What about those who never hear the Gospel?

I do not want to presuppose that everyone knows what I’m talking about when I say the Gospel.  For some people, the Gospel is synonymous with truth, the good news, the teachings of Jesus, the way of salvation, or even church dogma.  While there is an element of truth in each concept, I want to clearly define the Gospel.

The Gospel is the “Good News” of God.  It is truth about God’s way of salvation.  The Gospel is absolutely shared in the teachings of Jesus, and it should be part of the dogma (religious beliefs) of every church.  But let’s get more specific! 

What is the Gospel?  Stated simply, the Gospel is about relationship.

• You and I were created for relationship with God (Genesis 2-3; Leviticus 26:12).
• Our sin separated us from that relationship (Isaiah 59:2; Romans 3:23; 6:23).
• There is nothing that we can do to reconcile this relationship on our own (Ephesians 2:1-9).
• Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty of our sin (Romans 5:8-10; Ephesians 2:13-16; 1 John 4:10).
• Jesus rose from the dead that we might have eternal life (a reconciled relationship) (1 Peter 1:3; John 17:3).
• Jesus offers eternal life (a reconciled relationship) to those who will repent of their sin by placing faith in Jesus Christ (John 3:16; John 17:3; Acts 2:38; Romans 10:9).

The Gospel tells us who we are, why we’re here, what went wrong, what Christ did, and how Jesus can make all things right.  That’s why the Gospel is the Good News!

But now, we’re left with a difficult question.  If all have sinned, and if Christ alone saves, what about people who have never heard the Gospel?  Are they doomed to an eternity separated from God?

My reply is going to share Scripture, science, philosophy, and reason.  Let’s begin.

There are almost 7 billion people on the planet.  Research indicates that 92% practice some form of religion.  A basic definition of religion is the desire to please and/or appease the God through religious beliefs and practices.  I’ve got two questions. First, why are so many people trying to please and/or appease God?  Second, why would people automatically assume that they are not right with God?

Romans 2:15 gives the answer. “…in that they show the work of the Law written in their hearts, their conscience bearing witness and their thoughts alternately accusing or else defending them…”

This passage tells us that God has written His law in our hearts and our conscious either accuses or defends us.  In other words, we know something is wrong is because His moral code, His Law is written into the very fabric of our being.  When we sin, our conscious tells us that something is not right.  We become ashamed, we feel guilt, and we hide from God.  Every major world religion attempts to address this instinctive need to remove the guilt and shame and be right with God.

Judaism says that you are right with God by obeying God’s Law.  Islam teaches that you are right with Allah by practicing the 5 Pillars of Islam.  Buddhism tells people that they can be at peace with the divine by following the 4 Noble Truths and the 8 Fold Path.  Christianity says, “You can never be right with God on your own.  Only Christ can reconcile you to God.”

Here’s my point.  Even if someone has never heard of Christ, they still have the law of God written in their heart bearing witness against their conscious. 

Second, Romans 1 tells us that God has given general revelation about Himself through nature.  Romans 1:20 says, “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made…”  God’s attributes and power and nature have not only been seen, but they have been clearly seen and understood through what was made.

Some people may get upset with me for saying this, but the battle between Creationism and Evolution is not a battle of science—it’s a battle for souls.  If God’s attributes and power and nature can be clearly seen in His creation, what happens when our kids are taught that God was not the Creator?  What happens when the incredible design of God is reduced to atoms randomly colliding in space?  What happens when the purposeful creation of humanity is replaced with humanity evolving by chance?  When people reject God as the Creator, they also reject God’s revelation in creation.

When we look at what God has made, common sense should say—IT DIDN’T JUST HAPPEN.  The laws of science even dictate that IT DIDN’T JUST HAPPEN. 

Let me give you one quick example.  The Second Law of Thermodynamics (Law of Energy Decay) states that every system left to its own devices always moves from order to disorder...

If you build a house, and leave that house unattended for 100 years, what do you find?  A broken down house!  Items left to themselves move from away from order to disorder.  If you buy a brand new car and leave it in the desert for 50 years, what do you have?  A dilapidated, broken down, rusted out car! The 2^nd Law of Thermodynamics tells us that items move away from order to disorder.

And yet the theory of evolution is built on the premise that the universe moved away from disorder to order.  To this day, we have never witnessed, observed, or verified anything doing that.  What takes more faith?  To believe that an all-powerful God created the world, or to believe that random debris (going against the laws of science) just happened to come together in a way that formed life?  And even if you choose the second option, you still have to answer the questions, “Where did the debris come from. How does life come from non-life?  How does intelligent design come out of nothingness?

