Tactics filled in a weakness of mine like no other book. Asking questions is the key, and it's not just for apologetics. I find it useful teaching my kids or discussing politics or even the mundane.
You are making the claim that Jesus created our universe? So you defend that assertion....by asking questions? How do you asking questions defend your assertion? You are just deflecting and trying to avoid the burden of proof. How st*pid are you?
I really enjoyed this dialogue! I found it interesting that, at one point, Greg referred to "parrying" responses, which can be more useful than full apologetic responses. I love the idea of asking them to elaborate and breaking down misconceptions piecemeal, as opposed to shouldering the full burden of a thought-out response. At one point, when I heard mentioned the 'conflicting' Gospel accounts, I wondered what an experiment would look like if, after a Christmas day, I had my 4 children write down what happened on Christmas and what stood out to them. I wondered how seemingly conflicting their accounts would be, particularly if we had a lot going on such as guests over, leaving to visit relatives, playing in snow, etc. It could be a fun and eductional way to demonstrate how the Gospel writers don't conflict with each other, they just occasionally focus on certain details that the other Gospel writers don't.
@frogpaste....yes! Very good wish someone had told me this when I used to argue that the Gospels were conflicting! I gradually came to the realization that the writers saw different things slightly from their perception.
I agree with asking questions. I’ve recently learned that in my older age. That’s one of the best things to do, but I’ve also learned that the most important thing to do is to be prayed up for these times and allow the Holy Spirit to lead the discussion.
Love the discussion. What helped me to understand the Trinity was tying this in with a gem from Paul in 1 Corinthians 9:19-23 and the sense that God meets us where we are. God in the Trinity perfectly embodies being what all peoples need, right where they are in order that none should perish.
Greg's book, Tactics, is a game changer. Evangelism involves planting the seed, watering the seed and then harvesting. Greg is a master seed-waterer. Thanks Sean and Greg for your needed ministry.
meh, i think satan pays better. in fact god threatens to burn me alive if i don;t hand over my soul to him, at least satan trades my soul for a life skill.
@@SeanMcDowell no, you're not sean, you're as deceptive and two faced as all your gang of apologists. and cut with demon possession BS, leave mental health to the experts, tell me when your car breaks down do you take it to the church to get the demons out of it? demon possession is barbaric and disgusting and you ought to be ashamed of even suggesting it as an option.
This is absolutely incredible. I really want to learn how to speak with others this way. Sean started the desire in me to not only know the Bible but know how to dialogue with others regarding the Bible. This video in particular is catapulting me in that direction. I can read about how to do this all day long but without the example in video or sound recording, it just doesn’t stick. I hope this author has his book in audio because I think it would really serve me well.
@@theworldisee nope. But that’s not what Koukl is doing. He’s outright advocating deflecting. Standard discourse is one asks a question, the other answers and then asks a question. Not answering questions with questions to avoid the original question.
@@Bomtombadi1 I see what you're saying. Absolutely agree. I do not like the deflecting. It made my quills stick out! However, listening to others dialogue in this way helps me understand others that I have dealt with in the past and will probably find in the future. That's why I liked hearing Koukl's methods, but even more so, Sean's responses and the questions he asked in trying to understand Koukl's methods. I originally stated that I hope Koukl's book is in audio. That is because I'd like to hear what else is in there and what other methods he might present and see how he "plays this game." I do not want to be a deceiver, and I do not want to be deceived. As for Sean, his style gives me some clear ideas on how to reframe a question, so I can better understand what the person I'm dialoguing with is saying. I DO truly appreciate and value Sean's methods for questioning and appreciate how good of an interviewer he is. I'm not always super clear in getting my thoughts "on paper" or even "live and in person," so please try to see the heart of what I'm saying through my verbose message. I am learning to be a better communicator and videos like this help me analysis and adjust my techniques.
Thank you for this interview! Because of it, I bought this book “Tactics!” Wow! BEST book I’ve ever read about evangelism! I’ve read so many “Soul-Winning” books that are fleshy and focus on “sealing the deal” so we can brag about how many “souls WE led to Christ.” This book is fantastic! Such balance. I love the idea of “putting a pebble in their shoe!” It’s so less intimidating when your goal isn’t to always get a gospel presentation in, but simply to advance truth! Thank you!
I’ve read both of some of your books. What I loved about this conversation is that you’ve both underscored the importance of listening and digging deeper, on planting seeds, not focusing on harvest.
Yes, I agree! I have been in professional sales (selling entire telecom network components) and was educated in many of these techniques. I would bristle when people would summarize what I do as "talking people into things" because by and large most of what I did was to ask questions and come back with solutions to the problems that were revealed from the answers! This is no different HOWEVER, reading the book and watching these are enabling me to utilize these techniques in my Christian walk!
@@brainteezer197 That is so cool! At my church, we have a Bible School, and in our Apologetics course we read Greg's The Story of Reality. Such a helpful book to zero in on the 5 elements to lead any conversation to. In the past (pre-Greg Koukl evangelizing technique) when I have spoken to others about Jesus I thought I needed to show the RIGHT answer to everything. No wonder how I never felt I could do it well enough. Now I know, I just need to plant some seeds. When I then did a self-study after that course of Greg's book Tactics, I totally see what you are saying. Definitely applies to many sales techniques! Planting seeds so the customer sees they have a need for what you are selling them on. Thanks for sharing! I am looking forward to getting Greg's new book when it comes out!
@@ChristianCareerJoy you do realise that jesus wrote nothing right? and you do realise nothing was written about him until ten years after he was dead? and that christianity is based on one bloke having a hallucination he saw a dead bloke he NEVER MET? no one has a clue what jesus said, did or thought.
@Harry....Socratic method is philosophy. Was he manipulative? Selling something either in person or via ads is showing a consumer why the product is valuable and worth investing in. Greg Koukul's questioning is the same, plus investigative. Did you read it?
WOW, what a great way to respond to non believers. I agree, most people only believe what they believe to be facts because someone said so, they don’t have any backup.
sorry chum but i've always been atheist, i concluded there is no god right from the start, no one told me to not believe (that doesn't even make sense) in fact i didn't believe the dozens of people who were telling me i ought to believe, my backup? people don't come back from the dead, snakes don't talk (other than in mythology) all religions make the same claims, so none of them are actually divine, if i ask YOU to demonstrate this personal god you can;'t, NO ONE EVER HAS, and you expect me to believe you? it's you that has no grounds for your belief other than what someone else has told you, you sir are what we call in the trade a hypocrite. and: you do realise that jesus wrote nothing right? and you do realise nothing was written about him until ten years after he was dead? and that christianity is based on one bloke having a hallucination he saw a dead bloke he NEVER MET? no one has a clue what jesus said, did or thought, your religion has no substance, none of them do.
Your content is top notch. I have learned so much from you and your guests. I read Tactics a couple years ago and it quickly became a favorite of mine.
Thank you, Sean and Greg. This was a helpful and informative discussion. Thank you for the helpful tips for witnessing and sharing our faith, as well as reminding me of some things I have learned in studying apologetics. It is interesting to consider how many times Jesus and Paul asked questions! What a good method to get to know another person, and to begin to understand how to help them . May God bless you both! :-)
awesome liar. the book ought to be called "how to avoid answering questions you have no answer for by asking another question instead" it's not tactics, it's being a dick.
Excellent video and saving in my awesome file! Greg comes across very thoughtful, easy to understand and kind. I love the way he is able to get to the heart of understanding the other, and then logically debate the issue. Just pre-ordered his book to delve into the topic further. Looking forward to it, and thank you Sean for all the awesome interviews you make!
Tactics was a great book; I agree that questions can be much more disarming and diffusing than accusations. I read it around the time I read Boghossian’s “How to Have Impossible Conversations.”
Most people coming at Christianity are aiming for your head. You, as a Christian, are instructed to aim for their heart. Which is wise, because, as any hunter will tell you, it is best to aim for the largest part.
buy william lane craig's book(s), but if they don't like him, then buy sean mcdowells' book(s), Lee Strobel, eric hernandez', but maybe they would prefer frank tureks book(s) or even mike liconah's, or gary habermas', or best yet buy J.P. Moreland's books, god answered his prayers even if it was for a pool table, one thing is for sure though, you won't buy jesus book cos he didn't have the foresight to write ANYTHING. he employed "ghost" writers.
A HUGE help in this area for me was reading the paper called 'The Contingency Of Knowledge And Revelatory Theism' by R. M. Manion... I can't express how brilliantly he lays out the contradictions in the atheistic worldview at the philosophic level. It's easy to download and print off, but you'll want a pen handy to help you study it. It's a slow read because of the language he uses, but it truly is brilliant.
what contradiction? how does "there is no god" contradict itself? and atheism isn't a worldview, YOU have the worldview, theism, i call you liar when it comes to the existence of god, that's it, no view at all.
@Harry Nichols hi, I think what happens is: for me, “God” is causal . For you, “no God” leads to a next question of “then what is causal?” And there is where your atheistic worldview has to kick in.
Oh poor Greg having a conversation with unbeliever uncle Fred (Sean McDowell) 🤣🤣😂 I've been blessed with really helpful guidance for talking about my faith with the real uncle Fred 😂😅 Tku
jb if you know with 100% certainty that if you have intercourse with your partner you will produce a child that will be all his life in the most horrible pain and suffering. Would you decide to have intimacy and bring this child to the world?
