WILL ALL NON-CHRISTIANS GO TO HELL?
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR: Fulfilling Prophecy
1. Harry and his neighbor Joe often borrowed things from each other. One day, Harry asked to borrow Joe’s ladder. Joe said, “Sorry Harry, I’ve lent it to my son.”
2. Remembering a saying that his grandma often used to tell him, Harry said, "Joe, you should never lend anything to your children because you'll never get it back."
3. Joe replied, "Don’t worry, it’s not my ladder. It's my dad's."
B. RELIGIOUS EXCLUSIVISM & THESIS
1. First, let it be known that “religious exclusivism” - the belief that one’s own religion is true and following it is necessary to go to heaven – is practiced by every major world religion, not just Christians (see Wikipedia).
2. The media always slants its stories to make Christian’s appear to be bigots, racists, dogmatic, etc. It’s the spirit of the world which opposes God’s Spirit.
3. The truth is that all religions have exclusive views -- believing theirs is the only true religion and that all outside are not going to their heaven.
4. All religions can’t be right; only one can be. All of them except Christianity are based on works. Paul said, “By the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.”
5. It doesn’t matter how sincere you are or how hard you work, if you’re wrong you’re still wrong. God is the One who’s chosen the price of our justification. No other price will do.
6. The title of tonight’s message is “WILL ALL NON-CHRISTIANS GO TO HELL?”
I. OUR PROBLEM: SIN
A. ALL CAN’T GO TO HEAVEN
1. The Bible’s very clear that everyone has sinned (Rom. 3:23), that the penalty of sin is spiritual death (Rom. 6:23), and that the whole human race is condemned before God (Rom. 5:18).
2. Even one sin makes us unworthy of heaven (James 2:10).
B. THAT’S WHY JESUS DIED FOR YOU
The Good News is, that’s why Jesus came and died for us on the cross; there was no other way for us to be saved from sin.
C. HUMOR: QUALIFICATIONS FOR TRUST
1. A young lady was sunbathing on the beach when a little boy in his swimming trunks, carrying a towel, came up to her and asked her, "Do you believe in God?"
2. She was surprised by the question but she replied, "Why, yes, I do." Then he asked her: "Do you go to church every Sunday?" Again, her answer was "Yes!"
3. He then asked: "Do you read your Bible and pray every day?" Again she said, "Yes!" By now her curiosity was very much aroused.
4. The little lad sighed with relief and said, "Will you hold my money while I go swimming?"
II. WHAT ABOUT THE PEOPLE IN THE OLD TESTAMENT? How could they be saved before Christ?
A. O.T. PEOPLE BELIEVED IN CHRIST
1. In Romans 4, Paul proves that salvation was always through "justification by faith," whether during the N.T. or O.T. times.
2. Even O.T. persons were justified by their faith in Christ. To Adam and Eve was made the promise of the SEED (Gen. 3:15) which Paul said was Christ (Gal. 3:16).
3. Noah knew of Christ (1 Pet. 3:20-21), as did Abraham (John 8:58), Isaac (Gen. 22:2,8), Jacob (Gen. 49:10), Moses (Deut. 18:18), David (Acts 2:25), all the prophets (Lk. 24:44) and the whole nation of Israel under Moses (1 Cor. 10:4).
4. All the people of the O.T. were saved by putting faith in the Christ of the future, just as we do the Christ of the past.
B. WHY GOD CHOSE THE ISRAELITES [HUMOR]
Here is why God gave the Jews the Ten Commandments.
1. God first went to the Egyptians and asked them if they would like a commandment. "What kind of commandment?" they asked. "THOU SHALT NOT COMMIT ADULTERY," replied God. The Egyptians said, "No way. That would ruin our weekends."
2. So then God went to the Syrians and asked them if they would like a commandment. "What commandment?" God said, “THOU SHALT NOT STEAL." The Syrians replied, "No way. That would ruin our economy."
3. So finally God went to the Jews and asked them if they wanted a commandment. "How much will you charge for it?" God said, "They're free."
4. The Jews said, "OK. We'll take ten!"
III. BEING TRUE TO THE WORD OF GOD
A. CRATERING TO “UNITY” PRESSURE
1. The world community has put pressure on the world religions to give up their exclusive teachings. Some Protestants and Catholics have bowed to this pressure.
