Simon a pretender in God's house

Rev. Andrew Hunt, III

Walking through the Book of Acts • Sermon • Submitted 6 years ago

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Simon, a pretender in God’s house.

Simon, a pretender in God’s house

“But there was a man named Simon, who had previously practiced magic in the city and amazed the people of Samaria, saying that he himself was somebody great. They all paid attention to him, from the least to the greatest, saying, “This man is the power of God that is called Great.” And they paid attention to him because for a long time he had amazed them with his magic. But when they believed Philip as he preached good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. Even Simon himself believed, and after being baptized he continued with Philip. And seeing signs and great miracles performed, he was amazed. Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent to them Peter and John, who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, for he had not yet fallen on any of them, but they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit. Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles' hands, he offered them money, saying, “Give me this power also, so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money! You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right before God. Repent, therefore, of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you. For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity.” And Simon answered, “Pray for me to the Lord, that nothing of what you have said may come upon me.”

Now when they had testified and spoken the word of the Lord, they returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel to many villages of the Samaritans.”

Someone once said, beware of those Christians whose faith is based on their own ideas and feelings, and what they think is right, and not on God’s Word.

As we remember from last week, Philip’s initial impact on a group of Samaritans is remarkable (vv. 5–8), especially since it is made clear that it came from the Word of God and not from Simon’s sorcery and false religion. Philip’s proclamation of Jesus and the kingdom of God brought many to faith, and incited Simon to become a pretender. Although the signs and miracles performed by Philip are a significant factor in capturing the attention of the Samaritans (v. 6)— who were previously under a Satanic oppression and focused on Simon demonic magic. But it was Philip’s clear proclamation of the gospel that converts them and brings them to baptism.

The last time, we were all together Philip was going down to a city in Samaria to proclaim Christ Jesus, the Messiah there. Luke understands the fundamental hostility between Jews and Samaritans and though it is well known; yet he does not reveal it in this text. The first century was a time of very strained relations between these two neighbors, of both Jews and Samaritans.

‘The old antithesis of North Kingdom and the South Kingdom, of Israel and Judah, was revived in all its sharpness.’ Mt. Gerizim was the center of worship for the Samaritans and Jerusalem was the center of worship for the Jews. The Samaritans recognized only the Pentateuch as Scripture (in a form that differed significantly from the Masoretic text). In practice, the Jews put the Samaritans on a level with Gentiles and had restricted dealings with them, even though the Samaritans claimed to worship the same God and follow the law of Moses. So Philip’s offer of the gospel to these despised people was a radical step forward, signifying the newness of the situation brought about by Jesus and His gospel. The essential message proclaimed by Philip, even among the Samaritans, was that Jesus Christ is the Messiah. The Samaritans were looking for a prophet like Moses; the one promised in , “The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers—it is to him you shall listen—just as you desired of the LORD your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly, when you said, ‘Let me not hear again the voice of the LORD my God or see this great fire any more, lest I die.’ And the LORD said to me, ‘They are right in what they have spoken. I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers. And I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him. And whoever will not listen to my words that he shall speak in my name, I myself will require it of him. But the prophet who presumes to speak a word in my name that I have not commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other gods, that same prophet shall die,” calling him Taheb (‘restorer’) rather than an eschatological savior and ruler from the line of David. But we know that the true fulfillment of is in the coming of Jesus, we see this clear in , Moses said, “The Lord God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers. You shall listen to him in whatever he tells you. And it shall be that every soul who does not listen to that prophet shall be destroyed from the people. And Ann the prophets who have spoken, from Samuel and those who came after him, also proclaimed these days. You are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant that God made with your fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed.”

As we still look back towards verse 8:6 we see that, ‘The crowds paid close attention to the things said by Philip’ The same Greek verb (prosecho) is used again with reference to the response of the Samaritans to Simon in 8:10, 11, suggesting that they paid close attention to Simon. But now that the truth had come into their lives that attention was now being transferred to Philip. Such close attention to the claims of the gospel is the prelude to genuine faith. It was the gospel about Jesus that interested them most, and they applied themselves to understand it together. As they listened they also saw the signs and miracles being performed’. Philip’s preaching was accompanied by signs (sēmeia), as was the preaching of Jesus and the apostles. Luke then details what happened, illustrating the comparison in terms of exorcisms and healings (v. 7): “For unclean spirits crying out with a loud voice came out of many who has them, and many who were paralyzed and or lame were healed. So there was much joy in that city.

