Quest (11-20-2017)
Dear Colonel, Salvation is of the Lord. Salvation is not a human enterprise (religious denominational works or decrees). Human beings cannot save themselves. Salvation is a divine work; it is accomplished and applied by God. Salvation is both of the Lord and from the Lord. What I was trying to point out in my last post had nothing to do with Calvinistic teaching. I was merely attempting to show God's mercy and justice according to His divine sovereign will in somehow saving people who have never had an opportunity to hear about Jesus.
Let me be clear! Salvation in a specific sense refers to our ultimate redemption from sin and reconciliation to God. In a sense, salvation is the ultimate rescue from calamity---the judgment of God. This ultimate salvation is accomplished by Christ who "delivers us from the wrath to come", which is His "divine retribution" and ultimately experiencing the "second death" which will result in being cast into the "lake of fire" forever and ever (1 Thess 1:10, 2 Thess 1:8-9, Rev 20:14-15). All human beings will be held accountable before the tribunal of the Lord Jesus Christ (2 Cor 5:10).
The Bible uses the term salvation not only in many senses, but in many tenses. The verb to save appears in virtually every possible tense of the Greek language. There is a sense in which we were saved (from the foundation of the world); we were being saved (by the work of God in history); we are saved (by being in a justified state); we are being saved (by being sanctified or made holy); and we will be saved (experience the glorification of our redemption at the resurrection of the just). Let me conclude this by saying that salvation speaks in terms of the past, present, and future. Our actions do determine where we will spend eternity. "For by your words you shall be justified, and by your words you shall be condemned (Mt 12:37).
If you put God First, you have Him at Last.
Okay but the reason why people in the Americas didn't hear the gospel was that noone travelled there and they would have if more of them had served God faithfully. God didn't make them fail to serve him faithfully.
Quest (11-20-2017)
That is not the same as Jesus appearing to pagan tribes in 1000 AD and saving someone because they supposedly sought for God yet nothing eventuated - no record of salvation, no spreading of the gospel, no communities remain when missionaries arrive
Jesus said go and make disciples yet not one record of a disciple - Where is the FRUIT???
Jesus appearing to Muslims in the last few decades is in context with other things taking place like the availability of christians to get to that person and discipleship to occur. That is why I had the experience with my Muslim friend who Jesus appeared to - there is context and meaning to the encounter.
Islam was birthed in the Middle East where there were christians for centuries
This is no context or scriptural sense to Jesus appearing to all these supposed pagan seekers yet not one disciple or fruit
Strangely Mormons believe the same thing that their 'Jesus' appeared to pagan Indians - yet there is no evidence of Mormon Indians