There might have been a time when I would have easily answered that salvation before Christ came as the result of obedience to God's law; and on the surface, that appears to be a reasonably logical answer. But a few moments' reflection on the logic of that supposition leaves us with some serious stumbling-blocks in our theology. If, for instance, performance of sacrifices--or avoidance of sins--could somehow have saved those with whom God first populated the earth, then why would those same means no longer suffice? I can find no indication in scripture that God ever pronounced a change in the rules, and if God changed the rules and didn't tell us...well, that would mean that God was changeable (in direct opposition to what James writes when he says "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, Who does not change like shifting shadows." (JAS 1:17, NIV) Likewise, if salvation were accessible by work of any sort, why would the God of the Universe choose to give of His own suffering, humiliating Himself and suffering derision and torture, to make available what would then amount to just another option? Certainly, it was Paul's understanding that no one could be saved by actions: "...nevertheless knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the Law; since by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified." (GAL 2:16, NASV)
So, we have what appears to be pretty clear Biblical evidence that salvation never was by works. The fact that God required sacrifices of His people, that He set down laws for them, and that His presence was not to be entered into without fear and trepidation all had one aim: namely, they were "types", that is, images, of what God desired for His people. In the case of the sacrificial system, the important lesson was to be found in the futility of attempting to be at peace with God through actions or gifts. No matter how many rams or bulls or goats or pigeons were killed upon the altar, the sin of the people had returned before the blood had even dried on the horns of the altar. Such is the lot of man: we are doomed to perpetual shortcoming, to be slaves to our own lusts and seekers only of our own happiness apart from intimate and abiding relationship with God through Christ. Likewise, laws taught that no amount of not-doing, no amount of abstinence or sobriety or spiritual martyrdom could ever suffice to do more than make us prideful and lead us to consider ourselves better and others inferior by virtue of our keeping of the covenant. Indeed, this became even more intensely evident by the intertestamental period, when the rabbis and commentators had amassed and codified laws to dictate every breath and every movement. Clearly, in trying to achieve holiness by the law, we were as the proverbial man trying to dish out the ocean with a teaspoon. Again, because their sacrifices were incomplete, the Israelites could not face God in person, and when even Moses, their leader (who himself was a foreshadowing of the Christ), was in God's near presence, the lingering aura of YHWH's glory on his person was stunning to those whom he encountered. Yet, in God's timing, the coming of Christ would remedy all of these shortcomings: sacrifices and law-keeping were no longer matters of requirement or necessity for salvation, because God had provided as a gift all that was needed. And the same God whom the high priest himself scarcely dared to approach at the appointed time of sacrifice had, in Christ, breached the fabric of time, space and the separation of uncleanness and unholiness, and in a stunning plot twist, the Savior had come to seek those in need of salvation.
But still, what of the time before John lept in his mother's womb and Elizabeth pronounced to her cousin that she had been chosen to bear the Messiah as a tiny child? How did those whose lives were fated to end before the coming of Christ have access to salvation? Or did God somehow deem that not everyone He had created would have access to dwell with Him in eternity?
The key to understanding pre-advent salvation, in my opinion, lies in the teachings of the New Testament. First, let's look at Hebrews, where the author asserts that "...Christ came as high priest of the good things that are now already here,He went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not made with human hands, that is to say, is not a part of this creation. He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption. The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God! For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant." (HEB 9:11-15, NIV) In other words, Christ did permanently and completely what the Old Testament law and sacrificial system could do only temporarily and partially: He eternally, permanently made peace between God and man, and His work on the cross is the only work that can provide salvation. The author of Hebrews makes it clear that this sacrificial work of Jesus was not only for those blessed to be born in the "anni domini" (as we mark our history still, the 'years of God', those times following the birth of Christ), but that His work also made intimacy with God, forgiveness of sin, and access to the divine throne of grace available to all the descendants of Adam.
So how was salvation accessible in the days before Christ? Quite simply, by God's grace. Adam and Eve had the privilege of walking with God in the garden in the cool of the evening. Jehovah revealed Himself to the children of Israel as they crossed the wilderness in a pillar of fire and a cloud of smoke. Jacob wrestled with an angel of the Lord, certainly the presence of God Himself confronting Jacob mano-a-mano. And so it went, God's people encountering God's presence, being challenged to consider God's love for them, and finding faith and hope in the knowledge that He Who Was Before There Was Anything, He Who Made the Worlds, He Whose Banner Over Us Is Love had been abiding with them and providing for them all along.
How does God choose who may be saved? His Word shows us clearly that salvation is, in the words of the angelic messenger in Luke's gospel, "Good news of a great joy, which shall be for all people". As in our day, there have always been those who chose to reject this Good News, and there have been those who outwardly professed to follow Him, but whose lives bore other testimony. Neither has salvation ever been inaccessible to mankind, nor has it ever required any work on our part. In fact, even our faith is not a work in the sense that it is born of some right action or wise choice on our part; rather, it is the result of the work of God's Spirit, drawing us to repentance and conversion. If our faith were a saving work, then surely we would be doomed as soon as doubt began dogging us, as it always does, even for those most sure of their faith and salvation.
Thus salvation has been accessible since God first looked on Adam with love and saw past his transgression to rescue his heart. It was, and continues to be, a free gift from God's heart, not a concession grudgingly made as an alternate route for those who could not perform according to the law. As Jesus reminded us, we who are in Him will one day each find his name on a place card at God's banquet table in the company of Moses, Abraham, King David and all those down through the ages whose freedom was bought with the blood of God Himself.
May God bless you as you dwell in the promise of His salvation this good day!
For further references, see the following: 1 COR 10:1-5; 1COR 15:1-5; GAL 3:8; HEB 4:2,6; HEB 11
And as always, your comments and discussion are welcomed!
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