Faith without religion.
Conscience and Hope in 1 Peter 3
In a recent teaching session, we delved into the profound messages found in 1st Peter 3, focusing on verses 16 through 20. The discussion centered around the importance of maintaining a good conscience, even when faced with false accusations or suffering for doing good. This aligns with Peter’s exhortation to always be ready to provide an answer for the hope within us, a hope rooted in the eternal perspective offered through Jesus Christ.
The session highlighted the role of conscience, a concept deeply embedded in both scripture and human nature. We explored how conscience, described as “knowledge within oneself,” can be influenced by various factors, yet remains a crucial guide in discerning right from wrong. The teachings of Paul and the actions of Jesus illustrate the significance of a clear conscience in living a life aligned with Christ’s principles.
Furthermore, we examined the theological implications of Christ’s suffering and resurrection. Peter’s words remind us that Christ, the just, suffered for the unjust to bring us closer to God. This act serves as a model for us to endure suffering for righteousness’ sake, allowing our flesh to be put to death and our spirits to be quickened, or made alive, by the Holy Spirit.
The session also touched on the intriguing passage where Christ, through the Spirit, preached to the spirits in prison. While interpretations vary, the focus was on understanding the context and implications of this event, emphasizing the importance of not adding conjecture beyond what the scripture states.
In conclusion, the teaching reinforced the call to live with a good conscience, embrace suffering for doing good, and continually seek spiritual renewal through the example of Christ. As we navigate our daily lives, these principles serve as a guide to deepen our faith and understanding of God’s will.
Teaching Script:
Welcome
Prayer
Word to Music
Silence
When we come back 1st Peter 3 at verse 16.
1st Peter 3.20
Meat
October 4th 2015
Okay, Peter has been hitting the idea of doing good and behaving well and if suffering at the hands of others to prepare ourselves to give every man an answer for the hope that is in us.
Did you do your homework assignment?
I did. Here’s is what my reasonable answer for the hope that is in me is. The unabridged version is four sentences or 143 words:
“When I look around and seriously examine life and the tenuous nature of it, when I consider all the attractions, activities, and material possibilities surrounding me, I find myself greatly underwhelmed due to their temporary nature and our inability to enjoy them for more than a few measly decades. However, when I contemplate what makes this existence most appealing, I am drawn to principles that transcend time and space and material – things of a spiritual nature, things like love, peace, joy, kindness, understanding, forgiveness, generosity, hope, and personal sacrifice. And when I look at the ultimate embodiment of such things I see a man named Jesus, who, unlike the heroes of this world, lived these lasting principles most beautifully . . . even to the point of dying for us so I could live them too – not just here but in the hereafter. That’s the reason for the hope that is in me.”
My abridge version for the hope that is in me is ten words:
“Because through Jesus I possess an eternal perspective on existence.”
Anyone want to share theirs?
Alright then, Peter continues and after telling us to “always be ready to give every man an answer for the hope that is within us,” he says, at verse 16:
1st Peter 3:16 Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ.
17 For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing, than for evil doing.
18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:
19 By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison;
20 Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.
We’ll run through 16 and 17 quickly as Peter has covered the essentials of them pretty well thus far.
“Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ.
In Romans 2:14-15 Paul speaks to the human conscience – specifically of the Gentiles and says:
“For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another.”
The Greek word is SOON EE DAY SIS, and is used over thirty times in the New Testament so we have a fairly strong appeal to it here in Holy Writ.
Here Peter does this very thing saying that in our interactions with oppressors and those who we are troubled by that our actions ought to work in harmony with “having a good conscience.”
Their conscience is a word that comes from the Latin “concentius, which means, “knowledge within oneself” and relates to the judgment of both good and evil that we do or want to do.
We could debate endlessly on all the nuances of conscience – is it present in all people? Is it subjective or objective, can it be hardened or is it unchangeable and on and on.
We know that when Jesus confronted the men who were going to stone the woman caught in adultery that what got them to change their minds was conscience as John 8:9 says
“And they which heard Jesus words, being convicted by their own conscience, went they out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.”
When Paul stood up before the Sanhedrim in Acts 23 he said:
“Men and brethren, I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day.”
So we know that conscience played an important role in the Apostles life.
Standing before Felix on a charge of in the same setting, in Acts 24 Paul said:
14 But this I confess unto thee, that after the way which they call heresy, so worship I the God of my fathers, believing all things which are written in the law and in the prophets:
15 And have hope toward God, which they themselves also allow, that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust.
16 And herein do I exercise myself, to have always a conscience void of offence toward God, and toward men.
In Romans 9:1 Paul says something interesting. He says:
“I say the truth in Christ, I lie not, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Ghost . . .”
From this combination of words it seems that the Holy Spirit works on our conscience but cannot be considered our conscience at all.
