WWUTT 1627 Baptized for the Dead (1 Corinthians 15:29-31)

Well, here's a challenging verse. What will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why then are they baptized for them? There's a simple explanation for this passage when we understand the text.

Many of the Bible stories and verses we think we know, we don't. When we understand the text is an online ministry dedicated to teaching the Word of God in context, promoting sound doctrine while exposing the faulty.

Here's your teacher, Pastor Gabe.

The Resurrection Argument in 1 Corinthians 15

Thank you, Becky. Still in 1 Corinthians 15, and the section that we've been focusing on this week is verses 27 to 34. I'll begin by reading that from the Legacy Standard Bible. This is the word of the Lord through the Apostle Paul writing to the church in Corinth.

For he has put all things in subjection under his feet. But when he says all things are put in subjection, it is evident that he is accepted who put all things in subjection to him. And when all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself also will be subjected to the one who subjected all things to him, so that God may be all in all.

Otherwise, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why then are they baptized for them? Why are we also in danger every hour? I affirm, brothers, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.

If from human motives I fought with wild beasts at Ephesus, what does it profit me? If the dead are not raised, let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die. Do not be deceived. Bad company corrupts good morals.

Become righteously sober-minded and stop sinning. For some have no knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame. So many interesting doctrines we come into as we've been going through 1 Corinthians 15.

What did we talk about yesterday? We considered some eschatology, as Paul talks about end times even in verses 24 to 26. We talked about the eternal subordination of the Son. There's a doctrine you don't give much thought to, but that was discussed in verses 27 and 28.

What Baptized for the Dead Means

Today we come to another challenging verse. We've got another doctrine set before us here in verse 29. Otherwise, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? Really? We got to talk about baptism of the dead here?

And notice it's just one verse. Paul doesn't expound on it at all. We hit this statement, and then he moves on with his argument. But we can know that what this verse is not talking about is getting baptized on behalf of somebody who has died, and then your baptism has helped to save them.

That's not what's being talked about here, though. There are some faith traditions that have ripped this out of context and tried to apply it in that way. The Mormons, for example, practice baptism of the dead or for the dead.

So if you were a Mormon, you could go into a Mormon temple with a list of names of people who have died, and you could get baptized on their behalf. Now for so-and-so's name, and you get baptized, and so because you were baptized for them, you helped to break them out of the prisons of hell or level up in glory somehow or something like that.

When Joseph Smith developed his doctrine for the baptism of the dead, it was actually much later on in his, well, I don't want to call it a ministry exactly, in his con. We could call it that. But anyway, it was later on in his Mormonism game that he came up with new doctrines that were like the three levels of heaven.

So you have the celestial, the terrestrial, and the telestial. If you did everything that the Mormon church told you to do, well, you could get into the celestial kingdom. If you died without the law, but you were basically a good person, you would get into the terrestrial kingdom.

And then the telestial are those who are judged by their works, but they become the servants of those in the higher ranks of heaven. And then the lowest depths of hell were reserved for apostate Mormons.

So those who were at one point Mormons, but then they left the faith, the worst levels of hell were reserved for them. Of course, that's the way that Joseph Smith built his afterlife doctrine, because he wanted to make people afraid to leave Mormonism.

We're going to get you in, and then you're going to be terrified to leave. That was just kind of part of the manipulative game that he was playing. But it was passages like this, Joseph Smith would twist and create this new doctrine.

So again, in 1 Corinthians 15, 29, otherwise, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why then are they baptized for them? Now keep in mind, what is Paul proving here?

What is his argument in 1 Corinthians 15? He is arguing for the resurrection of the dead. Of course, there's been arguments for Christ's resurrection, but ultimately that we would even be raised with Christ.

So Jesus is the first fruits. He's the one who has died, who has rose from the dead, and then we who are in him, we also will be raised from the dead and receive glorified bodies as he did. So this is the argument that Paul is laying out, talking about proof, evidence for the resurrection of the dead.

