Disclaimer: this subject is a contentious one. In my experience its discussion has resulted in the destruction of positive relationships and the alienation of those who hold a dissenting opinion. In my last post, I tried to point out that there is one bond that all Christians share, and that is a commitment to following Jesus. As we participate in this discussion, we must avoid making hasty generalizations about people and groups. I will closely monitor the comments.
Let me begin by saying that I intend only to express my own belief regarding this topic. Because I will be drawing conclusions from my own experience and worldview, there will probably be many holes in my logic. I am sure that I will not give other viewpoints a proper defense and I may make assumptions that are unfounded and unfair. As always, I welcome questions and comments that point out these errors. By working together to eradicate weak arguments, I am sure that we can come closer to understanding the truth.
I must also say that I am drawing from the knowledge and ideas of men and women vastly more intelligent than myself. Where I can I will give them credit, but I am certain that some people have made impressions on my beliefs without my knowledge, and in such cases I must apologize for being unable to give them their due. Some of my conclusions come from my personal experiences and interpretations of Scripture, and must always be taken with a grain of salt. With these things in mind, let us begin our discussion.
It may help if I explain why I have chosen to write about this. About a year ago my school hosted a panel discussion featuring students who came from different faith backgrounds. The panel was made up of one Christian, one Muslim, one Jew, and one atheist. The details of the presentations and Q & A session escape me now, but the conversations that took place in the week or so following the panel do not. Immediately following the panel, a friend told me that it “broke his heart” to hear another Christian say that people who do not accept Jesus can enter the kingdom of heaven. This comment sparked an interesting debate. Perhaps a few days later, I spoke with another friend about the subject, who told me that God is a god of Wrath, and that it is God’s whim that determines who can and cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. Again, an interesting debate followed (incidentally, the discussion ended with him telling me that the God I believed in was inconsistent with everything that is found in Scripture. Needless to say, we disagreed on that particular point).
These discussions resulted in tremendous stress. I sought the wisdom of close friends and spiritual mentors who reassured me that my God did fit with at least some scripture (especially the “God is love” parts). I was then motivated to write a lengthy essay explaining the superiority of my opinions and why the two friends with whom I had found myself in disagreement were so terribly wrong. But after some reflection and prayer, I realized that such an essay would serve only to inflate my pride. I abandoned the project and had largely forgotten about it.
But something happened just recently that reignited my interest in the subject. My pastor, Rev. Adam Hamilton, delivered a sermon called, When Talking About Other Religions, as part of his series “When Christians Get it Wrong.” He made a number of excellent points that resonated with me in a very real way. After hearing the sermon and some careful reflection, I determined that I may have reached the maturity level necessary to revisit this topic. As I mentioned earlier, a great deal of my perspective has been shaped by the arguments outlined by Rev. Hamilton in his sermon. If anyone finds that my statements contradict his teachings, I would greatly appreciate some kind of notification.
So let us take a closer look at what this issue actually involves. First, there is the topic of salvation. Salvation, in this case and most others, can be understood to mean the act of being saved from sin. More specifically, to have received salvation can mean having obtained the right to spend eternity with God. So, naturally, the discussion of the “universality of salvation” will try to determine the degree to which salvation (i.e. through Jesus Christ) is applied to humankind universally. To sum it up crudely, this issue has to do with who goes to heaven and who does not.
My former youth pastor (a very wise man) notes that two extremes exist with regard to this topic. Under the first extreme, salvation can be claimed only by the 144,000 denoted in the book of Revelation. Others that lean toward this end of the spectrum would say that if (and only if), “you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Romans 10:9) This interpretation is far more common, but still falls under the category of Christian Exclusivism. Those who hold to this belief would argue that the blood of Christ is not just a way to heaven, it is THE way to heaven. After all, if Christ did not die so that our sins could be forgiven and we could spend eternity with the Father, for what did he die?
On the other end of the spectrum we have Christian Universalism. Proponents of this perspective hold that ultimately all humankind will be reconciled to God, regardless of their values or creed. Under this view Hell can be understood as a prison of sorts; a non-Christian may spend some amount of time there, but will at some point be able to return to God and spend eternity in heaven. Essentially Christian Universalism maintains that the blood of Christ covers all humanity without limit or discrimination. Jesus paid the price for our sin whether we choose to accept it or not, and so all are welcome in the kingdom of heaven.
Christian Inclusivism is the doctrine with which I find myself identifying most. Just like Christian Exclusivism, it says that humanity is inherently at odds with the perfection of God, and so we find ourselves in need of salvation. God came to earth in Jesus Christ, lived a perfect life, and offered said life as a sacrifice for humanity’s sins against God. Salvation, then, is God’s gift to humanity. In that respect this view is similar to Christian Universalism, but it differs on one significant point: one may choose not to receive the gift of salvation.
So those are the basics, at least as I understand them. I’m sure I’ve left some things out, so feel free to add something if that is the case. Now I’d like to take some time and tell you some of the conclusions I’ve come to given the information above.
