October 2, 2025 • 28 mins
On today’s Bible Answer Man broadcast (10/02/25), Hank answers the following questions:
Do you believe the cessation of gifts is the result of apostasy in the Church? Ron - Prescott, AZ (0:57)
Is there going to be a pre-tribulation rapture? Tiffany - Tulsa, OK (4:46)
Are there prophets and apostles today? What is the definition of an Apostle? Evan - Oklahoma City, OK (15:12)
Did the snake in the garden have legs? Is Satan being compared to a snake, just a metaphor? James - Alamogordo, NM (18:30)
Do you believe the cessation of gifts is the result of apostasy in the Church? Ron - Prescott, AZ (0:57)
Is there going to be a pre-tribulation rapture? Tiffany - Tulsa, OK (4:46)
Are there prophets and apostles today? What is the definition of an Apostle? Evan - Oklahoma City, OK (15:12)
Did the snake in the garden have legs? Is Satan being compared to a snake, just a metaphor? James - Alamogordo, NM (18:30)
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:07):
You're just in time for the Bible answer Man broadcast
with Hank Canagraph, the radio outreach of the Christian Research Institute.
Our purpose here at CRII is to equip Christians to
provide Biblical answers to life's most important questions, to read
the Bible for all it's worth, and counter the teachings
of cults and world religions that deviate from the plumb
(00:30):
line of God's Word, because life and truth matter. For
more information, to order resources or donate, call eight eight
eight seven thousand CROI, or go online to equip dot org.
That's equip dot org. The following program was pre recorded.
(00:50):
Now here's the president of the Christian Research Institute, Hank Canagraph.
Speaker 2 (00:55):
Thank you much, Randy. What are you hanging on? We'll
go right to the phone calls. First up today is
Roun listening in Prescott, Arizona on the web. Hi, Ron,
Good evening, Hank, good evening.
Speaker 3 (01:05):
Do you believe that the doctrine of cessationism, in which
people believe that the gifts of the Holy Spirit listed
in Firs Corantine's twelve are no longer in use and
no longer given, could be a cause of apostasy? In
the church. And the reason being is if there's a
(01:26):
large number of Christians who are rejecting those gifts, are
they resisting the Holy Spirit, and then he's not really
abusing them as much as he could.
Speaker 2 (01:38):
Well, I think we want to ever reject or resist
the gift of the Holy Spirit. And the beauty for
every believer is that we are in dwelt by the
Holy Spirit. So our temple becomes the temple of the
Holy Spirit, and He exercises his power through us, and
as a result of that causes us to be transforming
agents in the world. But when people talk about the
(02:00):
cessation of gifts, the idea I think that should be
underscored is that there are certain gifts that are not normative,
which is to say, it was normative for the disciples
to do miracles, but there was a reason for that,
and the reason was they were being substantiated as disciples
and apostles of the Word as a result of their
(02:23):
supernatural gifting. And we cannot lay claim to the same
kinds of gifts that they manifested in a normative way.
But that does not in any way preclude the fact
that God can work those gifts through us. For example,
God can work the gift of miracles through us. But
to say that I don't think necessitates saying that that's
(02:44):
something that's normative in the life of the believer today.
If it were, we wouldn't call it a miracle to
begin with.
Speaker 3 (02:51):
Right, So, of course, the gifts, as you believe, are
still being used. But you know I've thought about this
is there's a large number of Christians and churches that
just rejected outright. Would you say they're resisting the Holy
Spirit or just ignorant?
Speaker 2 (03:11):
Well, no, I think it's a matter of interpretation, and
I'd be remiss to call it ignorance. I think this
is one of those issues that Christians have debated vigorously
and yet not divided over because it is ultimately a
secondary issue. Now I'm not talking about it being secondary
in the sense that we can deny the redemptive work
of the Holy Spirit working in and through us, not
(03:33):
only transforming us, but transforming a world, but in the
sense that the supernatural gifts. For example, the Pentecostals say
that tongues is the evidence of the infilling of the
Holy Spirit. I don't think you can say that legitimately
on the basis of scripture. I think you can say
legitimately that it's a evidence, but I think saying it's
the evidence goes beyond what you can say legitimately on
(03:56):
the basis of what we have encapsulated in the Word
of God. By the way that it's one of the
reasons people debate this vigorously. I mean, my point is
we're all in dwelt by the Holy Spirit, and therefore
our temple is the Temple of God. The Holy Spirit
works redemptively in and through us, impacting the world. In
terms of supernatural gifts, I don't think that we can
(04:18):
say that we have those gifts in the same normative
fashion that the disciples had those gifts, nor in the
same normative fashion that the prophets had those gifts. For example,
the Old and New Testament prophets were able to foretell
the future. The reason those gifts operated in the past
is to demonstrate that this that we now call the
(04:39):
Word of God is in fact the Word of God,
and we can test all things in light of the
Word of God and hold fast to that which is good.
Back to the phone lines, we'll talk next to Tiffany
in Tulsa, Oklahoma, by Tiffany.
Speaker 4 (04:50):
Hi, Hi, taking my call.
Speaker 2 (04:53):
You're welcome.
Speaker 4 (04:54):
Yes. My question is we all we try to be
wrapped it up before the great tribulation.
Speaker 2 (05:01):
Well, remember that the great tribulation that people talk about,
particularly in modern vernacular, is a very very new concept.
