Transcript

American Family Radio takes your Bible questions live on American Family Radio

>> Jeff Chamblee: The Bible. It's the word of God. Sharper than any two edged sword. This sacred book is living and active and contains all that's needed for life and godliness. Stay with American Family Radio for the next hour as we study God's word and take your Bible questions.

Plus later on in the show, we'll take your Bible questions

Welcome to Exploring the Word.

>> Alex McFarland: In the book of Ephesians, Paul said that he was the least of the apostles, but, less than the least, actually in verse eight of chapter three. And he also says that he is the chief of sinners. Well, welcome to Exploring the Word. We're in Ephesians, Bert Harper and I. Plus later on in the show, we'll take your Bible questions. Bert, a week ago last week, we call, the Question Show Thursday Thunder. And there were a lot, a lot of great questions, weren't there?

>> Bert Harper: There really were. And we love questions and we love to try to answer those questions. And it's, it's always a challenge, but always depending upon the Lord, the word of God, and Alex's.

Bert says the longer he serves God, the sweeter he grows

We start Ephesians chapter three and, and we get to that place where he says, I am less than the least of all the saints. Here's what it is. The longer he serves him, the longer he knows more of God, the less he feels like he realizes the difference between God and who we are. Even at our quote best, we are less than the least. That's his thought. And honestly. Okay, I've been following the Lord. Let me get this everybody. So I do my math right. I've been following the lord now over 60 years. And I agree with Paul. The more I know him, the longer I serve him, not only is the sweeter he grows, but I want to tell you, it lets me appreciate his grace and mercy even more because I know who he is and I know who I am. No wonder he said I'm the least of the. I'm the less of the least.

>> Alex McFarland: Yeah. Amen. Amen. And you know, I've shared this many times. My dad once observed, he said, some people have been a Christian 20 years and some people have been a Christian one year 20 times. And kind, of reminds me of how Billy Graham said, if we attend to the depth of our walk, God will attend to the breadth of our impact. And that is our calling to grow, to walk with the Lord. And that's why we, we do exploring the Word. It's all about God's word and growing in the knowledge of the Word. And one last thing I would say, and then I do want to read from Ephesians 3. But in Romans 3, probably my favorite book of the Bible is Romans. I really love Romans. Paul asked the question, you know, very often Paul would ask a rhetorical question. In other words, a question where the answer is obvious. You know, Paul would say, what do you not know that you're not your own? But in Romans 3:27, Paul asked the question for the believer, where is boasting then? And he said, it is excluded. I mean, none of us can brag or boast or be, you know, prideful about where we are in our walk with Jesus because it's all by his grace. And, Bert, isn't that a beautiful thing? Because I think, you know, human beings, it's just, I guess, part of our sin nature, we have the tendency to be prideful. I mean, that was the. The very first sin was pride. But when we look at Jesus and his love and mercy and power and holiness and wisdom, all we can do is humbly bow our head and say, God, I give you glory. God, I worship you. Lord, have mercy on me. Because, like Paul, you know, humility before God, that's just the only appropriate response, isn't it?

>> Bert Harper: It really is. No other response. And in this one verse, in verse 8 of Ephesians, the reason he could say, I am less than the least of all the saints is answered. I believe in the rest of verse eight when it says, this grace was given that I should preach among the Gentiles. Now here it is, the unsearchable riches of Christ.

Bert : The unsearchable riches of Christ are breathtaking

This word unsearchable, it's so w. So deep, we can't even begin to. It's unfathomable. it cannot be traced to the very end. It starts with God, we know that, but it's just big. The magnitude is so great. No wonder Paul would say, when he thought of the unsearchable riches that we have in Christ, that he would respond, who am I? Who am I? And that's what the first three chapters of the book of Ephesians is about, about the riches of Christ. And we're going to hear about that some more here in this one chapter. So, Alex, when we even began to try to, understand, I'm going to use Paul's words, the unsearchable riches of Christ. We don't even skim the surface. it is deeper and wider than we could ever think of, because he's going to get to that later on. So much of this in verse 18 that we might comprehend with all the saints. What is the width, length, and depth and height to know Christ. It's unsearchable, unmeasurable, brother.