I really enjoyed Tactics. Super excited to hear that there's a new book coming out. I love that you guys also mention J Warner Wallace. I loved Person of Interest. I like the trinity and number of God/s "contradiction" question. I like to take that question down to an aspect of one's nature. When I ask your name or "Who are you?", you don't tell me "human". Human isn't who you are, it's what you are. Human is your "being type". Who you are, the person you are, is Dr Sean. That is human nature. One person or personality, in one being. On the other hand, God's nature is different from our own. In a manner of speaking, God created us in His image, but not to be just like Him. As such, God's nature is different from our nature. God's nature is that His being type is "God". God is both his type and the title we often refer to Him as. However, when we ask of God, "Who are you?", He's not one person, as we are. He is three persons, three personalities, or 3 consciences in one being. Those persons are the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Each is equally part of the singular "God" being, but also different or separate persons from one another.
and what has it doe for you? fill a space on your bookshelf? what else? will it get you into heaven? has it made you a kinder more loving person? what?
Suggestion? Love to see videos of real conversations, where this is put into practice. Ray Comforts street interviews and 'so be it' in Israel have been so helpful.
check out anthony magnasbosco and see how it REALLY is done, even though anthony is atheist he's not a two faced lying dodger like koukl or mcdowell, just real conversations about how you arrive at belief.
On a rare occasion, you might run into a thoughtful atheist or agnostic who would bring up these kinds of questions but almost all the time you would be talking to people that don't have a clue about theological issues. We have to trust what the Word has to say about itself that it has the ability to convict a person of their need and trust the Holy Spirit to give us the words each person needs to hear! Example: The Holy Spirit drops into my thoughts his name, his wife's name, and where they lived. The guy said, how did you know all that? I explained to him, God just showed me that. That's what the Bible calls a word of knowledge, one of the nine gifts of the Holy Spirit. As a result of seeing the power of God, he gave his life to Christ!
The problem is that many people require real evidence and not just made up stories. If the holy spirit actually gave you information that you could not possibly know otherwise then this could be tested… and it would be the first piece of verifiable evidence in a cumulative case for Christianity.😉 Unfortunately not a single person in history could ever demonstrate that they got such information in a supernatural way…
I have never felt a need to defend my faith - The desire is to refer to God's Word for answers to questions about Him, and our relationship with Him. Since He created us with a mind and a will, we always have a choice whether to believe His recorded Word or trust one's own mind and imagination in matters of God's truth and our spiritual life.
Hi thanks for your channel. I used be a Jehovahs witness, but even after leaving still remained a believer in their teachings for the most part. However I then started looking critically at the bible, God etc, to the point of becoming agnostic maybe even atheist recently. It was a range of different issues i think. Divine hidenness was a big factor. Looking back i thought that during my tme as a believer i could not actually KNOW if and how God had ever answered my prayers. This lead to me thinking my prayers are futile, since what difference do they make? Mixed with the idea that God is onmiscient anyway and already knows and acts according to his will. I would talk to christians, particularly born agains who would say i need to be born again once i have the holy spirit, everything would suddenly change, i would have peace joy, and would KNOW without any doubts. I examined different teachings in christianity (catholics, protestant, evangelical) and remained unsure about trinity and hellfire in particular. I tried praying for God reveal himself to me, and if Jesus is God to make it known to me in the way he waants... But i became disillusioned in my search i think partly because i was looking at a lot of skeptical info about everything. Particularly the evidence for jesus resurrection, the reliability of the gospels and new testament ...i became tired with searching and finding lack of concensus on these things. But my new agnostic atheist position is making me uneasy in some ways, perhaps i have been tricked, or decived myself? Its also making me nihilistic
stick with it, i've always been atheist, no one needs god unless they want an excuse to kick drugs or alcohol. if you have any kind of decent life, what would anyone need an imaginary friend for?
I bought Tactics but can't Invision using particular types of questioning. I might be able to ask what do you mean by that? But don't know if I could go on from their response. I'm a little unconfident. I wish I had Aaron like Moses did!
buy william lane craig's book(s), but if they don't like him, then buy sean mcdowells' book(s), Lee Strobel, eric hernandez', but maybe they would prefer frank tureks book(s) or even mike liconah's, or gary habermas', or best yet buy J.P. Moreland's books, god answered his prayers even if it was for a pool table, one thing is for sure though, you won't buy jesus book cos he didn't have the foresight to write ANYTHING. he employed "ghost" writers. you won't get into heaven unless god makes money from book sales.
@@HarryNicNicholas 😲huh! What? Sir, you don't have to buy books to make heaven. The Bible is most definitely sufficient, it's our ultimate authority but, yes the but. These books are also needed, they are helpful guide in our walk of faith because we don't know it all. I was never a person of Christian literatures growing up but I wanted to know, to know Him and the power of His might, I wanted the knowledge of God and these books have come in handy. So please don't despise them (books) and the people God is using to bring about His words/work. Shalom!
don't bother, they blather on making excuses and if you think there is a god then you will have to believe the excuses but really they are just lying cos slavery is immoral but not in the bible and blah blah blah. it;'s a subject done to death, religists can't own up to god condoning slavery, its all a waste of time cos religists are inherently dishonest and lie about everything to do with god. god is a punk basically. and if you're asking koukl all you're really doing is going "dear greg, slavery is hideous and immoral and outlawed by humans, but why doe god suggest it's okay and what's more you can beat slaves? please make up some crap that will MAKE ME FEEL BETTER about this hideous dictator i worship, lie to me greg, lie to me" religists make me puke.
Saying God did something is no more a science stopper, than knowing someone else created something answers all the questions or stop you learning and trying it yourself.
The Trinity is like the Sun. These three are all one thing and cannot be separated. You cannot have light or warmth without the burning ball of fire. The three are one and yet they are different.
I am on your side fully. However, I have something to add. I hear you say "we don't need to worry about discrepancies" and "if you are an atheist, how can you accuse us of transgressing a moral base when you have no moral base to stand on?" Having had this very circumstance with a family member, their response was "I am not asking from MY moral base or if I personally care about discrepancies but because YOU claim a moral base and YOU claim inerrancy. You say inerrancy and I see error. You claim justice and I see injustice."
Sean, you're one of this atheist's favorite apologists. I'd like to see you have that discussion about moral foundations with an atheist who's thought seriously about their moral philosophy. The problem in role playing with a fellow Christian is that there comes a point when you both agree with each other, like when you say that an atheist can't justify their criticism of slavery in the Bible, and then you seem to hit a wall in your imitation of an atheist. I'd rather see you talk with the real thing.
I thought that a lot of situations presented was relatable (like interactions with people & friends at school), also if I just want so spark some conversation with my folks. So I think this interview and its strategies are going super helpful for me. Thanks !
@@markb3786 then why defend it at all? If I said that about any other topic, people would call the belief illegitimate. Like if I said “you don’t want to have a deep conversation about abortion” then it’s clear that you are both afraid of legitimate investigation of your belief and/or that the belief isn’t properly grounded.
Just some feedback. I think it's important to allow the person who you've asked the question to to fully complete their answer before you respond otherwise it does feel like you're using loaded questions and aren't really interested in what they say but rather getting them to say what you want them to say to support your perspective. Otherwise very informative guys, loved the examples. God bless.
you saw through greg's actual tactic eh? all he does is deflect, that's all apologists do, when you get asked a question you don't like or can't answer, or makes god look like a shmuck, ask a question instead and make the other guy do the work, greg's book only needs one page, none if he put this on the cover. greg is like all apologists, just trying to win arguments, no actual care about his religion, just how to be dishonest and not get caught. he's an idiot.
Credit to Sean for trying to steelman the slavery questioning, but I think he recognizes Greg is practically begging for him to play along with his line of thought there. Dr. Josh Bowen would be a good place to look for a better understanding of the slave/servant relationship for Greg, but I think he doesn't want to learn about the harsh realities of his scriptures.
I know it's a year ago, but I'm wondering why Kouki didn't respond to the Synoptic Gospels question with an answer that's just as legitimate - and factual, to boot - as the example he posed. The differences in the Gospels is for the simple reason that each author wrote to their specific audience, and approached the facts from the position in order to understand the accounts of Jesus life.
If you have three beings with three centers of consciousness and one God, does that not mean there is a fourth essence greater than the three person who share or come out of the one God?
Regarding morals, atheism is a stance on if there is a God, so no it does not cover anything else. But if you want my specific take on morals, then our morals is a trait of evolution. In order for our species to survive we need to be a heard animal, this requires you to be able too work together with other entities of your species and not be rejected by them.
Defending your faith is fine, as long as, if the attack is none violent then you’re response must be none violent. I believe that the only place for religion to be taught is in the home or temple, never in a public building. Never in a school 🐹
asb if you know with 100% certainty that if you have intercourse with your partner you will produce a child that will be all his life in the most horrible pain and suffering. Would you decide to have intimacy and bring this child to the world?
As a thought experiment, I'm imagining meeting Greg on a plane and we have 2 hours with each other. How would the conversation go? If I start off the conversation with "I'm not a Christian because ..." then it's clear that I'm going to be on the defensive the entire way, I'm going to be asked a continuous stream of "What do you mean by that?" questions, which will probably devolve quickly into something like "What do you mean when you say that electrons have a negative charge?" We're gonna be down in the weeds and we're never gonna get anywhere. If I could flip it around so that Greg was defending an affirmative claim that Jesus rose from the dead, then I would start to ask if it's a physical resurrection or a spiritual resurrection. If he's resurrected physically, where did he go? If he ascended into Heaven, does that mean he's now in orbit around the Earth? Etc. It would be interesting to see where a conversation with Greg would lead. I suspect we would both get frustrated with each other quickly.
I had fellow Christian in a JW group I’m a part of make a statement then say “I’m just putting a stone in their shoe” I said, AHH you’re a fan of TACTICS.
As Greg Koukl has simply noted in the past vis-à-vis the sole integrity of science to tell us all we need to know, he simply asked: "can someone determine the weight of a chicken with a yard-stick?" which illustrated his observation that science does not have all the necessary tools with which to examine every question our minds come up with as to "why is this?" or "why is that?". Also, one of the apologists noted that, by common consent there is something, even agreed on in the legal profession and courts of law, that there is a REAL thing called "motive" when seeking to determine innocence or guilt for an act someone has undertaken, even though there is no way a person's brain can be opened and that piece of it called a motive can be found there. Things like motive are just not material at all.
