How does 1 Peter 3:21 define the role of baptism in salvation? Setting the Scene • Peter has just spoken of Noah, “in whose ark… eight souls were saved through water” (1 Peter 3:20). • He immediately links that picture to Christian baptism: “And this water symbolizes the baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body, but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God—through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 3:21) What Baptism Does NOT Do • “Not the removal of dirt from the body” – it is no mere ritual bath or external cleansing. • Physical water alone cannot wash away sin (Hebrews 9:13-14). • Salvation is never earned by human effort (Ephesians 2:8-9). What Baptism DOES Do • “Now saves you also” – Peter speaks of baptism as part of God’s saving work. • It is “the pledge of a clear conscience toward God” – a believer’s public commitment of faith and repentance, declaring loyalty to Christ. • It unites the believer with “the resurrection of Jesus Christ,” the very power that grants new life (Romans 6:3-4; Colossians 2:12). Connecting the Dots with Other Scriptures • Mark 16:16 – “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved.” • Acts 2:38 – “Repent and be baptized… for the forgiveness of your sins.” • Titus 3:5 – “He saved us… through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.” • Galatians 3:27 – “All of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.” Together these passages show: 1. Faith and repentance are the heart response. 2. Baptism is the God-ordained act that expresses that response and seals one’s union with Christ. 3. The saving virtue stems from Christ’s death and resurrection, not from water as such. The Living Link to Noah • In Noah’s day water judged a sinful world yet lifted the ark to safety. • In baptism, water signifies judgment borne by Christ and the believer’s passage into new life (Romans 6:5). • Just as Noah trusted God’s provision, the baptized believer trusts in Christ alone. Holding the Biblical Balance • Salvation is by grace through faith; baptism is the divinely appointed moment of identification with that grace. • Refusing baptism would be disobedience to the clear command of Christ (Matthew 28:19), while trusting the act without faith would be empty ritual. • Peter’s words keep both truths together: baptism saves “through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,” and as “the pledge of a clear conscience toward God.” Baptism, then, is God’s ordained doorway of public faith: not a human work that earns salvation, but the faith-filled act that unites the believer with the risen Savior and testifies, “My conscience is now clean because of Him.” |
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