1 PETER 3:18-22 - Saved Through The Waters

Introduction

Every time we hold a baptismal service, I try to get here as early as possible to make sure the baptismal tank is ready. Not only do we have a very distinctive baptismal here at Bethel, we have a very… distinctive… process for filling and draining it. There are two different places at either end of the basement that have to be turned on and monitored, as well as two (or three, I just did it this morning, and I’m still not actually sure) drains that have to be either opened or closed in order to get the tank to fill. I confess that there are moments—brief, mind you—when I am anxiously watching the tank for signs that the water is filling and I think very carefully through the theology of baptism by dunking versus sprinkling. (But before my Presbyterian friends start smirking at me, I come back to the Greek word baptizo meaning dip or immerse, and realize that no matter how complicated this process is, it’s the right thing to do!)

Of course, having an indoor baptistry is a rather modern luxury, isn’t it? Time was when a lot of churches would hold their baptism services on the banks of a stream—usually in warm weather, but there are multiple accounts of churches chopping holes in the ice in winter in order to conduct baptisms. Because that is how important baptism is. Even when it is difficult or complicated, obeying Our Lord’s command to follow Him in baptism is worth it.

The tremendous importance of baptism comes home to us even more when we turn to our passage this morning. (It’s on page 1016 if you are using the pew Bible). And the reason I say that the importance of baptism comes home so powerfully in this passage is because, at first glance, these verses feel like you’re staring at the drainpipes under the baptismal—the flow doesn’t make sense! But one of the most important things to remember about Bible study is that, when you come upon a passage that seems difficult or out of place or doesn’t make sense, those are the passages that will bear the richest rewards for your study. You have to dig to get gold, right?

So let us do some spade work here in this passage so that we can get to the gold of the significance of what we are doing here today in baptism. The question is—why does Peter suddenly talk about baptism in the middle of a letter about suffering for Christ? Through this whole letter, Peter has been encouraging his readers to bear up under persecution—in Chapter 1, he calls them to remember their eternal inheritance and strive for holiness. In Chapter 2 he reminds them that they can stand up under persecution by remembering that they belong to a different race—God’s people—and so they must honor Him in their conduct. He talks about how to relate to authority in the rest of Chapter 2 and first part of Chapter 3, and then specifically addresses how to deal with the pain and suffering of persecution through the rest of Chapter 3. In the verses leading up to our text, Peter is encouraging his readers to respond to the suffering the world was inflicting on them in a way that honors Christ:

1 Peter 3:13–17 (ESV)

13 Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? 14 But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, 15 but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, 16 having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. 17 For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God’s will, than for doing evil.

And as he moves into verse 18, Peter is still encouraging his readers in their suffering, reminding them that their suffering persecution is bearable because of the suffering of Christ for them:

1 Peter 3:18 (ESV)

18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit,

Then he goes on to make a reference to Christ’s victory over the angels who rebelled against God in Genesis 6--

1 Peter 3:19–20 (ESV)

19 in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison, 20 because they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water.

And from there he makes the leap to baptism:

1 Peter 3:21–22 (ESV)

21 Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22 who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him.

And then in Chapter 4 he picks right back up again with his teaching on dealing with suffering. So what is going on here? Why does Peter—under the direction of the Holy Spirit’s inspiration—draw our attention to baptism in the middle of a letter devoted to suffering persecution? And what does this mean for our four brothers and sisters in Christ who have come to receive this baptism today?

What I want to show you from God’s Word this morning—and the charge that I want to lay on you who are being baptized this day—is that

Your baptism is your WITNESS to a HOSTILE WORLD of your NEW BIRTH in Christ

Peter is building up his readers so that they will bear up under the weight of the ridicule and persecution and disdain of the world around them that was hostile to them and to God. And you who are being baptized today are in the same way making this statement not only in the presence of your friends, family and church family, but before a world that is increasingly hostile to your faith. The Scriptures here in 1 Peter demonstrate that this baptism you are receiving is a strong defense and solid rock to stand on while the scorn and ridicule of this world washes over you.

