Episode 138 - Preaching to the Unlikely - Acts 8:1-25

Sweet Selah Moments Podcast

Do you find it hard to share your faith with people? It's not easy, is it, even if your desire is to share good news with everyone. Our early Christians are now being persecuted, and that persecution is pushing them out of their comfort zones and into new places and situations. One of the first places they go is to Samaria - an area that would never have been their first choice before they met Jesus. And yet, they were met with great success! Let's go to those who are hungry for truth - even if they seem unlike us. Join Sharon and Nicole as they unpack an early missionary trip into Samaria.

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You can read the transcript for Preaching to the Unlikely-Episode-138

Speaker 1:

It is time for a pause in your day. Welcome to a podcast where we press the pause button on our busy lives for a few moments, and we focus on God’s word with Sharon and Nicole. We pray this is a time of refreshing for you. The Sweet Selah Moments Podcast is a cooperative production of Word Radio and Sweet Selah Ministries.

Nicole:

Welcome to Sweet Selah Moments. This is episode 138, Preaching to the Unlikely. Sharon, some people seem ready to hear the gospel, of course, but an awful lot don’t. How do we know when and how to share the gospel with unlikely people?

Sharon:

It’s tricky. It really is. You know, one of my favorite verses on witnessing is found in 1 Peter 3:15, “But in your hearts, revere Christ as Lord, always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.” So that seems to indicate we don’t barge in where people aren’t yet ready to hear a full sermon on the gospel. Right? So how do we share our faith then with those who need God, but seem far from him? That’s tricky.

Nicole: It is.

Sharon:

So, one way I’ve done it in the past is to teach a course called Christianity Explained. I’ve done this, I don’t know, five or six times now, and it’s really yielded a lot of fruit. It’s really been fun to do. And it is what it says. You’re simply explaining Christianity, real biblical Christianity. So I invite neighbors over, I’ve had neighbors receive Christ through it. (Nicole: Wow) I’ve had it at church, and people have brought their aunts and uncles and whatever, not uncles. I usually teach this to ladies, like, where did the uncles come from? And then I share it. So it has six lessons. And the first three, just tell you why it’s Christianity, following Christ. What’s so special about Christ according to Christians? Well, Christians actually believe he’s God, which non-Christians sure don’t. Christians actually believed that the cross wasn’t just an awful death, but that the punishment we deserved was put on Jesus on the cross. So that’s unique to Christian faith. And only Christians believe that he actually rose from the dead. So those are three distinctive things that explains Christianity. So you’re not saying it in a way that’s like, you have to believe this. You’re just telling them.

Nicole:
You’re just presenting the facts to them.

Sharon:

Right. And then the last three are, you talk about grace. How we’re not saved by works, but by grace. And then what it means to repent and then what faith means. And the whole time we’re reading the entire book of Mark with them.

Nicole: Oh, wow.

Sharon:

So skipping nothing, even the really hard part where for some bizarre reason, we are sending demons into pigs who drown themselves. And I’m like, this is a hard thing to discuss with people that have no interest in God. But it leads to such fun discussions.

Nicole:
Oh, I bet. That’s a really neat one to start off.

Sharon:

I can’t even tell you. And they take their homework seriously. They read the chapters they come back with, I mean, one lady came back and said, so Jesus was Jewish? And I said, yeah, he was, (Nicole: Wow, yeah) I mean, things that they just didn’t know. Right. And it’s a safe place to learn. But Nicole just sharing the truth of the gospel in that sort of non pushy way. I have seen in almost every class someone come to know Christ.

Nicole:
That is so neat.

Sharon: It is.

Nicole: Wow.

Sharon:

So that is my offering. Sharing Jesus with the unlikely. Sometimes it’s just giving a forum where it’s not pushy.

Nicole:
Right. Providing a place to answer questions and to tell. Wow.

Sharon:

Yeah. And six weeks gives you enough time to really dive deep. And the word of God is speaking as they’re reading it, you know?

Nicole: Oh, wow.

Sharon:
So, it’s really fun.

Nicole:
That’s really neat.

