Dr. Brown Answers All Your Questions

The following program is recorded content created by the Truth Network. calling 866-34-TRUTH. That's 866-34-TRUTH.

Here again is Dr. Michael Brown. Well, we had an amazing time down in Jacksonville, Florida for the new Awakening TV Network. We recorded eight debates in two days. I'll tell you a bit more about it later in the show, but what an amazing time. All of you who prayed, thank you so much, and I hope you appreciated the programming that we had. We did some special teaching on those days while I was recording, but here we are back in studio live 866-34-TRUTH, 866-34-87-884. Any question of any kind, any subject under the sun that relates in any way to material we talk about on the broadcast. Phone lines are open. Often we start the show, and before I even start, every line is jammed. Actually, look, well, that's the case, but keep calling. We'll get through 866-34-TRUTH.

Let's start over in Fort Sill, Oklahoma, with Eugene. Welcome to the line of fire. Good afternoon, sir, how are you?

Doing very well, thank you. Yeah, thank you for taking my call, sir, and I just had a question concerning righteous and unrighteous anger. One of the things that you see in Psalms 139, for example, 21, where you're speaking, you know, do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord, and do I not loathe those who rise up against you?

I hate them with complete hatred, I count them as my enemies. Then he says, search me, O God, and know my heart, try me, and know my thoughts, and see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me into the way of everlasting. And that's kind of how I feel with the culture, Dr. Brown, with like little Nas X and creating Satan shoes, and I'm getting a little bit more involved in politics, and I see the danger of it because I have a growing irritation for the hypocrisy I see mainly on the left, to be honest, and it irritates me to see evil, it irritates me to see people have such a lack of reverence for the name of Jesus Christ, and yet I feel like there is a biblical side to having a sense of righteous anger, being angry at evil, but I also see warning in scriptures, like in Ephesians, I believe it's chapter 4, it's talking about not letting the stun go down in your anger, and you see in James chapter 1, be angry but do not sin. Yeah, so Ephesians 4 is be angry and do not sin, and James 1 is about human anger does not accomplish God's righteous will.

Yeah, and Psalm 139, the Psalmist is expressing his heart and then saying God search it. So it's really important to catch this early on, Eugene, especially if you do get more involved in politics. If I preach a primarily political sermon against the evils of abortion and things like that, people will leave not just burdened about abortion but angry at people, angry at the Democrats, angry at Planned Parenthood, and that'll be the attitude. If I preach a gospel-based sermon on the evils of abortion, they'll leave deeply grieved over the evils of abortion, but with a broken heart as well to see people on the left saved, to see people in Planned Parenthood turn to God. So there'll be a hatred of the evil itself and a hatred of what that does to women and babies in society, but a tremendous broken heart of love and care for the people. So like the Lil Nas thing, I don't know him at all, obviously, but I feel terrible for the guy.

I mean, I feel terrible for a young guy that is so lost and so famous and having so much negative impact, my heart breaks for him. And I'm convinced there's as much hypocrisy on the right as there is on the left. And when you begin to dialogue with folks on both sides, you can see it.

So you have to come in with a sense of humility. You have to come in with a heart where you get alone and pray for the people that are on the wrong side of an issue and you pray for them even with tears. When God first burdened me about gay and lesbian issues, it was about issues.

Back in 2004, it was about the issues in our society about gay activism and where it was going. But I knew in order to have God's heart and perspective, I couldn't just think about issues. I needed to think about people. So I made appointments, you know, meet with a local gay activist, have lunch with him, let him share his story with me, read as many books as I could from the perspective of gay Christians that said, hey, this is right for you. This is who I am.

And those who tried to change and couldn't. And it was I read enough and I took in enough until I get alone in my room, get on my knees and weep. Say, God, I don't want to hurt these people. I just want to help. I just want to love. And out of that comes the idea that we often speak of in our ministry hearts of compassion, backbones of steel. So that's what you have to have, Eugene. And I see often those who get very political, they get nasty, they get mean-spirited, they just insult and provoke, you know, on both sides. And then you have the others, just we just have to love, love.

Well, there's a happy union. So spotted from the outset, when you have hostility towards the person instead of God's heart to see that person redeemed and repent and set free, then you've kind of crossed the line. So I hope that's helpful, Eugene.