>> Alex McFarland: Amen. Amen. and I love the way the King James renders that in verse 8 of Ephesians chapter 3, the unsearchable riches, I mean beyond finding out beyond measure. And verse nine, to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God who created all things by Jesus Christ. You know, here in Colossians, I'm sorry, Ephesians 3:9, the mystery of the gospel hidden in God. And then in the book of Colossians it says our life is hid with Christ in God. you're in God's heart and mind. I mean think about that as a believer. he so loved the world that he sent his son. God so loved you that the Spirit called, if you've been one so wise to put your faith in Jesus. the Spirit of God regenerated our dead soul and we are hidden in God, the mind and the heart of Christ. It's just amazing. verse 10 to the intent that now under the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church. The manifold wisdom of God. When we read about principalities and powers, you know, we often think about Satan and his demons. But there are the non fallen angels too. There are the 2/3 of all the angels that stayed true to God and serve God. And you know, when it talks about principalities and powers in heavenly places, Bert, it is a well ordered universe, isn't it? Nothing is, nothing is random or happenstance. God's universe just we know at the biological and molecular levels. It's an infinitely organized, intricately, ordered universe. But it's that way in the spiritual realms as well.

>> Bert Harper: Amen. Alex, when you combine that nine and ten, notice this. what had been hidden in God is now verse 10. The intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be known. Now that is it. In other words, it was hidden, hidden. But God purposely hidden means that I didn't reveal it. And we've talked about the will of God. We've talking about how God has what revealed himself. And now he's revealing his plan of the gospel. The revealing his plan of the church, Jew and Gentile forming God's plan, the bride of Christ. But notice the intent, the manifold wisdom. It means variegated, it means multi sided, multi colored. Peter talked about the manifold, you know, the trials that we go through there are very many. And so Here it is in this principalities and powers, even made known to, to them, it was not revealed to them. And that is, I would say, the uniqueness, that is the, the depth of God's grace toward Gentiles and Jews alike. That we would come to him in this relationship that was a mystery beforehand, but now being revealed. So Alex, I, love that. Notice the term to the intent. God's purpose is intentional. Now this is so important. Don't skip the word intent. At least that's what it says here in the NewSong King James. And it means that this is God's intent. He's not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. That's God's intentions. But we can reject that and go our way. But his intention is that the grace of God has appeared to all men, that men might respond in grace, to his grace by faith. So, Alex, when I see these words, intent, it really helps me know. Again, going back to what he said in verse eight, the unsearchable riches of Christ, one of those is intentions for us. They are good, aren't they?

>> Alex McFarland: They. They really are. They really are. And let me read 11 through 13 and then I want to comment on this, but it says, and I love this. The manifold wisdom of God. you know what that word means? is omnicapable, all powerful, all ability, omnipotent. The manifold wisdom of God according to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of Him. Wherefore I desire that you faint not at my tribulations, for you, which is your glory. That's an amazing verse. But look at verse 12. Boldness, access, confidence.

>> Bert Harper: Amen.

>> Alex McFarland: I mean, you know, we talk about the fear of God. Proverbs 1, verse 7 says that the beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord. And yet, as born again believers, blood washed, made clean, spirit sealed, spirit indwelt, and not only redeemed, but frankly educated by the word of God. If you read and believe and internalize the Bible. Verse 12. Boldness, access, confidence. That's just amazing. Talk about the blessings of being a believer.

>> Bert Harper: Amen. Verse 12. I tried to do this. If you only had one. You know, bold. Boldness without excess wouldn't do you any good anyway. You know, I could be bold.

Alex: Ephesians chapter three talks about having confidence in God

I could be confident of who God is, who I am. But if I don't have access, then what good is that confidence? What good is that boldness? The access is in Christ. So this is true with everyone who is listening. Listen, you can. Oh, I'm confident. Oh man, yeah, I can do this. But what has happened and it goes back to what all Christ has done in this, what Christ has done for us. And Paul has talked about having the middle wall of petition broken down, which gives us what? Direct access to God through Jesus Christ our Lord and the power of the Holy Spirit to indwell us. So when you're right, Alex, when you look at verse 12, it's mind boggling to know this. But it all happens because of who Jesus Christ is, what he's done and where he is right now, who. That brings access to every believer who's trusted Christ, doesn't it?