And I think what's happened is as a result of
people like John Nelson Darby. This has become popularized in
the church today. But to read into passages like First
(05:22):
Thessalonians chapter four or John fourteen as he and other
pre tribulational raptures have a paradigm in which two thirds
of the Jewish people will shortly be eradicated in a
Holocaust massacre while Jesus' people relax in heavenly mansions is
a frightful imposition on the integrity of our Savior in
(05:44):
the scriptures, because neither Paul's portrait of Paradise in First
Thessalonians Chapter four nor the Master's mansion metaphor in John
fourteen is intended to convey a temporary safe haven in
Heaven away from a seven year holocaust on Earth. Rather,
they represent a glorious picture of a new Heaven and
(06:06):
a new Earth in which the dwelling of God is
with men, and he will live them with him. So
I think that the problem here is that people have
taken great and glorious passages that have to do with
such eternal and relevant themes. In fact, central themes is
resurrection and used it for a very modern doctrine that
I think is an imposition on the scripture, not something
(06:27):
that we take from the scriptures.
Speaker 4 (06:31):
Because that really worried me because I didn't know dispensations
correct or anything like that. And so I guess what
I'm getting is that there is no rapture until the
end of the seven year trivulations.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
Well, no, I would say something different than that. I
would say, search as you might, you will not find
a future seven year tribulation in the biblic text. In fact,
the future seven year tribulation that's being trumpeted by modern
dispensationalists is conspicuous by its absence in the whole of scripture. Now,
it's true that there were periods of time in which
(07:13):
there were tribulation, and those were highly marked and notated,
such that even the Jews who look back at a
seven year tribulation and look back at the protection that
God provided his people at that time. The same thing
is true with respect to what happened prior to the
destruction of the Temple and the destruction of Jerusalem. But
(07:35):
the notion of a future seven year tribulation, as I said,
it's very modern, it's very new. The fact that's new
doesn't mean it's not true. But I don't think that
it has good biblical basis. And that's the ultimate thing.
I want to look at. What does the text say,
not what has been popularized in modern tradition.
Speaker 4 (07:55):
Well, do you believe that there is going to be
of course, nobody knows where. I mean, you know, like
they're a verse in Parthsalonians, where it says that we
should be taken up or something like that.
Speaker 2 (08:06):
Yeah, but that's the very passage to which I allude to,
in which Paul is telling the believers that they shouldn't
grieve like the rest of those who have no hope,
because Jesus died and rose again, and therefore we can
be absolutely certain of our own resurrection. That's the point
of the passage. You read that passage carefully. Nowhere in
that passage do you find Jesus coming down, reversing his trip,
(08:32):
taking believers into heaven, followed by a seven year tribulation,
followed by a second coming of Christ, followed by people
being saved after the second coming of Jesus Christ, followed
by a thousand year semi golden age, followed by the
greatest holocaust in human history, Gog and Maygog to gather
them for battle and the like. You don't find that's
an imposition on the passage, And that's just my point.
(08:55):
I think we need to read that passage and not
let the great and glare glorious truth of resurrection escape us.
Nor should we suppose that people are resurrected or raptured
at different times. Jesus said, do not be amazed at this.
A time is coming when all who in the grace
will come out. Some will rise to live, and some
will rise to be condemned. And I've used this illustration
(09:19):
many times on the broadcast, but it bears repeating. My
dad died in nineteen ninety seven. He died with the
hope of resurrection, a certain hope based on scripture. He
did not die with the hope that he was going
to come back to a thousand year semi golden age
that was going to include the greatest apostasy in the
history of the human race. That's not hope. He's died
(09:43):
in the hope, in the certain belief that Jesus will return.
In what he does, he will put all things to right.
So when my Dad is resurrected, he will not be
resurrected in a semi golden age, but in an age
in which the problem of sin and Satan has been
fully and finally resolved, In an age in which this
universe and everything in it has been restored to that
(10:07):
which was God's original intention, In an age in which
he will forever commune with a resurrected Savior, in a
restored universe. That's the hope of Christianity. And I think
we have allowed new and novel theories to take that
great hope away from us and to give us a
false presupposition of what the scripture teaches. Now having said that,
(10:31):
I would still say that the timing of the tribulation,
the Many, and the millennium are, at the end of
the day, secondary issues. In that the essential issue is
this that Jesus Christ will return again. That's a future promise,
it's a hope. Indeed, it's a certainty and in that
certainty we are united as Christians. Be right back with
(10:51):
more answers to your questions.
Speaker 1 (10:53):
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(15:07):
to your host and canagraph.
Speaker 2 (15:10):
Thanks very much, Randy, and let's go right back to
our phone callers. Next up is Evan listening in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Hi, Evan, Hey,
how you doing good? Thank you.
Speaker 5 (15:20):
I was talking with some guys at work today and
well we were talking about present day apostles. That is
that a possible thing? Since I guess I just understood it.
As you know, you had to have seen Jesus resurrected
and you had to have walked with him before then
to be appointed as an apostle.