Sharon:
I feel like I should do it again. It’s been a few years.

Nicole:
Yeah. What a great course.

Sharon: Yeah.

Nicole:

I know. I’ve found that most people, you know, myself included, we connect better to real stories, you know? And so I have lots of kiddos and puppies and life is busy. I don’t know if I could offer a a six week course right now, Soon, maybe? (Sharon: No) Or even doing a Bible study seems like a big, daunting task. But I think that in just simply sharing about my daily life and how God helps me, and my struggles and my triumphs, you know, it’s just a very subtle, honest way to share his love. (It is) Because he’s so part of my life. (Yes) And because I’m walking with him, and he helps me on the good days and the bad days. You know, I love that our church says a lot that our testimony should always be 24 hours old.

Sharon:
Yes. I love that thought.

Nicole:

And that’s, yeah, it’s such a good reminder that, oh, I do have a story to tell from yesterday. Like, how did God get me through yesterday? And the, you know, the chaos that it was with all the kids. And that’s my story to tell. I don’t have to make it overly special. I can just say, you know what, yesterday was crazy, but God did this and weaving him into the story of my life. (Sharon: Yes) It leaves space for them to ask questions if they want. (Yes) Like, oh, why did you pray and ask God to fix your fridge for you? That’s weird. (Exactly) Why don’t you call a repairman? Well, I did, but God, you know.

Sharon:

Right, right. And I think what happens is you’ve established yourself as someone who has faith, and then somebody that has trouble someday they’re gonna find you. (Nicole: Yes) And that’s when then they’re asking, ‘always be prepared to answer when they ask’. (Yes) Then they’re asking and then you can go into more depth. God’s in charge. (He is) We are so not in charge. We just have to be willing.

Nicole:

Right. And we just follow him. And that peace that comes from following him daily amidst the chaos, that’s gonna shine through.

Sharon:

Exactly. You know, it’s actually been a blessing to see unlikely people come to faith. It really strengthens my faith when I see it. Like, for example, Lee Strobel, no one thought he’d wanna come to Christianity.

Nicole:
He’s got such a cool story.

Sharon:

He has such a cool story. His whole investigation of Christianity came about because he was freaked out that his wife had become a Christian.

Nicole: Oh no.

Sharon:
And as a reporter and a logical man he’s like, she is in a cult and we need to rescue her.

Nicole:
I must save her.

Sharon:

And in the trying to save her, he got saved. I think it was so good. His book, The Case for Christ, is phenomenally well researched. So can you think of some unlikely folk, famous or not famous like Lee Strobel, who have come to know the Lord?

Nicole:

I know. I was thinking about that. And I was thinking of, I love Jim Elliot’s story, and I love his sacrifice. So he went to the natives of Ecuador and preached to them and was killed for it. (Sharon: Yes) And the fact that his wife continued in the faith, I think is rather unlikely a little bit, that she could have been a little angry with God for losing her husband,

Sharon:
Especially to a spearing death.

Nicole: Yes.

Sharon:
I mean, it wasn’t a nice death.

Nicole:

No, it was awful. Well, that people group became Christians because they continued to witness to them. I think it was two years afterward, they continued to go back to the people there. That was an unlikely group of people. They’d killed the first batch of missionaries. You would think, oh, maybe they’re not receptive. We’ll just leave them be. But they went back and now they’re believers and I think that’s so neat.

Sharon:
That’s a beautiful example.

Nicole: Yeah.

Sharon:

And we should just never say never. I prayed for Ray’s father from the time I was 16 until my 59th year of life.

Nicole: Oh, wow.

Sharon:
That is 43 years.

Nicole:
I’m glad you did the math for me. I’m going 1, 2, 3.

Sharon:
Of praying without him seemingly budging, an inch closer to God.

Nicole: Wow.

Sharon:

He just, he was closed. He would be, he’s so polite. He’s the nicest man. So I would share Jesus with him. And he, I could see him. He was just waiting me out. He would like close his mouth. I’m not gonna say one word. If I asked him questions, he would just stare at me and wait for me to change the subject.