So therefore, what is the argument that's being made in 29? What's Paul saying? Let's go back to verse 28, because we have that statement of otherwise, or that word otherwise that starts 29. So to keep things in context here, verse 28 again, when all things are subjected to him, then the son himself also will be subjected to the one who subjected all things to him, the father who gave all things to the son, so that God may be all in all.

Otherwise, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, OK, an important statement here in the middle of verse 29, because some of these Greeks do not believe in the resurrection of the dead.

They think that's foolish. That's ridiculous. And I've pointed back to Acts chapter 17 several times where Paul is preaching at the Areopagus there in the midst of the gods. And he says to the Greeks that are present there that the times of ignorance God is overlooked.

But now he's commanding all people everywhere to repent for God has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness. And he is shown by whom he is going to judge the world by raising him from the dead.

And as soon as Paul gets to that part, the Greeks are like, oh, the resurrection of the dead. That's impossible. It doesn't happen. There's no such thing, even though many Greeks believed in many gods, because that's who Paul was standing among, the idols that the Greeks had fashioned there and platformed at Mars Hill or the Areopagus.

Paul is standing there in the midst of these idols and testifying of the one true God and Jesus Christ, whom he has sent, who God in flesh died for us, rose again from the dead and will be the one who will judge the whole world in righteousness.

Paul is proclaiming this there in the midst of these idols, which are not real. Those gods don't even exist. He's proclaiming the one true God. So the Greeks, of course, believed in gods, but they did not believe in an afterlife.

You didn't die and then go live on Mount Olympus. I wanted to say Mount Vesuvius. That was the volcano. So you didn't die and then go live with Zeus and dine with him and all the other gods at Mount Olympus.

A Greek did not believe that they died and went to go dwell with the gods. They just died. That was just it. In fact, it was even more morbid than that. You might be floating along in the sea of the dead or something to that degree, but you did not have some sort of heaven or paradise to look forward to when you died, according to a Greek.

So the Greeks believed in gods. They were very spiritual as a people, but they did not believe in an afterlife. And they thought it was ridiculous to say that. So there were even people in the church in Corinth who didn't believe in the resurrection of the dead.

Now, Paul is moving here toward getting rid of those persons who believe such heresy. Either you need to come to believe in the resurrection of the dead or those who will not believe need to be removed from your midst.

Because we have that coming up here in this particular section where he talks about bad company corrupts good morals. If somebody does not believe in the resurrection of the dead, then they do not believe in a resurrection unto judgment, right?

Where we will all have to stand before God at the throne of judgment and give an account. Did you follow the Lord Jesus Christ or did you follow the passions of your flesh? If you followed Christ, enter into glory, the kingdom that has been prepared for you by my father from before the foundation of the world.

But if you followed after the passions of your flesh, then you will perish in that place prepared for the devil and his angels, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Eternal punishment, the way Jesus describes it in Matthew 25.

If a person doesn't believe in the resurrection of the dead, if there's not going to be a judgment, then it's a license to sin. Do whatever it is you want. There will be no eternal consequences for your actions.

Hence why Paul says, bad company, those who do not believe what you have been taught when the gospel was proclaimed to you, bad company corrupts good morals. You'll start to believe that, oh, yeah, maybe there is no resurrection of the dead.

Maybe this doesn't matter at all. I've got my little Christian club here. And ultimately, in the end, you know, hopefully I'm risen to an afterlife if there is one. But if not, we just become worm food.

No big deal. Hence why Paul also says, let us eat and drink for tomorrow we die. If there's no resurrection of the dead, live your best life now, because this really is the best life that you're going to get.

Whatever lot that you've been dealt, whatever whatever card you're playing, this is it. And then the lights go out and that's it. Even those who have gone before us in death, they have perished for no reason.

They were baptized in their lives. But why? I mean, what was the point of their baptism? We've been buried with Christ in our sins and risen again to new life. That's what baptism is supposed to testify to whenever we are baptized.

But they who believed before us and died, well, they've just gone into the ground. And now it was all for nothing. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.

