Leviticus 9:23b-24: "When they came out, they blessed the people, and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people. Then fire went out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat parts on the altar, and all the people saw it, so they shouted loudly and fell down with their faces to the ground."
The NET Bible (the version used above) makes an interesting comment, noting that while other English Bibles suggest shouting for joy, it is more likely they shouted in terror and fell in horror at seeing the glory of God literally burn the offerings right in front of them. This is hardly a time to question one's salvation!
If one were to ask the Israelite congregation at this moment if they believed their salvation was by grace, they would first have to pick themselves off the ground and recover their composure, since they surely must have thought their lives were over. They were not prepared for the display of God's glory, nor the heavy burden of the law. It is easily understood, then, why theologians debate if the Old Testament saints were saved in a different way than how believers are saved in New Testament era: works versus grace.
It is important to realize that grace alone by faith alone has always been the vehicle for salvation (cf. Genesis 15:6; Romans 4:3; Galatians 3:6; James 2:23). Though looking forward to the seed of Abraham (i.e. Christ), their experience and understanding of such grace would have naturally been deficient given the demands of the Law of Moses. Theologically, the truth is that salvation is always by grace. Experientially, the OT believers would probably be unable to express any real understanding of it in light of God's overwhelming holiness.
On this side of the cross, NT believers can rejoice without fear and approach with boldness the throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16). This indeed is much better than falling in terror before the LORD. How wonderful that because of Christ's substitutionary atonement (the once-for-all sacrifice), we who are in Christ can approach the Father and cry "Abba" without fearing our own destruction.
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