In verse 18, see how your baptism is a witness to a hostile world that you are

I. Saved from the PENALTY of your sin (1 Peter 3:18)

1 Peter 3:18 (ESV)

18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit,

This verse is the most succinct statement in all of the New Testament about the nature of Christ’s work on the Cross. In theological terms, this verse is a statement of the penal substitutionary atonement of Christ, that

Penal Substitutionary Atonement: Jesus paid the PENALTY for our sin as a SUBSTITUTE in our place to RESTORE us to God

We see here that Christ “suffered once for sins”—He suffered the penalty for sin. But notice that He did not receive the penalty for His own sin, did He? He suffered as “the righteous for the unrighteous”. Because He was perfect and without sin, the Second Person of the Trinity Who took on flesh, Christ did not have any of His own sin to atone for--

He received your PUNISHMENT

You who have come here for baptism today are making this declaration, that Christ has saved you from the penalty of your sin by taking on your sin to Himself. There was nothing that commended you to Him that He should choose you; there was nothing that you could have done to achieve this salvation on your own. The only thing that you contributed to Christ’s sacrifice on the Cross was the sin that made it necessary. He received your penalty for sin as a substitute in your place.

And why does Peter say that Christ suffered in your place, the Righteous for the unrighteous? “That He might bring us to God...” Christ died under the wrath of God against your sin so that you might receive the benefits of His death—He received your punishment, and

You received His RIGHTEOUSNESS

Your baptism, beloved, is your witness to a hostile world that you are set apart by God in the holiness of Christ. This statement you are making today in this ordinance is a statement that says that you have been purchased by the blood of Christ, and you are reconciled to God through Him.

Now, how does this statement you are making in your baptism equip you to stand against the attacks of a hostile world? For one thing, your baptism is a reminder that you are set apart as holy, and so you do not respond to the world’s reviling with reviling; you don’t answer hatred with hatred. This is what Peter writes earlier in Chapter 3:

1 Peter 3:9–10 (ESV)

9 Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. 10 For “Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit;

But I would suggest that there is another way that your baptism is a witness that equips you to withstand the attacks of a hostile world. Christian, you are constantly told by this world that you are ignorant, that you are hopelessly bigoted and hateful, that you are arrogant and close-minded. And on top of that, you’re not even very good at being a person—you aren’t smart enough, attractive enough, talented enough, strong enough, and on and on it goes.

That is an enormously effective method of attack; and all too often those attacks succeed in the hearts of Christians who don’t want to be considered bigoted or racist or hateful; they want the esteem of the world, and so they slowly wander away from their profession of faith.

But when you truly grasp what Christ has done for you on the Cross to save you from the penalty of your sin, those attacks don’t work on you. Because when the world accuses you of being hateful, your response is, “Hateful? You have no idea! You call me hateful because I won’t call a girl a boy? I used to be so hateful that I refused to call Jesus my Savior! I was so full of hatred that I refused to submit to God Himself! And yet He paid my penalty on that Cross anyway!

“You call me arrogant and close-minded because I’m a Christian? You ought to see the arrogance Christ delivered me from! I actually used to think that I could be a good person apart from Him!”

“You think I am a hypocrite? You should see the depths of my sinfulness that I still struggle with! And yet my Savior died to rescue me from that hypocrisy; He shed His blood on that Cross to cleanse me from it and bring me in righteousness to God, and He loves me in spite of all of my sin!”

Baptism is your witness to a hostile world that you have been saved from the penalty of your sin, and it is your witness that you have been

II. Saved from ENSLAVEMENT to your sin (1 Peter 3:19-20)

Verses 19-20 of 1 Peter 3 are perhaps some of the most difficult in the New Testament. They represent an ocean of complexities and questions and complications—but since even children can wade in the shallows of the Pacific, we can at least get our feet wet in the edge of the surf here. Peter writes at the end of verse 18 that Christ was “put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit”,

1 Peter 3:19–20 (ESV)

19 in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison, 20 because they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water.

There are all kinds of interpretations of what Peter is writing about here, but I believe the understanding that fits Peter’s purpose best in his letter is that he is writing about the angels in Genesis 6 that took human wives for themselves, creating an abominable race of half-human, half-divine creatures that plunged the world of Noah’s day into horrible depths of wickedness and depravity. (Peter seems to mention these same angels in 2 Peter 2:4-5, and Jude makes a similar reference in verses 6-7 of his letter).

Remember, Peter is writing to encourage his readers to stand up under persecution and slander—and so he reminds them that no attack of Satan against God and His purposes can succeed—Satan tried to destroy the human race in Genesis 6 and prevent the Messiah from being born. Peter says that after His resurrection, He went to demonstrate to those rebellious angels that they had failed to stop Him.

In the same way, Christian, your sin and wickedness seeks to destroy you and destroy God’s purposes for your holiness and righteousness in salvation. But your baptism is a sign that you have been

Delivered from TYRANNY of SIN (v. 19)

The Apostle Paul says in Romans 6—another powerful passage about baptism:

Romans 6:2–4 (ESV)

2 By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? 3 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

The control that sin used to have over your life can no longer enslave you! Sin’s false promises don’t deceive you anymore, the counterfeit pleasures of wickedness can’t seduce you anymore—your treasure and your delight and your desire is no longer set on this world, but on Christ! And that means this world can’t manipulate you anymore!

