why should someone living in africa, who has never heard of jesus, go to hell for not believing in him?

Question

i think im losing my faith in jesus. in fact i know i am.

what about all of those people who have never even heard of Jesus? they go to hell by default. doesnt that seem a little messed up?

i know that someone is going to say to me that that is why we should go into the world and make believers of everyone.

but thats not answering my question at all. what about the people who have never heard of jesus. who never will hear about him. according to the new testament they are doomed to hell without even ever having a chance to believe in God.

Tom, you did not answer my question.

Ernest, that is some serious, serious paraphrasing. The bible does not say anything that clearly. and youre pulling sources from random locations every in the bible. Its like youre beating a round peg into a square hole with a hammer

Beka, you said:

"Even if someone doesn't have the Bible, he can look around at creation and see that there MUST be a God"

if what is around us is creation than that would impy that there is a designer. but the question of whether or not there is a designer is precisely the question and so your answer here doesnt actually say or prove anything.

Also, how do you know that God is merciful and just? How do you know ANYTHING about God, assuming there even is one? Please let me know how you know that there even is a God, let alone your claims that he is just and merciful.

zenbuddha, did you know that African philisophical thought lacks consistancy and varies greatly from tibe to tribe?

birdsflies, you said:

"...So my friend don't worry God will make sure everyone will have a chance to hear even a little part of the Gospel"

this is just flat out wrong. i would guess that the vast majority of mankind throughout history has never heard of the gospel. and even though there are ministers in these countries that does not mean that they are reaching every single person.

Westward, it seems like religion must be man mad doesnt it. I feel like when i take an honest look at the bible it is very cleary outdated and clearly written by men from another culture in another time. I think if the bible truly were Gods message it would be a little more timeless and compatible with modern rational thought.

just an example Deuteronomy 22:28 "If a man happens to meet a virgin who is not pledged to be married and rapes her and they are discovered, he shall pay her father 50 sheckels of silver. He must marry the young woman, for he has violated her."

Now i dont care what you say about the old testament. its under the old law... whatever. THIS IS WRONG!

and its right in the bible. Do you really, really think a loving (and im not yelling at you Westward, just talking to anyone who is reading) God would want this? It is cleary written by an old man from another time. Not God!

Westward, i am having trouble forming my own beliefs because im new to throwing off

shackles or religion which i am so used to being there to restrict my thoughts. i need lots of time to think things through and form my own opinions, but i will keep your tequnique in mind. thanks

Answer 1

Sounds to me like you never believed that God is just.. I won't even try to pull you back that isn't my job that's the Holy Spirit's job, you sound like you have been told the Gospel. Delivering that message is the job of the christian.. Ok to answer lets turn to Abraham the Word tells us that God counted Abraham's faith as righteousness. He wasn't told about Jesus but his faith still saved him. God manifest Himself to all if nothing more through nature. It's harder but men have seen God there and trusted that God would take care of him.. It is easier to do if you are told.. Yes that's why we go but God won't send any anyone to hell, who seek Him....Jim

Answer 2

What your running into is one of the many contradictions of religion.
Something that might help you make sense of all this is understanding how religion actually works. Religion is a man-made creation meant to explain the unexplainable. At its worst it uses fear and manipulation to control a population. At its best, it provides a foundation of beliefs, a framework for life, and is a source of inspiration and/or hope for those who have none. However, religion has one gigantic flaw that in the end, causes more harm than good and will probably be its undoing. It expects you not question its teachings. It has even turned what is nothing less than willful ignorance into a virtue - they call it faith. And that is the conundrum that you are running into. What you are seeing and experiencing in your life probably does not mesh very well with what you have been taught, and so since you have a brain, you might be asking yourself "why?" a lot when it comes to your religion. Why should someone who has never heard of jesus go to hell? They shouldn't. And they don't. And yes, its seems very messed up because the whole concept is very messed up. While I cannot tell you what to believe (nobody can), I can provide you with a better way of thinking and coming up with your own beliefs. Think critically about the world around you. What can you prove and not prove? What makes sense to you? How will you deal with conflicting information in the future? Think long and hard about these things, and you will end with a set of beliefs that will probably be very different from the religion you were taught, but will be much more in synch with the rest of the world, and will be much easier for you to believe in and defend. Good luck!

Answer 3

This Gospel will go around this world to every nation before Jesus comes, that is Bible, It is true that some may not hear as much, there fore they will be require little. I know Ministers in just about every country in the world, I know a Minister in South Africa, personally, In Mexico, In Norway, in Canada, THE USA, So my friend don't worry God will make sure everyone will have a chance to hear even a little part of the Gospel, Don't lose your Faith in Jesus, God is a Just God. My church, is live on the internet every service, we have people from Africa, Norway, Canada, all over the USA, from Iraq, to Iran, to Saudia Ariabia, to Israel & many other nations in the world that listens in, even from Austrailia. WE also have a paper that goes out 8 times a year free of charge with a sermon on that paper, & this has gone around the world for the last 37 yrs. And some of the testimony we have gotten from people that just happen to see a page of that paper blowing down the street & they pick it up, & got saved over just that sermon on paper. God always has a way.

