Why do so many of us evangelicals ignore or minimize the Jewishness of the New Covenant? How does that impact the way we view the end times? And where does the American church fit into all of this? Those are big questions with important answers. We'll dig into them. Coming up today on the land and the book. Plus, we'll make you the smartest kid on the block as you join us for Bible questions and Charlie's answers. That's all ahead on our program. Again, we call it the Land.
In the book, our host is the one and only doctor Charlie Dyer, Middle East expert, author, conference speaker. I'm John Jaeger and Charlie. Many people wonder, how do I share the gospel with my Jewish friend? It's a good question. And the question, though, recognizes the need that we have for a sensitive approach to sharing with Jewish people. Yeah, John. And that's why our friends.
At Life in Messiah want to help answer that question. They put together a series of helpful articles on how you can share the good news with Jewish people around you. You'll learn about Jewish cultural sensitivities, how anti-Semitism affects Jewish evangelism, the importance of messianic prophecy, and more. To access the articles, visit Life in Messiah. Org click on the Moody Radio logo and sign up. You'll receive the articles to equip you with practical ways to share the good news with
Jewish people around you or online. Again, click on the moody radio icon at Life in messiah.org.
Well, as the war between Israel and Hamas continues, two key questions remain unchanged. First, what was Hamas trying to achieve by starting a war and then continuing to fight even as Gaza is being decimated? And second, why didn't Hezbollah or Iran do more to aid Hamas? Or are we just now maybe starting to see that take place?
Well, the one key thing we need to remember is that Hamas is driven by its religious beliefs. All the land belongs to Allah. So Israel needs to be eliminated and replaced by a muslim government that will implement Sharia law. Now they knew their attack wouldn't topple Israel, but they hope to shake Israel's faith in itself by capturing as many hostages as possible, and then by hiding in their
tunnels and using Gaza's civilians as human shields. They hope to cause more Israeli casualties, while also bringing about a worldwide condemnation on Israel. For all the casualties, and at least to some extent, their plans succeeded. A report earlier this week said the initial attack plan was originally prepared back in 2014, and then updated in 2021. While Hamas might have underestimated the ferocity of Israel's response to their attack.
They kept fighting, believing the hostages and worldwide pressure will eventually force Israel to stop and withdraw. And as long as the leadership is still alive and in place, they'll claim victory. Now, Hezbollah and Iran didn't jump in to help Hamas, at least to the extent Hamas hoped for two reasons. First. Hezbollah and Iran are Shiite Muslims, while Hamas are Sunnis. There's an underlying religious conflict between the two. And second, Iran wasn't yet ready for an all out
conflict with Israel. Hezbollah could harm Israel with its rockets, but Israel could also demolish Hezbollah and much of southern Lebanon in an all out war. And Israel also has the means of hitting Iran. Iran doesn't want that to happen until it's developed nuclear weapons that it can use as a threat for retaliation. That's why, at least so far, they've been engaged only enough to be able to claim they do support the Palestinians, but not enough to lead
to an all out war. However, the potential still remains for the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah to escalate should either side miscalculate. The US is trying to defuse the situation, though it's unclear how effective those efforts will be now. Hopefully, we'll see a decline in provocation along Israel's northern border with Lebanon as the fighting in Gaza begins to subside. But events over the next few weeks could make all the difference.
Charlie two quick follow ups one. It seems to me that if Hamas were to simply stop their violence, their fighting even now, they could swing more of public opinion on their side. But they don't. They fight. Why? And two. What of the hostages? I'm hearing rumors that most of them are pretty well dead anyway. That's that's a non-issue.
A lot of them are dead. We frankly don't know how many. And yet the other reports you hear is that Israel knows where Sinwar, the main Hamas leader, is. But he surrounded himself with those hostages, so any hostages remaining alive would likely be killed if Israel tried to attack him.
Well, last week you mentioned Israel's High Court decision to strike down the reasonableness clause inserted as part of their basic laws. The response thus far has been relatively mild. Is this because of the war or is something else taking place?