Now, think back also to something that Paul said in verse six. So going back to the testimonies that Paul was given, those who had witnessed the resurrection of the dead, they witnessed Christ's resurrection from the grave.

They saw him dead. They saw him buried. He was raised on the third day. The scriptures testified to it. There were hundreds of witnesses. To whom did Jesus appear? There was Cephas and then to the twelve, verse five.

And then in verse six, after that, he appeared to more than 500 brothers at one time, most of whom remain until now. But some have fallen asleep. So there are those who are still alive who can testify to the fact that, yeah, I saw him alive in that 40 days between his resurrection from the dead and his ascension into heaven.

He really died. He really came back from the dead. He really had a different kind of body after that, a glorified body and will receive the same thing. Testifying to that, we who are in Christ will receive bodies that are incorruptible.

They do not decay, will never tire, will live forever with God. There will be no more death, no more disease, nothing else like that. These people had testified to those things. They were baptized before us.

They were preaching the gospel before we believed. So then, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? In other words, they're baptized because of the testimony that was spoken to them by people who have now died.

We have people who've come before us preaching the gospel. We've been baptized by their testimony. If the dead are not raised at all, those who have preceded us in death, if the dead are not raised at all, why then are they baptized for them?

Why are we continuing to get baptized? Because of this testimony that had been proclaimed to us, all of those who have gone before us proclaiming the gospel, it's because the gospel that was preached to us that we get baptized.

And did you know that as people are being added to the kingdom of God, this is for the sanctification of those who have preceded us in death? Even going back to the Old Testament saints, as members are being added to the kingdom of God, not only are we sanctified, but even those who went before us.

Hebrews 11 verse 39, all these, speaking of the heroes of the faith of the Old Testament, that's what we have the hall of faith there in Hebrews 11. So at the conclusion of that chapter, all of these having gained approval through their faith did not receive what was promised because God had provided something better for us so that apart from us, they would not be made perfect.

Again, the they that is being talked about there are those who have preceded us in death, those who believe and preceded us in death. As God is adding people to his kingdom, those who had testified before us are even being perfected in this.

The more members that get added to the kingdom, the more glorious the body of Christ becomes. And it is their testimony that continues to speak to us even in the present. You know, when we go out and we preach the gospel, we're proclaiming the same gospel that Paul proclaimed.

We're proclaiming the gospel that was written down by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. We proclaim those things that were written in the epistles. We are even testifying to those things that were prophesied by the prophets in the Old Testament before.

So we are continuing this work that began with people long before us. And as we are baptized, showing our unity with Christ, that we've been buried with Christ in our sins, we're risen with him to new life.

We are united with him in a death like his so that we will receive a resurrection like his. Because as this has become our testimony, they who testified before us are receiving an even greater measure of glory.

And as you invest yourself in sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ in your lifetime, when you die and you go be with Christ in glory, still waiting for the resurrection to happen, we're up there glorifying in the presence of Christ, but his return hasn't come.

And then our bodies resurrected. Okay. That was verses 24 to 26, where we had talked about that, that Christ is the first fruits. After that, those who are Christ at his coming, then comes the end, we'll be raised from the dead with Christ Jesus.

We'll live with him forever in glory. Our souls will go be with him, but we won't get our resurrected bodies until Christ return. And then everybody is perfected at the same time and will be with Christ forever in glory.

But as you die and you go be with Christ in glory, as you're there worshiping him, waiting for his return, we're waiting for his return down here. They're waiting for Christ's return in heaven as well.

But the testimony that we had shared while we were here on this earth, that had, you know, and it could have been, it could have been a small number that you were entrusted with. It could have been a great big number of people.

Were you entrusted with your children and you shared the gospel with them and they grew up to believe in Jesus Christ? Or did you have a larger audience, you know, a podcast like this, a John MacArthur ministry or something like that?

You know, none of you that are listening to me are probably as big as John MacArthur, but but anyway, you know, what kind of mission field did God put you in? What responsibilities were you given? Remember in the parable of the sower in Matthew chapter 13, how he says that some will reap a harvest that's 30 fold, some 60 and some a hundred.

