"How shall we escape, If we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him; God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?", (Hebrews 2:3-4).
Can there be any exceptions to the New Testament plan of salvation we have studied in this book? This chapter will analyze some proposed exceptions in the light of Scripture.
At the outset, we must establish some basic principles to guide our discussion:
(1) God alone will judge the salvation of each person (Romans 2:16; Hebrews 12:23). No human being can condemn a soul to hell or guarantee him a place in heaven, for salvation is a matter between the individual and God.
The Lord taught us not to judge each other, but to judge ourselves and leave the judgment of others to God (Matthew 7:1-5; Luke 6:37). Jesus did not come to condemn the world but to offer salvation (John 3:17), and we should do likewise. We should proclaim the gospel, encourage obedience to it, and warn of the biblically prescribed consequences for disobedience, but the final results rest in God's hands.
We should not be quick to reject those who reverence the name of Christ, but who apparently do not have the fulness of truth. The disciples rebuked a man who cast out devils in Jesus' name because he was not part of them, but Jesus said, "Forbid him not: for there is no man which shall do a miracle in my name, that can lightly speak evil of me. For he that is not against us is on our part" (Mark 9:39-40). People such as these are not necessarily saved (Matthew 7:21-23), but they may still help to spread the Word of God and the name of Jesus (Philippians 1:15-18). Instead of opposing them, we should be thankful for what good they do and endeavor to lead them to more truth. If we preach the full gospel in a positive way, the truth will speak for itself and be its own defense.
(2) God is sovereign in His bestowal of mercy. He said, "I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion" (Romans 9:15). Nevertheless, He has voluntarily chosen a plan of salvation and will abide by it; He has clearly established the conditions upon which He will grant mercy. Paul first taught God's sovereignty in salvation (Romans 9:14-24), but then explained that God will grant salvation to everyone who believes on Jesus, confesses Him as Lord, calls upon His name, and obeys His gospel (Romans 10:9-17).
(3) The Bible is the sole authority for doctrine and instruction in salvation. Jesus told the Jews, "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life" (John 5:39-40). He did not rebuke their reliance on the Scriptures to find eternal life, but their refusal to believe on Him for eternal life when the Scriptures pointed so clearly to Him.
The Bible contains the only gospel we can preach. Paul stated, "But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed" (Galatians 1:8-9).
All true doctrine must rest upon the Bible. "The holy scriptures… are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works" (II Timothy 3:15-17).
We cannot impose demands that the Bible does not support, nor can we make exceptions that the Bible does not grant. Precisely because God is sovereign in granting salvation, we must limit ourselves to the clear teaching of Scripture. If God has plans that go beyond what He has revealed to us in the Bible, that is His prerogative, but we have authority only to teach the plan God gave to us in the Scriptures. We have no right to offer false or uncertain hopes based on wishful thinking, speculations, reasoning, philosophy, or doubtful interpretations of difficult passages. We cannot make exceptions for situations that arise from failure to follow biblical teachings and examples.
(4) We must not formulate doctrinal teaching on the basis of unusual or hypothetical situations. Human sympathy may sway us, but if we try to establish any exception we undercut the authority of God's Word. For example, God could have chosen to remit sins without water baptism, but we exceed our authority if we assert that He will or list circumstances under which He will. If we make an exception for one who was not baptized, then logically speaking baptism is not necessary for anyone.
By playing judge in this manner we will encourage disobedience or a casual approach to the Word of God. God alone is qualified to be Judge, and as such He will apply general principles to specific facts in order to reach a fair and legally correct decision. We should obey the full gospel to the utmost of our understanding and capacity encourage everyone else to do the same, and leave eternal judgment to God.
