Acts 8:4-25, What’s It For?

Acts chapter 8 beginning verse 4 hear the word of the Lord Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word

Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed to them the Christ and the crowds with one accord paid attention

To what was being said by Philip and they heard him and saw the signs that he did for unclean spirits came out of many who were possessed crying with a loud voice and many who were

Paralyzed or lame were healed. So there was much joy in that city 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

They all paid attention to him from the least to the greatest saying this man is the power of God.

It is called great and They paid attention to him because for a long time he had amazed them with his magic

But when they believed Philip as he preached good news about the kingdom of God in the name of Jesus Christ They were baptized both men and women even

Simon himself Believed and after having after being baptized he continued with Philip and seeing signs and great miracles

Performed he was amazed Now when the Apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the

Word of God They sent to sent to them Peter and John who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the

Holy Spirit For they had not yet for he had not yet fallen on any of them But they had only been baptized in the name of the

Lord Jesus Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit Now when

Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the Apostles hands He offered them money saying give me this power also

So that anyone in whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit, but Peter said to him

May your silver perish with you because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money

You have neither part nor lot in this matter for your heart is not right before God repent therefore of this wickedness of yours and pray to the

Lord that if possible the intent of your heart may be forgiven you for I see that you are on the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity and Simon answered pray for me to the

Lord that nothing of what you have said may come upon me Now when they had testified and spoken the

Word of the Lord, they returned to Jerusalem Preaching the gospel to many villages of the

Samaritans May the Lord add his blessings to the reading of his Holy Word. Oh, what is what is this for?

No, I mean, I mean this right here. What's if what's it for? this oh

Maybe you think I'm talking about the table or maybe you think I'm talking about the cloth over it You think you're saying well, it's for the

Lord's Supper. It's for that Bible or it's the decoration The cloth is nice, isn't it a little the silvery and then then the red sash whatever you call that thing

But mrs. Perry made that for us soon after we moved in here To me I look at that and think not only is this a nice decoration that serves to cover the table

It's actually the table is pretty crude if we took the it's just like basic boards, but it reminds us of mrs.

Perry so that's good to have but but what made you think I was referring to the table of the cloth. I Pointing because you've been taught that this gesture

I'm trying to point to you is for pointing to something Beyond it

But if you've ever tried to ever try that with a toddler get a little toddler a little a little more than a baby

You know old enough you can talk to him, but not much more and your baby you're you're you're at a window and a cardinal lands on the tree branch nearby and you point to the cardinal and say to the toddler look at that and He or she looks at What and he looks at your finger?

And you go no the bright red bird The toddler thinks you're referring to the finger

Maybe here she tries to mimic the gesture. You know see if I can do that, too Can I have my one finger sticking out and the toddler thinks the finger gesture is fun.

This is amazing Never mind the bird cares about the bird this I want to do you mean it to point beyond itself?

To something more wonderful than the ability to do this, you know, you think what's that but to the child

The sign is more interesting Well, what is this?

For I mean the church Well here in the early church, they've been told they have a mission remember chapter 1 verse 8 the witnesses

Jesus said here in Jerusalem Judea Samaria to the uttermost parts of the earth like North Carolina and Virginia We don't see an act that they've done anything to accomplish that mission until Stephen is first Slandered and then brutally murdered and a great persecution breaks out and that gives them the incentive to go out

Causing many Christians in to flee Jerusalem taking the gospel with them and verse 4 says those who were

Those who were scattered because of the persecution They're fleeing for their lives now.

They went about Preaching the word so they they took the word with them so now

Judea the region around Jerusalem begins to be filled with these messengers of the gospel and they were there were probably all kinds of great stories the believers bringing the gospel to Towns all around there and people being converted and they gather together in new churches and probably will be entertaining ourselves in heaven for who knows

How many a lot how long with all these great stories? One of those only a few of these is preserved here in the

Bible One of those is from here from Philip the first deacon and and he he knows what the gospel is for It's for spreading and he doesn't just go to the region around Jerusalem He goes to Samaria and here we see what the gospel is for With the gospel the church and the

Holy Spirit is for and we see that in four major parts first Samaria second signs then

Simon and finally the Spirit First Samaria now

Philip went to Samaria to us. That doesn't sound like much just a place name Any other place maybe it's like say well,

I was I went to Washington DC you think well, okay So what but going to Samaria is crossing a major boundary.