Yeah, well, there was some public controversy following the High Court's decision, but it was more muted than might have been expected. That's almost certainly due to the focus of the war in Gaza and the other existential threats that Israel is facing. For the most part, people on all sides of the political spectrum decided to remain focused on those greater threats, which right now is uniting the country. Now,
that doesn't mean things aren't happening behind the scenes. The unity and statesmanship that characterized Israel right after October 7th has started fraying around the edges as the different leaders and parties begin to switch into a campaign mode. Now, officially, elections aren't scheduled until October 2026, but virtually everyone in Israel believes new elections will take place this year, shortly
after the current fighting ends. So you can be sure that the High Court's decision and the surprise attack by Hamas are going to be two of the central themes raised by parties on all sides. In a recent poll conducted in Israel, if elections were to be held today, Benny Gantz National Unity Party would garner 33 seats, while Netanyahu's Likud party would receive just 20. Another significant drop would be Lapid's Tea Party, which would drop from 24
seats to 14 seats. But such polls can be very unreliable, especially when they don't account for other variables. And earlier polls showed former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett would receive 20 seats if he formed a party and ran. But he wasn't included in the most recent poll. And another poll suggests the former head of Mossad, Yossi Cohen, would garner up to 12 seats should he form a party and
choose to run. And that illustrates the major problem until things settle down and specific candidates and parties announce their intentions, polls are basically meaningless. Israelis will be focused on security and on finding some sort of national consensus and compromise in the issues that were tearing the country apart prior to October 7th, but that will all start taking place once the war ends.
Would it be your opinion that Netanyahu's slippage in those polls is a reflection of sentiment against his war policies, or is it just a fluke of polling or something else?
I think it's a sentiment against the fact that he was in charge when Hamas gained power, when they, when they finally launched this attack on Israel, was taken by surprise. And a combination that he's been in power so long, you build up a natural resentment to leadership at that point. So it's a combination of a lot of factors. But frankly, he probably is in some trouble as they would approach new elections. This is the.
Land in the book from Modi Radio with our host, Doctor Charlie Dyer. I'm John Jaeger. We're looking at current events from the region. Egypt's new administrative capital now has residents moving in. What do we know about this city designed to eclipse Cairo as the country's capital?
Yeah, this new capital is rising in the desert 28 miles east of Cairo. And the second phase of the project is just starting to get underway. Six months after 48,000 government employees began transferring to ministries and offices in the first phase. The project was launched eight years ago and 100,000 housing units have already been completed. A major banks and businesses are scheduled to move their headquarters this spring. Each of the first two phases is projected to house
1.5 million residents. Phase one will be fully completed by 2027, and work is already underway to draw up a master plan to incorporate phases two, three and four. Each phase encompasses 65mi², which makes this a truly massive undertaking. Phase one has a six mile long park, an area known as Knowledge City, which is intended to support research, development and entrepreneurial ship. It also includes the Egypt Informatics University,
which will focus on high tech. The initial price tag for this venture was put at $58 billion, but that was before Egypt went through a series of economic struggles with declining income and a devalued currency. No one knows the expected price today, so this is a vision that will help transform Egypt and propel it into a future high tech hub. At least that's their hope. Or it could be a boondoggle that will soak up Egypt's limited resources,
only to be abandoned before it ever reaches its potential. Now, only time will tell which vision is true, but in many ways, Egypt's leaders are trying to recapture the sense of vision and grandeur that produced the pyramids, the Sphinx and former cities like Karnak and Luxor in days gone by. Now, for Egypt's sake, let's hope they can pull it off.
A new Israeli medical tech company is working to reduce incidence of delirium in ICU patients. Tell us about this latest innovation from Amazing Israel.
Yeah, many don't realize that up to 80% of ICU patients who are sedated and intubated end up experiencing delirium, including nightmares and hallucinations, which are caused by disorientation and lack of communication. An Israeli company called AI control is working to help reduce or eliminate the delirium and stress, and they're doing it through the use of a plastic headset originally designed for use by those with ALS, Lou
Gehrig's disease. The headset includes an infrared camera. It follows the patient's eyes, along with a bone induction headset that they wear for most of the day. And night, families and friends can send messages that are played to the patient several times a day. Messages are given to them telling what day it is, what time it is, and the headphones that allow them also to listen to their favorite music. They use the camera to track the patient's
eye movements when they ask nonverbal responses to questions. The study is still ongoing, but their hope is that the individuals intubated and sedated in ICU will end up with a more positive experience and with less incidents of delirium, and that would definitely be a major contribution both to patients and to their families from amazing Israel.
