John E. Sanders - Sanders On Inclusivism

Sanders On Inclusivism

In his What About Those Who Have Never Heard? Sanders tells a story about a college student who rejected Christianity because, he claimed, it “damns to hell all those who never hear about Jesus.” Sanders replied that though some Christians held that position there are several other views which have been affirmed by Christians throughout history. In his book, No Other Name, he discusses a range of views affirmed by Christians. Sanders coined the term “restrictivism” for the view that Christian salvation is possible only for those who have heard about the gospel of Jesus and put their faith in Jesus prior to their death. Those who die without knowing about Jesus cannot inherit eternal life. The second view he discusses is universalism (or apokatastasis) according to which every human who has ever lived will be redeemed. Between these polar views are what Sanders calls the “wider hope” and he spends the most time on two views in this category. One is what he calls eschatological evangelization or postmortem salvation. In this view if a person dies without having heard of Jesus then he or she will encounter Jesus after death and be provided an opportunity to put their faith in Jesus. The final position Sanders covers is the one he affirms: inclusivism. The unevangelized are saved by the work of Jesus if they respond in faith to God based on the revelation they have available.

For Sanders this question is part of the “soteriological problem of evil. How can God be said to be all-loving. . . if those who die never hearing about Jesus have no opportunity to be saved?” He says the problem arises out of two beliefs commonly affirmed by Christians: (1) that Jesus is the only savior and (2) that God desires all people to be saved. He believes that inclusivism holds these two beliefs together and that it best accords with how God seems to have worked in history. He admits, however, that no position, including his own, is free of difficulties.

In support of inclusivism he provides several types of arguments. First, he cites biblical texts which he takes to affirm “God’s radical love” for humanity such as the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15). God ignores our insults and longs to embrace us. God genuinely wants all people to be redeemed (2 Peter 3:9). Second, Sanders holds that all people are included in God’s grace and those who are excluded are those who exclude themselves as in the story of the king’s son’s wedding (Matthew 22). Third, he speaks about the “great reversal” in Jesus’ teaching in which Jesus “gave hope for those considered outsiders while challenging the assurance of those who considered themselves insiders.” Fourth, Sanders argues that people in the Old Testament era were saved if they responded in trust to God. He calls this “the faith principle.” It is not how much you know but whether or not one responds positively to the revelation they have. He says that God reaches out to people “via general revelation, conscience and human culture. God does not leave himself without witness to any people. Salvation for the unevangelized is made possible only by the redemptive work of Jesus, but God applies that work even to those who are ignorant of the atonement.” The Holy Spirit is actively seeking people even where Christians are not present. He cites C.S. Lewis: “every prayer which is sincerely made even to a false god…is accepted by the true God,” and “Christ saves many who do not think they know him.” Sanders gives four reasons why he does not believe that inclusivism deprives Christians of the motivation to evangelize. First, Jesus wants us to do so. Second, those who have experienced the love of God in Jesus should desire to share it with others. Third, there are those who do not believe in God and they need to be lovingly challenged. Fourth, God not only wants people to experience life after death, God wants them to experience the blessings of a transformed life now.

Sanders has also edited a collection on violence in relation to the atonement and recently has done some work applying cognitive linguistics to theological discourse.