Bible Study If someone doesn't know about Christ, and has never heard of Christ, then where do they go when they die?

[WIP]

Thank you for your response. I have another question (please maplegoat or anyone who believes in this answer if you would answer this I would greatly appreciate). I am praying to God that the question will be answered without judgement of my LEGITIMATE question. My question is, if people who have not heard of the gospel will go to heaven like innocent children, then why should they be introduced to the gospel in the first place?

This is a challenging question and a legitimate one. The way I answer this question is to say that we cannot speak for God. I am not aware of anywhere in Scritpure where this question is asnswered but I am aware of Scripture that instructs us to share the gospel with the world. Why does God want us to do that? I don't know personally but I believe it is my duty to follow His command and do what He says. The rest I will leave up to Him.

 

[Jacks Bratt]

Thank you for your response. I have another question (please maplegoat or anyone who believes in this answer if you would answer this I would greatly appreciate). I am praying to God that the question will be answered without judgement of my LEGITIMATE question. My question is, if people who have not heard of the gospel will go to heaven like innocent children, then why should they be introduced to the gospel in the first place?

Personally, I think there is a difference between those who never reach an age of maturity at which they can be held accountable for their decisions and actions... and those that do reach an age of maturity and responsibility and behave in an unrighteous, unkind, unloving manner... for which they will be held "without excuse"

I think children and mentally challenged never reach a point where they could be held accountable and therefore, need no excuse..

This then, Seeker, would give purpose to the gospel.

But, that's just my opinion.

 

[stovebolts]

Thank you for your response. I have another question (please maplegoat or anyone who believes in this answer if you would answer this I would greatly appreciate). I am praying to God that the question will be answered without judgement of my LEGITIMATE question. My question is, if people who have not heard of the gospel will go to heaven like innocent children, then why should they be introduced to the gospel in the first place?

I believe that the gospel, aka good news is that Jesus is King, and he is currently reigning.
As far as Christianity, I believe we have the same mission. Israel had, and that's to be a light to the nation's. God choose us to be his ambassadors to the world, and we carry good news. Jesus is the son of God, and he was unfairly killed on a cross and burried in a grave. But, the grave did not hold him. He raised from the dead, walked among his deviples and is now at the right hand of God.

We are called to walk as Jesus walked 1 John 2:6. Paul talks about those not under the law, who walk in the law with no knowledge of the law, become a law unto themselves. Furthermore, Jeremiah 31 says that this law will be written on our heart.

And with what has already been written about Romans, I believe a person can not only walk as Jesus walked, but they can know Jesus, even if they never heard the gospel.

Scripture says, holy, holy holy is the Lord God almighty. The whole world is full of his glory.

We don't bring God to people, we reveal him to them. Paul does this very thing at Mars Hill.

I hope this helps.

 

[OzSpen]

Some posts may have been deleted due to the fact that they were deemed to be debating, by the mod's.

Sometimes it's hard to color within the lines. Myself included.

That's what happened to one of my posts.

 

[OzSpen]

This is the first response where I feel is actually answering my question without being incredibly condescending. Thank you. Are you willing to have a conversation in private message? I have some questions about this. I'm not willing to discuss this openly anymore.

Seeker444,

I'm available for a discussion further through a Conversation. I'll let you initiate it.

Oz

 

[reba]

to my simply mind and spirit the answer to this age old question, was answered ages ago..

Rom 1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;
Rom 1:19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them.
Rom 1:20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:

 

[maplegoat]

By Romans 1:20 then people who live in nature and have never heard the gospel will meet the judgment when they die. And they will be granted mercy through God's grace because they still saw God in nature and survived themselves accordingly.

That does make sense.

 

[Not_Now.Soon]

I have studied and I understand the history. I'm not ignorant. This has been pointed out in previous comments. This is not my question.

I'm sorry if I came off as insulting. It sounds like you have a deep respect for indigenous people, and comment on how they were bruttally forced to give up their ways. It was part of your example and I think shaped your question about will they go to hell for not believing. I recently went to a small tourist town that has a Native American influence. Because of this there was museums and tours that gave historic information of the history of the tribe that resided and co-owned the town. Part of that was an eye opener. Before the settles came tribes were regularly at war with each other pillaging and kidnapping wives, killing families of the women and girls and taking them off to be their brides.

Along with being more in tune with nature they showed a brutality that matched the settlers that waged war with them when they came, conquered and massacred many I one horrible event. (It was a military response with no mercy. The tribe tribe's warriors and healthy fled leaving the women, elderly, and children in a church thinking they will have mercy if they are in the church. Those left behind were bruttally killed in an attack on that church.