Yes, sir. And I think a good warning mechanism for me is having close friends that I communicate regularly with. And they know my heart's for God. If I have issues that they call sin out in my life or something that's maybe not healthy, I'll love them for it. So I think that's a good thing is having people on the outside looking in who can kind of monitor too, sir. Yeah, absolutely. And then go over and visit sites on the left, calling out the hypocrisy of the right. And you realize, OK, we all have to get on our faces.

We all have to get on our faces. All right, thank you for the call. 866-34-TRUTH.

Let's go to Blake in New Brunswick. Welcome to the line of fire. Thank you very much, sir. I have been a mess for about three weeks in response to, started in response to listening to your teaching on healing. And I just was driven to repentance and weeping and prayer on behalf of not any specific church leadership, but just leadership in general for our lack of faith. And then you started putting on programs last week on revival and it being like Judgement Day, and, you know, almost daily. Sorry. No, go ahead.

Go on. I'm driven to intercession and pacing and praying and weeping. And my wife has received some prophetic words. We believe in the coming harvest, the coming revival. I'm in grief over the state of the church and my own state in that.

But more so, my wife is having a different reaction. She's having anger because of seeing marriages break up and babies miscarried and sickness that's, you know, coming against God's ministry and these kinds of things. And she's gotten a word that, when we pray, she's got a word that God is bringing revival, but revival itself is judgment to the church. And I keep seeing Ezekiel 9, which is so grievous to me. Yeah, Ezekiel, it's a very intense passage.

So, Blake, let me share a few things. This is a wonderful, healthy thing to be broken, to be in spiritual pain and desperation, to find it difficult to function in normal life. That's a wonderful thing. It reflects God's burden and there's no revival in history that came without this kind of brokenness and pain and desperation. And the thing where you have to push meals away because you have to meet with God and you can't sleep because you're on your face seeking Him.

And you're just trying to do your normal job, but you break down crying. That to me is very sacred. That to me means that God's sharing more of His heart with us. And your wife's anger, obviously against the works of Satan and the effects of sin in the world.

And that reflects another aspect of God's heart. What you have to do is just first understand that this means you're in harmony with God. You're not fighting against Him, but joining with Him for salvation and healing and deliverance.

As for revival and judgment, for sure they are related in that when God comes in revival, He brings that intense holy scrutiny that was mentioned by James Edmund Orr that revival is like judgment day. You realize you have to give account to Almighty God. It's like, oh my God, and you're on your face before Him.

Literally, oh my God, on your face before Him, repenting. But then with that, to whom much is given, much is required. When God really comes and visits, then there's a great responsibility. If we respond rightly, there's great blessing. If we ignore what He's doing or push it away, then there's great loss with it. Blake, I just want to pray with you and encourage you to keep hungering and thirsting.

If you go online and just put in my name and then Holy Desperation, you'll find it on YouTube, perhaps on my website as well. But it's a message I preached in 1998 during the Brownsville Revival that I believe will deepen the heart cry in you and your wife. And I remember being like this, Blake, thinking, I can't live another day without the breakthrough.

I cannot live another day without the breakthrough and then another day and another day. But then that deepens the prayer, deepens the cry, deepens the fasting. And then when God visits, boy, it's all worth it.

It's very, very sacred. So Lord, I pray for Blake and his wife and for others listening right now, so that's my heart as well. Deepen our hunger and thirst for you. Deepen our hunger and thirst for revival for your presence, for your healing power to set the captives free. May our love for you and union with you be deeper than ever.

Hear the cry of your people and work once more on behalf of North America, on behalf of the nations. In Jesus' name. Amen. Hey, Blake, thanks for calling and sharing your heart. May the Lord be glorified.

Let me just pause for a moment. Jesus said in Matthew 5, blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled. Part of the hunger and thirst we have is we want to see God's righteousness in the earth.

We want to see his saving arm in the earth. And we hunger and thirst to see things set right. Jesus said in John 7, whoever's thirsty, let him come to me and drink. The psalmist said in Psalm 107 that God satisfies the hungry. He fills the thirsty with good things. The psalmist talked about hungering and thirsting for God in Psalm 63, spoke of that burden, hungering for God and his holy presence, like someone in a dry and thirsty land just dying to get a drink of water.

It's the deer pants for the water, so my soul pants after you. These are biblical expressions. When that burden deepens and intensifies, it's often a sign that God is drawing near. So it may be intense, it may be new for you, but go with the burden. Express your heart to God. He's near to the brokenhearted. Everybody, look up Isaiah 5715.

Isaiah 5715. 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.

