This is the love of God among us – pt11

The atonement: Saving OT  believers before the time of the Cross

Romans 3:21-26

One doesn’t have to study the Bible for long and especially the atonement that Jesus made for sinners on the cross, before the question percolates up: How were people saved in OT times? The question is made more curious by  the fact that Jesus told people who he ministered to that their sins were forgiven. How does that work, since Jesus hadn’t yet paid the price for sin on that cross?

Now we learn and believe that God forgives sins on the basis of Jesus’ shed blood on the cross (Ephesians 1:7; 1 John 1:7). But, before He went to the cross, Jesus directly told two people that their sins were forgiven. This fact puzzles some people. How could Jesus make this bold certification of their right standing before the sacrifice was even made? After all, Hebrews 9:22 says, “Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness” The answer to this question is vital and should matter to us very much, because it touches on the justice of God, the truthfulness of God and the nature of our trust in the atonement for sins that we preach and rely on for our own salvation.