Speaker 2 (15:43):
Yeah, I mean, the Bible teaches that apostles and prophets
were commissioned by God to be his personal spokesman. In fact,
if you read Ephesians too, you find out that the
Church is built on the foundation of apostles and prophets,
with Jesus Christ himself the chief cornerstone. So I think
(16:03):
it's clear that those who claim to be that kind
of apostle and prophet today have taken upon themselves authority
that was not given to them by God. The prophetic
words a scripture exposed today's pretenders. Not only do they
fail the biblical tests that are given in Deuteronomy thirteen
and eighteen, as well as for example, Acts chapter one,
(16:25):
but they mouth empty, boastful words, and they appeal to
lustful desires of sinful human nature, and they entice people
with their prophetic prowess, which really is a lizory. It's unreal,
and it's a mantle they have taken upon themselves, not
one that God has given to them.
Speaker 5 (16:46):
Yeah, that sounds a lot like the guy that says
he's an apostle.
Speaker 6 (16:49):
That I know.
Speaker 2 (16:50):
Yeah, now you know, we can equivocate on the word
apostle in the sense that apostle can be used in
the sense of a church planter or a missionary or
pastor of pastors. But you can't apostle in the same
sense that we would attribute to the apostle Paul, or
to Peter or to James.
Speaker 5 (17:07):
Okay, I see, So what's the actual definition of apostle.
Speaker 2 (17:12):
Well, again, I think you can equivocate on the use
of words. So words, as I've said many times in
the show, are not unifical, they're equivocal. So if you're
talking about apostle as a church planter, that's a permissible
use of the word. If you're talking about a prophet
in the sense of a leader who challenges the church
to deeper commitment to Christ, that's a possible use of
(17:35):
the word prophet. But you can't use apostle and prophet
in the same sense as the biblical apostles and prophets
upon which the Church of Jesus Christ is built with
Jesus Christ, as I said, the cornerstone, as we see
in Ephesians chapter two. So the sense of prophets like
Jeremiah or apostles like Paul, there is no such thing
(17:59):
in that sense today. They were the ones that gave
us the Word of God, which is now the final
court of arbitration. They're not duplicated in the present. But again,
you can use apostle as church planter or profit as
someone who has a voice to the church community. That's
(18:19):
important and necessary, but not at the same level as
the apostle Paul or the prophet Jeremiah.
Speaker 6 (18:26):
All right, well, thank you very much, you got it.
Speaker 2 (18:28):
Thank you so much for your call. Let's go back
to the phone lines. We'll talk next to James. He's
listening in New Mexico.
Speaker 6 (18:34):
Hi, James, Hi, andk how you doing today?
Speaker 2 (18:37):
Good? Thank you.
Speaker 6 (18:38):
I listened to your program pretty faithfully and it's a
wonderful thing that you're doing.
Speaker 2 (18:43):
Thank you.
Speaker 6 (18:44):
Hey. My question for you is it comes out of Genesis,
chapter three, verse fourteen, when we're talking about the snake,
when God has turned around and said, you know, I'm
gonna curse you above all and above all beasts in
the field. What was the position of the snake at
(19:06):
that time? Since I mean the curse was that the
snake will be rolla with his belly and eaten durst
all the days of his life, what was the position
prior to that?
Speaker 2 (19:19):
Well, again, remember that the Bible describes Satan in various ways.
So I want to lay the groundwork here for you
because this is a topic that is so often misunderstood
by Biblical Christians, and as a result of that, the
world sneers at our testimony. So let me lay this
out precept by precept. When the prophet Moses who wrote Genesis,
(19:42):
described Satan as an ancient serpent, and when the apostle John,
who wrote not only the Gospel of John, but the
Three Epistles and then the Book of Revelation, described Satan
as an ancient dragon. They don't intend to tell us
what Satan looks like. They want to teach us what
Satan is like. Now, of course we know that immediately,
(20:02):
because dragons are the stuff of mythology, not theology. And
if we think of Satan as either a slithering snake
or a fire breathing dragon, then we mistake the nature
of fallen angels. And also suppose that Jesus might have
triumphed over the work of the devil by stepping on
the head of a snake, as you find in the
same passage that you reference, Genesis chapter three, rather than
(20:25):
through his passion on the cross, which is delineated in
many passages throughout the New Testament, including Colossians chapter two.
So Eve was not deceived by a talking snake. Rather,
Moses used the symbol of a snake to communicate the
wiles of the evil one, who deceived Eve through mind
to mind communication, just as he seeks to deceive you
(20:47):
and I today. Now let me take that one step further.
What I'm saying is based on interpreting scripture in light
to scripture. That's number one. Number two, the biblical imagery
of the two serpent is a masterful betrayal of Satan's fall,
because once he held a privileged position in God's kingdom,
but now he's even lower than the livestock. That's the
(21:10):
metaphor of the idea. They have legs. He however, crawls
on his belly and eats dust. And if you know
the Old Testament, you will immediately recognize that this is
a metaphor, a metaphor that Mica, just like Moses, uses
where he uses the imagery of a serpent to depict
the nation seeking to thwart the purposes of God, and
he says they will lick dust like a snake, like
(21:32):
creatures that crawl on the ground. Now, obviously we're not
supposing now that the nations are licking dust and crawling
on the ground. So it's a metaphor, and we have
to interpret it in that way. But the metaphor is
not a way of somehow or other taking spiritual impact
out of the Bible. It's actually heightening the spiritual impact.
It's as we're a magnifying glass by which we observe
(21:57):
truth that we might otherwise miss.
Speaker 6 (22:01):
Okay, I kind of fegar. You might have said that, Okay,
that was just a metaphor.