Thanks, friends, for joining us on the Line of Fire. A little less than one hour from now, so 4.15 Eastern Time, we will be coming your way for a weekly Q&A YouTube chat right on the Ask Dr. Brown YouTube channel. If you're watching on YouTube now, if you appreciate the work we're doing and want to stand with us, there's a dollar sign at the bottom of the chat box you can click and give at any point. If you're watching on our Facebook page, Ask Dr. Brown on Facebook, there's a donate button.

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Click on donate and then monthly support. All right, let's go right back to the phone since I get this on my screen here. Oh, we got a phone line open. So great time to call, 866-344-TRUTH.

Let's go to Steven in Chagrin Falls, Ohio. Welcome to the Line of Fire. Thank you, Dr. Brown. I appreciate it.

You're very welcome. I wanted to call and just briefly discuss Romans 8, 29-30. I'm familiar with the typical Arminian stance as well as the Calvinist stance, and I've probably watched your debate with Dr. White probably five or six times on YouTube, the one that's like two and a half hours long. In the Q&A session at the end, you gave an answer on the foreknown of that chain of, for those whom God foreknew, he predestined, he called, he justified, he glorified. And I know you had to be quick in your answer, but you went to the Greek definition to start the chain, and you said that it's not exclusively tied to meaning preordained. And what I wanted to offer was, instead of going to the Greek definition of the foreknown, Paul actually offers his own usage of the word foreknown in Romans 11, verses one and two, where he actually refers to it as being Israel. And I wanted to just quickly read his definition of foreknown, and then reread that chain as being specific to Israel, and not exactly trying to explain who's saved and who's not. So Romans 11, verses one and two, he says, I ask then, has God rejected his people by no means? For I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin.

God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. And it's that exact same Greek word foreknown. So when we reread Romans 8, 29 through 30, starting that chain with Israel, it actually has a little bit of a different feel to it than the traditional explanation.

It would sound like that. For those who he foreknew, being Israel, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his son, that he be the firstborn among many brothers. So the foreknown being Israel, and firstborn among many brothers is this reference to Jesus, and then the Israelites, and that consistent idea throughout Romans that salvation was offered to the Jew first and then to the Greek. And those whom he predestined, he also called, and a calling is just a summoning, and there's an Old Testament verse that says, Israel, I've called you by name, you are mine. Those whom he called, he justified, meaning, justified, never sinned. And God did give Israel the different laws of the different sacrifices to take away their sins, and then he ultimately sent the Messiah through their bloodline.

And those whom he justified, he justified. And in context, what I think Paul's referring to is glorified. From Romans 8.21, just a few verses earlier, he talks about the glory of being a child of God. And Israel is referred to as being God's children in the Old Testament. Deuteronomy 14.1 is an example. And I think the most important thing about this verse is the concept of predestination is such a hotly debated topic. If he really is starting this chain with Israel, he's basically saying Israel was predestined, and yet he goes on to say in Romans 9 and 11, not every Israelite's safe. You know, some were broken off with lack of faith, and some Gentiles grafted in by faith. So what would be your thoughts on that? All right, so first thing, it's not an unfair reading of the text in any way.

In other words, it's not like you're squiggling and squirming to get out of something and coming out with something outrageous. Just as you were saying this, I was checking, so as far as I can see, this particular verb in question here is only used five times in the New Testament, and Paul only uses it twice, so it is Romans 8.29 and Romans 11.2. So are you aware of Paul ever using this anywhere else?

No, not that I can think of. Right, okay. And then he actually—yeah, sorry.

Yeah, I may have done the search wrong, but I hadn't searched that before. First Peter 1.20 is, speaking of Jesus, was chosen or foreknown before the creation of the world, 2 Peter 3.17, and then Acts 26.5. So the fact that it's used so rarely and that Paul uses it twice in this section here, which is all the related section, that argues in your favor. It then leads into Romans 9 in a more logical way, because that's always one of the big questions as to how do you get from the end of Romans 8 to the beginning of Romans 9. And one answer is, as Paul has been saying, that nothing can separate you from the love of God, then a natural question would be, what happened to Israel?

Hence, that's how you get into 9.1. But you would give it an even more clear bridge. So my biggest question—I don't have a—you know, the justified, debatable, but perhaps that could be understood in terms of God calling Israel out and giving them a fresh start. That seems slightly forced, but not impossible. What I'd have to do is look at all of Paul's uses for that and see where he explains it, because he does say later, of course, that what Israel was seeking it didn't find, you know, namely justification, which the Gentiles found because they pursued it by faith, whereas Israel did by works. The glorified, that doesn't trouble me either. In other words, that does not seem unnatural. And even if it's not about being a believer, it's that God dwelt in their midst.

