From the National Religious Broadcasters Convention in Dallas, Texas. It's open line. Hello, friends. Welcome to Open Line. This is Moody Radio's Bible study across America. My name is Michael Wright. I'm professor of Bible and Jewish studies at Moody Bible Institute, also the academic dean there. And also with you every week right here on Open Line, answering your questions every week we talk about your questions about the Bible, God
and the spiritual life. Normally, people will call with those questions. However, we've got a live audience here today. They are living people. They are going to ask the questions and that's what we're going to do. So no phone calls today. This is a pre-recorded program. Uh, the people here in the audience will be asking the questions. And if you would like to send a question in, in, but you can't today because you can't call. What you can do is
go to our website, openline radio.org. There's a link there that says Ask Michael a question. Click on that and you'll be able to post your question and we'll get to it in weeks to come. Now Tricia McMillan is our producer. Today. Just as always, Christi is handling all things technical, and I have a special guest with me for the first few minutes of the program just to kind of let us know what we're doing here. Uh, my friend Ed Cannon is here. Ed and I used
to work together at Moody. He has moved to become the president of Far Eastern Broadcasting Company, one of our partners on Open Line. I am so glad you're here, Ed.
It's a real honor. It's always a joy to be with you, Michael, on my all time favorite program in the world, Open Line on Moody Radio.
Oh, you say that to everyone?
No, I don't. No, I don't.
But now let's talk about Far Eastern Broadcasting Company.
Yeah.
Uh, I always talk about it because, uh, we partner with us to bring the Far East, the Febc mailbag.
We call it. Right?
Right. The middle of the program. We always take questions that people have mailed in, and I'm so grateful for your partnership with us. But one of the things I really appreciate is how Febc uses media to reach the world. Tell us a little bit about that.
Well, for 80 years, Michael, that's been our our mainstay. It's our mission statement is we use media to proclaim the gospel, to inspire people to follow Christ. And the subtitle under that is we work in areas which are the hardest to reach, places where people have never heard the gospel. And when you meet people who say, I've never heard of the name Jesus and tell them the gospel, it's interesting how open they are to hear and listen and understand. So we have staff in 50 countries. We're
broadcasting in 154 languages. Yeah, the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Now, the thing that I love about Febc is it's not just media. There's there's actual people. Right. That that engaged. Tell us about that.
Yeah. What we learned a long time ago is if you just broadcast the word and scatter the seed, it's it's effective because God's word will accomplish what he intended it to accomplish. It's Isaiah 55, but we think it's much more effective when people come along afterwards and fertilize and water the seed that's been planted, meet with people, answer their questions, become part of the community. It's our staff are frequently having listener gatherings. They meet with people.
They give out tracts. They pray with them. We hand out radios. As a matter of fact, I'm leaving tonight to go to Cambodia for that very reason, and we're going to have a number of gatherings with our listeners there, give out some radios, and hopefully spread the gospel more effectively.
I love the idea of giving out radios.
Yeah.
Are they transistors like from the 1960s, like I used to listen to when I was into ball games after my parents?
They're about the same size. But it's interesting, the thing that most people don't know about the radios we give out is that they're fixed tuned. So we give out the radio for the purpose of listening to our gospel presentations, not listening to Elvis Presley Cambodia. So people love to get the radio, but then they're trapped into listening.
That's the only station they have, right?
Actually, it's very interesting because we have a partnership with the Cambodian government. They wanted us to give out radios so they could listen to the government station, which provides information about vaccines for kids and education and election and, and disasters coming. But so we said, yes, we'd be happy to do that. So we fixed tuned the radios to the government station and to our station. And what we hear from the people is we never listen to the government.
That's great.
So we've been doing that for 80 years.
Yeah. That's wonderful. And now you've been with you're on the board of directors of National Religious Broadcasters.
Quite a number of years.
I'm sure our listeners don't know what the NRB is. And so tell us about that.
Well, the NRB was originally formed around 1945 for the purpose of protecting religious liberty to broadcast Christian content on US government supported FCC radio stations. So any radio station in the United States that you listen to is under the control of the FCC, Federal Communications Commission. And at one time, there was a threat that Christian content was kind of like not favorable on that. So that's why
they were formed. But now it's a meeting place for everybody radio, radio stations, even new media, social media, Christian broadcasting.