(5) God is the most loving, merciful, and just Judge anyone could have. His love, mercy, and sense of fairness are perfect, while ours are not: "For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations" (Psalm 100:5); "Great and marvelous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints" (Revelation 15:3). When it comes to salvation, our concept of justice is faulty, because no one deserves salvation. Only God has the right to grant mercy. Only He knows what is fair in each situation because only He has perfect knowledge. Only He knows the condition of the heart, the opportunities of the past, arid what an individual will do if given future opportunities.
(6) We cannot compromise God's plan because only a few follow it. "For what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect? God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar" (Romans 3:3-4). Jesus said, "Strait [small]] is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it" (Matthew 7:14). Someone asked Him, "Lord, are there few that be saved?" (Luke 13:23). He replied, "Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able" (Luke 13:24).
In Noah's day God saved only eight souls out of the entire world because only they believed Him and obeyed His plan. In the first century, almost all of God's chosen people (Israel) rejected His plan, prompting Paul's statement in Romans. Almost all the religious leaders and religious community rejected the gospel. Should we be surprised if the same is true today?
Applying these principles, let us investigate the possibility of an exception for those who have never heard the gospel.
No one can inherit eternal life outside the gospel of Jesus Christ: "Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God" (John 3:5). Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me" (John 14:6). He also said, "If ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins" (John 8:24). Paul wrote, "And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power" (II Thessalonians 1:7-9).
Even those who have never heard the gospel have a sufficient witness of God in His creation: "Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse" (Romans 1:19-20). God holds everyone accountable to glorify Him as God and to be thankful to Him (Romans 1:21).
God has also given a conscience to all. The heathen may not have full knowledge of God's will, but they have enough conscience that (1) if they follow it God will lead them farther into His will and (2) if they do not follow it they will be condemned. Everyone knows some things are morally wrong and that the proper penalty for these sins is death (Romans 1:32). Those who had the Law of Moses will be judged by it, and those who did not will be judged by the law of conscience (Romans 2:12-16). This does not mean anyone will be saved on the basis of conscience alone, because no one has ever lived up to the minimum demands of conscience. Everyone has transgressed at least once (Romans 3:10, 23). No one will be saved by works, or by adherence to law, including the law of conscience (Romans 3:20; Ephesians 2:8-9). Conscience then, will serve as a just basis for condemnation, not as a basis for salvation outside of Jesus Christ.
If someone sincerely attempts to follow conscience and diligently seeks after God, we believe He will reveal enough truth to him so that he can be saved. God "is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him" (Hebrews 11:6). He will always honor a broken and contrite heart (Psalm 34:18; 51:17), and He always reveals Himself to the seeker (I Chronicles 28:9; Jeremiah 29:13-14; Matthew 7:7).
God does not save outside of truth; it is God's will for "all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth" (I Timothy 2:4). Cornelius is a good example. He was a devout man who feared God, gave alms to the poor, and prayed to God constantly (Acts 10:1-2). In short, he did everything within his power to seek, worship, and obey God. His actions became a memorial before God, and as a result God sent an angel to him (Acts 10:3-6). The angel did not design a special plan of salvation for him or preach the gospel to him, but the angel gave him instructions so that he could find a preacher of the gospel. Cornelius was not already saved, for the angel told him, "Call for Simon, whose surname is Peter; who shall tell thee words, whereby thou and all thy house shall be saved" (Acts 11:13-14).
There was a woman in Seoul, Korea, whose mother was a shamaness (witch doctor). The mother's superstitious practices and constant communication with evil spirits caused the daughter to become so depressed that she attempted suicide. While near death she had a vision of two Americans. She recovered, and one day she passed by the First Pentecostal Church. Attracted by the noise of worship, she looked inside and saw the two American faces that had appeared in her vision. They were Elton and Loretta Bernard, the founders of the church. As a result of this miracle, the young woman began attending services, repented from her sins, was baptized in Jesus' name, received the Holy Ghost, and eventually won her mother to the Lord. She had known nothing of the gospel of Jesus Christ, but God apparently saw a longing in her heart for more than superstition and saw a sincere desire to worship Him. As a result, He led her to the truth.
