City Life Starter

Written by Scott Fiddler

The Word

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.” . . . .

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.”

Acts 8:9–10, 14–23

Reflection

I was into magic when I was a kid, mostly slight-of-hand stuff and a few card tricks. I think it appealed to me because my little unredeemed heart liked being the center of attention. Then, with the exception of a Siegfried & Roy show in Las Vegas once, I forgot about magic as an adult.

A few months ago, I made the mistake of looking too long when a magician’s reel showed up on my Facebook feed. Now Facebook feeds me magician videos daily. And I’ve noticed something has changed. 

When I was a kid, magicians didn’t reveal how they did their tricks. If you wanted to do magic, you bought the kit with the foam balls, the cups, the cards, and the instructions. Magicians didn’t reveal their secrets because to do so would undermine their ability to make a living. Now, magicians freely reveal their secrets on Facebook. I guess gaining followers is more important than maintaining the illusion.

Since this new business model favors me, I’m learning magic again. Recently, I picked up credit card and mind-reading tricks that even impressed my skeptical wife. Still, I know that as real as a good trick can appear, it’s not real magic. It is only an illusion.

Simon knew the difference too. Like me, Simon was into magic because he liked being the center of attention. And he was good at it. He told people he was someone great, and people paid attention to him. They even called him, “The power of God that is called Great.” I know that doesn’t really roll off the tongue in English, but I’m sure in Aramaic it sounded more like “Criss Angel” or “David Copperfield.”  He was the man.

That is why when he saw real supernatural power, he wanted it. He saw the Samaritan believers being baptized in the Holy Spirit. He saw demons being cast out and people healed, and he knew it was no illusion. 

So he did what people accustomed to buying secrets do—he reached for his wallet. 

Application

Peter immediately rebuked Simon. And herein lies the point of this devotional. 

Peter rebuked Simon because his heart was wrong. Simon wanted the Holy Spirit to bring more glory to Simon. And like any other good magic trick, he was willing to pay for it.

The Holy Spirit is not given to make us the center of attention. He is not given to make us a celebrity or “the Influencer that is called Great.” He is given to glorify Jesus (John 16:13–14) and empower us as His witnesses (Acts 1:8).

And that holds true in Samaria, Las Vegas, and to the ends of the world.

Prayer

Lord, help me always to remember that the Holy Spirit’s role is to bring glory to Jesus. Amen.