When Believers Fall
Acts Series
Chuck Sligh
June 28, 2015
NOTE: A PowerPoint presentation is available for this sermon upon request at chucksligh@hotmail.com.
TEXT: Please turn in your Bibles to Acts 8.
INTRODUCTION
Illus.– I remember when I first came to Christ. I had decided to follow Jesus—“No turning back; no turning back,” as the song says. However, my actions and thoughts did not always match what I believed and had committed myself to. All too often, I gave in to temptations; thought unkind things about people; got angry without cause; was vain or selfish; wanted my own way; or was materialistic. I discovered from experience that believing in Christ, or even committing ourselves to follow Christ as Lord does not automatically mean we always do right.
In our text today, we’re going to see what happens when a believer falters in His walk with God, and what the solution is.
I. FIRST, IN VERSES 9-11, WE MEET SIMON—A MAN WHO DECEIVED AND INTIMIDATED PEOPLE BY THE POWER OF SATAN. – “But there was a certain man, called Simon, which beforetime in the same city used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one: 10 To whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is the great power of God. 11 And to him they had regard, because that of long time he had bewitched them with sorceries.”
Simon was a sorcerer, and he boasted about himself and his abilities. He thought he was someone really great, according to verse 9. Today, magicians are slight-of-hand illusionists, not really sorcerers.
But Simon was the real thing, and he was a very dangerous man, as are all people who delve in the occult, and he was good at it! We’re told he had bewitched the people of Samaria, and they “all gave heed”—that is, they made sure they didn’t cross him, because they knew his demonic power.
The Bible forbids us to have anything to do with witches, sorcerers, astrologers, mediums, horoscopes, Ouija boards and ANYTHING dealing with the occult. Why?—Because Satanic power IS real, and because the realness of that power IS NOT FROM GOD, but from the other side—from Satan and his demons.
Simon had genuine demonic powers, which is why the people were bewitched by him, blasphemously calling him “the Great Power of God” (verse 10). Satan wanted the people to think that Simon had power from God. But the truth is that his power came from the ENEMY of God. And so it is with the mediums and astrologers and fortune tellers and New Age leaders today who falsely claim their gifts are from God.
II. NOTICE SECOND IN VERSES 12-13 SIMON TURNS TO CHRIST AS SAVIOR. – “But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. 13 Then Simon himself believed also: and when he was baptized, he continued with Philip, and wondered, beholding the miracles and signs which were done.”
In light of the fact that Simon tries to buy from Peter the power to bestow the Holy Spirit upon others, many Bible teachers have concluded that Simon was not truly saved. The thinking goes that a TRUE Christian would never do such a thing, and therefore Simon had a deficient faith that fell short of true saving faith.
However, this kind of thinking stems from the tendency of those who are of a Calvinistic or a legalistic persuasion to filter every Scripture through the sieve of their theological position, instead of letting the Word simply mean what it says. Luke says three simple things about Simon that show us he was truly saved.
• First, verse 12 says that when Philip preached in Samaria, many believed.
Here’s a question for you: Does this mean that these Samaritans were saved? Isn’t that how we ordinarily take this term? In fact, the New Testament is consistent that when one believes the Gospel or believes in Jesus, he’s saved by God, and the idea that there’s a kind of faith that does not save is foreign to the New Testament. If someone fakes belief, that’s one thing; but when the New Testament says that someone “believed,” it uniformly means they were truly saved.
Now when we come down to verse 13, Luke says, “And Simon also believed.” There’s no difference made between the belief of the SAMARITANS in verse 12 and SIMON’S belief in verse 13.
• Second, Luke tells us that Simon was baptized.
Baptism is the first step of the believer to obey Christ as Lord. In the New Testament, baptism is a natural follow-up of believing and there is no instance in the New Testament of a non-believer being baptized.
• Third, Luke said that after being baptized, he “continued with Philip.”
That is, he had the heart of a new believer to follow and learn of Christ. He didn’t make a rash decision and turn back to his sinful life. It is evident he was seeking to be a follower of Jesus.
NOTHING here in Acts 8 indicates that Simon was anything but a true believer, one genuinely saved, one truly seeking to follow Christ whom he had trusted in.
III. IN VERSES 18-19, OBSERVE HOW SIMON, AN IMMATURE, BABY BELIEVER, FALTERED IN HIS CHRISTIAN WALK.
Before we see how Simon faltered and why in verses 18-19, let’s read the full story to get the context verses 15-17 – “Now when the apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John:15 Who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost:16 (For as yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.) 17 Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost.”
Now this introduces a wrinkle that I’ll not be able to explain in full detail until a later sermon, but did you notice that these people were saved, but that they could not receive the Holy Spirit until Peter came? Philip could perform miraculous signs and wonders, but Peter had to come to bestow upon them the Holy Spirit.
As we’ll see in a later message, the Holy Spirit was given to certain people groups one by one to show God’s acceptance of all people groups into the kingdom of God, When Jesus talked about giving Peter the keys to the kingdom, He wasn’t talking about the keys to heaven, but that he would have the special privilege to unlock the door of the Holy Spirit of God to the Jews first, then to the half-breed Samaritans, and finally to the Gentiles when Peter took the Gospel to Cornelius.
