Acts 8:1-25

Acts chapter 8, that is page 916, as it says there in the bulletin in the Pew Bible, if

Acts 8 · chapter mention

you want to turn along there.

Let me encourage you to do that as we look into God's Word together this morning.

And as you're turning there, I wonder if you've ever sort of paused to reflect on the question

of just what it is that gets you up in the morning.

What is it that motivates you or drives you, or maybe another way of putting it, what is

it that sort of puts wind into your sails?

This morning we're starting a new series in the book of Acts.

And Acts, I don't know about you, but Acts is probably one of the most exciting books

in the whole Bible.

It's this explosive history of the first three decades of the church, taking us from the ascension

of Jesus and the ascending of the Spirit in the 30s all the way up to Paul's arrival in

Rome, sort of the center city of the world at that time in the 60s.

One author wrote a book on Acts and titled it, 30 Years That Changed the World.

That's a pretty bombastic title.

I mean, 30 years that changed the world.

And yet, you know, unlike so many book titles, I think that one actually is not an exaggeration.

So why study the book of Acts now?

Well, you know, one of the interesting things as we're going to study this book of Acts is

you see that, you know, the early church, it was not just a sort of smooth highway to

the finish line.

That there were challenges, there were struggles, there were heartaches.

We'll see this morning in our text there were persecutions.

And yet, and yet, we see again and again and again that the power of God's Word produces

such a joy in His people that they are able not merely to endure these things, but to even

flourish in the face of them.

And that God's kingdom goes forth in unbelievable ways, even in the face of those things.

You know, as a church, we're seeking to be a community that's gathered, transformed, sent

forth by the gospel.

And Acts is a book that's going to give us the right kind of motivation for doing so.

You know, Acts doesn't just teach us how to do church or how to do mission together, how

to sort of do these things.

But it actually, when we listen to it, when we enter into it, it actually stirs our hearts

for doing so.

Because as we've said, it points us again and again to the power of the gospel of Jesus

Christ and the joy that erupts when the gospel does its work.

Now, a few years ago, you'll remember, some of you will remember anyway, that we studied

chapters 1 through 7 in Acts.

Who was actually here when we studied Acts 1 through 7?

Like three of you, right?

Because it was three years ago, and that means Trinity is a totally different place.

That was the sheepest hand raised I've ever seen.

It's like, I don't want to admit that I was here that long ago.

So, if you want to listen to Acts 1 through 7, you can jump on the website and you can listen

to those old sermons.

But we're going to pick up this winter and into the spring, we're going to pick up with

chapter 8.

And chapter 8's a good place to begin because it begins really a new section of the book.

It's one of really the major turning points in the story.

And quite frankly, it's one of the major turning points in the history of redemption.

The gospel in chapter 8 begins to break new ground.

And in that sort of newness is where we're going to pick up.

So, if you've turned to Acts chapter 8, let me read starting from the second half of verse 1.

Acts 8 · chapter mention

Let me read this for us.

Luke writes,

Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word.

Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed to them Christ.

And the crowds, with one accord, paid attention to what was being said by Philip when they

heard him and saw the signs that he did.

For unclean spirits crying out with a loud voice came out of many who had them, and many

who were paralyzed or lame were healed.

So there was much joy in that city.

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 of 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.

And 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.

You know, sometimes God does things in ways that we don't expect.

In chapter 1 of Acts,

before ascending to heaven,

Jesus told his disciples that they would be his witnesses in Jerusalem,

and in all Judea and Samaria,

and to the end of the earth.

So, you have to expect that at some point,

as Acts unfolds,

the gospel is going to advance to those regions.

And yet here in chapter 8,

as we see the gospel going forth to Samaria,

and the church being established there,

in fulfillment of Jesus' very promise,

it all seems to be happening in ways

that no one would have expected.

It's not the neat and tidy,

or predictable,

or safe,

or comfortable way

that we think it all would happen.

And in each of these unexpected twists and turns of the story,

there lies a valuable lesson for us today.

And there are four I want to point out

as we walk through this text this morning.

