- How much would you estimate
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that you and I actually
owe to future generations?
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Do you think it's possible
that we're morally responsible
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for building the
world of tomorrow,
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the one our descendants
are going to have to live in?
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And just how capable
would we be of doing that,
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especially when we can't
seem to fix our own problems?
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[upbeat music]
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[upbeat music continues]
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Just the other
day I was flying home
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from a speaking appointment
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and I pulled out this
book by William MacAskill,
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a contemporary
Scottish philosopher.
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And I've got to admit,
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he really gave me
some stuff to think about.
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Now, the name of the book
is "What We Owe the Future".
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And as you can probably
guess, he's making the case
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that you and I
have a moral obligation
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to future generations.
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An obligation to leave the
world better than we found it.
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It's not just
the nice thing to do,
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he says it's the right
thing, a moral responsibility.
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And of course, at first blush,
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nobody's gonna argue with that.
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Most parents
already instinctively
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try to give their
kids better opportunities.
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They make sure they
get a decent education
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and grow up to be confident
and independent adults.
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Throughout the
history of parenthood,
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parents have,
generally speaking,
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put their own desires
and their own wellbeing
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on the back
burner, if they think
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it means their
children will prosper.
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I mean, over the
years, how many times
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haven't you been inspired
by the story of a single mother
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who worked two or three
jobs and did without sleep
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and skipped meals
so that her children
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would have the chance
to rise above poverty?
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But that's not really
what this book is driving at,
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at least not in
the opening chapters.
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The author is driving
it much bigger things,
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cleaning up the environment,
changing the moral landscape,
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and establishing
a more just society.
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And again, who's
really gonna argue with that,
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except that I
can't help but notice
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that historically
speaking, our very best efforts
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to deliberately
engineer a better future
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have almost always
ended in moral disaster,
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which makes me really suspicious
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about people who
claim they have a blueprint
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to a better
almost utopian tomorrow.
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I mean, let's just think
about our recent history.
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The most carefully
engineered societies
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that emerged in the 20th century
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are now remembered as
some of the most brutal.
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And of course, Mr.
MacAskill isn't naive
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and he isn't promising utopia.
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I'm just telling you that I
have some grave reservations
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about our ability
to engineer a so-called
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more just society for ourselves,
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let alone people who
live way down in the future.
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Because what often
happens when we do that
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is that people become
less important than policies.
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And we usually find ourselves
willing to get rid of people
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who stand in the way
of ideological objectives.
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I mean, the death toll
for the communist experiment
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of the 20th century
exceeded 100 million people,
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and it produced several
butchers like Joseph Stalin,
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who didn't mind starving
millions of his own subjects,
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if it meant
accumulating more power.
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And I find it fascinating
that the Bible talks about
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a fatal flaw in
our human character.
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A flaw that we find
ourselves incapable of fixing.
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It says we're
inherently selfish,
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which is hard to argue with,
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because generally
speaking, it seems like
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when many of the people
who cry for more justice,
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actually achieve a
modicum of political power,
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they somehow change and
become part of the problem.
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And so, I find
myself kind of torn
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when I see a
book like MacAskill's,
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because well, of course,
we have a moral obligation
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to our fellow human beings.
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And of course, if the kingdom
of God doesn't come first,
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we want to leave the
planet better than we found it.
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So, generally speaking,
obviously I'm in agreement,
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but at the same time,
I'm offering a giant word of
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caution, because how many times
over the course of recorded
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history have we ever
actually fixed something?
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For example, I've
brought this up before,
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but countless generations
have boldly proclaimed
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the end of human war,
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most famously, toward
the end of the 19th century
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and into the 20th.
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But then by 1914, we
had our first world war
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followed very
quickly by the second one,
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and we witnessed
a level of carnage
00:04:44.58\00:04:46.68
the world had never seen before.
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In fact, if I'm
remembering this correctly,
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more than 200
million people died
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across all the wars
of the 20th century.
00:04:55.36\00:04:59.03
And of course, one
of the key problems
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we had in the
middle of the 20th century
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was the fact that Hitler's
idea of a better tomorrow
00:05:03.40\00:05:05.90
clashed with the
rest of the worlds,
00:05:05.90\00:05:08.20
and so did Stalins.
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So, if we're going to start
planning for a better tomorrow,
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I mean, really make an effort
to engineer a better world,
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who gets to cast that vision?
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Who gets to be in charge of it?
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The hard reality of
living on this planet
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is that we have a huge
proportion of the human
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population who simply don't
agree on what that utopia should
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look like. Of course,
again, I'm now going places
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that the author
doesn't actually go.
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And so, I don't
want you to think
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he's pushing for a completely
re-engineered society.
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I mean, honestly, I
haven't even finished
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reading the book yet,
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and maybe he does
do that, I don't know.
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But based on what I've
read so far, I kind of doubt it.
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I'm just considering
what historically happens
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when we begin to think we can
somehow just apply human logic
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and reason our way out of
our very worst character traits.