And that's a look at current events up next Messiah's seven congregations. A look at the Jewishness of the New Covenant right here on the land. And the book. Why do so many of us evangelicals ignore or minimize the Jewishness of the New Covenant? How does that impact the way we view the end times? And where does the American church fit into all of this? Those are big questions with important answers, and we're going to dig into them in just a moment. Welcome back to the land
and the book. I'm John Jacob, and here's a really important idea about sharing the love of Christ with a Jewish friend or neighbor. I want you to listen carefully. So you've got this Jewish friend and you've been hanging out together. The friendship's deepening and you can talk about spiritual things. Is it possible to use prophecy in Scripture in a conversation? What do you think? Roy Schwartz have chosen? People ministries. Your answer?
Well, I would say prophecy is a great tool to discuss Israel, to discuss current events. You know that certain things, I mean, you need to understand it patiently and and not do ISIS's. That is projecting what's going on, but to begin a discussion. Do you think the State of Israel has anything to do with God? Do you think God brought about the state of Israel and then go from there and then talk about Ezekiel and Daniel and the times of the Gentiles? You know, who knows where
the conversation will lead? But prophecy especially focused on the Old Testament, never mind the New Testament, just focus on the Old Testament, the Jewish scriptures that will enable you to get into conversations about the God of Israel.
That's Roy Schwartz with Chosen People Ministries here on the land and the book. Sam Nadler is the president and founder of Word of Messiah Ministries. He's a Jewish believer in Jesus, and during 40 years in messianic ministry, he has focused on raising leaders who plant congregations and make disciples of Yeshua. It's good to have you back on the land in the book. Sam.
Shalom, John, wonderful to be back with you.
And let's zoom out for just a moment. What is the true purpose of the Book of Revelation?
Well, it's confusing as it may seem to some people. The title is everything. The actual title of the book that was recorded by John the Apostle is the revelation of Yeshua the Messiah. It's about Jesus. It's about Yeshua the Messiah. And so we want to understand him in order to understand the book of the outline of the book in revelation 119 has to do with three areas the things you have seen the past that John was
was revealed to John, and revelation chapter one. Messiah's eternal glory revealed in heaven, and then things which are revelation two and three. Messiah's present sovereignty among the seven congregations. Uh, and then finally the things which will shortly take place. Revelation for 22, for the 22 Messiah's future victory as the lamb over the adversary. And so that is the general idea of it. Uh, we can go into more detail, but that's why I write books. You know, they can read the book.
Well, in the book of revelation, the first several chapters mentioned the seven churches. And these seven congregations, of course, are representative of the spiritual condition of believers everywhere. And the messages from Messiah himself to those believers contain vital information for us. Um, you know, how deliberate do you think it was on the part of of God to make sure that I suppose every kind of church from the beginning of the church itself, up until this day,
was included. Uh, throughout those particular passages.
You know, I think that God seemed a future, you know, from, uh, he sees all things at once. Of course he's omniscient. Uh, but let's say, well, knowing but also let's understand he sees our condition. And so it is. And if we can think of this, it is written to those with ears to hear. And so that's really the question will people pay attention to what he's trying to tell us, that people need to return to their first love? Yes, they need to be faithful by faith in Jesus and
his cross. And so this is actually the message for everyone to listen to for sure.
For sure. You know, we often decry the fact that we're not, uh, you know, theologically astute, sufficient to all the details and imagery of revelation. But the fact of the matter is, those opening chapters have a ton of truth that is incredibly applicable. And we better have ears to listen. That said, how would you characterize the evangelical church today in America? Which church in revelation would you say matches us the most closely and why?
Well, as you mentioned my position, I think this is what the what it's actually teaching there is that during this age, all seven congregations represent the whole body of Messiah. That's why the word seven and seven congregations is used to speak of the completeness of it. But in any case, it's a the body Messiah. In the United States, it's a combination thereof. There are courageous and very faithful believers,
just like Smyrna and Philadelphia. And then there are compromised and faithless believers like it's Sardis and Leo the Seer. But the question that everyone needs to ask, do we have ears to hear what the spirit is saying to all of us? For all of us are being called by the Messiah to be faithful and to demonstrate our faithfulness by proclaiming his good news.
Sam Nadler is the president and founder of Word of Messiah Ministries, written many books, including Messiah's Seven Congregations, a reference to the seven churches that were addressed in the Book of Revelation. All right. That said, what course corrections do you see right now? Uh, America needs to take from a church perspective. Where do you think we're weakest?
