Does the World Matter to God? Why Should it Matter to Us? | John Lennox and Mark Boslough

[@KenAmmi-Shalom]

I attended this event and Boslough should be glad that it was not a debate but a discussion. He showed up with a handful of well within the box Atheist groupthink talking point one liners de jour. Lennox showed up with his usual mixture of grace, science, logic and theology. At one point, Boslough droned on in giving an answer about global warming, my friend said, "Do they ever listen to themselves?" and I leaned over and replied, "Almost exclusively"--then we almost popped a vein trying to keep from laughing out loud.

[@bonnie43uk]

+Ken Ammi Hi Ken, you mentioned that at one point Boslough 'droned on' about global warming, he was merely answering a direct question about how best to save the planet, Q: What are a few steps we could take to be more environmentally friendly?) as I saw it, he gave a very direct answer, which John Lennox agreed with. The future of our planet is an incredibly serious question.

[@ronniebuchanan6575]

@@bonnie43uk I am a skeptic and when the UN scientist were busted lying and admitting they were told to lie to make it much worse than what it is. You still haven't figured out the goal is New world order and to achieve this the American people must have their freedoms and independence revoked. We will be told that we need to use public transportation. The only people that will have their own transportation the politicians the elite. The global minimum wage will be determined and the Government of the world will own everything only the elite can own anything because they can pay the fees to be allowed to pollute. Every model of global warming has failed and failed miserably. The last doomsday forecast was 2009 that Said the polar caps will disappear and the lower half of the USA will be under water and some other countries. Here it is 2022 that has not happened and is not happening.China being exempted from the Paris accord for 10 more years the greatest offender of dumping tons of pollution in to the atmosphere in the name if being a developing country. if what they are propagating us true they would straight away shut China down they have no guiding or requirements to curb CO2 or anything else in manufacturing. So who gets to take up the slack here? Us if course the country that has improved our air quality steadily ever year since 1974. The only way this makes any sense is they are destined to bankrupt the USA to take control of the people. Our elite politicians are on board they want ever have to run another election they will remain appointed. You can beg for this all you want because you Bible the propaganda. The Bible prophesied a one world government way over 2,000 years ago now the buzz word is New World Order is gonna save us. Wake up look around you.

[@alanmcnaughton3628]

I certainly do agree that our planet is undergoing "climate change" BUT, if left to its own devices,can it recover? Dane Wiggington tells us we are already through the guard rail and on our way down the precipice waiting for the sudden jolt at the bottom of the canyon. The "mitigation" as it's been called attempts, appear to be the cause of the global flooding and droughts in isolated areas. If chemtrailing/Geo-engineering were to be stopped, could any improvement be noticed? Dane tells us that the same substance as the Le-quinta Columna laboratory identified in the injections, is being sprayed into the clouds, along with barium, strontium, and aluminium nano particles which are responsible for the death of trees, as well as making them more combustible. This link to Danes January update gives proof that G.O. IS being used in the chemtrailing.

[@alanmcnaughton3628]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/qJ7ZeXl-Z56lsK8 geo-engineering watch Dane wiggington January 15.

[@interactive1178]

Mr Lennox is the reason I believe in God 🙏

[@lostat400]

He is a big reason for what I understand Christianity to be.

[@interactive1178]

@@lostat400 well said

[@greenline5351]

Praise the Lord. He is s kind hearted man

[@marianaturda]

Excellent discussion ! Mr. John Lennox at his peak !

[@shazzylogo]

Mark Boslogh say's the big corporates must pay higher carbon taxes relative to their amount of emissions. all the corporates will do in turn is load the price of their products back to the consumer, so the poorer people still get hit

[@normaquirolgico1257]

Prof. John Lennox is such laudable as evangelist for a Christian scientist...

[@raymondhummel5211]

I enjoyed your discussion very much.

[@techservant]

His experience of Christianity being all about behavior through Methodism is rather sad. John Wesley is spinning in his grave.

[@mackdmara]

techservant You bet! The method in Methodist is not that historically. I worry now that they have come to that Idea. Then I go to church there & I see that over all they haven't. They do not focus on evangelizing & I can understand his home experience from that. You still should be able to tell people what you believe is real. That said, I hope they hold the line of what God has given. It is a strained line we walk here in 2018. We have Christ telling us to accept all people & we should, as sisters & brothers. We also have him affirming that homosexuality & trans practice in a home is not the will of God. I would like to welcome anyone from that community to come to our churches. Learn about God & his love & grace. I also want them to know they should treat their body as a temple, not a playground. The drawn lines by God are for your welfare, not your, not an inditement against you. As a culture, we place wealth, knowledge, power, & sex as that which you should seek & identify yourself by. We are basically becoming Roman in our thinking. There is real danger in that. God Bless

[@normaquirolgico1257]

I believe that the world matters to GOD, because He created the world as the habitat for humankind for survival of life.