TV broadcasting as well.
And it makes an enormous difference for the ability for these communicators to get together. Just like I'm here today to talk to you and other people. I met with a Transworld Radio guys this morning because we're in partnership. It's become a meeting place. It's become a place where you can voice your concerns and get the NRP to help. Um, yeah. It's a very, very highly functional organization.
Well, it's great to have you here. And most people don't know you were the one that said I should go on the radio and answer Bible questions.
I did.
I remember when you were the CEO of Moody.
Yeah, right. Yeah. That's right. And and I still think it was a brilliant move.
I think so too.
I started I started listening to Open Line, by the way, with Don Cole and Tricia McMillan. And so, no, it was Tricia Boyle back in those days.
Back in the day?
Yeah. I've always been a fan. It's a very important program. Proclaiming the gospel on radio, I think, is one of the most undervalued ministries anywhere in the world. We see it in hundreds of places. You see it right here in the United States. So for those of you who are listening, I hope you appreciate Moody Radio. I hope you appreciate the fact that you can hear God's Word on radio freely without the without the possibility of persecution. So let them know that you appreciate.
Okay. Tell us about your podcast though.
Yeah, we have a podcast until all have heard Wayne Shepherd, who's a familiar voice on Moody Radio. Wayne Shepherd and I do this podcast. It's, um, available on any podcast site until all I've heard we interview. Listeners in countries, we interview our directors in places and they tell you. What is it like to be a Christian in Indonesia, the largest Muslim country in the world? Or how is the gospel getting spread in Communist China where it's being
blocked every time we turn around? Very interesting program provides a lot of information for for those of us who want to know how effective the Great Commission is about getting the gospel to places that they have never heard.
Oh, that's great, that's great. I hope everyone will check out until all have heard. Check it out on your your podcast, uh, search whatever you want to find. I guess you're on all platforms. I think.
So.
Yeah. I tell people to go to Febc. Org. You'll you'll be sure to find until all I've heard. Thank you. Editor. Thanks for joining me.
Always a joy to be with you. And God bless Moody Radio.
Thank you. We're going to start with a question right now.
I am Jasmine and my question is how to read the Bible in accordance with God's will.
How how do we read the Bible in accordance with God's will. Well, the first thing I would say, it's always God's will that you read the Bible if you want to know God's will. He gave us his word so that we would read it. Uh, that's that's why he took it and put it in there. But I'm not exactly sure what you mean. Ah. How do you read the word? To find out God's will? Is that what you mean?
Yes.
Okay. Okay. So. Well, when we think about, uh, God's will, there's his, uh. You know, so often we think of his will as being some nebulous thing that we have to seek, you know? But he has his revealed will. That's in Scripture. And, uh, most of the time, I think we will have most of our questions answered if we're reading the word on a regular basis. Uh, and we see his revealed will there. I think that's a really important point to make. I think God doesn't care
if we choose to use Colgate or Crest toothpaste. You know, people struggle with. Hmm. What should I do? Is it God's will for me to get Colgate? No. Uh, you know, the Bible reveals how we are to engage with other people, uh, to love them. Uh, we love God. We love people. That's clearly in God's word. It teaches us how to do that. Uh, it teaches us what we should be saying and doing our control of our lips, uh, and and what we should be talking about. There's so much
in the word of God that is revealed to us. Uh, so it may not tell us who to marry in the sense of, you know, marry John Smith or or Audrey or whoever it is, but it will tell us that we should. It's clear in the scriptures that if if a person is a follower of Jesus, that they should only marry not only a follower of Jesus, but someone as committed to that faith as they are. So
that narrows the, the the options for us. And so it's really important that that when you're reading the Word of God, anything that it deals with in terms of our behavior, that's God's revealed will for us. And then I really think that God opens doors, closes doors. Uh, he enables us to follow that revealed will in terms of individual special aspects, his special will that he has for us. And and he we pray, we seek God.
