Answers to Your Questions

Well, judging by the stack of emails on my desk, you've certainly got questions. Good news is we've got answers. Phone lines are open. Mm-hmm. It's time for the line of fire with your host, activist, author, international speaker, and theologian, Dr.

Michael Brown, your voice of moral, cultural, and spiritual revolution. Michael Brown is the director of the Coalition of Conscience and president of Fire School of Ministry. Get into the line of fire now by calling 866-34-TRUTH. That's 866-34TRUTH. Here again is Dr.

Michael Brown. You know, I get sweet comments like this all the time. How about this one from a gentleman named Blake? You are a fraud. You need to seek treatment.

I hope people find out about your secret life. You sick, sick, sick. Man. Yeah, that was a sweet comment on my Facebook page. I get those all the time.

I wrote back and said. Blake, thanks for writing, and I'll pray for God's grace and love to flood your own life. As for my secret life, let the whole world know. It's the same as my public life. What you see is what you get.

Yeah. Yes, that's the joy of being a public figure standing for the Lord. And we pray for these folks to find mercy and new life and repentance in Jesus. Michael Brown here, delighted to be with you. 866-34TRUTH is the number to call.

You've got questions. We've got answers. Any question of any kind that you want to ask me, any question of any kind where I can help you, be of assistance to you in any way, by all means, give me a call, 866-348-7884. Be sure to go to the website, askdrbrown.org, and check out our latest videos and articles. I wrote one last night that's a real eye-opener, getting a lot of attention.

Gay activists are attempting to dissolve the First Amendment. Those who came out of the closet want to put us in the closet. This is ongoing. These are real issues threatening Christian freedoms and liberties on a very serious level nationally.

So we're addressing them in writing. And by the way, it's not just true born-again followers of Jesus being affected. It's Mormons and others being affected. But sometimes we are under the same attack for similar reasons. 866-348-7884.

I am going to go to your phone calls momentarily. But first, just a note about being an American. I am born and raised here in America. I've travelled overseas extensively. When I was figuring it out, just based on the 150-plus overseas trips I've had over the years and how long I've been on these trips, I've spent years of my life, I don't know, three plus years of my life overseas.

And then I think almost as much of that time jet lagged as well. But The fact of the matter is, I'm still an American. Yeah, I'm a Jewish follower of Jesus. I have that background, but I'm an American. You take things for granted in your country.

So You know, when Israel wins a bronze medal in judo, it's this big thing. I mean, Israel, for whatever reason, is just not good in the Olympic Games, good in so many other areas, but not good in the Olympic Games. And another nation, you know, they win one or two medals and it's a big thing. There's a celebration. But America, we dominate in so many ways.

I mean, America, Russia, China. And You know, we're just used to certain things. We're used to being this world economy and so on and so forth. We can take certain things for granted. We can have a certain arrogance when we travel that, you know, the whole world is going to speak English and so on.

All that being said, And as much as I often grieve, over the state of our nation. the moral and spiritual bankruptcy in our nation. At the same time, when I watch the Olympic Games. When I When I watched Michael Phelps and some of the American performers last night, some of the female performers winning medals and other male performers. There is a pride that I have.

of being an American. And it's it's a good pride. You know what I'm saying? Because there are many wonderful things about our country, and there are many people that work hard. And there are many people that are moral and God-fearing.

and many people who are creative and dynamic and helping the world in many ways.

So while I grieve over our nation in many ways, I'm grateful for our nation in many other ways. And when you look at it in terms of our impact on the world, boy does the world need America to get things right. We'll be right back. It's the line of fire with your host, Dr. Michael Brown, your voice of moral, cultural, and spiritual revolution.

Here again is Dr. Michael Brown. Welcome, welcome to the line of fire, 866-34 Truth. The number to call you if you've got questions. We've got answers.

Remember to download your copy of Ray Comfort's powerful new movie, The Atheist Delusion. When you download it from our website, not only did you get the benefit of the 60-minute video immediately to begin to watch and share with your friends, but 50% of the proceeds are being donated back to our ministry by Ray Comfort's ministry.

So take advantage of that. Be blessed and be a blessing to us. All right, 866-34Truth. Let's start it in Kingston, Massachusetts. Don, welcome to the line of fire.

Hey, Dr. Brown, thanks for taking my call. I called earlier this year about the same subject of Planned Parenthood to do with. Verizon Wireless. And so I always think about leaving Verizon Wireless because of the issue that I They indirectly support plane.

Yeah, I I I remember in general the phone call. Right.

So they indirectly do it. They don't directly do it themselves. They have an employee matching program, whatever program. The employee wants. They'll match half or they'll match the whole thing.

But um, so I switched to uh another company called Affinity4 Wireless, it's a Christian company, and um Later I found out they actually used Verizon wireless as towers. called him up to see what was going on. They just use their towers. But they don't pay anything to Verizon Wireless. They just used their towers.

So if they paid it, I would say, Okay, I'm going to drop it. But I'm wondering if um because they are doing this Verizon Wireless is donated to Planned Parenthood. Um is using their towers then off limits. That I shouldn't do that.

So that's the moral dilemma that I'm going to do. Yeah. John, first, I appreciate that you take these things that seriously, that you have that degree of moral repulsion. towards what Planned Parenthood does and what Planned Parenthood is. And that you were willing to inconvenient yourself, perhaps with a company that didn't have the same coverage or packages as Verizon might.

Don't know that in detail, but you're willing to inconvenience yourself to do that. I believe that's honorable in the sight of the Lord and commendable. I would say, though, that Yeah If they're using the towers. Yeah. but they're using them for their purposes and for their company.

That wouldn't trouble me. We can't go totally out of the world. You know what I'm saying? Paul said that if we're not going to have any commonality with fornicators or drunkards or extortioners, then we'd have to totally leave the world. His point was: if they're in the church and they refuse to repent and claim to be brothers and sisters, then you don't fellowship with them.

There may be some type of arrangement that they've had to make, but they're going to have to use somebody's towers, I imagine. I would judge them by what they do personally, how they conduct themselves, and where their money goes. And if they seem to be ethical and godly in that respect, which is sometimes rare for a company today to hold to those same standards across the board, then wonderful. And they've got to use somebody's towers. Look, there's going to be stuff that's owned by other people that we have to use.

I am every day, we're broadcasting. There's probably some line somewhere or some connection somewhere that somebody owns or somebody made. that's using the money in ways that I disagree with. Or if I'm using American Express credit card, if I've got to use a credit card, virtually any of the major credit cards, they donate to causes I don't agree with. I don't really have an alternative.

My thing is then I will then use this for the glory of the Lord. In other words, if Microsoft has donated to same-sex quote marriage in the state of Washington, well, I'm going to use my Microsoft computer to write articles and books and do broadcasts in ways that affirm what I believe and hold to. And where I can make a choice, for example, certain companies that I know that are very overt and it's discretionary. In other words, I don't have to do business with them. It's not like I have to fly somewhere and this is the only airline that can get me there.

Then I just choose not to. I may have mentioned that the first time around, but Starbucks was so aggressive with pro-gay events and Charlotte years ago, gay activist events. I interacted with them, and they were real plain. You know, we'll stand with them, but we won't stand with you. If you were doing a pro-life event or something, we won't stand with you.

Even though I'm not a coffee drinker, there are enough times in the past, and to this day at an airport, I want to grab something and Starbucks has it. I just don't do it as a personal matter of conscience. But my own view, sir, is I would not. Think twice about this. I appreciate the ethical care with which you're walking here.

But I would say that if they're not donating money in any direct way to Planned Parenthood or these other organizations, then be at peace and use your phone for the glory of the Lord. Thank you, though, for the call. 866-34TRUTH. Let's go to the Bronx, New York. Daniel, welcome to the line of fire.

How are you doing, Dr. Michael? Doing well, thank you. All right. My question is like, uh I I know I read the Bible, it says like there is a word, God the Father.

But my question is God the Son and God the Holy Spirit isn't the Bible, only the Word.

Well, what you do have in the Bible is references to the Son as God. Right.

And you normally just have references to the Father as God. He's not normally referred to as God the Father. He would be referred to as the Heavenly Father or the Father, or just as God. But sometimes you have the Son referred to directly as God. For example, Hebrews 1, to the Son he says, your throne, O God, is forever and ever.

So the Son is called God overtly. And then you have, excuse me, for example, in Acts 5, lying to the Holy Spirit, Peter says you have not lied to men but to God. And then in Hebrews 9, we read reference to the eternal Spirit.

So he's called eternal, and he's equated directly with God and someone that can be lied to.

So we just explain one God, God the Father, God the Son, God the Spirit. But those terms are not found. Uh in that way through the Bible. What we do have, as I say, reference to the Father as God, reference to the Son as God, reference to the Spirit as God. That's our understanding, not the Bible understanding, right?

I mean, the word, you know, the God. Yeah, yeah, that all works. Right.

