HOW TO REGARD VIRTUOUS NON-CHRISTIANS?

I go to many conversation groups (MeetUps). Some are hostile to my testimony and presentation of the Gospel. Others tolerate it, while another group even seems to encourage it and thank me for it.

The Bahai’s seem to lack a comprehensive set of divine promises and teachings about the identity of their God. However, they do believe that their God is just and loving and seeks the unity of all people and believe that each is endowed with a divine dignity. Consequently, the Bahai’s I’ve met follow peace and love out of a devotion to their relatively unknown God.

I have little dispute with their moral teachings. They resemble those of the Bible. Consequently, I have been merely trying to add to their understanding of their unknown God, and, amazingly, they seem to be appreciative.

Often, among those who practice virtue, especially those who reject the existence of a God, I feel that I can detect a whiff of self-righteousness. However, I have not been able to detect this among my Baha’i friends.

They seek unity among all people. This fact has made me suspect that it is this quest that has led them to express appreciation for what I had been sharing about the Christian faith. They seem to be humble and willing to admit that they are far from their ideal. They also have a hope that their God forgives them. Sound familiar? However, they have little understanding of the Gospel. For them, it seems that God could and does forgive without Jesus’ death.

Two questions emerge:

·       Will this form of spirituality continue to motivate them, and more importantly,

·       Will God honor it?

Fruit production only occurs in certain seasons and times. I love to sniff fragrant flowers. However, their scent will only last temporarily. After a few seconds, I can no longer enjoy it. The scent simply disappears.

The same phenomenon also pertains to doing good deeds. At first, they are very satisfying and even elevating. Then they become tiring. This is why the Bible warns us:

·       And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. (Galatians 6:9)

I see the same phenomenon at play in liberal churches, which have denied basic tenants of the faith. Consequently, although they still believe in doing good, they do so with little confidence that it serves God’s truth. Consequently, their zeal fades. When they rejected God’s Word, they also rejected God. Consequently, they lack the guiding and validating testimony of the Holy Spirit which accompanies His Word. Therefore, they are languishing.

My Baha’i friends haven’t explicitly rejected the Scriptures, but they too lack the conviction of the Spirit. Consequently, I sense a lack of confidence among them, a troubling uncertainty.

The second question is more important. Will God honor or validate the Baha’i faith? On the one hand, Biblically faithful Christians believe that we all face the condemnation of God (Romans 6:23; 3:10-20, 23) and that the only salvation available is through faith in Jesus (John 3:16; 5:24; 14:6).  Does this two-sided fact eliminate the Baha’is? Well, yes, but…

There are those who are on the road to salvation. Jesus had been asked by a scribe about the greatest commandments. Jesus answered, and the scribe praised His answer:

·       And when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And after that no one dared to ask him any more questions. (Mark 12:34)

Jesus’ answer is somewhat uncomfortable. Instead of a world where there are only the saved and unsaved, Jesus indicated that there is also a third category of people – those “who are not far from the kingdom of God.” I would like to believe that some of the Baha’i I’ve met fall into this category. This doesn’t mean that they have arrived. They might even turn aside as Jesus’ parable of the Seed and the Soil indicates. However, their devotion to God suggests that they might be heading in the right direction.

Jesus also gave another indication of the existence of this third category:

·       “And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.” (John 3:19-21)

Notice that Jesus’ final sentence also gives evidence of this third group, “who does what is true” and will eventually “come to the light.” This demonstrates that their “works have been carried out in God.” (Their works are only the evidence – the fruits – of God’s work in their lives and not the cause of salvation, which is faith in the mercy of God.)

What are we to think about King Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 4) and the Ninevites who had repented at the preaching of Jonah? Were they saved? Did they simply receive a temporary reprieve? The Bible doesn’t explicitly tell us.

What then do I communicate to my Baha’i friends? Nothing beyond the hope extended us through God’s Word!