What is going on with the GotQuestions.org Israel trip? - Podcast Special Edition

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The Got Questions team was actually on a trip to Israel and the explosion of violence from the

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Gaza Strip happened right before we were supposed to enter Israel. So we're here in Jordan on Mount Nebo. Hello and welcome to the

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Got Questions podcast. We're here at Mount Nebo reading Deuteronomy chapter 34 for the story where the last place

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Moses was able to get to on the journey from Egypt to the promised land. He disobeyed

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God and his punishment was he was not allowed to enter the promised land. Well, looking at the land that we wish we had the opportunity to visit, but we're still having a great time.

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We were safe. The Lord has been very good in protecting us. Amen. And we just wanted to share with you some of our thoughts so far on the trip and joining me are our regulars,

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Kevin and Jeff. So, so Kevin, what are some of your thoughts on the trip so far? Well, I love seeing

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Jordan and there's so much biblical history that's happening right here in Jordan. So there's a lot to see.

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We haven't been shortchanged at all that way. But I do feel like I can identify a little bit more with Moses in that we were wanting to get into the promised land and we got this far and no farther.

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But that brings out some things that I think are some wonderful spiritual truths.

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As we see that Moses was able to bring the people so far yet no farther.

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And then Joshua, his successor had to take over from there. And Joshua is actually the one that led the people of God into the promised land.

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And so if we take a look at Moses as being the law giver, and we say that Moses is, can represent the law, we can say the law can only take us so far and no farther.

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The law can never take us into the promised land, but Jesus can.

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And this is what's so cool is that Joshua and Jesus are really the same name.

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Joshua is the English version of the Hebrew form of Yeshua and Jesus is the

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English form of the Greek word translated from the same Hebrew name of Yeshua.

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So Yeshua, Joshua, Jesus, all the same name. And I don't think that's an accident in the history of the

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Bible. And so you've got the law bringing you so far, but no farther. Only Jesus can be the fulfillment of all the promises.

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Only Jesus can bring us into the land of rest. Only Jesus can save, which is what

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Yeshua means. The Lord is salvation. One of the things that's been interesting to me to see is that in what we've experienced since we've been here is sort of that combination of God's providence and his mystery and things that we can understand and things that we can't understand.

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Obviously there's people who are suffering incredible violence and horrible things that are going on. So there's not one second where any of us are thinking,

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Oh, low is us for what's going on. We understand exactly what's at stake for many people here.

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So we feel blessed that we've got the opportunity just to be here and see these things. But it also makes you recognize that, you know, you make plans and you expect that you're going to do something and then something happens and it doesn't go the way that you thought it would be.

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And God has different things in mind. Now, in our case, I would say that there's a sense of protection in that because as it comes for us, we weren't actually yet in Israel when things got really complicated.

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So by and large, we're having a very easy time of it with that. So I've gotten a chance to kind of feel that.

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I agree with what Kevin's saying. You get to sort of look across the terrain and say, Oh yeah, that's where we were hoping that we would get to, but God understands and he knows what's going on and what's happening.

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He's got his reasons and his messages and his lessons behind those things.

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You know, speaking on a personal, I'm feeling disappointment because we've had some opportunities to speak and do some little devotionals and things like that.

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We were around, I thought I was going to have an opportunity to present something on October 15th, which is my mother's birthday.

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And this will be her second birthday in heaven. And that whole process for me was, man, that was another one of those things where you just don't understand what's going on and why it's happening, but in it and through it, you see provision.

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Same thing with this. I am very grateful that God did not put me, my wife, my family in a position where we were in true danger at any point of time.

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And that frees me to really think about praying for, hoping for the people who are stuck in what's going on here.

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So it's, it's amazing to be at a historic site like this and see all of the things in real life with your own eyes that connect to the

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Bible and sort of get that sense of how God's in control. And we are not. Absolutely.

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One of the things about the trip that we've been talking about, someone else on the bus said, this is not the trip we planned, but trusting in the

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Lord, this is the trip that we needed. Going back to Proverbs 3, 5, and 6, trust the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding and all your ways, acknowledge him.

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He will direct your paths. We don't understand why we booked these dates over a year ago. And it happened to be the exact date we were leaving was the date the conflict erupted.

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So here we are in Jordan, celebrating what we're able to see, celebrating being together as brothers, sisters in Christ, and still getting to visit some great sites, learn more about the

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Bible and see some things with our own eyes. And that's exciting. We don't understand why God did it this way, but we trust him nonetheless.

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That would maybe be the biggest lesson I would take away from this is that the Lord's ways, the Lord's timing is always perfect.

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And God is reinforcing that message to us today. So greetings from Jordan. Greetings from almost

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Israel, but just not quite. Got questions? The Bible has answers and we'll help you find them.