Saved Without Law?
Can some people obtain eternal life apart from Christ and the law of God?
by Keith Hunt "For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without law: and as many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law" ( Rom.2:12 ). "There you have it !" say some. "Those who do not know God or Christ or the word of God, will perish in hell! Or, God will judge them by their own law and conscience as verses 14 and 15 show. They will get to heaven or hell, a different way than those who do know the Lord." And religious JEWS claim they are God's children and can have eternal life. i. e. For as many as have sinned without law shall perish [die] without law; and as many as have sinned in the law [knowing it] shall be judged by the law, in the day when God shall judge the secrets of of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel. Now, with that background - with getting out of our mind words that are not there, let us be willing to understand what Paul is saying from the context. He has been talking about individuals who did know God in chapter one - notice it in verse 21, and 28. "Because that, when they knew God, they glorified Him not as God.....And as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge......." He goes on in chapter two to warn those who know but will not do, and condemn others, that they shall not escape God's judgment. He warns them that unless repentance is forthcoming they will experience the wrath of God. Paul tells them that it makes no difference who they are - Jew or Gentile - all people will be dealt with on equal terms by God ( verses 1-11 ). So you know God - you know His will - you know His law, and are vainly confident you can teach others who are in darkness, Paul says to the enlightened. But he is also telling them that they are hypocrites - understanding but not doing gets no favor with God. Paul is here hitting the physical Jews right between the eyes. They had the knowledge of God and His law but they were not repentant or obeying the law - they HEARD but they were not DOING. They had the physical sign (circumcision) of the flesh that they belonged to God, but their heart and mind did not belong to Him. And that, Paul tells them is the real proof of being a true Jew as far as God was concerned - it was real repentance and a willingness to do the law of God that counted. If the Gentile was willing to repent and obey God, would he not be accepted as the genuine child of God, even though he was physically uncircumcised - sure he would be Paul tells them. And the repentant Gentile would bring judgment against the unrepentant Jew ( verses 17-29 ). This whole section of Paul's letter is to WARN those "in the know" as we say. Paul is admonishing - rebuking - those who know God and His law, that they stand in grave danger of receiving the wrath of God when on judgment day they stand before Jesus Christ. THIS IS Paul's MAIN purpose through this section of his letter. He wanted those who knew better to REPENT!! Paul was not here entering a theological exposition on, "Will those who do not know God, Jesus and the law, be saved by living a good life in their particular societies?" Paul was not at all here trying to teach or convey that a "good" Moslem, Communist, Buddhist, or member of a demon worshipping tribe in Africa, would "get to heaven" if they lived a "good life" by the standards of their laws, even if some of their laws happen to be some of God's laws. That is not the point Paul was getting at. Paul was trying to get some people who were "in the know" about God and His law to realize it was no good at all to be a physical Jew as far as eternal life was concerned if there was no genuine REPENTANCE and a doing from the heart the law of God. For he told them, ".....there is no respect of persons with God. For as many as have sinned WITHOUT LAW (not knowing God's law) shall also PERISH (a common Greek word here meaning - to die) without law......." (verses 11,12). God is quite fair to all people - those not called in this lifetime to know the Eternal and His law (1 Cor.1:26; John 6:44, 45 and request the in-depth article "The White Throne Judgment") will die in ignorance - will die the first death neither saved nor lost. But Paul goes on to warn those "in the know" that, "as many as have sinned IN THE LAW (knowing the law of God) shall be judged by the law (their attitude towards repenting and doing the law will be made evident), in the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ (at the last trump - first resurrection and return of Jesus to this earth - Rev.11:15-18; 1 Cor.15:50-54 ........... " ( verses 12, 16 ). Those now called by the Father to know Jesus and the law are having their opportunity for eternal life (verse 7), but if they willfully sin and will not repent - if they will only hear but will not DO (Heb.10: 26-31), they will be judged before Christ at the first resurrection as sinners - will not even be in the first resurrection, but will face indignation and wrath in the lake of fire and the second death ( Rev.20: 14, 15 ). Paul's parenthetical thought in verses 13-15 is again to shame those in the know and hammer the point home some more. He tells them they are only hearing and not doing. They are Jews and have been given the great privilege of knowing God and His law but to their shame they do not do the law - verse 13. And to make their shame worse, the Gentiles, who were not given the knowledge of the law in the way the Jews were given it, do by common sense some of the things contained in the law of God, and are more conscious in their hearts of breaking these laws. This puts the unrepentant, hypocritical, hear but don't do Jew, in real bad shape as far as eternal life is concerned. Paul uses the example of the Gentiles being more conscious of law than those Jews he is addressing to shame them and show them what a spiritual mess they are in, and NOT to teach that people who do not know God or His law, but live a "good life" by the standards of their particular society, will make it to God's Kingdom, at the coming of the Messiah in glory. There is no contradiction here by Paul with what Jesus taught when He said, "I am the door: by me if any man enter he shall be saved......" John 10:9. And, "All that the Father GIVES ME shall come to me......no man can COME TO ME, EXCEPT the Father......DRAW HIM......no man can come to me except it were given to him of my Father" (John 6:37, 44, 45). There is no contradiction here by Paul with what Peter taught when he said concerning Jesus, "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is no other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved" (Acts 4:12). There has from the beginning been only ONE WAY to eternal life. Come to KNOW the true God and His law - REPENT of sin - in FAITH look to the atoning SACRIFICE of Jesus, and be willing to DO the commandments of God. ............................................... |
