Acts
8:14-17
I
heard a preacher once say, "If
God called His Holy Spirit out of the world, about ninety-five percent of what
we are doing would go right on - and we would brag about it."
If
fact the `rugged individual, do it my
own way' philosophy is part and parcel of what it means to be an
American. Self-reliance is a quality all
of us admire. No one wishes to be
dependent upon the whim and whimsy of other people; for when we relied on
others we have often been bruised and battered, betrayed and broken.
Afterward
we re-group and promise ourselves that never again will we be put in a position
where our own welfare depends upon another individual or corporation or a
government quick to break its promises.
That is the wisdom which grows from our scars.
Unfortunately,
we sometimes extend the parameters of self-protection to boundaries which far
exceed the threat. The result is that we box out not only our enemies; but also
our friends. And sometimes even God.
We
may say the right words or faith, pray the right prayers, perform the right rituals;
but deep down we hold ourselves in reserve, keep something back even from
God. When we do that we close ourselves
off from the greatest blessing God gives; and that is the empowering presence of
the Holy Spirit.
In
a moment we will trace the impact this had on one congregation; and the
difference God's Spirit made. Maybe we
can see and experience the difference God's Holy Spirit can make right here. First, let us pray:
God of the living water; we thirst for the abundant
life Jesus promised; we yearn for the joy and `peace that passeth all
understanding'. But,
often we feel as if our faith is as dry as dust and any wind might blow it
away.
We yearn for the touch of your Holy Spirit. We pray the Comforter come into each heart
which truly hungers for you. This we
pray in the name of the one who promised the coming of your Spirit, even Christ
our Lord. Amen.
Philip
had not intended to travel to Samaria, but religious persecution at home forced
him and this fledgling band of Christians out of the neighborhoods which were
familiar and into a world which was not. One of the unintended consequences of
those who sought to crush this fledgling faith was that it prompted instead increased
growth. It was kind of like blowing on dandelion seeds; they end up almost
everywhere.
Geographically,
Samaria is only some 30 or 40 miles north of Jerusalem. It is not a far distance on the map; but it
was a tremendous journey from the culture of Judea to that of Samaria. Religious
prejudice and snobbery went back almost eight hundred years when the Assyrians
swept in from the north and conquered everything and everybody up until the
point where they came to the walls of Jerusalem.
So,
the 10 tribes of the Northern Kingdom of Israel were assimilated into the
Assyrian culture, and then into the cultures of the Babylonian, Greek, and
Roman conquerors. By the time of the New
Testament, traditional Jews looked down their noses at the Samaritans whom they
considered to be spiritual `half-breeds'.
That
harsh judgment was not altogether unfounded because, "The people of Samaria were entangled in magic and sorcery, not
unlike people today who seek spirit shortcuts to meet their needs. We all want
a quick trip to Wonderland."[1]
Philip,
though, was a Greek; and so he was not so infected with the bigotry. He did not
look down upon these people because of their background or they dressed or how
they talked. All he knew is that God led him to Samaria; and that witnessing to
his faith in Christ came as natural to him as breathing. So he proclaimed the Gospel. We can all take
a lesson from that.
Lo
and behold, who would have thought; there was a revival in Samaria - a genuine `hymn-singing, life-changing, soul-saving'
revival. The Bible says, "there was great joy in the city."
(Acts 8:8)
Meanwhile,
back in Jerusalem, the word filtered down that great things were happening in
Samaria; people lives were being changed, and souls were being saved. Now this spiritual renewal flew right in the
face of everything everybody believed about Samaritans. No one thought God could redeem these lost
people.
So,
the Church did what all churches do when they encounter something exciting
happening someplace else - they formed a committee to study it. They gave Peter and John a travel expense
account and sent them up north to see what all the fuss was about.
When
they arrived they discovered that everything they had heard was true; that many
had responded to the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. But, they also found something else.
For
some unknown reason, Philip in his proclamation of the Gospel showed them the
light of Jesus, but neglected to tell them about the power which would keep
that light shining. And it was clear to Peter and John that the light was
already beginning to flicker. Early
enthusiasm and energy for the gospel was already beginning to fade.
Lloyd
Oglivie, chaplain of the U.S. Senate described the predicament this way; he
said,
"We can pray prayers without talking to God;
we can teach
and learn truth without being transformed by the truth;
we can work for Christian causes
without being healed ourselves;
we can read the Bible and live with messed-up relationships;
we can hear about the power of
the Spirit and live inhibited, intransigent lives."[2]
We
can know the facts of what Christ did without having the enabling power of what
he is doing. And the enabling power
comes from the third part of God - the Holy Spirit.
On
the day of Pentecost, the second chapter of Acts describes the effects of the
moving of the Holy Spirit upon a timid band of disciples. The Bible says, "They were all gathered in one place. And suddenly a sound came
from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind...and there appeared to hem tongues
as of fire."[3]
That
is what they experienced. What they did
afterward proved the experience to be true.
They burst from behind the closed doors where they had been hiding, and
went into the streets and preached to the people they had once feared. In the following three hundred years the
movement which began with a few scatterings of people covered the known world. A
persecuted church proved powerful and persuasive. They moved from fear to
faith, they ceased relying upon the flesh and trusted in the Spirit, they went
from weakness to power.
The
Church in Samaria had yet to experience that power - they didn't know about it
until Peter and John told them.
