How Were People Saved in the O.T.? How are we saved? With just a little basic knowledge, we can say "by the blood of Jesus". He paid the price for us. What about those who lived before the sacrifice of Christ? How are they saved? Like us, their sins were real, their sins separated them from God, and they were in need of forgiveness. Isaiah 59:1-22 Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; nor His ear heavy, that it cannot hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God; and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear. How could they receive forgiveness when Christ had not yet been sacrificed? Problem - God gave a law that whoever sins must die. All have sinned, so all must die. God wants to save all mankind, so how will He do it? God cannot just forget about His law. He would not be a just God, a God of Justice. He would be denying His Holiness, something God cannot do. He IS Holy (Isaiah 6). The Law must be fulfilled. Man has sinned, so man must die. The sin must be punished. Problem: If Man is punished for his sin, the purpose of his creation is destroyed. God provided a way for the sin to be punished without man having to die. Instead of the sinner dying, an innocent sacrifice dies in their place. The innocent sacrifice bears the penalty that is deserved by the guilty. Sacrifices have been offered since the time of Cain and Abel. After the Flood, Noah offered sacrifices. From this beginning, after man dispersed all over the globe, all tribes took with them this knowledge of sacrifice. The innocent dying for the guilty. People sacrificed in many ways, both the way God told them and in ways they invented. a. Animal dies so man goes free. b. Throw one in volcano to spare others. c. Child or baby sacrificed for the benefit of others. During or Before the Time of Abraham: Job 1:5 So it was, when the days of feasting had run their course, that Job would send and sanc tify them, and he would rise early in the morning and offer burnt offerings according to the number of them all. For Job said, "It may be that my sons have sinned and cursed God in their hearts." Thus Job did regularly. Job and his friends knew many principles of how God works with men although they misapplied the principles. Abraham and Jacob understood the need of sacrifice. So did the Chinese, Africans, South American, Australians, Sumerians, Babylonians, Egyptians. This is a common trait of religion. All of this was known before the Law was given through Moses! Man has always had some revelation by God, had some laws they had to follow. Biblical Examples of Non-Jewish Believers 1. Melchizedek Gen. 14:18 Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was a priest of God Most High. 2. Jethro - a Midianite Priest - Exodus 18:1-12 The advice he gave Moses indicates a knowledge of justice and fairness - Exo. 18:19- 22. 3. Balaam - a Priest of God over 400 hundreds of miles away near Euphrates River. Numbers 22:18 Then Balaam answered and said to the servants of Balak, "Though Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not go beyond the word of the Lord (Jehovah) my God, to do less or more. Jews were given a special covenant by God, the Law of Moses. Most complete revelation given to mankind at that point, but not all mankind were under its requirements. Context or Romans 2: Discussing the guilt and sin of both Jew and Gentile Romans 2:12 NKJV For as many as have sinned without law will also perish without law, and as many as have sinned in the law will be judged by the law NASV For all who have sinned without the Law will also perish without the Law; and all who have sinned under the Law will be judged by the Law Romans 4:15 ...where there is no law there is no transgression. 1 John 3:4 Whosoever commits sin transgresses also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. (KJV) Gentiles are held accountable because there was a standard God delivered and held them responsible. Romans 2 - God bound certain moral standards on all, but a special covenant delivered by Moses was given only to the Jews. Righteous God-fearers did not immediately disappear from the earth although their numbers were decreasing. Jew and Gentile alike were offering animal sacrifices to be forgiven. Problem: This was not sufficient. Hebrews 10:1-4 For the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect. For then would they not have ceased to be offered? For the worshipers, once purged, would have had no more consciousness of sins. But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year. For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins. Even the number of sacrifices offered by Solomon (22,000 oxen and 120,000 sheep 1 Kings 8:63), could not fulfill the requirement of the Law - Man sins - Man dies. When Man sins - an animal or even thousands of animals die will not fulfill the requirement. Hebrews 10:5-6 Therefore, when He came into the world, He said: "Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, But a body You have prepared for Me. In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You had no pleasure. Man must die. This is why it was not