Acts 19:6

And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them; and they spake with tongues and prophesied. And they were in all about twelve men.

It is a mistake to make another Pentecost out of this. Walker said that "This was the same phenomenon witnessed on Pentecost and at the house of Cornelius";[11] but in neither case was the phenomenon due to the imposition of apostolic hands. This is therefore clearly something else. As Lange declared: "The true baptism ... and not the imposition of hands ... (is among) the conditions upon which the gift of the Spirit depends."[12] Bruner, who did an incredible amount of study on this, said:

Peter does not contrast the gift of the Spirit and baptism; he joins them ... It is one of the major purposes of Acts to show that baptism and the gift of the Holy Spirit belong indissolubly together. This is the special lesson of Acts 8 and Acts 19.[13]

Ramsay seems to be correct when he supposed that:

Luke's purpose in dwelling on this episode is to show that even Apollos' teaching at Corinth was Pauline in character and owed its effectiveness largely to the ideas of Paul, learned through Paul's two disciples (Aquila and Priscilla).[14]

Certainly the episode before us, so closely connected with Apollos' instruction by Aquila and Priscilla, casts Paul in the role of correcting those who had been inadequately taught, and whose baptism had been for a purpose other than that of bringing them "into Christ."

Before leaving this, it should be inquired what application this has for the Christians today and for those who desire to declare the whole counsel of God.

DISCIPLES NEEDING RE-BAPTISM

Are there any today whose baptism was so defective or inadequate that they should be baptized again "into the Lord Jesus"? The answer without any doubt whatever is affirmative. And who are they? (1) Those who were baptized in infancy, or at a time in childhood so early that no adequate understanding of the ordinance was possible. Millions today have never in any sense obeyed the apostolic injunction to "have yourselves baptized" as Peter commanded (Acts 2:38)[15] That passage makes it absolutely clear that the convert must consciously, and of his own will, submit to Christian baptism. If infant baptism is adequate, then baptism without faith, confession, or repentance is valid; and this we hold to be absolutely impossible of acceptance. (2) Those whose baptism was by some action other than the immersion submitted to by Christ, taught by the apostles, and practiced by the apostolic church, which action was denominated by the Holy Spirit as a figure of the death, burial and resurrection of Christ (Romans 6:3-5), making it certain that forms of baptism (so-called) without such a likeness are invalid. (3) Those whose baptism was an action initiated by others, not themselves, or whose baptism was in their hearts undertaken for any unscriptural purpose, such as (a) merely going with the group, (b) primarily to please parents, husband, wife, or other persons, or (c) any purpose other than that of surrendering the soul to the Lord as commanded in the gospel and for the purpose of coming "into Christ," receiving the forgiveness of sins and the promise of the Holy Spirit. (4) Those whose baptism was understood by themselves as having no connection with salvation, or as being, in their view, absolutely unnecessary, irrelevant, or unessential. (5) Those whose baptism, instead of being "into Christ," was into some organization unknown to the Scripture, operating contrary to New Testament authority, and constituting some kind of fellowship other than that of Christians "in Christ."

This writer earnestly prays that all who read these lines will ask himself in all humility, "Was I Scripturally baptized?" If the answer is negative, the re-baptism of these twelve disciples at Ephesus, long ago, provides an inspiring example of what should be done. There was nothing wrong with their baptism, except that it had been for the wrong purpose; but that was enough to invalidate it. One hundred sixty-nine times, in the writings of Paul alone, the New Testament uses the expression "in Christ," "in him," or its equivalent;[16] and that says as loudly as it could be said that this purpose of Christian baptism is absolutely vital and should be honored by all men (Romans 6:3-5; Galatians 3:26,27).

[11] W. R. Walker, Studies in Acts (Joplin, Missouri: College Press), p. 53.

[12] John Peter Lange, Commentary on Acts (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1866), p. 350.

[13] Frederick Dale Bruner, A Theology of the Holy Spirit (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans, Publishers, 1971), p. 169.

[14] Sir William M. Ramsay, Pictures of the Apostolic Church (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1959), p. 216.

[15] Vine's Greek Dictionary (Old Tappan, New Jersey.: Fleming H. Revell Company, 1962), p. 97.

[16] John Mackay, God's Order (New York: The Macmillan Company), 1953), p. 97.