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NASB | Acts 2:38 Peter said to them, "Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Acts 2:38 And Peter said to them, "Repent [change your old way of thinking, turn from your sinful ways, accept and follow Jesus as the Messiah] and be baptized, each of you, in the name of Jesus Christ because of the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. |
Subject: Is this about water baptism at all? |
Bible Note: Tim: "There simply isn't any time reference given as a command." Agreed (except in the case of Saul). But my question was whether it is prudent to put off a specific command of God. God says, "Be baptized." Is it really consistent with Scripture for a convert to respond, "I will, when I get around to it," or "When I fully understand what baptism represents," or "I really intend to, but not now"? Time frame references are not given with the commands to repent or to abstain from sexual immorality, either, but few would argue that Jesus and Peter could have meant that we are just supposed to repent at some point in the future. "My only issue was that many on this thread were making a time frame a direct command of God, when there is no time frame commanded." While there is no time frame specifically mentioned, it seems that when God says, "Do this," He normally doesn't mean "Whenever it suits you." The other thing is that we join the visible church via baptism. It is a visible mark of our new birth and ingrafting into Christ. And while it isn't the thing itself, I am convinced that there is a union between the sign and the thing signified that under normal circumstances should not be broken. --Joe! |