God glorified Israel by dwelling in their midst, et cetera. So it's definitely a viable reading, and it would be one that—again, I'm not looking to refute Calvinism, you know what I'm saying? In other words, the Calvinistic reading from a Calvinistic viewpoint works great exegetically.

It works just fine. The question is, isn't that what Paul was saying? Is it in harmony with what he's written elsewhere?

Once you get into Romans 9, he's really not talking about predestination as far as salvation, but as far as calling in terms of, you know, that Jacob was—Jacob, although these sort of hate it, doesn't mean one goes to heaven, the other goes to hell. It means one was selected for special service. From commentaries you've studied, how many have you found that go in this direction? I've actually never heard it explained that way before. Got it. All right, so I will be checking my pretty large Romans library just to see others who've gone in this direction, and when I come to some further conclusions, I'll mention it on the air one day. But great, I appreciate it. And again, this is the kind of thing you look for in terms of intertextual hints, usages. You know, I'm in the early stages of my Isaiah commentary, but, you know, I'll see a word like tiferet, which is beauty, glory, splendor. And just in my head it's like, I think Isaiah uses that a lot. And then, okay, so then I search, you know, and it's like, yep, yep, he uses it more than any prophet, anybody else.

So these things—again, that doesn't prove anything there, but it's just you find these themes, these trends. So I will follow through on this, Steven. You do the same, but I appreciate you calling and laying this out very much. I appreciate it. Thank you for taking my call. Thank you.

All right. 866-34-TRUTH. Have I ever seen that? Something's ringing a bell. Something's ringing a bell.

But definitely haven't looked at it carefully, and this is the first time I really will. So thank you, Steven. I appreciate it. 866-34-TRUTH. Let us go to Bob in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Welcome to the line of fire.

Hey, Michael. I wanted to comment first before I ask my question. I loved your show a couple of days ago about the tithe. Ninety percent of all preachers, and I'm 73, I've been a Christian for 45 years, I've never heard anyone except you and Erwin Lutzer tell the truth about the tithe. They all love to quote Malachi, and they love to quote 2 Corinthians 9-6 about whosoever's soul shall reap, but they don't ever quote verse 7. Let each one do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion. But what was the tithe? It was compulsory.

They had to do it, but they never quote that. And the most popular preacher that's on radio, internet, and everything today, and I will not mention his name, two years ago, he had the audacity to say that in his opinion, not the Bible speaking, but he said, in my opinion, if you're not tithing to your local church, then you're out of fellowship with Christ. And I don't listen to him anymore. I don't listen to him anymore. That's obviously extreme. Hey, listen, I've heard many people quote not grudgingly and under compulsion, but hey, enough is not said about this, so I'm glad you found the teaching biblical and life-giving. But anyway, your question.

Thanks, sir. Yeah, I just wondered, in the Old Testament under the Mosaic law, when people sinned, they brought sacrifices to be forgiven. If this sin was intentional, not unintentional, which I gather from reading the Old Testament that these were unintentional sins, that's what the sacrifices were for, am I wrong about that, or did they cover unintentional as well as intentional sins? No, intentional sins, first and foremost, there had to be repentance. Something unintentional, you realize, well, I didn't mean to do that, you feel bad about it. But something intentional, there must be clear repentance.

So that was always first and foremost. Intentional sins could be forgiven with repentance and the Day of Atonement. Leviticus 16, it does mention intentional sins, transgressions, which is outright rebellion. So Day of Atonement would cover that, and then certain intentional sins, if you look at the beginning of Leviticus 6, were covered by the asham, which is a guilt offering. So that was some specific sins of defrauding your neighbor things, and you did it, you repent, you offer that sacrifice. But generally speaking, if you just don't like somebody and decide to beat them up, there was not a specific sacrifice to offer, you're appealed for mercy, and you might offer a sacrifice just out of contrition, but the key sacrifice that would bring forgiveness for that was the Day of Atonement.

