A couple of years ago when I was coaching high school cross country, I was the regional meet director for Western Maryland. A part of this task was to join with other regional directors and put together our combined results and prepare for the state championships the following Saturday. This meeting was held on a Sunday morning at a hotel conference room somewhere in central Maryland. So I had to take a day off … though as it turned out, it really was not that complicated nor time-consuming, and I probably didn’t actually need to attend.

In some other conference rooms down the hall, it was clearly audible that a church worship service had begun; and it was very energetic sounding. Seeing I was no longer needed at the state cross country meeting, I ventured down the hall, not quite sure what kind of church I was going to encounter on the other side of the closed door. It turned out to be a very ethnic church, and I was instantly a minority of one! At a break in their worship service, there was this time where EVERY person in the room went around and hugged EVERY other person in the room. I guess my story as to why I was there came out in that time, because later in the service, I was called upon to come up front and share a word of greeting and encouragement from the Word! It was quite a fun experience

My adventure is somewhat similar to what we see in the Scripture passage today as Paul and Barnabas continue in the early stages of what we know as “The First Missionary Journey” – visiting a synagogue service in Antioch of Pisidia (this is in modern day Turkey, whereas the Antioch from which they were sent out was in Syria). As men with educated backgrounds in Judaism – known evidently through some conversation – they were called upon to give a word of exhortation from the Scriptures that were read that day.

Paul stands and basically takes his listeners through a summary of what in Bible College or Seminary would be a class called “OT-101” (Survey of Old Testament History).  He took them quickly from the time of God’s choosing of Israel to that of King David. Paul then jumps them right to David’s ultimate SON – Jesus, who is the fulfillment of all that was written in the Hebrew Scriptures. Paul tells them how the Jewish leadership in Jerusalem messed up completely by having Christ put to death, though in the larger plan of God, this opens the door not only to Jews who receive Christ, but Gentiles and all men everywhere who trust in faith.

The application of the sermon was that Paul encouraged the listeners to not make the same mistakes of so many of their ancestors (like in verse 41 – which quotes from the prophet Habakkuk), but to rather see and acknowledge that in Jesus the Christ – all the loose ends and varied prophecies and details come together in one new, great truth.

Wow, what a message! Totally dramatic new teachings! There was no way such a radical presentation could not stir up a range of reactions. Immediately a group of people are excited and follow them out the door – asking questions and desiring them to return the next week. Seven days later, “almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord.” And the response is the same as can be noted in multiple places in Acts (and is likewise the 3-part response to the preaching of the Gospel in our day):  Some believe (on this occasion, quite a few!), some remain seekers, and many scoff and reject.

Those who do the rejecting in this story do so quite vociferously, as these traditional Jewish leaders see their whole world being turned upside-down. The persecution they engender drives Paul and Barnabas out of town and on to the next location.

We will share this thought again and again: we should not be surprised at persecution and opposition – it is normal. Certainly the early believers saw it this way, because rather than being blown away by it,“… the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.”

In Pisidian Antioch – Acts 13:13-52

13 From Paphos, Paul and his companions sailed to Perga in Pamphylia, where John left them to return to Jerusalem. 14 From Perga they went on to Pisidian Antioch. On the Sabbath they entered the synagogue and sat down. 15 After the reading from the Law and the Prophets, the leaders of the synagogue sent word to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have a word of exhortation for the people, please speak.”

16 Standing up, Paul motioned with his hand and said: “Fellow Israelites and you Gentiles who worship God, listen to me! 17 The God of the people of Israel chose our ancestors; he made the people prosper during their stay in Egypt; with mighty power he led them out of that country; 18 for about forty years he endured their conduct in the wilderness; 19 and he overthrew seven nations in Canaan, giving their land to his people as their inheritance. 20 All this took about 450 years.

“After this, God gave them judges until the time of Samuel the prophet. 21 Then the people asked for a king, and he gave them Saul son of Kish, of the tribe of Benjamin, who ruled forty years. 22 After removing Saul, he made David their king. God testified concerning him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.’

23 “From this man’s descendants God has brought to Israel the Savior Jesus, as he promised. 24 Before the coming of Jesus, John preached repentance and baptism to all the people of Israel. 25 As John was completing his work, he said: ‘Who do you suppose I am? I am not the one you are looking for. But there is one coming after me whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.’

26 “Fellow children of Abraham and you God-fearing Gentiles, it is to us that this message of salvation has been sent. 27 The people of Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize Jesus, yet in condemning him they fulfilled the words of the prophets that are read every Sabbath. 28 Though they found no proper ground for a death sentence, they asked Pilate to have him executed. 29 When they had carried out all that was written about him, they took him down from the cross and laid him in a tomb. 30 But God raised him from the dead, 31 and for many days he was seen by those who had traveled with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. They are now his witnesses to our people.

32 “We tell you the good news: What God promised our ancestors 33 he has fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus. As it is written in the second Psalm:

“‘You are my son; today I have become your father.’

34 God raised him from the dead so that he will never be subject to decay. As God has said, “‘I will give you the holy and sure blessings promised to David.’

35 So it is also stated elsewhere: “‘You will not let your holy one see decay.’

36 “Now when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep; he was buried with his ancestors and his body decayed. 37 But the one whom God raised from the dead did not see decay.

38 “Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. 39 Through him everyone who believes is set free from every sin, a justification you were not able to obtain under the law of Moses. 40 Take care that what the prophets have said does not happen to you:

41 “‘Look, you scoffers, wonder and perish, for I am going to do something in your days that you would never believe, even if someone told you.’”