>> Alex McFarland: It really does. It really does. And by the way, let me just say this as we're in Ephesians, chapter three, psychologists say that your, your childhood, really has implications, that will stay with you your whole life. And maybe m, you know, you've had some less than ideal experiences because not only is your upbringing very, very formative about the person you become, but especially your interaction with your earthly father for good or for ill. And when it talks about having confidence, with God, maybe you have trouble trusting God because some of the adults in your life, you couldn't trust. I want to say that you can trust God, as the praise song says. He's a good, good father, isn't he, Bert?

>> Bert Harper: He really, Alex. He is a good father and he wants that relationship with every listener today. He wants you to come to him and you can find peace to your soul. We'll be back and we're going to finish up chapter three today, so you don't want to miss it. It ends in a prayer. Just think about that. We're living in a time when truth is under attack. Lies are easy to tell, easy to

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>>  I got stolen by the grave Pick me up from that rock bottom Watch my soul in that holy water Brought me back to life One more stone rolled away One more sin I've been saved by grace this dead man, he ain't dead no longer all the brave robber, Amen.

>> Bert Harper: Last night I was at a service, celebrating end of children's camp at Ozark Baptist Church, where I'm in or I'm pastor. And that's one of the songs we were singing and those kids got with it, the Grave Robber. Praise God.

Alex: One of the assignments for every Christian is to pray for riches

Well, we're in chapter three of the book of Ephesians, verse, 14. And it ends. This part ends in prayer. Now, again, what we've been talking about in these first three chapters is the riches of Christ. You'll see that repeated again. What we have in Christ, his unsearchable riches. Now, when we start in chapter four, verse one, it will be talking about use the access that we have to these riches. We should walk. And that will be the theme in the last three chapters of Ephesians, our walk. the first three is his riches. And then in chapter four, we talk about walking worthy of our calling. And so here is the prayer. Alex, can I read it all the way through this time? Since it's a prayer, I think it would be good.

>> Alex McFarland: Amen.

>> Bert Harper: For this reason, okay. What all he said and all the other, the rest of the letter that he's written so far. For this reason, I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that he would grant you according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might through his spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now, to him who is able to do. Now listen to this. Exceedingly, abundantly, above all that we could ask or think according to the power that works in us to him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages. World without end. Now, Alex, what a prayer this is. It's saying, God, let me. Let Paul. Let the church use the riches of Christ that he's put at our access to carry the message of Jesus around the world. What a missional statement. What a missional prayer, brother.

>> Alex McFarland: Amen. that really is beautiful. and I'm glad you read it in its entirety. in verse 16, there's a term Paul uses, and I think only the apostle Paul uses this term three times, and it just kind of jumps out at me. the inner man. And the prefix there is eso, esso. Now, we have a word like esoteric, which means kind of like the. The hidden thoughts or motives or purposes of. Of a person. But, the. The inner person. And it, if you look it up, it talks. It's your conscience and your soul. Now, in Romans 7, Paul says, I delight in the law of God according to the inward man or the inner man. And here's the thing about when you become a believer, God's word does become a delight to you. And then in Second Corinthians, chapter four, he talks about the outward man is perishing, but the inner man is being renewed day by day. And that's just one of the beautiful things. Bert, as, you know, if people get older and older and elderly, feeble, you know, the physical body might fail, but there is the strength of the soul. And then right here, the third time Paul uses it, Ephesians 3:16, that we are strengthened with might by his spirit in the inner man. And that. That is so important because here's the thing. Bert, I think one of the assignments for a Christian, and God kind of revealed this to me early in the ministry. I would meet people that, would be old and have physical issues, but they had great, great joy. And then sometimes I met people that were very advanced in years and they were very healthy, but they were angry or bitter or, And this thought occurred to me. One of the assignments for every Christian is to at some point be a good old person if we are fortunate enough to live a long, long life. I think it's a beautiful trophy of God's power when an older person has joy and, decades of confidence in the Lord. And we all, no matter what your age, we can work on the strength of the inner man, as Paul says, by what, Communing with God, being very strong in prayer, knowing and internalizing his word. And, the person that we're becoming. I mean, it's a lifelong project and a Lifelong pursuit, isn't it?

