Will God Condemn People Who Have Never Even Heard About Jesus?

If you are not filled with the Holy Ghost when you die you will go to hell. Everyone has had a chance of knowing stuff about Jesus, but they just shrug it off. There is only 1 God.

I know somewhere in the that those not heard about Jesus, God will by what he has revealed to them in their hearts. I cannot find this first, but I know I read it. I’ve been a Christian for over 50 years born Again, and filled with the Holy spirit. And I understand it’s by have been by man post Jesus did it all, but it’s just a fact that God says, even though he sent his disciples to preach the every nation, continue until his return the, There will still be some, and it says in the Bible, that have never heard, now I know that Abraham was saved by faith, and his works, proved that he had faith when he went to slay his son, Isaac, but where is that? Verse word says that God will judge him by what he revealed to them in their hearts? Thank you.

No, God doesn't send people to hell just like that... that would make our God the Father a despot. There are plenty of souls out there, good souls who either never heard or were taught about Jesus and others who were raised into pagan sects with no fault of their own... would it be fair to send these nice souls to hell??? That would be unthinkable!!! Only protestants believe that there are heaven and hell, and that's it. No one enters heaven without being baptized, baptism being just the first requirement to go to heaven - there are others. Limbo exists and makes all the sense in the world, the place where those good souls go... it's not a bad place, but it's not the splendor of heaven. So yeah, God doesn't send unchristian good souls to hell just like that! God is 100% love and 100% just as well!!!

What a load of bullshit. I feel embarrassed for humanity that people still believe in this nonsense.

They won't have eternal life, but they won't burn forever either. Unless god grants immortality, humans like every other animal truly dies.. when it dies. But no. Those who have a heart that would follow the teachings of Jesus in spite of never having heard them, are very likely saved according to the book of Romans. The bible only truly points to those who actively worship the devil and his angels during the tribulation and armageddon are those who will burn forever with them (and conversely, 144,000 people will be safe from judgment during the tribulation which also hints to the numbers of those destined to hell as being far less than believed). None can truly know though. All is conjecture.

What it all boils down to is the unending desperate attempt to untangle the twisted theological mess we have made of the bible. We try to make it work mathematically and the fact is the math just does not work. Every conclusion we have drawn about the necessity of eternal hell and Gods wrath and his supposed obligation to obliterate sinners based on Gods submission to the concept of justice is utterly medieval drivel which cannot stand up to informed knowledge about the sheer vastness of the unreached human populace prior to the birth of Christianity. God cannot be love and burn 50-80 billion people in hell forever. It’s absurd and hideous and defending the notion just to stay in good with your institutions and traditions is a sick charade. God is love and he revealed himself in the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus spoke in parables and metaphors and hyperboles in order to give moral and ethical weight to the values God wanted us to pursue. Outside of those who have been fortunate to hear the gospel there is still hope because When the disciples asked “who then can be saved?” Jesus beautifully answered, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” How can Jesus be the Savior of the world and fail in saving the world? How can he be victorious over Satan, hell and the grave while Satan spends eternity gloating in the fact that he has more souls in hell than God has in heaven? Or is there yet another mystery in which Gods word is fulfilled in the saying, “I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy.”? You see we think our theology binds God to have mercy only upon those who meet our theological criteria but God is not bound by your theology nor is he bound to that book compiled by men 300 years after Christ. The Word of God is not a book. The Word of God is a person and his name is Jesus, God in the flesh. And God is bigger than the bible. So when you have a question like the one posed here and the answers all seem contrived and small, thats when you know theres more to God than what we have been told. And thats Ok. Paul told us that God’s love surpasses knowledge and the height and depth and length and breadth are beyond measuring. Yet even still men try to put limits on what God can do. Jesus is the Savior of the world and he will have all that he paid for. And God shall be all in all. For every knee will bow in heaven and on earth...and under the earth. And every tongue confess Jesus is Lord. Dont worry friends. Jesus will save those ancient pagans and your atheist children whether on this side of the grave or on the other. I will end with a puzzle for you solve within yourself. If upon reaching heaven you find that God actually decided to save everyone...would that make you want to praise Him more...or less?

Acts 2:38

Jesus' blood is the way to heaven, what he did for us on the cross, dying and raising himself again is the way to heaven. NOT through the works of baptism.

God should burn in hell with Satan where they both belong.