42 As Paul and Barnabas were leaving the synagogue, the people invited them to speak further about these things on the next Sabbath. 43 When the congregation was dismissed, many of the Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who talked with them and urged them to continue in the grace of God.

44 On the next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. 45 When the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy. They began to contradict what Paul was saying and heaped abuse on him.

46 Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: “We had to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles. 47 For this is what the Lord has commanded us:

“‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’”

48 When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and honored the word of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed.

49 The word of the Lord spread through the whole region. 50 But the Jewish leaders incited the God-fearing women of high standing and the leading men of the city. They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them from their region. 51 So they shook the dust off their feet as a warning to them and went to Iconium. 52 And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.

From my several years of political activism and engagement, I met a number of people in politics who are among the finest folks I’ve ever known. However, the stereotype so often associated with the political characters of the world has been sadly earned by a majority of those working in this arena. And the King Herod of today’s passage would fit easily into that devious latter category of rascals.

This Herod – the grandson of the Herod in the birth narrative of Jesus – was allowed powerful authority under the Romans. He had distant Jewish blood connections and was always insecure about his position in the eyes of the populace. So he was playing his cards on both sides of the equation – pleasing the Romans and pleasing the Jews.

Keeping the peace is what most pleased the Romans, and he could do this by also pleasing the Jews with a growing persecution of the church. James, the brother of John, was executed by this vain king, and seeing how much it pleased the people, he determined to repeat the deed in a bigger way with Peter. Fortuitously intervening for Peter was the Passover season – so he would be stuck in prison until these days had passed. Things looked grim – very bad indeed. The church was praying, but the circumstances seemed to be surely insurmountable. Extra guards were standing watch – probably because some in the Sanhedrin had remembered that this Simon Peter fellow somehow escaped prison in the past and was preaching to the crowds when everyone in authority thought he was under lock and key.

Our story today records how Peter was miraculously delivered through the agency of an angel on the evening prior to his trial and certain execution. Awakening from what seemed more like a vision than a real-life situation, Peter discovered himself outside the prison and down the street. He proceeded to the home of John Mark’s mother – probably the single most prominent location of the church in Jerusalem – and knocked on the door.

In what is among the most humorous passages of Scripture, the people do not believe the servant girl’s report that Peter is actually at the door. But weren’t they praying for this very reality? Well, maybe; or maybe not. It may well be that they were likely praying for Peter to have courage and strength in his hour of trial and martyrdom. He shares the whole incredible story with the church and leaves for another location – leaving James (the brother of Jesus) as essentially the predominant single leader in the Jerusalem church. And the passage concludes with an account, not of Peter’s demise, but rather that of the arrogant King Herod Agrippa I.

Let us take away two major thoughts of application today:

1. We should pray in faith that God is able to accomplish ANYTHING!

So often when we pray, we do so without any honest or real expectation that the prayer is actually going to be answered – especially when the circumstances are not favorable. God does not always choose to intervene and overturn the natural flow of life circumstances. In fact, it is probably true that he most often allows the natural course of events to transpire. Yet there is no shortage of those occasional incidents where, against all odds and explanation, God miraculously steps in and accomplishes incredible things. He is able to do that, and we should pray fully believing that it could very well transpire – that we might even witness miraculous interventions.

2. We should pray in submission to God’s will, recognizing that not every prayer is going to be answered in the way we would most desire.

If God always answered prayers the way we desired, none of us would ever die – we’d always recover from any ills and circumstances. God is going to accomplish his will; and that will sometimes involves even the tragic loss of life of people who love the Lord. It is humanly inexplicable. We have seen such sadness even in the Christian community of Hagerstown this very week. But we must trust God in these matters that He is one who does all things well in the bigger picture of eternity. It our text today, James the brother of John is martyred, though God has an extensive future ministry for Peter.

Are you getting a better sense for why prayer should indeed be our first IMPULSE?

Peter’s Miraculous Escape from Prison – Acts 12:1-25

12 It was about this time that King Herod arrested some who belonged to the church, intending to persecute them. ² He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword. ³ When he saw that this met with approval among the Jews, he proceeded to seize Peter also. This happened during the Festival of Unleavened Bread. ⁴ After arresting him, he put him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring him out for public trial after the Passover.

⁵ So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him.

⁶ The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries stood guard at the entrance. ⁷ Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. “Quick, get up!” he said, and the chains fell off Peter’s wrists.

⁸ Then the angel said to him, “Put on your clothes and sandals.” And Peter did so. “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me,” the angel told him. ⁹ Peter followed him out of the prison, but he had no idea that what the angel was doing was really happening; he thought he was seeing a vision. ¹⁰ They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city. It opened for them by itself, and they went through it. When they had walked the length of one street, suddenly the angel left him.

¹¹ Then Peter came to himself and said, “Now I know without a doubt that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from Herod’s clutches and from everything the Jewish people were hoping would happen.”

¹² When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying. ¹³ Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant named Rhoda came to answer the door. ¹⁴ When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, “Peter is at the door!”

¹⁵ “You’re out of your mind,” they told her. When she kept insisting that it was so, they said, “It must be his angel.”

¹⁶ But Peter kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished.¹⁷ Peter motioned with his hand for them to be quiet and described how the Lord had brought him out of prison. “Tell James and the other brothers and sisters about this,” he said, and then he left for another place.

¹⁸ In the morning, there was no small commotion among the soldiers as to what had become of Peter.¹⁹ After Herod had a thorough search made for him and did not find him, he cross-examined the guards and ordered that they be executed.

