Baptism in the name of Jesus Christ would identify those being baptized with Jesus as opposed to a baptism (washing) being done for the sake of ritual purity (which was a practice of the Jews at the time).1 This would serve to signify that one is purified to meet with God through union with or on account of Jesus the Christ.2 He is the One who has authority to forgive and wipes out sin (Mark 2:10; Acts 3:19) so that we can meet with God (Hebrews 10:19–25). For the crowd of people, baptism in the name of Jesus would thus be a fruit of their repentance, evidence that someone has publicly and willingly acknowledged Jesus as the Christ and seeks to identify himself as one of his followers.3
38 And Peter said to them, “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.