American Family Radio takes your Bible questions live on American Family Radio
>> : 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.
Alex McFarland: Exploring the word in Titus 2:11
>> Alex McFarland: Welcome to Exploring the word in Titus 2, verse 11. There's a very, very well known verse. It says, for the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lust, we should live soberly, righteously and godly in the present age. Well, welcome to Exploring the word. Alex McFarland here, and we're going to talk about Titus 2:11 and following. And we invite you, if you're at a place where you can get a copy of God's Word, open up to the Book of Titus. Now, folks, is that old or NewSong Testament? Good answer. NewSong Testament. I'm sure you knew that. And, along with me is Dylan Burroughs, frequent, frequent contributor to Exploring the Word. Bert Harper is traveling. He'll be back, but he's traveling right now. And Dylan, we certainly do appreciate you filling in when either Bert or I am, on the road. Welcome back, Dylan Burroughs.
>> Alex McFarland: Well, thank you. Glad to be with you as always. We do miss having Bert with us, but I've enjoyed the past few days of going through this letter to Titus from the Apostle Paul, one of the three pastoral epistles, and all the truth and all the application it has for us today. We had some great questions yesterday. A, special opportunity to pray for many of our callers, and we look forward to talking with some of you later today.
We're going to start off in Titus 2 where we left off yesterday
But we're going to start off in Titus 2 where we left off yesterday. We had just a few verses left at the end of chapter two, and Alex started off with the first one there. Why don't you introduce the setting here and let's dive right in and get into it.
>> Alex McFarland: Yeah, well, you know, chapter two had given some qualities, that should be evident in the lives of men, women and even young people. godliness and self control and, temperance. Verse 7 says, in all things showing yourself to be a pattern of good works. In other words, this should be habitual, you know, for the Christian, you know, this should be the regular lifestyle that, our life has been changed. We've come to Christ. We are a, new creation. And so the things that show, forth Christ likeness, this is the pattern and the regular habits, of living for the believer. And yesterday, we commented on verse 10 about you know, even employees. I've. I've got to say this. many of you know that I have for some years, taught in Colorado. there's Christian college in Woodland Park, Colorado. And what a great testimony. I was in the local store, the grocery store, to get a couple of things. I was up there teaching. This was probably about fall of last year, maybe October, and a man came over to me, and he was the manager of this huge, you know, grocery store and everything. And he said, do you teach at the. At, the college? And I said, I do. And he said, well, I just want to thank you. He said, we've hired right many of the students, and they are the best. He said, they show up on time, they give a good day's work. They don't steal. He said, I will hire all the students you can send me. Because he said, frankly, our store has become, you know, more productive, more profitable. And he said, I just want to thank you for the quality of employees that your students make. And that, that was just an amazing testimony. and I said, well, you know, to God be the glory. And, you know, at first when he flagged me down, I thought, okay, I hope everything's cool. But he said, listen, spread the word among those college students. I'll hire as many as you can send me because they're, they're the best. And that's like what verses 9 and 10 would say, that, the most exemplary employees really ought to be the Christian employees. And you know what? I've got to say something. We'll segue into verse 11. but, Dylan, I'm holding in my hand commentary on St. Paul's epistles to Timothy, Titus and Philemon. And this commentary, is content that's 800 years old because it's Thomas Aquinas's Commentaries on the NewSong Testament. And, you know, my edition is not 800 years old. I don't own one of those, but it's a copy. And you know what's so pretty, wild is 800 years ago he was writing a verse by verse commentary. And it begins about, He says that, the theme of the NewSong Testament is found in the old testament, Habakkuk 2. 4. The just shall live by faith, and we are saved by faith. But once that saving faith has taken place in our heart, our lifestyle should be different. And I guess what's. What's really exciting, I think, is eight centuries have gone by, and yet the word of God still means what it means, and it says here, the grace of God which brings salvation has appeared to all men. Now let me say this doesn't mean that all people have been born again, because not everybody believes. Some reject. But you know what, Dylan is really amazing that within about four decades after the cross, the gospel message had been largely taken to the civilized world. I've heard people say, you know, Christ can't come back until the gospel goes to every people group. Well, in reality, the gospel has gone to virtually every people group in the world. now we need to ever be about that great commission. But verse 11 of Titus 2, God has revealed himself to the human race, hasn't he, Dylan?