And that's why Hebrews said it was an annual thing, whereas through Jesus, we receive that complete removal of guilt. Hey, thanks for the question. We'll be right back on the other side of the break. It's The Line of Fire with your host, Dr. Michael Brown. Get into The Line of Fire now by calling 866-34-TRUTH. Here again is Dr. Michael Brown. Thanks friends for joining us on The Line of Fire, 866-34-TRUTH. You've got questions, we've got answers. Really quickly, and I'll share more in the days ahead, we recorded eight shows for the new Awakening TV network, that's AWKNG.

You can get a free trial subscription at awakeningtv.com. It's going to be a brand new show called That's Debatable with Dr. Brown. We recorded eight debates in two days.

It's in a half-hour format, so it's lively give and take, back and forth. And it was wonderful. It was amazing. The production team did great. The guests were all just what we were hoping they would be, each from their own perspective. So from a gay pastor, transgender pastor, former Christian rock singer, now agnostic former evangelical now activist atheist, progressive Christian who votes pro-choice, another believer who believes charismatic overemphasized divine healing, replacement theology debate, Muslim on the Quran or the Bible being the Word of God.

Each one different, some more intellectual, some more experiential, personal. But it was just wonderful. It was a joy, an absolute joy to do it. And I believe it's going to be a really neat show. And although it's a subscription TV network, in point of fact, we're going to be able to play on the air like a three-minute excerpt each week from the debate.

So everybody will get to be exposed to highlights whether you subscribe or not, and those that want the full package or broadcast can do that. Okay, with that, we go to the phones. And let's start with Scott in St. Louis, Missouri. You're on the line of fire. Hey, Doug. Sorry, couldn't get this question yesterday, because you know Thoroughly True was Thursday.

Yeah, it was a repeat show because I was recording TV, yeah. Yeah. So I recently encountered a friend of mine on Twitter referring to the Septuagint writings, the early Church Fathers, such as Irenaeus, Hippolytus, and even Tertullian, referring to Jeremiah 17 and that. In our English translations for the majority, the hardest wicked above all things, who can know it both, you know, etc., etc. Yet in the Septuagint translations that I go through, and what he brought up, and the early Church Fathers primarily up until Jerome, who's seen two and three, around 330, when putting together the Vulgate, translated it as wicked. The Hebrew word being a kol, a relationship to Jacob's heel, if I'm not mistaken, or the story of Jacob and Esau. But the Septuagint and the early Church Fathers, a majority of them, look at that and they translated it as man's heart being deep, thoughts being deep, and who can understand, etc. Not necessarily in a negative or a wicked light or anything close to it. So I was just trying to get your, because I know the Masoretic came along, you know, that most of our translations come from. Well, yeah.

No, no, no. Everything comes from the Hebrew text. In other words, the Masoretic, that's the original text.

Everything is translated in the Hebrew text. So the Septuagint comes after that, all these others come after that. So any of the Church leaders that understood a kov to mean deep, which would be kind of like as if it was born out, cut out there, it would be a different root. So there are different meanings for the root a kav. But if they came to that conclusion, it's because they're reading it in Greek.

In other words, there's no mystery. If they're reading it in Greek, that's what their translation said. They couldn't read Hebrew. So if their translation said deep, that's what they thought it meant.

So it didn't matter if it's three or five or 50 of them. They're all reading the same translation. But you have to go back to Hebrew. When you're looking at other early traditions, for example, the Targum, which is the Aramaic translation of the Hebrew, that uses nachil, which would be deceptive. When I'm looking at, let's see, the Syriac pashitha, which comes a little bit later, that's the word there would be strong.

And yeah, it is true that the Septuagint uses bithéah there, which is deep. But I've never seen any reason to question this. In other words, to question the a kov reading, I've never seen a valid reading.

So here's something that'll be interesting for you to do, and I often encourage people to do this. Go to biblegateway.com, okay? Biblegateway.com, then type in, where it's looking for your verse, Jeremiah 17, 9. All right, then it'll have different translations on the right. Just leave whatever translation is there. And then when you scroll down under the verse, it'll say Jeremiah 17, 9 in all English translations. So you click on that, and this will go to give you a list of, I don't know, 30, 40 different English translations.

And when you see virtually all of them say the same thing, then you say, okay, there's a reason for this. So wherever the Septuagint went in a different direction, it's certainly not the most likely meaning of a kov. It's not what I would think when I would read it. And the only reason that these other church leaders understand it like that is because their translation said that. So if the only Bible you have, say, is the King James Bible in English, and you read a text a certain way, because you're only reading the English, right? So again, there's no mystery as to why Greek-speaking, Greek-writing church leaders would follow the Septuagint. But a kov, there's really, I've never seen a serious debate that's worthy as to it not meaning evil, excuse me, deceitful, wicked in that sense.