Nicole:
Oh, that’s funny. He was determined to not be budged.

Sharon:
Oh man. Dad Gamble endured me for 43 years.

Nicole:
That’s beautiful.

Sharon:

And totally miraculously, after our pastors had visited him and come away saying, he’s closed. He just isn’t, Sharon, he doesn’t wanna hear us. Nine days before he died, he’s like, I’m ready. Can I receive Jesus? And he did.

Nicole:
Wow. Oh, that’s amazing.

Sharon:
So never say never. That is my conclusion.

Nicole:
That’s a good one too.

Sharon:
Yes. Yes. We need to be ready to share our faith with all the people.

Nicole:
Yes. Absolutely.

Sharon:
Even those who seem far away or even awkward to us.

Nicole:

That’s a good point. Well, today we’re going to read about how the disciples started to preach to some unlikely people. Back in Acts 1:8, Jesus told his disciples to spread the gospel beyond the borders of Israel. “But you’ll receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you. And you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria into the ends of the earth.” And of all the places they didn’t want to go, Samaria would rank high on that list. So let’s talk about why the Samaritans were disliked by the Jews.

Sharon: Yes.

Nicole:

This is really fascinating. I didn’t realize that. I know the story of the Good Samaritan and the people walked far around him, but I didn’t understand where that conflict came from. So the Jews had had this ongoing feud with the Samaritans from a little bit before the time they returned from the Babylonian captivity. So during the time of captivity, the King of Babylon was capturing and moving all these people groups around. So the Jews that were left that were not taken into captivity, they intermarried with those who were brought in, the Gentile people that were brought in, and they started worshiping their gods as well. They were intermarrying, they were inter worshiping. They kind of muddled up their, their lines. So 70 years later, when the Jews returned, the Samaritans came to help rebuild Jerusalem. The Jews called them half breeds and sent them home. The Samaritans built their own temple. The Jews considered it pagan, and the feud just continued to grow.

Sharon: Wow.

Nicole:

The Samaritans didn’t want the Jews that had come back to reestablish things as they were before ’cause they thought that was ridiculous. So this just grew and grew uglier over the years. The Jews hated the Samaritans so much that they crossed the Jordan River rather than travel through Samaria, which was quite a ways away.

Sharon:
Isn’t that crazy? Yeah. Just didn’t wanna walk through Samaria.

Nicole:

Not even be near them. So they were all Jewish. They all started as a Jewish people, and then just slowly divided and separated.

Sharon:
Wow. Yeah. Yeah.

Nicole:
So, no love there,

Sharon:
No love there. Which is why Jesus meeting the Samaritan woman at the well was like shocking.

Nicole:
Absolutely shocking. They couldn’t understand what he was doing.

Sharon:

Yeah. Yeah. So, okay. Based on all that, where did the disciples go? They go to Samaria when they are leaving Jerusalem. So let’s read today’s passage in Acts 8:1-25. And I’ll start with verse one. And we’re kind of going back to the end of the killing of Stephen. “So Saul was one of the witnesses, and he agreed completely with the killing of Stephen. A great wave of persecution began that day.” I didn’t realize it was that day, the day that they killed Stephen.

Nicole:
Isn’t that awful?

Sharon:

Man? All right. Sharon. Read the passage. All right. “A great wave of persecution began that day, sweeping over the church in Jerusalem. And all the believers, except the apostles, were scattered through the regions of Judea and Samaria.”

Nicole:
“Some devout men came and buried Stephen with great mourning.”

Sharon:

“But Saul was going everywhere to destroy the church. He went from house to house, dragging out both men and women to throw them into prison.”

Nicole:
“But the believers who were scattered preached the good news about Jesus wherever they went.

Sharon:
“Philip, for example, went to the city of Samaria and told the people there about the Messiah,”

Nicole:

Crowds listened intently to Philip because they were eager to hear his message and see the miraculous signs he did.

Sharon:

“Many evil spirits were cast out screaming as they left their victims. And many who had been paralyzed or lame were healed.”

Nicole:

“So there was great joy in that city.”

