____________________________________________________ THE GOSPEL OBSERVER "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations...teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:19,20). ____________________________________________________ March 18, 2001 ____________________________________________________ Three False Concepts of 1 Peter 3:21 by Tom Edwards It was close to 20 years ago that I remember hearing Brian Gibson preach at the Sycamore church of Christ in Gravel Switch, Kentucky, on the topic of 1 Peter 3:21 and pointing out three false concepts people have held on this verse, over the years. Let us begin by hearing the verse in the King James Version: "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." Misconception #1: "Baptism Is Only a 'Figure'" The first misunderstanding is that "Baptism is only a figure; it is merely a 'sign' that one has already been saved." As we have heard others also say, who believe that baptism is irrelevant to salvation, "Baptism is just an outward showing of an inward grace." It's true that the Bible does use many figures, shadows, or types that represent things of a much greater nature: Romans 5:14, for example, speaks of Adam as "a type of Him [Jesus] who was to come." But what is this "figure" of 1 Peter 3:21 referring to? To find the answer, we need to back up to the previous verse, which speaks of the flood of Noah's day. It is the flood that is the figure for the water of Bible baptism. The New International Version makes this very clear: "...eight in all, were saved through water, and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you..." (vv. 20,21). The New American Standard Bible says, "and corresponding to that, baptism now saves you...." Corresponding to what? Again, it is referring back to the flood of Noah's day, as mentioned in the previous verse, in which eight persons "were brought safely through the water." Baptism, therefore, is not the type; but rather it is the antitype. It is what the shadow (of the flood) is pointing to. The New King James Version, incidentally, states, "There is also an antitype which now saves us, namely baptism...." Just as the eight souls in the ark were separated from the world of sin by the waters of the flood, which eliminated that sinful world, the waters of baptism separates a person from his own sins and brings him out from a sinful realm into the righteous kingdom of God's dear Son (Col. 1:13) because baptism (along with faith and repentance) puts one into contact with the blood of Christ and the benefits of the Lord's atonement (cf, Rom. 6:3,4). Misconception #2: "Filth" Means "Sin" A second false notion many have about 1 Peter 3:21 is that "the filth" spoken of is referring to sin; and then they continue by saying that "Since baptism does not remove the filth of the flesh, then it doesn't remove sin." Again, though, using other Bible translations will be helpful to better understand what this "filth" is standing for. The Revised Standard Version and the New International Version refer to "the filth of the flesh" as "dirt from the body." The New American Standard says, "dirt from the flesh." Therefore, this "filth" is not sin; but, rather, it is "dirt"; and the point being that baptism saves--but not merely by getting clean in the water. It saves as an appeal to God for a clear conscience. When Ananias told Paul in Acts 22:16 to wash away his sins through baptism, it wasn't the water that could literally do that; it was the blood of Jesus. But even the concept of being washed by the blood of Christ is figurative, for the forgiveness actually takes place in the mind of God when we meet His righteous demands that will enable us to benefit from the Lord's atonement. Still, though, water baptism is one of the steps necessary to benefit from Calvary. We can also liken this to Naaman's need to dip seven times into the Jordan River to be healed of his leprosy (2 Kings 5). Surely, it wasn't merely the water of this muddy river that healed him; but, nevertheless, it is what the Lord required of him to be healed--just as God requires of the alien sinner to be baptized into water to have sins forgiven. Misconception #3: "Answer" Lastly, many people have misunderstood 1 Peter 3:21 on the basis of the word "answer." As part of the verse says, "the answer of a good conscience toward God." Perhaps they feel that by "praying a sinner's prayer," the "answer" they receive will result in a good conscience and their salvation. We need to point out, however, what this term "answer" really means. For many who use only the King James Version and have never heard this term defined before, it might come as a surprise. According to Vine, the Greek word for "answer" "was used by the Greeks in a legal sense, as a demand or appeal." Bullinger defines it as "a question, an asking; enquiry after, seeking by enquiry." It, therefore, appears to be just the opposite (an enquiry) than how many would view it (as an answer). Baptism, therefore, is "an appeal to God for a clear conscience," as the Revised Standard Version states. The New American Standard Bible and the New English Bible also use the term "appeal." The New Berkeley Version has "earnest seeking," and The American Standard Version has "interrogation." So baptism saves as a means whereby one is making his "appeal to God for a clear conscience"; and since "appeal" also means "a call for aid, support, mercy, etc., an earnest request or entreaty," then we can conclude that baptism is part of the means whereby one "calls" on the Lord. As Peter had stated many years prior, in quoting Joel's prophecy, "...everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Acts 2:21). They called in Acts 2 by believing, repenting, and being baptized (vv. 36-38). And this is also why Paul was told by Ananias to "...Arise, and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on His name" (Acts 22:16). The good conscience, which has been cleansed by the blood of Jesus (cf, Heb. 9:14), comes after one has been baptized into Christ to then rise to "walk in newness of life" (Rom. 6:3,4); and 1 Peter 3:21 certainly makes it clear that this salvation is not possible until one is first baptized. ___________________________________________ Products of our Environment by Jack Harwell In A.D. 51, the apostle Paul arrived in the Greek city of Corinth on