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FATE OF THE UNREACHED - Part III

Buff Scott Jr.

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Fate Of The Unreached
[Part III]


What could possibly be required of a man when he responds to the only truth or revelation he knows or can know? Are we ready to exclude him from Paul’s decree that “those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life” (Rom. 2:7)? The man in darkest Brazil, as we noted in Part II, does good. He seeks glory, honor, and immortality as best he can, based on the only revelation to which he has access—creation. Paul says God “will give him eternal life!” Read it again. Let us not forget that God does not require the impossible of any man. Allow me to express it in this fashion:

Considering God’s enormous mercy, it seems to me that eternal condemnation for lack of obedience will not be relegated when opportunity to obey was not available.

Jesus touched upon this kind of situation when He taught there is no guilt when one is unavoidably blind of certain truths. The self-righteous Pharisees were chiding Him in their usual way. Following the healing of a blind man, He said He had come into the world that those who do not see may see, and that others who see may become blind. The Pharisees asked Him, “Are we blind, too” [of certain truths]? Note carefully Jesus’ answer. “If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains” (John 9:35-41).

We cannot pass this premise by without reflecting upon it closely. If I understand Jesus’ intend correctly, He seems to be saying, “There is no condemning guilt when one is unavoidably blind of certain truths and facts.” When a man has no occasion to hear of and submit to divine injunctions, yet has faith in the Lord of creation, as touched upon in Romans 1, and the heart is sincere, there is no convicting guilt credited to his account.

In a related passage, Jesus announces, “If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin. Now, however, they have no excuse for their sin” (John 15:22). The pagans in Romans 1, however, were guilty because God had “spoken to them” through the things He made (creation), yet they rejected Him.

But some may be asking, Will God take vengeance upon those who do not obey the gospel of Messiah Jesus? Of course He will. Heaven’s testimony affirms as much (I Thess. 1:8). The question is, however: Are there exceptions to this divine piece of legislation? I am compelled to answer in the affirmative.

I submit that this heavenly principle or truth encompasses only those who have been or can be exposed to the Gospel message. The severely retarded are excluded. The mentally incompetent are spared. Infants and small children are omitted. These three classes alone testify that the celestial legislation is not all-inclusive. I will even assert it is all-inclusive of those for whom it was meant, and I’m referring to those who are competent and have the opportunity to hear the Good News and embrace it. It cannot apply to or include those persons who are incapable of comprehending the Good News. But is there a fourth class? Let’s see.

The three classes referred to above have insufficient capabilities. They are not expected by man or by God to yield to celestial decrees. I offer a fourth class: Those who are devoid of opportunities. These persons cannot be expected to obey what they have not been nor cannot be exposed to, unless God requires the impossible. Please keep posted to the principle that my premise includes only those unexposed persons whose hearts are honest and receptive.

We all are aware that millions of American Indians lived and died without any opportunity of hearing the name Jesus and responding to His message of salvation. I like to think in terms that some of them responded to the truth they knew or had discovered through God’s creation. If some of these Indians served and honored God through the avenue of nature or created things, but could not honor and glorify His Son because of insufficient opportunities, will His blood not reach them through the avenue of mercy and grace? After all, His blood reaches those who are incapable because of mental incompetence through the avenue of mercy and grace.

I am confident mercy and grace will also compensate for the “good Indian” who honored God through nature, but could not accept Jesus and submit to the Good News because of insufficient opportunities.

As was noted earlier, the Gentiles in Romans who had never been exposed to special revelation in the form of scripture, knew God and could have glorified and given Him thanks through His handiwork, “but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.” These Gentiles or pagans could not have transgressed Jewish law, or the special revelation God gave the Jewish nation, for they were strangers to the Covenant. “And where there is no law there is no transgression” (Rom. 4:15). They transgressed the revelation of creation.

PIVOTAL QUESTION— In Part IV, I will have a pivotal question for my readers. A big part of this subject revolves around that question. Look for it within a day or two. You might wish to hold your questions until you have viewed all Parts.—Buff.​

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What could possibly be required of a man when he responds to the only truth or revelation he knows or can know? Are we ready to exclude him from Paul’s decree that “those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life” (Rom. 2:7)? The man in darkest Brazil, as we noted in Part II, does good. He seeks glory, honor, and immortality as best he can, based on the only revelation to which he has access—creation. Paul says God “will give him eternal life!” Read it again. Let us not forget that God does not require the impossible of any man. Allow me to express it in this fashion:

Considering God’s enormous mercy, it seems to me that eternal condemnation for lack of obedience will not be relegated when opportunity to obey was not available.
"It seems to me" is no basis for doctrine. You would be dead wrong to assume that "eternal condemnation for lack of obedience will not be relegated when opportunity to obey was not available." First, your notion of 'opportunity' there is more than questionable. God has given fallen man, who has no ability to obey, every opportunity to obey, but he will not —indeed he cannot, being at enmity with God.

I'm not going to say that the following is all there is to it, but the Potter has "all the right in the world" to do as he pleases with his clay. If he makes one vessel to be used and destroyed, that is his prerogative. I don't know if one who insists on self-determinism has the ability to understand that God is that much above us —in fact, MORE than that much above us— that by comparison we are only inanimate clay. We pride ourselves on our sentience, yet we don't even know what existence is. Compare that to God's sentience, who is self-existent, and the source of all reality and of existence itself.

We have no right to put ourselves on his level of moral competence. It is amazing enough that he can, ex nihilo, make something that is capable of rebelling against its maker.
 
