The First False Convert

Published by Stanley Pouw in 2016 · 12 June 2016

Let us now look in Acts 8 again at a man named Simon, not Simon Peter. This Simon lived in Samaria, and here Simon illustrates for us a faith that does not save. After we have studied Simon, we are then going to look at a man from Ethiopia. And when we see that man from Ethiopia, we will see a faith that does save. So let us learn from the contrast between the nature and character of saving faith and that of a false faith.

Acts 8:9-24, “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. 10 They all paid attention to him, from the least to the greatest, saying, “This man is the power of God that is called Great.” 11 And they paid attention to him because for a long time he had amazed them with his magic. 12 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.”

“13 Even Simon himself believed, and after being baptized he continued with Philip. And seeing signs and great miracles performed, he was amazed. 14 Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent to them Peter and John, 15 who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, 16 for he had not yet fallen on any of them, but they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 17 Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit. 18 Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles' hands, he offered them money,”

“19 saying, “Give me this power also, so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” 20 But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money! 21 You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right before God. 22 Repent, therefore, of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you. 23 For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity.” 24 And Simon answered, “Pray for me to the Lord that nothing of what you have said may come upon me.”

This is important in the history of the church because Acts 8 begins with the great persecution of the early church led by a man named Saul who supported the murder of Stephen. And beginning on the day that Stephen was murdered, Saul began to persecute believers from the church in Jerusalem. It caused them to flee and to be scattered throughout Judea and Samaria; while the apostles remained in the city.

Acts 8:4 says, “Now those who were scattered went about preaching the Word.” While the apostles stayed in Jerusalem and continued to preach the Word in Jerusalem. This was the Holy Spirit using persecution to fulfill the promise of Acts 1:8 where our Lord said, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Persecution was the catalyst, and it went from Jerusalem, through Judea, and into the next area, Samaria. Evangelization in Samaria becomes the bridge to the Gentiles, and the Gentiles will actually be reached in Acts 10. Persecution led to preaching, and preaching led to productivity, meaning fruitful ministry in Jerusalem, in Judea, and beyond.

Philip, the deacon, now becomes the key character. As Stephen dominated Acts 7, Philip dominates Acts 8. It is Philip who encounters Simon the magician. It is Philip who encounters the Ethiopian. It is Philip then who confronts the reality of false faith as well as the reality of true faith. These two stories are vital for us, in particular to show the difference between a non-saving faith and a saving faith.

And based on what you read, Simon looked like a true believer. We read that he believed in verse 13. We read that he was baptized and that he continued. And you might say that someone who believes and is obedient to baptism and continues to follow fits all qualifications of a true believer. He looked good on the surface. Even Philip himself was convinced.

Philip didn’t really discern that he was not a true believer. This only became apparent when the apostles Peter and John showed up – and we’ll look at that in just a moment. Jesus taught in Matthew 13 that there would be people who would respond initially, but would have no depth, and they would eventually quit because of not wanting to suffer tribulation, or because of their love of the world and riches was too great. Jesus also said that it would be hard to tell them apart.

Simon, with all that looked good, but lost out on salvation. And as we look at his life and see the narrative through Luke, we can see four characteristics of false faith in Simon. He had the wrong view of self, he had the wrong view of salvation, he had the wrong view of the Holy Spirit, and he had the wrong view of sin. He was egotistical, he viewed salvation as external, he viewed the Holy Spirit as economical, and he viewed sin as something you can evade; and all these are wrong views.

Acts 8:9, “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.” He was a magician in the Greek language. You remember the magi, the wise men who came to visit the Christ? They were magicians also. That’s what the magi means. They were priests who didn’t know God, and who were superstitious and had their magical arts. Simon thought he was someone great.

Many people practiced magical arts of different kinds: astrologers, soothsayers and sorcerers, pagans who dealt in incantations, charms, divinations and horoscopes. They could do some amazing things, as many magicians can today, by deception, slight of hand and aided by demonic power. The Samaritan people were generally superstitious. They mixed some parts of the Old Testament with superstition and magic. So here we meet the first false teacher who propagates what later became known as gnostic ideas.

