A common belief in traditional Christianity is that God is trying to save everyone now, in this age, and that this is the only day of salvation. But this is not true. Millions in the world have never had the gospel preached to them. God is not weak. He has the power to control this world as much as He wants. Jesus said that with God, all things are possible (Matthew 19:26). If God were trying to save everyone now, He would make sure everyone has had the gospel preached to them. That has not happened.
But why?
The Bible shows that everyone will have a chance to hear and understand the gospel and be saved, and helps to show why God is not trying to save everyone now, in this life.
This post will give a summary, for those who are interested, of God's plan for offering salvation to every human ever born, from Adam to this very time, not just in this age, but in the age to come. This is just a summary, and does not give every detail. I have numbered the main points for discussion.
1) Satan is the prince of the power of the air. He is king over this earth at this time. He deceives all nations and blinds mens minds. He does this through spiritually influencing mens minds, tempting them, leading them into error and sin. The whole world is deceived that way and cannot know the truth unless God intervenes and reveals it. God is stronger than Satan and Satan can only do what God allows him to do (Job 1:12, Job 2:6). But God allows Satan to do his work of deception at this time.
SEE SCRIPTURES: Ephesians 2:1-3, Isaiah 14:12-15, John 12:30-32, John 14:30-31, John 16:5-11, Revelation 12:9, 2 Corinthians 4:3-4, Matthew 4:8-9, Luke 4:5-7, Matthew 13:18-19, Deuteronomy 29:4, Isaiah 25:7, 2 Corinthians 3:12-16, Matthew 15:13-14, Matthew 23:16-22, John 12:37-41, Romans 11:7-12, Matthew 13:13-15, Isaiah 6:9-13, Romans 11:25-27, Ephesians 4:17-19, Ezekiel 28:11-16, Jeremiah 17:9-10, Romans 8:7-8, 1 Corinthians 2:6-16, Hebrews 4:1-2.
2) The term "call" can be used different ways and can mean different things, depending on the context, just like the word "law". There is a sense in which the "call" goes out to everyone who hears the message, whether they understand it or not. But when I use the word "call", I am referring to the following process, which is necessary for a person to become a true Christian and receive God's Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38-39, Romans 8:9-11), which is required for salvation:
a) The person must hear the gospel preached to him.
SEE SCRIPTURES: Romans 10:8-17, Mark 16:15-16, John 20:30-31, Acts 15:7-9, Romans 1:16-17, 1 Corinthians 4:15, 1 Corinthians 15:1-2, Ephesians 1:13-14, Colossians 1:3-8, 2 Thessalonians 2:13-14, Hebrews 4:1-2, Matthew 13:23, Luke 8:11-15, John 10:9, Acts 4:9-12, Acts 11:13-14, Acts 16:29-32, 1 Thessalonians 2:14-16, Mark 1:14-15, John 6:47, 1 John 5:9-13.
b) God must supernaturally intervene with His Holy Spirit to open that person's mind to be able to understand and accept the truth and to be able to repent, otherwise, that person will continue to be deceived by Satan and cannot know the truth. God must do this so the person is able to understand and believe the gospel and to repent of sin, the two conditions for salvation. Also, repentance is a gift from God as well as a decision a person must make. God's Spirit works with a person before conversion to open his mind to the truth and grant repentance, then once the person repents in faith and is baptized, God grants the gift of the Holy Spirit to dwell in the person.