The unclean spirits which were live in the unsaved people came out because the truth of the gospel was being preached. Before under Simon that we under Satanic oppression because they had give into the magic and were amazed by magic and not by God’s message of deliverance. Even though this text speaks of physical healing , I do believe there were spiritual healings as well. That there were people who were paralyzed in their faith by this pretender Simon and also many had a lame faith that could only be healed by the truth of God’s Word.

In Acts, signs and wonders establish the credentials of a prophet before all the people and authenticate or verify the prophet’s message by actually conveying a partial realization of the salvation proclaimed. The encounters with demonic forces which are specifically highlighted by mention of the evil spirits and ‘unclean spirits’. Prepares us for the detailed account of the conflict with Simon the sorcerer. So Philip’s preaching and the signs worked together, and because the people were being delivered from this satanic oppressed there was great joy in that city. But now the time for pretense was over and God wanted His people to know the difference between His prophet and the pretender. Simon was a pretender in God’s house... who amazed the people through magic; we see that in vv. 9-11. Simon was a pretender in God’s house…who was pretending to believe; we see this in vv. 12-13. Simon was a pretender in God’s house…who was exposed as a pretender through the Holy Spirit and the Word of God; we see this is vv. 14-25.

Simon was a pretender in God’s house.

Let us pray…

Simon was a pretender in God’s house… who amazed people though magic.

V.9, But there was a man named Simon, who had previously practiced magic in the city and amazed the people of Samaria, saying that he himself was somebody great.”

Luke pauses to introduce Simon before continuing the story of how the Samaritans came to truly believed and were baptized (8:12). Simon had been in Samaria before Philip and was already influential in the area. Luke outlines the spiritual oppression from which the Samaritans needed to be delivered and prepares for the encounter between Simon and the apostles (8:18–24). Simon is not mentioned elsewhere in the NT, though the second-century Christian writer Justin Martyr, who was himself a Samaritan, refers to Simon as being empowered by demons to perform magic and as later honored in Rome as a god.

Luke portrays Simon as ‘practicing sorcery’ and ‘amazing the Samaritan nation’, suggesting a widespread and powerful influence. The cognate word “mageuo.”It came to be used of anyone possessing supernatural knowledge or ability , anyone practicing magic. Look at, , “When they had gone through the whole island as far as Paphos, they came upon a certain magician, a Jewish false prophet named Bar-Jesus. He was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence, who summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God. But Elymas the magician (for that is the meaning of his name) opposed them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith. But Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him and said, “You son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord? And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and unable to see the sun for a time.” Immediately mist and darkness fell upon him, and he went about seeking people to lead him by the hand. Then the proconsul believed, when he saw what had occurred, for he was astonished at the teaching of the Lord.”

So this term, “mageuo”, describes anyone who was a deceiver or seducer. The term is clearly used in a negative way by Luke, who is keen to highlight the differences between Christianity and contemporary magical beliefs and practices. The Jews were strictly forbidden from any involvement in magical practices because of their association with idolatry and the demonic, and the earliest Christians adopted the same stance. , “When you come into the land that the LORD your God is giving you, you shall not learn to follow the abominable practices of those nations. There shall not be found among you anyone who burns his son or his daughter as an offering, anyone who practices divination or tells fortunes or interprets omens, or a sorcerer or a charmer or a medium or a necromancer or one who inquires of the dead, for whoever does these things is an abomination to the LORD. And because of these abominations the LORD your God is driving them out before you. You shall be blameless before the LORD your God, for these nations, which you are about to dispossess, listen to fortune-tellers and to diviners. But as for you, the LORD your God has not allowed you to do this.”

There was certainly a demonic/ false religious dimension to the hold that Simon had on the Samaritans. He boasted that he was someone great, and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, look at verse

10,“ They all paid attention to him, from the least to the greatest, saying, “This man is the power of God that is called Great” ‘This man is rightly called the Great Power of God’ Popular opinion in Samaria accepted what Simon apparently claimed for himself. We must always watch out for those people proclaim greatest by their own mouths, those who pretend to have more power than their positions really include, and those who are always trying to make a name for themselves so that they might be know as great.

Always remember the saddest thing about betrayal is that it never comes from your enemies but always from those that you feel you can trust.