But even though you have been freed from sin’s penalty and power, you are still battling that sin every day. And there are times when, though your heart is set on delighting in God and seeking His holiness, there are still times when, as James says, you are “lured away and enticed by your own desire” (James 1:14). But—thanks be to God—there is no condemnation for you! You are in Christ, and that means that you have been

Delivered from JUDGMENT by GRACE (v. 20)

Surely this is at least part of what Peter is getting at in verse 20 of our text, as Peter describes “God’s patience in the days of Noah”

1 Peter 3:20 (ESV)

20 while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water.

The waters of the Flood were a judgment on the horrifying wickedness and rebellion that had covered the whole earth—a judgment that Noah and his family richly deserved. But in the Ark, Noah and his family were brought safely through those waters that swept that wickedness off of the face of the earth. And the only reason that the Ark even existed was because

Genesis 6:8 (ESV)

8 ...Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.

The waters that brought death to the world did not consume Noah, because God had set His grace on him and his family. Noah was not saved by the waters; he was saved through the waters. This is at the heart of what Peter says in verse 21:

1 Peter 3:21 (ESV)

21 Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,

Noah was saved from judgment by the grace of God that placed him in the Ark that brought him through the waters. You are saved from judgment by the grace of God that placed you in Christ, and that union with Christ is demonstrated by your going down into the waters of baptism and then back up again to life. And your deliverance from the penalty of your sins before a holy God and your deliverance from enslavement to your sins means that you are

III. Saved for a CLEAN CONSCIENCE before God (1 Peter 3:21)

That phrase in verse 21, “Baptism… now saves you” has caused not a little consternation in Biblical studies over the centuries. What does it mean that “baptism saves you”? Peter hastens to clarify what he means when he says that, whatever this “saving” is that baptism does, it is

Not by WASHING the BODY

1 Peter 3:21 (ESV)

21 Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body...

Peter’s correspondence of baptism with Noah demonstrates that the waters of baptism don’t save you any more than the waters of the Flood “saved” Noah. Think about this for a moment—Noah was saved from the water, not by the water. Noah had already found favor in the eyes of YHWH one hundred years before the Flood! By the time Noah passed through the waters, he was already forgiven of his sins and in a right relationship with God!

And so this is why we reject the notion of baptismal regeneration—that somehow baptism removes the curse of original sin. Peter specifically says that the actual waters of baptism are powerless to save—it is “not a removal of dirt from the body”. The waters of baptism don’t cleanse you from your sin; you were cleansed by the blood of Christ before you were baptized (which is another strong argument against the baptism of infants—by connecting baptism with Noah, he is affirming that salvation comes before the observance of baptism!)

And so, if this baptism does not “save” you by removing the guilt of your sins, then how does it save you? Though this is an enormously difficult text, and there is so much more that could be said about it, surely at least part of what is going on here is this:

Consider the wider context of Peter’s letter and why he wrote it. Remember that he is calling his readers’ attention to their baptism in the face of the world’s slanders. They are being insulted, reviled, hated and maligned for their faith—but the reality of their baptism tells the truth about them in the midst of this hostile world’s lies.

Consider how this hostile world attacks you—you are constantly told that you are hateful and bigoted and racist and homophobic, that you want people to die because they believe differently from you, that you are a fragile white hypocrite (and very possibly a dangerous neo-Nazi Christian Nationalist!!) that is the actual source of the troubles that plague our nation and our world. But God’s Word shows you here that you have an appeal before God that these things are all false!

“God, they tell me that I am a bigot—but I bear the mark of baptism that demonstrates I have been cleansed of all evil bigotry—my conscience is clear, their slanders are false!”

“God, they accuse me of hatred and of desiring the death of people who differ from me—but my conscience before you is clear because I bear the mark of baptism that demonstrates that You have washed me clean of all hatred and malice!”

“Father, see how they accuse me of ignorance and want me to hang my head in shame over my stand for Your truth? They want to make me feel guilty, but I belong to Christ, and no matter what they say, my conscience is clear!

Your baptism doesn’t “save” you from your sins by washing your body; you are saved

By being RAISED with CHRIST

This is how Peter finishes his thought in this section—he ties your salvation back to the work of Jesus—start from the beginning of verse 22 again in order to trace the whole flow of his argument:

1 Peter 3:21–22 (ESV)

21 Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22 who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him.