>> Alex McFarland: He has. And we think often of Jon 3:16 that talks about Jesus coming and offering eternal life to all who believe. There's so many places like Titus 2 that talk about the same message. The grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. that is a powerful statement. It's not that everyone is a believer, like you clarified, but that everyone has the opportunity for salvation through Jesus Christ, by grace, through Faith. verse 12 teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously and godly in the present age. those are powerful phrases. And we saw some of those earlier when we talked about qualifications for church leaders in the previous chapter. But here the same message is being proclaimed to all believers. So it's not only for the top leaders in the church, of course yours, it's for all of us. That's how we're supposed to be striving to live for the Lord. And to clarify again, it's not us doing it in our own power. Jesus changes us by his grace. And so we are transformed from the inside out. But we also strive day by day, moment by moment, to live for the Lord.
Alex Titus: Verse 13 says looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing
And I love verse 13. And we'll get into this a little bit, our future hope that we're looking toward. Verse 13, the new king James Version says, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God Savior, Jesus Christ. That is something I hope you're looking forward to today. The older we become, the more we look forward to our eternity in heaven. Our body breaks down, life gets hard. We realize the limitations of this life. But there will be a glorious day, a glorious appearing when we will be with him forever in a new body with all believers and enjoy his presence forever. And that should motivate us in our day to day living as well, shouldn't it, Alex?
>> Alex McFarland: Absolutely. I love, verse 13 that you mentioned, looking for the blessed hope and the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. You know, in the English it says blessed hope. And in the original language, the word makarios, among other things, it means to make longer. Now what does that mean? Not necessarily in terms of like time, like you know, 60 minutes is longer than 30 minutes, but to enlarge, to expand, to fully open up the benefits of, and, and here's I guess at least one direction from which we could understand this. To be born again and to know the Lord, to know that Christ is with you right this minute, to know that you're secure in the Lord. And as a believer, when you leave this world, you, you'll go to heaven. Wonderful, wonderful. Immeasurably great how that knowledge is. But when we see Christ face to face, we're in the presence of the Lord. When Christ returns and he is the one who says, behold, I make all things new, that is the blessed hope. To expand it, to fully open it up, to make it longer, make it thorough. Dylan, we belong to Jesus right now, if you're a believer, but our, our full experience is, is partial. We're, we're still down here in this fallen world. We're awaiting the trumpet and the return of Christ. But it is the blessed hope, fully expanded, unbridled, complete, thorough, pervasive. One day we will be with Jesus and it's just beyond human ability to adequately describe, isn't it?
>> Alex McFarland: Well, you're right. And a couple of things that following verse clarifies as well that are helpful in this discussion. It says in verse 14 that he might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify us for Himself is His own special people zealous for good works. There are two parts there to emphasize. One, that he's redeemed us from every lawless deed. So we're putting aside the old, taking on the new in terms of living for the Lord and also this idea of purity. Now sometimes as, American Christians, we emphasize this first part that Jesus saves us, we have our ticket to heaven punched, as they say, but we don't focus so much on the purity aspect. And so, so many times we miss out on God's blessings because we're content to simply think that we're going to heaven and not think about the day to day walk with the Lord where His Spirit lives within us, works through us, impacts the lives of those around us. And that is an essential part of our walk with The Lord. And if you're neglecting that this is a call to focus on that purity for the Lord, that we are his special people and that we're zealous for good works, like the story you shared about the students in the grocery store that may God say the same thing about all of us when it comes to Amen. Our workplace, about our witness in our community, our neighbors. There's so many ways in which the way that we act on a day to day basis impacts the eternity of those around us. And it's, a convicting thing when we think about it from that perspective.
>> Alex McFarland: Amen. Amen. I love, verses 14 and 15 that close out Titus, chapter two, verse 15 especially it says, speak these things. Exhort and rebuke with all authority. Let no one despise you. Okay, speak what things? Well, salvation by faith. And then once we are born again, we are to live for Jesus and, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, these virtues and characteristics and, spiritual traits of, you know, godliness and love and righteousness and self control. And we who have received God's grace, we should show God's grace. So we're to exhort each other toward these things. But then also, the return of Christ is mentioned here. And, by the way, denying ungodly lusts. I mean, I think, Dylan, this is going to sound old school. We should preach holiness.
>> Alex McFarland: Yes.
