Common Question: “What Happens To ‘Good’ People?”

Question: “What happens to “good” people like the Dalai Lama and Ghandi?”

Answer: I am going to assume the person who asked this question meant: “What happens to ‘good’ people, like the two mentioned, when they die, WHILE not believing in Jesus?”  So I’ll answer this latter question in two ways.

1) There is a misunderstanding from this question about the idea of ‘goodness’.  The Bible says no one is good (Rom. 3:10-18, Eph. 2:1-3, Psalm 14, Isaiah 64:6, etc).  All humans are under the curse of the first Adam (Romans 5:12-21).  There is no man who does not sin (1 Kings 8:46).  This means Ghandi was a sinner and the Dalai Lama is a sinner, deserving death and hell for their sin because that is the due punishment from God.  Now, once we see this, we immediately think of those people we know or have known who were relatively “good” people during their life.  Were they really as bad as the Bible says they were?  Are they really sinners even though they did so much good in this world?  Yes.  Romans 14:23 explains and says,  ”…whatever is not from faith is sin.”  1 Corinthians 10:31 also tells us, “Whether you eat or whether you drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”  Therefore any action done by any human being on the planet, apart from faith IN CHRIST, is an evil action.  More so, any action done, by any human being on the planet, not to the glory of God, is an evil action.

What does this mean for ‘good’ people like the Buddha, the Dalai Lama, Ghandi,etc.?  The answer is simple, but to hear it we must take off our current cultural lense.  Our culture teaches us that no one has the right to tell anyone that their going to hell, or that they’re on the wrong path if such a path seems right to the person.  But, the Bible clearly states that Buddha, the Dalai Lama, and Ghandi could have done much good, but if their actions were not done with faith in Christ, or to the glory of the God of the Bible, all their actions were evil and sinful.

2) The Bible says Jesus is the only way to God.  Jesus said it Himself in John 6:46, 14:6, 17:3, and many other places.  The apostles believed this and preached it as well (Acts 4:12, 1 Tim 2:5-6).  Therefore if any person does not believe in Jesus before death, they will enter into judgment (Hebrews 9:27) and be cast into hell (Luke 13:3, 5).

This should move your soul to evangelism because you know the way God has provided to escape His wrath.  The most loving thing you can do on earth is to help save someone from certain death, whether they recognize it or not.  Also, if your a Christian, you must believe these things.  We do not have a buffet style faith where you believe as you please.  If we come to Christ, we come on His terms, not our own.  Whose terms do you come on?