1992 issue 8 - sermon on i peter 3:17-22 - the consequences of christ's suffering - counsel of...

8/12/2019 1992 Issue 8 - Sermon on I Peter 3:17-22 - The Consequences of Christ's Suffering - Counsel of Chalcedon

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,

,

PART II: lHE CONSEQUENCES

OF CHRISTS SUFFERING

Every

human being has in some way

benefited from the undeserved,

incomparable

sufferings

and

death of

Jesus Christ. Hence,

He

can

be

called,

theSaviorq[allmen,

especially

qfbelievers,

I

Tim.

4:

10.

Therefore, we, as

Christians,

are

able

to

endure patiently

any

unjust

persecution

for

Christ, which

God

has

willed that we undergo, I Pet. 3:17;

because, when

we

do,

we

are like

Christ,

close to Christ, and a

benefit

to

other people.

lPeter3:18-22,

which

focuses on

the

conse

quences of Christ's

suffering,

is one

of the

most diffirult passages in

the whole Bible

to

interpret correctly; but,

as we learn how to

interpret it,

we will be

sharper in interpreting

any other biblical text.

Furthermore, what we

willleam from this text is

worththe time,effottand

struggle put into the

interpreting of t.

Having seen the

nature of Christ's suffering-penal,

vicarious, and propitiatory; and

the

purpose ofHis suffering-to bring

us

to

God in knowledge, favor, resemblance

andcornmunion;wearenowinaposition

to

consider the consequences

of those

sufferings COSMICALLY,

SPIRIT

UALLY, PERSONALLY,

INDIVID

UALLY,

AND

ETERNALLY.

First, having been put to death in

the flesh, Christ was made alive in the

spirit vs.

IS. But

what is

the

meaning

ofthiscontrastbetween death inthe lesh

and madealive in fil Spirit'? It cannot be

a contrast between Christ's human and

divine natures, since it cannotbe said of

His eternal

deity

that it

is "made

alive

.

It

cannot

be

translated, as

many have,

"IN

the body

...

BYthe Spirit," because of

the

parallel of the dative phrases in Greek,

which

reads, in the flesh and "in

the

spirit."

It

cannot be a contrast of

the

physical and spilitual aspects of Christ's

humanness, for

two reasons:

(1).

the

human sphit

does

not

die;

(2).

Christ

was "made

alive" in

his

r e s u r r ~ O I l in

hiscompletehumanity-bodyandspirit.

What, then.

is

the

exact

point of

the

contrast- put

n

death in the flesh and

madealiveinthespirlf'11nordertoanswer

that question, let us consider

carefully

the

details

of

the

text. (I).

The balanced

grammatical structure and

the

parallel

dative phraseshnpliesacontrastbetween

flesh and "spirit" suggesting that

the

two nouns shouldbeunderstood

to

be in

the

same case.

(2).

The verb, "made

alive, isused ten othertimes in the

New

Testament referring to resurrection. It

is

usedinRomansS:l1synonymouslywith

raised up, which

clearly

refers to

resurrection.

Therefore, in I

Pet.

3: ISwe

have

a

reference

t

the

resurrection of

Christ. (3).

The words, "flesh," (SARl(),

and "spirit,"

(PNEUMA),

when used

without

an

atticle,

("the"),

(although

English translations

do

not reflect this

fact), emphasize quality and therefore

denote two modes of Christ's eJlistence

before

and

after His resurrection.

On the basis of these observations of

the

text,

we are

ready

to

interpret the

meaning of

the

contrast in verse

IS.

By

"flesh"

is meantChrist'seanhly existence

before

His resurrection;andby"spirit" is

meant His

glorified,

exalted existence

~ g i l l i n g withHis restlrrection, and

for

eternity thereafter.

I

Corinthians

15:35-50

corroborates

this interpretation, which contrasts two

orders

of

life,

two aeons, two world

periods, two creations-one beginning

with Adam, the other

beginning with the

resurrectionof]esusChrist

and consummated with

His Second Coming.

Theseare profoundverses

filledwithmuchtruth,but

notice three pohtts:

I).

the

contrast

between Christ's, and

the

Christian's, pre-resurrec

tionexistence andChrist's,

and

the

Christian's, post

resurrection existence;

(2). the description of

Christ'sresurrection-lifeas

"Spiritual,"

vs.4, and as

life-giving Spirit,

vs.

45.

This

is

not

to

say

that his

resurrection

was

not a bodily one, i.e.,

htvolving

Hisentirehumanity. Itis t say

that

His

resurrection-life is Spirit

produced, Spirit-transformed, Spirit

filled,

Spirit-dominated, and Spirit

qualified.

At His resurrection, Christ

became life-giving Spirit This does not

obliterate the personal distinction

between Christand

the

Spirit. Although

their

Persons are distinct, their Presence

is th

same.

Instead it emphasizes the

point that

at

His resurrection, Christ

experienceda"Spiritualqualification and

transformation so thorough,

an

endowment

of

the Spirit so complete

that

as

a result Christ and the Spirit can

be equated. This unprecedented

possession of the Spirit and the

accompanying

change in Christ result ht

September, 1992 TIlE COUNSEL of Chalcedon 13

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aunitysoclosethatnotonlycanitbesaid

simply that

the Spirit

makes alive, but

also

that Christ as

Spirit

makes a1ive."

Richard Gaffin, The

Centrality of

the

Resurrection . So

we

see,

that Paul in

I

Corinthians and

Peter

in I

Peter use the

word

"spirit"

in

the

same sense, to denote

post-resurrection

life.

(3).

The fact that 'llesh and blood

cannot inherit the

Kingdom of

God,

because they are perishable.

This

existing, earthly

life

and body are

perishable.

"Flesh"(SARX),

in I Cor.

15:50 is used in

the

same way as "flesh"

in IPet. 3:18. It denotes the perishability

ofpresertthumanlife,

inc1udingtheentire

sphere of human existence, man's

environment and

the

whole natural,

eanhly order

with everything that is

characteristic of human life, (pre

resurrection), Rom. 1:3. Thus,

the

flesh

spiritcontrastinlPeterandI

Corinthians,

is not an

anthropological contrast,

it

is

a

chronological and

bistorical contrast.

"Flesh" for Christ, and Christians, is

pre

resurrection life; and,

"spirit"

for Christ,

and Christians. is post-resurrection

life.

AsChristians, wehaveexperiencedinner

resurrection from

the

flesh:

i.e.,

fallen

human nature; but,since we

have not

yet

experienced outward, physical

resurrection, wewillcontinuetostruggle

against "the

flesh",

although

wewilldoso

victoriously,

Romans

6-7.

Christ

was

made alive

in

the spirit

because He was ''put to deaih in ti:leflesh.

Just

as

Christ

suffered in His entire

humanity,

so He

was

raised

from

the

deadand,glorified

inHisentire

humanity.

His redemptive

work was not complete

until the victory ofHis

resurrection.

His

exaltation

was

His

reward

from

God

for

His

hllI(liliation

for

our

salyation, Phil.

2:8-9.

The

implications of this truth are

important for us.

Just

as all

who

are in

Adam

die,

so

all

who

are in Christ, the

last Adam, are made

alive,

I

Cor.

15:22.

All

human beings in their fallen,

unbelieving condition are related to

Adam,

biologically and

covenantally,

Rom.

5:12f.

Whateverhappenedtohim

happens to

bis descendants,

i.e., the

human

race

.