Sharon:

“A man named Simon had been a sorcerer there for many years, amazing the people of Samaria and claiming to be someone great.”

Nicole:
“Everyone from the least to the greatest, often spoke of him as the great one, the power of God.”

Sharon:
“They listened closely to him because for a long time he had astounded them with his magic.”

Nicole:

“But now the people believed Philip’s message of good news concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ. As a result, many men and women were baptized.”

Sharon:

“Then Simon himself believed and was baptized. He began following Philip wherever he went. And he was amazed by the signs and great miracles Philip performed.”

Nicole:

“When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that the people of Samaria had accepted God’s message they sent Peter and John there.”

Sharon:
“As soon as they arrived, they prayed for these new believers to receive the Holy Spirit.”

Nicole:

“The Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them, for they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.”

Sharon:
“Then Peter and John laid their hands upon these believers, and they received the Holy Spirit.”

Nicole:

“When Simon saw that the Spirit was given, when the apostles laid their hands on people, he offered them money to buy this power.”

Sharon:

“Let me have this power too, he exclaimed, so when I lay hands on people, they will receive the Holy Spirit.

Nicole:
“But Peter replied, may your money be destroyed with you for thinking God’s gifts can be bought.”

Sharon:

“You can have no part in this, for your heart is not right with God.”

Nicole:
“Repent of your wickedness and pray to the Lord. Perhaps he will forgive you your evil thoughts.”

Sharon:
“For I can see that you are full of bitter jealousy and are held captive by sin.”

Nicole:
“Pray to the Lord for me, Simon exclaimed, that these terrible things you have said won’t happen to me.”

Sharon:

“After testifying and preaching the word of the Lord in Samaria, Peter and John returned to Jerusalem, and they stopped in many Samaritan villages along the way to preach the good news.” Oh, what a fun passage. There’s so much in this. I wanna do this a little differently. Sometimes we do it verse by verse. I wanna do it by people. There’s so many fascinating people. And I’d like to talk about them one at a time. So, and I wanna start with Saul, who’s mentioned at the very beginning. So Nicole, what further information do we learn about Saul from this passage?

Nicole:
He was completely in agreement to stone and kill Stephen.

Sharon: Yeah.

Nicole:
There was no hesitation. He was in complete agreement.

Sharon:
He was probably cheering them on. Gimme your coats. Gimme your coats.

Nicole: That’s so sad.

Sharon:

I know. It was, and then he’s dragging men and women. I mean, he’s not waiting for them to preach like Stephen. He’s going into their houses.

Nicole:

Right. Well, it said, like you said, it’s that the wave of persecution started that day. And I guess the word, I think the word ‘destroyed’ the Hebrew or Greek word, it meant kind of like tear apart, like a wild animal would ravage. Like (Paul) just, Saul destroyed the early church, you know, ripping apart the members, throwing them in prison, killing them. It was awful.

Sharon:
It was awful.

Nicole:
I don’t think we understand,. I didn’t understand that to the extent that this destroyed the early church.

Sharon:

I really didn’t either. They had to leave Jerusalem or they’d all have been thrown into prison. This was a vendetta.

Nicole: Yeah.

Sharon:
And I wonder if part of it is Saul’s trying super hard to justify the stoning of Stephen.

Nicole:
Oh, I wonder.

Sharon:

You know, sometimes when you do something wrong, you have to justify it. So you get more rabid about it to just kind of make it sound okay. I can remember, you know, explaining why I was right on something when I actually wasn’t and really trying to make it right. Because I didn’t wanna admit I was wrong.

Nicole:

Right. ‘Cause he had to live with the guilt of being okay with watching Stephen die. And what happened with him impacted Saul. It did something to him.

Sharon:

It did. It did. Saul, when he’s Paul, talks about it later on as well. So, yeah. So we’re meeting Saul and we’re certainly not meeting Paul, the one who’s been converted. But Saul was hugely responsible for the dispersion of the people. (Right) You know, ’cause they were all just jumbled into you know, smooshed into Jerusalem. (Yeah) And of course, they weren’t supposed to stay there. So, I mean, that’s not the nicest way to be,

Nicole:
But this got them moving.

