The question, "What about those who have never heard?" is a
question based on the biblical understanding that faith in Jesus is the
only way to eternal life (John 14:6). In this respect, the question
originates out of the unfairness that would be allegedly committed if an
individual died without Christ--and therefore didn't experience eternal
life--simply because faith in Jesus was never clearly communicated or revealed to him. Romans 1 is arguably one of the clearest chapters on the revelation of God to man. In it Paul gives a handful of ways that God has revealed Himself. These are,
- The Gospel - The Power of Salvation Through Faith in Jesus (1:16-17)
- The Gospel - The Wrath of God Through Unbelief (1:18)
- Moral Law (1:19; 2:15)
- Creation (1:20)
Paul seems to convey two types of revelation here: General Revelation and Special Revelation. General Revelation is how God generally reveals Himself (moral law and creation), but this type of revelation doesn't necessarily provide salvation because although the existence of God can be "clearly seen," the concepts of sin, its consequences, and the need for belief in a Savior cannot. Seeing a beautiful tree, for example, and considering that there is a creator of that tree doesn't atone for sin. Special Revelation on the other hand is the clear revelation of God through His Son Jesus Christ and does offer the opportunity for salvation. Special Revelation in Romans is revealed in the Gospel through either the righteousness of God in salvation (which is a result of faith) or the wrath of God (which is a result of the lack of faith or "suppressing the truth").
Most scholars like to keep General Revelation and Special Revelation separate, but Paul seems to convey that there is a connection. Concerning God's revelation through creation, for example, Paul says that "men are without excuse" (1:20). The overall message that Paul is conveying here is that God has not left Himself without a witness. In light of this, we can safely conclude from Romans 1 that God is very concerned about His witness to all of mankind because He has left it everywhere. This is an important truth to remember when answering our question.
Before moving on, it is important to outline some of the other important truths that the Bible teaches concerning salvation and eternal life:
- All are sinners from birth (Romans 3:23, 5:12)
- Sin separates us from God (Romans 6:23)
- Christ died to pay the price of sin (John 4:42; 1 John 2:2)
- Belief in Jesus covers sin (John 5:24, 6:47; Acts 16:30-31)
- Jesus is the only way by which man can be saved (John 14:6; Acts 4:12)
- Being "good" does not bring eternal life (Romans 3:10,12)
- Rejecting Jesus brings eternal death (John 3:36; Revelation 20:15)
- God is just (Romans 2:11)
- Man can ignore God's revelation (Romans 1:18)
These biblical truths clearly outline the fact that when a person dies without Christ, then that person experiences eternal death. This is an unarguable point. When we pair this truth, however, with Paul's message of God's revelation in Romans 1 (and some other helpful Bible verses) then we can come to a handful of truths that help answer our question:
- God Desires that All Men Be Saved (1 Timothy 2:4; 2 Peter 3:9)
- God Seeks Those who Seek Him (Luke 19:10; James 4:8)
- God Can Send Messengers to Reveal His Son (Acts 16:6-10; Romans 10:14,15)
- God Can Perform a Miracle or Reveal Himself in Special Way to Reveal His Son (Acts 9)
Concerning (4), Paul--the individual who wrote Romans--was once lost himself. He wanted nothing to do with Christ, but God sought after him and Jesus--although resurrected and ascended--came down and revealed Himself to him. Paul was, in result, saved. This is a beautiful picture of God's grace in that He has the power to reveal Himself to any person, at any time, in order that they may have an opportunity to accept Jesus Christ for salvation.
Moreover, in Jesus' final words, He told His disciples to make disciples by "going, baptizing, and teaching" (Matt. 28:18-20), to "proclaim His name unto all the nations (Luke 24:47), and to go, "even to the remotest part of the earth" (Acts 1:8). This argues for a God who is loving and who does not leave a single individual without a witness to His Son Jesus Christ.
So, to answer the question "What about those who have never heard?" the answer is that we can trust in the Lord and in His Word that He does not leave Himself without a witness to all of mankind. He has generally revealed Himself to all, and His General Revelation (for those in remote places) gives way for Special Revelation--be it from God or from His messengers. God never misses anyone! (John 18:9).
Jared, lots of good food for thought here. There’s too much here for me to respond to each point. Let me select a few, and if you’d like me to respond to anything else, please let me know.
ReplyDeleteJared wrote, “The question, "What about those who have never heard?" is a question based on the biblical understanding that faith in Jesus is the only way to eternal life (John 14:6). In this respect, the question originates out of the unfairness that would be allegedly committed if an individual died without Christ--and therefore didn't experience eternal life--simply because faith in Jesus was never clearly communicated or revealed to him.”
John here: God sends some sinners to hell because of their sin, not because of their response (or lack of) to the Gospel. Where is the unfairness? God would have been ‘fair’ not to save anyone, since all are sinners. This is what He chose to do with the fallen angels. They have no plan of salvation, and yet no one says to God, “You’re not being fair – you should offer salvation to those fallen angels.”
Jared wrote: Paul says that "men are without excuse" (1:20). The overall message that Paul is conveying here is that God has not left Himself without a witness. In light of this, we can safely conclude from Romans 1 that God is very concerned about His witness to all of mankind because He has left it everywhere. This is an important truth to remember when answering our question.