Whatever he did, the

race

sufferstheconsequencesof. FromAdam

we inherit

the

guilt ofsin, asinfulhuman

nature, the condemnation of God, and

death

. But for those

who

belong to

Christ, things

are

totally

different. We

haveanewHead,anew Representative

Jesus Christ. God raised Him from the

dead as the I.as(Adam, I Cor. 15:45; so

that now,

whatever

happened

to Him,

happens to those who belong to Him.

Whatever

He

did,

we

enjoy the

consequences ~ f and

resurrection

All who

are in Christ

live Because He

was

raised

from the

dead,

it is absolutely

cenain that we, who are

in

Christ"

by

grace

through faith,

will

experience

this

glorious resurrection and thorough

transfonnation bytheSpiritaswell. ..i

the Spirit

ofHim who raisedJesusfrom

the

dead dwells

in

you, He who raised Christ

Jesus rom the

deadwill

also

give life

toyour

mortalbodtesthroughHisspiritwhoindwells

you,

Rom. 8:11.

It

is certain.

We can

be

assured ofit

The eternal and irreversible

salvation

of

allbelieversinJesus, who trnst

in Him as

their

substitute

and covenant

bead is

based here

.

Because

Christ

was

"mode

alive in the spirit: i.e., raised from the

dead and glorified, all His people will

experience Spiritual resurrection

from

the

inward death they inherited

from

Adam ,

which

separates

them

from God

and makes them unwilling and

unable

to

make

any proper

response to the offers

and commands of

God,

from

the

depravity

and

slavery of

sin

in the new

birth, Rom.

6:1ff;

John 5:24ff,

which

Spicttually transforms

and

endows with

Iifethewholeinnerlifeofaperson. And,

all

who have experienced

the new

birth

in

Christ, Cor

.5:17

areeternallysaved,

and

will,

without fail, be physically raised

from

the

dead

and

glorified by the Spirit

at

the Rerum

ofjesus Chctst, Rom.

8:11;

I Cor. 15:50f. Our

salvation is not

completeuntil

our

Spiritually resurrected

4 f TIlE COUNSEL ofChalcedon September, 1992

''irmer person

(soul)

is reunited

to

our

Spiritually resurrected "outer person"

(body)

at the Second

Coming

of

Christ.

Second.

Christwentand preached

to the spirits in prison,

vs. 19.

The

interpretations of this verse have

been

many,requiringus, therefore, tobecareful

and specific in our

consideration

of the

details of the

text,

to

r n ~

sure our

interpretation

isa

correct

one.

Verse

19

reads: in which also.He went and

made

proclamation (preached)

to the

spirits in

prison.

Let

us study every word.

a.The phrase,"in which: refers to

Christ's resurrected state.

Although the

has through

whom,

the Greek can

justasaccurately

be

translated,

inwhich,

i.e.,

in

which state of

spirit

that Christ's

being "made alive,

brought Him-His

exalted,

resutreCledstate.

Theantecedent

of wh1ch cannot be

the

first pan of the

sentence

having been put

to

deaih

in

the

flesh,

for Christ is no longer dead.

Therefore it must refer

to

the second

part,

made alive in

the

spirit,

or

resurrected

,Rom. 8:

11.

b.Bytheword , also,"apparentlyPeter

wants us to understand verse

19

as

continuing

the sequence

ofverbs, put

to

death and"modealive. Christ alsowent

andpreached.

To

bring

us

to

Godandto

complete His

victory

over sin,

Satap.and

death, Christ had to die and to

be

raised

from

the

dead

; and also, as a

further

encouragement

to us, as the risen Christ,

He went and preached

to

spirits in

prison,

proclaintiug

His victory.

c.

We

must not

overlook the word,

went, which, in

the

Greek, is used in

verse

19 and

in versen,

where

it refers

to

Christ's ascension:

''having

gone

into

heaven. "Therefore, apparently

it

has the

same

reference in verse

19.

The

Greek

partidple,

translated went, denotes a

spedfic change of location.

The

risen,

ascending Christ went

somewhere to

preach.

d.The Greek

word translated, "made

proclamation

: or

preached

is

EKERUXEN, meaning

to

proclaim


3/11

publicly and loudly, to announce

as

one

heralding victory.

This

verb

is

in the

aorist tense, denoting decisive

proclamationat a definite point of

time.

It

is used

for

the proclamation of the

gospel of

"SOTERlA,"

i.e.,

victory over

sin, Satan and death in

Christ.

By this

verb

we

are to understand that the

resurrected Christ went somewhere and

proclaimed His victory over sin,

Saran,

death, and over all

His

enemies.

This

is

bad

news for His

enemies; but it

is

wonderful, encouraging news for

Christians being persecuted for His

Name's

sake.

e.who are the spirits

in

prLson to

whom Christ preached?

The

word,

"spirits," is used regularly in the

New

Testament to denote

evil

spirits, or

demons,

Mk

1:23,26,27;

3:11;

5:2, 8.

Peter

places two

qualifications on the

word:

(1).

They are kept

"in

prison.

In

n

Peter 2:4, he expands the meaningof

the

phrase: "For if

God

did not spare angels

when

Otey

sinned, but

cast

OtemintD

hell

and

committedOtemtopitsoJdarknm,

reserved

Jor

judgment... Jude picks up on this in

verse6: Andangelswhodidnotkeep Oteir

own

domain,

but

abWldoned

dleir

proper

abode,

He

has kept in eternal bonds under

darkness Jar

Ote

judgment

oj

die

great day.

And in Revelation 20:7, John writes:

AndwhenOte thousandyearsarecompleted,

Satan will be

released

Jrom hts prison. We

must conclude, then, that Peter, in 3:18,

is referring

to

Satan and demons, i.e.,

fallen angels, whenhespeaksof spiritsin

prLson.

(The

Bible

does not speak of the

souls of men being kept in prison.)

(2).They are "Ote

spirits

... who once

(aforetime, or long ago) were dis

obedient.... Notice that the phrase is the

spirits

..

who once

were

dtsobedient,

NOT

the spirits of those who

were once

disobedient. If t were the latter, Peter

could

be

referting to thesouls of

he

dead

who were disobedient in their lifetime.

However, the word, "spirits," as Peter

qualifies

it, refers to evil spirits who

disobeyed as spirits.

To say they disobeyed "once" or

"aforetime" or "long ago" is to indicate

that their disobedience, i.e., their

deliberate and conscious resistance

to

God's authority,was "formerly," at some

time

in thepast. Theirdisobedience took

place

plior

to

their imprisonment and to

Christ's preaching to them. In

fact,

verse

20

tells us

that this disobedience took

place

in

te

days

oJNoah. Therefore, the

term, "spirits," applies to the

fallen

angels

(demons) whose activity was so

pronounced and so dominant in the

days before Noah's Flood,when

evil

was

spreading

so

rapidlyin the eanh--'Then

the Lordsaw

that

the wickedness

oj

manwas

great

on

the

earth,

Wld

every Intent oj

the

thoughtsojhtsheartwasonlyevilcontinually.

-

And God looked on the earth, and

behold,

it was c o r r u p ~ Jar

all

flesh had

corrupted dleir way upon

the

earth, Gen.

6:5,12.

FromAdamtoNoah, Godwaspatient

with fallen

man.

Forthe

120 years

Noah

preached and built the ark,

God

was

lenient

in

waiting

to

execute

His

sentence

on the depraved human

race.

