I mean, she is the forerunner. She is the prototype. So that's exactly what the text is telling us.

That she sees this guy coming, and she's going to try to play her old tricks on him, and win him over, and bring him under her power. Exactly what it seems. That's exactly what we deduced from it.

Yes, sir. Okay, and I guess maybe a follow-up to that. The eunuchs that were in the window that ultimately threw her down, is it fair to assume that they were eunuchs because of her? I know a lot of times in the palace, the eunuchs castrate the males to prevent them from potentially being with the women. But as Jezebel was kind of in power at the time, was that them getting back at her? What can we, I guess, conclude based on the fact that they threw her down? Right, so a few things.

There is the symbolic meaning, the lesson that's learned, and then the plain facts of what happened. We don't know why they were eunuchs. But presumably, somewhere along in life, they were castrated.

In other words, they weren't born without sexual capacity. They were made into eunuchs. And it wasn't only to keep them, say, if they were going to keep a harem from sleeping with the women, or wanting the women. The other side to it was that by castrating them, it would take away some of their aggressive male drive. And they would just be more passive servants, and their gifts and skills could be used without threat to the leadership and things like that. So there are different reasons why men were castrated.

Of course, it could also just be a cruel punishment. But these were the ones, though, that now symbolically are Jezebel's victims. So whether they were made eunuchs by her or not, for sure, Jezebel had the effect of making men into eunuchs. When I talk about spiritual war with Jezebel, we don't mean with her, we don't mean with her ghost, but we mean those same type of demonic spirits that operated through her, operating today, they emasculate men.

They take away their sense of authority and confidence. Those who've really had extended spiritual battles and recognize that this was some of what they're dealing with can absolutely relate to that. Yet these are the ones, the ones who had been, again, we're saying this now symbolically, emasculated by her were the ones that threw her to her death. And in Jezebel's war with America, that's the appeal.

Those men who have been spiritually castrated, and these things can happen to women in a spiritual, moral sense as well, but speaking in particular to men, those men who've been spiritually castrated, those men who've been spiritually emasculated, who've lost their sense of authority and power and faith and conviction and boldness, they're the ones who can rise up by the power of God and bring this Jezebelic spirit down. So there's a lot to learn from it in the account, actually. As short as it is, there's a lot to learn from it. Thanks, Dr. Brown. You are very welcome, and thanks for the good word. 866-34-TRUTH. Let's go to Brandon in Baltimore, Maryland. Welcome to the line of fire. Hello, Dr. Brown. It's an honor to speak with you.

Well, thank you. My question is, it's a heavy question, but it's mainly, I know Christ spoke about how the children of the Kingdom would be cast out. I'm not sure if He spoke anything about whether Israel will be saved. I know Paul speaks about it. I believe that Israel will be saved.

Yes. But I never, I didn't, I was wondering if you have any specific quotations directly from the Lord about whether Israel will be saved. Yes, it's a wonderful question. Of course, we know what Paul writes in Romans 11, 26. We know what God speaks through Jeremiah in Jeremiah 31, 1.

We know the passage in Zechariah 12, 10 and following of the national mourning and repentance in Israel. The question is, what does Jesus Himself say? Because He does speak judgment. He does speak of Gentiles coming in and many of the children of the family being kicked out because of disobedience and rejecting Him as Messiah. So, what does He say that confirms that there will be a turning of the Jewish people at the end of the age?

I would say several different passages. First, in Matthew 23, beginning in verse 37, where He has pronounced seven woes on the hypocritical religious leaders in the previous verses. And then He speaks judgment over Jerusalem and says, Your house has left you desolate. And He says, You will not see Me again until you say, Baruch haba b'shem Adonai, until you say, Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Now, we know in Revelation 1.7 that when He comes, every eye will see Him. But He says that Jerusalem will not see Him until it welcomes Him back as the Messianic king. That's what the words mean, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. So, He will not be seen by the whole world until Jerusalem or the leadership of the Jewish people welcomes Him back.