From 1st Timothy conscience is further broken down when Paul says:
“Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned.”
Really interesting because from this we can see how conscience truly is a matter of mind rather than heart and emotions.
Just tapping on the subject I think we can say a few things – we all (unless we are crack babies or something who I am told can be born without consciences) but we all have a set judge in our minds that determines for us right and wrong.
Because the conscience is part of the mind the conscience can be manipulated and even damaged to the point where it judges bad as good and good as bad.
Conscience can be manipulated by a number of external forces and those who have a weak mental constitution may fall prey to what we call Jewish or Catholic guilt – hyperconscience and sin can warp people to having very little conscience toward banal things – hypoconscience.
In both cases – whether people thing everything is sin or nothing is sin – it is the washing of the mind (the renewing of the mind) that sets things in proper order and give those bound by conscience freedom and those with unbounded conscience restrictions.
What is intriguing to me about the interactive elements of human conscience and the Holy Spirit is the subjective result.
Add in our interpretation differences to the Word, intelligence, education and of course culture and upbringing which can play into the formation of conscience and we have a perfect mix supporting for human subjectivity when it comes to our walk with God – with Him and only Him being in a position to take all things into account and righteously judge.
I know this is the liberal take – and that at the other end of the spectrum is the position that says, “We allllllll know right from wrong, good from evil – it is written on our hearts and minds by God” and to a great extent I agree. God’s laws are God’s laws no matter how we view or understand them.
But I am convinced that we have seen the result of God’s laws meeting fallen and even redeemed Man, and therefore, as Paul clearly maintains we are now dead to the law but alive unto Christ who illuminates so much He becomes a lamp to our feet which are certainly different sizes and trod very different paths.
Anyway, Peter says:
1st Peter 3:16 Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ.
In other words, ”Being conscious that we have done no wrong; so that those who say evil things about our good way of life as Christians may be put to shame.”
Don’t give them any ammunition.
As much as I rail against the Law I do place myself in bondage as a willing slave to Christ.
As such I know that I am REQUIRED by Him to love. It is my duty. When something becomes duty it is much easier to live.
And when it is a duty created out of heart felt gratitude it is much more likely to last and remain.
This is why and how Jesus can say, “If you love me keep my commandments (to love others).”
Peter continues with a line that does not need any explanation – especially after all we’ve read from him:
17 For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing, than for evil doing.
But the next line begins to bring us into a very interesting piece of theology. It begins with something we all recognize saying:
18 For (in other words, is it better to suffer for well doing rather than evil doing – just look at Jesus!) for . . . Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:
Obviously the design here is to show that Christ suffered as an innocent being having done no wrong so therefore we all ought to embrace similar results or treatment.
Be patient, for Christ has also suffered for sins, the just for the unjust.
WHY?
“That He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but quickened by the Spirit.”
Again, the model is obvious. Jesus’ death, through which He was tempted in all things (though without sin) was put to death and therefore Paul’s appeal that we die to our flesh, being buried with Christ, and rising to new (spiritual life) makes perfect sense.
The line the just for the unjust is telling too. He was put to death in the flesh, THE JUST for the UNJUST – therefore, when we are tried and rebuffed and used and mocked, we too are directed to allow our flesh to be put to death “the justified (you and I) for the unjustified (those who mock).
“But quickened (made alive) by the spirit.”
The symbolism is amazing here friends.
Jesus, completely just in His flesh and undeserving of death was put to death –
His flesh was killed and buried –
“That He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but quickened by the Spirit.”
I would suggest that the physical death of Jesus the Son of Man, was the offering for us – because we are flesh.
I would suggest that flesh, though raised from the dead, has no meaning in the heavens relative to God. That God, condescending below all things, came, took on flesh and lived in a way that His body did not in any way whatsoever deserve to die.
But then – for all fleshly human beings – “Christ suffered for sin, the just for the unjust THAT He might bring US to God, being PUT TO DEATH in the flesh . . .” allowing His flesh (that did NOT deserve death) to be brutalized, whipped, scourged, nailed to a cross, and to experience death (listen) WHICH ACT allows US to do the same to our flesh as we “die daily” to our flesh but are instead “quickened BY THE SPIRIT.”
Amazing.
The word for “quickened” by the Spirit is “DZOI-OP-OH-EH-OH” and it doesn’t mean “to be kept alive” but to be “made alive,” to be “recalled to life,” or “reanimated.”
We are entering into some waters now.
Let me explain. The words translated “quickened here” is never used in the sense of “maintaining life” or preserving something to keep it alive.
The word is used eleven times in the New Testament where it is translated “quickened, quicken, quickeneth.”
1st Corinthians 15:22 says to “be made alive.”
2nd Corinthians 3:6, “giveth life,” and
Galatians 2:21 reads “have given life.”
