questions

Hey guys throughout my walk in Christianity I've come to know and understand many things. But there is one thing that I still can't grasp. In ezekial it says if we don't preach to a man about changing his ways and he doesn't change his blood will be on our hands. The confusion I get from this verse is that, how could God entrust someone's salvation to the hands of a human. We are so imperfect. If that man goes to Hell it will be MY fault. Also for clerification Christians always get asked the infamous question. What happens if someone lives in a tribe and are on a different continent and never hear the gospel. Some say that if someone there is to be saved God will provide a way for them to hear the gospel. If this were true than God would get the gospel to people now days who could get saved and it wouldn't be blood on man's hands b/c God will make sure a man will preach it. The next is that they are sinners anyway so they will go to hell regardless. And the last one which is mostly a Catholic theology, they will go to heaven. Any suggestions would be helpful. Thanks

Chapter and verse so I can locate your quote to see if one you got it right, second which translation are you using?

Why all the questions?Does your belief in God rest on the resolution of these issues?Is this just a sudo intellectual game you like to play?I need more information:Chapter and verse so I can locate your quote to see if one you got it right, second which translation are you using?Do you have any faith in God? Are you another wolf in sheep’s clothing?Quite a set of questions from a "first time" poster who only has been registered for a couple of hours. You quote the bible but give no chapter and verse. Your questions reveal more about you than you think. I noticed you do not claim to be a Christian, I would like to know more about your "walk in Christianity" are you sure it was not a quick jog?Let this be a rebuke and a warning to you David (CyberCarbon). How dare you make such presumptuous statements and accusations to a new member here. Who do you think you are? You re-read your statements and ask yourself what they reveal.

In ezekial it says if we don't preach to a man about changing his ways and he doesn't change his blood will be on our hands. The confusion I get from this verse is that, how could God entrust someone's salvation to the hands of a human. We are so imperfect. If that man goes to Hell it will be MY fault. Hello manyquestion and welcome to the site, hope you are able to partake in many of the resources here and that in turn they spur you on into Gods thought.Perhaps what might be helpful to this question is to read through all of the context in which it was given. There is surely a bit of difference of opinion even amongst the Brethren here and will attach a previous thread that comes to mind at the bottom.Something of a recent sort may apply here. Just finished reading through the entire book of Jeremiah and without overstating it, maybe a different sort of bible study is in order in this day, that of reading whole books of the Bible straight on through. It did go a long ways in proving a certain suspicion I have had and well get caught up in just as much, that of mis-applying scripture verses in all sorts of ways. On the one hand it may be proper to express 'sentiment', the underlying and repetitive sentiments that carry right on through Gods Word; Issues of the heart, of motive, of honesty to name but a few. An example similar to this question is in Jeremiah;Jer 29:11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. This may make for a nice refrigerator magnet, a verse or 'promise' to claim, but is it accurate to do so? What was the context? As it goes on there is even more expressed sentiment that surely can be applied. But what may get missed in doing this is in the context of what is happening. Jer 29:20 Hear ye therefore the word of the LORD, all ye of the captivity, whom I have sent from Jerusalem to Babylon: This is only the nearest verse that helps explain what has been going on all along. In essence it is in the paradoxical way ("My ways are not your ways") that the Lord said to them, 'submit to the Babylonians' or put yourself under bondage.The point of all this is twofold. One is a great bit of advice uttered here from an elder in this walk, that we may lift out a verse to examine it, but be sure to put it back where you found it. In other words, in it's context.The other is to take everything you hear even from the well meaning, that includes us all and find out whether these things are so. Personally found that this idea of taking what was told to Ezekiel and applying it to ourselves in this way is more than a bit of a reach in application. Instead of a reactionary reply think it would be better to read all of Ezekiel to get a proper understanding of what the context was and so I will hedge at just this point.Also for clarification Christians always get asked the infamous question. What happens if someone lives in a tribe and are on a different continent and never hear the gospel. Some say that if someone there is to be saved God will provide a way for them to hear the gospel. If this were true than God would get the gospel to people now days who could get saved and it wouldn't be blood on man's hands b/c God will make sure a man will preach it. The next is that they are sinners anyway so they will go to hell regardless. And the last one which is mostly a Catholic theology, they will go to heaven. Any suggestions would be helpful. ThanksI do see where the questions are overlapping here and it may be more fruitful to answer them one at a time or at least direct you where you can begin to discover them on your own. Again, a warm welcome to you, there is so many resources here and many durable and thoughtful saints amongst us, willing to be of some help.And again would suggest reading all of the book of Ezekiel or at the least taking it from the verse in question back to a point in the narrative where there is a change in emphasis and then reading past the verse as well... context.Here is the related link:WARNING! WARNING! WARNING! BLOODY HANDS!

