Do the people in the Old Testament get to go to heaven if Jesus hadn't died for them?

Ever since “the fall,” salvation has always been available through God. The requirement for salvation has always been faith. The object of faith for salvation has always been God. In the Old Testament it was God the Father; in the New Testament it is Jesus Christ, His Son. No one, either before Jesus’ death or since Jesus’ death, would ever be saved without the resurrection of Jesus. His death paid the penalty for past sins of Old Testament saints and future sins of New Testament believers.

Do you remember the account of Abraham? In Genesis 15:6, Abraham believed in the Lord and was credited for being righteous. He was “saved” because he believed and trusted in God and God saw him as righteous, meaning right – not wrong- according to His eyes. In Isaiah 69:10, Isaiah says, “I delight greatly in the Lord: my soul rejoices in my God. For He has clothed me garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of His righteousness…” Isaiah’s faith in god made him righteous and “saved.” Even King David, in Psalm 86:1-2, cried out to the Lord and was saved through his faith. There are plenty of other Old Testament heroes that are saved through the simple act of having faith in God (By faith, Abel…by faith, Enoch…by faith, Noah…by faith, Sarah…by faith, Isaac… by faith, Jacob…by faith, Joseph…by faith, Moses…by faith, Rahab…etc.)

And, to answer your question directly, all the Old Testament believers who followed Abraham in his faith in God and also had faith in God also enjoy eternity with Jesus. Ephesians 2:8 states, “For it is by grace you have saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is a gift of God.”

Why is God called “The Rock”?

God is referred to as a rock often in the Bible. You see the reference in both the Old and New Testaments. When the Bible talks about God being a rock, it is using a metaphor comparing two things that are alike. The Bible often uses metaphors to help us understand something. When God is referred to as a rock it represents constancy, strength, power, presence, a strong support, and refuge or a safe place that protects.

One of my favorite verses that refer to God as a rock is Psalm 18:2, it says “The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer, my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge.” When David wrote the words of this Psalm he was going through hard times but he kept his focus on God. He found comfort and security knowing God was with him. David is a wonderful example to us.

We can (and should!) look to God as our rock, the one who is always there for us to protect and support us, and a place where we can find security.

Do all people have to read the Bible?

That is a great question! And here is my answer to you: if people really want to know God, then, yes, they need to read the Bible. The Holy Bible is the Word of God and teaches us many things about who God is, why the Earth was created, why things happen they way they do and how we are supposed to live. Even for those people who don’t know God yet can learn a lot from the Bible. It’s kinda like an Owner’s Manual on life!

But, for those of us who are Christ-Followers, the Bible is a very important piece of our faith. We can go to church and learn some things, we can pray, we can sings songs to God and we can talk to our Christian friends and learn even more…and that’s great! BUT, if you really want to know who God is and what his unstoppable plan is, you have to read His Word.

I remember the first time I picked up a Bible. I remember thinking, “Oh, man! This is wayyyy too much reading! Where do I start? What’s the important stuff??” Then, I had a very good friend, who is also my small group leader, tell me to start with the Book of John in the New Testament. It talks about God’s love for us and why He sent Jesus to us. If you haven’t read it, start there. You don’t have to read it all in one day either. Then, as you learn about Jesus, you’ll want to learn more about Him.

And, believe it or not, the Old Testament has some really cool stories in it! And they all show God’s love for us and His unstoppable plan for us. The story of Noah and the Ark, the story of Moses and leading the Hebrews out of captivity and the miraculous things he did with God’s help, the story of Samson and Delilah, the story of David and Goliath and the stories about King Solomon are so amazing! And the best part is…they’re true!

So, do all people need to read the Bible? Absolutely!!!!

Do I have to read the Bible every day?

I’m going to answer that question by asking a question of my own…do you have to talk to your parents every day? I’ll bet you’re thinking, well, of course I have to talk to my parents everyday. Maybe you’re saying, well, no I don’t have to talk to them everyday but I like talking to them everyday.

Well, guess what? The Holy Bible is God’s Word. And, it’s God’s way of talking to you. It’s His way of letting you get to know Him and He really, really wants you to know Him.

There are some incredible stories in the Bible, especially in the Old Testament. The story of Adam and Eve, the story of Moses, the story of David and Goliath or Samson and Delilah, the story of King Solomon…I could go on and on.

Do you like love stories? The Holy Bible is the greatest love story ever written! The stories of God’s love for us are endless. My favorite is how He gave His one and only Son to die for us so that we could have eternal life with Him in Heaven!

I remember when I first became a Christian and I picked up a Bible. It was so thick! I thought to myself, seriously??? I’m supposed to read this whole thing? Ummm, are there any DVD’s I can watch or maybe a thinner version? I didn’t even know where to start! Do I read it like a book from one cover to the other? Or, do I start with the Old Testament then read the New Testament? It seemed so overwhelming.

But, then, my small group leader said, “Start with the book of John in the New Testament.” He said it was all about God’s love for us. So, I flipped to John and saw that it was only twenty-one chapters. I said, “I can handle this!” And, before I knew it, I had read an entire book of the Bible. It was awesome!!! It made me want to read more. So, I started reading books of the New Testament. Then, my wife said, “Try reading a Psalm and a Proverb a day.” And she meant just one psalm and one proverb, not the whole book of Psalms and Proverbs. How easy is that???

And because it’s God’s way of talking to you, you end up wanting to know more and more. You find yourself just immersing yourself in God’s Word! Believe it or not, every little thing you will ever face, good and bad, is mentioned in the Bible. Every question you’ll ever have, God has an answer for and it’s in the Bible.

So, to answer your question…do you have to read the Bible everyday? I guess you really don’t have to but why wouldn’t you since God really wants to talk to you every day.