Well, we actually discussed this quite a bit at our website. We have a lot of free material on the literature for our listeners to avail themselves of. If they go to Word of messiah.org, where the Messiah talk to see a lot of free downloads, a lot of helps as well, as well as the number of books we've written on this very subject. And so when we think about the course corrections, we want to remember that not much has changed. Uh, you may not be old enough, John, but back in
the day, I remember books written. We need to get the salt out of the salt shaker. 40 years ago, they were saying such things. The same needs to be said today. We need to get the salt out of the salt shaker. We need courage in the pulpits that they might have an expectation of holiness and faithfulness for all the saints because of budget problems, most churches, uh, need more people coming in the front door than going out the back to. Many do not want to preach
deal breakers. That is an expectation of godliness that results from dependence on the cross of Messiah. And so, of course, correction. They need to preach the blood of Yeshua and our total dependence upon him to live out the victorious life.
Well, you know, some might say that's all well and good, but I'm just one person. What can I do? How can my little life help change the course of the church in America?
God is at work in the heart of every believer, and I would suggest they demand justice from the wicked judge. In other words, you need to go to your pastors, and you have to insist upon the discipleship that will focus on the cross and be expressed to the Jew. First, uh, you need to have your pastor expecting every believer to live boldly for the Lord Jesus to proclaim the good news to the neighbors and friends. This is what must be taught, and therefore each person can make a difference.
Each one reach one, then each one to each one. This the calling every believer has.
So what happens if we fail to take this seriously? And this is a serious book, a serious conversation.
Well, certainly. Of course. We read in first John 228 that there will be those who be quote unquote ashamed as his coming. They're living in unprepared life. They're living for the world. They're not living for the Lord. And so there are many nominal believers in churches who are too easily welcomed. Uh, these tares will be left behind and be the apostate Babylon the harlot. And many genuine believers need to resist the influence of our modern culture. How do they do that? By faith in the cross.
Submit to God. Resist the devil. He will flee you. That submission to God is faith in the cross of Jesus. That's that's what it means to submit to God. And therefore, by trusting in the shed blood of the Messiah, uh, then we can actually declare to this world a good news message that they desperately need to hear. Otherwise, genuine believers living unfaithful lives. They may be saved, but they
will go into heaven unrewarded. That's not God's desire. He wants to reward the faithfulness of his saints.
You're right. This book is written to continue to show not only the Jewishness of the New Covenant, but that the calling of God through the New Covenant and the revelation of Yeshua the Messiah has not changed. And I can hear some people saying, why does the Jewishness of the New Covenant matter that much? After all, Paul himself wrote in Galatians 328, there is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. How do you respond?
Well, it's certainly true. I mean, regarding our salvation, there's only one way of salvation. That's what Paul was referring to in Galatians 328. Uh, of course we're all one in the cycle, one family. But we want to remember that, you know, uh, that those who are males, you're still male, aren't you? And you, those who are female are still female. Orange. You and those who are Gentile are still Gentiles, and Jews are still Jews. So it doesn't mean we've lost
our wonderful diversity. It just means there's no division. We have unity in the cross of our Messiah. But that being said, we want to appreciate the fact that what Jesus, how he lived and what he did. In other words, we follow him. We follow not just who he is, but what he did. We follow his example. Life is all about Messiah and how he expressed himself. And therefore when he said, salvation is of the Jews, we want to appreciate that was in the past tense matter. Salvation
is of the Jews, not was. And so we want to appreciate the fact that we are called to be to the Jew. First, the apostle to the Gentiles told every believer that the good news is the power of God and salvation to all who believe, to the Jew first and equally to the Gentiles praise God. And so we need to understand God's program is to the Jew first, and therefore there needs to be an understanding of the Jewishness, a new covenant, to proclaim and teach it clearly and accurately.
Some listeners hear us talking about the New Covenant, and they say, look, I accepted Jesus as my Savior. I'm going to heaven. So why do I need to be concerned with this New covenant stuff?
Okay, well, the New Covenant speaks of the new relationship you have with God in the Messiah. Uh, in other words, you're not under the law. You're not under the authority of the law. And the New Covenant tells us that we have a new life to be lived out. And it explains how to live out that life as we trust in the cross of Messiah, and therefore live out
the new life we have in Yeshua, in Jesus. And so we want to understand this new life through the New Covenant or New Testament as it's translated.
You know, you used a phrase a moment ago that caught my ear an unprepared life. How can we be absolutely sure we are ready for Messiah's return versus living an unprepared life?