>> Alex McFarland: Sanctification, you don't hear that too much anymore, but, there was a time in the American church where holiness was an important thing. And I don't mean up on some, you know, arrogant, moral high horse. No, but a humility and a hunger for godliness and truth. And then we're to preach not only these things, but, preach the return of Christ. that's eschatology, the blessed hope, the returning of Christ, the unveiling and appearing of the great God, our Savior, Jesus. We need to preach these things now. Verse 15. Regarding the whole counsel of God, rebuke with all authority. Let no one despise you. Preachers, teachers, don't be afraid to talk about the hard issues. Where we can speak, where God has spoken. And regarding the moral social issues of our day. God's word is clear. I think we can and confidently should be clear as well. Stay tuned. A brief break and more of Titus on this edition of Exploring the Word.
>> : The AFR App is a powerful tool, but it does have limitations. You can't use it to change the 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.
>> Alex McFarland: Enough colors to paint the whole picture.
>> Caroline: Not enough words to ever say what I found.
The Ten Commandments Speech Challenge is for children and youth ages 7 to 17
>> Alex McFarland: Welcome back to Exploring the Word. This is Dylan burrows with Alex McFarland and we are enjoying a look at the epistle of Titus from the Apostle Paul, one of the pastoral epistles. We had a great first segment with you and we look forward to hearing from you later in our program. You can go ahead and send your questions now. I want, to make sure to remind you that if you're doing this by email, it's wordfr.networdfr.net you can also go to Facebook if you're watching us there on video and drop your question in the comments on the Exploring the Word Facebook page. And we will check those out as we are able and share those on the live show. And then of course you can call us on the phone number and make sure you write this down or save this 888-589-8840 and next segment we will get into those 888-589-8840. But before we continue today, I want special challenge that we have called the Ten Commandments Speech Challenge. Maybe you've heard about this. It's for children and youth ages 7 to 17. You're invited to write and present a 3 to 5 minute speech on the topic of the First Commandment. You shall have no other gods before me. Now, you can have a parent or a sibling help you with this, but you need to submit it by June 30th. All the information is at afr.net on the 10 Commandment Speech Challenge page. But let me tell you why you want to do this. first you're going to get a book bookmark and a free T shirt with the Ten Commandments on it, as well as a free shipping coupon code to use in the AFA Resource Center. So there are all kinds of good reasons to do that, but it doesn't have to be fancy. You just record, it on your phone or your mobile device and send it in. And we'd love to have that to share. So go to afr.net 10commandments and check out the details and let us hear your submission before June 30th. We look forward to it. And I don't know about you, Alex, but hearing the voices of young people, either on our show or in churches, speaking the truth of God, that touches my heart. I don't know about you, but this is. There's just something about it, when young people are speaking God's word, that is transformative and powerful.
>> Alex McFarland: Amen. Amen. Well, thank you, Dylan, and, thanks for that information. yeah, we love it when we hear about young people listening to, exploring the Word. And, if you're out there listening and maybe you're an elementary schooler or a middle schooler or in high school, we, love and appreciate you. We really do. And I know many godly moms and dads keep the radio turned to American Family Radio. And a lot of people growing up hear this content. You know, Dylan, we having done the Show now for 16 years, sometimes I meet kids that are 24, 25, 30, 35, and they'll say, you know, I've been listening to Exploring the Word in my mom and dad's car ever since I was little. And, hey, we give God the glory because no matter who you are, and I want to say to the people out there that are not so young, no matter where you are in life, no matter what stage of life, you can call out to Jesus Christ and put your faith in him. it's been our joy to see some people come to Christ and be born again that were in their 80s. And even a few people I know that have accepted Christ in their 90s. Now, you need to do that today because none of us are guaranteed tomorrow. You know, I'll tell you one thing that would cause you to miss heaven, and that's procrastination. Seriously. So if you're listening, no matter what, your age is young, not so young, make sure that you've put your faith in Christ, that you've had that moment where you prayed and you said, dear Jesus, I do believe in you. I believe you died on the cross for me. I believe you are the Son of God and Lord, I'm accepting what you did as the payment for my sins. Dear Jesus, save me, wash my sins away, and help me to follow you. You know, it's not what, the words are so much, Dylan, as you know, but we admit that we're a sinner, and then we recognize and we confess that Jesus Christ is the son of God. He paid our sin debt on the cross. He rose from the dead. And the Bible tells Us in so many places, in so many ways, that if we put our trust in Jesus, we are forgiven. So if you've never done that, do that today. You know, Dylan mentioned that we, we take a lot of emails, wordfr.net and on the Facebook page, you know, please friend us on Facebook. Brent Austin is always putting up content and so like us on Facebook, if you would. But on there and on, my own website, we've got the gospel up there, and that's the most important thing. That's why we do this, so that people would know Christ and grow in Christ and with his word, become everything that God has for you, every. Every blessing he has for you as a believer and as a Christian.