Sharon:
It did get them moving. Yes, it did.

Nicole:
All the way to Samaria.

Sharon:

Okay. So that’s Saul. He’s a very important part of the story. I want one last look next at the person, Stephen, our Stephen whose death was so impactful, you know?

Nicole: Yes.

Sharon:

It had a lingering effect on the church. We read a little bit more about him in verse two. “Some devout men came and buried Stephen with great mourning.” So, it was probably courageous even to go out and bury him.

Nicole:

Well, I think they were not allowed to mourn people that had been killed as criminals. So their mourning out loud (Sharon: Wow) was an act of defiance showing that they saw

Sharon:
Even that was courageous.

Nicole:

Yes. They were kind of like, we know he was killed, you know, wrongly. So just, there’s so much in here. But you’d think that, oh, Stephen’s life was a waste, but it really wasn’t ’cause we are talking about him now. He’s impacting our life now with his sacrifice. So nothing is lost. God doesn’t waste any life, any pain.

Sharon:

Yep. I can’t tell you which church father said it, but one of the church, ancient, ancient church fathers, said the church was built on the blood of the martyrs.

Nicole:
Ooh. That is powerful.

Sharon:

And they really were because the belief was so strong, they were willing to die for it. (Nicole: Right) And even after Stephen’s death and all the imprisonments when they’re dispersed. They’re gonna go and talk about Jesus anyways.

Nicole: Still.

Sharon:

Man. All right. That’s good stuff. So there we’ve got Saul and Stephen. Next we’ve gotta look at Philip. Good old Philip.

Nicole:
Let’s talk about Philip.

Sharon:

Yeah. Philip confused me for a bit ’cause I was thinking he was Philip, the disciple of Jesus. I really was. (This a different one) And for whatever reason, no Bible commentator thinks that’s the same Philip. So I

have to receive that. I’m like, yeah, but couldn’t it be? I kinda want it to be, but there were four Philips mentioned in the New Testament. Two are sons of Herod. And then the one that I wanted this guy to be was one of the original twelve disciples of Jesus. But this Philip, well the original disciple of Jesus first followed John the Baptist, and then Jesus. Very little is known about him. Although church history tells us that he went into Phrygia and preached the gospel there. And that’s in modern day Turkey. So, yeah. So he just kind of fades from sight, the disciple Philip. The Philip we’re reading about today is a different Philip. And you know what? I have to tell you, this is one reason I believe the Bible is true. If I were writing the story, I wouldn’t have had so many Marys or Philips in the Bible.

Nicole:
Isn’t that funny? It’s true though. You’d make the names more distinct. So it’d be,

Sharon:
So it wouldn’t be confusing.

Nicole:
It’s gotta be true. There’s way too many Marys and Philips.

Sharon:

Right. Any author worth her salt wouldn’t do that. But, but this is not a story. (Right) This is the truth. (History. Yeah) There were four Philips. There were tons of Marys, sorry people. That’s the way it was.

Nicole:
As confusing as it is this is the truth.

Sharon:
That’s the way it was. So, okay.

Nicole:
So fourth Philip.

Sharon:
Fourth Philip was chosen as one of the seven deacons to help the widows get fed equally and fairly.

Nicole: Oh, okay.

Sharon:
So he worked closely with Stephen.

Nicole: Oh.

Sharon:
Oh dear Philip. Yeah.

Nicole:

So this Philip was known as Philip the Deacon, or Philip the Evangelist. He’s the one who goes to Samaria after the great persecution begins. It must have been a safer choice than Jerusalem. Although, it seems rather a bleak prospect that drove them there.

Sharon:

Yeah, I know it. I know it. Yeah. Hard as the persecution was. It did move those followers of Christ outta the city, even to the dreaded Samaria, which fulfilled what Jesus had commanded to start in Jerusalem. But go everywhere else. So, okay. So Philip goes to Samaria and I love that about him because this was not a popular place.

