Not to mention the good fortune of where I was born: the United States, Land of the Free. We all have freedom of religion here, but even though we can practice whatever dang religion we want to practice, our country was founded on Christianity. Even our money says "In God We Trust."
It's safe to say the majority of Americans, about 70%, identify themselves as Christians, and even those who aren't Christians have still at least heard of Jesus. If you aren't a Christian in this country, it is most likely because you have heard about it and chosen not to follow that religion.
'Merica.
I don't know if you guys have heard of the Romans Road to Salvation, but it basically goes like this:
- Everyone falls short of God's standard (Romans 5:8).
- Penalty for sin is eternal death (Romans 6:23).
- God sent Jesus to take on our penalty (Romans 5:8).
- "If you confess 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved" (Romans 10:9).
I hate to be this blunt, but according to my interpretation of what this says, if you don't do that last step, you will not be saved.
As I said, in the United States, if you don't follow Jesus, it's your choice. People here who have been given the opportunity and consciously rejected it are not saved, and I can live with that because they have chosen that for themselves.
In other countries of the world, there is no freedom of religion. In other countries of the world, there are people who have no idea who Jesus is. In other countries of the world, people are raised in other faiths and are taught about other things that happen to them when they die. In other countries, people can't consciously reject the Christian faith because they don't know about it.
What about them?
It doesn't seem fair to me that a person who has never had the opportunity, who has never had the chance to learn about Jesus, or who has been raised in another faith is going to spend all eternity burning and suffering in hell.
I'm not gonna lie, the idea of this makes me very angry. I mean, wouldn't the innocent still go to heaven? That would make sense, but the Bible says that you have to believe in Jesus in your heart and say you believe in him or you're not going to heaven.
I'm not gonna lie, the idea of this makes me very angry. I mean, wouldn't the innocent still go to heaven? That would make sense, but the Bible says that you have to believe in Jesus in your heart and say you believe in him or you're not going to heaven.
I couldn't seem to come to terms or understand this, so, since he is clergy, I asked my dad.
He said,
"Good question. The important thing to realize is that God alone is to judge. So it's not up to me to say who goes to heaven and who doesn't. I can only say from what I think I should do. If freedom of religion is ever taken away from me, I would still be encouraged by scripture to speak up for Christ. Also, no one deserves to go to heaven. All of us have sinned and fallen short of God's glory. Scriptures say that Jesus died for the sins of the world. Those who don't know Jesus, I am sure will be treated lovingly and mercifully, but it really is up to God. CS Lewis said something like hell is reserved for only the people that want to be there. He said 'Hell is locked from the inside.'"
So what my dad is saying is that he feels that God would be merciful on the people who didn't have a chance, but really we can never know because ultimately, God is the final judge.
There are religions similar to Christianity, such as Islam. The Islamic faith also includes beliefs in God, heaven, hell, angels, spirits, a resurrection in the future, and even Jesus (although they think he was a great moral teacher). I often wonder if they will make it into heaven. It seems to me that they would, because they believe that they are. However, again, the Bible says you have to confess that Jesus is Lord and not just a great moral teacher. I really don't know what will happen to them.
Things like this are difficult to understand because God doesn't give us a straight answer. The reality is that God can do whatever He wants because He is ultimately the judge, and He doesn't have to justify Himself to us because His reasoning is beyond our own understanding.
He said,
"Good question. The important thing to realize is that God alone is to judge. So it's not up to me to say who goes to heaven and who doesn't. I can only say from what I think I should do. If freedom of religion is ever taken away from me, I would still be encouraged by scripture to speak up for Christ. Also, no one deserves to go to heaven. All of us have sinned and fallen short of God's glory. Scriptures say that Jesus died for the sins of the world. Those who don't know Jesus, I am sure will be treated lovingly and mercifully, but it really is up to God. CS Lewis said something like hell is reserved for only the people that want to be there. He said 'Hell is locked from the inside.'"
So what my dad is saying is that he feels that God would be merciful on the people who didn't have a chance, but really we can never know because ultimately, God is the final judge.
There are religions similar to Christianity, such as Islam. The Islamic faith also includes beliefs in God, heaven, hell, angels, spirits, a resurrection in the future, and even Jesus (although they think he was a great moral teacher). I often wonder if they will make it into heaven. It seems to me that they would, because they believe that they are. However, again, the Bible says you have to confess that Jesus is Lord and not just a great moral teacher. I really don't know what will happen to them.
Things like this are difficult to understand because God doesn't give us a straight answer. The reality is that God can do whatever He wants because He is ultimately the judge, and He doesn't have to justify Himself to us because His reasoning is beyond our own understanding.
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