,

,
PART II: lHE CONSEQUENCES
OF CHRISTS SUFFERING
Every human being has in some way
benefited from the undeserved,
incomparable sufferings and death of
Jesus Christ. Hence, He can be called,
"theSaviorq[ allmen, especially qfbelievers,"
I Tim. 4: 10. Therefore, we, as Christians,
are able to endure patiently any unjust
persecution for Christ, which God has
willed that we undergo, I Pet. 3:17;
because, when we do, we are like Christ,
close to Christ, and a
benefit to other people.
lPeter3: 18-22, which
focuses on the conse-
quences of Christ's
suffering, is one of the
most diffirult passages in
the whole Bible to
interpret correctly; but,
as we learn how to
interpret it, we will be
sharper in interpreting
any other biblical text.
Furthermore, what we
willleam from this text is
worththe time,effottand
struggle put into the
interpreting of it.
Having seen the
nature of Christ's suffering-penal,
vicarious, and propitiatory; and the
purpose of His suffering-to bring us to
God in knowledge, favor, resemblance
andcornmunion;wearenowinaposition
to consider the consequences of those
sufferings COSMICALLY, SPIRIT-
UALLY, PERSONALLY, INDIVID-
UALLY, AND ETERNALLY.
First, having been put to death in
the flesh, Christ was made alive in the
spirit" vs. IS. But what is the meaning
of this contrast between "death inthe flesh"
and "made alive in file Spirit'? It cannot be
a contrast between Christ's human and
divine natures, since it cannot be said of
His eternal deity that it is "made alive." It
cannot be translated, as many have, "IN
the body .... BYthe Spirit," because of the
parallel of the dative phrases in Greek,
which reads, "in the flesh" and "in the
spirit." It cannot be a contrast of the
physical and spilitual aspects of Christ's
humanness, for two reasons: (1). the
human sphit does not die; (2). Christ
was "made alive" in his in
hiscompletehumanity-bodyandspirit.
What, then. is the exact point of the
contrast-"put In death in the flesh" and
"madealiveinthespirlf'11nordertoanswer
that question, let us consider carefully
the details of the text. (I). The balanced
grammatical structure and the parallel
dative phraseshnpliesacontrast between
"flesh" and "spirit" suggesting that the
two nouns should beunderstood to be in
the same case. (2). The verb, "made
alive,"isused ten other times in the New
Testament referring to resurrection. It is
usedinRomansS:l1synonymouslywith
"raised up," which clearly refers to
resurrection. Therefore, in I Pet. 3: ISwe
have a reference to the resurrection of
Christ. (3). The words, "flesh," (SARl(),
and "spirit," (PNEUMA), when used
without an atticle, ("the"), (although
English translations do not reflect this
fact), emphasize quality and therefore
denote two modes of Christ's eJlistence
before and after His resurrection.
On the basis of these observations of
the text, we are ready to interpret the
meaning of the contrast in verse IS. By
"flesh" is meant Christ's eanhly existence
before His resurrection; and by "spirit" is
meant His glorified, exalted existence
with His restlrrection, and for
eternity thereafter.
I Corinthians 15:35-50 corroborates
this interpretation, which contrasts two
orders of life, two aeons, two world-
periods, two creations-one beginning
with Adam, the other
beginning with the
resurrectionof]esusChrist
and consummated with
His Second Coming.
These are profound verses
filled withmuch truth, but
notice three pohtts:
(I). the contrast
between Christ's, and the
Christian's, pre-resurrec-
tion existence and Christ's,
and the Christian's, post-
resurrection existence;
(2). the description of
Christ'sresurrection-lifeas
"Spiritual," vs.4, and as
"life-giving Spirit," vs. 45.
This is not to say that his
resurrection was not a bodily one, i.e.,
htvolving His entire humanity. Itis to say
that His resurrection-life is Spirit-
produced, Spirit-transformed, Spirit-
filled, Spirit-dominated, and Spirit-
qualified. At His resurrection, Christ
became life-giving Spirit! This does not
obliterate the personal distinction
between Christ and the Spirit. Although
their Persons are distinct, their Presence
is the same. Instead it emphasizes the
point that at His resurrection, Christ
experienced a "Spiritual qualification and
transformation so thorough, an
endowment of the Spirit so complete
that as a result Christ and the Spirit can
be equated. This unprecedented
possession of the Spirit and the
accompanying change in Christ result ht
September, 1992 TIlE COUNSEL of Chalcedon 13
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aunitysoclosethatnotonlycanitbesaid
simply that the Spirit makes alive, but
also that Christ as Spirit makes a1ive."-
Richard Gaffin, The Centrality of the
Resurrection." So we see, that Paul in I
Corinthians and Peter in I Peter use the
word "spirit" in the same sense, to denote
post-resurrection life.
(3). The fact that 'llesh and blood"
cannot inherit the Kingdom of God,
because they are "perishable." This
existing, earthly life and body are
perishable. "Flesh"(SARX), in I Cor.
15:50 is used in the same way as "flesh"
in I Pet. 3: 18. It denotes the perishability
ofpresertthumanlife, inc1udingtheentire
sphere of human existence, man's
environment and the whole natural,
eanhly order with everything that is
characteristic of human life, (pre-
resurrection), Rom. 1:3. Thus, the flesh-
spiritcontrastinlPeterandI Corinthians,
is not an anthropological contrast, it is a
chronological and bistorical contrast.
"Flesh" for Christ, and Christians, is pre-
resurrection life; and, "spirit" for Christ,
and Christians. is post-resurrection life.
AsChristians, wehaveexperiencedinner
resurrection from the "flesh: i.e., fallen
human nature; but, since we have not yet
experienced outward, physical
resurrection, wewillcontinuetostruggle
against "the flesh", although wewilldoso
victoriously, Romans 6-7.
Christ was "made alive in the spirit"
because He was ''put to deaih in ti:le flesh.
Just as Christ suffered in His entire
humanity, so He was raised from the
deadand,glorified inHisentire humanity.
His redemptive work was not complete
until the victory of His resurrection. His
exaltation was His reward from God for
His hllI(liliation for our salyation, Phil.
2:8-9.
The implications of this truth are
important for us. Just as all who are in
Adam die, so all who are in Christ, the
last Adam, are made alive, I Cor. 15:22.
All human beings in their fallen,
unbelieving condition are related to
Adam, biologically and covenantally,
Rom. 5:12f. Whateverhappenedtohim
happens to bis descendants, i.e., the
human race. Whatever he did, the race
sufferstheconsequencesof. FromAdam
we inherit the guilt of sin, a sinful human
nature, the condemnation of God, and
death. But for those who belong to
Christ, things are totally different. We
haveanewHead,anew Representative-
Jesus Christ. God raised Him from the
dead as "the I.as(Adam," I Cor. 15:45; so
that now, whatever happened to Him,
happens to those who belong to Him.
Whatever He did, we enjoy the
consequences ~ f e and resurrection!
