“Freely You Received” (Matt. 10:8, Nasb).
Opening Prayer
God of hope, Your name be praised. I thank You for the gift of hope that holds my life together.
Read Acts 8:9–25
9 Now for some time a man named Simon had practiced sorcery in the city and amazed all the people of Samaria. He boasted that he was someone great, 10 and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, “This man is rightly called the Great Power of God.” 11 They followed him because he had amazed them for a long time with his sorcery. 12 But when they believed Philip as he proclaimed the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. 13 Simon himself believed and was baptized. And he followed Philip everywhere, astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw.
14 When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to Samaria. 15 When they arrived, they prayed for the new believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit, 16 because the Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 17 Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.
18 When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money 19 and said, “Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”
20 Peter answered: “May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! 21 You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. 22 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. 23 For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin.”
24 Then Simon answered, “Pray to the Lord for me so that nothing you have said may happen to me.”
25 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.
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Meditate
“The call to discipleship is a call to change” (Dietrich Bonhoeffer, 1906–1945).
Think Further
When someone believes and is baptized, God alone knows exactly what has transpired in their heart. It is only the fruit of their transformed lives that can communicate the work of the Holy Spirit in them to us as human beings. There are no doubt people in our churches of whom it can be said, as with Simon, that they “believed and were baptized” (13), but for whom the words of Peter in verses 20–23 could equally be true! More usually, the problem arises from the fact that new Christians require much teaching to understand the implications of their new faith. Perhaps this is even more so for those who have attained a certain standing in society but now acquire a new status of babies in Christ, needing to be started on milk (1 Cor. 3:2).
Simon in today’s Scripture still carried a lot of excess baggage from his former life, but one thing can be said of him: he was in a position to recognize the genuine article when he saw it! The demonstration of the power of the Holy Spirit he saw in Philip and also in those on whom the apostles laid their hands was of an altogether different quality from that for which he was locally esteemed. It was enough to prompt him to get out his wallet—but the gifts of God are not for sale. This fact does not stop some people from peddling it for profit, as Paul remarked (2 Cor. 2:17). Sadly, we have their offspring with us today, sucking the unwary into their health-and-wealth heresy. Peter was not the only one who had strong words to say against such an approach to the Gospel. Paul too teaches that their end is destruction (Phil. 3:18,19).
Apply
Jesus says, “You will know them by their fruits” (Matt. 7:16, NASB). What should you be doing today to make this evident in your own life?
Closing prayer
Lord, continue your transforming work in my life. I want to embrace all that You have for me. I am willing to cooperate with You rather than resist Your will.
Click here to sign up to receive the EXTRAs via email each quarter.
© 2024 Scripture Union U.S.A. All rights reserved. Reproduction of the whole or any part of the contents without written permission is prohibited.
Encounter with God is published in the USA under license from Scripture Union England and Wales, Trinity House, Opal Court, Opal Drive, Fox Milne, Milton Keynes, MK15 0DF.