Bible Talks - Family Church (9:45am)
Persecution & Progress
Sunday, 24 August 2003
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When Robyn & I took some time off between our last church and starting here, we attended MBM for a few weeks. MBM is Multicultural Bible Ministry at Rooty Hill.
It’s a church in one way exactly like ours. But look around, and you’ll notice a difference.
This is a church full of second generation migrants. It was started by Ray Galea, who’s from a Maltese background, as the Maltese Bible Ministry, to reach other people from the same background. But people from other ethnic backgrounds have joined as well. The guy leading the service one week was originally from Egypt. Just over the aisle from us there was a guy from New Guinea. Next to us was an Argentinean. And so on.
And you know what? I never felt more at home.
In one way it’s a sort of a miracle. Afterwards at morning tea, people made me feel right at home – part of the family. And the reality is – we were.
I mean, in the days of paranoia about refugees, and protests against racism – here’s a bunch of people from every place you can think of. And some you’ve never even heard of, singing together, praying together, listening to the bible together, loving one another. With never even a thought of who comes from where. Because they’re not so much one nation – but one family. A family that’s been brought together by their common faith in Jesus Christ.
We’re looking at a passage this morning that’s got a lot to say about miracles, like a lot of the book of Acts…
Chapter 8, after the stoning of Stephen, a huge persecution breaks out against the Christians in Jerusalem. And we’re told there at the start of chapter 8, everyone except the apostles was driven out of Jerusalem and scattered through Judea. And Samaria.
And so they spread; all around the state. And then across the border as well. And here’s where I want you to keep your eye out for the miracle. Because this isn’t just like crossing the border into Queensland where everything’s pretty much the same. They’re going to Samaria. And the Samaritans, you might remember, were the sworn enemies of the Jews.
It was a feud that went back a thousand years. The Jews and the Samaritans were sort of relatives. And I guess if you’ve ever seen a family feud, you’ll know sometimes they’re the worst kind. There’d been a split 1000 years before. And the Samaritans had broken away; they built their own temple on Mount Gerazim; and from there on, the two nations almost never mixed.
We pick up the story in v4. where Philip and the rest of the Christians who’ve been scattered, preached the word wherever they went. Wherever they go, the gospel goes with them.
V5, the spotlight falls on Philip. And the spotlight’s on him because of where he’s gone beyond the borders of Israel.
Read from v5. “Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Christ there. When the crowds heard Philip and saw the miraculous signs he did, they all paid close attention to what he said. With shrieks, evil spirits came out of many, and many paralytics and cripples were healed. So there was great joy in that city.”
Here’s Philip. In Samaria. Doing exactly what the apostles have been doing in Israel. And exactly what Jesus did. Healing cripples, driving out evil spirits. Paralysed people walking again. In other words, God is at work in Samaria – just as much as he was in Israel. And Philip’s proclaiming Christ – in exactly the same way. And more than that - these Samaritans are paying close attention. And in v12, they believe Philip as he preaches the good news of the Kingdom and the name of Jesus Christ. And they’re baptised.
In v14, word gets back to the Apostles (who have stayed back in Jerusalem), that there are Samaritans who want to become followers of Jesus. So Peter and John head down to Samaria to investigate.
Confirming what?
Now if you take a look at v14 to 17, you need to take on board the fact that these are some of the most debated verses in the whole book of Acts. These three verses are the start of some trends that have run right through Christian history to the present day. Have a look. v14. “When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them. When they arrived, they prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them; they’d simply been baptised into the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Peter and John laid their hands on them – and they received the Holy Spirit.”
Now let me tell you, this is weird stuff. It’s a bit like you’re watching it on video and someone’s pressed the pause button. Everything stops. They’ve believed in Jesus. They’ve been baptised. But everything stops. The Holy Spirit holds off until Peter and John turn up to check things out. Until the Apostles come and give it the thumbs up.
Now this is one passage picked up by some Charismatic churches, who tell you that on the basis of these few verses, that just believing in Jesus isn’t enough. That you need a second blessing. And they say, this passage proves it.
Look at it again. v12. They believed Philip as he preached about Jesus. And they’re baptised. But they haven’t got the Spirit yet.
And so if you’re a Charismatic Christian, if you’re part of the Assemblies of God or the Christian Life Centre, you’ll be taught this. That people like Anglicans, they’ve just believed in Jesus. And they need a special second blessing. To receive the Spirit. Which is what seems to be happening here.
