Simon the Magician
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Scripture reading: Acts 8:9-13.
Hallelujah. This morning, we’re continuing on in the book of Acts. Last we left off, Stephen was martyred, the disciples were scattered, and deacon Philip goes to Samaria preaching the gospel. Let’s continue on in Acts 8:9-13
9 But there was a man named Simon, who had previously practiced magic in the city and amazed the people of Samaria, saying that he himself was somebody great.
10 They all paid attention to him, from the least to the greatest, saying, “This man is the power of God that is called Great.”
11 And they paid attention to him because for a long time he had amazed them with his magic.
12 But when they believed Philip as he preached good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.
13 Even Simon himself believed, and after being baptized he continued with Philip. And seeing signs and great miracles performed, he was amazed.
Some people might be wondering, is magic real? Is there really a way to bend reality to my will? And the answer is most definitely yes. There are demonic forces around that can manipulate reality according to what you want. And we see one such example in today’s passage with Simon the Magician.
Now, if you watched Harry Potter or any other movies on magic, one element that’s always there is the idea of getting it right. You need to say the right words, in the right tone, and with the right movement of the wand. And if you don’t get any of those parts right, you don’t get the result you want.
How do we know this? Because the Bible talks about the books and scrolls that they used in order to perform such magic.
19 And a number of those who had practiced magic arts brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted the value of them and found it came to fifty thousand pieces of silver.
So we could say that magic or witchcraft, at its essence, is bending the situation according to my will based on my works. It’s kind of like cooking, but with weird ingredients. Two frog legs plus the horn of an antelope and the hair of your ex-husband. If you get the measurements wrong, things won’t go your way.
It’s a form of works righteousness to make your will come true.
And although we don’t often encounter such forms of magic in Singapore, the principles of magic are everywhere. Do what you need to do to improve your reality. My will be done. And for people who focus only on this mindset, they work incredibly hard in order to achieve
How long do you think it took Simon the Magician to learn his magic? If it was easy, everyone would do it. But he stood out from among the people. He must have spent a lot of money to buy the magic scrolls, and then spent years and years, sleepless nights, learning and memorizing and practicing the spells.
What was the result? He became famous. He declared that he was great, and all the people called him great.
9 But there was a man named Simon, who had previously practiced magic in the city and amazed the people of Samaria, saying that he himself was somebody great.
10 They all paid attention to him, from the least to the greatest, saying, “This man is the power of God that is called Great.”
11 And they paid attention to him because for a long time he had amazed them with his magic.
He got all of their attention, their adoration, their applause.
But here’s the thing. If Simon one day fails to perform his magic, he loses everything. No one will give a clap to him. They might even mock him and jeer at him. “You thought you were so great, but look at you now.” That’s how this world operates.
In today’s world, the magic wand has been mostly replaced with the magic wallet.
Everyone gave Simon their attention. Everyone but God. For the Bible says that God gives His attention to those who are humble.
6 For though the Lord is high, he regards the lowly, but the haughty he knows from afar.
2 All these things my hand has made, and so all these things came to be, declares the Lord. But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word.
God gives His attention to the humble. God gives His grace to the humble. And when the humble deacon Philip came along, proclaiming not his own greatness, but the greatness of God, the people believed and were baptized. And even proud Simon was baptized, because he saw the even more amazing miracles performed by humble Philip.
12 But when they believed Philip as he preached good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. 13 Even Simon himself believed, and after being baptized he continued with Philip. And seeing signs and great miracles performed, he was amazed.
When it says ‘signs and great miracles performed’, it’s in the passive tense. In New Testament Greek, this is called the divine passive, and it points us to the true actor behind the scenes: God Himself. Philip isn’t the one doing the miracles. God is. Because God gives grace to the humble.
6 But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”
How do we know that Philip was humble? We know this because he went to Samaria. If you recall at the time, Samaria was regarded as a pigsty. The Samaritans were considered as half-breeds, born out of willful disobedience and intermarriage with the gentiles. Jesus told the parable of the Good Samaritan. It's meant to be ironic. Because the Jews at the time would rather walk around Samaria than step into that land.
Philip chooses to go to Samaria. Why? Because his life was a life of Thy will be done. That’s humility.
So either we follow the way of magic, which says “My will be done,” or we follow the way of Jesus, which says, “Thy will be done.”
Even the Son of God submitted to the will of the Father. How much more should we? We must be humble before God. True humility is understanding who we are in light of who God is. Humility isn’t insecurity. Humility is realizing how great God is, and at the same time how completely devoted God is to us. How completely He loves us. Love so pure, love so simple, love so uncomplicated and unconditional.
That’s why it says here that Philip preached good news about the kingdom. It’s a kingdom where anyone can enter in, so long as they humbly receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior.
Christianity isn’t about doing the right things and saying the right words. It’s first and foremost about receiving the love of God through faith in Christ Jesus. So let us pray, humbly holding on to this good news. And I pray that like Deacon Philip, we will see the Lord will do amazing works of evangelism, signs, and miracles through us. Amen?