Simon did not presume to be the supreme God but ‘inculcated the belief in the people that had all the Powers of God, that he was the great one.’ The Samaritans were gripped by his magic and by his idolatrous claim to be in some sense ‘a divine man’. They were therefore caught up with a strange syncretism of Hellenistic-Pagan and Samaritan-Jewish beliefs. More specifically, this magic is a ‘satanic power actualized’. The verb translated gave him their attention (prosecho) in v. 10 is also rendered they followed him in v. 11. We have already noted the use of this same verb in v. 6 to describe the reaction of the crowds to the preaching of Philip. So, this story involves competition for conversion. Converting to the true and living God that should be worshipped or converting to Satan through demonic magic masquerading as true miracles.

These Samaritans, who had previously been captivated by Simon because he had amazed them for a long time with his sorcery (mageuo, ‘magic practices’), but were now captivated by Philip’s message and by the Christ he proclaimed.

Simon was a pretender in God’s house…who pretended to believe.

12 But when they believed Philip as he preached good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.”

Proclaiming and preaching the good news is a key idea in this chapter 8, with the verb euangelizomai being used five times (8:4, 12, 25, 35, 40). Stephen was literally ‘preaching the gospel about the kingdom of God and the name of the Lord Jesus Christ’.

The kingdom of God was the focus of Jesus’ teaching (e.g. ; ; ; , ; ), and, in the course of his public ministry, he sent his disciples to preach the same message (; ). The kingdom of God is referenced often in the gospels (e.g., ; ; ; ) and other places in the New Testament (e.g., ; ; ).

What is the kingdom of God?

The kingdom of God is synonymous with the kingdom of heaven. The concept of the kingdom of God takes on various shades of meaning in different passages of Scripture. Broadly speaking, the kingdom of God is the rule of an eternal, sovereign God over the entire universe. Several passages of Scripture show that God is the undeniable Monarch of all creation: “The LORD has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all” (). And, as King Nebuchadnezzar declared, “His kingdom is an eternal kingdom” (). Every authority that exists has been established by God (). So, in one sense, the kingdom of God incorporates everything that is. To narrow this concept down a bit, the kingdom of God is a spiritual rule over the hearts and lives of those who willingly submit to God’s authority. Those who defy God’s authority and refuse to submit to Him are not part of the kingdom of God; in contrast, those who acknowledge the lordship of Christ and gladly surrender to God’s rule in their hearts are part of the kingdom of God. In this sense, the kingdom of God is spiritual—Jesus said His kingdom was not of this world (), and He preached that repentance is necessary to be a part of the kingdom of God (). That the kingdom of God can be equated with the sphere of salvation is evident in , where Jesus says the kingdom of God must be entered into by being born again.

, “ Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor idolaters, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.” There is another sense in which the kingdom of God is used in Scripture: the literal rule of Christ on the earth. Daniel said that “the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed” (), and many of the other prophets predicted the same thing (e.g., ; ; ; ). I see the future, open manifestation of the kingdom of God as the “kingdom of glory” and the present, hidden manifestation of the kingdom of God as the “kingdom of grace.” , promises us this, “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” After Pentecost, the apostolic preaching became more explicitly Christological, as the role of the crucified and resurrected Christ in the fulfillment of God’s kingdom plans were more clearly understood. Interestingly, in 8:12 we find the kingdom of God coupled with the name of Jesus Christ. So Philip proclaimed that God’s kingly rule had been established in fulfillment of prophecy through the person and work of the Lord Jesus. Jesus is the savior upon whom everyone must call to be delivered from the coming judgment, since God has made him ‘both Lord and Christ’ (2:36). Also of interest in this verse is the statement that they believed Philip. This does not mean that their trust was in Philip rather than in Christ, or that their belief in the gospel was somehow deficient. The meaning is rather that they were convinced by the truth of Philip’s message: they believed Philip as he preached the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ. It was out of genuine conviction, then, that they were baptized, both men and women. Here again Luke makes the point that women shared equally with men in this new community, with respect to its blessings (1:14; 5:14) and its suffering (8:3; 9:2).

13 “Even Simon himself believed, and after being baptized he continued with Philip...”

The word ‘even’ (kai) is included in the Greek, suggesting that Simon was a special and unexpected case. He seemed to be like the rest of the Samaritan converts in making a public commitment to Christ. But this was a false conversion, which we will see clearly in vv. 14-25. However, as Luke writes of this superficial belief he also highlights two worrying aspects of his behavior. First, we are told that he continued with Philip, in other translations Luke states that he followed Philip everywhere. The word here translated as contained is the verb “proskartereo” The verb has previously been applied to the devotion of believers to prayer and various forms of mutual ministry (1:14; 2:42, 46; 6:4), and so Simon’s personal attachment to Philip does not seems out of place or unusual. But it is because it is a false devotion to Philip and to the things of God that it now stands out.

