EXPLORE THE TEXT

Be Assured (1 Peter 3:18-20)

Application Point:

Believers can be confident that Christ’s death was sufficient to obtain salvation.

18 For Christ also suffered for sins once for all,
the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring you to God.
He was put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit,
19 in which he also went and made proclamation to the spirits in prison
20 who in the past were disobedient, when God patiently waited in the days of Noah while the ark was being prepared.
In it a few-that is, eight people-were saved through water.

Paraphrase:

Break down the first sentence of 1 Peter 3:18 into four phrases.

18) : For Christ also suffered for sins once for all:

Despite sinless perfection, Jesus suffered at the hands of unrighteous people.

Christian suffering is real, but it also unites believers with Christ as they follow His example

18) the righteous for the unrighteous:

He died for sins.
This was a common part of the Christian confession in the first century
and remains a foundational element of faith.

18) that he might bring you to God:

Jesus died for all.
Jesus’s suffering was unique in that it was redemptive.
Our suffering can never atone for sin.
It only serves to conform us to His image.

18) He was put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit:

he died, but still lives.

restate each phrase in two or three words.
1 suffered once for all
2 substitutionary (died for sins).
3 for God's glory (died for all).
4 dead but lives

Ask:

• Why is it significant that Jesus’s death paid the price for all past, present, and future sins? (PSG, p. 60)

Explain:

Acknowledge the obscurity of 1 Peter 3:19-20.

Key Teaching

Rejecting Heresy

In addition to the possible interpretations for verse 19 mentioned, some scholars lean toward an explanation that crosses the line into heresy.
These individuals believe that Jesus went to hell to share the gospel with evil people who died-particularly those who died during the flood.
It is their contention that these individuals were given a “second chance” to repent.
Taken to its logical extreme, this would mean that everyone who died without Christ would be given a second chance, a “spiritual mulligan.”

But this position contradicts the clear teaching of Scripture.
As Peter noted, Christ died for sin once for all.
The opportunities humans have to embrace salvation are reserved for this lifetime.
For example, in Jesus’s story of the rich man and Lazarus, the rich man had no hope for escaping torment and recognized that his brothers needed to repent before they died (Luke 16:19-31).

Transition:

Peter concluded by focusing on the role and significance of baptism
as a testimony to the saving grace of Jesus.