Baptism

Heb. 6:1-2 - "Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ
and go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from
acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, instruction about baptisms, the
laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment."
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B. Baptism does not bring the anointing of the Holy Spirit
Was baptism the means of receiving the Holy Spirit?
Acts 2:38 Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the
name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the
gift of the Holy Spirit.
On the occasion of Cornelius conversion this is what happened:
Acts.10: 44 -47"While Peter was still saying this, the Holy Spirit fell on all
who heard the word...for they heard them speaking in tongues and extolling
God " Then Peter declared, "Can anyone keep these people from being
baptized with water? They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have."
The obvious implication is that these people received the Holy spirit- the
baptism from Jesus, who can now stop them from becoming members of the
church of Jesus Christ? The only consistent condition for receiving the Holy
spirit is that they hear the word. They were baptized because they heard the
word and received Jesus and received the Holy Spirit. Here was a visible
indication of God's impartiality. "Truly, I perceive that God shows no
partiality..."
But in Samaria we have a different situation:
Acts 8:12 But when they believed Philip as he preached the good news of the
kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men
and women.
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