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But of course, that doesn't mean
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I'm saying we shouldn't try.
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Of course we should try.
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I just think that
treating society as if it's
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some kind of scientific
lab experiment is dangerous,
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because it has never succeeded.
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Not even once, why?
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It's because there
are too many variables,
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too much potential for
unintended consequences.
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And of course, there's
also the nagging problem
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of our
essentially selfish nature.
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I mean, let's think about this.
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When most people
have to make a choice
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between what's
good for everybody else
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and what's good for them,
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well, what does our
natural instinct drive us to do?
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I think you know the answer,
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because the people
who instinctively do
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what's good for
somebody else are so rare
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they actually surprise us.
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We make heroes
out of these people,
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we name streets after them,
we raise statues to their honor.
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That's how rare, genuinely
altruistic people really are.
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So, for just a few minutes,
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let's consider
the moral implications
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of trying to frame a world
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that somebody else is
gonna have to live in.
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Of course, to some extent,
we do that already every day.
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All of the big
decisions we make on this planet
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are likely gonna change the way
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that future generations
are going to have to live.
00:07:24.97\00:07:28.08
That much is obvious.
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And I think because we're
building the future anyway,
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we should be thinking about
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negative consequences
to the best of our ability,
00:07:34.78\00:07:38.12
and we should do what
we can to avoid those.
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And of course, as we do that,
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we're going to get
a lot of things wrong,
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because there's no
way we can accurately
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anticipate the
world of the future
00:07:48.66\00:07:50.87
any more than a
group of Greek philosophers
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living 600 years before Christ
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could ever
anticipate this world.
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Where for example, I can
talk to people face-to-face
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in real time, anywhere on
the planet, anytime I want.
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Under those circumstances,
I wouldn't necessarily
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wanna live by the
rules set way back then.
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But just because we can't
really imagine the future,
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does that mean we
shouldn't try to improve it?
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Again, of course not.
00:08:20.90\00:08:23.10
But it's that whole problem
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with our imperfect
fallen natures that makes me
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suspicious of people who
claim to have all the answers,
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because, well,
that's never been the case.
00:08:30.91\00:08:34.74
Yet, still there's
something in our hearts
00:08:34.74\00:08:36.54
that makes us
want to follow people
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who promise to
make utopia happen,
00:08:38.21\00:08:40.98
and almost every single time
we get sharply disappointed.
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I mean, if you wanna
see it on a smaller scale,
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watch the election
cycle every time it rolls out
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here in the
United States of America.
00:08:50.33\00:08:53.23
During the primary season,
all kinds of promises are made
00:08:53.23\00:08:56.67
and somebody's poll numbers rise
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as voters choose to believe them
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and they start to lean in
that candidate's direction.
00:09:01.37\00:09:04.61
In spite of our past experience,
00:09:04.61\00:09:06.31
people continue to
get their hopes up.
00:09:06.31\00:09:08.28
And then when the
candidates we believed in
00:09:08.28\00:09:10.81
are actually elected
about two years into their term,
00:09:10.81\00:09:14.58
we usually, not always,
00:09:14.58\00:09:16.62
but we usually send their party
00:09:16.62\00:09:18.15
a disciplinary
message in the midterms.
00:09:18.15\00:09:20.89
The poll numbers start to drop,
00:09:20.89\00:09:22.76
because yet again,
another political candidate
00:09:22.76\00:09:25.73
didn't fix our worst problems.
00:09:25.73\00:09:29.20
Now, expand that idea
across the entire planet
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and ask yourself,
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who exactly is going to be
in charge of building utopia?
00:09:34.44\00:09:39.17
You want me to do it?
00:09:39.17\00:09:40.81
Because I don't
want you to do it.
00:09:40.81\00:09:43.01
And I'll be
right back after this.
00:09:43.01\00:09:45.35
- [Promoter] Here at
The Voice of Prophecy,
00:09:48.62\00:09:50.09
we're committed to
creating top quality programming
00:09:50.09\00:09:52.62
for the whole family.
00:09:52.62\00:09:54.09
Like our audio adventure
series "Discovery Mountain".
00:09:54.09\00:09:57.16
"Discovery Mountain"
is a bible-based program
00:09:57.16\00:09:59.73
for kids of all
ages and backgrounds.
00:09:59.73\00:10:02.00
Your family will enjoy
the faith building stories
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from this small
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with 24 seasonal
episodes every year
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and fresh content every week.
00:10:10.14\00:10:12.31
There's always a new
adventure just on the horizon.
00:10:12.31\00:10:15.58
- Okay, we're back.
00:10:18.51\00:10:19.78
So, let me raise
some ethical questions
00:10:19.78\00:10:22.18
that popped into my mind
when I started to think about
00:10:22.18\00:10:25.12
what kind of moral obligation
we might have to the future.
