Alan Lewis
Elon, North Carolina
November 2024
Otherwise, what do people mean by being baptized on behalf of the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized on their behalf? 30 Why are we in danger every hour? 31 I protest, brothers, by my pride in you, which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die every day!
32 What do I gain if, humanly speaking, I fought with beasts at Ephesus? If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.” 33 Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.” 34 Wake up from your drunken stupor, as is right, and do not go on sinning. For some have no knowledge of God. I say this to your shame.
Today, we come to one of the most difficult verses in I Corinthians. Paul says. It is one of the hardest verses in the Bible. No one knows exactly what it means. It is found in I Corinthians 15:29.
“Now if there is no resurrection, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized for them?” (I Corinthians 15:29 NIV)
How do we deal with the difficult passages of the Bible. This is not the only one.
Three Important Truths
1) Most of the Bible is clear
The Bible was written to be understood. It was given to reveal things, not hide them. The Bible is not a code that has to be deciphered. It was written to be understood.
A child can understand it. You do need the Holy Spirit to understand it. The Holy Spirit wrote it but if you are saved, you have the Holy Spirit and can understand the Bible.
2) Some verses are not clear
Thijs is something that we need to acknowledge. Beware of preachers who give dogmatic answers on everything. Some things are clear, and some things are not clear.
This verse is not clear. Paul knew what he meant. The Corinthians knew what he meant but we don’t. Christians don’t agree on what this means. There are forty interpretations. There are no parallel verses on the passage.
We should not feel too bad about this. We live two thousand years after Paul and don’t understand everything he said. Some people who lived in Paul’s day didn’t understand him. Some of the apostles didn’t. Notice what Peter said.
Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters.
His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction.” (II Peter 3:15-16 NIV)
They had different ministries. Peter was the apostle to the Jews. Paul was the apostle to the Gentiles, but he wasn’t jealous of Paul. He called him “our beloved Paul.”
He loved him. He respected him but he did not always understand him. Paul was deep. He was a theologian. Peter was a simple fisherman.
Peter said that some of Paul’s writings are hard to understand. He also said that many people misinterpret Paul. They misread what he says. They take him out of context.
Sometimes they do it deliberately. That happened two thousand years ago and still happens today. Many cults build major doctrines over one obscure passage of Paul that is hard to understand.
A Puzzling VerseThere are many interpretations of I Corinthians 15:29. Some are farfetched. What are some of them? Some say it means, “What shall they gain who are baptized to bring salvation to the dead?” That is the Mormon interpretation. Some say it means, “What shall they gain who are baptized because of the testimony of the dead?” Many come to faith and get baptized, because of the testimony of believers who died. Some say it means, “What shall they gain who are baptized to see the dead?” Some nonbelievers come to faith and get baptized, in order to one day to reunite with saved loved ones who passed on. Some say it means, “What shall they gain who are baptized to replace the dead?” One day, we will be gone, and someone will take our place in the church. Baptism replaces believers who have passed away and puts new believers into the church. Some say it means, “What shall they gain who delay baptism until the end of their life.” If baptism wipes away sins, why not want to wait until you are on your deathbed to get baptized. That would not be baptism for the dead but for the dying. Some say it means, “What shall they gain who are baptized over the dead?” Luther believed it was talking about being baptized in a cemetery, perhaps over the graves of the martyrs. There is no historical evidence to my knowledge that this ever took place. Some say it means, “What shall they gain who are martyred for their faith?” This would not refer to baptism at all but martyrdom. Baptism is a metaphor for martyrdom (Mark 10:38; Luke 12:50). |
3) We should have some answers
When unbelievers have questions about the Bible or about our faith, we should have some answers. Even on difficult passages, we can have some answers.
But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. ALWAYS be prepared to give an answer to EVERYONE who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect (I Peter 3:15 NIV).
Some have been in church for forty years and still do not have any answers. Peter says that we should be prepared when people ask us questions and we should have answers for them.