Gnosticism didn’t really come into being until much later than this. But the seeds of Gnosticism are already in the New Testament. What is Gnosticism? It’s from the Greek word gnosis which means people who have the secret knowledge; people who feel that they have ascended beyond the masses. The Gnostics were those who claim they are the only ones who had access to the divine secrets.

Notice verse 10, “They all paid attention to him, from the least to the greatest, saying, “This man is the power of God that is called Great.” Simon taught, along with the practice of magic, that sort of pseudo philosophy which we find later in Gnosticism, that he was an elevated being. The Samaritans were convinced by Simon that he was the Great Power of God, almost a sort of god in human form.

Do you know that this is precisely how the Mormons see Jesus? According to them Jesus is not God, He is an emanation from God. He is a great power of God, elevated above man, but below God. The Mormons also believe that Satan is the same. He is the spirit brother of Jesus, who is also a created emanation. Satan used this man Simon to counterfeit divine power and hold the people captive. That’s the business Satan is in.

So first, we see that there is a barrier between Simon and salvation and that is pride. Now he was not unusual in the ancient world. There were astrologers and magicians everywhere. They made a comfortable living with their trickery and their demonic power. Many of them were conscious frauds, convinced that the reality was just a show, and very adept at pulling it off. But pride is a real hindrance to anyone in coming to Christ. It robs the heart of the possibility of genuine brokenness, repentance, humility, which is necessary for salvation.

He had no fear of judgment. He had no sense of his own wretchedness, his own sinfulness. For the Jews, their mask was only the honor of God and this caused the killing of the Son of God. For the Pharisees, their mask was purity of life, when in reality they were vile and filthy inside. Pride is the deadly sin that cost king Hezekiah his kingdom and it cost Peter almost his life. Pride was in the fallen angel’s hearts and it cost them heaven.

Proverbs 8:13, “The fear of the Lord is to hate evil. Pride and arrogance and the evil way do I hate.” Proverbs 16:5, “Everyone who is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord.” Proverbs 16:18, “Pride goes before destruction.” Proverbs 21:4, “A high look and a proud heart are sin.” And so the sum of it is in James 4:6, “God resists the proud and gives grace to the humble.”

Justin Martyr, one of the early church fathers says, “Simon was honored. He was so famous that he had a statue in Rome, where there was an inscription that read, ‘Semoni Sanco deo.’ which means, “To Simon, Holy God.” But, his birthplace was in the land of Samaria, where he lived all his life, and where he had kept the people long under satanic bondage.” Here Simon illustrates the fact that God hates pride.

Secondly, Simon believed that salvation was external. Verse 12-13, “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. 13 Even Simon himself believed, and after being baptized he continued with Philip. And seeing signs and great miracles performed, he was amazed.”

As this happens, Simon’s hold on people begins to dwindle and because of that he falls in line. Even Simon believes and is baptized, and he continues on with Philip. Why? Because he’s watching the signs and miracles taking place and he is absolutely amazed. He is attracted to the miracle power. That’s his business; that’s what he’s into. Instead of being humble, his pride causes him to follow because he wants in on that power.

Any false miracle worker knows the difference between what he does and what is real. Simon knew the difference between demonic deception, which he was very accomplished at, and a Godly miracle. He was impressed with the real power as opposed to his counterfeit power. And he wanted to mix his power with that power and elevate himself even more. He saw this miracle power as a commodity to be added to his arsenal, so he decided to join the movement.

And this is a satanic approach because Satan always wants to join the church. Satan always wants to talk and act like a believer, a Christian or a true preacher. So in Simon, we see the first example of one who, having been baptized in the name of Christ, enters into the church with the sole purpose of corrupting the faith he professed.

Ludwig Ott, the Roman Catholic theologian, says this, “Baptism confers the grace of salvation.” Another quote from Ludwig, “Even if it be unworthily received, valid baptism imprints on the soul an indelible spiritual mark.” And a final quote: “Baptism by water is necessary for all men, without exception, for salvation.”

