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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: Water baptism unnecessary for conversion |
Bible Note: Quite easily. Let's start in John 20:22. Jesus gives them the Holy Spirit. Now Acts 1:3 He spends 40 days teaching them. I submit the 12 Apostles are saved. Now go to Pentecost. They are filled with the Holy Spirit and speak in tongues. Did reception of the Spirit save them or was it to enable them to tongue speak. Obviously they were already saved, it simply gave them the ability to speak in tongues. Now go to Acts 11:4, notice the word "precisely". Now go to v.15, as he "began" to speak the Holy Spirit fell. Surely Cornelius was not saved before he heard the message and was able to repent and believe. Notice Peter said in v.15, the Spirit came on "them"(cornelius) the same way it came on "us"(12 apostles) at the beginning. Not the same way it came on the 3,000, or Phillip, or Simon, or the Samarians, or the Ethiopian, or any of the other thousands who were being saved. It came on Cornelius the same way the 12 Apostles received it at Pentecost. Not to save them but to get peoples attention and to give them the abililty to speak in tongues. The Holy Spirit coming on Cornelius's household was to show that God was opening up the Gospel to the Gentiles. That was the whole purpose of Peter's dream and this story. God was now granting the Gentiles the opportunity to hear the Gospel and repent. Preaching the Gospel to the Gentiles was a huge obstacle to overcome for the Jewish Christians, thus God did something miraculous. Just like at Pentecost, He was ushering in the new church with power. Notice they were required to respond to the Gospel by being baptized in Jesus name, the same way everyone else responded when they heard the message. |