Just to note: Hell is intended for Satan his Angels and the (lost) followers, of sin, that's why we need a savior. where there is evil there is good where there is heaven there is hell. God bless you with wisdom and discernment

Almighty GOD would not destroy anyone who has not heard his word. He will allow them to learn his word and if they do not except it, then they will be destroyed. Lets read PSALMS 37:9=11 and verse 29. If you really want to know what the Bible says, read the Gospel of John, 3:13. Have a preacher explain it for you, if not please contact me at [email protected]. And let me show you what YOUR Bible really says in GOD"s word.

So if you go to a remote tribe, and tell them about Jesus, you put them in great danger?

Paul answered this question in Romans 214-16 - those who do the things that are right in God's sight, but have never heard the Gospel will be judged by their own conscience in the day of judgment. If my Father were to judge them based on whether or not they'd accepted Jesus as their Lord, when they've never heard of him, he would be unjust. The most wonderful thing about my Father is... He's NEVER unjust.

This is actually unbiblical. Think about this: If teaching the Gospel to people, means they are going to face a harsher judgement (because now they have more knowledge than before and thus their sins carry more weight), then spreading the Gospel is an unloving thing, full of hatred. In that case if you actually loved people, you would bury the Gospel and burn it and let no one ever hear of it again until Jesus's Second Coming, thus people would have a much easier time fulfilling their obligations towards God and be saved. Every person you educate about Jesus, is a person that carries a heavier burden because now he knows... How can you love him if you do that to him? Let him just follow his conscience in blissful ignorance... The truth is this: 1) Every single person dies, and stays dead. That is what God proclaimed in Genesis, we return to the clay we came from. 2) Our souls are not eternal. That is actually a pagan doctrine that infiltrated the Church during late medieval times. In Genesis, God didn't say our bodies die but our souls remain. He said we came from dirt and we return to dirt. Every single person who dies, including us Christians, dies permanently. Non-existence, no thoughts, nothing. Just blackness, the void. We are inseparable from our bodies, when our bodies go, our minds go too. 3) Jesus Christ according to Revelation, earned the right to write names on the Book of Life. Only He can do that. And only the people whose names are on the Book of Life, are going to be resurrected. Only people who believe in Him as their personal Saviour get in that Book. 4) When Jesus returns, He is going to resurrect the Saints. The Saints are all those who believed in the Gospel and got reborn in the Holy Spirit. He will then send His angels to grab the remaining Saints still living on Earth. 5) Then the current world will get destroyed, alongside everyone who still remained here. The world is going to burn. Destroyed with fire. Anyone on it will die permanently. 6) That means anyone who hasn't heard of God will die too. If God wanted him/her to come, He would have made sure He/She had been taught the Gospel. God had chosen His people before the world was ever created, says the Bible. Anyone not believing in Jesus, is not on the list. He will go just like animals and insects and bacteria will go. This is not "hate" on God's part. His Kingdom is His and He can call whoever He wants in it. Be glad you got the invitation yourself.

Hello all on here, I would like to start off with this passage from Romans like I'm sure everyone on here read. ☺ “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities — His eternal power and divine nature — have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse” (Romans 1:20) To my understanding of this passage and really everything I read on up above, I feel it is talking about we are all born with sin. As we grow and mature we start to understand right and wrong correct? Has anyone witnessed a loved one or a friend get sick with cancer, or covid, the flu, or just the common cold and recover? My understanding on that is wow there has to be something out there that has healed him or her. Yes, I'm using the pronouns. It's not just that. I have witnessed numerous miracles in my lifetime and I'm almost 33. Can I ask why do we have a conscience? I'm not being funny either, I'm just asking if anyone can tell me on here that hasn't accepted Jesus into their heart yet? My understanding on why we have one is because it's in our genetic makeup. God doesn't make mistakes on anyone he creates. By that being said, we should know that we shouldn't talk back to our parents, push Johnny on the ground, take a life just because, even talk behind someones back. Because we know we shouldn't do wrong by growing up listening to whoever raised us whether by grandma, parents, aunt, or foster parent, I feel we have to come to an understanding that just maybe there has to be something out there to explain this no? I would want to research what could have caused these miracles. Why you ask? Well, I feel it is our job if we don't have anyone to teach us. We need to find Him!!! I feel Jesus puts things in our lives as clues(miracles or whatever you choose to call it) for both believers and non believers. Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father but through me” (John 14:6). This vs. stayed with me since i was a kid whom went to Bible school. I was a church going Sunday school kind of kid. There were days my dad said I had to go when I didn't want to. I thank him for that even though I resented (sin) him for that. When I got to be in my teenage years I cursed God out his name. I know what you're thinking. Oh my, how could I do that? I was going though a tough time in my life then. It wasn't until 2014, about 7 years ago, when I repented from everything. I asked Him for forgiveness, and asked Him back into my life again. Let me tell you He (Jesus) heard me I know and believe that He did. In 2017 after 3 years of praising Him and serving faithfully in my church(non denomination) I felt that I was ready to take the next step in my walk with the Lord. I was going to get Baptized!!! A week after Easter Sunday was when I got baptized. Jesus Christ has risen indeed!! That for me was the most beautiful day in my life. I felt Jesus removing my burdens that was in my life at that time. You see, I feel believing in Jesus isn't a religion. A lot of Christians believe that it is. I have been to lots of churches and I heard a lot of false prophets as the Word speaks on that. When I came across the non denomination church I listened in the back like I usually did when I would check out churches. After hearing the Pastor speak I knew I found my church. He said Jesus is the only way to Heaven. Not being a good Christian, Catholic, Buddhist, etc. No religion will get you into Heaven alone. I feel when we accept Jesus into our hearts, repent, and spread His Word then we can go to Heaven. Am I wrong? I am sincerely asking and not being funny to everyone who reads this. Please, comment anything. God bless everyone 😊