Nicolette, Taryn, Garrett and Corey, this is the witness that you have come here this morning to carry out—you have come here to make this declaration to your family, friends, church family and a watching world:

You have been freed from the penalty of your sins by the blood of Jesus Christ. There is no power in this world that can condemn you, and there is no adversary that can possibly condemn you more deeply than you already stood condemned before the holiness of God! When they revile you and say all manner of evil against you, you can say right back to them “You don’t know the half of it! I was far more guilty before God than I could ever be before the likes of you—but He completely and utterly cancelled the penalty that stood against me! And I take this step of baptism today as testimony that I have died to sin and risen with Christ!

You have been freed from the power of your sins by the work of Jesus Christ. You take this step today, going down into the waters to picture your death to sin with Christ, and you come back up out of those waters of death alive in Him for righteousness! This is your statement to the world—your statement to your past—that everything before today is over. This is the day that you are making your declaration of your life of obedience to Christ and the end of your obedience to the tyranny of sin. You have died to that sin, and it no longer has a hold over you!

You have been freed from the accusations of a hostile world by the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The lies and slander and hatred and reviling of a hostile world does not weigh on your conscience, because you know that in Christ you have been forgiven and freed and cleansed from your sin! You are not a racist, you are not a bigot, you are not hateful, you are not a hypocrite or fragile white man or woman because of your faith in Christ—you are free from all of those accusations; your conscience is clear before God!

And so it is for all who are here today having followed Christ in baptism—this baptism is your sign that you are free from the penalty of your sin, that you are liberated from slavery to your sin, and you are free in a clear conscience before God!

And for you who are here this morning who name Christ as Savior and yet have not passed through these waters, do you see the power of this sign in your life? Why would you want to have the forgiveness of sins and freedom from guilt that Christ has purchased for you on that Cross and yet not want to declare that salvation through baptism? If you are a Christian and have not been baptized, let me invite you to consider carefully what it is that prevents you? We would be happy to talk more about this with you.

And if you are here this morning and you have not been baptized because you have made no profession of faith in Christ, then let me urge you to consider carefully the picture that will be presented before you in a few moments. As these men and women pass through these waters, consider the connection God’s Word makes between these waters and the waters of the Flood. In Luke 17, Jesus warns His listeners,

Luke 17:26–27 (ESV)

26 Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. 27 They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all.

In Noah’s day, the wicked and rebellious world around him went on their way, living their lives, eating, drinking, going about their daily business and ignoring Noah’s pleas to repent (2 Peter 2:5). Then one day, when they least expected it, judgment came upon them in the waters of the Flood and they were swept away.

Friend, don’t miss the warning that God has graciously brought before you this morning! You are living your life, doing your thing, planning for your future, eating, drinking, carrying on with the business of living and ignoring the warnings that come to you about your sin. You say you have plenty of time to get serious about spiritual things someday, but you have a lot of “eating and drinking” you want to do in the meantime. You know that God calls you to repent for what you have done to anger Him, but you can’t be bothered to worry about it.

Can’t you see that it is only a matter of time before God’s wrath sweeps you away? Please wake up—please don’t turn away from this warning! You are going to watch your friend, your family member, go under these waters and come back up as a picture of their rescue from judgment by the grace of God. There is death waiting under that water; if they stayed down there they would die—and if you go under the wrath of God without an escape, you will perish eternally!

The only hope you have to escape that death, to escape from that wrath that will suddenly and without warning sweep you away for eternity, is to cry out to God for mercy in Jesus Christ! You cannot cleanse yourself from your own sin, you cannot excuse your own guilt, you cannot have a clear conscience before God unless you repent of your sin and hide yourself in Jesus Christ! He is the only way that you can pass through the waters of judgment and find life on the other side; He is the only way that you can be reconciled to God. So please don’t leave here today without calling out for mercy from the only One who will deliver you! Come—and welcome!—to Jesus Christ!

BENEDICTION

Jude 24–25 (ESV)

24 Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, 25 to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION:

Why does Peter mention baptism in a letter about suffering for Christ? How does the reality of your baptism give you a way to stand against the accusations of a hostile world?

What theological concept is reflected in the statement, "Christ suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous"? What does it mean that Jesus paid the penalty for our sin as a substitute?

What is the correspondence between baptism and the Flood of Noah’s day? Read Genesis 6:8 again. Did Noah find grace with God before or after the Flood? How does this help us answer those who say that baptism erases original sin?

How does baptism “save” us through a clean conscience? How does your assurance of your righteousness before God (symbolized in baptism) enable you to answer all of the guilt and shame that a hostile world wants to place on you for your faith?