[@grannygear1001]

I am a Christian and know in my head how much God utterly loves His children, but sometimes when I see things, like recently a half starved abandoned dog or human kid trafficking today, the world hating Israel, I wonder why God doesn’t come back?

[@mackdmara]

The method in Methodist is not that historically. I worry now that they have come to that Idea. Then I go to church there & I see that over all they haven't. They do not focus on evangelizing & I can understand his home experience from that. You still should be able to tell people what you believe is real. That said, I hope they hold the line of what God has given. It is a strained line we walk here in 2018. We have Christ telling us to accept all people & we should, as sisters & brothers. We also have him affirming that homosexuality & trans practice in a home is not the will of God. I would like to welcome anyone from that community to come to our churches. Learn about God & his love & grace. I also want them to know they should treat their body as a temple, not a playground. The drawn lines by God are for your welfare, not your, not an inditement against you. As a culture, we place wealth, knowledge, power, & sex as that which you should seek & identify yourself by. We are basically becoming Roman in our thinking. There is real danger in that. God Bless

[@jujulepew]

About that carbon footprint. The powerfuls always point at the regular people who dont own much, one car, one modest home, just the necessary. BUT THEY NEVER POINT AT THEMSELVES! they own big power and energy consuming atems like multiple mentions with 4 AC units, pri zte jets used to travel the world constantly, they even take 20mn flights, they own multiple muscle cars, and huge pleasure private yacht runing machinery, AC, generators 24/7. So before they ask us to sacrifice on our basics, what about they start showing the example

[@zainulabideen6812]

As your eyes closed think will be cleared to you stay on your faiths believes

[@GoCanucks2011]

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.

[@lianecornils8733]

Your real good.

[@vhawk1951kl]

What could pork chop Lennox know of what matters to whatever he means by god? Owing to the loss of the capacity to ponder and reflect, whenever the contemporary average man hears or employs in conversation any word with which he is familiar only by its consonance, he does not pause to think, nor does there even arise in him any question as to what exactly is meant by this word, he having already decided, once and for all, both that he knows it and that others know it too. A question, perhaps, does sometimes arise in him whenhe hears an entirely unfamiliar word the first time; but in this case he is content merely to substitute for the unfamiliar word another suitable word of familiar consonance and then to imagine that he has understood it. To bring home what has just been said, an excellent example is provided by the word so often used by every contemporary man-”world.” If people knew how to grasp for themselves what passes in their thoughts when they hear or use the word ”world,” then most of them would have to admit-if ofcourse they intended to be sincere-that the word carries no exact notion whatever for them. Catching by ear simply the accustomed consonance, the meaning of which they assume that they know, it is as if they say to themselves “Ah, world, I know what this is,” and serenely go on thinking. Should one deliberately arrest their attention on this word and know how to probe them to find just what they understand by it, they will at first be plainly as is said “embarrassed,” but quickly pulling themselves together, that is to say, quickly deceiving themselves, and recalling the first definition of the word that comes to mind, they will then offer it as their own, although, in fact, they had not thought of it before. If one has the requisite power and could compel a group of contemporary people, even from among those who have received so to say “a good education,” to state exactly how they each understand the word “world,” they would all so “beat about the bush” that involuntarily one would recall even castor oil with a certain tenderness.

[@FabledEnd]

You need to watch the Dawkins debates buddy boy. The machines programming has you hard of heart.

[@olgaburgos7780]

It is irrational to think that from apes humans evolved and where did language come from? From Hhuh to Adam, Eve who named all the animals? Huh!

[@tonyisnotdead]

why is it irrational? language came from human beings having higher levels of thinking than animals, which is pretty clear from the fact that a lot of animals have some ability to communicate with one another and without the existence of language and the usage of it, no human would know how to speak words and sentences, just noise

[@zainulabideen6812]

bodies

[@lannyhoover1625]

I ’m not sure what this scientist Mark was doing making a confused attempt to discuss our world & God. His god according to C S Lewis is Too Small. No wonder he doesn’t discuss God & science.