Very well covered!!

Only the Jews were saved in the OT. The NT tells us after the word is known to the ends of the earth then will he return. Remember the millions in Africa saved when hearing the word/name of Jesus? All will have the chance to know him. God's plans for the 1,000k of peace might be part of it. That's also a time of judgement. Rev.20:4

Well..

“For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities — his eternal power and divine nature — have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse” (Romans 1:20).

Yep. The forgiving, loving spirit of Christ sure does live within you.. except from your rant here it clearly doesn't. Love thy neighbor (not just the people who go to church with you) and forgive your enemies ring a bell? Also, send all deportees to Washington DC and I guarantee you regardless of their nationality, at least 90% will have jobs by the end of the week. Please keep your blatant racism to yourself in the future.

The bible tells us that unbelievers are spiritually dead deaf and blind. Paul tells us in Romans 3:11 that no one can seek God neither the Jews or Greek. Paul tells us in Ephesians 1 that God chose those who would come to believe. Those who do come to believe where chosen by God, before the foundation of the world began, to be saved according to God's good pleasure and perfect will, not the will of man. A person who is spiritually dead, he is also spiritually blind, deaf, dull. He/she unable to see, nor hear, nor do they have the God granted regenerate ability understand spiritual things . Furthermore because he is Spiritually dead he cannot also know or feel hunger and thirst and neither able to respond or have interest to any spiritual things of God. A spiritually dead person is actually the same as a dead person physically. He is lifeless (in spirit ) and senseless (in his wanderings). In society, at this particular time, if you want to understand something, you need to read, you need to study, you need to listen, you need to be open to instruction and teaching. We should never put ourselves in the position where we say, "You know what? I know enough. I know enough about God, I know enough about the church". Or, "let the pastor take care of it, that is his job." Sometimes that mentality is our attitude. And it is not a healthy one. What this means is, we have to change our priorities, in order to obtain what we want to know. So what can cause spiritual blindness or deafness? Well for one thing, merely being born into this world as a human means were are born into sin as a result of our having inherited the sin of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden according to the scriptures. Biblically speaking, another is spiritual ignorance in relation to spiritual blindness. Another is cynicism & I believe it is a cancer, a poison. It seems to be a cancer and a poison because it will extinguish whatever light is in our heart & whatever trust that we have in God. Cynicism simply poisons/stifles whatever goodness is truly occurring. Humans as unbelievers are blind to it. So we see everything with this cynical view and we say, “Oh, yeah, well he did this, but he also did that. He might have done a little bit of good, but look at all that bad he did.” And we tend to not only look at the church in that manner, but we look at everything in that manner. We become sort of negative, and we become poisoned with that. So that cynicism—we have to be able to recognize these things in ourselves. If we have that cynicism in our heart, we will never be open to the truth, we will never be open to that love and that light that God wants to give us. \He has to pour his Holy Spirit into a clean vessel, into an open vessel. Another cause of our spiritual blindness is this hardness of heart. Maybe cynicism and hardness of heart are related. Maybe one causes the other. But this hardness of heart—again, if we are unwilling, as God says, to replace our heart of stone with a heart of flesh, God will never be able to manifest His work in our lives. Never! Because what is it that God wants to change in us? When we have this hardness of heart, when we hold onto whatever grudge it is, and we are unwilling to let that go, and unwilling to soften our attitude and soften our life, our spiritual blindness will remain. These are very important truths that this very long gospel reading presents to us. If we take the time to look at it in this way, it becomes then, not just another story about healing, but it becomes the very principles of truth for what God wants to do in our life. God wants us to see the world, and the person sitting next to me, with new, bright, spiritual sight. But because of our ignorance, and our cynicism, and our hardness of heart, our spiritual sight is myopic. We are not able to see things the way God wants us to see them, and we might even say, the way they really are. It does not mean that we have to be naïve, it means that we have to be open to the truth. Scriptures: (Isa 59:10) We grope for the wall like the blind, and we grope as if we had no eyes: we stumble at noonday as in the night; we are in desolate places as dead men. (Mt 6:23) But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness! (Mt 15:14) Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch. (2Co 3:14 ) But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ. 