We ask him. We don't just open a Bible and point our finger and say, oh, this is what I should do. But rather we're now praying, seeking, looking at open doors, closed doors. We allow the Holy Spirit to speak to our hearts. And those are some of the ways that, uh, God reveals his special will. But most most important, to become a student of the word and understand his revealed will. Okay, we're going to take a break here. And when we come back. There's a lot
of questions here in this room. And so we're going to get to all of them. I hope you're listening and saying, oh, that's my question. Because what we're going to do is answer all these questions and hopefully you'll find the answers that you're looking for. Uh, this is open line with Michael Radonich at the National Religious Broadcasters Convention in Dallas, and we'll be right back. Jewish people
completed our annual Passover observance last weekend. This festival was such a meaningful celebration of redemption to learn the rich teaching of this holiday. Chosen People Ministries, one of our partners, is offering a free booklet, Passover A time for redemption. Besides explaining the significance of the Exodus from Egypt, this booklet will open our eyes to the way the Passover
foreshadows the death and resurrection of Yeshua, Jesus our Passover Lamb. Additionally, comprehending Passover will deepen our understanding of the Messiah Yeshua, the Bread of Life. Celebrating the Lord's Supper will never be the same. After grasping the significance of this festival for a free copy of Passover A time for redemption, just go to the Open Line website. That's Open Line radio.org. Scroll down and you'll see the link that says A
free gift from Chosen People Ministries. Click on that and you'll be taken to a page where you can sign up for your very own copy of Passover. A time for redemption. Welcome back to Open Line. We're at the National Religious Broadcasters Convention in Dallas, Texas. It's a pre-recorded program with a live audience. Uh, but it's prerecorded, so don't call in today. My name is Michael. We're talking about the questions that these folks have about the Bible,
God and the spiritual life. And hopefully those are the same questions you have and we'll be talking with them right now. Let's go right to the questions.
I'm Jared from Wctg and radio in Lima, Ohio. And my Bible question is can we lose our salvation?
That I think, is I used to think that the Genesis six question was the number one question, but I really, truly believe that fear of losing salvation is something that is prevalent. It's the number one question I get, and I think it's so important that we understand where we are in terms of relationship with God. And so in John chapter six, uh, this is what the Lord Jesus
had to say. And I think it's where we ought to start when we discuss this, this question, uh, he says in John six that all that the father has given me will come to me. That's in verse 37. Let's see if I can find it here. Uh, it says, uh. Here we go. Uh. Everyone the father gives me will come to me. And the one who comes to me, I will never cast out. And so the the point of that is, uh, that everyone that the father opens the hearts of people to come to the Lord Jesus,
and he will receive us. The Lord Jesus will always receive us. Then he says, for I have come down out of heaven, uh, not to do my will, but the will of him who sent me. The Lord Jesus, saying, I always do the father's will. Now that's imperative that we understand that because the proof that he really is the Messiah, the Son of God, who he claimed to be is, is in the fact that he obeys what the father has sent him to do. He always does the will of the father, and this is the will
of him who sent me. What's his will? Well, obviously there's lots, lots of aspects about God's will. But he says this is the will for me, that. That the one who of the one who sent me that I should lose none of those he has given me, but should raise them up on the last day. So it's really clear what the Lord Jesus says is not only
will he receive us, but he will keep us. And if if he could lose one of us after we've come to know him, that means he's not doing the father's will, and he is not who he claimed to be. The Lord Jesus stakes his entire identity on the fact that he can keep you and me secure. And so that is, people often say, do you do you believe in perseverance of the saints? I don't I think we're pretty bad at persevering. I do believe in perseverance of
the Savior. He's very good at keeping his word. And so, uh, that's my my hope and confidence. There's one of the passage, I think, because this is such a such an important question, it's so common. Uh. Is what the Lord said in this passage. He says, uh, in John ten about his followers, his sheep who hear his voice. I give them eternal life and they will never perish, ever. No one will snatch them out of my hand. My father, who has given them to me is greater than all no one
is able to snatch. Snatch them out of the father's hand. The father and I are one, he says no one can snatch anyone out of my hand or the father's hand. That's John 1028 through 30. Why is that so important? Just imagine yourself as a toddler walking along and you have one parent holding your hand and the other parent holding your other hand. And now, I used to walk
with my son when he was a toddler. We lived in Queens, New York, and there was a huge boulevard, Queens Boulevard, with about 8 or 10 lanes of traffic right in front of the courthouse. We'd walk over there and cross the street, and my wife and I would hold his hand as we crossed the street. People would say, well, couldn't he run out of your hand? Not on your life. I had him so secure he might have if he tried to leave. There was no way, because that was
a very dangerous street. We would hold hands as we crossed, as we cross the dangerous aspects of this life. The father and the son have us in their hands, and nothing will ever rip us out of their hands. We can't even jump out of their hands. We are safe and secure. So that's why it's so crucial to know that you get up one day and you have a wonderful day, and you read the Bible and you pray and you, you know, if you're a woman, you got your your hair done right and your makeup's good. And
the kids have gotten off to school great. And you've packed their lunches and everything's great, and you get to work and everything is doing fine. And and you think, of course, God loves me. I am safe and secure. What? What couldn't he love here? And then the next day, you get up and you realize you've overslept and the kids have overslept. And you have to rush them, throw them out of the house without even getting them dressed. Go in your pajamas, get on the bus. And now
you eat lunch. No breakfast today and you don't have any time in the word. And you're not praying, and. And you get a ticket on your way to work, and and you get to work and it says, you say God doesn't love me. I who could love this? And here's the best news we have. He loves us as much every day. We can never earn more of his love or less of his love. The Bible says nothing for those of us who have put our trust in Jesus. Nothing can separate us from the love of
God which is in the Lord Jesus. Romans eight. So that's that's what I would say about that.