"All who are in Christ live!" Because He
was raised from the dead, it is absolutely
cenain that we, who are "in Christ" by
grace through faith, will experience this
glorious resurrection and thorough
transfonnation bytheSpiritaswell. " ... if
the Spirit of Him who raisedJesusfrom the
dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ
Jesus from the deadwill also give life to your
mortalbodtesthroughHisspiritwhoindwells
you," Rom. 8:11.
It is certain. We can be assured ofit
The eternal and irreversible salvation of
allbelieversinJesus, who trnst in Him as
their substitute and covenant bead, is
based here. Because Christ was "mode
alive in the spirit: i.e., raised from the
dead and glorified, all His people will
experience Spiritual resurrection from
the inward death they inherited from
Adam, which separates them from God
and makes them unwilling and unable to
make any proper response to the offers
and commands of God, from the
depravity and slavery of sin in the new
birth, Rom. 6:1ff; John 5:24ff, which
Spicttually transforms and endows with
Iifethewholeinnerlifeofaperson. And,
all who have experienced the new birth
in Christ, II Cor. 5: 17 ,areeternallysaved,
and will, without fail, be physically raised
from the dead and glorified by the Spirit
at the Rerum ofjesus Chctst, Rom. 8:11;
I Cor. 15:50f. Our salvation is not
complete until our Spiritually resurrected
14 f TIlE COUNSEL of Chalcedon ~ September, 1992
''irmer person" (soul) is reunited to our
Spiritually resurrected "outer person"
(body) at the Second Coming of Christ.
Second. Christwentand preached
to the spirits in prison, vs. 19. The
interpretations of this verse have been
many, requiringus, therefore, to becareful
and specific in our consideration of the
details of the text, to r n ~ sure our
interpretation isa correct one. Verse 19
reads: "in which also. He went and made
proclamation (preached) to the spirits in
prison." Let us study every word.
a. The phrase,"in which: refers to
Christ's resurrected state. Although the
NN has "through whom," the Greek can
justasaccurately be translated, "inwhich,
i.e., in which state of "spirit" that Christ's
being "made alive," brought Him-His
exalted, resutreCledstate. Theantecedent
of "wh1ch" cannot be the first pan of the
sentence "having been put to deaih in the
flesh," for Christ is no longer dead.
Therefore it must refer to the second
part, "made alive in the spirit," or
resurrected, Rom. 8: 11.
b.Bytheword, "also, "apparentlyPeter
wants us to understand verse 19 as
continuing the sequence of verbs, "put to
death, "and "mode alive. Christ "alsowent
andpreached. To bring us to Godandto
complete His victory over sin, Satap. and
death, Christ had to die and to be raised
from the dead; and "also," as a further
encouragement to us, as the risen Christ,
He "went and preached to spirits in prison,"
proclaintiug His victory.
c.We must not overlook the word,
"went," which, in the Greek, is used in
verse 19 and in verse n, where it refers
to Christ's ascension: ''having gone into
heaven. "Therefore, apparently it has the
same reference in verse 19. The Greek
partidple, translated "went," denotes a
spedfic change of location. The risen,
ascending Christ "went" somewhere to
preach.
d.The Greek word translated, "made
proclamation': or "preached" is
EKERUXEN, meaning to proclaim
\
publicly and loudly, to announce as one
heralding victory. This verb is in the
aorist tense, denoting decisive
proclamation at a definite point of time.
It is used for the proclamation of the
gospel of "SOTERlA," i.e., victory over
sin, Satan and death in Christ. By this
verb we are to understand that the
resurrected Christ went somewhere and
proclaimed His victory over sin, Saran,
death, and over all His enemies. This is
bad news for His enemies; but it is
wonderful, encouraging news for
Christians being persecuted for His
Name's sake.
e.who are "the spirits in prLson" to
whom Christ preached? The word,
"spirits," is used regularly in the New
Testament to denote evil spirits, or
demons, Mk 1:23,26,27; 3:11; 5:2, 8.
Peter places two qualifications on the
word:
(1). They are kept "in prison." In n
Peter 2:4, he expands the meaning of the
phrase: "For if God did not spare angels
when Otey sinned, but cast OtemintD hell and
committedOtemtopitsoJdarknm, reserved
Jor judgment ... " Jude picks up on this in
verse6: "Andangelswhodidnotkeep Oteir
own domain, but abWldoned dleir proper
abode, He has kept in eternal bonds under
darkness Jar Ote judgment oj die great day."
And in Revelation 20:7, John writes:
"AndwhenOte thousandyearsarecompleted,
Satan will be released Jrom hts prison. " We
must conclude, then, that Peter, in 3:18,
is referring to Satan and demons, i.e.,
fallen angels, whenhespeaksof"spiritsin
prLson." (The Bible does not speak of the
souls of men being kept in prison.)
(2).They are "Ote spirits ... who once
(aforetime, or long ago) were dis-
obedient...." Notice that the phrase is "the
spirits ... who once were dtsobedient," NOT
"the spirits of those who were once
disobedient." If it were the latter, Peter
could be referting to the souls of the dead
who were disobedient in their lifetime.
However, the word, "spirits," as Peter
qualifies it, refers to evil spirits who
disobeyed as spirits.
To say they disobeyed "once" or
"aforetime" or "long ago" is to indicate
that their disobedience, i.e., their
deliberate and conscious resistance to
God's authority, was "formerly," at some
time in the past. Their disobedience took
place plior to their imprisonment and to
Christ's preaching to them. In fact, verse
20 tells us that this disobedience took
place "in Ote days oJNoah. " Therefore, the
term, "spirits," applies to the fallen angels
(demons) whose activity was so
pronounced and so dominant in the
days before Noah's Flood, when evil was
spreading so rapidly in the eanh--'Then
the Lordsaw that the wickedness oj manwas
great on the earth, Wld every Intent oj the
thoughtsojhtsheartwasonlyevilcontinually.
- And God looked on the earth, and
behold, it was Jar all flesh had
corrupted dleir way upon the earth," Gen.
6:5,12.
FromAdamtoNoah, Godwaspatient
with fallen man. Forthe 120 years Noah
preached and built the ark, God was
lenient in waiting to execute His sentence
on the depraved human race. But His
patience has limits! "Then God said to
Noah, 'The end oj all flesh had come beJore
Me; Jar the earth ts filled with violence
because oj them; and behold, I am about to
destroy Otem with the earth. - .. .1 am
bringing the floodoJwaterupon the earth, to
destroy allflesh in which ts the breath oJ life,
Jrom under heaven; everything thatts on the
eardlShall perLsh," Gen. 6:13, 17.
Noah's . contemporaries were
notoriously evil and served as agents of
demonic spirits in their rebellion against
God. There is no other time in history in
which the conrrast between faith and
unbelief, obedience and disobedience,
was as pronounced as in the days of
NoahjustbeforetheFlood. Therebellious
evil spirits seemed to control the human
race with the exception of Noah and his
family.
How has this phrase, "Christ preached
to spirits in prLsOll," been interpreted by
Bible scholars? Some of the
interpretations are far- fetched, so let me
mention only three, two of which have
some feasibility, but all falling shon of
the text, as we shall see.
Some have interpreted the text as
saying that between Christ's crucifixion
and resurrection, Christ went to hell to
preach to evangelize the lost souls there.