In 1st Timothy 6:13 the word refers to God as He is the one who gives life to all creatures. Three times it refers to “the life-giving power” of the Holy Ghost.
Seven times it is used with direct reference to the raising of the dead.
Therefore, and this is important, the sense is not in reference to Jesus soul – His mind, will, and emotion. It refers to the power of the Spirit separate from His person.
I have thought in the past that Jesus walked around, He was put to death in the flesh, then His Spirit person or His soul at death went and preached to the spirits in prison before He (His Spirit Person) reentered His Body and He rose again.
This does NOT seem to be the case when we consider the word “quickened.”
Instead we might better liken Jesus death and resurrection to Him going to a swimming pool, jumping in with the sins of the world strapped to His sinless frame, submitting to death instead of treading water to stay alive, dying, and then GOD Himself reanimating Him (the Son of Man) with the breath of life (like giving Him mouth to mouth) thereby raising Him back to physical existence.
In my estimation the parallel and application for us is utterly profound. Let me explain.
All believers have experienced justification for sin by grace through faith.
The picture and type in Christ for this justification for our sin comes through the perfect life He lived and the death He suffered on the cross.
By this we are justified.
But once we are justified are we expected to continue forward as believers who grow in the faith, and produce fruit, and overcome our flesh.
Certainly. We call this the “sanctification of the believer,” and the picture and type in Christ of this sanctification is seen in His resurrection where He was quickened by the Spirit AFTER He suffered in the flesh.
Get it?
We see our justification in His life and death.
We see our sanctification in His resurrection, where AFTER suffering His flesh to die, He was quickened or made alive by God and restored or reanimated to new life.
And it is in this process of dying daily that we are constantly reanimated to greater and greater spiritual life.
If we are dying daily we are rising daily too. Having let our flesh die and fall into the grave with Christ, each morning brings us to new heights of spiritual maturation. And the process, for us here in the flesh, who are still subject to failure sin) is unending so long as we walk the earth.
But the import of this principle cannot be lost – when we submit to the death of our flesh we discover His constant quickening of the Spirit and the reanimation of ourselves to new life.
We might be so bold to suggest that each day and night presents us with challenges to the flesh and each morning another resurrection or quickening of the Spirit which serves to help us walk about here, in flesh, as partially resurrected in some sense or another.
I this way we might see the missional life of Christ is a macrocosm for our day to day existence in Him with each of our days being a microcosm of His whole missional life.
And now to some theology (verse 19)
19 By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison;
In verse 18 we read:
18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:
Then the first words of verse 19 say:
“By which he also went . . .”
How this works I have no idea but the point is Jesus “by the Spirit” Jesus went to the spirits in prison and preached.
This is a literal fulfilment of Isaiah 42:7, which says that the Righteous One would come
“To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house.”
Now, we could read verse 19 as saying the it was by and through the Spirit that Jesus went (traveled) to the Spirits in prison (as if the Spirit was the transporter that took Him) OR we might we read it as saying that it was BY THE SPIRIT that He preached to the Spirits in prison. Or both.
But the more literal translations I think say it best – “IN which” instead of “BY which” – “In which He went and preached to the Spirits in prison.”
We also note the phrase, “He went,” to the Spirits in prison. To me this says that they are a reality, that prison is a reality, and that prison is in a place that a person has to “go to,” (as in, “He went”).
Of course the common biblical picture for the location of prison is IN THE EARTH and this would verify
Matthew 12:40 where Jesus Himself said,
“For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.”
However, 1st Peter 3:19, while possibly obvious to some of us, we may be missing something because the meaning was not so obvious to some of the great scholars of the ancient church.
Martin Luther admitted that he does not know what Peter meant while Biggs has no doubt that the event recorded took place between Christ’s death and his resurrection and holds that Peter is alluding to Christ’s “Descensus ad Inferos” (which would be the position I take).
Wohlenberg maintains that Peter is saying that Jesus (in his preexistent state) preached to those who rejected the preaching of Noah. Augustine taught that Christ was “in Noah” when he preached during the 120 year period while the ark was a preparing.
Going back to Biggs argument, who strongly says that Jesus, during the time between his death and resurrection preached to those who once heard Noah (and because they rejected his message are now in prison) and there offered them another chance. If this is so, which I believe it is, why, we might ask, did Jesus confine his preaching to this one group?
Let’s read these two difficult passages together:
19 By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison;
20 Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.
So speaking specifically of “the Spirits in Prison WHICH at one time were disobedient” – (when was the one time?)
Peter writes, “when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, wherein few (meaning eight souls) were saved by water.”
Let’s consider some other translations of these two passages:
(RSV) who formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, during the building of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were saved through water.
(WNT) who in ancient times had been disobedient, while God’s longsuffering was patiently waiting in the days of Noah during the building of the Ark, in which a few persons–eight in number–were brought safely through the water.