FOR SCRIPTURES SHOWING THAT BELIEF AND REPENTANCE ARE CONDITIONS FOR SALVATION, SEE: Mark 1:14-15, John 6:47, Acts 2:38-39, 2 Peter 3:9, Acts 20:18-21, Hebrews 6:1-2
FOR SCRIPTURES SHOWING GOD MUST OPEN A PERSON'S MIND, SEE: John 6:43-44, Matthew 16:13-17, 2 Corinthians 4:3-4, Matthew 13:18-23, Deuteronomy 29:4, Isaiah 25:7, 2 Corinthians 3:12-16, Matthew 15:13-14, Matthew 23:16-22, John 12:37-41, Romans 11:7-12, Matthew 13:10-17, Isaiah 6:9-13, Romans 11:25-36, Ephesians 4:17-24, Jeremiah 17:9, Romans 8:7-8, 1 Corinthians 2:6-16, Hebrews 4:1-2, John 14:16-17, 2 Timothy 2:24-26, Ephesians 2:1-3, Acts 5:31, Acts 11:18.
3) This is how God calls a person. Then the person must of his own free will choose to believe the gospel and repent. If he chooses not to do this, once God's Spirit has opened His mind, he has rejected God's calling. He has had his one chance for salvation and rejected it.
SEE SCRIPTURES: Mark 16:15-16, John 3:18, Matthew 9:13, Acts 2:38-39, Acts 3:19-21, Ezekiel 18:1-32, Ezekiel 33:10-20, Hebrews 6:4-6, Mark 3:28-30.
4) When a person hears the gospel, God opens his mind to understand it, and he believes and repents, God can give the person His Holy Spirit to dwell in his mind and that person becomes a Christian. Then, provided the person continues to obey God and does not turn away from the truth in this life, he will live a life of obedience in faith and overcoming and enduring to the end, and when Christ returns he will be in the first resurrection and be raised to immortality. At that point, his salvation is complete. He will be with Christ forever.
SEE SCRIPTURES: Acts 2:38-39, John 14:16-17, John 16:5-13, Matthew 19:16-19, Mark 10:17-19, Luke 18:18-20, 1 Corinthians 7:19, Revelation 12:17, Revelation 14:12, Hebrews 6:4-6, Matthew 10:22, Matthew 24:13, Revelation 2:11, Revelation 2:26, Revelation 3:5, Revelation 3:12, Revelation 21:7-8, 1 Corinthians 15:20-23, 1 Corinthians 15:50-57, 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17, Revelation 20:4-6.
5) In this age of man, while Satan is deceiving the world, God only calls a few this way compared to the entire population of the world. Probably fewer than 10% of all humans who have been born on the earth have ever had the true gospel preached to them. Of those, most are still blinded even after they hear it and cannot understand it, believe it, and repent.
SEE SCRIPTURES: Luke 4:5-7, Ephesians 2:1-3, Revelation 12:9, Revelation 20:1-4, Luke 8:11-15, John 12:37-41, John 6:43-44, Matthew 7:13-14, Matthew 13:10-17
Someone once asked me, why has God not called everyone at this time, in this age?
In trying to answer why God does this or that, I have to be careful because I do not necessarily know why God does everything that He does. There are clues for some of His reasons in the Bible, and some may be discerned based on Biblical principles, but I certainly cannot explain why God does everything He has done. Many of His decisions I do not understand, but I trust Him that His decisions are always based on wisdom and love. Also, even if I might correctly understand some of His reasons, that doesn't mean I know all of them. God may have ten reasons for doing a certain thing and I may only correctly discern one or two of them.
That being said, I will share what I think are some of the reasons why God has done things this way. This is based on scripture or on general principles ("God is love" - 1 John 4:8, 16) that are found in scripture.
6) When Adam chose to turn from God's standards and make up his own standards to follow, the world as a whole began to be cut off from God and to be under the influence of Satan. God allowed this for a purpose. God wants the human race to learn lessons, that Satan's ways are wrong and harmful and lead to suffering and death, and that man, apart from God, is incapable of correctly determining right from wrong and doing what is right, and that man's ways apart from God lead to bad results. That is why there is so much suffering in this world, and that suffering and death will increase to a climax at the end of this age, as described in the book of Revelation.