Well, I can certainly appreciate the importance of this matter. I we only want our listeners to understand. The only hope, uh, now and forever is trusting in the blood of Messiah. The shed blood of the Messiah is the only hope for now and forever. He is our blessed hope because of what he did for us in the cross. And if you're listening and have not personally trusted in Jesus, you may have gone through various Christian activities and ceremonies.
But they cannot save you. You must trust in the shed blood of the Messiah, and then you will be ready for his return.
Sam, would you lead us in a model prayer that someone could could pray as they're listening to you? Praying? Who? Somebody who wants to receive Jesus could use that prayer. I'm going to invite you to do that.
Lord, forgive me for my sins. See the blood of Messiah through his finished work. Cleanse me of all my sins. So I will be ready for heaven. Whether it's soon or just in the near future. Even now I trust wholly in the blood of Messiah. Thank you for loving me. Thank you for saving me. For in Jesus name I pray. Amen.
Hey friend, if you just prayed that prayer along with Sam, we'd love to hear from you. And email is always welcome and particularly welcome from you at the Land and the book@moody.edu. Sam Nadler has written Messiah seven congregations, a link to that book and his website. When you visit the land and the book.org. Thanks for your time, Sam.
God bless you all.
Shalom and Charlie Dyers popped back into the studio. I'm looking forward to sitting down with him and getting his take on your Bible questions. That's just around the corner on the land and the book. Hope you're having a good day. This is the land in the book from Moody Radio. I'm John Geiger. If we never met before. And the guy you really need to know, that's Doctor Charlie Dyer, our host, who is a former pastor, a Bible teacher, and a guy who loves answering your questions. Charlie,
I'm looking forward to our questions. I'm always amazed at the variety that come in, aren't you?
It is truly fascinating and I do love it. I love questions and it lets us know where the listeners are. So as I said in the past, it's like saying sic them to a dog to ask me a question.
Israel, of course, has been on all of our minds for months, many of us struggling with what to think and feel. But God's heart for the Jewish people remains unchanged. I'm so glad that he is faithful to his chosen people.
Yeah, and that's why our friends at Life in Messiah would like to help you better connect with this crucial aspect of God's character. They're offering their new book, Sharing God's Heart to Land. In the book listeners, this 30 day guided reflection will help connect you with God's heart for his precious people. The articles, which were all written by Life in Messiah staff, provide insight into Jewish life and culture. They can help prepare you to share with
your friends the peace of Messiah that they so desperately need. Now, if you'd like one of these insightful books for yourself or as a gift for someone else, visit Life in Messiah org and click on the Moody Radio button there to find out how you can receive your copy. That's life in messiah.org.
All right. Linda has the honor of being our first questioner today. She heard our discussion in a previous broadcast about whether John the Baptist telling his disciples to ask Jesus if he was the one is really what we think it is. She says, I believe it's quite possible that John knew that he was about to be martyred. He sent his disciples to Jesus for their sakes, and when John was gone, they would know who to follow. After all, John began his ministry declaring that he must increase,
while John must decrease. Your thoughts, Charlie?
Yeah, well, I have to say the suggestion is possible, but I do have some difficulties with it. The first is that John had already been telling his disciples about Jesus. You know, John chapter one John told his followers that Jesus was the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Uh, in that same chapter, he told two of his disciples, one of whom was Jesus's brother Andrew, that Jesus was the Lamb of God. And
then as a result, they chose to follow Jesus. So John's message seems to be consistent from the very beginning. And yet, as you noted later in John three, some of John's disciples became concerned that Jesus's ministry was beginning to eclipse John's and John's response. He must become greater. I must become less so. Prior to his imprisonment, John was absolutely clear on who Jesus was, and he had
been sharing that with his disciples. But the second. Then in Matthew 11, there are signs that it's John who's now having doubts. He's been imprisoned. And so he now asks his disciples to go and ask Jesus, are you the one who's to come? Or should we expect someone else? Now that suggests the element of doubt is behind John's question. And after telling John's disciples to report back to John what they had seen and heard, Jesus then says, blessed is the man who does not fall away on account
of me. That suggests to me that Jesus was encouraging these disciples to go back and encourage John himself by reporting what they had seen and heard. Now, within the context of these passages, it looks to me like John's imprisonment had caused him to doubt what he had earlier affirmed so clearly. Likely it was because things hadn't turned out as he had expected, which we also see true
in our lives. Often Jesus didn't rebuke John. He just simply reminded John of the larger picture to encourage him. And I believe John was encouraged as a result.
Gabe asks, have you heard about the book The Oracle, The Jubilee and Mysteries Unveiled by Jonathan Kohn?