>> Bert Harper: We better start today. Don't wait till you get old to get that way. Be that way now and then when it happens, and it will happen, it happens sooner than you want it to. you have those characteristics that you're talking about, Alex, because of what the work of the Holy Spirit in the inner man. Notice through his spirit, that is letting the Holy Spirit have control where the Spirit of the Lord is. Guess what? Where the Spirit of the Lord, there's liberty. Liberty to do what? To be like Christ. You're set free. Not. Not completely, but you're set free from having to be controlled by the outward man. The outward man that demands his way. No, the inner man overrides that. Now, Alex, real quickly, verse 15, I just wanted to make sure we got this. Notice what it says. Whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named. Hey, that means these Old Testament saints that we read about in the first 39 chapters of. Of the Bible, our, 39 books of the Bible, hey, they're part of this, the whole family. And those that are alive now on earth is part of that family. And you can't help but remind yourself of. Of what said about Hebrews 12. We're surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, those that have gone before us, like it did in chapter 11 of Hebrews, all the saints, those that had been delivered, but those that died because they would not recant, they would not turn away from God, and so is we're part of that whole family in heaven and earth. And again, what a glory it is. And it's demonstrated again, here's the word used in verse 16. According to what the riches of his glory, he is driving this home to these Ephesian saints, that what they have in Christ is sufficient. It is enough. So, Alex, we can say that in 2026, no matter where you are on the face of this earth, if you're listening later on at a podcast, if you're listening right now on the radio or through Internet, maybe in a different country, a different area, no matter what, the riches of his glory will strengthen you in that inner man. That Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. That you, being rooted and grounded in love now, here it is. Might be able to comprehend. Wow, Alex, when you combine all that together, what God has done, what God is doing, and what God will do. brother, it's. It's worth following him, isn't it?

>> Alex McFarland: Amen. Amen.

There are compelling lines of evidence that show faith in Jesus is the most real thing

Well, you know, and I've always loved the way that verse 18 is structured, comprehend with all saints what is the breadth and length and depth and height. And it is kind of, it does connect a little bit like to verse 8. Talks about the unsearchable riches of Christ, beyond measurement, beyond comprehension. And yet he uses these, they're called spatio, temporal dimensions. Length, width, breadth, height, even though it's beyond measure. And yet, by the way, comprehend with all the saints. Do you know, Ephesians talks about how we're going to grow up and we'll get into, chapter four, the unity of the body of Christ one day in a number of songs have said, you know, Lord, haste the day when our faith shall be sight.

>> Bert Harper: Amen.

>> Alex McFarland: See, we're going to see Jesus face to face. Praise the Lord. Now we trust him by faith. Now it's a faith that's very tangibly rooted in many things. God's word, the empty tomb, answered prayer, changed lives. I mean, there are compelling lines of evidence that show our faith in Jesus is the most real thing in our lives. Honestly. we think the physical world is the real reality. No, the most real reality in your life is all that you have in Jesus Christ. And yet it's going to be even better and more tangible that day that we see him face to face. there's another old hymn, that every now and then I'll quote it. Is this the Crowning Day? And there's this lyric, this is so good. It says, glad day, glad day when I will see my friend. You remember that song, Bert?

>> Bert Harper: I do not. That's a new one to me.

>> Alex McFarland: I'm sure if you've got an old hymnal, look up a song called Is this the Crowning Day?

>> Bert Harper: Okay.

>> Alex McFarland: The day that we see our friend. Who is that? The friend who sticks closer than a brother Jesus.

>> Bert Harper: Amen.

Alex: When you read verse 18, you think about the cross

Now verse 18, when you hear width, length, depth and height, I can't help but think about the cross, you know?

>> Bert Harper: Oh yeah, because upward, you know, vertically and then horizontally. And the depth, you know, he rescues us. The width, everyone. Length for how long? And then, the height taking us to glory. I just can. That's visual to me when I read verse 18 and I see the width, length, depth and height. Majored in mass and math for two years in college and having to take geometry and then taking trigonometry and calculus and all of that. And you were able to look at all of that. The volume of a, of a water tank. When you know the depth and all the length of it, you can know how many gallons? Listen, when you see this width, length and depth and height, as you said going back to verse eight, unsearchable riches of Christ. it is the, let me just say the depth and the width and the volume of the container of the love of God is unmeasurable. Alex, you know, that's the volume that you get. That's what you get for having a math guy. That is part of your co host here.

