I am a Bible thumper and believe only Salvation thru Messiah/ Jesus (alone) is the way to heaven. Yet my Aunt (who claims to be saved) believes even people who "believe in god, even if the wrong god, like Muslims,(for example or put any religion in or lack of) will still go to heaven because of their faith.
Is my Aunt right? Am I right? Is there a middle ground or is my Aunt A. just not really saved?
Jesus is the only way to salvation, but people can be saved if they have not heard the word of God, but they cannot dwell with Jesus until the millennial reign of Christ is over, but at the great white throne judgment if they did proper before the Lord as an example is Job, Noah, Lot, and Enoch, where the Old Testament was not in affect yet, they will be saved.
For people were right before God before the Old Testament came out, and before the Jews knew the name Jehovah, and before they knew of the Savior to come Jesus Christ.
The Bible says creation testifies of a higher power, God, and of His attributes, which He is powerful, intelligent, and love, for He provided food, and the means to make clothing, and shelter, and since this God created all things we should give heed to Him to follow Him, and He loves people so we should love people, so the world is without excuse.
Creation alone is a witness to a higher power, and testifies of a higher power, and covers the 2 greatest laws throughout the history of mankind, love God, and love people, which is how a Christian is saved by obeying the 2 greatest laws and love is the fulfilling of the law.
And God said our conscience bears witness of what is right and wrong for the Gentiles even had laws against wrong doing people that knew not the word of God as it is today with the laws nations have concerning no wrong doing people.
No stealing from them, no hurting them, no slandering them, and the such.
Also concerning creation testifies of a God it means not to attribute nature to God as many of the heathen do in such religions as Buddhism, and Hindu religion, which the Bible says some attribute nature to God and worship the creation more than the Creator.
People that have not heard the word of God will be judged on creation if they believe in a higher power, God, that loves all people, and their conscience to do right, and love people not offending them, and if they ask God to forgive them if anything is amiss since they have not heard from Him, or received words from Him.
These people cannot dwell with Jesus for they did not accept Him for they did not know about Him, and did not know of the Old Testament that tells of His coming in the future, but if they believed in a God and loved people to the satisfaction of God they can dwell with God and Jesus after the millennial reign of Christ and join the saints that accepted the truth.
For God is a fair God and will not condemn people that have not had a chance to hear the word of God.
Concerning Muslims there is no salvation if they reject Jesus having sufficient evidence and information about Him, and they believe in violence, and deceit to further their agenda of Islam, even war and going physically against their enemies, which does not qualify as loving people according to the Bible so there is no salvation there, and goes against the testimony of creation.
And many religions attribute nature to God instead of only worshipping a personal God apart from creation for He created all things so He would be apart from creation so there cannot be salvation there for God said professing themselves to be wise they became fools and changed the glory of God into things of nature.
An example of this is the new age movement today that God warns us about in 1 Timothy 4:1-5, 2 Timothy 4:2-4, which shall occur at the latter times that does not acknowledge a personal God, but honors the God of forces, or the power of nature as their higher power, the evolutionary process, for they believe people are still evolving to be greater and spiritual, which Native Americans were big in attributing nature to God.
The new age movement will pave the way for all people who do not love God to follow the New Age Christ, man of sin, and when they follow him God will end this sin business on earth.
Jesus said the Gospel must be preached in to all the world as a testimony to all nations and then the end shall come, so in today's world nobody can escape it for all the major religions know of the Bible, and Jesus, and many religions believe the Bible has truth although they interpret it according to their religion, as the new age movement interprets the Bible according to the occult, and evolution, and Jesus is not Lord and Savior, but a good teacher and love, and evolved to be an ascended master and avatar.
And when Islam first started they knew of the Bible and Jesus, but went their own way with what they believed, so Muslims cannot have salvation if they reject Jesus.
People cannot have salvation by believing in a God alone if they know of the word of God, and what is preached about it, for they reject Jesus, attributed nature to God, and do not show love like they should.
And the world knows of the Bible and Jesus which there might be a scant few that do not compared to the population of the world but they will know shortly.
Also if they know of the Bible and that it preaches perfect love towards people, and they do not have that love for they are greedy and selfish, and may offend people, then they cannot be saved for creation alone testifies of love towards people and caring for them, and love is the fulfilling of the law.
There is no excuse today for the word of God is known among all nations, even Africa and the tribes there, and in the past if they have not heard the word of God they will be judged by their belief in a higher power that is not attributed to nature as the occult, and loving God, and people, for love is the fulfilling of the law.
And Islam does not show love towards people like they should, and for anybody that says some are non violent, and not like the ones that show violence if Islam calls a holy war and fights against the world who would they side with the world or Islam, which they would side with Islam.
And also there is that they reject Jesus thing also going on so that alone means no salvation.
If they know of the word of God, and have heard it sufficiently they cannot get away with they believe in a God but then reject the God of the Bible and Jesus, or say their God is compatible for their God is not compatible to the God of the Bible.
There is many in America that says I believe in a God and believe that is enough, and then do not believe the Bible, or that Jesus is Savior, but it is not enough, and they sure know of the Bible and what it teaches in America.
Nobody is going to get away with saying I believe in a God and then believe what they want, and not showing the love of Jesus and being Christlike.
Even before the word of God was written they still could not get away with saying they believe in God and then believe what they want for they still had to abide by the not attributing nature to God, and showing love towards people to not offend them.
Which many that believed in a God before the word of God, and have not heard the word of God, offended people, and sometimes much offended them, which history testifies of that as they were war mongers, and pushing for power.