God would say, “By looking at creation, you can see Me.  I’m here!  Just look at the mountains, think about the billions of stars and the depths of the sea, look at the variety of animals and the complexity of the human brain, smell the fragrance of a rose and ponder the elements of life…just look at it.  It’s screams of my attributes; it tells of my power; it clarifies my nature.”

So why don’t some people see in God in creation? Paul tells us in Romans 1:18.  People “suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident to them…”  In other words, they don’t want to see God. 

God is an inconvenient truth!  The moment you recognize God’s existence is the moment we are accountable to someone bigger than us.  People don’t want to see God in creation because His presence messes up their plans.  So as long as they walk in ignorance, suppressing the truth, God says in Romans 1, “they are without excuse.”

Even if a person has never heard the Gospel, they still have God’s law written in their hearts bearing down on their conscious, and the general revelation of God as revealed through creation.

Finally, and if people have never heard the Gospel of Christ, we should be upset with the Church—not God!  Jesus commissioned His Church to take the message of the Gospel to the nations (Matthew 28:19-20).  He told us to preach it to every creature.  He places us in situations so that we can be witnesses for Him.  If people never hear the Gospel, we need to take responsibility.

It’s easier to say, “God, you’re not fair” than to admit, “God, I’ve been disobedient.”  You might not be able to take the Gospel to people in Africa, or the unreached people groups of the Amazon, or the post-Christian culture of Europe.  But are you taking the Gospel to your own family, to the people you work with, or to the neighborhood you live in?  What are you doing with the light He’s given you?

There’s one final thing I want you to see before we finish this question.  In Acts 10, Cornelius had a seeking heart, and he pursued the light he was given.  He didn’t know the Gospel, but he pursued as much of God as he knew. But God has an incredible way of sending His people those who want to know Him.

• In Cornelius story, God sent Peter to tell him the Gospel. 
• In Saul’s story, God sent Stephen to live the Gospel.  
• In Lydia’s story, God sent Paul to proclaim the Gospel. 
• In the Eunuch’s story, God sent Philip to explain the Gospel.

Don’t ever forget this truth.  Someone is waiting on the other side of your obedience.

Peter was told to go.  Paul was told to go.  Philip was told to go.  The Church is told to go. And every time, there is someone who needs to hear the Gospel. Someone is waiting on the other side of your obedience.

Will you go?  Will you be the light to those you work with?  Will you sow seed in your own family?  Will you take the Gospel to your neighborhood?  Will you be a witness for Christ in your circle of friends?

Someone is waiting on the other side of your obedience.

Why do Christians continue to sin?

If you’re a Christian who has struggled with some lingering sin, this question has popped into your mind.  If God has changed a person’s life, shouldn’t that change be immediate?  Shouldn’t a Christian stop doing bad things and start doing good things? Why do Christians continue to sin?

Here’s a list of common responses given to that main question.

• We continue to sin because we are still sinners.
• We continue to sin because we don’t have enough discipline in our lives.
• We continue to sin because we love sin.
• We continue to sin because we don’t understand enough about the Bible.
• We continue to sin because we are enslaved to sin.
• We continue to sin because we still have the old sin nature.
• We continue to sin because we don’t have what we need to live without sin.

Did you know that all of these answers are incorrect?  Some of these responses seem correct, but they do not have a biblical basis for the Christian.

The reason Christians continue to sin is because they are not pursuing intimacy with God and they are not living according to their new identity in Christ.

Jesus said in John 14:15, “If you love Me, you will keep my commandments.”  This verse is not a passage to prove.  Jesus does not want His followers to prove their love by attempting to keep His commandments.  Jesus is actually giving a diagnosis of the problem.  The reason we don’t keep His commandments is because we have a love problem.  There is a breakdown in intimacy.  A life of sin points back to a lack of love.  “If you love Me, you will keep my commandments.”  Christians continue to sin because they are not pursuing a love relationship with Jesus Christ. 

The second part of the problem is that Christians are not living according to their new identity in Christ.  Second Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”  As a Christian, you are a new creature.  You have new passions, a new hope, a new future, a new family, a new relationship with God—and a new identity.

Prior to Christ, you were dead in sin and living according to the old nature in Adam.  In Christ, you are alive to God and given a new nature in Christ.  You died to that old nature at salvation; you were raised with a new nature in Christ.

William Culbertson describes the transition through the lens of Romans 6:6-8. “Who died on the cross?  Of course, our blessed Lord died on the cross; but who else died there?  ‘Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.  Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him.”