>> Alex McFarland: But you remember, in math class you'd have to find, the volume of a sender.

>> Bert Harper: That's it.

>> Alex McFarland: Yeah. That almost prevented me from graduating college. I majored in avoiding math.

>> Bert Harper: I know some m folks like that. Yeah. But I tried to avoid all English classes. Now that's how bad. Now that's the guy God said I want to preach. The guy that avoided English classes. So that was, that's who we are.

>> Alex McFarland: I do love math because I think it brings glory to God. Hey, let me just say this. And by the way, I'm going to give the number in case you have a Bible question. folks, maybe write this number down and we would love for you to call in with a Bible question. It's 888-589-8840. That's 888-589-88420. And by the way, you can always email us if, if you ever want to submit a question. Brent Austin gets those for us. But you can email Bert and I@wordfr.net, w o r d wordfr.net we'd love to hear from you. But let me just say this about, the Bible. I was thinking about something. What a well ordered universe. the angelic hosts are ordered. The physical created world is ordered. The solar system is well ordered. The way we come to Jesus is very well structured in how we grow in the Lord. So everything about God's creation and revelation is very well ordered. Doesn't it stand to reason that the Bible would be too? I mean, and Bert, part of the reason I bring this up is, I got a call earlier today from Fox News and they want to have Frank Turk and myself on June 4th to talk about the truth of Christianity. and as we get closer to that, I'll tell a little more about that. But Frank, and I both are passionately committed to defending the Bible because there are a lot of people that say, oh, the Bible is wrong on this issue or not right on this other issue. No, I mean God's written revelation to the human race. God's Intricate, fully orbed book, the Bible, holy Bible, book divine. Of course the Bible is going to be well ordered, accurate to the nth degree. I mean, everything else about God and his universe is very well structured and well ordered. Why wouldn't the Bible also be, and the word we use is inerrant. That means without error. And so Bert, I think a lot of people that doubted the Bible are going to be very surprised one day that God's, word has been given, preserved. And it is accurate to the ninth detail, isn't it?

>> Bert Harper: It is. It's settled in heaven. I mean, that's real quickly.

We got about two minutes. So I want to do this. Look how verse 18 and 19 are connected

We got about two minutes. So I want to do this. Look how verse 18 and 19 are connected. We've talked about the width, length, depth, height. Now look at the last to know the love of Christ, which passes knowledge. Now that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now the width, length, depth, height. It feels, it's the fullness of who he is. And just like you said, his word. Which brings us to verse 20. Now I don't want to miss it. Now here we've been talking about the riches of Jesus Christ. Let me get this. And I got them listed vertically. First, notice what he says do, okay, what God is able to do. But then he does it exceedingly. Okay, that's the first thing. And then abundantly. And then above. And then all we ask, or dare to ask is what some translations say. And it would be that or even think now, Alex, that's the riches of Christ who is able to do exceedingly, abundant, abundantly above all you ask or even think, that's the riches of Jesus Christ that every believer has. And it goes back to those words that we talked about in verse 12 that gives us what access we have. Access to the wealth of our God.

>> Alex McFarland: Amen. Well said, Bert. Well said. Well, folks, we've got a very brief break. We're going to come back and answer your phone calls. So call in. you'll get through, 888-589-8840. And we'll do Bible questions after this brief break. Stay tuned.

>>  : The AFR app is a powerful tool, but it does have limitations. You can't use it to change the old oil in your vehicle or get rid of carpet stains. It won't walk the dog, won't pick up the dry cleaning or take the kids to practice. But while you're doing those things, you can listen to your favorite AFR content through the app on your phone, smart device, or Roku Just go to your app store or visit afr.net Listen to AFR wherever you go with the AFR app.

>>  Why we feel this way we walk with our.