Titus chapter three reminds us to be subject to rulers and authorities
Well, Titus, chapter three, we kind of segue into that, and it begins this way. Remind them to be subject to rulers and authorities, to obey, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing all humility to all men. For we ourselves also were once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lust and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hurting one another. Now, Dylan, in these verses, I mean, if we're honest, it's very convicting and humbling. Like verse three, There was a day I know what I used to be. before I knew Jesus. foolish, disobedient, deceived. I mean, that was me. And at 21 years old, I heard about the gospel and I prayed and put my faith in Jesus Christ. And, you know, Lord knows I'm not everything I ought to be even yet, but praise God, I'm not what I used to be. And so these are reminders, you know, when verse 15 said, speak these things. And then verse one of chapter three reminds me to remind others. I think that's a big part of being in church and being around Christian friends and having accountability that we gently remind each other and we role model before each other that we are followers of Christ and He is the Lord and our lives should look like it.
>> Alex McFarland: Well, that's a powerful word, and I'm so thankful that you started off by sharing the simple gospel message. so many of us take for granted that we've had that opportunity in our lives to express faith in Him. But sometimes there are people listening, even today, who have never done that, who aren't sure where they will spend eternity. And your words may have been what prompted them to call out to the Lord. So if the Lord did something in your heart during that time, please let us know. Word net we'd love to know about it, celebrate it with you, send you some materials to help, or call us at our number here in a moment at 888580 8900. 8840. But as you mentioned in chapter three, it starts off with remind them. And you could tell from the words that Paul is talking about something he shared before. This isn't new information, but he's telling them things that he said when he wasn't there with them before, perhaps with Titus. And he starts off with this idea of being subject to rulers and authorities. that is a very applicable message for today, where we have, so much rebellion against our government, sometimes against law enforcement, against leaders of all kinds in our society, teachers, coaches, others. And when we follow Christ, we are called to stand above the cultural norms and to do what the scriptures say here. To be subject or to be obedient or to be respectful to rulers and authorities. And if we think that we have a bad think about who was in charge of the kingdom when Paul was writing these words, he was under a king of the Roman Empire who had all authority. So we have a much better situation where we have voting and representation for our governmental leaders. And these words apply to us as well, that we need to be obedient and subject to those in our communities, to authorities, law enforcement, and beyond, and be ready for every good work.
Paul says when you follow Christ, those foolish, disobedient deeds are past
another thing you mentioned in these verses that are so important, this idea that, we see ourselves differently than what we used to be, it says we ourselves were also once foolish and disobedient. And it gives a list of other traits there. that's the exchange. When you follow Christ, when you believe in him, those foolish, disobedient deeds are things of the past. Now, we still fall into those at times. We still make mistakes. But our goal is to give those up and to live differently from that point forward. And as Christians today, there's that temptation to believe and yet keep living according to the ways of the world. And that's incompatible with what we see in these teachings and what we see in the verses that follow, aren't they?
