Monday Acts 8:14-25

The apostles come to Samaria.

Click here for an online Bible. Acts 8:14-25

Philip had preached the gospel in Samaria and many people believed. Word got back to the apostles in Jerusalem that Samaritans had accepted the word of God. They sent Peter and John to investigate.

Remember, up to this point, all of the followers of Christ were Jews. To the first Christians, Jesus did not establish a new religion; He was the next step in God’s plan for His people. The Christians were not going off in another direction; they were following the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It was the Jews who did not follow Christ that were heading off in the wrong direction.

But Samaritans? There had to be some doubt in Jerusalem about Samaritans coming to Christ. It is ironic that John was one of the apostles to go to Samaria. In Luke 9:54, after the Samaritans in a village rejected Jesus, it was John and his brother James that wanted to call fire down from heaven to destroy the Samaritan village. But in this case, Peter and John, the two main apostles came to Samaria to see what was going on.

When they got there, they found true faith, but the Samaritans had not yet received the Holy Spirit. So the apostles laid their hands on people and prayed that they receive the Holy Spirit. Luke does not describe any events surrounding the receiving of the Holy Spirit, but there must have been something to elicit the response from Simon. He was so impressed that he wanted to buy the ability to impart the Holy Spirit. It is likely that the same kind of events as Pentecost occurred.

So what are we to make of this? Why did the Samaritans not receive the Holy Spirit when they first believed? Why was there a “Samaritan Pentecost?” Remember the day of Pentecost from chapter 2. This was a sign from God showing the legitimacy of faith in Christ. This event is a sign from God showing that Samaritans could become Christians too. Each of the “baptism of the Holy Spirit” events was a transitional event which needed the special sign from God to show its legitimacy.

Unity of the church is a big deal to God. Remember the tension between the Helenistic Jewish Christians and the Hebraic Jewish Christians. That would be nothing compared to Jewish Christians and Samaritan Christians. God provided an undeniable sign at the hands of the apostles to show that Samaritans could be brothers and sisters in Christ and provide for unity in the church.

Poor Simon; he just doesn’t get it. From his background, this ability to impart the Holy Spirit would be transferable. He would like to have that power. He offered to pay the apostles in order to get it. Obviously, to Simon, Philip did not have that power. Peter strongly rebuked Simon and told him to get his heart right with God.

So, was Simon really saved? Luke doesn’t tell us. Two people can read this passage and come up with different answers. Some would say that Peter’s comment about perishing with his money shows that he was not saved. In addition, Simon did not repent, he asked Peter to intercede for him. Therefore, Simon was not a believer – end of discussion. Others point out that it seems as if Simon were a participant in the receiving of the Holy Spirit. Peter’s rebuke did not tell him to believe in Christ. Peter was basically saying that Simon was lucky not to be struck dead like Ananias and Saphira. We can’t say, but we can learn from Simon’s bad behavior.

There is a term for Simon’s approach. It is called “simony.” It is the buying of ecclesiastical office. This was common in the middle ages when people purchased offices like bishop. A similar practice was the buying of indulgences which was paying off of peoples sin so that they could get out of purgatory early.

A similar problem occurs in churches today where large givers throw their weight around to exert influence.

Simon’s problem was that he took the ways of the world that he was used to and tried to apply them to Christian living and spiritual life. We do this all the time. An example would be how we put people into leadership positions in the church based on their ability and personality rather than their spiritual maturity.

What’s the solution? Biblical worldview. Spiritual Disciplines. Transformation.