Baptizing for the Dead
Cults such as Mormonism often take unclear passages of scripture and make more out of them than is justified by the context, original language, or, more importantly, the teaching of the rest of the Bible. One such passage is 1 Corinthians 15:29 which reads, “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?” (ESV). Mormons use this passage to claim that a practice that Joseph Smith introduced to the LDS church has a biblical foundation. Read what they say about baptizing for the dead on their website:
“The New Testament indicates that baptisms for the dead were done during the time of the Apostle Paul (see 1 Corinthians 15:29). This ordinance was restored with the establishment of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.”
Source:
https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-topics/baptisms-for-the-dea d?lang=eng
So why am I going out of my way to write an entire article about this? Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses, as well as almost every cult out there, use scriptures such as this to make Christians doubt what they’ve been taught about the Bible and feel that they are missing some valuable truths that only the cult has. Here is an example of how such an encounter may play out:
Mormon (M): “What did you do this weekend?”
Christian (C): “I got baptized at my church!”
M: “Really? So did I!”
C: “Really? What are the odds!”
M: “Well, this weekend was actually the 5th time I’ve been baptized.”
C: “5 times?! Why did you get baptized 5 times?”
M: “I was baptized once for myself, and now I get baptized on behalf of those who weren’t able to be or didn’t get around to being baptized while they were alive!”
C: “I’ve never heard of being baptized for dead people...”
M: “Ah, that’s because other churches don’t teach you about it. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints teaches you many things that were forgotten by the church until the prophet Joseph Smith restored them.”
C: “I don’t know about that... I’ve never read anything like this in the Bible.”
M: “It is in the Bible! Look up 1 Corinthians 15:29.”
C: “Oh wow, I didn’t know that was in there.”
M: “That’s because other churches don’t teach passages like that one. They don’t have the full teaching on subjects like these. We have the Book of Mormon, which sheds light on things that have been lost to the church for centuries, and our prophets also explain things more clearly with their revelations from Heavenly Father. You’ll be amazed at how much more there is to Christianity! Maybe you could come with me to the temple sometime and see for yourself!”
Cult members use things like this for outreach to try to convert Christians to their beliefs. Christians who do not have a firm foundation in scripture and sound doctrine are particularly vulnerable to such tactics. We must prepare Christians, especially those who are young in the faith, to understand how cultists twist and abuse scripture to try to deceive them, albeit unintentionally, as they are deceived themselves. We must ground them in biblical truth.
So if this particular scripture is being twisted and abused, what is the correct interpretation? This is admittedly an unclear text, but looking at the context helps us in more ways than one.
First, Looking at the immediate context can often help put the passage in perspective by revealing what the main point of the scripture in question is. In the context surrounding 1 Corinthians 15:29, Paul is trying to drive home the fact of the resurrection of the dead. Some of the Corinthians seem to have been teaching that there is no resurrection of the dead. Paul is trying to correct a false teaching circulating within the Corinthian church. Knowing the main point can help give us a hint as to why the author said a certain thing, or used certain words, which is the second way context can be useful.
Now that we know what the main point is, we can make some educated guesses as to why Paul made the reference to the practice of baptizing for the dead. It would seem, as Craig Keener points out in his commentary on the chapter, that Paul was using a practice that the Corinthians affirmed in order to show them the inconsistency between their behavior and their belief that there is no resurrection of the dead. Paul is effectively saying, “You don’t really believe that the dead will not be raised. For if you did, you wouldn’t be baptizing for the dead as if there is something more after death!”
Most importantly, it is unclear whether Paul affirmed the practice of baptizing on behalf of the dead, nor does he command it or forbid it, although it would have been the perfect place in any of his epistles to do so. He is simply using this practice to make his point. It is important to note that there is no command anywhere in this passage or in the rest of the Bible to perform this act. It is important because (you may have already caught it) in the excerpt I included earlier from LDS.org, the writer says, “This ordinance w as restored with the establishment of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.”
The Mormon church claims that this is an ordinance. This is not taught in scripture and now that you know about this false teaching, you are better equipped to defend the truth when facing one of your Mormon friends or family members.
Recommended Resources:
IVP Bible Background Commentary by Craig Keener