Salvation or Damnation part 2
May 6th 2011 17:50
So, what about all those people who have not heard of the messiah or who do not believe Jesus was the Messiah that was promised. Can they still be saved? It’s always been a kind of tricky question for me. Today it became clearer, but of course, I do not know if I am any more accurate. Knowing the things of God is not something any human can ever fully accomplish, but knowing enough for now, that I can do, or at least try to do. That in itself is another demonstration of faith. Trusting in something you cannot and will not every fully understand is part of the nearly insurmountable mountain called Faith.
There is no excuse for us if we reject the fact that there is a creator GOd. Romans, as well as many other verses in the Word, seems to be saying that the Universe itself, in all of its complexity, design, preciseness and predictability; testifies to the existence of a Creator. The very idea that humans have a conscience, a sense of right and wrong no matter how warped, is evidence that there is some universal standard or code of conduct for humans. (Romans 2:14-15) If we accept that idea from our own conscience, we would also have to accept that fact that we have violated that code many times in our lifetime. Anyone who has corrected a child for lying has seen the idea of ‘right/wrong’ pass through their little eyes. Why would they lie? If the thing they did was of no consequence, if there was no standard written in their heart, why bother to lie? Or if the humans in their lives had no sense that there was a right/wrong why would they bother to enforce such things and create that image of failure in their child? That first lie of self-protection is just one more evidence of the innate knowledge of an unwritten code which is formed in our minds and passed on to our children. We lie because we have done something 'wrong' and desire to avoid being held accountable. Adam did it with Eve.
Different cultures have different variations, but each culture seems to realize that without a standard of behavior, which everyone fails at eventually anyway, there would be chaos. It is that code that helps us maintain order and the code that condemns some to prison or even death. If we as humans know that we need that code and recognize the inability to keep it well and the need for punishment when we fail; then why do we expect any less of our Father?
Where do we think such a thought came from? Do we believe that the laws of our country are what ensured our freedom? Heavens no! We know that many people sacrificed their lives, or parts of their lives, to take our place in battle so that we could live free. Our laws only help us to live that 'freedom' in a better environment. We are not free to do whatever we want to do, but if we choose to break the law, there are consequences. Ignorance is no excuse. There is plenty of evidence for us to become aware of the law. Thus, no one has an excuse. Just as on earth, there must be a penalty for law breakers.
Here we pay fines, lose privileges, get locked up or in severe cases are put to death. In the heavenly realms there is only one penalty, death. But, in His grace, God has provided a payment plan under His terms. We sign on the dotted line and exchange our lives, for Christ's. He in turn pays the death penalty for our sins. We know longer allow that in our culture, but in days past there was such a thing as the 'scape goat' who took the punishment for the privileged. Some of us do not like the idea of not being able to pay for our failures ourselves and keep trying to be good enough to survive. We do fine on earth, but in heaven, one broken law is the death sentence. It is 'God's Country' and He gets to set the rules there.
We set our own rules here and not a one of us has kept them perfectly. I can guarantee that each and every one of us has at some time or another broken one of the laws of the land. Petty theft, even accidentally, is a crime. Public intoxication, speeding (even just 5 over!), lying to an officer (only had 1, don't know why you pulled me over, etc) and on and on. Lawbreakers. Sometimes we get away with it on earth. Sometimes we get a warning. God is merciful enough to give us untold written warnings for our code and law violations. He gives us a whole lifetime to learn that we cannot keep the code and must find a way to pay our 'fines'.
Because we recognize the fact that we fail to keep the earthly laws, we hire law enforcement officials, lawyers and judges. We recognize our need to be policed, for without penalty there is no motivation. The Jews were saved by Faith in the fact that they failed to keep the law and needed a Messiah. I am starting to believe that all of those who die with that knowledge of failure to meet the standards set by a just Authority, a God, and are aware of their need to be redeemed by Him or suffer the penalty for law breaking, will also be in "Abraham’s bosom". Basically, they had faith in the Creator God and in their inability to be good enough for Him. I think, but cannot prove in my limited capabilities, that God will provide salvation for them as He did the Jews. People from every tribe, nation, race, color, and maybe even various creeds; but that would be a whole different topic.
It is so comforting to know that God is just. That He is faithful. That He keeps His covenant even when we don’t understand it. That He longs for all to be saved and is not being slow to judge, but rather, patient; not wanting any to perish but all to come to the knowledge that faith in the atoning sacrifice of Christ is needed to pay the “fines” for all of our lawlessness. He seems to give people many more chances than humans are willing to give each other.
If that wasn’t enough for us to try to get our minds around, James steps in to clear up the fact that just because we cannot keep laws perfectly does not mean we don’t have to follow them. Just as our obedience to the rules of the society and culture we live in demonstrates our desire to remain in that community, so our desire to obey the rules of God demonstrates our desire to live within His community on earth. If we do not acknowledge the laws of society, we pay a price and will eventually lose our privileges and our very lives as a consequence. Although we are choosing not to follow those laws, that does not mean they do not apply to us. Why are we able to see the justice in that on earth, yet not see it when the Creator applies the same principle, the one HE CREATED. The place we originally got it from.
If we choose to live by our conscience, that condemns us, because we know we have violated our own standards at times for our own reasons. If we choose to live by man's standards, we know we have violated laws and codes, if we choose to live by God's standards it is the same. The only real difference is that on earth we don't always get 'caught'. Somehow we expect God to be as incompetant as the earthly legal system. That will be our downfall. Our inability to trust that God is there, knows best and will judge. Eve was tripped up by that and she walked with Him. She still believed when a serpent said God wasn't being fully honest with her. To this day, so many are looking for that loophole. That place where they can 'be like God'.