Now can I say to you, this is a big issue. And there are more Christians who are confused at this point than you can ever imagine.
And the big question you need to ask is this. And that is, are these events in Samaria recorded because they’re so typical. Or because they’re so unique.
The Samaritans have believed in Jesus. And then everything goes on hold until the apostles arrive. Then they get the Spirit. Is that a general rule? Or is this something that we’re meant to notice – is it something that’s recorded here - because it’s special?
Well, there are some very good reasons to go for option number 
2. First of all, Peter said back in Acts 2, ‘if you repent and you believe in Jesus, that you’ll receive the Holy Spirit.’ Just like that. And the rest of the New Testament says that as well. So it’s very clear, this idea that there are first class and second class Christians is wrong. If you’re a Christian, it’s a promise. The Holy Spirit is all part of the deal – and the Spirit is at work in you, growing fruit, bringing change, fighting off the selfishness of your old human nature. Absolutely guaranteed.
Except, for some reason, if you’re one of these Samaritans. And there’s no apostle handy.
I want to suggest to you that the reason is this: A very important boundary has just been broken. There’s a miracle happening. More to the point, it’s exactly what Jesus said was going to happen. He told them at the start – the Kingdom’s going to be preached in Jerusalem, Judea, and in Samaria, and the ends of the earth.
And it’s almost like it’s too big an event for the Apostles not to be in on. Kind of like one of those official openings when the guest of honour is running late. And you hold off cutting the ribbon until they arrive.
The fact is, this is the start of something new. And it’s big. It’s the very beginning of what I saw when I went to M.B.M. - a church made up of people of every different race you can think of. The fact that the kingdom of God isn’t just for a bunch of Jews. It’s for everyone!
And the apostles need to be there. The apostles who were given the task of being the foundation of the church – it’s particularly important that at this point they get their hands dirty. That they’re involved. Up until now they’ve been sitting back in Jerusalem – now the church has gone multi-cultural. And they’ve given it their blessing.
And notice in v25, when they’ve finished, when they’ve testified and they’ve proclaimed the word, they head back to Jerusalem. And they join in preaching the gospel … in many Samaritan villages.
Let’s sum it up. What I’m saying is this. When the apostles come and lay their hands on the Samaritans and they receive the Spirit, it’s got nothing to do with an idea that when you become a Christian, you’ve got to move on to a second stage and get a second blessing.
It’s got to do with the fact that the gospel has just gone outside of Israel. And the Apostles are confirming that., and the Holy Spirit is confirming it as well. And from here on in the book of Acts, the web grows bigger and bigger and bigger. Which ultimately is why we’re sitting here today.
THE MAIN THING IS THAT…
Now there’s another issue going on in this passage, isn’t there. Because alongside that big miracle I’ve been talking about; alongside the multicultural miracle, we’ve already noticed there are some other pretty amazing miracles going on as well.
Verse 4 to 7, Philip’s been healing the sick, making the lame walk, driving out demons. But it’s interesting that miracles are nothing particularly new for the Samaritans; when they see Philip doing miracles, in a way it’s not exactly surprising. Because there’s a guy there called Simon. Who’s a sorcerer, a magician who’s been impressing them for ages.
In other words, Simon was a miracle worker as well. Whether it was by trickery, whether he had some sort of supernatural powers; we’re not told. But we are told he had plenty of fans.
And in contrast to Philip and the Apostles – who only ever want to glorify Jesus – we’re told that Simon loved to glorify himself. V9, he boasted that he was someone great. And not only that – everyone believed him. All the people, from the mayor to the street sweeper, they agreed with him. He was someone great. And they called him divine, the great power. They were totally sucked in.
They followed him, it says in v11, because he’d amazed them for a long time with his magic.
Now it’s interesting, isn’t it. Because the temptation is, when you see someone who claims to be Christian, doing something that you can’t explain, you sort of automatically think they’ve got power from God. And you automatically give them credibility. As if they’re something special.
I wonder if any of you have ever watched Benny Hinn? He’s got a show on channel 10 at 5.30 every morning. He claims to have special power from God to heal people. And he draws 1,000’s to his meetings as he travels around the world, or at his huge “World Healing Centre” in the States.
Every now and then, I get Benny on tape.
