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Four years had passed since the Holy Spirit had been given to the Jews.(1) “A great wave of persecution” had begun on the day that Stephen was killed.(2) It swept over the church, causing many believers, except the apostles, to scatter throughout Judea and Samaria. Despite this dispersion, the church continued to grow. The apostles remained in Jerusalem for a season to shepherd the still-growing church through her infancy, despite threats from the religious leaders and the persecution directed toward the other believers. It is very possible that the initial persecution was primarily aimed at the Hellenistic Jewish believers, as was the case with Stephen.
Philip, the second of the seven Hellenistic Jewish leaders selected to minister to the widows, was directed by God to go to Samaria. Jesus had previously prohibited His apostles from going there.(3) However, now the Lord was inviting Philip to enter into the labor He had begun about seven years earlier through His encounter with the woman at the well.(4) Philip was not only to declare God’s Word but also to demonstrate God’s power through miracles.
Sadly, wherever God sows His true believers, Satan will eventually sow his counterfeits. This was as true in the first-century church as it is today. It was true in the ministry of John the Baptist,(5) Paul,(6) and even Jesus.(7) The enemy seeks to devour, and if he is unsuccessful at that, he will turn his attention to deception. In this case, Satan’s instrument was a sorcerer named Simon. The people were amazed by the “things” Simon did, and as a result, they believed the “things” he said.
Training in the identification of counterfeit currency always begins with studying the real thing. Recognizing counterfeit faith is best accomplished in the same manner. Genuine truth and works will always align with God’s Word and glorify Him. The enemy’s counterfeit actions and lies will always bring attention to self. Simon relished in being called “the great one” by the crowd.
When Simon witnessed the miracles performed by Philip, he did not demonstrate faith in the Word of God; rather, he placed his faith in the miracles themselves. His belief was like that of many people who witnessed the miracles of Jesus but refused to acknowledge His Word. Simon’s “belief and baptism” were not the result of true repentance; they were part of his attempt to manipulate and deceive in order to gain favor and power.
i can relate to that. There was a time when i was going through the motions of belief. My motivation was more to win the heart of the woman i was pursuing than to pursue Jesus as my Lord and Savior.
Let’s take a momentary side road. Simon had not truly repented and believed, but there were many who had—and they were baptized by Philip. Luke tells us that these believers had not yet received the Holy Spirit,(8)even though they had trusted in Christ. Paul, writing to the church in Ephesus, tells us, “… when you believed in Christ, He identified you as His own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom He promised long ago.The Spirit is God’s guarantee that He will give us the inheritance He promised and that He has purchased us to be His own people.…”(9) So, if God gives us the Holy Spirit when we believe in Christ (like Paul says(9)), why didn’t the Samaritans receive the Holy Spirit immediately upon believing in Christ (like Luke says(8))? It would seem to be a contradiction—and that’s the reason for this side road.
In these beginning days of the church (Acts chapters 1 through 10), we see God working in ways that were unique to that time period. The two elements we need to understand are these. First, before Jesus ascended, He told His disciples that they would receive power and then they would tell the Good News in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the ends of the earth.(10) There was an initial order to the spread of the Gospel that applied at the start, but no longer applies today—first to Jerusalem, then to Judea and Samaria, followed by the ends of the earth.
Second, Jesus told Peter, in the presence of His other apostles, “And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”(11) Jesus very specifically gave the “keys to the Kingdom” to Peter, granting him the unique privilege of opening the door (loosing on earth and in heaven) to the release of the Holy Spirit. Peter was the one who preached on the Day of Pentecost, opening the door to the Jews in Jerusalem and Judea. We see here that Peter (and John) laid their hands on these new believers, opening the door to the Samaritans. Later in Acts 10, we read that God used Peter to open the door to the Gentiles (the ends of the earth). Once these doors were opened, they no longer needed to be reopened. The truth Paul wrote to the Ephesians applies to us today: we are immediately identified and indwelt by the Holy Spirit at the point of our salvation.
Let’s come back to Simon. There is a word in the English language today—“simony”—which means “the buying or selling of something spiritual.”(12) Its origins are in this very passage. Peter confronted Simon for his sin in thinking he could buy the power and presence of the Holy Spirit. This attitude still exists today. People attempt to gain positional or spiritual favor from God and/or recognition from man through “good works” or by giving financial gifts as a “quid pro quo.” As i mentioned earlier, i attempted to impress and receive favor through my own disingenuous actions. Within the church, we may want to “more spiritual” than we truly are in order to gain favor or position, but that fake façade often quickly falls away, revealing our true hypocrisy.
Regrettably, there is no indication that Simon ever truly repented. He was “sorry” and asked Peter to pray that he would escape the judgement of God, but he stopped short of turning from his own way and turning to Christ. He sought power and recognition but never sought the Savior.
There are those today who attempt to spiritualize their circumstances in an effort to “buy” sympathy or recognition. They believe God owes them something, or the church owes them something. Their focus is on themselves and what they can “get” through the journey—not on the promises and faithfulness of God even in the midst of the trials and the hardships. An attitude surfaces that God “owes” me—based on what i have done or what has happened to me. i sometimes see that attitude expressed through comments on my blog posts. But here’s the reality—just as it was for Simon—the power of God is not for sale! It’s not earned. It’s not deserved. We can only witness and experience the power of God working in us and through us when our hearts are turned and surrendered to Him—and even then, only for His purpose and glory. The power of God isn’t about us—it’s all about Him. And it can’t be bought!
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You can read about Simon’s deceit in the eighth chapter of the Book of Acts.
This post is taken from chapter 21 of my book, Until He Returns. For more information about the book, click here.
(1) Acts 8:9-24 (NLT)
A man named Simon had been a sorcerer there for many years, amazing the people of Samaria and claiming to be someone great. Everyone, from the least to the greatest, often spoke of him as “the Great One – the Power of God.” They listened closely to him because for a long time he had astounded them with his magic. But now the people believed Philip’s message of Good News concerning the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ. As a result, many men and women were baptized. Then Simon himself believed and was baptized. He began following Philip wherever he went, and he was amazed by the signs and great miracles Philip performed. When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that the people of Samaria had accepted God’s message, they sent Peter and John there. As soon as they arrived, they prayed for these new believers to receive the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them, for they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Peter and John laid their hands upon these believers, and they received the Holy Spirit. When Simon saw that the Spirit was given when the apostles laid their hands on people, he offered them money to buy this power. “Let me have this power, too,” he exclaimed, “so that when I lay my hands on people, they will receive the Holy Spirit!” But Peter replied, “May your money be destroyed with you for thinking God’s gift can be bought! You can have no part in this, for your heart is not right with God. Repent of your wickedness and pray to the Lord. Perhaps He will forgive your evil thoughts, for I can see that you are full of bitter jealousy and are held captive by sin.” “Pray to the Lord for me,” Simon exclaimed, “that these terrible things you’ve said won’t happen to me!”
(2) Acts 8:1
(3) Matthew 10:5-6
(4) John 4
(5) Matthew 3:7
(6) Acts 13:6; 2 Corinthians 11:1-4, 13-15
(7) Matthew 23:15, 33; John 8:44
(8) Acts 8:15-16
(9) Ephesians 1:13-14 (NLT)
(10) Acts 1:8
(11) Matthew 16:18-19 (ESV)
(12) Britannica
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