If you have a Bible question, call 858-98-8840

>> Alex McFarland: Welcome back. Welcome back to exploring the Word. Yet no dusty Bibles around here. We want our Bibles to be read and experienced every single day. Hey, well the number toll free. If you've got a Bible question, we would love to hear from you. And we Brent's get getting the calls queued up here, but you'll very likely get through if you call, contacting 858-98-8840. We'd love to have your Bible questions. And Bert, the Facebook page, we haven't mentioned that in a little while. We have a Facebook page and Brent Austin puts things up there from the shows and sometimes articles and other things. So if you would like us on Facebook and spread the word about this Bible teaching show every day, Monday through Friday, 4 to 5 Eastern, 3 to 4 Central, and the time zone of your choice.

>> Bert Harper: Amen.

Jacob from Michigan calls in with a question about water management

>> Alex McFarland: Where should we start our question?

>> Bert Harper: Well, let's start in Michigan and go to Jacob. Jacob, thank you for calling. Go right ahead, brother.

>> Caroline: Hey guys, thanks again for taking my call. yeah, I wanted to say too, I appreciated your analogy, earlier with the the tanks, you know, measuring the volume and stuff. I work at a water plant so I got to do that all the time. But I'll get into my question.

Jacob: What are ways that I can worship God on Sunday

My question is, so I answered the Sabbath, you know, on one day. And my question is, what are ways that I can worship God? You know, I want to be care. I really enjoy the rest that I get from it. But I try to be careful with the things that I do. So, you know, I'm not sure if it's okay to cook and do other things because I find enjoyment from it. But I just don't want to you know, disobey God, I suppose.

>> Bert Harper: Jacob, man, I appreciate the spirit in which you asked that. the worshiping of the Lord on the seventh day of the week that has been set aside and I believe it was set aside at the resurrection of Christ and the early church. I'll just make that known to everyone. And Alex, there was so much restrictions in some places that you know, it was difficult but now it's hard to know the difference between Sunday and any other day of the week and ah, in any place. You know what I mean?

>> Alex McFarland: Yeah, I'm old enough. I remember when on Sundays there almost was nothing Open, but, there was a one drugstore in Greensboro. A pharmacy was open, but everything was pretty much closed. And. And I know that, you know, even, you know, we have to work and. And we have to do things, and we're free in Christ. we don't legalistically have to necessarily abstain from anything. But I will tell you this, Bert. down south where we live in the Bible Belt, on Sunday, that's God's day, the day of worship. You. You almost never see somebody mowing their lawn or things like that. And, you know, I appreciate that reverence for Sunday. And it's not works, and I'm not being legalistic, but, I do think it's healthy. And it's biblical to take a day, yes, to rest from one's labors, but really to as much as is possible, prioritize God and be thinking about the Lord and worshiping the Lord and counting our blessings. And, I think we need that quietness of at least one day a week. Don't you think?

>> Bert Harper: So? I agree fully. Here's what I want to say. I would not make a list for you, Jacob, of what you can't do, but I would say something that we all need to do, and that is worship. Gather together and worship the Lord and make him, a part of our life collectively. And I would say privately as well. The collective gathering of God's people should happen after a week of privately meeting with him. If that happens like it's supposed to, Sundays ought to be amazing, because we have worshiped him in private, and now it's time to come together and collectively. So, Jacob, be conscientious. again, you seek the Lord. And if you have a question in your spirit, Alex, I'd say don't then, you know, and follow the Lord. Thank you, Jacob. Listen to Arkansas. It's Phyllis. Phyllis, thank you for calling.

>> Caroline: Good afternoon. we live in the northwest corner of Arkansas, which is kind of the middle of the United States. My husband's grandmother went around the United States teaching on the tabernacle. And she asked my children one time, go into your woods and find me a rock with a shell on a seashell. And they found one, and she carried that thing around with her for years. But my question was, when the flood came, and I believe it was a global flood, everything was full water. Where did the water go?

>> Bert Harper: Okay. Alex, it. It went back. You know, it gushed up, did it not?

>> Alex McFarland: Yeah.

>> Bert Harper: And then when it separated, it went back to those areas. Go ahead, Alex. You're that.