his second missionary journey; at the time, the Christians back in Judea may have wondered why. In the first century, Corinth had a well-deserved reputation as a den of immorality. It was the capital of the Roman province of Achaia, and was strategically located on the main trade route between the eastern and western halves of the empire; this brought much wealth to the inhabitants. It was also a pagan city, going back to the days of the Phoenicians. There was a temple there to Aphrodite, the Roman goddess of love, where more than a thousand "priestesses" engaged in ritual prostitution. Such was the city's notoriety that actors who portrayed Corinthians in plays invariably appeared to be drunk. If a preacher in our time expressed a desire to go to such a place, there would doubtless be many raised eyebrows and whispered comments. But Paul was determined to carry out the Lord's command to "go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature" (Mark 16:15). So he stayed a year and a half in the wicked city, preaching the good news to anyone who would listen; first, to the Jews in the synagogue, and then, when they rejected him, to the Gentiles. "And many of the Corinthians, hearing, believed and were baptized" (Acts 18:9). Some years later, Paul wrote his first letter to the Corinthian church, in which he had to address the sort of problems that arise in a church that exists in an immoral society -- sectarianism, lawsuits between brethren, food from idolatrous sacrifices, abuses of the Lord's Supper, and adultery. The church at Corinth has become a worst-case scenario for Bible students who seek to learn just how bad things can get in a congregation. Should we expect any different, given the circumstances? Anyone who knows what Corinth was like in those days cannot be surprised that people who call themselves Christians would sink into such depravity. In our own time, we are seeing problems in churches that would have been unheard of a generation ago. The greatest danger, though, is not the transgressions of modern Christians, but rather that we may become so accustomed to them we are no longer shocked by them -- or even worse, we no longer condemn them as wrong. We will have become the kind of people Paul warned Timothy about in I Timothy 4:2: "Having their own conscience seared with a hot iron." This is exactly the complaint Paul raised to the Corinthian brethren in I Cor. 5:2. They had become puffed up, he said, instead of taking the action necessary to put this sin away from them. He didn't soft-pedal the issue or try to play it down because of their circumstances, because the circumstances didn't matter. God's word reads the same in the presence of blasphemers as it does in the presence of apostles. His commands never change -- nor do His expectations of us. Consider this: After going over all their sins, individual and collective, in chapter 10 Paul tells the Corinthian brethren exactly what they need to hear. All of the Hebrew fathers, he said, ate the same spiritual food, but some of them died in the wilderness anyway (vv. 1-5). They serve as examples of what can happen to God's people when they disobey. The Corinthians drank the same spiritual water, from the same Christ (v. 4), as had all other Christians. But they were now committing some of the same sins that had caused the Hebrews to lose their inheritance in the land of promise, and as a result they were placing their spiritual inheritance in jeopardy. Paul concludes his thoughts this way in verses 12-14: "Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall. No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry." There is no question that the Corinthian Christians lived in an environment that was not spiritually healthy. Even so, they still had an obligation to obey God's laws, even the ones that were inconvenient. They could not use their surroundings as an excuse for their misbehavior -- and neither can we. That is a concept that will need to be driven home to Christians in the 21st century. Everywhere we see and read about people who are claiming they are not answerable for any wrongdoing they commit because of some vaguely defined emotional condition. The great hope now is that science will come up with a pill we can take that will make us responsible, just as we have pills that will cure headaches and sinus blockage. Recently I read about a pharmaceutical company that is testing a medication -- and I am not making this up -- that will cure shop-a-holics of their insatiable desire to spend money in stores. Bad environment, emotional stress, or whatever, will not stand up in the day of judgment. We are each responsible for what we do -- or fail to do. We need to remember that (Romans 14:12). -- Via The Exhorter, November 26, 2000 ___________________________________________ News & Notes We extend our condolences to the family and friends of Dot Hall (of Dunedin, Florida) who passed away recently. She was the grandmother of an old friend of mine, Bill Lappe. Having just turned 102 prior to her passing, Mrs. Hall lived during three centuries--and her mind and health remained good for virtually all of that time. Let us also continue praying for the friends and family of the Copes, who have also recently deceased. John Pitman is still in need of our prayers. His mobility has greatly diminished: been able to use the car only twice since November 7. The pain medication that he must continue taking has been producing other physical complications, which are becoming more serious and will lead to another hospitalization if they cannot be resolved. If you would like to drop him a line, his address is P.O. Box 9, Louisa, Kentucky 41230. John Ricciardi, a member of the Piscataway church of Christ in New Jersey was hospitalized recently and can also use our prayers. He has had MS for a number of years and now has also "a variety of serious problems." Greetings to our visitors! Please come again. ________________________________________ Avondale CHURCH OF CHRIST P.O. Box 421 1606 Glen Willow Rd., Avondale, PA 19311 (610) 268-2088 Sunday: 10:00 A.M. Bible class 11:00 A.M. Worship 6:00 P.M. Worship Wednesday: 7:00 P.M. Bible study evangelist/editor: Tom Edwards (610) 925-3567 e-mail: tedwards@onemain.com web site: http://www.mypage.onemain.com/tedwards/avondale ________________________________________