But, this cannot be correct, since there is
no second chance for salvation after death
for those in hell, Heb. 9:27.
Others have understood the text as
teaching that Christ preached through
the preaching of Noah to the disobedient
people of His day, and who, because they
persistedintheirdisobedience, are NOW
"spiritsinprLson"inhell. Theywerenotin
hell, when Christ preached to them
through Noah, but they are in hell now.
The translators of the NASB apparently
held this view, as is evident from their
placing of the word, "now", in italics, in
the phrase, "the spirits now in prison."
This interpretation is appealing, but we
mustlayitasidebecause, ''now''isabsent
in the Greek, and it does not deal
grammar of the verse,
which indicates that "went and preached"
hastheresurrected,notthepre-incarnate,
Christ as its subject.
A third interpretation is that of the
great Scottish, Biblescholar,joImBrown.
And it is very appealing. According to
Brown, in his resurrection, Christ was
infinitely endowed by the Holy Spirit
with an inuneasurable superabundance
oflife so as to enable Him to give eternal
life to those dead in their sins, In.
12:24,32; 3:34. Having died for sin and
been raised, glorifiedandgiven the Spirit
without measure, Christ now preaches
to "spirits in prison," i.e, guilty and
depraved people, imprisoned by sin and
Satan, lsa. 61: If, setting them free,
through the preaching of the gospel by
apostles and ministers. "Through which"
in verse 19 refers to the agency of the
Holy Spilit, who "made him alive".
Ephesians 2:17 seems to confirm this
view, when it speaks of the resurrected
September, 1992 THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon 15
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Christ "coming and preaching" to the
Ephesians through the apostles. This
truth, taught elsewhere in the Bible, Rom.
10: 13-15andEph. 2: 17, isagreatmotive
for evangelism and world missions.
However,althoughthisinterpretation
exdtes us, because it is taught in the
Word of God, we must reject it as the
proper interpretation of! Peter3:19 for
rwo reasons: (1). Brown stretches the
meaning of "made alive"; (2). He fuils to
do justice to the aorist tense of "preach, "
indicating a point in time, not a
continuous action; (3).
And he fails to deal
adequately with the
grammatical structure of
the text, and with such
phrases, as "spiritS ... who
were dtsobedienL.in the
days of Noah.
After having held the
previOUS. rwo views, (not
the first one), I now find
myself in the position of
havington;jectthem,and
to adopt the following
one, because of the force
of our concise exegesis of
the verse in the earlier paragraphs. The
resurrected Christ, duringHisAscension
to God's right hand, proc1aimed His
victdry over sin, Satan and death to the
fallen spirit-world, (demons), who are
chained in darkness until their eternal
damnation on the final day of judgment,
when they are castinto the bottomless pit
of hell. As Colossians 2:15 says: "When
He disarmed them/ers and authorities, (i. e.,
demonlcspirits), He made apubltcdisplay of
them, having triumphed over them through
Him" (RememberthattheBlblerefersto
Satan as "theprinceofthepoweroftheair. ")
Amazing! The resurrected, glorified,
exalted Christ, ascending to the highest
place of honor and authority in the
universe-God's right hand; enters the
worldofSatartanddemons, fordblycalls
them to gather, and declares His victory
over sin, Satan and death to them, who a
few hours earlierwere rejoicing that they
had destroyed God's Son in death and
the grave. Now they are told
authOritatively that, while they "bruised
His heel, He had, in fact, crushed thctr
heads: Gen. 3: 15f. What a sermon that
must have been! What a congregation,
forced to listen to every word! It was a
congregation comprised only of Satan
and his fiendish, totally evil, perverted,
God-hating, man-hating, murderous,
lying, envious, enraged, monstrous
demons. The risen Christ takes the
pulpit, calis the service to order, looks at
His congregation and triumphantly
shouts: You are finished!! I have
defeated you forever! I am coming
back at the endd of History to cast you
into the bpttomless pit of hell! Until
then, I am keeping you chained in
darkness, awaiting that great day of
judgment, when I will say to you -Go
To Hell!!
Praise God, suffering, slandered
Christians! Satan's servants and dupes
donothaveasnowball'schanceinheUto
harm you or to defeat you, or to keep
God from fulfilling His promises and
advancing His kingdom, Heb. 2: l4f. Let
this truth get hold of you and excite you!
Let it encourage and uplift you! Let it
motivate you! Nomatterwhattheydoto
you, they are defeated and they know it.
Christ told them! In blind, reckless fury
and hatred, they are destroying
themselves trying to destroy you, while
16 'I' THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon 'I' September, 1992
you remain Hyper -conquerors, more
thanconquerorsin Christ. Don't lettheir
threats and intimidations get to you! It's
all a big blum They hate Christ for
"rubbing it in", when he proc1aimed His
victory to the spirits in prison. Now,
since they cannot get at Him, theywiU try
to get at those whom Christ loves most,
His blood-bought people. But I am
absolutelyconvincedthatnothingin time
or eternity, in life or death, on eanh orin
hell, can separate us from the love of God
in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Third, Baptism now
saves you through the
resurrection of Jesus
Christ, vs. 21. The
mentionofthearkinverse
20 enabled Peter to shift
his thoughts from those
upon whom judgment
feU to those who were
saved. The salvation of
Noah and his family
reminded him of the
salvation we have in
christ from the wrath of
Godwhichdesrroyedthe
old world; and this
reminded him of baptism, the sign and
seal of that salvation. Do we think like
this? Howcloselyissalvationandbapclsm.
linked in our understanding? .
In order to understand verse 21, we
must keep every word of it before our
minds, and answer three questions: (1).
How were eight people saved by or
through water? (2). How does Noah's
Floodsymbolize and represent Christian
Baptism? (3). How does baptism now
save us?
"And corresponding tn that, baptism
nawsavesyou-nottheremovalofdirtfrom
the .flesh, bl!t an appeal tn God for a good
c.onsciena-throughtheresurrectionof]=
OrrisL.: vs. 2l.
Question one: How were eight
people saved by or through water, vs.
20? As our text shows, this is obviously
a reference to Noah's fumUy being saved
in the ark, while the rest of the human
race drowned in the worldwide Flood,
Gen. 7,8,9. Anunderlyingassumptionis
that their physical salvation from the
Flood-waters was, at the same time, their
spiJituai and moral salvation from the
infuqiogs corruption of a fullen race
qUickly spreading throughout the earth,
and from the wrath of God on that fallen
race, Gen.6.
Thisphraseinverse20, "eightpersons,
were brought saJely through the water,"
records the rransition from theold world,
(pre-flood), to the, very literally, new
world, (post-flood). Thecompound verb
and the preposition, DIA, give the force
of complete deliverance. The passive
voice indicates that the arkwas the actual
agent of their salvation.
