19 After being made alive, he went and made proclamation to the imprisoned spirits—20 to those who were disobedient long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water. ~ 1 Peter 3:19-20
Today, we continue our study of 1 Peter 3. This passage is one of the most difficult passages in all of the Bible to interpret and to understand. However, the difficulty understanding it is quite instructive, much like our pain and suffering. Most often, it is in hindsight that we make the most sense of our suffering and pain. If it weren’t for the experience of separation, we would not appreciate the joy of love. Such is it's nature.
In v.19 of today's passage we read, "After being made alive, he went and made proclamation to the imprisoned spirits."
When the Lord Jesus died on the cross, He experienced spiritual death which is separation from God. Then He was made alive through His resurrection. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the cornerstone of the Christian faith. In Psalm 91:16 we read, "With a long life I will satisfy him and let him see My salvation." This verse is one of many in the Old Testament which told us beforehand that the Messiah would overcome sin and death by dying and rising from the dead. In Psalm 16:10 we read, "For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol; Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay." This is yet another verse from the Old Testament attesting to the fact that the Messiah would overcome death by raising from the dead. This is the reason that David pictured the Messiah alive in Psalm 22:29 which reads, "That all of God’s people will also undergo a resurrection, all those who go down to the dust will bow before Him, even he who cannot keep his soul alive."
When the Lord Jesus died on the cross, He experienced spiritual death which is separation from God. Then He was made alive through His resurrection. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the cornerstone of the Christian faith. In Psalm 91:16 we read, "With a long life I will satisfy him and let him see My salvation." This verse is one of many in the Old Testament which told us beforehand that the Messiah would overcome sin and death by dying and rising from the dead. In Psalm 16:10 we read, "For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol; Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay." This is yet another verse from the Old Testament attesting to the fact that the Messiah would overcome death by raising from the dead. This is the reason that David pictured the Messiah alive in Psalm 22:29 which reads, "That all of God’s people will also undergo a resurrection, all those who go down to the dust will bow before Him, even he who cannot keep his soul alive."
This event, which occurred almost two thousand years ago, is the best attested fact in human history and experience. During the forty days following His resurrection, the Lord Jesus showed Himself to be alive from the dead by "many infallible proofs." He appeared at various times and places to many people who told others what they had seen. According to 1 Corinthians 15:6 the Lord Jesus was seen at one time by more than 500 people. It would have been easy to dispel the resurrection as a hoax but with so many seeing Him alive after His resurrection, at the same time, it was impossible to do so.
The next phrase in v.19 is one of the most difficult verses to figure out. It reads, "...he went and made proclamation to the imprisoned spirits."
This means that after His resurrection, the Lord Jesus' living spirit, apart from His body, which lay in the tomb, went to Hell to announce His victory over sin and death to the "imprisoned spirits." When the Lord Jesus died on the cross, for sure there was a victory party in the realm of evil. The Apostle Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 2, "None of the rulers of this age understood it; for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory." The forces of evil thought they were overcoming God that day but they were deathly wrong.
In v.20 of today's passage we read, "...to those who were disobedient long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water."
In v.20 of today's passage we read, "...to those who were disobedient long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water."
Since the beginning of time, when Lucifer fell, he has been at war with the purposes of God. And, throughout time he has tried to destroy the redemption of man. He tried to destroy the Lord Jesus through the religious leaders of Israel. And, as is indicated in this verse, the Lord Jesus' proclamation was to those who chose not the free gift of God, but the lies of the enemy during the days of Noah. Why He did that, we are not sure. But, one thing that we are for sure about is that He overcame sin and death by raising from the dead.
Peter, in these two verses, has pulled back the curtain to enable us to see that when we resist the lies of Satan and receive God's will, we are choosing a spot, at that moment, on the winning team. Most often we miss the beauty of suffering because we don’t know that we actually are loved by God. We miss the absolute beauty of suffering because we don’t feel safe. It is in our ignorance that we suffer more than we ought. There were only eight who chose to get on Noah's ark. Only eight who chose rightly, only eight out of so many. It is our ignorance that cripples us. Oh, but when we choose wisely, the lid will be popped off for us for eternity and we will enjoy the fruits of Christ's suffering exponentially.