And I'm perfectly happy to teach on these things and only to use biblical vocabulary. You know what I'm saying? Yeah. That I will teach on these things, and I won't use any later terminology. I won't use terminology from church creeds.

In fact, I'm happy to base my argument, if I'm dealing with a Jewish person, just on what's written in the Hebrew scriptures, just on what's written in the Old Testament.

So thank you, sir. Appreciate it. No problem. Thank you. 866-348-7884.

Four. We go to Danielle in Washington, D.C. Welcome to the line of fire. Hi, Doctor Brown. How are you?

Doing well, thank you. Good. Um question. is about marriage and divorce. I'm recently separated.

And, um I believe that God has called me to plan for my marriage. what what happens in the event that my husband divorces me? Yes. Danielle, first. Yeah, first, I'm sorry to hear.

that you're going through this and it's got to be terribly painful. And challenging, obviously. And friends listening, Danielle is one of many suffering in this way. Let's pray for her, for grace in this. You're obviously doing the right thing to stand for your marriage.

God is a God who reconciles and who brings about the impossible. Is your husband claiming to be a believer now? Has he walked away from the Lord? Where does he stand? Um, well, he's walked away from the Lord, yeah.

Yeah. Um so I think that he knows Governor Wood, but he's just He is an English banding with him. Yeah. And and is he open to reconciliation or is he is he fighting it? He's completely saying now.

Yeah. Well, as I understand it, Danielle, the principle of 1 Corinthians 7. Would apply.

Now, you have to be convinced in your own heart. I'm going to share what I understand, but ultimately, if it comes to this, you have to be very sure in your own heart that you're honoring the Lord. You don't want to do something that you question for many years or that hangs over you.

So you need to come to conviction in your own heart. But as I understand it, the principle of 1 Corinthians 7 applies: that if the unbeliever departs, That you are not bound in that situation.

So let's say you and your husband are married, you're both non-believers, you come to faith, and he has a real issue with that. He wants to go the way of the world, or you both got married in the Lord. He turns away from the Lord. He says, I don't care. I found somebody else, or I don't want this marriage, whatever.

And he walks away. As far as I understand it, If that person divorces you and reconciliation is impossible. then you are free to remarry.

Now, obviously, you don't want to think that far ahead. You just want to think as if this marriage is your one and only option and pray like it is. And God can bring him to repentance and God can change him dramatically. And God can do amazing things in your life as well. And the two of you could live happily ever after.

But in the event that he refuses reconciliation, turns away from you and divorces you. And there's no way to renew that relationship as I understand it. As I understand it, 1 Corinthians 7, the principle would apply that you are not bound in that situation, and therefore you would be free to remarry. Just be sure that you. Have conviction and certainty about it if it comes to that.

And may the Lord help you right now, Danielle. And may He touch your husband and bring him to repentance. Thanks for calling. It's the line of fire with your host, Dr. Michael Brown, your voice of moral, cultural, and spiritual revolution.

Here again is Dr. Michael Brown. Hey, I want to get word out early.

So if you're listening to me right now on WMCA. If you're listening to me on our great station that blankets New York out into Long Island into New Jersey, everybody listening on WMCA, or if you're listening through other means, You live in the greater New York area. One month from now, I will be in New York City for a series of special meetings and I on the island. And two in particular, Brooklyn. Brooklyn.

Thursday night, September 8th. I'll give you more details, but just put it on your calendar. If you live in Brooklyn, I'm going to be doing a special meet talk, a Jewish-themed talk. Then we're going to do a meet and greet. I'm going to take your questions face to face.

I'm going to give you a great vision of what we're doing on radio.

So just put that down. If you live in Brooklyn, put it down. September 8th. I'll be preaching in the Bronx Friday night, September 9th. I'll give you all the details as we get closer.

Alright, so if you live in Brooklyn. Oh, that's the closest place for you. Put it down. Thursday, september eighth. If you live In the Bronx Friday night.

I'll be preaching in a church there, September 9th. If Manhattan is the best place for you, Special Jewish Talk September 10th in New York City. All right, so join me for these special meetings. We've got a meeting, an afternoon meeting Sunday. The eleventh In Nassau County, in northern Nassau County, that's Sunday.

So, a great series of meetings for you. By all means, Join me. By all means, please join me. If you're listening on WMCA in Greater New York, we've added in extra meetings just to meet with you, just to get with you. All right?

866-34TRUTH. Let's go to Reese in New Brunswick, Canada. Welcome to the line of fire. Uh hi there, Doctor Brock. Hello.

Hi. I just want to say it's a great honor. uh your podcast has really helped me a lot. And uh thank you so much for uh everything you do in your stuff as well.

Well, you're very welcome, sir. Thank you. Yes. So my question is about presuppositional apologetics and evidential. Um I'm just wondering Do you think one is more effective than the other?

Do you think one is Can they be used in tandem? Is one wrong? Is one right? Um I've heard a lot of um presuppositional Apologists say that evidential apologetics can put God-like on trial, so it's not good.

So yeah, I was just wondering your uh opinion about that. Yeah, so so one School of thought would say that we start with who God is and what Scripture says is true. And we start based on that presupposition. We start based with that, and I'm saying this for the sake of others that may not be as familiar with the terms.

So we start there. And then we do our best to explain and to open up people's hearts and minds to defend the faith. And the evidentialist would say, okay, let's start with what someone knows and try to bring them to a place of faith. And in my mind, It's not either or. In my mind, it's who we're dealing with.

In our own hearts and minds as believers, we're presuppositionalists, right? We're starting there. In our own hearts and minds, we know that we know that God is true, that his word is true, that Jesus is Lord, that his standards are right.

So that's where we start and that's where we end. And our goal is to help people who differ, who don't believe, to get them to a point where they're willing to listen, hence to answer their questions and to raise issues for them to think about. And then as the Holy Spirit works in their hearts and minds, they become open to hear the gospel. But to me, it's a matter of who I'm talking to. and where I'm starting.

And for someone that doesn't believe in the existence of God whatsoever, I'm going to ask them the same questions whether I'm an evidentialist or a presuppositionalist. And I'm going to try to get them to think about the origin of the universe and the origin of life and the existence of DNA and things like that. And then, if I can get them to begin to embrace the idea that there is a God or that they don't have answers, then I begin to go a little further. And so to me, it's also a matter of who I'm debating. what the setting is.

I might be debating a religious Jew, and we both agree that the Hebrew scriptures are God's word. and that there is one God and one God only, but who is He? And how do we understand his word?

So Uh To me, it's not the kind of thing that I get into a big philosophical. argument about personally. I think the biggest thing is just to be pragmatic in our approach.

Now, look, I do understand. That someone's saying, okay, you're going to try to bring someone in in an evidentialist way that ultimately you're appealing to them as if they have some authority, as if they have the right to choose or refuse the nature of God or something like that, or God now has to cater to them. But no, ultimately, the goal is to bring them to the foot of the cross as a lost sinner needing salvation. And I think if we do things rightly, That any number of different approaches will work effectively. You can read very passionate arguments.

you know, for one or the other. And even to the point of of um attacking the other. There's an article about D.A. Carson's book, The Gagging of God. And the point is made: the presuppositionalist may charge the evidentialist with superficiality.

I understand the arguments. I just don't think that they're taking into play or into consideration, we have a larger goal. To bring someone to a certain point through an appeal to their mind, to reason, while believing and knowing that the Holy Spirit is the one who changes the heart, that the Holy Spirit is the one who convicts of sin, that this is just a tool. It'd just be like this: if there's somebody shivering by the side of the road, you know, I'm driving by, they're sitting by a bus stop, they're shivering, they're cold, and I stop by and say, Hey, Are you okay? Do you need a ride?

Hey, I got a blanket in the back seat here once. You need a ride somewhere? Come on.

Well, you care about that person.

Now you have them in the car. You begin to talk. And now you begin to share the gospel with them.

Well, were you not relying on the Holy Spirit when you pick them up? Were you not relying on the Holy Spirit when you offered them the blanket? No, it's just practical, loving outreach, meeting somewhere where they are.

So that's my pretty simplistic answer to the question.

Okay, great.

Well, thank you very much. You are very welcome. All right. Joey, grab clip number 11 for me. Friends, I'm going to be taking calls another 90 minutes.

Wherever you are, you can get on the phone, and sooner you get on, the better chance I have of answering your questions. 866-34Truth. Listen to what Matt Barber said about Ray Comfort's new movie, The Atheist Delusion. This is Bar None the most compelling and comprehensive piece of its kind. I've never seen anything so comprehensive.

Somehow you managed, in less than an hour, to make the case beyond any reasonable doubt for the Creator God. This is your masterpiece. You know, when you hear, when you hear praise like that, um from someone like Matt Barber on the front lines of cultural Apologetics and things like that, you realize this is something to be taken seriously.

So Check it out on the website, askdrbrown.org. Check out our short video about the atheist delusion, and then download your copy today. Let's be changed by God and let's go and change the world together. It's the line of fire with your host, activist, author, international speaker, and theologian Dr. Michael Brown.

