Today on the verdict with Pastor John Monroe.
So negatively Baptism doesn't save us. Positively, what is baptism? Verse 21. It is an appeal to God for a good conscience. Through the resurrection of Jesus Christ who's gone into heaven and so on.
Welcome to the verdict, featuring the Bible teaching of Pastor John Monroe.
Some churches teach that sprinkling water on a baby removes original sin. Others practice baptism by immersion. Today, John tackles 1 Peter 3:21, where Peter seems to say baptism saves us, then immediately clarifies what he doesn't mean. Be clear on the distinction between ritual and relationship. Here is John with his message, an appeal to God.
Thank you so much for tuning in to the verdict. I want to thank those of you who pray for our ministry and also who give generously. That's a great encouragement as we sow the seed of God's Word. We pray. that it is received by humble, open hearts.
Preaching through the book of 1 Peter, we've dealt with some very difficult verses. Today, As we look at verses 20 21 and 22 of 1 Peter 3, we also find ourselves in deep water. One of the principles of understanding scripture is that we do not allow what we do not understand from scripture negatively to impact what we clearly understand.
So, we've been learning a lot of very encouraging truths in 1 Peter.
So we will look at baptism. and think of what it does and doesn't do.
Well, as we've seen in our study of 1 Peter, Peter is writing in the first century to give encouragement to persecuted and suffering Christians. They are going through fierce persecution. They are suffering from For the sake of Jesus Christ. And Peter, of course, encourages them to think of the perfect example of suffering. But not only, just as we've been saying it.
Not only did our Saviour die, The just for the unjust. the innocent for the guilty, he triumphed. And in his resurrection, all of the forces of darkness, of sin, and of Satan. himself have been defeated. And Peter is saying, as we'll read in a minute, that he has gone into heaven.
and is now at the right hand of God. That is, the greatest suffering of our Lord leads to his greatest triumph. And because he died the righteous for the unrighteous, we who receive Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord not only have our sins forgiven, But we are given as a gift eternal life and we shall never perish. That is, after This life However long or short it may be for us. But for the believer, we then go into the presence of a Lord, into the glories of heaven itself.
And these first century readers, as this letter was read to them and as it was passed around the various churches they attended, you can imagine the trend tremendous encouragement. that for all of the power of the Roman Empire Our Savior, our magnificent Lord Jesus Christ, is greater and has.
Now last Sunday We consider the difficult verses of 1 Peter 3. verses nineteen and twenty and I I ask you to open your Bible.
So 1 Peter 3. And Uh when Peter writes in verses nineteen and twenty He writes of the proclamation of Christ to the spirits in prison. And in dealing with the prison the spirits in prison, Peter mentions, perhaps surprisingly to us, The story of Noah and the flood. And that leads to a brief discussion by Peter on the subject of baptism.
So we're focusing on 1 Peter 3. Verses 21 and 22, two of again very difficult verses for us. But we're going to read the Word of God together and seek, as I've prayed, the Spirit's understanding. I'm going to read for the sake of context from 1 Peter 3. Verse.
Eighteen. 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, in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison.
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, a persons, were brought safely. Through water. 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, who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected. to him. Not the easiest verses, but we're going to focus on verses 21 and 22, hopefully seeing it in its context. And first of all, as Peter deals with baptism, he makes a A negative statement that baptism does not spiritually. Cleanse us.
Baptism, in the true sense, although it seems in the verse that Peter is saying the opposite, baptism, as we will see, does not save us. That that is, we do not become Christians through baptism. Notice what he says expressly in verse 21. That baptism, this is not a removal, that is not a washing away of dirt from the body. Peter realizes when he makes the statement That baptism now saves you, that you may be misunderstood.
Therefore, he explains that through baptism, that is, water baptism, obviously. There is not a washing away of the defilement of the flesh. Chapter 1, you may recall. that Peter calls us to be holy. Part of the difference between the Christian and the non-Christian is that we are holy, we live holy lives.
And water baptism does not eradicate the desires, the sinful desires of the flesh. Peter has said in 1 Peter 2 verse 11, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against yourself. The Christian? Although they have the indwelling spirit, still have the flesh, sinful desires which war against our soul. What's the answer to that?
Not to get baptized and get rid of that, not at all. But rather, we are to abstain from these sinful desires.
Now I realize when we talk about baptism There are churches which baptize babies. Many of you have been baptized as a baby or christened as it's sometimes called. And those who practice it.
Some churches, anyhow, which practice infant baptism, believe that the child. As a result of the sacrament of baptism, they are receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit, as expressly stated in their doctrine, in their catechisms. But at the moment That child is baptized, his or her original sin is removed. They are born again and they are placed into the church. of Jesus Christ.
