The REAL Reason God Forgives Murderers But Not You
A serial killer who murdered 12 women found Jesus on death row. He was forgiven. Meanwhile, Steven asks about the kindest person he’s ever known, a woman who lived an incredible life but didn’t believe. Is she in hell? Oxford mathematician Professor John Lennox faces the hardest question in Christianity head on, and his answer challenges everything most people think about how God works.Lennox begins by making a distinction most people have never heard: the only people Jesus ever warned about hell were religious bigots.
He never threatened ordinary people who were struggling with faith. He then explains the CS Lewis interpretation of hell that has reshaped his own thinking: hell is not God stuffing people into a furnace. It is absence of God, and it is chosen. If someone spends their entire life saying they don’t want God, God honors that decision. Forcing himself into their life would violate the very freedom he gave them.
Steven pushes harder with the most difficult version of the question: if a serial killer repents at the end of their life, are they forgiven? And if so, how is that fair when a good person who doesn’t believe apparently isn’t? Lennox shares the story of visiting a Russian death row prison, looking through the door at a gaunt man awaiting execution, and hearing him say: “I deserve to be here. But I met Jesus here, and he forgave me.” Then his face burst into what Lennox can only describe as a ghastly smile. The man lying in the bed next to him had the same story.
Discover:
• Why Jesus only ever warned religious bigots about hell, not ordinary people
• The serial killer on death row who found Jesus and was forgiven
• Why hell might be something you choose, not something imposed on you
• How a man who murdered 12 women could find peace before his execution
• Why AI can imitate consciousness but never actually have it
• The moment Steven told Lennox: “The most compelling argument for God is actually you”
• Why the peace that Christians carry is something Steven keeps noticing
📺 Watch the full episode here – https://youtu.be/dLrvJeSugkM
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@TheDiaryOfACEOClips
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
Watch the full episode here – https://youtu.be/dLrvJeSugkM
@phoebeo.appolon
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
God as per the human religions DON'T exist. No allah, no Trinity, no vishnu and the likes, no shang-di and his gang, no amaterasu, no any of them gods 🎉🎉
@DezInContext
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
So it’s possible Hitler will be in heaven? Given the fact that if Saul of Tarsus (later the Apostle Paul), he persecuted Christians and mass murdered them. Only to turn to become the very same thing he hated (a Christian) because Jesus Christ appeared to him which led to Saul/Paul toward a total conversion. Also the account of the thief/terrorist/murderer who on the cross with Jesus in his last minute received a pardon and salvation from Jesus Christ without ever having chance to prove his faith through works. It's then true to accept that Hitler could be in heaven?
@MomzLuv
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
Please forgive me for lack of better words. This was in my Bible study this past week.
We should all rejoice if a murderer truly repents but only God knows his heart. GOD is LOVE. What’s the hardest to do and I believe God wants us to learn, is true forgiveness and acceptance. Put yourself in his shoes to contemplate. Like the story in the Bible about the father with 2 sons. The elder son and the younger son.
As an individual looking at the murderer, you’ll have hatred towards him and judgement. But if you are his father learning that your son(murderer) has truly repented and feels sorry for his actions asking for forgiveness. I’m almost certain you’ll forgive him.
@ursulawassenberg2006
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
Dear Steve, please invite Alexander Vassely. He is the grandchild of Viktor Frankl, who developted the "Existenzanalyse und Logotherapie". I think it is the best form of psychotherapie, including a philosophie and anthropologie very open to the wisdome of the global humanity. Honestly Ursula
@m-rezaabazar-ghafari8757
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
This person who are questioning all these questions is a perfect next generation of Antichrist.
@Barb-og7sv
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
Please have Dr. Jason Lisle on at some point!
@divineceleste.m
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
This young man’s doubt and unbelief is so embedded. I just hope he didn’t only ask his questions carefully, but that he truly listened as well.
@mariobueno4676
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
He’s got it wrong… there are demons waiting for those destined to darkness
@cinnamonthebeau3199
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
AI has to be told what to put in the piece of art.
@abelturner2999
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
Brilliant conversation
@stevenpritchett4933
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
I beg to differ with the old man about the rich man and Lazarus. They both died but the rich man went to hell while Lazarus went to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man cried out to Abraham to send Lazarus that he might dip his finger in water to cool his tongue for he was tormented in the flames. He begged Abraham to tell his brothers so that they would not also go down into hell where he was. This was a parable told by Jesus. It was a warning that hell is definitely not a place you want to spend eternity. If you go, you will be tormented in flames. Dear God, help me to truly repent of my sins and do them no more.Amen
@3generboiler
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
I fear for the woke English… you have fallen asleep while a Trojan Horse is among you ..