But it's deceitful, it's unreliable, you know, negative, who can know it, not like who can plumb the depths of it. I definitely don't see that there. Thank you very much.

Yeah, you are very welcome. 866-3-4-TRUTH, and we go to Christian in Toledo, Ohio. Welcome to the line of fire. What's going on, Dr. Brown?

Hey, man. I have, like, two personal questions, not necessarily Bible-related in a sense, but the first one is just confidence, you sound like a very confident man. How did you get to the point in your life to where you only cared about what God thought, you didn't really care about the negative things people would say about you, they'd whine about you, you didn't care, you'd be, you'd walk in front of them, you'd preach the Word, you'd do what you gotta do for the Lord. How did you get to that point?

That's my first question. Right, well, my natural inkling is to be self-confident, and God really had to purge that to be more God-confident than self-confident, you know? Some people are very shy, so that was never me. But when God saved me, the salvation was so radical and dramatic, and that meant being rejected by the whole Jewish community. So from day one, I was an outsider, and I was told I was wrong. So I had to deal with that from day one, but I knew that I knew that Jesus was real in my life. And when you, when you, you know, look, if I say, you're not Christian from, that is not who you are, and you're lying, it's like, you just feel bad for me because you know that you are Christian, you know, that's who you are, right? So that's been the biggest thing, to know that you know that you know that your foundation in God is solid, and that what you believe is real and true, and then you feel bad for those who differ.

You know, if someone says, I know you don't live in Toledo, Ohio, man, you're lying, you're from Mars, you think, you poor guy, man, what's the matter with you? So that's a really big thing to, so it was out of the gate that I had to be confident, and then the more I got challenged, it drove me to study, and it drove me to pray, and it drove me to my knees. And the more you do that, the more God affirms, the more God blesses. And then over the years, as I've seen so many people that attacked me and maligned me then later come and apologize, or I've seen them tell me, this will never happen in your life and you will never do this and you will never do that, and it's like, God, you promised me, and he does it. So that, it's been that initial thing, and then the experiences over the years have just made that kind of lifestyle for me. And you might challenge me on a question like something I hold true, it's like, that's a great question, I never thought about that. But the things that are core foundation, man, I'll die for those, and I feel terrible for those who are missing it. So the more they attack me, the more my heart goes out to them.

Okay. And thank you for that. And my second one is, you know how, maybe it's just me, hopefully there's other people too, so I'll be alone on this island, but you know like them seasons when the Bible just seems a little bit dull and God don't seem too close? How do you push through those times? It don't allow yourself just to get complacent, it's just still, I actually say, yeah, I know the Bible don't seem too interesting right now, but I'm still gonna read it, I'm still gonna study it, and I know God don't seem too close right now, but I'm still gonna praise him, I'm still gonna worship him, and I'm still gonna live my, you know, live my Christian lifestyle, I'm still gonna serve the Lord.

How do you get through those dry times? Yeah, well, be assured you're not alone in asking that, sir. Be assured that everyone that walks with the Lord long enough, or most everyone's gonna go through that. So the one thing is to be honest with God about it, right?

He knows anyway. It's like, God, I don't want to read the Bible, I don't want to pray, I find this all boring right now, I'd much rather do something else, I'd much rather, you know. So first, just be honest and pour your heart out. Sometimes when you do that at length, you end up really coming into communion, you do that at length and you end up really feeling now like kind of the relational aspect of things coming back. The other thing I've done with Scripture is try to change things a little bit. Like, I remember once being in a rut where just, the Bible just did not interest me, and reading it, I didn't feel like I was getting anything out of it, and it was a matter of just going through the religious exercise of reading it. So I got down on my knees, and for a period of time I would read the Bible in a communing way with God. In other words, let's say I'm reading 1 Timothy, and I'm reading this verse, and I say, wow, God, that really speaks to me.

How do I do that? How do you get there? So the whole way I read was interactive, and everything turned into God, you know, that's an amazing truth, but I think I'm missing something here, or that convicts me. You're like, God, that seems strange.

God, I don't understand why you would do that. And it's just that honest interacting with God. Obviously, you're not going to read through as much Scripture, but then it didn't take long before things really kind of lit up again.