The waters of the Flood drowned the
evil human race but caused the ark to
float safely. The Flood-waters that
destroyed the wicked weretheverymeans
ofsalvationforNoahandhisfarnily. The
waters buoyed up the ark and brought
them safely through w the new world
washed clean by divine judgment. The
family of Noah went into the ark and left
behind a world of evil. After going
through the waters of the Flood formore
thanayear,Noah'sfumilyleft thearkand
knew that God had saved them from
being drowned by an ocean of human
corruption under the wrath of God. This
point is made time and again throughout
the Scripture, e.g., the Exodus and
Calvary. God saves us from our
enemies, not by "rapturing" us from
our enemies, but by destroying our
enemies by conversion, Acts 9:1ff,
demoralization, Josh. 5:1, or death,
Psa. 58:6-11.
Question two: How does Noah's
flood symbolize and represent
Christian Baptism? There is a
resemblance, ("correspondence") ,
between the Flood and baptism. As the
Flood-waters cleansed the earth of man's
wickedness, so the water of baptism
indicates man's cleansing from sin, Tit.
3:5. AstheFioodseparatedNoahandhis
family from the evil world of their day, so
haptism separates believers from the evil
world of our day, Gal. 3:27. Baptism is
thecounterpanoftheFlood. The parallel
lies in the saving experience of Noah and
his family passing through the Flood-
waters to a new world; and Christian
Baptism as that which denotes the
believer's passage from the old life of sin
to new life in Christ, Rom. 6:3-4.
(Excursus: The salvation of Noah
and his family by the water of the Flood
corresponds to baptism, and yet it was
the world that was immersed, not Noah
and his tamily! The most one can say is
that they were "sprinkled" by the rain.
Baptism doesnotmeanimmersioll. Noah
and his fumily were the only people on
eanh, who were not inrmersed; and yet,
it cannot be said that the whole,
immersed, evil world was baptized!)
Question three: How does Baptism
now save us? Let us consider carefully
every word. "Baptism" is the application
of water by a minister of the gospel in the
name of the triune God. The use of the
word, "now," is a marked feature of I
Peter, 1:6, 12; 2:10, 25. It denotes the
time of the New Dispensation, Eph. 1:10,
the last Days, Heb. 1:1-2, the Day of
Salvation, II Cor. 2, the Reign of Grace,
Rom. 5:21, the Coming of the Kingdom
of Christ, Mk. 1:15; I Cor. 15:24ff, into
human history. Salvation, ("saves"), is
defined by I Peter 1: 1-9 as total and
complete freedom from sin, (its guilt,
punishment, power and presence), and
perfection in holiness. The pronoun
"us' refers to Peter and to the addressees
ofhisepistle, identified in 1: 1-2 as "those
who are chosen (by God before time,
Eph. 1 :3[) according to the
foreknowledge of God the Father, by the
sanctilYingworkoftheSpirit, that (they)
may obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled
with His blood ... ." In other words, the
"us" which baptism saves are believing
recipients of the lich salvation we have
in Christ.
The phrase, "baptism saves us,' is not
unparalleledintheNewTestarnent:Rom.
6:3-5; Gal. 3:27; Col. 2: 12. Here Peter
qualifies its meaning. He tells us in what
sense baptism DOES NOT save, and in
what sense it DOES save.
First, we have the qualifYing phrase,
"not the removal oj dirt Jrom the flesh,"
showing us in what sense baptism does
NOT save. It reminds us that haptism
does not save in the physical, material,
literal sense. Thewaterofbaptism cannot
washawaysin. TIrissacrament, inandof
itself, ex opere operato, is not effective in
obtaining salvation. The idea that the rite
ofwaterbaptismcansave,conveyspiritual
life, justify and regenerate is absurd,
unbiblical and dangerous. It is absurd
because moral flaws and moral effects
must have moral causes and moral cures.
Second, Peter gives us two qualifying
phrases, showing us in what sense
baptism does save: (1). ''but an appeal to
God Jar a good conSCIence: and (2).
"through the resurrection oj]esus Christ"
In the first phrase, "appeal," can just as
easily be translated more clearly as
"pledge." Baptism is God's pledge to the
believer that the covenanted blessings of
salvation will continue to be bestowed
onhim, Rom. 4:11. Itisalsothebeliever's
pledge to serve the Lord with a good
conscience, i.e., one cleansed by the
blood of Christ through IiIith, Heb. 9: 14,
accompanied by a life lived
conscientiously and obediently to God's
honor and glory, Rom. 2:15.
At this point, one might ask, "How
then may infants be baptized, since they
cannot make this pledge, without which
baptism does not save?" The first
observation we should make about this
question is that, if it were allowed to
stand, all circumcision of infants in the
Old Testament would be illegitimate,
since, although circumcision was a sign
and seal of salvation, Rom. 4: 11, the
infants would be incapable of
understanding baptism, much less of
makingapledgewliIithfuiness. However,
September, 1992 TIlE COUNSEL of ChaIcedon 17
as Thomas Watson has pointed out:
"Neither could the child that was to be
circumcized understand drcumcision;
yet the ordinance of drcumcision was
nouo beomitt.edordeferred, Gen. 17: If[
Though an infant understand not the
meaning of baptism it may partake of the
blessing of baptism. The litde children
that Quist took in his anns, undetstood
not christ's meaning" but they had
Cluist's blessing. H ~ put his hands upon
themandblessedthem,'Mk.1O:16."-ABody
of Divinity
Watson goes on to answer two more
related questions: (1). What benefit can
the infant bave in being baptized, if he
does not understand it? Answer: "It may
have a right to the promise sealed up,
which it shall have an acrual interest in
when it comes to have faith. A legacy
may be of use to the child in the cradle;
thoughitnowunderstandnotthelegacy,
yetwhenitisgrownuptoyears,itisfuUy
possessed of it." (2). Since the person
baptized must rnake a pledge to God,
how can infants be baptized, since they
areincapapleofmakingpledges? Answer:
"The parents can engage for it, which
God is pleasedlo accept as equivalent to
the child's personal engagement, (Deut.
29:100."
In the second phrase, "through the
resurrection ofJesus Dlmt: showing us
how baptism DOES save, we are taught
an important truth. Without the
resurrection of Jesus Christ, which
presupposes His death, baptism would
be an empty ritual. The etudfied and
resurrected Christ is the basis of our
salvation and our guarantee of victory
over sin, Satan and death, Acts 4: 12.
Peter has already told us that God has
regenerated us by the resurrection of
Christ, 1:3, and by His Word, 1:23; so
there is no doubt or confusion in Peter's
mind: waterdoesnotsave! Christ saves!
Baptism isasiguandseal of that salvation
in Guist! God sovereignly saves us by
His sheer grace by sending His SonJesus
Christ, to save us by His shed- blood.
The Holy Spirit saveS us by applying the
benefits of Christ's death to our lives
through the preaching of the gospel,
which we receive by saving faith, which
isa gift of God, publicly confessed, and
signed and sealed to us by the sacrament
of baptism. It is in this way that "baptism
now saves us. "
This brings us to abrief, bumecessary,
and hopefully helpful, explanation of "a
sacramental way of speaking. The
actions of God are sometimes spoken of
by means of the signs and symbols that
represent them, Gen. 17: 10,13; Exod.
13:21; 34:5; Ezek. 36:25;Psa. 50:8;M.aL
26:27,28; I Pet. 3:21; Rom. 6:4; Col.
