Spreading the Flame
Introduction: The Scripture text before us today, Acts chapter 8, can be studied biographically or geographically. If we take a biographical focus we discover there are 4 main characters—two positive and two negative: there is Saul the Persecutor, Philip the Evangelist, Simon the Magician, and the Ethiopian eunuch. But there is also a strong geographical focus in the chapter, as it describes the spread of the Gospel beyond Jerusalem and Judea to two unlikely places—Samaria and Africa. The importance of this is seen in the Great Commission we examined back in chapter 1. Jesus said to His disciples, “You shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Here in Acts 8 we begin to see the fulfillment of that Commission.
Our four main characters interact with the geography of this chapter in that Saul’s persecution forces the disciples out of Jerusalem to Judea and Samaria where they spread the Good News; Philip carries on an evangelistic campaign to the Samaritans; Simon presents a significant internal threat to the fledgling church in Samaria, and the Ethiopian eunuch (after being evangelized by Philip out in the desert) takes the Gospel to Africa.
My sermon in a sentence is this: The Great Commission takes a great leap forward in Acts 8, as the Gospel is spread from Jerusalem to Judea and Samaria and then to the ends of the earth, despite outside persecution and internal opposition. The preaching of the Word—the Gospel—is mentioned in verse 4, 5, 12, 25, 35, and 40.
Saul instigates a great persecution against the church, resulting in the dispersion of the believers and the spread of the Gospel throughout Judea and Samaria. (1-4)
“And Saul approved of his (i.e., Stephen’s) execution. And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. 2 Devout men buried Stephen and made great lamentation over him. 3 But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison. 4 Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word.”
The followers of Jesus faced persecution from the beginning. You will recall that Peter and John were hauled before the Sanhedrin in chapter 4. All the apostles were arrested in chapter 5 and flogged. Then Stephen was arrested in chapter 6 and became the first martyr of the church in chapter 7. Up to this point the persecution was primarily against the leaders of the church but now in chapter 8 the Enemy changes his strategy. In verse 1 we are told that everyone except the apostles were scattered. I’m not certain why that is. It could be that since the Apostles refused to be intimidated, the Jewish leaders decide that going after their followers might bring them to their knees.
The first main character in our story, Saul, is introduced to us at the end of chapter 7 (v. 58) as simply a young man at whose feet Stephen’s clothes were laid when he was stoned to death. Saul is mentioned again in the first verse of chapter 8 as giving approval to Stephen’s execution, but then in verse 3 we learn that his involvement is much more sinister than being a mere bystander or even approving of Stephen’s stoning. Saul is the chief instigator, in the persecution of the Christian community. His goal is to destroy the church and he is going about it by invading people’s homes and imprisoning them. In fact, he does worse than that. In a speech before King Agrippa years later in Acts 26 this same man, known now as the Apostle Paul, confesses that when some of his victims were put to death his vote helped to condemn them. Saul was persecuting, imprisoning, even murdering the early Christians.
But God is not just sitting on his hands as this persecution unfolds; in fact, I suggest to you that He is purposely allowing it. Verse 4 says: “those who were scattered went about preaching the word.” It could be that up to this point the believers were satisfied to stay in Jerusalem and hunker down in their holy huddles. If that is the case, God is no longer going to let them ignore the Commission He gave them in chapter 1, and so He scatters them. Thankfully they accept the challenge, and their dispersion results in the spread of the Gospel everywhere they go.
Tertullian, one of the early church fathers, is famous for his statement that “The blood of martyrs is the seed of the church.”[i] As persecution increases, so does the strength and health of the church. That has always been true. It was true here in Acts 8. It was true during the reign of Bloody Mary, the 17th century English monarch who executed countless Protestant leaders; under her persecution the English reformation blossomed. And it was true in the 1950’s when thousands of young people committed themselves to missionary service following the murder of five young missionaries to the Auca Indians. We decry the persecution of Christians wherever it occurs, and rightly so. But persecution is not without benefit, friends. The church in America would not be so anemic, as it is today, if we were facing the wrath and fury of the Enemy as many previous generations have.
It is at this point we are introduced again to Philip. As you will recall from chapter 6, he was one of the first deacons or servants in the early church. The Apostles chose seven men to take administrative duties off their plates so they could give their time to teaching and to prayer. But these seven weren’t just administrators; they weren’t any less spiritual than the Apostles; in fact, they were full of the Holy Spirit and of wisdom. All seven are named in Acts 6, but only two are mentioned anywhere else in the NT. One is Stephen, but now he has been martyred. The other is Philip.
