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NASB | 1 Peter 4:6 For the gospel has for this purpose been preached even to those who are dead, that though they are judged in the flesh as men, they may live in the spirit according to the will of God. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | 1 Peter 4:6 For this is why the good news [of salvation] was preached [in their lifetimes] even to those who are dead, that though they were judged in the flesh as men are, they may live in the spirit according to [the will and purpose of] God. |
Subject: Those who died before Jesus' death |
Bible Note: Hi, Tim Moran! "playing "god?" You are correct in stating that "Scripture tells us exactly how someone is saved, by faith in Christ." This is an excellent point... yet the manner in which we are saved is totally under God's control--The Holy Scripture does not offer a total revelation on all issues of Salvation and of the world to come... there are insinuations, there are visionary depictions, there are prophecies... none complete! This is why some people have a problem with Jesus stating to the thief that on that very day in which they were to die He would take him to Paradise... we are creatures of habit and of corporial existence... too many times we seek to reason with human intellect in order to understand God's Design--it just can't be done! It is a matter of Faith! If Jesus tells me that He will be put to death, burried, and resurrected... I believe! If Jesus tells me that on that day that He is put to death He will rescue someone and give him passage to Paradise... I do not reason with my intellect about the permeability or imposibility faced by Jesus; Jesus is God and, to God. all things are possible... so I believe tha He can accomplish that which He promised without invalidating His previous commitment to Scripture! Here's where part of the problem lies... when you state that Scripture and only Scripture has the Truth, don't you reject Jesus' own words that the Paraclete would come and bring the fulness of Truth? (John 16:12-13); it is He, the Holy Spirit, who revealed to holy men of God what they were to write for Israel and the generations to come (2 Peter 1:20-21; Romans 15:4); but Scripture never intended to limit God nor did anything written claim to have offered the full revelation of God in all matters of Faith and Worship... we find testimony, Scripture's, that tells us that in the in the last days God's Holy Spirit will descend upon us and both young and old will experience visions and dreams and will prophesy! (Acts 2:17-18) Further, if we limit God to your statement that "Scripture tells us exactly how someone is saved, by faith in Christ. God Himself has revealed that explicitly to us in His Word," aren't we condemning all those who, at their death, due to insufficient chronological development (infants-children) or through some mental impairment which impedes their intellectual development, cannot receive the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the news about God's Mercy and Gift of Eternal Life? This is where Faith comes into play! It is not enough to believe that we know how to interprete Scripture if our interpretation of Scripture limits God's Mercy, Power, and Salvific Plan! There are no boundaries that God cannot overcome! Again, the Holy Scripture does not contain the fullness of God! It is God who chooses who and how we are saved... the Holy Scripture guide us to God's fullness but it does not replace God! (1 Corinthians 13:9-12; 1 John 3:2; John 16:12-13) "It is preciously because we add to, ignore, or go beyond Scripture that we have so many differences between Christians." My argument keeps: "deliverate and systematic selective adherence to Scripture," is what causes the schisms in the Body of Christ! When we zealously hold fast to one/some Scriptural passages while denying or rejecting the rest of the Bible (see Jehovah Witnesses, Mormons, Muslims, the Jews, the fantastic twisting of Matthew 16:18-19; the distortion of Jesus' statement: "Father is greater than I"...) we construct walls and barriers that are detrimental to our Spiritual wellbeing; yet instead of seeking to unite we continue, in strict adherance to our personal belief, to feed the ambers which promote further schisms in the Body of Christ! True, there are those who seek to add/substract from Scripture--to them the rest of the Bible is applied... not in vain did Jesus say that it is the Word that will judge those who do not believe! (John 12:48) "We cannot take narrative passages and turn them into imperatives." So are you saying that because Scripture speaks of Melchizedek in the form of a narrative--Melchizedek is not relevant to God's Plan? Or is Paul just being ostentatious when he reveals that the rock that gave Israel water was Jesus? (I mean, there's no command nor any prior revelation, in Scripture, that Jesus is that Rock!) Clearly, this particular revelation (1 Corinthians 10:4) demonstrates that the fullness of God had not been totally revealed... that the Holy Spirit sent by the Father and the Son, assist's Christ's Body by teaching, instructing and guiding Body of Christ. God Bless! Angel |