Your voice of moral, cultural, and spiritual revolution. Get into the line of fire now by calling 866-34TRUTH. Here again is Dr. Michael Brown. Thanks for joining us on the line of fire, 866-348-7884.

Let me just check for one second, and we're going to go right back to the phones. It's Friday. You've got questions. We've got. answers Let me just see the most recent videos that we posted on my website.

Do you have to speak in tongues to be saved? See that's an interesting question. Yeah, well Check it out. Is the New Testament reliable? These are some of the new videos that are posted on the website.

How about this, when a Palestinian father urges Israeli soldiers to shoot his son? And fee fi faux fum the latest in transanity. All on the website, askdrbrown.org. Just click on latest videos. All right, let's go to Round Rock, Texas.

BJ, welcome to the Line of Fire. Yes, hello, Doctor Brown. Hello. Um I'll I was reading a a book, um About, like, the the Jewish cultural uh context. In the time of Jesus.

And it's talking about sacrifices, and so I looked it up. And it uh on some Jewish websites and they started talking about Corbin. And I remember in March 7, I think it is. I wrote it down. Jesus says, you know, Corbin, you know, you don't give to your father and mother.

Um because the thing you would have given them is Corbin.

So I started looking it up. And I found a bunch of things on Jewish FAQs, but I was just going to ask you about it to kind of check and see if any of this was a Correct or not? Um one thing I read It said that The Corbin was um All the sacrifices from the Old Testament, the wheat offerings, the grain offerings, the sin offering, the burnt offering. I had never heard that before, and it didn't sound like that's what Jesus was talking about at march seventh. I was wondering if you could clarify on that.

Uh yeah, what was the book you were reading in the first place? Do you remember? It's a pretty lay-level book called, I think it was. Jewish Culture in the time of Jesus. Uh and it was just I had a bunch of pictures, um, like artwork.

Um Right. And then it it said some things you could look up Sanhedrin or Temple or Work. Um there's my I forget Miriam somebody. Got it.

Okay. Yeah, so so yeah, the actual uh pronunciation would be Corbonne. Just no, no, hey, listen, I mispronounce things contemporary things on the radio all the time because I'm used to seeing them in print and I'm not used to hearing the name or the foreign language pronunciation.

So trust me, I do that on a regular basis. But We know a certain about this. First thing, the word Korban itself comes from the root, which is to draw near or approach. And it's a root for sacrifice.

So the root Karav is to draw near, to approach. And this is something in approaching God, drawing near. And the term only does occur. in the New Testament in Mark 7, 11. uh which uh correct so It's speaking of something dedicated or given to God.

So, on the one hand, It is a reference to any offering is called the Korban.

Okay, you had a burnt offering, or it's all these different things, they're all called a Korban.

So that's why you'll read many, many different things could be called a Korban. But there's a specific thing that Jesus is speaking about or that Mark is explaining to us whereby you consecrate something to God, consecrate this to the temple, and it cannot be used for any other purpose. And that some people were using as a loophole. Rather than, let's say, I should be bringing something to you as my father in honor of you and support of you. Instead, I said, no, this is devoted to God.

And I was using it as a legal loophole. That's what Jesus was referring to.

So there's the specific custom korbon, something specially consecrated to God, and then the more broad meaning of the word, which is just an offering. All right. Thank you, sir, for the call. You're on the right track. Angel world O God of burning, cleansing flame.

It's the line of fire with your host, Dr. Michael Brown. Get into the line of fire now by calling 866-34TRUT. Here again is Dr. Michael Brown.

Thanks for joining me today on the line of fire. Michael Brown, your voice of moral sanity and spiritual clarity in the midst of a society and chaos in the church, all too often in Compromise. Just a note from the Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible, just as I was looking at some different notes on Korban during the break, just to see how it's presented in some of these different dictionaries. The Baker entry was a pretty good one, explaining that Jewish law allowed individuals to earmark their service or property as dedicated to God, thus removing it from profane use and giving it the character of an offering intended for God. To do this was a serious decision and was rarely reversed for violation of a Korban vow risked the severe consequences of divine judgment.

In Mark 7, Jesus chastises the scribes because theoretically his son could exclude his parents from getting any benefit from his estate by declaring his property Korban to them. This, in effect, nullifies the fourth commandment, honor your father and mother, setting rabbinic traditions against the law of Moses. Worse still, if the son repented of his vow, arguing that it had been given in haste, the rabbinic tribunal would no doubt forbid a reversal of korban. that that I don't know, would no doubt forbid it. Perhaps I'm not 100% sure on that, but that's a good note, just giving a little bit more background for the previous caller.

866-34TRUTH7-2 884, the number to call. I just put together 34 truth and 3487884 made it one. All right, we go to sorry. What's going to Belleville, New Jersey? Maybe my mixing together those two numbers confused our caller there.

All right, we go to Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin. Brad, welcome to the line of fire. Hey, Dr. Brown, how you doing? Doing well, thanks.

Yeah, I just have a scriptural question on Second Samuel 12. Eight, where Nathan is talking to David. And obviously, we know in scripture it speaks of having. one man and one wife, you know, marrying together. But how do we interpret a verse like this?

Yeah, well, we know that polygamy was permitted in the Old Testament. And that even under the law, Deuteronomy 17, the king could have several wives, just not many wives. And Deuteronomy 24, there's the instance if you have two brothers. And one of them is married, and the other one is married without children, and he dies. Then his widow would marry the other brother, and the first child she would have through that brother would carry the name of her deceased husband.

So we see. Overall, the polygamy. Is not ideal through what unfolds in the Old Testament, and we see that it's not what God did at the beginning. God did not give Adam, Eve, and Yvette and Yvonne, and things like that.

So we understand that. But yeah, in point of fact, God did deliver. uh the kingdom of Saul into David's hands. And uh Saul's daughter became his wife.

So, I gave you your master's house, your master's wives, into your arms. It doesn't say he married all of them, right? Gave you the house of Israel and Judah. If this were too little, I would add to you as much more.

So, yeah, David had all he needed. David had several wives already. David did not need to take the one and only wife of this man Uriah. But, yeah, God did give him those wives. That's what would be.

Um It's again, not ideal, not, and even with Bathsheba, just to show how God is a redeemer. Uh David sins grievously. and his kingdom does decline thereafter. and he does suffer much in his life thereafter, so there were terrible consequences of his sin. But the next child that David and Bathsheba have, Solomon.

And he's also named you Didya, which means loved by the Lord. Yeah. So it's God working in the midst of Old Testament times. And it's God working redemptively. And Bathsheba even makes it into the genealogy of Jesus.

as the wife of Uriah the Hittite, right?

So, God's an amazing Redeemer, but we see a lot of pain because of David's multiple wives. And then his son Solomon follows in his footsteps even worse and destroys his own life. And the kingdom splits as a result of his sin of idolatry, which was because of his many wives.

So we see the consequences.

Okay. Thank you. You bet.

Okay. 866-34-TRUTH. Let's go to. Boston area in Massachusetts, Geneva, welcome to the line of fire. Oh, hi, Doctor Brown.

I want to first say that I joined to be a torchbearer, so I'm just really happy that I finally did that. And I would I encourage anyone else, everyone else listening, to do that as well, especially in the summer when I know funds are needed. But my question is There's an organization I was considering joining. It's a women a group of women that pray. They call themselves uh the Watchmen.

And they But their day starts at six p.m. because the woman was saying to me, That's when the Jewish day began. On the go 6 p.m., 9 p.m., 12 midnights, 3 a.m., 6 a.m. nine, twelve and noon. But they said they also observed uh the Sabbath on, I guess, from Friday to Saturday.

And I was concerned when she told me that.

So I was wondering if you can shed any light. Sure thing. Sure. First, thanks so much for joining us as a torchbearer, as a monthly supporter, and for encouraging others to do so. I appreciate you doing it, and I appreciate the word of encouragement to others.

That's why we're on the air. That's how we're able to do what we do and reach so many people.

So thank you for being part of the team.

So as far as saying, hey, we live by Jewish calendar or reckoning of things, there's nothing wrong with it. In other words, to say, okay, Genesis 1, there's evening, then there's morning.

So the day starts in the evening, and that's the Jewish reckoning. The day starts with sundown. And it's sundown to sundown as opposed to sunrise to sunrise. There's nothing wrong with that. It's just one system versus another.

If you're a religious Jew today, that's still how you would see things and calculate things. They're not Jewish. Right, no, I understand that. In other words, there's nothing saying you can't because it's biblical. That's my point.

Yeah, yeah. And the same thing with Sabbath.

Some would say, hey, look, that was just... God set apart the seventh day in Genesis 2. When he ceased from his labor, so that's that's before Israel, that's before God gave it to Israel in Exodus 16, and then in the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20. Uh, so There are people that say, why not? God never changed it to Sunday, or God never commanded Christians to observe the Sabbath on the eighth day on Sunday.

So why not?

