Hebrews - Salvation before Jesus? - 3

"All these people died still believing what God had promised them. They did not receive what was promised, but they saw it all from a distance and welcomed it." (Hebrews 11:13)

Dear Mrs. Kurtz,
How were people saved before Jesus? Were people who made sacrifices the only people who were saved? It talks in Hebrews about how He came and saved those who were "waiting" for Him. What does that mean?

Dear Friend,

It is hard to understand completely how God's purposes and plans work both within and without time and for all men. We can struggle greatly to make sense of things. 

What if people have never heard?

What if people are sincere about God but do not know the forgiveness of sin through the blood of Jesus?

What if...?

Why...?



When we do not understand, 
we recall what do know, 
and we anchor our faith to that.

 So, what do we know about God?

God is God.

"In the beginning God..." (Genesis 1:1)

"Then the LORD said to Moses, 'Give the following instructions to the people of Israel. I am the LORD your God. So do not act like the people in Egypt, where you used to live, or like the people of Canaan, where I am taking you. You must not imitate their way of life. You must obey all My regulations and be careful to obey my decrees, for I am the LORD your God'." (Leviticus 18:1-4)

<Note: the expression "I am the LORD your God" and similar expressions, are plentiful in Scripture; this is just one example.>

God is just.

"For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God's glorious standard. Yet God, in His grace, freely makes us right in His sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when He presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed His life, shedding His blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when He held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, for He was looking ahead and including them in what He would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate His righteousness, for He Himself is fair and just, and He makes sinners right in His sight when they believe in Jesus." (Romans 3: 23-26)

God is merciful.

"The LORD is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. He will not constantly accuse us, nor remain angry forever. He does not punish us for all our sins; He does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve. For His unfailing love toward those who fear Him is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth. He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west. The LORD is like a father to His children, tender and compassionate to those who fear Him. For He knows how weak we are; He remembers we are only dust. Our days on earth are like grass; like wildflowers, we bloom and die. The wind blows, and we are gone--as though we had never been here. But the love of the LORD remains forever with those who fear Him." (Psalm 103:8-17)

God is holy.

"For I am the LORD your God. You must consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy. So do not defile yourselves with any of these small animals that scurry along the ground. For I, the LORD, am the One who brought you up from the land of Egypt, that I might be your God. Therefore, you must be holy because I am holy." (Leviticus 11:44-45)

God does not delight in the death of the wicked.

" 'Do you think that I like to see wicked people die?' says the Sovereign LORD. 'Of course not! I want them to turn from their wicked ways and live'." (Ezekiel 18:23)

" 'As surely as I live,' says the Sovereign LORD, 'I take no pleasure in the death of wicked people. I only want them to turn from their wicked ways so they can live. Turn! Turn from your wickedness, O people of Israel! Why should you die?' " (Ezekiel 33:11)

God is sovereign and works all things well at just the right time.

"Oh, how great are God's riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand His decisions and His ways! For who can know the LORD's thoughts? Who knows enough to give Him advice? And who has given Him so much that He needs to pay it back? For everything comes from Him and exists by His power and is intended for His glory. All glory to Him forever! Amen." (Romans 11:33-36)

"When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners." (Romans 5:6)

God's love never ends.

"The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is His faithfulness; His mercies begin afresh each morning." (Lamentations 3:22-23)

• How has the idea of "fairness" corrupted our modern society, and the way that we (individually) view things?
• Who has the right to protest God's judgments? 
• When we don't understand something about God, we have two choices: rely on His character as revealed in Scripture, or reject Him based on our own limited/faulty understanding. Which is easier? Which is better?
• I love Hebrews 6:19! How is our "hope" an "anchor"?

Andree Seu Peterson is one of my favorite editorial/devotional/blog writers. I recently read this article and found it interesting. I hope that you will enjoy it too. "Remembering God is God, and we are not"

Heavenly Father, When we look to Your Word, we see Your goodness and Your mercy, and we rejoice. Yet, we shudder because we know that we deserve judgment, an eternity in hell! We thank You for the gift of forgiveness through the death of Your Son, Jesus Christ! We cling to You, by faith, in what we understand, and even more in what we do not understand. Will You help us to continue to grow in You?