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DOES GOD BLESS MUSLIMS,
HINDUS, AND PAGANS? by Roy A. Reinhold
One misconception held by many Christians is that God does not bless anyone
unless they are a believer. This misconception arises because they forget
that God our Father created all things and He inherently operates with perfect
justice, perfect judgment, and mercy. We've all read the words of Jesus
our Messiah who taught that, "God causes His sun to rise on the evil
and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous,"
(Matthew 5:45). It is with this concept in mind that we present the thesis
that God our Father, perfect in mercy, justice, and judgment, does bless
people on earth who do not know Him or the written Word.
Why would God our Father bless the unsaved and pagans? The overriding principle
is that He loves people even though they spurn Him and the ways of truth.
"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that
whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life."
(John 3:16). The same thought is written another way in 2 Peter 3:9, "The
Lord is not slow about His promise (to return and reign on the earth), as
some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish
but for all to come to repentance." All Christians on earth were at
one time unsaved, and ignorant of God and His ways. It is the desire of
all heaven that no one on earth should perish eternally and be cast into
hell, but that they should be saved.
Since we all were at one time guilty of sin and far from the ways of God,
do you believe that God in His perfect knowledge didn't know that you were
one day going to repent and be saved? Yes, He knew that you would! So, while
you were unsaved, He still blessed you with health, an education, and a
system of government to keep the unsavory appetites of sin in check. The
reason is that you are a valuable person with an eternal spirit, even when
you were in darkness and sin. In the same way, God our Father blesses the
unsaved who are Muslims, Hindus, or other pagans, because He knows that
before this is all over, some will come to a knowledge of the truth. Since
some will eventually be saved, the education and skills that person acquired
before they were saved will be of use throughout their life and will enable
them to serve God in a greater way after they are saved.
Actually, there are still three systems operating in parallel in the earth
today. The first system is that of the conscience, where God built into
everyone a sense of right and wrong. This conscience enables people who
have no knowledge of God, to avoid gross sin like murder. The fact is that
because we were created with a free will, we can override the restraints
of conscience. Society can also condition people to override the restraints
of conscience. The conscience was the system in place before the flood when
there was no written law and commandments of God, and still operates in
the world today. If a pagan pays heed to conscience, they will receive the
benefit of it in living peaceably with their neighbor and being able to
conduct day-to-day business transactions without cheating or being cheated.
If a pagan honors their elders and respects their neighbors, God will bless
them.
The second system, to know right and wrong, is the written laws and commandments
of God. Many people think that they were first known at Mount Sinai when
God gave the commandments to Israel. However, we know that the covenant
that Noah received after the flood was taught. Ancient documents teach that
Shem, the son of Noah, established a school of the prophets, and they passed
down the revealed truth of which Abraham was schooled in before being called
by God to move to the land of Canaan. The Torah (first five books of the
Bible), however, are a clear revealing of the laws and commandments of God.
Even as Christians, we know that the 10 commandments hold true today, because
they are all written in various places in the new testament of the Bible.
Both Jews and Muslims endeavor to follow the 10 commandments, since the
commandments are also a part of the Koran, their Muslim holy book. If a
Muslim follows the 10 commandments as part of their faith, God will bless
them. He would be an unjust God if He did not keep His word in this regard.
Does that mean that the Muslim religion is a true religion? No, it is not
and does not provide a way of salvation which is only gained through Jesus
our Messiah. Yet, the knowledge that God blesses a sincere Muslim on this
earth is a good thing, because we all are blessed to know that God will
always keep His word. Many pastors wrongly teach that the law and commandments
are done away with, but the fact is that God our Father will fulfill all
the previous prophecies concerning the Jewish people. One example is in
the book of Joel, which outline events prophesied to take place in the land
of Israel during the Great Tribulation period to come, when the nations
invade and overrun the land of Israel in World War 3.
Joel 2:12-14 "Yet even now," declares
the Lord, "Return to Me with all your heart, and with fasting, weeping,
and mourning; and rend your hearts and not your garments." Now return
to the Lord your God, for He is slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness,
and relenting of evil. Who knows whether He will not turn and relent,
and leave a blessing behind Him, even a grain offering and a libation for
the Lord your God?
And Joel 2:17-18 Let the priests, the Lord's ministers,
weep between the porch and the altar, and let them say, "Spare Thy
people, O Lord, and do not make Thine inheritance a reproach, a byword
among the nations. Why should they among the peoples say, "Where is
their God?" Then the Lord will be zealous for His land, and will
have pity on His people.
The above two texts highlight an interesting prophecy
for those who have said that the law is done away with. When the nation
of Israel is overrun during World War 3, God says to repent and fast and
pray, and He will leave a grain offering and libation so that their sins
will be forgiven. When the priests weep and pray in front of the altar of
the soon to be rebuilt Temple in Jerusalem, then God will pity them and
take action to repel all the invading armies. It is apparent that the Jewish
people will not yet have been saved through the Messiah, but rather that
God fulfills the prophecy and answers according to the law. Yes, the Lord
takes action because of their repentance and faith, but also because He
sovereignly forgives them because of the sacrifices and grain offerings.
Many Jewish people all through the centuries have reaped the blessings of
God because they acted in accordance with the law and commandments, and
stood in faith that God would keep His word.
Common sense would tell you that even Christians who violate the commandments
have to pay the price here on earth. For example, I've read of many Christians
who were saved when young, who later got involved in crime and even murder.
They had to pay the price for their crimes, the same way any non-Christian
would. The good thing is that they can completely change through the power
of God working in their lives. Prison Fellowship ministry has many stories
like this in their monthly magazine. The fact is that if a Christian murders
someone, then they have to pay the price here on earth, God does not get
them off the hook just because they are born again. Nevertheless, it does
not negate their salvation.
The fact is that God our Father is full of perfect justice, perfect judgment,
and mercy. He will bless those who follow the system He established for
the earth, whether they know Him or not. If a Christian will not follow
God's way, then that person will not reap the blessings possible on this
earth, while still retaining their eternal salvation. Meanwhile a Muslim,
Hindu, or pagan can reap the blessings possible here on earth by following
the conscience and/or laws laid down by God, even though they don't know
Him. The downside is that the blessings they reap will be temporal, only
on the earth, while their eternal destiny hangs in the balance. Think about
that next time some preacher tells you that we are not under the consequences
of the law, and that Christians can do anything they want without repercussions.
I've heard many of these preachers, and none have stated that God talks
to them regularly to tell them what to do in each circumstance of life.
No, God's written Word, the Bible, is the handbook for life, and there are
repercussions here on earth for violating the systems laid down for all
people of the earth.
Earth is a Schoolhouse For Training |
