Christians: If I want to be saved I have to accept Jesus Christ as my lord and savior, correct?

Question

What about all the people who lived before Christ? They couldn't possibly have accepted him as such, so did none of them go to heaven?

Answer 1

God required animal sacrifices so that mankind could receive forgiveness for their sins (Leviticus 4:35; 5:10). To begin, animal sacrifice is an important theme found throughout Scripture. When Adam and Eve sinned, animals were killed by God to provide clothing for them (Genesis 3:21). Cain and Abel brought sacrifices to the Lord. Cain's was unacceptable because he brought fruit, while Abel's was acceptable because it was the "firstlings of his flock" (Genesis 4:4-5). After the flood receded, Noah sacrificed animals to God. This sacrifice from Noah was an aroma that was soothing to the Lord (Genesis 8:20-21). God commanded Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac. Abraham obeyed God, but just as Abraham was to sacrifice Isaac, God intervened and provided a ram to die in the place of Isaac (Genesis 22:10-13).

In summation, the animal sacrifices were commanded by God so that the individual could experience forgiveness of his sins. The animal served as a substitute--that is, the animal died in place of the sinner. Animal sacrifices have stopped with Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ was the ultimate sacrificial substitute and is now the only mediator between God and mankind (1 Timothy 2:5). Animal sacrifices foreshadowed Christ’s sacrifice on our behalf. The only basis on which an animal sacrifice could provide forgiveness of sins is the fact that Christ would sacrifice Himself for our sins, providing the forgiveness that animal sacrifices could only illustrate and foreshadow.

Answer 2

After we die we go for a short time back to the spirit world. Those who never got the chance to hear the word of the lord will be able to hear it there. As far as those who lived before Christ were looking for him also the Prophets all talked about him. However a lot of those people could not phantom someone coming back to life in the resurrection. They at the time of Christ were looking for someone like Moses, a king who would free them temporally and spiritually. So when Jesus was in the world they did not understand the scriptures where he would have to suffer and die for the sins of the people and would come back at the last dispensation of time to rule as a temporal King. (Yet to be) A good example is on here how many people just cannot believe in Christ now. It has been said by the prophets that we will retain the same spirit as we die with. To better understand this if someone having the chance to hear the word of the Lord on this earth rejects it and dies they will reject it while in spirit and will not change until Judgment day when they are resurrected and every knee will bend and every mouth confess Jesus is the Christ.

Answer 3

pastorart1974 explained it perfectly. Yes, the sacrifices were so that you were seen as sinless in God's eyes, but only for a little amount of time, as everyone would sin again and have to sacrifice again.

Just as pastorart1974 said, we accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, who lived over 2,000 years ago, even though we have never even seen him. Back then, they knew that God was sending a redeemer, and they trusted in him and had faith. God says in the Bible several times that Abraham got into Heaven by faith alone, because he screwed up alot, so it definitely wasn't by his works. Great question!!

Answer 4

Since the fall of man, the basis of salvation has always been the death of Christ. No one, either prior to the cross or since the cross, would ever be saved without that one pivotal event in the history of the world. Christ's death paid the penalty for past sins of Old Testament saints and future sins of New Testament saints.
The requirement for salvation has always been faith. The object of one's faith for salvation has always been God. The psalmist wrote, "Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him" (Psalm 2:12). Genesis 15:6 tells us that Abraham believed God and that was enough for God to account it to him for righteousness (see also Romans 4:3-8). The Old Testament sacrificial system did not take away sin, as Hebrews 9:1-10:4 clearly teaches. It did, however, point to the day when the Son of God would shed His blood for the sinful human race.
What has changed through the ages is the content of a believer's faith. God's requirement of what must be believed is based on the amount of revelation He has given mankind up to that time. This is called progressive revelation. Adam believed the promise God gave in Genesis 3:15 that the Seed of the woman would conquer Satan. Adam believed Him, demonstrated by the name he gave Eve (v.20) and the Lord indicated His acceptance immediately by covering them with coats of skin (v.21). At that point that is all Adam knew, but he believed it.
Abraham believed God according to the promises and new revelation God gave him in Genesis 12 and 15. Prior to Moses, no Scripture was written, but mankind was responsible for what God had revealed. Throughout the Old Testament, believers came to salvation because they believed that God would someday take care of their sin problem. Today, we look back, believing that He has already taken care of our sins on Calvary (John 3:16; Hebrews 9:28).

Answer 5

When Jesus came, he denounced the old law under Moses to make the new law of Himself as Christ. They went to Heaven because they followed the law God wanted them to at the time.

Answer 6

Actually none of them went to heaven, except for Enoch, Moses, and Elijah. They are still in the ground, asleep, waiting for Jesus to come (Eccl. 9:5, 1 Thess 4:13-18). However, they will go to heaven when Jesus comes, because they were covered under the sacrificial law, when lambs would be sacrificed for their sins. This was an act that symbolized the cross, and it sufficed for salvation until the actual event that it pointed forward to took place.

Answer 7

We look backwards in time to our Lord Jesus Christ.

Duing the Old Testament time, those folks looked forward to the coming of their Messiah. Those who looked forward in Faith, were saved.

Hebrews chapter 11 lists a whole bunch of Old Testament Saints.

Job said, "I know my redeemer lives." Job 19:25

King David said about his son who had just died in infancy, "I will go to him, but he will not return to me" 2 Sam 12:23

Jesus shared the true story about Lazarus who made to to Paradise with Father Abraham and the rich man who didn't. That is found in Luke 16:19-31.

We also read in Matthew's gospel that many Old Testament Saint were resurrected after Jesus died. Matt 27:50-53

Pastor Art

Answer 8

Christ descended into hades throw the cross and restore them
from this place 1 peter 3:19 .

Answer 9

There was a sacrificial practice before Christ where people atoned for their sins. Jesus was the final Sacrifice, not the first.

Answer 10

Yes, you have to accept Jesus as your lord and personal savior in order to be saved. Before he was born God revealed himself to people in various ways and in order to be saved you had to abide by Gods laws and worship him. Plenty of people went to heaven before Jesus was born. The rules were different then.