It's a it's a breakthrough to a different kind of people Remember, this is one of the steps

Jesus specifically told them to take Jerusalem Judea Samaria Now so far over seven chapters into the book of Acts This is about a quarter of the way through the book

But about that seven chapters the book they haven't crossed any boundaries yet. They haven't gone out yet Now they had a kind of an internal cultural boundary

They needed to cross between Greek speakers and local Hebrews, but they haven't gone out there across geographic boundaries

Now finally Philip breaks through a boundary What's Samaria for?

by the way So the Jews It's for avoiding, you know

If you lived up north where Jesus was raised and you want to go down south to Jerusalem Samaria was in between you

Most the time they would go far out of their way Around it to avoid it the people there in Samaria were for ostracizing

That's why the disciples were amazed. Remember Jesus is speaking to this woman at the well They're amazing speaking to it.

Not just a woman but a Samaritan It was a revolutionary to think that a Samaritan remember the parable who is my neighbor

Jesus He tells a parable of the good who? That's what so I'm shocking about that.

It's a Samaritan is my neighbor The Samaritans were outcasts.

They were considered half breeds and heretics they were the descendants of some Gentiles who have been imported into the land of Israel and who then

Intermarried with a few leftover Israelites there and they they kind of adopted this watered -down perverted form of Israelite religion and a mixed with other things

They and they had even their own temple the Samaritan temple on a different mountain, you know

Not remember that woman at the wells trying to debate Jesus about where should we worship in Jerusalem or our own temple?

They were a breakaway sect Kind of like what we may regard the Jehovah's Witnesses They're like that You don't consider them one of us

They didn't need and they on their part didn't consider the Jews one of them they didn't need

Jerusalem They didn't need to fellowship with the Jews. They thought what's Jerusalem for in their mind?

Nothing to us Samaritans. We're independent. We're separate and so Philip goes to these

Breakaway Israelites in verse 5 and proclaims to them The Christ that is he was preaching who the

Messiah is Who is the one who brings in the kingdom of God on earth? Of course, that's

Jesus So if you want to be in the kingdom of God, you must believe in you must submit to and you must follow

Jesus that's what he's telling these people no more debating about which temple is best. That doesn't make any sense anymore

Jesus is the way the truth and the life if you want to be God's worshiper Doesn't matter which temple you go to you must worship

Jesus and spirit and in truth So what's Philip in Samaria for? He's for getting the good news out to all kinds of people even these

Breakaway Israelites, it's it's for crossing boundaries either geographic ones or cultural ones that divide people for cross those boundaries with the good news that Jesus is the king of the kingdom of God What are?

Signs for You know, I point to the table and the cloth

And you know that when I say look at that. I don't mean look at my finger. Of course not

I'd look at whatever I'm pointing to sign are not for drawing attention to themselves

What would you think if you're driving down the road and you saw a sign it read? Read me.

I mean, that's it. Just just read me You probably think What a waste of a sign who would put up a sign like that signs are for pointing to something else

You know beyond them maybe to the speed limit saw a sign coming in here. No zoning

Okay, I'm not sure exactly what that's about. But I understand somebody around this county doesn't want there to be zoning Okay, got it.

Maybe they can point to where a hospital is our billboard might point to a business signs are for pointing

Philip in Samaria has signs calls them verse six crowds are gathered and they were very attentive to what he was saying because Because they saw

What quote the signs that he was doing signs pointed to what he was saying?

So they paid very very careful attention to his message. It was what some people call power evangelism

In other words, you use power to get people's attention spiritual power and and then evangelize them

The signs are expressions of God's power to show that the message of salvation is powerful and he says for in verse 7 other words explaining because he's doing signs because These are the signs unclean spirits came out of people

They would scream loudly, but they came out many and it says many who are paralyzed or lame were healed

These are the signs if they stumbled into Phillips meeting on crutches They could leave without the crutches if they were carried in by others.