Herod’s Death

Then Herod went from Judea to Caesarea and stayed there. ²⁰ He had been quarreling with the people of Tyre and Sidon; they now joined together and sought an audience with him. After securing the support of Blastus, a trusted personal servant of the king, they asked for peace, because they depended on the king’s country for their food supply.

²¹ On the appointed day Herod, wearing his royal robes, sat on his throne and delivered a public address to the people. ²² They shouted, “This is the voice of a god, not of a man.” ²³ Immediately, because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died.

²⁴ But the word of God continued to spread and flourish.

Barnabas and Saul Sent Off

²⁵ When Barnabas and Saul had finished their mission, they returned from Jerusalem, taking with them John, also called Mark.

There really is something extraordinarily energizing about the early years of a new church. As with our lives, though we might like to stay a teenager forever in some ways, a church also has to grow up and live through other seasons. But those early years of vitality of living through new experiences together are special memories indeed.

At TSF, we’ve had experiences of living through such a time and setting the course locally for contemporary ministry that God has multiplied through dozens of other churches in our region. I remember one time when we were interviewing a young man as a possible candidate for a pastoral staff position, he was hesitant to come, and even said, “You guys are so out there that you are doing the stuff that happens before the cutting edge arrives!”  Well, that was an overstatement to some extent – probably revealing as much about the comparatively traditional place where he was serving as it spoke of the actual ministry of TSF at that time.

Antioch was truly the cutting edge church of the early New Testament era. I wrote last week that if there was one Bible person I’d like to be, it would be Barnabas. And if there was one church of the early Christian era that I’d like to be part of, it would be the church in our reading today – Antioch of Syria. So it is interesting that Barnabas becomes the primary leader of this congregation.

The Gospel message that had spread throughout the Roman world after the persecution that broke out upon the occasion of the martyrdom of Stephen had spread to Antioch – a city about 300 miles straight north of Jerusalem in what would today be Syria. This was no small city. Having been favored by prominent leaders in both the Greek and Roman empires, at the time of the writing of Acts, it was the third most important city in the Roman sphere. It was a renowned center of commerce and luxurious living, populated as well by maybe about 25,000 Jews. In what today might be called “a university town,” it was a place of cosmopolitan blending of cultures.

The text today clearly states that the empowerment of God’s spirit resulted in a tremendous response of the Gospel message by large numbers of Gentiles. The news of this came to the ears of the mother church in Jerusalem who, as we read yesterday, had come to the startling realization that such was a new work of God. And so it was deemed wise to send Barnabas to oversee and bring his unique encouragement skills to this high-energy and fledgling community. It was a perfect choice!

Barnabas arrives and sizes up the situation, realizing he needs some serious help in discipling all of these new believers. Being Gentiles in large numbers, they would have lacked the Jewish background and Old Testament foundations necessary to understanding the richness of God’s work through Christ as the fulfillment of the plan of the ages. Barnabas went through his mental rolodex of apostolically-qualified resumes, deciding that Saul of Tarsus was the perfect guy. He had the background and the communications skills. He was from just 100 miles to the northwest and was oriented toward success in such a cosmopolitan context. Saul was never going to fit comfortably in the more stuffy environs of the Jerusalem church. So here was a place he could really bloom. It was perfect for the church; it was perfect for Saul.

So Barnabas fetches Saul for this task, and together they teach for a year. This must have been an amazing season of ministry. The believers were making an impact upon their surrounding culture – to the extent that it was here they were first given the title of “Christians.”  There was no hiding their faith and commitment.

God has always used different churches at different times to accomplish the work of reaching varied types of people. Certainly the church communities in Jerusalem and Antioch were very different from one another. One was not more correct than the other; they were simply in different places with a different sense of a vision from God as to what the local expression and mission of their ministry should be. But the unity of the one true Church (capital C) was evident in the heart of the people in Antioch to care for the poor in Jerusalem, and so a generous gift was collected and sent in the care of both Barnabas and Saul. These folks were simply stellar in their faith – truly a great church in every way.

The Church in Antioch – Acts 11:19-30 

¹⁹ Now those who had been scattered by the persecution that broke out when Stephen was killed traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, spreading the word only among Jews. ²⁰ Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus. ²¹ The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.

²² News of this reached the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. ²³ When he arrived and saw what the grace of God had done, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts. ²⁴ He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.

²⁵ Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, ²⁶ and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch.

²⁷ During this time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. ²⁸ One of them, named Agabus, stood up and through the Spirit predicted that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world. (This happened during the reign of Claudius.) ²⁹ The disciples, as each one was able, decided to provide help for the brothers and sisters living in Judea. ³⁰ This they did, sending their gift to the elders by Barnabas and Saul.

I confess it is difficult to get into the sandals of first century Bible characters, but let’s try to do it. Yesterday’s reading told the story of Peter going to the home of Cornelius with the result that the Gospel message spread beyond the confines of Jewish people and Proselytes.

News travels fast, and the mother church in Jerusalem heard about it. And it was surprising beyond any capacity to imagine or believe. Central to the suspicious feeling was the word that Peter – yes, PETER! – not only went into the home of a Gentile, but he also stayed there and ate with them!

So, you’re thinking, “What’s the big deal?”  Well, Jews just didn’t do such things. You may remember the prophets of the Old Testament warning the children of Israel over and over about not becoming like the nations around them, else they fall into similar idolatry and sins. The people did not listen, they associated too closely, and two captivities later (to Assyria and Babylon), the returning remnants determined to not have the same fate befall them. And so, for the past 400+ years, the Jews were very strict about whom they would fellowship with beyond necessary business communications.