John here: Yes, men are without excuse. We all know about our Creator, but some suppress that truth. From observing God’s creation, we can know about “God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature” (Romans 1:20). But there’s nothing in Romans 1 about God saving His people from their sin. So I think Paul in Romans 1 is telling us that we are without excuse with regard to general revelation, not special revelation.
Jared wrote: Man can ignore God's revelation (Romans 1:18).
John here: Yes, man can and does ignore God’s revelation. A man will continue to ignore His revelation until God regenerates a man’s heart so that the man can see God’s truth and respond to the Gospel. 1 Cor 1:18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 1 Cor 2:14 The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.
Jared wrote: "even to the remotest part of the earth" (Acts 1:8). This argues for a God who is loving and who does not leave a single individual without a witness to His Son Jesus Christ.
John here: Jared, that’s a leap. Yes, the disciples (and by extension, Christians today) are commanded to witness to Him to the remotest part of the Earth. But it will take us a while to get there. Two thousand years later, we still have not reached every people group. What about those who lived and died before we could reach them?
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ReplyDelete(Still John.) You could answer, “God reaches them supernaturally, if men cannot.” I would agree that God does do this at times. Paul’s conversion is an example, as you have noted. Also, I have heard stories about Muslims who had no exposure to the Gospel report dreams of God calling out to them to receive Christ as Savior. These stories ring true, and I have no reason to doubt them. But do we then assume that God does this for every person ever born who has not heard the Gospel through conventional means? If so, then why does God tell us in Romans 11, “How can they hear without a preacher?”
Jared wrote: So, to answer the question "What about those who have never heard?" the answer is that we can trust in the Lord and in His Word that He does not leave Himself without a witness to all of mankind. He has generally revealed Himself to all, and His General Revelation (for those in remote places) gives way for Special Revelation--be it from God or from His messengers. God never misses anyone! (John 18:9).
John here: John 18:9 says, “This happened so that the words he had spoken would be fulfilled: “I have not lost one of those you gave me.” Jared, I don’t see how this verse means that God will provide a witness to the Gospel to every person ever born. If anything, it means that Christ will not lose any who have been given him by the Father for salvation.
John again: Jesus says as much in John 6:38-39: For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. 39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day.
Still John: God’s people will definitely be saved. That is why Jesus came to earth: Matt 1:21 “She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” And that is exactly what Christ did: He saved His people from their sins.
John here: We must understand that not everyone can claim to be one of God’s people. Just being created does not make a person a child of God. All of us are children of Adam, but some of us, by His grace, are children of God. Jesus makes this point when addressing the Pharisees in John 10:26: “ . . . but you do not believe because you are not my sheep.” Not “you are not my sheep because you do not believe.”
I suppose my overarching point in these posts is that God will use whatever means are necessary to convert His people, whom Christ refers to as ‘the elect.’ You and I don’t know who the elect are, of course, so we are commanded to share the Gospel at every opportunity, and believe that the Holy Spirit will use God’s Word to convert His people.
A few more thoughts:
ReplyDelete1) Egg on face: It's not Romans 11, it's Romans 10 that says "How can they hear without a preacher?" Sorry for my senior moment.
2) I am no longer getting e-mail alerts when new posts appear. I wonder if I did something wrong or if the site is just goofy. I will try to click again where it says "Subscribe by e-mail."
3) I have been thinking more about what my main point is. I had said earlier that my main point is that God will use whatever means are necessary to convert His people, whom Christ refers to as ‘the elect.’ And I do want to communicate that, but perhaps more than that is this:
If we are not convinced by Scripture that God gives a witness to the Gospel to every person ever born, that is no indictment of God's character. It is no indictment because God is not obligated in the first place to provide a way of salvation, nor is He obligated to tell every person equally about Christ's atonement. So I don't think Christians are obliged to defend the idea that every person has an equal opportunity for salvation.
Thanks for the responses John. I am trying to decide what I want to interact with.
ReplyDeleteI want you to know that I agree with your argument that "If we are not convinced by Scripture that God gives a witness to the Gospel to every person ever born, that it is no indictment of His character." God is God, and we are man. We cannot judge God or hold Him to our standards. God can do whatever He wants (for example, in the book of Habakkuk God raises up the Chaldeans to destroy Judah), but I do believe that He chooses to commit Himself to certain things for His own glory.
God has made promises to men that He will always keep. So, it would be an indictment to His character to ignore these promises. God's promise concerning salvation is not that "all men will be saved," but that "all men who have faith in and follow Jesus will be saved." Second, I believe that Scripture portrays God as longsuffering. The thousands of years that we are experiencing right now (sometimes called the age of mystery or the age of the church), for example, are really years of grace in order that many may come to know Him.
My argument is that God, in His grace, desires to see men come to know Him through His Son, and that He can make that happen through whatever means necessary. Sometimes the method includes an evangelist and other times it includes Jesus appearing on the road to Damascus. I think that God, in this grace, will reveal enough of Himself to every individual in order that they will be held accountable for whether or not they choose to repent and turn to Jesus.
As I said in one of the posts, God's revelation to men differs. For some it is heavy and for others it is light.