THE SAMARITAN MISSION
Opening Prayer
Lord, open the hearts of those to whom we share the gospel.
Read ACTS 8:9–25
Simon the Sorcerer
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.
New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Meditate
Ask God to help you to witness to His love to those who think differently from us.
Think Further
With the scattering of the disciples and the evangelists preaching the Word wherever they go, Jesus’ command in Acts 1:8 is accomplished. Samaria is interesting: it was a province of Israel under the Roman Empire, yet it functioned almost like a different country. The Jews and the Samaritans disliked each other. Jews from Galilee going to Jerusalem were prevented from passing through Samaria and had to take a roundabout route. A major religious difference was about the correct site of the temple. The Samaritans believed that the correct place was Mount Gerizim, where the tabernacle first rested in the Promised Land, but Jews believed it was Mount Zion in Jerusalem, which was believed to be the place where God tested Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice Isaac; also, this was where Solomon built the temple.
Perhaps the Samaritans’ minds have been opened by their experience of Jesus in John 4, since they also anticipate the coming of the Messiah. As Philip ‘proclaims the Messiah’ to them (5) they listen carefully and are filled with great joy as they accept the good news.
In this passage we see two recognized types of evangelism. Reaching Judah was what we would call ‘E1 Evangelism’ – same culture, same language. Reaching the Samaritans was ‘E2 Evangelism’ – different culture, same language. (E3 Evangelism would be to a different culture and different language.)
In India and indeed most of the world, non-Christians can be reached only by cross-cultural evangelism. This means Christians must learn the thought-forms of culturally similar but different people. This may be the person across the street who talks the same language as you, but thinks differently.
Apply
Pray that God will help you witness today to someone who is near you but different from you.
Closing prayer
Lord, make us as productive as the early church. Give us their vision.
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