On non-belief and the existence of God

[Michael]

If we look at how John the Evangelist describes Jesus's response to the Jews who were rejecting them he says (John 5:22), "If I [Jesus] had not come and spoken to them, they would not have sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin.".

Omg. Remind me to steer clear of that Jesus guy. Coming into contact with him puts me in dire jeopardy of going to hell?

The Christian view is that you will come into contact with him whether you want to or not. The question then is what would be your response? So the idea that hell could be avoided if the Gospel was never preached is not one that actually makes sense from a Christian perspective. At some point a decision must be made, the 'Great Divide' must happen, as C.S.Lewis described it in the book of that name. Some say that this life is spent in preparation for meeting Jesus, so what we do still matters, just as the early pattern an addict sets for themselves can often, sadly, have ramifications further down the line. If we spend our lives rejecting the values of Jesus, the are we likely to accept Jesus as King when meeting him? Likewise if we accept the values of Jesus, even without knowing much or anything about Jesus, are we likely to reject him when we meet him? That is the essence of the parable of the sheep and goats. But also I'd want to say that Christianity isn't just about the future - I think it's very much about the present, it's about the world we create now as much as thinking about the world we're building for the future.