And the first is this.

We see here that the gospel advances

by an unexpected circumstance.

This is verses 1 through 4.

Scan down over those verses again.

And as you do so,

I wonder if you've ever felt defeated,

or discouraged,

or ready to give up.

Our passage opens with this

massively disheartening scene.

The church seems headed for defeat.

Stephen has just been martyred.

A great persecution breaks out.

Believers are scattered.

Churches are ravaged.

Men and women in prison.

These first three verses are a discouraging picture indeed.

Some in the church may have even been thinking

whether or not God was really caring for them at all.

How could he allow this to happen?

But in verse 4,

Luke points us to this great lesson.

You see, God

is turning

this seeming defeat

into a triumph.

Persecution ends up

scattering the believers,

but the scattered believers

end up

sharing the gospel wherever they go.

It's as if this attempt

to stamp out

the fire of Christ.

Have you ever done that

when you're camping?

It's not a very

wise thing to do.

You sort of

stamp out the fire.

What happens?

The sparks start flying everywhere.

And that's exactly

what's happening to the church.

The sparks start flying

in all new directions

and they start lighting

fires of their own.

And one of those new fires

was in Samaria.

that God uses this instance

to initiate

a great new phase

of gospel growth.

The time for the gospel

to advance beyond

the walls of Jerusalem.

You see, God took

the seeming defeat

of Stephen's death

and the ensuing persecution

on an attempt really

to bring an end

to the movement of Christ.

But God takes that attempt

to bring the church

to an end

and does the exact opposite.

that instead of ending

the church,

the church begins

a whole new phase

of growth.

And of course,

as we study church history,

we see that God

has done this again

and again and again.

John Stott

in his commentary

on Acts

mentions the example

of China

as one of these.

In 1949,

after the Communist Party

took power,

all the Christian missionaries

in China

were forced to leave

the country.

And it seemed like

a disaster

for the cause of Christ.

But the reality

of what happened

as a result

was that many

of the expelled missionaries

went to other parts of Asia

and so spread the faith

in unreached places.

And in China itself,

Chinese lay leaders

ended up taking

the lead of the church

and the church

exploded in size

and in vitality.

It's been estimated

that the church

is some 30 to 40,

probably more times

larger than it was

today than when

the missionaries left.

You see,

the flame just simply grew.

But it's not just

church history

that teaches us

this lesson, right?

Don't we see it

in our own

personal stories?

That times of challenge,

times of persecution,

times of suffering,

these are often

the times

when the gospel

takes its deepest root.

That those are often

the times

when the gospel

ends up bearing

the sweetest fruit

in our lives.

So friends,

we need not despair

when hard times come.

We need not

lose hope.

Even as we grieve

this season of the church

that we're entering

into with news

that we've just

received today,

friends,

even this

is not cause

for despair

to lose hope.

It's a time to grieve.

It's a time to continue

to bear each other's burdens.

It's a time to continue

to pray fervently.

Ah, but friends,

it's not a time

to despair

to lose hope.

You know,

many students of Acts

have speculated

that perhaps

the early church

needed something

that was sort of

as massive

as a great persecution

that would dislodge them

from their comfort zone

in Jerusalem

and send them out

into the world.

And you know,

we can't really say for sure.

That's kind of speculating.

But you know,

we can know that

no matter what comes,

even if it be

great persecution

like here in Acts 8,

God will always

have a way in the end

of using it

for the advance

of his kingdom

and for our ultimate joy.

Which isn't that

a great comfort

that Stephen's death

wasn't in vain,

that the great persecution

wasn't lost

in God's plan.

That should give us

great confidence

and comfort

as we look ahead

as a church.

That this is the great God

that we serve.

What happens in Acts 8

is that this scattering

leads to a great advance

of God's redemptive plan

to call all peoples

to himself.

And that brings us

to our second point.

We see that the gospel

advances,

not just through

an unexpected circumstance,

but through unexpected people.

In verse 4,

we see that the apostles

who are sort of

leading the church

up to this point

in the book of Acts

aren't the ones now

who are on the forefront

of gospel mission.