They were able to walk out These weren't intended by calling them signs think what that means

That means they are not intended to just be miraculous works of health care right now sure is it's great that people can be relieved of their physical or Psychological suffering to give them healing in the body healing in the mind give them the healing that they want that that's that's good

But here by calling them signs it shows the healing is not an end in itself

They are meant for more than just allowing people peace of mind or the ability to walk unhindered they were signs pointing to something far greater than the healing itself and Think what it says about the fact now in our day

There's so many prayer meetings one reason people find prayer meetings It's so dull and don't want to go because they'll end up hearing about you know

I have a cousin who has a friend who has an uncle who's got a sore toe and they'll pray, you know It's just a list of physical ailments and let's pray for them sometimes prayer meetings and prayer requests are just filled sometimes just consumed with prayers for healing as If they were an end in themselves, they were the goal

Just getting healed rarely prayers for conversion or for repentance almost like that's embarrassing that's to be somebody be

Somebody something to be saved someone to repent of their sins, you know But you but if you see the there's wrath of God coming or judgment

Don't you want to pray for people to be relieved of that? Suffering maybe the reason we don't see more signs because people look at this.

Why don't we see things like this now? for evangelism, what do we could do but bunch of Miracles signs and that would give people's a position that we could evangelize them

But maybe the reason we don't see signs is that we don't treat them as signs Remember what signs are signs point to something else

That's what they're called here. That's why they're called signs. We treat them as In this ends in themselves

That they're they're self Referential they're just a bit just about healing the body to be relieved of our aches and pains to be able to walk

Well again, it's about extending our life for a few more years, but they point to nothing

Eternal people go to healing meetings if they didn't get healed but Will they go if they want to hear the gospel?

Here's something eternal But if it here they are what signs

They point to the truth that Philip is preaching That Jesus is the king of the kingdom of God And so because the gospel has come to Samaria, it's pointed to it's attested to with signs

Paid attention then many were not only healed temporarily, but far more importantly they were saved eternally

So in verse 8 there was much joy in that city. What are the signs for?

Pointing to Christ who brings much joy But then there's

Simon Simon was a big shot in Samaria. He had practiced some kind of magic

Now whether he was a he was a charlatan who just did illusions sleight -of -hand tricks.

It fooled people You know think of how much a guy like David Copperfield could get by in those ancient days, you know

Do these illusions people think he had real power? Maybe he was like that He learned tricks that you know

That fool people in the thinking had power or whether he actually had possibly good. I had actually demonic power

It's I've got a medium or we eat you either way. We don't know it really doesn't matter But he amazed the people of Samaria.

He was he was an amazer And so they they even gave him the title of the great

He had divine power. So he was they said Simon the Great. He's like the incarnation of God's power.

He's so amazing The amazer amazed amazed him with his tricks Interesting though you think about it whatever tricks he did

He wasn't healing all those cripples in Samaria was he because there's so plenty of them for Philip to heal

Philip had plenty of things to work with with his signs people that people with needs because whatever

Simon was doing he didn't meet those needs So maybe that's why God gave Philip those many signs to do to show that the

Jesus the Christ That he's preaching has far greater power than this Simon You're impressed with him and this

Simon who's been enthralling the people for years It was what is called a power encounter when the power of God encounters the power of some other power

Some other claim to power Here is the power of the one who they used to call the great.

Oh So you think this guy you think this Simon is the divine power that is called great

That he's the incarnation of God's power. You think so because they can do these tricks now

God says you want to see some real power look what I'm gonna let Philip do and So God heals cripples the demon oppressed to show as Jesus said that the finger of God is at work

If the fingers of God is at work So the kingdom of God has come upon you the signs point to the fact that Jesus is more powerful than Simon and Whatever he was representing

The signs and the preaching are so powerful many believe even Simon himself sort of They believe

Phillips message in verse 12 About notice in verse 12. This is summing up his message the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ Now some today teach that the the kingdom of God was just the message that Jesus taught before the he was the crucifixion and the resurrection and And now in the quote

Church Age we have a whole different gospel some people teach that but but he see right here in verse 12 and In later in the book of Acts that that is still the message

It's still the kingdom of God's the same gospel of the kingdom Jesus was preaching that when he was on earth the rule of God is coming on earth

So repent and submit to the king the kingdom then comes through and in now we know the name of Jesus what is preaching for It's for the kingdom of God the preaching with the signs brings conversions and that means

That means baptism notice that they believe first and are baptized

That's always the pattern in the book of Acts in the New Testament believe then baptism both men and women including the amazer himself

Simon Notice in verse 13 Simon says Simon believed in a manner of speaking

Now here's an important truth Many people don't understand but it's obvious from this passage as particularly you see it when when when you when we look at all that the

Bible says about faith Some say that all one must do is believe to be saved.

