There is no mistaking what Peter meant on the day of Pentecost. When people responded to the gospel, he commanded them to repent and be baptised in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ for the remission of sins and they should receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. Reading this account of the first administration of water baptism in the Christian era, we discover that although Peter did not plainly say so, he meant that consequent upon their obedience to his command to be baptised and as a direct result of it, they could expect to receive the Holy Ghost. Whether some received the Spirit before water baptism or none received until afterwards is not clear, nor at this point does it much matter. What Peter is doing here is moving out into the glory of the New Covenant and boldly making promises in a way not possible before; he is pioneering. Excluding the Lord Jesus Christ, not a man in Israel, including Peter himself, received the Holy Spirit at Jordan; John had made no such promise as Peter was then making. Reception of the Holy Ghost was not made dependent upon being baptised then, and neither did the apostle make it so in his day. Neither John Baptist nor Christ nor any of the apostles made water baptism the condition for reception of the Spirit. Water baptism is always to be found in scripture as a response and confession of faith, as here, never as a means to the end of Spirit Baptism. Suffice it for us to observe that Peter did not definitely say 'Repent ... be baptised ... in order that ye may receive'. The cardinal fact that emerges is that although this baptism incorporated into it, all the blessing which was available by John's baptism, namely remission of sins, it certainly is not John's baptism.