Who is it?

The apostles

stay behind in Jerusalem,

probably to continue

their sort of

pastoral care

and presence in the city.

But it's not the apostles

who are on the forefront.

It's those

who are scattered abroad.

It's these

everyday Christians

who had jobs to do,

who had families

to take care of,

who had clothes to wash,

who had meals to cook.

These so-called

ordinary Christians

are the pioneers

of this great

redemptive movement

of God.

Isn't that a wonderful

surprise?

That in God's economy,

each one of us

has a part to play.

That each one of us

has a role

to take up

in the cause of God.

The early church

is this great example

that for the first

300 years

of the church's growth,

the gospel spread

to all corners

of the world

through people

just like you and me

who had tasted

the joy of the gospel

and couldn't help

but share it.

And then Luke

focuses in

in verses 5 through 13

on a ministry

of Philip.

And again,

you know,

he's maybe not the one

we'd expect

to be doing

this groundbreaking,

bold mission

to Samaria.

He's not an apostle.

He's one of the seven

that was named

in Acts 6

to sort of help

with food distribution

in the Jerusalem church.

He's a mature believer,

companion of Stephen,

but you know,

not sort of,

not an apostle.

But he's the one

that God uses.

And we'll later learn

in Acts chapter 21

Acts 21 · chapter mention

that Philip comes

to be called

the evangelist.

Isn't that great?

That this unlikely guy

ends up being known

as the one

who really broke ground

for the gospel.

And Luke's actually

going to spend time

with him,

the author of Acts,

actually,

as a companion of Paul.

He's actually going

to spend time

with Philip

in Acts 21,

we learn.

And that's probably

when Luke learned

or at least verified

these accounts

that we have written

for us in chapter 8.

Luke's writing for us

firsthand accounts

from Philip himself

of what happened

when God did

this great work.

Now,

as we focus in

on Philip's work here,

consider how radical

Philip's mission

to Samaria is,

after all.

I mean,

verse 5 just sort of

almost feels like

a throwaway verse to us,

but it's wild.

Think of it this way.

Many days,

when I get home

from work,

my three-and-a-half-year-old

son, Jack,

often has one thing

on his mind

as I step in the door.

He comes running

down the hall,

meets me at the door,

and says,

Dad,

let's wrestle.

And of course,

if you're wrestling,

you have to come up

with awesome wrestling names,

right?

So, you know,

sometimes we go

for our traditional superheroes,

Spider-Man,

Superman,

Batman,

whatever man.

Sometimes we'll sort of

make up wrestling names

of our own creation.

Some of my favorite

that Jack has come up with

are Thunder Cruncher.

It's a good one.

Lightning Jammer.

But sometimes,

Jack will look at me

and say,

Dad,

let's be bad guys.

Now,

I'm not sure where

he sort of learned

the concept of bad guy.

It was probably

one of those corruptions

induced by an older cousin

during a family visit.

One of those

sort of things.

But you know,

once Jack got the idea

of bad guy

in his head,

he's never forgotten it.

And he's kind of

fascinated by it.

And of course,

it seems like

every good story

has a bad guy,

right?

An arch nemesis

that never seems

to go away.

Always the sort of thorn

in the hero's side.

And the best bad guys,

when you look at

all the stories,

always have some

sort of connection

or similarity

to the good guys,

right?

You know,

Darth Vader

is actually Luke Skywalker's

father.

Or Gollum actually

used to be a hobbit.

So there's this weird

sort of connection

that the good guy

and the bad guy has

that makes it all

the more poignant.

Well, you know,

if you would have asked

most Jews

in the first century

who their arch nemesis was,

who was the thorn

in their side,

they probably would have said

the Samaritans.

What existed between Jews

and Samaritans

was bitter ethnic rivalry.

Sort of like we see

in many parts of the world

still today.

Because the Samaritans

were actually sort of

distant relatives

of the Jews.

