BAPTISM AS SPOKEN OF IN 1 PETER 3:21 1 Peter 3:21 KJV The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ: 1 Peter 3:21 NASB And corresponding to that, baptism now saves you—not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience—through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. This is the only verse that says “baptism now saves you.” But is it teaching that we must be baptised in water to be saved? No it is not. But to correctly understand it, we need to look at its context. So often folk come to the wrong conclusions about the Word simply because they have not taken the context into consideration. That means all the verses pertaining to the particular verse being discussed, wherever they might be found in the Bible. The Muslims are most at fault in taking verses out of their context and then trying to use them to disprove the veracity of God’s Word. Let’s look at the context: 1 Peter 3:18-22 18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit: 19 By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison; 20 Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water. 21 The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ: 22 Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him. 1 Peter 3:18-22 NASB 18 For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, in order that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; 19 in which also He went and made proclamation to the spirits now in prison, 20 who once were disobedient, when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through the water. 21 And corresponding to that, baptism now saves you -- not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience -- through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22 who is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, after angels and authorities and powers had been subjected to Him, The above translation in verse 21 from the NASB is a good translation: “and corresponding to that, baptism now saves you.” The key word in this section is the Greek word antitupon, which means to “copy”, to “type”, “corresponding to”, “a thing resembling another”, “its counterpart”, etc. The KJV translates it as “like figure”. Baptism then, is a representation, a copy, a type, a counterpart of something else. The question is then, “Of what is it a type?”, or “baptism corresponds to what?”. If we look at the context an interesting possibility arises. What does baptism correspond to? Is it the flood, or is it the ark? What was it that saved Noah and his family, the flood or the ark? Obviously it was the Ark. Noah built and entered the ark by faith and he was saved (Heb 11:7) and the flood waters destroyed the ungodly. Also, Peter consistently refers to the flood waters as the means of destruction of the ungodly (2 Pet 2:5; 3:6), not the salvation of Noah and his family. Rather, it was the Ark that saved, the ark that Noah entered by faith. I believe that baptism here refers to the Ark and not the waters, which may be why the rest of the verse says, “not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a good conscience toward God”, which is consistent with what Paul said in Colossians 2:11+12, where he equates baptism with being circumcised of heart. In other words, Peter clarifies that it isn’t the water baptism that saves, but the appeal to faith in the heart. To be fair, the Greek does seem to imply that baptism is referring to the water, not the ark, but we need to consider this and make some observations. If we were to look at the flood waters as the thing that removed evil from the land, we could say that correspondingly, the waters of baptism removes the sin from our hearts. Although this reading seems a bit more natural, it too has problems when taking the full context into consideration. The water of baptism is not what saves us, but the sacrifice of Christ does, which we receive by faith. We read numerous verses about justification by faith (Rom 5:1), salvation by faith (Eph 2:8), etc., not justification “by faith and baptism”, or salvation “by faith and baptism”. The fact is that salvation is received by faith. Peter, not wanting to declare that baptism itself is what saves us, quickly adds, “not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience.” Water baptism, then, must accompany the work of the Holy Spirit in the person being baptised. Peter’s explanatory comment shows us that the act of physical baptism is not what saves us, but faith in a righteous God does. This faith in God is the same as Noah’s faith in God, which led him to build the Ark, enter it, and remain in it. It was the Ark that saved Noah, not the flood waters. The flood was for Noah a type of baptism even as the passage through the Red Sea was a type of baptism for the Israelites. 1 Corinthians 10:1-4 1 Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; 2 And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; 3 And did all eat the same spiritual meat; 4 And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. The baptisms of, both of Noah and the Israelites served as types of a transition in which they moved people from the old world to the new, from the old covenant to the new covenant. It is not the water that saves us, but the spiritual faith associated with the water. For both Noah and Moses it was faith in God that saved them. But some may say that the work of the Holy Spirit and the act of baptism are simultaneous, that the Holy Spirit works in and through baptism to bring regeneration. However this cannot be the case since the Bible tells us that salvation is by faith alone (Rom 5:1; Eph 2:8), and we have a clear instance in scripture where people are saved before their baptism: Acts 10:44-48 KJV 44 While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word. 45 And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost. 46 For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter, 47 Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we? 48 And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then prayed they him to tarry certain days. Acts 10:44-48 44 While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who were listening to the message. 45 And all the circumcised believers who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out upon the Gentiles also. 46 For they were hearing them speaking with tongues and exalting God. Then Peter answered, 47 “Surely no one can refuse the water for these to be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just as we did, can he?” 48 And he ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to stay on for a few days. In these verses we see that as Peter preached the gospel the Holy Spirit fell upon the listeners. In verse 45 we read that “...the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out upon the Gentiles also.” This gift manifested itself in speaking in tongues, which is significant because tongues is a sign-gift given to believers (1 Cor 14:1-5). Also, verse 46 says they were “...exalting God.” Unbelievers don’t praise God. They can’t because praise to the true God is a deep spiritual matter that is foreign to the unsaved (1 Cor 2:14). Therefore, the ones in Acts 10 who are speaking in tongues and praising God are definitely saved because they are moving in the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues, and glorifying God. It is the Holy Spirit who gives charismatic spiritual gifts to the church (1 Cor 12:27-28), not to unbelievers. Now, please notice that it was after this movement of the Holy Spirit that the believers are baptised. If baptism is necessary for salvation, then how is it that the people were speaking in tongues and exalting God before they were baptised? If you were to say that the Holy Spirit was simply working upon and through those not yet saved, then remember that tongues and praise to God are for the church, not the unbelievers. The church consists of people who are saved, not unsaved. If they were not saved until they were baptised, then they were not in the body of Christ and would not have moved in the charismatic gifts. Therefore, they were regenerate before they were baptized. This simply isnt an exception. It is a reality. Conclusion 1 Peter 3:21 is not teaching us that baptism is what saves us. Rather, it is showing us that the water symbolizes a spiritual cleansing through the power of the Holy Spirit gained through Christ’s victory over death. It is the person’s faith in God that saves the soul, not the washing of water upon the body.
Posted on: Mon, 17 Mar 2014 09:59:13 +0000
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