And the key thing is, don't stop. You know, better to say, God, I feel totally bored praying. I feel like I'm talking to the wall, but I'm going to do it anyway, because otherwise you can just fall out of a habit of praying and reading the Word. But be honest, change the routine, do more of the interactive kind of thing, as I've said in Scripture, and soon enough you find the joy coming back, the interest coming back, the passion, the hunger, the thirst.

One time I just went on a short fast of like six days with juice only, and just saying, God, things are dry, and then came out of it greatly refreshed. But be an honest man. That's where it all starts, being honest with God and with yourself. And turn that and just have, like, having a chat with me, just sit down, all right, God, we have to have a little talk here, because things are just not, they're not working.

Something's wrong. And the fellowship will be restored. Thank you for asking. It starts with honesty.

God bless. 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 866-34-TRUTH.

Here again is Dr. Michael Brown. I almost totally forgot to make this important announcement. Do you get my e-mails or e-blasts telling you about our latest videos, our latest articles? Do you get those?

And then special resources and things? No? Okay. Take a minute, as soon as you can, as soon as you get a break, you know, driving in your car, sign up for e-mails.

It'll take you probably 30 seconds or less. Go to AskDr.Brown, A-S-K-D-R-Brown.org and click on e-mail. You'll sign up, just put in your name and e-mail address. The reason I wanted to remind you is we've got a really important announcement about my latest book, brand new book coming out in May. It's a big announcement.

It's a book I think God's really going to use to help a lot of people, kind of sacred territory we touched on. So we'll be sending out Mondays. If you don't get my e-mails, by all means, sign up. And when you do, you'll also find out more about my personal story from LSD to PhD, more about the three R's of our ministry and the resources we have available for you already. Okay. 866-34-TRUTH. Let's go to Kevin in Mississippi. Welcome to the line of fire.

Thank you so much. It's an honor to be on with you today. I'm just calling because I was wondering, as a believer, when a person is praying to be set free from a particular struggle with sin, why is it that God sometimes does not take away that struggle initially, but like, you know, have that believer to struggle with that sin, you know, for a particular season? What is the real purpose behind that? Yeah, Kevin, it's a serious question that most of us have had to deal with at some point or another.

There are several possible answers. I say possible because every situation is different. Sometimes we're double minded, you know, and we want to be free one day, but we don't the next. And we have to get to that point of really hating that sin and wanting to be free when God comes in and delivers. So that sometimes is the process going on. The reason it's delayed is because of our own double mindedness. Sometimes the reason is that we need to take practical steps. In other words, if I'm working at a bar, I clean up the bar and I'm an alcoholic and every day I get free drinks because I work there and I'm struggling with alcohol, God help me to get free from alcohol.

I have to quit my job and I'm gonna have to get another job. So sometimes we don't take the practical steps we need to take and because of that, we don't get an answer. We don't need a miracle, we just need to take practical steps and when we do, then God will help us walk that out. Another reason can be that we are in a fallen world and that things are often battles. There are often long term strongholds in our lives, the result of many years of living a certain way and that to turn the ship doesn't necessarily happen overnight. But out of that crying out, out of that determination, character is built. In other words, it's not just the deliverance from the sin, but now a mindset, a heart, an attitude has been raised up within us that is very different than the way we were living and then we can make that lasting turn. So it could be again because of double mindedness, it could be because there are simple practical steps to take, it could be because they're just deep issues that take time to change our lives. And lastly, every so often we need help from others.

Every so often, it's the way God set things up, we're in a body, we're not independent. Sometimes there are other gifted people that can help us. So a lot of former drug addicts work in ministries like Teen Challenge and they help people get discipled to start a new life because they've had no right foundations, they weren't raised right, things were, the outward sin is the manifestation of other problem areas in their lives. So now they just get in an environment of encouragement, discipleship and discipline for like an intensive year, and that relays foundations in their lives. So those would be some of the potential reasons that it can sometimes, not just be an instantaneous deliverance, but be assured that God does want to help you or help anyone and give them lasting victory in areas where they struggle. So I hope that helps.

Yeah, they definitely have. And another one, do you have a Bible college? Because your knowledge of the Word is amazing. Well, we have an online school, sir. We were full-time in person only and never online. We've shifted everything online, where I teach, where we have terrific faculty. So Kevin, go to fireschoolofministry.com. fireschoolofministry.com. You can find out about taking classes, you can just order the class to check it out. But each class is a full audio series of lectures with a complete study guide and practical lessons.