I'm David Woodworth from our Moody Radio affiliate relations area, and I my question is related to a recent social media post. Recently, a well-known pastor among the greater Christian community equated Jesus position on the center cross at Calvary S Hill when he was crucified to a political statement that Jesus today would be a middle of the road political standing, that is, versus being on the right, a
conservative or on the left like a liberal. Uh, and he was subsequently criticized by all kinds of Christians for making that kind of a statement. And he later retracted that statement from the social media. My question, though, is how dangerous is it to draw modern parallels to Scripture references such as one he was pointing to?
I would think that. That you think it's pretty dangerous, don't you? Yeah.
Oh, yeah.
Yeah, yeah. That's a pretty loaded question, is all I'm going to say. Yeah. Well, I don't think that the Lord Jesus would be. I should be identified as a centrist. And I'm glad he pulled that back. I think he should be identified as a supervisor. He's over it all. And, uh, he's he's ruling us from the right hand of the father. He's our king. Uh, and, uh, so we have to kind of think of him as being sovereign over us rather than in the center or the right or the
left with us. And I think that's a better way of you. But I think so often what we do is when we read Scripture, we want to impose our own meanings and applications onto it. And I think what we have to do is draw out the meanings from Scripture. So we have to understand what the text is actually saying. That text, for example, about how the Lord Jesus was crucified between To criminals. It's really more about how in Isaiah says, he was counted to be among the criminals.
It's it's not about a political position. So it's sort of a linkage, a fulfillment in some respects of Isaiah 53. That said, what we need to do is read what the text is saying in terms of what it means, and then draw a principle from it. Now there's an application, and when we get that principle, we can apply it to our own lives. So for example, the principle he was associated with criminals, he was not understood for who he really was and was rejected. And that's why he
was crucified between two criminals. That's what we see as a principle that very often we can be rejected. We can be associated with people who maybe aren't as really who we are. but might be rejected because of our associations or identifications and things like that, because we want to identify with all kinds of people. And, uh, and so as a result of that, uh, we have to be ready for rejection what they did to the shepherd, they'll do to the sheep. And and hopefully we won't
be crucified. But that, you know, in some cultures, in some places that did happen. So I would say that we have to understand what the text is actually saying, draw a biblical principle from it and then apply it to our own lives. That's really how we study the scriptures, not with trying to impose our political views into it. So yeah.
My name is Maddie. And my question is, does God ever change his mind?