Simon is just attaching himself to Philip to steal some of his credibility. Watch those people in your life who treat you like Jesus said, “ They honor you with their mouths but their hearts and far away from you.” Secondly, we learn that “And seeing signs and great miracles performed, he was amazed.”

In vv. 9, 11 the Samaritans’ astonishment with Simon’s magic is noted, and so it seems that Simon was ‘at the same point where the Samaritans were initially when they heard Philip (cf. vv. 6–7)’. Simon’s obsession with the spiritual power of the apostles would soon prove to be the dominant issue for him (vv. 18–19). Simon’s magical worldview had not changed, and a more thorough renunciation of his former beliefs and practices was still necessary (cf. 19:18–20). ‘Simon’s belief in Jesus seems to have been like that spoken of in— ,“Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs that he was doing. But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people and needed no one to bear witness about man, for he himself knew what was in man.” His was a false belief based on miraculous signs and thus an inferior faith and belief to a true commitment to Jesus.

The visit of Peter and John is not a problem-solving expedition on behalf of the apostles in Jerusalem, but rather a response to the news that ‘Samaria had accepted the word of God’ (v. 14).

Even so, when they arrive they perceive that the Spirit ‘had not yet come on any of them’ (vv. 15–16). The impartation of the Spirit through prayer (v. 15) and the laying on of hands (v. 17) is presented by Luke as unusual event, related to the uniting of Jews and Samaritans in one community through baptism into Christ (v. 16b, ‘baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus’).

I think the importance of having apostolic witnesses present for this outpouring of the Spirit is better understood when this narrative is compared with what is later said about the incorporation of the Gentiles into the church. Look for a moment at ,

, “As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on them just as on us at the beginning. And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he said, ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ If then God gave the same gift to them as he gave to us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could stand in God's way?” When they heard these things they fell silent. And they glorified God, saying, “Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life.”

You see, the repeating of the similar action here in Samaria makes it clear to the Jews in Jerusalem and the rest of the Jewish leadership that God has really accepted the Gentiles in Samaria also.

14 Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent to them Peter and John.

The fact that the apostles in Jerusalem sent representatives to check on these developments shows that evangelism took place in Samaria without their authorization or supervision. However, Peter and John were sent for positive reasons, to verify the surprising news that Samaria had accepted the word of God. This visit should be considered from two perspectives. First, Philip’s mission is incomplete until Peter and John pray for the Samaritans to receive the Holy Spirit. ‘The result is a cooperative mission in which an established church affirms and contributes to the establishment of new churches.’ Second, the effect on Peter and John is that they become convinced that the Samaritans are truly included in the messianic salvation. This event is comparable to

, “While Peter was still saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word. And the believers from among the circumcised who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out even on the Gentiles. For they were hearing them speaking in tongues and extolling God. Then Peter declared, “Can anyone withhold water for baptizing these people, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have? And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to remain for some days”

Here we see that the coming of the Holy Spirit is a sign that God wants to include all believing Gentiles on the same basis as believing Jews in with the benefits of the New Covenant.

On both occasions, there is a stunning break with traditional cultural and religious barriers, as the Spirit draws Samaritans, and then Gentiles, together with Jews into the fellowship of Christ.

15 “Who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit.” When they arrived, they prayed for the new believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit. The apostles’ willingness to pray for the gift of the Spirit suggests an awareness that a work of God had actually taken place among the Samaritans (they had simply been baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus), but that something was missing. Instead of preaching the gospel or correcting misunderstandings, Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. Prayer is mentioned in connection with the laying on of hands in 6:6; 8:15–17; 13:3; 28:8 and may be assumed in other places where it is not mentioned. This gesture appears to represent identification with and concern for the person who is prayed for.

But why had the Holy Spirit not yet come upon any of them (epipetōkos, ‘fallen upon’; cf. 10:44; 11:15)? Given the promise that those who repent and are baptized in the name of Jesus Christ will have their sins forgiven and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (2:38–39). Are we to conclude that there was something deficient in the faith of the Samaritans? Luke seems to be at pains to stress the orthodoxy of Philip’s preaching, the close attention paid by the Samaritans to what they heard, and the genuineness of their response (8:5–6, 12; contrast the ‘disciples’ in 19:1–5).