Speaker 2 (22:06):
And again no, not just a metaphor. Remember, you don't
want to append the word just to it, because metaphors,
as I just said, are magnifying glasses that exposed truth
we might otherwise miss. Now, what's the truth about Satan? Biblically,
we know that Satan is spirit, which is to say,
he doesn't have physical properties. So imagery is used to
(22:31):
communicate just how cunning and devious and lethal he is.
But we don't want to mistake the meaning of the
imagery because if we do, we're going to take scripture
and tie it into all kinds of implausible knots. For example,
let's imagine for a moment that Satan could take on
(22:51):
physical form. If he could, then he would have creative power.
And if he had creative power, he could have masquerated
as a resurrected Christ. So the consequt of the notion
of taking these metaphors in ways other than what was
intended by Moses in Genesis and John in Revelation, those
consequences are drastic to Christian theology.
Speaker 6 (23:14):
Okay, well, thanks a lot, Hank for your answer there.
I truly appreciate it, and you keep staying strong and
God bless you.
Speaker 2 (23:22):
Thank you as well, appreciate your call so much. And
remember Moses's original audience was intimately acquainted with the imagery
of the serpent, and during their sojourn in the desert,
the lethal venom of fiery serpents was emblazoned upon the
tablet of their consciousness. They would ever remember the bronze
serpent that Moses lifted up in the Araba. And as
(23:45):
the bronze serpent was an image without venom, so the
image of the invisible God, who came in the appearance
of sinful flesh, was without sin, and thus the serpent
was not just emblematic of seduction as in the garden,
but the exemplar of a savior who would die so
that we might live. And that imagery of the serpent
(24:08):
is employed by scripture as literary subversion of pagan myth.
Though Bail, who, according to the Eugarretic text or the
pre Jewish texts of the ancient Canaanites, rides the clouds
and smites the primordial seven headed serpent lying coiled in
the chaotic waters of the sea. In reality, it's Yahweh,
(24:30):
creator of heaven and Earth, who alone can crush the
serpent's head. So the bottom line is that the Bible
uses the pagan imagery of a serpent as a powerful
theological apologetic by which to undress gods of wood and
stone who are impotent to save. All of this, of course,
points to a far more graphic truth than that is,
(24:53):
we as Christians must learn to read the Bible for
all its worth, or mind the Bible for all its wealth.
If we don't, we come up with absurdities that undermine
the very faith once for all delivered to the Saints.
As we close the broadcast, here's what I want to say,
(25:15):
we as Christians should respond to the signs of the times.
The facts tell us that we've fallen short in our
teaching and theology of money. The facts tell us that
the largest givers in our history are heading towards death
and retirement and will be replaced by a generation of
non givers. The facts tell us that the current social
(25:38):
and political climates don't bode well forgiving, and that impacts
ministries like the Christian Research Institute. But in the midst
of this malaise of giving, it's important to tell the
truth about giving, and that is It doesn't matter what
climate you live in. You cannot outgive the Lord. And
we're asking those who genue I only love His word
(26:01):
and love truth to stand with this ministry prayer fully
and financially. The Gospel's free, someone has to put in
the plumbing, so we're asking you to be faithful and
financially stewardship minded as you give to the Christian Research Institute.
Look forward to seeing you next time with more of
the show.
Speaker 1 (26:17):
You've been listening to the Bible answer Man Broadcast with
Hank Hannagraph. Our mailing address is Pobox eighty five hundred, Charlotte,
North Carolina, zip code two eight two seven one. To
listen to the broadcast on the Internet, visit equip dot org,
where you'll also find a wealth of information and resources.
To equip you. To talk to a resource consultant, call
(26:39):
eight eight eight seven thousand CRII. That's eight eight eight
seven thousand, two seven four. The Bible answer Man Broadcast
is supported by listeners like you. We're on the air
because life and truth matter. Has God spoken? Are the
(27:08):
words of Scripture merely human in origin? Or are they
in fact the very words of God himself? Three years
in the making and based on two decades of research
and reflection, Hank Henagraph's monumental book Has God Spoken answers
what is surely the most important question facing our world.
In Has God Spoken, Memorable Proofs of the Bible's Divine inspiration,
(27:32):
Hank counters the contentions of the Bible attackers and clearly
shows that belief in the Holy Scriptures is not a
guess or wishful thinking. It is the only logical conclusion
after an honest examination of overwhelming evidence. Ordered Has God
Spoken from the Christian Research Institute by calling eighty eight
seven thousand CRII or go online to equip dot org.
(27:56):
Equip dot org
You're just in time for the Bible answer Man broadcast
with Hank Canagraph, the radio outreach of the Christian Research Institute.
Our purpose here at CRII is to equip Christians to
provide Biblical answers to life's most important questions, to read
the Bible for all it's worth, and counter the teachings
of cults and world religions that deviate from the plumb
(00:30):
line of God's Word, because life and truth matter. For
more information, to order resources or donate, call eight eight
eight seven thousand CROI, or go online to equip dot org.
That's equip dot org. The following program was pre recorded.
(00:50):
Now here's the president of the Christian Research Institute, Hank Canagraph.
Speaker 2 (00:55):
Thank you much, Randy. What are you hanging on? We'll
go right to the phone calls. First up today is
Roun listening in Prescott, Arizona on the web. Hi, Ron,
Good evening, Hank, good evening.
