Welcome Guest [Log In] [Register]
 photo jesuslamb.jpgA forum for a community of people interested in discussing salvation in Jesus Christ by grace through faith
Add Reply
September 19, 2008 God Has Always Revealed the Saving Message
Topic Started: Dec 26 2008, 06:13 PM (137 Views)
lightninboy

God Has Always Revealed the Saving Message

Posted by: Bob_Wilkin

There seems to be a general impression today that prior to death and resurrection of Jesus OT saints were saved not by faith in Christ, but by a general faith in God. Indeed, it is common in seminaries and Bible colleges today for professors to say that there was no concept of bodily resurrection from the dead in the OT, and even that OT saints were “saved” but not born again! Many say that regeneration did not occur in the OT.

Jude tells us that Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophecied about the Second Coming of Christ (Jude 14-15). Yet the OT nowhere tells us that.

Genesis 3:15 tells us that God (the preincarnate Christ) shared the gospel with Adam and Eve in Garden after the fall. This is call the proto-evangelium, or the first gospel. They heard that at least 2500 years before Moses wrote Genesis around 1440 BC. It is wrong to think that they kept that prophecy to themselves. Surely they passed it to their children, who in turn passed it on.

The preincarnate Christ appeared to many people in the OT besides Adam and Eve, including Abraham, Moses, and the three men in the fiery furnace. He spoke with them and revealed things to them, surely including the saving message.

There were many OT prophets and yet only a small number of them wrote their messages down. Many OT prophets preached the saving message. Surely there was never a generation that lacked a prophet to preach the saving message at least until the 400 silent years when the OT canon was complete and the need for prophets would have been greatly diminished. And even during those silent years God surely raised up men and women who shared the saving message which they had believed.

What was the saving message in the OT? It was the same message as we have today. That is Paul says in Romans 4:1-8 and in Gal 3:6-14. Abraham believed what we believe, justification by faith alone in Christ alone. But some will say, “Abraham didn’t know about Christ.” No? A careful reading of Genesis 15:1-6 shows that what Abraham believed was God’s promise of the deliverer who would bring worldwide blessings (Gen 12:1-3) to all who simply believe in Him. Compare John 8:56 where Jesus says, “Abraham rejoiced to see My day.” Compare Hebrews 11 where we learn that Abraham knew about the New Jerusalem and where we learn that Moses knew about eternal rewards and he knew about Christ and willingly accepted “the reproaches of Christ” (Heb 11:26).

Genesis 17 and 18 make it clear that Abraham met the pre-incarnate Christ and spoke with Him.

Simeon and Anna were OT saints when the baby Jesus was brought into the temple by Mary and Joseph. These saints knew this was the Messiah King Savior (Luke 2:25-38) and they believed in Him for eternal life.

John the Baptist was the last OT prophet (other than the Lord Jesus Himself). He knew that Jesus is the Messiah. He believed in Him for eternal life.

Old Testament saints knew a lot more than we give them credit. They certainly knew the saving message. They might not have known that the Christ’s name is Jesus, though even that some OT saints, like Simeon and Anna, knew and maybe even some like Abraham and Moses knew His name. (After all, quite a few met Him face to face, which is something we haven’t done yet.) But they knew that they had eternal life because they believed in Him for it.

We should not think that there was one way to be born again prior to the cross and resurrection and another way to be born again later. The saving message has never changed. With more revelation God gave more details in His written Word. But since we can’t be sure what the oral revelation was prior to the birth of Christ, we can’t even be sure how many details the OT saints knew.

It would not surprise me if Moses and David and Abraham had a greater grasp of the doctrine of eternal rewards than most born again people in the church age have. (I get that impression from Hebrews 11.) It would not surprise me to find out that when they were alive they had a better understanding of substitutionary atonement than most church age people have. These were men who had very close walks with the Lord Jesus and it would be presumptuous to assume that we know Him better than they knew Him when they were alive.

One day we will be able to talk and visit with these OT heroes of the faith. Until then, I suggest we view them as giants of the faith who knew the Lord and doctrine quite well.
No I will not, No I will not
Not go quietly
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
lightninboy

Comments:

1. dwags4him
Thanks Bob….that really helped me….at Moody I cannot recall hearing such a concise and well-defended position….I heard the generic ‘they believed in God.’