So, that's the first thing that gives hope. Along with that, Matthew 19, Jesus tells His disciples, His 12 disciples, obviously whoever's going to replace Judas would then fill that role. That in the renewal of all things, in the new age, you will sit on 12 thrones judging the 12 tribes of Israel. So, in the renewal of all things, and we would look at that as the millennial kingdom, that the apostles will be ruling over the 12 tribes. So, that's telling you there's going to be a restoration of the 12 tribes.

That is encouraging to me. Also, in Luke 21, when Jesus talks about the Jewish people being scattered out of Jerusalem into all nations, that is until the times that the Gentiles are fulfilled. Which is telling me then, at that point, there's a physical restoration. That doesn't mention a spiritual restoration there, but there's a physical restoration. So, those three passages, then you tie that in with Acts 3, 19, that were the call to repent and Jesus must remain in heaven in the time of the restoration of all things.

But what does Peter say? Repent and turn to God that your sins may be blotted out, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, that he may send the Messiah whom heaven must retain until the time of the restoration of all things. So, Jewish repentance brings the Messiah back. So, all these promises together give us real encouragement that Jesus at the end of the age will miraculously restore his Jewish people, so we see the ongoing restoration back to the land, the ongoing faith building within the land of more and more Jews in Israel and around the world coming to faith in Jesus the Messiah, and then the final culmination. I was just looking for a testimony.

Yeah, just got this yesterday on Facebook. Someone sent me a note, Dr. Brown. I've been listening to you for years. I have an Israeli Jewish friend who we have been talking to about Messiah.

He found you on his own and has been watching your videos on YouTube. Long story short, he will be baptized this weekend. Thank you for being so faithful. I pray many more to come. So that just made my night reading those words. Another Israeli Jew coming to faith, and we got to play a role in that.

But it is a first fruit, so every life counts now, and then at the end of the age, we see the same testimony from Old Testament, New Testament, Jesus, Paul, Peter, that there will be a turning of the Jewish people at the end of the age, and all Israel will be saved. So thank you for the call. I appreciate it. Is there a way if I can have a follow-up question? Yeah, please, go ahead. Go ahead.

No, no, go ahead. So as a Gentile believer, what way would you recommend to talk to someone that's, you know, the people, you know, the people, the Scriptures? The Scriptures are given to them.

I can't judge them, you know what I'm saying? Right, so you live in Baltimore, and you have a fairly large religious Jewish community there, and then like the rest of America, you have secular Jews. When you're talking to a secular Jew, non-religious Jew, it's very similar to talking to a non-religious Gentile. You know, they'll have different perspectives.

A person may be more atheistic, materialistic, this-world-oriented, or they may be looking for spiritual truths in all kinds of odd places. So you speak with them, you speak with anyone else, and then if issues come up because of anti-Semitism in church history, or why would I want to believe in Jesus, I'm Jewish, then you say, no, no, Jesus is Jewish himself, and anti-Semitism is the opposite of what he taught, and it's an aberration. And, you know, why do you think Christians today are Israel's best friends?

It's because of the Bible. If they're more religious, it's going to be more difficult to have a conversation, but I would seek to build bridges. I would say, hey, I'm a Gentile Christian, and it's because of Jesus that I believe in the God of Israel, I believe in your God, and I believe he's the Jewish Messiah, so obviously you don't believe that, but who is God to you? Tell me about your relationship with God, and about the meaning of prayer, and just see if you can have some common ground, and then if there's an interest, you can share your own testimony, and then, if someone is interested, send them to our website, our Jewish website, realmessiah.com. Everybody, visit there, check out the abundance of free resources, send your Jewish friends there, those who have questions, those who have been hit with objections, who are struggling, realmessiah.com. That is there for you. Hey, Brandon, thank you for the questions. All right, we'll get to some more calls on the other side of the break, and for all of you who pray for us, support us financially, that testimony I just read, you're part of that. You're sharing that reward.

