The eternal fate of the unevangelized brings forth another question: is it possible to find salvation apart from the redemptive work of Christ? While members of the Christian community may disagree on various matters, there is universal agreement on this point: there is no salvation apart from Christ’s redemptive work.
Perhaps the clearest Biblical support for that position appears in Acts 4:12: “No one else can save us. Indeed, we can be saved only by the power of the one named Jesus and not by any other person” (GW). Several other Biblical passages validate this position as well…
“For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Timothy 2:5).
“Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him” (John 3.36).
“Christ… has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself” (Hebrews 9:26).
We could also turn to Luke 10:16, John 3:16-18, John 5:24, John 14:6, and Hebrews 10:12-14 for additional support. Therefore, those who reject this position (or add something else to Christ’s redemptive work) go beyond the parameters of orthodox Christianity.
However, this might prompt an additional question: how did the pre-New Testament saints find salvation prior to Jesus’ atoning death? The answer is that they were saved as we are today: by faith. The Biblical book of Hebrews offers the following explanation…
“For this reason Christ is the one who arranges a new covenant, so that those who have been called by God may receive the eternal blessings that God has promised. This can be done because there has been a death which sets people free from the wrongs they did while the first covenant was in effect” (Hebrews 9:15 GNT).
Consider the experience of Abraham, the great Old Testament patriarch. Romans chapter four will discuss Abraham’s life at greater length, but for now, let’s focus on one aspect of Abraham’s relationship with God: “…[Abraham] believed the Lord, and the Lord counted him as righteous because of his faith” (Genesis 15:6 NLT). Although Abraham’s life pre-dated the Old Covenant, he still fulfilled God’s directive through the pen of the Biblical prophet Habakkuk…
“Behold the proud, His soul is not upright in him; But the just shall live by his faith” (Habakkuk 2:4).
In addition, Abraham’s faith anticipated the arrival of a future Messiah. Jesus testified to that element of Abraham’s faith when He said to the religious leaders of His day, “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad” (John 8:56). Thus, as the following scholar concludes, “Sinners who were saved under the First Testament were actually saved, not by it or by any sacrifice offered under its jurisdiction, but through the atoning work of Messiah under the New Testament.” (1)
(1) Kenneth S. Wuest, Word Studies in the Greek New Testament [Hebrews 9:15] Copyright © 1942-55 by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.