Shabbat Shalom, everyone. Let's turn, please, to the Book of Acts today. We are going to continue in the study of the Book of Acts and we are going to look at the 8th chapter, at least the first part of Acts chapter 8. We have been studying so far in the Book of Acts and we have enjoyed to see the beginning of the proclamation of the Gospel by the early Hebrew Messianic believers who came to faith in Yeshua the Messiah. And we have seen how beautiful they have been presenting the message of the Gospel to their own brethren and many have come to faith in Yeshua. And when we begin now in Acts chapter 8, we can see that they had to go through some persecutions and they had to experience things that we have to admit many of us do not even know who live outside of the land of Israel.

We don't have even the realization what does it mean to be persecuted by those who oppose the message of the Gospel. And so, we begin today with the reading in Acts chapter 8 and please follow up with me as I'm reading some of the first verses there. Verse 1 we read: "And Shaul was consenting unto his death. And at that time there was great persecutions against the church which was a Jerusalem. And they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria except the apostles. And devout men carried Stephen to his burial, and made great lamentation over him. As for Shaul, he made havoc of the church, entering into every house, and hauling men and women committed them to prison.

Therefore, they that were scattered abroad went everywhere preaching the word. And Philip went down to the city of Samaria and preached the Messiah unto them. And the people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Philip spake, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did. He had unclean spirits, crying with a loud voice, came out of many that were possessed with them. And many taken with palaces, and that were lame, were healed. And there was great joy in that city." Verse 9: "But there was a certain man called Shimon, which before time in the same city used sorcery and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one, to whom they all gave heed from the least to the greatest, saying, "This man is the great power of God." And to him they had regard, because that of long time he had bewitched them with sorceries.

But when they believed Philip, preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Yeshua the Messiah, they were baptized, both men and women. Then Shimon himself believed also, and when he was baptized, he continued with Philip, and he wondered, beholding the miracles and the signs which were done. Now when the apostles which were in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John, who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Spirit. For as yet he was fallen upon none of them, only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Yeshua.

Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. And when Simon saw that through the laying of the apostles' hands the Holy Spirit was given, he offered them money, saying, "Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands he may receive the Holy Spirit." But Peter said unto him, "Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money. Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter, for thy heart is not right in the sight of God. Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee.

For I perceive that thou art in a gall of bitterness and in a bond of iniquity." Then answered Simon and said, "Pray ye to the Lord for me, that none of these things which ye have spoken come upon me." "And then they had testified and preached the word of the Lord, returning to Jerusalem, and preached the gospel in many villages of the Samaritans." And I'm going to stop here, in verse 25, for the portion of today. I know it is a long portion, but I just have to bring it together here, in chapter 8, in order not to lose something here, especially as the gospel moved on now, from Jerusalem, from Jerusalem, to the location of Samaria.

Now, I would like to remind you, dear brothers and sisters, that we are now taking ourselves back in the studying of the book of Acts, about 2,000 years back, we are looking at the time where the foundation of the body of Messiah had begun, where the first early believers in the city of Jerusalem proclaimed the message of the gospel to their own brethren, and they have experienced misunderstanding and much persecution by their own people. And especially in the end of chapter 7, we have seen what happened to this man by the name of Stephen. Stephen was one of these Jewish people who have immigrated to the land of Israel, became a believer in Yeshua the Messiah.

He was one of those Grecian Hebrews, and he became one of these servants among the believers in Jerusalem, and he testified concerning the Messiahship of Yeshua, and his whole testimony to the Sanhedrin is described to us in chapter 7 of the book of Acts. And what happened to him at the end of the book of Acts? And what happened to him at the end of his testimony? If you remember, they took Stephen, and they stoned him, and as they stoned him, he was crying to the Lord Yeshua the Messiah, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. Stephen believed in Yeshua the Messiah and his love for his brethren, even at the time of the stoning of this man, he was crying to his Lord, to the Messiah, and asking him not to lay this sin to the charge of the Sanhedrin there.

