Simon the Sorcerer and the Holy Spirit
Notes
Transcript
Please turn in your Bibles to Acts chapter 8.
Acts chapter 8, beginning at verse. 9
and let’s stand.
I want to read our theme verse for Acts.
these words are from Jesus, applied to them, and applies to us:
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
we will be his witnesses....
we have seen this in Jerusalem, and in Judea
and because Stephen was killed for his faith—the 1st martyr—persecution breaks out and the church is forced to scatter all over the region...
but instead of squelching the Gospel—it has the amazing affect of spreading the Gospel (like spreading seed)
and now in this chapter…the Gospel will spread to a new region — Samaria
(show map)
and the Holy Spirit will be involved in a unique way.
so let’s stand and I will read.
Acts 8:9–25 (NIV)
9 Now for some time a man named Simon had practiced sorcery in the city and amazed all the people of Samaria. He boasted that he was someone great,
10 and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, “This man is rightly called the Great Power of God.”
11 They followed him because he had amazed them for a long time with his sorcery.
12 But when they believed Philip (remember Philip is one of the 7 chosen in Acts chapter 6 to help take care of the widows) as he proclaimed the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.
13 Simon himself believed and was baptized. And he followed Philip everywhere, astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw.
14 When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to Samaria.
15 When they arrived, they prayed for the new believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit,
16 because the Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
17 Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.
18 When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money
19 and said, “Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”
20 Peter answered: “May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money!
21 You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God.
22 Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord in the hope that he may forgive you for having such a thought in your heart.
23 For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin.”
24 Then Simon answered, “Pray to the Lord for me so that nothing you have said may happen to me.”
25 After they had further proclaimed the word of the Lord and testified about Jesus, Peter and John returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel in many Samaritan villages.
What a crazy passage!
We will look at this in 2 parts---
part 1 - Simon the character
part 2 - and the Holy Spirit coming later—after they believed...
Simon is an interesting character.
my heading says Simon the sorcerer—yours may say Simon the magician.
look again at verses 9-11
9 Now for some time a man named Simon had practiced sorcery in the city and amazed all the people of Samaria. He boasted that he was someone great,
10 and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, “This man is rightly called the Great Power of God.”
11 They followed him because he had amazed them for a long time with his sorcery.
Biblical scholars believed he traveled as a healer, exorcist—casting out evil spirits, and a wonder-worker.
How is that possible you ask? we don’t totally know, but my best guess is as someone who is not following Jesus—he is following the kingdom of darkness (whether he realizes that or not), and there is power even in the kingdom of darkness. there is a real power--
Somehow he was able to use that to amaze people, and he was used to getting attention.
but then Philip comes to town—preaching the good news of Jesus and doing miracles.
look at Acts 8:12-13
12 But when they believed Philip as he proclaimed the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.
13 Simon himself believed and was baptized. And he followed Philip everywhere, astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw.
Simon is beginning to lose followers—b/c the people encounter real power—the kingdom of God-both in word and deed.
and Simon seems to join the kingdom of God as a Christian he believes and is baptized...
as I was thinking about Simon…and this story of him, and Philip.
It’s a reminder of these Kingdom Principles — as the Gospel of Jesus goes out—the kingdom of God into new territory...—what do we learn
Principle #1 - the kingdom of darkness or sorcery is no match for the power of the kingdom of God. (no comparison!).
the Gospel goes forth in the book of Acts, defeating occultic power, sorcery, witch doctors (that kind of stuff is still prevalent in the world, all over the world, even here in US.)
the kingdom of God defeats all Satanic, worldly, fleshly, sorcery, magical, centers of power. and it’s not even close.
I would imagine every Sunday there is at least one person tampering with satanic or occultic powers—even here directly or connected—don’t be fooled by false power—the real power is in Jesus.
but we see later a problem as the kingdoms clash...
verse 18
18 When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money
19 and said, “Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”
and Peter the apostle basically says literally “to hell with you and your money...” he is not swearing or using bad language—he is uttering a curse upon Simon.
and your heart is not right...
Think of what we are learning as the Gospel goes forth...
2. Kingdom Principle #2 - As the Gospel goes forth—we need discernment.
we see amazing results - many Samaritans believe—that’s awesome. what a harvest!
but we also see people attracted to Christianity or something about but not Christ.
and it’s hard to tell at first who really is genuinely saved or not. certainly we don’t know—b/c it is a matter ultimately not just of confessing with our mouth—but our hearts.
look at how Peter says it
Acts 8:21 (NIV)
21 You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God.
Acts 8:22–23 (NIV)
22 Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord in the hope that he may forgive you for having such a thought in your heart.
23 For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin.”
whenever we are trying to figure out as we share the Gospel who is genuinely following Christ or not—who genuinely converted to Christ—we need some humility.
it’s ok to say—we had 10 people choose to follow Christ last night at our meeting.
but only God ultimately knows—and even we can’t always tell until some time has passed...
true Christians…true Christians…will keep following Christ to the end. they will persevere.