Philip proclaims the Gospel in Samaria in the power of the Holy Spirit. (5-8)
Let’s turn our attention again to the text, reading verses 5-8:
5 Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed to them the Christ.6 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. 7 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. 8 So there was much joy in that city.
In Samaria (here called a city but also a region) Philip, one of those forced out of Jerusalem, proclaims Jesus as the Messiah, a clear indication that the early Christians do not consider Jesus to be just a Jewish Messiah but rather a Messiah for the world. Philip uses both the spoken word (preaching) and miraculous signs to gain the attention of the people. Demons are cast out, shrieking as they emerge, and paralytics and cripples are healed, much as Jesus did during His ministry. The result is great joy in the city, as family and friends are restored to health and sanity.
Why does God employ signs and wonders as a dominant factor in this particular case? Well, the answer may have something to do with the next character we meet.
Simon the Magician threatens the fledgling Samaritan church from within. (9-25)
9 But there was a man named Simon, who had previously practiced magic in the city and amazed the people of Samaria, saying that he himself was somebody great. 10 They all paid attention to him, from the least to the greatest, saying, “This man is the power of God that is called Great.” 11 And they paid attention to him because for a long time he had amazed them with his magic. 12 But when they believed Philip as he preached good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. 13 Even Simon himself believed, and after being baptized he continued with Philip. And seeing signs and great miracles performed, he was amazed.
14 Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent to them Peter and John, 15 who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, 16 for he had not yet fallen on any of them, but they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 17 Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit. 18 Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money, 19 saying, “Give me this power also, so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” 20 But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money! 21 You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right before God. 22 Repent, therefore, of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you. 23 For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity.” 24 And Simon answered, “Pray for me to the Lord, that nothing of what you have said may come upon me.”
25 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.
Simon’s character. The first thing we are told about Simon is that he is a sorcerer. I believe there are only two possibilities with any sorcerer, wizard, or magician. The first is that he is simply an illusionist, a trickster; the other is that he is demon-possessed. I am not sure which it is in this case. Simon seems to have superhuman powers, but the word “magic” in verse 11 can mean “trickery.” We may simply have to leave the question unanswered. We are also told that Simon is boastful and narcissistic. He claims to be someone great; in fact, he seems to be encouraging worship of himself as a deity. He is big stuff in Samaria.
Simon’s competition. Simon amazes the people of Samaria for a long time (verse 11), butwhen Philip preaches the good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, and when he accompanies his preaching with true first-class miracles, many Samaritans believe the Gospel and are baptized. This is the first competition Simon has faced and I suspect he is flustered. What’s a poor sorcerer supposed to do when someone shows up with even greater signs and wonders? Simon knows sorcery, but what Philip is doing blows his mind. You know the old saying,“if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.” Perhaps that is what is going through Simon’s mind, for in verse 13 we read about his own confession.
Simon’s confession of faith and baptism. I call it his “confession” rather than “conversion” because I am not sure what this man’s spiritual status is. The text says he himself believed and was baptized, and it further says that he continues to follow Philip. However, the subsequent story casts doubt on the reality of his profession, to say the least. It may be that what Simon had in mind is that he was willing to become an apprentice to Philip if he could eventually become a master.[ii]
Now in verse 14 the account of Simon is temporarily interrupted.
The strange case of how the Samaritans receive the Holy Spirit. (14-18) Remember that when the persecution started the Apostles stayed in Jerusalem. But when they hear that the Samaritans have accepted the Good News of the Gospel, they send their two most prominent members, Peter and John, to check it out. Why? Is there something deficient in Philip’s preaching that needs correction? I doubt it. Verse 16 says that the Holy Spirit had not yet come upon the Samaritans, so I suspect Philip himself realizes something is missing and calls for the Apostles to come and help out.
Most evangelical theologians (other than charismatics) teach that Spirit baptism today is automatic. The Holy Spirit takes all new believers and baptizes them into the Body of Christ, and it happens at the time of conversion. 1 Cor. 12:13 puts it this way: “For in one Spirit (or by one Spirit) we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.” That is the norm—every believer baptized by the Holy Spirit into one body. But when the Holy Spirit was first introduced to the Body of Christ, it seems that God provided accompanying evidence, specifically the gift of speaking in tongues. We saw that on the Day of Pentecost in Jerusalem when the church was founded.
Now the Gospel is penetrating a new area, Samaria, and once again some sign of the Spirit’s baptism is offered, possibly again the gift of tongues, though the text does not explicitly say so. It does say in verse 17 that “Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit,” and clearly there was something different about these believers after they received the Holy Spirit because Simon could “see” the difference (v. 18).
I want to suggest to you that what is going on here in the visit by Peter and John is that the church in Jerusalem is officially placing its stamp of approval on, and is welcoming into the Body of Christ a group of people that have been estranged from the people of God for over 700 years. Ever since the Assyrians took the northern kingdom into captivity in 722 B.C. and brought in foreigners to intermarry with the Jews, the Samaritans had been considered half-breeds and outcasts. Their religion was a strange amalgam of truth and idolatry, as witnessed in 2 Kings 17:33, where it says of the Samaritans, “They feared the Lord but also served their own gods, after the manner of the nations from among whom they had been carried away.”
To receive such people into the church requires buy-in from the apostles on down, but once the Apostles give their approval the matter is settled. The fact that the Holy Spirit comes upon the Samaritans through the laying on of the Apostle’s hands puts it beyond dispute that the Body of Christ crosses all racial and ethnic barriers.[iii]
We return to Simon in verse 18.
Simon’s sinful reaction to the giving of the Holy Spirit. He offers money to the Apostles, saying, ““Give me this power also, so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” Peter responds, “May your silver perish with you!” Literally he says, “To hell with you and your money!”, not as a curse word but as a real divine threat. What was Simon’s mistake? It is identified as thinking he could buy the gift of God with money! Ever since this event Simon’s name has been associated with corruption in the church. “Simony” is the term used when church leaders allow greed to control their ministry. It was especially rampant in the medieval Catholic church, as the positions of bishop and cardinal went to the highest bidder. But the problem of greed on the part of church leaders is, unfortunately, not absent from the church today. The root problem for Simon, of course, is spiritual. His heart is not right before God. He is wicked and a captive to sin.
Simon’s destiny. I would say it is unknown. On the one hand, some very troubling things are said about him. The use of the term “perish” causes one to think he was condemned, as does Peter’s judgment that he has “no part or share” in this ministry. On the other hand, that same phrase “no part or share” was used of Peter himself by Jesus when Peter refused to allow Jesus to wash his feet, and while Peter was mistaken, his faith was genuine. Further Peter urges Simon to repent and holds out the possibility that God will forgive him. And Simon asks Peter to pray for him so that nothing he has predicted, including perishing, happens to him. I think we should probably reserve final judgment.
The Simon story ends with the note that Peter and John preach the Gospel in many Samaritan villages on their way back to Jerusalem.
Now the fourth and final act in our chapter involves the Ethiopian Eunuch.
The Gospel spreads to Africa by means of the Ethiopian Eunuch. (26-40)
26 Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Rise and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is a desert place. 27 And he rose and went. And there was an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure. He had come to Jerusalem to worship 28 and was returning, seated in his chariot, and he was reading the prophet Isaiah. 29 And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.”30 So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” 31 And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. 32 Now the passage of the Scripture that he was reading was this:
“Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter
and like a lamb before its shearer is silent,
so he opens not his mouth.
33 In his humiliation justice was denied him.
Who can describe his generation?
For his life is taken away from the earth.”
34 And the eunuch said to Philip, “About whom, I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?” 35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this Scripture he told him the good news about Jesus. 36 And as they were going along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?” 38 And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. 39 And when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away, and the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing. 40 But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he passed through he preached the gospel to all the towns until he came to Caesarea.
This story tells about the first spread of the Gospel beyond the homeland of Israel.
Philip’s Travel Agent. The Angel of the Lord tells Philip when and where to go and Philip, despite being uninformed about the reason for the detour, listens and responds. Philip might be excused for thinking, “Why should I leave the effective ministry I am currently experiencing, with hundreds of people coming to faith and an entire region being evangelized, to go to a desert road near Gaza where there are few people and no chance of establishing a church?” But the Holy Spirit knows something Philip does not know. He is preparing an individual to receive the Gospel who will have an impact way beyond Philip’s Samaritan converts.
The Ethiopian’s Quest. He is an important official; he is essentially the Chancellor of the Exchequer of a major country in Africa. He is known as an` Ethiopian, but the country from which he comes would be closer to Sudan than to present-day Ethiopia. He works for the head of that government, Candace the Queen. The fact that he is a eunuch is not surprising since this was normal for palace officials—either to provide protection for the King’s harem, or in this case for the Queen herself. But his status as a eunuch continues a key theme in this chapter. First, the Gospel is shared with the Samaritans, a despised group that was not even allowed entrance into the temple in Jerusalem. And now it is shared with a eunuch, who is also considered unclean and unfit to worship in the Temple.
This Ethiopian has gone to Jerusalem to worship. We don’t know if he has other business there, but his personal priority seems to be worship of the one true God. Now he is on his way home, not having found all he was looking for but having picked up some Scriptural scrolls, which he is reading in his chariot. He just happens to have obtained a scroll of the prophet Isaiah, and just happens to be reading the 53rd chapter, which has been called the OT Gospel. What a coincidence!
Philip’s travel agent tells him, “Go to that chariot you see riding down the road and stay near it.” I would assume God provides supernatural strength for Philip to run alongside the chariot.
Philip’s exposition of the Gospel. He hears the man reading aloud from the scroll, recognizes it as the writings of Isaiah, and asks him, “Do you understand what you are reading?” The man says, “No, how could I without someone to explain it,” and invites Philip to come up into the chariot and sit with him. Then we are told exactly what portion of Scripture the Ethiopian is reading, Isaiah 53:7-8, a clearly Messianic passage bout the death of Jesus, the Lamb of God.
The eunuch then asks an interesting question—not about what the text means but rather specifically who the prophet Isaiah is talking about—himself or someone else? This is a valid question, because at times the OT prophets would speak of their own experience, while at other times they would speak prophetically of someone yet to come. And sometimes they would speak of themselves (or someone else in their time) while the Holy Spirit intended the ultimate fulfillment to be about someone else.
Philip then, beginning with that passage, explains to him the good news about Jesus, the Gospel of salvation through the death of Christ. That, by the way, is the task of the biblical preacher—to take the Scriptures, whether OT or NT, and explain how it is ultimately all about Jesus. A week ago today I attended services at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, probably one of the three greatest church edifices in the world. I was there for a wedding, not the royal one but the wedding of my niece near Cambridge. The atmosphere of the Evensong Service at St Paul’s was awesome, the music was stunning, and the Scripture lessons were edifying, but the sermon was pathetic.
The canon (chief clergyperson) of the cathedral was led with much pomp and circumstance to the ornate pulpit with the figurative hand of God arching over it, but his sermon barely mentioned Jesus or even God. He eulogized John Donne, Martin Luther King, Archbishop Tutu, Elton John, Gene Robinson (the first openly gay Episcopal bishop), and he gratuitously criticized Trump, but he never gave anyone the slightest idea of how to get right with God or have their sins forgiven. And they wonder why a church that holds 5000 people averages a few hundred in attendance, mostly tourists who are there to view the architecture! Philip preached Christ!
The Ethiopian’s baptism. As they rode along they came to some water, perhaps a lake or a river (in the desert? Could this be another miracle in our story?), and the Ethiopian suddenly asks why he shouldn’t be baptized. It seems odd that he would want to be baptized before expressing faith; so odd, in fact, that the KJV added verse 37, which verse you notice is missing in the ESV and most other versions: “And Philip said, ‘If you believe with all your heart, you may.’ And he replied, ‘I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” This is perfectly sound theology, of course, but the manuscript evidence is very weak.
Question: Why would the Ethiopian seek to be baptized? Philip hasn’t mentioned baptism, at least not that we know of. There’s certainly nothing about baptism in Isaiah 53. Perhaps he knew enough about Judaism to know that proselytes were required to be baptized. Or possibly he had run into some Christians while in Jerusalem and knew they always baptized new converts. At any rate, Philip and he go down into the water where he is almost certainly immersed, and as they come out of the water the Spirit of the Lord takes Philip away and the Ethiopian eunuch goes on his way rejoicing. We aren’t told here, but he is undoubtedly the origin of the church in Africa.
Philip’s supernatural departure and continuing evangelism. The chapter ends with the information that the Holy Spirit carries Philip away (the Greek word is actually “snatched” or “raptured,” the same word used for the rapture of the saints when Jesus returns (1 Thes 4:17). The Spirit deposits him in Azotus, where he preaches the gospel throughout the area until he reaches Caesarea, on the northern coast of the Holy Land. There Philip settles and raises a family who share in his ministry (Acts. 21:8-9).
Conclusion: There are many principles and applications we could take from this chapter, but I want to focus on just one: God will go to incredible lengths to provide the Gospel to those who respond positively to the truth they have. One of the most common questions that come from skeptics of the Christian faith is this: What about those who have never heard the Gospel? If a person has to know Jesus as his personal Savior, doesn’t that automatically leave billions of people without hope? And since that is unacceptable to the modern mind, surely we can assume God will grant salvation to all those who do the best with the truth as far as they know it.
I say “No,” to both of these propositions. Billions of people are not without hope, but God does notgrant salvation to those who simply do the best with the truth as they know it. He grants salvation only to those who put their faith in Jesus Christ, but (and this is a glorious truth!), He will go to incredible lengths to get the Gospel to those who respond positively to the truth they have. They, in turn, must believe the Gospel.
The NT has a term to describe someone who has some knowledge about God and is desirous of knowing more. He is called “a God-fearer.” The spiritual knowledge he has might come through nature, through conscience, or through exposure to believers, and it is sufficient to render the person without excuse (Rom. 1) but not sufficient in and of itself to result in salvation. The Roman Centurion in Acts 10 is denoted as a devout God-fearer, but he clearly is not born again. Yet God goes to incredible lengths, including several miracles, to provide him with the Gospel, to which he responds and is saved. And while that exact term, God-fearer, is not used of the Ethiopian, the description we have of him makes it clear that is exactly what he was.
We don’t know whether his initial belief in God came through nature, conscience, or in some other way, but we know he is pursuing his limited knowledge as far as he can. Does God consider him a true believer? No, but He directs his path to Isaiah 53 and then pulls His #1 evangelist away from a fruitful ministry in Samaria, where thousands are responding and being baptized, to share the Gospel with this one man heading back to an unknown part of Africa. Why? Because God wants to communicate to us that no person, no matter what race or country of origin or even if mutilated and thus ineligible to enter the Jewish Temple, is outside the reach of His grace. If the Ethiopian could have been saved merely by believing in God, or by reading the Scriptures, or by making a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, why would God have sent Philip to the desert and then included this story in the book of Acts. No, God is communicating to us that this man needs to know Jesus or he will spend eternity separated from God.
In one sense Christianity is incredibly exclusive. Acts 4:12 tells us clearly that “neither is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name (than the name of Jesus) under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” Salvation comes through Jesus or not at all. But in another sense Christianity is incredibly inclusive. Because God is not willing that any should perish, He will do whatever it takes to get the Gospel to a God-fearer, any God-fearer. And one of the means He uses is to send people like Philip, men or women who are willing to listen to God’s nudging and go to places that don’t make sense on the human level, but where God is preparing individuals to believe and be baptized and spread the Gospel. What an appropriate conclusion to our Missions Month!
Let’s pray. Father, thank You that You are a searching God, a God who does not desire any to perish but for all to come to repentance. Thank you for revealing Yourself to people everywhere through nature, through conscience, or through other means. Thank You for sending Your witnesses to the ends of the earth to bear witness of the truth of the Gospel. And thank You most of all for sending Your Son Jesus Christ to pay the penalty for our sin that we might have our sins forgiven and lead a life worthy of Your grace. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Tags:
Evangelism
Persecution
Magic
Baptism of the Holy Spirit
Baptism
[i] Interestingly, Luke uses a word for “scattered” that means to scatter as seed is scattered on the ground.” See Everett Harrison, Acts, The Expanding Church, 130.
[ii] Harrison, 138.
[iii]Charismatics generally extrapolate from Pentecost and this text on the Samaritans that Spirit baptism is alwaysaccompanied speaking in tongues, but I think it fits the biblical evidence better to say that tongues was employed in situations where the baptism of the Holy Spirit is first introduced to a new group. By the way, water baptism in the name of Jesus, in this particular case, precedes by perhaps several days the gift of the Holy Spirit. In other situations water baptism follows the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1-4), in others it is simultaneous with it (Acts 2:38), and in still other cases no connection is mentioned between the two (as we see with the Ethiopian eunuch in verse 38). This leads me to believe there is no essential connection between water baptism and the reception of the Holy Spirit.