Every one knows God from His visible creation. However, one has to hear the Gospel of Christ to be born again. Therefore, Christ equip us by empowerment of the Holy Spirit, some as evangelists, prophets etc. Say our Lord asked you to go proclaim the gospel to a friend, you didn't go, and the friend died in a wreck, suddenly. Did you not rebel against the command of our Lord? The friend may never have heard the gospel before and you were his only hope before his tragic death. Don’t asked, how can I be sure the Lord had sent me? His word is like fire in your bone, there will be no peace until you go. Asked Jeremiah how it felt when he stalled, he tells you in his book.As obedient children let’s not be like Jonah. Had he not repented from the gut of the fish, he could have die in rebellion, and Nineveh might have perish. Ezekiel 3:18 17Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me. 18When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand. Ezekiel 3:17-19 19Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul. Ezekiel 3:2020Again, When a righteous man doth turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumbling-block before him, he shall die: because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thine hand. 21Nevertheless if thou warn the righteous man, that the righteous sin not, and he doth not sin, he shall surely live, because he is warned; also thou hast delivered thy soul.

Rom 1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; Rom 1:19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. Rom 1:20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Rom 1:21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. The onus and responsibility is still on the creature.Heb 9:27 And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:Take note of 'who' it is from the passage you cited;Ezekiel 3:1817Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me.

To Manyquestions and everyone else,I was out of line and out right rude to a new user, I made a bad Judgement and made an even worse assumption you were someone else because of your writing style, and to compound it I tried to weasel out of it by deleting the comments and slither a way like a reptile.Mike you are right for calling me on this and again I apologize, for not seeing it myself. Manyquestion do not judge this website for my stupid remarks, the people here are kind and gentle and have a great deal of love, as for myself sometimes I am barely saved.

Wondering if I ought to share in our correspondence here...The short of it is just this. Being a Christian is to often hold each others feet to the fire and my own shenanigans and compulsiveness I pray will always be called on the carpet as well.Pro 9:8 Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate thee: rebuke a wise man, and he will love thee. Pro 9:9 Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man, and he will increase in learning. Pro 9:10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding. May the Lord continue to hold us accountable one to another, keep us humble and honest and admitting our failures.Well handled brother. By the way, think there is some profundity in this;as for myself sometimes I am barely savedAren't we all? ;-)

hey, i know that i may have come off as secular or a skeptic. but i am saved. i was just asking questions that a lot of people ask when i share the gospel with them. no hurt feelings. thanks for the help. i always get on this site for advice and spiritual lifting b/c of the great knowledge base God has created here. thanks