@@sanjeevgig8918 gb if you know with 100% certainty that if you have intercourse with your partner you will produce a child that will be all his life in the most horrible pain and suffering. Would you decide to have intimacy and bring this child to the world?
@@sanjeevgig8918 exactly my line of argumentation was going when I`m talking of "suffering" and I`m talking about all his existence, I`m trying to express a case where you having intimacy with your partner will cause the existence of a child that will end up in hell. I`m not sure how you flesh out hell but I leave up to personal interpretation however is largely accepted that: 1) hell is a horrible place of suffering 2) you can`t escape hell 3) most mankind won`t be safe and will end up here. Given this why anyone should engage in sex. (nor protected or unprotected) why would anyone risk having a child that will experience the horrible eternity of hell, knowing that you can`t assure anyone salvation and you know most humans are doomed, and the end times are close.1
In my daily life I don't look for opportunities to engage with strangers to discuss differences in our worldviews, or to defend Christianity. Most of my friends and family are Christian, but some have abandoned it. This is where my pointed discussions occur. A common complaint is "not enough" evidence. Whenever we say there's "not enough" of something, even the sugar in our tea, we're claiming there's an "enough" out there somewhere, regardless of how much sugar that actually might be. With this, the complainant states categorically that enough would be enough, as it were. They've now straw-manned themselves, by implying/pretending they'd be somehow satisfied with this God in whom they now believe. They've misunderstood (intentional naivete?) a central claim that Christianity makes about human nature/psychology/behavior; namely, that our disapproval/dislike of God is the primary phenomenon, not mere disbelief/skepticism. Why else is the penultimate "commandment" to love (God), not merely believe? I take from this that it's one of my highest duties to make the case, through speech and behaviour, that God is lovable, so to speak.
well give me ONE piece of evidence of a god. or better still DEMONSTRATE a god. no one has or ever will do, there is no god to demonstrate. god is for needy people or people who want too impose unnatural rules on OTHER people, it's never about being a decent person yourself, like atheists are.
I asked the same question to my pastor in the late 90s, he was speaking of asking the Father if this cup compass, so I said he asked himself for permission?
@@loriforges6304 the trinity certainly doesn't make sense. If God is a family then the separate members do keep their own identity. Jesus wasn't in contradiction to this, on the contrary. In as much as we can compare our own families with its different members to keep their identity, even when they are agreeing. A family can be one in the sense of having the same outlook on life and one could say that they are united in spirit...
In addition if the holy spirit is a separate person, does this give that separate person power OVER' the father and the son? Or rather is the Holy Spirit THE POWER OF the Father and the Son? In which case the holy spirit cannot be a separate person, but only the same mindset and spirit which emanates FROM the Father. and Son to unite them ?
This is interesting. I loved Tactics and have encouraged others to read it and have done small groups in our church. I even recorded a UA-cam video on it. When I hear "The Bible is full of contradictions" I want to ask what they mean by that. What is a contradiction? I want them to define it. And by the Bible do they mean all translations? Start there. I see a contradiction that has two things that are mutually exclusive and cannot both be true at the same time and in the same way.
@@SeanMcDowell well when i talk about contradictions i mean what is it you are "harmonising", if something needs "harmonising" then i'd say that's smoothing over a contradiction, like god being all loving, yet he kills people, that's a contradiction, harmonise that for me. you can't - you have to lie.
well when i talk about contradictions i mean what is it you are "harmonising", if something needs "harmonising" then i'd say thats smoothing over a contradiction, like god being all loving, yet he kills people, that's a contradiction, harmonise that for me. you can't - you have to lie.
greg's book ought to be titled "how to doge atheists questions" cos that's all it is, i recommend eric berne and "games people play" cos greg is a game player - dishonest to the core.
@@HarryNicNicholas maybe you were just confused about what an actual contradiction is. Apparent contradictions you can harmonize, like how many Angels were at Jesus tomb or how many women went to his tomb after the resurrection, and actual contradictions you cannot harmonize. As far as killing people, could a loving person ever have a morally justifiable reason for killing another person? Would it be morally justifiable and loving to kill a child sex trafficker? If you had a time machine would it be morally justifiable to kill Hitler? Or a suicide bomber the day before he sets off a bomb that kills a Bus full of innocent people?
Dr. Sean, I've been watching you for a while and admire how you try to have civil/loving conversations with people of different world views. I've been trying to implement that into my conversations with my friends of various beliefs, is Street Smarts the best book for talking to others with “gentleness and reverence” or would you recommend any other books?
@@Iverath Thanks, I have been looking for other atheist channels that really challenge my beliefs and make me think critically when they talk to Christians. Especially in a civil manner
What the modern Church needs is a New Covenant Revival (Heb. 9:10) in which members of various denominations are willing to re-examine everything they believe and see if it agrees with the Bible, instead of the traditions of men. We need to be like the Bereans. It will be a battle between our flesh and the Holy Spirit. It will not be easy. If you get mad and upset when someone challenges your man-made Bible doctrines, that is your flesh resisting the truth found in God's Word. Nobody can completely understand the Bible unless they understand the relationship between the Old Covenant given to Moses at Mount Sinai and the New Covenant fulfilled in blood at Calvary. What brings all local churches together into one Body under the blood of Christ? The answer is found below. New Covenant Whole Gospel: Let us now share the Old Testament Gospel found below with the whole world. On the road to Emmaus He said the Old Testament is about Him. He is the very Word of God in John 1:1, 14. Awaken Church to this truth. Jer 31:31 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: Jer 31:32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by husband unto them, saith the LORD: Jer 31:33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. Jer 31:34 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more. Is the most important genealogy in the Bible found in Matthew 1:1 (Gal. 3:16)? Is God's Son the ultimate fulfillment of Israel (John 1:49)? Why has the modern Church done a pitiful job of sharing the Gospel with modern Orthodox Jews? Why would someone tell them they are God's chosen people and then fail to share the Gospel with them? Who is the seed of the woman promised in Genesis 3:15? What did Paul say about Genesis 12:3 in Galatians 3:8? Who is the "son" in Psalm 2? Who is the "suffering servant" of Isaiah 53? Who would fulfill the New Covenant promised in Jeremiah 31:31-34? Who would fulfill the timeline of Daniel chapter 9 before the second temple was destroyed? Why have we not heard this simple Old Testament Gospel preached on Christian television in the United States on a regular basis? Once a person comes to understand the New Covenant promised to Israel and Judah in Jeremiah 31:31-34, which is found fulfilled by Christ during the first century in Hebrews 8:6-13, and Hebrews 10:16-18, and specifically applied to the Church in 2 Corinthians 3:6-8, and Hebrews 12:22-24, man-made Bible doctrines fall apart. Let us now learn to preach the whole Gospel until He comes back. The King of Israel is risen from the dead! (John 1:49, Acts 2:36) We are not come to Mount Sinai in Hebrews 12:18. We are come instead to the New Covenant church of Mount Zion and the blood in Hebrews 12:22-24. 1Jn 3:22 And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight. 1Jn 3:23 And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment. 1Jn 3:24 And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us. The following verses prove the Holy Spirit is the master teacher for those now in the New Covenant. Jer 31:34 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more. Mar 1:8 I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost. Joh 14:26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. Act 11:16 Then remembered I the word of the Lord, how that he said, John indeed baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost. 1Co 12:13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.
1Jn 2:27 But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him. Watch the UA-cam videos “The New Covenant” by David Wilkerson, or Bob George, and David H.J. Gay.
The Trinity doesn't contradict. You are an aware being, in case you were unaware. You have one point of awareness: you can be in the moment, or in your head, in some specific corner of your head. You know you don't think about many things at once, you actually bounce between many things. When you think about yourself, observing your actions and deciding what to do, you have limited knowledge, and you will find yourself going back and forth between two positions. (brain says get up, body says stay in bed, for instance.) If you asked an infinitely aware being who had in a sense infinite points of attention (everything that was and is and could be all at once, who sustains the world by paying attention to it, for example) about itself, you would find it talking as though it had a point of interaction with and perception of your world (a Son) which perfectly submits to a will making the decisions in those interactions (a Father) for a giant, mysterious living could of reasons that all point to things He think are good, all of which are working together but also pursuing different things, like truth or mercy (The Holy Spirit). It would have a Body, a Soul and a Spirit, but all at once. It must have a point of interaction with your world, for a few reasons. First, there are many things God can't know without having been embodied. What it feels like to fear death, or be ignorant, or be separated from or forsaken by God. He can't know what it's like to be like us if He has not seen life through our eyes. And since He knows everything, He must have been embodied. Second, in this particular case, God wishes to forgive us, and for us to find the Kingdom of God. But since we are made in His image (again, I guess in this particular case), we are things that decide. The very things we need to be saved from are the things which control our wills against our will. God will not do this (hence, the still small voice, with barely any expression at all.) He will not radio-control His image, because the imaging is in the freedom, and to break the freedom is to break the image. So God had to communicate with us, to convince us and entice us, draw us back to Him by His goodness, but all the reasons we DON'T obey His rules are embodied in the human experience: the lusts of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life, etc. So to understand how to communicate this to us, He became embodied. That's what Hebrews seems to say, anyway. It needs a will (I call that the Soul, probably a different thing for a different comment) because, in this world, things can only be one way. Chesterton said he wanted to thank someone for making the rose red, because it could have been blue. Possibly, by now, it can be blue, and you have somebody to thank for that, too. Some gardener. The point is, it has to be SOME color. I can want to paint my house red, you can want to paint it green, but we can't paint it both. (Like, all over, I mean. I won't paint it red with green trim, but for different reasons.) In every single situation, there must be a single answer. There is a rock there, or not. The leaf grows here, not there. The photon goes through the left slit, or the right. I think this is in order to allow many wills to interact: I can't control your body, and you can't control mine. (If you can, please stop.) But an infinite being, which would be capable of paying attention to something which WAS everything all at once everywhere, must limit itself to one thing at one place at one time in order to create such a thing. And to make a decision, it needs a will. I don't know why it needs a Spirit. But if I don't have a reason for doing things, I don't do anything, and God did something, so he had a reason for it, and that's what I think the Holy Spirit is. At least what part of it is. God is Spirit. I don't know why there's God. I've been thinking about making a video on this stuff. Would anybody watch that?