If the heathen are saved without the gospel, then Christ's death was unnecessary and Christ's command to preach the gospel to every creature was a mistake. If the heathen are saved before hearing the gospel, then missionaries actually cause saved people to be damned, because many reject the gospel when they do hear it. In this case, Christ's commission would actually cause more people to be lost, contrary to God's stated will (II Peter 3:9).
Paul said, "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? … So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God" (Romans 10:13-15, 17). The truth is that all men are lost until they hear, believe, and obey the gospel of Jesus Christ.
God is not unfair to base salvation totally upon the gospel, for everyone deserves to be lost. God was not responsible for man's sin and had no obligation to design a plan of salvation. Since salvation is by His grace, He can offer it on His own terms. Furthermore, God is not to blame that many people do not know about Him. Beginning with Adam and again with Noah, God revealed His will to all humanity. In our age He has commissioned the church to bring the gospel to everyone. It is not God's fault that men have repeatedly failed to transmit the knowledge of God to their descendants and to their fellow men. God is more than fair - He is gracious - to give every man a witness of Himself through creation and conscience.
No one is righteous in himself, no one is good in God's sight, all are sinners, and no one will be saved on the basis of his good works (Romans 3:10-12, 23, 27-28; Ephesians 2:8-9). One sin is enough to condemn the soul, and no matter how good a person may be, without God he is still a sinner. No one can earn salvation; it is a free gift of God and must be received on God's terms, which include faith in Christ and obedience to His gospel. No matter how morally a person attempts to live, if he does not follow God's plan he cannot be saved.
Morality and good works are not the determinants of salvation, for there have been Moslems, Jews, Buddhists, Hindus, and others who have rejected Christ but who have manifested morality and good works equal to or greater than that of many professing Christians. No doubt many of the Jews who rejected Jesus were highly moral, obeying the Law of Moses in every detail. Paul was blameless as far as the righteousness of the Law, but he still needed a conversion (Philippians 3:5-7).
Sincerity is not enough either, for false religionists, Communists, atheists, and others are often highly sincere in their beliefs. It is absolutely necessary to worship God both in spirit and in truth (John 4:24). God demands obedience above sacrifice (I Samuel 15:22), and no one will be saved who does not obey the gospel, regardless of sacrifice.
Only God sees the heart of a man and knows what he is truly like (Jeremiah 17:9-10). We must not make exceptions for those who seem to deserve salvation based on their goodness as perceived by faulty human judgment.
Sincere profession based on a faulty concept of Christ is not enough; one must believe and obey the gospel. False prophets and cultists profess Christ, but they are not saved. According to Jesus, some people will sincerely profess Him, believe that they are saved, and even profess to perform miracles in His name, but they will not be saved because they did not obey His Word (Matthew 7:21-27). Many will profess to know Him and even to have enjoyed His presence but will not be saved (Luke 13:25-27).
Where does this leave those who have a certain degree of faith in Christ but have not obeyed the full gospel? We must recognize that they have responded to God's Word in some measure and that God has dealt with them. God seeks to lead them to the full truth, and if they continue to follow His Word and Spirit they will be saved. We must not belittle any genuine experience with God they may have. These people have begun to follow God's Word, but at this point in their experience they are not apostolic believers; they have not been born again of water and the Spirit according to John 3:5 and Acts 2:38.
Apollos is a biblical example of someone in this situation (Acts 18:24-28). He was an eloquent man, mighty in the Scriptures, instructed in the way of the Lord, and fervent in the spirit. He taught diligently the things of the Lord and spoke boldly in the synagogue, but he knew only the baptism of John. When Aquila and Priscilla heard him, they took him aside and expounded the way of God unto him more perfectly. Apparently, they taught him baptism in the name of Jesus Christ and the baptism of the Holy Ghost, because that is what Paul taught twelve other disciples of John in the very next chapter.