So it's perfectly fine. As long as they don't judge others who don't do that. And as long as it's not a central focus. If it becomes a central focus where this is something that is majorly emphasized, or that they find an identity in these days and seasons as opposed to finding a primary identity in Jesus. Or if they are judging others in the body, well, the church is Babylon, they're all in sin, they're in darkness, then for those reasons, I would stay away because it can become exclusivistic, it can put the emphasis in the wrong place.

It can be separatist. But if they say, hey, if others worship on Sunday, if that's their Sabbath, if people reckon the day from morning to morning, hey, that's fine. But this is what we do. We feel we're on God's calendar or God's clock and we're watchmen.

So we want to be thinking the way He's thinking. Perfectly fine. Not not a not a problem. Yeah, they are really are a good group of praying women all over the world, and they are really praying for Israel as well. And that was one of the reasons that I thought I wouldn't mind joining this particular prayer group 'cause I I can pray at home, you know, it everything you know, with with them on the phone.

That's how it works. I didn't want to do something if it wasn't quite kosher to do anything. Yeah, well, kosher definitely sounds kosher, right? I mean, it's funny how you use that word. But here's the other thing.

If if um If I was part of a world prayer group that prayed daily for, say, South Korea, I was just there, or say North Korea, okay? I would be very conscious of what time of the day it is in North Korea. I would be very conscious of what's happening there. And I would be praying accordingly if I was part of this World Prayer Group. If there's a World Prayer Group that prays a lot for Israel, to say we're going to get on Israel's calendar.

We're going to reckon days and nights the way Israel does. We're going to reckon Sabbath the way Israel does. That's fine also as a point of identification. That's so again, no problem with it on that level. And if you find them to be prayerful, Jesus-centered people.

Wonderful. then go for it and be blessed. Hey, thanks once again for the call. Thank you. Have a blessed weekend.

All right. 866-348-7884, the number to call. You know, fire has been an operative word in my ministry for years. I began preaching on God being a consuming fire, God being a refining fire decades ago. We have fire school of ministry and fire church and fire international, our missions organization, and the line of fire radio.

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Here again is Dr. Michael Brown. Thanks so much for joining us on the line of fire. 866-34Truth is number to call. You've got questions, we've got answers.

I go to the emails. Let's see here, starting with Gordon. Job chapter 1. implies that Job's children were in right standing with God because he made offerings on their behalf. They did departing and he word about their sin, but I thought we were supposed to sanctify ourselves, and yet this portion of Scripture states that his efforts on their behalf sanctify them.

He was worried about their spiritual health, but they sure didn't seem to be. Your insight will be greatly appreciated. Thanks for you taking the time to read and respond to my inquiry. All right, I appreciate the question, and I agree with the overall premise. I think you may be missing some of the points of Job chapter one.

When it says that Job sanctified them, that would mean that he sent for them to go through some ritual sanctification. Again, this is pictured as pre-Israelite. Job would have been. As pictured a non-Jew or a pre-Israelite righteous man, say in the time of the patriarchy, and you can't place that with precision. But that's how the narrative would be placed historically.

So he would have had his children go through some rite of purification, whether it'd been that they would offer sacrifices or that they would have to wash themselves or whatever.

So there'd be something they'd be participating in. And it doesn't. indicate they were partying in a in a a sinful way necessarily. It could be when he says they might curse God in their hearts. Yeah, it could be that severe.

It could be that direct. And and that ugly that they are partying, they're getting drunk, uh or it it could be a neglect of God that he was concerned of in the midst of eating and drinking and having these celebrations. And was it each on their birthday? Again, it's debated exactly what it means. But in any case, regardless of whether they were wicked sinners or whether they were just caught up in the excesses of a rich life.

Either way, he was He's interceding for them. And he's offering sacrifices on their behalf. This is his way of interceding and appealing to God for them. And then on their end, they still have their responsibilities. But it's just like a parent praying for a kid.

and and the kid's out doing the wrong thing, or the parents concerned the kid's doing the wrong thing, so they s stay up all night praying. And they're interested in oh God, touch them, God, have mercy on them, God, keep them safe.

So that's what the Father's doing. That's his priestly ministry as the head of his house. That makes perfect sense to me, right? And then And then On the other side, he is sending for them to be sanctified, so to cleanse themselves, to do whatever.

So perhaps there was repentance on their end if there had been sin as well. But it doesn't say explicitly that they were in right standing with God. It doesn't make that statement. Job is certainly praying for divine protection and divine mercy in their lives. 866-34-TRUTH.

Shall I go on with them? Yeah, let me go on with another email. Um this is from Kel. Can Dr. Brown teach us on the flesh, spirit, and the walk with God?

He's referring to an article written by Chris Vallaton. Is the law of sin and death still present in the believer? I always believe that, but Vallaton seems to say that all we need to do is renew the mind. Yeah, so that's a question that many have asked. Do I still have a sinful nature?

Now that I'm a follower of Jesus. Or have I died to sin and now I need to consider myself dead to sin?

So one view says that there's still kind of like good dog, bad dog inside of us, and the dog that's going to be stronger is the one that we feed.

So are we feeding the sinful nature or are we feeding the spiritual nature? Whatever we're feeding is going to be stronger. And they point to Romans 7 where Paul says, the things I want to do, I don't do, the things I hate, I do. And others would say, no, that's a misconception. We were slaves to sin.

We were dominated by a sinful nature. We have now died to sin in Jesus, and we now live by the Holy Spirit. The problem is we're still in this world that's filled with temptation. The problem is we still have a human body which has fleshly urges and desires, and we still have a mind that's not renewed, but we have a new nature. The nature of the Son of God, and we need to renew our minds.

We need to renew our minds, and by renewing our minds, That's what Paul counsels in Ephesians 4. We renew our minds to being new creations and we put off the old. Let me say this. When I read Romans 7, I read it in the context of Romans 6 and Romans 8. And the struggles that Paul speaks of, although we can all relate to them on a certain level, that's not my daily story.

And I don't think it was Paul's daily story: that every day the things I hate, I do. and the things I love I don't do. No, it's the reverse. That the overall pattern of my life is the things that I love, I do. And the things that I hate, I don't do.

Right, I mean isn't that the normal pattern of the normal believer? Oh no. We're not perfect. We still fall short. But do you, on a daily basis, primarily do the stuff that you know is sinful and wrong and destructive and you hate?

That's what you do on a daily basis. And the things that you love to do and that you know are right, living a godly life, loving others, being in the word, praying, sharing the gospel with people, turning away from sinful practices. You don't do that? No, I mean, if we're born-again followers of Jesus, our lives are characterized by obedience, not disobedience, even though we know that we fall short. even though we know that we're not living up to the perfect standard of God.

The fact is, we used to be habitual sinners, slaves to sin.

Now we're slaves to righteousness, and sin should be the exception to the rule of our lives. And we get cleansing and washing by the blood of Jesus, but we do it as people who are seeking to please the Lord and live for God. My life now is totally different than it was before I was saved. And I'm sure yours is if you've been genuinely born again and you're walking with the Lord. I look at Paul in Romans 7, reflecting on life under the law or seeking to live the way he lived before he was regenerate.

But the bottom line, however you interpret Romans 7, you have to interpret it in the context of 6 and 8. And the sixth chapter says we've died to sin. How can we live in it any longer? And the eighth chapter says that we now live by the Spirit. And we're not in the flesh, but in the spirit, if truly Jesus lives in us, we've been born from above.

I'm not even going to Worry about whether someone says, Well, we still have a sinful nature or not. I would say, Who are you? Are you a new creation in Jesus? That's the issue. Whether you think it's just renewing your mind, whether you think it's putting down a nature, either way, who are you ultimately?

Are you a new creation in Jesus? Yes. Does the Holy Spirit live in you? Yes. Have you.

Through faith and water baptism, died to sin, now live to God. Yes, well, then consider yourself dead to sin. And put to death those deeds of the body, those deeds of the flesh, because that's not who you are. Your life is now hidden with the Messiah in God.

So, what does it ultimately come down to? It comes down to. That crucifixion of the fleshly desires. How do we do it? By the renewing of the mind and fellowship with the Lord, by life in the Spirit, the Holy Spirit dwelling within us, God's word now written on our hearts that we delight to do His will.

That should be our primary confession and testimony. In that sense, I would be affirming, without reading the article, but just based on what you're saying, I'd be affirming the point that Chris is seeking to make. All right. Have you downloaded your copy yet of the Atheist Delusion? All right, do it today at my website, askdrbrown.org.

Check out the video, find out more about it, then download it. Remember, 50% of the proceeds donate it back to our ministry. My bottom line today: when you find your primary identity in Jesus, your whole life, change accordingly.

Well, judging by the stack of emails on my desk, you've certainly got questions. Good news is, we've got answers. Phone lines are open. It's time for the line of fire with your host, activist, author, international speaker, and theologian, Dr. Michael Brown, your voice of moral, cultural, and spiritual revolution.

