1 Peter 3:18-22 – Christ sufferedfor our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit.19 So he went and preached to the spirits in prison— 20 those who disobeyed God long ago when God waited patiently while Noah was building his boat. Only eight people were saved from drowning in that terrible flood. 21 And that water is a picture of baptism, which now saves you, not by removing dirt from your body, but as a response to God from a clean conscience. It is effective because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.22 Now Christ has gone to heaven. He is seated in the place of honor next to God, and all the angels and authorities and powers accept his authority.Recap:We learned a few weeks ago that as we examine why and who this letter was written too, we can conclude that the overall theme of 1 Peter is that Christians must withstand persecution and persevere in their faith. We see this in Vs:14-15 – But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it. So don’t worry or be afraid of their threats. 15 Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it.Jesus has become an example for us when we face suffering. There are 2 ways Peter shows us from this letter:1. His attitude and disposition during unjust suffering (which we will/should expect at some point in our own lives) 2. His identification with our suffering and therefore he is not un-relatable as some might think. But what's with baptism? And then adding the ark of Noah and spirits in prison? And does this passage say that baptism saves us? I am going to get into some of this in a bit, but before we jump into that section we should look at Vs:18 first. Peter gives us 3 great takeaway points from these verses that we all need to remember. 1. Jesus our sacrifice (Vs: 18) Christ sufferedfor our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit.The word “suffered” is used 2 x’s in this verse. In fact the word “suffered” is used a total of 11 times from the KJV in the book of 1st Peter, more than any other book in the NT. Jesus not only suffered in his life but he is the ultimate suffering servant who gave His life for us as a sufficient and acceptable sacrifice for the sins of the whole world. Peter perfectly sums it up in chapter 2:24 - 1Peter 2:24- He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed.His death brings us life. His wounds bring us healing and I would add His suffering brings us communion with Him. Deuteronomy tells us that without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. Jesus gave his literal body and shed his literal blood so that we could have forgiveness and cleansing from our sins! 2. Jesus our salvation (Vs:19-21) So he went and preached to the spirits in prison— 20 those who disobeyed God long ago when God waited patiently while Noah was building his boat. Only eight people were saved from drowning in that terrible flood. 21 And that water is a picture of baptism, which now saves you, not by removing dirt from your body, but as a response to God from a clean conscience. It is effective because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. What in world is Peter talking about when he writes in Vs:19-20A - So he went and preached to the spirits in prison— 20 those who disobeyed God long ago?Prison:Peter is actually making a reference to something that happened way back in Gen 6To summarize for the essence of time: · The sons of God (fallen angels) came down to earth (likely the 3rd of the deceived by Satan who fell with him) and they procreated with human women. · The result is a hybrid race of part human, part fallen angels called “Nephilim”. · The further result is that the human condition becomes so perverted that the bible tells us that mankind only thought of evil all of the time.· God thus takes action and decides (with great sorrow) to eradicate the earth of all living things except Noah and his wife, 3 sons and their wives. 8 in total will be saved. So, I know you are probably thinking “Turner how do you get spirits in prison?” from Gen 6? I want to introduce to you to the book of Enoch. · The Book of Enoch is an ancient Hebrew apocalyptic religious text, ascribed by tradition to Enoch, the great-grandfather of Noah. · Enoch contains unique material on the origins of demons and Nephilim, why some angels fell from heaven, an explanation of why the Genesis flood was morally necessary, and prophetic exposition of the thousand-year reign of the ...