But

His

patience has limits "Then God

said

to

Noah, The end

oj

all

flesh had come beJore

Me; Jar the

earth

ts

filled

with violence

because oj them; and behold, I am about to

destroy

Otem

with

the

earth.

-

..

1

am

bringing thefloodoJwaterupon the

earth,

to

destroy

allflesh in

which ts

the

breath oJ life,

Jrom

underheaven; everything thatts on the

eardlShall perLsh," Gen. 6:13, 17.

Noah's .contemporaries were

notoriously

evil

and served as agents of

demonic spirits in their rebellionagainst

God. There is no othertimein historyin

which the conrrast between faith and

unbelief,

obedience and disobedience,

was as

pronounced

as

in the

days

of

NoahjustbeforetheFlood. Therebellious

evil

spirits seemed

to

control the human

race with the exception ofNoah and his

family.

How has this phrase, Christ

preached

to

spirits in

prLsOll, been interpreted by

Bible scholars? Some of the

interpretations are

far-

fetched, so letme

mention only three, two ofwhich have

some

feasibility, but

all falling shon of

the text, as we shall

see.

Some

have interpreted the text as

saying that between Christ's crucifixion

and resurrection, Christ went to hell to

preach to evangelize the lost souls there.

But,

this cannot be correct,

since

there is

no

second chance for salvationafter death

for those in hell, Heb. 9:27.

Others have understood the text as

teaching that Christ preached through

the preachingofNoahto the disobedient

people ofHis

day,

and who, because they

persistedintheirdisobedience,are NOW

"spiritsinprLson"inhell. Theywerenotin

hell, when Christ preached to them

through Noah, but they are

in

hell now.

The

translators of the

NASB

apparently

held this view, as is evident

from

their

placing ofthe word, now ,

in

italics,

in

the phrase, the spirits now

in

prison.

This

interpretation is appealing, but we

mustlayitasidebecause, ''now''isabsent

in the Greek,

and it

does not deal

a d e q u a t e l y ~ t h t h e grammarof he

verse,

which indicates that went

and

preached"

hastheresurrected,notthepre-incarnate,

Christ as its subject.

A third interpretation

is

that

of the

greatScottish, Biblescholar,joImBrown.

And it is

very

appealing. According

to

Brown,

in his resurrection, Christ was

infinitely endowed by the Holy Spirit

with an inuneasurable superabundance

oflife

so

as to

enable Him to

give

eternal

life

to those dead

in

their sins, In.

12:24,32; 3:34. Having died

for

sin and

been raised, glorifiedandgiventhe Spirit

without measure, Christ now preaches

to

spirits

in

prison, i.e, guilty

and

depravedpeople, imprisoned by

sin

and

Satan, lsa. 61:

If

setting them free,

through the preaching of the gospel by

apostles and ministers. Through

which

in verse 19 refers

to

the agency of the

Holy Spilit, who made him alive".

Ephesians 2:17 seems to confirm this

view,

when it speaks of the resurrected

September, 1992 THE COUNSEL

of

Chalcedon 5

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Christ coming

and preaching

to

the

Ephesians

through

the

apostles.

This

truth, taught

elsewhere

in the Bible,

Rom.

10:

13-15andEph.

2:

17 , sagreatmotive

for

evangelism

and

world

missions.

However,althoughthisinterpretation

exdtes us,

because

it is taught in

the

Word of

God,

we

must

reject it

as the

proper interpretation of Peter3:19

for

rwo

reasons:

(1).

Brown

stretches

the

meaning of made

alive ; (2). He fuils to

do justice

to the

aorist tense of

preach,

indicating a point in time, not a

continuous action;

(3).

And he fails

to

deal

adequately with the

grammatical structure

of

the text,

and with

such

phrases, as "spiritS ..who

were dtsobedienL.in the

days

of

Noah.

After having

held

the

previOUS

. wo

views,

(not

the first one),

I now

find

myself in the position

of

havington;jectthem,and

to adopt the following

one,

because of the

force

of our

concise

exegesis

of

the

verse in the earlier

paragraphs.

The

resurrectedChrist,

duringHisAscension

to

God's

right hand,

proc1aimed

His

victdry over sin,

Satan and

death to the

fallen spirit-world,

(demons), who

are

chained in darkness

until their eternal

damnation on

the

final day of udgment,

when theyare castinto the

bottomless

pit

ofhell. As

Colossians 2:15

says: "When

He disarmed them/ers andauthorities, (i.e.,

demonlcspirits), He made

apubltcdisplay

of

them, having triumphed over them through

Him

(RememberthattheBlblerefersto

Satan

as

theprinceofthepoweroftheair.")

Amazing

The

resurrected, glorified,

exalted

Christ, ascending to the highest

place

of honor and

authority

in

the

universe-God's right hand;

enters the

worldofSatartanddemons,fordblycalls

them

to

gather, and

declares His victory

over

sin,

Satan

and death

to them, who

a

fewhours earlierwere rejoicing that they

had

destroyed

God's

Son

in

death and

the grave. Now they are told

authOritatively that, while they

bruised

His

heel, He

had,

in fact, crushed thctr

heads: Gen

3:

15f. What a

sermon that

must have been What a congregation,

forced

to listen

to every

word It was

a

congregation comprised only of Satan

and

his

fiendish, totally

evil,

perverted,

God-hating,

man-hating,

murderous,

lying, envious,

enraged, monstrous

demons. The risen Christ takes

the

pulpit, calis the

service to order,

ooks at

His

congregation and triumphantly

shouts:

You

are finished

have

defeated you

forever

am

coming

back at the endd of History to

castyou

into the bpttomless pit of hell Until

then, am keeping you chained in

darkness, awaiting that great

day of

judgment, when will

say

to

you

-Go

To Hell

Praise

God,

suffering,

slandered

Christians

Satan's servants and

dupes

donothaveasnowball 'schanceinheUto

harm you or to defeat you, or to keep

God from fulfilling His promises

and

advancing His kingdom,

Heb.

2: l4f. Let

this

truth

get

hold

o you and excite

you

Let it

encourage

and uplift you Let it

motivateyou

Nomatterwhattheydoto

you, they are defeated and they know it.

Christ told

them

In blind,

reckless

fury

and hatred, they are destroying

themselves trying to destroy you, while

16 I

THE

COUNSEL of

Chalcedon

I September, 1992

you remain Hyper-conquerors, more

thanconquerorsin

Christ.

Don't lettheir

threats and intimidations

get to

you It's

all a

big

blum They

hate Christ for

"rubbing

it in",

when

he proc1aimed His

victory to the

spirits

in prison. Now,

since they

cannot

get

at

Him, theywiU try

to get at

those

whom Christ loves most,

His

blood-bought

people. But am

absolutelyconvincedthatnothingintime

or eternity,

in

life or death, on

eanhorin

hell, can

separateus

from the love of

God

in Christ

Jesus

our

Lord.

Third,

Baptism

now

saves

you

through the

resurrection of Jesus

Christ, vs. 21.

The

mentionofthearkinverse

20 enabled Peter to shift

his

thoughts

from

those

upon whom judgment

feU to

those

who were

saved.

The salvation of

Noah and his family

reminded him of the

salvation we have in

christ from

the

wrath of

Godwhichdesrroyedthe

old world; and this

reminded him of baptism, the sign and

seal of

that salvation. Do we

think

like

this?

Howcloselyissalvationandbapclsm.

linked

in

our understanding?

.

In order to understand verse

21,

we

must keep

every

word of it before our

minds, and answer three questions: (1).