Michael Brown is the director of the Coalition of Conscience and President of Fire School of Ministry. Get into the line of fire now by calling 866-34-TRUTH. That's 866-34-TRUTH. Here again is Dr. Michael Brown.

Thanks so much for joining us on the line of fire, 866-348-7884. You've got questions. We've got answers. Michael Brown, delighted to be with you on this Friday. Just had a great hour of questions, callers from around America and even Canada today.

Thrilled to be here to answer your questions. Anything whatsoever that I can do to be of help to you, any question you have in any area of expertise that I have, please, by all means, give me a call: 866-348-7884. You're also free to call and differ with me. You're also free to call and disagree with me? Absolutely.

And glad to have a discussion with you. Even if you get nasty with me, I won't get nasty with you. Glad to have a discussion. 866-34TRUTH. So I got home from ministry in Canada yesterday, last night.

And flew in from Buffalo, got home, I don't know, 9.30, 10 in the evening, something like that. And decided just while I'm having a meal, a late night meal, I'm going to put on the Olympics for a few minutes, chat it with Nancy Somme, said, I'm just going to watch the Olympics of it. And Uh saw A couple of victories by the American team. And of course, you are focusing, you might just assume that all Olympic coverage is the same, but no, we're focusing on events where the Americans are and Americans have a chance to win, right?

So it's just watching an athlete that seems to really know the Lord. Just based on the way they talk about God or the way that they refer to being blessed, or the just maybe you've read about their testimony, you know that they're strong believers. But to hear a Christian athlete winning, especially one that didn't expect to win. And genuinely from the heart give glory to the Lord. That's always very moving to me.

That's always very precious to me. There's just something about it.

So there was a swimming event last night. And there were two Canadian sisters that may have been favorites in it. And there was an African-American woman, which was significant because an African-American woman has never won an individual. swimming event in the Olympics.

So and and the young the young woman even mentioned how there was no one that looked like her when she'd be training and swimming and growing up and things like that.

So in that sense, it was it was a big historic breakthrough. But I hadn't followed this carefully. I didn't know who she was or what her standing was, but just the commentary to setting it up. It didn't seem, the commentators didn't seem that they were saying that she had a really good chance of winning. And she came on strong at the end, and she won.

And actually a 16-year-old gal from Canada tied.

So it was quite a dramatic finish and obviously very exciting for the 16-year-old from Canada. But you could tell what happened. She didn't know where she came in. And she finishes the race.

So you look up to see where you are on the board and then you see where she realizes that she won. It was very precious, very, very touching. I mean, all the athletes work hard and train hard. And then afterwards, she was just in tears. And she was just so blessed and just had to give glory to the Lord.

And again, I don't know her life. I haven't read her story, but she seemed to be a genuine believer. And when I saw the reaction, I thought, I wonder if she's a believer. And I wonder if she's going to glorify the Lord. And when she did, there's just something that touches me about that.

I know plenty of athletes win and don't glorify the Lord. And plenty of athletes win, and they work hard, they train hard, and they do it. They just talked about their event. And there's some who are believers that feel, hey, it's just the time here to answer the questions as they're being asked. That's fine.

But just something sweet about it, and then just something inspirational to think about going for it. Given your all. Whatever it is. Giving it your all. Inspires me.

All right, we'll be right back with your calls and questions: 866-34 TRUTH. Angel World. Oh God of burning, cleansing flame, send the fire. It's the line of fire with your host, Dr. Michael Brown, your voice of moral, cultural, and spiritual revolution.

Here again is Dr. Michael Brown. Thanks for being part of the broadcast today, 866. Three, four, truth. You know, we talk all the time about moral, cultural, spiritual revolution.

It's based on truth. We change the world based on truth. We change the world based on being changed ourselves. We don't use the methods of the world. We don't use hatred and anger and violence and intimidation.

We live by the Spirit. We follow the principles of Jesus. But if we are going to change others, we ourselves have to be changed. If we are going to confront error, if we are going to call for repentance, we ourselves have to be living by the truth. And I say that to say this, being grounded in the Word is foundational.

If we're going to see a gospel-based moral and cultural revolution, we must be people of the Word and we must be people who know the Lord and people who walk in the Spirit.

So we have a lot of fun on Fridays. You've got questions, we've got answers, but the goal is always to educate, to equip. And to strengthen you, the believers, to go and make a difference and to inform those who may not agree, may not believe.

Well, hear us out. Hear us out. 866-34TRUTH. We'll start in Houston, Texas. Mario, welcome to the line of fire.

How are you doing, Dr. Brown. Uh my question deals with the second. And basically I have friends who are Sabbath keepers And one of the Yeah. Yeah.

To, I guess, justify their keeping of the Sabbath is Mark 7, verses 6 through 9, where it talks about. Yeah. What they basically is like if you keep the sound Or if you keep Sunday, you're basically keeping the traditions and commandments of men. Whereas if you keep the Sabbath, then they say you're keeping the commandments and traditions and teachings of God. And so.

I'm kind of questioning in my own self. Should I Be keeping Sunday or should I be keeping Sunday? I'm not just kind of trying to figure out if they're using this verse out of context is Well, or if you could help me out there. Sure thing. Sure thing, Mary.

And I appreciate your desire to please and honor the Lord. The fundamental flaw with their argument is. that God nowhere commanded the Gentile world. or Gentile believers to keep the Sabbath. Yes, Genesis 2, it says that God sanctified the seventh day, said it apart as holy, but he didn't give a command.

He did not give a command to honor the seventh day as the Sabbath until Exodus the 16th chapter. There's no written command until then. And then it was for the people of Israel. Reiterate it in the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20, which were repeated in Deuteronomy 5. And the Sabbath is reiterated through the Torah.

And then through Ezekiel, God says that this is a sign between him and Israel.

So he never gave it explicitly to the Gentile world. You say, okay, let's go to the New Testament. Where does the New Testament command Gentile Christians to observe a seventh-day Sabbath? It doesn't. It doesn't anywhere.

And in fact, Colossians 2, Paul warns about anybody putting you under pressure to observe a Sabbath or a new moon. And he says that the Sabbath is the shadow, the substance, the reality is found in Jesus. And then we know in Acts the 15th chapter, when the question was, okay, do Gentiles have to observe the law of Moses in order to be saved? The answer was no. And then there were certain basic things laid out, primarily having to do with dietary restrictions so that there could be fellowship between Jews and Gentiles and things like that.

But even then, all the food laws were not given to the Gentile believers. And someone says, yeah, but Acts 15 also says Moses is read in all the synagogues and the Gentiles will hear it, meaning that they'll catch on to the rest of the law.

Well, that's not the most likely way to read it. He could well be saying this stuff is going to be familiar to them because they've heard it before in the synagogue. It's also possible that he's saying, look, they've heard the law of Moses over and over in the synagogue, and that's not the new message we're bringing them of equal standing with us in the Messiah. Romans 14, although it's probably not addressing Sabbath particularly, does give the principle that one man sets aside one day to the Lord, another man sets aside every day to the Lord. Let everyone be equally persuaded in their own conscience.

And then Hebrews 4 emphasizing that we have come into rest in Jesus. And some would say that's really the ultimate issue, that Sabbath was foreshadowing the rest that we experience in Him. Jesus says, Come to me, all you who are burdened and heavy laden, I'll give you rest.

So the problem with what they're saying is there is not a New Testament commandment for Gentiles to observe the Sabbath. And you say, yeah, but we're grafted in with Israel.

Well, then what about all the other laws that God gave to ancient Israel? And what about stoning disobedient children? What about killing adulterers? What about burning witches? We're not under the Sinai covenant.

And God has not given a New Testament command for Gentiles to observe a seventh-day Sabbath. And what we do know is that pretty early on in the church, that Gentile believers pretty early on in church history gathered either Sunday morning before work or Sunday after work to celebrate the resurrection. And it seems it's out of that that the custom of celebrating the resurrection on Sunday grew into a full-fledged A Sabbath observance.

Now, having said that, Mario, there is not a syllable in the New Testament that says the Sunday is the new Sabbath or the Sabbath has changed, not a syllable. There's not a syllable saying you must keep the eighth-day Sabbath, the Sunday Sabbath, not a syllable.

So it's 100% a matter of what God writes in your heart and convicts you to do in a life-giving way. That's the real issue. Yeah, go ahead.

Well, one other uh thing that as you mentioned You brought up the collage of one of the arguments that I've heard against. that What I Right. They're trying to say like Uh Paul is actually telling these people, I think it's Colossians two, sixteen and seventeen. Uh where you mentioned about uh Don't let them judge you. or drink or regarding the They try to say that oh this This is what he's basically saying is that church.

was actually key. Keeping this Sabbath and the holy days. And keep those. who were either of the circumcision and those who were practicing paganism. Tell the Christian.

church Either to not keep the Sabbath or you're keeping the Sabbath wrong or something like that. Uh so basically they're the the the argument was I that I'm hearing is that That the church was at this particular point in time was and was. keeping the Sabbath and the early days of the am I'm not sure if I'm reading that. Yeah, whatever, bottom line is they're completely mistaken in terms of the point they're trying to make. Number one, we know.

