Quick Update 02

Another passage on my heart recently

James 1:2-4 (NIV) - Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 

Trials test faith. The idea of “trials of many kinds” suggests that there is also faith of many kinds too, or at least faith applied in different areas of life and yielding different results. 

Romans 14:1-4 (NIV) - Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters. One man's faith allows him to eat everything, but another man, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. The man who eats everything must not look down on him who does not, and the man who does not eat everything must not condemn the man who does, for God has accepted him. Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.

One person’s faith holds him/her to stricter standards, another’s faith gives more latitude. I find it interesting that even Paul refused to specify one as better than another. If he doesn’t hold up one as higher or stronger than the other, why should we?

Back to the topic of trials – the purpose of trials is to bring maturity, and that requires perseverance. That finally started making sense to me, since any virtue is flawed unless it has perseverance to back it up. For example, compassion is weak if it cannot continue in the face of adversity. Humility in degrading situations has to persevere, or else it is unable to bear fruit.

Sounds good in theory. But in real life, when trials hit, we usually don’t know what they are for and how we ought to handle them. Sometimes trials require us to use our faith, to express our faith with specific works, in order that we may achieve the outcomes God desires for us.  

James 1:5-8 (NIV) - If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does. 

Here we see the most basic application of faith – to ask for and receive wisdom. We can even say that without wisdom, we are unable to achieve the purpose of any trial, because we’d just be groping in the dark about what is happening and what to do to overcome that specific trial. 

This tells me that one of the first areas a new believer has to be established in (after the Fatherhood of God and forgiveness of sin) is divine wisdom. The new believer has to be taught that God’s wisdom is above that of this world, he desires to impart wisdom to us, and what we, on our part, have to do to receive it in order to act upon it. 

James 1:9-11 (NIV) - The brother in humble circumstances ought to take pride in his high position. But the one who is rich should take pride in his low position, because he will pass away like a wild flower. For the sun rises with scorching heat and withers the plant; its blossom falls and its beauty is destroyed. In the same way, the rich man will fade away even while he goes about his business. 

This passage has had me stumped for ages – humble circumstances are a high position? Riches are a low position? But it is starting to make sense to me these days. When we are in humble circumstances, the only high position we have is NOT of this world, it is in the eyes of God. 

Ephesians 2:6-7 (NIV) - And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.

It is when we are in humble circumstances that we most need to remind ourselves of how highly God has lifted us up in the heavenly realms. Problem is, the heavenly realms aren’t perceived by our earthly senses, they can be perceived only through faith. Hence the need for both faith to be tested (James 1:2) and for us to set our minds and hearts on things above (Colossians 3:1-2), as I said in my previous post. 

And when we are rich we should take pride in our low position. In what way are riches a low position? Earthly riches are so transient, they can fade away so quickly. 

Proverbs 23:4-5 (NKJV) - Do not overwork to be rich; Because of your own understanding, cease. Will you set your eyes on that which is not? For riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away like an eagle toward heaven.  

Earthly riches are transient, they can be lost so quickly. Every rich man knows that, anyone who has slogged for his or her millions knows how precarious that position is, that he or she is usually just one bad decision or one financial calamity away from losing everything. You don’t need the Bible to tell you that, life tells you that quickly enough! But the Bible goes a step further and tells is to take pride in it. 

The Greek word translated as “take pride” (Kauchaomai, Strongs’ #2744) has the idea of boasting. When a rich person boasts of how precarious his wealth status is, that tells everyone not to look to him for help, to not envy him but to look beyond earthly wealth. And that means looking unto the LORD, maker of heaven and earth. 

Maybe this explains what happened to David in Psalm 30. Could it be that he got caught up in his wealth and success and thought that they were secure even apart from God’s sustenance? 

Psalm 30:6-7 (NIV) - When I felt secure, I said, "I will never be shaken." O LORD, when you favored me, you made my mountain stand firm; but when you hid your face, I was dismayed.

I suspect this is what God wants me to learn this season, that in the midst of my trials I have an exalted position in Christ, and even when my trials are over, any earthly success or reward I might get is transient, so fragile and able to fade away quickly. But earthly rewards are not all that I will receive when I make it through this season.

James 1:12 (NIV) - Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.  

There is a crown of life waiting for me. I don’t understand what it means, what it looks like, or if it is something I will receive in some way here on earth or only at the final judgment. All I know is that thinking about it makes my heart beat faster in anticipation and courage to arise again within me. That passage also tells me the secret to persevering under trial: love God. Keep loving God and that will ensure you make it through!

That is my prayer for myself now, that God will keep that crown of life on my heart and strengthen my love for him even during this season. Is that your prayer too? I would to God that be so! 

When You Meet Simon the Sorcerer

May was the month I studied the Book of Acts. And when I looked into Acts 8 one day over dinner (I was eating by myself and flipped open my Bible for fun) some thoughts came to me.

Acts 8:9-11 (NIV) - Now for some time a man named Simon had practiced sorcery in the city and amazed all the people of Samaria. He boasted that he was someone great, and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, "This man is the divine power known as the Great Power." They followed him because he had amazed them for a long time with his magic.

In this day and age we are likely to meet Simon the Sorcerer again, spiritually speaking.

Witchcraft and sorcery, obvious use of the occult for self-gain, is not only easily available, it is now fashionable. When I was a teenager I would see the occasional book on spells in the bookshop and think it was a joke. Now you can get detailed instructions on performing and casting spells for free. Just search online!

Because it is now so much easier for people to practice sorcery again, it is likely that we Christians will meet a real genuine sorcerer (or a Satanist or a person with occult powers) sooner or later.

Acts 8:12-13 (NIV) – But when they believed Philip as he preached the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. Simon himself believed and was baptized. And he followed Philip everywhere, astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw.