We should have answers to those trapped in sin. We should have answers to those who believe false doctrines. We should have answers to those who are deceived by false religions. We should have answers to those who are in a cult.
Origin of the Mormon Practice
The one group that claims to be experts on baptism for the dead today are Mormons. They practice it. They love I Corinthians 15. If you talk to a Mormon missionary, they will bring it up.
This practice began when Joseph Smith’s brother died at the age of 23. His name was Alvin Smith. He died in 1823.
After he died, preachers said that he went to Hell because he was not a church member. He was never baptized, so his brother, Joseph Smith, came up with the doctrine of baptism for the dead.
Mormons believe that, if someone dies without being baptized, that person can still get saved by proxy baptism. The living can be baptized for the dead, but the dead still have to accept it in the next life for it to work.
It is a strange practice. No branch of the Christian church throughout church history practiced this. Paul does not say that he did it.
In fact, Paul says, “Now if there is no resurrection, what will THOSE do who are baptized for the dead?” He does not say, “What will WE do who are baptized for the dead” or “What will YOU do who are baptized for the dead.”
Is Mormonism Christian?
This is something that has only been done by cults and heretics. The Mormons are the only ones today who practice it. Mormons are not just another denomination. They are a whole different religion.
They claim to be Christian. They claim to be in the Church of Jesus Christ They call themselves “latter-day saints,” but they are not Christian at all.
They have a different God, a different Jesus, different way of salvation and use a different Bible. It is a bizarre religion. They believe in millions of gods. They do not worship all of these gods, but they believe they exist.
Brigham Young, who was the second president of the LDS church said, “How many Gods there are, I do not know. But there never was a time when there were not Gods and worlds, and when men were not passing through the same ordeals that we are now passing through.”[1]
They believe that God the Father was once a man. Brigham Young said, “He was once a man like us; . . . God himself, the Father of us all, dwelt on an earth, the same as Jesus Christ himself did”[2]
Mormons teach that God has a physical body. They teach that He has a body of “flesh and bone.”[3] That comes right out of one of the so-called inspired books. The Bible says that God is a spirit. Jesus said that (John 4:24).
They teach that a heavenly father and mother had relations in heaven, and it produced Jesus. They believe that Jesus was the firstborn of the spirit children that God created. They believe that Satan was created second.
They teach that Jesus and Satan are brothers. They teach that Jesus is not eternal. He had a beginning. They teach that Jesus became a god through his resurrection and glorification.
They not only teach that Jesus became a god; they teach that we can become God. They teach that we all have “seeds of divinity” in us. We have “divine potential.”[4] We can become divine, according to Mormon theology.
One of their publications says, “We can become Gods like our Heavenly Father. This is exaltation. If we prove faithful and obedient to all the commandments of the Lord, we will live in the highest degree of the celestial kingdom of heaven. We will become exalted, just like our Heavenly Father.”[5]
Brigham Young said that “the Lord created you and me for the purpose of becoming Gods like himself.” We were created “to become Gods like unto our Father in heaven.”[6]
Refuting the Modern Mormon Practice
What can we say about this Mormon practice? Mormons make three assumptions that are wrong.
1) They assume that you have to be baptized to be saved.
These people died without being baptized, so you have to do it for the person in order to be saved. The problem is that baptism is not essential for salvation.
We know that from the Gospel of John. The purpose of the gospel is to tell how you can have eternal life. The emphasis is on faith in passage after passage with not a word said about baptism.
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16 NIV)
18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. (John 3:18 NIV)
The whole practice is based on a false premise. Baptism is important. It is a command. If you are not baptized, you are disobedient to a clear command of Scripture, but baptism is not what saves you.
Baptism is just an outward symbol of an inward faith. If you have the outward symbol but no faith, it is completely meaningless. Just getting baptized is not going to get you saved and just getting baptized for somebody else is not going to get them saved.[7]
Baptism is an outward demonstration and a public declaration of faith in Christ. It is not a public declaration of someone else’s faith but your own. You cannot believe for someone else. You can’t be baptized for someone else.