So there are some that are going to have more responsibilities than others. But as you testified to the gospel, you die, you go be with Christ in glory, waiting for his second coming. The work that you did when you were alive continues to have that ripple effect.

Maybe you only raised your children to know Jesus Christ, but then who are they witnessing to? Who are they going out and bringing the gospel to? Because you brought the gospel to them. And then that brings perfection to those who have gone before us.

That statement there at the close of Hebrews chapter 11, as members of the kingdom are being added, those who have gone before us are being perfected so that even when you die and you go be with Christ, whatever work that you did down here is added to the glory that you receive in the in the glorious kingdom that we have been promised.

But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then that's all for nothing. We're not contributing to anything or anybody. Those who had suffered before us, those who had died, they don't even get anything.

And it was all for nothing. So what's really the point? Because consider where Paul goes after that. Verse 30. Why are we also in danger every hour? Why am I putting myself on the line for this? I affirm, brothers, by the boasting in you, which I have in Christ Jesus, our Lord, I die daily.

So there you have that reference to death again. Verse 29. What will those do who are baptized for the dead? Those who had died preaching the gospel. That's really what I think the context is there in verse 29, because Paul refers to himself as dying for the sake of the gospel.

So that's the reference to those dead in verse 29. If you have a study Bible, a common note that you might see there on verse 29 explains it this way, that the Corinthians were practicing some sort of ritualistic baptism for the dead, which they weren't supposed to be doing because that wasn't taught to them to do that.

But they were doing it anyway. And Paul is saying you're logically inconsistent because you're being baptized for the dead. What's the point of doing that if the dead are not raised? But I really don't think that's what Paul is confronting here, or he would have said something about that, about that practice.

Y 'all need to stop because that's not what we taught you about baptism. And we don't see that kind of rebuke going on here. Instead, what Paul is referring to is those who had died preaching the gospel, those who have gone before us proclaiming those things, because he associates himself with them as dying daily for their sake to preach Christ and him crucified and resurrected.

The Cost of Preaching Christ and the Folly of Denying Resurrection

Verse 32, if from human motives, I fought with wild beasts at Ephesus, and we don't know exactly what that reference is, but it's probably in reference to the riot that we read about in Paul's time there in Ephesus, the people that wanted to kill him, that were rising up and saying, great is Artemis of the Ephesians.

He refers to them as being like wild beasts. And he had to be ushered out of Ephesus and never made a return there again. So if for human motives, I fought with wild beasts at Ephesus, what does it profit me?

If the dead are not raised, let us eat and drink for tomorrow we die. And God willing, that's where we're going to pick up tomorrow. If we do not die, we will, we'll continue and finish up this particular section of First Corinthians chapter 15.

But I hope as we've been going through this together, you see the importance of this beautiful doctrine, that you have assurance of resurrection from the dead, that we have by faith in Jesus Christ. And you also see the importance of sharing this message with others, that they may also receive this resurrection rescued out of this world, which is coming into judgment and receiving an inheritance with those who will be gathered together in glory.

We also remember those who have gone before us. We're not the first generation to have received the gospel, and we may proclaim this to the next generation and receive an even greater weight of glory.

Heavenly Father, we thank you for bringing us into your kingdom, bringing us somebody who would share the gospel with us, convicting our hearts of sin, bringing us to faith in Christ, giving us an inheritance in our savior, something eternal that is stored up in heaven above where nobody can take it from us.

We know that Christ is on our side, so what can man do to us? May we not have fear in these days, but continue to proclaim the gospel of Christ to a wicked and crooked generation so that many others will be saved out of this world and have the promise of eternity, the resurrection of the dead in Christ our Lord.

Help us to live that resurrection life even in the present. We've been raised from death to life, so we walk in newness of life, the righteousness that has been granted to us by our savior. It's in his precious name that we pray, amen.

Thank you for listening to When We Understand the Text with Pastor Gabe Hughes. If you'd like to support this ministry, visit our website www .wutt .com and click on the Give tab in the top right corner of the page.

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