To those saying that the Old Testament saints were NOT saved by faith????
First off NO ONE is righteous by the Law including the OT saints:
Romans 3:20 20 Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin.
No one is JUSTIFIED by God by the law. Only those who live by FAITH:
Galatians 3:11 11 Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for “The righteous shall live by faith.”
You might be thinking, but that’s New Testament…
Well, here's the Old Testament Scripture that Paul is referencing:
Habakkuk 2:4 “Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by his faith.
Here’s Abraham saved by faith:
Genesis 15: 6 Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness.
Here’s David saved by faith and discussing the need for faith:
Romans 4:
6 just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works:
7 “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven,
and whose sins are covered;
8 blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin.”
So how does faith work in the OT? God set it up before the LAW was ever introduced. The Gentiles are justified by faith through Abraham, but notice Scripture says ALL nations this includes the OT saints.
Galatians 3:8 And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.” 9 So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
Here’s Luke quoting the OT in Psalm 118:22:
Acts 11 This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. 12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
If not through FAITH how else do you think people were saved in the OT? From the LAW? From the SACRIFICES?
After Moses had given the law, the Israelite nation had the sacrificial system to follow. Did the sacrifices really save them? Did killing all of those bulls and sheep really wash their sins away? In Hebrews 10:4 we read, “For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins.”
If not through FAITH or sacrifices how else do you think were saved in the OT? Through their GOOD DEEDS?
Isaiah 64:6 For all of us have become like one who is unclean,
And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment;
And all of us wither like a leaf,
And our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.
I’ll tell you why FAITH saved people in the OT and why no good deeds, no righteous works, no keeping of the law, and no sacrifice of blood and bulls and goats EVER saved a single person!
800 years BEFORE Jesus died Isaiah wrote this:
Isaiah 53:
6 All of us like sheep have gone astray,
Each of us has turned to his own way;
But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him.
This is an OT Prophet explaining the state of the saints without Jesus. All went astray, each turn his own way, but every person’s iniquity fell on HIM.
Part 1
First off NO ONE is righteous by the Law including the OT saints:
Romans 3:20 20 Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin.
No one is JUSTIFIED by God by the law. Only those who live by FAITH:
Galatians 3:11 11 Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for “The righteous shall live by faith.”
You might be thinking, but that’s New Testament…
Well, here's the Old Testament Scripture that Paul is referencing:
Habakkuk 2:4 “Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by his faith.
Here’s Abraham saved by faith:
Genesis 15: 6 Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness.
Here’s David saved by faith and discussing the need for faith:
Romans 4:
6 just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works:
7 “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven,
and whose sins are covered;
8 blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin.”
So how does faith work in the OT? God set it up before the LAW was ever introduced. The Gentiles are justified by faith through Abraham, but notice Scripture says ALL nations this includes the OT saints.
Galatians 3:8 And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.” 9 So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
Here’s Luke quoting the OT in Psalm 118:22:
Acts 11 This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. 12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
If not through FAITH how else do you think people were saved in the OT? From the LAW? From the SACRIFICES?
After Moses had given the law, the Israelite nation had the sacrificial system to follow. Did the sacrifices really save them? Did killing all of those bulls and sheep really wash their sins away? In Hebrews 10:4 we read, “For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins.”
If not through FAITH or sacrifices how else do you think were saved in the OT? Through their GOOD DEEDS?
Isaiah 64:6 For all of us have become like one who is unclean,
And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment;
And all of us wither like a leaf,
And our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.
I’ll tell you why FAITH saved people in the OT and why no good deeds, no righteous works, no keeping of the law, and no sacrifice of blood and bulls and goats EVER saved a single person!
800 years BEFORE Jesus died Isaiah wrote this:
Isaiah 53:
6 All of us like sheep have gone astray,
Each of us has turned to his own way;
But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him.
This is an OT Prophet explaining the state of the saints without Jesus. All went astray, each turn his own way, but every person’s iniquity fell on HIM.
Part 1