Verify Podcast

So the bible says that Christ is the only way to everlasting life and there is no other name by which men can be saved (Acts 4:12). Now, I’ve heard some sceptics say that the God of the bible must then be unkind and extremely unfair, to judge everyone based on their acceptance of Christ, without caring that there were some who lived before Christ came to the world.

Frankly, I have thought of this many times myself. I have wondered about the fate of people who lived before Christ was born; People who never heard about Christ in their lifetimes, and so could never have received Him. What becomes of them? Are they all condemned to hell automatically?

Rom 1: 19-20, lets us know that through the earth, the sky and indeed, all of creation, God has surrounded us with evidence of Himself and so, no one can give an excuse for not knowing God. He has proved His existence to mankind, such that just by observing the intricacies of God’s creation, even the earliest of men, would have known that there is a God behind it all. Rom 1: 18, however, also lets us know that even in the midst of this evidence provided by God, some choose to suppress and ignore this truth about God, thereby rejecting it.

Now we may ask questions about the fate of people who lived before Christ was born, whereas, the reality is that Christ was right there from the beginning of time. What do I mean? The bible says in the beginning was the word and the word was with God and the word was God. (John 1:1). And just in case you’re still wondering who the word is, John 1:14 tells us that the word who was with God in the beginning, became flesh and dwelt among us. This means that Jesus was there in the beginning, thousands of years before He was born on earth, and before anyone on earth ever existed. And since Jesus is God, any ancient man or woman who received a revelation of the existence of the one true God by faith, and did not suppress or ignore the truth they had received about God, were saved.

Abel and Noah, some of the bible’s earliest humans, are good examples of this. They lived thousands of years before Christ came and never knew him physically, but Hebrews 11:4-7 describes them as people of righteousness and faith, because they recognised that there was a creator and worshipped the one true God.

Christ may have showed up on earth only 2000 years ago, but in reality, He has been there since the beginning of time, slain before the foundations of the world! (Rev 13:8). He died for all sins, not just for us today, but once for all time, to take away the sins of many (Heb 9:28), and through Him, those even in ancient times, who put their faith in God, were saved by Him. God thought this through and sorted it out; put things in place, way ahead of time, and the fact that He is a thoughtful, just, deliberate and intentional God, can never ever be overemphasized.

I pray today, O Lord, that You will help us to believe Your word over the pronouncements of critics. Help us to see more clearly, not only that Jesus is the only way to eternal life, but that Jesus has been here all along. Help us to see not just that You are a master planner, but that You are perfectly kind and just, and help us never to take this for granted, in Jesus name, Amen.