“The Supremacy Of Christ Jesus!”

“The Supremacy Of Christ Jesus!”(I Pt.3:18-22).
A prelate visited a prison. He asked each inmate to know the reason for his imprisonment. All except one person replied, “They accused me for…, but I’m innocent.” The one exception said, “I’m here because I stole…”
The prelate told the prison authorities, “Release this criminal so that he should not contaminate these good citizens.” It is scare in such an interview to find such a prison inmate who will not add a lie to the crime for which he is incarcerated.
Writing within a context of suffering for doing good, Peter further states, “It is better, if it is God’s will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil…” The irony of this is that on a daily basis for many years now, there are thousands of people suffering for what they do not know, and their suffering is not in God’s will! Their suffering is in man’s will! Examples are not limited to people who arr framed up and imprisoned, but also people who put in their best in work but inconsiderate employers withhold their wages for months. What a world!
Peter gives the Lord Jesus Christ as an example of suffering for the sake of us.
“Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit, through whom also he went and preached to the spirits in prison who disobeyed long ago 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 good conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand – with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him.”
Few points to note:
During the long time in which it took Noah to build the ark God was waiting patiently, hoping that many people will turn their back on evil deeds, but only eight people were saved. Even so, we are told that Noah was a righteous man, but we have not been told that the others were righteous.
That notwithstanding, like we said on Monday, Peter considers that the flood water was a precursor to the baptism which saves us as “the pledge of a good conscience toward God.”
Baptism saves us through our belief in the resurrection and the acknowledgement that Christ is at God’s right hand “with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him.”
It is stupidity at its utmost for anyone to believe that there is any authority or power – be it spiritual or physical – that outranks the Supremacy of Christ the exalted Lord! On the contrary, they are all in submission to him.
May the dead of the One who suffered for doing good remind us that it was for our sake that he suffered so that we can be reconciled to the LORD. May this reminder teach us to do good and be good; even if we suffer for doing good so long as it is in God’s will.
Prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, thank you for being our anchor in a large ocean. Amen!
Have a blessed day! Peace be with you!
Prayer point: Pray that believers should be fully convinced that all authorities and powers are in submission to Christ.
Rev Babila Fochang.