How Can God Be Love?

[Steve Myers] You wouldn't get much of an argument from any Christian to say that God is love. We know that 1 John 4:8 says exactly that. Everybody believes that. Yet, there's a disconnect. When it comes to Christianity most believe that if you haven't heard the name of Jesus, you're going to suffer forever in hell. And that's a major issue, a major problem that oftentimes people won't deal with.

[Darris McNeely] And I've not heard really a satisfying answer from Christians who believe exactly this when it comes to the question of then what happens with people of a non-Christian faith who do not believe Jesus Christ was the Son of God, who died for our sins, and who rose on the third day - after the third day, and do not accept Him as their Savior. And if they don't, then what about them? People come up with reasons, but they're not biblical reasons. And that's a hard question that people don't have the answer for.

[Steve Myers] And that's the interesting part. I printed off of a website trying to get a solution where Christians deal with that problem. Here's what one of them said, it said, "This is one of the more vexing questions that Christians encounter" because they don't know how to answer it. They answer it in three different ways on this particular website. Firs they say, "If you haven't heard of Jesus, you're going to burn forever." Now another way they answer this question is by saying, "We do not know how God is dealing with people in lands yet unreached by the gospel." So if you were born in Africa or some parts of Asia, maybe China, and you never heard the name of Jesus, they're saying, "Well, you could go to hell forever, or we're not sure how God's going to deal with that."

[Darris McNeely] The good news of the gospel is that God does have a plan and a purpose for people of the past, of the present, and of the future who have never accepted the name of Jesus Christ because it has never been presented to them in the correct biblical way. And those people are not lost. God in His plan does have an opportunity, a plan for them to come to know Him and His Son Jesus Christ. And the question about the plan today who may not believe in Christ is answered in really understanding the fullness of God's plan that the Bible reveals.

[Steve Myers] Absolutely. If you don't know what that plan is, don't fall for these kinds of answers that are given because they don't know the truth. Look into your Bible and realize God does have a plan for everyone because after all God is love.

[Darris McNeely] That's BT Daily. Join us next time.