Uh, right now he's changing his mind about having me do this program. Uh, the Bible says that he does. Uh, for example, the Lord changed his mind about it, says that he regretted that he created humanity because they were so sinful. In Jonah, he changed his mind about, uh, destroying Nineveh. So it sounds like he can change his mind. And then, on the other hand, in the book of Numbers, very you know, this is like the foundational book of the whole Bible, the Torah, uh, the the Pentateuch, the
law of Moses in numbers 20. I believe it is, uh, it says that God is not a man, that he should lie, nor the Son of man, that he should change his mind. Uh, I'm looking for that verse. Uh, but the point of that is that, uh, that may be numbers 23. I think I got it wrong. Yeah. Numbers 23, verse 19. God is not a man who lies, or a son of man who changes his mind. Does he speak and not act or promise and not fulfill? So God doesn't change his mind, but he does. What
does that mean? I believe those passages that where it says that God changes his mind is a figure of speech called anthropomorphism. That means attributing to God human characteristics. And the reason we have anthropomorphisms in the Bible, for example, the ear of the Lord is not too dull to hear, nor is his holy arm too short to save. I think that's in Isaiah 59. I want to tell you something. God is a spirit and he has no body, so he doesn't have an ear and he doesn't have an arm,
and yet it uses that. So what is it? That's a figure of speech to help us understand that God hears and acts in the same way. We cannot comprehend how the sovereign God and how, uh, our interaction with him works. Human responsibility. It's beyond our ability between God's sovereignty and human responsibility. And so, as a result, there are figures of speech that are used to say, listen, it's okay to pray and God will respond. He'll change his mind. He'll change his actions based on the people
of Nineveh repenting. Doesn't mean he that was part of his whole sovereign plan altogether, but we cannot comprehend it. And so the Bible, kind of the way Scripture does, is it kind of accommodates us by giving us these figures of speech so that we still would pray that we will still look to God to act in our lives. Uh, and it's not that God gods think of watching a whole parade. You know, if you're standing on the side, you can only see the the ones coming in front
of you. Gods on top of the building. He sees it from beginning to end, and that's how he's going to accomplish his purposes. And so it looks like he's changing his mind to us. So anyway, we're going to come right back with more of your questions. In fact, we're going to do the mailbag, the Febc mailbag in just a moment with Tricia McMillan. Stay with us. We'll be right back. We're so glad that Febc partners with Open Line with Doctor Michael Ray Melnick, bringing the Febc
mailbag every week. Learn how Far East Broadcasting Company is taking Christ to the world at febc. Org on their weekly podcast. Until all I've heard with Ed Cannon, you'll hear stories of lives changed by Messiah all across the globe. Again, you can hear the podcast when you visit febc. That's Febc. Org. Welcome back to Open Line. We're at the National Religious Broadcasters Convention and we're having a great time here in Dallas, Texas. It's prerecorded so no calls today. But we're still going
to have our mailbag aspect of the program. The Febc mailbag is sponsored partnership with Far Eastern Broadcasting Company. It's a wonderful ministry that brings the gospel through media and personal follow up to people all over the world. I hope you'll check out their website and check out their podcast until all have heard. And joining me right now is Tricia McMillan. She's part of the team here with Open Line. Uh, how long have you been part of the team.
At Open Line? Yeah. Oh, goodness. No.
Nine years.
Nine, nine and a half years.
Yeah. And. And how long have you been working for Moody Radio?
Uh, almost 25, 25 years.
And she started when she was two.
Mhm.
Yeah. Uh, now I've, I knew her before. I knew Tricia before she was married. Uh, she worked in all kinds of things in Moody Radio. I think right out of school as a student. Right.
I did, yes, I did my internship my senior year. Yeah. And then started working.
Well, that's. And I, I remember when we needed a producer for Open Line. I said there are only two people in Moody Radio that I would accept. I won't say who the other one was, but I was really obnoxiously insistent that Tricia McMillan be the producer of Open Line, and I was so grateful that I didn't get fired. But instead, I got Tricia to come and join us here. Uh, but anyway, that that is, uh, you know, the partnership that that I feel with everyone that works on Open
line with everyone at Moody Radio. It's it's just a. I just have this great sense that we're all working together, uh, towards that, that goal and of bringing the good news to people, helping people understand the scriptures and live them out better in their lives. Uh, that's what we're about. We really do believe at Moody Radio, and we're all partnering together, that the gospel changes everything. And that's we
want to bring the word to life, uh, to everyone. And, uh, one of the things I love about this partnership is that as a result, what we can do is we can bring the good news to people, and there are people out there who will partner with us as well. We call them kitchen table Partners on Open Line. These are people who commit to give every week, every month to open line so I can be on the air every week, and I'm so grateful to them. So they give a monthly gift. And not only that, uh, they're
just really partners with the program. I know they pray for us, uh, and I do pray for them as they send in prayer requests. I love that, uh, but another aspect of this partnership with our Kitchen Table partners is Tricia, and I produce a Bible study moment every other week. Uh, it's a it's an audio brief Bible study that they get in the email and they click on it and they get to hear it. And it's one of the ways that we can say, hey, thanks
so much for being a kitchen table partner. If you are interested in becoming a kitchen table partner, uh, just call 886447122. That's (888) 644-7122. Or you can just go to open line radio or call or open line radio. Org.