So Peter is “called on the carpet” about his actions. And as it says in verse 5 today, Starting from the beginning, Peter told them the whole story. And what does he essentially do? He blames God! He really does – explaining how it was all by divine initiative and sovereignly-orchestrated circumstances that he did all that transpired. The result was that the same Spirit baptism (the work of God that identifies a person with the body of Christ) that came upon the first Jewish believers also fell upon these Gentiles. And Peter concludes, So if God gave them the same gift he gave us who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to think that I could stand in God’s way?

That was a good question about which the answer was an obvious one! As we wrote yesterday, this marked the proof of a new era of God’s grace abounding. It was not just a next chapter of God’s work specifically through the nation of Israel; no, this was an entirely new program of God’s activity to reach all people of all nations. It was indeed the day that grace hit the fan – to be spread wide and far beyond the confines of the Jewish world.

Don’t fail to read the final paragraph, for here we see that these folks were not just traditionalists and obstructionists. They did not dig in and defend their roots, but rather they praised God for this incredible new breeze of expansion of God’s work through Jesus Christ.

Not every issue was immediately solved … sticking points like the role of circumcision, the value and place of the Law of Moses, the matter of fellowshipping together with people from vastly differing cultures and traditions – all these issues had to be pounded out over time. We’ll be talking about them in subsequent chapters. But today, there is the great joy that the good news is for all men. Since around TSF we are 99% or better from Gentile backgrounds, we should today when reading this have an extra profound sense of God’s grace extending to all of us! Thank God it hit the fan!

Peter Explains His Actions – Acts 11:1-18

11 The apostles and the believers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. ² So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him ³ and said, “You went into the house of uncircumcised men and ate with them.”

⁴ Starting from the beginning, Peter told them the whole story: ⁵ “I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision. I saw something like a large sheet being let down from heaven by its four corners, and it came down to where I was. ⁶ I looked into it and saw four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, reptiles and birds. ⁷ Then I heard a voice telling me, ‘Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.’

⁸ “I replied, ‘Surely not, Lord! Nothing impure or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’

⁹ “The voice spoke from heaven a second time, ‘Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.’¹⁰ This happened three times, and then it was all pulled up to heaven again.

¹¹ “Right then three men who had been sent to me from Caesarea stopped at the house where I was staying. ¹² The Spirit told me to have no hesitation about going with them. These six brothers also went with me, and we entered the man’s house. ¹³ He told us how he had seen an angel appear in his house and say, ‘Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter. ¹⁴ He will bring you a message through which you and all your household will be saved.’

¹⁵ “As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came on them as he had come on us at the beginning. ¹⁶ Then I remembered what the Lord had said: ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ ¹⁷ So if God gave them the same gift he gave us who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to think that I could stand in God’s way?”

¹⁸ When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, “So then, even to Gentiles God has granted repentance that leads to life.”

If I had a dollar for every time I asked a teenage son of mine about his social plans, “So who else is going to be there? / So who was with you last night?” … well, I could take us all out to dinner tonight. As parents, we ask these questions because we know how significantly our kids are influenced by the people with whom they hang out. There is nothing new about this timeless truth, since Solomon said the same thing 3,000 years ago – “Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm.”  (Proverbs 3:20)

But it is not just teenagers who are subject to this; adults are influenced by the people around them nearly as much.

I often encounter Christians who are annoyed with God. They expected to hear from him about this or that – to somehow intervene in their lives … but it hasn’t happened. And when we probe about why that is, it is not uncommon to find out that they really are not spending time with God – not employing such easy disciplines as Scripture reading and prayer. Expecting to hear from God about guidance for issues in our lives when we, in fact, don’t spend time talking with him about them would be about like trying to decide if we should or should not marry a person with whom we only spend time very occasionally.

In today’s rather long chapter about the story of Cornelius, the first thing that jumps out at me is that both Cornelius and Peter were given direction from God as a side benefit of regular prayer. They were hanging out with God, and while doing this, God dropped on them some pretty cool stuff that would change their lives.

Cornelius the Centurion was a Roman soldier who was also a “God-Fearer.”  This meant that he accepted and worshipped the God of Israel, though he remained technically a Gentile. God reaches out to him to bring to him the full message of the completed work of Christ. Simultaneously, God uses the situation to move the early church to the full biblical understanding that this new work of God’s abounding grace was for the Gentile world as well – God was not modifying an old program; he was creating a new one. Each needed to have a categorical shift in their thinking and understanding of what God was doing in the world, and it was awesome.

So are you hanging out with God? Are you seeking him and asking his leading and direction? Some people, incredibly, fail at this basic starting point. Beyond that, I have found it takes some time and experience to hear God’s voice. Oh how I wish he worked on a faster schedule! But looking back, I can always say that God consistently revealed to me in a variety of circumstances, feelings, and opportunities what was his direction in what proved to be the perfect timing. And so I’ve learned also that when I am genuinely looking and seeking and asking … even greatly desiring something … but God is not seeming to hear or answer, that this is his way of putting that issue on hold (or even saying “no”) for reasons I will not be able to see until much, much later (if ever).

I have no better advice for you today or any other day than this: Hang out with God. Make prayer your daily impulse … hey, “impulse” – that would be a great word for a sermon series title!