Speaker 3 (01:05):
Do you believe that the doctrine of cessationism, in which
people believe that the gifts of the Holy Spirit listed
in Firs Corantine's twelve are no longer in use and
no longer given, could be a cause of apostasy? In
the church. And the reason being is if there's a
(01:26):
large number of Christians who are rejecting those gifts, are
they resisting the Holy Spirit, and then he's not really
abusing them as much as he could.
Speaker 2 (01:38):
Well, I think we want to ever reject or resist
the gift of the Holy Spirit. And the beauty for
every believer is that we are in dwelt by the
Holy Spirit. So our temple becomes the temple of the
Holy Spirit, and He exercises his power through us, and
as a result of that causes us to be transforming
agents in the world. But when people talk about the
(02:00):
cessation of gifts, the idea I think that should be
underscored is that there are certain gifts that are not normative,
which is to say, it was normative for the disciples
to do miracles, but there was a reason for that,
and the reason was they were being substantiated as disciples
and apostles of the Word as a result of their
(02:23):
supernatural gifting. And we cannot lay claim to the same
kinds of gifts that they manifested in a normative way.
But that does not in any way preclude the fact
that God can work those gifts through us. For example,
God can work the gift of miracles through us. But
to say that I don't think necessitates saying that that's
(02:44):
something that's normative in the life of the believer today.
If it were, we wouldn't call it a miracle to
begin with.
Speaker 3 (02:51):
Right, So, of course, the gifts, as you believe, are
still being used. But you know I've thought about this
is there's a large number of Christians and churches that
just rejected outright. Would you say they're resisting the Holy
Spirit or just ignorant?
Speaker 2 (03:11):
Well, no, I think it's a matter of interpretation, and
I'd be remiss to call it ignorance. I think this
is one of those issues that Christians have debated vigorously
and yet not divided over because it is ultimately a
secondary issue. Now I'm not talking about it being secondary
in the sense that we can deny the redemptive work
of the Holy Spirit working in and through us, not
(03:33):
only transforming us, but transforming a world, but in the
sense that the supernatural gifts. For example, the Pentecostals say
that tongues is the evidence of the infilling of the
Holy Spirit. I don't think you can say that legitimately
on the basis of scripture. I think you can say
legitimately that it's a evidence, but I think saying it's
the evidence goes beyond what you can say legitimately on
(03:56):
the basis of what we have encapsulated in the Word
of God. By the way that it's one of the
reasons people debate this vigorously. I mean, my point is
we're all in dwelt by the Holy Spirit, and therefore
our temple is the Temple of God. The Holy Spirit
works redemptively in and through us, impacting the world. In
terms of supernatural gifts, I don't think that we can
(04:18):
say that we have those gifts in the same normative
fashion that the disciples had those gifts, nor in the
same normative fashion that the prophets had those gifts. For example,
the Old and New Testament prophets were able to foretell
the future. The reason those gifts operated in the past
is to demonstrate that this that we now call the
(04:39):
Word of God is in fact the Word of God,
and we can test all things in light of the
Word of God and hold fast to that which is good.
Back to the phone lines, we'll talk next to Tiffany
in Tulsa, Oklahoma, by Tiffany.
Speaker 4 (04:50):
Hi, Hi, taking my call.
Speaker 2 (04:53):
You're welcome.
Speaker 4 (04:54):
Yes. My question is we all we try to be
wrapped it up before the great tribulation.
Speaker 2 (05:01):
Well, remember that the great tribulation that people talk about,
particularly in modern vernacular, is a very very new concept.
And I think what's happened is as a result of
people like John Nelson Darby. This has become popularized in
the church today. But to read into passages like First
(05:22):
Thessalonians chapter four or John fourteen as he and other
pre tribulational raptures have a paradigm in which two thirds
of the Jewish people will shortly be eradicated in a
Holocaust massacre while Jesus' people relax in heavenly mansions is
a frightful imposition on the integrity of our Savior in
(05:44):
the scriptures, because neither Paul's portrait of Paradise in First
Thessalonians Chapter four nor the Master's mansion metaphor in John
fourteen is intended to convey a temporary safe haven in
Heaven away from a seven year holocaust on Earth. Rather,
they represent a glorious picture of a new Heaven and
(06:06):
a new Earth in which the dwelling of God is
with men, and he will live them with him. So
I think that the problem here is that people have
taken great and glorious passages that have to do with
such eternal and relevant themes. In fact, central themes is
resurrection and used it for a very modern doctrine that
I think is an imposition on the scripture, not something
(06:27):
that we take from the scriptures.
Speaker 4 (06:31):
Because that really worried me because I didn't know dispensations
correct or anything like that. And so I guess what
I'm getting is that there is no rapture until the
end of the seven year trivulations.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
Well, no, I would say something different than that. I
would say, search as you might, you will not find
a future seven year tribulation in the biblic text. In fact,
the future seven year tribulation that's being trumpeted by modern
dispensationalists is conspicuous by its absence in the whole of scripture. Now,
it's true that there were periods of time in which
(07:13):
there were tribulation, and those were highly marked and notated,
such that even the Jews who look back at a
seven year tribulation and look back at the protection that
God provided his people at that time. The same thing
is true with respect to what happened prior to the
destruction of the Temple and the destruction of Jerusalem. But
(07:35):
the notion of a future seven year tribulation, as I said,
it's very modern, it's very new. The fact that's new
doesn't mean it's not true. But I don't think that
it has good biblical basis. And that's the ultimate thing.
I want to look at. What does the text say,
not what has been popularized in modern tradition.
