Paul
the apostle told the church members in Corinth, “when
all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself
be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be
all in all”,
and in
chapter fifteen and verse twenty-nine of First Corinthians, Paul
asked the Corinthian church members,“what
shall they do which are baptized for the dead”,
where we read:
Else
what shall they do which are baptized for the dead,
if
the dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the dead?
The
verse begins, “Else
what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, ...”
Paul began
with the words, “Else” or
“when, since, after, of cause, since, seeing that and because”
“what shall they do”
which means “what shall they make, produce, construct, form or
fashion” “which are baptized”
or “that are immersed or submerged” “for
the dead”
or “on behalf and for the sake of those who have breathed their
last, were lifeless, deceased, destitute of life and inanimate”.
Paul questioned why the people would practice “baptism” for
people who “died” since Jesus shall subdue “all
things”,
make Himself “subject”
to God the Father so “God may be all
in all”.
The
verse continues, “...if
the dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the dead?”
Paul added
the words, “if the dead” which
means “whether those who have breathed their last, were lifeless,
deceased, destitute of life and inanimate” “rise
not” which
means “do not arouse from the sleep of death or to recall the dead
to life” “at all”
which means “wholly or altogether”? There would be no reason to
“baptize”
people who had “died”
if there was no resurrection.
When
we consider these words from Paul, we see how he reasoned the
uselessness of “baptism” for people who had “died”
if there was no “resurrection”. There would be no point, for
those people would be beyond the benefits of “baptism”.
Jesus Christ desires to reach all people with the gospel while they
are living, and when they receive Him as “Savior and Lord”, they
are promised “eternal life”. Those who “die” while
having “faith” in Jesus Christ are promised to be “raised from
the dead”, and those who are reading these words should consider
the great promise of the “resurrection”.
Next
time Paul asks
the church members why he is,
“in
jeopardy every hour”,
so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until tomorrow…there is more…
Look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, and the new devotional “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
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