"I've been thinking about making a video on this stuff. Would anybody watch that?" Is the alternative to have molten lead poured into my eyes? Then maybe yes.
the trinity is designed to make people into liars, no one understands the trinity, it's total gibberish, a plot hole filler about god and souls and crucifixion. total nonsense. you have to PRETEND you understand if you want to PRETEND you're a good christian. but a christian obviously will argue till the cows come home, milk and then die that it makes sense.
He doesn't, personally. He is trying to help others who don't have all the answers, but want to start civil conversations. When people don't fear being asked hard questions, they are more willing to engage in spiritual conversations. (Later, they'll learn the answers, but this is a start.)
42:42 Greg is a great guy but it's funny to hear a Calvinist being critical of determinism. 43:19 substitute "stimulus from the environment" with "God's meticulous immutable pre-creation decree"
Here are some tactical questions: How old is the Earth? How large is the Universe? Did man evolve from primates? Why did a good God let so many innocents & their mothers die in childbirth or early life for so long?
So god, instead of saying slavery was wrong and make a commandment against it he said since everyone else is doing it ill make some laws around it. These laws helped the slaves stay slaves or servants for the rest of their lives. Call it whatever u want, based on our evolved morality this is immoral
@DrNateSIMP No actually. It depends on if the man was a foreigner or not. You were let go after 7 if you were Isrealite but it was for life if u were a foreigner. There were also ways to keep female slaves for life and pass her and her children to your offspring by marrying her to one of your slaves. If the male slave had the option of leaving after 7 years the wife wouldn't and stayed a slave from then on. Lev 25: 44-46, Exodus 21:4
The practice of constantly answering someone’s questions with more questions is ineffective. Eventually you have to answer your interlocutor’s questions.
I think it would be more instructive if you just had a debate with one of the better known atheists, like Sean Carroll for instance, or honestly any of the better known members of an atheist subreddit. I myself feel like I could have answered your rebuttals. The problem is that Greg is only so good as his interlocutor...and in the real world a lot of these defences already have counters. For instance your argument regarding slavery in the bible, and how atheists have no moral basis on which to claim things are right or wrong. It might surprise you to learn that measurement of distances has no objective standard. The meter stick, is actually based on an arbitrary rod of aluminum (or steel, forgot), kept in a museum in France if I remember correctly. The point that it is relative doesn't really matter though, we are able to perform accurate scientific measurements and understand speed and dimension with it just fine. Similarly the fact that morals might be relative, poses no challenge at all. We can still agree on what is wrong and right, we merely need to agree on a standard. And there are many moral principles which are so commonly agreed upon and have been fixed in place for so long, that we can reliably claim that something ought to have been wrong 1000 years ago just as today. We just observe - these things harm us, these things make us feel better, so lets argue that this is proper moral behavior, while this isn't. That is the entire basis of the legal system. None of the laws we live under in the US are based on the bible, we have the separation of church and state. These are laws that are agreed upon by society, and for the most part they function perfectly well as relative standards, because they are very common, fixed moral principles that each human mind shares. So to argue against relativism is to argue against every system of criminal justice we have around the world, and argue that it is somehow defective or unreliable when it has served us very well for thousands of years. Really the argument that we can't be certain of the objective validity of our moral values is an extremely impractical one that doesn't concern us, because we can't have any objective certainty about virtually anything. It is entirely possible that we just exist in a simulation and that our senses are deceiving us. It is possible that our logic fails to account for the behaviour of the universe in various ways. It is entirely possible that our memory is unreliable and is being changed every second by a God-like entity, as with the thought experiment of Descartes and his demon. Christians have no answer to this. Appealing to a book like the bible is at best circular reasoning because the bible relies on those same senses and reasoning faculties in order to be apprehended. So whether or not something is objectively real is at best unverifiable and applies equally to both religious and non-religious people. And even in the case where we assume God is real, there are countless denominations of Christianity with their own interpretations, and to say that one is correct over others necessarily requires a relative stance. Slavery in particular was defended by many preachers in the confederacy of the United States. So all in all there is no real challenge here. But at least with human, relativistic ethics, we can firmly say that upon our agreed upon system, slavery is wrong, and beating your slaves is also wrong :).
@@anthonybarber3872 ,kjb if you know with 100% certainty that if you have intercourse with your partner you will produce a child that will be all his life in the most horrible pain and suffering. Would you decide to have intimacy and bring this child to the world?
And yet, you’re here, on a Christian podcast! What are you searching for if you’re not searching for something greater than yourself? If you’re not serving God, ask yourself who or what are you serving? Why do you have such a vested interest in tearing down God abiding people?
@@samwaffle3293 yeah good try but I grew up in evangelical Christianity so I know all your fake little Jedi mind tricks . I listen to these podcasts because I work with people who deconstruct their faith and I want to hear the BS that evangelicals are still trying to sell to people . Basically I hear the same old shit that evangelicals have been trying to sell for decades . Not surprising
@@RyanKingston-e1x you speak as an American with ignorance of the rest of the world. Even today in 2023 Christians world wide are the most persecuted group of people.
@@RyanKingston-e1xhanks be to God that you and I live in America. A country where pretty much anybody can do anything without physical persecution. But you should know about world wide religious studies. “The group Open Doors USA figures that 360 million Christians last year lived in countries where persecution was “significant.” Roughly 5,600 Christians were murdered, more than 6,000 were detained or imprisoned, and another 4,000+ were kidnapped. In addition, more than 5,000 churches and other religious facilities were destroyed.”
Tactics filled in a weakness of mine like no other book. Asking questions is the key, and it's not just for apologetics. I find it useful teaching my kids or discussing politics or even the mundane.
I agree! Love this book and now use the Colombo tactic for all sorts of conversations!
You are making the claim that Jesus created our universe? So you defend that assertion....by asking questions? How do you asking questions defend your assertion? You are just deflecting and trying to avoid the burden of proof. How st*pid are you?
Agreed!!
You loved this book? It teaches you to not answer questions, but deflect them.
Is “dishonest” somewhere in that book title?
Does he say what to do when they are using the same tactics? I have someone who keeps answering my questions with questions.
I really enjoyed this dialogue! I found it interesting that, at one point, Greg referred to "parrying" responses, which can be more useful than full apologetic responses. I love the idea of asking them to elaborate and breaking down misconceptions piecemeal, as opposed to shouldering the full burden of a thought-out response.
At one point, when I heard mentioned the 'conflicting' Gospel accounts, I wondered what an experiment would look like if, after a Christmas day, I had my 4 children write down what happened on Christmas and what stood out to them. I wondered how seemingly conflicting their accounts would be, particularly if we had a lot going on such as guests over, leaving to visit relatives, playing in snow, etc. It could be a fun and eductional way to demonstrate how the Gospel writers don't conflict with each other, they just occasionally focus on certain details that the other Gospel writers don't.
@frogpaste....yes! Very good wish someone had told me this when I used to argue that the Gospels were conflicting! I gradually came to the realization that the writers saw different things slightly from their perception.
I used to listen to Stand To Reason every day. I had forgotten how good Greg Koukl is. This is a great reminder.
I agree with asking questions. I’ve recently learned that in my older age. That’s one of the best things to do, but I’ve also learned that the most important thing to do is to be prayed up for these times and allow the Holy Spirit to lead the discussion.
Love the discussion. What helped me to understand the Trinity was tying this in with a gem from Paul in 1 Corinthians 9:19-23 and the sense that God meets us where we are. God in the Trinity perfectly embodies being what all peoples need, right where they are in order that none should perish.
Greg's book, Tactics, is a game changer. Evangelism involves planting the seed, watering the seed and then harvesting. Greg is a master seed-waterer. Thanks Sean and Greg for your needed ministry.
To God be the glory.
meh, i think satan pays better. in fact god threatens to burn me alive if i don;t hand over my soul to him, at least satan trades my soul for a life skill.
You're fantastic, Sean! We appreciate you and your ministry.
Aw, thanks! Greg makes it easy.
@@SeanMcDowell no, you're not sean, you're as deceptive and two faced as all your gang of apologists. and cut with demon possession BS, leave mental health to the experts, tell me when your car breaks down do you take it to the church to get the demons out of it? demon possession is barbaric and disgusting and you ought to be ashamed of even suggesting it as an option.
This is absolutely incredible. I really want to learn how to speak with others this way. Sean started the desire in me to not only know the Bible but know how to dialogue with others regarding the Bible. This video in particular is catapulting me in that direction. I can read about how to do this all day long but without the example in video or sound recording, it just doesn’t stick. I hope this author has his book in audio because I think it would really serve me well.
So … learn to speak with other’s dishonestly?
@@Bomtombadi1 Is asking a question to understand someone else dishonest?
@@theworldisee nope. But that’s not what Koukl is doing. He’s outright advocating deflecting.
Standard discourse is one asks a question, the other answers and then asks a question. Not answering questions with questions to avoid the original question.