That's a common belief. Other churches baptize babies as a sign that they're now part of the covenant family of faith. Infant baptism, I believe, has resulted in many people falsely. thinking that they are right with God. As I speak to people about their faith, sometimes they get the answer, I'm all right, I have been baptized, as if being baptized is the key to getting into heaven, not at all.
Please do not depend. on any outward ritual. Such as baptism. Church membership. Taking communion.
or any other ritual to get you into heaven. Outward acts.
However Significant they may be. And we bel we believe in baptism. We believe in communion. We believe in church membership. But all of these outward acts and any other ones do not produce inner And spiritual cleansing.
God is always concerned. First, with your heart. He wants to deal with your heart. With your soul rather than you going through some outward ceremony. What has Peter said?
How do we get right with God? He's told us. In verse 18, that we've said over and over again that Christ died for our sins once. The righteous for the unrighteous, that He, that is our Lord Jesus Christ, might bring us to God. And the only way of salvation is not through your baptism.
It's not being a member of church. The only way of salvation is through receiving our Lord Jesus Christ as our personal Savior. That is why I emphasize it. That's why virtually every week I challenge you as you sit there because you can come to church every day for the rest of your life and still not be right with God. True faith Authentic Christianity does not begin with the external, it begins with our heart.
That is coming to Jesus Christ, turning from our sin, and embracing our Savior.
So we do not become Christians through baptism. Peter is said. Chapter one. Verse 3. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to his great.
Mercy. You need mercy from God. You don't deserve salvation. I need mercy. He's caused us.
To be born again. Heard that expression, being born again? How does it come about? Does he say? To baptism, through baptism, no, to a living hope.
Through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. That's it. Again, in verse 23 of 1 Peter 1, He says, since you have been born again, He's writing to Christians. not of perishable seed, but of imperishable through the living And abiding word of God. It is, as we hear, the supernatural word of God.
as we are convicted of our sin by the Holy Spirit. As our eyes are open as to our sinful state, and our eyes are open to see the beauty of our magnificent Savior, that we cry out to Him, What must I do to be saved? And the answer is, get baptized. Absolutely not. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ.
And you will be saved. I have to ask you. Have you been born again? And he said, well I've gone to church all my life. That's great.
I've gone to church all my life. You say, well, I was baptized. That's great. I've been baptized. I'm a good person.
I'm not sure if I'm a good person, but if you are, well done. How good are you? Are you good enough to stand in the presence of God? If God called you into his presence today, are you good enough to stand in the presence of a holy God? Absolutely not.
This is why we need regeneration. A new birth. We're born once physically, we're now born once spiritually. And so Jesus says to a very religious man, Nicodemus in John 3, you must. Be born.
Again.
Now as we think of our text, We can say this. That water did not save Noah and his family. He says in verse 28, That eight persons that know in his family were were brought safely through water. They were saved through water, that is a flood. The dirty.
Water save them? Not really. They were saved because they were in the ark. They were saved by means of water. or through water.
in the water that floated the ark to safety. And that, Peter is saying, is a symbol. He says In verse Twenty-one, baptism which corresponds to this.
Now, Saves you. That is, baptism is an anti-type, it's a picture, it's a prefigure of something else. The water of the flood prefigured something else, the ark. At the time of Noah, is a picture of our Lord Jesus Christ. It's a picture of safety and of salvation.
Here is Noah. The preacher of righteousness preaching years and years. That a flood is coming. He was mocked. There was no floods, there was no water.
And then he build this monstrosity of a huge ark. And so it's now The flood is coming. And your only place of safety is to be in the ark. Those who were in the ark We're sheltered. From the judgment of God.
The earth at that time We saw last week. in Genesis chapter 6 was very wicked. They were very evil. And because of that, God's judgment was coming. The only place of safety was in the ark.
A picture. Of our Lord Jesus. Paul writes, In Romans 8, verse 1, there is therefore now no condemnation. To those who Are baptized? No.
There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. Only place of safety at the time of the ark. was in the ark. The only place of safety to the coming judgment of God is in our Lord Jesus Christ. And so here there are.
These suffering believers. In the first century, perched good are driven from their their homes. Living under the heel of Rome. with an idolatrous Roman Emperor. But says Peter, you're safe.
You're eternally saved from the coming judgment of God. When you die, You're going to follow Jesus. Notice what he says so beautifully in verse 22: who has gone into heaven. And there is at the right hand of God. You know, when you follow Jesus Christ, You're always with them.
We began by singing that Christ is our hope. in life and in death. That for the follower of Christ one who's embraced Christ, we follow Christ through life. With all of its mountaintops, with all of its sorrows. In the good times and the difficult times, we keep our eyes on Jesus Christ.
And he has gone into heaven. And we who follow Jesus Christ are going to go into heaven. Remember what Jesus says to his disciples in John 14. I'm going to come again. that where I am heaven, there you may be also.
