Little Red Book Ministry

C. Acts 2:38
“Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost” (Acts 2:38).

This one is a little more difficult because it definitely says that remission of sins comes from baptism. The context of the entire passage must be examined in order to see what is actually being said here. In addition, you must bear in mind that, as we have seen, the term baptism does not always indicate immersion in water.

Bearing this in mind we can now look at Acts 2:38 in the light of the entire passage of Acts 2:1-41:

Acts 2:1–4 establishes the context as involving the baptizing and subsequent filling of the apostles with the Holy Ghost. We can see from these verses that the house was filled with a sound like a rushing wind and cloven tongues similar to fire sat upon each of them. This is a special case where many were baptized at the same time in a spectacular way so that they could better understand what was happening. It was, after all, the first time anybody was ever baptized with the Holy Ghost. The key here is found later in Acts 11:15–16 where the same event is specifically referenced as being “baptized with the Holy Ghost.” Jesus had also prophesied this event in Acts 1:5, calling it baptism “with the Holy Ghost,” and emphatically distinguishing between this and water baptism. Thus the context is established as being baptized with the Holy Ghost rather than with water.

Acts 2:5–13 describes the results of this baptism and subsequent filling with the Holy Ghost.

Acts 2:14–36 explains the process and purpose of being baptized with the Holy Ghost. It explains that it was made possible by the redemption obtained by Jesus Christ through His substitutionary death on the cross. A key verse is verse 21 which says that it was prophesied that a new method for obtaining salvation would be offered in which calling upon the name of the Lord would be the primary requirement.

“And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Acts 2:21).