I’m curious what makes you think Peter jumped the gun, and that he and the other apostles were acting on their own. Please explain further.
They were told to not begin their commissioned work (i.e. being Jesus’ witnesses) until the Holy Spirit had equipped them. But as for the qualifications stated by Peter, those coincide with the job Jesus had just previously alluded to.
Yes, it’s true that Luke didn’t write in chapters - and the manmade chapter divisions can sometimes cause misunderstanding if we’re not careful. But it’s a convenience in a study of this sort.
The questions above could’ve just as easily be part of a set covering Acts 1-2, and the answers would be found in those chapters rather than elsewhere. Luke wrote with a purpose, as the Holy Spirit inspired him. If we just trust the Book and follow along with him, watching as the story unfolds, how can we go wrong?
I think following along is good, but we want not to lean on our own understanding and always ask the Holy Spirit to teach us as we read because that is one of the reasons He was sent. This is a positive thing and we need not be doubtful, just trust the Lord to help us to surrender to Him so we can learn at his feet. His grace will help us.
Acts shows us the amazing contrasts between believers with and without the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Acts 1 shows Christians without the baptism of the Holy Spirit doing what they do best - tending toward self-effort and forgetting what the Lords says. Jesus said to stay in Jerusalem and “wait” (Acts 1:4-5). Later, the Lord began to talk about the power they would receive from the Holy Spirit to be his witnesses (Acts 1:7-8).
Peter, as we all know he was inclined to do, ran ahead. Peter hadn’t yet been baptized in the holy Spirit, so we see Peter still being more or less ruled by his own human understanding.
Nothing in scripture indicates this meeting and Peter’s efforts were initiated by the Lord but may have, and I think was, actually in contravention to the Lord’s words to “wait”. Peter wanted to draw straws. Where did Jesus tell him to do that? The results were basically zero. It is evident that Jesus himself picked Paul, the replacement apostle (Acts 9:15), as He, not man, picked the first twelve.
Contrast that with Peter after he was baptized in the Holy Spirit. He arose and spoke with boldness to the crowd and 3000 were saved. His life dramatically changed after receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit - he was bold and effective and his life was characterized by being led by the Spirit. We too are effective to the degree we are filled, energized, and guided by the Holy Spirit.