Cornelius Calls for Peter – Acts 10:1-48

10 At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion in what was known as the Italian Regiment. ² He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly. ³ One day at about three in the afternoon he had a vision. He distinctly saw an angel of God, who came to him and said, “Cornelius!”

⁴ Cornelius stared at him in fear. “What is it, Lord?” he asked.

The angel answered, “Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God. ⁵ Now send men to Joppa to bring back a man named Simon who is called Peter. ⁶ He is staying with Simon the tanner, whose house is by the sea.”

⁷ When the angel who spoke to him had gone, Cornelius called two of his servants and a devout soldier who was one of his attendants. ⁸ He told them everything that had happened and sent them to Joppa.

Peter’s Vision

⁹ About noon the following day as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the roof to pray. ¹⁰ He became hungry and wanted something to eat, and while the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance. ¹¹ He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. ¹² It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles and birds. ¹³ Then a voice told him, “Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.”

¹⁴ “Surely not, Lord!” Peter replied. “I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.”

¹⁵ The voice spoke to him a second time, “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.”

¹⁶ This happened three times, and immediately the sheet was taken back to heaven.

¹⁷ While Peter was wondering about the meaning of the vision, the men sent by Cornelius found out where Simon’s house was and stopped at the gate. ¹⁸ They called out, asking if Simon who was known as Peter was staying there.

¹⁹ While Peter was still thinking about the vision, the Spirit said to him, “Simon, three men are looking for you. ²⁰ So get up and go downstairs. Do not hesitate to go with them, for I have sent them.”

²¹ Peter went down and said to the men, “I’m the one you’re looking for. Why have you come?”

²² The men replied, “We have come from Cornelius the centurion. He is a righteous and God-fearing man, who is respected by all the Jewish people. A holy angel told him to ask you to come to his house so that he could hear what you have to say.” ²³ Then Peter invited the men into the house to be his guests.

Peter at Cornelius’s House

The next day Peter started out with them, and some of the believers from Joppa went along. ²⁴ The following day he arrived in Caesarea. Cornelius was expecting them and had called together his relatives and close friends. ²⁵ As Peter entered the house, Cornelius met him and fell at his feet in reverence. ²⁶ But Peter made him get up. “Stand up,” he said, “I am only a man myself.”

²⁷ While talking with him, Peter went inside and found a large gathering of people. ²⁸ He said to them: “You are well aware that it is against our law for a Jew to associate with or visit a Gentile. But God has shown me that I should not call anyone impure or unclean. ²⁹ So when I was sent for, I came without raising any objection. May I ask why you sent for me?”

³⁰ Cornelius answered: “Three days ago I was in my house praying at this hour, at three in the afternoon. Suddenly a man in shining clothes stood before me ³¹ and said, ‘Cornelius, God has heard your prayer and remembered your gifts to the poor. ³² Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter. He is a guest in the home of Simon the tanner, who lives by the sea.’ ³³ So I sent for you immediately, and it was good of you to come. Now we are all here in the presence of God to listen to everything the Lord has commanded you to tell us.”

³⁴ Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism ³⁵ but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right. ³⁶ You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, announcing the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. ³⁷ You know what has happened throughout the province of Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached— ³⁸ how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.

³⁹ “We are witnesses of everything he did in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They killed him by hanging him on a cross, ⁴⁰ but God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen. ⁴¹ He was not seen by all the people, but by witnesses whom God had already chosen—by us who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. ⁴² He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. ⁴³ All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”

⁴⁴ While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message.⁴⁵ The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on Gentiles. ⁴⁶ For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God.

Then Peter said, ⁴⁷ “Surely no one can stand in the way of their being baptized with water. They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have.” ⁴⁸ So he ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked Peter to stay with them for a few days.

Approaching today’s reading, let us recall that the purpose of Luke’s historical account of the Acts of the Apostles was written for this fellow named Theophilus – to describe for him the way in which the message of the Gospel had spread all over the Roman world. Throughout the book of Acts, we see read various summary statements of the results of this preaching ministry – 3,000 saved, then growing to 5,000, and everywhere stating (as in verse 42 today) that many people believed in the Lord.  To see something really cool, go to this link and watch the time-action way the Gospel spread to 364 places in the book of Acts.

Since the purpose of our series is a devotional one, I really wish to stay away from some of the controversial topics like tongues and healings, etc.  But it is just about impossible today to write much without getting into it a bit. Though my views on the subject are very standard for the Evangelical Free Church and the portion of the broader evangelical movement that is resourced by schools such as I have attended in Philadelphia and Dallas, I have many Christian friends and even family members who disagree with me. There are TSF people who do not think as I do upon this topic.

I’ll be as brief as possible to say that I believe the signs and wonders such as are seen in this passage and in numbers of other Scriptures in Acts (particularly on the occasion of the Spirit’s first coming to a group of believers) are miracles unique in the experience of the early church era. At a time when the Scriptures were far from complete, God validated the message and the messenger with very unique signs and gifts – miraculous abilities and activities that gradually ceased to be the normative experience of believers and church communities. Something better took their place:  the completion of God’s Word – the Bible. This is the final authority that, in the power of the Spirit, vindicates the message and messenger.

Do not hear me saying that miracles cannot and do not occur; but you may rightly understand me to say that they are not the normative experience that we should seek out, nor are they the evidence of gifts that I believe have also ceased, nor the evidence of a “baptism” of the Holy Spirit. The baptism of the Spirit – in my understanding of Scripture – happens at the moment of salvation and is not a gift to be sought afterward as a second blessing or second work of grace.