Yes there was great harm done to them by those who probabley were Christian. But there was evil done on both sides of the field. If this is true in one place why would it not be true in most places. I'm not saying you are ignorant of history as if it is an insult, but just that you might not know, and are placing these people on a pedestal that no population should be on.
____________________________

As to answer your question. If these people don't know Jesus, it's God's decision on what to do with them. Not yours or mine. we can hope for mercy, and with God's love there probabley is some way for them to be accepted before they were told about Christianity. After they knew about Jesus though they are given a sure way to being redeemed. It is probabley easier to come to Jesus then to earn our way to God's forgiveness. So rejecting the sacrifice and redemption bought through Jesus is unfortunately all it takes to be rejected by God as well.
__________________

To your second question. Why we should spread the gospel? Because it that is part of the great commission Jesus gave the Apostles, and because by coming to Jesus they will be saved.

 

[Mike]

Seeker444 keep asking questions and keep your heart open to wherever the Truth leads you. Keep seeking. Many people adopt their parents' faith without struggling with these tough questions, and thus they never grow. DO NOT take the advice given early on to just keep to yourself. As long as you are open to the answers that might initially be hard to hear, you're on the journey.

 

[UberMink]

Answering the OP question, I think God's mercy would fall upon such a one and they would enter Heaven.
Babies return to Heaven when they pass away. Someone who doesn't know Christ and therefore doesn't know about their status as sinner in need of repentance are as innocent of their fallen state as a newborn is of the state they will grow into when they are accountable for their behaviors.

 

[WIP]

Folks, this forum is for seekers to ask questions and for Christian members to answer. If you wish to debate various points made, start a new thread in the appropriate forum.

 

[UberMink]

By Romans 1:20 then people who live in nature and have never heard the gospel will meet the judgment when they die. And they will be granted mercy through God's grace because they still saw God in nature and survived themselves accordingly.

That does make sense.

I agree with that also.

The tenets of the faith that concerns recognizing sin and repenting of it so as to hold faith through the grace of God and eternal salvation is something that is taught through the Gospel. If someone has never heard the gospel they do not know the tenets of the faith that prescribe repentance, redemption, salvation, and eternal life.
As such I believe they would be in God's mercy when they die and arrive at the throne of judgment. God would know they had never heard the Gospel and he would judge them accordingly. How can someone repent when they don't know what that is? Or what the alternative to that is? They cannot.

God is love and his mercy is everlasting. There are certainly people who have not been reached by missionaries. God knows that too. They would be in his mercy.

 

[Razeontherock]

Hello, there are a few things about teachings that I would like to understand. I have asked this question before but without an answer, which causes more confusion. As I understand it, if someone knows about Jesus Christ, then if they accept Jesus as their saviour they will enter Heaven. If they do not accept Jesus as their saviour, they will go to Hell. I have a lot of questions around that but the main one is:

If someone doesn't know about Christ, and has never heard of Christ, then where do they go when they die?

This brings up an example: Indigenous people who according to history have had the deepest connection with the Earth and nature, who by their teachings had a deep respect for our Earth and life itself..as far as I know they do not follow Christ. They were taught about Jesus in the most brutal and evil ways, which I've been told was not the work of Jesus but how could they be expected to go from their lives which were of deep connection to nature and themselves to following someone who they were taught about in brutal ways. Their lives became a version of hell because of invasion of their way of life. It makes absolutely no sense for them to go from a way of life that seems to have worked in deep relationship with nature to a way of life that in their experience caused unimaginable pain.

I really deeply struggle with this. I would appreciate an understanding of the basic question I wrote above and also the situation that I outlined below the question. Thank you kindly.

Here's the answer:

all judgment has been given to the Son.

If at first that strikes you as unsettling, please look at the genius of the plan:

the prosecution has been defeated, by the Son;
the defense attorney has also paid all fines and costs, and served the sentence for the worst guilty verdict possible, and is also the Son. Did He do all that to see His client condemned?

It really is an unbeatable plan. He's got it covered!

 

[atpollard]

This brings up an example: Indigenous people who according to history have had the deepest connection with the Earth and nature, who by their teachings had a deep respect for our Earth and life itself..as far as I know they do not follow Christ. They were taught about Jesus in the most brutal and evil ways, which I've been told was not the work of Jesus but how could they be expected to go from their lives which were of deep connection to nature and themselves to following someone who they were taught about in brutal ways. Their lives became a version of hell because of invasion of their way of life. It makes absolutely no sense for them to go from a way of life that seems to have worked in deep relationship with nature to a way of life that in their experience caused unimaginable pain.