2:11,12. For example, in Ezekie136:25
weare told thatGodwillcleanseusofour
sinsbythebloodofChristandthepower
of the Holy Spirit in the New Covenant;
but the exact wordS are: "I will sprinkle
clean water on you, and you will be clea1L
Paul tells the Ephesians that Christ
c1eansesHis Bride from her sins by the
Word and Spirit of God; but, again, his
exact wordS are: ... that He mightsanctify
her, having cleansed her by the washing of
waterwith the word. .. : Eph. 5:26. When
the Israelites went to the threshold of the
Tabernacle to seek the Lord's counsel or
to make their vows to the Lord, it is said
that they went "bifore the Lord," Judg.
20:26.
Understanding"asacramental wayof
speaking" involves understanding the
threepartsofasacrament: (1). the visible
sign; (2). the things signified; and (3). the
sacramental union, i.e., the relation of
the sign and the spiritual reality. That
union is so close that the names and
effects of the one are often attributed to
the other; hence, I Peter 3:21. Asimilar
way of speaking is related to the unity of
the two natures, (divine and human) , in
. the one person ofJesus Christ. The two
are never divided nor confused. Some
thingsJesus does can only be true of His
divine nature, e.g., forgive sin; while
other things are true only ofhis human
nature, e.g., thirst for water. And yet,
because of the close union of the two
natures in Christ, actions which are true
18 ~ UlE COUNSEL of ChalcedOll. f September, 1992
of one are sometimes attributed to the
other. For example, Acts 20:28 can
speak of the church as "bought with the
blood of God. " God had no blood; but
Jesus' humanity did. Therefore, Christ
savesandsealsthatsalvationtousthrough
baptism. The salvation and the seal are
clearly distinct, and yet because their
relation is so close, it can be said that
baptism saves, without implying
baptismal regeneration as taught by
Roman Catholidsm.
This sacrnmental union between the
sacrament, Le., 'lis'..ble sign. and the
invisible spiritual reality, i.e.,the thing
signified, Is: (1). symbolic and
representative, i.e, the one symbolizes
and represents the other; (2).
instrumental, because by divine
appointment, through the right use of
the sacrament, thespiIitualgracesignilled
inthesacramentisreaUycortveyed to the
believer. This union is based on three
things: (1). the natural fimess of the
sacrament to symbolize the grace
signified, as washing With water
symbolizes the purification of sin by the
Spirit. (2). Theauthoritativeappointment
ofChristthatthesesacramentsofbaptism
and the Lord's Supper, righdy used,
would truly represent and convey the
grace of salvation to the believer, Mat
28: 18f. (3). The Spirit-produced faith of
the believing redpient of the sacrament
enables him to conunune with God and
to receive Chtist in the right use of the
visible sign, Heb. 11:6; I Cor. 10: 14-ll;
11:17-34.
Finally, undetstanding the purposes
fOr which Christ gave us the sactalllents
of baptism and the Lord's Supper, helps
us uridetstand what is meant by the
phrase, "baptismnowSa\lesus." According
toA.A.Hodge,inhisbook, TheConfession
of Faith, Christ instituted the sacrnments
forthefollowingreasons:(l).torepresent
the benefits of Christ and the New
Covenant to us as pictures of the truths
they represent, I Cor. 10:16; 11:25,
presented "totheeyesandothersensesof
the redpient in a manner analogous to
that in which they are presented to the
earsinthepreachingofthe Word." Hence,
they are called outward, visible signs to
the senses of inward Spiritual graces to
the soul. (2). To be "seals" of the benefu:s
of the New Covenant, Rom. 4:11; Rom.
6:4; Gal. 3:27. Jesus said, "This cup is the
NewCovenantinMyblood,"il<.22:20,i.e.,
"This cup represents My blood, by which
the New Covenant was ratified; and
therefore, it is a visible confinnation of
the covenant, since it is a visible
representative of the blood." -Hodge "The
gospel is presented under the form of a
covenant. Salvation and
an the benefits of Christ's
redemption are offered
upontheconditionoffaith.
In the sacraments God
sensibly, (i.e., to and
through the senses), and
authoritatively pledges
Himself to invest us with
this grace if we believe and
obey. In receiving the
sacrament we actively
assume all the obligations
implied in the gospel, and
bind ourselves to fulfill
them."-Hodge
Lastly, (3). the purpose
of the sacrament is to actually apply and
convey to believers the benefits of
salvation and the New Covenant, I Cor.
10:16; Gal. 3:27; Rom. 15:8, hence,
"baptism now saves," by conveying the
salvation accomplished by Christ to
believers as a means of grace together
with the Word of God. The Westminster
Confession of Faith uses these words:
"The grace which is EXHIBITED in or by
the sacraments, rightly used, is not
CONFERRED by any power in them;
neither does the efficacy (effectiveness)
of a sacrament depend upon the piety or
intention ofhim that does administer it;
but upon the work of the Spirit, and the
word of institution; which contains,
together with a precept authorizing the
usethereo(apromiseofbenefittoworthy
receivers. - The efficacy of baptism is
not tied to tllat moment of time wherein
it is administered; yet notwithstanding,
BY THE RIGHT USE OF THIS
ORDINANCE (ofbaptism), THE GRACE
PROMISED IS NOT ONLY OFFERED,
BUT REALLY EXHIBITED AND
CONFERRED BYTHEHOLYSPIRlT ... ,"
The WestminsterShonerCatechismsays:
"A sacrament is an holy ordinance
instituted by Christ; wherein, by sensible
signs, Christ, and the benefits of the New
Covenant, (i.e., salvation), are REPRE-
SENTED, SEALED and APPLIED."
Notice the words in these quotes:
(a)."EXHIBITED,"notsimplyas"toshow
fonh," but in the sense of the Laltn word,
exhibere, from which it is derived, "to
administer and apply." (b).
"CONFERRED", (c). "REALLY
EXHIBITED AND CONVEYED," and
(d). "REPRESENTED, SEALED AND
APPLIED." This grace-conveyingpower
of the sacraments depends upon two
things: the sovereign will and power of
the Holy Spirit of God, and the active
!aith of the recipient, not upon any
inherent power in thesaQ'ament itself or
in the one administeling the sacrament.
The right use of the sacrament, in !aith
and with a pledge to !aithfulness, is, by
the sovereign detennination of God, the
occasioninwhichtheHolySpilitconveys,
exhibits, confers, represents, seals and
appliesthegraceandblessingsofsalvation
to those to whom it belongs, i.e., the
chosen of God in Christ.
Therefore, it can be said that the
sacraments save, (both Baptism and the
Lord's Supper), as means of grace and
instlUments, butasinstmmentsofdivine
appOintment. The sacraments save as
the Holy Spirit uses them in the life of the
believer to bring him to God, to bring
him into the knowledge, Javor, renewed
resemblance and communion with God.
The sovereign God isnot bound to them,
but the church is.
In I Peter 3:21, the
verb in the phrase,
"bapttsmnowsavesus,"is
in the present tense. In
Greek this tense denotes
continuous action in
present time. Therefore,
the phrase can be
translated, "baptism
now continues to save
us." The point is that as
the believerpanicipates
in the sacraments,
salvation continues to
be conveyed to him and
applied to his life by the
living Christ through
the agency of the Holy Spirit and the
Word of God.