>> Alex McFarland: You know, one thing that's very fascinating, is what's called the hydrologic cycle. you know, there's. There's water and it evaporates, and there's steam and then there's clouds and water in the atmosphere, and then there's precipitation. And so what. What's very interesting, by the way, there was a fantastic defender of the faith named Dr. Henry morris. he did his PhD at, I think it was Virginia Polytechnic Institute, and it was hydrology. That not only, was his, doctoral subject, but Dr. Henry Morris basically created a whole apologetic system, defending, the Bible and creation. And what got him started on that was the fascinating hydrologic cycle, the way the water operates. but, you know, when the flood came, it says the foundations of the great deep broke loose. And there were all sorts of canyons, the Grand Canyon, the Palo Dura Canyon down in Texas. and much of the water of the flood went down into the ground, into the. The aquifers or the water table from which people all around the world, they drill wells. And, you know, the weather patterns that we have are due to the flood. And so, you know, one last thing. I gotta say this. Babylonians, the ancient Native Americans of North America, Australia, the Aztecs, Romans, Greeks, Chinese, Mayans. All cultures have a flood narrative, they call it. Anthropologists have documented that basically every people group has this ancient story from time past. How, because of the. The wickedness of the human race, God flooded the Earth. Isn't that something?

>> Bert Harper: It is amazing. So, Phyllis, a lot of the water went back down into the earth, which broke loose and came up at that time. And then the canopy, that probably the only thing I can do that covered the earth because the water would come down, would go back, evaporation, as Alex has said. There it is. And again, let me recommend the Creation Museum and the ark. make a trip there. And I'm telling you, you will be blessed. Phyllis, thank you for. For calling. Let's go to. Stay in Arkansas and go to Linne. Linne, thank you for calling.

>> Caroline: Thank you. Yeah,

Watch out, Phyllis. All this rain. Don't break your neck

Watch out, Phyllis. All this rain. Don't break your neck. I almost did just now on my deck. with, dirt, you know, mixing with. Just real lightweight and being careful and still. It's like a banana peel out there.

Lynn: I wanted to ask you about the Anglican Church

Anyway, yeah, I wanted to ask you about the Anglican Church. a friend of mine said her son is going to that church. And I wanted to know, is there anything in the Bible where the Anglican faith comes from. Are they kind of like the Catholics, where they kind of have their own, Bible or whatever?

>> Bert Harper: Okay. Anglican Church going back to England and, church history. Alex. I remember studying that and kind of. Would you call it a separation from the Catholic Church?

>> Alex McFarland: Yeah. And, you know, there are great, like, evangelical Anglican churches. it's hard to paint with too broad of a brush. But, yeah, the Anglican Church is a little bit Catholic and a little bit Protestant because it was kind of, Although, really, what the Anglican Church is goes back more than a thousand years, pretty much as it is today. Came about during the Reformation era in the 1500s. M. The communion is really the central part of the worship service. but, you know, the Puritans that came over here, like the. The Pilgrims and the Puritans, were ones who had left the Anglican Church. But, I hesitate to take it to, too broad of a generalization because, like, you've got C.S. lewis, who was an Anglican, and I mean, he's one of the great defenders of the Christian faith in the mid 20th century. but the more high church Anglicanism is kind of, ceremonial more than the emphasis on a personal faith relationship with Jesus. Although they're definitely a Christian. Christian, part of, I mean, they're orthodox, except for the American iteration of the Anglican Church, the Episcopals. They've leaned, pretty leftward in recent years, haven't they, Bert?

>> Bert Harper: They really have. Going back to you mentioning the Puritans, and you had two groups coming out of the Anglican Church, the Puritans. And they get their word from wanting to stay in the church but purified to, And then you had the separatists. The separatist would come out, and they're the ones that would be kind of, you know, individualized and even persecuted from that. So you had two groups that would come out of the Anglican Church. And, Alex, I think it's kind of like that. I know some Anglican, people, members that are faithful to the word of God. They love the word of God and they study. Yes, the worship is more formal than you would be for, I'd say Baptist or assembly of God, you know, but again, Christ, is he. Christ is the center of their history about it was Christ. So, I hope that helps, Linne. but Alex is right. When you paint certain denominations with so broad a brush that you throw them all under the bus, Alex, I think you got to be careful, don't you?