After that, the Holy Spirit is no longer “given” to anyone by the laying on of hands by Peter, or anyone else. Later Paul says ALL believers receive the Spirit, but His initial bestowal occurred in three stages, and only through Peter, God’s special representative.
We’ll deal with this at a later date more fully, but for now, let’s see what happens.
Now look at verses 18-19: “And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money, 19 Saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost.”
The essence of all sorcery and witchcraft is the quest for POWER. Simon had seen Philip do signs and wonders, and he saw that the power of God exceeded the power of Satan. Then he heard the Gospel and his heart was stirred because sorcery was all about pride and power and control and manipulation for selfish purposes. The preaching of a Savior who would sacrificially give up His life to give those who believe in Him eternal life must have made a profound impression on him. So he believed in Christ as Savior and turned from that old life to follow Christ.
But that didn’t mean he would always make right decisions, or automatically grasp how God’s kingdom was to work at such an early stage of his Christian experience. When we trust in Christ as Savior, our sins are forgiven, we receive eternal life and the Holy Spirit comes in to guide us and to help us grow and mature. But that doesn’t mean our old self—our old sinful nature, what Paul calls “the flesh”—doesn’t rear it’s ugly head and confuse and tempt us and lead us astray.
Simon was growing in faith; but his whole experience up to that time was the opposite of what following Christ was all about. No wonder he was so mixed up and easily led astray! No wonder pride stirred again as he saw an opportunity to control others.
If you doubt that Simon could do such a thing and still be a Christian, perhaps you should ask yourself if your old sinful nature doesn’t ever rear up to haunt you at times too! And baby believers are especially susceptible to old ways of thinking and acting.
No wonder Paul tells us in Romans 12:2: “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”
It takes time—really all our Christian lives—for our minds to be fully transformed by God’s Word so we know what is always “the good, and acceptable and perfect will of God,” and even THEN we sometimes choose to do the wrong thing anyway!
IV. BUT IN VERSES 20-24, I WANT YOU TO SEE HOW SIMON WAS RESTORED BY A TRUTH-TELLING BROTHER IN CHRIST. – “But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money. 21 Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God. 22 Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee. 23 For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity. 24 Then answered Simon, and said, Pray ye to the Lord for me, that none of these things which ye have spoken come upon me.”
Peter sets Simon straight right away. He says, “You can’t buy this power. Your money can perish with you,” not meaning he would perish in hell, but he could take his money to the grave with him.
But he says something significant: He says, “You’re heart is not right with God.” Peter warned him that he was struggling with bitterness that led him to become captive again to sin. The only answer was to repent of his sin and seek God’s forgiveness so that his heart would be right with God again.
You should be glad for those in your life, like Peter, who call you out when you sin, or when old sinful patterns and ways of thinking reappear in our lives. It can be a pastor, a mentor, a spouse or a friend. Proverbs 27:6 says, “Faithful are the wounds of a friend…”
Well, what was Simon’s response to Peter’s rebuke? Immediately he repents in verse 24 and even asks for Peter to pray for him, recognizing his weakness and his need for prayer from others. This was exactly the kind of response you would expect from a true believer!
When we sin, we know we’ve displeased our Lord, but we want our hearts to be right with God, so we seek restoration with God by confessing our sin to Him. And if we’re wise, if we know we struggle with a certain sin, we should seek intercessory prayer from more mature believers.
CONCLUSION
What can we learn from the story of Simon the Sorcerer? Several practical applications literally jump right off the page to us:
• First, DON’T dabble in ANYTHING that has to do with the occult!
Don’t watch movies about it; don’t read books about it; don’t let your kids read books about it; don’t see mediums or astrologers or palm readers; don’t read your horoscope; and don’t play with Ouija boards. You’re playing with fire, and God specifically warns us against ALL of it.
• Second, like Simon, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ for God’s forgiveness.
The same power that turned Simon from a sorcerer ionto a saint can turn your life around and change you and give you eternal life. Jesus died for you in your place to save your from sin. Come to Him and be saved!
• Third, if you’re a believer, BE CAREFUL in your walk with the Lord.
1 Peter 5:9-9a says, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:9 Whom resist stedfast in the faith…”
Satan wants to devour you, to make you totally ineffective as a witness for God, but you also have your old sinful nature and the world to contend with, all which want to put you into the world’s mold instead of being Christ like. Do all the things to help you transform your mind and become more like Christ: Read His Word and pray daily; seek to walk in the Spirit by every minute by listening to and obeying His voice; listen to Christian music that reminds you of precious truths from God’s Word; attend all the church services you can for more input of the God’s Word in your life; attend a homegroup for fellowship and more of the Word and prayer with other believers.
• Lastly, learn what to do when you fall.
Peter’s advice was exactly the right answer: Repent and confess your sin to God. You don’t need a priest or a preacher to confess your sin. Jesus is your high priest, and no matter WHAT you have done, God’s Word promises that if you pray to God and confess your sin to Him, He is faithful and just to forgive you of your sins and cleanse you from all unrighteousness.