00:10:25.12\00:10:29.16
The author of this book,
00:10:29.16\00:10:30.99
basically takes
the position that
00:10:30.99\00:10:32.73
humanity as we recognize it now
00:10:32.73\00:10:35.50
emerged from the
evolutionary process
00:10:35.50\00:10:37.40
about 300,000 years ago.
00:10:37.40\00:10:39.80
Then he suggests
that the average lifespan
00:10:39.80\00:10:42.14
for a species of mammals
is about a million years.
00:10:42.14\00:10:45.57
At which point he says,
00:10:45.57\00:10:47.08
"We turn into something
else or we just go extinct."
00:10:47.08\00:10:50.31
Now, that's not the
way that I look at things,
00:10:50.31\00:10:52.71
because it's not the
biblical point of view.
00:10:52.71\00:10:55.55
But what he does with that idea
00:10:55.55\00:10:57.49
is propose that
most of the human beings
00:10:57.49\00:10:59.72
who will ever
live still don't exist.
00:10:59.72\00:11:02.62
Our biggest population
he says, by a long shot,
00:11:02.62\00:11:05.99
will live in the
very distant future.
00:11:05.99\00:11:08.33
And so because of that,
we have a moral obligation
00:11:08.33\00:11:11.60
to those people
because well, he thinks
00:11:11.60\00:11:14.20
they're going to outnumber us.
00:11:14.20\00:11:15.90
But where exactly
does he get that idea?
00:11:16.97\00:11:19.37
Why does he assume that
greater numbers of people
00:11:19.37\00:11:21.81
are worth more than
fewer numbers of people?
00:11:21.81\00:11:24.71
Why would he assign moral worth
to the size of a population?
00:11:24.71\00:11:28.95
I mean, I get it.
00:11:28.95\00:11:30.22
When you live in
a Western democracy,
00:11:30.22\00:11:32.02
you're raised in the idea
that the majority must rule.
00:11:32.02\00:11:35.59
And so, more people
will always seem like
00:11:35.59\00:11:38.09
they carry more
value than less people.
00:11:38.09\00:11:40.73
But why, and how are
we supposed to know that?
00:11:40.73\00:11:44.70
Now, again, I
don't believe this,
00:11:44.70\00:11:47.17
but suppose that
we really did emerge
00:11:47.17\00:11:49.30
as a unique
species 300,000 years ago,
00:11:49.30\00:11:51.61
just for the sake of argument.
00:11:51.61\00:11:54.14
How exactly did that happen?
00:11:54.14\00:11:55.98
Was it an accident?
00:11:55.98\00:11:57.65
Did incredibly vast amounts
of time coupled with chance
00:11:57.65\00:12:00.55
somehow accidentally
produce the human race,
00:12:00.55\00:12:03.45
self-conscious,
self-aware, rational people?
00:12:03.45\00:12:07.16
And if we really
got here by accident,
00:12:07.16\00:12:09.36
why is there any moral
worth to preserving anything?
00:12:09.36\00:12:13.23
I mean, it's just
an accident, right?
00:12:13.23\00:12:15.20
And at some point it's
all going to disappear.
00:12:15.20\00:12:17.13
And then 100 million years
after that, the theory says,
00:12:17.13\00:12:20.87
nobody's ever gonna
know that we even existed.
00:12:20.87\00:12:23.24
So, who's to say that
our presence in this galaxy
00:12:24.61\00:12:27.04
has any moral worth?
00:12:27.04\00:12:28.84
And why should we
assume that the needs
00:12:28.84\00:12:30.71
of some future majority are
more important than my needs?
00:12:30.71\00:12:34.42
Where does that idea come from?
00:12:34.42\00:12:36.45
I mean, you and I
are going to be dead
00:12:36.45\00:12:37.95
when that
distant future arrives.
00:12:37.95\00:12:39.52
So, why in the world
should we care about it?
00:12:39.52\00:12:42.82
Now, don't get me wrong,
00:12:42.82\00:12:44.23
I'm not arguing that
future people don't matter.
00:12:44.23\00:12:46.33
I'm just asking why.
00:12:46.33\00:12:48.86
Where exactly do
these moral values,
00:12:48.86\00:12:51.10
these moral price
tags, actually come from?
00:12:51.10\00:12:54.30
Somebody might argue that it's
a matter of self-preservation
00:12:54.30\00:12:57.21
for the human race that we
need to keep humanity going,
00:12:57.21\00:13:00.31
and that makes it a moral issue.
00:13:00.31\00:13:02.84
But why?
00:13:02.84\00:13:04.31
I mean, we all understand
that we're going to die anyway.
00:13:04.31\00:13:06.61
And after the passage
of this much human history,
00:13:06.61\00:13:09.68
we should
understand that suffering
00:13:09.68\00:13:11.62
is probably gonna be a
part of every generation anyway.
00:13:11.62\00:13:14.99
So, who's to say that the
future happiness of people
00:13:14.99\00:13:18.53
we will never meet is
more important than ours?
00:13:18.53\00:13:21.93
Why should I sacrifice for
people who don't even exist yet?