Nicole:

Right. Right. Well, let’s read about Philip in Samaria and see how he fared there. So I’m gonna read verses four through 13 and then we can study them. “But the believers who had scattered preached the good news about Jesus wherever they went. Philip, for example, went to the city of Samaria and told the people there about the Messiah. Crowds listened intently to Philip because they were eager to hear his message and see the miraculous signs he did. Many evil spirits were cast out screaming as they left their victims. And many who had been paralyzed or lame were healed. So there was great joy in that city. A man named Simon had been a sorcerer there for many years amazing the people of Samaria and claiming to be someone great. Everyone from the least to the greatest, often spoke of him as the great one, the power of God. And they listened closely to him because for a long time he had astounded them with his magic. But now that people believed Philip’s message of good news concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ as a result, many men and women were baptized. Then Simon himself believed and was baptized. He began following Philip wherever he went, and was amazed by the signs and great miracles Philip performed.”

Sharon: Wow.

Nicole: Interesting.

Sharon:
Wow for Philip. He was a successful preacher.

Nicole: He was.

Sharon:
I bet he was good.

Nicole:
Yeah. Apparently to kind of blaze in there to a place where they didn’t like him. He didn’t like them.

Sharon:
Yeah. And here they are, following him around. Of course, the miracles didn’t hurt.

Nicole:
Those do help, I’m sure.

Sharon: Yes.

Nicole:
Heal a couple lame people for good measure.

Sharon:

Yes, yes, yes. So he was passionate. And it’s fascinating to me that all these people that continue to speak about Jesus, they’re in a new location, and yet they’re still , you know, talking about the Lord. It’s beautiful.

Nicole:
They don’t really have the safety of numbers or the support of the other new believers.

Sharon: No. No.

Nicole:
You know, that he’s just, I think he’s off by himself at this time.

Sharon: Yeah. Yeah.

Nicole:
So that’s pretty good.

Sharon:
But he’s not gonna stop. He wants everybody to know.

Nicole: That’s great.

Sharon:

Oh boy. So then Peter and John are gonna get involved. They wanna encourage these new believers in Samaria. So they joined Philip. And I’m reading verses 14 to 17, “When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that the people of Samaria had accepted God’s message they sent Peter and John there. As soon as they arrived, they prayed for these new believers to receive the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them. For they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Peter and John laid their hands upon these believers and they received the Holy Spirit.” Well, that’s so fascinating. And you and I have both been puzzled a little bit by that, but I’m gonna let you explain it ’cause you told me before we started the podcast, and I’m like, why didn’t, I mean the Holy Spirit came instantly on the guys in Jerusalem.

Nicole: Right.

Sharon:
How come Peter and John had to show up?

Nicole:

So the commentary I read said that it was very important for Peter and John to witness the Holy Spirit coming into the Samaritan’s hearts. Because if they had gone back and said, the Samaritans are now believers, or if they had heard secondhand that they were, I don’t think they would’ve been believed by the church.

Sharon:
Because they were the Samaritans. The unlikely. Yes.

Nicole:

Right. And I think for the Samaritans part, to have Peter come there and John be part of when the Holy Spirit came on, and again, it kind of started to bond them. So there wasn’t two separate groups of new converts. They were the one Church of God, you know, the United Church.

Sharon:
Yes. I love that.

Nicole:
So it was kind of this way to unite the Jews and the Samaritans.

Sharon:
Under one authority.

Nicole: Yes.

Sharon:
The Apostolic authority. And confirming in front of Peter and John.

Nicole: Yeah.

Sharon:
Oh, guess what? Samaritans are, they’re not a separate, lesser group.

Nicole:
Even the Samaritans can receive Jesus.

Sharon:

Yes, yes, yes,

Nicole:

So it’s kind of cool ’cause we received the spirit instantly. Now, I think this is the only instance where it was a little bit delayed. But it was for a very important reason.

Sharon:
Very important reason.

Nicole: So cool.

Sharon:
The Samaritans are no longer second class citizens.

Nicole:
No, isn’t that beautiful?

Sharon:
They’re equal. I love it.