From this account, we see that someone may have a deep knowledge of the Scriptures, a powerful ministry, and a spiritual fervency and still not be born again. Basically such people are pre-Pentecost believers, not part of the apostolic church. Despite their valid religious experience with God, they need to be led to further truth.
Perhaps one way to describe their position is to say they are in the conception stage and have not yet had the new birth. Pioneer Pentecostal leaders such as A. D. Urshan and G. T. Haywood used this analogy. [246] The Word has been planted and conception has taken place as a result (Luke 8:11; I Peter 1:23), but the actual birth has not yet occurred. They are in the formative stages of being a Christian and need to be led to the fulness of truth so they can have a normal, healthy birth.
The Bible reveals only one plan of salvation for the entire New Testament church age, and the Bible has been available throughout church history. Historical accounts from the early post-apostolic age have also been available to later generations, and they confirm the apostolic message of baptism in Jesus' name and the baptism of the Holy Ghost with tongues. Furthermore, it appears that these doctrines have existed throughout church history. [247]
We do not know everything about the spiritual lives of important church leaders during the Reformation period. Some possibly received the Holy Ghost and spoke in tongues without fully comprehending the significance of this experience. In many cases there is evidence that certain Protestant leaders were aware of key apostolic doctrines. For example, during the Reformation a noted Spanish physician named Michael Servetus proclaimed the oneness of God, the full deity of Jesus, and the need for rebaptism. Luther, Zwingli, and Calvin all knew of his doctrine. In particular, Luther was aware of a controversy over the Jesus Name baptismal formula. Speaking in tongues occurred among early Anabaptists and the Reformers could have heard of this experience. Luther definitely knew of the "enthusiasts," a group that emphasized the moving of the Spirit and communication with God through prophecy and inspiration (probably including tongues and interpretation). They opposed Luther as being a man of letter only; in turn Luther and the Lutheran Formula of Concord (1577) rejected them. [248] Apparently, then, the Reformers were exposed to at least some apostolic doctrines.
The Reformers certainly were not infallible doctrinally, for they held such false doctrines as predestination of the individual soul, infant baptism, sprinkling, and the trinity. Neither were they always noble examples of Christian principles. Luther condoned and even recommended that a certain German ruler practice bigamy, believed that all Anabaptists were heretics and endorsed their execution, questioned the value of the Book of James and called it "an epistle of straw," endorsed violent persecution of the Jews, and strongly supported the German feudal princes in crushing peasant revolts. [249] He wrote a tract condemning the peasant revolts, entitled "Against the Murderous and Thieving Hordes of Peasants," which said, "Let everyone who can, smite, slay, and stab" them. [250] Zwingli died in battle attempting to extend Protestant rule to Catholic portions of his native Switzerland. [251] Calvin consented to the execution of Servetus, allowing him to be burned at the stake near Geneva. [252]
The basic noble character of these men and their significant contributions to church history are well documented, but it is equally true that none of them were perfect or infallible.
We cannot make special exceptions based on personal courage, zeal, or insight into certain areas of Scripture. Many people have demonstrated courage, zeal, determination, and sacrifice for false religions, politics, and nationalism. Many have been persecuted, cruelly tortured, and martyred for the sake of Judaism, Buddhism, Islam, Communism, revolutionary causes, and anarchism. Many heretics and cultists have suffered because of their profession of Christ. Men have lived and died for noble causes and even for causes important to God, such as democracy, freedom of religion, belief in Jehovah, and belief in the Bible. However, none of these people were saved because of their suffering or sacrifice. Under no circumstances should we allow the life of a pious ancestor or a noble leader in church history to dissuade us from believing, obeying, and proclaiming what we know to be God's will today.
All other schemes and speculations concerning salvation for those who do not experience the new birth are outside the boundaries of Scripture and must be treated as such.
