“Implication” is the interpretive key opening the door to a mass of evidence for postmortem opportunity for salvation.
36 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?”
37 Jesus said to him, “`You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’
38 “This is the first and great commandment.
39 “And the second is like it:`You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’
40 “On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” (Matt. 22:36-40 NKJ)
In Jesus’ day Rabbinic argument often pivoted upon an implied premise: Jesus asked the Pharisees “if David calls Christ ‘my Lord’ how can he be David’s son? (Mt 22:41-45); ” I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob” proves Sadducees twice wrong, not only about the afterlife but the resurrection of the body for daily God is reminded He promised they and their offspring would inhabit the land physically forever (Gen. 17:7-8; 26:3; 28:13). James quotes Amos 9:11-12 to prove Gentiles were always participants in God’s salvation (Acts. 15:15-18); Paul argues “This, ‘He ascended’– what does it mean but that He also first descended into the lower parts of the earth?'” (Eph. 4:9).
18 You have ascended on high, You have led captivity captive; You have received gifts among men, Even from the rebellious, That the LORD God might dwell there.
19 Blessed be the Lord, Who daily loads us with benefits, The God of our salvation! Selah
20 Our God is the God of salvation; And to GOD the Lord belong escapes from death. (Ps. 68:18-20 NKJ)
Today scholars believe Paul’s application is “contextually problematic.” Not to the School of Hillel where Paul learned exegesis at the feet of Gamaliel (Ac. 22:1-3). Both the translators of the Greek Septuagint and Aramaic Targums of this verse parallel Paul’s Holy Spirit-inspired application. They conclude similar premises from the implication of David’s prophecy.
The prophet David speaks of Christ’s descent into hell and preaching to the formerly disobedient “spirits in prison” (1 Pt. 3:18-22) who gladly give gifts for being shown the LORD could dwell among them. Like the Church, they responded to Christ’s preaching “with the answer of a good conscience towards God”. That is the “like figure” Peter saw in Baptism, not referring to water at all. Having believed Christ’s preaching the formerly dead were raised to a newness of life (Rom. 6:4. Col. 2:12. Eph. 2:3-7) “through the resurrection of Jesus Christ (1 Pt. 3:21-22). Upon learning Christ is the only way to Salvation; the formerly rebellious become God’s gift to the church of apostles prophets evangelists pastors teachers “for the edifying of the body of Christ.” (Eph. 4:7-16). Without postmortem opportunity, none of these connections can be made.
Postmortem Opportunity does not exist for those who deliberately and in full knowledge reject the gospel of Christ (Heb. 6:4-8). Ignorance of God is the only ground for divine mercy. Christ made this clear: “He who is not with me is against me”, which implies Christ’s identity is fully known. However, if “anyone speaks a word against the Son of Man” (incarnation veiling Jesus’ identity) “it will be forgiven” “in the age to come” (Mt. 12:30, 32) for he spoke in ignorance of God.
Explanation of how postmortem opportunity fits into the larger Christian theology of salvation.
This theory of Universal Opportunity is Exclusive to Christ: “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (Jn. 14:6 NKJ). “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12 NKJ). It does not require temporal or geographical luck, everyone from Adam and Eve hears the gospel of Christ preached when their appointed deaths occur. Then is the “Judgment/trial” if Christ’s sacrifice “to bear the sins of many” includes them. To finite creatures living in spacetime this “is impossible, but not with God; for with God all things are possible” (Mk. 10:27 NKJ).
https://endtimenews.net/does-the-bible-teach-a-second-chance/