There is no excuse for us if we reject the fact that there is a creator GOd. Romans, as well as many other verses in the Word, seems to be saying that the Universe itself, in all of its complexity, design, preciseness and predictability; testifies to the existence of a Creator. The very idea that humans have a conscience, a sense of right and wrong no matter how warped, is evidence that there is some universal standard or code of conduct for humans. (Romans 2:14-15) If we accept that idea from our own conscience, we would also have to accept that fact that we have violated that code many times in our lifetime. Anyone who has corrected a child for lying has seen the idea of ‘right/wrong’ pass through their little eyes. Why would they lie? If the thing they did was of no consequence, if there was no standard written in their heart, why bother to lie? Or if the humans in their lives had no sense that there was a right/wrong why would they bother to enforce such things and create that image of failure in their child? That first lie of self-protection is just one more evidence of the innate knowledge of an unwritten code which is formed in our minds and passed on to our children. We lie because we have done something 'wrong' and desire to avoid being held accountable. Adam did it with Eve.
Different cultures have different variations, but each culture seems to realize that without a standard of behavior, which everyone fails at eventually anyway, there would be chaos. It is that code that helps us maintain order and the code that condemns some to prison or even death. If we as humans know that we need that code and recognize the inability to keep it well and the need for punishment when we fail; then why do we expect any less of our Father?
Where do we think such a thought came from? Do we believe that the laws of our country are what ensured our freedom? Heavens no! We know that many people sacrificed their lives, or parts of their lives, to take our place in battle so that we could live free. Our laws only help us to live that 'freedom' in a better environment. We are not free to do whatever we want to do, but if we choose to break the law, there are consequences. Ignorance is no excuse. There is plenty of evidence for us to become aware of the law. Thus, no one has an excuse. Just as on earth, there must be a penalty for law breakers.
Here we pay fines, lose privileges, get locked up or in severe cases are put to death. In the heavenly realms there is only one penalty, death. But, in His grace, God has provided a payment plan under His terms. We sign on the dotted line and exchange our lives, for Christ's. He in turn pays the death penalty for our sins. We know longer allow that in our culture, but in days past there was such a thing as the 'scape goat' who took the punishment for the privileged. Some of us do not like the idea of not being able to pay for our failures ourselves and keep trying to be good enough to survive. We do fine on earth, but in heaven, one broken law is the death sentence. It is 'God's Country' and He gets to set the rules there.
We set our own rules here and not a one of us has kept them perfectly. I can guarantee that each and every one of us has at some time or another broken one of the laws of the land. Petty theft, even accidentally, is a crime. Public intoxication, speeding (even just 5 over!), lying to an officer (only had 1, don't know why you pulled me over, etc) and on and on. Lawbreakers. Sometimes we get away with it on earth. Sometimes we get a warning. God is merciful enough to give us untold written warnings for our code and law violations. He gives us a whole lifetime to learn that we cannot keep the code and must find a way to pay our 'fines'.
Because we recognize the fact that we fail to keep the earthly laws, we hire law enforcement officials, lawyers and judges. We recognize our need to be policed, for without penalty there is no motivation. The Jews were saved by Faith in the fact that they failed to keep the law and needed a Messiah. I am starting to believe that all of those who die with that knowledge of failure to meet the standards set by a just Authority, a God, and are aware of their need to be redeemed by Him or suffer the penalty for law breaking, will also be in "Abraham’s bosom". Basically, they had faith in the Creator God and in their inability to be good enough for Him. I think, but cannot prove in my limited capabilities, that God will provide salvation for them as He did the Jews. People from every tribe, nation, race, color, and maybe even various creeds; but that would be a whole different topic.
It is so comforting to know that God is just. That He is faithful. That He keeps His covenant even when we don’t understand it. That He longs for all to be saved and is not being slow to judge, but rather, patient; not wanting any to perish but all to come to the knowledge that faith in the atoning sacrifice of Christ is needed to pay the “fines” for all of our lawlessness. He seems to give people many more chances than humans are willing to give each other.
If that wasn’t enough for us to try to get our minds around, James steps in to clear up the fact that just because we cannot keep laws perfectly does not mean we don’t have to follow them. Just as our obedience to the rules of the society and culture we live in demonstrates our desire to remain in that community, so our desire to obey the rules of God demonstrates our desire to live within His community on earth. If we do not acknowledge the laws of society, we pay a price and will eventually lose our privileges and our very lives as a consequence. Although we are choosing not to follow those laws, that does not mean they do not apply to us. Why are we able to see the justice in that on earth, yet not see it when the Creator applies the same principle, the one HE CREATED. The place we originally got it from.
If we choose to live by our conscience, that condemns us, because we know we have violated our own standards at times for our own reasons. If we choose to live by man's standards, we know we have violated laws and codes, if we choose to live by God's standards it is the same. The only real difference is that on earth we don't always get 'caught'. Somehow we expect God to be as incompetant as the earthly legal system. That will be our downfall. Our inability to trust that God is there, knows best and will judge. Eve was tripped up by that and she walked with Him. She still believed when a serpent said God wasn't being fully honest with her. To this day, so many are looking for that loophole. That place where they can 'be like God'.
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