@@Bomtombadi1 I see what you're saying. Absolutely agree. I do not like the deflecting. It made my quills stick out! However, listening to others dialogue in this way helps me understand others that I have dealt with in the past and will probably find in the future. That's why I liked hearing Koukl's methods, but even more so, Sean's responses and the questions he asked in trying to understand Koukl's methods. I originally stated that I hope Koukl's book is in audio. That is because I'd like to hear what else is in there and what other methods he might present and see how he "plays this game." I do not want to be a deceiver, and I do not want to be deceived. As for Sean, his style gives me some clear ideas on how to reframe a question, so I can better understand what the person I'm dialoguing with is saying. I DO truly appreciate and value Sean's methods for questioning and appreciate how good of an interviewer he is. I'm not always super clear in getting my thoughts "on paper" or even "live and in person," so please try to see the heart of what I'm saying through my verbose message. I am learning to be a better communicator and videos like this help me analysis and adjust my techniques.
why?what will you gain from being manipulative?
@45:46 : How modern science started. This is an encouraging and important point for me.
Thank you for this interview! Because of it, I bought this book “Tactics!” Wow! BEST book I’ve ever read about evangelism! I’ve read so many “Soul-Winning” books that are fleshy and focus on “sealing the deal” so we can brag about how many “souls WE led to Christ.” This book is fantastic! Such balance. I love the idea of “putting a pebble in their shoe!” It’s so less intimidating when your goal isn’t to always get a gospel presentation in, but simply to advance truth! Thank you!
Thank you so much for this! As a Christian I feel I am always in the hot seat, trying to defend my faith. This is helpful for many reasons
I’ve read both of some of your books. What I loved about this conversation is that you’ve both underscored the importance of listening and digging deeper, on planting seeds, not focusing on harvest.
Yes, I agree! I have been in professional sales (selling entire telecom network components) and was educated in many of these techniques. I would bristle when people would summarize what I do as "talking people into things" because by and large most of what I did was to ask questions and come back with solutions to the problems that were revealed from the answers! This is no different HOWEVER, reading the book and watching these are enabling me to utilize these techniques in my Christian walk!
@@brainteezer197 That is so cool! At my church, we have a Bible School, and in our Apologetics course we read Greg's The Story of Reality. Such a helpful book to zero in on the 5 elements to lead any conversation to. In the past (pre-Greg Koukl evangelizing technique) when I have spoken to others about Jesus I thought I needed to show the RIGHT answer to everything. No wonder how I never felt I could do it well enough. Now I know, I just need to plant some seeds. When I then did a self-study after that course of Greg's book Tactics, I totally see what you are saying. Definitely applies to many sales techniques! Planting seeds so the customer sees they have a need for what you are selling them on. Thanks for sharing! I am looking forward to getting Greg's new book when it comes out!
@@brainteezer197 i've always been atheist, oddly i find these two to be manipulative and dishonest - funny that eh.
@@ChristianCareerJoy you do realise that jesus wrote nothing right?
and you do realise nothing was written about him until ten years after he was dead?
and that christianity is based on one bloke having a hallucination he saw a dead bloke he NEVER MET?
no one has a clue what jesus said, did or thought.
@Harry....Socratic method is philosophy. Was he manipulative? Selling something either in person or via ads is showing a consumer why the product is valuable and worth investing in. Greg Koukul's questioning is the same, plus investigative. Did you read it?
WOW, what a great way to respond to non believers. I agree, most people only believe what they believe to be facts because someone said so, they don’t have any backup.
sorry chum but i've always been atheist, i concluded there is no god right from the start, no one told me to not believe (that doesn't even make sense) in fact i didn't believe the dozens of people who were telling me i ought to believe, my backup? people don't come back from the dead, snakes don't talk (other than in mythology) all religions make the same claims, so none of them are actually divine, if i ask YOU to demonstrate this personal god you can;'t, NO ONE EVER HAS, and you expect me to believe you?
it's you that has no grounds for your belief other than what someone else has told you, you sir are what we call in the trade a hypocrite.
and:
you do realise that jesus wrote nothing right?
and you do realise nothing was written about him until ten years after he was dead?
and that christianity is based on one bloke having a hallucination he saw a dead bloke he NEVER MET?
no one has a clue what jesus said, did or thought, your religion has no substance, none of them do.
@@HarryNicNicholasYou have no proof that God doesn't exist. You have misplaced faith. Your belief is in there is no God.
Loved tactics, and just bought street smarts.. look forward to reading and using it.
Your content is top notch. I have learned so much from you and your guests. I read Tactics a couple years ago and it quickly became a favorite of mine.
meh. if you enjoyed "tactics" why not have a read of "how to create atheists" and get BOTH perspectives (bearing in mind bhoggosian was there first).
Thank you, Sean and Greg. This was a helpful and informative discussion. Thank you for the helpful tips for witnessing and sharing our faith, as well as reminding me of some things I have learned in studying apologetics. It is interesting to consider how many times Jesus and Paul asked questions! What a good method to get to know another person, and to begin to understand how to help them . May God bless you both! :-)
Sean is best interviewer on the planet.
Greg Koukl is so awesome! Love this- thank you!
Give me an example of what is awesome. He is picking your pocket, you know.
awesome liar. the book ought to be called "how to avoid answering questions you have no answer for by asking another question instead" it's not tactics, it's being a dick.
@@LindeeLoveHe doesnt charge....he's giving you the way to live forever.
Great video, both of you brothers! Thank you for making this. God bless you! ❤
Excellent video and saving in my awesome file! Greg comes across very thoughtful, easy to understand and kind. I love the way he is able to get to the heart of understanding the other, and then logically debate the issue. Just pre-ordered his book to delve into the topic further. Looking forward to it, and thank you Sean for all the awesome interviews you make!
Brutal Greg pours his heart out to Sean & he ignores it & goes right back to the book
What a great conversation!!! 👏🏼👏🏼
Amazing 👏 questions, always lead with a question.
this site, utube, is a treasure trove, of information
Tactics was a great book; I agree that questions can be much more disarming and diffusing than accusations. I read it around the time I read Boghossian’s “How to Have Impossible Conversations.”
Most people coming at Christianity are aiming for your head. You, as a Christian, are instructed to aim for their heart. Which is wise, because, as any hunter will tell you, it is best to aim for the largest part.
This was fantastic and extremely helpful information! I’m so looking forward to reading the book and putting to use what I learn from it!!🤗🥰
buy william lane craig's book(s), but if they don't like him, then
buy sean mcdowells' book(s), Lee Strobel, eric hernandez', but maybe
they would prefer frank tureks book(s) or even mike liconah's, or gary habermas', or best
yet buy J.P. Moreland's books, god answered his prayers even if it was for a pool table,
one thing is for sure though, you won't buy jesus book cos he didn't
have the foresight to write ANYTHING. he employed "ghost" writers.
A HUGE help in this area for me was reading the paper called 'The Contingency Of Knowledge And Revelatory Theism' by R. M. Manion... I can't express how brilliantly he lays out the contradictions in the atheistic worldview at the philosophic level. It's easy to download and print off, but you'll want a pen handy to help you study it. It's a slow read because of the language he uses, but it truly is brilliant.
what contradiction? how does "there is no god" contradict itself?
and atheism isn't a worldview, YOU have the worldview, theism, i call you liar when it comes to the existence of god, that's it, no view at all.
@Harry Nichols hi, I think what happens is: for me, “God” is causal . For you, “no God” leads to a next question of “then what is causal?” And there is where your atheistic worldview has to kick in.
Oh poor Greg having a conversation with unbeliever uncle Fred (Sean McDowell) 🤣🤣😂 I've been blessed with really helpful guidance for talking about my faith with the real uncle Fred 😂😅 Tku
Yes. This discussion is very encouraging.
Awesome conversation, I love Tactics and I'm excited for Greg's new book!
jb if you know with 100% certainty that if you have intercourse with your partner you will produce a child that will be all his life in the most horrible pain and suffering.
Would you decide to have intimacy and bring this child to the world?
@@a.39886 are you okay mate? do you need to lie down for a bit?
read peter bhoggasions book too then, how to make atheists, it's even better than koukl's
@@a.39886he couldn't help himself because love creates...
Thanks for this Sean, this was excellent. I'll definitely listen to again and share with others
I really enjoyed Tactics. Super excited to hear that there's a new book coming out. I love that you guys also mention J Warner Wallace. I loved Person of Interest. I like the trinity and number of God/s "contradiction" question. I like to take that question down to an aspect of one's nature. When I ask your name or "Who are you?", you don't tell me "human". Human isn't who you are, it's what you are. Human is your "being type". Who you are, the person you are, is Dr Sean. That is human nature. One person or personality, in one being. On the other hand, God's nature is different from our own. In a manner of speaking, God created us in His image, but not to be just like Him. As such, God's nature is different from our nature. God's nature is that His being type is "God". God is both his type and the title we often refer to Him as. However, when we ask of God, "Who are you?", He's not one person, as we are. He is three persons, three personalities, or 3 consciences in one being. Those persons are the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Each is equally part of the singular "God" being, but also different or separate persons from one another.
I have the Tactics book by Greg Koukl. Thanks for this interview.
and what has it doe for you? fill a space on your bookshelf? what else? will it get you into heaven? has it made you a kinder more loving person? what?
@@HarryNicNicholaswhy are you so angry Harry??
This was good thank you! I have one of his books. I just have to read it.
I really enjoyed Tactics, looking forward to reading Street Smarts.
why, what did these books do for you?
Suggestion? Love to see videos of real conversations, where this is put into practice. Ray Comforts street interviews and 'so be it' in Israel have been so helpful.
check out anthony magnasbosco and see how it REALLY is done, even though anthony is atheist he's not a two faced lying dodger like koukl or mcdowell, just real conversations about how you arrive at belief.