All right. Our first question from the mailbag is from Noelle. And Georgia listens to WNBA. I'm studying the book of Ruth, and a commentator referred to this book as part of the Bethlehem trilogy. What is the Bethlehem trilogy?
The Bethlehem.
Trilogy?
Yeah.
I have never heard that expression before.
Okay.
Did did you ever hear it before?
I did not.
Wow. I can tell you what the Book of Emanuel is, is chapter seven through 12 of Isaiah. But I've never heard of the. That's a very creative thing. I don't know what he would. Well, obviously, Bethlehem is where these events take place. Uh, maybe he the gospel, the story of the birth of Jesus. That's from Bethlehem. And I would guess that the the story of David coming from Bethlehem. So, uh, the story of David, the story of Ruth and Naomi. And then thirdly, I would guess the third book, and
that would be the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem. How am I doing?
Uh, I'm not sure. I probably should have done more research. I'm so sorry for springing this.
I'm going to just say that's my Bethlehem trilogy, and I will go with that.
All right, so one one says that three stories, two at the end of Judges and Ruth make up what is frequently referred to as the Bethlehem trilogy.
Okay, there we go.
Three events occur in or near Bethlehem the city of David.
You know, part of the reason why that's someone who reads the English Bible. Only that would come up with that, because Judges and Ruth are in our English Bibles right next to each other. But Ruth actually follows the Book of Proverbs in the Hebrew Bible.
So that's actually the next question I had for you is from Colleen in Wisconsin, who you had mentioned that recently. Um, and she wanted to know why and when did the order of those books get, get redistributed and moved around? And are there any current English Bible translation that arrange it where Ruth would come after Proverbs?
Yeah, okay. Well, first of all, let me just say why it is that Proverbs 31 is I mentioned this on the radio a few weeks ago, but, uh, Proverbs 31 talks about the woman of noble character. The Hebrew phrase is Eshet kale. Uh, a woman of valor is what it is. And it's got that sort of theoretical description. I once preached on Proverbs 31 for Mother's Day and I titled the sermon how in the world did I get so tired? I mean, that is one active woman.
She's selling real estate. She's she's making textiles. She's, uh, she's feeding her family and makes her husband look good at the gate where all the elders sit. It is, uh, she's really an amazing woman. And if you want to know what a real amazing woman like that looks like, the very next book is the Book of Ruth. And what does Boaz say of her? I have heard about you, Ruth, that you are an asset. A woman of valor. And I really do believe in the Hebrew canon. That's why
Ruth follows Proverbs 31. It's a description of Ruth, who is a living example of that woman in Proverbs 31. I think it's so interesting that it's a moabitess that is the one that's the. So that's that. Well, later on, when the Bible was translated into Greek in the Intertestamental period. It's called the Septuagint for reasons that I do not understand. I don't think anyone does. They reordered the books and they reordered them into the order that we have in
our English Bibles. And so even though we translate our Bibles from the Hebrew, they follow the order of our English Bibles. They follow the order of the Septuagint in the Old Testament. So that's that's where we get it from. And then are there any English Bibles that have the Hebrew Bible order? I would say yes. There's the Tree of Life translation, which is a translation done almost entirely by Messianic Jewish scholars. And it's a good translation, and
it follows the Hebrew Bible order. I think there are some others that, for example, the American Bible Society has put together a an Old Testament translation without chapter divisions or verse divisions. How do you find anything? But, but. And it follows the Hebrew Bible order. Okay. So. All right. Okay.
Well, thank you for that question, Colleen. Next question is from Nancy in Illinois, who actually listens to the Florida station on the Moody Radio app?
Oh, there we go. That's a it's probably because it's cold in Chicago and she wants to listen in Florida.
What is the difference between likeness and image in Genesis 126 which says, Then God said, let us make man in our image according to our likeness.