2Co 4:4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. Eph 4:18 Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: 2Pe 1:9 But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins. 1Jo 2:11 But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes. Although man can see in his own physical eyes but because he is spiritually dead his spiritual eyes was also affected and thereby he cannot see as if he is a blind physically. Therefore a spiritual blind person is not able to see the spiritual things of God nor able to see the glory of the gospel of Christ. He is also unable to see the truth for he was covered with great darkness and therefore he did not know what he is doing and where he is going. That is the very purpose of God’s word, The Bible, to tell us what is the truth because His words are true. But the god of this world blinded the eyes of the unbelievers so that they cannot see nor believe the truth that the Bible is proclaiming unless they are given sight to see how true and how beautiful the Word of God is. 2. Spiritual Deafness Not only a spiritual dead person is blind, but he is also a deaf. He is not only unable to see the truth concerning God and His word but also a deaf as the Bible says, “Hearing they cannot hear.” Scriptures: (Isa 6:10) Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed. (Jer 6:10) To whom shall I speak, and give warning, that they may hear? behold, their ear is uncircumcised, and they cannot hearken: behold, the word of the LORD is unto them a reproach; they have no delight in it. (Eze 12:2) Son of man, thou dwellest in the midst of a rebellious house, which have eyes to see, and see not; they have ears to hear, and hear not: for they are a rebellious house. (Zec 7:11) But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they should not hear. (Matthew 13:15) For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. (Acts 28:26) Saying, Go unto this people, and say, Hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and not perceive: (2 Timothy 4:4) And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. The Apostle Paul is right when he told Timothy that time will come when people will no longer take heed to sound doctrine because the word of God for them is an offensive, a reproach, a disgusting because they will be convicted of their evil deeds, but instead of being delighted of God’s holy word that speaks of the truth they will hate it, they have no delight in it. They heard always the word of God proclaimed by the preachers and pastors but still they don’t understand. Therefore they will turn away their ears from the truth and shall be turned to worthless, nonsense stories of fables and fantasies and jokes that would tickle their ears.This is the reason why we should preach the word of truth no matter what happen even if it will cause or make strife and divisions and conflicts to hearers we really don’t care, “we speak because we believe thus says the Lord.” 3. Spiritual Dullness People are not only blind and deaf but also dull. This means they cannot able to understand what they heard. They listen but never understand. Always learning but never learned. They never respond nor have interest what they heard. Scriptures: (Isa 44:19 ) And none considereth in his heart, neither is there knowledge nor understanding to say, I have burned part of it in the fire; yea, also I have baked bread upon the coals thereof; I have roasted flesh, and eaten it: and shall I make the residue thereof an abomination? shall I fall down to the stock of a tree? (Ps 82:5) They know not, neither will they understand; they walk on in darkness: all the foundations of the earth are out of course. (Mic 4:12) But they know not the thoughts of the LORD, neither understand they his counsel: for he shall gather them as the sheaves into the floor. (Mt 13:13) Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. (Ac 28:27) For the heart of this people is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes have they closed; lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. (Ro 1:31 ) Without understanding, covenant breakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: (2Ti 3:7 ) Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. (Jer 4:22) For my people is foolish, they have not known me; they are sottish children, and they have no understanding: they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge or ability im the eyes of God. We know people who are very wise in Scriptures and even almost memorize the whole Scripture, but still no understanding about the truth and their lives are not transformed. Look at the people who worshiped idols do they come to understanding what they are doing? No they don't. So you see if God uses you to show but one person how very blind they are, then you will have been used by God to spiritually give both vision and hearing to more people than received it in the entire physical ministry of Christ. The "greater things" are always the things of the spirit. (John 14:12) Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. You have been given the eyes to see and ears to hear which none of the multitudes of Babylon have been given. Stay Blessed

The simplest, and indeed the only logical way to deal with this question is this: Regardless of the process/mechanism God uses to deal with a person who has not heard of Jesus/Christ, if that process/mechanism is equitable and fair, then all people can be assessed by that process/mechanism and the outcome will be identical. If the outcome is not identical, the process/mechanism is not equitable or fair. Thus Jesus/Christ is irrelevant/redundant.

