On today’s Bible Answer Man broadcast (04/17/23), Hank resumes his overview of the days of Holy Week, arriving at Holy Saturday, which was observed by the Eastern Church this past weekend. Holy Saturday marks one of the most enigmatic of all mysteries—the mystery of Christ’s descent into Hades. Being “put to death in the body,” says Peter, he was “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.” Peter here reminds us of two great and glorious truths. First, that we are saved through water, and second that the descent of Christ into Hades inaugurates resplendent triumph. A triumph by which Christ “tramples down death by death.”
Hank also answers the following questions:
- When a person is baptized, do they become a new creation right away, or is it an ongoing process?
- What provision does the Bible make for young children or some adults who don’t have the mental capacity to accept Christ?
- I have a cross pendant that has discolored over time. I bought a replacement, but what should I do with the old one?
Hank Hanegraaff, The Third Day: The Reality of the Resurrection