Are these people lost?

The National Indian Foundation in Brazil published this picture on its web site on May 29th as evidence that this tribe exists and that the dangers of illegal logging may drive these and other marginally-contacted peoples into extinction. The tribe shown here is thought to have had no direct exposure to the modern world prior to this feaful and alien encounter with a helicopter.

There are literally hundreds of uncontacted or marginally contacted people groups living in what can only be described as an aboriginal state, organized as hunter-gatherer societies, most with no form of agriculture and some, such as the unwelcoming and violent Sentinelese off the cost of India, even lack the know-how to produce fire, instead relying on lightning strikes to provide this helpful "technology"!

The concern of anthropologists is that inevitable extinction awaits these tribesmen in the wake of extensive contact with outsiders who will certainly bring disease which these people, living in prolonged isolation, undoubtedly lack the immunity to resist. But there is a more basic and plaguing question that confronts the Christian community, one that gets at the heart of the Christian mission and very basic doctrine: are these people lost?

Let me begin by saying that no one can speak with absolute certainty about any individual's eternal destiny, fingering a person for heaven's pleasures or hell's horrors...even those shown in the picture above prompting our saying "lost" is beyond the scope and authority of the church and any pastor, theologian, or writer. BUT, can we biblically answer important questions concerning the basis of condemnation and the imperative for evangelization and missions? More simply: why are people lost and is evangelism necessary [or hurtful!]...as far as the Bible is concerned? Let's take these two very briefly and attempt a simple and concise anwer on each of them.

Why Are People Lost?
Fundamentally, the bible does not teach that people are lost BECAUSE they reject Christ as savior. It is not the act of rejecting Christ that results in one being lost, the Lord's response to Nicodemus in John 3:17-18 helps us tremendously on this:

• 3:17 - For God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.

We can easily and incorrectly draw from this that Christ does not bring a "judging" mindset to the world but only a tolerant, accepting approach in dealing with us. If we aren't careful we can somehow draw from this that we should not speak to the worldy patterns and conduct that warrant condemnation; sinful conduct and sin-loving hearts can and must be condemned, and Christ showed us this by example (Sermon on the Mount, dealing with Pharisees, etc.). But what this passage is stating is that Christ does not introduce condemnation into the world, but that God actually injects salvation into the world through Christ. The next verse makes this even clearer:

• 3:18 - Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son.

This is similar to what the Lord said in John 8:24, that if his hearers did not believe in him that they would die in [their] sins. We must remember that bibically, condemnation does not occur because of anything that we did or do, but is something that we inherit from Adam, Paul helps us here in Romans 5:18 & 19 -

• ...as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men...through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners...

So no one is lost because they reject Christ...nor is anyone not lost if they have never heard of Christ; if one is a descendent of Adam then that one is a sinner deserving God's righteous condemnation. This is a harsh and stern truth, and we have our ultimate patriarch to thank for this...but except one be oustide of Adam's descent and curse, then Adam's condemnation remains on any human being ever born. We are a condemned race; please contemplate this grave reality.

Is Evangelism Necessary [or hurtful]?

Of course evangelism is not hurtful, I only ask this because many suggest that an individual can only rightly be condemned if they've heard of God's "offer" of salvation, otherwise it would be patently unfair to hold them to the impossible standard of needing to know of Christ in order to be saved. It is often said, will any be able to stand before God in the day of judgment and say "Lord, I didn't know about Christ, why would you judge me for something I didn't know about?!" Yet, what we see in the Bible is that all those who are sinners [born in sin] actually merit God's just condemnation. Again, this is a hard truth, but it is a biblical one.

If ignorance of Christ excuses one from accountability before God, then indeed evangelism and missions would bring eternal risk to some who had not heard of God's "offer", as it is often referred to. However, biblically we have every reason to believe that evangelism and missions are necessary if one is to escape the condemnation that has come to the world because of Adam's disobedience.

Again, Paul helps us in Romans 10:13-15 -

• Everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved. How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent?

Hearing the gospel is necessary for salvation...nowhere do we see, at least in scripture, that eternal life is attainable outside of a knowing and active relationship with Jesus Christ. We are told that many know and reject, and still others fake it...but there is no biblical latitude provided that salvation is somehow applied to those ignorant of either their need for salvation or its availability. I welcome any insights from those who think differently, because this is not a point to be argued, but simply a doctrine for us to be clear on. So, I stand ready to hear from brothers or sisters who have greater insight and biblical clarity on this...

• Aside: The Lord does make it clear in Luke 12:48 that the one who does not know but does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows.... I think we see a principle of mercy here that the Lord gives to the ignorant, but I don't think it means they are saved only that their punishment is less harsh. It should be clear that only God knows what this means in actuality. Eternal life is his gracious gift and eternal condemnation is a right only he has as the righteous judge of "the great and the small"...only let us live up to what we know and be true to scripture with integrity.

Why does this matter?

First of all, this is not a hypothetical, these tribes exist and we need to pray fervently that the gospel reaches them, indeed I sincerely hope missionary organizations are contemplating ways to reach them without putting these people and their small societies at the risk of extinction

Secondly, this is important for clarity sake even as we evangelize in our own communities, especially in an increasingly culturally pluralistic society. For example, we are hard-pressed to say that muslim women living in Pakistan are knowingly "rejecting" Christ when because of their muslim heritage they have a completely different understanding as to who he is; I frankly don't see their situation as being any different from the uncontacted Indians of South America...this is why many missionaries are risking their lives to do missions in muslim countries, so the people in those lands can receive a true understanding about Christ, his lordship and God's plan of salvation.

Lastly, we must maintain a biblical basis for what we believe as Christians, especially when so much of what we hold to in the church today is of a spurious biblical basis. As mentioned in my previous posting, the beginnings of a Reformation movement in the African American church must rest on a rediscovery of the bible and its core message...and then living by the same! We have some work to do in this effort, but it's necessary and will return to us many dividends of God-glorifying living, Christ-exalting preaching, and true Christian fellowship across all cultures and peoples who comprise the wonderfully mosaic body of Jesus Christ. To him be the glory!