Some people, including Mormons and Jehovah's Witnesses, teach the possibility of a chance to be saved after death, at least for those who did not have a "full" opportunity in this life. These theories may be interesting to speculate upon, but the Bible does not give us the authority to preach them as gospel. The Bible nowhere teaches the doctrine of a chance to accept the gospel after this earthly life is over, but if anything, it indicates there is no such chance: "It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment" (Hebrews 9:27); "Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that be in the graves shall hear his [the Son's] voice, And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation" (John 5:25-29); "And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works" (Revelation 20:13).
Two passages have been used to support the doctrine of a second chance. One is Paul's allusion to baptism for the dead (I Corinthians 15:29), which was explored in Chapter 6 - Water Baptism. The other passage states that the Spirit of Christ preached to spirits in prison who were disobedient in Noah's day (I Peter 3:15-20). Here are some alternative explanations for this verse: (1) The Spirit of Christ preached in Noah's day through Noah to those who are now in prison. The wording and tense of I Peter 4:6 support this interpretation. (2) The Spirit of Christ went to the underworld while His body lay in the tomb and announced His victory over death to the fallen angels in prison (II Peter 2:4) or to all the satanic forces. (3) The Spirit of Christ made this announcement to human spirits in the underworld but did not offer anyone a second chance to be saved.
The last two explanations receive support from the Greek word translated "preached," which is not the usual word euangelizo meaning to preach the good news of salvation, but kerusso, meaning to proclaim as information. Both explanations fit in well with the doctrine of Christ's descent into hell (hades), when He won the keys of hell and death and led captivity captive (Acts 2:25-32; Romans 10:7; Ephesians 4:8-10; Revelation 1:18).
Instead of teaching salvation today without the new birth, some hold that one can be born again with less than full conformity to the apostolic pattern. For support of this concept they point to examples in which God saved people within His plan for their day, but fulfilled His plan in an unconventional or unexpected way. Old Testament examples are Jethro, Balaam, and Nineveh. Also, the thief on the cross was saved under the Law, but with Jesus being his priest and sacrifice. This shows that God has the liberty to fulfill His plan in His own way, but we must not make too much of this example since it occurred in a unique situation and time period.
There are two possibilities raised with respect to New Testament salvation: (1) Some could be born of the Spirit without the sign of tongues because they did not know about it or did not understand it and so did not have faith for it. (2) Some could be born of water without orally uttering the name Jesus at baptism because they never heard it taught or did not understand it. This presupposes that at baptism they had genuine faith in Jesus as Savior and understood practically (if not theologically) that He is the fulness of the Godhead.
Although these arguments seem more logical and internally consistent, there are at least two serious difficulties: (1) The Bible itself teaches the complete apostolic experience without alluding to exceptions; (2) Throughout church history and today many sincere people have received the Holy Ghost with the evidence of tongues, including many who were not expecting tongues, and many have been baptized in the name of Jesus who had never heard anyone teach baptism in Jesus' name. In view of these difficulties, our clear responsibility is to receive and proclaim the complete apostolic experience, expecting to see the apostolic pattern repeated exactly.
Our discussion has not treated the case of children who die before they are old enough consciously to believe God and repent from sin, nor has it dealt with the mentally incompetent. Several views have been proposed:
(1) They cannot go to heaven due to their sinful natures (Psalm 51:5; Romans 5:12-21). This presupposes that the sinful nature includes not only a compulsion to sin but also an inherited guilt apart from personal acts. Roman Catholics hold this view, teaching infants must be baptized to wash away original sin. They have invented a nonbiblical place for unbaptized infants, called limbo, where there is neither pleasure nor pain.
(2) They will go to heaven. Jesus used little children as examples to illustrate the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 18:1-10; 19:14); perhaps this implies they are part of the kingdom. This view presupposes that based on Christ's atonement God will automatically eliminate their sinful nature.
(3) They will be resurrected in the Millennium and given an opportunity to accept or reject salvation. Jehovah's Witnesses teach this, but there is no biblical support.