Yeah, well, I have to start by saying I've not read the book. I am familiar with con's writings, and unfortunately, I can't accept his approach to interpreting God's Word. I feel like he tries to read into the Bible rather than letting the Bible speak for itself. People are attracted to the idea that there are deeper, quote hidden messages in God's Word. This approach isn't new. It's been around a long time, but those trying to find that deeper meaning end up missing the mark by making the Bible
say something God hasn't clearly said. It's always best to stick to the plain meaning of the text. When I was in Bible college, I learned a principle of Bible interpretation that has stuck with me over the years. It goes like this when the plain sense of scripture makes common sense, seek no other sense lest it result in nonsense.
That's pretty good. You're listening to The Land in the book from Moody Radio, our host, Doctor Charlie Dyer, working his way through a list of questions that have been emailed. I'll share our email contact info later. Todd asks, Does God promise a blessing to individuals and nations who help the Jewish people? Is this included in God's promise to Abraham?
Well, I think God's promise in Genesis 12 three applies to both individuals and nations. The very first line is plural. That is, God promises to bless those plural who bless. But the second line then switches to the singular. The one singular who curses Abraham and his descendants will be cursed by God. So the message is true whether it applies to individuals or groups, and I actually see it in the rest of the Old Testament, applying to entire
nations as it unfolds there. For example, in Obadiah 15, God says to the nations, the day of the Lord is near for all nations, as you have done, it'll be done to you. Your deeds will return on your own head. And the next verse makes it clear that God's referring to what the nations had done to Israel. In Amos chapter one, God announces his judgment on Damascus, Gaza, tyre, Edam and Amman. And he says it was because of
what they had done to his people. In Zechariah one get to the end of the Old Testament, God announces he's very jealous for Jerusalem and Zion. But I'm very angry with the nations that feel secure because of what they've done to his people. So throughout the Old Testament, I see God judging Israel based on their obedience or disobedience to his revealed will. But he judges the nations
and individuals based on their response to those people. He blesses individuals and nations who seek to bless his people, and he curses those who seek to harm his people. And since that was part of God's unconditional covenant with Abraham and Israel, I don't think it's ever been revoked.
Can you please explain Ezekiel 20 verses 25 and 26, where God says, moreover, I gave them statutes that were not good, and rules by which they could not have life. Passages such as Psalm 119 tell us God's statutes are good. So how do we reconcile these two?
Yeah, and this is another case where it's so important to look at the whole context in context. Ezekiel 2025 isn't referring to God's law, but to the false religious worship and accompanying regulations that the people had turned to in their idolatry. And I say that for two reasons. First, the preceding verse specifically says the people had not obeyed my laws, but had rejected my decrees, and their eyes
lusted after their fathers idols. And then second, in the very next verse, after verse 25, it illustrates the kind of statutes they turn to that were not good. He says. I let them become defiled through their gifts, the sacrifice of every firstborn. So the laws that were not good included pagan regulations requiring child sacrifice. One other thought a word needs to be supplied in verse 25 to have the verse make sense in context, instead of I gave
them statutes that were not good. It needs to be understood in the sense of I gave them over to statutes that were not good. It's picturing a judicial act of divine judgment. Once the people rejected God and His law and turned to idolatry, God handed them over to the logical results of their choices. And in this case, it was the decision to offer their own children as
human sacrifices. By the way, I see something similar in Romans one, where God judicially gave people over to the consequences of their own sinful actions.
Interesting question here. Should we thank God for things we don't feel thankful for? But no, we should be thankful for? Isn't that disingenuous?
Well, I got an answer two ways. First, I think first Thessalonians 518 provides the basic answer give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. Now that suggests we can choose how we respond in spite of our physical or emotional circumstances. But second, then I'm reminded of Paul's second letter to the Corinthians.
Paul gave a general principle in chapter one he says, praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the father of compassion, the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. And then later in the book, in chapter seven, he explains how he was able to move from despair to comfort and thanksgiving. He says, when he came into Macedonia, we had no rest. We were
harassed on every turn, fierce without. But God, who comforts the downcast, comforted us by the coming of Titus, and not only by his coming, but also by the comfort you'd given him. Now all that to say, I think God wants us to be thankful for all things. That doesn't mean such thanks comes automatically, but we start by remembering God does work all things together for good, even when those all things might not in and of themselves be good. And we can be honest with God about
our struggles. We can ask him to bring someone along who can help us remember to be thankful by helping us look beyond ourselves and see the beauty and joy in life around us.
