"Christ ... preached unto the spirits in prison"

Our chapter for this Sunday, 1 Peter 3, has some controversial sections ... including this one:

Because Christ also suffered for sins once, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God; being put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; in which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison, that aforetime were disobedient, when the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing. (v. 18-20)

Conservative Bible students have generally taken one of two views on this:

(1) Between His death and resurrection, Jesus in spirit went to Hades (the holding place of the wicked dead) and preached to the spirits there. This "preaching" was not an evangelistic message offering a second chance at salvation, but a proclamation of Christ's victory. (Some believe Ephesians 4:8-9 refer to the same thing.)

(2) Back in the time of Noah, Christ (in the person of the Holy Spirit and through the preaching of Noah -- see 2 Peter 2:5) preached to the ungodly of that day, who rejected the message of coming judgment and as a result are now spirits in prison.

Sunday Afternoon Blessings

The ladies gathered for a baby shower for Julie and Andrea during lunch Sunday.

The men took the occasion for some profitable discussions about debt, employment, and other lifestyle issues.

Pray for our moms and new babies as the due dates approach!

The Neglected Mission Field

Craig recommends this excellent article by Scott Brown:

I believe that we are involved in the greatest evangelistic opportunity before the church today. I am talking about the salvation of millions of children under the evangelistic and discipleship ministry of fathers and mothers in the home. This is not the only mission field, but it is perhaps the most neglected mission field before the church in our day.

The Bible calls fathers to preach the gospel to their children every day, when they “sit in their house, when they walk by the way, when they lie down and when they rise up” (Deuteronomy 6:7). This kind of instruction gives children a true understanding of the gospel.

Click here to read rest of article.

Pray for New Church in Guerrero

From Daniel White:

For the past several months, Roberto Garza and I have been having home Bible studies in the city of Guerrero, Coahuila, Mexico. Five souls have called upon the Lord for salvation since we started the Bible studies, and the people are faithfully attending the services. It was becoming a little inconvenient to continue meeting in homes, so Roberto began looking for place to rent for a church. He found a nice building that was already set up to be a church building and the owner is allowing us to use the building free of charge! This past Sunday we held our first services in the building and had a good turn out. Please pray as we establish this new work.