Don't get me wrong, as I do believe in a creator.
The Bible says "that without faith it is impossible to please God, for they that come to God must BELIEVE that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that deligently seek Him."
It all boils down to faith - for the believer and the atheist as well.
Faith applies to believe what someone says on trust. The reasons one has for having and holding that trust can and do vary. Faith is a judgement call, based on an evaluation of some of what someone says, that the rest of what they say is true also.
An atheist doesn't believe anyone's stories. There's no faith involved there. None whatsoever. His only justificaiton for claiming that no god exists, is Occam's razor and pointing out faulty logic in the stories. That means he is justified in saying the stories are meaningless, irrelevant to the reality of nature and that there is almost no chance whatsoever that a god exists.
"The Bible says "that without faith it is impossible to please God, for they that come to God must BELIEVE that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that deligently seek Him.""
What's the relevance of this? The Samaritan pleased God. This comes from Hebrews 11. Here's the relevant passages: Hebrews 11:5-6 By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, “and was not found, because God had taken him”;[Gen 5:24] for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God. But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
Paul's talking about Enoch here. That means He's talking about those that know Him. The pleasing is that they have found what God says, and the things that God values, are the same things they value. These passages do not say that only those who believe in Him please Him. One does not even have to know Him to please Him. As long as one values what God holds as valued, He is pleased. That is what is contained in God's statement of salvation, Matt 12:32
Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.
It is the things the Holy Spirit values that are important and as long as one holds them of value, God holds that person's judgement to be as if it was His own. That's because hte judgement is the same. The Samaritan didn't believe in God, yet he was separated out by God as a sheep from the goats. See Matt 25. As long as an anyone values the same things God does, God is pleased and they will live with Him in heaven. That includes atheists.