That as the decades developed, the Gentile believers increasingly did not understand why the Jewish believers kept the Sabbath and followed the Jewish calendar. They thought it was odd or thought that they were mixing things or whatever. The point being, that's not what the whole church was doing. All right. We do not have evidence from the ancient world that these first Gentile believers were Sabbath observant in that respect.

But then, then, listen to what Paul's writing. See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than of Christ.

So it was a mixed practice, a mixed religion of some kind. For in Christ, all the fullness of the deity lives in bodily form. And then he says, Therefore, do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink with regard to a religious festival, a new moon celebration, or a Sabbath day. And here's the point: these are a shadow of the things that were to come. The reality, however, is found in Christ.

So that's the whole point he's making. These are the shadow. What you need to do is focus on the reality, and the reality is found in Jesus, the Messiah. The arguments dealing with Colossians 2 are actually very weak, to be honest. And they may have been practicing these things, but they're practicing them under certain pressure.

And Paul's point is that's not the issue. Don't get pulled into that. The issue is the Messiah. And again, the question: If this was so widely understood, then why is it that it was basically the Jewish believers that were observing the seventh-day Sabbath and not the rest of the Gentile church as it developed to the point that they didn't understand why Jews were continuing to live as Jews?

So it's perfectly fine. It's 100% fine if God lays something on your heart to do this. 100% fine. but to say that others who are not doing it are sinning. To say that others are not right with God because of this, that's completely misreading Scripture and bringing people under a yoke of bondage that is absolutely not right.

Okay. I appreciate you talking. Sure thing. And let me just say this last thing. I have plenty of friends, many, many, many, many, many, many, many, many Jewish friends in the Messianic movement.

And every Messianic congregation has Gentile believers in it. And the Gentile believers set apart the seventh day of Sabbath. Wonderful, great. More power to you. And if I'm not speaking on the weekend, if I'm not traveling and speaking or doing some kind of ministry.

then that is that is my principal rest day.

Well, as much as possible is the seventh day.

However, so I'm not opposing this. I'm saying It is wrong when someone tries to lay it on somebody else. It is absolutely wrong and it is unscriptural, especially laying it on a Gentile believer. All right, we'll be right back. Around the new shine.

Shake the new sign. Change the world. Change the world. Send it along. It's the line of fire with your host, Dr.

Michael Brown. Get into the line of fire now by calling 866-34TRUT. Here again is Dr. Michael Brown. Welcome back to the line of fire, 866-348-7884.

You've got questions, we've got answers. Another reminder, download the terrific DVD, the video. From Ray Comfort, the atheist delusion, eye-opening, impacting for the believer and for the non-believer. And remember, when you download it from our website, not only do you get it immediately, you can use it in any different format you please, that 50% of the proceeds are being donated back to our ministry through Ray's Ministry.

So take advantage of this, and you can bless us in the process. 866-348-7884. We go to Los Angeles. Robert, welcome to the line of fire. Hi, Dr.

Brown. How are you doing? Doing well, thank you. Um, there's a lot of stuff going on in my life actually for the last uh like fifteen months or so. Um I discovered that my wife was cheating on me and it was with a woman.

It's with a woman and she's still with her. Um She's exposed my children to this lifestyle and now my daughter is telling me that she might be having some sexual orientation fusion. We she's just turned thirteen. Um I've been trying to reach my wife through, um, through God and through the Bible and and through church, but she kinda doesn't want she doesn't want to go to church with me anymore or go back to the church and Um, but m the reason why I'm really calling, though, is uh my wife's pretty set on leaving me. And um I have a I have a nephew who's very Bible-oriented.

He's I think he's a Pentecostal and Tells me that even though my wife is cheating on me and we were to get a divorce, and I can get an annulment through the Catholic Church. that should I marry again, I would still be committing adultery according to his definition or what he understands in the Bible. And he pointed me to a YouTube video by an old an old really nice old guy, Dr. David Pawson, I believe is his name. Yeah, uh-huh.

And a few other YouTube videos that explaining. How, when Jesus said, you know, in the book of Matthew, I believe. Yeah. Um He did commit adultery. Um so to remarry again.

That fornication doesn't include adultery because of a couple of other passages in the Bible where. adul um where uh adultery and fornication are listed separately.

So that they're separate. sins and adultery is not Under Um fornication.

So my question basically is if this doesn't work out for me, because we're still not divorced and She almost came back a couple of months ago and um you know but left after about half an hour. Um If this doesn't work out and I end up getting divorced, and I don't plan on going the rest of my life being a celibate guy, I don't. Um I still haven't seen anybody and I'm not planning to any time soon. I just my word to God means more to me than my sexual desires. Um Would I be committing adultery?

All right, Robert, first, I hate to hear you're going through this. with your wife and with your your family. And obviously the emotions you go through and the pain and the and the thoughts you have to battle have to be very, very intense.

So when I first she keeps coming home every morning and leaving every night and and most of my family members and friends are telling me, Why don't you kick her out? And I'm like, Well, because I don't I don't wanna reach her that way. I wanna reach her through love and so, you know, and Anyway. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to cut you off. No, no, no, that's okay.

And Robert, I would never tell you. uh to to not reach out with love And to not make sacrifice, because sometimes that's the very thing that can win a person over, that's the very thing that. can bring them to repentance. On the other hand, if you see it's creating problems and hardship with your own kids and creating confusion, then you may have to think of them and say, listen, you're going to have to make a choice. You can't have your foot in both worlds.

And then you turn up the prayer for repentance. You pray for your own life. God, change me anything in my life that needs to change, do it. And then you pray for her and you cry out to God on her behalf that God would bring her to the end of herself, that she'd come to a point of absolute desperation where she has to call out to God for mercy because she hates the sin that she's living in. We've had that discussion about, you know, we got into it a couple of times.

And I go, you know what, you kind of need to read the Bible. And she's like, well, you just started reading. I was like, no, I've been reading it throughout my lifetime, but I've paid more attention to it lately. Did you get that? Yeah, hang on, just because time is limited.

Yeah, sorry.

So do have you how long have you been a committed follower of Jesus? I mean, committed. I mean, I haven't given myself. I'm Catholic, like I said, so I'm not. I wouldn't consider myself a a born again Christian, I guess I wouldn't consider myself that.

I've just lived as good a life as I can. Right.

Right, well, yeah, let me just. Let me finish that guy, my whole life. Go ahead, go ahead. I will answer your question, but first and foremost, Um It's important that you recognize that is a human being that you've sinned countless times against God. And stand guilty before him and need the blood of Jesus to wash you.

Whether you call yourself a born-again Christian or not is secondary, but knowing that you know that you've received forgiveness from God and that your life belongs to him. That's the greatest thing. And it doesn't happen just on a weekly basis at math or mass or confessing to a priest. This is something that transpires between us and God, where we say, God, I recognize I'm a sinner. I recognize I'm lost without you.

I don't call myself a pretty good guy. Right.

So rather than the pretty good guy, it's like, God, in your sight, I'm a rebellious sinner. Have mercy on me. Wash me clean. I believe Jesus died for my sins, rose from the dead. I want to live for you.

That's what it would mean when God really comes into your life in a changing way. That's what it would mean to be, quote, born again, regardless of whether you considered yourself Catholic or Protestant. That would be the secondary thing.

So that's the biggest thing to make sure that you really, really know the Lord and you'll be able to pray in a way that you haven't before. You'll be able to get alone with God and say, God, get hold of my wife and change her and bring her to repentance and salvation. And she might see a change in your life that brings her back as well. With regard to this specific question, which is secondary to the biggest one in terms of just your own relationship with God and your ability to pray for your wife. I absolutely respect David Pawson.

He's a terrific teacher. We spent time together many years ago. I haven't seen him in ages, but highly respected Bible teacher with a lot of insight. I do respect that. I differ in terms of.

The use of the word fornication there, I believe it's a wide-ranging word for sexual immorality that includes adultery in this particular case.

Sometimes it's listed separately. Your heart has to be God. If you want me single, you're going to have to help me to be single. If I can remarry, If there's divorce and there's no reconciliation, then I welcome that.

So your attitude has to be: Lord, your will, whatever your will is, I embrace. But in short, for from my understanding of scripture. If The spouse leaves, commits adultery. and refuses to reconcile. which then leads to divorce.

that we are free to remarry. Others different and say as long as the spouse is alive, it's adultery.

So, you have to be sure before the Lord, Robert. You have to come to a conclusion before Him because you have to live with that. But, most importantly, Before the day is out, make sure you have a real heart-to-heart talk with the Lord. Ask him to wash you clean, give you a brand new start, and then we pray for a miracle of restoration. But that's my understanding, sir.

It's the line of fire with your host, activist, author, international speaker, and theologian Dr. Michael Brown. Your voice of moral, cultural, and spiritual revolution. Get into the line of fire now by calling 866-34TRUTH. Here again is Dr.

