The atonement reaches back and covers to Adam and forward to the natural birth of the last person that God gave to his Son to atone for. All of those that God gave to his Son will be drawn (called) to him and will be given the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in the new birth in the same manner that Moses (Isaiah 63:11) and the rest of the old testament saints were. 2 Tim 2:15, Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. One of the things that the Holy Spirit kept hidden from me, when I was depending upon my entelect was how to divide the differences in the same words used in different scriptures, such as these words; World, life, all men, death, kingdom, salvation. Your statement that "God reaches out to men like us to preach the gospel of salvation to those who are dead (spiritually) in their sins". If we preach spiritual things to those that are spiritually dead they will think it to be foolishness because they cannot discern the things of the Spirit, until they have been born again and have been given the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. This is why Jesus instructed his Apostles to go and preach to the lost sheep (God's born again children) of the house of Israel (Matt 10:6-7) telling them that the "kingdom of heaven" is at hand. This kingdom of heaven is not referencing eternal heaven, but is referencing Christ's church of which he is the king of and also the bride of. Also there is The nation of Israel and there is the Jacob Israel. God changed Jacob's name to be no more called Jacob, but to be called Israel. The Jacob Israel is representative of God's elect people as evidenced in Romans 9:11. The reason that I made the statement that "there is a deliverance (salvation, but not eternal) in becoming knowledgeable of the gospel, is to show how the gospel can save (deliver) you here in time, because a man cannot discern the things of the Spirit (1 Cor 2:14) until he has already been born again with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. This is why God calls preachers, and that is to preach the good news of the gospel to God's born again children informing them that they are already saved eternally by the imputed righteousness of Christ and there is no need to think that their good works have saved them eternally, but that their obedience to God's commandments will lead them to enjoy that abundant life here in time (Matt 7:14) - and few there be that find it. There is an eternal life and a life which we can have, by our good works, here in time. The doctrine that Jesus taught when he was on earth was not accepted by the majority of the population and some said "It is a hard doctrine, who can understand it". It still seems to be not accepted in this day and time.