How were people
saved before Jesus died for our sins?
Answer: Since the fall
of man, the basis of salvation has always been the death of Christ. No one,
either prior to the cross or since the cross, would ever be saved without that
one pivotal event in the history of the world. Christ's death paid the penalty
for the sins of believers who lived after him and those who lived before.
The requirement for salvation has always been faith. The object of one's faith
for salvation has always been God. The psalmist wrote, "Blessed are all those
who put their trust in Him" (Psalm 2:12). Genesis 15:6 tells us that
Abraham believed God and that was enough for God to account it to him for
righteousness (see also Romans 4:3-8). The Old Testament sacrificial system did
not take away sin, as Hebrews 10:1-10 clearly teaches. It did, however, point
to the day when the Son of God would shed His blood for the sinful human race.
All the prophets pointed people to that future Saviour.
What has changed through the ages is the content of a believer's faith. God's
requirement of what must be believed is based on the amount of revelation He
has given mankind up to that time. This is called progressive revelation. Adam
believed the promise God gave in Genesis 3:15 that the Seed of the woman would
conquer Satan. Adam believed Him, demonstrated it by the name he gave Eve
(v.20) and the Lord indicated His acceptance immediately by covering them with
coats of skin (v.21). At that point that is all Adam knew, but he believed it.
Abraham believed God according to the promises and new revelation God gave him
in Genesis 12 and 15. Prior to Moses, no Scripture was written, but mankind was
responsible for what God had revealed. Throughout the Old Testament, believers
came to salvation because they believed that God would someday take care of
their sin problem. They looked forward to the Saviour
who was to come. Today, we look back, believing that He has already taken care
of our sins on Calvary (John 3:16; Hebrew 9:28). Our salvation is still based
on the death of Christ, our faith is still the requirement for salvation, and
the object of our faith is still God. Today for us the content of our faith is
that Christ died for our sins, He was buried, and He rose the third day (1Corinthians
15:3-4).