(TCNT) who once were disobedient, at the time when God patiently waited, in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared; in which some few lives, eight in all, were saved by means of water.
By these passages it does seem like Jesus, going to Prison, only preached to those souls that were disobedient during the days of Noah – specifically 120 years while the ark was preparing.
Why to them? First, Peter does not say it was ONLY to them but that it was specifically to them, so I suppose we can’t be sure it was exclusive.
But if it was only to them I have no idea as to why – and it is for this reason other scholars reject the idea that Peter is describing Jesus activities as happening between His death and resurrection.
Another thing to note is where the passage says, “he went and preached unto the Spirits in prison,” the word for preached is NOT
YOO ANGLE ID ZOE but KAY ROOS SO.
Does this mean anything? I think so. You see, whenever the Gospel or Good News is described as being preached in the New Testament the Greek term is YOO ANGLE ID ZOE. So when Peter uses KAYROOS SO it seems to mean NOT the preaching of the Gospel but the making of an announcement.
So when we (or others – ahem, LDS) teach that “the Gospel was preached to those in prison” that is taking great liberties with the text. All Peter seems to be saying is, Jesus went and made and announcement there.
Since this is one of the only passages to endorse both Roman Catholicisms stance on purgatory and the LDS stance on teaching the Mormon gospel in the afterlife, I think we ought to ask ourselves some questions here.
First, what is meant by “in prison?”
“Fu lak ay” is the Greek term translated prison and while the Catholics consider it a redefined place called Purgatory, the he Syriac translation reads “in sheol” (referring to the abodes of the dead, or the place in which departed spirits are supposed to dwell).
The word properly is applied in scripture to “a watch,” “a guard” “the act of keeping watch,” or “the guard itself,” and also “a watchpost” or a “station” and then finally “a place where any one is watched or guarded,” (as a prison) and then even as a watch in the sense of a division of the night, as in “the morning watch.”
Then it is also used in the New Testament as having reference to the future world –
In 1st Peter 3:19 and in Revelation 20:7.
The allusion in the passage before us is undoubtedly to a confinement or imprisonment located somewhere in the invisible world but we have to be really careful we don’t allow ourselves any further conjecture, meaning we cannot
adduced that this passage supports the Roman Catholic doctrine of purgatory, because
(1.) the essential teachings that come with the teaching of purgatory are not present here –
(2.) there is no evidence in an honest interpretation of the passage that any saving message or second choice is borne to them while they are in prison – only that they received an announcement
(3.) there is not the slightest hint that they can be released by any prayers or offerings or vicarious works in temples done by those who remain here on the earth.
All we really have is Peter saying:
That Christ went and delivered a message to the spirits in prison who were disobedient during the 120 years of Noah preparing the Ark.
That’s it.
I know how easy it is to add other ideas or insights to this simple passage – bot the Catholics and the LDS have done it.
But the limit of Peter’s words make us automatically question these man-made ideas.
Again, all we know is
18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:
19 By which – also he went – and preached (made an announcement) unto the spirits in prison;
VERSE 20
20 Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.
The meaning here seems to be that they were a group of people who were disobedient to Noah’s preaching and God was longsuffering with them, even waiting 120 years before wiping them out.
A couple of things. In Genesis 6:3 we are told that is was 120 years, in 2nd Peter 2:5 Noah is called “a preacher of righteousness,” and Hebrews 11:7 intimates that all the while Noah was building the Ark he was also preaching.
Again, why He preached to them is only a matter of conjecture and it is also conjecture to suppose others weren’t there as well.
And then Peter says, “Wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.”
This is a fascinating way of speaking. “Wherein eight souls were saved by water!??”
In our day we would say, “Wherein eight souls were saved FROM water.” Not so in biblical language. And I would suggest there is good reason for this.
Peter has been writing about suffering and he is writing at a time that is very close to the end of that age, so much so that he will write in 1st Peter 4:7
“But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.”
It’s quite possible that Noah was saying the same things to people in his day. Now all through the epistles the apostles have been promising the people that if they hang on to faith and endure that they would be saved.
Saved from what. Their enemies – who were all over them from every direction.
At the end of that age they were saved (from their enemies) by what – we could say that the believers were saved FROM THEIR ENEMIES (who were out to kill them) by either the Roman armies, the Sword, or by fire – you pick.
So too, in Noah’s day, the eight souls were saved by water (which wiped out their enemies). This is why it is written this way – the water didn’t threaten them, sent by God it DELIVERED them.
One of the main purposes of Peter’s writings was to warn and encourage the believers to hang on – same with Noah – so I thing he cites Noah and the story and imagery here in a most remarkable way because in the next verse he says:
“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.”
We’re going to stop here because this passage needs some time and attention.
Questions / Answers
Prayer