Nicole: Really neat.

Sharon:

Okay. Last person is Simon the sorcerer, who was often called the great one. Can you imagine walking around going, yes, I’m the great one.

Nicole:
I’m the great one. I do some magic. Oh my goodness.

Sharon:
He sounds like something of a showman.

Nicole: He does.

Sharon:

Yeah. Doing magic and wowing the crowd. So it must have been interesting for him when he saw real healings without the magic.

Nicole: Right.

Sharon:

It’s like, wait, wait, this is real power. It’s not trickery.

Nicole:
This is what I do. That’s interesting.

Sharon:

Yeah. I kinda like that. So, well, let’s finish the passage. We’re gonna find old Simon reverting, kind of back to his old ways. The showman is living on, even though he accepted Christ. So why don’t you finish up.

Nicole:

All right. Verses 20-24. Let’s read about how Peter and John definitely set him straight, good old Peter. (Sharon: Yeah) “But Peter replied, may your money be destroyed with you for thinking God’s gift can be bought. You can have no part in this. For your heart is not right with God. Repent of your wickedness and pray to the Lord. Perhaps he will forgive your evil thoughts. For I can see that you are full of bitter jealousy and are held captive by sin. Pray for me, Simon exclaimed that these terrible things you said won’t happen to me. After testifying and preaching the word of the Lord in Samaria, Peter and John returned to Jerusalem and they stopped in many Samaritan villages along the way to preach the good news.”

Sharon:
And that ends our little section of the day. Oh my goodness, Simon. It is easy to get off track.

Nicole: It is.

Sharon:

He was doing well for a while. But he had inside him that bitter jealousy. So he’s acting like everything’s okay, but, but I think he’s like, Hey, I am not the great one anymore.

Nicole:

Right. He was kind of following along in the glory of Philip thinking he could just, Yeah. But Peter called him out on it. And thankfully he was quick to repent.

Sharon:

Yes, Yes, yes, yes. I mean, he’s seen the signs. He’s like, okay, no, no, no, no. Please don’t let these terrible things happen to me. So, but he just needed to be brought up short. And I love that we’re affirming again, you can’t buy your way into God’s kingdom. You can’t buy your way into miracles. And God’s really not interested in people who want to perform miracles. He’s more interested in the ones that just want someone healed, not wanna be the great ones.

Nicole:

And we can’t become something great in God’s kingdom with what we brought with us before we were saved.

Sharon:

No. Exactly.

Nicole:
I think he was trying to still be the great one for God.

Sharon: That’s true.

Nicole:
And that’s not what God wants from us.

Sharon:
No. He wants humble.

Nicole:
Yes. And then he gives us new gifts to use.

Sharon: Yes.

Nicole:
Through him, but not in our own merit can we do any of this.

Sharon:
No, no, no, no, no. As soon as we do that, we’re super in trouble.

Nicole: Yes.

Sharon:

And then let’s just look at verse 25 again ’cause that is so cool too. “They stopped (Peter and John stopped) at many Samaritan Villages on their way back.” They’re like, okay, we get it. Samaria is in.

Nicole:
Hey, this worked with the Samaritans.

Sharon:

Yeah. It’s funny how their biases had to continually be overcome. They were so used to being separate as Jews. So first you get to Samaritans and we’re gonna see, you know, further and more to the uttermost parts of the earth, what Jesus asked for, that all people, all nations are welcome at the foot of the cross. It’s just gorgeous. So I love it. All right. So that’s how we shared our faith. And we’ve talked about that. I think we’re just going right to the questions because my goodness, we’re running outta time and I want to know your favorite verse. So.

Nicole:

So much today, alright. I liked verse 24. “Pray to the Lord for me, Simon exclaimed, that these terrible things you said won’t happen to me.” I just was kind of humbled by his quick response, his authentic and quick response to, you know being confronted with his sin. You know?

Sharon:
That’s true. He could have prevaricated and explained and justified. He just said, uhoh.

