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People Ignorant of the Gospel
What will happen to people who have never heard the Gospel, or never heard of Jesus? Will God condemn people to Hell who have never heard about Christ?
This is a common question and a good question. What will happen to the countless souls who lived, before Christ and since, who never heard the Gospel, who don't know about Jesus or the Bible, who have never heard a sermon, who know nothing about salvation or regeneration? Of the 6 billion people who currently live on earth, it is believed that as much as half of them have never heard about Jesus. What will happen to them? The Scriptures teach that no man can come to the Father but through Jesus Christ. Does this automatically condemn every one who has never heard about Jesus?
It has been said that there is a God-shaped void within every man. The variety and number of religions on the earth account for this. People over the world, from civilized nations to remote tribes in Africa, the native Indians of America, and the jungles of South America, realize there is a Higher Power, that there is Someone who is greater than themselves, Someone they must seek to please and Someone they can turn to for help and guidance. And in their own way, they have reached out to this Higher Power. Paul said to the Romans, "Since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 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 seen, so that men are without excuse." (Romans 1:19-20 NIV). While men are sinful by nature, even uncivilized tribes have certain moral laws similar to our own. These people, who have no knowledge of the moral standards and laws given by God, by nature have set up laws that are similar. Paul addresses this to the Romans. "For when the Gentiles, which have not the law," Paul said, "do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves; which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the men while accusing or else excusing one another; in the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel." (Romans 2:14-16). Paul also says a little earlier in verse 13 that it is the hearers of the law who are just before God, but the doers of law. Paul makes it clear in verse14 that people without any law can do by nature the things in the law, and it is the doers, and not the hearers, who are justified.
Paul says that God "will render to every man according to his deeds." At the final judgement of the unsaved, John saw in his vision " a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.... And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire." (Revelation 20:11-15).
We know from the Scriptures that Jesus is the way of salvation, and the only way to come to the Father. We also know that God desires all men to come to the knowledge of the truth and commands all men everywhere to repent. The Church has received the mandate to go into the world and preach the gospel to every person, and make disciples of men from all nations. Some have said that if ignorance is an excuse, then we shouldn't "go" but "stay", for by telling the ignorant of Christ, they become condemned if they do not listen. This subject is not without controversy, but I believe the Bible teaches that people who have never heard the Gospel will be judged according to their works, and who by nature do the law, will be judged according to the law written in their hearts. Without doubt nor question, I do know that God will do what is fair and just.
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