You don’t have to be baptized to go to heaven. If that is the case, then the thief on the cross did not go to heaven, because the poor man was never baptized.
If that is the case, a person who accepts Christ as Savior on an airplane before it crashes, would not go to heaven.
2) They assume that there is a second chance after death.
This is completely contradicted by Scripture. There is no second chance after death.
The Bible teaches that now is the day of salvation (II Corinthians 6:2). The day of salvation is NOW, not after death. It says that “it is appointed unto man once to die and after this THE JUDGMENT” (Hebrews 9:27), not “after this is the second chance.”
We also have the account in Luke 16 of the rich man who went to Hades. If people who suffer in the next life are given a second chance, that would have been the perfect time to say so. The rich man wanted a second chance, but he was not given one.
3) They assume that this is a command for Christians to do
There is no command for Christians to baptize for the dead. This is not a command. Paul does not tell us to do that and neither does any other NT writer.
If it is that important, we would have a command or we would have an example. There are no examples in the NT of Christians being baptized for others. There is no example in the NT of any church doing this.
Paul’s Argument
I Corinthians 15 is all about the resurrection. That is what the chapter is about. It is the great resurrection chapter of the Bible. It is one long chapter in the Bible about resurrection. It is almost sixty verses long.
Paul is NOT dealing in the context with a second chance after death. He is NOT dealing in the context with those who died and never heard the gospel. He is dealing in the context with the resurrection of the body.
He is refuting doctrinal error in this chapter. He is refuting those who deny the doctrine of the resurrection of the body.
He is answering those who say there is no resurrection (I Corinthians 15:12). Paul is showing what would happen if there is no resurrection.
If there is no resurrection, our preaching is foolish. There is no point in doing evangelism.
If there is no resurrection, then Christianity is a complete lie. It is a false religion.
If there is no resurrection, then there is no point in conversion. There is no point in getting baptized. Baptism is the foolish if the dead do not rise.
If there is no resurrection from the dead, why should you undergo a bunch of meaningless religious rituals? Why even go to church?
Baptism should make us think of resurrection. Baptism is a picture of death, burial and resurrection. It is a ritual enactment of the transition from death to life.
Every baptism is connected to resurrection. The fourth century church father, John Chrysostom, said that before Christians got baptized in the early church, they said, “I believe in the resurrection.”[8] It is part of the Apostles Creed.
Baptism makes no sense if there is no resurrection. If there is no resurrection, there is no reason to get baptized. It would be stupid to be baptized for dead bodies, as Chrysostom points out. He is absolutely right.
If Jesus is dead, there is no point in getting baptized in the name of a dead savior. That is baptism for the dead. Paul makes another point in these verses.
31 I face death every day—yes, just as surely as I boast about you in Christ Jesus our Lord. 32 If I fought wild beasts in Ephesus with no more than human hopes, what have I gained (I Corinthians 15:31-32 NIV)
Paul faced persecution. People tried to kill him. He risked his life for the gospel and was eventually martyred. We don’t face this kind of persecution in our country. Now not everyone will be martyred. But we will all experience persecution.
Paul said, “EVERYONE who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus WILL BE PERSECUTED” (II Timothy 3:12 NIV). Paul was persecuted. He died a martyr.
Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they Abraham’s descendants? So am I. 23 Are they servants of Christ? (I am out of my mind to talk like this.) I am more. I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again.
24 Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, 26 I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers.
27 I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. 28 Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. (II Corinthians 11:22-28)
That was early in his career. What is the point if there is no resurrection? We saw last time that the resurrection of the body is true.
It is a clear biblical doctrine and there is historical evidence that Jesus rose from the dead. We will live again. You are not wasting your life if you die because you refuse to compromise your faith.
Jesus said, “Whoever loses their life for me will find it.” (Matthew 16:25 NIV). He said, “Whoever loses his life will keep it.” (Luke 17:33 NIV)
Lastly, Paul says, if there is no resurrection, then there is no point in godly living. If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.”
