We who belong to God are His own possessions. If we are
being persecuted, He has allowed it for our testimony and our eventual
blessing. We need not fear adversity as long as in our conduct we are honoring
our Lord. He honors those who keep His Word. In His will, we have nothing to fear.
“always being prepared to make a defense” is not a command
to debate, as some have said. It means to be studied up on our Bible doctrine
and prayed up at all times, so that when “anyone ASKS for a reason for the hope
that is in us” we are ready to respond with the truth of God’s Word. “the hope
that is in us” is our absolute confidence in the salvation we have in our Lord
Jesus Christ. “Hope” is not wishful thinking. Biblical hope is certain
knowledge of what to expect. Confident anticipation. We give these answers with
a respectful attitude, not in a confrontational manner, knowing that when we
are accused of being self-righteous, judgmental prigs (and we will be accused
of that, and more), we will know that is is simply the slander of evil people who
hate what we represent. Therefore, when we suffer, it will be for doing good
that is honoring to God (divine production), not for doing evil.
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, eight 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. I Peter 3:18-22
Jesus Christ, the Righteous One, suffered the ultimate agony
for the sins of the unrighteous, you and me. He did that so we could be members
of His Royal Family forever. As His body died, His living spirit actually went
to the imprisoned spirits in Tartarus (the abode of the unbelieving dead), to
make a “Victorious Proclamation” ("proclaimed:" Greek kerusso--to herald, especially divine truth.) that His work of atonement was finished and
that they (Satan’s hordes) had lost the war. There are other interpretations
of this passage, but Peter does plainly say that Christ “in the spirit, went
and proclaimed to the spirits in prison…” and those spirits are identified as
the ones who did not obey the gospel as presented by Noah before the flood.
This is directly related to the angelic conflict, in which
Satan and his followers (fallen angels) have always tried to usurp the
authority of God, and sabotage the plan of God. Part of this conspiracy
involved the angelic infiltration of the human race before the flood, told in
Genesis chapter 6, wherein there were human-angel hybrids born on the earth who
had superhuman characteristics. They were offered salvation for 120 years as
the ark was being constructed, and they rejected it. Those demons who
perpetrated the act of impregnating human women are incarcerated “in chains of
darkness” (2 Peter 2:4, Jude 6) and we know that angelic beings who move freely
about are not capable of that kind of reproduction anymore (Matthew 22:30).
Noah and his family, just eight souls, were protected
through that worldwide flood. That was a prefigure of Christian baptism, since
they had identified themselves with God’s plan of grace. We identify ourselves
with God’s plan of grace by placing our faith in the finished work of His
perfect Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. By believing in Him, we are placed by the
Holy Spirit IN HIM forever. That is our permanent position.
People and circumstances can come and go; our own obedience
can wax and wane, but our position IN CHRIST never changes. It is the work of
God, not our work that saves us. It is the work of God, not our work that keeps
us. Our eternal life does not depend on our weakness and stupidity, but on the
eternal essence of almighty God, the creator and sustainer of the universe. We
are Jesus’ representatives in this world. Simple gratitude should motivate us
to represent Him honorably and well, as He is representing us at the right hand
of God, in the presence of angels, authorities and powers. Thank you, Lord.
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