January 13, 2022 (Thursday)
Every now and then, the Bible will introduce a seemingly
random person. Sometimes we get a glimpse into their significance, such as
Sarah and Hagar.
However, not every character is seen clearly because the
Bible only introduces them. If we were watching the movie of the book of Acts,
ominous music would be playing as Luke narrates, “Before Philip’s arrival, a certain man named
Simon had practiced sorcery in that city and baffled the people of Samaria. He
claimed to be a great person. Everyone, from the least to the greatest, gave
him their undivided attention and referred to him as “the power of God called
Great.” [Luke 8:9 – 10 CEB]
Simon was a sorcerer, not a prophet. We do not know what he
did to amaze the people. Apparently, he did not claim a source of his power
because the people attributed it to God. When Philip preached, he also did
amazing things. This was convincing to Simon, “Even Simon himself came to believe and was
baptized. Afterward, he became one of Philip’s supporters. As he saw firsthand
the signs and great miracles that were happening, he was astonished.” [Luke 8:13 CEB]
While Simon’s conversion seems authentic, something is off. “When Simon
perceived that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’
hands, he offered them money.” [Acts
8:18 CEB] It should be easy to write this mistake off as immaturity. I would
like to believe this except for what happens next. Side note: Philip did not display
the ability to “lay hands on” for people to receive the Holy Spirit even though
he did signs and wonders. Was Simon attempting to purchase the office of Apostle?
Peter curses Simon. “Peter responded, “May your money be condemned to hell along
with you because you believed you could buy God’s gift with money! You can have
no part or share in God’s word because your heart isn’t right with God.” [Acts 8:20 – 21 CEB] After urging him to repent,
Peter observes, “for
I see that your bitterness has poisoned you and evil has you in chains.” [Acts
8:23 CEB] Simon does not repent, he only askes Peter that none of the curse
will happen to him. The Bible moves on from Simon. End of story, right? Not so
fast.
There are some good preaching points about Simon, but I want
to suggest the rest of the story is found in history. Justin Martyr (100 – 165)
claims Simon moved to Rome and portray himself as the apostle Peter (or used the
title “Peter” as a rival) and styled himself as the representative of God (or actually
God as redeemer and savior). Justin also states that Simon traveled with a
women (his girlfriend) named Helena (a slave and prostitute) whom he claimed
was the feminine side of God. Irenaeus (125 – 202) claims Simon was the source
of all false teaching and the founder of the first Christian cult known as “Gnosticism.”
I do not believe the Bible was written in a vacuum. The Holy
Spirit moved the writers to write in a specific culture and context of events. It
makes me wonder if Paul did not see someone in his time (claiming to be Jesus,
of sorts) that exemplified a bigger picture when he wrote, “This is why God will send them an influence (“delusion”
ESV, NIV) that will mislead them so that they will believe the lie.” [2
Thessalonians 2:11 CEB]
The willingness to believe (or create) “the lie” comes from being poisoned by bitterness, the chains of sin, and a heart unwilling to repent.
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