00:13:21.93\00:13:26.13
And again, just in case
somebody's tuning in right now,
00:13:26.13\00:13:28.70
let me emphasize, this
isn't the way I actually think.
00:13:28.70\00:13:32.51
I come to the world
from a Christian perspective,
00:13:32.51\00:13:34.91
which absolutely
requires that we esteem
00:13:34.91\00:13:37.85
other people as more
important than ourselves.
00:13:37.85\00:13:40.12
After all notice what it
says in Philippians chapter two,
00:13:40.12\00:13:44.32
"Do nothing from
selfish ambition or conceit,
00:13:44.32\00:13:47.66
but in humility count others
00:13:47.66\00:13:49.29
more significant
than yourselves."
00:13:49.29\00:13:52.56
Biblical Christians
believe in selflessness,
00:13:52.56\00:13:55.26
because that's
the example of Christ
00:13:55.26\00:13:57.40
who sacrificed everything
for our future happiness.
00:13:57.40\00:14:01.10
And the very
reason that I'm free
00:14:01.10\00:14:02.67
to own a copy of
the Bible at all,
00:14:02.67\00:14:05.01
is because so many
Christians living in the past
00:14:05.01\00:14:07.71
were willing to make
absolutely massive sacrifices
00:14:07.71\00:14:11.18
to make sure of it.
00:14:11.18\00:14:13.08
What we have from
the biblical perspective
00:14:13.08\00:14:15.82
is the belief that
there is such a thing
00:14:15.82\00:14:18.25
as an authentic human life.
00:14:18.25\00:14:19.95
A right way to live
with authentic human values
00:14:19.95\00:14:23.73
provided by the Creator.
00:14:23.73\00:14:26.03
We may not do it perfectly,
in fact, we seldom do,
00:14:26.03\00:14:29.53
but when it comes
to considering others,
00:14:29.53\00:14:31.63
including people who might
live way off in the future,
00:14:31.63\00:14:34.47
there's a solid
reason for doing this.
00:14:34.47\00:14:36.97
We're living in harmony with
a pattern that God established.
00:14:36.97\00:14:41.41
And by no means do I believe
that you have to be a Christian
00:14:41.41\00:14:45.25
to be a decent or moral person.
00:14:45.25\00:14:47.92
And I say that because
I've heard a lot of Christians
00:14:47.92\00:14:50.59
suggest that atheists do not
have the capacity to be moral,
00:14:50.59\00:14:54.42
which is silly.
00:14:54.42\00:14:56.32
Most of the atheists I've
met are good and decent people,
00:14:56.32\00:14:59.63
at least to the
extent that anybody can be.
00:14:59.63\00:15:02.73
What I'm really questioning
is where our values come from.
00:15:02.73\00:15:07.20
If our morality is just a
matter of social convention,
00:15:07.20\00:15:10.21
if it's just an
arbitrary social contract,
00:15:10.21\00:15:13.38
is that really a moral reason
00:15:13.38\00:15:15.54
to behave well
and consider others?
00:15:15.54\00:15:18.25
And here's another question
00:15:18.25\00:15:19.35
for atheists
and believers alike.
00:15:19.35\00:15:21.45
Is the biblical maxim,
00:15:21.45\00:15:22.72
"Whatever you wish
that others would do to you,
00:15:22.72\00:15:25.35
do also to them."
00:15:25.35\00:15:27.32
Well, is that really enough
to make your actions moral?
00:15:27.32\00:15:30.69
Because if you're
treating others well
00:15:30.69\00:15:32.16
just because that's what
you would like for yourself,
00:15:32.16\00:15:35.50
have you really
overcome that basic instinct
00:15:35.50\00:15:38.00
that puts self first?
00:15:38.00\00:15:40.07
You know, in that same passage,
00:15:41.14\00:15:43.10
Jesus taught that we're
supposed to treat others
00:15:43.10\00:15:45.44
as we would like to be treated,
00:15:45.44\00:15:46.94
because that's the essence
of the law and the prophets.
00:15:46.94\00:15:51.05
When somebody asks Jesus,
00:15:51.05\00:15:52.45
"Which of the moral
commandments was the greatest?"
00:15:52.45\00:15:55.48
Jesus answered by saying this,
00:15:55.48\00:15:57.29
and you'll find
it in Matthew 22,
00:15:57.29\00:16:00.19
"You shall love the Lord
your God with all your heart
00:16:00.19\00:16:03.22
and with all your soul
and with all your mind.
00:16:03.22\00:16:06.06
This is the great
and first commandment.
00:16:06.06\00:16:08.33
And a second is like it:
00:16:08.33\00:16:09.86
You shall love your
neighbor as yourself.
00:16:09.86\00:16:12.40
On these two commandments
00:16:12.40\00:16:13.94
depend all the
Law and the Prophets."
00:16:13.94\00:16:17.21
In other words, the very
essence of God's moral law
00:16:17.21\00:16:20.14
is love and selflessness,
00:16:20.14\00:16:22.51
and that's
because God's moral law
00:16:22.51\00:16:24.58
is a transcript of who He is.
