Hypothetical question for christians?

Question

It is my understanding that people need salvation because they can't be perfect, so Jesus is helping those people that have sinned, to yet go to heaven instead of hell (that is the answer I received when I asked why people need salvation). So, that means, asuming someone is completely perfect and never makes a sin in his entire life, he will go to heaven though he has no religion. Is that correct?

Don't say nobody's perfect, we will asume that we are talking about someone who (by absurdity) is perfect

This is a question for those people who are christians and who believe, not for non believers, I want chrisian's thoughts on this one

karate, all christians who believe in the idea of salvation

Answer 1

Hi again Larissa! I like your questions. You have some serious thought in them. Well I gave this one some serious thought. I used to be a practicing Catholic. In fact I went to a seminary. I don't believe anymore, but the answer I would've given if I was still a practicing Catholic is No!

Reason being, one cannot be perfect if he did not believe in god. Perfect is a relative term. What is perfect to one person, may not be perfect to another. What you consider a sin, may not be what another considers a sin. So in who's perspective are we to consider this person's perfectly sin-free life? To you and I he may be perfect, but to the Mormons (no offense just an example) he may have sinned because he cried when he woke up, or to the Muslims (again no offense, just an example) he could've looked at a woman too long...

The point is, according to Catholicism and Christianity in general, the only way to be perfect is to dedicate your entire life to god. The way Jesus did. If you look at how the bible chronicles Jesus' life, you can see that whatever he did he did for god. People thought he sinned, because he worked on the Sabbath, he talked back to his mother, all these things, humans consider sins, aren't sins, because he did them for god. He lived his entire life that way, and died that way. That's how you live the perfect life. And it is impossible to do that without believing in god.

Now hypothetically speaking, if there was a completely selfless, caring, generous, person who never gave for himself, and always did for others. And that person died having never sinned in EVERY single human beings eyes (hypothetically speaking of course) and didn't believe in god, then he would still go to hell. According to most Christian doctrine, a many must live his life for god (earning his way back to heaven). You can site Job in the old testament as an example. Site Abel in Genesis. Site Abram/Abraham. Only those who were not clung to worldly things, and lived only for god were allowed into heaven.

In Revelations it speaks of only 100,000 getting into heaven, only 100,000 understanding that this life is not yours but gods. That nothing on this earth belongs to you, no matter how hard you work for it, no matter how much you think you deserve it, nothing here is yours, not even in your good works. Everything you do, you do for god otherwise, it's meaningless.

I hope that answers your question. Hit me up sometime...I love this ****!

EDIT: I'd like to add something in response to Karate's answer. God is not reasonable. What reasonable god will punish a person for ETERNITY for the sins of 100 years? That is not reasonable in any sense of the word.

EDIT: Another edit for Michael S...You say god will reject you saying you honored me with your lips but your hearts were far from me. Can you honor god with your heart but refuse to honor him with your lips?

Answer 2

Yeah, I guess so. Jesus was perfect, and He went to heaven, although I don't know if you could say He had no religion, since He invented religion in the first place. An interesting question.

I guess you've heard this a million times already, but the truth is "...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God," so we really can't know the answer. Tell you what though, if I get to heaven first, I'll ask God for you.

Answer 3

I wager the functional reply is sure, however there could want be a lot more too it. He could have had to give an explanation for it extra than simply that the sector was once (whilst it's) overpopulated, like he could must give an explanation for that he has performed away with the entire different commandments approximately procreation, marriage, now not conducting gay intercourse acts, and so forth. Also, founded to your hypothetical it leaves it as much as the follower to examine whilst the sector is overpopulated and for that reason the character could pray to invite God whilst that could be. Because the sector will under no circumstances be overpopulated (ninety nine.nine% prone to be the case), then it could be a frivilous or useless commandment, which I could then ask God why He could provide this type of frivilous commandment. I'm definite His reply could be that He was once rather simply trying out humans and seeing in the event that they could use God and His teachings as an excuse for conducting specific habits (or now not), which he had certainly forbidden. I wager there are simply too many holes in thy hypothetical. But, to be transparent, if God did ask that humans in no doubtful manner that they will have to take any one of the equal intercourse to be their companion, then I do not suppose I would disobey, regardless of how opposite it was once to everthing He has ever taught and commanded.

Answer 4

Hypothetically you are correct. If there was someone who never once in their life sinned then they would be pure before God on their own accord and not needed someone to justify themselves. It's like asking if someone doesn't break the law will they not go to jail. Of course they won't. (disregarding false convictions)

But as you point out yourself no one is perfect.

You don't need religion to go to heaven you only need a relationship with Jesus.

What couldn't be made clear in the hypothetical answer is whether that person believes in God. I couldn't see anyone not believing in God and being perfect hypothetically and even more so in reality. Everything good comes from God as it says in the Bible so you can't go one without the other. So I think to be perfect, even hypotheically, you would have to have something going on with the person and God.

Answer 5

It's a difficult question, because Christian theology generally takes the position that no human being has ever been perfect or sinless, with the sole exception of Jesus Christ. But in your hypothetical situation, if another individual were to emerge who was sinless, they would probably go to heaven. Sin is what keeps people distanced from God, and hence, out of heaven. If the factor of sin were omitted, then it would follow that the person would likely be permitted to enter heaven, because there would be nothing barring them from it.

Answer 6

Obviously, we believe that nobody is perfect. The Bible even states this explicitly: "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23).

However, I believe that your hypothetical proposal makes sense. Salvation is a means God provides for wiping away the stains of sin. Therefore, a person who had not sinned would go straight to heaven.

While this is outside the realm of possibility, you are addressing an interesting theological point!

Answer 7

Your understanding to the reason why people need salvation is basic... but doesn't fully explain why, but is fully amiss that anyone could be perfect enough to earn their way to Heaven.

God created us and understood us better than we understand ourselves. It is His perfect understanding unto why we needed the Savior, Jesus Christ because it is impossible to be pure ourselves, as our hearts are wicked as we see in Genesis 6 -
5 And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
6 And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart

Besides our parent Father, who is really our Father? The first reply to this by most people is to naturally assume God is... but the bible says different! In John 8:44 - YE ARE OF YOUR FATHER THE DEVIL, and the lusts of your FATHER ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the FATHER of it.

Our earthly Father became Satan the moment mankind disobeyed God. Take note of the Lords prayer in the book of Matthew 6:9 - OUR FATHER which art in HEAVEN... not on earth!

It is impossible to get to Heaven without God... Religion is man's way, not God's way.

Answer 8

You've asked me to assume the impossible -- that there is a perfect, sinless human being. But alright, I'll bite.

Jesus said that HE is the only way to the Father and that NO ONE gets into Heaven unless they believe in Him. To reject Jesus is the same as rejecting God -- which is a sin. So your theoretical "perfect person" (who is a sinner because s/he rejected God) would not go to Heaven.

Answer 9

Anyone who overcomes the love of sin and ignorantly sinning has no need of what the world has to offer anymore and so heaven descends upon their thought, but no one actually "goes" to heaven, for heaven is a state of mind and not a locality. But remember, it is also a sin to not know God and His ways, and this must be taken into account here and now or hereafter before heaven could come.

Answer 10

Even if that were true you would still have to deal with the fact of original sin, which all human beings are born with. But if someone were perfect, and was preserved from original sin, then no, they would not die. This was the case with the virgin mary. Catholics believe that she was assumed into heaven.

The Catholic church also teaches that being a member of the Catholic church is not a requirement for entering into heaven (Catechism of the Catholic Church).