Jesus mentioned this in his parable of the soils…how the farmer went out to scatter his seed…it’s an image of us going out and sharing the Word of god.
some of that seed fell along the path and the birds or Satan takes it away.
some seed fell on rocky soil. It started out well—people are excited to follow christ—but then when troubles come, b/c there are no roots they fall away.
some seed was choked by thorns—the pursuit of wealth—the worries of this life, and they too fell away,
but some fell on good soil, and produced a crop 30, 60, and 100 times what was sown.
True Christians will persevere—and it’s not all on them—it is God who enables — He will continue what He started.
Simon’s motivations are being found out. and we need some humility and discernment as we spread the Gospel seed
#3 Kingdom Principle: We have a tendency to be just like Simon the Sorcerer.
how? isn’t he a sorcerer—and maybe in the occult...
some signs that we may be like Simon...
Sign #1 — We want the reputation for follow Jesus more than Jesus Himself… reputation > Jesus
if that’s you…you might be a Simon the sorcerer. this is a big temptation in a religious community like us. where many go to church (and also many don’t). we want the reputation for looking like we follow Jesus.
and it’s even bigger temptation with the ability to post on social media what we are reading or doing—and I can’t discern your heart when you post—but when we do post spiritual things—are we doing it for God’s glory or for ours?
this is one of the dangers of becoming a leader in any ministry—you can start to glory in the attention and notoriety which Simon loved rather than Jesus himself.
Ananias and Sapphira also had this problem back in chapter 5 when they looked more generous than they actually were.
think of the opposite—true followers of Jesus—want Jesus more, even if it hurts their reputation. (sacrifice their reputation for Jesus’s sake)
Sign #2 - We want to be able control Jesus rather than surrender to Him
Simon was used to controlling his sorcery and power, using it for his own ends.
this is exactly what magic and sorcery is—manipulating powers for our own purposes...
and if we approach our relationship with God like that—we want to use him for our own end—rather than surrender to Him for His end—we are just like Simon.
I actually believe that sorcery is a type of legalism—legalism is doing good works in order to earn God’s favor—why? so he has to bless me, and I can somehow control God and put him in my debt. legalism wants to control God—just like sorcery.
Truly following Christ involves a surrender to Him—allowing Him to be king, and Him to get the glory. even if the plans in my life don’t make sense—I will surrender Him and stop trying to control everything.
True followers of Jesus—want to surrender to Jesus—even if they lose control.
Sign #3 - We want the benefits of following Jesus more than Jesus Himself
Simon wanted the power—He wanted the power of the Holy Spirit, the attention and the fame, the following—more followers, more likes. rather than following Jesus.
certainly following Jesus produces a lot of great benefits—forgiveness of sins, entrance into God’s kingdom, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness—the fruit of the Spirit—brothers and sisters in Christ.
but if that is more important than Jesus himself—it’s a problem.
one of the things that really strips us down to our motivation is suffering. when you go through suffering it becomes real fast and it becomes clear fast if you are going to follow Jesus or not.
we all have a little simon in us...
in fact, the term simony was coined from this character — the buying of power within the church...
Natalie Grant - song “More than Anything...”
Help me want the Healer
More than the healing
Help me want the Savior
More than the saving
Help me want the Giver
More than the giving
Oh, help me want You, Jesus
More than anything
before I talk about how to get past simony...
there is a weird scene right in the middle.
look at verses 14-17 again.
14 When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to Samaria.
15 When they arrived, they prayed for the new believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit,
16 because the Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
17 Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.
this brings up SO MANY QUESTIONS.
Why did they NOT get the HS when they first believed?
Was the HS working in their lives to help them believe?
Why did it take the apostles Peter and John to help them receive the HS?
and is this passage NORMAL for us today, or was this simply UNIQUE for that time period?
and before I tell you what I think—what do you think?
it’s important to know that Christians and different denominations have answered this question differently.
Let me try my best...
Answer #1 — The Spirit was at work in the Samaritan’s lives even before they received the Spirit. why?
look at Acts 16:14
14 One of those listening was a woman from the city of Thyatira named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth. She was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message.
opened her heart—the Lord had to have opened the Samaritan’s hearts for them to believe. that’s the Holy Spirit’s job.
Answer #2 - Acts 8:14-17 is most likely unique and not repeatable for today.
why?
go back to Acts 1:8
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
power—HS--
and then locations—Jerusalem and Judea
then Samaria (which is here)
and the ends of the earth.
this is a declaration and a prediction from our Lord Jesus Christ.
each time the Gospel goes forth into new territory in Acts—the Spirit comes in a mighty, powerful, dramatic, demonstratable way.