00:16:24.58\00:16:26.31
It's a picture of His character.
00:16:26.31\00:16:28.58
The Book of Genesis says
that you and I were made,
00:16:28.58\00:16:31.12
at least
originally, in the image of God.
00:16:31.12\00:16:34.09
As a perfect reflection
of His loving character.
00:16:34.09\00:16:37.43
And then we
twisted that terribly
00:16:37.43\00:16:39.43
putting our own wants ahead
of absolutely everything else.
00:16:39.43\00:16:43.73
And that's the reason that
utopian experiments always fail.
00:16:45.03\00:16:48.67
It's because
we're tragically flawed.
00:16:48.67\00:16:51.21
And when those experiments fail,
00:16:51.21\00:16:52.97
we have no problem
blaming the people who ruined it
00:16:52.97\00:16:56.21
While assuring ourselves that we
00:16:56.21\00:16:57.91
would never, ever cause
those kinds of problems.
00:16:57.91\00:17:01.42
I mean, if I was in charge,
00:17:01.42\00:17:03.28
I could pretty much
fix everything, right?
00:17:03.28\00:17:05.92
Except you and I
both know that's not true.
00:17:05.92\00:17:09.59
Let's suppose for
the sake of argument
00:17:09.59\00:17:11.26
that I really, really want
to make the world a better place
00:17:11.26\00:17:14.40
1,000 years into the future.
00:17:14.40\00:17:16.70
How exactly am I
supposed to guess
00:17:16.70\00:17:18.87
what's going to be
beneficial 1,000 years from now?
00:17:18.87\00:17:22.37
And how am I supposed to guess
what culture will look like
00:17:22.37\00:17:25.27
and what kinds of things
people are going to value?
00:17:25.27\00:17:28.48
I mean, let's
suppose that our ancestors
00:17:28.48\00:17:30.71
did the same
thing 1,000 years ago.
00:17:30.71\00:17:32.51
They hatched a plan
to improve our lives.
00:17:32.51\00:17:36.22
Would you really
want a medieval doctor
00:17:36.22\00:17:38.15
planning your healthcare,
00:17:38.15\00:17:39.69
or a medieval
anybody planning anything?
00:17:39.69\00:17:42.82
It's a ridiculous proposition.
00:17:42.82\00:17:45.13
And yet, because of
the perpetual arrogance
00:17:45.13\00:17:47.40
of every
generation, we like to think
00:17:47.40\00:17:49.43
that we're a lot smarter than
the people who came before us.
00:17:49.43\00:17:53.30
But what if our choices actually
end up promoting suffering
00:17:54.60\00:17:57.54
the way they almost always do?
00:17:57.54\00:18:00.14
Wouldn't our tinkering then
become a moral transgression?
00:18:00.14\00:18:03.91
Again, I'm not
arguing that we shouldn't try.
00:18:03.91\00:18:06.25
Please don't misunderstand.
00:18:06.25\00:18:08.58
But I am thinking we
should be very careful
00:18:08.58\00:18:11.49
before we assume that we
actually know what we're doing.
00:18:11.49\00:18:14.82
I mean, how many times
00:18:14.82\00:18:16.29
have our very best
efforts resulted in disaster?
00:18:16.29\00:18:19.89
How many times haven't
we pointed a finger at our
00:18:19.89\00:18:22.70
ancestors blaming them for
the condition of our world?
00:18:22.70\00:18:26.37
I'll be right back.
00:18:26.37\00:18:28.00
[upbeat music]
00:18:28.00\00:18:31.04
- [Promoter] Dragons,
beasts, cryptic statues.
00:18:31.04\00:18:35.31
Bible prophecy can be
incredibly vivid and confusing.
00:18:35.31\00:18:39.91
If you've ever read
"Daniel, a Revelation"
00:18:39.91\00:18:42.12
and come away scratching
your head, you're not alone.
00:18:42.12\00:18:45.15
Our free focus
on prophecy guides
00:18:45.15\00:18:47.56
are designed to help you unlock
the mysteries of the Bible
00:18:47.56\00:18:50.33
and deepen your understanding
00:18:50.33\00:18:51.89
of God's plan for
you and our world.
00:18:51.89\00:18:54.40
Study online or
request them by mail
00:18:54.40\00:18:56.83
and start bringing
prophecy into focus today.
00:18:56.83\00:19:00.54
- Okay, here's what I
find really interesting.
00:19:00.54\00:19:02.74
It's the fact that there's
an entire book of the Bible
00:19:02.74\00:19:05.31
dedicated to these
kinds of questions.
00:19:05.31\00:19:08.81
Of course, the whole Bible
deals with these questions,
00:19:08.81\00:19:11.95
but there's one book in
particular that makes a solid
00:19:11.95\00:19:15.25
case that all the
human planning in the world
00:19:15.25\00:19:17.62
is never going to
end with paradise.
