Edgework

“…we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of those who believe” (I Timothy 4:10).

We turn our attention now to inquire about the fate of those who have not received Jesus as Savior nor walked in his ways. In other words, is it possible that God is the “Savior of all men?”

In his book, “Surprised by Hope,” N. T. Wright makes the case quite forcefully that the ultimate vision is not a duality somewhere in outer space where a few party with their God while the masses languish in hell for all eternity. God’s hope is for a restoration of all he has created. So we ask the question, “If God envisions a time when the whole cosmos will recognize and glorify God, what indeed happens to non-believers or those who have never even heard the gospel?

Standing over against the notion that all unbelievers end up in an eternal hell, there are many thoughtful Christians who hold out for a more positive ultimate outcome.

In his book, “No Other Name,” John Sanders points out that for those who reject hell as a viable biblical option, there are two basic answers with respect to what ultimately happens to unbelievers. One view he calls, “The Wider Hope,” the other “Universalism.”

All those holding to the “The Wider Hope” vision proclaim that there will be more people redeemed than lost. In “Unconditional Good News,” Neal Punt contends that most will be saved but those not included in the elect will be lost. In “The Gospel of Christ Revisited,” Archie Penner challenges Punt, stating that some will ultimately be lost but only because they deliberately walk out on God, thus bringing separation from God upon themselves. All infants and mentally handicapped persons are secure in Christ, he states, because they are incapable of responding to the gospel – and that holds true universally.

While holding to the notion that “the many” will be saved, John R. W. Stott and Clark H. Pinnock suggest that those who simply refuse God’s grace will be annihilated – an irreversible judgment rather than an experience of endless torment in hell. They claim that passages speaking about the unbelieving experiencing death, perishing, being destroyed, etc. must be taken literally. The best known verse in this regard is John 3:16. They also base their argument on the notion that justice requires finite punishment for finite sin. To punish someone eternally for having sinned in a short life-time violates the principle of justice as taught in the biblical text. And furthermore, they claim that in the end all rebellion must be eliminated in order for God to restore cosmic harmony.

Most proponents of the “The Wider Hope” reject the notion that God can only work with people while on earth. Based on the biblical reference to Christ having gone to preach to the dead (I Peter 3-4) and Paul’s affirmation that Christ is Lord of both the living and the dead (Romans 14), they believe it is possible that God will continue working with those who have departed this earth without the personal knowledge of Christ. In other words, because God is not limited by time, those not having bowed the knee in life will have the opportunity to do so after physical death. Some also hold to the notion of the “anonymous Christian” based in part on the passage, “everyone who loves is born of God and knows God, for God is love” (I John 4:7-8).

While the scenario surrounding this wider hope is much more positive and palatable than eternal punishment in hell, there are those who find an even broader hope within the biblical text. The question that keeps haunting them is how the cosmic redemption passages can be taken at face value if even one part of God’s creation is lost or annihilated? Thus they hold that God will pursue the “last lost sheep” until he finds it and brings it home (Matthew 18:10-14).

Universalists generally do not deny that there are no consequences for rejecting Christ or living an ungodly life. There is a judgment day coming for the whole world (Acts 17:31). And, indeed, many who live ungodly lives create their own kind of “hell” on this earth, not only for themselves but for those with whom they come in contact – a judgment in itself. And Paul indicates clearly that “…For those who are self-seeking and who obey not the truth but wickedness, there will be wrath and fury (Romans 2:8-9). Yet in the same letter Paul also writes, “God has imprisoned all in disobedience so that he may be merciful to all” (Romans 13:12), and at last “every knee will bow to me, and every tongue shall give praise to God” (Romans 14:11).

While universalists will concede that some of God’s actions may appear to be “wrathful,” the character of God is “love” (I John 4:8). And they point out that like any responsible parent, any punishment God would inflict on his children would be purposeful – to bring about a desired end. It cannot be retributive. So, In “What the Bible Really Says About Hell,” Randy Klassen suggests that, “Hell, then, refers to that severe realm of judgment which continues until God’s purposes are realized” (p. 111). So while God’s judgment may in fact be very unpleasant, it results in a good end, not an endless and hopeless torment.

A question we need to ask is whether it is possible to keep together those references referring to punishment alongside those that suggest ultimate salvation for all. Is it possible to say, as some do, that “God’s YES is always bigger than his NO?” I would like to believe it is. What do you think?

One question that pops up immediately in light of such dialogue is, “Why be involved in missions if all will end well anyway?” We will unpack the answer to that question in the next article.