>> Alex McFarland: You do. And, by the way, the number is triple eight. 589-8840. here's the thing. I do think, a lot of younger people that are gravitating toward a more high church experience, whether it be Anglican or Catholic. it's because maybe, sometimes, at least in the last 30 to 50 years, some of the American churches have really gotten way too informal. And, I'm not trying to be flippant, but I mean, some are just kind of loosey goosey. And, so, you know, the structure of the more high church denominations has been very appealing to kids that are looking for order and substance.

>> Bert Harper: It is.

Paul wants Alex to give him a list of Christian books to post on Facebook

Brett, we have something you're wanting to share.

>> Actually, I have two things on Facebook. One is a question and one is a suggestion. Paul writes he, would love for Alex to, give me a list of books to post on Facebook of trusted, Christian authors.

>> Bert Harper: Okay.

>> Alex McFarland: let me say this very quickly. This has been at least a decade ago, but Bert and I did a recommended reading list one time, and I have. It's funny, back before Christmas, I was updating that. Brent, I'm going to email that to you, hopefully later this afternoon, and maybe you could put it up on Facebook.

>> Alex McFarland: Great, Paul, we'll get that out to you.

Bert and Alex: Sometimes skeptics say the Bible endorses slavery

And I've got one more from Tanya. she says lately she's seen a lot of young people had questions about slavery being mentioned in the Bible, and she would love it if you guys could enlighten us more on this subject.

>> Bert Harper: Okay, Alex, can we say that and just say a little bit about it? The Bible does not endorse slavery because of color of skin or anything. There are indentured servants. and then the other was war. You know, in war, people being taken.

>> Alex McFarland: sometimes skeptics will say, oh, the Bible endorses slavery. no, no, it doesn't. In fact, God poured plagues on Egypt, in his, protest against the enslavement of the Jewish people. Now, in colonial America and in Europe, you know, 200 years ago, people tried to legitimize their enslavement of some people by scripture. But just because some people misused the Bible doesn't mean that the Bible condones slavery. In fact, it reports on it, but it, it's not condoning it.

>> Bert Harper: It is not. We'll try to write that down and do a special program on that. I think it'd be good. Let's go to Iowa. Edwin, go right ahead.

>> Caroline: Hi there, Bert and Alex.

Edwin: The Old Testament is the gospel of the kingdom that Jesus taught

M. I've got a question about what to tell somebody the difference between the Old Testament and NewSong Testament, the difference between the gospel of the kingdom and the gospel of grace. It's kind of a difficult subject to understand. The Old Testament is the gospel of the kingdom that Jesus taught. And what Jesus taught after is crucified is the gospel of grace.

>> Bert Harper: Okay, Edwin, we don't have a lot of time. Let me just share this with you. Go back to Abraham. Abraham believed God, and it was accounted unto him for righteousness. Alex, again, that's grace even back then, wasn't it?

>> Alex McFarland: Yeah. And, you know, Gary Habermas, who's a great colleague of ours, talks about how when Jesus used the term and the NewSong Testament uses the term, the gospel of the kingdom or the kingdom of God, that that is very unique. The kingdom is coming. And so, Bert, I would say, though, the gospel of grace, that we're saved by grace through faith, and that the gospel of the kingdom, they're the same gospel.

>> Bert Harper: I, agree.

>> Alex McFarland: It's the good news. How the Son of God came, died, rose again. Through faith in Jesus, we are reconciled to God, and we are going to be the inhabitants of that kingdom. And every kingdom has a king.

>> Bert Harper: Our king is Jesus, King of Kings, Lord of lords. Deborah, sorry we didn't get to you today, but guess what tomorrow is, Alex? It's Fire Away Friday, isn't it?

>> Alex McFarland: All questions, all the hour tomorrow, folks. Tune in. Yeah, the. The calls we did not get to today. Please try again tomorrow, and we'll do our very best.

>> Bert Harper: Thank you for being with us here on Exploring the Word on afr. Tell someone about the whole program of afr. You can get there and you can look at it and see what we have. Afr.net and, listen, the programming is good, but we especially love this hour because we dig into the Word of God. Join us tomorrow with more of exploring the Word.

>> Alex McFarland: The views and opinions expressed in this broadcast may not necessarily reflect those of

>> Bert Harper: the American Family association or American Family Radio.