What About Those Who’ve Never Heard of Jesus?
By Tricia Scribner
The Problem
What happens to people who’ve never heard about Jesus? Do they automatically go to hell? That seems unfair, given they weren’t given the opportunity to respond!
Maybe they’re given a free pass. But then, why does Scripture say you must trust or place faith in Jesus for salvation and why did Jesus need to come and suffer a gruesome death if faith in His sacrificial death and resurrection isn’t required for a relationship with God or to enter heaven?
Different Views on Salvation
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- Pluralism: All religions are valid paths to God.
- Inclusivism: Other religions may contain elements of truth that align with Christianity.
- Implicit Faith: People who respond to general revelation may be saved even if they don’t explicitly know Jesus.
- Exclusivism: Salvation is only possible through explicit faith in Jesus Christ.
Every Human Is Without Excuse before God.
Romans 1 and 2 reveal that all humans are without excuse before God because we suppress the truth God has revealed in creation that proclaims universally that God exists as the all-powerful Creator. Given such compelling revelation, every human should worship the Creator and seek Him with all their heart. Then God would gladly reveal the truth about Jesus Christ that leads to salvation. But they don’t. Instead, they suppress the truth and make gods of their own liking, often in their own image.
God Can Reveal Jesus to Anyone, Anywhere.
If a person rejects God and suppressed the truth He has revealed about Himself, God is not obligated to reveal more truth about His Son Jesus and salvation through Him. The person already has received sufficient revelation to warrant worship and a desire to know God. God is able and willing to reveal who Jesus Christ is and His offer of salvation through faith to anyone willing to hear Him. Throughout history God has reached people with the truth about His Son Jesus when they searched for God, even when they had never heard of Jesus/Messiah. In Acts 10, God revealed the truth of Jesus to a Roman centurion, Cornelius, by sending the apostle Peter to share the message with him and his family.
People were Saved In the Old Testament by Faith, Just Like Us.
The Old Testament nation of Israel looked forward in faith to the Messiah’s coming as we look back. While their knowledge was limited and progressive through history, they recognized their sin, need for forgiveness, and exercised faith in God to bring Messiah to whom the sacrificial and holy day observances pointed. Thus, the Israelites were saved through faith as we are. At the same time, Romans 9:6 says not all of Abraham’s descendants through Isaac are saved. God alone knows who has exercised faith in Him and in His provision of the Savior for their sins.
The Bible Teaches We Must Turn to Messiah Jesus for Forgiveness and Salvation.
The Messiah the prophets promised throughout the entire Old Testament (see Luke 24:44), came in the person of Jesus Christ of Nazareth who lived in the first century A.D. The view that salvation requires explicit faith in Jesus the Messiah is supported by biblical passages, such as John 14:6 and Acts 4:12.
What About Babies Who Die?
We infer the destiny of babies who die before understanding the gospel and individuals with mental disabilities based on both the character of God and specific scriptures. 2 Sam. 12:23 suggests that David would one day join his child who had died. Matt. 19:14 says Christ invited the children to come to Him as members of the kingdom of heaven. Both passage suggests that God’s grace preserves them for eternity. How this happens is expressed in several theological positions.
Finally, we remember our responsibility as believers in Christ is to act as His ambassadors and share His gospel with every person. We can be assured that whether a person hears about Jesus or does not, that person justly stands before God having been given the opportunity through general revelation of creation to seek and worship God.