Do Non-Christians Have the Possibility of Going to Heaven?

[Basil the Great]

Yeah me too. Though I must say that Baptists are no longer what they used to be. Many have no idea what they believe or why. They simply like their preacher because he "challenges" them but never actually teaches them any truth.

I think to a great extent, the same thing can be said about the Episcopalians, the United Methodists, the Lutherans, etc. Not all, but many of their members do not follow well in the footsteps of their grandparents.

 

[Light of the East]

I make of them that the Lord Jesus Christ is our inheritance and all that He earned is everything that Heaven is. He is enough for the believer and all that we need to be accepted, loved, and blessed by God.

Certainly Christ is our inheritance for it is He who is eternal life. But the point remains - whether you say it is eternal life or Christ Jesus, the Scriptures teach that we inherit eternal life, not that it is given at the time of our salvation.

 

[RDKirk]

Since Job is considered by many to be pre-Moses we can assume that it came down to him from Adam and his children.

We know that the Gospel was first taught by God right after the Fall from Gen. 3:15. Also we have the account of Cain and Able's sacrifices in which the one accepted was shed blood picturing a substitutionary sacrifice.

Moreover the woman apparently thought that she had the promised Redeemer when she named her son Cain.

The meaning of the Hebrew Qayin is "spear." I don't see how that relates to being the promised Redeemer.

I think we can do better than to assume that somehow Job's knowledge of God came by way of handed-down religion from Seth. Or Cain.

Who makes the Bear, Orion and the Pleiades, And the chambers of the south -- Job 9

Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades, Or loose the cords of Orion? Can you lead forth a constellation in its season, And guide the Bear with her satellites? -- Job 38

Behold now behemoth, which I made with thee; he eateth grass as an ox. -- Job 40

Though the river rages, Behemoth is unafraid; he remains confident, even if the Jordan surges up to his mouth.-- Job 40

Can you catch Leviathan with a fishhook or tie his tongue down with a rope? -- Job 41

We have this set of exchanges between God and Job that is of any other interchange between God and any other man, in which God validates Himself through His creation rather than divine revelation or reference to His promises to ancestors or His acts in favor of a group of people. With Job, uniquely, God focuses on His creation.

The heavens are telling of the glory of God;
And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands.

Day to day pours forth speech,
And night to night reveals knowledge.

There is no speech, nor are there words;
Their voice is not heard. -- Psalm 19

That which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them.

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.

For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. -- Romans 1

I think that Job knew God through creation, because clearly from Psalm 19 and Romans 1, God has made creation sufficient to know His existence and character. Creation is such a sufficient witness of God that creation alone is sufficient for God to judge men by, so that because of the witness of creation--even only creation--man has no excuse not to acknowledge God.

God did this so that they would seek Him and perhaps reach out for Him and find him, though He is not far from any one of us. --Acts 17

So...what if by the witness of creation alone--which is sufficient for belief as we see in Romans 1 and that being God's intention as we see in Acts 17--what if a man does acknowledge God through creation? I think Job is an example of such a man.

 

[twin1954]

The meaning of the Hebrew Qayin is "spear." I don't see how that relates to being the promised Redeemer.

I think we can do better than to assume that somehow Job's knowledge of God came by way of handed-down religion from Seth. Or Cain.

Who makes the Bear, Orion and the Pleiades, And the chambers of the south -- Job 9

Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades, Or loose the cords of Orion? Can you lead forth a constellation in its season, And guide the Bear with her satellites? -- Job 38

Behold now behemoth, which I made with thee; he eateth grass as an ox. -- Job 40

Though the river rages, Behemoth is unafraid; he remains confident, even if the Jordan surges up to his mouth.-- Job 40

Can you catch Leviathan with a fishhook or tie his tongue down with a rope? -- Job 41

We have this set of exchanges between God and Job that is of any other interchange between God and any other man, in which God validates Himself through His creation rather than divine revelation or reference to His promises to ancestors or His acts in favor of a group of people. With Job, uniquely, God focuses on His creation.

The heavens are telling of the glory of God;
And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands.

Day to day pours forth speech,
And night to night reveals knowledge.

There is no speech, nor are there words;
Their voice is not heard. -- Psalm 19

That which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them.

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.

For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. -- Romans 1

I think that Job knew God through creation, because clearly from Psalm 19 and Romans 1, God has made creation sufficient to know His existence and character. Creation is such a sufficient witness of God that creation alone is sufficient for God to judge men by, so that because of the witness of creation--even only creation--man has no excuse not to acknowledge God.

God did this so that they would seek Him and perhaps reach out for Him and find him, though He is not far from any one of us. --Acts 17

So...what if by the witness of creation alone--which is sufficient for belief as we see in Romans 1 and that being God's intention as we see in Acts 17--what if a man does acknowledge God through creation? I think Job is an example of such a man.

Did creation teach Job to sacrifice?

(Job 1:5) And it was so, when the days of their feasting were gone about, that Job sent and sanctified them, and rose up early in the morning, and offered burnt offerings according to the number of them all: for Job said, It may be that my sons have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts. Thus did Job continually.

As far as the name Cain I get my view from what Eve said not from the name Cain.

Here is Adam Clarke on the verse:

Genesis 4:1

I have gotten a man from the Lord - Cain, קין, signifies acquisition; hence Eve says קנתי kanithi, I have gotten or acquired a man, את יהוה eth Yehovah, the Lord. It is extremely difficult to ascertain the sense in which Eve used these words, which have been as variously translated as understood. Most expositors think that Eve imagined Cain to be the promised seed that should bruise the head of the serpent. This exposition really seems too refined for that period.

 

[RDKirk]

Did creation teach Job to sacrifice?

(Job 1:5) And it was so, when the days of their feasting were gone about, that Job sent and sanctified them, and rose up early in the morning, and offered burnt offerings according to the number of them all: for Job said, It may be that my sons have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts. Thus did Job continually.

What people-group on earth did not sacrifice? Offering sacrifices appears to be as universal as the concept of deity in the human race. That Job offered sacrifices is not in itself indicative of knowledge of the One True God.

That which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them.

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.

For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. -- Romans 1

God did this so that they would seek Him and perhaps reach out for Him and find him, though He is not far from any one of us. --Acts 17

 

[Dave-W]

Why would non-Christians, who deny Christ and do not believe in Christ now, want to spend eternity with Christ in heaven worshiping Him?

I dunno - maybe that would be considered preferable to spending eternity burning but not being consumed.

"...and the smoke of their torment rises forever..." Rev 14.11

 

[JM]

Nobody here has argued that they would. That's not even a category in the poll.

But that's the underlying intention of the poll as you can see from Light of the Easts posts. Universalism is an influential view in Eastern Orthodoxy.