Speaker 4 (07:55):
Well, do you believe that there is going to be
of course, nobody knows where. I mean, you know, like
they're a verse in Parthsalonians, where it says that we
should be taken up or something like that.
Speaker 2 (08:06):
Yeah, but that's the very passage to which I allude to,
in which Paul is telling the believers that they shouldn't
grieve like the rest of those who have no hope,
because Jesus died and rose again, and therefore we can
be absolutely certain of our own resurrection. That's the point
of the passage. You read that passage carefully. Nowhere in
that passage do you find Jesus coming down, reversing his trip,
(08:32):
taking believers into heaven, followed by a seven year tribulation,
followed by a second coming of Christ, followed by people
being saved after the second coming of Jesus Christ, followed
by a thousand year semi golden age, followed by the
greatest holocaust in human history, Gog and Maygog to gather
them for battle and the like. You don't find that's
an imposition on the passage, And that's just my point.
(08:55):
I think we need to read that passage and not
let the great and glare glorious truth of resurrection escape us.
Nor should we suppose that people are resurrected or raptured
at different times. Jesus said, do not be amazed at this.
A time is coming when all who in the grace
will come out. Some will rise to live, and some
will rise to be condemned. And I've used this illustration
(09:19):
many times on the broadcast, but it bears repeating. My
dad died in nineteen ninety seven. He died with the
hope of resurrection, a certain hope based on scripture. He
did not die with the hope that he was going
to come back to a thousand year semi golden age
that was going to include the greatest apostasy in the
history of the human race. That's not hope. He's died
(09:43):
in the hope, in the certain belief that Jesus will return.
In what he does, he will put all things to right.
So when my Dad is resurrected, he will not be
resurrected in a semi golden age, but in an age
in which the problem of sin and Satan has been
fully and finally resolved, In an age in which this
universe and everything in it has been restored to that
(10:07):
which was God's original intention, In an age in which
he will forever commune with a resurrected Savior, in a
restored universe. That's the hope of Christianity. And I think
we have allowed new and novel theories to take that
great hope away from us and to give us a
false presupposition of what the scripture teaches. Now having said that,
(10:31):
I would still say that the timing of the tribulation,
the Many, and the millennium are, at the end of
the day, secondary issues. In that the essential issue is
this that Jesus Christ will return again. That's a future promise,
it's a hope. Indeed, it's a certainty and in that
certainty we are united as Christians. Be right back with
(10:51):
more answers to your questions.
Speaker 1 (10:53):
Has Jesus Christ returned to earth as a woman. Eastern Lightning,
also called the Church of All Mighty God, claims a
Chinese woman is the reincarnated Christ, Almighty God and the
fulfillment of Jesus's olivet discourse. This cult is doctrinally deviant
and socially subversive. It masquerades as a persecuted Christian movement
(11:16):
while exploiting Western sympathy to spread its destructive dogmas. Don't
miss the special issue of the Christian Research Journal exposing
the treacherous teachings and practices of Eastern Lightning. To receive
your copy, call eight eight eight seven thousand CRII and
make a gift to support the Christian Research Institute's mind shaping,
(11:38):
life changing outreaches. That's eight eight eight seven thousand CRII,
or go online to equip dot org. That's equip dot org.
The Bible answer Man broadcast will return in just a
few moments. Has God spoken? Are the words of Scripture
(12:09):
merely human in origin? Or are they in fact the
very words of God himself? Three years in the making,
and based on two decades of research and reflection, Hank
Henagraph's monumental book Has God Spoken answers what is surely
the most important question facing our world. In Has God Spoken,
(12:29):
memorable proofs of the Bible's divine inspiration, Hank counters the
contentions of the Bible attackers and clearly shows that belief
in the Holy Scriptures is not a guess or wishful thinking.
It is the only logical conclusion after an honest examination
of overwhelming evidence. Order Has God Spoken from the Christian
Research Institute by calling eighty eight seven thousand CRII or
(12:53):
go online to equip dot org equip dot org. The
number of wolves surrounding the Christian flock is growing, and
they relish nothing more than docile's sheep, utterly incapable of
defending themselves from militant secularists at home to militant Islamists abroad.
(13:14):
The assaults on Biblical Christianity are growing dangerously, but Christian
Research Institutes Support team members aren't in favor of feeding
these wolves. Instead, each day they're making possible an array
of outreaches that defang these wolfpacks with solid arguments and
evidence that have stood the test of time. What's more,
(13:34):
support team members are equipping themselves with criis Equipping Essentials,
a handpicked collection of the best apologetics tools around. Your
selection of resources are just our way of saying thanks.
To learn more about the benefits of membership, simply visit
equip dot org. Once again, that's equip dot org. The
(14:00):
Complete Bible answer Book Collector's Edition is the comprehensive collection
of the most often asked questions Hank Hannigraph has received
throughout his four decades as host of the Bible answer
Man broadcast. With more than half a million copies already
in print, this newly revised and expanded Collector's Edition helped
seekers and skeptics alike sort through the truth on topics
(14:23):
such as reliability of the Bible, religions and cults, the
resurrection and afterlife, and many more issues vital to a
better understanding of God in Christ and our relationship to Him.
To receive your copy of The Complete Bible answer Book
Collector's Edition, Revised and Expanded, call eight eight eight seven
(14:44):
thousand CRII and make a gift to support the Christian
Research Institute's life changing outreaches. Eight eight eight seven thousand
CRII or visit us at equip dot org. Let's return
(15:07):
to your host and canagraph.
