Consider the following scenario:
CynicalBear is born not some time in the 1900's in the United States (I assume) with access to bibles and preachers and internet forums and what have you.
Rather, he is born CynicalRhinoTusk in a small jungle village in Africa in say, 1077 AD. Will you ever hear the word of God or be contacted by a clergyman of any type? Doubtful. So you will you ever be a Christian? Not likely.
So what happens to CynicalRhinoTusk? After all, he has never known Jesus, at least not in the conventional sense.
Hmmm...
Let me get this straight. You think that those who have never heard of Jesus but lived good lives went to heaven right?
Now, they were “in a small village in Africa” and they all lived good lives and were going to heaven. But you do gooders read that Jesus said go into all the world and preach the gospel so you pass the collection plate, put the money together with other do gooders and send a missionary down to “do God’s work”. The “villagers” don’t much cotton to this new fangled idea and send the missionary packing and reject any talk of some foreigner who is supposed to “save them”. Now we know that anyone who rejects Jesus is going to hell right? So what you and the rest of the do gooders just did was condemn a bunch of people that would have gone to heaven to hell? Is that what your telling me?