R. Paxson said, “The old ‘I’ in you and me was judicially crucified with Christ.  ‘Ye died’ and your death dates from the death of Christ.  ‘The old man,’ the old ‘self’ in God’s reckoning was taken to the cross with Christ and crucified and taken into the tomb with Christ and buried.  Assurance of deliverance from the sphere of the flesh and of the dethronement of the old man rest upon the apprehension and acceptance of this fact of co-crucifixion.”

Notice the words that I’ve placed in bold print: in Christ, with him, with Christ, co-crucifixion.  All of these phrases deal with identity.  As a Christian, your new identity is found in Christ.  Therefore, when He died on the cross—you died on the cross.  When He rose from the dead—you rose from the dead.  You are in Christ and Christ is in you.  He is your identity!

Christians continue to sin because we don’t understand and/or believe our new identity in Christ.  The following chart describes your new identity from God’s perspective. 

Who Am I?

I am the salt of the earth. (Matt. 5:13)

I am the light of the world. (Matt. 5:14)

I am a child of God (part of His family). (Jn. 1:12; Rom. 8:16)

I am part of the true vine, a branch of Christ's life. (Jn. 15:1,5)

I am Christ’s friend. (Jn. 15:15)

I am chosen and appointed by Christ to bear His fruit. (Jn. 15:16)

I am a personal witness of Christ for Christ. (Acts 1:8)

I am a slave of righteousness. (Rom. 6:18)

I am enslaved to God. (Rom. 6:22)

I am a child of God. (Rom. 8:14, 15; Gal. 3:26; 4:6)

I am a joint-heir with Christ sharing His inheritance with Him. (Rom. 8:17)

I am a temple of God. His Spirit dwells in me. (1 Cor. 3:16; 6:19)

I am joined to the Lord and am one spirit with Him. (1 Cor. 6:17)

I am a member of Christ's body. (1 Cor. 12:27; Eph. 5:30)

I am a new creation (new person). (2 Cor. 5:17)

I am reconciled to God and a minister of reconciliation. (2 Cor. 5:18,19)

I am a son of God and one in Christ. (Gal.3:26,28)

I am an heir of God since I am a son of God. (Gal.4:6,7)

I am a saint (Eph. 1:1; 1 Cor. 1:2; Phil. 1:1, Col. 1:2)

I am God's workmanship (handiwork) created in Christ to do His work that He planned beforehand that I should do. (Eph. 2:10)

I am a fellow citizen with the rest of God's people in His family. (Eph. 2:19)

I am a prisoner of Christ.(Eph. 3:1; 4:1)

I am righteous and holy. (Eph. 4:24)

I am a citizen of heaven and seated in heaven right now. (Phil. 3:20; Eph. 2:6)

I am hidden with Christ in God. (Col. 3:3)

I am an expression of the life of Christ because He is my life. (Col. 3:4)

I am chosen of God, holy, and dearly loved. (Col. 3:12)

I am chosen and dearly loved by God. (1 Thess. 1:4)

I am a son of light and not of darkness. (1 Thess. 5:5)

I am a holy brother, partaker of a heavenly calling. (Heb. 3:1)

I am a partaker of Christ…I share in His life. (Heb. 3:14)

I am one of God's living stones and am being built up as a spiritual house. (1 Pet. 2:5)

I am a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession to proclaim the excellencies of Him. (1 Pet. 2:9.10)

I am an alien and stranger to this world I temporarily live in. (1 Pet. 2:11)

I am an enemy of the devil. (1 Pet. 5:8)

I am now a child of God. I will resemble Christ when He returns. (1 Jn. 3:1,2)

I am born of God and the evil one (the devil) can't touch me. (1 Jn. 5:18)

I am a sheep of His pasture. Therefore, I have everything I need. (Ps. 23 and 100)

We are at the beginning of a brand new year.  There’s a good chance that many of you have made New Year’s resolutions that involve stopping some bad things and starting some good things.  That’s great!  However, apart from pursuing intimacy with Christ and living according to our new identity in Him—our resolutions will be short lived. 

Make 2012 a different type of year!  Instead of trying to bring about change through will power and determination, ask God to bring the change as you pursue Christ relationally and learn to walk in your new identity.  You will be amazed how much change Christ can bring.

Understanding Election and the Grace of God

(A Modern Day Parable)

There was a guy named George who owned a hardware store in a small town for many years.  He was an honest man, a good boss, and a hard worker.  Everyone loved George.

One day, three of his employees had a devious idea. They decided to make a little extra money and pay off their debts by making false returns at the store.  Over the next 20 years, they made false returns for $25, and $75, and $100.  The amounts were small enough not to cause any suspicion, but big enough to take hundreds of thousands of dollars out of the store. 