And our last question for this segment comes from Steve. He says, I'm interested in getting a Bible timeline from creation all the way to the start of the church age, and I have resource various outlines and found some agree closely like the creation date, but others vary widely. The birth of Abraham, for example. The question is who do I trust? Does Moody have a resource that dates creation, Noah, the flood, the Tower of Babel, Abraham, etc.?
I mean, I understand the frustration because there are so many different chronologies out there. I've personally not found one source I can agree with completely, but I can recommend two books I found helpful. The first one is called Chronological and Background Charts of the Old Testament, and it was written by John Walton, and the second is chronological and background charts of the New Testament by H. Wayne House.
Now both are published by Zondervan. They're both available on Amazon, and I found both of them very helpful in terms of providing basic information that helps me date things and put them in place.
Well, as always, it's a fun trip through these questions. And by the way, I promised I'd share our email address. If you'd like to get a question to Charlie, here's how to do it. The land and the book@moody.edu. That's simple. The land and the book@moody.edu. We'll look forward to getting your question. Well, the program has more yet to come. It's Charlie's devotional right here. Next. What's that old line? The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain. Well,
welcome back to the land in the book where. Charlie, your devotional has to do with weather bulletins and rain. Is that correct?
That's right. We're continuing that series on weather bulletins from the Bible. And today we're looking at rain.
Okay, but we're not going to Spain at all. We're headed to Deuteronomy chapter 11. Right.
That's exactly.
Right. Okay. We'll get to that devotional and its implications for you and me after we hear this Holy Land experience testimony.
I had the wonderful experience of visiting the Holy Land. I cannot express how much it meant to me just to walk the streets and just to go to places that are so familiar in the Bible.
The Bible truly come alive to me. After visiting Israel, the Dead Sea was one of my favorite spot the garden tombs. Oh, I love that. Mount Olive was wonderful. I mean so many places to enjoy and to see. My desire is to return again. I'm now in school doing a degree and as soon as I finish.
That will be my place of giving myself a tree to visit Holy Land again with my granddaughter. Anybody who have the opportunity to do this should do it and enjoy to the best of their ability. God bless you and thanks for sharing. Your program have been a blessing to my heart daily as I sit at work and listen to you.
All right, Charlie, I have my, uh, rain boots on my umbrella at the side. Ready to go for your devotional. Take it away.
Uh, thanks, John. I'm glad you're carrying that umbrella, because I am starting today's devotional by describing two unusual occurrences. For the first, imagine a sudden August storm descending on a city along the coast. As rain pours down, residents spot a waterspout whirling ominously just off shore. Now, while that might not be too unusual if you live in Florida, this took place in Haifa, Israel. One resident who posted a video of the waterspout said the end of the
world has come to Haifa. The second occurrence took place years ago when I was with a group of students at Yarden. Neat! The baptismal site near the southern end of the Sea of Galilee in June. There were dark clouds in the sky, but I assured our group not to worry. It never rains in Israel. In June. About then, the sky opened up and a torrent of rain soaked
all of us before we could make it inside. Later there I talked with a 70 something kibbutz Nick, who worked at the site, and I asked him about the rain, and he said, I've lived in Israel all my life. I've never seen it rain here in June. What made both of these events so memorable was their uniqueness. While I learned never to say never, the reality is that Israel has a mediterranean type climate that's more like Southern
California than like the rest of the United States. Generally, they experience a rainy season from October through April and a dry season from May through September. Each season can extend for a longer or shorter time, depending on when the rains start and stop. The Bible refers to those as the early rains and the latter rains, but in general the pattern is predictable. Moses provided the first long range weather forecast for the children of Israel as they
were preparing to enter the Promised Land. Those who had been born in Egypt or during Israel's time in the wilderness, had no experience with the meteorology of this new land. They had always lived in a desert where they got water either from the Nile River or from the wells and wadis in Sinai. Moses explained what was in store
for them in Deuteronomy 11. The land you're about to enter to take over is not like the land of Egypt from which you've come, where you planted your seed and irrigated it by foot, as in a vegetable garden. But the land you're crossing the Jordan to take possession of is a land of mountains and valleys that drinks
rain from heaven. And if they remain faithful to God, he promised to send rain on your land in its season, both the early and late rain, so that you may gather in your grain, new wine and oil, rain from heaven, rain that would begin in the fall and extend through the winter into the spring. But with that promise came