Thank you. It's The Line of Fire with your host, Dr. Michael Brown. Get on the line of fire by calling 866-34-TRUTH. Here again is Dr. Michael Brown. Welcome back to The Line of Fire, 866-34-TRUTH.

Let us go to David in New Jersey. Welcome to The Line of Fire. Hi. Pleasure to be here.

Thanks. Go ahead. So my question is—and I know you're a scholar with biblical languages, and so I would respect your opinion on this a lot more than most—so I know that there are two different scripts that we translate our Bibles from. Bibles like the King James, New King James, and the Med Bible translate from the Basidian and Texas Receptus, whereas other translations like the NASB, ESV, and other Bibles translate from the Alexandrian and Codex Zenicanus. Now, I understand that the Codex Zenicanus and the Alexandrian are said to be more reliable because they're older, but the majority of manuscripts don't agree in some places that the Codex and the Alexandrian texts say things.

Like in the Father's Prayer, they shorten it in the Codex and the Alexandrian, unlike with the Basidian text. And so my question is, which would actually be more reliable? Like, would it be more reliable simply because it's older, even though it was found in places that preserve text better, or is the majority of manuscripts more reliable because they are the majority and they were the ones used for the bulk of the ancient world? Right, so again, it's a question that scholars debate, but the majority of textual scholars today who weigh all the evidence, and what you mentioned is part of the evidence, but there's a whole mountain of evidence that gets weighed, would agree that the manuscript tradition used by ESV and NIV is the better one.

So the older is better, and that scribes, as a general rule, will lengthen rather than shorten. That phrases get added in, that something gets added in for clarity, that if you had, let's just say you had three straight books in the Bible that mentioned prayer and fasting, and the next one just mentioned prayer in a similar context, the scribe would more likely add and fasting than remove it. But for quite a number of reasons, the great majority of Greek New Testament scholars today believe that the older manuscripts, Vaticanus, etc.

that you mentioned, are the more reliable. Again, there is debate over this, and my specialty in terms of scholarship is more Hebrew Bible than Greek New Testament as far as languages and texts. That being said, it does not faze me in the least if someone says, well, I really prefer reading from the New King James or the MEV, which are based on the same textual tradition, that any addition, let's just say they're additions, with the exception of 1 John 5, 7 and the King James, which is absolutely not original, the additions where if it adds another reference to the blood of Jesus or adds add fasting, that they are truthful and they're in harmony with other Biblical texts. So, it's absolutely nothing to lose sleep over, it's even, you know, the longer ending of Mark, if it's not the original ending of Mark, which seems clearly it's not, and even if it was not originally viewed as scripture universally, I believe everything in there is truthful and right.

So, to me it's more of an academic debate that could go either way, but the great preponderance of modern scholarship would say, go with the older manuscripts for quite a number of reasons. It's of interest, but it's nothing to consume all your time, because the differences end up being very minor and ultimately all within the range of orthodoxy. Hey, thank you, sir, for the call. I do appreciate it. Let us go to Peter in Cleveland, Ohio, where I just was last weekend. Welcome to the line of fire. Hey, Dr. Brown, this is Peter the pastor that's good friends with Phil Gigliotti and Larry Tomzack.

Talk now and then. Real quick, do Christians have to endure the great white throne judgment? I was listening to a sermon by Billy Graham on YouTube where he said he will not be at that great white throne of judgment, and we need not be too. So, for sure, our sins are paid for and we do not come under condemnation as followers of Jesus. Also, for sure, Romans 14, 12 tells us that all of us will give account to God, believers, and 2 Corinthians 5, 10 says that we'll appear before God's judgment seat. So, Christians like Billy Graham, many others, the church in which I got saved, we were told that there are different judgment seats, that there's the judgment seat of Christ where we give account for our lives as believers and receive certain rewards, and the great white throne judgment where the lost are cast into the lake of fire. So, if we appear before the great white throne judgment, we are those who are not put under eternal condemnation because our names are written in the book of life. All those whose names are not written in the book of life are the ones who suffer punishment there in Revelation 20. If there are two separate thrones, the judgment seat of Christ versus the great white throne, then it's at the former where we give account for our lives. It's also a sobering thing.

