“And Saul approved of their killing him…On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison.”

‭‭Acts‬ ‭8‬:‭1‬-‭3‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The seed was buried…

The persecution began in earnest… not just with court cases…intimidation, threats, jail. These strategies didn’t work. This dangerous heresy was spreading like a forest fire. The “wood” of the  common people was tinder dry…ready for the fire of the Holy Spirit to set it ablaze with supernatural life. 

And the wind of the Spirit blew…scattering the burning fragments from Jerusalem everywhere. The believers fled the city…just as Jesus had predicted…into Judea and Samaria. Up to that point, the church was still contained and functioning within city and the borders of Israel but…give it time…

Meanwhile, a new branch of the church began to grow in Samaria…the place where Jesus Himself had started a blaze through a disreputable Samaritan woman…who had drunk from the “water of life.”

“Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah there. When the crowds heard Philip and saw the signs he performed, they all paid close attention to what he said. For with shrieks, impure spirits came out of many, and many who were paralyzed or lame were healed. So there was great joy in that city.”

‭‭Acts‬ ‭8‬:‭4‬-‭8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The leadership of God’s people had new blood. The “deacons” of Acts 6 became spiritual leaders outside Jerusalem while the apostles remained in the city to care for the remnants of the flock left behind. 

Stephen was gone…but Philip, possibly one of the seven deacons, stepped up to fill the gap. The city of Samaria, in the province of Samaria, came alive with the power of the Holy Spirit. The same miracles that sparked the fierce opposition in Jerusalem now spread to Samaria. The powers of hell were shaken. The comfortable demonic presence was stirred up to resist and fight. The kingdom of God had come… and the demons didn’t like it. 

Luke included a story about an individual, Simon the sorcerer, who had duped the people into believing that he doing miracles for God. His deception was unhindered until the Spirit came. The people of Samaria were ripe for the gospel. 

“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, and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, “This man is rightly called the Great Power of God.” They followed him because he had amazed them for a long time with his sorcery.”

‭‭Acts‬ ‭8‬:‭9‬-‭11‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Peter and John, on a fact-finding mission from Jerusalem, passed on the Holy Spirit’s baptism to the new believers in this Samaritan hybrid group… and Simon was impressed!

“When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to Samaria…

“…When they arrived, they prayed for the new believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.”

‭‭Acts‬ ‭8‬:‭14-‭17‬ ‭NIV

Simon also “ believed” but his cover was blown. When the true Spirit of God fell on people in Samaria, Simon decided to change sides. He still craved power…but now…he saw genuine power at work and tried to buy it!

Wrong!

“When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money and said, “Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”

‭‭Acts‬ ‭8‬:‭18‬-‭19‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Peter was incensed. How dare this man try to buy God’s power! 

Peter stared right into Simon’s soul. No words were harsh enough to expose this man’s true intention. Money! Peter saw a heart full of money, dark and sinister because the love of money drove his life…colouring his every thought and deed…killing love, compassion, and kindness…caring about nothing or no one except to deceive for the sake of money. He was even ready to use some of his money to buy the Holy Spirit, as if he could, to gain more power over people, to manipulate and deceive…so he thought!

…“May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. 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. For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin.”

The judgment was harsh but real…and Simon was shocked and afraid. 

“Then Simon answered, “Pray to the Lord for me so that nothing you have said may happen to me.”

‭‭Acts‬ ‭8‬:‭20‬-‭24‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The next phase of God’s strategy, painful as it had been…through death and persecution…had opened the door to a hybrid nation.  The once-hated Samaritans had become part of God’s forever family. Grace had come to graft them into God’s “olive tree”! 

To be continued