That's sort of true Sola fide faith alone. It's one of the principles of any true church.

Certainly any before church But not everything that is called belief or faith is real belief

It's just mental agreement Belief you just don't think of any reason to argue against the message.

Is that really faith? Now some say yes That all you have to do is say you believe you have to agree in your mind

And they say that's faith and then you're saved and then they'll say one saved always saved

So you can't lose your salvation because you agreed at one point in the past and it is a matter about whether that belief changes your life at all

What's faith for they say it's just to keep you out of hell Here Simon believes it says in verse 13 sort of He agreed

You know, he wasn't arguing with Philip He was going along with his message He was even baptized as an expression of his sort of faith and He continued it says

Simon continued with Philip that means he went to the meetings and he listened to Philip and our terms would say he's going to church

And so he appeared for a time to be a believer. He's baptized. It's attending church But did he have true?

Saving faith. Oh, we'll see By what he thinks what he thinks this the gospel the church the preaching the signs

What it's all about what it's for What you think it's for deep down shows whether your faith is real or Whether what you call faith

Is just something else Well Simon the amazer is

Now himself amazed at the end of verse 12. He sees the signs and the great miracles performed.

He's amazed by them You know, he knows look at that. Wow Simon. I mean this Philip this isn't a trick

You know, he's not just pulling coins out from behind people's ears, you know things like that and amazing people.

No, he's actually healing cripples He knows this is no illusion.

The problem was though. He didn't see what the signs pointed to He was like a toddler looking at this

Wow, that's amazing thinking it's all about itself Thinking about how can I do that?

Can I do that? Can I make my fingers do that? No, he's thinking Simon's thinking well somehow how looking at Philip.

How can how can I make this about me? Well, there's

Samaria the breakaway Israelites with the signs pointing to Jesus and Simon Formerly the great now apparently a believer, but what does he think belief is for?

Next is the spirit the Apostles in Jerusalem hear the good news about the Samaritans. It says they had received the

Word of God That's an interesting way. That's in verse 14 an interesting way of putting believing isn't it?

Accepting the gospel normally people today say they've received Christ as their Savior here Luke puts it as they received the

Word of God That's how believing the gospel is put in verse 14. It's receiving the Word of God. It's not just believing part of it

You know the part that promises heaven It's believing it

That he is true And so you don't just you know, believe the parts are convenient to you. You believe at all even the parts about if you want to be

Jesus a disciple you have to take up your cross and follow him or seek first the kingdom of God or You know seek that first not money or pleasure or being the great you receive the

Word of God That's what you do When you become a believer So the

Apostles hear that that has happened in Samaria and they send their a team there, you know Peter and John to check them out to connect with them to form a relationship with them to show that we're part of the same church

Now here's an odd thing starting in verse 15 and 16 They needed the Apostles to come to confirm them because they had not received the

Holy Spirit It's what it says. They had not received the Holy Spirit They had believed and so they must have they must have something of the

Holy Spirit in their hearts Because we know from elsewhere we saw that passage in Sunday school this morning 1st Corinthians chapter 2 verse 14 that the unspiritual person the natural

Person person without the Spirit. He cannot he lacks the ability to accept the things of God the gospel, right?

It's not just a matter of willpower you simply can't do it without the Holy Spirit it's a

Impossibility for the unsaved person to to believe the gospel It is not able so everyone who truly believes needs the

Holy Spirit to enable them to believe so they had Something of the Holy Spirit, but notice the language in verse 16.