What if a person never truly discovered what he/she should do in life? Does that mean they aren't worthy of God’s salvation since it’s necessary?

This is absolutely false. The letters address this very question, and come to the complete opposite conclusion. This is heresy.

If the the plan to save sinners included using the benefits of Jesus death for some, while holding others accountable for knowing who he is was the point all along, why need there be a "Go Ye into all the world..."? The purpose of the gospel is for humanity to work with heaven in telling all about the truth as it is in Jesus...Not in assuming the there is another plan where by people can just acknowledge God somehow and if they do so in the right way, they get lumped in with the rest who've walked the "straight and narrow path". That, I believe, cheapens the point of Jesus' sacrifice and suggests it possible for anyone to live by some unknown principle capable of saving their soul and "oh we'll introduce you to Jesus when you get to Heaven"...I don't think so. Thats not what the bible teaches. The unfortunate reality is that people will die in their sins if not given a chance to repent through the Gospel truth...read Ezek 3:17-18. We must labor to save the lost, not expect God to step in and create a backdoor. There is no other name among men where by we must be saved except Jesus.

Jamie, I can appreciate what you are saying with that last comment partly because I knew someone that thought God told her to cheat on her husband. Obviously, that wasn't God that she was hearing. I don't believe that the Bible necessarily states anything other than what I say I believe though, but once again the scriptures are up for interpretation. If they weren't then all Christians would agree on everything and there would not be different branches of Christianity. In fact, I just read that there are 40,000 different Christian beliefs worldwide. It seems to me that Everyone thinks that their the one with the true understanding, but 40,000 different beliefs can't all be right. When someone starts quoting scripture and acts as if they have it all right, my gut instinct is to disregard what they are saying. I believe that the people that think they know less usually know more, and the people that think they know it all usually know less. I believe that's Gods way of humbling the proud and confounding the wise. I don't drop what I am doing to prove anything to anyone at any given moment. However, If God shows me something in the Bible when I am reading it contrary to a formal belief, I am ok with changing that belief. Usually, my belief system is never altered by scripture quoting know it alls though, so I try not to be one of them. :-)

That danced around the question and included extraneous information to avoid giving a real answer.

Robert— Interesting comments you make. I was trying to determine what your own spiritual beliefs might be from what you wrote. While much of what you wrote is true within the context which you wrote, it is only true if Yeshua is not God himself. So that is the significant starting point. As with salvation itself, what one believes about Yeshua means everything. I believe that a careful reading of Isaiah 53 makes it crystal clear that Jesus Christ is the Messiah, and that Jesus himself makes it quite clear that he is the Messiah by perfectly fulfilling Old Testament prOphecies as well as undeniably stating that he is God (see John 8:58 for example). Therefore, since Jesus is God, all of scripture was written (inspired) by him and not taken from extra-biblical sources, and all scripture is consistent and non-contradictory. It also means that something may be only partially revealed in the OT and more thoroughly revealed in the NT, or that one of the prOphets or NT authors might write something under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit of God that's every bit as authentic as though Jesus personally spoke the words from his mouth. Apart from these things, the Old Testament does refer to an eternal place of torment. The OT pr0phets repeatedly spoke of a time when the Holy One would have His "day" — a day of justice in which He would express His anger toward sin and visit judgment on sinners. They referred to this as "The Day of the Lord." (Isaiah 2:12; 13:6, 9; Ezekiel 13:5, 30:3; Joel 1:15, 2:1,11,31; 3:14; Amos 5:18,20; Obadiah 15; Zephaniah 1:7,14; Zechariah 14:1; Malachi. 4:5). The Psalmist also referred to this day as one of wrath and judgment: The Lord is at your right hand; he will shatter kings on the day of his wrath, (Psalm 110:5 ESV) Daniel describes the duration of this "day" of wrath as eternal: And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. (Daniel 12:2 ESV) So Robert, I'd be interested in learning more about your own spiritual beliefs. Might you be of Jewish heritage?