Michael Brown. That religion is just absolutely uncalled for. We are just near things floating on a rock in space. Believing in God makes no sense. To me, it's the dumbest thing.

We are not only figuratively, But literally. Stardust. Ah, some of the great clips from the Ray Comfort movie, The Atheist Delusion. If you have not yet downloaded your copy, do it on our website. Ask Dr.

Brown, A-S-K-D-R-Brown.org. And when you do that, remember, half of the proceeds are being donated back to our ministry by Ray Comfort's Ministry.

So you'll be blessed and you'll bless us in the process. You've got questions? We've got answers. 866-348-7884. Over the first 90 minutes of the broadcast today, questions came up that I did take on the air that I often don't take on the air because we've addressed them so, so many times.

But if you have questions about Sabbath observance, specifically or about divorce. Remember, we have videos where we address those questions, a short and concise statement of the issue and my response to it.

So it's not an hour-long teaching to listen to. It could be three or four minutes that will just give you the basic argument and my response, my understanding of those. To watch these videos, go to Ask Dr. Brown, A-S-K-D-R-Brown.org, and just click on latest video or just. Type in Sabbath.

or type in divorce. Of course, you'll find many, many, many, many other videos, scores and scores and scores of videos, and scores and scores, hundreds and hundreds of articles, and scores of audio messages on a wide range of subjects, and then thousands of hours of radio broadcasts where we're covering many, many other issues.

So, we've got a ton of resources, and they're free. waiting for you. on one of our that's where we do them i here to be candid i don't record a video because i need to learn the subject I record a video because I've studied the subject and want to make that information available to you to be a blessing to you.

Now, there are other things I get asked, and it's like, that's a good question. Let me research it. I've never looked into it. But when we're recording a teaching video or I'm sharing something on the radio, I'm doing it because I've got some background in it and I want to be of help to you. All right.

86634Truth. Let's go to Salisbury, North Carolina. Tara, welcome to the line of fire. Hey. Hello?

Yeah. Go ahead. My statement. was um when I was listening to the young men talk about the Sabbath Um It's part of the Ten Commandments. It says remember the Sabbath.

It's the only commandment that says remember. Um People keep all nine, but why wouldn't they wonder and keep? the fourth commandment about the Sabbath. That's what I don't understand. white people you know, if you're not going to keep one, why would you Worry about the other nine.

Because the other nine are reiterated in the New Testament for all believers, and the Sabbath commandment is not given for all believers in the New Testament. There's no verse in the New Testament that says, keep the seventh-day Sabbath. There are verses that say, remember, the substance is found in Jesus. The Sabbath is only a shadow. Verses that say, let everyone be persuaded in their own heart about the day set apart as holy, which could then apply to Sabbath.

And there are verses where Jesus says, Come to me. and receive rest. And remember it just means keep in mind.

Okay, keep it in mind.

So remember in that sense, remember and observe. But in any case, I'm not going to have a further debate on it. Um Uh You know, we've talked about it enough, but that's the simple answer, Tara: that the seventh-day Sabbath commandment is not reiterated in the New Testament for all believers, which would then point to the fact that Sabbath rest has been found in Jesus. And for those who say, no, no, it remains as important to this day, but we celebrate it on this particular day, or no, it's on the seventh day, that's something that believers have to work out between them and God. All right, yeah, did I mispronounce Salisbury?

Salisbury.

Okay, probably right, Joe. Thanks. Uh Angel World. Give us strength to always do what's right. It's the line of fire with your host, Dr.

Michael Brown, your voice of moral, cultural, and spiritual revolution. Here again is Dr. Michael Brown. Welcome back to the line of fire. You know, I said earlier in the broadcast, I was just going to mention we had a caller from Boston who's a recent torch bearer monthly supporter, was encouraging others to join us, especially during these summer months, to make that fresh commitment.

And I said, Yeah, I'll share the benefits that our torch bearers get. I completely forgot to do that.

So remember, If you are a monthly supporter, at least a dollar a day per month, so $30 more per month, you're an official torchbearer of this ministry. We send you a special book of appreciation that I sign over to you and date so you can remember when you joined our team. Every month, you get an insider letter from me. I share special testimonies with you, tell you what's happening in different parts of the world, things that I share, just ask you to be praying with us about. Every month, we send you a brand new audio message, either something just preached or a classic that we pull out from archives.

Every month, you have the option of taking advantage of any of our online courses, video or audio, for free. and you get a 15% discount in our bookstore.

So you're blessed as we sell back into you. 866-34-TRUTH. Let's go to Wake Forest, North Carolina. Louise, welcome to the line of fire. Hi, thank you for the opportunity.

You're welcome. What I was calling about, Dr. Brown, I'm aware of a person that just recently got saved. And he made a financial commitment before he was saved. um to support the mother of his children.

They're not married. They never were married.

So it's my knowledge. The question is, but but he's not tithing. you know, he's really stretched. He's a very giving person to his children and the mother of the children. And he doesn't see he doesn't see that he has any money to give to the body of Christ.

So He did make that commitment to help her.

So, how would the Lord look at this situation? Sure. First, the Lord would not look at it through the lens of the law. In other words, that God would put out a little checklist and say, okay, you're doing this, but you're not doing this.

So I gave you a score of three and a half out of five. Right.

That's the first thing. The second thing is that certainly it's an honorable thing. To make this commitment, you brought someone into the world, even though it was out of wedlock. You should take responsibility. And it would be quite bizarre, quite bizarre.

To say to this woman, now that I've become a follower of Jesus, I'm not going to keep my commitment, right?

Now that I become a follower of Jesus, I'm going to become less responsible towards you and towards the children.

Now, if you made an outlandish commitment, in other words, for her to live in outright luxury while he has to live on the street, you know, and that's where you sit down and say, listen, I wasn't realistic or I overcommitted. But as far as an honorable commitment, you want to have him keep that just like any other obligation. What I would then say is, you want to encourage him to encourage him. to learn the principles of divine generosity. that as we give, it's given to us.

As we give freely and put the Lord first, that He meets our needs. We're not promised earthly riches or things like that, but we are promised as we honor the Lord the meeting of our needs. And I would encourage him not out of a sense of burden, but as a sense of discovery of the generosity of God. to say hey Why don't you just say, okay, the first amount that comes in, let's not even think 10%, right? Just, I'm gonna put aside a certain amount from the, I'm just gonna pray and see what I feel I should do.

I'm gonna put aside the first amount of my check. If if I get a $700 check each week. And my commitments are $698 each week, but I feel the Lord telling me to put aside $50 at the beginning of the week for the gospel, for the local assembly. I'm going to do that. And then you pray and believe God with him.

And normally, I mean, we've seen it happen. Where you can't quite figure it out, but you end up having more than you started with. Or someone says, Hey, I just felt to help you and bless you. I mean, I want to give this tiny illustration. I've used it many times before, but I was.

In California one time, I was speaking at a missions conference. And there was an offering, I was going to receive an honorarium for speaking there, and of course my airfare both ways. And as the offering was being received from missions that night, I had two $20 bills in my pocket. And I remember thinking, well, even though I'm the guest speaker and I'll receive an honorarium from my ministry, I feel like I'm supposed to give in this offering. And I just felt prompted, give the money that you have in your pocket.

I thought, well, going to the airport, I'm taking the red-eye flying home. I don't have any cash in my pocket to get any food. Whatever. I'm just going to give what I have in my pocket.

Well, the guy driving me. to the airport was a student in a mission school there and this guy gave every impression of having no money. And every impression of his car running on fumes is going to even get me to the airport, right? But as I'm getting out of the car, He hands me two $20 bills and says, Get something to eat here at the airport. And I said, no, no, no, you can't he said, no, no, I insist.

And I thought, isn't that funny? You know, it's a very, very minor thing, $40. But it was two 20s that I had given. And before the night was out, 220s were back in my pocket.

Now, of course, it doesn't always happen like that. Sure. But if you could help him to start to grow. In a relationship with the Lord, where He's not doing this based on a law, because I don't see a New Testament law to tithe, but I see the reiteration of principles that we give to Him first. We give with generosity, we help those in need, and God shows generosity to us.

So the principles of we reap what we sow. We pr the principles of generosity reproduces generosity. And say, hey, let's see. Do this as kind of an adventure with the Lord. And pray and see what you feel is on your heart, and give that first before the other things, so that you're in a place where if God doesn't come through, you're going to have a shortfall at the end of the week, right?

And then maybe he gets a raise on his job, or maybe he even sales and has an increase there, or somebody pays something for him. But he'll begin to see as he honors the Lord, these things fall into place. And if he's a reader, my friend Robert Morris. wrote an amazing book on giving called The Blessed Life. It's not a book teaching financial prosperity.

It's a book teaching financial generosity. Right.

And if he reads it, it will inspire him, not in a legalistic way, but a life-giving way. Robert Morris, The Blessed Life.