Twenty years later, George decided to sell the store.  While preparing the books for the next owner, he hired an accounting firm to audit his books.  Through a routine process, the accounting firm found 3 credit cards with hundreds of thousands of dollars of returns.  They traced the numbers, discovered the card owners, and then shared those findings with George.

George was devastated.  He loved each man and considered them to be friends.  He couldn’t understand why they chose to do what they did. He paid them a salary that was much better than similar jobs in the area. If they were financially destitute, they could have come to him.  He knew that they had families to support, but justice had to be served. 

George brought each man in his office and revealed his findings.  He asked them how they intended to pay back the money, but no one had an answer.  The amount was more than any could repay.  After careful consideration, he fired each man.  The men were devastated and ashamed.

Several weeks later, George called one of the men back to the office. He said, “I know you’ve done wrong.  I know that you don’t deserve this, but I paid back the amount you stole. If you are willing to be honest with me—I’ll give you your job back.”  The man could not believe it.  He gladly accepted the offer and immediately went home to tell his wife the good news. 

Soon the news got back to the other two men. They were angry and went to see George.  “Why didn’t you do the same for us?  How could you give his job back and not ours?  He was just as guilty as we were.  It’s not fair.  If you made that offer to one person—you have to make that offer to all three of us.”

George listened to the other two men complain.  In a very calm way, he said, “Each of you stole from me.  Each man was fired.  If I chose to bring one man back to work—that is my right. It is my store.  It was my money. It was my decision.”

The two men became angrier with George.  They insisted that his actions were not fair, and they accused him of playing favorites.  The more they complained, the more they distanced themselves from the actions that caused their problem.

However, for the one man who was brought back to work—he was extremely grateful.  He knew that he did not do anything good to deserve the job; he was employed because George was gracious.  This understanding prompted him to become more loyal and more dependable than the other employees. He no longer worked to make money; he worked to serve the one who gave him so much.

While there is no human designed story that fully expresses God’s grace and election, this story may help.

In some ways, this is our story!  It’s the story of humanity in relation to God.  According to the Bible, we were created for relationship with God, and sin severed that relationship.  We knew right from wrong, and we chose to do wrong.  God did not treat us poorly or neglect our needs.  Rather, we wanted what we could not have and we were willing to steal to get it.

Even though God loved us and wanted the best for our future, justice had to be served.  The punishment of our sin was spiritual death.  Everyone received the same punishment.  Everyone was guilty of sin.  Everyone was separated from God.  If the story ended there, we could wallow in our perception of fairness while facing an eternity separated from God.

However, the story does not end there.  Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty for our sin, He rose from the dead that we might have life, and He calls people into relationship with Himself.  He does not choose people based on how little they’ve sinned or how good they promise to be.  The Bible does not give percentages to indicate how many are of the elect and how many are not.  In fact, this entire process is shrouded in the mystery of God.

Here are a few things we do know.

• God is loving, just, merciful, gracious, and compassionate (1 John 4:8; 2 Thess. 1:6; Deut. 4:31; Exodus 34:6).
• Humanity was created for relationship with God (Genesis 1-3).
• Everyone sinned (Romans 3:23).
• The penalty of sin is death or spiritual separation from God (Genesis 3:23-24; Romans 6:23).
• God loves the world and Jesus died for the sins of the world (John 3:16; Romans 5:8).
• Jesus told us to share the Gospel with the world (Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 1:8).
• God desires that all people are saved and come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:4).
• God calls people into salvation (John 6:44).
• God must quicken a dead spirit to extend eternal life (Eph. 2:1-10).
• God’s plan in election does not affect our mission to share the Gospel. (Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 1:8).
• God anticipates that people will not understand His plan in election (Romans 9:10-24).

Does it all make perfect sense and fit nicely into our preconceived notions of God?  Not even close!  Can we learn to trust God with the details we don’t understand?  Absolutely!

However, before we get upset with God for electing some, put yourself in George’s shoes for a moment.  If you owned a store, and your money was stolen, and you chose to be gracious to one—how would you respond to a thief that demands to be rehired? Would you be okay with an employee telling you what you could or could not do with your own business?

In the same light, God owns everything.  He created everything. He has the right to do with His creation as He desires.  We may claim that God is not fair, but fairness as we know it went out in the Garden of Eden. If fairness were the determining criteria for humanity’s sin, some would not be elect—all would be damned. 

While this post will not resolve the tension that many feel, hopefully it will show how God’s plan in election and God’s grace can fit together.