This is so helpful! I wish I had know how to respond to the objection, "we cannot know what is true because eye-witness accounts differ"!
On a rare occasion, you might run into a thoughtful atheist or agnostic who would bring up these kinds of questions but almost all the time you would be talking to people that don't have a clue about theological issues. We have to trust what the Word has to say about itself that it has the ability to convict a person of their need and trust the Holy Spirit to give us the words each person needs to hear! Example: The Holy Spirit drops into my thoughts his name, his wife's name, and where they lived. The guy said, how did you know all that? I explained to him, God just showed me that. That's what the Bible calls a word of knowledge, one of the nine gifts of the Holy Spirit. As a result of seeing the power of God, he gave his life to Christ!
The problem is that many people require real evidence and not just made up stories.
If the holy spirit actually gave you information that you could not possibly know otherwise then this could be tested… and it would be the first piece of verifiable evidence in a cumulative case for Christianity.😉
Unfortunately not a single person in history could ever demonstrate that they got such information in a supernatural way…
Great explanation of the Trinity.
@56: things will gradually 'stick together'. That's what my materials science lecturer said. He was right too!
This was very helpful. ❤❤
in what way? koukl basically teaches people how to avoid answering questions that religists have no answer for, the book ought to be "dodging"
Oh my... you two 🤔are conversing way over my head.😵💫
This interview was very helpful! Thank you! 🙏🏻
I have never felt a need to defend my faith - The desire is to refer to God's Word for answers to questions about Him, and our relationship with Him. Since He created us with a mind and a will, we always have a choice whether to believe His recorded Word or trust one's own mind and imagination in matters of God's truth and our spiritual life.
That was fun! I look forward to the book.
Hi thanks for your channel. I used be a Jehovahs witness, but even after leaving still remained a believer in their teachings for the most part.
However I then started looking critically at the bible, God etc, to the point of becoming agnostic maybe even atheist recently. It was a range of different issues i think.
Divine hidenness was a big factor. Looking back i thought that during my tme as a believer i could not actually KNOW if and how God had ever answered my prayers.
This lead to me thinking my prayers are futile, since what difference do they make? Mixed with the idea that God is onmiscient anyway and already knows and acts according to his will.
I would talk to christians, particularly born agains who would say i need to be born again once i have the holy spirit, everything would suddenly change, i would have peace joy, and would KNOW without any doubts.
I examined different teachings in christianity (catholics, protestant, evangelical) and remained unsure about trinity and hellfire in particular.
I tried praying for God reveal himself to me, and if Jesus is God to make it known to me in the way he waants...
But i became disillusioned in my search i think partly because i was looking at a lot of skeptical info about everything. Particularly the evidence for jesus resurrection, the reliability of the gospels and new testament ...i became tired with searching and finding lack of concensus on these things.
But my new agnostic atheist position is making me uneasy in some ways, perhaps i have been tricked, or decived myself? Its also making me nihilistic
stick with it, i've always been atheist, no one needs god unless they want an excuse to kick drugs or alcohol. if you have any kind of decent life, what would anyone need an imaginary friend for?
Jesus Christ died and resurrected with you in mind. Keep on knocking, that door will be open very soon and Jesus will reveal Himself to you.
I bought Tactics but can't Invision using particular types of questioning. I might be able to ask what do you mean by that? But don't know if I could go on from their response. I'm a little unconfident. I wish I had Aaron like Moses did!
Please pray for my daughter Abigail Fardina anak Usang. Let's Jesus use her life for His kingdom
I'm so getting this book. I have tactics but yet to read it. How I wish the interview was longer. Was enjoying it.
I’m so glad!
buy william lane craig's book(s), but if they don't like him, then
buy sean mcdowells' book(s), Lee Strobel, eric hernandez', but maybe
they would prefer frank tureks book(s) or even mike liconah's, or gary habermas', or best
yet buy J.P. Moreland's books, god answered his prayers even if it was for a pool table,
one thing is for sure though, you won't buy jesus book cos he didn't
have the foresight to write ANYTHING. he employed "ghost" writers.
you won't get into heaven unless god makes money from book sales.
@@HarryNicNicholas 😲huh! What? Sir, you don't have to buy books to make heaven. The Bible is most definitely sufficient, it's our ultimate authority but, yes the but. These books are also needed, they are helpful guide in our walk of faith because we don't know it all. I was never a person of Christian literatures growing up but I wanted to know, to know Him and the power of His might, I wanted the knowledge of God and these books have come in handy. So please don't despise them (books) and the people God is using to bring about His words/work. Shalom!
Great podcast. Thanks!
Very good session, but I would love to hear to hear a better explanation of the slave-beating passages in Exodus.
don't bother, they blather on making excuses and if you think there is a god then you will have to believe the excuses but really they are just lying cos slavery is immoral but not in the bible and blah blah blah. it;'s a subject done to death, religists can't own up to god condoning slavery, its all a waste of time cos religists are inherently dishonest and lie about everything to do with god. god is a punk basically.
and if you're asking koukl all you're really doing is going "dear greg, slavery is hideous and immoral and outlawed by humans, but why doe god suggest it's okay and what's more you can beat slaves? please make up some crap that will MAKE ME FEEL BETTER about this hideous dictator i worship, lie to me greg, lie to me"
religists make me puke.
They were servants like housekeepers. We have housekeepers today right ??
Saying God did something is no more a science stopper, than knowing someone else created something answers all the questions or stop you learning and trying it yourself.
Tactics. Tactics to get out of answering any question by asking questions that have nothing to do with the question at hand.
The Trinity is like the Sun.
These three are all one thing and cannot be separated. You cannot have light or warmth without the burning ball of fire.
The three are one and yet they are different.
I am on your side fully. However, I have something to add. I hear you say "we don't need to worry about discrepancies" and "if you are an atheist, how can you accuse us of transgressing a moral base when you have no moral base to stand on?" Having had this very circumstance with a family member, their response was "I am not asking from MY moral base or if I personally care about discrepancies but because YOU claim a moral base and YOU claim inerrancy. You say inerrancy and I see error. You claim justice and I see injustice."
Sean, you're one of this atheist's favorite apologists. I'd like to see you have that discussion about moral foundations with an atheist who's thought seriously about their moral philosophy. The problem in role playing with a fellow Christian is that there comes a point when you both agree with each other, like when you say that an atheist can't justify their criticism of slavery in the Bible, and then you seem to hit a wall in your imitation of an atheist. I'd rather see you talk with the real thing.
Sean I am at work currently, and my lunch ends about when this premieres!
Good thing I can listen to earbuds when I work 😁😁
Enjoy and let us know what you think!
I thought that a lot of situations presented was relatable (like interactions with people & friends at school), also if I just want so spark some conversation with my folks. So I think this interview and its strategies are going super helpful for me. Thanks !
Great video.
My mother is a ….mother…. a daughter…… a grandmother
Liked this example much better than 5 people = 1 family.
This sounds like a way to avoid genuine conversation and instead engage in manipulation.
You never actually want to have to deep of a conversation if you are trying to defend your faith. It can be self-defeating...........
@@markb3786 then why defend it at all? If I said that about any other topic, people would call the belief illegitimate. Like if I said “you don’t want to have a deep conversation about abortion” then it’s clear that you are both afraid of legitimate investigation of your belief and/or that the belief isn’t properly grounded.
Just some feedback. I think it's important to allow the person who you've asked the question to to fully complete their answer before you respond otherwise it does feel like you're using loaded questions and aren't really interested in what they say but rather getting them to say what you want them to say to support your perspective. Otherwise very informative guys, loved the examples. God bless.
you saw through greg's actual tactic eh? all he does is deflect, that's all apologists do, when you get asked a question you don't like or can't answer, or makes god look like a shmuck, ask a question instead and make the other guy do the work, greg's book only needs one page, none if he put this on the cover. greg is like all apologists, just trying to win arguments, no actual care about his religion, just how to be dishonest and not get caught. he's an idiot.
1. What do you mean by that?
2. Why do you believe that?/what makes you say that?/ How did you come to that conclusion?
Credit to Sean for trying to steelman the slavery questioning, but I think he recognizes Greg is practically begging for him to play along with his line of thought there. Dr. Josh Bowen would be a good place to look for a better understanding of the slave/servant relationship for Greg, but I think he doesn't want to learn about the harsh realities of his scriptures.
I know it's a year ago, but I'm wondering why Kouki didn't respond to the Synoptic Gospels question with an answer that's just as legitimate - and factual, to boot - as the example he posed. The differences in the Gospels is for the simple reason that each author wrote to their specific audience, and approached the facts from the position in order to understand the accounts of Jesus life.
If you have three beings with three centers of consciousness and one God, does that not mean there is a fourth essence greater than the three person who share or come out of the one God?
Regarding morals, atheism is a stance on if there is a God, so no it does not cover anything else.
But if you want my specific take on morals, then our morals is a trait of evolution.
In order for our species to survive we need to be a heard animal, this requires you to be able too work together with other entities of your species and not be rejected by them.
The contradictory questions step from the belief that each author had, copied and redacted each other's work.
Defending your faith is fine, as long as, if the attack is none violent then you’re response must be none violent. I believe that the only place for religion to be taught is in the home or temple, never in a public building. Never in a school 🐹
ugh. you have too much common sense.
@@markb3786there is an interesting fact about “common sense”. It’s not very common. 🐹
an atheist will say their moral foundation is inerrant in themselves. we are naturally good and have morals on our own
asb if you know with 100% certainty that if you have intercourse with your partner you will produce a child that will be all his life in the most horrible pain and suffering.
Would you decide to have intimacy and bring this child to the world?
My question is, how can I remember to ask questions?