So rather than saying you should be tithing, and if you're not tithing, you're doing something wrong, and you're helping this woman, which you're not saying, but sometimes people could come across like that. Instead, you want to say, hey, it's an honorable thing to do. And certainly the Lord smiles on you, keeping that commitment. uh to this woman and and to the children. But there's a whole new realm you could walk in.

You're like in ankle deep, you can learn to swim in these waters. Thank you. I appreciate your words of wisdom. Have a blessed day. I love what you do, sir.

Oh, thank you so much. Much appreciated. 866-34Truth. All right, we go back. It is Salisbury.

I mispronounced it the first time around. I get to redeem myself. Leo in Salisbury, North Carolina. Thanks for calling the line of fire. Thanks for taking my call.

I'm not sure if you can answer this. In 1 Samuel. when the Eli's sons go take the ark into battle and believe the Philistines. kill everybody and take it. And Later in the chapter, later down the road, when they send the arc.

Back. If the ox part of the stumbles or hits or and one of the Israelites reaches out and touches it and it's killed instantly. How did the Phil how did the Philistines even take the ark? Yes, sir. This was all a matter of God's action.

In other words, in other words. It wasn't an automatic magical thing that if you touched it something happened. It was a matter of why, why he died because it was God's word, and he said and. And they're supposed to be uh Yeah, yeah, but just to explain. But I don't understand.

So just to explain, Leo. Just to explain. What happened was God chose how to demonstrate. His glory and his holiness. In the one hand, the one case, He demonstrated it as they mishandled the ark.

Utza. in in uh 2 Samuel 6 touches it And God smites him, right? And David calls it Peretz Utzah, a breaking forth against Utzah.

So God demonstrated the holiness of the ark, and you don't. play games with it and you handle it rightly.

Now, with the Philistines, they're pagans. They had no laws about this. And God allows Israel to be defeated because they were in sin. even though it made God look bad, but now immediately God begins to bring judgment on them. And instead of one person die, you end up with many people getting smitten.

And because of that, they said, we've got to get the ark out of here.

So it was the same principle. You don't. Touch it and play games with it without coming under judgment. And this is how God demonstrated it.

Now, later on, when God judged the people of Judah and the ark was taken into Babylon, nothing is said there about something happening to the Babylonians for touching it, but not long after that, of course, they are crushed as being a nation.

So it was simply the way God chose to operate, Leo. In the one case, instant manifestation of judgment. In the other case, in the days after, a much harsher judgment. And this was demonstrating you don't mess with the ark, which represents the presence and the word of God. God of light, hear our cry, send the fire.

It's the line of fire with your host, Dr. Michael Brown, your voice of moral, cultural, and spiritual revolution. Here again is Dr. Michael Brown. Let's see if we can get to a few more calls before the end of the hour.

866-34TRUTH, you've got questions, we've got answers. Michael Brown, delighted to have you. With us today on the line of fire. We go to Columbus, Ohio. CJ, welcome to the line of fire.

Gotta touch. Dr. Brown. wanted to call with a question just to try to get your Your insights. Uh Go on.

just kind of had this issue that I've been kind of wrestling with and trying to prevent it from becoming I guess, uh also bondage in a way for me. But Basically, it's just Um Wanting to to understand it. God has a particular formula That I guess for lack of a better word, I'm just saying formula. that he uh expects believers to to uh to follow in order to receive Yeah.

Okay. Uh Yeah. I appreciate the question, and obviously, when we're dealing with sickness in our own lives or those close to us, this is not just. Theological and abstract, right? This is.

life and death in many cases. On the one hand, CJ, It's important that we believe rightly. That we understand who God is and what He's promised, and that we believe rightly. On the other hand, we'd be mistaken if we try to reduce things to the right formula. When we see how God heals in the Bible, there's so many different ways.

God heals in the Old Testament. and God heals in the New Testament. And we see consistently, for example, in the Gospels and Acts that there are commands given. for sickness to leave or for someone to rise up. And that there is not prayer for someone.

God, I'm asking you to heal this one or that one. Jesus prays in John 11 before he raises Lazarus, but then he just says, I'm doing that. I know you always hear me. I'm just saying this for the benefit of those that are here. And then he says, Lazarus, come forth.

And yet, we also have John 14, where Jesus says, if you ask anything in my name, I'll do it. And then Jacob James, the fifth chapter. Where it says, Is any sick among you let him call for the elders of the congregation? Let them anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord and the prayer offering in faith will make the sick person well.

So there you pray for the sick.

Sometimes the sick were healed just by a touch. The sick were healed in Acts 19 by touching garments that had been with Paul.

So, there are many, many different ways that people are healed in Scripture. You don't want to reduce it to a formula. But I would say that you should come to God with expectation that healing is a gift from God. that physical health is a blessing from God. and although he can work with us in sickness, and he can redeem that sickness for his purposes.

and there are godly people who are sick, Still, Scripture indicates that healing and health are the ideal will for God's obedient children.

So you want to come in faith and expectation, believing that God wants to heal and desires to heal. that Jesus is the healer. But you don't want to rely on a formula that you have to say certain words a certain way or have someone pray for you a certain way in order to be healed.

Okay. Like I said, You know, you hear certain teachings, you you talk to certain people, just even in church, I think people mean well. But it's uh it's almost like uh Yeah, they uh You can So that you know, you have to spend this amount of time in the word or you may want to quote these verses so many times a day and or you wanna do or whatever your um And all these things, you have to your heart has to be a certain way, and and or your faith, your faith has to be at a certain level on the faith meter. Or the wise guy is like, you know, you you almost got there, but you know, maybe we'll try again tomorrow type thing.

So I I guess I just didn't want to fall in uh you know part I I don't know, it's just it just kind of got me in sort of a Um It doesn't make you free. It puts you under pressure. And it's almost like someone telling you to don't think about elephants for the next hour and you'll win $1,000. That's all you think about the next hour is elephants.

So don't think about elephants. Don't think about elephants.

So it's true that we should grow in faith. It's true that meditating on the word is helpful, but it's not, look, God heals unbelievers. God heals atheists. God touches people. Mark 9, Lord, I believe, help my unbelief.

And the Lord works in that way.

So what you want to do is find a way in your own life that you grow in faith and confidence. Meditating on the word is great. That's helpful, but it's not, again, this faithometer. And oh, you're just short. You were almost there.

Not quite. Try again tomorrow. And you've got to regather yourself. Instead, just say, okay, I want to believe what God says. I want to have healthy thoughts about God.

I want to have right thoughts. About sickness and healing.

So, getting the word in your heart, your mind, that's helpful. Quoting scriptures, these are things that are all helpful for sure. But they're helpful in that just like eating a diet is helpful. It's not going through your checklist and that's what's helpful. It's actually getting the good stuff in you that's helpful.

But then ultimately you you say, Look, Lord, I'm trusting you because you're good. Not that I'm so good or so full of faith. I'm trusting you because you're good and because you're the healer. And that's really a key essence to it. And by the way, if you want extensive teaching on it, I do have a teaching series.

On God the Healer, on my website. It's a whole class you can purchase inexpensively at askdrbrown.org. Just check out the audio store there at askdrbrown.org. But that'll be a blessing to you. But otherwise, just leaning on the goodness of the Lord and take what people say as helpful.

but not as a binding formula. Otherwise, it does get difficult and it becomes a real battle. All right. God bless. Thank you for the call.

Let's go to Durham, North Carolina. Jeanette, thanks for calling the line of fire. Thank you, doctor Brown. I didn't really have a comment or anything. I just wanted to just say thank you.

I listened to your show on Fridays only. Can you hear me? Yeah, I can hear you.

Okay, great.

Thank you. And I I was just listening, I came in on what you were sharing about the money And the the the the lady sister was saying about a brother and make he's very generous. And my thing is, I know time is short, but I just wanted to say, you when I do listen to you, like I said, it's Friday, I'm going to go on the media and pull up information. Is when you're saying about the relationship, And like I said, I was just commenting on that, how you always pushing about having relations at least when I hear you, about the relationship with God. And speaking as someone who's been taken advantage of financially, I'm starting life all over, As a single, my divorce wiped me out, but you always say about the relationship with God.

I just want to tell you that I can't speak for anyone else. I won't, but I am speaking for Jeanette, that I am really blessed, and I thank you that you always stand about the relationship with God. And that's all I really wanted to say. Hey, thank you again. Yeah, Jeanette, you're very welcome.

And that brings a smile to my face that you would just call to express that. And yeah, any day of the week you listen, obviously we cover different issues on different weeks, different days. Friday is just a caller QA day. But always, always, always, what ultimately matters, where we're pushing is relationship with God, knowing him, walking with him. Jesus says in John 17, 3, as he prays to the Father, this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus, the Messiah whom you've sent.

Isn't it interesting? He doesn't say this is the way to eternal life, but this is eternal life. Knowing God, knowing his Son. Hey, may the Lord's blessing and favor be richly on you. Thank you.

My bottom line today, yeah, it all comes down to knowing him and making him know.