I also reject the interpretation that healing is in the atonement (quoting from Isaiah 53). I take that passage to say that the “stripes by which we are healed” refer specifically to the spiritual issue of sin, not physical well-being. We are fully healed spiritually and eternally by faith in Christ’s death, and we will be physically healed in our glorified bodies upon our exit from this world across the threshold of eternity. We are invited and obligated to pray for the healing and touch of God in the lives of people who are afflicted with the ailments that evidence the decay of our mortal flesh. And God may, and often does, honor these prayers with even incredible means of intervention. We should engage this resource more than we do!

Today’s passage tells the story first of a paralyzed person being healed after eight years of affliction, with the result that all who were nearby and aware of this miracle followed the Lord. And secondly, we see an actual miracle of a physical resurrection through the work of Peter – again with Luke noting that the outcome was not simply to help a person or bring someone back to life merely for their individual benefits, but that rather the act was one that God used uniquely to bring large numbers of followers to the faith. Geographically speaking, these towns are in the area to the northwest of Jerusalem, both near and along the Mediterranean coast.

Applicationally speaking – We should be faithful to pray for God to do great works through the power of His divine will in healing and restoring people to wellness in every way. The error of certain Pentecostal and Charismatic friends is to essentially assert that God is obligated to hear us and honor our requests, particularly if we arouse enough faith. But the error of the side where more of us (such as are in the EFCA) stand is to go ahead and pray out of some sense of obligation because we can’t deny we are told to do so, yet to honestly at our core doubt that God will consider doing something even miraculous. God is able, and He does heal.

Aeneas and Dorcas – Acts 9:32-43

³² As Peter traveled about the country, he went to visit the Lord’s people who lived in Lydda. ³³ There he found a man named Aeneas, who was paralyzed and had been bedridden for eight years.³⁴ “Aeneas,” Peter said to him, “Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and roll up your mat.” Immediately Aeneas got up. ³⁵ All those who lived in Lydda and Sharon saw him and turned to the Lord.

³⁶ In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (in Greek her name is Dorcas); she was always doing good and helping the poor. ³⁷ About that time she became sick and died, and her body was washed and placed in an upstairs room. ³⁸ Lydda was near Joppa; so when the disciples heard that Peter was in Lydda, they sent two men to him and urged him, “Please come at once!”

³⁹ Peter went with them, and when he arrived he was taken upstairs to the room. All the widows stood around him, crying and showing him the robes and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was still with them.

⁴⁰ Peter sent them all out of the room; then he got down on his knees and prayed. Turning toward the dead woman, he said, “Tabitha, get up.” She opened her eyes, and seeing Peter she sat up. ⁴¹ He took her by the hand and helped her to her feet. Then he called for the believers, especially the widows, and presented her to them alive. ⁴² This became known all over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord. ⁴³ Peter stayed in Joppa for some time with a tanner named Simon.

If you could be any person in the Bible, who would you want to be? Some folks might go right for the Apostle Paul – the mighty man himself. Others might want to be Solomon because of his wisdom, but remember that would include the issue of a thousand wives! Daniel or Joseph would be good choices, until you consider the years of trials that each endured as well as the years of blessing.

If I could be anyone, it would be Barnabas – the guy who actually gave Paul his start!  In my book, Barnabas is the best of the good guys. His name meant “son of consolation” and he was always encouraging people and seeing the best in them.

Today he makes his second appearance in the Acts narrative, though far from his last – we’ll be talking about him more in the coming weeks. In his first appearance, which was what I have a couple of times referred to as Luke’s style of giving main characters a brief “walk on” role early in the play, Barnabas was simply listed specifically as one of those who sold a property and deposited the assets at the feet of the Apostles. This was with a view toward contributing for the basic needs of the early church community – he was being an encouragement.

In our text today, we see that Saul immediately began to use open door opportunities to present the Gospel. He went into synagogues where he was welcomed to speak. We will see Paul use this same strategy later in the book throughout the ancient world. He was a highly-trained university dude – a sort of elite Harvard-educated fellow.

The synagogue folks in Damascus immediately recognize that this is the same guy who was condemning the preaching going on “among those who call on this name” – of Jesus. And here he is presenting the totally opposite point of view from what they anticipated relative to his recent press releases! And several times in this passage we see the Jewish default response, which is to stop it by killing the person doing it. So, Saul’s new friends help him escape by dropping him over the city wall in a basket. (Remember being a kid in VBS and doing the craft project related to this story?)

So Paul needs some more new friends and goes to Jerusalem to get connected with the church leadership there. His welcome is … ah … less than inviting and is rather filled with distrust. This would be about like Governor O’Malley becoming a Republican and showing up at the local Central Committee meeting and hoping to be invited to dinner. Ah… not today!

And then comes these great words, “But Barnabas” … the great encourager is the first to befriend him and sponsor him in communication with the others. The ice is broken and again Saul takes on a powerful work of preaching the gospel in Jerusalem. And again also, it is a Jewish element – this time the Hellenistic group of those adopting the Greek culture – who rises to meet this new threat by eliminating Saul. Apparently none of these folks were very good at keeping their plots secret, and so Saul is sent off. At this point of his career, he is sort of being sent down to the minor leagues to hone his skills for a while before coming back to be a star player in the early church.