[@lianecornils8733]

I guess you didn't go tell them to quit either.

[@robmarshall956]

Mark denies the resurrection as that’s a supernatural act and therefor is the polar opposite of Christianity. Can’t believe pastors are giving him a platform at any church.

[@Marco-jo7vc]

God said in the holy quraan of Islam that this world doesn’t even equal one wing of a mosquito for him

[@zainulabideen6812]

immedately

[@bonnie43uk]

John Lennox was asked about the problem of evil towards the end, he mentioned that with Christianity we get justice, and he talked about murderers and rapists 'getting away with it' if there is no God. As I understand it, those people who have committed acts of evil, under Christianity, if they repent, they go to heaven, whereas people who have lived ordinary lives and have committed no acts of evil, unless they accept Jesus as their savior, they go to hell, ( or as some Christians now call it..a separation from God). That doesn't sound like any human justice that I'm aware of.

[@Derek_Baumgartner]

+bonnie43uk Well, that's an interesting and definitely a worthwhile question to ask. While I am no expert on the subject, hopefully I can start down a path here and also do some research of my own: -I believe one window into helping solve this issue with Christianity is recognizing that forgiveness is not the same as a reward. For a Bible passage on this very subject, 1 Corinthians 3:11-15: it talks about rewards or loss separate from the foundation of Christ. -The second point to declare here also related to forgiveness, because if a crime is not paid, then someone has to foot the bill. As you said, those who repent and accept Jesus are given forgiveness, since Jesus, because He loves us, came to earth, lived a perfect life, and died to foot the bill for sin. I can propose a few similar thought scenarios related to the one you described: -If a man committed a crime early in his life, then spent the rest of his life doing good (charity, helping the weak, fundraisers, etc.), would that mean that he actually did nothing bad? The man may be punishing himself in a manner (depending on your point of view), but is that the same as justice AND who would be worthy to be the judge in that case? -If a man were to accept Christ then not live as Christ commands, or if a man were to hold off accepting Christ (because he wanted to be free from such a lifestyle) then accepted Christ when he knew his death drew near, do you think he deserves a reward simply for accepting forgiveness and nothing else? -If a man does not want God in his life, should God then force Himself onto that man? From the bit of research I have done, many Christians seem to believe that hell, like heaven, has different levels of payment depending on what the person in question has done. Does this mean it's exactly true? I'm not sure yet - have more to learn here. I do know, though, that a man can reject God and still do good things, but that doesn't erase sin. Similarly, I know that a man can do evil and accept Christ, but accepting Christ garners forgiveness, not reward. I have seen you comment on multiple videos such as this one, and I hope that you sincerely wish to find the answer to questions such as these. I encourage you to do some research - a good site I know is "Answers in Genesis" for a start. I do not claim to know all the answers nor the fullness of your question, and neither do I claim that Answers in Genesis holds them either, but hopefully I at least pointed you in the direction of an answer or two. :) There are a load of difficult questions out there, and the important thing to consider is that you are not alone in asking them. Thank you for your post.

[@TheZymbo]

+bonnie43uk Your understanding is partially correct. Yes, a terrible sinner (murderer, rapist, etc) could truly repent and be forgiven of his sins, therefore allowing him entry into heaven. To say otherwise would be to limit God's forgiveness or ability to save. Through faith in Christ that person would be made righteous in the eyes of God as Jesus would have paid the penalty for their sins. That being said, repenting and saying, "I believe in Jesus" must begin in the heart. It must be a true repentance and not just a verbal profession to allow you to escape punishment. An empty profession on your deathbed to hedge your bets in eternity is not true belief. You and I cannot read a man's heart, only God can. True repentance and faith will be judged by the Lord, not a simple profession which we observe. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart. 1 Samuel 16:7 As to your second point regarding, "people who have lived ordinary lives and have committed no acts of evil, unless they accept Jesus as their savior, they go to hell." This is presupposing that people have committed no acts of evil. All of humanity is sinful. The argument of the "innocent man" starts with a false premise. All of man is fallen. There is no such thing as a "good" person within the biblical worldview. They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt; there is none who does good, not even one. Psalm 14:3 Yes, they would be eternally separated from God in hell.