It
was kind of like story I read once about a man named George Yates. He owned a sheep ranch in West Texas. But, the price of wool was down; and he
wasn't making enough money to pay the bills.
He was in danger of losing it all.
For a time, he had to live on a government subsidy.
Day
after day, he grazed his sheep over those rolling West Texas hills; worrying
and fretting over how he was going to make ends meet.
Then
one day a seismographic crew from an oil company came into the area and told
Mr. Yates that they thought there might be oil on his land; and asked him if it
would be alright to drill a wildcat well.
He signed an agreement.
At
1,115 feet they struck a huge oil reserve.
The first well came in at 80,000 barrels a day. Subsequent wells came in twice as big. George Yates owned it all.
The
day he purchased the land he received the oil and mineral rights; yet he had
been living on relief; a potential multi-millionaire living in poverty because
he did not know the oil was there. He
owned it; but he did not possess it.
That
is what happened in Samaria. From the
moment that said "Yes"
to Jesus Christ they became children of God and heirs to all that God
promises. They knew the facts about what
Christ did through the cross and resurrection, but not know about so did not
understand or become aware of the enabling power of God expressed through the
Holy Spirit. They did not know that they “could do all things through Christ
who strengthens.”
How
many of us have felt just like that? We
can repeat what we learned in Sunday School or through the confirmation
class. We may even be able to describe
with great theological certainty and conviction who Jesus was and what he
taught back then; but become silent when asked what God is doing in your life
right now. So faith has become only
obligations and responsibilities; but the joy is lacking or has faded.
One
song from the 60's described it this way:
All the old religion has burned out in me.
All the wide eyed wonder of my youth.
God relight the light that has turned out in me.
Give me back some faith and hope and truth.
If there is a Holy Spirit, if there is a heavenly
Dove,
Then I would like to see and hear it. Changing
this cold world with love.[4]
So,
we come to the question those Samaritan Christians asked, "How do we receive the Holy
Spirit?"
Receiving
the Holy Spirit begins with the recognition that there is a need within us we cannot
fill by ourselves, or anyone else for that matter; or a challenge which cannot
be met only by our own wisdom and strength, or God’s peace that passes all
understanding. That is, the first step to receiving God's Holy Spirit is the
recognition that we need it.
It
seems to me that those who have discovered the secret of Christian living are
those who realize that the closer we grow to Christ, the more we long to know
more of him; the greater we sense his strategy, the more we need and pray
urgently for the Holy Spirit. We cannot
expect the Holy Spirit's power until we have opened our hidden hearts to the
Lord.
Jesus
put it this way, “I stand at the door and knock; if any one hears my voice and
opens the door, I will come in.”[5]
We
all say we want the abundant Life that Jesus describes, (John 10:10), but we
want it without changing anything about the way we live or how we think or what
we do. That was the response of Simon
the Magician. For when he saw the difference the Holy Spirit made in the life
of those Samaritan Christians, he wanted to buy it, control it, use it, sell
it. He asked Peter and John in effect, "What do I have to pay? Let me buy this
power." (Acts 8:19)
The
power and Spirit of God is not for sale.
God freely gives His Spirit; but God does not pour it into a dirty cup.
And that is what Peter and John said to that magician.
In
fact, when you look at what Jesus said about the Holy Spirit in the 14th and
16th chapter of the Gospel of John; you find that Jesus did not say that the
main reason the Holy Spirit would come was to give you a good feeling. What did Jesus say about it?
"But, the counselor, the Holy Spirit whom the
Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and bring to remembrance
all that I have said unto you."
(John 14:26)
and
"When the counselor (the Holy Spirit) comes he
will convict the world of sin and righteousness...he will guide you to all
truth." (John
16:8,12)
That
is where the freedom and power and joy comes from. The freedom comes from the knowledge that we
no longer have to `play dress-up';
we no longer have to pretend, and put our best face forward. God sees beneath your Sunday Best. God knows what your really like - the key is
that you acknowledge what you are really like.
Once you `name the demons'
they lose their power over you. The
result is freedom and power to live better.
And where there is power to live better there is joy.
Simon
the Magician was looking for another kind of `feel good' drug. He was
looking for another placebo to get people through the day. He was looking for the quick fix, a cheap
thrill, and a fast high. And some people
look to God for the same things, and think that is what the Holy Spirit is for.
It
is not. The Holy Spirit does not come
into a life to make you feel better; he comes into a life to help you `be better.' If you are thirsty for that kind of life;
God has promised to quench that thirst.
Jesus said, "Blessed are
those which o hunger and thirst after righteousness; for they shall be
filled." (Matthew 5:6)
It
is when the desire for righteousness is filled that the desires we have for the
feelings of peace and joy and enthusiasm are fulfilled also.
The
secret of Christian living is found when realize that the closer we grow to
Christ, the more we long to know more of him; the greater we sense his
strategy, the more we need and pray urgently for the Holy Spirit. We cannot expect the Holy Spirit's power
until we have opened our hidden hearts to the Lord.
Someone
said, "When we rely on
organization we get what organization can do.
When we rely on education, we get what education can do. When we rely on
eloquence, we get what eloquence can do.
When we rely on the Holy Spirit, we get what God can do."
Let
us pray:
Spirit of the living God,
Fall
a-fresh on me;
Spirit of
the living god,
Fall
a-fresh on me.
Melt me, Mold,
Fill me, Use me,
Spirit of
the living god,
Fall
a-fresh on me.
Amen.
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