I don't think there's much of a difference in Hebrew. Uh, there's a form of poetry that doesn't rhyme like our poetry. The rhythm is much more about. And this is written in poetic fashion. Okay. It's what's called parallelism, where it says the same thing two different ways with with a different nuance, perhaps, but it really is repetitive. And so to be made in the image of God, uh, indicates that, uh,
it's there's something that we represent. God. Uh, and and so God made us in his image and in that passage, and we're like him in some respect. So image, likeness. Uh, in the ancient world, what they would do is they would say, we're going to make an image of the God, and they'd make an idol, and they'd put it in their temples, and it would represent God there. And they get that's sort of the concept of the image of God. But we're not little gods. What God did is he
made us after his image. He made us in his image, and he put us here on the earth to represent him just as so that similar idea and, uh, what does it mean to be made in the image of God in this text? It does appear to me that part of it is that there's only one God, and yet there's a plurality. Here's what I mean. It says, uh, God said, let us make man in our image and according to our likeness. Who's God talking to you? The angels. No, man. Humanity is not made in the image of God, of angels.
We're made in the image of God. Who's he? Maybe he's being like Queen Victoria. You know, plural of majesty. Always talking about himself in the plural. I don't think that's the case either. Well, what is it? Well, the text tells us God created man in his own image. He created him in the image of God. He created them. Plurality, male and female. So just as there's one God but plurality in the Godhead, so there's one essence of humanity made in the image of God, but there's plurality, male
and female. And so it hints. Part of the image of God is plurality and oneness. Uh, that's one uh, another aspect is because of this, we could engage humanity, can engage with God. We have a spiritual capacity. You see, in Genesis two, with the creation of the animals, they do not have a spiritual capacity to relate to God. God made humanity in his image. So we have a spiritual capacity also. He gave us dominion over the earth and to guard and protect the earth, uh, as God's
representative on earth. And I think that's part of the image of God. So those are the the aspects of image and likeness that we have as part of humanity. Okay, okay. We're going to take a break here. And when we come back, we're going to take a few more questions from people here in the room with us at the National Religious Broadcasters Convention. My name is Michael Zelnick. That was Christian McMillan. And we are you're listening to Open Line.
We're going to come right back with more of these questions in just a moment. So stay with us. Have you ever wondered how we got the Bible? The story of the Bible by Carl Laney takes you on a fascinating journey through scriptures from divine inspiration to modern translations. Doctor Laney reveals how God gave us his word. This book will deepen your confidence in the Bible's reliability while answering questions you've always had. If you'd like a copy,
it's yours. When you give a gift of any size, just go to our website, openlibrary.org or call 886447122. Welcome back to Open Line. This is a special pre-recorded edition of Open Line from the National Religious Broadcasters Convention in Dallas, Texas. And so today's not a day to call, uh, but to listen. We have a live audience here and they are the ones asking the question questions. And we're going to go right back to those questions right now.
So I'm Rob, I'm the executive director of Crossway Radio, Moody affiliate in new Jersey.
New Jersey.
Nice to be here. Yes.
What town?
Where? In Dover. And also in Washington, new Jersey. Great. And we have another station.
I'm from the East Coast, so. Yeah, I love Jersey.
Yeah. So my question is what translation of the Bible do you use and why does it matter which translation.
I happen to use the Holman Christian Standard Bible, the CSB. It's been revised. Revised. Now it's the Holman CSB, but I use the original one. I like it because I think it balances. Uh, you know, there's three different schools of translation. There's formal, uh, word for word translation, like the New American Standard. That's a great translation. My wife thinks that Moses and the Apostle Paul actually translated that. Uh, so she's a really committed person to the new American standard.
