In the previous BLOG,
I suggested that Pope Francis’ answer to a little boy who wondered if his dad
was in heaven, fell within the stream of thought called “wider mercy doctrine”. The Pontiff comforted the boy by suggesting
that even though his dad had not believed, because he had accomplished the
meritorious act of having his children baptized, then God would look kindly
upon him. He would be in heaven.
The proponents of the “wider mercy doctrine” believe:
“. . . that salvation can be obtained even when a person has
not heard the gospel and does not know Jesus Christ. It is a belief that,
somehow, God grants status to persons who are sincere in their religious
beliefs, even if those beliefs are false. Therefore, a sincere Buddhist or
Shintoist or any other religious adherent can obtain salvation, simply because
they are sincere in their belief and desire to approach God.”[1]
I suggested in the previous blog that this belief system
extended further than the Church of Rome.
It is called by various names but essentially it’s a gospel of inclusion
or universalism. It all boils down to
this essence: salvation can be given to
a person who has not heard the gospel or of Jesus Christ. Certainly it is
no surprise that the Church of Rome believes this. “The plan of salvation also includes those
who acknowledge the Creator, in the first place amongst whom are the Muslims;
these profess to hold the faith of Abraham” (Catholic
Catechism). The Pope unites in prayer and effort with Hinduism, the
traditional African religions of animism, he acknowledges Buddhism and approves
of the Dalai Lama who is regarded as a living deity.”[2]
It is not particularly surprising that the late Robert Schuller would
agree to the “Wider Mercy Doctrine” since his definition of sin is, “…any act
or thought that robs myself or another human being of his or her self-esteem.” But many would not be surprised that Clark Pinnock, Rob Bell and Bishop Carlton Pearson
holds to such a view. But the surprise
to all of us is that the late Dr. Billy Graham espoused this view. He said, ““I think everyone who loves
Christ or knows Christ, whether they are conscious of it or not are
members of the Body of Christ . . . “He’s calling people out of the world for
His name, whether they come from the Muslim world, or the Buddhist world, or
the Christian world or the non-believing world, they are members of the Body of
Christ because they’ve been called by God. They may not even know the name
of Jesus but they know in their hearts that they need something
that they don’t have, and they turn to the only light that they have, and I
think that they are saved, and that they’re going to be with us in heaven.”” [Emphasis mine]
Grace to You (Dr.
John MacArthur) has placed an insightful comment on their website regarding Dr.
Graham’s beliefs. https://www.gty.org/library/blog/B100228
So again, as Paul warned us, “I know that after my departure fierce wolves
will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves
will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them.”
(Acts 20:29–30,
ESV). It is one thing to pounce on the
false doctrine of Romanism, but we must also look carefully within
evangelicalism. “Because, if you confess with your mouth that
Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you
will be saved.” (Romans
10:9, ESV).
[1] http://apprising.org/2013/01/20/what-does-the-wider-mercy-doctrine-teach/
[2] http://www.letusreason.org/curren31.htm
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