When was the last time you preached to a Satanist? Or maybe a priest of some other religion, who happened to have supernatural powers? I used to assume that they would never give up the powers they had and turn to Christ, because in order to get their powers they probably sold off their souls permanently and weren't interested in getting them back.

But Satanists do turn to Christ. I know one personally. And I know two powerful evangelists who have no hesitation to declare the resurrection, love and power of Christ to Satanists, witches and priests of other religions. And they do have some success, mainly because they were gutsy enough to pray for God to show signs and miracles to others through them.

You would think that a witch who could curse people with deadly sickness or get winning lottery numbers from spirits would not be impressed when you pray for them and they get healed of headaches. But they are. I have heard of them breaking down and crying when God heals them in the name of Jesus. Of course, these two evangelists have seen God heal more than just headaches through them. But it started from them daring to pray for signs and miracles to confirm the Word they preach.

One thing though, it requires you to accept that signs and miracles are still available to the Body of Christ today. If you believe that the Book of Acts was just meant to be a fluke, a transitional period, and signs and wonders are not meant for us today, then you will have great difficulty witnessing to Simon the Sorcerer when you meet him again.

Acts 8:14-17 – When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them. When they arrived, they prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them; they had simply been baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.

This was a turning point in Church history. The coming of the Holy Spirit upon the Samaritan believers was not only a reminder to the apostles that the command of Acts 1:8 (to preach the gospel in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and all the earth) was still in force, it was also a sign of reconciliation between the Jews and the Samaritans.

And yet in the midst of the Holy Spirit's demonstrated approval of the reconciliation, someone much more worldly-minded could miss or ignore the significance of this event…

Acts 8:18-19 – When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles' hands, he offered them money and said, "Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit."

First, he may have been looking at the whole matter from the perspective of potential profit. If he could bring the Holy Spirit upon anyone whom he laid hands on, he may have been thinking about charging people for receiving the Holy Spirit.

But I personally don't think this is the reason, because as long as the apostles did not charge for laying on of hands, Simon the Sorcerer could not charge for it either. No one would pay him for the Holy Spirit if they could receive the Holy Spirit free of charge directly from the apostles, right?

Second, he may have assumed that the apostles themselves received this ability as a result of giving someone else money. Or that they achieved this ability at great personal sacrifice and training, and deserved to receive monetary compensation for all their efforts and dedication.

This was most probably how he himself received his powers. He either paid someone who had those powers to teach him and then practiced and trained very hard to master those powers, or he sought out spirits to teach him. And in case you do not know, those spirits would have demanded a heavy price from him in one way or another in return for giving him those powers. They may have demanded animal (or even human) sacrifices or that he perform elaborate rituals that are time-consuming and difficult.

(in a nutshell, that is what my ex-Satanist friend taught me about the nature of witchcraft and sorcery…)

So Simon probably thought that was how it was for the apostles. Look at Peter's response.
Consider Peter's rebuke. When Peter rebuked Simon for thinking he could buy the gift of imparting the Holy Spirit, Peter was implying that this gift was free of charge also. It was not given only to those who had the money to pay for it. That was not how the apostles received this gift, or the gift of working miracles. They received all their gifts from the LORD freely, and so they likewise imparted them freely too (Matt 10:8).

Acts 8:20-23 (NIV) – Peter answered: "May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord. Perhaps he will forgive you for having such a thought in your heart. For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin."

This is a serious matter. Once you think you have to buy the gift of God, instead of receiving it freely on the basis of faith, the above passage tells us that your heart is not right before God (vs 21), it is wickedness (vs 22) and you are full of bitterness and captive to sin (vs 23).

Does this also apply to trying to buy the gift of God with good works, piety and devotion? Think about that…

Acts 8:24 (NIV) – Simon answered, "Pray to the Lord for me so that nothing you have said may happen to me."

Now we come to the final question: was Simon the Sorcerer saved? Why did Simon the Sorcerer make this offer?

Yes, I believe so, because he believed in the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 16:31). But he certainly had a faulty understanding of his salvation. Remember, the Apostle Paul had not yet appeared on the scene to explain in greater depth how we can freely approach God on the basis of faith in what Jesus has done for us on the cross and through the ministry of the Holy Spirit (Eph 2:18).

Notice that when Peter ordered Simon to pray to the Lord (vs 22), Simon refused and asked that Peter pray for him instead (vs 24). This tells me that Simon himself was still afraid of approaching the LORD in prayer, especially when he has sinned. His own faith was not yet established to the point that he could pray to God himself and know God will freely pardon him (Isa 55:7).

This has two implications for us that I would like us to ponder together:

1) Do we believe we have to buy from God what he has freely given us on the basis of faith?

If we believe that, and teach others the same, our hearts are not right before God. Moreover, we will find ourselves captive to bitterness and sin (vs 23) as Simon the Sorcerer was. We will find ourselves stumbling when we try to work for what God has already given us, instead of believing God's Word and trusting in his goodness.

2) People who have a background in sorcery or witchcraft usually have greater difficulty believing in the goodness and forgiveness of God.

Please be patient with them, especially in this area. They need more time and effort to be established in this aspect of the Christian faith. So if you are the one who will follow-up with them after they believe in Jesus or if you have to disciple them, pay careful attention to this area. It is very easy for them to slip up and start relating to God the same way they relate to whatever deities or spirits they served before. And we don't want that to happen!

Conclusion: I personally believe that we will encounter more people with occultic powers in this day and age. We need not be intimidated, in fact, we should be confident as we share Christ with them. The case of Simon the Sorcerer gives us some lessons and thoughts to consider, and we will do well to learn what we can from this passage of Scripture. Be blessed!