2. The Catholic Church’s Vatican Council II yielded to this, saying that some could be saved without Christ:
3. “They also can attain to everlasting salvation who through no fault of their own do not know the Gospel of Christ or His church, yet sincerely seek God, and moved by grace, strive by their deeds to do His will as it is known to them through the dictates of conscience.”
4. Some Protestant denominations have said similar things. This teaching sounds good, but it doesn’t reflect what God’s Word says. It also makes their salvation rest on their works, which won’t work.
B. WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS
1. The Lord Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” Jn. 14:6.
2. Peter said; “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved” Acts 4:12.
3. John 3:36 says, “He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on Him.”
4. Paul said, “I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!” Gal. 2:21.
5. If there was any other way, as Paul said, then Christ died in vain! The Bible is very clear -- only through Jesus Christ can a person be saved from sin.
6. Further, salvation is not simply a decree of God, but it’s something to be experienced now in the human spirit. 7. The Bible teaches that our spirits are "dead in sins and trespasses" and must be “quickened together with Christ” to be made alive (Eph. 2:5).
8. Peter said we must be “partakers of the divine nature” (1 Pet. 1:4); Paul said we must experience “regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit” (Titus 3:5); the Lord Jesus said we must be “born again” of the Spirit (John 3:3,5).
9. Spiritual union with Christ IS eternal life (1 Jn. 5:11-12). Without Christ there is no eternal life.
IV. ARE ALL WHO’VE NOT HEARD THE GOSPEL AUTOMATICALLY GOING TO HELL?
Not so! Consider the following:
A. MANY RECEIVE SPECIAL REVELATION
1. Jesus said, “Everyone who listens to the Father and learns from Him comes to Me” Jn. 6:45. Jesus said that all who really seek the true God will be given a revelation of Jesus Christ.
2. That is what happened to Abraham and has happened to many sincere seekers, including many Muslims around the world (see www.cbn.com/tv/1422238422001).
B. MINIMUM OF KNOWLEDGE IS NECESSARY
The thief on the cross by Jesus was saved, though he didn’t pray the ‘sinner’s prayer.’
C. PREMATURE DEATHS & DISABILITIES
1. Records show that as many as 30% of English children (chnm.gmu.edu/cyh/teaching-modules/166) in the 1800’s died before the age of 15.
2. The “Age of Accountability” is the Biblical concept that children are innocent (Luke 18:15-17) of committing sin until they reach a certain level of maturity, which might be as high as 12.
3. According to Isa. 7:15 & Deut. 1:39, children are not accountable for sin until they’re old enough to know right from wrong and choose to sin. Until then there is no commission of sin (Rom. 7:9).
4. If the mortality rate of 30% of children was universal in history, then up to 30% of all the people who never heard the Gospel about Christ automatically went to heaven! The same would be true of all those born with mental disabilities.
D. GOD IS A JUST & MERCIFUL GOD
1. Not to give undue or false hope here, the Bible clearly shows that God is a loving and merciful God (Jer. 31:3). He wants all men to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth (1 Tim. 2:4).
2. The fact that God gave His most treasured possession -- His Son -- to die a terrible death on the cross so that we could go to heaven, demonstrates in the most graphic terms God’s desire for us to be saved.
3. With this in mind, we can trust His good intentions and that He will do everything else possible to make sure every person who's ever lived, if there's any good in them, will make it home to heaven.
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION
1. Hayden Carlo, 25, of N.Y. was pulled over by Plano police because he had an expired registration. He told the police officer that he was struggling financially.
2. He said he had to choose between updating his registration and feeding his kids. Carlo said he didn't have an excuse for the expired registration except he couldn't afford a new one.
3. The police officer then handed the driver a citation, but when Carlo unfolded the paper, he found a crisp $100 bill tucked inside.
4. He said when he discovered it, he "broke down" in his car. Carlo took the money and updated both his and his wife's registration with the money.
5. The charitable act would have gone unnoticed, except Carlo's grandfather was moved to contact the department about the gesture. It was picked up on Foxnews 12/18/12.
B. THE CALL
1. That’s what God did; He gave us the ticket for our sin, but He also paid the penalty, and like Carlo, what God gave to us far exceeds what had to be paid.
2. The truth is, not one of us will get to heaven without the blood of Christ applied to our lives.
3. Have you accepted the death of Jesus as payment for your sins? Don’t wait another hour, It would be terrible to be so close to heaven and miss it.
4. Prayer for salvation.