He That's the Holy Spirit had not yet fallen Falls out of a you know, like a weighty a powerful big thing falling that that had not fallen on them

They had only I think that's key only been baptized

So see this is the only kind of baptism they had in water. I think that's implied emphasizing that this is the only baptism they had experienced not a baptism in the

Holy Spirit and They had only been baptized in the name of Jesus that is by his authority and Commission now

The implication is they had not been baptized in the Holy Spirit and that's odd Because I if you remember a few weeks ago

I said it when we're in Acts chapter 1 or 2 or both that after Pentecost now Every believer is baptized in the

Holy Spirit at conversion that Pentecost was the church being baptized in The Holy Spirit and since then every believer receives that empowering when they are born again

In other words Pentecost is not something we seek after we're saved It comes as part of the package deal now and I believe that's what scripture teaches first Corinthians chapter 12 verse 13 says for in one

Spirit we were all baptized into one body and all were made to drink of one spirit

But here these believers believe and are baptized in water but oddly enough

They aren't baptized in the Holy Spirit So they're they're like then almost exactly like that Remember the first part the disciples 120 disciples are in Acts chapter 1

Before you know before acts 2 for Pentecost Believers they're believers who haven't been baptized in the

Holy Spirit So what's going on? Well some like Pentecostals would say well just see you're wrong

About the baptism of the Holy Spirit is being part of conversion. It's a separate experience There are two stages first that my answer to that would be well

Okay, I understand from this passage as though it is if this were all that the Bible said But first Paul never teaches that or the other apostles in the epistles even when just teaching about the

Spirit That's kind of important now surely we'd be taught about something that's that important when we there's something we need to seek and experience

Surely, we would be taught about it, but we're not and second If you're going to make this passage and to the norm

You're teaching that is a pattern. It's not just history, but it's a pattern We're supposed to follow that there are two stages

There's salvation first and then there's a baptism the Holy Spirit we seek after that You're making this the norm to say that then you need to make all of it the norm

You don't just get to pick and choose which parts you want to make the norm and ignore the rest And so you'd say well, we need the apostles to come and lay hands on us and pray for us to have that spirit

Right. That's what happens here. By the way, that doesn't happen again later in the book of Acts. So this is the only time So, how can it be the norm but never mind that but you have to say well

This is the norm where we're gonna get these apostles to come and pray for us and Get us that baptism the

Holy Spirit. Well, of course some will say some would say okay. I'll see you to that I'll we'll fix that by calling some people apostles and well, yeah, but I'm not that impressed by these new apostles

We have around here. Sorry. I'm just I'm not buying that. They're like Peter and John not going for that now

I know Remember the context the church is crossing boundaries

This is a new breakthrough up until now. The gospel had only been spread among Jews Now they cross into the

Samaritans Jerusalem Judea Now Samaria, it's another step to obeying

Jesus's command But Samaritans are breakaway Israelites Maybe and actually probably or maybe even almost certainly

They would be tempted Since their culture is so accustomed to breaking away from the

Jews Maybe they would think hey We can form a breakaway church

Alright, they think we've become believers. We'll have our own church independent If they believe the gospel and are baptized in water and in the

Holy Spirit They have everything then maybe they would think Like they've been trained to think from their youth as Samaritans worshiping in their own temple

Completely separate from the Jews. Maybe they would think We don't need the wider church. We don't need that church in Jerusalem.

We don't need those so -called apostles We're self -sufficient We've been self -sufficient before we didn't need the temple in Jerusalem Will be self -sufficient

Christians not needing the church in Jerusalem They were breakaway

Israelites. They could easily become breakaway Christians Now here's a statement of opinion.

I Think it's not ideal That we this church is not formally associated with a wider

Fellowship of churches, whatever you want to call it some convention or association or denomination We don't want to be micromanaged from outside like told where where we can, you know can't have a building

But we also don't want us. We don't want for ourselves a self -sufficient got a breakaway

I'm independent. It's kind of arrogant spirit. It's healthy for any church for us to recognize

Formally officially that we're not the only church in the world That we're part of a bigger body of Christ and it's healthy and maybe healthy to have some outside Accountability, I still hope one day that we can join some kind of family of churches

After all, what's what's the church for? It's for being part of the true universal church

Well here the Lord seems to have made an exception to not have included the baptism in the

Holy Spirit with conversion That's the only time this happens in Acts so that and he seems to have done it so that Peter and John would come from Jerusalem Connect with them

You know say they physically lay hands on them. They touch them communicate through touch

You know that we people we were disconnected Jews Samaritans had nothing to do with each other, but now we're connected.

We're touching communicate through touch that we're together now We're the body of Christ we're part of the same family of believers and by doing that and When that happens, it's then that they experience the same baptism of the

Holy Spirit that the Apostles experience in Pentecost What's the Holy Spirit for?

for power Notice first That after they're being baptized in the

Holy Spirit. Nope. Nope. Well notice that that experience was Was noticeable notice that it's noticeable.

