God our Savior…desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Tim 2:3b-4).
Hunter asks two excellent questions:
If God wants everyone to be saved, why wouldn’t He make it extremely easy to believe in Him? Why doesn’t He reveal Himself more so that people can see Him before it is too late?
I have a theory on these questions, as you would suspect if you have read my blogs before.
The Scriptures are clear that everlasting life is the gift of God (John 4:10; Eph 2:8; Rev 22:17). It is a gift that is received by believing in the Lord Jesus Christ (e.g., John 3:16; 4:10-14; 5:24; 6:47).
Is it hard to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ? In one sense, it is “extremely easy to believe in Him.” The only effort involved is to pray and seek out the true saving message. Furthermore, the Holy Spirit is drawing everyone to Christ (John 16:7-11; cf. Ps 19:1; John 12:32).
For those who grow up in a believing home, it is probably quite easy to believe in Christ for everlasting life. It is part of the family tradition.
But if you grow up in some tradition that is opposed to everlasting life as a gift to all who simply believe in the Lord Jesus for it, then it can be hard to believe. In such cases, a person must be willing to consider that his tradition may be wrong (John 5:39-40).
Has God made it extremely easy to believe and be born again? Yes, He has. However, that does not mean that there is no opposition. Satan loves to snatch away the seed so that people will not believe and be saved (Luke 8:12).
The question of why He does not reveal Himself more is also intriguing. As Hunter implies, if the Lord Jesus came and personally did signs and wonders for every generation, then more people would be born again. i
My theory is that God wants people to be open to believing and being born again. The Bible is clear that all who believe in Jesus have everlasting life. But it is also capable of being misunderstood.
The evidence suggests that God does not expect everyone to believe. He expects most to disbelieve (Matt 7:13-14; John 1:11-12). If He bound Satan, and if the Lord Jesus came to earth in every generation and did miracles all over the planet and spoke to people in every nation, tongue, and tribe, I imagine that eventually everyone in every generation would be born again.
But the Lord said He wants people who are “willing to come to [Him]” that they may have everlasting life (John 5:40).
God gave us all we need through the Bible and through Christian witnesses. He could have given more. But what He has given is the perfect amount.
He desires people to seek Him (Matt 7:7-11; Heb 11:6). Those who seek Him will find Him (Acts 17:27).
I do not find it helpful to lament the way God has set up the universe. He is all–knowing, all–wise, loving, and just. The way things are is the best of all possible worlds.
Do not fret that some of your friends or loved ones may find it difficult to believe in Christ. It is not difficult. They may be hindered by their tradition. But God can and does reach people from false traditions all the time. If they are open, they will come to faith in Christ and be born again.
Keep grace in focus.
i This is one of the arguments used to support the signs and wonders movement. While that movement does not say that Jesus personally appears and does those things, it does say that He sends out people to do the attesting signs and wonders. However, the Lord Jesus and His apostles gave us all the signs and wonders we would ever need.