And it’s a slick show. In fact, it’s almost exactly like watching Oprah. Special guests; interviews. But the most striking thing is the way Benny Hinn swaggers around, and after he’s apparently healed all these people, he gets them up on the stage, then he knocks them down – just by waving his hand at them. Which he says is the power of the Spirit.
And Benny prances round the stage and he goes wham. Knocks them down. Wham. Over and over again. And he says he’s anointing them with the Spirit.
When you see that, you want to say, WOW! This is someone great. This guy’s special!
Which is what Simon said about himself. And people believed him – because of the stuff he was doing.
Now make sure you see the contrast here. And it’s coming up in the very next verse. Because incredible as it might seem, just doing miracles counts for nothing.
The people of Samaria followed Simon because he’d amazed them for a long time with his magic. They called him the great power. But look at verse 12. They start dropping Simon. And following Philip. And it’s not the miracles that Philip does that make the difference. It’s something else. And at this point they actually get it right… follow what it says. “But when they believed Philip as he preached the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptised. Both men and women.”
See, it’s one thing to believe someone because they can do some impressive stunts. But that’s missing the point. God’s at work through the gospel. He always has been – and he always will be. The message of the kingdom. The message that Jesus is King. The message that if you turn from your sins, that if you come to him asking for forgiveness, you’ll be washed clean. That’s the message that Philip’s preaching. and that’s what they believe.
The main thing for the Apostles and for Philip is that people get to hear the gospel; that Jesus is King, that they’re called into his Kingdom. And the Samaritans see that. And they believe.
Not in the miracles. But in the message.
Except for Simon. Who gets it wrong. And we’re told in v13 that he believes and he’s baptised and he follows Philip around – for exactly the wrong reason. He’s following Philip because he’s astonished by the great signs and miracles.
Simon the Sorcerer knows when he’s been licked. The Great Power has been overpowered. So he says, if you can’t beat em, join em. But instead of taking in the gospel, instead of listening to the message, all Simon wants to do it get a top up of power. And so when he believes, he’s believing for all the wrong reasons.
And so when a few verses later he sees the Apostles come down to Samaria and lay their hands on people, and when he sees the effects of people receiving the Holy Spirit – he wants to buy it. He gets out his chequebook.
End of v18. He offers them money, and he says “Give me also this ability, so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” Simon’s made a terrible mistake. I mean, as if you can buy something like that. And in the end, he’s missed the point, hasn’t he. Because the real power for change lies in the gospel. Which if he wanted to, he could have started preaching straight away. But he wanted something more than that. And he sees it as a good investment. Good for business.
Well, Peter puts him right. And he calls on him to repent. Or face the consequences. He says, may your money perish with you. As if you can influence God – with money. As if you can buy the gift of God. And the last you see of Simon, he’s retreating with his tail between his legs.
Conclusion
You know, we need to be careful. Because it’s not that hard to find guys like Simon everywhere. Big reputation. Draw a crowd. They present themselves as ambassadors of Jesus. And yet in the end they’re con-men. Who just want to build a reputation. Build a business. And the trouble is, among Christians, there’s a sucker born every minute.
And we’re instinctively more impressed by a bloke who says he can get people out of wheelchairs – than by a message that can bring together people who have been enemies for a thousand years. We are instinctively more impressed by a bloke on TV who says “God’s telling me there’s someone in the audience who’s troubled by sweat around the eyes” – than we are by a simple preacher who tells you the way to have your sins forgiven by trusting Jesus. We’re instinctively more impressed by someone who swaggers round a stage pushing people over in the Spirit – or so he says – than by a gospel that can bring together Greeks and Egyptians and Argentineans and Papua New Guineans and you and me. As a family.
Let me tell you, sometimes we make Simon’s mistake, don’t we. We’re fascinated by stuff that looks like power. I guess we’d love to have some of that same sort of power God gave the apostles, too, wouldn’t we. And so we miss the point. That the gospel is all about preaching Jesus. That’s what brings the bigger miracles. His death for our sins. His Kingdom, that’s a kingdom for every nation. That breaks down barriers that can run so very, very deep.
So when it comes to signs and wonders, when it comes to miracles, be careful. Don’t pay so much attention to what’s supposed to be the miracle. Pay attention to what’s being said. To make sure it’s nothing but the gospel. Pointing people to nothing but the death and resurrection of Jesus. Which brings people together in a way that no end of politics ever will. As forgiven brothers and sisters. Who are followers of Jesus.