(4) God will judge infants based on His foreknowledge of what they would have done had they lived. This raises unanswerable questions about the freedom of the will and the factors contributing to an individual's decision.
(5) An infant's salvation is determined by that of his parents. The problem here is that God would condemn some infants because of their parents' sin and their own inability to believe. There are Old Testament examples in which children suffered because of their parents' sin, such as in the Flood. This does not necessarily mean those children were eternally damned, but simply demonstrates that children often suffer in this life as a result of their parents' actions.
First Corinthians 7:14 states that an unbelieving spouse is sanctified (separated) by a believing spouse and the children of that union are made holy (separated from the world to God). If this refers to salvation, arguably the unbelieving spouse and adult children are included. It seems clear, however, that it alludes to the godly influence that believers have on their families, which certainly may be a powerful factor in leading them to salvation.
We conclude that the Bible simply does not say what happens to infants and the mentally incompetent. This is not surprising, for the Bible is a very practical book and addresses only those who are able to respond. Perhaps the Bible does not address this subject because God does not want us to withhold the gospel from any age group. The Bible teaches us to train children in the ways of the Lord (Proverbs 22:6), and we should do this from the earliest ages. God fills even small children with His Spirit; members of families have been filled at ages 6, 7, 9, and 10. The Bible specifies no age limitation, perhaps because the age of accountability may vary considerably depending on the individual child's rate of development, capabilities, and training.
The lack of clear teaching regarding infants and the mentally incompetent should not disturb us. We should have faith in God, believing that He has a gracious plan for them even as He does for us. Having experienced God's grace, mercy, and love in our own lives, we can entrust them into His care without reservation.
The Bible indicates that sinners will suffer differing degrees of punishment based on the knowledge and opportunity they had on earth. This does not minimize, however, the reality of punishment that all sinners will have or the greatness of the salvation that they will forfeit. It may help us understand the justice of God a little better, and encourage us not to make exceptions to the gospel out of sympathy for those who seem to deserve punishment less than others. God will fairly evaluate every sinner's degree of responsibility and will mete out punishment accordingly. The Bible does not explain exactly how God will implement this principle, but the following passages teach it:
(1) Jesus taught, "For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required" (Luke 12:48). By way of illustration, He told a parable about a master who unexpectedly returned to his possession. The servant who knew his lord's will but did not follow it was beaten with many stripes, while the servant who did not fully comprehend what his lord required but also committed deeds worthy of punishment received few stripes (Luke 12:42-48).
(2) Hypocrites will receive a greater damnation than others (Mark 12:38-40).
(3) Backsliders will be punished more severely than if they had never known the truth (Matthew 12:43-45; II Peter 2:20-22).
(4) The saints, who are saved by faith, will receive rewards according to their good works (I Corinthians 3:11-15). If the same principle applies to sinners, they will be punished according to their works.
(5) Everyone will be judged according to his works as evaluated by the knowledge available to him (Romans 2:6,11-16). No one will be saved outside the gospel, but sinners who followed the law of conscience in certain areas will be excused in those areas, while those who transgressed will be punished (Romans 2:14-15). This distinction has meaning only if there are different levels of punishment.
(6) If any man does a good deed for the gospel or for a Christian, he will not lose his reward under any circumstances (Matthew 10:40-42; Mark 9:41). Possibly, some unsaved people will not receive their full reward in this life but will somehow reap benefits in the life to come.
The Bible does not teach any exceptions to the simple new-birth message, which is repentance from sin, water baptism in the name of Jesus, and the baptism of the Holy Ghost. We should not teach extra-biblical theories and speculations as revealed truth, but we should base all doctrine solely on the clear teaching of God's Word. God will save anyone who sincerely seeks truth with his whole heart and places complete faith in Jesus Christ.
We should preach the full gospel, which includes Acts 2:38 as the norm for the new birth.