Question:  Dear Greg,

            My sister was murdered recently.  Many Christians I know told me that unless she accepted Jesus as her Savior before her death, there is no hope for her.  I became very depressed and for a brief time my connection to God became unstable.  Your articles and answers to questions are the only things that really give me hope and comfort on this subject.

            When I became a believer I was told that a lot of bad things would happen to me because Satan did not want me to follow Christ.  I didn’t think much about it, but not even a year later my father died, then four months later my young sister was killed.

            Is there truth in this—that once you become saved, expect bad things to happen?  Wouldn’t that scare off many potential believers?

            I also want to say that your sometimes humorous approach to some of the questions posted have really made me laugh out loud.

            Thank you so much for all your help,

            Marie

Answer:  Dear Marie,

            We appreciate the fact that our website provides spiritual nourishment (even a little humor from time to time!) for you and that God is, of all things, using us as his tools to help people!  In all honesty, that fact is not only amazing, but we here at PTM take it seriously that:

1.      God allows us to be used.

2.      God uses us as we yield to him.

3.      If we get the big head he can use lots of other folks instead of us.

So, thanks.  We appreciate being able to help.

The question about what happens to people we do not think have accepted Jesus Christ before their death is one that Christians should not be so dogmatic about.  The friends who told you that there was no hope for your sister seem to have very few facts to go on.  Since all judgment belongs to God, they are presuming to speak for God when he has not given any of us absolute specifics about this issue.  They would be wiser to “tip-toe through the tulips” on this issue.

            One of my favorite quotes on this topic comes from Billy Graham, who said, “I used to think that pagans in far-off countries were lost—were going to hell—if they did not have the Gospel of Jesus Christ preached to them.  I no longer believe that—I believe there are other ways of recognizing the existence of God, through nature, for instance, and plenty of other opportunities, therefore, of saying ‘Yes’ to God.”

            Some Christians assume because someone else did not make a profession of faith like they did, did not sing the same Christian hymns they did, did not accept exactly the same creeds or confessions they did, did not belong to the same denomination, etc., etc.-- that such a person is lost.  Lost in such a case is a definition that more closely resembles those who make such judgments, not hopefully in terms of salvation, but lost in terms of their lack of understanding the real nature and attributes of God.

            The idea that Satan declares war on people once they accept Christ and that new Christians really begin to have trials is:

1.      an old wives’ tale (or today we might call it an urban myth).

2.      often a self-fulfilling prophecy.

People are told, “Satan is really going to cause problems for you now”.  They start to look for troubles to happen and interpret things that they would have seen as happenstance as Satan’s direct attack on them.  Many also see trials and difficulties, given such a belief, as proof that they are authentic Christians.  Therefore, they believe, let the trials begin!

            Nothing in the Bible dogmatically teaches such a thing.  It is true that Christians are called to a life of suffering and adversity, not health and wealth as some falsely teach.  We will pick up our cross and follow him, but nothing suggests that we will be deluged with immediate trials in the few days and weeks and months following our conversion.

            In Christ,

            Greg Albrecht