When the ancient

northern kingdom of Israel

was sort of conquered

by the Assyrians

in the 8th century BC,

what happened was

the Assyrians deported

large numbers of people

and then imported

a bunch of foreigners

and the Jews who were left

in the northern kingdom

sort of intermarried

with the Jews who were left.

So what happened was

is that, you know,

the Samaritans,

the people who still live

in that old northern kingdom,

ended up being seen

by most Jews in the south

as sort of half-breeds.

And to make matters worse,

most Samaritans claimed,

and they all did really,

to serve the same God

as the Jews,

but they rejected

large portions

of the sort of

Hebrew scriptures.

They even built

their own temple,

you know.

So they weren't just

sort of, you know,

weird ethnically.

But they were also heretics.

You know,

this sort of

age-old dispute

between Jews

and Samaritans

just went for

hundreds of years.

And they basically

treated each other

with ongoing suspicion

and hostility

and sometimes even violence.

Now, consider,

if that's the case,

how radical it was

for Philip,

having been driven

from Jerusalem

because of persecution,

where does he go?

He makes a beeline

for Samaria.

That is strange.

I mean, as a Jew,

these were people

he had been brought up

to despise.

And as soon as he

sort of steps out,

that's the first place

he's headed.

he goes to one of their

most prominent cities.

Luke actually doesn't

mention which one.

He says,

the city of Samaria.

He goes to one of their

prominent cities

and starts loving them

and sharing the good news

about Jesus,

the kingdom of God

and the name of Christ.

I mean,

think of what that would

look like today.

Think of a place

in the world

where there's been

long-standing religious

and ethnic strife.

Belfast

in the 70s and 80s,

the Balkans

in the 90s,

Rwanda

in the 90s,

Israel and Palestine

today where people

hate each other.

what power

could so transform

a young person's

heart

who's been born

into that kind

of intense strife

and hastery

such that

he or she

no longer

views the other

as an enemy

to be hated

but a neighbor

to be loved.

What

must have done

a thing like that?

Friends,

you see,

Philip had learned

the deep

and essential

truth

of the good news

of grace

which is this,

that on the one hand

what the gospel

tells us

that regardless

of your background

or culture,

regardless of your

religion

or your moral performance,

even everyone

is hopelessly

sinful

and selfish

and in need

of rescue.

But on the other hand,

no one

is beyond

the reach

of God's

free mercy

and grace

in Christ.

That what

God did

through Jesus'

life,

death,

resurrection

and ascension

is for all

who believe.

The whole concept,

in other words,

of bad guy,

had been

utterly

deconstructed

and demolished

for Philip.

There no longer

were good guys

and bad guys

in his moral world.

He began

to see the truth

that everyone

is a sinner

in need of grace.

That he couldn't

look at other

people anymore

and say,

you're out.

That he couldn't

look at people

anymore and say,

there's no way

you could be in.

Friends,

and if you let

the gospel

sink in like that,

it will

revolutionize

your life.

When Philip

takes the risk

and goes to Samaria

and starts telling

them about the

good news

of the kingdom

of God

and the name

of Jesus,

what happens?

Lo and behold,

the fact that

they're Samaritans

doesn't stop

God from working.

In verses 6

through 8,

the message

rings out

and God

confirms

Philip's preaching

with powerful signs

as a demonstration

that this is

his truth.

Come to redeem.

And even in

verses 9

through 13,

we see that

even though

this particular

city had been

bound in

sort of

deception

and lies

by a local

sort of

charlatan

magic worker,

that even though

they had been

sort of clouded

in spiritual

deception,

not even that

stopped God

from breaking

through and

opening up

life and joy

in Christ for them.

right before

Philip's eyes,

he gets to see

that God

is making

the Samaritans

full members

of his family

on the basis

of faith alone

and nothing's

stopping it.

Something totally

new is underway.

You know,

one way of looking

at this whole

sort of portion

of the book of Acts

from chapter 8

to chapter 12

where the gospel

goes to all Judea

and Samaria,

it's almost as if

it's this great

transitional period

it's as if

a great door

is sort of

turning on its

hinge,

opening up

more and more

and more

until by the time

we reach chapter 13

the Gentile mission

is exploding out

in full force.