[@bonnie43uk]

zymbo Hi Zymbo, thanks for that. Yes, i did say if a man who has committed terrible crimes then *genuinely* in his heart and soul is repentant, then he gets eternal heaven according to Christianity. That is not so much the problem. I can accept that, as we're told that God is 'all loving', it would make sense that he forgives even the worst of us. The problem comes when people ( such as myself.. i openly reject Christ as i see no credible evidence), I cannot think of anything I have done in my life that would honestly warrant a single day in prison. I've not killed or raped anyone, If you are telling me that maybe stealing a bar of candy when I was 10 is punishable by going to hell, then I seriously have to question Christianity. Particularly if a rapist who has done despicable things to innocent victims goes to heaven. Do you not see a problem here Zymbo? Gods justice of punishment and reward bears no resemblance to reality. Also, am I to be punished in some way by being absolutely honest with myself in rejecting Christ. Would God want me to be honest with myself or would he prefer me to lie to myself and accept Christ knowing deep down inside I cannot believe in something without what i see as credible evidence. Yes, i understand that you may well find the evidence for Christ very credible.. i do not.

[@TheZymbo]

+bonnie43uk Thanks for your thoughtful reply. I often struggled with this question myself before Christ came into my life. I generally believed I was a "good" person, in a sense that I hadn't killed or raped anyone. Oh, I suppose I was OK in comparison to a lot of people, but I was a lot worse than many others. It came down to pride. I didn't want to believe that God would judge me against such harsh standards. I felt it was unfair. A miraculous string of events in my life shattered my pride and granted me a new understanding. Ultimately, without accepting Jesus and taking on His imputed righteousness, we are not judged in how good we are in relation to other people. We are judged against Christ. How would you stack up to the Lord and how have you kept His commandments? This being the case, without Jesus we are in big trouble. If we are to be honest with one another, no one has kept the commandments (regardless if you believe in them). Have you ever lied? Of course. Have to ever stolen something, regardless of value? Of course you have (ever sneak out of work 10 minutes early?) Have you ever looked at someone and lusted after them? Of course. Have you ever looked at someone with true hatred. Of course. Have you ever taken the Lord's name in vain. Of course. That would make you a liar, a thief, an adulterer, a murderer and a blasphemer. And I would be just as guilty as you, because I would answer every one of those questions in the affirmative. The difference between us is I can rely on the saving work of Christ's grace and not stand on my own righteousness. All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away. Isaiah 64:6 Matthew 5 21-43. I will paraphrase because it is a long segment of scripture. Jesus taught us that our sins start in our mind. If you look at a brother with hatred, you have committed murder. If you look at a woman with lustful intent, you have committed adultery. Its because God knows your intentions and thoughts. You used the example of stealing one bar of candy as a child as if it would be your only sin. I would presume, if we are being honest, you have probably told thousands of lies, even little white ones. I would presume you've been angry with people to the point of hatred. I would assume you've lusted after at least one person. How many sins would be acceptable before damnation? I realize I'm throwing a lot of fire and brimstone at you, but I'm not trying to soft sell you the message. I'm not judging you, I'm merely telling you what is the message of the Gospel. Without Christ, we are lost. Romans 10:9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. You asked about a rapist going to heaven and a person who stole a candy bar going to hell. I do not see a problem with that. There is a fundamental difference between the two people. The rapist, though vile in his earthly deeds, sought a relationship with God and hated his sin, albeit in the 11th hour. The thief never desired a relationship with God. Would it not be unjust for God to force the thief, the person who does not want to be with God, into dwelling with Him eternally? Therefore, the thief would go to hell to be separated from God eternally, because that's what the thief wanted. Does that mean the thief is burned in oil forever? I have no idea. The bible seems to suggest there are levels of reward and punishment in heaven and hell. Ultimately, hell is eternal separation from God. May I ask, what evidence have you looked at regarding Jesus and what particularly turns you off to the notions of faith? Also, what would you consider credible evidence? Thank you for your response. God Bless.

[@bonnie43uk]