SEE SCRIPTURES: Genesis 2:16-17, Genesis 3:11-12, Genesis 3:22-34, Luke 4:5-7, Ephesians 2:1-3, Revelation 12:9, Deuteronomy 28:1-68, Deuteronomy 30:15-20, Jeremiah 2:19, Matthew 24:21-22, 2 Timothy 3:1-5, 2 Timothy 3:13, Revelation chapters 6 through 19, Romans 11:25-36.
7) God's plan is for Christ to return, put Satan away in a condition of restraint so he can no longer deceive and tempt mankind, and then Christ will rule the earth for 1,000 years. This will occur in the near future, at the end of about 6,000 years since Adam. During the 1,000 years of Christ's rule, mankind will experience peace and prosperity and happiness, as described in many prophecies in the Old Testament.
SEE SCRIPTURES: Revelation 20:1-4, Daniel 12:4, Isaiah 11:1-16, Isaiah 2:1-4, Micah 4:1-8, Isaiah 25:7
8) At the end of the 1,000 years of Christ's rule over the earth, there will be a general resurrection of mankind back to physical life. Satan will no longer be around to deceive man, and Christ will be on earth to rule and teach them. It is at that time that the billions on earth who never heard the gospel, or heard and were not able to understand because Satan blinded their minds, will for the first time hear the gospel preached to them and be able to understand it. Each person can then make his or her own free choice to believe and repent, or not. Those who believe and repent will be saved and those who do not will not be saved. But they will have the advantage of being able to look back at their past lives and compare living in Satan's present world of sin and suffering with a world of happiness living God's way under the rule of Christ. They will be able to look at the history man for 6,000 years, some of it they lived through, and compare it with the history of the 1,000 years of Christ's rule and the new life they are living God's way, and that will provide a lesson for them. They can see that God's way is better.
The whole 7,000 year plan of God is a demonstration that God's way is best. It will help those who are raised in the general resurrection to make the right choice.
SEE SCRIPTURES: Ezekiel 37:1-14, Acts 10:34-35, Revelation 20:10-13, Isaiah 25:7, Deuteronomy 30:15-20, Acts 2:38-39, Ezekiel 37:14, 2 Peter 3:9, 1 Timothy 2:3-5
9) This is why God is not calling the majority now and why God is not trying to save the whole world now. He wants to let this world as a whole, except for a few, remain unconverted and living Satan's way so there can be an object lesson of the suffering that results from it for 6,000 years. Then everyone will have an opportunity to be saved.
SEE SCRIPTURES: Isaiah 6:9-13, Romans 11:25-36, John 6:43-44, Isaiah 25:7, Revelation 20:1-4, Revelation 20:4-6, Isaiah 2:1-4, Isaiah 11:1-16, Micah 4:1-8, Revelation 20:10-13, Deuteronomy 28:1-68, Deuteronomy 30:15-20, 2 Peter 3:9, 1 Timothy 2:3-5
10) The weekly cycle of six days when man does his work and a seventh day of rest when man draws closer to God in prayer, Bible study, instruction, and fellowship, in an atmosphere of peaceful rest from the burdens of working during the week, is a pattern for God's 7,000 year plan for mankind, with 6,000 years of man ruling himself under Satan's influence followed by 1,000 years of Christ's rule over the world
SEE SCRIPTURES: Exodus 20:8-11, Isaiah 58:13-14, 2 Peter 3:8, Revelation 20:2-3, Revelation 20:4-6, Daniel 12:4.
11) It is God's will that Christ will not rule alone after He returns, but will rule with the saints. So for that purpose, a small number are called and converted during the six thousand years so that they can be raised in a resurrection to immortality when Christ returns and fulfill offices of rularship under Christ. David will be king over Israel. The twelve apostles will rule over the twelve tribes. Some of the saints will rule over one city, some over ten cities, etc. Christ will be king of kings over the whole earth.
SEE SCRIPTURES: Revelation 20:4-6, Revelation 1:4-6, Revelation 14:1-5, Revelation 3:21, 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17, Ezekiel 37:24-28, Jeremiah 30:8-9, Matthew 19:28, Luke 19:15-19, Revelation 17:14.