"It seems to me" is no basis for doctrine. You would be dead wrong to assume that "eternal condemnation for lack of obedience will not be relegated when opportunity to obey was not available." First, your notion of 'opportunity' there is more than questionable. God has given fallen man, who has no ability to obey, every opportunity to obey, but he will not —indeed he cannot, being at enmity with God.

I'm not going to say that the following is all there is to it, but the Potter has "all the right in the world" to do as he pleases with his clay. If he makes one vessel to be used and destroyed, that is his prerogative. I don't know if one who insists on self-determinism has the ability to understand that God is that much above us —in fact, MORE than that much above us— that by comparison we are only inanimate clay. We pride ourselves on our sentience, yet we don't even know what existence is. Compare that to God's sentience, who is self-existent, and the source of all reality and of existence itself.

We have no right to put ourselves on his level of moral competence. It is amazing enough that he can, ex nihilo, make something that is capable of rebelling against its maker.
Makesends, you affirm above, "God has given fallen man, who has no ability to obey, every opportunity to obey, but he will not —indeed he cannot, being at enmity with God." Perhaps you won't mind explaining what Jesus meant when He said in John 7:17, "If anyone's will is to do God's will, he will know whether the teaching is from God..." But you're saying he cannot obey God, even though he has a free will to do so.

I'm not interested in dialoging free will at this point. That is not the topic of this thread. It is that I see some questionable rationale in a few of your remarks. By the way, look for Part IV, the final Part, in a day or two.​
 
Makesends, you affirm above, "God has given fallen man, who has no ability to obey, every opportunity to obey, but he will not —indeed he cannot, being at enmity with God." Perhaps you won't mind explaining what Jesus meant when He said in John 7:17, "If anyone's will is to do God's will, he will know whether the teaching is from God..." But you're saying he cannot obey God, even though he has a free will to do so.

I'm not interested in dialoging free will at this point. That is not the topic of this thread. It is that I see some questionable rationale in a few of your remarks. By the way, look for Part IV, the final Part, in a day or two.​
You said, "But you're saying he cannot obey God, even though he has a free will to do so."

Be a little more clear —are you saying that he has free will to do so, or, are you saying that I'm saying he has free will to do so?

Whatever, I'm saying that he wills not to do so. Jezebel was given opportunity to repent. She was not willing. So it is with all the lost. They will not, unless God regenerates them, changing their will. If he does not regenerate them, they will continue to be unwilling.

As for what Jesus said, it is a separate question, though in part it relates to the principle I tried to describe. If anyone's will is to do God's will, they are already regenerated. NOBODY that is not born again, wills to do God's will—that is to say, nobody that is not born again, will obey God's commands, nor wants to do what God requires, though they may think they do. We can any of us be fooling ourselves there. If we are lost, we don't know what God's will is. We might have structures and doctrines and definitions that satisfy us, but our use of them is corrupt at the core, within us, if we are not born again. Whatsoever is not of faith is sin, and nobody that is not born again has faith.

What is ironic is, everybody, redeemed or lost, does what God has ordained, whether they meant to or not —even the devil. But that is not obedience. That is a different "will of God".
 
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You said, "But you're saying he cannot obey God, even though he has a free will to do so."

Be a little more clear —are you saying that he has free will to do so, or, are you saying that I'm saying he has free will to do so?

Whatever, I'm saying that he wills not to do so. Jezebel was given opportunity to repent. She was not willing. So it is with all the lost. They will not, unless God regenerates them, changing their will. If he does not regenerate them, they will continue to be unwilling.

As for what Jesus said, it is a separate question, though in part it relates to the principle I tried to describe. If anyone's will is to do God's will, they are already regenerated. NOBODY that is not born again, wills to do God's will—that is to say, nobody that is not born again, will obey God's commands, nor wants to do what God requires, though they may think they do. We can any of us be fooling ourselves there. If we are lost, we don't know what God's will is. We might have structures and doctrines and definitions that satisfy us, but our use of them is corrupt at the core, within us, if we are not born again. Whatsoever is not of faith is sin, and nobody that is not born again has faith.

What is ironic is, everybody, redeemed or lost, does what God has ordained, whether they meant to or not —even the devil. But that is not obedience. That is a different "will of God".
Makesends, as I noted, I do not want this thread to evolve into a "Free Will" thread, so these remarks will be the last on this topic in this thread. Yes, I indicated you do not believe man has a free will of his own. Secondly, it was Jesus, your Lord and my Lord, who plainly and clearly said man has a free independent will of his own. "...if anyone's will is to do God's will" (John 7:17). Plus, there are dozens of other biblical statements similar and related to what Jesus advanced.​
 
Makesends, as I noted, I do not want this thread to evolve into a "Free Will" thread, so these remarks will be the last on this topic in this thread. Yes, I indicated you do not believe man has a free will of his own. Secondly, it was Jesus, your Lord and my Lord, who plainly and clearly said man has a free independent will of his own. "...if anyone's will is to do God's will" (John 7:17). Plus, there are dozens of other biblical statements similar and related to what Jesus advanced.​
I did not claim man did or did not have free will. What I asked is whether you were saying man has free will, or whether you were saying that I was saying that man had free will. You are continuing the progress of that tangent on your own. "Free will" is irrelevant to the OP.

What I did say is that man is not willing, until God changes his will. I also invoked faith into the equation. Without faith it is impossible to please God. Whatsoever is not of faith is sin. Does the lost have faith? No. Then, whether the lost chooses God or doesn't choose God the choice of the lost is sin. And the wages of sin is death.
 
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