I remember when Leonard Ravenhill got seriously ill September of 1989 at the age of 87 and fell into a coma, had a stroke, fell into a coma and never came out of it. And his wife Martha told me, she said, it's actually good because it gives him more time to prepare to meet with God. This is the most devoted man that I knew, but it was a very sobering thing for him to think that he was going to give account for his life before the Lord as a believer. But I don't, my own view, it doesn't happen at the great white throne. There's a separate judgment, the judgment seat of Christ.

I just can't prove it decisively from the Bible. All right, let us go to, let's go to Michael in Brooklyn, New York. Welcome to The Line of Fire. Hi Dr. Brown, I'm honored to talk to you.

Thank you. So about last week I rekindled with an old friend of mine from years ago and we got to talk about many things and he had brought up how he reads the Quran with his partner and we just started going back and forth. You know, I told him that I was saved in Christ for years now and when I mentioned the Bible, he said that he doesn't believe in the Bible because it was written by a white man and it just baffled me and I started getting into some of the history, you know, the Bible and the Jewish roots and everything. And he just would not, he wouldn't accept it and it baffled me and he was, it was kind of like trying to explain why two plus two equals four, but he was just not accepting. So I wanted to know, you know, if I see him again, what could I say to something to kind of rebut that claim because I know it wasn't, but to try to talk to someone who's hardened their heart completely to the Bible and God, you know, it's just a different story.

Yeah, Michael, I'm sorry to hear that and it is hard when people reject truth. You know, first that referencing a white man as opposed to dozens and dozens of different people who wrote the Bible. So it's different than the Quran which comes from this one man, Muhammad, although of course I don't believe for a second that it came by divine inspiration, but in any case that the fact he's not aware that the Bible is written by dozens and dozens of different people, most at least would accept that. If he wanted to say, you know, white men have used the Bible to exploit others and come up with some other narrative, that's a whole other issue, but in terms of the Middle East, 3,000 years ago, there weren't predominantly white men there at all. And if you want to show him a text that maybe to try to open up his thinking a little bit, this came up with a question someone asked me a few days ago. Take him to Acts 21, towards the end of the chapter, where Paul is mistaken for an Egyptian terrorist, right?

So just ask your friend, okay, you understand Paul wrote a lot of the New Testament, right? Okay, so we get that. So just explain this here, explain this. How is it that he's mistaken for an Egyptian terrorist if he's a white man? The people of Egypt are not white. They're darker skinned, Middle Eastern, some even black. So just ask, how did they get mistaken? How did he get mistaken? Or go to Exodus 2, the baby Moses, right, raised by Pharaoh's daughter in Egypt.

So 3,500 years ago. How does she raise a white kid as her own and everybody thinks that this is her own kid? So I mean, it's just so ridiculously wrong and illogical. You can even say, hey, in Numbers 12, Moses marries a Cushite.

Who's a Cushite? It's an Ethiopian woman. So even if he was lighter skinned, he's marrying an African woman.

What do the kids look like? So you try to show him that, you know, Exodus 2, Moses being adopted by Pharaoh's daughter, Numbers 12, Moses marrying a black woman, and then Acts 21, Paul being mistaken for an Egyptian terrorist. Again, there's a massive stronghold here and he's spiritually blind and in rebellion against the truth. But maybe this will jar him enough for him to think, whoever told me this stuff is not telling me the truth. Even about Islam, ask him why Malcolm X was killed. Was part of it that he realized that there were Muslims that were lighter skinned?

Is that part of the reason? Anyway, may the Lord be with you. And then, of course, prayer.

Prayer that God will open his eyes and set him free. Hey friends, we're out of time, so we can get to all your calls. But the earlier you call on the show, the better chance we have of getting you. Make sure you visit the website AskDrBrown.org. Check out our resources, get our emails. Back with you on Monday. Another program powered by the Truth Network.