Therefore, we can see how vitally
imponant the sacraments and their
proper use are in the life of the Christian,
and of the whole church. Praise God for
them! We would not have them were it
not for the incomparable suffering and
gloriousresurrectionofjesusChrist. The
sacraments are blood-bought. Value
them as such. They are instruments of
the risen Christ by which He puts us into
deeperandlichercontactwiththeliving
God continually, and by which He
advancesoursalvalton by the Spirit. Use
them as such.
Fourth, Christis seated at the right
hand of god, withal! angels, authorities
and powers in subjection to Him, vs.
September, 1992 ~ THE COUNSEL of CbaIcedon ~ 19
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-- ._- -- -_._------
------_.-- ---._.
22. This is the culmination of Christ's
sufferings: the universality of His
dominion. The universal. reigh of the
risen Christ is a truth taught throughout
the Bible. The same point is made in
Ephesians 1:20f-" ... which He brought
in Christ, when He raised Him from the
dead and seated Him at His right hand
in m:: heavenly places, far above all rule
and authority and power and dominion,
and every name that is named, not only
in this age, but also in the one to come.
AndHeputallthingsinsubjectionunder
His feet, and gave !-lim as head over all
things for the church ... ." I Corinthians
15:25 adds: "For He must reign until He
has put all His enemies under His feet. The
last enemy that is being abolished is death
For'Hehasputall things in subjectlonuncler
Hisfeet' ....
Paul declares in Philippians 2:5-11,
that as God's reward to Christ for
voluntarily humiliating Himself for our
salvation, "becomitlgobeclientto thepointof
death evendeathonacross, therefore, "God
high!; exalted Him, and bestowed on Him
thenamewhich isabave every nome, thatat
the name of Jesus, every knee should bow, of
those who are in heaven, and on earth, and
under the earth, and that every tongue
should confess thatJesus Christis Lord, to
the glory of God the Father." In Revelation
11:15, the seventh angels shouts, "The
kingdomof theworldhasbecome thekingdom
of our Lord, and of His Christ, and He will
reign forever and ever.' And, long before
Christ was bom, Daniel prophesied of
Him: "And to Him was given dominion,
glory and a kingdom, that all the peoples,
nations, and men of every language might
serve him. His dominion Is an everlasttng
dominumwhkh will notpass awa.Y; andHis
kingdom is one which will not be destroyed,
7:13-14. ]esusHimselproclairned, "All
authority has been given to Me in heaven
and On earth,' Mat. 28: 18.
Now, letuslook carefully at ourtext,
I Pet. 3:21-22- " ... through the
resurrection of]esus Christ, who is at the
right hand of God, having gone into
heaven, after angels and authorities and
powers had been subjected to Him."
Notice the follOwing emphases of this
text: (1). Where is Christnow? A-"atthe
right hand of God." (2). When did He
take that position? A.-"through the
resurrection," "having gone into heaven,"
Le. at His ascension. (3). What is the
extent of His authority and sovereignty,
Le., his Kingdom?
(1). WHERE IS JESUS CHRIST
NOW? Answer: HE IS SITTING AT
THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD, vs. 22.
The focus of the New Testament is on
Cnrist's Throne at the Right Hand of
God, Lk. 22:69; Eph. 1:20; Col. 3: 1;
Heb. 1:3; 10:12; 12:2, indicating the
fulfillment of the messianic Psalm
110: 1-"The Lord says to my Lord: 'Sit
at My right hand, until I make Thine
enemies a footstool for Thy feet. m
What does Christ's sitting "at the
righthandofGod"signify? (1). Itdenotes
the highest position of honor and
authority in the universe, next to God
Himself. He is seated there as king,
majestic in glory ,with God in the
govemmentoftheuniverse,!sa. 9:6. The
textmakesitclearthatChrist'sgoverning
of the universe is not something that will
take place in the future. Itisineffectnow.
It is not that He "will" sit, but He "is
sitting" at God's right hand in powerand
sovereignty. (2). He is a seated priest,
Heb. 1:3-4. The Old Testament priests
could not sit down, becaUse their work
was never done. They were always
offeringsactifices; butwhen Christ offered
Himself as our sacrifice for sin once-for-
all there need be no further sactifices,
~ e His sacrifice successfully "obtained
etemalredempDon"forallthoseforwhom
He died, Heb. 7:; 9:. Therefore, having
finished the work Godsent Him to earth
to do-the accomplishing of the eternal
salvationofGod'speople, He satdown at
God's right hand in trinmph over sin,
Satan and death, Mat. 26:64; Acts 7:55;
Heb. 12:2. (3). From God's right hand,
Jesus Christ baptized His church with
the abundance of the Holy Spirit on the
day of Pentecost, recorded in Acts 2. He
20 ~ TIlE COUNSEL of ChaIcedon ~ September, 1992
continues to equip His church with
Spiritual gifts, ministries and powers,
along with a Spirit-produced Bible, Acts
2:33-35; Eph. 4:7-8; Rom. 12:31. And,
(4). seated at God's right hand, Heactsas
our InrercessorandAdvocate, constantly
praying for us and pleading His death in
ourbehalf, Rom. 8:34; Heb. 9:24; I]n. 2:;
Heb.8:1.
(2). WHEN DID CHRIST TAKE
THIS POSITION AT mE RIGHt
HAND OF GOD? Answer: AT HlS
RESURRECDON AND ASCENSION,
vs.22.0urtextsaysthattheresurrected
Chtist, vs. 21, is "at the right hand of
God, having gone into heaven." Christ's
resurrection brought Him to His present
lordsbipandexaltationbyHisascension.
His ascension was His actual
enthronement, Acts 1:6-11.
When the New Testament speaks of
the reign of Christ, it always speaks of it
as something in effect right now, and not
as something that will not take place
until the future. In I Peter 3:21-22 the
beginning of His reign is clearly with His
resurrection and ascension. The past
tense verbs in Ephesians 1:20-22 make
the same point: when God "raised Him
fromthedead,"He "seated Him atHis right
hand;" and He "gave Him as head over an
things." "He put all. things In subjection
underHisfeerinverse22,beingapresent
tense verb, which . shows continuous
action indicates that God is continually
at wo;k in human history bringing all
things into subjection to Christ, "Jor He
mustreignunttl8ehasplacedaliHisenemies
under His feet" Philippians 2:9-11 also
describes the resurrection of Christ as
His enthronement in past tense verbs.
AU the verbs in these verses are in the
aorist tense, denoting decisive action ina
definite moment of past time-"God
highly exalted Him," "(God) bestowed on
Him the name: "that .. every knee should
bow," "that every tongue should confess."
Thepointis:Jesus Christis theking
of the earth and universe now!. Since
His resurrection and ascension to God's
righthand,Hehasbeenandwillconunue
to be the "King oJkings, and Lord oJlords, "
to whom all authority, power and
sovereignty has been given, Mat. 28: 18f.
He, not Satan, has everything under His
comrol. His will is being accomplished.
