July 8, 2012
Lessons From Simon the Sorcerer for Today
You can have no part in this, for your heart is not right with God. -- Acts 8: 21 (NLT)
In the eighth chapter of the Book of Acts we find the interesting story of Simon the sorcerer. Simon lived in the city of Samaria, where he was a pretty big thing for many years. Scripture tells us that he amazed the people of Samaria and claimed his own greatness because of it. That is the first lesson for us today -- beware people who claim their own greatness or importance. We see this running rampant throughout modern Christendom. People demanding to be called apostle this or prophetess that. I do not wish to get into a semantics argument over which offices are still viable today as compared to the times of Jesus. That misses the mark entirely. It is the manner in which one presents oneself that reveals the heart motive.
But he gives us even more grace to stand against such evil desires. As the Scriptures say, "God opposes the proud but favors the humble." -- James 4: 6 (NLT)
If the Apostle Peter had a Facebook page do you really think he would refer to himself as "apostle?" Would Isaiah demand to be called prophet wherever he went? Even when the Apostle Paul referred to himself as an apostle, here was how he did it:
This letter is from Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, chosen by God to be an apostle and sent out to preach his Good News. -- Romans 1: 1 (NLT)
He starts by stating that he is nothing more than a slave before the Lord Jesus Christ and ends the opening by reminding everyone what his role is. Yes he was chosen to be an apostle but that was always secondary to Paul, in fact here was how he compared himself even though he had evangelized the entire known world at the time he wrote these words:
For I am the least of all the apostles. In fact, I'm not even worthy to be called an apostle after the way I persecuted God's church. -- 1Corinthians 15: 9 (NLT)
An apostle or a prophet does not seek to be called such. They seek only to glorify Jesus Christ. Simon the sorcerer was all about self promotion. The people who surrounded him even referred to him as "The Great One -- The Power of God"; yet Simon offered no correction. Many today in the church will also usurp the greatness and power of God and offer no correction to those who seek to exalt them. No humility before God. The second lesson for us today is that not everyone who claims to be on your team is actually on your team:
But now the people believed Philip's message of Good News concerning the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ. As a result, many men and women were baptized. Then Simon himself believed and was baptized. He began following Philip wherever he went, and he was amazed by the signs and great miracles Philip performed. -- Acts 8: 12-13 (NLT)
Read these verses carefully. According to this -- Simon believed! He was baptized! He followed the Apostles around and was genuinely amazed at the power they had received from God. Do I believe that he was amazed? Absolutely! Do I even believe that he was enamored with Philip like some Christians become enamored with their Pastors today instead of God? Absolutely! But was he saved? Was his heart genuinely regenerated and he transformed into a new creation by the power of almighty God? The story would bear out that the answer to that is no. Remember the warnings from Jesus that not everyone who says "Lord Lord" will enter the kingdom of heaven. While we are not to judge people in terms of their final destination -- we are to judge their fruit. There is often this sense in Christianity that we are "all on the same team." I think that is in error. Not everyone who says Lord Lord. Not everyone who is baptized. Not everyone who is initially amazed has actually been saved unto God. There are a lot of wolves and goats mixing with the sheep of God. There are a lot of wolves and goats in the leadership as well -- leading people down the broad path instead of towards the narrow gate. We need to be careful. Maybe Philip had some doubts here but the Bible does not indicate so. Simon was accepted into the fellowship and followed them around but thanks be to God because while you can fake what you claim to believe; you cannot fake the fruit of the spirit over a long period of time. Lastly, as we come to the key verse and final lesson, we need to learn that the issue as always is where our heart is:
You can have no part in this, for your heart is not right with God. -- Acts 8: 21 (NLT)
You see, when Peter and John had heard about Samaria they went to visit Philip. When they realized that the new believers there had only experienced John's baptism they laid hands on them to receive the Holy Spirit -- and they did. That was when the true motives of Simon became clear:
When Simon saw that the Spirit was given when the apostles laid their hands on people, he offered them money to buy this power. "Let me have this power, too," he exclaimed, "so that when I lay my hands on people, they will receive the Holy Spirit!" -- Acts 8: 18-19 (NLT)
Simon the follower of Philip was still Simon the sorcerer at heart. He was not interested in the things of God but only of acquiring the powers the apostles displayed. Perhaps as way to continue with his prior standing in the Samaritan community where he was so highly regarded. Whatever the reason, Peter sternly rebukes him for trying to purchase the power of God and tells him to repent quickly for he can see that he was still bound by sin.
This is the most important lesson for us today from Simon. Where is our heart? The Bible says where we lay up our treasure is where our heart is. In other words -- what do we value? For Simon, he valued the power of God not the relationship with Him. We still see this in modern Christianity where people are more enamored with facets of the religion than they are with the actual relationship with Christ. Perhaps we have allowed our ministries become bigger than the God they are supposed to serve. Maybe we have become enamored with title -- reverend, pastor, deacon, elder, ministry leader. What is standing in our way with having the full relationship with Christ that He intends for us? What has become more important? For Simon it appears to be power. For the rich young ruler it was money that was blocking his relationship with God. For some of us it is that relationship we place higher than God. Or our career. Or our pride. Or our lust. Where is our heart today?
Just three quick lessons from the
story of Simon the sorcerer for us to consider today. Be wary of people who
demand titles they like to flaunt. Titles that take the attention away from
God. Secondly, not everyone who claims to be on our side is actually on our
side. What we claim to be with our mouth should already be evident by our
actions. Lastly, we need to be very careful where our heart is today. We need
to make sure there is absolutely nothing blocking us from our relationship with
Jesus Christ. Amen.
Rev. Anthony
