Who then will be saved? | Dreaming Beneath the Spires
Romans 2 Blog Through the Bible Project
Romans 2:5 But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed. 6 God “will repay each person according to what they have done.” 7 To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. 8But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger. 9 There will be trouble and distress for every human being who does evil: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile; 10 but glory, honor and peace for everyone who does good: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. 11 For God does not show favoritism.
12 All who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law. 13 For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous in God’s sight, but it is those who obey the law who will be declared righteous. 14 (Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law. 15 They show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts sometimes accusing them and at other times even defending them.) 16 This will take place on the day when God judges people’s secrets through Jesus Christ, as my gospel declares.
I have known smug Christians who are convinced that they are going to heaven because they have their theological boxes ticked, because they believe the right things about Christ, whereas those who far excel them in mercy, justice and kindness are going to hell, because they do not believe in Christ.
What kind of justice is that? Not God’s.
Here Paul has a statement which is at odds with smug parochialism.
I cannot do better than quote it.
6 God “will repay each person according to what they have done.”
7 To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life.
8But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger
9 There will be trouble and distress for every human being who does evil: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile;
10 but glory, honor and peace for everyone who does good: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile
11 For God does not show favoritism.
12 All who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law.
13 For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous in God’s sight, but it is those who obey the law who will be declared righteous.
14 (Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law
. 15 They show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts sometimes accusing them and at other times even defending them.)
16 This will take place on the day when God judges people’s secrets through Jesus Christ, as my gospel declares.
God looks at people’s hearts and lives, not just their creeds.
Those whose profession of faith is letter-perfect, but whose heart and life belies their faith may have a few surprises coming.
Similarly, those who have what Tertullian called an anima naturaliter Christiana, a “naturally Christian soul,” who have been kind, generous, merciful, compassionate, unselfish, sacrificial, have behaved like men fashioned in the image of God, might have a few pleasant surprises in store.
And for Mr and Mrs Average–not too bad, not too good? I believe mercy will rule.
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I do believe in standard reformed theology–that I am grafted into Christ, that when God sees me he sees Christ, that he accepts me because Christ paid the punishment for my sins on the cross.
However, I also believe that all the gentle kind Buddhists and Hindus and Muslims and Jews who believe what they have been taught will also find mercy because of the content of their lives and characters.
* * *
C.S. Lewis has a scene in The Last Battle in which though who were taught to worship Tash, but whose life had a nobility and purity that resembled the followers of Aslan in fact enter with Aslan into Aslan’s Own Country.
I believe that too.
Emeth the Calormene, the Tash-worshipper went through the stable door and was accepted by Aslan. Aslan explains that he and the vile god Tash have nothing in common. “We are opposites.” Yet Aslan accepted Emeth because “no service which is vile can be done to me and none, which is not vile, can be done to him.”
Emeth continues,
“Then he breathed upon me and took away the trembling from my limbs and caused me to stand upon my feet. And after that, he said not much, but that we should meet again, and I must go further up and further in. Then he turned him about in a storm and flurry of gold and was gone suddenly.
“And since then, O Kings and Ladies, I have been wandering to find him and my happiness is so great it even weakens me like a wound. And this is the marvel of marvels, that he called me Beloved, me who am but a dog – ” (p.155)
I posted this passage with some misgivings on my Read through the Blog and was not entirely surprised to receive three reproving comments.
Here was my response
Hi, I agree, God would not have sent Jesus to die that horrific death–nor would Jesus have voluntarily endured it– if there was any other way that man could be reconciled with God.
However, Jesus tells us that he will say, “I never knew you,” to people who worked miracles in his name, and also Matt. 25, that he will say, “Come, you who are blessed by my father, enter in” to those who think they have never known him, but have been kind to numerous people they have encountered.
While I believe in hell, I simply cannot believe that people are condemned to hell because they have not believed in Christ. Christ himself did not say that.
Acts 10: 34 Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism 35 but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right.
Romans 2:6 6 God “will repay each person according to what they have done.” 7 To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. 8 But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger. 9 There will be trouble and distress for every human being who does evil: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile; 10 but glory, honor and peace for everyone who does good: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. 11 For God does not show favoritism.”
I am aware that on this point alone I diverge from the standard evangelical interpretation of these Scripture–and on this point, I have always diverged from it.
I simply cannot believe that God will condemn the many kind, gentle, lovely people I have met on my travels who have never heard about Christ to torment.
Christ’s sacrifice on the cross could well have been more all-encompassing and all-sufficient than we realize.
I have to add that I am no theologian, however 🙂