Answer 4

Hmm... I've wondered abt this, too. But I think I have the answer. The New Testament does not say all those ppl will go to hell. It says that "God's word in written in the hearts of all men" so I believe that even if people do not verbally tell them about Jesus, God can do so with his holy spirit; he can change someone's heart w/o using another human.
The New Testament also says that the end time will come after the "good news has been preached all over the world" and everyone has had a chance to hear.
Shame on me for not knowing the verses, but if you ask your pastor or another church leader, I'm sure they could tell you.
God bless you :)

Answer 5

I wave wondered this question before, like many people i know. The answer is very simple. People that have never heard of Jesus, like this person in Africa, do have an opportunity once they get to Heaven. Jesus is a loving and JUST God. And because he is a JUST God, he would not let something like that happen, he wants everyone to go to Heaven and be with Him. He will give them a chance. But, also to answer your question, most people in the World have heard of Jesus before, because there are missionaries everywhere in the World, That is their job, to spread the Gospel of Jesus. So, i hope this answers your question. Jesus Loves You, DON'T GIVE UP ON HIM!!!!

Answer 6

Hi there. They will not go to hell because they don't know who Jesus is. That's just silly. They are not under the law if they do not have the law. Ignorance is an excuse in the kingdom of GOD. Now the Holy Spirit is out and about in this world and lives in us. These people who do not know Jesus by name know GOD through the spirit inside them that guides us to what is good and what is evil. Jesus is the way the truth and the life. No man gets to the father but by him. So shall Jesus turn away these people because they didn't hear his name? LOL That's really silly. Jesus died for the whole world. People will be judged perfectly because GOD can see all the facts. We will have stress here on earth trying to figure out GOD when we see dimly at best.
May GOD richly bless you.

Answer 7

That's a good question. The Bible basically tells us to deal with the knowledge that we have. It says that we all know that there is a God because of creation. It also says that God put his law --- or the Ten Commandments --- into our hearts, meaning that we know right from wrong. A person who has not heard of Jesus will not go to hell if they recognize that there is a God and follow the law that God put in their hearts. The only ones who go to hell are those who willingly reject Christ.

Answer 8

The Bible says that Jesus will return when EVERYONE has heard when Jesus died he went to hades hell and he set the captives free and he took the keys from Satan when he rose from the dead many other people who had been dead for year also rose from the dead all things are possible through Jesus Christ but the word says EVERY knee shall bow and tongue confess Jesus is Lord so i don't know how things like that will be done i am not God but everyone is given a chance.

Answer 9

while i was looking in the bible to help me answer your question better i was comeing up with a long answer but it hit me . THE hardest question can be answered with the most simplest answer. i had a freind that met a women in ucrain in the soviet union thru a dating service on the net . and he got into some trouble there but they letted him go with a waring cuz he didnt know the laws there since he was just visiting there. from here. but he did still had to pay a nice fine tho. and in the bible its pretty much the same . even if you havent NEVER heard about jesus but still do bad things you will still have to pay a fine for what you did . and its worse to have know jesus and go back to a life of sin . hope this help. ps you have to be accountable for your actions no matter what you do or which god you belive in you will allways have to pay the price for the sin that you commit no matter how sever it is or was . and thats in all religions. a punishment is base upon the crime committed. just like our leagel system .

Answer 10

Romans 1:19 says: "because the thing which may be known of God is clearly revealed within them, for God revealed it to them. For the unseen things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being realized by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, for them to be without excuse."

This basically means that God reveals Himself to everyone. Even if someone doesn't have the Bible, he can look around at creation and see that there MUST be a God. Some think that if a person responds to that, then God will make a way for them to learn about the gospel. Others think that maybe a person who knows that there is a God, and simply seeks to serve Him the way his conscience says may go to heaven, because there was no way he could know about Jesus. All I know is that God is just and merciful, and no one who goes to hell has not had sufficient chance to respond to God's love. If they reject that, then they will go to hell.

Answer 11

If you read the Bible you will find that all will one day know the truth. A person is not held accountable for the things they don't know. Same as a little child. We are all children in the eyes of God but some of us have had the opportunity to hear about God. If you've never heard about Him then when He calls your name He will show you the way. People will argue this but we have a loving forgiving God and I believe with all my heart that it is His will that none perish.