But Barnabas … don’t you want to be like that guy? What does it involve? Well, certainly a lot of the same stuff we’ve been preaching at TSF for a while now. It is the counter-current theme of caring about people diverse from yourself in some way. It may be a difference of generation or cultural background or personal taste. Do you care about seeing other people grow to be all they can be in Christ as much as you care about just fellowshipping with your own natural affinity group? It is a hard sell – this “preference deference” stuff. But it is what Jesus did, and you’ll never be all you can be until you do it … and be a Barnabas type of person.

Saul in Damascus and Jerusalem – Acts 9:19b-31

Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus. ²⁰ At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God. ²¹ All those who heard him were astonished and asked, “Isn’t he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn’t he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?” ²² Yet Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Messiah.

²³ After many days had gone by, there was a conspiracy among the Jews to kill him, ²⁴ but Saul learned of their plan. Day and night they kept close watch on the city gates in order to kill him. ²⁵ But his followers took him by night and lowered him in a basket through an opening in the wall.

²⁶ When he came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple. ²⁷ But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the Lord and that the Lord had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus. ²⁸ So Saul stayed with them and moved about freely in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord. ²⁹ He talked and debated with the Hellenistic Jews, but they tried to kill him. ³⁰ When the believers learned of this, they took him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus.

³¹ Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace and was strengthened. Living in the fear of the Lord and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers.

As a political and news junkie, I am much familiar with the commentary in print and TV of Kirsten Powers. She does not come from anywhere near my point of view on the spectrum of issues, though lately I have found myself surprised several times by a different tone and perspective. It really has caught my attention and had me going “hmm… not what I would have expected her to say on that one.”

On this very day that I am writing this devotional article from today’s reading about the incredible conversion of Saul – known to us later as the Apostle Paul – literally, immediately before sitting down to write about this passage, I stumbled upon an article that gave the story of Kirsten Powers trusting in Christ. The full article about how this confirmed atheist was chased down by God and recently came to faith may be found by clicking HERE. Let me share a couple of the quotes:

“I was not looking to be a Christian. The last thing in the world I wanted to be was a Christian. … When I went away to college, whatever little faith I had, I lost. … All my friends were secular liberals. At this point, I really got even more deeply into an incredibly secular world because now, all my friends were basically atheists, or if they had any kind of spirituality, they were very hostile towards religion, Christianity in particular. So, I really didn’t have any interest in it.”

Through a friend who drew her to attend Redeemer Presbyterian Church in NYC where Tim Keller is pastor, she began to hear new truths and consider new ideas.

“Really, it was like God sort of invaded my life. It was very unwelcome. I didn’t like it. … It’s kind of hard to describe, but I did have this moment where the scales just fell off of my eyes, where I was saying, ‘this is just totally true, I don’t even have any doubt.’ … If I could have avoided it, I would have. There is nothing convenient about it in my life or in the world I live in. It’s not like living in the South where everybody is a Christian. I live in a world where nobody is a believer. But God pursued me.”

God pursued her. God pursued Saul. God pursued you! As I shared in the devotional writings in the previous sermon series called “Cross Words,” it might seem like we found God … as we talk about salvation in that way. But the reality is that God found us. We see, only because we are able to see because God has removed the “scales” from our eyes. It is all a work of grace. God is in the human reclamation business.

The other part of this story in Acts 9 that I so much like is that of this fellow named Ananias. He is given just about the worst assignment imaginable. Saul had become famous for his antagonism and harsh treatment of Christians. And God calls up Ananias and says that Saul of Tarsus would be ringing his doorbell. How would you feel if you found out that you were going to be visited by North Korean President Kim Jong-un? (I guess you could throw some NBA games on TV and he’d be happy, but you get the picture!)

God does not always give us easy assignments. But there is no safer place than in the center of God’s direction in your life through obedience to Him. God has a plan for all of us.

Saul’s Conversion — Acts 9:1-19a

9 Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest ² and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. ³ As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him.⁴ He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”

⁵ “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.

“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. ⁶ “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”

⁷ The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. ⁸ Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. ⁹ For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.

¹⁰ In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision,  “Ananias!”

“Yes, Lord,” he answered.

¹¹ The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. ¹² In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.”

¹³ “Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people in Jerusalem. ¹⁴ And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.”

¹⁵ But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. ¹⁶ I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.”

¹⁷ Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” ¹⁸ Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, ¹⁹ and after taking some food, he regained his strength.

The expansion of the early church could be somewhat likened to the modern growth of online social or professional networks. I almost daily get invites and updates from a professional network called “LinkedIn” – though I’ve not been very active with it personally. But with such tools, people connect with other people and so on … until before long, there are even millions networked one to another.

Of course, God’s “salvation network” is the Gospel message, that when received in faith networks the new believer to the body of Christ – the Church. And the book of Acts details how this network grew – both in numbers and ethnically.

The very first believers were folks with a strong Hebrew Jewish background. We soon see that there are Hellenistic Jews in the early company of Christians – these being ethnically Jewish people who had adopted the Greek culture and language of the Roman world. Today’s passage will give the story of a proselyte coming to Christ – this being a Gentile who had fully adopted the Jewish faith and God as the one true God. In the soon-coming story of Cornelius there will be the inclusion of a “God fearer” – one who believed in the one true God, but who had not become Jewish. And finally we will see the Gospel extending to fully Gentile peoples. So … Hebrew Jews >> Hellenistic Jews >> Proselytes >> God Fearers >> Full Gentiles. Cool stuff!

