What about those who have never heard?

What about those
who have never heard?

The Question
The Bible clearly states that Jesus is the only way to God (John 14:6), the only name by which we can be saved (Acts 4:12), and the only means to eternal life (1 John 5:11). But what about people who have never even heard of Jesus? Do they miss out on God, salvation & eternal life just because they were never presented with the necessary information? If so, isn’t that unfair?

The Answer
There are 2 issues involved in this question. First, certain people are being thought of as innocent due to their levels of ignorance. Second, God’s justice is being disputed. Both issues require a closer look.

Before accusing God of injustice, we should be clear about the levels of ignorance and innocence attached to the persons in question. According to the Bible, just because a person has never heard of the story of Jesus doesn’t mean they haven’t been given information about God.

The Bible says that the heavens declare the glory of God (Psalm 19:1). In other words, creation itself points to a Creator. Paul says that God’s existence and even some of God’s attributes can be clearly discerned from creation (Romans 1:20).


But beyond creation pointing to the existence of a Creator, we also have a conscience that points to the Creators moral standards. Across the globe a general sense of right and wrong is agreed upon.

Because people have creation and conscience pointing them toward God, even people from isolated tribal groups are without excuse when it comes to responding to God’s natural revelation.

The question becomes, if a tribal member did respond positively to creation and conscience, could they be saved despite their ignorance of Jesus? The Bible doesn’t address this question directly, but the answer may very well be yes!

If God chooses to save such a person, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they found some other way to be saved than by Jesus. It may simply mean that Jesus saves them despite their ignorance of His name. Just because they were ignorant of Jesus doesn’t mean Jesus was ignorant of them. The Bible says that Jesus is the truth (John 14:6). If they were seeking truth, they were seeking Jesus all along!

In the end, we can trust that God will make the right decisions. God knows our limitations. He will judge people according to how they have responded to the revelation they did receive (Proverbs 24:12).

Not all Christians would agree with this response to the question. But from our point of view, this answer makes the most sense of God and the relevant Bible passages.