Well, thousands and thousands of them.
@MultiTacs
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
The pastoral and logical problem with “choosing hell” is that it makes God’s judgment almost incidental. As if God is simply ratifying a personal preference. But judgment is God acting in perfect justice on a nature that is fully deserving of wrath. His justice is the active reality, not a rubber stamp on human preference.
@hollow7873
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
You're already a murderer whose body made by billions of corpses, you're horrible machine that uses living beings like a fuel, so don't think about this absurd delusions
@cleopatraponder9274
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
What we need to understand is that GOD is not a has no respect for what we think of our selves and what we think of others in terms of our so called "GOODNESS" he is the judge and he judges the heart not the thoughts of man. We are all BORN sinners already its our job to seek forgiveness for that sin.having chosen to invite the presence of JESUS in our lives by prayer, praise, and worship in HIS name.
@mbfrommb3699
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
I think that sadly there is way too many false ideas about what the Bible says about Heaven and Hell. And most of what people including many Christian’s believe has been someone else’s understanding passed down. And it’s become this overwhelming overcomplicated confusing topic.
Hell is an eternal place of death. In Deuteronomy30 it speaks of having life and death set before us. We ALL know what brings death and what brings life. It’s not complicated. If I overeat constantly (gluttony) i am slowly killing myself (death =sin). When I lie to others I bring death to the relationship. This is sin. We are all sinners and we bring darkness and death to ourselves, others and the planet daily. We choose to sin, but we are also sinners by nature. We will die and we will choose things that accelerate that death.
Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty of our sins and rose from the dead conquering death showing us eternal life is possible.
If you want to go to Heaven and live forever then choose that. Know that you cannot attain it on your own because you are a mortal who sins and will one day die. Trust in Jesus (as God) to get you to Heaven.
The mechanics of how Gods Justice is satisfied for our sins is the cross. But we simply have to place our trust in Him to get us to Heaven. That faith and desire for eternal life and Heaven is simply a choice of “who do you trust in?” Yourself or God?
Now some people love death. They love pain and suffering and will forever choose to bring death and suffering with no remorse or desire to be forgiven. Evil always has its devoted followers. These are those who if they don’t change and turn to God for forgiveness and mercy will choose Hell willingly because all love and desire for life is gone. They are so consumed with hatred and death they will curse God and willingly choose it for an eternity. If that isn’t you. If you don’t love death and love causing suffering and want eternal life then simply go to God and tell Him. Knowing that Jesus paid the penalty for all your sins and darkness you already know is in you. (Otherwise why do we try to do good to balance out the bad we do?)
Trust in Jesus and His work on the cross to get you to Heaven and eternal life and not in yourself and Hell is taken off the table forever. Sure we stumble and fall and fail but eternal Hell is removed because of what Jesus has done for all of humanity. It’s not about religion or politics or morality it’s who do you trust in to get you into Heaven? Who do you have faith in?
So ifHeaven and Hell actually do exist where do you want to go? Hope this helps. Take care.
@sarahhood4423
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
🥰
@Granmaster1996
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
people think when ai is made they get to stay home and chill. You will be repurposed to another job. You office workers are mostly screwed time to pick up a trade and contribute to society while Big brother gives us our orders
@NoName-x5y4m
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
Let’s put it this way. Before Christ, if u lived a good life, you would still go to hell, your sins of you ancestors have not been payed for by Christ, but u would instead go to Abraham’s Bossom.
@laurafuller8528
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
God doesn’t forgive murderers. They pay for that sin themselves, without his help.
@LuceNelBuioTrovaLaVerità
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
I appreciated the discussion, but I think the biblical answer goes even deeper.
The question is often framed as, “Why would a murderer who repents go to heaven while a kind person who spent their life helping children goes to hell?” The problem is that Scripture does not divide humanity into “bad people” and “good people.” The Bible says that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).
According to God’s standard, every one of us is a lawbreaker. Jesus taught that hatred in the heart is murder in God’s sight (Matthew 5:21–22), and lust is adultery in the heart (Matthew 5:27–28). We have all lied, coveted, dishonored God, and broken His commandments. The issue is not that one person is a murderer and another is merely “nice.” The issue is that all of us are guilty before a holy God.
