**Peter’s realization of true baptism in Acts 11:16 comes after Acts 10:47-48.**
Whaaat?, you think that when the Holy Ghost fell on Cornelius and his household, Peter didn’t realize that it was from God, UNTIL after he baptized them in the name of the Lord for the remission of sins. He had already seen the Holy Ghost fall on thousands by that point, and you appear to have him in a state of dementia while preaching to Cornelius. That is WHY he commanded them to be baptized; he and the others had just witnessed the Spirit given. He HAD to step in and command their sins be remitted (see John 20:23).
So do you believe that Spirit baptism is “true baptism”, and water baptism in the name of Jesus is man-made? If that’s your interpretation, you’ve just declared Acts 2:38 to not be from heaven, but of men. And you seem to have dismissed these as well:
John 3:5-8; a man must be born of the water and of the Spirit, and how you KNOW when they are.
Matt. 28:19; the Lord commanded that THEY baptize souls.
Mark 16:16; The Lord commanded to his disciples that one must believe and be baptized.
Luke 24:47; The Lord commanded that repentance and remission of sins are to be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
John 20:23; The Lord commanded that whose soever sins YE remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins YE retain, they are retained.
Furthermore, with your interpretation, Peter should have gotten a hold of Philip, and told him to quit performing anymore water baptisms. He failed to stop Paul from baptizing everywhere he went.
Every anti-water baptism teacher scrurries to 1Cor, 1:17, to say Paul didn’t baptize, when he just got done admitting to it. And from that we understand that he wasn’t sent to perform John’s baptism unto repentance. Because Paul DID personally baptize, and even re-baptized 12 in Ephesus, that had only been baptized unto John’s baptism. And one can argue that he had a hand in these as well:
9:18 His own conversion.
16:15 Lydia and her household.
16:33 keeper of the prison and his household.
18:8 Crispus (one of several Paul admitted to baptizing in Corinth. 1Cor 1:14,16)
22:16 His own again.
1Peter 3:20,21 is quite plain,.... 20 “...eight souls were saved by water.” 21 “The LIKE figure whereunto even BAPTISM doth also now save us (not the butting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God.) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ.”
Good conscience?...Yes, by being baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins. Just don’t do it if you don’t believe it.
Surely you won’t tell me that Acts 2:38 is a lie. Pray about this.....it’s very serious.
“you think that when the Holy Ghost fell on Cornelius and his household, Peter didn’t realize that it was from God”
And what does that tell you? Cornelius and his household received and manifested Holy Spirit “which IS the Baptism’ before Peter performed his water ritual. That ties in to Peter’s realization of Holy Spirit Baptism later in in Acts 11:16, which is consistent with what the Lord says in Act 1:5 and the source of Peter’s realization:
Act 1:5 -
“For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.”
The new administration of grace brought on the new baptism in Christ. And what the Lord said here is certainly consistent with what John the Baptist said himself:
Luke 3:16 -
“John answered, saying unto them all, I indeed baptize you with water; but one mightier than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire”
Note there’s no mention and inclusion of water.
“you’ve just declared Acts 2:38 to not be from heaven, but of men. And you seem to have dismissed these as well”
The passage really makes no mention of water. Still, you keep sidestepping Peter’s realization of true baptism that came later in Acts 11:16.
“Furthermore, with your interpretation, Peter should have gotten a hold of Philip, and told him to quit performing anymore water baptisms. He failed to stop Paul from baptizing everywhere he went.”
Peter was performing the works that God laid out for him and following God’s path. Apparently God did not assign him the responsibility to go chasing down and correcting other apostles in that regard.
“1Peter 3:20,21 is quite plain,.... 20 “...eight souls were saved by water.”
Here Peter is actually refuting the need for water for salvation, and the passage read correctly with it’s reference to water is actually showing that it’s NOT water that saves.
“not the putting away of the filth of the flesh but the answer of a good conscience toward God by the resurrection of Jesus Christ:”