The Scripture is silent on things, like the afterlife the Old Testament was silent on it, it didn't describe it as Yeshua does in the four Gospels. So really The Lord Yeshua didn't go by the scriptures when he mentioned Abraham's Bosom he was describing things from extra-biblical sources at the time. So basically he didn't get it from the Tanakh or Hebrew Bible. So basically he was describing it from revelation from God or another traditional belief in Judaism at the time. So he was not going by the scriptures alone as his only source to describe reality or a story to teach a spiritual truth. The Old Testament doesn't even mention a fiery Gehenna, but Isaiah 66 does mention something similar, but does not describe it as the afterlife. All references to Sheol are not really clearly indicating a sulfurous lake, and sometimes that just means grave or place of the dead or nether-world. So I am saying the Lord describes allot of things not actually mentioned in the OT. So it seems he didn't go by scriptures alone on these revelations that he was revealing. So the scriptures don't really describe everything, and showing even the Lord didn't go by the scriptures alone. So also the scriptures is silent on where infants go where they die, then Augustine believed infant baptism and believed unbaptized infants went to Gehenna or hell. This is all extra-biblical teaching though, and not mentioned or found or described in the scriptures. So the scriptures or Bible is silent concerning where do infants go in the afterlife if they die. It was protestant desire to break away from Catholicism and to go by the scriptures alone (sola Scriptura) as a authority, and not saying Catholics are right but the Scriptures are silent on issues. The four Gospels are silent when it comes to the more abominable sins and even idol worship is not mentioned, but you know that Yeshua went by the Torah and perhaps Jewish society stayed clear of these things. I mean that The Lord Yeshua probably never hanged out in a idol temple with pantheist Gentiles, he probably didn't associate with pantheist Gentiles and only with Jews who tried to observe the Torah by not worshiping idols. So this is actually silent and not found in the gospels. So what I wrote is only assumption, because Yeshua never addresses the issue, when talking to the rich young ruler he doesn't even mention the command against Idolatry, but Yeshua says the Shema Yisrael (Deuteronomy 6:4-5)in Mark. So it is assume they didn't have the same problem as the pantheist Romans. So anyways there are things the scriptures are silent on. So it is really probably an extra-biblical issue, and some cases the Bible may address somethings while not others regarding it.

Hi Alley, we know something is from God because it lines up with what He has revealed through the Bible. That is why it is so vital for followers of Jesus to be immersed in His Word, so that we are familiar with what He has said and can recognize His voice when He speaks. While there are some differences over interpretation of scripture, that doesn't mean that we just give up using it to guide our lives. A lot of the differences of interpretation are based on people's willingness to accept what the Bible clearly states. It can be tempting to read into scripture what I want it to say and miss what God is actually saying.That is why I feel it is so important to find evidence in the Bible of the things I believe about God and ask for His help to understand it. Otherwise I might get led astray by my own selfish desires and miss what God really wants for me.

...Abracadabra is an incantation used as a magic word in stage magic tricks, and historically was believed to have healing powers when inscribed on an amulet.

Also Jamie, how does anyone know when they are prophesying that what they are getting is truly from God? How does anyone walking in any gift of the spirit know that what they are getting is from God? After all, everything is counterfeited by satan. For example, I heard about someone that was healed from someone practicing witchcraft at one time. Also, someone that initially prayed over me to get the baptism of the holly spirit told me to say what ever comes to mind. They did that as they told me someone they previously prayed fors first words were abracadabra. No Joke. How does anyone truly know anything is from God? I believe that God shows us in our hearts, that is the only way that anyone could ever truthfully walk in the gifts of the spirit.

Hi Alley, I guess part of the problem is that while God does speak to us and lead us, we also have a sinful nature that battles against what the Spirit of God speaks to us. Paul wrote about this in Galatians, "For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do." (Galatians 5:17) How do you discern whether the things written on your heart are from God and not from your own sinful nature? That's one of the reasons why the Bible is such an important part of the life of a believer because we can measure those things on our heart and determine what is from God. I am sure that was part of what the author of Hebrews meant when he wrote, "For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart." (Hebrews 4:12) The Bible isn't just a reference book that we use to prove our point, it is a living document through which we meet with God. He speaks to us as we immerse ourselves in His revelation there. It is a privilege to spend time with Him in reading His Word and allow His Spirit to shape our lives.