Did you notice how noticeable it is? You could see it in other words it expressed itself

Being filled baptizing the Holy Spirit expressed itself in an obvious ways

Now we're not told exactly here what those expressions were But they were obvious they were visible

It's not just well now now we've laid hands and we pray this prayer and now you just believe you have the Holy Spirit Now you could see something and something has changed to quote

John Piper Receiving the Holy Spirit is experiential not inferential

That is many Christians today are taught Like I just taught you that they receive the

Holy Spirit when they believe so They then think on the basis of that that they can infer that they have the

Holy Spirit by the fact that they believe Of course that depends on what you think believe is right that's also an issue here

It doesn't mean to believe but it but they think they agree because they agree they have the

Holy Spirit So you you ask them whether they know they have the Holy Spirit and they reason they think in their heads.

Yes I know I have the Holy Spirit because I believe they think they believe and Believing is all the evidence you need

For knowing you have the Holy Spirit But here we see that that's not true Being baptized at the

Holy Spirit was something that could be seen it made it an obvious Difference it was powerful

You know if someone or yourself has the Holy Spirit by what you what you can see and their experience

Not not just inferring Well, they say they believe and so therefore they have the Holy Spirit That's that's that's inferential

No, it's experiential That that expression of the

Holy Spirit May be a hunger and thirst for the Word of God. It's just now

You want to you want to read it? You want to hear it effectively preach? You just want to be You want you want to understand it?

You want to know it you want to absorbed it or it may be a love of praise So that you just want to sing to the

Lord Maybe maybe loudly. This is praise in the Lord in song

It may be maybe a gift for evangelism you want to reach out and you have a gift to do that or maybe a yearning to do something you want to do something to The extension of the kingdom you want to serve maybe you want to give you want to be involved with reaching out or it may be

The power to be self -controlled when before you didn't have that power You can control your temper now or your sexual desires.

You can walk in holiness. It may be the gifts of the Holy Spirit But it's obvious it's experiential it's not just inferential

That means if someone says that they believe But there's no signs of the

Spirit in their life And there's no spiritual desires. They agree with the doctrine. Sure.

They're not gonna argue with you about it But there's nothing in their life that shows the power of the Spirit then maybe

They're not baptized in the Holy Spirit Which now for us? Because we're not

Samaritans. We're not breakaway Israelites for us that means They're not true believers

They're not truly saved They're nominal They just have a mental belief

Are there such people I Think there are a lot of people

Who have come into the kingdom of God who have finally been truly saved Perhaps through the

Pentecostal and charismatic movement or to what campus crusade used to do I'm not sure if they still do it or not they used to have this old strategy of trying to lead nominal

Christians profess Christians to be quote filled with the Spirit and They tell nominal

Christians profess believers It may maybe show no signs of our of interest in spiritual things

They say, you know, they would challenge them if they're not saved. It's a supposedly you say, okay Supposedly you're a

Christian, but you're lacking something, right? You're lacking power So you need to be filled with or baptized in the

Spirit and many then, you know saying yeah, you're right I'm lacking power. So they would repent of their sins.

They would seek that power they would pray to be filled with the Spirit and their lives would be changed radically and then they testify that For years they say, you know

I became a believer when I was whatever when I first prayed that prayer and I agreed but for years I was a Christian But I lived a powerless life until I had that Second experience, however, they want to describe it a baptizing the

Holy Spirit or whatever What I think really happened to many of those people is that many of them weren't true believers at all before They were just mental believers mental agreeers.

Maybe we should call them that Greer's agreeers who had never been born again and And then when they they were challenged about their powerless life about the sins in their life

And they pray to be baptized in the Holy Spirit. It was then that they were truly born again Regenerated given a new heart and of course as part of that package deal

Received the Holy Spirit. And so what they think is a second experience Was really their first experience

They had a great experience But just a just a bad understanding of it Here Simon thinks he's a believer

The church even thinks he's a believer up until now But he shows he's not He sees in verse 18 that the

Spirit was given to the Apostles hands again. He noticed that he's he sees it It can be seen the experience.

It's an experience. It's not just a doctrine. It's powerful Of course

Simon loves power He wants power So he does what any good businessman would do

No How much is it? What you know, what is money for?

