Read I Peter 3:18-22
“For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God …” (v18)
Some Thoughts…
There are two very confusing ideas presented in this section that can totally distract one from the point Peter was trying to make…1) Did Jesus go into Hell and preach a “second chance” sermon? 2) Is baptism necessary for salvation? But before I get bogged down in Theology and non-essentials, let me remind myself again what it is that Peter is saying; This is the ending of a section that started in 3:13 and goes through 4:6, and the single message can be stated, “blessings follow suffering for well-doing” – and in these verses Peter is pointing to Jesus as our model example and the One who has the greatest victory in the battle against all that is evil that would come against all that is righteous – Jesus beat death! He proclaimed His victory, made the way for salvation and now presides over the universe until it is time for His return (see v22).
But, what about those two hard questions?
1)Did Jesus go into Hell?
– There are two different schools of thought 1) He did go “by the spirit” into the place where these “Spirits” or imprisoned angels (See Revelation 20:8, 2 Peter 2:45, Jude 6) to proclaim victory, not preach an evangelistic message. 2) The other thought is this: (to understand it we must look closely at the Greek wording), and we could interpret v18b-20 like this – “Jesus died, then He, by His power, made Himself alive in the Spirit – in the same spiritual form that was present with Noah as he built the ark and proclaimed to those who would be disobeyed by the flood.” – A time of over 120 years (Genesis 6:3) when God was so patient and no one repented except 8 people. (see 2 Peter 3:9) – Either way, He did not go and preach a “get out of Hell” sermon to give the condemned a second chance. Nor did Jesus spend time suffering for our sins in Hell… that was taken care of on the Cross!
2) Does baptism save me?
The phrase “baptism that now saves you” could be misunderstood to mean something it does not at face value – but in context, we can see that Peter’s illustration of the water and the flood made him connect it’s similarities in that what looked like death and judgment for the world turned out to raise up the boat and save Noah and his family…no, water didn’t save – God saved through Noah’s obedience. So it is for baptism (Peter even calls it a symbol or a “type” here in v21) and makes the point that it is not an outer washing, but a symbol of an inner pledge (or covenant) with God and the accepting of His sacrifice and forgiveness to give a clear conscience before Him. – So to answer the question; NO Baptism is a symbol of the miraculous transformation brought about by Jesus in every believer
It is the resurrection that saves! (v21b). It is Christ’s victory and blessing after enduring suffering…He wins and we belong to Him…no more fear of man or temporary pain…life lived in Christ – and the gift of a clear conscience as we have been brought into the very presence of God (v18).
A Prayer…
Father, I will live today fully alive because of You. Your Spirit is in me and I am blessed regardless of my outward groanings and pain! Jesus let me live with “Resurrection Victory!” Amen.