Greetings. I am not an expert on History, but I know a man named Fred Blind who worked for years with one of the indigenous people of the Amazon. During one of his return trips to the US he brought one of the native converts to talk with our small bible study group. So let me tell you what one of those people with a “deep connection to nature” had to say about the impact of Christianity on his tribe. Before news of Jesus came, they lived in constant fear of accidentally offending one nature spirit or another and being cursed with a bad hunt or a drought or a child becoming ill and dying. That is the reality of living with a deep connection to nature. The news of the Gospel freed them from fear of the spirit world.

(The rest of your question has been answered by others. I just had a dollop of first hand knowledge to contribute to this part.)

 

[islandrazor]

I partial to this section in Romans;
13 (For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.

14 For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves:

15 Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another;)

16 In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel.
I may catch some flak for this, but God is a just God and I think that kinda judgement I'll leave up to Him.

In Christ

 

[blessedsmithereens]

Hello, there are a few things about teachings that I would like to understand. I have asked this question before but without an answer, which causes more confusion. As I understand it, if someone knows about Jesus Christ, then if they accept Jesus as their saviour they will enter Heaven. If they do not accept Jesus as their saviour, they will go to Hell. I have a lot of questions around that but the main one is:

If someone doesn't know about Christ, and has never heard of Christ, then where do they go when they die?

This brings up an example: Indigenous people who according to history have had the deepest connection with the Earth and nature, who by their teachings had a deep respect for our Earth and life itself..as far as I know they do not follow Christ. They were taught about Jesus in the most brutal and evil ways, which I've been told was not the work of Jesus but how could they be expected to go from their lives which were of deep connection to nature and themselves to following someone who they were taught about in brutal ways. Their lives became a version of hell because of invasion of their way of life. It makes absolutely no sense for them to go from a way of life that seems to have worked in deep relationship with nature to a way of life that in their experience caused unimaginable pain.

I really deeply struggle with this. I would appreciate an understanding of the basic question I wrote above and also the situation that I outlined below the question. Thank you kindly.

No, God wouldn't send someone to Hell for rejecting the son they never knew about. You can't reject what you don't know.
God is a God of mercy and love. God's mercy would prevail for those who never knew about the Gospel or Christ.

 

[jasonc]

This is exactly why I stay out of discussions like this lol I'm afraid you opened up a whole can of worms by asking this question. A lot of the time I think it's better if you say nothing at all. That way, you don't get your feelings hurt.

life has a way of and God of bringing the truth to us, its on us to decide if we accept that . there are things I have been doing that I simply asked prayer for here and it was answered and lot of it was my own fault. I cant change my life but I can focus on the God who can. the truth hurt that I am not getting what I wanted in the manner and time of my choosing but I also know that I have no means of becoming better. so I accept that.

 

[Douglas Summers]

I'm going to ignore the rest of your message as you are twisting my words.

I have a question about the statement above. It's the first time I have heard this. What is the purpose of these people who were never meant to be saved if it was never God's intent? Will they go to hell if they were not meant to be saved?

Hi Seeker, God is creator of everything, And who are we to question God why he does things...Get you a Bible and start reading...God explains everything we need to know...we live by faith...Why faith? Because God walked with man once, but man never saw fit to believe or obey Him. Now man is living in a curse that he created by neglecting the creator....Read these Scriptures...look them up. (Rom. 1:16-32) (Rom. 8:18-39) (Rom. 9:1-24). You are going to have to ask God, He is the only one that can teach you...all men can do is show you Scripture and confirm doctrines, but there are so many different beliefs, only God can give you the increase as He did me and many others... There are too many that try to teach their own doctrines and cause turmoil and dissension among believer. The truth is hidden to the self willed and trespassers who claim knowledge so called, but the knowledge of the Gospel is co- equal with The Spirit of Christ and the born again believer. You are going to have to read the word for yourself.

Saved by Grace from faith in Christ,
Douglas Summers

 

[Randy]

No, God wouldn't send someone to Hell for rejecting the son they never knew about. You can't reject what you don't know.
God is a God of mercy and love. God's mercy would prevail for those who never knew about the Gospel or Christ.

OR Jesus will make a judgment concerning them and nothing is hidden from Him. Such a person could never discuss Jesus as they would never had heard of Him. I have never met anybody who hasn't heard of Jesus. A very hypothetical question to answer.

 

[Randy]

No one loves or is more concerned about peoples well being more than the Father. His Love/concern is "authentic" and His faithfulness endures forever.