I've had the question asked of me lately if I believe that you have the pray the "sinner prayer" to be saved. What if someone lives the life that Jesus taught us to live but never calls Jesus by name? Will that someone go to hell out of ignorance? That is a heavy and difficult question to answer. I can't claim to know the answer, because I don't know the answer. What I do know is that God is a loving God and that He wants the very best for us. I read a passage this morning in John that helped me with the above question.
The passage reads: "Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them...Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them." John 14:21,23
It seems to me that if we truly love Jesus we will obey His teachings. That is to say, live a life the way Jesus taught us to live. It doesn't mention the "sinner's prayer" in this passage but it does contain a promise of God. It promises that God will "make His home with us" if we truly live by His commands. I still believe that we who have been told must choose to follow Jesus and call upon His name, but if we had never been told?
There is so much that is far above my head when it comes to God and His infinite, divine grace. The more I learn, the more I realize that I have so much more to figure out. It's a good thing that seeking God is so fulfilling ;)
- Because I Can
Hate the sin, love the sinner.
Mahatma Gandhi
Love. It's all about the love.
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