Here Simon believed and Simon was baptized. Yet he was never saved; he received no grace. He saw salvation as an external thing. “I’ll do the ceremony. I’ll be baptized.” He thought that by being baptized, he would be in and now he could tap into the power. And that means, thirdly, that he had the wrong view of the Holy Spirit. He had an economic view of the Spirit.

Verse 14-17, “Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent to them Peter and John, 15 who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit. 16 for He had not yet fallen on any of them, but they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 17 Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit.”

Now this is important. We see in verse 14, that the apostle heard the news about the marvelous response to Philip’s preaching in Samaria. Peter and John were sent to inspect whether this was true. They were going to go see if this evangelization of these Samaritans was genuine. Peter and John came to look at the harvest; to give the sanction of the apostles on what was going on and, thirdly, to confer the Holy Spirit. Verse 15 says, “that they might receive the Holy Spirit.”

“Why is it that when they believed in the Lord Jesus Christ that the Holy Spirit does not come immediately? Well it is important to know that the book of Acts is a historical time for transition. The Samaritans did not receive the Holy Spirit at the very instant they believed because the Jews needed apostolic testimony and evidence that they were to be included in the one church. Why? Because the Jews hated the Samaritans.

For 500 years, the Samaritans had worshipped in Mount Gerizim on their own. The Jews in the south and the Samaritans in the north each claimed in their own way to be God’s chosen people; there was intense rivalry between them. Jews didn’t even go through Samaria. It would have been very difficult for the Jews in Jerusalem and in Judea, who believed in Jesus Christ and received the Holy Spirit, to believe that the Samaritans were included in the one church, and baptized into the one body, as 1 Corinthians 12 says.

Remember that Philip was a Hellenistic Jew, and the rest of the people were Samaritans. They needed the most trustworthy Jews there to witness to this unity; Peter and John, so that everybody knows that the Holy Spirit came in the same way on the Samaritans that He did on the Jews at the Day of Pentecost. And that’s exactly what happened. Verse 17 says, “Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit.”

And Simon saw that the Holy Spirit was bestowed through the laying on of the apostles’ hands. How did Simon know that since the Holy Spirit is invisible? Look at Acts 10: 44-46 when the gospel reaches the Gentiles, “While Peter was still saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word. 45 And the believers from among the circumcised who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out even on the Gentiles. 46 For they were hearing them speaking in tongues and extolling God.”

In Acts 11:15-17 Peter is giving his testimony about what happened when he went to Joppa, “And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on them just as on us at the beginning. 16 And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he said, ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ 17 If then God gave the same gift to them as he gave to us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could stand in God's way?”

Why were they so amazed that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles also? The Jews thought that they only were God’s chosen people, so God had to repeat the coming of the Holy Spirit and the presence of the apostles, not only to the Samaritans, but also when it happened to the Gentiles in Acts 19:2-6. So the Holy Spirit comes when the apostles arrive in order that everyone will know that they all have the same salvation.

Acts 8:18, “Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles' hands, he offered them money.” Simon wanted to buy the true Holy Spirit. Today false teachers are trying to sell false spirits too. But Isaiah 55:1 states, that where the invitation has come, it comes without price, without cost and without money.

Verse 19-21, “Give me this power also, so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit. 20 But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money! 21 You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right before God.” Philip didn’t see that at first but Peter saw its sinfulness, you are not a Christian because your heart is not right. You can’t buy the Holy Spirit.

Verse 22-24, “Repent, therefore, of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you. 23 For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity. 24 And Simon answered, “Pray for me to the Lord that nothing of what you have said may come upon me.”

What was in his heart? I don’t know. There’s no confession; there’s no asking for forgiveness; there’s no repentance, nothing but a kind of scornful comment. Here is a man who starts out looking good, but ends up horrible because he had the wrong view of everything. Let us pray so that we also do not fall in that same trap, Amen?