His plans are being carried out. He has
orchestrated everything 'Jor the church, "
Eph.l:22,sothateverythingthathappens
in the universe throughout history will
be for the benefit of the church and for
the glory of God. As the Absolute
Monarch of the Universe, the resurrected
Jesus administers the
covenant blessings and curses
of Deuteronomy 28 and
Leviticus 26 on His friends
and enemies, cursing those
who curse us, and blessing
us, alongwith those who bless
us, Gen. 12: 1; Rom. 15:8. As
the Westminster Shorter
Catechism says: "Christ
executes the office of a king,
in subduing us to Himself,
Acts 15: 14f, in ruling, lsa.
33:22, and defending us, Isa.
32: If, and in restraining and
conquering All His and our
enemies, I Cor. 15:25."
(3). WHAT IS THE
EXTENT OF HIS AUTHORITY AND
SOVEREIGNTY, I.E., HIS KINGDOM?
Answer: ANGELS,AUTHORITIES,AND
POWERSHA VEBEEN SUBJECTEDTO
HIM, vs. 22. The aorist passive Greek
parriciple, "having been made subject to
Him," translated, ''have been subjected to
Him," stresses the actual subjection of
everything to Christ's governing
authOrity. The passive voice indicates
that everything now standsinsubjecuon
to Him. Colossians 2: 13-15 tells us that
the basis for this universal dominion of
Christ is His redemptive work on the
cross, i.e., His incomparable suffering
and death:
"And when you were dead in your
transgressions and the uncircumcision oj
yourjlesh, Hemadeyoualive together with
Him, having Jorgiven us all our
transgressions, having canceled out the
certificate oj debtconsistingoJ decrees against
us and which was hostile to us; and He has
takenitoutoJtheway, having nailed it to the
cross. When He haddisanned the rulers and
authorities, He made a public display oj
dum, having triumphed over them Qlrough
Him:
And so, the thOUght of submission to
God, which is the chief traitor Christians,
and which has been in the mind of Peter
throughout his first epistle, now reaches
a climax in verse 22.
CHRIST'S EMPIRE HAS NO
BOUNDARIES IN TIME OR SPACE OR
ETERNITY: His supreme govemrnentis
'Jar above All rule aJul authority and
power and dominion and EVERYname that
is named, not only in dlis age, but also in the
one to come: Eph. 1:21. Godhasplaced
"All filings insubjectionunder His Jeet, and
gave Him as head over ALL things ... ," Eph.
1:22. He is "the King oJkings, and Lord oj
lords," Rev. 19:16. "All auVlOrity IN
HEAVEN AND EARm has been given to
(Him), Mat. 28: 18. "Angels andauthorities
and powers (have) been subjected to Him,"
I Pet. 3:22. God exalted Him to this
majestic position in order that "All the
peoples, nations and nun of every IWlguage
might serve Him His domillion is an
everlasttng dominion which will not pass
away; and His kingdom is one which will not
be destroyed," Dan. 7:13-14. Therefore,
"all the ends oj the earth will remember and
tum to the Lord, and all dIe Jamilies oj VIe
nations will worship beJore Thee, Jar the
Kingdom is the Lord's and He rules over the
nations," Psa. 22:27. "EVERY/mee" will
bow a)ul "EVERY tongue" wiU conJess that
'1esus Christ is Lord. .. ," Phil. 2:9-11. All
opposition to His rule in all areas will be
put down, 'Jor He must Jeign until He has
putAllHisenemiesunder HisJeet. - And
when all things are subjected to Him, then
dle Son HiJnselj also will be subjected to the
OnewllOsubjectedall things to
Him, that God may be all in
all," 1 Cor. 15:24ff.
Christ's monarchy is
etemal and universal. It is
supreme over all human
beings and over all their
instirutiollS. "He is the Ruler
oj the kings oj the earth," Rev.
1:5. Throughout history
every tribe, race, ethnic
group, nation and people of
every language are
accountable to His supre-
macy. You are accountable
toHislordshipoverYOUI If
you are not a Christian,
"Believe in the LORD Jesus
Chlistandbesaved,youandyourhousehold,"
Acts 16:31. "If you con Jess withy our mouth
that JESUS IS LORD, and believe in your
heart that God has raised Him from the
dead, YOUwiUbe saved," Rom. 10:9.
Christ is also king over the angelic
world, including both un!allen angels
and fallen angels, i.e., Satan and his
demons, I Pet. 3:22. The unfallen angels
sing His praises, and are ever-ready to
serve Him and to obey His every
command, Mat. 4:6; Heb. 1:7; 12:22; II
Thess.l:7. The fallen angels, (Satan and
his demons), arealsounder Hissovereign
comrol. During His earthly life He
rebuked, mocked, cast out and
commanded demons with such
omnipotence and sovereignty that they
could do nothing but obey, although
they hated to do so, Mark 3:22-27. He
September, 1992 l' THE COUNSEL of Cha1cedon l' 21'
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wouldeveno'ochestratetheirevilschemes
to serve His own purpose and to
aa:omplish His own will. "He causes the
wrath of the wicked to please Him."
PetertellSusthat "Goddidnotspare (fallen)
angels when they sinned, but cast them into
hell and committed them to pits oj darkness
reserved Jor "n Pet. 2:4. These
fiillen angels are so restrained by Christ's
government thatJude says: "He has kept
(them) in eternal bonds under darkness Jor
thejttdgmentoJthegreatday,"vs.6. Since
Christ's lite, death and resurrection, He
has "bound" Satan, ie., vastly cm".ailed
hispower,inllUlince andactivities, so He
can "enter the strong man's .
house and plunder hiSY
property: Mark 3:27, i.e.,"
destroy hisevilldngdomll!ld'
set his captives free, Eph. ;
2:1ff. And, again, this rule of >
Christ over Satan is based on
the aa:omplishments of His
sufferings and death. As
Hebrews2:14says: "Since the
chlldrenshareinjleshandblood,
He Himself (Chr!sV Hhewise
also partook oj the same, that
throuFJtdeathHemightrender
powerless him who had the
power oj death, that is, the devil ... ."
So, therefore, faithful Christians have
nothing to fear from Satan and his
demons. Although he acts like a rooting
lion, seeldng someone to devour, if we
resist him, firm in the faith, he willllee
from uS,lPet 5:8 .. 9;James4:7. "Youare
oj God, little chtldren, and have overcome
them; because greater is He Who is in you,
than he who is in the world," I In. 4:4.
"Christ's sovereignty over all spirituaL
forces is a precious assurance to aIllicted
believers. Surely Peter's readers, who
were facing a very real onslaught from
evil powers through their enemies, would
findrealencouragementinthatremark." ..
D. Edmond Hiebert, First Peter.
(4). WHAT ARE THE IMPLI ..