Hi Manyquestion,I appreciate your honest desire to learn more about the ways of our Lord.In regards to the question of what happens to the heathen who never heard about Jesus (I get that one alot when I witness, too), here's some thoughts I've gleaned over the years on the subject, particularly from reading and listening to guys like Paris Reidhead and Winkie Pratney. It's kind of long but you may find it beneficial:In order to understand how God judges the heathen, I will attempt to lay some groundwork. Knowledge = ResponsibilityResponsibility rejected = GuiltThe Bible puts it like this: “And that servant, which knew his Lord’s will, but did not prepare himself, nor did His will, shall be beaten with many stripes. But the servant who did not know, but yet committed things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For to whomever much is given, of him shall much be required…” (Lk. 12:47, 48).Now I ask you, who has the most knowledge of God, the heathen in Africa who never heard about Jesus or the heathen in America who has heard but rejected Christ? In other words, it would be far better to be a heathen from Africa in hell than one from America, because: a little amount of knowledge rejected = little guilt. But, a lot of light rejected = much guilt.God says that there are some basic things about Him that are revealed to us by His creation all around us. So, all are without excuse in regards to having some knowledge of God:“That (Jesus) was the true Light, which gives light to every person who comes into the world” (Jn. 1:9).In the Bible, “light” means “that which is most wise.” The “Light” is Jesus. This verse is saying that God has revealed to each individual that which they need to know in order to please Him. Or in other words, He has given us all “light”-- from the heathen in Africa to the preacher’s kid in America. The Bible makes it clear that God will reveal Himself to anyone who seeks Him with the slightest bit of honesty:“And you shall seek Me, and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart” (Jer. 29:13).It is common knowledge that God is in all places at once, so what is it that separates a person from God—distance or relationship? It is obviously not distance because God is everywhere. The reason why a person does not know God is because they don’t want to know Him. For God has declared that we “should seek the Lord, in the hope that we might feel after Him and find Him, because He is not far from any of us” (Acts 17:27). The reason why most people don’t give their lives to God is not because they haven’t heard about God, rather it’s because they don’t want to live for God. Most people don’t find God for the same reason that a bank robber doesn’t find a policeman.God says that everyone knows enough about Him to be saved—even the heathens in Africa. Every person could be saved (whether they ever heard of Jesus or not) if they would only be honest and walk in the light that they have. The problem is not that the heathen in Africa (or wherever) do not know enough already to be saved—they don’t need more light. The reason that a missionary goes to Africa (or wherever) to preach the Gospel is not to give the heathen more light. The reason to go and preach is to get them to start obeying the knowledge of God that they already have.We’ve all heard it said, and some of us are even guilty of saying it, “You don’t go to hell for sinning; you go to hell for rejecting Jesus. But is this really true? That’s like saying that a person who has cancer is not dying because of the disease, but rather, they are dying because they refuse to take the treatment that could cure them. But the truth is, they are dying because they have cancer, not because they have rejected the cure. The question of their death has already been settled when they contracted the disease—the choice they now face now is whether or not they want to live. And so it is with the heathen and hell, they are not going to hell because they don’t know about Jesus; they are going to hell because they are sinners who refuse to walk in the light of the truth that they already possess. The missionary doesn’t come to create the basis for accepting Christ; he comes to remind the sinner about the truth that he has already been rejecting.So, why does a person go to hell (even if they’ve never heard of Jesus)? It’s certainly not because they’ve rejected Him. How can they reject someone who they’ve never even heard about? The answer is that they go to hell for rejecting the truth that they did possess (And Truth just happens to be Jesus).Now, on the other hand, if it is true that people go to hell for rejecting Jesus, and not just for sin, then if I go to a group of 100 happy heathens and preach the Gospel and 50 accept Jesus and the other 50 don’t, then I just sent 50 people to hell. However, that’s not how it works. Rather, God says, “There are 100 men who are already damned for their own sins. You go and bring them back from death and into life. For even though they know that they have wronged both themselves and others, and ultimately they have that nagging feeling that if there is a God, they have wronged Him too; you go and tell them that I do not hold a grudge against them. Tell them that they don’t have to kill chickens and sprinkle blood all over the ground, for blood has already been shed for their sins. Go and tell them about the sacrifice which My Son made for them, and just perhaps, it will convince them that I truly love them and that they can know and trust Me.”The bottom line is that the reason the heathen (both in Africa and America) need to hear about Jesus is not to keep them out of hell, but rather, it is to bring them to God because He deserves the glory that He should be getting from their lives. They deserve hell—we all do. But God loves them, and He already endured the agonies of hell for them. Doesn’t Jesus deserve the reward of His suffering? Doesn’t He deserve the love of those for whom He died?And finally, isn’t that what should motivate us to tell everyone about Jesus? It’s not about trying to prevent humans from going to hell and suffering a punishment that they deserve. Rather, it’s about showing and telling people about the love of Jesus (as demonstrated on the cross) in an effort to turn them from their life of sin to a life of love and worship and obedience to God, in order to relieve His suffering both now and when we die.When men stand before God they will be judged according to the truth that they knew and whether or not they walked in it. Those who had no knowledge of Jesus Christ will be judged according to the revelation of truth that they did have, such as their conscience, their understanding of right and wrong, and the witness of nature. And rest assured that each will receive a just judgment. For instance, suppose a man stands before God and says, “I didn’t know anything about right and wrong. To which God replies, “Oh really—watch this.” And then, a perfect recording of his life is played right before his eyes. The man looks and sees himself doing something very dirty and hears his own words, “You dirty…”“For by your own words you shall be justified, and by your own words you shall be condemned” (Matt. 12:37).“For when the heathen, who do not know the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, who do not have the law, are a law unto themselves: because they show the work of the law written in their hearts, their consciences bearing them witness, and their thoughts either accusing or excusing them (Rom. 2:14, 15).Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment that you judge, you will be judged; and the same measure that you use to judge others, will be measured back to you (Matt. 7:1, 2). God bless.