And you see

what's happening

here friends

is that God

is fulfilling

all of his

ancient promises.

God is fulfilling

his promises

to gather

the lost sheep

of Israel

and not just

those but to

gather all nations

to himself

that God's

keeping his

long promises

in his son.

So we see

that the gospel

advances through

unexpected circumstances

and through

unexpected people

and then third

the gospel

advances through

this unexpected

initiation.

What happens

in verses 14

through 17

of our text

this morning

is something

of an exegetical

sort of quandary.

A lot of ink

has been spilled

over it.

But as we

take a step

back

what God's

doing in these

verses is making

it unmistakably

clear both

to the Samaritans

and to the

apostles and

through them

to the church

in Jerusalem

that they

are members

of one

and the same

family.

One

and the same

body.

One

and the same

church.

That's what

God's doing

here.

And God

demonstrates

this fact

by doing

something

very

very

odd.

What's

odd?

Well

when the

apostles

come down

from Jerusalem

it becomes

evident to

them

that the

Samaritan

converts

they had

certainly

believed

they had

definitely

been baptized

that they

hadn't

received

the full

indwelling

presence of

the Holy

Spirit.

Now

that would

have struck

them all

as unexpected

and even

strange.

And even

the language

of verse

16 which

is sort

of oddly

kind of

constructed

in our

English

translations

it sort

of suggests

that something

weird is

happening.

Do you

remember back

in Acts 2

how Peter

made very

clear in his

first sermon

after Pentecost

that believing

in Jesus

getting baptized

receiving the

Spirit all

go together.

And the

rest of Acts

and the rest

of the New

Testament bears

this out.

What's

belief?

Belief is

personally trusting

the good news

of what Jesus

has done

and relying

on him.

And the

Holy Spirit

is the gift

of the

Father for

all who

believe.

Filling

believers with

joy and

power for

ministry.

And baptism

is the outward

expression of

all of this

symbolizing

cleansing from

sin and

the beginning

of one's

new life

in the

family of

God.

And they

all go

together as

one thing.

But it

was evident

to Philip

and to Peter

and John

when they

showed up

strangely

that the

Samaritans

hadn't received

this promised

new covenant

and dwelling

of the

Holy Spirit

even though

they believed

and been

baptized.

In some

sense they

were sort

of like the

original

disciples in

Acts 1

before

Pentecost.

They believed

in Jesus

they'd been

baptized but

the full-on

New Testament

ministry of the

Spirit hadn't

yet begun in

their lives.

It hadn't

yet started

for them.

And the

million dollar

question is

why the

delay?

Why hadn't

they received

the Spirit?

Well as I

mentioned this

passage has

been read and

interpreted in

a number of

ways.

Some will

point to

this text and

say that it

teaches a sort

of pattern to

be imitated

today.

That every

Christian sort

of needs some

sort of post

conversion,

post baptism

kind of experience

or imparting of

the Holy Spirit.

For Roman

Catholics and

for some high

church Anglicans

that's really

what the

rite of

confirmation is

all about.

That after

your baptism

that's when

you sort

of get the

fullness of

the Holy

Spirit.

For various

sort of other

Pentecostal or

maybe even

charismatic streams

of the church

that's what being

baptized in the

Spirit is all

about.

You're converted

and then at a

later point you

get sort of the

full sort of

experience and

presence of the

Spirit.

Both

traditions as

different as

they are want

to sort of

read Acts 8

this sort of

moment as a

sort of normative

and normal

Christian experience

that after

conversion you need

this sort of

second stage or

this second

experience.

But friends I

think it's pretty

clear that that's

not what this

passage in Acts

8 means.

On the one

hand you have

to think that

every narrative

in the Bible

isn't necessarily

there to give

us a pattern

for how to

act now.

Everything in

the Bible is

there for our

edification and

for our instruction

and for our

learning and for

our growth but

sometimes narratives

in the Bible

describe unique

events from

which we have

something to

learn yes but

not necessarily

something to

imitate.