How were eight

people saved

by

or

through

water?

(2). How does

Noah's

Floodsymbolize

and represent Christian

Baptism?

(3). How

does baptism now

save us?

And

corresponding

tn

that,

baptism

nawsavesyou-nottheremovalofdirtfrom

the .flesh,

bl t

an appeal tn God

for

a good

c.onsciena-throughtheresurrectionof]=

OrrisL.: vs. 2l

Question

one: How

were eight

people

saved

by or through water, vs.

20? As

our

text

shows, this is

obviously

a reference to Noah's fumUy being saved


5/11

in the ark, while the rest

of

the human

race drowned in the worldwide Flood,

Gen. 7

,8,9.

Anunderlyingassumptionis

that their

physical

salvation from the

Flood-waters was, atthe

same time,

their

spiJituai and moral

salvation

from

the

infuqiogs corruption

of a

fullen race

qUickly

spreading throughout the earth,

and

from

the wrath ofGod

on that

fallen

race,

Gen.6.

Thisphraseinverse20,

eightpersons,

were brought saJely

through

th water,

records the

rransition

from theoldworld,

(pre-flood),

to

the,

very literally, new

world, (post-flood). Thecompoundverb

and the preposition, DIA, give

the

force

of

complete

deliverance.

The

passive

voice indicates thatthe arkwas

the actual

agent

of

their

salvation.

The waters

ofthe Flood

drowned

the

evil

human race but

cau sed the ark to

floa

t

safely.

The Flood-waters that

destroyed the wicked weretheverymeans

ofsalvationforNoahandhisfarnily. The

waters

buoyed up the ark and brough t

them

safely

through w the new world

washed

clean

by divine judgment.

The

family

of

Noah wentinto the

ark and left

behind a world of

evil.

After going

through

the waters

of

the Flood formore

thanayear,Noah'sfumilyl

eft

thearkand

knew that

God

had

saved

them

from

being drowned by an ocean of human

corruption under thewrath ofGod. This

point

is

made time andagain throughout

the Scripture, e.g., the

Exodus and

Calvary.

God saves us

from

our

enemies, not by rapturing us from

our enemies, but by destroying our

enemies by conversion, Acts

9:1ff,

demoralization, Josh. 5:1,

or

death,

Psa. 58:6-11.

Question two: How does Noah's

flood symbolize and represent

Christian

Baptism? There is a

resemblance, ( correspondence ) ,

between the Flood and

baptism.

As the

Flood-waters cleansedtheearth

of

man's

wickedness,

so

the water of baptism

indicates man's cleansing from sin, Tit.

3:5. AstheFioodseparatedNoahandhis

family

from the

evil

world of heir

day, so

haptism separates believers from the

evil

world of our

day,

Ga

l. 3:27. Baptism

is

thecounterpanoftheFlood.

The parallel

lies

in the

saving

experience of

Noah

and

his

family passin

g through the

Flood

waters

to a new

world;

and

Christian

Baptism

as

that which den

otes

the

believer's passage

from

the old life ofsin

to

new life in Christ, Rom. 6:3-4.

(Excursus:

The salvation of Noah

and his

family

by the water of the Flood

corresponds

to

baptism, and

yet

it

was

the world that

was

immersed, not

Noah

and his

tamily

Th

e most

one can

say

is

that th

ey were

"sprinkled" by the rain.

Baptism doesnotme

animmersioll. Noah

and his

fumily were

the only

people

on

eanh,

who

were

not

inrmersed;

and

yet,

it cannot be said that the whole,

immersed,

evil

world was baptized )

Question three:How does Baptism

now save

us? Let

us consider

carefully

every word. "Baptism" is

the

application

ofwater by aminister of

h gospel

in the

name of the triune God. The use of the

word, "now," is a marked feature of I

Peter,

1:6,

12;

2:10,

25.

It

denotes

the

time of he New

Dispensation, Eph

. 1:10,

the

last Days, Heb.

1:1-2, the

Day

of

Salvation, Cor.

2,

the Reign of

Grace,

Rom. 5:2

1, the Coming ofthe Kingdom

of Christ, Mk. 1:15;

I

Cor. 15:24ff,

into

human history. Salvation,

("saves"), is

defined by I Peter

1:

1-9

as tota

l and

complete freedom from sin, (its guilt,

punishment, powerand presence), and

perfection in holiness. The pronoun

us' refers to

Peterand to

th

addressees

ofhisepistle, identifiedin

1:

1-2 as"those

who are chosen (by God before time,

Eph

. 1 3[) according

to

the

foreknowledge ofGod theFather, by the

sanctilYingworkoftheSpirit, that

(they)

may obey

Jesus

Christ and besprinkled

with

His

blood

.. ." n

other words, the

us" which baptism saves are believing

recipients of the lich salvation we have

in Christ.

The phrase, baptismsaves us,' snot

unparalleledintheNewTestarnent:Rom.

6:3-5;

Gal. 3:27; Col.

2:

12.

Here Peter

qualifies

its

meaning. He tells us in what

sense baptism DOES NOT

save,

and in

what sense

it

DOES save.

First,

we

have the

qualifYing

phrase,

not

the removal

oj

dirt

Jrom

the

flesh,

showing us in what sense baptism

does

NOT save. It reminds us that haptism

does not

save

in the physical, material,

literal

sense. Thewaterofbaptismcannot

washawaysin. TIrissacrament, inandof

itself, ex opere operato, is not

effective

in

obtainingsalvation. The idea that the

rite

ofwaterbaptismcansave,conveyspiritual

life,

justify and regenerate is absurd,

unbiblical and dangero

us.

It is absurd

because moral flaws and moral

effects

musthave moral

causes

and moral cures.

Second, Petergives

us two

qualifying

phrases, showing us in what sense

baptismdoes

save: (1).

''but an

appeal

to

God Jar a good

conSCIence:

and (2).

through the resurrection

oj]esus

Christ

In the first phrase, appeal, can just as

easily

be translated more clearly as

"pledge." Baptism is God's pledge to th

believer

that the covenanted blessings of

salvation will continue to be bestowed

onhim,

Rom.

4:11. Itisalsothebeliever's

pledge to

serve

the Lord with a good

conscience, i.e., one cleansed by the

blood ofChristthrough IiIith, Heb. 9:

14,

accompanied by a life lived

conscientiously and obediently

to

God's

honor and

glory, Rom

. 2:15.

At this point, one might ask,

"How

then

may

infants be baptized, since they

cannotmake this pledge, without which

baptism does not save?" The first

observation

we

should make about this

question

is

that, if it were allowed to

stand,

all

circumcision of

infants

in the

Old Testament would be illegitimate,

since,

although circumcision was a sign

and

seal

of salvation,

Rom.

4:

11,

the

infants would

be

incapable of

understanding baptism, much less of

makingapledgewliIithfuiness. However,

September, 1992 TIlE COUNSEL

of

ChaIcedon 7


6/11

as Thomas Watson

has

pointed

out:

"Neither could the child that

was to

be

circumcized understand drcumcision;

yet the ordinance of drcumcision

was

nouobeomitt.edordeferred,

Gen. 17: If[

Though an infant understand

not

the

meaning of baptism it may partake

of

the

blessing of baptism.

The

litde children

that Quist took

in

his anns, undetstood

not christ's meaning" but

they

had

Cluist's blessing. put

his hands upon

themandblessedthem,'Mk.1O:16. -ABody

of

Divinity

Watson goes on to answer two more

related questions:

(1). What benefit can

the infant bave in being baptized, ifhe

does not understand

it?