Was it because there were no apostles present? Luke later makes it clear that the Spirit can be given when the person baptizing is not an apostle (9:17–18). Was it because they needed to receive the Spirit in a fuller sense, for inspiration, or for the reception of charismatic gifts? Was it because they specifically needed the Spirit to be given to them in this way to empower them for mission?

The best explanation is that God himself withheld the Spirit until the coming of Peter and John, ‘in order that the Samaritans might be seen to be fully incorporated into the community of Jerusalem Christians who had received the Spirit at Pentecost’. God withheld the gift for his own revelatory and salvific purpose, not because of an inadequate response on the part of the Samaritans. The apostles needed to be there as reliable witnesses on behalf of the Jerusalem church, not to impart the Spirit because of their office. But to show the inclusion on the Gentiles into the larger Jerusalem church. Significantly, in 8:25 they return to Jerusalem to report what God has been doing. The delay in the sending of the Spirit put the Samaritans somewhat in the position of the Jewish disciples before Pentecost. They had a genuine faith in the risen Lord, but had not received Him.

Simon was a pretender in God’s house…who was exposed as a pretender through the Holy Spirit and the Word of God. (8:18–25)

Simon’s preoccupation with spiritual power (v. 13) leads him to make a monetary offer to the apostles for the authority to impart the Spirit through the laying on of his hands (vv. 18–19).

Peter’s response is first of all in the form of a curse, since Simon does not understand the grace of God and thinks he can ‘buy the gift of God with money’ (v. 20). Secondly, Peter declares that Simon cannot be part of this ministry because his heart is not right before God (v. 21). Despite the curse, Peter offers Simon the chance to repent and seek the Lord’s forgiveness, warning him that he is in a bondage to wickedness from which he can be delivered by God (vv. 22–23). Simon recognizes his spiritual impotence when he asks Peter to pray for him (v. 24), though Luke gives no explicit indication of the outcome. The concluding note about the freedom of the apostles to continue their evangelistic ministry (v. 25) may, however, suggest that the battle with demonic forces in the encounter with Simon indicates that he was truly a pretender.

18–19, “ Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money, saying, “Give me this power also, that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”

There is no mention of outward signs to confirm the coming of the Spirit, though these may be implied by the reference to what Simon saw. In some way, Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles’ hands, and this appeared to him to be a new type of magic. His offer of money to obtain this power became notorious in church history and gave rise to the name ‘simony’ for the purchase of spiritual positions. Simony is the sin of buying or selling ecclesiastical or sacred things to make a profit from them. Simon does not want Christ, Simon wants more power.

What he really wanted is expressed with the request, ‘Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit’. ‘The magician’s characteristic interest appears in Simon’s desire to have the possession of the Spirit for his own use without specific reference to Christ faith.

Doubtless he also saw this power as a way of regaining his hold over the Samaritans, even ‘a way of gaining a “share” in the leadership of the movement’. I see this request and totally me centered and not God centered. Simon seems to mistakenly regarded the Christian leaders as magicians like himself. ‘Luke then exploits Simon’s apparent misconception, using it as a foil to display the apostles’ utterly opposed view: they, unlike Simon, would never take money for what they had to offer. Look at

, “ But Peter said, “I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give I to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!”

Thereby Luke illustrates that the Christians do not share one of the most widely recognized traits of practitioners of magic.

They do not work for greedy gain but for the glory of God!

Pretenders always see religion as base to build their own power.

Whenever religion is used to make its leaders seem great and powerful, and whenever religion becomes a commodity by serving the interests of those who have or want money, it has become corrupt. , “But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.”

20- “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money!” Use of the Greek optative mood to express a wish (‘May your money go with you to destruction’) implies a curse against Simon, ‘consigning him and his money with him to destruction’. The word here for perish is the word `“apoleia”,which means the destruction which consists of eternal misery in hell. Money cannot buy the gift of God (cf. 2:38; 10:45; 11:17).

Peter further declares, 21- You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right before God.’ Simon is showing himself to have no part or share in the gospel and its blessings. He appears to be unconverted, a pretender. The reason for this is that his heart is not right before God. Simon is attempting to cheat God, to infringe the divine prerogative of bestowing the Spirit in accordance with his own will.’ He does not understand the grace of God and has not yielded his heart to God’s rule. How could a true saved disciple even think about stealing God’s glory and gift for his or her own used! Only a pretender would dare such a thing.