And I think

that's what's

going on in

Samaria.

God is doing

something historically

unique in this

moment.

He's doing

something historically

unique to make

an incredibly

clear once for

all point to

the church.

that God

delays the

pouring out of

the spirit and

fullness until

the apostles show

up in order to

demonstrate loud

and clear that

there's one

gospel, one

spirit, and

one church.

Think of how

easy it would

have been for

the all-Jewish

church in

Jerusalem to

remain skeptical

and suspicious of

Samaritan converts.

It would have been

very easy, wouldn't

it have been?

On the flip side,

think of how easy

it would have been

for the Samaritan

converts to sort

of drift away from

their brothers and

sisters in Jerusalem,

maybe always thinking

of themselves as

second-class citizens,

perhaps drifting away

theologically because

they had no

connection and

mooring to the

teaching of the

apostles.

But instead of

that, instead of

these divisions sort

of dividing up the

church right from

the start, God has

the apostles show up

and see with their

own eyes the

spirit fall on

them.

That they get to

be the authoritative

witnesses of what

Jesus Christ does in

Samaria.

And he does it

through means of

their own prayers,

which is very

interesting, as if

to say, you're one

family, you're

together in this.

Now, of course,

Luke doesn't say how

they knew the spirit

came upon them at

last.

Maybe it was

speaking in tongues,

miraculous signs.

Maybe, honestly,

maybe it was just a

deep and pervasive

sense of joy, of

joy and gladness that

just filled them when

the spirit came.

But whatever it was,

you have to see that

God is forging a

single body that

spans our ancient

divisions of

ethnicity and

ethnicity and

nationality and

language and

culture.

God is saying that

the church is going

to be the one

place where the

animosities that

divide us are at

last healed through

the balm of the

gospel.

That's the lesson

from this unexpected

initiation.

That's the point that's

being driven home.

one last episode that

Luke includes as he

wraps up his account of

how the gospel came to

Samaria.

Fourth, we see that the

gospel advances through an

unexpected rebuke.

You know, if the lesson of

verses 14 through 17 and the

lay of the spirit is sort of

an outward corporate lesson

about the unity of the body,

then what happens in verses

18 through 24 is more of an

inward and individual lesson

about the state of our

hearts.

Peter rebukes Simon and

even exposes him as a

counterfeit who's in grave

spiritual danger.

Now, of course, the surface

lesson here is that trying

to buy spiritual power and

position is wrong.

In fact, that practice came to

be known as Simon-y, named

after you got it, Simon.

How's about that for a

namesake?

But there's a deeper lesson.

Twice in his rebuke, what

does Peter mention?

The heart.

Simon, he says, your heart's

not right.

Pray that God will mend the

intentions of your heart.

Peter could see that Simon's

heart was still riddled with

all the same motivations that

he had before his supposed

conversion.

Peter sort of, with spiritual

insight, sees that there's

been no sort of fundamental

change.

No real new birth.

Even though Simon had

professed.

Even though Simon had

believed.

Even though it seemed like he

was making a good start.

This instance exposes that

maybe it wasn't a real start

after all.

You see, Simon, what did he

want?

He still wanted to have

power over people.

He still wanted to control

them.

He still wanted people to look

at him and think that he was

someone great.

Wasn't that the difference

between Simon and Philip when

the gospel came to Samaria?

Simon had been there preaching

himself.

I'm somebody great.

Philip came preaching Jesus,

the one who's truly great.

And people saw finally the one

who was their redeemer and

their savior.

Christianity, it seems for

Simon, was just merely a means

to sort of getting his old

desires for pleasing and

serving himself.

He saw Christianity in his

heart just as a new method to

make himself great.

And Peter calls him to

repent.

Which is pretty impressive,

that rebuke in itself, when

you think about it.

I mean, Simon, after all, was

sort of the celebrity convert

in the church, right?

He was the magician-turned

Christian that everybody was

talking about.

It would be sort of like the

notorious atheist professor

suddenly getting baptized and

calling himself a Christian.

He'd end up on all the

Christian magazines.