Tom, I can appreciate what you are saying, but I do not have time to dig through the bible to back up what I believe. I also feel no obligation to prove what I believe to anyone. The scriptures are up for interpretation. Like I said, even theologians miss things as the Jews of the old testament did. No one knows it all, even if they memorized the bible from cover to cover! I have shared things that are in the bible that I believe back up my point of view, I just have not given specific scriptures. If someone wants to do a word search on what I am describing, so be it. Let them take the time. I am already convinced in my beliefs, via what I have read in the bible & otherwise. Tell me Tom, do you personally think that little children go to hell if they were to die? Most Christians say no to that question, that is unless they are at an age of accountability. That is the standard scripted christian answer to that question. What about aborted babies, do you think they go to hell since they never had the chance to receive Yeshua? Do you think God only shows concern for unborn & little children? I believe that the people that haven't heard the gospel are basically held accountable as such. It makes absolutely no sense for God to show mercy to these little children but condemn everyone else that hasn't heard. Also, according to the scriptures the word & truth of God is written in our hearts. I speak what God puts in my heart.

I'm not a Bible scholar by any means, but is the Bible clear about the concept of baptism? In certain parts of the New Testament, that definitely seems like an important aspect of outwardly showing our commitment to Jesus. Yet not every Christian practices that. Is that confusing to anyone else?… Also, I think the parable that Christ taught of the faithful servant is also very important to remember as those of us who have accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. Christ taught this: Luke 12:47-48 (King James Version) "And that servant, which knew his lord's will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more." Those who are without a sure testimony of Jesus Christ will not be judged the same way as those who have had an opportunity to either be raised in a good Christian family or who found Jesus later on. The reason that I believe we do missionary work and ministering is twofold: So that we can help others, yes... but I believe the ultimate reason is so that we can show our commitment to our Heavenly Father as faithful servants. We should never think for one minute that because we merely passed out Jesus-flyers to passersby that we've done what's been asked and can check Salvation off our to-do list. True missionary work is about showing love--the pure love of Jesus Christ. It's about showing our Father in Heaven that we are committed to Him and that we want to serve Him. Everything Christ did during His ministry was out of love. If we do not sincerely and truly love our fellow beings, our brothers and sisters (regardless of their beliefs and views and actions)--then I fear we've missed the whole point of what it means to be a Christian.

Sam Gibson— You are right in saying the Bible is clear about the purpose for baptism. It is a physical sign/indication that one has given their life to Jesus Christ and is ready to serve him, and it should be done in obedience to Christ. Like much of what he did, Jesus was baptized in order that we would have an example. People will be judged in two ways: 1) Heaven or hell depending on whether a person has or has not trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ. 2) Based on what the person did in life—varying rewards in heaven for the believer, and varying degrees of torment in hell for the unbeliever. If we love the Lord Jesus, we'll be as obedient as possible to live faithfully for him. However, no amount of works will have anything to do with God's grace in saving us in the first place or keeping us secure thereafter. I trust you are being obedient to the Lord in order to honor him and bring him glory.

Alley-- Everyone has beliefs. But wouldn't you agree that just because someone believes something, that doesn't necessarily make it true? I've noticed you've stated a number of beliefs, but you haven't given any reasons for having them. Believing things simply because you'd like for them to be true seems rather dangerous, don't you think? Jamie has given you what he believes and given you the reasons for those beliefs. The Bible addresses most of the beliefs you've stated, but its description differs from yours. That should give you some reason for reflection on not just what you believe, but why.

I am glad to hear that I didn't sound snobbish this time Alley :) I believe God is far bigger than my ability to comprehend Him and He is able to communicate His truth to people no matter what circumstances they find themselves. He has revealed HIs plan for salvation to us through His promises recorded in the Bible, and He is able to fulfill those promises in ways that I cannot even imagine. But I am also keenly aware of how easily I can deceive myself, and how well Satan can distort God's truth and lead us down a path that makes us feel good but takes us further away from God. The world is full of religious beliefs that have a lot of good ideas but they also contain the lies of Satan that we can redeem ourselves by following the proper rituals, living by the proper moral code, or by reaching a level of enlightenment that sets us free from the brokenness of our lives. All of those emphasize our ability to rescue ourselves, whereas only Jesus tells us that we need Him to rescue us. So I trust God to communicate to those whom I cannot reach, and look to His leading of who He brings into my path to share His Gospel with. He is the perfect Judge who will deal perfectly with everyone. None of us will be able to stand before Him and say, "I didn't know!"

Tom, I also appreciate what you had to say as well but my beliefs are still the same. Read my response to Jamie & that is my exact stance on the subject.

