As an unsaved seventeen-year-old, God began to draw the heart of this writer to Himself. A pastor was patient enough to spend several hours answering directly from Scripture a number of spiritual questions I had. Two of these questions were “What about the heathen in remote parts of the world who may never have the opportunity to hear this simple plan of salvation?” and “Will God have mercy on them, or send them into eternal punishment?” Basically, I was asking if the God who was offering me eternal life as a free gift of His grace was just to every soul.

There are two principles from God’s Word that sufficiently answer these questions. Genesis 18:25 asks, “Shall not the Judge [or God] of all the earth do right?” The answer is, “Yes!” God always does what is right. There is never any unrighteousness with God. Whether we understand every circumstance or not, we can trust that this principle is always true. Secondly, God will always sovereignly enable any soul who genuinely seeks the Lord and eternal life to find both. Deuteronomy 4:29 says it this way: “But if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord thy God, thou shalt find Him, if thou seek Him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.” Jeremiah 29:13 promises “…ye shall seek Me, and find Me, when ye shall search for Me with all your heart.” Similarly, while these promises were directly given only to Israel, we believe it is also a broad principle that has always been true for all people in every dispensation (Ruth, Rahab, and the Ethiopian Eunuch are examples). We believe this because “The Lord is…not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (II Peter 3:9). God “…will have all men to be saved, and come unto the knowledge of the truth” (I Timothy 2:4). We believe any lost soul genuinely seeking eternal life will be divinely enabled to find salvation through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. It may be through a missionary, radio broadcast, or a child of God placed in one’s path.

The Apostle Paul assured the Gentiles on Mars’ Hill that God “…hath made of one blood all nations of men…that they should seek the Lord, if haply they might…find Him, though He be not far from every one of us” (Acts 17:26-27). You can believe God is just and that He will mercifully save all who genuinely seek Him.