For Les Feldick, 'baptized for the dead' is not water baptism or proxy baptism; it points to the Holy Spirit's baptism into Christ's body, which has meaning only because of the resurrection.
Les consistently teaches that the baptism Paul emphasizes is the Holy Spirit placing believers into the body of Christ, not a water rite. In 1 Corinthians 15, where the context is resurrection, Paul asks why anyone would be baptized for the dead if there is no resurrection. Les's teaching links that Spirit baptism to identification with Christ's death, burial, and resurrection, from which believers are raised to new life.
1 Corinthians 15:29 — This is the exact verse in question, asking what those who are baptized for the dead will do if the dead do not rise.
1 Corinthians 12:13 — This verse describes the one Spirit baptism into the body of Christ, which Les teaches is the baptism Paul means.
Romans 6:3-4 — This passage shows that baptism into Christ means union with His death, burial, and resurrection.
The phrase 'baptized for the dead' occurs only once in Scripture, in Paul's argument for the resurrection: 'Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the dead?' (1 Corinthians 15:29). The verse is a rhetorical question, not an explanation. In the same letter, Paul defines Christian baptism in relation to the Spirit's work: 'For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit' (1 Corinthians 12:13). In Romans 6:3-4 he writes that believers are baptized into Christ's death and buried with Him by baptism, so that they can walk in newness of life as Christ was raised from the dead. The Bible presents baptism as union with Christ in His death and resurrection, not as a rite performed on behalf of the deceased.
Les Feldick teaches that when Paul speaks of baptism into Christ, he is not referring to water baptism but to the Holy Spirit's supernatural work of placing believers into the body of Christ. He calls it being 'inundated' and 'engulfed' into Christ (clip 2). He says water baptism cannot do what Paul describes because it cannot give new life (clip 4). Les ties this Spirit baptism to Christ's death, burial, and resurrection: believers are 'buried with him by baptism into death' and are raised with Him to walk in newness of life (clips 3, 7). He also teaches that those who have died in Christ will be raised in resurrection power (clip 1) and that the only qualification for this hope is believing the gospel, not water baptism or church membership (clip 6). Because resurrection is the believer's future, God's Spirit baptism into Christ has meaning.
Les says Paul is not talking about water baptism because water baptism cannot do what Paul describes. The work is done by the Holy Spirit, who places, inundates, and engulfs the believer into the body of Christ. This baptism identifies the believer with Christ's death, burial, and resurrection.
The whole chapter of 1 Corinthians 15 argues for the resurrection. Les teaches that those who are in Christ and have died will be raised in resurrection power and that believers are buried with Christ only to be raised again. The 'baptism for the dead' question only makes sense if resurrection is real—God's act of placing people into Christ's body has a future beyond death.
No. Les does not teach any practice of baptizing living people on behalf of the dead. He separates Paul's baptism language from water baptism entirely and says the Spirit's baptism is God's work alone. He also says the qualification for those who are raised is believing the gospel, not participating in any ritual.
What Happens After Christ's 1,000-Year Reign? 1 Corinthians 15:28
still coming a point in time when the then shall the Son, also Himself, be subject unto him who put all things under him, that," what's the next word? "...that God may be all in all." Now you can just about wake up in the middle of the night and consider that verse, can't you? That after he has put everything under Christ's feet, and he has become all in all, yet there's coming a day when even Chr…
Spirit Baptism and Resurrection Power
Les says those in Christ have been baptized into the body by the Holy Spirit, not with water, and those who have died in Christ will be raised in resurrection power.
Spirit Baptism into Christ's Body
Les explains that baptism into Jesus Christ is the Holy Spirit's work of placing, inundating, and engulfing believers into the body of Christ, not a water ritual.
Not Water Baptism but the Work of God
Les stresses that this baptism goes beyond water baptism and is the work of God Himself, representing real death with Christ, not an unconscious state.
Water Baptism Cannot Give New Life
Les is convinced Paul's baptism is not water baptism because water cannot give new life; it is the Spirit baptism described in 1 Corinthians 12.
Death with Christ Leads to Life with Him
Les teaches that identification with Christ's death means the believer is also identified with His life; old Adam is put to death and real life begins.
Faith in the Gospel Is the Qualification
Les says the only qualification for being among those who will be raised is believing the gospel, not water baptism, church membership, or works.
Buried and Raised with Christ
Les explains that believers are buried with Christ in the mind of God, engulfed in His tomb experience, but are not meant to stay there—they are raised out of it.
1 Corinthians 15:29: Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the dead?
This is the verse in question; it asks a rhetorical question about the value of baptism if the dead do not rise.
1 Corinthians 12:13: For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.
This shows the Spirit baptism into the body of Christ, which Les says is the baptism Paul refers to.
Romans 6:3-4: Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
This connects baptism into Christ with His death, burial, and resurrection, the basis for Les's teaching.
Romans 6:5: For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:
This further links the believer's death with Christ to a future resurrection, supporting the resurrection context of 1 Corinthians 15.
In Les Feldick's teaching, the baptism Paul refers to is the Spirit's work of placing believers into the body of Christ, not a water baptism performed for dead people. The verse is a resurrection argument: if there is no resurrection, why would God place anyone into Christ's body?
No. Les teaches that Paul's baptism language is about the Holy Spirit's supernatural act, which cannot be performed by any human ritual. He also says the qualification for resurrection is believing the gospel, not a proxy baptism.
Les describes it as the Holy Spirit inundating or engulfing a believer into Christ, making them part of His body. It is not water baptism because water baptism cannot give new life.
Paul's argument in the chapter is that resurrection is essential. Les teaches that believers are placed into Christ's body and identified with His death and burial so that they can also be raised to new life. Without resurrection, that placement would have no purpose.
Watch the Teaching: What Happens After Christ's 1,000-Year Reign? 1 Corinthians 15:28