Answer:

"It

may

have a right

to

the promise

sealed

up,

which it shall have

an acrual

interest in

when it comes

to

have

faith.

A

legacy

may be of use

to

the child in the

cradle;

thoughitnowunderstandnotthelegacy,

yetwhenitisgrownuptoyears,itisfuUy

possessed of it." (2). Since the person

baptized must rnake a

pledge

to God,

how can infants be baptized,

since the

y

areincapapleofmakingpledges? Answer:

"The

parents can

engage

for it,

which

God is pleasedlo accept

as equivalent to

the child's personal engagement, (Deut.

29:100."

n

the second phrase,

through

the

resurrection

ofJesus

Dlmt: showing

us

how baptism

DOES

save, we

are taught

an important

truth

. Without the

resurrection of Jesus Christ, which

presupposes His death, baptism would

be an empty ritual.

The

etudfied and

resurrected Christ

is

the basis of our

salvation and our

guarantee

of

victory

ov r

sin, Satan and death,

Acts

4:

12

.

Peter

has

already told us

that God has

regenerated us by the resurrection of

Christ, 1:3, and by His Word, 1:23; so

there is no doubt or

confusion

in

Peter's

mind: waterdoesnotsave

Christ saves

Baptism

isasiguandseal of

hat salvation

in Guist God

sovereignly

saves us

by

His sheer

grace

by sending

His

SonJesus

Christ,

to save

us by

His

shed- blood.

The Holy Spirit saveS us by

applying the

benefits

of Christ's

death

to

our lives

through

the preaching

of

the gospel,

which we receive by saving faith,

which

isa gift

of

God, publicly confessed, and

signed

and

sealed

to

us

by the sacrament

of

baptism. It is

in

thisway

that

baptism

now saves

us.

Thisbrings us

to

abrief, bumecessary,

and hopefully helpful, explanation of

"a

sacramental way of speaking.

The

actions of

God

are sometimes spoken of

by means of

the signs

and symbols

that

represent

them

,

Gen. 17: 10,13; Exod

.

13:21; 34:5;

Ezek.

36:25;Psa.

50:8;M.aL

26:27,28; I Pet. 3:21; Rom. 6:4; Col.

2:11,12. For

example,

in

Ezekie136:25

weare

told

thatGodwillcleanseusofour

sinsbythebloodofChristandthepower

of the

Holy Spirit

in

the

New Covenant;

but the exact wordS

are:

"I

will

sprinkle

clean water

on

you, and you

will

be

clea L

Paul tells the Ephesians that Christ

c1eansesHis Bride from

her

sins by the

Word and Spirit ofGod; but, again, his

exact

wordS

are: ..

that

He mightsanctify

her, having cleansed her y

the washing of

waterwith the word...

Eph. 5:26. When

the

Israeliteswent to

the threshold

of the

Tabernacle to seek

the

Lord's counsel or

to make their

vows

to the Lord, it

s

said

that

they

went

bifore

the Lord, Judg.

20:26.

Understanding"asacramentalwayof

speaking"

involves

understanding

the

threepartsofasacrament:

(1). the visible

sign;

2). the things signified; and (3) . he

sacramental union, i.e., the

relation

of

the sign and the spiritual reality.

That

union

is

so close that the

names and

effects of

the one are often

attributed

to

the other; hence,

I

Peter

3:

21. Asimilar

way

ofspeaking

is

related

to

the unity

of

the two natures, (divine andhuman) ,in

.

he

one person ofJesus

Christ. The

two

are

never divided nor

confused.

Some

thingsJesus

does

can

only be true of His

divine

nature,

e.g.,

forgive

sin;

while

other things

are

true only ofhis human

nature, e.g., thirst for

water.

And yet,

because of the

close

union of the two

natures in

Christ,

actions which

are

true

18 Ul COUNSEL of

ChalcedOll.

September, 1992

of

one are sometimes

attributed

to

the

other.

For

example, Acts 20:28 can

speak of

the

church

as bought

with the

blood

o

God."

God

had no

blood;

but

Jesus'

humanity

did.

Therefore,

Christ

savesandsealsthatsalvationtousthrough

baptism.

The salvation

and the seal

are

clearly distinct,

and

yet

because

their

relation

is

so close,

it can

be

said

that

baptism saves, without implying

baptismal regeneration as taught by

Roman Catholidsm.

This sacrnmental

union

between the

sacrament,

Le.,

lis ..ble

sign

and the

invisible

spiritual reality,

i.e.,the thing

signified, Is:

1).

symbolic and

representative,

i.e,

the

one

symbolizes

and represents the other; (2).

instrumental, because by divine

appointment,

through

the right use

of

the

sacrament,

thespiIitualgracesignilled

inthesacramentisreaUycortveyed

to

the

believer

.

This

union

is

based

on three

things:

(1).

the

natural fimess of the

sacrament

to

symbolize the grace

signified,

as

washing

With

water

symbolizes the

purification ofsin by the

Spirit. (2).Theauthoritativeappointment

ofChristthatthesesacramentsofbaptism

and the

Lord's

Supper, righdy used,

would

truly represent and

convey

the

grace

of salvation

to

the believer,

Mat

28

:

18f. (3)

.TheSpirit-produced

faith

of

the

believing redpient of he sacrament

enables him to

conunune with

God

and

to receive Chtist in the right use of the

visible

sign Heb.

11:6;

I

Cor.

10:14-ll;

11:17-34.

Finally, undetstanding the purposes

f r

which

Christ gave

us the sactalllents

ofbaptism

and

the Lord's

Supper,

helps

us uridetstand what

is

meant by

the

phrase,

baptismnowSa\lesus.

According

toA.A.Hodge,inhisbook, TheConfession

ofFaith, Christ instituted the

sacrnments

forthefollowingreasons:(l).torepresent

the

benefits of Christ and the

New

Covenant

to us

as pictures of the truths

they represent, I Cor. 10:16; 11:25,

presented "totheeyesandothersensesof

the

redpient in a manner

analogous to


7/11

that in which they

are

presented

to the

earsinthepreachingofthe

Word." Hence,

they

are

called outward, visible signs

to

the

senses of inward Spiritual

graces

to

the soul. (2)

.

To

be

"seals"

of

he benefu:s

of the New Covenant, Rom.

4:11; Rom.

6:4;

Gal.

3:27. Jesus

said,

This

cup

is

th

NewCovenantinMyblood, il


8/11

22.

This

is the culmination of

Christ's

sufferings: the universality of His

dominion.

The universal.

re

igh

of

the

risenChristis a truth

taught

throughout

the Bible. The same point

is

made in

Ephesians

1:20f-

..which He

brought

in Christ, when

He raised

Him

from

the

dead and seatedHim

at

His right hand

in

m

heavenly places,

far

above

all

rule

and authority andpower and

dominion,

and every name that is named, not only

in this age, but

also

in

the

one

to come.

AndHeputallthingsinsubjectionunder

His feet, and gave -lim

as

head

over

all

things

for

the church .. ." I Corinthians

15:25 adds: "For He

must

reign until He

has put

all His enemies under

His

feet. The

last

enemy that is

being

abolished is death

For'Hehasputall

things in

subjectlonuncler

Hisfeet'

...

