…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, and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God.
Summary: Peter uses the analogy of Noah’s ark to describe baptism. Baptism is an appeal to God for a clear conscience. Looking deeper, we see it is also an analogy of our Christian life here on earth.
Normally, I would dissect a passage like this into about fifteen parts. However, Peter is doing something rather incredible here. His mind is racing so fast that he is tying the Old and New Testaments together in a single tapestry right before our eyes.
Yesterday’s passage was about “imprisoned spirits.” If you dig into some of the writings about that passage you will find that people have a multitude of ideas about what it means. Generally, each approach to the verse draws on the context of the rest of Peter’s letter in different ways. Today’s verse provides context for yesterday’s from a certain point of view but it also stands alone. Peter, under the Holy Spirit’s guidance, has woven many layers of meaning together in very few words.
Looking at this passage we see the following:
- God waiting patiently.
- Noah building the arc.
- Noah’s family being saved from the flood.
- The flood waters symbolize baptism.
- Baptism saves you – not by cleaning you, but by “the pledge of a clear conscience toward God.”
- (In fairness we need to be mindful of the next sentence, that we are saved by the resurrection of Jesus Christ!)
This phrase, “the pledge of a clear conscience toward God” is a little awkward to my ear. What does “the pledge of a clear conscience” mean? Looking at the original Greek and other translations, the Revised Standard Version (RSV) offers wording that makes more sense to me. It says, “but as an appeal to God for a clear conscience.”
Isn’t that what we hunger for most when we come to Jesus? Freedom from the shackles and chains of our sin, our guilty conscience? Yes, we want eternal life, but intuitively we know that freedom from sin is a prerequisite for life with God. So we appeal to God for forgiveness. Saving Noah and his family from the Flood of God’s wrath symbolize Jesus saving us from God’s wrath. (See Genesis 6-8 for the story of Noah and the ark.)
Would you mind if I read a little bit more into Peter’s analogy?
- Noah listened to God when he warned of the coming flood.
- He obeyed God when he built the ark.
- He humbled himself, choosing the ark rather than the world.
- He trusted God during the long season of rain, flood, and regeneration.
- He waited on the Lord to open the ark.
- He thanked God when he stood in a new world.
Are there similarities here with our own journey of faith? I think there are. We enter an ark of faith in Jesus when we become Christians. We trust God while we live out the rest of our lives in the ark. We wait on the Lord to open the ark of faith and welcome us into the New World.
Application: Consider what it was like for Noah to be in the ark for an entire year. How does that compare to our wait to see Jesus in Heaven?
Food for Thought: What do you think removal of dirt from the body represents in Peter’s analogy?
Three minutes
If it’s not the actual dirt from the earth God created then it has got to be the sin in our life that needs to be removed,..that only comes through confession and repentance,..
The blood of Jesus is the only cleansing agent we need and it is not for sale,..you can’t find it in any ingredients of the cleaning products on the shelf at the supermarket to purchase,..because it has already been purchased,..
There is beauty in being saved,..the blood of Jesus is no mascara,..it is the cleansing agent everyone needs to be clean from sin and death…and that brings out the beauty in all that have accepted Christ and His work at the cross,..
John,
I like the phrase, “the blood of Jesus is no mascara.” It is not about the outside, it cleans us from the inside. Well said!
Well said John. I concur.
In the physical act of baptism we have removal of dirt from the body. Peter is clarifying that he does not mean that. The removal of dirt from the body does not save you and is rather unimportant. However, faith in the victoriously resurrected Jesus who died for our sin does save you. Baptism points to His work and our salvation through faith in Him based on that work. Peter’s clarification reminds us of what is most important.
Nicely said, Rich!
To me the term “washed in the blood of the Lamb” refers to being washed by virtue of the blood of Jesus. Washed clean by our accepting His sacrifice for our sins.
Jesus gave His life for the sins of all mankind. When I accepted His sacrifice, repented, and turned from my sins, all were forgiven. I became a believer, free from all sins which were washed away. It was an experience where I actually felt I was walking several feet off the ground for a period of time. The heavy burden of my sins had been removed. I had stopped resisting the conviction of the Holy Spirit for my unforgiven sins. This was a one time event with eternal reward. My battle with God was over, I had been born again, a new creation, acceptable to God.
However, I remained in the world and at some point the powers of this world begin to draw me back into this world. My old familiar ways began to seek power over my life again. This is called the power of our flesh which is strong. My battle with God had become a battle with my flesh. God had known this would happen and has given me His power of the Holy Spirit who joins with my spirit and consistently defeats the powers of my old flesh. This “dirt” must be removed from my body by a lifetime of washing, regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit. I must seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness in all I do. Allow him to cleanse me and seek to live in His Holy Spirit FULL TIME.
I fail everyday, but I will not lose sight of my goal, I will not return to my old ways.
John 7:37-38, If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, streams of living water will flow from within him.
“That living water is the Holy Spirit.”
Titus 3:5, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit,
Psalm 51:2, Mark 7:14-15, Acts 22:16
Ron,
Great verses! (I have added a link for those last three.) I appreciate you sharing your experience with the flesh pulling at you. It is an encouragement to the rest of us who struggle with the same thing. We are not freaks. This is normal. We are being transformed, and it is not an instant process.