Nicole:

You’re right. Help me. I don’t want this to happen. So I just was really inspired by his quick repentance. And, you know, I need to be that way with God too. If someone calls something out, like, oh, you know what, I’m, you’re right. And not try to justify, well, actually, this is why I did that.

Sharon:
Yes. And, yeah, I’m more, much more likely to do that. Yes.

Nicole:
Oh. Yes. So that was really, that was convicting for me.

Sharon:
That is convicting. We are learning from Simon, the great one.

Nicole:
Yes. From the Unlikely convert, but.

Sharon:

When he became humble. (Nicole: Yeah) Yeah. I think that’s awesome. Oh, I didn’t even think of that. I chose, “But the believers who were scattered preached the good news about Jesus wherever they went.” Verse four. All I could think of was, they’re new in their faith. Now they’re nomads. They’re immigrants, they’re in a new place. They don’t know the town, they don’t know where the doctor’s office is or whatever. You know what I mean?

Nicole:
Who the safe people are if they need help.

Sharon:
Right. I mean, they’re strangers there, and yet what are they doing? They can’t wait to tell about Jesus.

Nicole:
Isn’t that amazing?

Sharon:
The persecution did not stop them at all. And I just love that, the boldness that they had. So.

Nicole:
That is really neat.

Sharon:

Yeah. Well, all right. Second question. What did we learn about God? Well, I learned a couple of things. Number one, God wants all of us to come. Even the unlikeliest. And second of all, God does not want us to turn our preaching into a sideshow for our own gain, which would’ve been Simon.

Nicole:
That’s a good one. Yeah. Yep, for sure.

Sharon:
Yeah. How about you? What did you learn about God from this passage?

Nicole:

Oh, the same thing, that his love and salvation is for everyone, not just for a certain group, but is for everyone in the world.

Sharon:

Yeah. Yeah. Holy Spirit was given alike, yeah, I love it. And Nicole, what did you learn about the early church and how can we apply that today?

Nicole:
They were a tenacious group of people.

Sharon: Weren’t they?

Nicole:

They just, like you just said about verse four, they continued to preach in different areas. After Saul destroyed and scattered their early church. They had to leave family. They probably left behind people in prison. Just amazed that they didn’t just say, oh, this is too hard. I don’t wanna do this. I’m going back to, you know, the Jewish faith. But they were tenacious. They held on despite severe persecution, and they obeyed God no matter what, even to death.

Sharon:
They did. They did. It is amazing. And it’s why I know that Christianity is true.

Nicole: Yeah.

Sharon:
Nobody that didn’t know it a hundred percent would do what they did.

Nicole:
No. There’s no reason to.

Sharon:

They knew it. They knew it to their core. They were eager to meet Jesus. I mean, some of them had watched Stephen seeing Jesus before he died.

Nicole: Right.

Sharon:
The reality that this was not the only life was just big in them.

Nicole:
Yeah. And that probably really carried them through a lot of it too.

Sharon:

Yeah. So, well, let me pray. Man, this went fast. Oh, Father God, I thank you so, so much for this life lesson for all of us. That we, we need to be bold in speaking of you, we need to remember that the most unlikely are loved by you. There’s no one outside your ability to heal, restore, change, and save. God, help us. Help us in small ways and big ways to share the good news that you love all people and have died for them and want them in heaven with you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Nicole:

Amen. I am so glad that no one is too far from God and impossible to convert. God so loved the whole world, and that means everyone in it. I want to be less pessimistic about people knowing God is able to bring the hardest soul to faith. How about you? Do you have some unlikely converts in your own life? We’d love to know their names so we can pray for them with you. You can write us at [e-mail] anytime. We love hearing from our listeners. You can donate at sweetselah.org/donations too. We appreciate every gift that helps us produce this podcast. We hope you’ll be back next week for episode 139, The Power of Just One. Thanks so much for listening and have a great week.

Speaker 1:

We are so glad you stopped for a while with us. The Sweet Selah Moments Podcast is a cooperative production of Word Radio and Sweet Selah Ministries. More information about this podcast can be found @sweetselah.org. Thank you for joining us.

You can download and print the transcript here.