The Bible says, “The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). A wage is something earned. What we deserve for our sins is God’s righteous judgment. Hell is not ultimately about God being unfair; it is about God being perfectly just.
But there is another crucial truth: the Lord Jesus said, “Unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3). The problem is not merely that we have committed sins; it is that we are sinners by nature. We do not simply need moral improvement. We need a new heart. We need to be regenerated by the Holy Spirit.
This is why the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector is so important. The Pharisee stood before God trusting in his own righteousness and good works. The tax collector stood far off, would not even lift his eyes to heaven, and cried out, “God, be merciful to me, the sinner!” (Luke 18:13, LSB). Jesus said that it was the tax collector who went home justified.
That is the posture of every true Christian. We do not come to God pointing to our good deeds or comparing ourselves with others. We come as guilty sinners, acknowledging that we deserve judgment and crying out for mercy. The only hope for any of us is the mercy and grace of God.
The amazing news of the gospel is that God is also rich in mercy. The Lord Jesus Christ lived the sinless life we could never live and died on the cross bearing the wrath that sinners deserve. He rose from the dead and now offers forgiveness and eternal life to all who repent and believe in Him.
Yet the Bible teaches that no sinner can save himself, change his own heart, or come to Christ apart from the grace of God. The Lord Jesus said, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him” (John 6:44). When God saves a sinner, the Holy Spirit regenerates him, gives him a new heart, opens his eyes to his sin, grants repentance and faith, and makes him a new creation. Salvation is not something we achieve; it is something God graciously does for undeserving sinners.
So the real question is not, “Why does anyone get into heaven at all?” The answer is grace. No one is saved because they are good enough. No one is saved by their works. We are saved by God’s grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone.
Consider the criminal who was crucified beside the Lord Jesus. He could not undo his past sins. He could not perform good works, be baptized, join a local fellowship of believers, or spend years growing in holiness. He could only cast himself upon the mercy of Christ. Yet the Lord Jesus said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43, LSB). He was not welcomed into Paradise because his sins were small. He was welcomed because Christ is a great Savior.
At the same time, had that man come down from the cross and continued living, the new heart God had given him would have produced fruit. He would have desired to obey Christ, to be baptized, to gather with God’s people, to grow in holiness, and to follow the Lord. Those things would not have been the cause of his salvation but the evidence of it. We are saved by faith alone, but the faith that saves is never alone.
Likewise, the moral, charitable unbeliever is not condemned because he helped children, but because, like all of us apart from Christ, he stands guilty before a holy God and rejects the only Savior God has provided.
The gospel is not that good people go to heaven and bad people go to hell. The gospel is that guilty sinners can be forgiven and reconciled to God through the Lord Jesus Christ. Every person who truly repents and trusts in Christ does so because God has shown him mercy. Therefore, all glory for salvation belongs to God alone.
I would also love to see a conversation with Ray Comfort. His emphasis on God’s Law, human sinfulness, the new birth, repentance, and the grace of God in Christ would bring an important biblical perspective to this discussion.
That addition makes the gospel presentation more complete because it preserves both truths: we are justified by faith alone, and genuine saving faith inevitably produces obedience and fruit as evidence of regeneration.
@JohnTheAvocado
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
God bless John Lennox!
@vincentx845
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
None of this matters if you don't believe in Christianity. Debate over.
@flexone612
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
That's a really long answer to just say that the best person in the world would go to hell if they didn't believe. He said it himself, Christianity isn't about being a good moral person, and that's a misconception Lennox is keen to clear up in this interview
@jean-paulespinosa4994
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
There is a common misunderstanding about hell, namely that hell exists as a real place. I believe hell does not exist; there is no such place. It would mean permanently establishing animosity, a state of permanent hostility, which in itself goes against Jesus Christ’s universal principle of “love your enemy.” When Jesus Christ talked about Hades, for example in the illustration of the rich man and the beggar (Luke 16:19–31), what he highlighted is that someone who is rich can become poor and someone who is poor can become rich. This is so people do not assume that, once you are rich, you will always remain rich, or that, if you are poor, you will always remain poor. His goal was to show that any status can change, giving strength and hope to the beggar and humility to the rich. You could say that Jesus’ aim was to level the playing field, showing that both positions can be reversed.