12) God calls a person by having the gospel preached to them and by opening his mind so that he can understand and believe the gospel. He has not called everyone now during the 6,000 years of man because this is the time for the world as a whole to be unconverted and carnal so that the lesson can be written in human history that Satan's way does not work. But God in His love, wisdom, and fairness (and there is a scripture in the Bible where God does say that He is "fair") will provide the same opportunity for everyone to hear the gospel and be able to understand and believe it and be saved, either in this age or the age to come.
SEE SCRIPTURES: 1 Corinthians 4:15, 1 Corinthians 15:1-2, John 6:43-44, Matthew 7:13-14, 1 John 4:8, 1 John 4:16, 2 Peter 3:9, 1 Timothy 2:3-5, Ezekiel 18:25-29, Ezekiel 33:17-20, Acts 10:34-35.
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6 comments:
You say; “The whole world is deceived that way and cannot know the truth unless God intervenes and reveals it” . The scriptures say “According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:” I Peter 1:3.
You say; “believe the gospel and to repent of sin, the two conditions for salvation.” Then; “once the person repents in faith and is baptized, God grants the gift of the Holy Spirit to dwell in the person.” And then; “SCRIPTURES SHOWING THAT BELIEF AND REPENTANCE ARE CONDITIONS FOR SALVATION”. At least one of us is confused! What do the scriptures really say?
You say; “When a person hears the gospel, God opens his mind to understand it, . . .” but earlier you said; “God must supernaturally intervene with His Holy Spirit to open that person's mind to be able to understand and accept the truth and to be able to repent. . .” Are you certain you know what you are talking about? It is either one or the other not both!
"When a person hears the gospel, God opens his mind to understand it...".
Sorry if my wording was confusing. The "When" in this sentence refers to a list of comma separated events in rest of the sentence.
Here is the full sentence: "When a person hears the gospel, God opens his mind to understand it, and he believes and repents, God can give the person His Holy Spirit to dwell in his mind and that person becomes a Christian." The "when" is a condition that applies to: 1) the person hears the gospel, 2) God opens his mind to understand it, and 3) he believes and repents. In other words, when these three things happen, THEN God can give the Holy Spirit and that person becomes a Christian. I am talking about the main spriritual steps - it is understood that baptism is also required (we previously agreed to that) and the Bible also shows that the laying on of hands by the ministry is also required (we haven't talked about that). But those are physical rituals and God can grant exceptions, such as the case with Cornelius. The the three spiritual steps that are required are: the person hears the gospel, God helps the person understand it, and the person of his own free will chooses to believe and repent. If any of these three steps are missing, there is no conversion.
So I could have worded the sentence this way: "WHEN a person hears the gospel, and WHEN God opens his mind to understand it, and WHEN he believes and repents, THEN God can give the person His Holy Spirit to dwell in his mind and that person becomes a Christian."
All three must occur. If a person hears the gospel, but God does not give the understanding of it, then that person cannot respond. In cases when the person hears the gospel and God opens the person's mind to understand it, but the person chooses not to believe and repent, that person has rejected the salvation God has offered him.
You say "I am talking about the main spriritual steps - it is understood that baptism is also required, . . ." Is baptism not a main spiritual step? Then in the next paragraph you again say "WHEN a person hears the gospel, and WHEN God opens his mind to understand it, and WHEN he believes and repents, THEN God can give the person His Holy Spirit to dwell in his mind and that person becomes a Christian." If baptism is required aren't you remiss if you neglect to tell people?
Also you did not address the first part of my comment. Here it is again "You say; “The whole world is deceived that way and cannot know the truth unless God intervenes and reveals it” . The scriptures say “According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:” I Peter 1:3." How do you reconcile these two statements?
Baptism is not a spiritual step. It is a physical ritual, commanded by God. God can make exceptions, such as when Cornelius received the Holy Spirit before he was baptized. But Cornelius did not receive the Holy Spirit until he heard and believed the gospel Peter preached to him.