Paul

declares in Philippians 2:5-11 ,

that

s

God's reward to Christ

for

voluntarily humiliating

Himself

for our

salvation,

"becomitlgobeclienttothepointof

death evendeathonacross,

therefore, "God

high ; exalted Him,

and

bestowed on Him

thenamewhich isabave every

nome,

thatat

the name of

esus,

every knee shouldbow,of

those who are in

heaven,

and on earth, and

under the

earth and that

every tongue

should confess

thatJesus

Christis

Lord,

to

theglory

of

God

the

Father."

In

Revelation

11:15, the seventh

angels shouts, "The

kingdomof

heworldhasbecome thekingdom

ofour Lord,

and

of

His

Christ,

and

He

will

reignforever

and

ever.' And long before

Christ was bom, Daniel prophesied

of

Him "And

to

Him

was

given dominion,

glory and

a kingdom, that

all the

peoples,

nations and

men

ofevery language might

serve him.

His

dominion

Is

an everlasttng

dominumwhkh willnotpass

awa.Y;

andHis

kingdom

is

one

which will

not

be

destroyed,

7:13-14. ]esusHimselproclairned,"All

authority has been given to

Me

in heaven

and

n earth Mat

. 28:18.

Now, letuslook

carefully

at ourtext,

I Pet. 3 :

21-22-

.. hrough the

resurrection of]esus

Christ,

who

is

at the

right hand of God ,

having gone

into

heaven, after

angels

and authorities and

powers

had been subjected to

Him.

Notice

the follOwing

emphases

of this

text: (1).Where is Christnow?

A- atthe

right hand of God." (2).When

did

He

take

that position? A.- through the

resurrection,"

"having

gone

into

heaven,"

Le. at

His ascension.

(3).

What

is the

extent

of

His

authority and

sovereignty,

Le.,

his

Kingdom?

(1). WHERE

IS

JESUS CHRIST

NOW?

Answer: HE

IS

SITTING AT

THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD, vs. 22.

The focus

of

the New Testament is

on

Cnrist 's Throne at the Right

Hand

of

God, Lk.

22:69;

Eph. 1:20; Col.

3: 1;

Heb.

1:3;

10:12;

12:2, indicating the

fulfillment of the messianic

Psalm

110:1- The Lord says to

my

Lord: 'Sit

at My right hand, until I

make Thine

enemies a footstool

for

Thy

feet.

m

What

does

Christ's

sitting

"at

the

righthandofGod

signify? (1).

Itdenotes

the highest position of honor and

authority in the universe, next to God

Himself.

He

is

seated there as king,

majestic in

glory

,with

God

in the

govemmentoftheuniverse,

sa.

9:6.The

textmakesitclearthatChrist'sgoverning

of he universe

is

not something that

will

take

place inthe

future.

Itisineffectnow.

It

is not that

He

will

sit, but

He

"is

sitting at God's right hand in powerand

sovereignty. (2). He is

a

seated priest,

Heb. 1:3-4. The Old Testament priests

could not sit down, becaUse their work

was

never done.

They were always

offeringsactifices;

butwhen

Christ

offered

Himself

as

our

sacrifice

for

sin

once-for

all there need

be

no further sactifices,

~ e

His sacrifice successfully

obtained

etemalredempDon"forallthoseforwhom

He died, Heb . 7:; 9:.

Therefore, having

finished the work Godsent Him

to

earth

to do-the

accomplishing of

the eternal

salvationofGod'speople,

He

satdown

at

God's

right hand in trinmph over sin,

Satan

and death, Mat. 26 :64; Acts

7:55;

Heb. 12:2. (3). From God

's

right

hand,

Jesus

Christ

baptized His church

with

the

abundance of

the Holy Spirit on

the

day of Pentecost,

recorded in

Acts

2.

He

20 TIlE

COUNSEL

of

ChaIcedon September,

1992

continues

to

equip

His

church with

Spiritual

gifts, ministries and

powers,

along

with a Spirit-produced

Bible

,

Acts

2:33

-35

;

Eph

. 4:7-8;Rom. 12:31. And,

(4).

seated at God's

right hand, Heactsas

ourInrercessorandAdvocate, constantly

praying

for us

and

pleadingHis death in

ourbehalf, Rom.

8:34;

Heb .

9:24;

I]n.

2:;

Heb.8:1.

(2). WHEN DID

CHRIST

TAKE

THIS

POSITION

AT mE RIGHt

HAND OF GOD? Answer: AT

HlS

RESURRECDON

AND ASCENSION,

vs.22.0urtextsaysthattheresurrected

Chtist, vs. 21

,

is

"at the right

hand

of

God,

having gone

intoheaven." Christ's

resurrection broughtHim

to

His present

lordsbipandexaltationbyHisascension.

His ascension was His actual

enthronement,

Acts

1:6-11.

When

the

New Testament

speaks

of

the

reign

of Christ,

it

always speaks

of it

as

something

in

effect

right

now,

and not

as

something

that

will

not

take

place

until the future.

In I

Peter 3:21-

22

the

beginning

of

Hisreign is

clearly

withHis

resurrection and

ascension.

The past

tense

verbs

in Ephesians

1:20-22

make

the same point:

when

God

"raised

Him

fromthedead,"He seated

Him

atHis right

hand

;

and

He

"gave

Him

as

head

over

n

things." "He

put all.

things

In subjection

underHisfeerinverse22,beingapresent

tense verb,

which .

shows

continuous

action indicates

that

God is continually

at wo;k in human history bringing all

things

into

subjection to Christ, Jor

He

mustreignunttl8ehasplacedaliHisenemies

under

His

feet"

Philippians 2:

9-11

also

describes the

resurrection

of

Christ

as

His

enthronement in

past

tense

verbs.

U

the

verbs

in these verses

are

in the

aorist tense, denoting decisive action

ina

definite

moment of past time- God

highly exalted Him, (God) bestowed on

Him the

name: "that

..

every knee should

bow,"

"that

every tongue should

confess."

Thepointis:Jesus Christis theking

of the earth and universe

now . Since

His resurrection

and

ascension to God's


9/11

righthand,Hehasbeenandwillconunue

to

be the

King oJkings,

and Lord oJlords,

to whom all authority, power and

sovereigntyhas been given, Mat. 28:

18f.

He, not Satan, has everything underHis

comrol. His

will

is being accomplished.

His plans are being carried out. He has

orchestrated everything

'Jor

the

church,

Eph.l:22,sothateverythingthathappens

in the universe throughout history will

be

for

the benefit of the church and

for

the glory of God. As the Absolute

Monarch of heUniverse, the resurrected

Jesus administers the

covenant blessings andcurses

of Deuteronomy 28 and

Leviticus 26 on His friends

and enemies, cursing those

who curse us, and blessing

us, alongwiththose who bless

us,

Gen

.

12:

;

Rom. 15:8.

As

the Westminster Shorter

Catechism says: "Christ

executes the

office

of a king,

in subduing us to Himself,

Acts 15: 14f, in ruling, lsa.

33:22, and defending

us,

Isa.

32: If and in restraining and

conquering l l

His

and our

enemies, I Cor.

15:25.

"

(3). WHAT

IS

THE

EXTENT

OF

HIS

AUTHORITY AND

SOVEREIGNTY, I.E., HIS KINGDOM?

Answer: ANGELS,AUTHORITIES,AND

POWERSHAVEBEEN

SUBJECTEDTO

HIM, vs.

22. The aorist passive Greek

parriciple,

having

been

made

subject to

Him,

translated,

''have

been subjected to

Him,

stresses the actual subjection of

everything to Christ's governing

authOrity.

