Is it possible to be a good person without Jesus Christ?

Question

If so, do you think its just to send good people to Hell?

So much for compassion and forgiveness, eh, Fireball?

I am continually amazed by the fact that christians have no moral problem with sending good people off to be tortured eternally. Doesn't it bother you at all???

Lord French Fry. Nice mental acrobatics, but the thing you forget is that God makes the rules. He could wipe away our sins without requiring us to believe in what appears to the rational mind to be a fairy tale. Who says the imperfect cannot approach the perfect? You? Or God? If its God, he can do whatever he wants, he's omnipotent. If its the way-its-gotta-be, its that way because God WANTS it to be that way.

I'd like to think Goodness was derived from something more than obedience. Obedience isn't Goodness.

Your analogy might make some sense if the truth of your religion was self-evident. It isn't. There is no way for a rational person to decide which religion is right and which is wrong. To believe otherwise is supreme arrogance. To hold people accountable for that choice is supremely unjust (evil)

above post was for Josh, forgot to list that lol

Carol L, thanks for your thoughts but in order to worship God, I'd have to believe in him first. If you are correct, your God hasn't given us a FAIR chance to see the truth of his existence. And I still question why a supreme being would REQUIRE worship. It seems small. I appreciate your candor and genuine concern, however, but I feel if God did exist, he'd be even nicer, more loving and more merciful than even you believe him to be.

Answer 1

from what I have seen in real life, non christians as a group are far better people than christians as a group--not that I haven't met my share of good christians, but for every one good one there are fifteen who should be shot--you seem to have your hands full with all these judgemental and intolerant people--Forgive them Father, they know exactly what they do, and since they know better, they most certainly will find themselves in the fiery pits some day--bless them father, gee, I hope they don't die......................

Answer 2

I imagine you think of yourself as generally a good person, but by who's standards? Yours or God's?

Have you ever told a lie?
Have you ever stolen anything even if it's small?
Jesus says if you even look lustfully at a women you've committed adultery in your own heart. Have you ever done that?

Just take a look at the ten commandments and see how well you'll do when you're put on trial on the day of judgement.

What are you going to say to Him? "Well God I know I've done all these bad things but I know you're a good God an you'll just look over it all and let me into your kingdom."

Let's look at a similar example. A rapist goes in front of a judge for the atrocity he has committed. He is found guilty before the court, but before the judge can pass sentence the defendant asks to say a few words to the judge. The judge agrees and the rapist tells the judge "I know what I did was wrong but Judge I know you're a good man so you'll look past my offense and let me move on with my life." The Judge turns to the rapist and says "well you're right about one thing, I AM a good man. And because I'm good i'm going to see that justice is done."

God IS GOOD! Because of His goodness He has the obligation to punish sin where ever and whenever it is found.

In all honesty, we all fall short of the perfect life God has set for us to lead. We are ALL guilty before the law. The Good news is that Jesus came into the world not to condemn the world but to save it! By His sacrifice we are saved from our otherwise certain fate.

Back to that court room analogy, it's like right before the judge passes his sentence, His lawyer walks up to the cop and asked that he be put to death instead of his defendant. The lawyer obviously did nothing wrong, but out his perfect love, he makes the sacrifice.


Jesus gave his Life for you that you might be free from death and the grave. He offers you new life! All you have to do is accept it.

Grace and peace be upon you from God our father and the Lord Jesus Christ!!

Answer 3

Yes. I am a good person. Always tried to be. I've resuced people & animals. Never intentionally hurt anyone. I think I live as Jesus would (yes, I have read the Bible) But, I don't know if I believe in Heaven or Hell. Reincarnation makes more sense to me. Why to babies get blown up in Iraq?

Answer 4

I'm absolutely sickened by some of these answers. Arrogant AND oblivious, what a combination!

I'm an atheist, and I try to be a good person because it's the right thing to do, not out of fear of hell, or because some old book says that's what I should do.

Answer 5

Yes, it is just/fair to send supposedly "good people" to hell. God is the absolute ruler of the universe because He created it, and therefore He gets to decide who goes to Heaven and who goes to Hell. And it's pretty simple - everyone who finds Christ as their Savior from their sins and as Lord of their life will go to Heaven. It's in the Bible in black-and-white

If we were to say that "good people" should go to Heaven, then we end up thinking that we know better how to run things than God does. If that's the case, then we are god... oh wait, we still haven't figured out how to create human life out of nothing, so I guess we're not god yet. So... God is really God, and if He is really God then he gets to decide what's just and unjust.

Answer 6

Yes. Warren Buffett, who recently denoted some $37 billion to charity, is an atheist. So were womens' rights advocates and abolitionists Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton.

Answer 7

of course.

Do you think that every human being born BEFORE Christ was evil?

How about every human who has not been exposed to Christian teaching...are they all evil too?

What about people who do not believe in your particular version of Jesus?

Besides, jesus just borrowed elements of Buddhism and combined it with Hebrew tradition.

Buddha seems like a pretty decent fellow

By the way, there is no such thing as hell.

Answer 8

There are some fundamentalist Christians who tell me if I don't accept Jesus as God and saviour, I am doomed to hell. They quote from their holy book the perfect word of God as proof.

There are some fundamentalist Muslims who tell me if I worship a false deity such as Jesus, I am doomed to hell. They quote from their holy book the perfect word of God as proof.

For the exact reasons they don't find each other convincing, I find neither convincing.

Answer 9

I see good people who are of other faiths and no faith all the time. Just as I see Christians who need a double-dose of beyotch-slappin' and vice versa. There's no Biblical basis to claim that non-believers cannot do good and that believers do no evil.

But there is no real hell, unless you count East St. Louis.

Answer 10

Yes, but without christ, they are still condemned to Hell.

It's not as much as a Just thing as it is a that's-just-how-it's-gotta-be thing. God is perfect. For any ounce of sin to be in his presence would be unthinkable, impossible, It simply can't happen.

And to make things worse, everyone sins. Therefore, doing good stuff really does nothing to get yourself saved, though God promotes it. To be saved, we have to realize our sin, admit it to God, ask for his forgiveness through Jesus who died on the cross (thus paying for our sins) and then we are saved. Only when will sin no longer dwell is us.