Title: Symbol of Salvation, Baptism (1 Peter 3:21,22)
Contents
Baptism, the symbol of salvation (1 Peter 3:21,22)
When we receive Jesus and receive Him as our Savior, we openly confess our faith and be recognized as God's children through our confession of faith. You must publicly confess your faith and be baptized, become a regular member of the Baptist Church, and participate in the Lord's Supper. Since the sacraments are the means of receiving grace, we must have a correct understanding of the sacraments and a heart to cherish them.
I. Water is a type of baptism, a symbol of salvation (21a)
In verse 20, “one who has been saved through water” is used, especially when referring to the fact of being saved from a storm in the sea (Acts 27:44, 28:1, 4). So, this verse means that the fact that Noah's family was saved through water in the ark in Noah's day is a foreshadowing of the saints now being saved through water baptism.
The ‘ark’ is a symbol of the ‘church’ (Justin, Tertullian) or ‘Jesus’, and God, who waited 120 years in the days of Noah, is still patiently waiting for sinners (2 Peter 3:9).
Just as there is a time when the door of the ark closes, there is a time when the door of salvation closes. When the door of salvation is open, unbelievers must repent and return to be saved. The fact that Noah's family was saved through water in the ark is a foreshadowing of the saints now being saved through water baptism, but that does not mean that baptism is salvation. Our salvation is based on the resurrection of Christ, not through the ordinance of baptism.
However, the rite of baptism is also important as a process of publicly professing and confirming that the saints are united with the risen Christ. In this way, baptism is a ritual performed with water as an instrument, and it is not merely a procedure to cleanse the body, but has a spiritual meaning to die with Christ and live again with new life. Therefore, united with the community of the Lord, the baptized saints must now live a life of restoring communion with God to a new life.
II. Baptism is a pledge of good conscience toward God (21b)
Baptism is a ritual to be immersed in water and then to come out again, but it is different from a bath in which the dirt of the body is washed away.
The sinful nature of man is washed away through obedience to the Holy Spirit and the Word, and baptism is merely a confessional ceremony that outwardly marks the death of the old man and the rebirth of the new man.
In other words, the text defines baptism as ‘a vow of good conscience toward God’ or ‘a covenant to God out of a good conscience’ (appeal). When we are baptized, we openly pledge ourselves. We pledge to get rid of our sinful old life, put on Jesus Christ and live a new life. It was a promise made with God in front of many witnesses. Let the baptized saints keep that promise in mind, and let's live by keeping that promise as a changed new person.
It is not that baptism itself has the power to save, but that salvation is possible because we are united with Christ through baptism and belong to the body of the Lord.
Our age does not want to acknowledge absoluteness. Therefore, they refuse to acknowledge the only way to salvation. But Peter clearly asserts that the essence of baptism is not to remove defilement, but to seek God with a good conscience. In other words, salvation does not consist in getting rid of defilement itself, but in coming to God. And the Bible clearly states that the only way is Christ, who is the way and the life (John 14:6).
Therefore, today, like Peter's exhortation, let us not be shaken back and forth according to the foolish claims of the world, but return to the Bible and hold fast to Christ alone (2 Peter 3:17,18 John 10:9; Acts 4:12 1 Timothy 2:5)
Ⅲ. Jesus ascended into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God (22)
Jesus Christ was made very low to save us sinners. But his status ascended and exalted. He conquered death and triumphed.
Our saints will enter the kingdom of heaven under the guidance of our Lord Jesus, and reign with the Lord (Revelation 20:15). At this time, the angels will also do our errands. For “angels and authorities and powers to be subject to him” means that Christ is Lord and King of all creation. As the Creator of the universe, Jesus is the Almighty Sovereign over even invisible beings. If so, it goes beyond the simple praise of Christ and clearly shows the secret to true success for all who live on this earth.
Saints! As citizens of heaven who have realized the spiritual truth through the grace of God and the help of the Holy Spirit, please acknowledge the fact that, above all else on this earth, fellowship with our Lord is our top priority. At this time of the last days, here and there are full of tempting voices. Their ultimate destruction.
In such a time, I hope that we will be wise people who will lead a successful life on this earth and safely reach the eternal kingdom of God by faithfully receiving the guidance of the Lord, the supreme manager and ruler of the universe.
Saints! We believe that when we live a life led by the Lord, He will open the way for us. (Psalm 25:5, Psalm 37:5,6, Proverbs 3:5,6)