zymbo Hi Zymbo, good to hear back from you. You mentioned some miraculous events in your life, I have a fascination with miracle claims, so I'd be more than happy to hear about your miracles if you'd like to tell me more. Heh, I'm not saying I'm in anyway perfect, those things you mentioned, lying, stealing, and those types of things, sure, we all do. I especially like looking at attractive women with lust, it's one of life's free pleasures in life. In no way do I feel as though I've committed adultery in my heart, esp as I'm not married, anyway, i think all married men and women are perfectly free to enjoy looking at good looking men and women. I think lying is an essential part of being human, if we all went around telling the truth about what we thought, our lives would be chaotic, trust me on this. We lie as a coping mechanism to get along with others and to prevent harm in delicate situations. Try spending a day saying exactly what you think about people, it will not end well. Stealing also, i agree is very wrong in most cases, but I can think of plenty of scenario's where it would be considered ok to steal. Regarding heaven and hell, you say the bible suggests there are levels of reward and punishment in heaven and hell, where does it say this?. Regarding eternal separation from God, if God is all loving, how can he completely shut the door on his creation?. If I loved my creation, i would find a way to allow them to come back to me. Maybe God isn't as all loving as you thought. Regarding your excellent questions, I'm not turned off by the notion of faith, i think having faith can be extremely beneficial to many people, especially if they have miserable lives, the thought of something better is an enormous comfort to millions of people. The reason it doesn't work for me personally is that I never felt comfortable being told these magical stories, they never rang true for me, and as time goes on, we seem to have much better answers as to why life is the way it is. I have looked at the evidence for Jesus, it seems the harder I look, the less evidence I find. Here is an interesting fact, during his life, when he was performing all these incredible miracles in the presence of thousands of people all over Judea, not a single person, Christian or non Christian, wrote a single thing about him, if you know different, I'd be happy to hear what evidence you have. Does it prove he didn't exist or didn't do the things he's claimed to have done?, absolutely not, but it gives me good cause to doubt. Finally you ask what I would consider credible evidence, well, ok, lets go back to miracles again, if God could heal one single amputee I will become a Christian, you have my absolute word of honor. I'm guessing you will tell me God doesn't perform magic tricks on demand, well, I'm not demanding he do it, you've simply asked me what evidence would convince me, and I've given you my honest answer. He performs miracles every single day according to most Christians, .. if a Christian prays for God to heal their mother of cancer, and she is healed, isn't that testing God's existence in some way. I'm not asking God to heal an amputee strictly for my benefit, do it for the benefit of the amputee. My witnessing it will simply be confirmation of his existence, and in the process, i will become a follower of Christ, and encourage others to do the same. It's a win/win situation as I see it. I accept Christ as my Lord and savior, and the amputee gets their limb back, I'm sure if that amputee was not a follower of Christ, the healing will almost certainly change their mind. As I say, everybody wins, and nobody loses. There is *no* negative aspect to God doing this as i see it.

[@zainulabideen6812]

i told you choice is yours to chooes your fates

[@aquillafleetwood8180]

Romans 1: 20, says we can see God by observing creation! Genesis 1: 14 says,..." the stars shall be for signs...." Psalms 75: 6 says, exaltation comes from God out of the north! So, let's look at some stars around the North Star! Google, the Northern Cross by Aquilla Fleetwood, youtube! Google, Night Signs by Aquilla Fleetwood, youtube! Google, Jeff Benner the North Star and read his comments about this very special star! Romans 16: 16 Shalom............

[@lianecornils8733]

Why are u in business ? Dcfs

[@sweetsendaedreamr]

Tell me you're a bigot with out telling me you're a bigot.

[@brandenholmes322]

Prof. Lennox said that Dawkins' claim that explanations always go from the simpler to the more complex is false when it comes to language. But his counter-example was merely trivial. Of course complex intelligence will often do simple tasks, and hence explanation of those simple tasks will be in the volitions (or otherwise) of a far more complex entity. But the explanation of the intelligence in the first place goes from the simple to the more complex.

[@aquillafleetwood8180]

Branden Holmes...google, Paleo-Hebrew Word Pictures, by Aquilla Fleetwood, youtube! Google, Paleo-Chinese Word Pictures, by Aquilla Fleetwood, youtube! Google, the Northern Cross by Aquilla Fleetwood, youtube! Shalom......

[@williambissell4792]

Lennox offered no evidence but made it clear that he believes because he likes to and it gives him pleasure. I would ask him "why don't I have the ability to believe?"

[@cristilaye5912]

Not about ability......or the lack thereof

[@tonyisnotdead]

@@cristilaye5912 it is about ability

[@AtamMardes]

Lennox rambling on.....

[@D3V1N3CR34710R]

delusion much?!

[@carsongarfield6524]

+D3V1N3CR34710R Depends who we are talking about...

[@D3V1N3CR34710R]

+Carson Garfield I was obviously talking about the religious spastic

[@johncook19]

John Lenox disproves Christianity. His self indulgence demonstrates that he eats to much and talks to much and he is extremely self indulgent.and obsessed with Richardson Dawkins.

[@andrewmeneely9774]

hate much