Salvation

Good people from all religions are saved

In his book What the Bible Actually Teaches, John Odhner, who is a follower of spiritist Emmanuel Swedenborg, states: ‘The Bible states clearly that it is the way a person lives, not just what he believes, that determines whether he goes to heaven or not. …. One reason why a non-Christian can be saved, is that he can love his neighbor. Anyone who genuinely loves his neighbor also loves Christ, although he may not realize it. ….’ References from Swedenborg: Heaven and Hell 318-328, Divine Providence 326

Confutation

The Scripture has confined all under sin, as it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: Their feet are swift to shed blood: Destruction and misery are in their ways: And the way of peace have they not known: There is no fear of God before their eyes” (Romans 3:10-18). Therefore all are dead in their sins for “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23), and are on the way to perdition. No matter what kind of religion a person professes, no matter how good he may appear to others, he is a child of wrath for he is a slave of sin and he deserves to go to hell at his death. How can he escape hell then? The Scripture says that he can be saved from hell through faith in Jesus Christ. “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved ….” (Acts 16:31 – NKJV), that’s what the Word says to everyone who wants to know what he must do to be saved. There is no other way of salvation in the sight of God except the faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus stated that He is the Way and no one comes to the Father except through Him (cf. John 14:6), that is to say, no one can be reconciled to God nor enter the kingdom of God except through faith in Him. That’s why Jesus commanded His disciples to preach the Gospel to every creature, for He knew that outside Him there is no salvation. Did Jesus not say: “He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:15-16 – NKJV)? Is it not written: “He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him” (John 3:36 – NKJV)?

Therefore, anyone who is a non-Christian, that is, anyone who does not believe in Jesus Christ, is not saved, and unless he repents of his sins and believes in Jesus he will go to perdition at his death. That a non-Christian is not saved by good works is evident from the story of Cornelius. The Scripture says that Cornelius “was a devout man and one who feared God with all his household, who gave alms generously to the people, and prayed to God always” (Acts 10:2 – NKJV) - Here is a man who loved his neighbour and did much good to his neighbour! - Yet he was lost, yes, he was lost, for one day an angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him: “Send men to Joppa, and call for Simon whose surname is Peter, who will tell you words by which you and all your household will be saved” (Acts 11:13-14 – NKJV), and when Peter came to his house and preached the Gospel to them, they were saved. The conversion of Cornelius shows very clearly that a man is not saved by good works, but by faith in the name of Jesus Christ.

Brethren, beware of all those who teach that a person can be saved through good works, for they are deceivers of mind. They lie against the truth, they oppose the truth just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses. Hold to the teaching on salvation which you were taught. Let no one deceive you with empty words. Remember these things: first, by grace we have been saved through faith, not by works, lest anyone should boast (cf. Ephesians 2:8); secondly, if a man could be saved through good works, then Christ died in vain (cf. Galatians 2:21); and thirdly, if it were not necessary for an individual to believe in Jesus in order to be saved, then there would be no need to preach the cross to men.

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