No, you are the pagan; they are not. They are not so foolish as to think they are saving themselves by their actions.
Oh, you mean men like John and Paul are Acts skippers. Glad to see I'm in good company. I wonder why they woundn't shut up about Faith saving if its by specific words spoken during a baptism. Let's look at a few:
1) John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that He gave his only Son, that
whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.”
2) Romans 1: 16-17, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the
power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and
also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith
for faith as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”
3) Romans 3:22, “the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for
all who believe. For there is no distinction”
4) Romans 3:24, “and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the
redemption that is in Christ Jesus”
5) Romans 3:26, “It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so
that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”
6) Romans 3:28-30, “For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from
works of the law. Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of
Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, since God is one—who will justify the
circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith.”
7) Romans 4:3, “For what does the Scripture say? ‘Abraham believed God,
and it was counted to him as righteousness.’”
8) Romans 4:5, “And to the one who does not work but believes in Him who
justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness”
9) Romans 4:11, “He received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the
righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. The
purpose was to make Him the father of all who believes without being
circumcised so that righteousness would be counted to them as well”
10) Romans 4:16, “That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise
may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring—not only to the
adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of
Abraham, who is the father of us all.
11) Romans 5:1, “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have
peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
12) Romans 5:9, “Since, therefore, we have now been justified by His blood,
much more shall we be saved by Him from the wrath of God.”
13) Romans 9:30, “What shall we say, then? That Gentiles who did not
pursue righteousness have attained it, that is, a righteousness that is by
faith”
14) Romans 9:33, “as it is written, ‘Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone of
stumbling, and a rock of offense; and whoever believes in Him will not
be put to shame.’”
15) Romans 10:4, “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to
everyone who believes.”
16) Romans 10:9-10, “because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is
Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will
be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the
mouth one confesses and is saved.
17) Romans 11:6, “But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works;
otherwise, grace would no longer be grace.”
18) Galatians 2:16, “yet we know that a person is not justified by works of
the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ
Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the
law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.”
19) Galatians 2:21, “I do not nullify the grace of God, for if
righteousness was through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.”
20) Galatians 3:5-6, “Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works
miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith—just
as Abraham ‘believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness’
21) Galatians 3:8, “And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the
Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In
you shall all the nations be blessed.”
22) Galatians 3:14, “so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham
might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised
Spirit through faith.
23) Galatians 3:22, “But the Scripture imprisoned everything under sin, so
that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who
believe.”
24) Galatians 3:24, “So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in
order that we might be justified by faith.”
25) Ephesians 1:13, “In Him you also, when you heard the word of truth,
the gospel of your salvation, and believed in Him, were sealed with
the promised Holy Spirit”
26) Ephesians 2:8, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And
this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God”
27) Philippians 3:9, “and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my
own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ,
the righteousness from God that depends on faith”
28) 1 Timothy 1:16, “But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the
foremost, Jesus Christ might display His perfect patience as an example to
those who were to believe in Him for eternal life”
If your pet interpretation of Acts 2:38 contradicts so many passages maybe, just maybe, your interpretation is incorrect. FYI, I could keep going.
Wow, you think Paul wrote Romans as to get people to skip Acts 2:38? How can anyone think this is the case?
Order in the NT? Look at John 3:15-16; 5:24; 6:40, 47, 54 etc. Jesus taught this, John taught this, Paul taught this. Either Peter just got his theology all mixed up in Acts 2:38, or YOU ARE INTERPRETING IT INCORRECTLY!!!
God Bless
PS: Your Romans is only written for saints game is utter silliness. In truth, Acts was only written for Theophilus; so, who are you to take his personal letter and create your own religion from it as to accuse us Christians of stealing Romans? Secondly, all these passages in Romans and the like are written as to explain how these saints became saints. Therefore, if you think you're a saint, you still have to deal with them as to give a reason for the hope that you have. Why does Paul teach Romans 10:9-10 and Ephesians 2:8-10 if it's by baptism and specific words spoken? Why would Jesus say those who believe already have eternal life over and over and over again if it's by baptism and specific words spoken?
PPS: Romans was written to the Church at Rome as a primer on the gospel that it might be taught to unbelievers as to lead some to conversation.