Speaker 2 (15:10):
Thanks very much, Randy, and let's go right back to
our phone callers. Next up is Evan listening in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Hi, Evan, Hey,
how you doing good? Thank you.
Speaker 5 (15:20):
I was talking with some guys at work today and
well we were talking about present day apostles. That is
that a possible thing? Since I guess I just understood it.
As you know, you had to have seen Jesus resurrected
and you had to have walked with him before then
to be appointed as an apostle.
Speaker 2 (15:43):
Yeah, I mean, the Bible teaches that apostles and prophets
were commissioned by God to be his personal spokesman. In fact,
if you read Ephesians too, you find out that the
Church is built on the foundation of apostles and prophets,
with Jesus Christ himself the chief cornerstone. So I think
(16:03):
it's clear that those who claim to be that kind
of apostle and prophet today have taken upon themselves authority
that was not given to them by God. The prophetic
words a scripture exposed today's pretenders. Not only do they
fail the biblical tests that are given in Deuteronomy thirteen
and eighteen, as well as for example, Acts chapter one,
(16:25):
but they mouth empty, boastful words, and they appeal to
lustful desires of sinful human nature, and they entice people
with their prophetic prowess, which really is a lizory. It's unreal,
and it's a mantle they have taken upon themselves, not
one that God has given to them.
Speaker 5 (16:46):
Yeah, that sounds a lot like the guy that says
he's an apostle.
Speaker 6 (16:49):
That I know.
Speaker 2 (16:50):
Yeah, now you know, we can equivocate on the word
apostle in the sense that apostle can be used in
the sense of a church planter or a missionary or
pastor of pastors. But you can't apostle in the same
sense that we would attribute to the apostle Paul, or
to Peter or to James.
Speaker 5 (17:07):
Okay, I see, So what's the actual definition of apostle.
Speaker 2 (17:12):
Well, again, I think you can equivocate on the use
of words. So words, as I've said many times in
the show, are not unifical, they're equivocal. So if you're
talking about apostle as a church planter, that's a permissible
use of the word. If you're talking about a prophet
in the sense of a leader who challenges the church
to deeper commitment to Christ, that's a possible use of
(17:35):
the word prophet. But you can't use apostle and prophet
in the same sense as the biblical apostles and prophets
upon which the Church of Jesus Christ is built with
Jesus Christ, as I said, the cornerstone, as we see
in Ephesians chapter two. So the sense of prophets like
Jeremiah or apostles like Paul, there is no such thing
(17:59):
in that sense today. They were the ones that gave
us the Word of God, which is now the final
court of arbitration. They're not duplicated in the present. But again,
you can use apostle as church planter or profit as
someone who has a voice to the church community. That's
(18:19):
important and necessary, but not at the same level as
the apostle Paul or the prophet Jeremiah.
Speaker 6 (18:26):
All right, well, thank you very much, you got it.
Speaker 2 (18:28):
Thank you so much for your call. Let's go back
to the phone lines. We'll talk next to James. He's
listening in New Mexico.
Speaker 6 (18:34):
Hi, James, Hi, andk how you doing today?
Speaker 2 (18:37):
Good? Thank you.
Speaker 6 (18:38):
I listened to your program pretty faithfully and it's a
wonderful thing that you're doing.
Speaker 2 (18:43):
Thank you.
Speaker 6 (18:44):
Hey. My question for you is it comes out of Genesis,
chapter three, verse fourteen, when we're talking about the snake,
when God has turned around and said, you know, I'm
gonna curse you above all and above all beasts in
the field. What was the position of the snake at
(19:06):
that time? Since I mean the curse was that the
snake will be rolla with his belly and eaten durst
all the days of his life, what was the position
prior to that?
Speaker 2 (19:19):
Well, again, remember that the Bible describes Satan in various ways.
So I want to lay the groundwork here for you
because this is a topic that is so often misunderstood
by Biblical Christians, and as a result of that, the
world sneers at our testimony. So let me lay this
out precept by precept. When the prophet Moses who wrote Genesis,
(19:42):
described Satan as an ancient serpent, and when the apostle John,
who wrote not only the Gospel of John, but the
Three Epistles and then the Book of Revelation, described Satan
as an ancient dragon. They don't intend to tell us
what Satan looks like. They want to teach us what
Satan is like. Now, of course we know that immediately,
(20:02):
because dragons are the stuff of mythology, not theology. And
if we think of Satan as either a slithering snake
or a fire breathing dragon, then we mistake the nature
of fallen angels. And also suppose that Jesus might have
triumphed over the work of the devil by stepping on
the head of a snake, as you find in the
same passage that you reference, Genesis chapter three, rather than
(20:25):
through his passion on the cross, which is delineated in
many passages throughout the New Testament, including Colossians chapter two.
So Eve was not deceived by a talking snake. Rather,
Moses used the symbol of a snake to communicate the
wiles of the evil one, who deceived Eve through mind
to mind communication, just as he seeks to deceive you
(20:47):
and I today. Now let me take that one step further.