First, I like to think I have a small idea of what the nature of God is like. Obviously God’s entirety eludes me (He is very large), but I think that He has given us some pretty helpful clues. First, as noted by Rev. Hamilton, scripture shows us repeatedly that God is, at the very least, Just, Loving, Merciful and Kind. Surely this is not a comprehensive list, and I’d be lying if I told you I knew exactly how each of those four things applies to the character of God. But let’s make the gigantic assumption that those four qualities can be defined by our human minds and be somewhat close in classifying the Almighty. The second thing that I think points to God’s nature is Jesus. I realize that this goes without saying, but I think too often we consider Jesus as someone apart from (and different-natured) than God. It is my firm belief that the way Jesus did things while He walked the planet was characteristic of the way God does (and forever intends to do) things in the cosmos.
So what does that tell me about God and His take on salvation? Well, for starters it doesn’t necessarily tell me a whole lot. You see, I think God is this big mystery and I bet we’ll never come close to figuring out what He’s really all about. But if I can take those qualities and draw some conclusions, I’d say God would be a lot more inclusive than we think. Let’s look at an example:
We have a man in the heart of the Congo. He lives in a little village that hasn’t seen an outsider since its formation thousands of years ago. He wakes up each day and thanks the Sun for shining. Then he goes to the River and thanks it for the fish. He spends time with his family and friends in the evenings. Before he goes to bed, he thanks Something Bigger Than Himself for loving him enough to allow his existence. Keep in mind no missionary has ever set foot in this town, and this man has never heard the sounds that form the name, “Jesus.” What of his salvation?
There are some who would say that the Whim of God comes into play here. They would argue that God may be Loving, but He is equally Wrathful. And in His wrath He can and often does decide not to include people in His eternal kingdom. After all, we all deserve damnation, do we not? Isn’t it God’s prerogative to decided that anyone, for no other reason than he or she deserves damnation, to allow said damnation to befall them? Others would ask such arguers, “So because we were born into a nation populated by Christians, we recieve salvation, and Congo Man does not simply because he was born in the Congo?”
I have asked that question twice. Both times the answer was, “Absolutely.”
And when I hear that word, something deep inside me objects with ferocity. Not because I know for certain that they are wrong, but because my understanding of God in Scripture and my experience of God tells me that He loves us more than He wishes us harm. I have no doubt that God can be wrathful. But I know that the story of God and humanity is one of love and salvation. And so here is how I think it might work.
God says to Congo Man, “Well done, my good and faithful servant. No one told you, and you didn’t even know, but you were worshiping Me the whole time. You see you were born broken. You had a natural propensity towards doing things the opposite of how I wanted you to do them. But see I came down and took care of all that. I lived in your world and I did it the way I wanted you to do it all along. And then I died as a sacrifice for your mistakes. Now unfortunately you missed out on some pretty cool experiences on Earth because no one told you about Me. But you know what, I’m a pretty Big Guy, and I know your heart did the best that it could. You see I know you better than anyone, I made you in your mother’s womb, and I’ve been waiting for this day for a long time. Welcome home, son.”
If you ask me, God is too big to be classified. To say that we understand how He handles anyone’s salvation is putting Him in a box that is just way too small. After all, God can do whatever He wants, so long as it is not contrary to His nature. Why should our theology say He is limited to only letting group X or group Y receive salvation? But I can say this: the God that rescued me, the God of Ages that I have come to love and serve is not a God who turns Congo Man away because the Christians of the world failed to visit his village. I believe that the God who rescued me gives each person the capacity and means to seek Him in whatever way he or she can. And so I think I will be able to spend eternity with Congo Man in heaven. Because the same blood of Christ that washes me and grants me entry also washes him.
But not necessarily. I think one has to choose God. All the way back to Adam and Eve, the story of God and humanity has been one of choice. Without it, we are simply puppets on a string. If that is the case, what is the point of making any choices? I realize that this opens up an entirely different can of worms (a can called predestination) and it is not my intention that we discuss that issue here. However, if your understanding of predestination plays a fundamental role in your interpretation of salvation, by all means share it. For me, though, free will is one of God’s many gifts to His people. I think that at some point every human being, no matter what his or her geographical or cultural limitations may be, is presented with the choice to submit to God’s will.
Regardless of where you stand on this issue, I think it is critical that we understand that our call is the same. As Christians, we are called to a life of mission. Even if everyone can get into heaven, shouldn’t we be doing everything in our power to show them how God intended for us to live and interact with Him on Earth? We are called by Christ to make disciples of all nations. Not because we think we need to so they can go to heaven, but so they can live the life that we have come to know as the most authentic life possible.
I have this book called The Hand of God. It is an extraordinary collection of images from the Hubble Space Telescope and other space telescopes. It is filled with quotes from physicists and theologians that focus on what creation tells them about the nature of God. There is a quote by John Archibald Wheeler that I think applies very well to this discussion, and I’d like to close with it. Again, I’d like to thank you for participating in this conversation. Hopefully we can learn from each other and come a little bit closer to understanding who God is. Before I close, I would like to thank Lyndsay, Eric Rucker and Emily Heinz, whose wisdom and encouragement were instrumental in the development of this essay.
“Behind it all is surely an idea so simple, so beautiful, so compelling that when----in a decade, a century, or a millennium----we grasp it, we will say to each other, how could it have been otherwise? How could we have been blind for so long?”
Below is a link to Adam Hamilton’s sermon, When Talking About Other Religions.