a warning. If the people chose to disobey God, he threatened to shut the heavens so that it will not rain in the ground, will yield no produce, and you will soon perish from the good land the Lord is giving you. Water is essential for life, and God's supply from heaven would be dependent on Israel's faithfulness. Perhaps that's why so much of the Bible revolves around the issue
of rain, or the lack thereof. With the crazy exceptions I mentioned at the beginning, the weather is fairly predictable in Israel, at least in the summer, even when it might look like rain. At the start of the day, the clouds vanish as the sun rises in the sky. That's why Solomon compared someone who promises much but doesn't deliver to clouds and wind without rain. And Jesus's half brother Jude warned against godless men whom he compared to
clouds without rain blown along by the wind. Those living in Israel understood those summer clouds that looked promising but never seemed to amount to anything. And that's why a heavy rain or thunderstorm during the summer dry season makes the news even today. But imagine how frightening it was to those in Israel who experienced times when God turned
the weather forecast on its head. The Prophet Samuel's farewell speech to Israel took place at the time of the wheat harvest, which is in June during the dry season. Knowing what you know now, listen to his interaction with the people. Is it not wheat harvest? Now I will call upon the Lord to send thunder and rain, and you will realize what an evil thing you did in the eyes of the Lord when you asked for a king. Then Samuel called upon the Lord, and the same day
the Lord sent thunder and rain. So all the people stood in awe of the Lord and of Samuel. The people all said to Samuel, pray to the Lord your God for your servant, so that we will not die. Oh, and one final detail. That meeting took place in Gilgal, near Jericho. While it might rain rarely up in the hill country in June, it never rains in the lower Jordan Valley at that time of year. No wonder the people were frightened. Rain in the appropriate season was a
visible reminder of God's faithfulness. But when the people turned from God, he threatened to withhold the rain. When Ahab and Jezebel tried to replace the God of Israel with Baal, God sent Elijah to announce as the Lord, the God of Israel lives, whom I serve there will. Be neither do nor rain in the next few years, except at my word. And for the next three and a half years, Israel experienced no rain about the same time as Elijah
was ministering to the northern Kingdom of Israel. The prophet Joel was ministering to the southern kingdom of Judah, and while he describes a devastating invasion of locusts, he also alludes to a time of drought so severe that, quote, the streams of water have dried up, as he describes
it in chapter one, verse 20. And then as he looked beyond the time of judgment to a future time of blessing, he describes that as a time when God will send you abundant showers, both the early and the latter rain as before, rain at the proper time and in appropriate amounts, was a sign of God's blessing. But Jesus used rain to reveal one additional truth. The religious leaders in his day were telling people to love your
neighbor and hate your enemy. In contrast, Jesus told those listening to love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. And to make his point. In Matthew 545, Jesus reminded them of the example of God and the rain. God sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. This is often referred to as God's common grace, the unmerited favor he extends to both believers and unbelievers alike. And
rain is a good illustration of this common grace. Now, as you get ready to close up your umbrella and head home, what lessons can you carry along with you? Let me suggest two. First, just as God used the rain in Israel to remind the nation of their need to remain dependent on him, so God brings circumstances into our lives to remind us of the same thing. You might be experiencing your own time of spiritual drought. It
could be financial or physical or an emotional crisis. But whatever the situation, it could be a wake up call from God to remind you to return to him. Don't wait until the crisis becomes greater. Go to him in prayer today. And the second lesson is just as important as the first. God wants us to reflect his character, and one truth about God is that he loves the world. How do we know? Well, he sent his son to
die for the world. But Jesus also said, God causes the sun to shine on the righteous and the unrighteous, and he brings the rain on both as well. If you want to reflect God's character, then search out a way today to demonstrate his love and care not only to those who are part of God's family, but also to those who are not. To borrow from the words of the old gospel song, let's become showers of blessing to everyone we meet today.
Thank you Charlie. Well, Weather Bulletins is the name that Charlie has titled this devotional series been going on for some time. You can hear them all as you head to our website. The land and the book.org. Information there about every program, every guest, all waiting for you. And also our podcast. Check it all out at the land and the book. Org. Well, our time is gone. We want to say thank you for investing your time with us. Thanks to the station for giving us a slot here.
Thank you to Dan Anderson for putting it all together. To our host, Charlie Dyer, I'm John Geiger. The land and the book is a production of Moody Radio, a ministry of Moody Bible Institute.