What I'm saying is based on interpreting scripture in light
to scripture. That's number one. Number two, the biblical imagery
of the two serpent is a masterful betrayal of Satan's fall,
because once he held a privileged position in God's kingdom,
but now he's even lower than the livestock. That's the
(21:10):
metaphor of the idea. They have legs. He however, crawls
on his belly and eats dust. And if you know
the Old Testament, you will immediately recognize that this is
a metaphor, a metaphor that Mica, just like Moses, uses
where he uses the imagery of a serpent to depict
the nation seeking to thwart the purposes of God, and
he says they will lick dust like a snake, like
(21:32):
creatures that crawl on the ground. Now, obviously we're not
supposing now that the nations are licking dust and crawling
on the ground. So it's a metaphor, and we have
to interpret it in that way. But the metaphor is
not a way of somehow or other taking spiritual impact
out of the Bible. It's actually heightening the spiritual impact.
It's as we're a magnifying glass by which we observe
(21:57):
truth that we might otherwise miss.
Speaker 6 (22:01):
Okay, I kind of fegar. You might have said that, Okay,
that was just a metaphor.
Speaker 2 (22:06):
And again no, not just a metaphor. Remember, you don't
want to append the word just to it, because metaphors,
as I just said, are magnifying glasses that exposed truth
we might otherwise miss. Now, what's the truth about Satan? Biblically,
we know that Satan is spirit, which is to say,
he doesn't have physical properties. So imagery is used to
(22:31):
communicate just how cunning and devious and lethal he is.
But we don't want to mistake the meaning of the
imagery because if we do, we're going to take scripture
and tie it into all kinds of implausible knots. For example,
let's imagine for a moment that Satan could take on
(22:51):
physical form. If he could, then he would have creative power.
And if he had creative power, he could have masquerated
as a resurrected Christ. So the consequt of the notion
of taking these metaphors in ways other than what was
intended by Moses in Genesis and John in Revelation, those
consequences are drastic to Christian theology.
Speaker 6 (23:14):
Okay, well, thanks a lot, Hank for your answer there.
I truly appreciate it, and you keep staying strong and
God bless you.
Speaker 2 (23:22):
Thank you as well, appreciate your call so much. And
remember Moses's original audience was intimately acquainted with the imagery
of the serpent, and during their sojourn in the desert,
the lethal venom of fiery serpents was emblazoned upon the
tablet of their consciousness. They would ever remember the bronze
serpent that Moses lifted up in the Araba. And as
(23:45):
the bronze serpent was an image without venom, so the
image of the invisible God, who came in the appearance
of sinful flesh, was without sin, and thus the serpent
was not just emblematic of seduction as in the garden,
but the exemplar of a savior who would die so
that we might live. And that imagery of the serpent
(24:08):
is employed by scripture as literary subversion of pagan myth.
Though Bail, who, according to the Eugarretic text or the
pre Jewish texts of the ancient Canaanites, rides the clouds
and smites the primordial seven headed serpent lying coiled in
the chaotic waters of the sea. In reality, it's Yahweh,
(24:30):
creator of heaven and Earth, who alone can crush the
serpent's head. So the bottom line is that the Bible
uses the pagan imagery of a serpent as a powerful
theological apologetic by which to undress gods of wood and
stone who are impotent to save. All of this, of course,
points to a far more graphic truth than that is,
(24:53):
we as Christians must learn to read the Bible for
all its worth, or mind the Bible for all its wealth.
If we don't, we come up with absurdities that undermine
the very faith once for all delivered to the Saints.
As we close the broadcast, here's what I want to say,
(25:15):
we as Christians should respond to the signs of the times.
The facts tell us that we've fallen short in our
teaching and theology of money. The facts tell us that
the largest givers in our history are heading towards death
and retirement and will be replaced by a generation of
non givers. The facts tell us that the current social
(25:38):
and political climates don't bode well forgiving, and that impacts
ministries like the Christian Research Institute. But in the midst
of this malaise of giving, it's important to tell the
truth about giving, and that is It doesn't matter what
climate you live in. You cannot outgive the Lord. And
we're asking those who genue I only love His word
(26:01):
and love truth to stand with this ministry prayer fully
and financially. The Gospel's free, someone has to put in
the plumbing, so we're asking you to be faithful and
financially stewardship minded as you give to the Christian Research Institute.
Look forward to seeing you next time with more of
the show.
Speaker 1 (26:17):
You've been listening to the Bible answer Man Broadcast with
Hank Hannagraph. Our mailing address is Pobox eighty five hundred, Charlotte,
North Carolina, zip code two eight two seven one. To
listen to the broadcast on the Internet, visit equip dot org,
where you'll also find a wealth of information and resources.
To equip you. To talk to a resource consultant, call
(26:39):
eight eight eight seven thousand CRII. That's eight eight eight
seven thousand, two seven four. The Bible answer Man Broadcast
is supported by listeners like you. We're on the air
because life and truth matter. Has God spoken? Are the
(27:08):
words of Scripture merely human in origin? Or are they
in fact the very words of God himself? Three years
in the making and based on two decades of research
and reflection, Hank Henagraph's monumental book Has God Spoken answers
what is surely the most important question facing our world.
In Has God Spoken, Memorable Proofs of the Bible's Divine inspiration,
(27:32):
Hank counters the contentions of the Bible attackers and clearly
shows that belief in the Holy Scriptures is not a
guess or wishful thinking. It is the only logical conclusion
after an honest examination of overwhelming evidence. Ordered Has God
Spoken from the Christian Research Institute by calling eighty eight
seven thousand CRII or go online to equip dot org.
(27:56):
Equip dot org
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