Money is for getting anything we want, right? That's why we love it so much I mean we tell the kid to do a chore and he or she doesn't do it

But we tell money to get what we want and money always obeys money's great like that That's exactly what we tell it to do buys whatever we want

Until we find out there's something that money can't buy Simon like a lot of people today doesn't know that there are some things that money can't buy

Well, he gets out his checkbook Comes to Peter and John says in verse 19, you know, how much is it?

Give me this power Also, so that anyone of whom I lay may my hands may receive the

Holy Spirit The money can't buy the power of God. It can't buy a new heart

It can't make your child into an obedient moral spiritual saint it can't save your family in fact in the end

Money can't do any of the really important things What is the spirit for?

It's for the power to make our stone dead hearts and to soft living ones for making us new for pointing to Christ and Giving us the power to really believe in him not just be agreeers but people who trust in him and Follow him and love him with all that we are

That's why above all We need the Holy Spirit Not more money

Simon thanks the spirits for him. It's a way to continue his career as the great the divine power in Samaria, so So is he a believer he agrees

Is he a believer? So Peter says starting in verse 20. May your silver perish with you the

Greek. I looked it up It's blunter and even hotter Basically, it's may you and your silver go to destruction

In other words, hey rich guy you and your money can go to hell because Next phrase this is why you're going to hell

Simon if you don't repent This is why you're going to hell if you think that all you need is money the money can buy you anything

You thought you could get God's gifts with money the spirit with money That's not what money is for if you think money will get you everything you need

Well, yeah sure with enough money. You can make even the demons grind your rice Well, you can't buy a whiff of the

Holy Spirit with all the money in the world If you think all you need is enough money You're going to hell

Peter says that to a baptized professed Believer in verse 21 and then he says in verse 21.

He says you have neither You have neither part nor lot in this matter Oh, it's you have no share in the

Holy Spirit because your heart is not right before God your faith

Simon Coming from your heart It's not right. It's not it's not real faith.

It's not aimed at God. It's not for God What's real faith for?

It's for God It it isn't just agreement

Now Philip had convinced him intellectually that Jesus was the Christ He wasn't arguing with Philip the signs amazed him.

So he went along But his heart was never trusting in the

Lord Not everything that is called faith Is saving faith?

And Peter continues in verse 22 repent Therefore the other words turn around turn your whole life around because you're going to hell trusting in your money

Thinking all all this the gospel the church the spirit that is for you

It's for your advancement so you can be called the great or maybe the

Apostle or maybe Reverend doctor or whatever you're after turning away from this wickedness

There's this money trusting Self -centered it's all about me my best life now and pray to the

Lord Peter says that if possible Some of the scariest words in the

Bible there maybe if possible because it may not even be possible He made

Simon may be too hard -hearted already to to bent in on himself but if possible

The intent of your heart may be forgiven you for I see that you are you run the gall of bitterness

So you're you're dominated by a bitter heart. You're full of the most refined the most the bitterest of bitterness and You are in the bond of iniquity

You're a you're a slave of sin What are what are hard words for to create soft people so Simon asked

Peter to pray for him But Peter said him you need to pray yourself and you look at what he asked to be

To be relieved of he asked that, you know pray for me Peter that that I won't be judged that I that I won't go to hell

He asked to be relieved of the consequences of his sin And not his captivity to it what happens if you don't have the spirit

Bitterness captivity Self -serving hard -hearted people who think everything is about them and then money can buy anything leave behind a legacy of bitterness

What happens if you do have the spirit Well, then the Word of the Lord goes out

Like be like by the Apostles here not only in Samaria all the villages around on their way back.

It's believed If you have the spirit the Word of the Lord is believed

Maybe by you That's why you believe by the way because you have the spirit now

You know because you've accepted the Word of the Lord that money can't buy everything. It can't buy the spirit

What's the spirit for? He's for making you alive For breathing life into your formerly dead bones and putting a living heart in you

When before without the spirit you were cold and dead inside thinking thinking that life was for chasing dollars or skirts or Great titles like the great

Anything that you could get now if you have true faith Breathe into you by the spirit

Faith that looks not just for signs, but for what the signs point to to Jesus if you do

Then you have a new heart that that looks to that loves the

Lord with all that you are that loves his word and his church that Unites you with all who truly believe with you