CATIONS OF THE UNIVERSAL
DOMlNlON OF THE LORD JESUS
CHRIST FOR US TODAY?
a. The Church exists for thesake of
Christ's Kingdom. By the preaching
and teaching of the gospel, it is to work
at ''making the world's nations Christ's
disciples," Mat. 28: 18f. ..... to belong to
thechurchisto belong to Christ'sworking
COfjlS, to his army militant, to that divine
society which He has set up on the earth
as the propaganda of His royal cause in
the earth. - The very meaning and
purpose of the Churchinthe earth makes
it a missionary institute and binds it to
devoteitselfeXclusivelyandindustrlously
totheestahlistunent, inaninstrwllentary
way, of the mediatort3l Kingdom of the
Redeemer; and the sublimest motive
which can play upon the Christian heart
to urge it to aggressive enterprises is
derived from the fact that the success of
the Church's mission is the triumph of
the Kingdom of the Redeemer."-
Alexander Webb, Olristian Salvation: Its
Doctrine and Experience.
b. Submission to the Lordship of
Christisessentialtosalvation .. Resting
on and unconditionally surrendertng to
Jesus Christ is of the essence of true
savingfaith,Mat. 7:21. Apersonbecomes
a Christian when he/she "believes in the
LORD Jesus: Acts 16:31. Confession
with the mouth that JESUS !SLORD and
faithin the heart that God hasraisedHIm
from the dead are absolute necessities, if
a person is to be forgiven ofhis sins and
acceptedwithGod,Rom.10:9.Although
Charles Ryrie calls those who teach what
12 IRE COUNSEL of Cha1cedon September, 1992
we have just stated as "under the curse of
perverting the gospel," in his book,
Balandng the Christian LiJe; "those who
contend that a person may be saved
without submitting to the Lordship of
Christ are contending that there is
forgivenesswithoutrepenrance,aconcept
entirely without biblical foundation, Lk.
17:3." Arnold Ten Pas, The Lordshtp
Controversy. You cannot enjoy the
benefits of Christ's cross without bowing
before the claims of Christ's crown'"
c. The Universal dominion ofjesus
Christ is tIle basis for Ch..-tstia..
reconstruction. Since Jesus Christ is
Lord over everything,
everything (all individuals and
institutions) is aa:ountable to
Him. The church is to submit
to Hisrulerevealedin theBible,
as is the home, the school, the
civil government, the courts,
business and industry" the
military, and all other facets
and institutions of human
society. As Christians, we are
to press His claims and to
establish His crown rights in
every area of our own and of
our nation's life, Gen. 1:28;
Mat. 28: 18f, aswellasineveryareaofthe
life of the whole world, Mk. 16: 15.
SinceJesus is Lord, He has a revealed
law to be obeyed by all people and all
nations, Exod. 20: Iff; Mat 5:17ff. Since
He is King, it is Impossible for a
relationship or an activity or a thOUght to
exist under His blessing, unless it is in
conformity to HisLawandinsubmission
to His Person. "Righteousness, i.e.,
(confonnitytotheLawofGodinChrist),
exalts a nation; but sin is a reproach to any
people," Prov. 14:34.
Mayall Christians everywhere
recollll11i.t ourselves, by the grace of
God, to earnestly pray for and to dili-
gently work toward the establishment
of the crown rights ofjesus Christ over
all rhe earth and the reconstruction of
aU aspects of American society and
culturebytheWordandSpiritofChrist,
to the glory of God, beginning with
ourselves and our own lives, until we
become a truly Christian Republic-
one nation under Christ.
d. Since Christ is King, He is
necessarily victor. The Bible, especially
inthe bookofi'salms, constantlyconneas
two truths about Christ: His
SOVEREIGNTI and His VICTORY,
Psalm 45, 47, 76; I Cor. 15; Rev. 19.
These two truths presuppose each other.
How can One be totally sovereign over
all things, and not be totally victorious
over all opposition against that
sovereignty? (See Isaiah 45 and 46.)
I Corinthians 15:24 teaches us that
the end of the world will come afteljesus
has put down all opposition to Him in
history and in the universe, 'Jor He must
reign un!11 He has put all Hts enemies under
Hts feet In the Book of Revelation it is
written that on Judgment Day at the end
of theworld.Jesus will cast Satan into the
bottomless pit of hell forever, 20:7-15.
But notice in thattext that, when Satan is
cast into "the lake of fire, the "beast" of
Revelation 13,symbolizinganti-christian
civil governments which oppress' the
church, and the jalse prophet,
symbolizing apostate churches and anti-
christian religions, which slander and
persecute the church, ARE ALREADY
THERE, Rev. 20: 10! The conclusion is
that the opposition to and oppression of
Christ's church by humanistic &ates and
churches will be put down significantly
in history before the rerum of Christ; and
that His return at the end of dIe world
will totally destroy them, and restore
God'sperfectordertoHisentirecreation.
Therefore, believinginthetriumphant
kingdom ofJesus Christ, we are victory-
oriented, not defeat -Oriented, as we face
our tasks, our problems and our future.
We see ourselves as "more than
conquerors," Rom. 8:37. We must look
for the progressive advance of Christ's
Kingdom in the earth until "all the earth
will worship Thee and sing praises to
Thee,"Psa. 66:4;untilthatdaywhen"the
earth will be full of the knowledge of the
Lord as dIe waters cover the sea," !sa.
11:9. We must look at the future in the
light of the parables that speak of the
invincible development of dIe Kingdom
of Christ in this eanh. We must learn to
see the future of our generations, not as
something to be feared, but as a pan of
the glorious inheritance which God in
Christ is working out for His faithful
people, ! Cor. 3:21; II Cor. 2:4,14.
"Therefore, my beloved brethren, be
immovable, always abounding in
the work of the Lord, knOwing that your toil
tsnotinvainintheLord,"!Cor.15:58. "Let
us not grow weary in well-dotng,for In due
time, we Shall reap, 6:9.
Praise God for the incompar-
able ChristandHis incomparable
suffering! n
.+. We believe in the full authority of the Bible as expressed in the Westminster
Confession of Faith, the Heidelberg Catechism, the BelgiC Confession, and the
Canons of Dort We are Refonned in theology.
.+. We teach a comprehensive Biblical Worldvtew in all areas of study. God's
word is the foundatton of all knowledge.
.'. We have a high view of God's revealed law in both Old and New Covenants,

as a basis for sodal and political ethics.
.:. We believe in theultimate triumph of sovereign grace which will impact
the world.
.} We believe in velY limited constitutional dvil government and a free enter-
prise economic system
.} Webelievein and encourage Cl,ristian home-education (and enthusiasticalry
aaept homeschoolers), as well as Cl,ristian schools.
.:. We offer a Bachelor degree in Theology, Philosophy, History, Political
Economy, and Christian EducatiOll StudenlS may alsotahecourseworn (e.g.
Accounting, Business, Modem Languages, Sciences) at nearby Liberty
University, a Christian schooL
.:. Board of Trustees: Dr. GregL. Bahnsen, M.Div., Th.M., PhD.; Dr. Kevin L.
Clauson, M.A.,J.D. President; Dr. earl Curtis, M.A., Ph.D.; Rev. Richard E.
Knodel, M.Div. (REA V Board); Dr. RodMays, M.Ed., D. Mill; Rev. Donald
H. Post, M. Di.. Many nationaUy-known Christian sdlOlars involved.
Current resident faculty of six men.
September, 1992 t THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon t 23