MarMema: "A favorite point of mine as well"
There was no Church then. Salvation is God's prerogative. To assume that God has no other ways of saving people is to be arrogant and Adamesque. The idea is that God gave us a Church after He left the earth as a means of salvation. How God handles those who are not aware of Him or who do not know the Gospels is something known only but to God, and we should not concern ourselves with that.
Those of us who know His teachings should concentrate on following them.
Yes of course I agree with all you said. But what is Adamesque, please?
Ah, if this matters to you ... the "church" is the body of believers according to the Bible. Try reading the Bible sometime.
The doctrine of justification provides discernible guidance. The child of God is justified by virtue of the fact that God has declared him to be righteous. The righteousness which is the basis of His justifying decree is no less than absolute righteousness of God made available through Christ and is imputed to all who believe.