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14 Now when the apostles who were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them, 15 who, when they had come down, prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit. 16 For as yet He had fallen upon none of them. They had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 17 Then they laid hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. 18 And when Simon saw that through the laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Spirit was given, he offered them money, 19 saying, “Give me this power also, that anyone on whom I lay hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” 20 But Peter said to him, “Your money perish with you, because you thought that the gift of God could be purchased with money! 21 You have neither part nor portion in this matter, for your heart is not right in the sight of God. 22 Repent therefore of this your wickedness, and pray God if perhaps the thought of your heart may be forgiven you. 23 For I see that you are poisoned by bitterness and bound by iniquity.” 24 Then Simon answered and said, “Pray to the Lord for me, that none of the things which you have spoken may come upon me.” 25 So when they had testified and preached the word of the Lord, they returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel in many villages of the Samaritans. ~ Acts 8:14-25
Today, we return to our study of Acts 8 where we discover God sowing the blessing of the light of His kingdom. As always, God's work is always met with the counterfeit that the devil always brings forth. Despite the adversity, the early church grew like crazy. It was the late Mike Yaconelli who once said, "The power of the Church is not a parade of flawless people, but of a flawless Christ who embraces our flaws. The Church is not made up of whole people, rather of the broken people who find wholeness in a Christ who was broken for us."
In v.14-17 of today's passage we read, "14 Now when the apostles who were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them, 15 who, when they had come down, prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit. 16 For as yet He had fallen upon none of them. They had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 17 Then they laid hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit."
Oddly, when the Apostles in Jerusalem heard that the people in Samaria had believed on the Lord Jesus, they sent Peter and John who came and prayed that they would receive the Holy Spirit. Many of the Samaritans believed on the Lord Jesus as their Savior. As a result, they experienced the joy of the Lord. Joy is a fruit of the Spirit, and this kind of joy can never be produced except by the indwelling Holy Spirit. They had been baptized in water as a testimony to that very regeneration which had occurred within their hearts.
Now, it is obvious these brand new believers had not received the Holy Spirit, even though they had experienced the effects of having believed on the Lord Jesus as their Savior. When Peter and John arrived in Samaria these brand new believers received the Holy Spirit. This is one of those unique moments in the book of Acts where things did not transpire as they normally do for those who believe on the Lord Jesus as their Savior. This happened in order to galvanize the apostles in the eyes of the people as God's representatives. Of course, with the death of each of these apostles things have changed. Today, when a person trusts in the Lord Jesus as their Savior, they are immediately indwelled with the Holy Spirit. Today, there is no need for an Apostle to be authenticated because we no longer have apostles.
In v.18-19 of today's passage we read, "18 And when Simon saw that through the laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Spirit was given, he offered them money, 19 saying, 'Give me this power also, that anyone on whom I lay hands may receive the Holy Spirit.'"
Even though Simon had believed on the Lord Jesus, he was yet confused. He actually thought that God's power could be bought with money. So he inquired of the apostles about the power of God. It was then that Simon suggested that the apostles give him this power in exchange for his money. This revealed the immaturity of Simon's theology. I say this because who is expected to be perfect in their theology just after believing on the Lord Jesus? Clearly, Simon believed the gospel. This is what saves us. We are not saved as a result of not making stupid errors concerning life in Christ after being saved. If such were the case, not a person who has ever been saved would continue to be saved.
In v.20-23 of today's passage we read, "20 But Peter said to him, 'Your money perish with you, because you thought that the gift of God could be purchased with money! 21 You have neither part nor portion in this matter, for your heart is not right in the sight of God. 22 Repent therefore of this your wickedness, and pray God if perhaps the thought of your heart may be forgiven you. 23 For I see that you are poisoned by bitterness and bound by iniquity.'"
Peter, in response to Simon's request, rebuked him strongly and boy did he get it wrong. I believe Peter was a little over the top here with this brand new believer. I do find it refreshing that he responded as he did to Simon's offer of money. Many today limit the working of the Holy Spirit among us when they make ministry about money. In many cases believers are known to trust in money than God.
It was then Peter reminded Simon that he had neither part nor portion in this matter. This "portion" of which Peter spoke belonged to the office to which it had been assigned, meaning that of the apostles. This is obvious because Philip, not being an apostle, had preached the gospel and the people had believed, but the Holy Spirit had not come upon them until the apostles had come and placed their hands on those who had believed. Further, this portion is not something that was required at all times, as has been seen earlier in Acts and as will be seen later in our study of the book of Acts. We must not build doctrine on historical narrative such as today's passage. We must derive our theology from the epistles for therein do we find proper theology. And, since we have no apostles among us today, the office of apostle no longer needs this type of approval.
In v.23 Luke used the word, "bitterness," which is one of the many negative traits that believers still wrestle with. Even though we have been born again, we still wrestle with sin. The Bible calls this "the flesh." And, it takes time for God to change us from the inside out, and He is not in a hurray to change us because the change isn't about what we think it is. It's really about us getting to know Him and trust Him more deeply. When this happens, we allow Him to define us. It is to be noted that throughout the New Testament there are saved believers who are highlighted for their worldliness in their choices and in their attitudes, but God does not call us to question their salvation.
In v.24-25 of today's passage we read, "24 Then Simon answered and said, 'Pray to the Lord for me, that none of the things which you have spoken may come upon me.' 25 So when they had testified and preached the word of the Lord, they returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel in many villages of the Samaritans."
I love the humility shown here by Simon the former Sorcerer. When he asked both Peter and John to pray for him, it revealed he had an understanding of the value and power of prayer. It also reveals that he understood that his sin was not consistent with God's definitions and therefore wrong. This further implies that he was looking for freedom from the sin that bound him. Then, Simon drew attention to the ultimate when he referenced that it is only the prayers of the Lord Jesus that matters. He asked Peter and John to speak on his behalf with the Lord Jesus. This reveals Simon was a changed man who had believed on the Lord Jesus. He just needed to be taught and patience was required of the apostles to do just that.
Quietly tucked away in our final verse today is that on their way back to Jerusalem Peter and John and Philip preached the gospel in the many villages in Samaria. The Jews absolutely hated the Samaritans because the Samaritans were half Jewish and half Gentile. In John 4, these apostles had learned a lesson from the Lord Jesus and His ministry to the Samaritan woman. Instead of traveling back to Jerusalem with cold hearts toward the Samaritans around them, the apostles demonstrated hearts toward the Samaritans by sharing the gospel with them. Oh, God had not sifted all of their prejudisms out of their souls just yet but their attitudes towards the Samaritans had been profoundly changed. They then saw the Samaritans through the compassionate eyes of the God of the Bible.