>> Alex McFarland: Absolutely. And, you know, verse four is so tender. I mean, it's really moving. You know, there's this contrast, of what we used to be foolish, disobedient, sinful, verse 4. But when the kindness and the love of God, our Savior toward man appeared not by works of righteousness, which we have done, but according to his mercy, he saved us through the washing of regeneration and the Renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Christ Jesus, our Savior. Now what he's doing is he's reminding the reader, at this point, us, of the goodness of God. It really speaks of the humanity of Jesus. In other words, the incarnation that God took on a human body, left heaven, came to earth, walked the dusty roads of Jerusalem all the way up to Mount Calvary to pay our sin debt. Dylan, the great motivator to repent from sin. Get straight, live right, be obedient, be in church, be in the Word every day, pray, do right by God and those around you. What's the motive? I think gratitude, because had it not been for Jesus, had it not been for Calvary, we would be lost. We would be hopeless, helpless. And so, Paul is, encouraging the reader. Think back. The kindness of the love of God appeared now not only Bethlehem, Calvary, the incarnation, but when God made Himself known to you. Think about that, folks. can you remember the time that it dawned on you? The lights came on, you realized, I need Jesus, Jesus loves me. Jesus is patiently waiting on me. do you remember that? I remember some of those times when, okay, it was that aha moment. Okay, I'm a sinner, but God loves me. Christ died for me. I'm going to ask Jesus to be my Lord and my Savior. And I think it's important to go back to that. Don't forget it. Don't lose the wonderment and the awe and the realization I can be in a relationship with God. God loves me. And so, verse five, not by works of righteousness. Dylan, this is one of our memory verses. When I was at Liberty University 30 plus years ago, and we, I, was in seminary and we had a stack of 100 Bible verses that we were to memorize. And the Titus 3. 5 was one of them. Not by works of righteousness, which we have done, but according to his mercy, he saved us. Now should we do good works? Of course. But it's not works that saved us. It's by his mercy and his grace, isn't it?
>> Alex McFarland: Of course. And the way this wraps up in this section in verse eight, brings it all together, it says, this is a faithful saying. Ah, to summarize these verses that we've been talking about. These things I want you to affirm constantly. Paul told Titus that those who have believed in God should be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable to men. this is not an option for us as Christians. This is essential for us as followers of Jesus Christ, that we would be dedicated from the point of salvation forward until we meet Christ face to face, to holy living, to good works, to things like respecting governing authorities, to things like being washed by the regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, to be making an eternal impact in the lives of those around us. Like you said, out of gratitude, not out of a sense of earning our way. And when we do, God works through us in incredible ways, through his spirit, to change eternity. I don't know about you, but the older I get, the more I think, how do people make it without Jesus in their lives?
>> Alex McFarland: Exactly.
>> Alex McFarland: You think about that. If you go through some terrible tragedy or grief, you lose a loved one. It is hard enough when you have the Holy Spirit in your life, when you have God living inside of you, but when you don't have that, how do you function? And sadly, we see what does happen when people don't have Christ in their lives. They result in dysfunction. There's depression, there's discouragement, there's anxiety, there's hopelessness, there are wrecked relationships. And the answer to that is, Jesus. It's the gospel. You know, we have programs we can go to, we have other things we can look into. But the ultimate answer behind it all is the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Paul reminds Titus that without Jesus, we're lost
And Paul affirms that here, not just for him, not just for us, but to Titus, a minister of the Gospel, to remind him that when you're leading these churches, when you're choosing these leaders, it's about the gospel and it's about living out that hope within you. Because one day Christ is coming back and you want to be able to go with this expectation that you were ready and not that you're living with the regret in some way hoping that he would come back some other day.
>> Alex McFarland: You know, I was just thinking about that. You're so right, Dylan. I mean, as a Christian, and I mean, Angie and I have both been believers for decades now. And, you know, even as a born again Christian, life ain't always easy, right? And how people wake up and get out of bed and face the day without Jesus, I just can't imagine. there was a gospel song. Some of you will know it, I'm sure. Mylon Lefebvre was the composer. It's called Without Him I Could Do Nothing. And, there was a time you heard this song a lot, and a lot of people recorded it. I think the Gaithers did it. I, think Elvis did a version of it, but without him, I'd Surely fail. Without him, I could do nothing. like a ship without a sail. some of those old gospel songs that remind us, and certainly this scripture reminds us that without Jesus, we're lost. But with Jesus Christ, he is always there. He will never forsake us. Philippians 4:13. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Philippians 4:19. My God shall supply all your needs according to his riches and glory through Christ Jesus. Now, maybe just kind of, put a marker there in your Bible. Tomorrow we're going to wrap up Titus 3, verses, nine and following to conclude this short but very powerful book. And we come back, we're going to take your questions. Get ready. Call in 888-58-9884. Your questions after this brief break.
Preborn Network of clinics offers free ultrasounds to women in crisis
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>> Alex McFarland: They do an ultrasound. And that's when everything changed. Because when I saw my baby, ah,
>> Caroline: when I heard her heartbeat, that was it.
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>> Caroline: There's just nothing left to say.
>> Alex McFarland: I call your name.
>> Caroline: Jesus.
>> Alex McFarland: Reaching out for grace. We call his name. Indeed we do.