00:19:17.62\00:19:20.29
And that's the book of Daniel.
00:19:20.29\00:19:22.69
Here's the basic premise.
00:19:22.69\00:19:23.89
A young Jewish
noble named Daniel
00:19:23.89\00:19:25.96
is taken captive to Babylon
along with everybody else.
00:19:25.96\00:19:29.60
God allowed the Babylonians
to conquer the city of Jerusalem
00:19:29.60\00:19:32.93
and burn down the temple,
00:19:32.93\00:19:34.90
because His people had
to abandon their mission
00:19:34.90\00:19:37.91
and tried very hard to
become like their neighbors
00:19:37.91\00:19:41.11
to the point where they actually
00:19:41.11\00:19:42.78
adopted their religious beliefs.
00:19:42.78\00:19:45.15
So, at the end of the
day, there was no point
00:19:45.15\00:19:47.75
to keeping the
temple in Jerusalem,
00:19:47.75\00:19:49.45
because it didn't
mean anything anymore.
00:19:49.45\00:19:52.12
What we get in
the Book of Daniel
00:19:53.19\00:19:54.66
is an
exploration of what it means
00:19:54.66\00:19:56.69
to live under the
thumb of other nations
00:19:56.69\00:19:58.99
instead of the
government of God.
00:19:58.99\00:20:01.56
In Daniel chapter two,
we see the rise and fall
00:20:01.56\00:20:04.80
of successive world empires
00:20:04.80\00:20:06.40
depicted as a statue
made of different metals.
00:20:06.40\00:20:09.87
And as history progresses,
00:20:09.87\00:20:11.34
the metals become
more and more brittle
00:20:11.34\00:20:13.68
and less and less valuable.
00:20:13.68\00:20:15.84
Then in chapter seven,
we see those same kingdoms
00:20:15.84\00:20:18.85
portrayed as
animals rising from the sea
00:20:18.85\00:20:21.38
walking onto the shore.
00:20:21.38\00:20:23.49
The Jews believed that their
nation was a protected island
00:20:23.49\00:20:26.55
in the midst of gentile nations,
00:20:26.55\00:20:28.39
a kind of oasis
of covenant grace.
00:20:28.39\00:20:32.13
But in Daniel
seven, the nation of Israel
00:20:32.13\00:20:34.83
is being dominated by one
gentile nation after the other,
00:20:34.83\00:20:39.00
and that's why they're
seen coming up on the shore.
00:20:39.00\00:20:41.94
And the thing that
drives it all, nonstop warfare.
00:20:41.94\00:20:45.84
The Book of Daniels
shows us an ocean of humanity
00:20:45.84\00:20:48.58
being whipped up by the wind.
00:20:48.58\00:20:50.31
And as the turmoil continues,
00:20:50.31\00:20:52.31
one human kingdom after
another fights for power
00:20:52.31\00:20:55.85
and replaces the
one that came before it.
00:20:55.85\00:20:58.42
It's really a very
accurate description
00:20:58.42\00:21:00.79
of the world's history.
00:21:00.79\00:21:02.46
And you can be
sure as each new empire
00:21:03.56\00:21:05.33
took its place
on the world stage,
00:21:05.33\00:21:07.13
it was brimming with promise.
00:21:07.13\00:21:09.40
I mean, get out of
our way Babylonians,
00:21:09.40\00:21:11.43
the Persians are here
00:21:11.43\00:21:12.77
and they're gonna
show you how it's done.
00:21:12.77\00:21:15.17
Until of course, the
Greeks appear on the horizon
00:21:15.17\00:21:17.74
and take their turn.
00:21:17.74\00:21:19.51
This progression
of failed empires
00:21:19.51\00:21:21.28
continues until we get
to the heavenly judgment
00:21:21.28\00:21:24.68
when everybody gets
called on the carpet.
00:21:24.68\00:21:27.92
And that results in this
scene found in Daniel 7:17.
00:21:27.92\00:21:32.55
It says, "I saw
in the night visions
00:21:32.55\00:21:35.16
and behold, with
the clouds of heaven
00:21:35.16\00:21:36.86
there came one
like a son of man,
00:21:36.86\00:21:38.83
and he came to
the Ancient of Days
00:21:38.83\00:21:40.56
and was presented before him.
00:21:40.56\00:21:42.73
And to him was given dominion
and glory and a kingdom,
00:21:42.73\00:21:45.93
that all peoples, nations,
and languages should serve him;
00:21:45.93\00:21:49.50
his dominion is an
everlasting dominion,
00:21:49.50\00:21:52.01
which shall not pass away,
00:21:52.01\00:21:54.01
and his kingdom one
that shall not be destroyed."
00:21:54.01\00:21:58.78
You know what it's telling us?
00:21:58.78\00:22:01.02
You and I are not
gonna fix this place.
00:22:01.02\00:22:03.35
It's not gonna happen.