He'd probably write a book.

He'd start a speaking tour.

Veritas Forum would be

calling him up.

But Peter doesn't get caught

up in all that.

He sees Simon's heart and does

the most gracious thing

imaginable and says, repent,

Simon.

And Luke leaves it open-ended.

He doesn't tell us whether

Simon actually repents or not.

Later church tradition will

suggest that Simon didn't.

And that he became sort of a

grand heretic in the early

church.

Perhaps that's the case.

We don't know for sure.

You know, Simon, after all,

interestingly, in verse 23, 24,

he doesn't pray for forgiveness,

does he?

He just prays that the

consequences won't come upon him.

But you know, the real point for us

isn't to speculate about Simon.

But the point for us is to examine

our own hearts.

And friends, that's why we come to

the Lord's Supper.

On the one hand, this is the table

where all who trust in Christ are

welcome.

And we've seen in our passage that

God does something out of the

ordinary to drive home the unity that

we have in Christ.

Jew, Samaritan, Gentile, rich, poor,

male, female.

We're one in him.

And that's part of what's being said

here at the table.

That through faith alone in Christ,

our sins are forgiven.

And we take this bread and cup

together as a sign of what he's

done for us and as a sign of our

unity.

But this table is also a time where

we need to examine our hearts.

And seek God's freely offered

forgiveness.

And to receive his freely extended

fellowship.

To look down in.

And to be turning away from those

ways in which God shows us we're

still being selfish and still being

self-motivated.

The table is a place where we lay our

old motivations before God in prayer.

And ask him again to forgive us for

Christ's sake.

And to change us by his spirit.

And to be confident that he's

promised to do so for all who

believe.

So friends, as we wrap up and come to

the table.

Span this whole sort of section.

We see that God will often advance the

gospel in unexpected ways.

But in the end, as we sort of take

stock of this passage and read the

summary in verse 25.

Don't we see that one thing has been

constant?

Amidst all the unexpected events,

there's been one utterly expected.

But utterly wonderful thing running

through the whole passage.

And it's the word, as verse 25 puts it.

The gospel of Jesus Christ, the word of

the Lord, creates the church.

Amidst all the changes, all the

circumstances, that will remain the

same exciting, powerful, thrilling reality.

So friends, as we launch out on this new

study of Acts, let's expect God to do

things perhaps we didn't anticipate.

Let's expect God to move in ways that are

maybe a bit unexpected.

But let's also look forward to the ways in

which his powerful word will do what it's

always done.

Let's pray.

Let's pray.

Bring joy to all people and bring life to his

church.

Let's pray.

Lord, as we come to your table now, we pray that

through faith you would feed our hearts.

Jesus, as we remember your cross and what you've

done for us, Lord, would we be strengthened once

more as we partake in this act, proclaiming your

death until you come.

Amen.

Well, friends, I wonder if those who are serving this

morning would come up.

If you're here this morning and you're a Christian, if

you've turned from sin and placed your trust in Jesus

Christ as your Savior and as your Lord, then you're

welcome, friends, to partake in these elements with us.

The way we sort of practice this here at Trinity is

that we'll pass around the bread first, pray, and

then we'll eat it together as a sign of that unity, and

then we'll do the same thing with the cup.

If you're here this morning and you're just spiritually

searching, if you're not sure where you are with

Christianity, we're glad you're here.

You're always welcome to join us.

But as the elements sort of come around, just pass them

by.

This is the sort of thing that Christians do to express

outwardly their inward faith.

So simply pass it by and instead use this time for

spiritual reflection.

Instead of taking the elements of the bread and the

cup, instead consider taking Christ himself.

He's the one that these elements point to.

Well, with those thoughts, friends, let me read some of

Paul's words from 1 Corinthians 11.

He says,

I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you,

that the Lord Jesus, on the night when he was betrayed,

took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and

said, this is my body, which is for you.

Do this in remembrance of me.

Craig, would you pray for the bread for us?

Let's pray together.

Let's pray together.

Let's pray together.

Amen.

Thank you.