“It doesn’t matter. I’m going to hell anyway,” they say. Their faces tell it all, God hates me. God only cares about Christians. For one reason or another, many non-Christians often feel like God doesn’t care if they go to heaven or not. Like they’re on some blacklist with a sealed fate. But the truth is, God doesn’t only have Christians in His heart to save and redeem. He looks upon the whole world with this hope:
The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
2 Peter 3:9
God wants everyone to have an opportunity to come to Him and have eternal life. But if this is the case, then how does the Bible say it will happen?
From One to the World – God’s Plan to Save Everyone
We can see throughout the Bible how God has worked to save people. First, they must know about Him, so He provides a way to teach them. However, God doesn’t go to each individual and personally teach them His word. The Bible would have looked a whole lot different if God had done this.
There would be no Noah leading people to the ark. No Moses to strike his staff to part the Red Sea. No prophets chosen to give God’s words of promise. It would just be every person proclaiming what they personally heard from God. And think about it…do you think every single person would say the same thing? We have to wonder–would there even be a Bible if God just talked to everyone? Would there be a need for a single, concise standard for us to verify our beliefs with?
Through the Bible we actually learn that in every generation, God chooses one person to give His Word to. That person then teaches a small group, and then that group is tasked to do the same throughout the whole earth.
Moses and the Israelites – God’s Chosen People
Think of Moses. God entrusted him with the task of leading the nation of Israel out of captivity in Egypt. Not only that, but he also was responsible for teaching them God’s commandments. The purpose of this was to create the Israelites into the people of God. In other words, a kingdom of priests and a holy nation (Exodus 19:5-6).
This holy nation, made perfect in the eyes of God, would then be fit to teach the rest of the world about God and welcome them into His kingdom.
But how far did this plan go? You may already know, but the Israelites broke the covenant they made with God. They betrayed Him and left Him to worship idols (Hosea 6:7). If you betray God and leave Him for lifeless, man-made pieces of wood and gold, do you think He would be able to entrust the task of sharing His knowledge and heart to the whole world to you? Most definitely not. Like this, the Israelites were no longer fit to spread the word of God throughout the earth.
Jesus and His 12 Disciples
Due to the betrayal of the nation of Israel, God started again with Jesus, and the same logic still applies. God’s heart was for the whole world to come to Him through Jesus (John 14:6). So Jesus taught his 12 disciples about the way to salvation. He equipped them to go out and preach to the rest of the world.
But you will receive power then the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
Acts 1:8
It is because of their efforts and sacrifice that now nearly everyone in the world has heard of Jesus, whether they choose to believe in him or not. However, today nearly 70% of the world doesn’t identify as Christian. And these days there’s a mass exodus from the church for countless of different reasons. Why is that?
Christianity Today
Christians today are held together loosely by a few common doctrines, but kept separate by the work of 2,000 years of division. When Jesus sent out his disciples, they had one truth and one doctrine. But today, it’s not one doctrine–it’s over 30,000 denominations and 30,000 doctrines and ideas of what salvation is and how to receive it. In this kind of state, we have to consider–will God’s hope of salvation for all ever be realized?
It’s up to us. If God has always used people that He trusts to do His work, then we have to live a life that reflects that.
Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed…
But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”…
Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart.
1 Peter 1:13, 15-16, 22
If we conduct ourselves in discipline, in holiness, and love, won’t non-believers want to learn more about this God who has helped us become this way? People will go from ‘Christianity isn’t for me’ to ‘I want this too.’ If non-believers see how we are different from the norm by following the Bible, wouldn’t they be curious and seek out God and the Bible for its light?
Do you stand out as a light within the darkness?
God Wants to Save Us All
It has always been God’s will to dwell with His creation. Since the time of Adam He has been working to make that a reality. God doesn’t just love those who acknowledge Him–He has provided a way for the whole world to know Him because He loves everyone.
This is the heart of a parent who desires to be with their children despite many years of separation. If you were separated from your children, to the point where they even forgot who you were, wouldn’t you work tirelessly to get back to them? It’s the same with God, who has worked without rest to save everyone. Not just Christians. And in the end, God has promised to make this a reality, as we see in the final book of the Bible:
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.“
Revelation 21:3-4
Let’s help God in making this a reality. We must be the light of the world, shining into the darkness so that all will hear of God’s love and heart to rescue them. Let’s take up the same task that Jesus and his disciples began and help God save everyone.
Written by Samantha
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