Today we can observe this kind of reversal in several conflicts… and maybe you have also experienced this kind of reversal in your own life: moments when you suddenly find yourself the victim and, at other times, the one with power or advantage over others. One can say that these reversals often happen like a pendulum, meaning they are outside your control, and you may suddenly find yourself on the opposite side without ever having aimed for it. Jesus also said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34), showing compassion even for those who were harming him. When Jesus spoke these words, his primary audience was his Father, but they were also heard by the people around him, and they echo toward every future listener. Some believers would say that, on a deeper level, his words and his sacrifice also spoke into the spiritual realm—before God, in the presence of angels and demons, and even before the one many call the Devil. Through his sacrifice, he did not only seek to end hostility between human beings, but also to bring an end to the deeper conflict that exists in the spiritual realm, reconciling all things to God.
There is no point in bringing peace on earth if there is unresolved conflict and continuous hostility in the spiritual realm, since both dimensions affect each other, according to the Bible.
Jesus spent forty days in the desert being tempted by the devil, which is a very long time to be with someone who is supposed to be your enemy. In my view, when temptation lasts that long, the strongest pull usually comes at the beginning; as time passes and you know you are being tested, you grow more resistant and, by the end, you are often strengthened against it. That suggests the real temptation of the flesh would have been in the first hours or days. As humans, we normally only remain forty days in a place if, at some level, we can endure it and even feel a certain pull toward it. In a desert, nature is scarce and dry and very little can survive there, which further emphasizes the importance of building mutual relationships in order to survive such a harsh environment. And the main danger is not lack of bread or status, but dehydration: a human can usually survive only about three days without water, and in desert heat sometimes even less. So if Jesus was there for forty days, he must somehow have received what was needed to stay alive, which makes me wonder: who, in that harsh environment, provided what he needed?
So, to me, the length of time Jesus spent there, and the fact that the devil continued speaking with him, hints that something deeper was happening than a single, brief confrontation or temptation. A relationship of trust was being built: Jesus had the power to destroy the devil, and the devil the power to end Jesus’ earthly life, yet the devil only offered temptations, and Jesus simply said “no” and stayed there for forty days, and then they parted ways peacefully. Think about that. This experience then becomes, in my eyes, a foundation and direct expression of the principle Jesus later taught: “But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). This principle is multidimensional, meaning it resonates in both the human and the spiritual realms.
To really see how this principle works, imagine someone “sent to hell” who begins to live by the multidimensional principle “love your enemies.” As others follow that example, the place itself would gradually become peaceful, because hostility cannot survive where enemy‑love is practiced. Likewise, if you live by this principle here on earth, the “hell situation” never truly materializes in your life, because you are already acting in a way that dissolves hatred and revenge. For such a Christian, hell is not a meaningful destination: either they never go there, or, if someone arrives there and then starts practicing this principle, that place itself would be transformed. In that sense, by following Jesus’ example of having no enemies—in both the physical and the spiritual dimensions—there is no need to wait for him to come back and fix everything. He has already given us the tool to create peace wherever we are. Once we start applying this multidimensional principle, the ripple effect will grow until it transforms the whole dimension.
@Epoch380
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
There’s something therapeutic about about John Lennox’s voice. He speaks so much wisdom with perfect clarity and I would love to listen to him all day.
@afost5965
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
This is getting crazy, How do I even know this video is real maybe it's also a deep fake 🤦♀️ or how would anyone know my comment is from a real person? Maybe I'm a robot 🤖
@tory1560
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
If believing in God was so important, it would've been downloaded before birth?
Or…should all of us been brainwashed by the church?
Believe, don't believe, it's irrelevant. We come here for spiritual growth. Upon death, we return home.
@TerenceFisherSuperman
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
I always find it odd that when questions are posed like this to believers, the answer is always "none of us are god." As in, none of us can know. But then, in the same breath, profess to know everything else about god! Everything is, god is this, god does that, god is like this, but when it comes to this question of whether or not we go to hell, none of us can know!
@JamesSmith-qj9kd
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
Sin is mostly but not always a product of mental illness. A good example is Trump. He’s mentally ill.😮
@Soundheat-ix2el
June 8, 2026 at 3:52 am
❤❤❤Jesus Jesus Jesus ❤❤❤ ..Jesus is mighty to save….the Ark is now boarding🎉
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