You can take it for credit towards an associate's degree. We also have some video classes just separate from the full-time online school, but all the info is there, fireschoolofministry.com. Everyone just wants to grow in God. It's a great place to go. You feel a calling and want to deepen your calling and life in God, fireschoolofministry.com. Hey, Kevin, thanks for the call and thanks for the kind words. Let's see.

Let's go to David in Boston, Massachusetts. Welcome to the line of fire. Hello, Michael Brown. Can you hear me well? I can hear you, sir.

Yeah. Thank you so much for the work you're doing, and you've been a blessing through the years. Thank you for the work you're doing, sir.

Well, thank you. I do have a question, and it's something that maybe it's two questions in one, but it's about the fear of death as a Christian. So this is the thing that I've never struggled with in the past, when I was younger, but now that I'm married and God has really blessed me with everything, and now it was the time to start to be a blessing to others. But then I realized that in these past few months, I'm thinking about death and the fear of death, and sometimes it's really paralyzed me to the point that I cancel flights and I'm trying to spend nights trying to find buses to connect, because I know for sure that my calling is to bless others, and they have to travel to do that, and in India, in Africa, everywhere. So I have that thing of really blessing beyond who I am, but now I can't even travel. I feel this fear.

So to me, the question that I had was, is it really something that some Christians really do struggle with, or is it just me? No, no, David. David, let me jump in, but first jot this down, okay?

Jot this down. The book called Restore the Roar. Defeat the spirit of fear with the breath and power of God. Restore the Roar.

And it's Pat and Karen Schatzline, so S-C-H-A-T-Z-L-I-N-E. Pat and Karen Schatzline, but yeah, Restore the Roar. That's all you need to get, and you'll have the book title, okay? Okay.

All right, so first, I recommend you read the book. I had Pat and Karen on the air. We talked about her battle with cancer and the fear of it, but listen, this is going to be crazy for you to hear this, but I understand. I've never dealt with fear as a believer, basically. I don't mean that I'm happy to go on like the world's craziest rollercoaster ride, you know, but in terms of ministry, fearful situations, danger, I don't even think about it.

God says it, I go for it. Travel around the world, loved it, enjoyed it, crazy schedules, crazy environments, you know, dangerous mob, I'm going to preach to them, I don't care, no fear. So, I was flying to Phoenix for a debate years ago with my friend, Rabbi Shmuley, and it was after an event in 2002 where I had been sick. I went out to a ministry, to a service, driving back on a fast-food sandwich, was eating it, started almost choked to death.

I was found unconscious on the side of the road. And sometime after that, a few years afterwards, traveling, I got hit with this, like a panic attack. You know, I was on the plane, I wasn't upgraded, I was in the back and window seat, and I just felt squeezed in, and next thing, I was like, what, you're having a panic attack?

You? I was like, that can't be, it's not possible. But somehow, someone was triggered by almost being choked to death, strangling, that whole thing, whatever it was. You know, I talked to a flight attendant, a doctor comes and talks, I was completely embarrassed, like, what in the world? So, I had to deal with that thing trying to attack me for years, flying.

Now, I never missed a flight, I never didn't get on the plane, but trust me, there were times when I didn't want to get on the plane, when I wanted to get off the plane, and I had to find ways to get help. And then it'd be, before I'm going to preach, I'd get hit, like, you're going to collapse, it's like, what in the world is going on? So, I was able to pray with some folks, and again, never stopped me from ministering, but trust me, there was a battle and an attack, and I never did what you're saying, but I can relate.

Trust me, I deeply, deeply relate. And we were able to trace back some of the roots of where that was coming from and what was triggering it, and in prayer, just get God to get to the roots of it and get me free from it, you know, and then just renew my mind, that was the biggest thing, then renew my mind to the freedom, you know? But anyway, in my book Jezebel's War with America, I talk about the paralyzing fear, because when you're talking about fear, I said, you're about to say paralyzing, because I understand it. It's terrible, it's miserable, it's part of this larger Jezebelic attack, she intimidated by fear, but Pat and Karen wrote a book that really focuses on it. So listen, once you get the book and read it, and work it through, shoot us a note, tell us if God's really helped you, and Father, right now, I pray for my brother David, and we join together as a prayer team, Lord, get to the root of the fear, whatever's triggering it, and set him free for life. In Jesus' name. Amen. Fifteen minutes from now, Ask Dr. Brown YouTube channel, ASKDRBrown on YouTube. We'll be right back there. 4.15. Your program, powered by the Truth Network.