If there is no resurrection and this life is all there is, then hedonism is the answer. We should live for today. That is the philosophy of the atheist. They have nothing else to look forward to. This life is all there is.
Four Exhortations
Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.” Wake up from your drunken stupor, as is right, and do not go on sinning. For some have no knowledge of God. I say this to your shame. (I Corinthians 15:34-35 ESV)
Paul closes these verses with some very strong words to the church. He shames believers. Can you imagine Paul doing this today? Can you imagine him walking into a local church and shaming them for their beliefs or practices? What are his four exhortations for us today?
1) Don’t be deceived
That is still relevant today. How many Christians today are deceived? There are all kinds of teaching out there and many Christians are being deceived. They are blown about by every wind of doctrine. They do not know sound doctrine from unsound doctrine. The solution is to know the Word.
2) Wake Up
Many Christians need to wake up. There are Rip Van Winkle Christians in many churches and they are asleep. Even the leaders are asleep. The elders are asleep. The pastors are asleep. The deacons are asleep.
You can be genuinely saved and spiritually asleep. Sleepy Christians have no fire or passion. They have no zeal. They do not know what is going on in the world. They do not know what is going on in the spiritual realm.
5 For you are all children 2 of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness. 6 So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober. 7 For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, are drunk at night. 8 But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. (I Thessalonians 5:5-8 ESV)
3) Watch your Company
Why is that necessary? Paul says, “Bad company ruins good morals.” That is a quote. Where did it come from? Who said it? This is interesting.
He is not quoting Bible. He is not quoting the OT. He is quoting a non-inspired book. He is quoting secular literature. He is quoting an unbeliever, a pagan unbeliever.
What does that tell you? Paul was familiar with pagan poets. He read secular literature. Menander was a Greek poet who lived three hundred years before Paul. He used some quotes from pagans.
Everything an unbeliever says is not wrong. You may be taught mathematics from an unbeliever. Some things unbelievers say line up with what Scripture says.
Evil company does ruin good morals. That is why kids should not hang out with the wrong crowd. They will be affected by them. One of the most important decision kids make is who their friends will be. The Book of Proverbs says over and over again to avoid bad company.
Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm. (Proverbs 13:20 NIV)
Stay away from a fool, for you will not find knowledge on their lips. (Proverbs 14:7 NIV)
Proverbs says to stay away from a prostitute. Keep to a path far from her, do not go near the door of her house (Proverbs 5:8 NIV),
It says to stay away from an angry person. Do not make friends with a hot-tempered person, do not associate with one easily angered, 25 or you may learn their ways and get yourself ensnared. (Proverbs 22:24-25 NIV)
It is also true that if we follow false teachers, we will also be affected by them. False teaching always leads to false teaching. If you teach there is no resurrection, it will affect how you live your life.
4) Stop Sinning
What Paul said to the Corinthians applies to us as well. Some of the Corinthians led immoral lives. They went to church but were visiting prostitutes and getting drunk. Paul doesn’t say, “That’s okay. Jesus loves you. You are going to heaven anyway.”
He tells them the same thing that Jesus said. Jesus told the adulteress woman, “Go and sin no more.” Paul told the Corinthians to stop sinning. He would say the same thing to Christians today.
[1] https://rsc.byu.edu/lectures-faith-historical-perspective/discussion-lectures-3-4#:~:text=President%20Brigham%20Young%20spoke%20to,we%20are%20now%20passing%20through.
[2] https://www.mrm.org/gospel-principles, citing Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, sel. Joseph Fielding Smith [1976], 345-46.
[3] Doctrines and Covenants, 130:2.
[4] https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-topics-essays/becoming-like-god?lang=eng
[5] https://www.mrm.org/gospel-principles.
[6] Ron Rhodes, pp. 80-81, citing Brigham Young, Journal of Discourses (London: Latter-day Saint’s Book Depot, 1854-56), 3:93.
[7] Jerry Vines, “Death of Death” (sermon).
[8] https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/220140.htm