I agree that that OT saint knew far more than we give them credit for….

Thanks for the article….

Dave
September 19th, 2008 at 5:38 pm


2. Mike Smith
Dr. Wilkins,

I want to think you, for answering some of my questions. In reading all the GES member’s blogs - it hard to know what is the GES viewpoint. I do hope the tone is not from GES.

Here’s a few more questions to help me understand your teachings.

In your exegesis of Genesis 3:15 you stated, “…Surely they passed it to their children, who in turn passed it on.” and “surely including the saving message” is reading into the passage.

I might be missing something, but what is up with using the word, “surely” in connection with “God Has Always Revealed the Saving Message”?

We can make a passage say anything we want saying, “Surely…” The passage does not reveal all the “surely” information you gave to us in your article. When God reveals something to us, Doesn’t He spell it out to us?

What was the saving message to Adam and Eve (w/chapter and verse)?

If it is revealed, it’s got to have a chapter and verse. Doesn’t it have to be in the context given in Gen. 3:15?

Everything that God, the preincarnate Christ (did) revealed in Gen. 3:15 was not mentioned in your explanation of the passage, such as, the words, “her seed” and “shall bruise His heel.” Do you see any connection that this is a reference to the death and resurrection of Christ?

I agree with your statement that “God (the preincarnate Christ) shared the gospel with Adam and Eve in the Garden after the fall.” Adam and Eve knew it was God speaking to them in the Garden.

Several times you use the word, “gospel” with Gen. 3:15. First, “…shared the gospel with Adam and Eve…” and “This is… or, the first gospel.” Are you using the word, “gospel” to mean saving message?

Thanks,
Mike
September 23rd, 2008 at 11:26 am


3. peggiep
Bob, Thanks for posting this.
Bye-the-bye, I love the new look of
your Blog.
Peggie
September 24th, 2008 at 10:25 am


4. Mike Smith
Dr. Wilkin,

I think you make a good point in that O.T. Saints knew more than we give them, but we have to go with what is given in the text. Gen. 3:15 does not state that Adam and Eve was given the saving message as you state it today. We do know they believed what God told then in verse 15. How much they understood about “the seed of women” being the Promise One, the coming Messiah, is not revealed to the reader. Gen. 4:1 does state that when she gave birth to Cain, she said, “I have acquired a man from the LORD.”

Adam and Eve knew nothing of what was revealed to Abraham, but Abraham knew what was revealed to them.

Gen. 12:1-1-3 gives more content to the story. God gave several promises to Abraham:

1. I will make you a great nation
2. I will make your name great.
3. I will bless you
4. I will make you a blessing to the nations
5. I will bless those who bless you
6. I will treat lightly those who treat you lightly.

In Gen. 15, Abraham’s promise was to have a son (Isaac), and his descendants would be numbered like the stars. Abraham simply believed what God revealed in verses 1-5.
The emphasis is that Abraham will have a son and lots of descendants. Gen. 15:6 “And he (Abraham) believed in the LORD (God), and He (God) accounted it to him for righteousness.”

I believe we are saved the same way as O.T. Saints, but the saving message that was revealed to O.T. Saints in the O.T. is not stated exactly as you state it today. Where is the one verse in Gen. 3, or 15 that tells us , “Jesus promises eternal life to all who simply believe in Him for it?

Abraham simply believe in the LORD, and He (God) accounted it to him for righteousness. Gen. 15:6 says the same thing as 2 Cor. 5:21, “For He (God) hath made Him (Christ) who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” It says the same thing, but notice that God has revealed a little bit more to us.

I hear this a lot, “but that verse” is written to believers.” My reply is “so what?” I don’t think it means that there is a gospel/saving message for the saved and a gospel/saving message for the lost. The saving message is the saving message, period!

What other doctrine do we make an issue using this argument? When we teach on Angelology, do we teach it one way for believers and another way for the lost? What about Christology? Anthropology?…and so on…

Thanks again.

Mike
October 2nd, 2008 at 1:31 pm
No I will not, No I will not
Not go quietly
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
1 user reading this topic (1 Guest and 0 Anonymous)
« Previous Topic · GES Blog · Next Topic »
Add Reply


View My Stats Msn bot last visit powered by  Bots Visit Yahoo bot last visit powered by  Bots Visit