Acts 8: 1 – 25 NLT
“Saul was one of the witnesses, and he agreed completely with the killing of Stephen.
A great wave of persecution began that day, sweeping over the church in Jerusalem; and all the believers except the apostles were scattered through the regions of Judea and Samaria. 2 (Some devout men came and buried Stephen with great mourning.) 3 But Saul was going everywhere to destroy the church. He went from house to house, dragging out both men and women to throw them into prison.”
The opposition to Christianity is now in full swing. Remember Acts 1? “you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.” (v. 8 NASB) The church is now branching out to Judea and Samaria. Persecution actually spreads the word. The people scattering are missionaries, not just refugees. The apostles stayed in Jerusalem – notice “all believers except the apostles were scattered”. Perhaps they felt they should stay where this new church began, and had faith that the centre of this new movement needed to stand firm.
Saul was certainly on fire. Try to visualize that scene – dragging both men and women out of their houses into the street, and then throwing them in the horrible prisons of that day. Have you ever wondered if God is able to change something we see as terrible? Maybe there are things in your life that you struggle with personally, and wish you could get control over them. Maybe there are situations in your family, your church, that you pray about and wonder if God can fix it. Look at Saul. Would you have ever thought that Saul would be the one to take this new church world-wide in his day? Would you have ever thought Saul would say this some day? “For to me, living means living for Christ, and dying is even better.” (Phil. 1: 21)
We should start living trusting in God’s plans and help even when things are tough.
Philip Preaches in Samaria
4 But the believers who were scattered preached the Good News about Jesus wherever they went. 5 Philip, for example, went to the city of Samaria and told the people there about the Messiah. 6 Crowds listened intently to Philip because they were eager to hear his message and see the miraculous signs he did. 7 Many evil spirits were cast out, screaming as they left their victims. And many who had been paralyzed or lame were healed. 8 So there was great joy in that city.”
Remember Jesus at the well in Samaria? It was a place that Jews didn’t go. The Samaritans were a mixed race of people, and those that came from Jewish backgrounds had built a new temple on Mount Gerizim. The woman who Jesus met at the well talked about that temple and her beliefs before she realized who Jesus really was. Philip is now in Samaria where people seemed eager to listen to his message. Perhaps they still remembered the time Jesus was there and they had believed they had met the Messiah. Philip’s preaching was accompanied by many miracles. Again, God stepped in to confirm His power when the gospel went to this new and different culture.
“9 A man named Simon had been a sorcerer there for many years, amazing the people of Samaria and claiming to be someone great.10 Everyone, from the least to the greatest, often spoke of him as “the Great One—the Power of God.” 11 They listened closely to him because for a long time he had astounded them with his magic.
12 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. 13 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.
14 When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that the people of Samaria had accepted God’s message, they sent Peter and John there. 15 As soon as they arrived, they prayed for these new believers to receive the Holy Spirit. 16 The Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them, for they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 17 Then Peter and John laid their hands upon these believers, and they received the Holy Spirit.”
18 When Simon saw that the Spirit was given when the apostles laid their hands on people, he offered them money to buy this power. 19 “Let me have this power, too,” he exclaimed, “so that when I lay my hands on people, they will receive the Holy Spirit!”
20 But Peter replied, “May your money be destroyed with you for thinking God’s gift can be bought! 21 You can have no part in this, for your heart is not right with God. 22 Repent of your wickedness and pray to the Lord. Perhaps he will forgive your evil thoughts, 23 for I can see that you are full of bitter jealousy and are held captive by sin.”
24 “Pray to the Lord for me,” Simon exclaimed, “that these terrible things you’ve said won’t happen to me!”
25 After testifying and preaching the word of the Lord in Samaria, Peter and John returned to Jerusalem. And they stopped in many Samaritan villages along the way to preach the Good News.”
Once again, we see a dramatic coming of the Holy Spirit. Just like God confirmed the message with miracles, He now confirmed His presence in each of their lives by sending the Holy Spirit to this new group of people.
Simon’s story is an interesting one. It appeared that he accepted the gospel message, but then what he was really thinking came to light, and Peter denounced him. Samaria was a culture that seemed to honour magic. Simon was well known and respected. “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”. (v. 10 – 11) It appears he followed Peter and John around because he wanted to figure out how they managed to do the things they did. He wanted to find out how to continue being a “big shot” in Samaria.
Sometimes we need to stop and think about our motivation for what we do. Do we want to honour God and exalt the Lord Jesus, or are we hoping for some popularity for ourselves?
Our song for today is What a Beautiful Name by Hillsong Worship.