“Who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost:”
When they arrived, they prayed for the believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit - Peter and John's first action is 'prayer' (proseuchē) for the Samaritan believers 'that they might receive the Holy Spirit' (hopōs lambanosin pneuma hagion). The reception of the Spirit is not automatic upon baptism but requires apostolic intercession. This establishes a two-stage pattern: water baptism (through Philip) and Spirit baptism (through apostolic prayer and laying on of hands).
COMMUNITY REFLECTIONS
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