>> Alex McFarland: The name of Jesus.
Tomorrow is the birthday of the reborn State of Israel
Welcome back to Exploring the Word. Hey, the number toll free. If you have a Bible question, Dylan Burrows and I would be very honored to hear from you. The number is 8885-8988-4088-8589-8840. And we would love to hear from you. And hey, by the way, tomorrow is May 14th, very significant day, we believe very significant because Israel declared its independence, and 12 minutes in, 12 minutes into the reborn modern state of Israel. then President Harry Truman recognized the sovereign nation of Israel. And a day later, a day later, Arabs, attacked Israel. But, tomorrow is very significant because it's the birthday of the reborn State of Israel. May 14, 1948. But, we're going to begin to go to some calls. I've got a computer that's being in the tech room being worked on even as we speak. But helping us out to queue up the calls is Mr. Brent Austin, board operator extraordinaire. Brent Austin. Do we have some calls?
>> Alex McFarland: Your checks in the mail, by the way.
>> Alex McFarland: Oh, thank you.
Marcina from Tennessee shares her thoughts on John 10:16
>> Alex McFarland: Let's go to Marcina in Tennessee. Marcina, thank you for calling.
>> Alex McFarland: You're welcome.
>> Caroline: I would like Alex to comment on, chapter 10 of Jon, verse 16, Jon 10:16.
>> Alex McFarland: Okay, let me turn over here. Thank you for calling in, and we'll see what we got here. Jon 10:16. My Bible, Jesus says, and other sheep I have which are not of this fold, them also I must bring, and they will hear my voice, and there will be one flock and one shepherd. Okay, very good. Thank you. Jon 10. He, Jesus is talking about, he is the true shepherd. And one thing I want to lay out, like verse two, that he is the one door. he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. There's one Jesus. And then, like verse 14, he says, I'm the good shepherd. I know my sheep and am known by my own. some translations. It will say, I know my sheep, and my sheep know me. First of all, let me say what I don't think this is saying. I've read some commentators that will take verse 16, other sheep I have not of this fold. And somebody will say, I've heard, you know, liberal commentators say, well, see there, there's more ways to heaven than just Jesus. There are other sheep that maybe they don't believe in Jesus, but they're sheep of God. I don't believe that. Brent, do you remember when. I mean, Dylan, do you remember when some of the disciples came to Jesus and they said, others are preaching in your name. Should we rebuke them? And Jesus said, no, you know, he who is, not for me is against me, and he who doesn't stand with me scatters. But, you know, just rejoice that the gospel is being preached. I think this speaks to the broad numbers of people that did and do believe in Jesus. But he says that they will hear my voice and they'll ultimately be one flock and one shepherd. I don't think this is meaning that all religions lead to God. Not at all. But I think that there are, many different people that have come to Jesus, but they salvation is only through Jesus. But, we are one day going to Be one flock under one Shepherd. That's Jon 17:20. One last thing I'll say, and I'll throw it to you, Dylan. Christ prayed, Father, that they, the believers, all may be one. O N E. Right now we're kind of fragmented. There's denominations and there's different camps. But here's what we all have in common. All true Christians have believed in Jesus Christ, the Son of God. We're not the church unified yet, but one day we will be all unified under that one shepherd, the good shepherd, the chief shepherd, Jesus Christ. What do you say about this, Dylan?
>> Alex McFarland: That's well said. the thing I would add to that is a lot of people take this as a verses, specifically talking about how Jesus will bring together both Jews and Gentiles into one family of God through the Gospel of Jesus Christ. And that's how I would understand it, too. These other sheep or Gentiles who would come to believe in Jesus, that were distinct from the Jewish people, they would become one flock and they would have one shepherd. Jesus, you know, the good shepherd it talks about in Jon 10. So it's not about universalism like you're talking about, or even, other ways of knowing Christ, but that there would be unity in Christ for all people, Jews and Gentiles. I think that's clear from what we see in other places, like Galatians 3. 28, where there's neither Jew nor gentile, slave nor free, male or female. You are all one in Christ Jesus. That is the emphasis throughout the NewSong Testament that all this discrimination that Jews and Gentiles have between one another during that time was wiped away. And one family of God for all those who believed in Jesus as the Messiah. So it's a powerful teaching for their culture. And of course, it still is for us today. Thanks so much for your question. Indeed.