In the scripture you quote from I Peter 1:3, in the part where it says, "hath given unto us all things", the "us" refers to converted Christians, not the world as a whole.
While I do not wish to get into a discussion of the Holy Spirit at this time I will give you some scriptural instruction for your consideration.
The gift of the Holy Spirit promised in Acts 2:38 which is received as a result of our obedience is the indwelling of the Spirit. Whereas the Holy Spirit coming upon Cornelius before his obedience was the miraculous measure of the Spirit (Acts 10:44-48). Let us not confuse the two for they are distinctly different.
Again I cannot find any reference that would indicate that baptism is a ritual. It is an act of obedience in the same way as repentance. Jesus coupled it with belief (Mark 16:16) and Peter coupled it with repentance (Acts 2:38). This is undeniable!
If you think that I Peter 1:3 only applies to the Christian (such is a misapplication of an inspired truth) then what do you make of the God ordained, Spirit inspired John 20:31-31?
I am not trying to downgrade the importance of baptism by calling it a "ritual". If that is a problem for you, I won't call it a ritual anymore in this discussion. I agree that it is an act of obedience, and I agree that it is coupled with belief and repentance. When I said that it is a ritual, I basically meant it is a physical act that has a special meaning because of what it represents. I really don't think we disagree in any substantial way about baptism. Actually, if you believe there are never any exceptions to baptism being a requirement for salvation, that only supports my point that there are millions who never had a chance for salvation in this life because there are millions who never had a chance to be baptized. Baptism is a peripheral issue as far as what we are discussing here, I think.
John 20:31 is written to those who are reading the book of John and are therefore learning about Christ. Once they read or hear of the truth, if they believe it, they can be saved. This seems to support what I am saying. John wrote his book so that people might read what he wrote, and as a result, find life in Jesus Christ's name. That reinforces the principle that it is necessary to hear (or read) the gospel to believe it to be saved. Since there are millions who never had the chance to read the book of John as well as the rest of the Bible, or to read or hear these same truths some other way, they need an opportunity to do so in order to be saved. Hence, the general resurrection. In that resurrection, everyone will be able to read the book of John. That is not true of the six billion people on earth today.
1 Peter is written to brethren in the Church, not those who are unconverted in the world. Notice the first two verses which address the letter to "pilgrims of the dispersion" and "elect" and "in sanctification of the Spirit". Verse 6 says "in this you greatly rejoice", and then goes on to say that the genuineness of the faith of those Peter is addressing is being tested. He is not addressing the whole world, but those who have faith, who are rejoicing in the truth, and who are the elect. That is not everybody. When Peter says "us" he is referring to the Church.
I think you have something in mind when you refer to John 20:31 in connection with 1 Peter, but I am not getting what you are driving at.
I re-reading what I just wrote, I realize I need to clarify something. 1 Peter 1:3 only appies to the Church now. The statement, "given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness", the "us" who have been given this is the Church, that is, Christians. But it will apply to everyone else when they come into the Church, or if you prefer, become Christians, in the general resurrection. So as far as the hundreds of millions in China and India who have never heard the gospel are concerned, they have not yet been given all things that pertain to life. But they will! They will be given all things that pertain to life WHEN they hear the gospel, believe, repent, and are baptized after the general resurrection. But those who hear the gospel and knowingly reject it will never receive it. Christians in this life have already made their choice, and have been given all things that pertain to life as Peter wrote. Those in the general resurrection will have their chance and will be given all things that pertain to life, IF they make the right choice to believe, repent, and be baptized.
So the gift of "all things that pertain unto life" is a gift intended by God for everyone in the world, but there are conditions to receiving it, namely, belief, repentance, and baptism, and each person receives the gift only when and if he believes, repents, and is baptized.
That choice has been made by many in this life today and will be made by many more in the general resurrection.
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