Acts 8:14-25

                                                                     Acts 8:14-25

When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to Samaria. When they arrived, they prayed for the new believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.

When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money and said, “Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”

Peter answered: “May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God.  Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord in the hope that he may forgive you for having such a thought in your heart.  For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin.”

Then Simon answered, “Pray to the Lord for me so that nothing you have said may happen to me.”

After they had further proclaimed the word of the Lord and testified about Jesus, Peter and John returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel in many Samaritan villages.

 

There are certain portions of Scripture that have aspects that are difficult to explain or understand exactly what happens in the text.  This is certainly one of them.  It is hard to know exactly why Peter and John had to lay their hands on the Samaritan believers in order for them to receive the Spirit, and we can speculate as to why this was the case, but it is both difficult and unwise to be dogmatic about one’s explanations.  With that said, there are many other valuable lessons we can learn from this text.  In this blog, I will share my “non-dogmatic” speculations but also hope to gain some insight into the other teachings of this text.

 

THE RECEIVING OF THE SPIRIT: The news of Phillip’s ministry in Samaria reaches the church in Jerusalem.  The reports of the power of the Gospel and work of the Spirit are so astounding that both Peter and John come to the city to help with the revival.  When they arrive, it becomes clear to them that the Holy Spirit has not come upon the Samarian believers.  So, Peter and John begin to lay their hands on the people and pray for the Spirit to come and He does.  Why the delay?  Why did Phillip only baptize them in the name of the Lord Jesus?  These are questions that remain unanswered in the text.  Perhaps they remain unanswered because Luke considers the fact that Peter and John were laying hands on Samaritans to be bigger news than a delay in the coming of the Spirit.  We can see the minds of Peter and John opening to the spread of the Gospel.  Previously they scolded Jesus for going to Samaria and associating with these people who were despised by the Jews.  Perhaps Phillips understanding of the work of the Spirit and the ministry of baptism was still unclear at this early stage of his evangelistic ministry.  Perhaps the delay was simply for the sake of Peter and John so that they would witness with their own eyes the coming of the Spirit on the Samaritans.  We don’t know the answer to those questions, but we do know that God loves these people, sent Christ to die for them and sent the Spirit to inhabit them just as He did with the Apostles, other Jews, and as He will do for Gentiles.  

 

 

THE REBUKING OF SIMON: Simon was the big attraction in Samaria prior to the arrival of Philip and then the coming of the Spirit through the ministry of Peter and John.  The power of the Holy Spirit obviously overshadowed anything that Simon had been able to do previously.  Simon had a desire to have the same power as Peter and John to impart the Holy Spirit through the laying on of his hands.  He offered to pay them if they could give him this power.  The rebuking that follows this request demonstrates that his heart is not right with God and that he was still captive to bitterness and sin.  Peter wants to make sure that the gifts of God cannot be purchased with money.  The ministry is different than any other calling.  It cannot be purchased for money and should not be practiced in search of money.  Peter calls on Simon to repent.  And Simon asks Peter to pray for him.  I find it interesting that Peter does not call for his death as happened with Ananias and Saphira.  I think this demonstrates that it is still possible for new believers to have whacked out ideas about their new life in Christ.  It is understandable for a man who lived practicing sorcery to still have some rough edges even after coming to Christ.  We don’t have further mention of Simon in the Bible.  However, he is identified in the Apocrypha as having ministered in Egypt with Thaddaeus and was, according to tradition, martyred by being cut in half.  If this is true, there is great encouragement for all of us to be patient with new believers and understand that God is in the business of changing hearts.

 

THE RETURNING THROUGH SAMARIA:  Peter and John continued to minister in Samaria together will Philip for a period of time and then returned to Jerusalem.  However, it is interesting to note that they returned through many other Samaritan villages and proclaimed the Gospel in these places as well.  This statement is to emphasize the change that was taking place in the lives of the Apostles as they opened up to the idea that the Gospel was for more than just the nation of Israel.  Prior to the persecution of Christians in Jerusalem, the church was comprised exclusively of Jews who recognized Jesus as Messiah and placed their faith in Him.  However, this is not the Church that Jesus had commissioned His disciples to build.  His Church was to be made up of believers from all people groups and all languages unto the ends of the earth.  We all feel more comfortable amongst our own people while speaking our own language.  God’s mission for us requires that we step out of the zone of comfort and spread the Gospel to all people everywhere.

 

APPLICATION:  The Holy Spirit is vital to the life of every believer.  We must always recognize our dependence upon Him.  Prayer is one of the most telling demonstrations of our dependence on the Spirit or lack thereof.  Only the Spirit has the power to transform lives and this power comes through a genuine relationship with Jesus.  It cannot be purchased or earned in any way.  However, the Spirits work of transformation is not instantaneous.  It takes time for new believers to grow and be conformed to the image of Christ.  We must be patient but faithful to rebuke new believers who continue to demonstrate sinful behaviors.  Our mission is to proclaim Christ wherever we go and we are called to be intentional about going to those who have never heard.