When in Williamsburg, Don't Miss Samaria

acts 8:4Introduction

Sometimes we miss things we are around everyday

used to live 30 miles from the Stone Quarries and everybody asked if we had seen them

There are churches which have heard the word preached for years and yet had little evidence of the power, joy and liberation of the Holy Spirit

Many have responded and commited as much of themselves as they know to as much of Christ as they have learned

Are there 2 steps to becoming a Christian?

Why was Philips preaching of the word give the Samaritans all they needed

Acts 8:4–25 NIV84

Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Christ there. When the crowds heard Philip and saw the miraculous signs he did, they all paid close attention to what he said. With shrieks, evil spirits came out of many, and many paralytics and cripples were healed. So there was great joy in that city. 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, and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, “This man is the divine power known as the Great Power.” They followed him because he had amazed them for a long time with his magic. But when they believed Philip as he preached the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. Simon himself believed and was baptized. And he followed Philip everywhere, astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw. When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them. When they arrived, they prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them; they had simply been baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money and said, “Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” Peter answered: “May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord. Perhaps he will forgive you for having such a thought in your heart. For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin.” Then Simon answered, “Pray to the Lord for me so that nothing you have said may happen to me.” When they had testified and proclaimed the word of the Lord, Peter and John returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel in many Samaritan villages.

Part 1:Philips preaching of the living Christ

Philip preached to gospel to the Samaritans

They were hated by the Jews because they were half breeds

Jesus used the Samaritans as examples

Woman at the well

Also the good Samaritan

Persecution prompted it, scattering motivated it

Results of his preaching

sioUnclean spirits cast out

people were healed

Christ’s love liberated people to accept love and forgiveness

Joy filled the city

Peter came preaching a power greater than magic

Before their eyes they saw people transformed by the resurrected Lord

But something was missing

They had received the gospel intellectually and had begun, with human effort, to live it

But Phillip had left out a crucial dimension out of his proclamation

WHAT WAS MISSING?

Any preacher or witness to Christ who proclaims the matchless wonders of salvation without making clear the necessity for the Holy Spirit to live within us and give us the power to live the new life, has given his listeners hope without healing, potential without power to live it

It is between Philip’s eloquent proclamation of the gospel and the visit of the Apostles that we find the contemporary church and most Christians longing in limbo.

Great multitudes had intellectually accepted the truth but did not have uplifting liberation of the Spirit of the Savior they had accepted

The Same is true today

Church pews are filled with people who have done their best to respond and come to church Sunday after Sunday, long to get enough vision and vitality to live another week.

In between, we suffer the embarrassing exposure of our impotence to deal with life’s demands, conflicts, and challenged,

Many of us would have to admit that, in essence, there has been little change in our attitudes, little transformation of our character, inadequate power to live in our relationships, and insufficient courage to apply what we believe

The result is a lot of Christian babes out of the womb but not fully alive!

Philip preached an authoritative, evangelistic message about the Messiahship of Jesus, the kingdom of God, the saving name of Jesus, but left out the secret of living and growing --- The Holy Spirit.

Part 2: Peter and John changed things

Peter and John told the Samaritans about the Spirit’s power to regenerate to actually change their lives---and sanctification---to make them like the Savior in character, attitude, and action.

How and when is the HOLY Spirit given?

How many times have we heard about the HS

I seldom heard it preached

The example of the Christian Church

I refused to denounce the Pentecostals even if I disagreed with them.

It is possible to hear the gospel, take part in church activities, and to be a faithful contributor without the experience of a vital living relationship with the Spirit of God

We can pray prayers without talking to God; we can work for Christian causes without being healed ourselves” we can read the Bible and live with messed up relationships; we can hear about the power of the Spirit and live inhibited, intransient lives

The Holy Spirit can really live in us

The Holy Spirit is not for us for our personal ends but to reach out

We all would like to have a spiritual rediance without repentence.

We want Life without having to change our life