What about all those who just don't know?

I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one can come to the Father, except through me. John 14:6.

If you were unaware that murder is a crime and you committed it, would you still be guilty of murder? Ignorance of the law does is not an excuse for disobedience from the law. God allows us to choose to ignore His presence revealed through Scripture, the Holy Spirit, and the existence of nature.

Being "nice" is not the same as having salvation. "For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it." James 2:10. The only thing that brings salvation and removes the total guilt is the acceptance of Christ's sacrifice.

If this is indeed the case, what of all those who have never heard of Jesus or simply don't understand who Christ really is?

Romans 1:20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:

In Romans we find a verse that declares that those who reject the revelation of Jesus through creation can be held accountable for their rejection.

While no mention is made positively saying that this same revelation is sufficient for people to be saved, it does leave the door open to that possibility.

Another possibility is that there is a huge infant mortality rate among tribal peoples. It may be that those who the Lord desires from those people groups, he takes early.

Part of faith is trusting that the God who gave us salvation is not cruel, capricious, or indifferent to suffering. We may not understand or even be able to understand, but we should be able to be certain that our God is both loving and just.

Saint Paul says that when heathen follow the natural law they are law to themselves.

Saint Justin the martyr even goes as far as to call the philosophers that believed in Logos "christians".

And what to say about e.g. Melchizedech or Balaam which knew God despite not being part of Israel?

So Chistians always believed in natural law and that one can know God without being preached Gospel. This of course doesn't mean that Gospel is unnecessary.

Yes, this is Christian teaching. According to the Bible, Jesus said, "No one comes to the Father except through Me." (John 14:6b) Is this tough on people who have never heard the Gospel? Absolutely. That's why Christians send missionaries all over the world.

This could simply be the harsh reality of life. My son was born with a deformed kidney that would have been fatal without surgery. Fortunately for him, the doctor had noticed the problem on an ultrasound when he was still in the womb, and after he was born he had a series of operations that saved his life. Well, what if we had lived in some poor country where they don't have ultrasound machines? What if the doctor had not noticed the problem? My son would have died. Is that "fair", that some children live and others die just because some doctors have more knowledge or skill than others? Maybe not, but that's reality. Again, that's why Christians send out missionaries: because we don't want people to die without Christ.

Christians often debate exactly what "believing in Christ" means in this sense. We routinely talk about "general revelation" -- what you can learn about God by looking at his creation -- versus "special revelation" -- the Bible. Is it possible for someone who has never heard the Gospel to "figure it out" based on what he sees in creation, his own conscience, etc? It's hard to imagine that they could somehow deduce that there must have been a man named Jesus who was born in Bethlehem and died on a cross in AD 33, etc etc. But they could deduce that there must be a God, that he created the universe, that people are sinners, etc. Is that enough? Even if it's theoretically possible, how many people have actually managed to do it? Any?

I've often heard Christians say that people who have never heard about Christ must go to Heaven because it wouldn't be fair for God to send them to Hell when they never had a chance. That might be pleasant to believe, but nothing in the Bible backs it up. If that's true, then Christians are doing active harm by telling people about Christ. After all, if someone who hears about Christ and rejects him goes to Hell, while someone who never hears goes to Heaven, then a person would be far better off to never hear. But then why did Jesus command us to "go into all the world and preach the gospel"?

Maybe God has some plan for those who never heard the Gospel. But if so, there is no mention of it in the Bible.

Billy Graham told a story about a minister friend of his. This minister spoke to a Chinese man who had just emigrated to the USA. He had never heard of Jesus. The minister told him the whole story. At the end of the story, the Chinese man began to cry. "Why are you crying?" said the minister... "Because all of my life I have known HIM inside me but I didn't know his name...Now I know his name!" "Jesus! Sweet Jesus!" The Chinese man got to know HIM even better now. He always HAD known Him but now he knew Him even better....

When Helen Keller learned to communicate, her teacher Ann Sullivan wondered how she would tell Helen about God. She just did the best she could and Helen's response was "I have always known Him".....

We should always witness to people of course, so they have an even better chance to know Him. Of course people who love God want to get to know him better.

Where does it say in the Bible that you simply CANNOT come to the Father unless you've actually HEARD of Jesus? Jesus isn't even his name anyway.....