The

passive voice

indicates

that everything

now

standsinsubjecuon

to Him. Colossians 2: 13-15 tells us that

the basis for this universal dominion of

Christ is His redemptive work on the

cross, i.e., His incomparable suffering

and death:

And

when you were dead in your

transgressions and the uncircumcision

oj

yourjlesh,

Hemadeyoualive together with

Him,

having

Jorgiven

us

all our

transgressions, having canceled out the

certifica

te

oj

debtconsistingoJdecrees against

us

and

which was

hostile to us;

and He

has

takenitoutoJtheway, having

nailed it to

the

cross. When He haddisann

ed

the rulers and

authorities,

He

made a

public display

oj

dum, having triumphed

over them

Qlrough

Him

:

And

so,

the

thOUght

of submission

to

God, whichisthechief raitor Christians,

and which has been in the mind of Peter

throughout his first epistle, now reaches

a

climax

in

verse 22.

CHRIST'S EMPIRE

HAS

NO

BOUNDARIES IN TIME OR SPACE OR

ETERNITY: His supreme govemrnentis

'Jar above

All

rule aJul authority and

power

and

dominion

and EVERYname

that

is

named, not only in dlis age, but also in

the

one to

come:Eph. 1:21. Godhasplaced

All

filings

insubjectionunder

HisJeet,

and

gave

Him as head over ALL things ..

,

Eph.

1:22. He is the King oJkings, and

Lord

oj

lords, Rev. 19:16. All auVlOrity IN

HEAVEN

AND

EARm

has

been given

to

(Him),

Mat. 28: 18. Angels

andauthorities

and powers

(have)

been subjected to Him,

I Pet. 3:22. God exalted

Him

to this

majestic position in order that All

the

peoples,

nations

and

nun of every IWlguage

might serve Him

His

domillion is

an

everlasttng dominion

which

will

not pass

away; and His

kingdom is

one

which

will

not

be

destroyed, Dan 7:13-14. Therefore,

all the

ends oj

he

earth

will remember and

tum to the Lord,

and all

dIe

Jamilies ojV e

nations

will

worship beJore Thee, Jar the

Kingdom

is

the Lord's and He

rules

over the

nations, Psa. 22:27. EVERY/mee will

bow

a)ul EVERY tongue wiU

conJess that

'1esus Christ

is

Lord. ..

,

Phil. 2:9-11. All

opposition

to

His rule in

all

areas

will

be

put down,

'Jor

He must Jeign until He

has

putAllHisenemiesunder

HisJeet. -

And

when all

things are subjected

to Him, then

dle Son HiJnselj also will

be

subjected to the

OnewllOsubjectedall things to

Him,

that God may

be

all

in

all, 1Cor. 15:24ff.

Christ's monarchy is

etemal and universal.

It

is

supreme over all human

beings and over all their

instirutiollS. He is

the Ruler

oj he kings oj

he

earth,

Rev.

1:5.

Throughout history

every tribe, race, ethnic

group, nation and people of

every

languag

e

are

accountable

to

His supre

macy.

You

are accountable

toHislordshipoverYOUI If

you are not a Christian,

Believe

in the LORD Jesus

Chlistandbesaved,youandyourhousehold,

Acts 16:31. Ifyou con

ess

withy

ourmouth

that JESUS IS

LORD, and

believe in your

heart that God has

raised

Him from the

dead, YOUwiUbe saved, Rom. 10:9.

Christ is also king over the angelic

world, including both un allen angels

and

fallen angels,

i.e., Satan and his

demons, IPet. 3:22. The unfallen angels

sing His praises, and are ever-ready

to

serve Him and to obey His every

command,

Mat.

4:6; Heb.

1:7;

12:22;

II

Thess.l:7.

The

fallen angels, (Satanand

hisdemons), arealsounder Hissovereign

comrol. During His earthly life He

rebuked, mocked, cast out and

commanded demons with such

omnipotence and sovereignty that they

could do nothing but obey, although

they hated to do so, Mark 3:22-27. He

September, 1992

l' TH

COUNSEL of Cha1cedon l' 21'

_ _---

_

--_

..._.

_

- -


10/11

wouldeveno'ochestratetheirevilschemes

to serve His own purpose and

to

aa:omplish

His

own will. "He causes

the

wrath of

the wicked to please Him."

PetertellSusthat "Goddidnotspare

(fallen)

angels when

they

sinned,

but

cast

them

into

hell

nd

committed them to pits

oj

darkness

reservedJor u g m e n ~

nPet.

2:4.

These

fiillen

angels

are

so

restrained by

Christ

's

government thatJude says:

"He has kept

(them) in eternal bonds under darkness Jor

thejttdgmentoJthegreatday,"vs.6.

Since

Christ's

lite,

death and resurrection, He

has

"bound" Satan,

ie.,

vastly cm".ailed

hispower,inllUlince

andactivities, so

He

can

"enter the

strong man's .

house

and plunder

hi Y

property: Mark 3:27, i.e.,"

destroy

hisevilldngdomll ld'

set his

captives

free, Eph.

;

2:1ff.

And,

again,

thisrule of >

Christ

over Satan

is

basedon

the

aa:omplishments

of

His

sufferings and

death. As

Hebrews2:14says: "Since

the

chlldrenshareinjleshandblood,

He Himself (Chr sV Hhewise

also partook

oj

the same

that

throuFJtdeathHemightrender

powerless him who

had

the

power oj

death, that is,

the

devil...

."

So,

therefore,

faithful Christians have

nothing to

fear

from

Satan

and his

demons. Although he acts like

a

rooting

lion, seeldng

someone to devour,

if we

resist

him, firm in

the

faith,

he

willllee

from uS,lPet

5:8

9;James4:7. "Youare

ojGod, little chtldren,

nd have overcome

them;

because

greater is He Who is in you,

than he

who

is

in

the world,"

I In.

4:4.

"Christ's sovereignty over all spirituaL

forces is a precious assurance to aIllicted

believers.

Surely

Peter's readers, who

were facing a

very

real

onslaught

from

evilpowers

through

their

enemies,

would

findrealencouragementinthatremark."

D. Edmond Hiebert, First Peter.

(4).

WHAT

ARE

THE

IMPLI

CATIONS OF THE UNIVERSAL

DOMlNlON OF THE LORD JESUS

CHRIST FOR US

TODAY?

a.

The Church exists

for

thesake

of

Christ's

Kingdom

.

By the preaching

and teaching of the gospel, it is to work

at

''making the world's nations Christ's

disciples," Mat. 28:

18f. .....to belong to

thechurchisto

belongto

Christ'sworking

COfjlS, to his army

militant,

to

that divine

society

which

He has set upon

the earth

as the

propaganda of

His

royal

cause

in

the earth.

- The very

meaning and

purpose

of he

Churchinthe earth

makes

it a missionary institute

and

binds it

to

devoteitselfeXclusivelyandindustrlously

to

theest hlistunent

n ninstrwllent ry

way,

of

the

mediatort3l Kingdom

of

the

Redeemer;

and

the sublimest

motive

which

can

play

upon

the Christian

heart

to

urge

it

to aggressive enterprises is

derived from

the

fact that the

success

of

the

Church's mission is the triumph of

the Kingdom of the Redeemer.

"-

Alexander

Webb,

Olristian

Salvation: Its

Doctrine

and

Experience.

b. Submission to the Lordship of

Christisessentialtosalvation .