Acts 2— when the Spirit came on the day of Pentecost in Jerusalem…we have the Jerusalem Pentecost
tongues of fire come on each of them, and they speak in tongues—other known languages to those gathered. It’s amazing! it is powerful proof the Holy Spirit has come, the very power and presence of God in them and on them. (btw—we don’t see tongues of fire again)
and now in Acts 8, we have the Samaritan Pentecost…the Gospel goes forth into new territory—they believe—and the Apostles are sent. and the HS comes in a unique way.
if you look at vs. 18
Acts 8:18 (NIV)
18 When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money
he saw SOMETHING when the HS came…was it tongues of fire? don’t know?
speaking in tongues? don’t know?
but it was powerful...
why did this happen in such a visible, demonstratable way...
if you know the history of the Jews and the Samaritans—there was some bad blood between them.
we learn in the Gospel of John, chapter 4—when Jesus talks with the Samaritans woman at the well—John 4:9 says that Jews do not associate with Samaritans. why?
several reasons? many Jews considered them not pure-blood Jews—or maybe at best half Jews. b/c in their history, Samaria had been conquered by the Assyrians and resettled and the Jews intermarried with the Assyrians.
in addition, the Samaritans only followed the first 5 books of the OT, not the whole thing, and they had another temple and worshipped at a different temple than Jerusalem.
so there was a lot of beef..
I think God orchestrated that Peter and John would come from Jerusalem to lay hands on them and receive the Spirit in this way...
to show the Samaritans that they received the same HS as the Jews in Acts 2.
and to show the Jews—through Peter and John—that the Samaritans were full blooded members of the kingdom of God…just like them.
In other words, there is not a Jewish Christian church, and a Samaritan Christian church—but ONE church—and God orchestrated it this way so big time leaders like Peter and John could verify and attest—that they are one church.
are you with me?
as we keep going in Acts. We will see another kind of Pentecost in Acts 10-11 a Gentile Pentecost—as the Gospel starts going to the ends of the earth.
Acts 19:1-7 - another type of pentecost...
so kind of 4 Pentecosts—all to show the Holy Spirit comes all on believers.
there certainly is a danger as we look at these. one danger is to say that God can’t work in this precise way today. He certainly can-He is God—we dare not put him in a box.
but the other danger is to say God MUST work in this way. this is a PATTERN. and sometimes people like this look down on others who have not had the same Holy Ghost experience as they did. “You are a JV Christian—and I am a varsity Christian.”
it’s interesting as you compare Acts 2, 8, 10-11, and 19—these 4—how there is not 1 repeated pattern. there is a different order—and in each episode where the Holy Spirit comes in a unique way—it’s always with groups—not individuals.
Here’s the good news...the normal way you and I receive the Spirit today—is the moment you and I believe in Jesus Christ.
Acts 2:38—Peter said this on the day of Pentecost in Jerusalem.
38 Peter replied, “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.
right away!
Romans 8:9—the second half says...
Romans 8:9 (NIV)
And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ (HS), they do not belong to Christ. (to have Christ is to have the Holy Spirit)
it is a glorious thing to note—that you don’t need to:
buy the Holy Spirit’s power like simon wanted to...
or have a crazy experience to confirm it...
no—the moment you believe in Jesus as Savior and Lord—you get the very presence and power of God…He is a Gift--who point you to Jesus. who reminds you that there is no condemnation for those in Jesus. who equips and empowers you with spiritual gifts to serve. who reminds you of Scripture from God’s Word. (advocate, helper, comforter, encourager, reminder)
The Bible is clear on this—and He wants it to be clear so that there is no division in the Body—no JV Christians or varsity Christians, no first class vs. 2nd class—but one body of Christ.
we are going to transition to a time of communion…
communion is open to anyone who is a believer in Jesus Christ. you don’t have to be a member or regular attender to partake. but we do ask that you have trusted in Jesus as Savior, Lord, and Treasure.
28 Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup.
Philip in Acts 8—challenged Simon to repent deeply.
22 Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord in the hope that he may forgive you for having such a thought in your heart.
23 For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin.”
the good news is that if you confess your sin to the Lord—call it like it is—and acknowledge that Jesus alone can forgive you—you can be forgiven. there is hope…and I encourage you to heart level deep in your confession and repentance—to look at your motivations—why do you follow Jesus—what is your motivation...
23 For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread,
24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.”
25 In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.”
26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
all b/c the body of Christ and blood of Christ—all b/c of what Jesus did—the bread reminds us of His body—that He gave
the cup of His blood.
would you take a moment and confess and repent—and taste and savor Jesus--
1st service - Chris Hawbaker pray.
2nd service - Carolyn Fudge pray.
I would encourage you to consider giving financial to a specific fund called Christian Aid.
this goes to help those in need in our congregation and community.
It helps pay rent bills, utility bills, hospital bills.
It helps people and couples get counseling.
some of you remember love food boxes—where SS classes would collect toiletries and non-perishable items.
instead of doing that—we use the Christian aid fund to keep those things stocked for those in need.
whenever we have communion, I would consider each of us giving $25 to $50 above and beyond what we normally give specifically to Christian Aid to help this Fund. we give b/c Jesus has freely given to us.
You have to designate your offering online or on your offering envelope if you do this.