Lisa is asking for prayer for her niece that she would receive salvation
>> Alex McFarland: Brent, what you got?
>> Alex McFarland: I'm going to throw this one in here off of our email. Lisa is asking for prayer for her niece that she would receive salvation and she would get out of the trans lifestyle.
>> Caroline: Wow.
>> Alex McFarland: Dylan, would you pray for, Lisa's niece to come to Christ?
>> Alex McFarland: Sure. Let's pray. Father, thank you so much for Lisa sharing this prayer request today for her niece. Of course, we don't know all the details, but we know that you do. And specifically, she's praying for her to come out of this transgender, background and to follow the Lord and to come to faith in Jesus. And of course, that would be our number one goal for her as well today, that she would turn to Christ, the author of our salvation, the beginner of our faith, and be transformed. And Lord, that you would do a, mighty work in her life, Father. help her to see the love of other Christians around her and be compelled and drawn to it. Help her to be drawn to you through the power of the Holy Spirit. And that we would someday be able to rejoice that she is following you and living for you completely and transformed by the renewing of her mind, just like Romans 12 teaches. And we thank you for Lisa's prayer request today. In Jesus name, amen.
>> Alex McFarland: Amen. Amen. Where to next, Brent?
Dylan: How extensive is the gospel and the impact of Christ
>> Alex McFarland: All right, let's go to Joe in Tennessee. Joe, thank you for calling.
>> Caroline: Yeah, I just got a quick prayer request and a question. my sister in law's knees are in real bad shape and she needs an operation. But if she could find some relief, that would be really great. my question is, I know what height is, depth is, width is what is breath.
>> Alex McFarland: great question. These are called spatio temporal dimensions. Length, width, height, breadth. and it really speaks to the fact in all directions, you know, salvation touches everything. I mean, honestly, I remember I've read about several different earthquakes that, Like, for instance, In December of 2004, I believe it was, was the Asian tsunami. And there was an earthquake at the bottom of the ocean. And sadly, that created that tidal wave that swept across much of Thailand. But they said that there was no point on earth where that, seismic event wasn't felt. And I think it's that way with the coming of Jesus. I mean, the, the birth of the infant in the Bethlehem manger was such a seismic event that not only the whole human race, the whole world, but all of history would forever be touched. And the breadth of Christ's salvation, I'll put it this way. There was. There was a scholar named Abraham Kuyper. He was Dutch Christian. And he said, look in any direction, any 360 degrees in every direction, God has spoken. The breadth, how extensive is the gospel and the impact of Christ. Everything, everywhere, everybody. What do you say, Dylan?
>> Alex McFarland: Well, you're right. And it reminds me so much of Psalm 19, where it talks about the heavens declare the glory of God, the skies proclaim the work of his hands. If you look at those opening verses to Psalm, 19, it describes very similarly to what you're saying now. That the creation around us describes God. It reveals him. It's what's called general revelation in theology, where we have general revelation through nature, through the universe, and we have special revelation through the scriptures that give us more specifically the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Both are important, but the gospel itself gives us the clear directions on how to believe. So it's a very important part of our faith. It's a very important reason that we are very respectful of nature and the created world around us. But at the end of the day, it's Christ and Christ alone that we believe in and are changed by. And appreciate your call, and thanks so much for your time.
Brent: Let me encourage people everywhere to pray for this young generation
>> Alex McFarland: Brent. What you got, guys?
>> Alex McFarland: I'm going to go back to, email one more time. Robin is asking for prayer for Royce. that's going to be his son. He's 19 and he's grown up in church, but his, mind and her heart are elsewhere. And, she's. He's asking for prayer for his son's heart.
>> Alex McFarland: Amen. Thank you for sharing that. And let me encourage people everywhere, pray for this young generation. So many, Dylan. I think, think I hear it almost daily of kids that grew up in church. And, maybe they're in their 20s now, early 20s, they've become skeptics or agnostics or, you know, worse, maybe getting into Lord knows what, occultism or something. And I really do think that Satan has made a power play for this young generation. The Gospel is still clear. In fact, there is more compelling evidence than ever before for the truth of the Bible. My goodness. History, archaeology, the manuscripts, when it comes to apologetics and the evidence for the Christian faith, it's almost like an embarrassment of riches. Dylan. I was debating an atheist at a college in South Dakota, and, he said, how can you be a Christian? I said, how could you not be a Christian? I mean, my goodness, it is just so clear, so compelling, undeniable. But I want to pray. I believe, Brent, was the young man's name Royce?