As a thought experiment, I'm imagining meeting Greg on a plane and we have 2 hours with each other. How would the conversation go? If I start off the conversation with "I'm not a Christian because ..." then it's clear that I'm going to be on the defensive the entire way, I'm going to be asked a continuous stream of "What do you mean by that?" questions, which will probably devolve quickly into something like "What do you mean when you say that electrons have a negative charge?" We're gonna be down in the weeds and we're never gonna get anywhere. If I could flip it around so that Greg was defending an affirmative claim that Jesus rose from the dead, then I would start to ask if it's a physical resurrection or a spiritual resurrection. If he's resurrected physically, where did he go? If he ascended into Heaven, does that mean he's now in orbit around the Earth? Etc. It would be interesting to see where a conversation with Greg would lead. I suspect we would both get frustrated with each other quickly.
greg's an idiot and that;s a daft hypothetical, anyone would get fed up with that story and move away from you.
I had fellow Christian in a JW group I’m a part of make a statement then say “I’m just putting a stone in their shoe” I said, AHH you’re a fan of TACTICS.
Jws believe in a false gospel brother
usually, in so called contradictions, there is different information, for different audiences, based on their interests....or need, to know...
Greg Kouki needs to go and try his tactic in Speaker Corner
As Greg Koukl has simply noted in the past vis-à-vis the sole integrity of science to tell us all we need to know, he simply asked: "can someone determine the weight of a chicken with a yard-stick?" which illustrated his observation that science does not have all the necessary tools with which to examine every question our minds come up with as to "why is this?" or "why is that?". Also, one of the apologists noted that, by common consent there is something, even agreed on in the legal profession and courts of law, that there is a REAL thing called "motive" when seeking to determine innocence or guilt for an act someone has undertaken, even though there is no way a person's brain can be opened and that piece of it called a motive can be found there. Things like motive are just not material at all.
So, god of the gaps. got it.
@@sanjeevgig8918 gb if you know with 100% certainty that if you have intercourse with your partner you will produce a child that will be all his life in the most horrible pain and suffering.
Would you decide to have intimacy and bring this child to the world?
@@a.39886 what does that have to do with greg koukl being a calvinist ?
@@sanjeevgig8918 exactly my line of argumentation was going when I`m talking of "suffering" and I`m talking about all his existence, I`m trying to express a case where you having intimacy with your partner will cause the existence of a child that will end up in hell. I`m not sure how you flesh out hell but I leave up to personal interpretation however is largely accepted that: 1) hell is a horrible place of suffering 2) you can`t escape hell 3) most mankind won`t be safe and will end up here.
Given this why anyone should engage in sex. (nor protected or unprotected) why would anyone risk having a child that will experience the horrible eternity of hell, knowing that you can`t assure anyone salvation and you know most humans are doomed, and the end times are close.1
@@a.39886 I agree. Calvinists should not have children. They are producing children who will be burnt in hell forever.
There was an inerrant Hebrew Bible in the 1st century?
How about questioning the Adam and Eve fable, the logistics of Noah's Ark, and the immortal Jewish godman who never came back?
In my daily life I don't look for opportunities to engage with strangers to discuss differences in our worldviews, or to defend Christianity. Most of my friends and family are Christian, but some have abandoned it. This is where my pointed discussions occur.
A common complaint is "not enough" evidence. Whenever we say there's "not enough" of something, even the sugar in our tea, we're claiming there's an "enough" out there somewhere, regardless of how much sugar that actually might be. With this, the complainant states categorically that enough would be enough, as it were. They've now straw-manned themselves, by implying/pretending they'd be somehow satisfied with this God in whom they now believe. They've misunderstood (intentional naivete?) a central claim that Christianity makes about human nature/psychology/behavior; namely, that our disapproval/dislike of God is the primary phenomenon, not mere disbelief/skepticism. Why else is the penultimate "commandment" to love (God), not merely believe?
I take from this that it's one of my highest duties to make the case, through speech and behaviour, that God is lovable, so to speak.
well give me ONE piece of evidence of a god. or better still DEMONSTRATE a god. no one has or ever will do, there is no god to demonstrate. god is for needy people or people who want too impose unnatural rules on OTHER people, it's never about being a decent person yourself, like atheists are.
Trinity: When Jesus prayed to his Father, did he address himself ?
I asked the same question to my pastor in the late 90s, he was speaking of asking the Father if this cup compass, so I said he asked himself for permission?
@@loriforges6304 the trinity certainly doesn't make sense. If God is a family then the separate members do keep their own identity.
Jesus wasn't in contradiction to this, on the contrary.
In as much as we can compare our own families with its different members to keep their identity, even when they are agreeing. A family can be one in the sense of having the same outlook on life and one could say that they are united in spirit...
In addition if the holy spirit is a separate person, does this give that separate person power OVER' the father and the son?
Or rather is the Holy Spirit THE POWER OF the Father and the Son? In which case the holy spirit cannot be a separate person, but only the same mindset and spirit which emanates FROM the Father. and Son to unite them ?
Please search out ...
The Surprising Origins of the Trinity Doctrine
This is interesting. I loved Tactics and have encouraged others to read it and have done small groups in our church. I even recorded a UA-cam video on it.
When I hear "The Bible is full of contradictions" I want to ask what they mean by that. What is a contradiction? I want them to define it. And by the Bible do they mean all translations? Start there. I see a contradiction that has two things that are mutually exclusive and cannot both be true at the same time and in the same way.
Glad you enjoyed it. Street Smarts is a great new book!
@@SeanMcDowell well when i talk about contradictions i mean what is it you are "harmonising", if something needs "harmonising" then i'd say that's smoothing over a contradiction, like god being all loving, yet he kills people, that's a contradiction, harmonise that for me.
you can't - you have to lie.
well when i talk about contradictions i mean what is it you are "harmonising", if something needs "harmonising" then i'd say thats smoothing over a contradiction, like god being all loving, yet he kills people, that's a contradiction, harmonise that for me.
you can't - you have to lie.
greg's book ought to be titled "how to doge atheists questions" cos that's all it is, i recommend eric berne and "games people play" cos greg is a game player - dishonest to the core.
@@HarryNicNicholas maybe you were just confused about what an actual contradiction is. Apparent contradictions you can harmonize, like how many Angels were at Jesus tomb or how many women went to his tomb after the resurrection, and actual contradictions you cannot harmonize.
As far as killing people, could a loving person ever have a morally justifiable reason for killing another person? Would it be morally justifiable and loving to kill a child sex trafficker? If you had a time machine would it be morally justifiable to kill Hitler? Or a suicide bomber the day before he sets off a bomb that kills a Bus full of innocent people?
Dr. Sean, I've been watching you for a while and admire how you try to have civil/loving conversations with people of different world views. I've been trying to implement that into my conversations with my friends of various beliefs, is Street Smarts the best book for talking to others with “gentleness and reverence” or would you recommend any other books?
Start with the book tactics by the same author
It’s a great book. It’s more focused on strategy, but Greg always focuses on kindness. Check out “I Beg to Differ” by Muehlhoff.
A great atheist that does this is PineCreek (with Christians)
He's much better at civil conversation than Greg Koukl is.
@@Iverath Thanks, I have been looking for other atheist channels that really challenge my beliefs and make me think critically when they talk to Christians. Especially in a civil manner
@@deytonmathews2768 PineCreek actually interviewed Greg Koukl.
Also, I can recommend his talks with Mike Winger (before he got bigger).
Which natural law causes us to have opinions?
Natural laws are descriptions created from observations. So as formulated, that's not a meaningful question.
Thank you ok! Oh one more thing.
What the modern Church needs is a New Covenant Revival (Heb. 9:10) in which members of various denominations are willing to re-examine everything they believe and see if it agrees with the Bible, instead of the traditions of men. We need to be like the Bereans. It will be a battle between our flesh and the Holy Spirit. It will not be easy. If you get mad and upset when someone challenges your man-made Bible doctrines, that is your flesh resisting the truth found in God's Word.
Nobody can completely understand the Bible unless they understand the relationship between the Old Covenant given to Moses at Mount Sinai and the New Covenant fulfilled in blood at Calvary.
What brings all local churches together into one Body under the blood of Christ? The answer is found below.
New Covenant Whole Gospel:
Let us now share the Old Testament Gospel found below with the whole world. On the road to Emmaus He said the Old Testament is about Him.
He is the very Word of God in John 1:1, 14. Awaken Church to this truth.
Jer 31:31 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:
Jer 31:32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by husband unto them, saith the LORD:
Jer 31:33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.
Jer 31:34 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.
Is the most important genealogy in the Bible found in Matthew 1:1 (Gal. 3:16)? Is God's Son the ultimate fulfillment of Israel (John 1:49)? Why has the modern Church done a pitiful job of sharing the Gospel with modern Orthodox Jews? Why would someone tell them they are God's chosen people and then fail to share the Gospel with them? Who is the seed of the woman promised in Genesis 3:15? What did Paul say about Genesis 12:3 in Galatians 3:8? Who is the "son" in Psalm 2? Who is the "suffering servant" of Isaiah 53? Who would fulfill the New Covenant promised in Jeremiah 31:31-34? Who would fulfill the timeline of Daniel chapter 9 before the second temple was destroyed? Why have we not heard this simple Old Testament Gospel preached on Christian television in the United States on a regular basis?
Once a person comes to understand the New Covenant promised to Israel and Judah in Jeremiah 31:31-34, which is found fulfilled by Christ during the first century in Hebrews 8:6-13, and Hebrews 10:16-18, and specifically applied to the Church in 2 Corinthians 3:6-8, and Hebrews 12:22-24, man-made Bible doctrines fall apart.
Let us now learn to preach the whole Gospel until He comes back. The King of Israel is risen from the dead! (John 1:49, Acts 2:36)
We are not come to Mount Sinai in Hebrews 12:18. We are come instead to the New Covenant church of Mount Zion and the blood in Hebrews 12:22-24.