Then there's, uh, dynamic equivalence instead of formal equivalence, which is, uh, thought for thought, uh, because it's really hard to take an ancient language and update it so that it makes sense. And so there's, uh, that's like the New Living Translation. A dynamic equivalence. And then, uh, what they was decided with this translation, the CSB was to go with optimal equivalence, to try and be as literal as we can word for word, except where it doesn't make any sense or
it's just too bumpy. And then to to use some thought for thought to straighten it out. And I think it does a good balance of doing that, and that's why I use it. Uh, but when I'm studying, uh, in depth, I might start with the new American standard because it's word for word, uh, and less interpretive. Uh, if I'm reading quickly, I'll use the New Living Translation or the NIV because it gives me a quicker, smoother read. So there's I think there's place and value of all
the different translations. The ESV is a very good translation, so I'm not at all saying that this is the only one that we should have. Uh, I people think I'm down on the King James Version. I'm not. I think that there are better manuscripts that are used for the the than the King James. But if people like the King James, they should read it because it's a good translation. If you're in the 17th century and uh, uh, my wife says, which translation should we read? The one
that we would actually read. That's the one that we should read. That's the best translation for the person.
So what's the easiest way to explain the Trinity to a non-believer?
Uh.
Don't try. I think in the book 50 Most Important Bible questions. There's a question that said, is there a simple explanation? Could you give a simple explanation of the Trinity? And my first answer were the first words of my answer are I wish I could. There is no simple explanation of the Trinity. So the way I mean, we could go through what the Bible says, that the Bible teaches that there is a father, there's a son, there's a Holy Spirit teaches that they all are God. But
the Bible also teaches that, uh, that God is one. Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Uh, even in the New Testament. One Lord, one faith, one baptism, one Lord. You know Ephesians four four. So, uh, the Bible teaches that there is only one God, and yet
there seems to be this three persons. You know, uh, I think the clearest way that's presented that's sort of surprising to us is in Matthew 28, where it says, uh, that the, uh, baptizing them in the name of the father, son and the Holy Spirit, you would expect the word name to be plural, but it's not. It's the name singular of the father and the son and the Holy Spirit.
3 in 1. So theologians have done this with, uh, in the past, in the fourth or fifth century, six centuries, they've used terms like ousia, the essence of God, that there's one essence of God, and that there are three hypostases three persons. But I always say this. I know the Bible teaches it. I'm not sure I could explain
it to myself, let alone to anyone else. And so the the best thing I can do is it says in Isaiah 55, as high as the heavens are above the earth, so far are my ways higher than your ways, my thoughts higher than your thoughts. God understands the Trinity. I just have to believe it. I don't have to understand it. Uh, the verse in Second Timothy without controversy. Great is the mystery of God that God was manifest in the flesh. He says, if Paul could talk it,
call it a mystery, why can't we? So Ed Cannon mentioned at the beginning of the hour.
Donald Cole, I know you learned a lot from him and how he answered questions. Have you learned anything or what have you learned from your listeners?
Yes, just like I learned from my students at school. Yeah, I would say I was thinking about that question. One of I see the questions that come in, and sometimes people are reading the Bible so carefully and they're comparing kings to Chronicles, and they're saying, well, the story seems a little different here than it is there, or they compared the different gospels, or they want to know the
exact genealogy genealogy of every apostle. Why does James the son of Alphaeus and not James the sons of Zebedee, you know the son of James and John. So one of the things that I see is a really careful reading of the scriptures, and I really appreciate that. And it reminds me over and over to read the details, go for the details. The second aspect that I think I've learned from them, and that's even sometimes when they misapply the Bible, uh, they're really trying to have the
scriptures affect their lives. And as a result of that, sometimes they go a little too far with their application. But it's a good motive. They want the Bible to guide them in everything that they're doing and how they're living. And that's also a great reminder for me and something that I need to be doing as I read it. I can't be just reading it to fill my head. I need it to affect my heart and and then
change my life, transform my life. And and those are two aspects that I think I learned most from, from listeners who call with their questions because they're calling, because they, they, they really are reading the Bible carefully. And then secondly, they're they're wanting to change their lives. So, uh. Well, I can't believe that that's the fastest hour I've ever been part of. And I'm so glad that you've been listening. Uh, this is a special time of open line at the
National Religious Broadcasters Convention. Hope you enjoyed that. Uh, first hour, but we're going to come back with a second hour right here at the convention, so don't miss out on that. Uh, while we're in the break, check out our web page, Open Line radio.org. That web page has everything you're looking for, whether it's past programs, how to become a kitchen table partner, or how to get our current resource. Uh, we're going to come back with more of your questions in just
a moment. Open line. Our Bible study across America will continue in the second hour, so stay with us. Open line with Doctor Michael Radonich is a production of Moody Radio and ministry of Moody Bible Institute.