>> Alex McFarland: That's right.
>> Alex McFarland: Okay, let me lead us, folks. Let's pray. Father, in the name of Jesus, we thank you for the gospel and how it does change lives. All who will believe can experience Jesus. And I, especially in the name of Jesus, I pray for this young M. Man, Royce. Father, keep him alive physically till he could be born spiritually, even right now. May the Holy Spirit of God call out to him, Draw him, open his eyes. Lord, whatever barrier, whatever obstacle, unbelief, whatever it is, Lord, take it away and draw this young man's heart to you. And I do pray for this younger generation. so many, many. You know, there's so much online that's just Ungodly, and sometimes it really kind of poisons the minds and the perspectives of young people about Jesus. There's sin, morality, temptations everywhere. Please, Holy Spirit of God, move in a powerful way, draw all ages to you, but especially young people. And we thank you in advance for Royce's salvation. And we're asking for the salvation of millions like him. And we're asking it in the name of Jesus. And for your glory, we pray. Thank you for working in this way, dear Jesus, in your name we ask it, Lord. Amen. Amen. Brent.
Steve in Missouri comes up with new lie about hyper grace
>> Caroline: All right.
>> Alex McFarland: Steve in Missouri. Steve, thank you for calling.
>> Caroline: Hi, Alex. I thank you for taking my call. I thought Satan's most brilliant lie was gray areas. but I'm afraid that I've come up with a new lie, or I was told about it about a week ago, something called hyper grace, where you don't have to, say, I'm sorry for committing a sin even after you're saved. Because apparently they say, oh, well, Jesus died on the cross for your past, present, and future sins, and you don't have to do that anymore. I'm afraid this lie is going to cost more souls than the last one, and I'd like to know what I can do to try and fight this so people find out the truth. Because I can't find anything in scripture that says this is supposed to be correct.
Brent Austin: Dylan raises the issue of hyper grace on American Family Radio
>> Alex McFarland: Dylan, I'm going to let you start this one. Yes, I've been hearing this term more and more hyper grace, and, there's a lot we could say. But I'm going to let you go first, Dylan, on this one about hyper grace.
>> Alex McFarland: Well, we've talked about this a little bit before, but it's this idea that emphasizes. Emphasizes grace and eternal security to, to the extent that we can do whatever we want and we're fine. And to some degree it's true, but not completely. So let me put it in this perspective. you come to faith in Christ, you're called to live and do good works according to the salvation that you have in Christ. But what if you don't live for Christ? What if your life doesn't look any different? Does that mean that you're still, okay, or maybe you didn't get saved to begin with. And so that's the conflict that we're trying to deal with here. And instead of trying to convince people that still saved no matter what, sometimes we need to go back and say, did you really get the real thing at the beginning? And that's the real controversy so this hyper grace message is sometimes, a way to excuse living for Christ and for holy living today. And it's something that is concerning because of that. And, what do you think on this one, Alex?
>> Alex McFarland: Yeah, I mean, grace, I'm sure everybody's heard it preached on is unmerited favor, love and favor that is undeserved. I've heard grace, an acronym. People sometimes make it God's riches at Christ's expense. And that's true. I mean, all of us, the fact that we're not dead and in hell right now, God's grace is. Is multiplied, and manifested. But hyper grace is, like Dylan said, is basically the idea that you can live any which way. There's no change in life, there's no repentance of sin, just grace, grace, grace. I don't think that's found in the Bible, and I really don't think it's defensible. Sure, we're saved by the work Christ did on the cross, but if we've truly come to Christ and been changed like 1st Corinthians 6 says, those past things, not who we are anymore, our life should be changed because Christ is now our Lord. Well, Dylan, thanks. Tomorrow we're going to wrap up Titus, the last part of Titus 3, plus more questions. Brent Austin, thanks for running the board. And Jeff McIntosh and Marty and Cole, the whole crew, and of course you, dear listeners. We sincerely appreciate you, Dylan. It'll be a great day tomorrow when we have more exploring the Word. Right, great.
>> Alex McFarland: Join us again next time. Look forward to being with everyone on exploring the Word.
>> Alex McFarland: The views and opinions expressed in this broadcast may not necessarily reflect those of the American Family association or American Family Radio.
>> Caroline: M.