We today read about an Ethiopian official of some high office who had travelled many miles to Jerusalem to worship and was now on his way home. This was quite a long journey, and it certainly indicates a person very serious about faith and knowing God. Such is also evident by his study of Scripture, as in this passage he is laboring over the meaning of Isaiah 53:7,8 – about the prophecy of Christ as the Lamb of God. Philip is divinely placed in the path of this man to explain this passage in the preaching of the Gospel and the completed work of Christ. The Ethiopian gladly receives the truth and publically proclaims his faith through baptism.

I would make two observations today about the heart of God – each of which should encourage us personally, as well as in the work we share of the spread of the Gospel.

1.  Notice the vast heart of God in this expansion of the Gospel. This was not simply a message for the Jewish people, the descendents of Abraham … it was growing to be universal for all lost peoples. God always had a heart for the nations of the world. His desire was that Israel be a missionary nation to the countries around them, but they blew that assignment over and over. But this new message of Christ’s forever payment for the sin of all people presents a great new era of a message of God’s abounding grace. And Luke is recording the growing network of believers – this new program of God called “the church.”

2.  Notice the warm heart of God for the individual. Here was a man with a passion for truth and for knowing God. Though he lived remotely from the center of what God was doing, the Lord did not lose him in the crowds of humanity, but rather orchestrated divine circumstances that this one man may know the plan and work of God.

How great it is to know the God who cares both about the masses of people in the world, yet also is the God of the individual worshipper … and that should certainly encourage us today.

Philip and the Ethiopian – Acts 8:26-40

²⁶ Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Go south to the road—the desert road—that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” ²⁷ So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopianeunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of the Kandake (which means “queen of the Ethiopians”). This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship, ²⁸ and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the Book of Isaiah the prophet. ²⁹ The Spirit told Philip, “Go to that chariot and stay near it.”

³⁰ Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. “Do you understand what you are reading?” Philip asked.

³¹ “How can I,” he said, “unless someone explains it to me?” So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.

³² This is the passage of Scripture the eunuch was reading: “He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before its shearer is silent, so he did not open his mouth. ³³ In his humiliation he was deprived of justice. Who can speak of his descendants? For his life was taken from the earth.”

³⁴ The eunuch asked Philip, “Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?” ³⁵ Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.

³⁶ As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, “Look, here is water. What can stand in the way of my being baptized?” ^{[37]   38} And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptized him. ³⁹ When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him again, but went on his way rejoicing. ⁴⁰ Philip, however, appeared at Azotus and traveled about, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he reached Caesarea.

If you are a really careful reader, you may have noted that verse 37 was omitted. In some manuscripts it is contained and says: Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” The eunuch answered, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”  This would appear, from the evidence of manuscripts containing it, that this is likely a later addition and was not in the original writing of Luke. In any event, you can see that there is no theological controversy attached to these simple words.

My closest friend in pastoral ministry (and thousands of miles of marathon training and running) is a fellow from a family with whom my extended family has been friends for many, many decades. We together grew up in the same small New Jersey country church, later migrating together to a different ministry where we each followed dissimilar roads toward pastoring two congregations in our home town. Being older than me, he served in Vietnam along with his brother and brother-in-law. My friend was a marine platoon leader with incredibly intense front-line war experiences, while his brother served as a pilot dropping tons of bombs upon the Viet Cong. Later in life, his brother would become the president of World Vision, and all of them have been involved with returning to Vietnam – bringing relief work and the preaching of the Gospel to the very people who had been enemies some decades before. That is the sort of change that the Gospel can bring about!A

Today’s reading tells the story of the Gospel spreading through Philip, the first real missionary, to the area of Samaria. You will recall that these people were a sort of mixed race crowd from a Jewish background and the infusion of conquering Gentile nations. The Samaritans were also despised and looked down upon by the Jews. Remember the surprise of Jesus talking with the Samaritan woman in John chapter four – along with explanations about how the Jews had nothing to do with these people? But now, the message of Jesus had come to them and many had believed and expressed their faith publically through baptism.

Among those making this profession was a fellow named Simon – a guy with the “humble” sobriquet of “The Great Power of God!”  He had ability in the magic arts, perhaps even empowered by demonic spirits? But he was amazed at the ability of Philip to perform signs and wonders – these being gifts particular to this age of the establishment of the church prior to the completion of the written Word of God.

At first glance, this appears to be a fabulous conversion story. But when John and Peter come from Jerusalem to affirm these new believers, the Spirit’s power is even more profoundly evident through them – especially through their God-given ability to lay hands on people that the Spirit may come upon them in new power. The heart of Simon is revealed when he offers money to Peter and John to receive this sort of amazing power for himself and his carnival act. As is evident in the reading, Peter REALLY condemns him for this.

Even in the early church, it is interesting to see that not every last person was one of genuine faith. It has always been true that some embrace the accoutrements of the faith for a measure of personal or public gain that comes with it, rather than for actual repentance from the lost condition of sin that separates one from God. It is sobering.

But as we leave this reading, note the final verse 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. This is the last we will see of John in the book of Acts; but compare this ministry here with a story also written by Luke in his Gospel account, chapter 9: ⁵¹ As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem. ⁵² And he sent messengers on ahead, who went into a Samaritan village to get things ready for him; ⁵³ but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem. ⁵⁴ When the disciples James and John saw this, they asked, “Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them?” ⁵⁵ But Jesus turned and rebuked them.

What a change the Gospel brought about! Here is John, no longer wanting to drop bombs on them, but rather ministering and serving with the wonderful new message of the work of Jesus. The Gospel enables us to see people beyond them being the “Viet Cong” or the “Samaritans” of our worlds – seeing people as simply lost and in need of a Savior whom we know.

Simon the Sorcerer – Acts 8:9-25

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.