00:22:03.35\00:22:04.85
And again, that doesn't mean
00:22:04.85\00:22:06.32
we don't have a moral
obligation to help people,
00:22:06.32\00:22:08.56
because we do.
00:22:08.56\00:22:10.19
In fact, every Christian
should take very careful note
00:22:10.19\00:22:13.60
of Jesus' words over
in Matthew chapter 25,
00:22:13.60\00:22:16.80
where he says, "When the
Son of Man comes in his glory,
00:22:16.80\00:22:20.40
and all the angels with him,
00:22:20.40\00:22:22.14
then he will sit on
his glorious throne.
00:22:22.14\00:22:24.84
Before him will be
gathered all the nations,
00:22:24.84\00:22:27.11
and he will separate
people one from another
00:22:27.11\00:22:29.74
as a shepherd separates
the sheep from the goats.
00:22:29.74\00:22:32.98
And he will place
the sheep on his right,
00:22:32.98\00:22:34.75
but the goats on the left.
00:22:34.75\00:22:36.99
Then the king will
say to those on his right,
00:22:36.99\00:22:39.42
'Come, you who are
blessed by my Father,
00:22:39.42\00:22:41.92
inherit the
kingdom prepared for you
00:22:41.92\00:22:44.06
from the
foundation of the world.
00:22:44.06\00:22:46.29
For I was hungry
and you gave me food,
00:22:46.29\00:22:48.60
I was thirsty and
you gave me drink,
00:22:48.60\00:22:50.83
I was a stranger
and you welcomed me,
00:22:50.83\00:22:53.10
I was naked and you clothed me,
00:22:53.10\00:22:54.84
I was sick and you visited me,
00:22:54.84\00:22:56.81
I was in prison
and you came to me."
00:22:56.81\00:23:00.24
So yeah, we do have a duty
to help our fellow human beings.
00:23:00.24\00:23:04.15
The very character
of God demands that.
00:23:04.15\00:23:08.02
You can trust your
instinct to help people.
00:23:08.02\00:23:11.42
But when it comes to
manmade utopian experiments,
00:23:11.42\00:23:14.72
well, I think the Book of Daniel
00:23:14.72\00:23:15.96
has proven to be
absolutely right.
00:23:15.96\00:23:18.19
Not one of those
experiments so far
00:23:18.19\00:23:20.70
has done anything
to make us happier,
00:23:20.70\00:23:23.60
because not one of them
can fix our fundamental flaw.
00:23:23.60\00:23:27.44
We're sinners trapped
by a selfish perspective
00:23:27.44\00:23:30.74
that is never going to
change through anything we do.
00:23:30.74\00:23:34.18
Anybody putting absolute faith
in people to fix this world,
00:23:34.18\00:23:38.01
is going to be
bitterly disappointed.
00:23:38.01\00:23:40.42
I mean, we've never
pulled it off in the past,
00:23:40.42\00:23:43.12
and I don't believe for a moment
00:23:43.12\00:23:45.05
we're going to pull
it off in the future.
00:23:45.05\00:23:47.49
So, why trust mere people
with the future of the planet?
00:23:47.49\00:23:51.73
Again, that doesn't
mean it doesn't need fixing,
00:23:51.73\00:23:54.76
it just means that fixing it
00:23:54.76\00:23:56.53
is going to take something
more than what we have to offer.
00:23:56.53\00:24:00.04
So, who do you want
to trust with the future?
00:24:01.17\00:24:03.64
Self-interested people
who always seem to use others
00:24:03.64\00:24:06.74
to accomplish their aims,
00:24:06.74\00:24:08.81
or would you rather have a
God who sacrificed everything
00:24:08.81\00:24:11.95
to secure a future for you?
00:24:11.95\00:24:14.22
Historically speaking,
there was only one person
00:24:14.22\00:24:17.02
who perfectly
reflected the image of God,
00:24:17.02\00:24:20.02
one person who lived a
completely selfless life,
00:24:20.02\00:24:23.16
one person who was
willing to lose everything,
00:24:23.16\00:24:25.99
if it meant your utter
and complete restoration.
00:24:25.99\00:24:29.30
And I would like to suggest that
00:24:29.30\00:24:30.83
before you
believe any more promises
00:24:30.83\00:24:32.90
from well-meaning
politicians or social engineers,
00:24:32.90\00:24:36.34
that you consider
the claims of Christ,
00:24:36.34\00:24:38.74
because maybe just maybe he
really does have the ability
00:24:38.74\00:24:42.51
to give you the peace of God,
00:24:42.51\00:24:45.35
which surpasses
all understanding.
00:24:45.35\00:24:47.92
I'll be right back after this.
00:24:47.92\00:24:50.45
[upbeat music]
00:24:50.45\00:24:53.09
- [Promoter] Life
can throw a lot at us.
00:24:54.16\00:24:56.32
Sometimes we don't
have all the answers,
00:24:56.32\00:24:59.73
but that's where
the Bible comes in.