Hi Jamie, I appreciate what you had to say with that response. You definitely came across with Gods spirit this time, not like a bible snob :-). I still believe that people are held accountable by what they know. Take for instance the Native Americans, they would pray to the Great Spirit & I believe that they got their belief in it through Gods creation like you said. I believe that when they die they will be held accountable to how they followed the Great Spirit. I also believe that when they die it will be revealed to them that the great spirit is Yahweh God & that their salvation is given to them via Yeshua. I don't believe that everyone gets a chance to receive Yashua when they die though, I believe that only the people that never heard about him or that couldn't comprehend him will, like little children.

This guys study seems to back up what I am suggesting about the prophets salvation anyways. https://faithalone.org/jour...

Alley-- If I may add my 2 cents worth, while we all have ideas of what we'd like to think God's plan is, it has nothing to do with what one may personally "believe" and everything to do with what the scriptures tell us. Nowhere in scripture are we told people have a second chance after death. Hebrews 9:27 has already been quoted: "It is appointed for a man to die once, and after that to be judged." Then consider Jesus' story of the rich man and Lazarus which clearly states that a great gulf is set between those who die in their sins and those who are saved. Why would the rich man be so concerned for his family's eternal destiny if he knew they would have a second chance for salvation after they died? Why was he so concerned for himself if all he had to do was trust Jesus and be removed from his agony? Those who were saved (considered righteous) in the Old Testament were saved not just by their faith in God but by their faith that what God said about the coming Messiah was true. Salvation has been stated as only through Christ since Genesis 3:15, and the people of the Old Testament knew that. Before Christ's birth, death, and resurrection, those who had trusted in the coming Messiah went to be with Abraham. At the resurrection of the dead, they, along with Abraham, will be transferred to be with the Lord Jesus. Again, it's terribly important to believe what scripture says, not what we might personally want to believe. We can be easily deceived in our thinking, and that can have eternal consequences.

Jamie, it's not all about salvation in my opinion, although, that is an important reason to preach the gospel. I believe it's about being useful to God. The less someone knows about Yeshua in this life, the less useful they are to him. I believe that God has the people who haven't heard covered just like he does children that pass before they can ever comprehend the gospel. Think about the prophets & God loving Jews that died before Yeshua even came. Do you think that they are in hell since they were long gone before Yeshua came? I believe that they received Yeshua after they died just like children too young to understand the gospel & people that have never heard it. That is what I believe though, I am not saying it's a fact.

You could be right Alley. I do think it is important to base our doctrine on what is revealed in scripture. I guess the question is: How does your belief impact the way you live? There have been some, who have had similar positions to you, who have suggested that since people will have a chance to choose Jesus after they die, there is no pressure to make an effort to proclaim the Good News of Jesus to unreached people groups. That is clearly a position that does not fit the commands we have from Jesus.

Sometimes even bible scholars can miss things. Think about the Jews of the old testament,they thought they had all the knowledge about their coming messiah, & they were well versed on the scriptures of their time, yet they missed their savior completely when he came. I know the things that God speaks to my spirit, & I definitely believe there is more grace than what you are seeing in your understanding of those scriptures.

I believe that just because it really makes no sense for people to be condemned to hell without even having heard the message of Yeshua. In Romans, I forget the exact scripture but it mentions that we will only be held accountable for what we know. Also, I felt like God led me to that scripture when someone I knew died. That person was confused & thought they could be a witch & a christian at the same time.

I believe that people will get a chance to receive Yeshua when they die if they never heard the gospel before that.

I truly believe that God has grace for people who haven't heard the gospel. I believe they will get a chance to receive Yeshua when they die.

Rickey, true God's Word means what it says, but there are a number of ways by which it can be interpreted. At times God's Word is taken literally, and at times allegorically. In the passage which you mentioned in Mt.22, the man did not wear the wrong wedding garment, but he did not have a wedding garment on at all. And, it goes on to say that he (the man), "was speechless." (Mt.22:12) He probably showed up in his best "duds," but, they were not good enough. Why? Because the wedding garment the King (God)requires is the righteousness of Christ. (Romans 3:22) Many will try in that day to get into heaven in their very best "go to church clothes" (their own efforts), but will end up speechless when rejected because they do not have a wedding garment on.

Sean, the Old Testament says of Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, and others, that they believed God, thereby became heirs of the righteousness that is in keeping with faith. Believing God does not mean that you believe that there is a God, "for even demons believe—and tremble!" (James 2:19) But, believing God means that you believe what He says-- His Word. There are different ways by which God can speak His Word to you. Through the written word, through people, through inanimate objects, through dreams, even through a donkey talking, etc. And, when you believe what God says, in reality, you are believing in Jesus Christ, the Word of God. John 1:1,14, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth."