WEBVTT 00:00:06.320 --> 00:00:15.759 Welcome to Sermons from the Way Church KC, a community of licensing saints in Kansas City following the way of Jesus and pushing back darkness together. 00:00:21.039 --> 00:00:22.239 Good morning. 00:00:26.719 --> 00:00:29.920 Now is the time to turn on the microphone. 00:00:30.079 --> 00:00:30.960 There it is. 00:00:31.679 --> 00:00:33.759 Now's the time to read scripture. 00:00:33.920 --> 00:00:36.640 So if you're standing, you can continue standing. 00:00:37.200 --> 00:00:40.799 But if you're sitting, please stand in honor of God's word this morning. 00:00:40.960 --> 00:00:48.000 It'll be from Acts 8, verses 4 through, I think, 25. 00:00:48.799 --> 00:00:49.840 I know when to stop. 00:00:49.920 --> 00:00:50.960 So okay. 00:00:52.560 --> 00:00:56.640 Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word. 00:00:57.600 --> 00:01:02.320 Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed to them the Christ. 00:01:02.799 --> 00:01:11.120 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. 00:01:12.400 --> 00:01:22.640 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. 00:01:22.959 --> 00:01:25.200 So there was much joy in that city. 00:01:25.920 --> 00:01:37.439 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. 00:01:37.760 --> 00:01:46.959 They all paid attention to him, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is the power of God that is called great. 00:01:47.920 --> 00:01:53.040 And they paid attention to him because for a long time he had amazed them with his magic. 00:02:02.560 --> 00:02:07.680 Even Simon himself believed, and after being baptized, he continued with Philip. 00:02:07.920 --> 00:02:12.240 And seeing signs and great miracles performed, he was amazed. 00:02:13.199 --> 00:02:32.479 Now, when the apostles at 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. 00:02:32.960 --> 00:02:36.960 Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit. 00:02:37.439 --> 00:02:53.759 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. 00:02:54.240 --> 00:03:02.319 But Peter said to him, May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money. 00:03:02.560 --> 00:03:08.719 You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right before God. 00:03:09.199 --> 00:03:18.000 Repent, therefore, of this wickedness of yours and pray to the Lord that if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you. 00:03:18.400 --> 00:03:23.680 For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity. 00:03:24.879 --> 00:03:31.599 And Simon answered, Pray for me to the Lord, that nothing of what you have said will come upon me. 00:03:32.080 --> 00:03:41.680 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. 00:03:41.919 --> 00:03:43.199 That is the word of the Lord. 00:03:43.280 --> 00:03:44.479 You can be seated. 00:03:51.599 --> 00:03:54.240 Well, welcome everyone to the Way Church. 00:03:54.800 --> 00:03:56.719 My name is Zach. 00:03:56.800 --> 00:03:58.639 I'm the lead pastor here. 00:03:59.039 --> 00:04:09.199 Um, if this is your first time here, if you're new here, um we're a new church plant who exists to follow the way of Jesus and push back darkness together. 00:04:09.360 --> 00:04:11.280 That's the journey that we've been on. 00:04:11.360 --> 00:04:13.680 It's been a joy-filled journey. 00:04:13.919 --> 00:04:22.399 Um we've been on that journey for about um a year and a half now, and the Lord has been faithful to build his church. 00:04:22.560 --> 00:04:24.560 That's something I always try to remember. 00:04:24.720 --> 00:04:30.319 It's like it's not up to us, it's not up to any one of us, it's not up to our staff to build the church. 00:04:30.639 --> 00:04:32.160 Christ will build his church. 00:04:32.240 --> 00:04:34.720 That's what his word says. 00:04:35.279 --> 00:04:38.240 Uh we are genuinely glad you're here. 00:04:38.639 --> 00:04:44.879 And my prayer this morning is that you would meet Jesus in his word and among his people. 00:04:45.839 --> 00:04:56.160 We um have been in a sermon series through the book of Acts, and this series is entitled Living by the Spirit and Following the Way. 00:04:56.639 --> 00:05:10.639 Um, really, what we're doing as we look at this text is we're we're tracing what happens when the risen Christ empowers ordinary believers through his spirit to do extraordinary kingdom work. 00:05:10.959 --> 00:05:15.120 We're all who have called on the name of Jesus ordinary believers. 00:05:15.279 --> 00:05:18.160 There's no one among us who's anything special. 00:05:18.399 --> 00:05:19.839 Hate to break it to you. 00:05:20.000 --> 00:05:28.800 Um we are proof of what happens when the risen Christ works in a people to build his kingdom, and that's the mission we're trying to live out. 00:05:29.920 --> 00:05:34.959 Um as Teresa read, we're in Acts chapter 8, verses 4 through 25. 00:05:35.040 --> 00:05:39.279 And uh today's passage it gives us a striking contrast. 00:05:40.000 --> 00:05:46.800 It shows us first what real faith looks like, and then it shows us what counterfeit faith looks like. 00:05:47.360 --> 00:05:56.560 It shows us joy breaking into enemy territory, and it shows us the danger of approaching God with the wrong heart. 00:05:57.839 --> 00:06:07.600 If you remember last week, the text we look at was looked at was Stephen being martyred, being killed for his faith. 00:06:07.920 --> 00:06:18.240 Um, and today we we see as the the church, the early church, spreads out beyond Jerusalem to Judea and Samaria. 00:06:19.360 --> 00:06:22.399 With that, we're offered two contrasting stories. 00:06:22.480 --> 00:06:36.160 And there's a world of difference between being impressed with Jesus and actually following him, between admiring spiritual power and actually surrendering to Christ. 00:06:36.720 --> 00:06:38.560 What we see in Acts 8 is both. 00:06:38.800 --> 00:06:40.879 Acts 8 shows us both. 00:06:41.519 --> 00:06:50.720 There's true faith that empowers believers for service, while the desire for power without understanding leads to spiritual deception and emptiness. 00:06:52.480 --> 00:06:55.519 With that, there's four truths that we're gonna examine today. 00:06:56.399 --> 00:07:01.600 First, we're gonna see the scattered church become a preaching church. 00:07:02.079 --> 00:07:06.480 Second, we're gonna look at spectacle versus spirit, spectacle versus spirit. 00:07:06.720 --> 00:07:12.399 Thirdly, we'll see that true spiritual authority is received, not taken. 00:07:13.040 --> 00:07:18.000 And then lastly, fourthly, we'll see the danger of a bought faith. 00:07:20.240 --> 00:07:21.519 I'll pray and then let's dig in. 00:07:21.600 --> 00:07:24.160 Heavenly Father, thank you for bringing us here today. 00:07:24.480 --> 00:07:36.879 Lord, thank you for your word, the living word, Lord, the divine words that you've spoken to us, that we we can encounter you through your word here in 2025, Lord. 00:07:37.040 --> 00:07:44.000 God, I pray that you move in this space, that right now you would prepare our hearts, prepare our minds, prepare our ears for the words that you have for us, Lord. 00:07:44.240 --> 00:07:46.240 Lord, would you move me out of the way? 00:07:47.439 --> 00:07:49.040 Would you speak through me? 00:07:53.839 --> 00:08:02.959 God, would you would you make us a people who are hungry for you, who are hungry for your word, who who desire to be transformed by it, Lord? 00:08:05.199 --> 00:08:07.519 God, thank you for sending your son, Jesus. 00:08:07.839 --> 00:08:10.240 Would you guide, guard, and direct us today, Lord? 00:08:10.399 --> 00:08:14.160 We love you, we praise you, and it's in the mighty name of Jesus I pray. 00:08:14.480 --> 00:08:15.120 Amen. 00:08:15.759 --> 00:08:16.319 Amen. 00:08:16.560 --> 00:08:21.600 Hey, so point number one this morning is the scattered church becomes a preaching church. 00:08:21.839 --> 00:08:25.439 The scattered church becomes a preaching church. 00:08:25.759 --> 00:08:34.480 Acts chapter 8, verse 4 through 8, the word says, Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word. 00:08:34.960 --> 00:08:40.000 Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed to them the Christ. 00:08:40.320 --> 00:08:48.240 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. 00:08:48.480 --> 00:08:56.399 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. 00:08:56.720 --> 00:09:00.320 So there was much joy in the city. 00:09:02.399 --> 00:09:07.679 So to start with, Luke tells us that those who were scattered went about preaching the word. 00:09:08.320 --> 00:09:16.399 These are believers that had just fled Jerusalem after the martyrdom of Stephen, after the violent persecution that he endured. 00:09:16.799 --> 00:09:19.519 It looks like tragedy, right? 00:09:20.159 --> 00:09:22.960 It looks like defeat for the early church. 00:09:23.039 --> 00:09:27.360 It looks like retreat for the early followers of the way. 00:09:28.559 --> 00:09:36.879 But family, what we see right here in this text is that this was not defeat, that this was not retreat, that this was divine redirection. 00:09:37.840 --> 00:09:42.399 In God's hands, scattering becomes seed spreading. 00:09:43.120 --> 00:09:47.759 Philip, one of the seven chosen in Acts 6, goes to Samaria. 00:09:48.720 --> 00:09:54.799 And to travel like this, it might feel normal to us with our like hyper-connected world. 00:09:55.120 --> 00:09:59.440 But in the first century, traveling like this, it was almost unthinkable. 00:10:00.399 --> 00:10:07.519 For one, there was a distance, but secondly, Jews and Samaritans, they carried generations of hostility. 00:10:07.759 --> 00:10:10.320 They carried generations of racial tension. 00:10:10.480 --> 00:10:15.600 They carried religious conflict, they carried political resentment against each other. 00:10:15.919 --> 00:10:24.159 If you want to do some more research, you can look back to 2 Kings 17, to Ezra 4, and even to John chapter 4. 00:10:25.840 --> 00:10:32.080 Their hostility to each other was so much that they didn't share food or water or space. 00:10:32.960 --> 00:10:37.120 And so the Samaritans, they were a mixed people with a mixed religion. 00:10:37.279 --> 00:10:49.600 They were ethnically, they were part Israelite, part Gentile, religiously, part Torah observant, part syncretistic, so they blended with the religions that were around them. 00:10:50.080 --> 00:10:58.240 They considered themselves descendants of Jacob, but Jews in the first century did not consider them true Israelites. 00:10:58.960 --> 00:11:05.039 So they were a people who were hostile to the Jewish people, and the Jewish people often hostile to them. 00:11:06.559 --> 00:11:13.360 And I think what we see by Philip going and preaching there is that the gospel does not respect human hostility. 00:11:13.840 --> 00:11:18.799 The Spirit sends Philip right into the place that many Jewish people avoided. 00:11:20.080 --> 00:11:27.279 Because what we see is that ministry across lines of hostility is exactly how the Spirit builds Christ's kingdom. 00:11:28.000 --> 00:11:35.840 Philip, he effectively becomes the first-cultural cross-cultural missionary that we see in scriptures. 00:11:37.200 --> 00:11:43.120 The fact that Philip goes there, it signals the widening of the gospel promised in Acts 1.8. 00:11:43.519 --> 00:11:45.600 As a refresher, let's look at that. 00:11:45.759 --> 00:11:51.519 That's kind of been our kind of thematic verse through this series. 00:11:51.919 --> 00:12:03.120 Acts chapter 1, verse 8 says, 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 until the ends of the earth. 00:12:03.440 --> 00:12:04.960 So that's what we're seeing. 00:12:05.120 --> 00:12:10.399 We're seeing this to Jerusalem, from Jerusalem to Judea and Samaria sort of transition here. 00:12:10.559 --> 00:12:13.440 Acts 1 through 7, focused on Jerusalem. 00:12:13.679 --> 00:12:17.840 Acts 8 through, I think 12 or 13, Judea and Samaria. 00:12:18.159 --> 00:12:22.480 And then the remainder of the book of Acts ends of the earth. 00:12:22.639 --> 00:12:23.759 So that's what we're seeing. 00:12:24.000 --> 00:12:27.200 Acts 1.8 coming to life for us in real time. 00:12:28.320 --> 00:12:32.080 So Philip he goes to Samaria, he preaches the gospel, and what happens? 00:12:32.240 --> 00:12:37.200 He proclaims Christ, demons flee, bodies are healed. 00:12:37.519 --> 00:12:43.600 A whole city pays attention because the spirit of the living God is moving in Samaria. 00:12:44.320 --> 00:12:45.679 And what's the result? 00:12:46.080 --> 00:12:50.559 Well, verse 8 says that there was much joy in that city. 00:12:51.039 --> 00:12:53.519 There was much joy in that city. 00:12:53.600 --> 00:12:55.039 Isn't that beautiful, family? 00:12:56.639 --> 00:12:58.159 Louis doesn't think so. 00:13:00.480 --> 00:13:06.320 Here's the thing: the gospel brings joy where there was oppression and spiritual bondage. 00:13:07.919 --> 00:13:15.120 Signs accompanying the word, the preached word, validate the gospel's advance into new territory. 00:13:17.919 --> 00:13:24.799 Many likely thought that the gospel would be silenced when Stephen was martyred earlier in Acts 7. 00:13:26.000 --> 00:13:28.399 But persecution did not silence the church. 00:13:28.720 --> 00:13:30.320 No, it mobilized it. 00:13:30.480 --> 00:13:34.879 What looked like loss became a seedbed of mission. 00:13:36.720 --> 00:13:40.320 Here's the thing: the spirit turned suffering into mission. 00:13:41.759 --> 00:13:44.799 Here's a few applicable truths for us this morning. 00:13:44.960 --> 00:13:48.000 First, you don't need ideal conditions to be faithful. 00:13:48.320 --> 00:13:52.320 You just need a willingness to obey wherever God scatters you. 00:13:52.799 --> 00:13:55.759 For us, we've been scattered to Kansas City, right? 00:13:55.919 --> 00:13:58.879 We've been scattered in Rosedale and across the metro. 00:14:00.000 --> 00:14:03.360 But even more so, like, really drill into your own personal life. 00:14:03.519 --> 00:14:04.720 Like, is it a workplace? 00:14:04.879 --> 00:14:08.320 A workplace that may feel hostile to the gospel? 00:14:08.720 --> 00:14:11.679 Maybe it's a school that feels spiritually barren. 00:14:11.759 --> 00:14:15.600 Maybe it's a school that your children are going to that feels spiritually barren. 00:14:15.840 --> 00:14:19.759 Maybe it's a neighborhood that feels resistant to the gospel of Jesus. 00:14:21.519 --> 00:14:26.480 What I want you to hear this morning, family, is that the same spirit who empowers Philip empowers you. 00:14:28.399 --> 00:14:37.279 And the gospel that still pushes God's people across every dividing line, across cultural, racial, political, and relational dividing lines. 00:14:38.480 --> 00:14:39.600 Think of it like this. 00:14:39.840 --> 00:14:41.360 Here's a little illustration for you. 00:14:41.440 --> 00:14:49.440 Think of like a wildfire carried by a powerful wind, uncontained, unpredictable, unstoppable. 00:14:50.480 --> 00:14:53.039 Well, that's the early church here in this text. 00:14:53.200 --> 00:15:04.720 The church, scattered by the winds of hardship, by the winds of persecution, by the winds of Stephen's martyrdom, becomes the wildfire of the spread of the gospel. 00:15:05.440 --> 00:15:10.559 Where they land, here they land in Samaria, flames ignite. 00:15:12.639 --> 00:15:18.799 And right as joy breaks out in Samaria, Luke introduces a man who embodies a different kind of spirituality. 00:15:19.120 --> 00:15:23.840 A spirituality of spectacle, of awe, of self-exaltation. 00:15:25.200 --> 00:15:30.480 A spirituality that looks powerful, but yet is hollow on the inside. 00:15:31.519 --> 00:15:34.159 Next we'll look at point number two, spectacle versus spirit. 00:15:34.320 --> 00:15:36.639 Spectacle versus spirit. 00:15:37.120 --> 00:15:52.720 Acts chapter 8, verses 9 through 13, the word says, 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. 00:15:52.960 --> 00:16:00.799 They all paid attention to him, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is the power of God that is called great. 00:16:01.039 --> 00:16:05.759 And they paid attention to him, because for a long time he had amazed them with his magic. 00:16:06.159 --> 00:16:14.159 But when they believed Philip as he preached good news about the kingdom of God in the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. 00:16:14.399 --> 00:16:23.440 Even Simon himself believed, and after being baptized, he continued with Philip, and seeing signs and great miracles performed, he was amazed. 00:16:24.639 --> 00:16:37.360 So enter Simon, a local celebrity of sorts, a man who practiced magic, who practiced, you know, these kind of pagan ritualistic things. 00:16:37.519 --> 00:16:44.159 It wasn't like sleight of hand, like a fancy little card trick, but this was like occultic manipulation. 00:16:44.240 --> 00:16:45.919 This was ritual practices. 00:16:46.080 --> 00:16:47.600 This was spiritual control. 00:16:48.480 --> 00:16:51.200 The people called him the great power of God. 00:16:51.600 --> 00:16:53.919 And Simon, he loved that title. 00:16:54.399 --> 00:16:57.600 He fed on the admiration that he felt. 00:16:57.919 --> 00:17:05.519 He represented a counter-kingdom of false awe, of self-exaltation, and spiritual spectacle. 00:17:07.759 --> 00:17:18.240 For a little context, first century Samaria, they had a long tradition of this sort of syncretistic religion, of these sort of folk practices and magic arts. 00:17:18.559 --> 00:17:25.359 Sorcery, it was not, like I said, card tricks, but it was a blend of occultism and claims to spiritual authority. 00:17:26.079 --> 00:17:32.160 And for years, the Samaritans paid attention to Simon because he amazed them with his magic. 00:17:32.799 --> 00:17:38.319 But now, but now they're paying attention to Philip because he preaches Christ. 00:17:39.839 --> 00:17:44.240 This is, do you see this sort of contrast between Simon and Philip? 00:17:44.400 --> 00:17:53.839 Luke contrasts the crowds paying attention to Simon's magic in verses 9 through 11 versus them paying attention to Philip's message in verses 6 and 12. 00:17:54.240 --> 00:17:56.880 Luke is very deliberate in the language he uses. 00:17:56.960 --> 00:18:01.839 He says, Simon amazed the crowds, but Philip's message converted them. 00:18:03.839 --> 00:18:14.079 People believed Philip, not because of spectacle, not because of his showmanship, not because of having fancy words, but because he had the words of good news. 00:18:14.559 --> 00:18:20.559 The good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, the name that is above every name. 00:18:21.519 --> 00:18:28.799 And what's so crazy is as we read this is that even Simon, the magician, believed and was baptized. 00:18:30.319 --> 00:18:33.359 But look closely at the words used to describe him here. 00:18:33.759 --> 00:18:38.400 He followed Philip and he was amazed by miracles. 00:18:38.640 --> 00:18:45.200 Just like the Samaritan people were amazed by the magic that Simon was doing. 00:18:46.319 --> 00:18:51.440 Simon is amazed at the miracles that are being performed. 00:18:52.720 --> 00:18:55.680 His amazement is not directed towards Christ. 00:18:56.160 --> 00:18:59.119 His amazement is directed towards spiritual power. 00:19:00.960 --> 00:19:09.759 Simon gives us a picture of someone who is drawn to spiritual experiences, but not surrendered to Jesus Christ. 00:19:11.599 --> 00:19:12.880 Got you, Crystal. 00:19:14.079 --> 00:19:17.759 This is belief as fascination, not repentance. 00:19:20.720 --> 00:19:25.759 And here's the harsh reality for us across the Western Church. 00:19:28.160 --> 00:19:29.599 Maybe this church, I don't know. 00:19:29.680 --> 00:19:30.400 I hope not. 00:19:30.720 --> 00:19:40.720 But the reality is that there are people, including some in churches, who like Jesus, who like the idea of Jesus, but do not submit to Jesus. 00:19:42.000 --> 00:19:50.160 They enjoy the feelings of spirituality without embracing the great cost of discipleship. 00:19:52.799 --> 00:19:59.920 They're impressed with Christianity's aesthetic, not with Christianity's Lord. 00:20:02.480 --> 00:20:11.839 So the question for every one of us is: are we drawn to Christ Himself, or are we drawn to what we think Christ can do for us? 00:20:15.599 --> 00:20:17.119 Think about it like this. 00:20:17.599 --> 00:20:26.400 It's like someone who buys all the gym gear, who watches all the workout videos, who talks endlessly about fitness, but never actually trains. 00:20:27.119 --> 00:20:28.480 I'm that someone. 00:20:28.880 --> 00:20:29.359 Right? 00:20:29.599 --> 00:20:37.759 Like, I can talk about fitness, I can talk about going to the gym, I can talk the talk, I know the lingo, but I never go. 00:20:38.000 --> 00:20:45.039 And granted, I have a newborn at home and it's like life's crazy right now, but like that's me. 00:20:48.319 --> 00:20:54.880 That sort of person, they love the aesthetic of transformation that comes from the gym, but not the discipline of it. 00:20:56.160 --> 00:20:58.079 And so for this text, that's Simon. 00:20:58.160 --> 00:21:02.880 And if we're honest, that's us far more than we'd like to admit it. 00:21:05.119 --> 00:21:07.039 But here's what's what's so sweet. 00:21:07.359 --> 00:21:10.240 God loves Simon enough not to leave him there. 00:21:11.440 --> 00:21:18.720 And family, he loves us enough not to leave us to stay in a shallow or self-centered faith. 00:21:20.640 --> 00:21:25.680 So what he does next is he reveals what what real spiritual authority looks like. 00:21:25.839 --> 00:21:27.599 That's what we'll look at in point number three. 00:21:27.839 --> 00:21:30.960 True spiritual authority is received, not taken. 00:21:31.200 --> 00:21:34.240 True spiritual authority is received, not taken. 00:21:34.480 --> 00:21:37.440 So Acts chapter 8, verses 14 through 17. 00:21:38.079 --> 00:21:48.640 Now when the apostles at 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. 00:21:48.799 --> 00:21:53.680 For he had not yet fallen on any of them, but they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 00:21:53.839 --> 00:21:56.640 Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit. 00:21:56.799 --> 00:22:02.640 Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying On of the apostles' hands, he offered them money. 00:22:05.200 --> 00:22:13.039 So word gets back to the apostles in Jerusalem that Samaria of all places has received the word of God. 00:22:14.319 --> 00:22:18.559 So the apostles send Peter and John, and that's significant. 00:22:20.160 --> 00:22:28.240 These are lifelong Jews walking into Samaritan territory in order to affirm the new work of God that is taking place. 00:22:32.079 --> 00:22:38.480 Now, Luke says that the Spirit had not yet fallen on the Samaritans, and I just want to like take a pause there real quick. 00:22:38.559 --> 00:22:49.039 And before we move on, like it's important to say this like this passage has different, differing views over what the meaning of these three verses is. 00:22:49.200 --> 00:22:57.920 There's been discussion throughout church history, and even among faithful believers across churches, across maybe even within our church. 00:22:58.799 --> 00:23:09.599 So some see this moment in Acts 8, when the Spirit comes after the Samaritan's belief as teaching like a second experience of the Spirit's power that believers should seek today. 00:23:09.680 --> 00:23:21.680 Others see it as a unique transitional moment in salvific history, marking how the gospel was crossing barriers for the first time from Jerusalem to Samaria and not a pattern for every believer. 00:23:22.480 --> 00:23:24.000 Here's what I want to say. 00:23:24.160 --> 00:23:33.200 Wherever you land, what's clear is that the same spirit who fell on the Samaritans is the same spirit who fills every follower of Jesus today. 00:23:33.519 --> 00:23:38.480 He is not divided, he does not give himself in portions. 00:23:38.640 --> 00:23:43.119 Every believer is indwelt, and yet all of us can be freshly filled. 00:23:44.960 --> 00:23:55.519 So rather than, here's my hope, rather than us dividing over timing or labels, my hope is that we are united in our desire to see the Spirit move powerfully in us and through us. 00:23:56.960 --> 00:24:02.400 Just as he did then, to bring healing, to bring reconciliation, to bring new life to our city. 00:24:07.920 --> 00:24:10.000 So why does God do it this way? 00:24:11.440 --> 00:24:20.000 Well, I think it's done in this manner to make it unavoidably clear that there's one church, that there's one spirit, that there's one body, that there's one baptism. 00:24:20.319 --> 00:24:22.559 Jew and Samaritan are united in Christ. 00:24:24.480 --> 00:24:27.839 The apostles lay hands on them, they pray, and the Spirit comes. 00:24:28.480 --> 00:24:42.960 Not because Philip himself lacked power, and not because the Samaritans were not saved yet, but because God is stitching, He's molding, He's grafting His church together in unity. 00:24:44.240 --> 00:24:52.079 So the Apostles' presence, it guards the unity of the early church and affirms Samaritans as full participants in God's kingdom. 00:24:54.960 --> 00:24:58.720 So this merit moment, it carries a true crucial truth. 00:25:00.240 --> 00:25:03.599 Spiritual authority, it's not seized, it is received. 00:25:04.000 --> 00:25:06.000 It's not achieved, it is given. 00:25:06.640 --> 00:25:10.240 It is not controlled, it is submitted to. 00:25:10.720 --> 00:25:13.119 The God of the universe cannot be controlled, family. 00:25:14.559 --> 00:25:19.200 We do not command the spirit, we posture ourselves to receive him. 00:25:21.680 --> 00:25:24.640 Here's the thing, ministry done in the flesh, it may impress people. 00:25:25.279 --> 00:25:28.240 But only ministry done in the spirit transforms people. 00:25:29.599 --> 00:25:31.200 Here's what I what I tell people often. 00:25:31.359 --> 00:25:51.440 Like I I was in the nonprofit world before church planting, and there was times when I could just get by through my own, you know, natural strength and talent and pick myself up by the bootstraps, and like I could get by and have a semblance of success, and my bosses would be impressed with me and all those things. 00:25:51.599 --> 00:26:02.480 But what I know is true today, that through the journey of church planning, what the Lord has revealed to me is that every single good thing has been a result of the Lord, of the Lord's work, of the Spirit's moving. 00:26:02.640 --> 00:26:05.519 It ain't nothing I've done, it ain't nothing any of us have done. 00:26:05.680 --> 00:26:08.480 It is all the Lord's moving and the Lord's willing. 00:26:08.799 --> 00:26:13.599 And I don't know about you guys, but that's the sort of place, that's the sort of posture I want to be in for the rest of my life. 00:26:14.319 --> 00:26:17.359 That's the sort of place of just dependence on the Lord. 00:26:17.519 --> 00:26:22.640 Like, God, I don't know what to do, but you do, and I'm gonna I'm gonna receive what you have for us. 00:26:27.440 --> 00:26:29.839 And that's I think I think that's Christian maturity. 00:26:30.000 --> 00:26:31.680 That's us maturing in the Lord. 00:26:31.839 --> 00:26:35.680 Christian maturity, it looks like humility and expectancy. 00:26:36.079 --> 00:26:39.599 Hands open, hearts surrendered. 00:26:40.640 --> 00:26:53.119 So, church, that's my encouragement for you this morning to pray for a posture of humility, to pray for a posture of expectancy. 00:26:56.319 --> 00:26:58.480 It's so kind of almost ironic, isn't it? 00:26:58.559 --> 00:27:04.319 Like we can't, left to our own devices, we can't like self-will our way to humility. 00:27:04.480 --> 00:27:06.319 We can't just say, hey, I'm gonna be more humble. 00:27:06.480 --> 00:27:08.240 Like that ain't how it works. 00:27:09.119 --> 00:27:11.200 Or, hey, I'm gonna expect more from the Lord. 00:27:11.359 --> 00:27:14.559 Like, that's not, we can't self-will our way into that. 00:27:14.720 --> 00:27:16.960 It is only the Lord that can do that work. 00:27:17.279 --> 00:27:19.759 So, church, pray for a posture of humility. 00:27:20.079 --> 00:27:23.519 Pray for a posture of expectancy. 00:27:26.799 --> 00:27:30.880 Think of it like this receiving a gift that you could never earn or purchase. 00:27:31.200 --> 00:27:36.640 I think one of the most beautiful pictures of that is adoption, right? 00:27:36.720 --> 00:27:39.839 And I often think of my wife Chelsea. 00:27:40.000 --> 00:27:46.240 For the first nine years of her life, it was her and her mama, um, single mother doing life together. 00:27:46.400 --> 00:27:48.720 And then Nate, he adopted her. 00:27:48.960 --> 00:27:59.759 And now when we we go down there for Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner, it's like this big bash with like 50, 60 of her closest family members, all on her dad's side. 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:09.680 So her and I both have been adopted into this massive family, many of them following Jesus, one of them a pastor. 00:28:09.839 --> 00:28:18.000 And I just think that like that's a gift that we did nothing to receive, that we could never earn or purchase, right? 00:28:21.839 --> 00:28:26.960 These gifts come to you through another's initiative and grace, not through payment. 00:28:27.440 --> 00:28:30.480 And it's that same sort of gift that we receive from Christ Jesus. 00:28:31.119 --> 00:28:35.359 There's nothing that we can do to earn Christ's grace, Christ's love. 00:28:35.759 --> 00:28:42.240 There's there's nothing we can do in and of ourselves to deserve Christ's grace, to deserve his love. 00:28:44.160 --> 00:28:45.359 Oh, it's a free gift. 00:28:46.000 --> 00:28:48.559 All we do, open hands, open hearts, we receive it. 00:28:58.960 --> 00:28:59.920 Here's what's what's crazy. 00:29:00.079 --> 00:29:05.839 While the Samaritans receive the Holy Spirit as a gift, Simon sees the Spirit as an opportunity. 00:29:06.640 --> 00:29:09.200 A chance to elevate himself again. 00:29:10.720 --> 00:29:14.960 And that leads us to one of the sharpest warnings that we see in the entire book of Acts. 00:29:16.000 --> 00:29:18.640 Point number four, we see the danger of a bot faith. 00:29:20.000 --> 00:29:22.319 We see the danger of a bot. 00:29:22.480 --> 00:29:24.799 B-O-U-G-H-T faith. 00:29:25.519 --> 00:29:28.559 Acts eight, eighteen through twenty-five. 00:29:30.079 --> 00:29:43.519 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. 00:29:43.759 --> 00:29:51.119 But Peter said to him, May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money. 00:29:52.559 --> 00:29:59.519 You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right before God. 00:30:00.559 --> 00:30:01.519 Verse 22. 00:30:01.839 --> 00:30:10.079 Repent, therefore, of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you. 00:30:11.119 --> 00:30:15.119 For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bonds of iniquity. 00:30:15.680 --> 00:30:22.160 And Simon answered, Pray for me to the Lord, that nothing of what you have said may come upon me. 00:30:22.799 --> 00:30:31.119 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. 00:30:40.960 --> 00:30:45.920 When Simon sees that the spirit comes through the laying on of the apostles' hands, he offers them money. 00:30:46.240 --> 00:30:48.559 He wants to buy that sort of power. 00:30:49.200 --> 00:30:51.359 Give me this power, he is saying. 00:30:52.000 --> 00:30:58.880 Not give me the spirit, not I receive the spirit, but give me this power. 00:31:02.240 --> 00:31:09.519 Simon attempts what later becomes known as a Simony, buying spiritual influence or office. 00:31:11.519 --> 00:31:13.759 And Peter's response is scorching. 00:31:14.400 --> 00:31:17.119 May your silver perish with you. 00:31:18.480 --> 00:31:21.200 This is covenantal judgment language. 00:31:22.240 --> 00:31:30.160 It's not a curse of hatred, but it's a call to recognize the deadly seriousness of his request. 00:31:31.920 --> 00:31:34.319 Peter, he diagnoses the issue. 00:31:35.200 --> 00:31:38.720 He shows that the problem is not ignorance, it is idolatry. 00:31:39.200 --> 00:31:41.680 He says, Your heart is not right before God. 00:31:42.240 --> 00:31:45.200 Your heart is not right before God. 00:31:45.920 --> 00:31:49.200 And maybe here this morning we need to examine our own hearts. 00:31:50.480 --> 00:31:56.000 Is there a place in which our heart is not right before God? 00:31:58.240 --> 00:32:03.519 Where we have an idol that's taking the place of God in our lives? 00:32:03.759 --> 00:32:06.480 You know, idolatry looks different in our day and age. 00:32:06.559 --> 00:32:16.799 It's not, you know, the uh, you know, like physical metal sort of idol, but there's things that we can make an idol of in our lives. 00:32:16.960 --> 00:32:20.640 There's things that we put in the place of God in our lives. 00:32:21.039 --> 00:32:32.240 Could be money, could be power like Simon, it could be influence, it could be success, it could be popularity, it could be, you know, what is it for you? 00:32:32.400 --> 00:32:35.359 Like, really, like pray for the Lord to reveal that to you. 00:32:35.680 --> 00:32:44.160 Because my hope for us is that we would be a people that God would say our heart is right before Him. 00:32:46.720 --> 00:32:49.359 Simon, he wants influence without repentance. 00:32:49.920 --> 00:32:54.160 He wants impact without surrender, he wants power without holiness. 00:32:55.359 --> 00:32:59.119 He wants to use God instead of being used by God. 00:33:00.480 --> 00:33:02.400 And I think that this is a warning to all of us. 00:33:04.160 --> 00:33:12.000 We must hear this church, we must guard against transactional Christianity. 00:33:13.839 --> 00:33:27.119 Approaching prayer, scripture, church, or even like service, or even like outreach as ways to get something from God rather than simply responding to his grace and obedience. 00:33:28.559 --> 00:33:31.279 The the Holy Spirit, it's not an accessory. 00:33:38.000 --> 00:33:41.759 I think of Kyle Moody's he he collects and restores vintage watches. 00:33:42.079 --> 00:33:48.079 Watches are an accessory to Kyle's boots and you know his his pearl snap and all that. 00:33:53.200 --> 00:33:54.960 But the Holy Spirit is not an accessory. 00:33:55.119 --> 00:33:56.720 He is not a tool. 00:33:58.079 --> 00:34:00.799 He is not a means to personal advancement. 00:34:01.200 --> 00:34:04.720 The Holy Spirit is God and God cannot be bought. 00:34:07.440 --> 00:34:08.400 But here's what's great. 00:34:08.559 --> 00:34:10.480 Peter, he calls Simon to repentance. 00:34:11.599 --> 00:34:13.440 True, true repentance. 00:34:13.679 --> 00:34:15.599 The kind that Christ welcomes. 00:34:16.960 --> 00:34:21.599 And that repentance is always the doorway back into life. 00:34:29.280 --> 00:34:32.480 Imagine trying to buy a friend. 00:35:26.480 --> 00:35:28.719 We follow the Lord who loves us unconditionally. 00:35:29.679 --> 00:35:37.519 I think back to my life before Christ, before I was radically saved from the darkness of addiction. 00:35:38.559 --> 00:35:41.840 And so many of my relationships were just that. 00:35:41.920 --> 00:35:42.880 They were transactional. 00:35:42.960 --> 00:35:44.559 It was what can I get from you? 00:35:44.719 --> 00:35:46.880 What do you have to offer me? 00:35:47.360 --> 00:35:49.119 An eye for an eye. 00:35:49.679 --> 00:35:57.119 But what I found since following the way of Jesus is that the best relationships are unconditional. 00:35:57.440 --> 00:36:01.760 And the greatest relationship, the relationship that we have with the Lord Jesus, it's unconditional. 00:36:02.320 --> 00:36:06.320 Unconditional grace, unconditional mercy, unconditional love. 00:36:07.519 --> 00:36:08.320 We don't deserve it. 00:36:08.480 --> 00:36:09.119 We don't earn it. 00:36:11.280 --> 00:36:13.280 Nothing we can do to merit it. 00:36:14.639 --> 00:36:15.840 It's simply a free gift. 00:36:19.440 --> 00:36:20.719 So where does this leave us? 00:36:20.880 --> 00:36:24.239 Ashley, you can come and close us in song. 00:36:24.400 --> 00:36:25.519 Where does this leave us this morning? 00:36:27.280 --> 00:36:28.079 Well, a few things. 00:36:28.159 --> 00:36:31.760 Here's a a few things to just a kind of tie a bow on it to recap us. 00:36:33.119 --> 00:36:33.760 True faith. 00:36:34.320 --> 00:36:36.400 It receives Christ with open hands. 00:36:38.639 --> 00:36:44.400 False faith tries to grasp spiritual power with clenched face. 00:36:51.760 --> 00:36:56.639 First, the Spirit sends us out, even through hardship, to proclaim Christ. 00:36:59.840 --> 00:37:04.320 Second, the gospel dismantles long-standing hostilities and brings joy. 00:37:06.960 --> 00:37:13.679 Thirdly, Christianity is not spectacle, it is surrender to King Jesus. 00:37:15.280 --> 00:37:18.719 Fourthly, the Spirit is a gift, not a product. 00:37:20.800 --> 00:37:29.519 Lastly, repentance is the doorway into the authentic Jesus life, into real spiritual life, into the way of Jesus. 00:37:30.719 --> 00:37:33.199 Maybe this morning we need to just simply repent. 00:37:33.280 --> 00:37:37.039 Maybe there's something that you need to lay down at the foot of the cross. 00:37:41.119 --> 00:37:44.639 Maybe you need to seek the gift of the Spirit. 00:37:45.519 --> 00:37:50.000 Maybe you need to surrender your seeking of power. 00:37:52.480 --> 00:37:56.480 Maybe there's some hostility that needs dismantled in your life. 00:37:57.599 --> 00:38:00.880 Or maybe it's you need to put your yes on the table and be sent. 00:38:01.039 --> 00:38:02.320 Go to your Samaria. 00:38:02.880 --> 00:38:06.639 Maybe the Lord wants to send you on mission somewhere. 00:38:08.880 --> 00:38:10.480 I don't know what it is for you. 00:38:10.800 --> 00:38:12.480 The Lord does, the Spirit does. 00:38:12.800 --> 00:38:14.400 Flesh that out with Him. 00:38:14.880 --> 00:38:16.880 Happy to discuss with you too. 00:38:17.920 --> 00:38:19.360 Let me ask you this though. 00:38:19.599 --> 00:38:22.400 What draws you to Jesus? 00:38:23.519 --> 00:38:26.159 What draws you to Jesus? 00:38:28.480 --> 00:38:33.039 Is there an area in your life where you are resisting repentance? 00:38:39.360 --> 00:38:44.639 Do you hunger for the Spirit Himself or only for His benefits? 00:38:46.800 --> 00:38:49.760 Do you hunger for Christ Himself or only for His benefits? 00:38:50.079 --> 00:38:52.239 Do you hunger for God Himself or only for His Pit Him? 00:38:52.559 --> 00:38:58.159 Do you hunger for the triune God Himself or Himself or only for His benefits? 00:39:02.159 --> 00:39:04.320 Until his passage points us to Christ. 00:39:04.559 --> 00:39:15.760 The one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit, the one who crosses boundaries to redeem outsiders, the one who offers forgiveness freely to all who repent. 00:39:16.719 --> 00:39:19.599 The one whose power is not thought, but giving. 00:39:26.639 --> 00:39:53.039 As we take this story as a whole, what we see, just to summarize it for you, is we see a place long marked by division, by confusion, by oppression, because there was much joy in this. 00:39:54.239 --> 00:40:00.639 So there was much joy in the same area. 00:40:20.000 --> 00:40:23.119 So there was much joy in Kansas City. 00:40:23.280 --> 00:40:25.599 So there was much joy in Rose City. 00:40:27.840 --> 00:40:32.480 If Jesus can renew Samaria, he can renew Kansas City. 00:40:33.840 --> 00:40:43.199 If the Spirit can bring centuries of hostility, he can reconcile neighborhoods, families, and hearts in our city. 00:40:44.800 --> 00:40:52.559 If joy can flood Samaria Christmas, joy can fly Kansas City through a people who preach Christ wherever they're strong. 00:41:45.280 --> 00:41:54.480 The words that you've given us through people to seek your spirits. 00:42:06.079 --> 00:42:08.159 So there's much joy to see.