possible for the cup to pass from Jesus. Some say God could have saved man any way He wanted to. Not so! It was not possible to do it any other way. The law had to be fulfilled. Man MUST die. Only one like Christ could pay the price for the whole human race. Only He could do this. If a man died, a man could go free. Christ died and the Human race is offered freedom. Christ was more than a man. He was God dwelling in the body of a man. Only He could pay the price. We must keep in mind that both the physical and the spiritual suffering of Christ was experienced by one who was by nature divine and thus infinite in His being. Thus, even though He suffered for only a finite period of time, the suffering itself was infinite; it cannot be quantified. This helps to answer two questions. First, how can the suffering of Christ, which lasted only a few hours, be the equivalent of eternity in hell for the whole human race? Because He was God. The finite suffering of an infinite being would seem to be equivalent to the infinite suffering of finite beings. This is one of the main reasons why the atonement could be accomplished only by God himself and not by any creature, man or angel. Second, did Christ suffer only for the "elect" or those who will be ultimately saved? No, his suffering was infinite and has no limit. Thus it is improper to try to quantify the atonement in any sense or to think that it could be limited to a certain number of people. H ering was infinite and thus satisfied the wrath of God for every human being. Jack Cottrell, God the Redeemer, pg. 435 How were people saved before Christ? The same way we are saved after Christ - by faith. Habakkuk 2:4 Behold the proud, his soul is not upright in him; but the just shall live by his faith. (Rom 1:17, Gal. 3:11, Heb. 10:38) Faith in God to keep His Word. They knew if they would do right God would bring them to a City, eternal, made by God. They did not fully understand, yet believed that God would keep His promises. Even the angels looked into these things trying to understand. Heb. 11 - BY FAITH! They lived by OBEDIENT Faith, trusting God to keep His word. Christ paid the penalty for all the sins committed before His time and after His time. If Christ failed, all would be lost - no true payment could have been made. No one could save themselves. the only alternative is to trust God to provide salvation. 1. God freely chose to send His Son to pay the debt for all. Nothing else would work if mankind were to be saved. 2. Heb 9:1-7 Description of the Old Law and its services 3. Heb 9:8-10 Old Law could not make the conscience perfect, but was for the body, UNTIL the time of reformation. 4. Heb. 9:14 The conscience can now be cleansed. 5. Heb. 9:15 Jesus paid the price for those under the Old Covenant too! 6. Heb 10:1-14 God applies the payment to all who believe what He says, whether they lived in a time of limited revelation or completely fulfilled revelation of today ("for all time" - verse 12, 14). 7. Heb. 11:39-40 O.T. saints were not perfect without us (not us, but Christ). 8. Hebrews 9 - The Jews before the Sacrifice of Christ 9. Romans 3 - Includes Gentiles before the sacrifice of Christ 10. .Romans 3:21-27 God "passed over" sins previously committed. Propitiation - an offering that turns away wrath. Jesus bore it all (verse 25). John 1:29 The next day he saw Jesus coming to him, and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! The only thing that enabled God to do this was His foreknowledge and predetermined counsel concerning the sacrifice of Jesus. Acts 2:22-23 Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves also know - Him, being delivered by the determined counsel and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death; Acts 4:27-28 For truly against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before to be done. 2 Timothy 1:8-9 Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began. Titus 1:1-2 Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God's elect and the acknowledgment of the truth which is according to godliness, in hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began. 1 Peter 1:18-20 knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you. How were they saved? The same way we are - by the Blood of Christ and faith in God. 1. The Blood of Christ cleanses all who keep God's Word, no matter what Covenant they live under. 2. All generations have been delivered God's commands in one form or another. 3. Throughout the ages, there have been the obedient and the disobedient. 4. By faith, Abraham obeyed and was saved by the blood of Christ (Heb. 11:8) 5. Today, by faith, we obey and are saved by the blood of Christ 6. Their forgiveness was dependent on what God was going to do in the future. 7. Our forgiveness is dependent on what God has done in the past. Acts 17:29-31 Therefore, since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, something shaped by art and man's devising. Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead. Colossians 2:11-13 ...through the faith of the operation of God... bWayne Wells wayneliz@twave.net http://users.twave.net/ncc