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1 Peter 4:5-6 – what about proclaiming the gospel to the dead?

Jesus harrowing hell

There are some passages of scripture that encourage endless speculation. What are we to make of 1 Peter 4:5-6:

5 They will face a reckoning before[a] Jesus Christ[b] who stands ready to judge the living and the dead. 6 Now it was for this very purpose[c] that the gospel was preached to those who are now dead,[d] so that though[e] they were judged in the flesh[f] by human standards[g] they may live spiritually[h] by God’s standards.[i] (NET)

Here are a few thoughts on this passage.

There are lots of details to debate in this passage. But here’s the big picture: the dead in Christ have eternal hope; the dead outside of Christ…not so much.

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Church Vision Party

On April 7, 2024, we had a vision party to dream about what our church might look like in seven years. All 37 people there (how cool is that?) covered their tables with ideas written on bright sticky notes. Why don’t you try it? Here are the two questions:

  • In seven years, what would your dream Sunday morning fellowship be like?
  • In seven years, what characteristics will we see in people who attend our Sunday morning fellowship?

With all these people, there’s no surprise they came up with lots of ideas. Each table moved from generating to grouping ideas: what are the thoughts that many of us are thinking? Once everyone quieted down–which took some doing–each table shared a few of the ideas that they were excited about.

It was a good time of sharing ideas, collaborating, and discovering some of the big picture hopes living in our church. Hopefully in the coming days as we consider change, we will find these hopes to be big enough to carry us through. After all, Ephesians 3:20-21 gives us a big reason to hope:

20 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. (NIV)

Stay tuned for the results in the coming weeks. They will appear outside the office, online, and you’ll hear about them again and again. Because it’s important to consider where we are going.