00:24:59.73\00:25:02.13
It's our guide to a
more fulfilling life.
00:25:02.13\00:25:05.23
Here at The Voice of Prophecy,
00:25:05.23\00:25:06.80
we've created the
"Discover Bible" guides
00:25:06.80\00:25:08.90
to be your guide to the Bible.
00:25:08.90\00:25:10.54
They're designed to
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00:25:10.54\00:25:13.01
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00:25:13.01\00:25:16.04
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So, jump online
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00:25:20.42\00:25:23.28
- Here's one of the
problems with trying to engineer
00:25:23.28\00:25:25.49
a better future
for your grandkids,
00:25:25.49\00:25:27.52
and that's our
skewed understanding
00:25:27.52\00:25:29.62
of what makes people happy.
00:25:29.62\00:25:31.79
I mean, just think
back to the world's fairs
00:25:31.79\00:25:33.53
of the 18 and 1900s
00:25:33.53\00:25:35.16
or some of the
articles that appeared
00:25:35.16\00:25:37.07
in "Popular Science"
journals back in the 1950s.
00:25:37.07\00:25:40.70
Everybody was optimistic,
00:25:40.70\00:25:42.40
because technology promised
more leisure time and less work.
00:25:42.40\00:25:47.14
But when we actually
made life more convenient,
00:25:47.14\00:25:49.64
we weren't any happier.
00:25:49.64\00:25:50.98
In fact, I think
it's the opposite.
00:25:50.98\00:25:54.02
Our generation has
more comfort, more security,
00:25:54.02\00:25:56.79
more disposable income
00:25:56.79\00:25:58.42
than almost any
generation that came before it,
00:25:58.42\00:26:01.56
but we're not
happier than our ancestors.
00:26:01.56\00:26:04.09
We're just a
little more comfortable.
00:26:04.09\00:26:07.00
I mean, just ask
yourself, why are we dealing
00:26:07.00\00:26:10.00
with unusually high levels
of depression and anxiety?
00:26:10.00\00:26:13.40
Why has the political
world become more divided,
00:26:13.40\00:26:16.04
more polarized,
and more hostile?
00:26:16.04\00:26:19.11
Apparently, all the
technology in the world
00:26:19.11\00:26:22.18
hasn't fixed our worst problems.
00:26:22.18\00:26:24.45
Again, let's think
about that experiment
00:26:25.51\00:26:27.28
that was the
former Soviet Union.
00:26:27.28\00:26:29.22
All those
five-year economic plans,
00:26:29.22\00:26:30.92
all those carefully thought
out government initiatives,
00:26:30.92\00:26:34.16
none of them did
anything to help.
00:26:34.16\00:26:36.76
In fact, apart from a
handful of party elites,
00:26:36.76\00:26:40.50
those decisions made
people more miserable.
00:26:40.50\00:26:43.53
So, are we really smart enough
00:26:43.53\00:26:45.80
to figure out what's
gonna make the human race happy?
00:26:45.80\00:26:49.14
Again, God absolutely expects
us to alleviate suffering.
00:26:49.14\00:26:54.08
He expects us to feed the
hungry and clothe the poor.
00:26:54.08\00:26:57.15
He expects us to
care for the planet,
00:26:57.15\00:26:59.08
and yes, leave it
better than we found it.
00:26:59.08\00:27:02.55
But at the same time, I
think we should remember
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a couple of important realities.
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One, trying to
tinker with the future
00:27:07.06\00:27:09.49
in ways we think is appropriate,
00:27:09.49\00:27:11.93
that's probably a losing game.
00:27:11.93\00:27:14.36
Two, speaking from a
biblical perspective,
00:27:14.36\00:27:17.80
we know we're not gonna fix it.
00:27:17.80\00:27:19.97
The Bible
indicates quite clearly
00:27:19.97\00:27:22.07
that you're not gonna solve
what's wrong with this place.
00:27:22.07\00:27:25.11
Our existence is a little bit
00:27:25.11\00:27:26.47
like an
old-fashioned Greek tragedy.
00:27:26.47\00:27:29.68
It doesn't matter
how well you plan,
00:27:29.68\00:27:31.98
if you can't get
rid of your fatal flaw,
00:27:31.98\00:27:34.38
it's going to destroy you.
00:27:34.38\00:27:36.45
From the Bible's perspective,
the problem only gets solved
00:27:36.45\00:27:40.12
after the judgment when the
Son of Man receives His kingdom
00:27:40.12\00:27:44.16
and He restores this world
to what it's supposed to be.
00:27:44.16\00:27:47.66
And I don't know about you,
00:27:47.66\00:27:49.36
but if God is
real, and I know He is,
00:27:49.36\00:27:52.07
then I think you'd
rather have Him plan the future
00:27:52.07\00:27:54.84
than somebody like me.
00:27:54.84\00:27:56.84
Thanks for joining me.
00:27:56.84\00:27:58.31
I'm Shawn Boonstra, and you've
been watching "Authentic".
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