"People who don't know anything about God are able to do the right thing on a regular basis. Without having any instructions from God or the Bible, these people are still able from time to time to live as God created us to live. Truth is everywhere, and it is available to everyone(p.78)."
Way back in 4 B.C., a few guys saw something extraordinary in the night sky. What they saw was so incredibly spectacular, they began following it only to end up years later at the feet of a toddler named Jesus. Who were these guys? Why did they come? Did they even know?
The Magi were a group interested in predicting the future via dream interpretation, magic, and other astrology. They, in essence, were the first gentiles (non-Jews or believers) to seek out Christ. Even though they had no concept of who God is, they sought out truth. In previous entries, statements were made regarding reality. In my opinion, God is the ultimate reality. And because we regard reality as something that is true, God is truth. "Truth is everywhere, and it is available to everyone (p.78)." The truth is bigger than any religion.
I am passionate for high-angle rescue. Let's just say I love dangling in the air from a rope. The reason I am comfortable in the air is the same reason why I'm comfortable inside a burning structure; I am confident in the equipment that protects me. The equipment I use has been tested and certified. I know without a doubt that it will do what it says it will do. If your life depended on a piece of hardware or equipment, would you want something that was tested and proven or something that was not tested and it's end results are unknown? Which would you choose? I would speculate that you would choose what has been tested and proven. If it's tested, then it has been certified. It is true to what it says it can do. If it hasn't been tested, the results are a gamble; false.
You see, God has given His creation an option to choose. Consequently, as His creation, we do not have the option not to choose. If we do not choose Truth, we have chosen what is false; a lie.
So what do you choose?
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8 comments:
Great post! I was glad when Rob Bell broached this subject in Velvet Elvis.
That's the eternal question: if a person believes in something other than Christianity, but is genuinely a good person and seeks after God, who are we to say that person is damned to Hell? And, what about remote tribes of people who have never heard about Christianity, but recognize that something bigger than them is out there, taking care of them? Are we in a position to say they are not going to Heaven?
Rob Bell puts it in plain terms. That God IS truth, and truth is all around us in many different venues. Yes, Jesus is the ultimate Truth, and He does say, "No one can get to the Father except through me." but that's just it. Since Jesus refers to himself as the Truth in the statement prior, isn't He ultimately saying, "No one can get to the Father except through Truth?"
God is the ultimate Judge. It is our duty to point others in the direction of Truth, not to condemn.
Unfortunately, this subject is one of the grayest areas of Scripture. Many believe that if you're not a Christian (believe in and follow Christ) then you are destined for Hell. Some speculate that other cultures are following the same God we are however they call Him by a different name. I do have a problem with those that say, for example, that Christianity, Hinduism and Islam are all following a higher power which is God. The reason being is that you can find the remains of both, Buddah and Muhammed. Christ, however rose from the dead (just as prophecy said He would hundreds of years before. Jesus didn't say He was "a way." He said He was "THE WAY." The messages of the other religions may have had some truth to them, but Christ's message was/is all Truth. As far as the remote tribes go, again, gray area. We all come into this world with three things:
(1) a conscious
(2) a void that needs to be filled
(3) with sin.
Society screams that we find ourselves or that we seek out our own identity. The ironic thing is is that we're all the same; screwed up and in need of Someone to fix us.
Well said. I agree with you, Josh. But I agree with Rob Bell as well. It is still our duty to share Christ with the world. I just can't comprehend that good people are condemned to Hell. Paul did say that all people can recognize God through His creation, right? I mean, there are people who are Muslim and Hindu, etc. who haven't heard of Christ. I think this is where I have to throw my hands up and say, "God is the ultimate Judge." We won't know what will happen until we get to Judgement Day. As for me, and my message, Jesus is THE ultimate way to Salvation and Truth.
Well, you have to be careful when it comes to what warrants heaven and what warrants hell. You know as well as I do that God demands perfection; something we will never be able to accomplish in and of ourselves. When you say good, how good is good enough? If you say a lifetime of righteous acts lands a person a ticket to heaven, where does grace come in? You see what I mean when I say 'gray' area because to believe this and I mean truly believe it is to literally cheapen the gospel. We do have a loving God; a God that is sovereign and just. A God that will not be bought with a lifetime of good deeds. This has been wonderfull dialogue. I look forward to your response.
A few days ago, after I last posted, I read where David's army (I think) was transporting the Ark of the Covenant. Well, the carriers of the Ark stumbled, and almost dropped it. One of the men reached out his hand to steady it. Well, God sentenced that man to death. This passage, along with all the other passages where God allows, and even encourages anhilation of villages, is hard to swallow. Why would God condemn a man who was trying to keep the Ark from falling? Unless, of course, there is another part to the story. Maybe the man purposefully "peeked" into the Ark, maybe he uttered a curse. Who knows?
But you're right. God demands perfection. Not because He's OCD, but because HED himself is perfect. God lovingly provided part of Himself -- Jesus -- as a way to allow us to come to Him. He doesn't condemn people because of some pious attitude, but for reasons we can never comprehend. Because He's so huge and powerful... and loving.
So, think if we offered something as an act of love, wouldn't it cause you a huge amount of hurt and anger? Also, knowing that accepting this gift is the only way the person can ever be around you, wouldn't that just rip your heart out? It's not because he chooses to condemn, maybe it's because he HAS to. He's perfect. We're not. There's no mixing the two.
So, am I contradicting my earlier statements? There's still the issue of people who have never heard of Christ.
AUGHHH! My head hurts!
Shoot. Just read my last post. It barely makes sense.
what I meant to say was, if you offered up a part of yourself in order to save someone AND THEY REJECTED IT, wouldn't it cause you pain?
I know what I'm trying to say, but I'm not sure it's coming out right! :-)
Crystal,
You were talking about when the Ark of the Covenant was being transported...What we need to remember is that this all happened under the Law. At the time, the Law was the only way to salvation. And unfortunately, as this story illustrates, it is impossible to keep all of the Law all of the time. Even when we are trying to do something "good" we can still break the Law. And there is a punishment for breaking the Law. That is where Christ comes in. Grace says that we don't have to measure up to the Law, we just have to accept God's gift of grace and the mercy that comes along with it. I think about the way I lived my life before I really gave it to Christ, and I know without a doubt that had I lived in Old Testament times I would probably have been stoned to death or something equally awful. But for the grace of God and the mercy of the cross. I do believe that God can and does speak to people in His own way and can bring them to Himself and His Son without using us to spread the Word, but it is like anything else in life...how much easier is it to have someone share something with you than to have to wrestle with it and figure it out on your own? Hope y'all don't mind me jumping in on your convo. Great posts, BTW.
Blessings,
Shannon
Shannon, thanks for interjecting. The whole point of this blog is for open discussion. Thanks you for your comments and perspective. It is through another's eyes that we can finally see something that may have been present all along.
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