You say, well. I don't know if I follow that, John. I don't know if I entirely agree with you.
Well, That's for you. You're made in the image of God, you're accountable to God. What happens to those Who do not believe? What happened? To those at the time of Noah that Peter was writing about didn't believe.
You don't need to speculate. Jesus himself says, Matthew chapter 24, Did you did you think that Jesus meek and mild? Doesn't speak of judgment. No one spoke more of judgment. No one spoke more of eternal punishment for the unbeliever than our Lord Jesus Christ.
Here it is, Matthew 24. Verse thirty-six. regarding the coming of Jesus. When's he going to come? No one knows.
But concerning that day and hour, I'm reading from Matthew 24, verse 36. No one knows. Not even the angels of heaven, nor the sun that is in the humanity. But the Father only. Here it is.
For as were the days of Noah, Jesus believed in Noah. Don't mock the story, he believed in it. For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Who's the Son of Man? Our Lord Jesus.
For as in those days before the flood, They were eating And drinking marrying and giving in marriage. Life was pretty good. They were getting on very well. But Until the day That when Noah Entered The ark. And they were unaware.
Until the flood came, and swept them Oh. Away.
So will be the coming of the sun. The flood came. and swept them all away. Not one person. Escape the judgment of God.
Why? because the man of faith had preached to him, preached to them, had told them the only safety was in the ark, that God's judgment was coming. They mocked it, they continued to live, marrying and giving in marriage, and then the flood came. and swept them all. Yeah.
Are you in the ark, as it were? How wonderful for the Christian. Yes, we can sing of our hope. Even in the valley, even in the valley of the shadow of death. Why?
Because our Lord Jesus Christ Brings us to God. He has entered into heaven. He's at the right hand of God. And those that He gives as a gift of His grace, eternal life, shall never perish.
So negatively Baptism doesn't save us. Positively, what is baptism? Verse twenty-one. It is an appeal to God. for a good conscience.
Baptism, which corresponds to this, a figure of this, now saves you in some sense, 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 who's gone into heaven, and so on. They say, Well, are you saying you shouldn't get baptized? No, quite the opposite. I'm saying you should get baptized.
It's an appeal to God for a good conscience. That is the believer in Jesus Christ, not babies. But those who have first received Christ Those who have experienced the new birth. Those who have their sins forgiven from within.
Now I don't ask God for a good conscience. Rather, our baptism is an appeal or pledge or commitment to God for a good conscience. It rises out of a good conscience before our Lord Jesus Christ. First. There is the inner cleansing.
First, there is a purity of heart as my sins are forgiven.
Now, as a believer in Jesus Christ. As an answer to a good conscience, I'm going to get baptized. I think there's great confusion in this. I think some of you think Uh because You were christened as a baby. You don't need to be baptized.
Can I say respectfully, but on the authority of the Word of God. That ritual that was performed in you as a baby that you knew nothing about, that is not biblical baptism. That is a tradition of the church. And it cannot be substantiated in Scripture. And baptism for the believer is not an optional Extra.
Our Lord Jesus Himself, that's why we call baptism an ordinance, he commands us. Did you get that? Not an option. He commands us to be baptized. Jesus says, if you love me, you will keep My commandments.
Here is a commandment of Jesus. You say, well Seems a bit odd to put people underwater. I can understand you saying that. Are you wiser than God? This is the verdict with Pastor John Monroe beginning his examination of baptism in a message titled An Appeal to God.
John will return in just a moment. How many people have false assurance because they're trusting in their infant baptism rather than trusting in Jesus Christ as Saviour? Peter's teaching in today's passage deals with an all important truth. True salvation comes through relationship with Christ, not religious rituals. When we have a question, we always need to turn to Scripture.
And we're learning that having a biblical perspective transforms the way we approach day-to-day living. And that's why we're offering, for the time is near. A booklet written by John that deals with the book of Revelation in a practical and straightforward way. Don't wait. Request this unique and helpful guide free of charge today at theverdict.org.
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Join us for powerful worship, warm fellowship, and the same strong biblical teaching you hear on The Verdict. We're located in Charlotte, North Carolina, at the corner of Highway 51 and Railroad. And you can also join us remotely through our live stream online. For more details, just visit theverdict.org.
Now, here's Pastor John Monroe.
Well, what's your verdict? Certainly I don't want to impose my views forcibly on you. You have the word of God before you. If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, you have the indwelling spirit.
So continue to pray, to read, to reflect, and ask for understanding. What is clear? is that we're not saved by water baptism. but rather by the person of our Lord Jesus Christ. Make sure your trust is in Him.
He died for our sins, was buried and rose again.
Next time, we'll continue with this fascinating subject. Thanks for joining us today on The Verdict. I'm Michelle Davies. Today's program with Pastor John Monroe was produced and sponsored by Calvary Church in Charlotte, North Carolina.