Resting

on and unconditionally surrendertng

to

Jesus Christ is of

the

essence of true

savingfaith,Mat.

7:

21. Apersonbecomes

a

Christian

when

he/she "believes

in the

LORD

Jesus:

Acts 16:31.

Confession

with the

mouth

thatJESUS

SLORD

and

faithin

the

heart

that

God

hasraisedHIm

from

the dead are

absol

ute

necessities, if

aperson is to be forgiven ofhis sins and

acceptedwithGod

,

Rom.10:9.Although

harles

Ryrie

calls

those who

teach

what

12 IRE COUNSEL ofCha1cedon September, 1992

wehave uststated as "under the curse of

perverting the

gospel," in

his

book,

Balandng the Christian

LiJe

"those

who

c

ontend that

a

person may be saved

without submitting

to

the

Lordship of

Christ are contending that there is

forgivenesswithoutrepenrance,aconcept

entirely without biblical foundation, Lk.

17:3."

Arnold Ten

Pas,

The

Lordshtp

Controversy.

You cannot

enjoy the

benefitsofChrist's cross

without

bowing

before the

claims

of Christ's crown'"

c.

The

Universal dominion ofjesus

Christ

is tIle

basis for Ch..-tstia..

reconstruction.

Since

Jesus

Christ

is

Lord over everything,

everything

(all

individuals

and

institutions) is aa:ountable

to

Him. The

church is

to

submit

to

Hisrulerevealedin

theBible,

as is

the home,

the school, the

civil government, the

courts,

business and

industry"

the

military, and

all

other

facets

and institutions

of

human

society. As Christians, we are

to

press His claims and to

establish

His crown rights in

every area of our own and of

our

nation's

life, Gen. 1:28;

Mat.

28:18f, aswellasineveryareaofthe

life

of

the

whole world,

Mk. 16:

15.

SinceJesus is Lord, He has arevealed

law to be obeyed by all people and all

nations

,

Exod. 20:

Iff;

Mat

5:

17ff. Since

He is King,

it is Impossible for a

relationship or

an

activity or a

thOUght to

exist

under His blessing,

unless

it is in

conformity

to

HisLawandinsubmission

to

His Person. "Righteousness, i.e.,

(confonnitytotheLawofGodinChrist),

exalts

a

nation; but

sin

is

a

reproach to

any

people," Prov.

14:34.

ayall

Christians everywhere

recollll11i.t ourselves, by the

grace

of

God, to

earnestly pray

for

and to dili-

gently

work toward

the

establishment

of the crown rights ofjesus Christover

all rhe earth and the reconstruction of

aU

aspects of American

society and

culturebytheWordandSpiritofChrist,


11/11

to the glory of God, beginning with

ourselves and our own lives, until we

become a truly Christian Republic-

one nation under Christ.

d.

Since Christ is King, He is

necessarily victor. The Bible, especially

inthebookofi'salms, constantlyconneas

two truths about Christ: His

SOVEREIGNTI

and

His

VICTORY,

Psalm

45, 47,

76;

I Cor.

15; Rev. 19.

These two truths presupposeeach other.

How can One be

totally

sovereign over

all

things,

and

not be totally victorious

over all opposition against that

sovereignty? (See

Isaiah

45

and

46.)

I Corinthians 15:24 teaches us that

the end

of

the world will

come

afteljesus

has put down all opposition

to Him

in

history and in the universe,

'Jor He

must

reign un 11 He has put all

Hts

enemies

under

Hts feet n the

Book

of Revelation

it

is

written that on Judgment Day

at

the end

of

theworld.Jesuswill cast Satan into the

bottomless pit of hell forever, 20:7-15.

But notice

in thattext that,when

Satan

is

cast

into "the lake of fire, the "beast"

of

Revelation 13,symbolizinganti-christian

civil governments which oppress' the

church, and the jalse

prophet,

symbolizing apostate churches and

anti

christian religions, which slander and

persecute the church,

ARE

ALREADY

THERE, Rev. 20:

10

The

conclusion is

that the opposition

to

and oppression of

Christ'schurchby humanistic

&ates and

churches

will

be put down significantly

inhistorybefore the rerumof

Christ;

and

that His

return at the end

of dIe world

will totally

destroy

them, and restore

God'sperfectordertoHisentirecreation.

Therefore,believinginthetriumphant

kingdom ofJesus Christ, we

are victory

oriented, not defeat

Oriented

,as

we

face

our

tasks,

our problems and

our

future.

We see ourselves as more than

conquerors," Rom. 8:37. We must look

for the progressive advance of Christ's

Kingdom

in the earth until "a

ll

the earth

will

worship Thee and sing praises

to

Thee,"Psa .66:4;untilthatdaywhen the

earth will be

full

of

he knowledge

of

the

Lord as dIe waters cover the sea," sa.

11 :

9.

We must look at the future in the

light

of

the

parables that speak of

the

invincible development ofdIe Kingdom

ofChrist in this eanh. We must learn to

see the future of our

generations,

not as

something to

be

feared, but as a pan

of

the

glorious inheritance

which

God

in

Christ

is

working out

for

His faithful

people, Cor. 3:21; Cor.

2:4,14.

Therefore, my beloved

brethren,

be

s t e d f s ~ immovable, always abounding in

the

work

of the Lord, knOwing

that your

toil

tsnotinvainintheLord," Cor.15:58. "Let

us not grow weary in well-dotng,for In due

time, we

Shall reap, f w e f a l n t n o ~ a L 6:9.

Praise

God for the incompar-

able ChristandHis incomparable

suffering

n

. .

We

believe in the full authority of the Bible

as

expressed in the Westminster

Confession of

Faith,

the

Heidelberg

Catechism, the BelgiC Confession,

and the

Canons

of Dort We are

Refonned

in

theology

.

. .

We

teach acomprehensive Biblical

Worldvtew

in ll areas ofstudy. God's

word is the

foundatton

of all knowledge.

. .

We

have

ahigh view ofGod's revealed law in both

Old and

New

Covenants,

as a basis

for sod

al and political

ethics.

.:.

We believe

in

theultimate triumph of

o d ~

sovereigngrace

which

will impact

the world.

.}

We

believe

in

velY

limited

constitutional

dvil

gove

rnment and

a

ree

enter

-

prise economic syst m

.}

Webelievein and encourage Cl,ristian home-edu

ca

tion(and enthusiasticalry

aaept homeschoolers),

as

well

as

Cl,ristian schools.

.:.

We offer a

Bachelor degree

in

Theology, Philosophy,

History, Political

Economy,

and Christian EducatiOll S

tudenlS

may also

tahecourseworn

e.g.

Accounting, Business, Modem Languages,

Sciences)

at nearby

Liberty

University, a

Christian

schooL

.:.

Board ofTrustees: Dr. GregL. Bahnsen, M.Div. , Th.M., PhD.; Dr.

Kevin

L.

Clauson, M.A.,J.D. President; Dr.

earl

Curtis,

M.A.,

Ph.D.; Rev.

Richard

E

Knodel, M.Div. (REAVBoard);Dr.

RodMays, M.Ed.,

D. Mill; Rev. Donald

H.

Post, M. Di..

Many

nationaUy-known Christian

sdlOlars

involved.

Current resident faculty

of

six

men.

September, 1992

t

THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon

t

23

1992 issue 8 - sermon on i peter 3:17-22 - the consequences of christ's suffering - counsel of...

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