Is Christian Universalism New?

About thirty years ago, when I first began to see that Jesus really is the Saviour of the world, as first declared by John the Baptist, I felt as if I was all alone in this belief.
A few years later, as I began preaching and writing about God's plan to save the world through the death and resurrection of Jesus, the feedback I received included:

You are totally our of step with the traditional mainstream church,
You claim to be a Bible-believing Christian but you have now become one of those liberals,
Surely you can't believe that when you see the world heading downhill so rapidly,

even though I always backed my views and comments with Biblical references.

Indeed, a really dear friend of mine used to say, "I cannot fault your argument ... and I believe you are correct in your quoting of Scripture ... and I would like to believe what you are saying ... but I just can't".

Since those days, I have discovered many, many others who have written books or have BLOGs and websites that promote this belief that Christ ultimately reconciles everyone -  and this includes several highly-regarded theologians and academics.

More recently, I have been discovering the writings of some Church Fathers from centuries ago who have also believed and promoted this doctrine.

Allow me to show a potted history of some snippets of their writings, demonstrating that the eventual reconciliation of all is not a new or liberal fad, but a view held by many since the earliest days of the church.

Of course, the oldest Church Fathers are the Apostles of the first century AD, and their writings, recorded in our Bibles, I have been quoting for years.
So just a small sample of those again to get us started.

Paul the Apostle.

Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men.
[Romans 5 : 18  ESV]

Peter the Apostle.

Heaven must receive him until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets.
[Acts 3 : 21  NIV]

John the Apostle.

We [who were with Him in person] have seen and testify [as eye-witnesses] that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.
[1 John 4 : 14  AMP]

Jesus himself.

When I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to me.

[John 12 : 32 GNT]

Now a sample of quotes from Church Fathers of the first few centuries AD.

St Clement of Alexandria.

"For all things are ordered both universally and in particular by the Lord of the universe, with a view to the salvation of the universe."

St Origen, Clement's student and successor.

"our belief is that the Word [Christ] shall prevail over the entire rational creation, and change every soul into his own perfection. … For stronger than all the evils in the soul is the Word, and the healing power that dwells in him; and this healing he applies, according to the will of God, to every man.“

St Macrina the Younger, a famous Nun in the Eastern Church.

She taught that God’s judgements were a “process of healing [that] shall be proportioned to the measure of evil in each of us, and when the evil is purged and blotted out, there shall come in each place to each immortality and life and honor.”
She also taught that the resurrection is “the restoration of human nature to its pristine condition.”

St Gregory of Nyssa, St Macrina's brother, an Easter Church Bishop.

“the annihilation of evil, the restitution of all things, and the final restoration of evil men and evil spirits to the blessedness of union with God, so that He may be ‘all in all,’ embracing all things endowed with sense and reason.”

Bishop Theodore of Mopsuestia.

“The wicked who have committed evil the whole period of their lives shall be punished till they learn that, by continuing in sin, they only continue in misery. And when, by this means, they shall have been brought to fear God, and to regard Him with good will, they shall obtain the enjoyment of His grace."

Actually, there are many more quotes from these "Fathers" that could have been included in this post, together with quotes from other Church Fathers. Indeed, that there were many others is revealed by St Augustine, an opponent of the universal reconciliation of all and arguably the starting point for the Western Church's doctrine of eternal torment in hell for unbelievers.

St Augustine commented, "There are very many who though not denying the Holy Scriptures, do not believe in endless torments."

So my discovery, of the universal salvation of all through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, was hardly a discovery of anything new. Many of the ancients in the Church, particularly the Eastern Church, taught it also.

Blessings, Barry

PS. I haven't done any original research on the writings of the ancient Church Fathers, but have used more recent writings of others from which to choose these samples:
"The Lost Message of Paul" by Steve Chalke, Chapter 20
"Christ Triumphant by Tomas Allin", Chapters IV and V
"If Grace Is True" by Philip Gulley and James Mulholland, Appendix 2
Website: https://christianuniversalist.org/articles/history-of-universalism/
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Other published Writings at https://www.ibtechservices.com.au

I'm Not Religious But

I am not a fan of religion - not religion of any kind, including Christianity as it is most frequently promoted and practised.
Religions operate under formulas like:

Do this list of things and don't do this list of things and you will be happy here and rewarded in the future.
But if you don't follow those lists, you will .....

Clearly such religious formulas offer benefits and bliss, but actually produce control and fear, often breaking people.

I remember shifting into a new neighbourhood several years ago and meeting my next door neighbours. In our discussion, after discovering that I attended church, my neighbour quickly retorted with "I'm not religious" hoping to create a safe distance between us.
My response was "Neither am I; but I have a great relationship with God", which led to several interesting conversations over the following years.

My great relationship with God is the result of Jesus Christ freeing the whole creation from its slavery to sin through his death and resurrection about 2000 years ago.

God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them.
[2 Cor 5: 19  NIV]
God had Christ, who was sinless, take our sin so that we might receive God’s approval through him.
[2 Corinthians 5 : 21  GW]

As I have become aware of my relationship with God, I am able to be free from religious formulas and enjoy Christ's leading and provision in my life and be assured of my future, not matter what.

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.
[Galatians 5 : 1  NIV]

This was St Paul's advice to those who discovered their new relationship with God and encouraged them not to go back to their previous Jewish religion, calling it a yoke of slavery.

Although this new relationship with God is a universal truth for all of God's creation due to the achievement of Jesus, not too many currently know about it. But we all will, eventually, as Jesus fufils his promise to bring us all into intimate relationship with him, and therefore to know him and to appreciate what he has achieved for all of us.

When I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to me.
[John 12 : 32  GNT]
God did what he had purposed, and made known to us the secret plan he had already decided to complete by means of Christ. This plan, which God will complete when the time is right, is to bring all creation together, everything in heaven and on earth, with Christ as head.
[Ephesians 1 : 9 - 10  GNT]

Yes, one day, we're all going to know and experience the freedom that Christ has given us, and to enjoy that relationship face-to-face - and there won't be a religion anywhere in sight.

Blessings, Barry

The Lost Still Belong

Luke 15 records Jesus' teaching on the lost sheep, the lost coin and the lost son. Two things stand out that are not often mentioned when discussing these parables.

Firstly, the lost sheep and lost coin are searched for until they are found. Their owners do not give up the search until the sheep and coin are found and returned to their rightful place in the flock or in the owner's purse.

The case for the lost son is a little different, since he had a decision-making ability. The father was waiting and watching for his son's return, and ready to welcome him in true fatherly fashion, knowing that eventually he would make a comparison between his pig sty living conditions and those in his well-to-do family estate.

In each case the story doesn't end until the lost are returned and restored.

Secondly, each lost one was still of the same value as before it was lost.
The coin still had its original currency value, and the image of the emperor still engraved on it.
The lost sheep was still a sheep; it had not become something else, and comfortably fitted back into the flock (maybe after some cleaning up).
The lost son was still a son, as the father declared most emphatically - "this son of mine was dead and is alive again".

Since God is the Saviour of the world,

That is why we labor and strive, because we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all people, and especially of those who believe.
[1 Timothy 4 : 10  NIV]

and Jesus the reconciler of all,

For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
[Colossians 1 : 19 -20  NIV]

and Jesus promises to draw everyone to himself,

"And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.”
[John 12 : 32  NIV]

I can't imagine God being less successful than the humans (shepherd, woman and father) in Jesus' parables.

Blessings, Barry
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Other published Writings at https://www.ibtechservices.com.au