1Jn 3:22 And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.
1Jn 3:23 And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment.
1Jn 3:24 And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.
The following verses prove the Holy Spirit is the master teacher for those now in the New Covenant.
Jer 31:34 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.
Mar 1:8 I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost.
Joh 14:26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.
Act 11:16 Then remembered I the word of the Lord, how that he said, John indeed baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost.
1Co 12:13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.
1Jn 2:27 But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.
Watch the UA-cam videos “The New Covenant” by David Wilkerson, or Bob George, and David H.J. Gay.
The Trinity doesn't contradict.
You are an aware being, in case you were unaware. You have one point of awareness: you can be in the moment, or in your head, in some specific corner of your head. You know you don't think about many things at once, you actually bounce between many things. When you think about yourself, observing your actions and deciding what to do, you have limited knowledge, and you will find yourself going back and forth between two positions. (brain says get up, body says stay in bed, for instance.)
If you asked an infinitely aware being who had in a sense infinite points of attention (everything that was and is and could be all at once, who sustains the world by paying attention to it, for example) about itself, you would find it talking as though it had a point of interaction with and perception of your world (a Son) which perfectly submits to a will making the decisions in those interactions (a Father) for a giant, mysterious living could of reasons that all point to things He think are good, all of which are working together but also pursuing different things, like truth or mercy (The Holy Spirit). It would have a Body, a Soul and a Spirit, but all at once.
It must have a point of interaction with your world, for a few reasons.
First, there are many things God can't know without having been embodied. What it feels like to fear death, or be ignorant, or be separated from or forsaken by God. He can't know what it's like to be like us if He has not seen life through our eyes. And since He knows everything, He must have been embodied.
Second, in this particular case, God wishes to forgive us, and for us to find the Kingdom of God. But since we are made in His image (again, I guess in this particular case), we are things that decide. The very things we need to be saved from are the things which control our wills against our will. God will not do this (hence, the still small voice, with barely any expression at all.) He will not radio-control His image, because the imaging is in the freedom, and to break the freedom is to break the image. So God had to communicate with us, to convince us and entice us, draw us back to Him by His goodness, but all the reasons we DON'T obey His rules are embodied in the human experience: the lusts of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life, etc. So to understand how to communicate this to us, He became embodied. That's what Hebrews seems to say, anyway.
It needs a will (I call that the Soul, probably a different thing for a different comment) because, in this world, things can only be one way. Chesterton said he wanted to thank someone for making the rose red, because it could have been blue. Possibly, by now, it can be blue, and you have somebody to thank for that, too. Some gardener. The point is, it has to be SOME color. I can want to paint my house red, you can want to paint it green, but we can't paint it both. (Like, all over, I mean. I won't paint it red with green trim, but for different reasons.)
In every single situation, there must be a single answer. There is a rock there, or not. The leaf grows here, not there. The photon goes through the left slit, or the right. I think this is in order to allow many wills to interact: I can't control your body, and you can't control mine. (If you can, please stop.) But an infinite being, which would be capable of paying attention to something which WAS everything all at once everywhere, must limit itself to one thing at one place at one time in order to create such a thing. And to make a decision, it needs a will.
I don't know why it needs a Spirit. But if I don't have a reason for doing things, I don't do anything, and God did something, so he had a reason for it, and that's what I think the Holy Spirit is. At least what part of it is. God is Spirit. I don't know why there's God.
I've been thinking about making a video on this stuff. Would anybody watch that?
"I've been thinking about making a video on this stuff. Would anybody watch that?"
Is the alternative to have molten lead poured into my eyes? Then maybe yes.
the trinity is designed to make people into liars, no one understands the trinity, it's total gibberish, a plot hole filler about god and souls and crucifixion. total nonsense. you have to PRETEND you understand if you want to PRETEND you're a good christian. but a christian obviously will argue till the cows come home, milk and then die that it makes sense.
@@ballasog "The Trinity doesn't contradict." Then he tries to explain why with 8 paragraphs of apologetics nonsense.
why does Greg fear the burden of proof?
He doesn't, personally. He is trying to help others who don't have all the answers, but want to start civil conversations. When people don't fear being asked hard questions, they are more willing to engage in spiritual conversations. (Later, they'll learn the answers, but this is a start.)
42:42 Greg is a great guy but it's funny to hear a Calvinist being critical of determinism.
43:19 substitute "stimulus from the environment" with "God's meticulous immutable pre-creation decree"
where in the bible dose it say that God has 3 consciousness.
Here are some tactical questions:
How old is the Earth? How large is the Universe? Did man evolve from primates?
Why did a good God let so many innocents & their mothers die in childbirth or early life for so long?
The slave owners in the S considered some slaves as servants. Especially house slaves. Or unwilling concubines.
Don’t have any compelling or sufficient answers hey, just ask them questions. This is a tactic of diversion.
Welcome to the “Stay Divided Channel.”😂
So god, instead of saying slavery was wrong and make a commandment against it he said since everyone else is doing it ill make some laws around it. These laws helped the slaves stay slaves or servants for the rest of their lives. Call it whatever u want, based on our evolved morality this is immoral
@DrNateSIMP No actually. It depends on if the man was a foreigner or not. You were let go after 7 if you were Isrealite but it was for life if u were a foreigner. There were also ways to keep female slaves for life and pass her and her children to your offspring by marrying her to one of your slaves. If the male slave had the option of leaving after 7 years the wife wouldn't and stayed a slave from then on. Lev 25: 44-46, Exodus 21:4
The Socratic method :P
Does The Holy Spirit have a sex? Could it be feminine?
The practice of constantly answering someone’s questions with more questions is ineffective. Eventually you have to answer your interlocutor’s questions.
I think it would be more instructive if you just had a debate with one of the better known atheists, like Sean Carroll for instance, or honestly any of the better known members of an atheist subreddit. I myself feel like I could have answered your rebuttals. The problem is that Greg is only so good as his interlocutor...and in the real world a lot of these defences already have counters.
For instance your argument regarding slavery in the bible, and how atheists have no moral basis on which to claim things are right or wrong. It might surprise you to learn that measurement of distances has no objective standard. The meter stick, is actually based on an arbitrary rod of aluminum (or steel, forgot), kept in a museum in France if I remember correctly. The point that it is relative doesn't really matter though, we are able to perform accurate scientific measurements and understand speed and dimension with it just fine.
Similarly the fact that morals might be relative, poses no challenge at all. We can still agree on what is wrong and right, we merely need to agree on a standard. And there are many moral principles which are so commonly agreed upon and have been fixed in place for so long, that we can reliably claim that something ought to have been wrong 1000 years ago just as today. We just observe - these things harm us, these things make us feel better, so lets argue that this is proper moral behavior, while this isn't. That is the entire basis of the legal system. None of the laws we live under in the US are based on the bible, we have the separation of church and state. These are laws that are agreed upon by society, and for the most part they function perfectly well as relative standards, because they are very common, fixed moral principles that each human mind shares. So to argue against relativism is to argue against every system of criminal justice we have around the world, and argue that it is somehow defective or unreliable when it has served us very well for thousands of years.
Really the argument that we can't be certain of the objective validity of our moral values is an extremely impractical one that doesn't concern us, because we can't have any objective certainty about virtually anything. It is entirely possible that we just exist in a simulation and that our senses are deceiving us. It is possible that our logic fails to account for the behaviour of the universe in various ways. It is entirely possible that our memory is unreliable and is being changed every second by a God-like entity, as with the thought experiment of Descartes and his demon. Christians have no answer to this. Appealing to a book like the bible is at best circular reasoning because the bible relies on those same senses and reasoning faculties in order to be apprehended.
So whether or not something is objectively real is at best unverifiable and applies equally to both religious and non-religious people. And even in the case where we assume God is real, there are countless denominations of Christianity with their own interpretations, and to say that one is correct over others necessarily requires a relative stance. Slavery in particular was defended by many preachers in the confederacy of the United States.
So all in all there is no real challenge here. But at least with human, relativistic ethics, we can firmly say that upon our agreed upon system, slavery is wrong, and beating your slaves is also wrong :).
Are you sure about everything you just said?
It is interesting that you say that we can't have objective certainly about virtually anything...why not?
@@anthonybarber3872 ,kjb if you know with 100% certainty that if you have intercourse with your partner you will produce a child that will be all his life in the most horrible pain and suffering.
Would you decide to have intimacy and bring this child to the world?
So the synopsis is how to try and manipulate people into believing in your failing religion
And yet, you’re here, on a Christian podcast! What are you searching for if you’re not searching for something greater than yourself? If you’re not serving God, ask yourself who or what are you serving? Why do you have such a vested interest in tearing down God abiding people?
@@samwaffle3293 yeah good try but I grew up in evangelical Christianity so I know all your fake little Jedi mind tricks . I listen to these podcasts because I work with people who deconstruct their faith and I want to hear the BS that evangelicals are still trying to sell to people . Basically I hear the same old shit that evangelicals have been trying to sell for decades . Not surprising
@@samwaffle3293 oh btw keep playing that persecution card . Maybe Jesus can give you a hug and make it better for you
@@RyanKingston-e1x you speak as an American with ignorance of the rest of the world.
Even today in 2023 Christians world wide are the most persecuted group of people.
@@RyanKingston-e1xhanks be to God that you and I live in America. A country where pretty much anybody can do anything without physical persecution.
But you should know about world wide religious studies.
“The group Open Doors USA figures that 360 million Christians last year lived in countries where persecution was “significant.” Roughly 5,600 Christians were murdered, more than 6,000 were detained or imprisoned, and another 4,000+ were kidnapped. In addition, more than 5,000 churches and other religious facilities were destroyed.”