22- Peter offers repentance as the only solution.

“ Repent, therefore, of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you.” The only way for Simon to escape the judgment of God is to ‘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’ Here the call to repentance, which is normally associated with initial gospel proclamation (2:38; 3:19; 17:30; 26:20), is applied to one who has already made a profession of faith. The indefinite construction used in the Greek ‘if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you’) highlights the seriousness of the situation. Simon’s problem is deeper than we all might think, Simon’s problem is an heart problem. Simon cannot take the mercy of God for granted. Although he needs forgiveness for a specific sin (for having such a thought in your heart), Peter discerns that this reveals a deep-seated, underlying problem that needs to be resolved. Simon needs to be actually saved because is an unbeliever and is still ‘full of bitterness and captive to sin’

Look at what Peter says next in the text, 23, “ For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity. This word gall refers to the bitter fluid secreted by the liver, which is its bile.

This terminology also recalls

“Bewared lest there be among you a man or woman or clan or Trimble whose heart is turning away today from the Lord our God to go and serve the gods of those nations. Beware lest there be among you a root bearing poisonous and bitter fruit.”

Here we see where the image of a root producing ‘bitter poison’ describes a person going after false gods and leading others to do the same. , “ See to it that no one fails to obtain they grace of God; that no “root of bitterness’ springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled.” The Lord’s punishment for such people is severe, , “The Lord will not be willing to forgive him, but rather the anger of the Lord and his jealousy will smoke against that man, and the curses written in this book will settle upon him, and the Lord will blot out his name from under heaven. And the Lord will single him out from all the tribes of Israel for calamity, in accordance with all the curses of the covenant written in this Book of Law.”

There was a bitter poison in Simon that needed to be extracted. The expression captive to sin appears to be an allusion to ( ‘the bond of unrighteousness’). Clearly Simon had not experienced the release from captivity to sin which Jesus came to provide (cf. ; ). His inadequate understanding of the gospel made him an idolater, in danger of corrupting the new Samaritan converts with his beliefs.

,“One who, when he hears the words of this sworn covenant, blesses himself in his heart, saying, ‘I shall be safe, though I walk in the stubbornness of my heart.’ This will lead to the sweeping away of moist and dry alike.”

He we see that ‘Simon’s response to the presence of God’s Spirit and the evidence of God’s power is one of those tragic stories that accompany every advance of the gospel. Whenever and wherever God is at work among people, there are not only genuine responses but also counterfeit ones.’

24 -And Simon answered, “Pray for me to the Lord, that nothing of what you have said may come upon me.”

Simon perceives that he is in such bondage and that others must pray for his deliverance, but his desire seems to be ‘to escape the consequences of his sin rather than to amend his life’.

This seems remorse instead of repentance, to be remorseful is to feel deep and painful retreat for wrongdoing. Repentance is the turning away for deep sorrowful actions of past sins and vowing not to return. Since Luke does not record the outcome for Simon, it is possible that he viewed his penitence as insincere. This lack of closure is often explained in terms of the original readers knowing something of the later developments recorded by the early church fathers and understanding that Simon remained unconverted.

, “ And what I am doing I will continue to do, in order to undermine the claim of those who would like to claim that in their boasted mission they work on the same terms as we do. For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds.”

Since Simon as proved himself to be such a servant of Satan and and such a pretender of the faith; is there really any need to dwell on his fate? Will not his fate correspond to his deeds?

‘Satan in the person of his servant Simon has been trampled down. Satan does still have some power, but he is handily subjugated when confronted by the vastly greater divine authority that Christians wield.’ Attention is thus directed to the apostles again, who begin to share in Philip’s ministry to the Samaritans even more extensively, unhindered by the devil.

25-Now when they had testified and spoken the word of the Lord, they returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel to many villages of the Samaritans.” Peter and John then returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel (euēngelizonto) in many Samaritan villages. Luke combines familiar terms here, and making it clear that the apostles preached the same message as all the believers who had been scattered from Jerusalem.

Peter and John continued in their testimony of Christ Jesus which brings faith and salvation. Because true faith comes by hearing and hearing through the word of Christ.

You must decide in your heart if you are going to sit under the Word of God and just sit under someone who is just speaking words.

Going to church doesn’t make you a Christian any more than sleeping in your garage makes you a car. Don’t be a pretender, be born-again and believe in Jesus Christ our Lord.

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