And if you remember, when those who testified against Stephen were there testifying against him, they laid their clothes in chapter 7 and verse 58 to ease themselves so they can stone Stephen easily, they have laid their clothes beside a man by the name of Shaul. It is the first time in the scripture that we have been exposed to this man by the name of Shaul. His Hebrew name is Shaul. His diaspora name is Paul. We are going to talk about him much more as we are studying the book of Acts. But here we see Shaul in chapter 8 and verses 1 to 3, beginning with the persecution of the believers in the city of Jerusalem.

Notice those verses in the first three verses here. We see first of all, it says here in verse 1, And Shaul was consenting unto his death. And at the same time there was great persecutions against the church which was in Jerusalem. You notice that word, by the way, in the Greek, the word consenting, it's not only agreeing with the persecution of Stephen, it is much more he found pleasure in the persecution of Stephen even unto death. Now can you imagine, here is this young man by the name of Shaul, who was a real devoted man to the God of our fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

When he saw that there were many who became believers in Jesus the Messiah, in Yeshua HaMashiach, he was not happy with this. And he sought to oppose that message of the Messiahship of Yeshua. So what does he do? He does that which is seemingly pleasing his God, but obviously not. What does he do? He began to persecute those Hebrew believers. It says there that in verse 1, there was a great persecution of the church which was in Jerusalem. I want to highlight that word church here, because the word church, we understand it from the scriptures, simply means called out once. It's not the building, it is the people.

He couldn't persecute the building, but he persecuted the believers that were in the city of Jerusalem. He began to persecute them and he began to be that leader who motivated others to persecute those early Hebrew believers. And so what happened? They were scattered in verse 1 throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. Now, do you remember that when Yeshua, before he went to glory, in Acts chapter 1, he said to the disciples, You shall be my witnesses, beginning in Jerusalem, then Judea, and then Samaria, and then the uttermost parts of the earth. And perhaps it seemed to be that Yeshua used the persecution of the early believers in order to scattered them abroad, beyond the borders of Jerusalem.

So the message of the gospel is going to move on to Judea, Samaria, and then ultimately to the uttermost parts of this earth. And that man, by the name of Shaul, was the ringleader. He was so devoid to the Lord, that in other passages in the scripture, he tells us of himself. He says, I was circumcised, if you remember, in Philippians chapter 3, on the eighth day. I was of the stock of Israel. I am a Hebrew of the Hebrew. I am from the tribe of Benjamin. I am a Pharisee. I was committed to the truth of the God of Israel. He was so devoted to the things of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, that for him, faith in Yeshua, the Messiah, was dishonoring to God.

And therefore, he began to be that one that was persecuting his own Jewish brethren who believe in Jesus, the Messiah. So, what does he do? The Bible shows us here that he persecuted. He was consenting to his death. There was a great persecution against the church was born in Jerusalem. They were scattered abroad in verse one. And then in verse two, a devout men were carrying Stephen to his burial and made a great lamentation over him. Now, we do not know who were those devout men. Luke usually used this expression, devout men. Some suggest that they may have not even been believers, but they simply did not agree with what the Sanhedrin have done by accusing Stephen and by stoning him because Stephen was a man that was not supposed to be the criminal.

He didn't do anything wrong. He simply believed that Yeshua was the Messiah. And so, those devout men carried Stephen and apparently they lamented over him. If he was a criminal, there was no need to lament over him. But he was a man of God, a man that was pleasing God. And therefore, they lamented over him. There was a great lamentation over Stephen. But then we read a little bit more about Saul. Look what we read. Saul had made havoc of the church. He entered into every house. And he hauled men and women and he committed them to prison. Can you imagine going from house to house, from place to place, and bringing those believers out of the houses in Jerusalem, hauling them out and taking them to prison?

Look at this great persecution that happened in Jerusalem. You will hear a little bit more about what's going on today in Israel. But I personally, just two weeks ago, stood in Israel, in the city of Arad, in the middle of a demonstration of Orthodox people who believe strongly in the God of our fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, opposing those who believe in Yeshua the Messiah. Obviously, they didn't go from door to door and haul the believers from house to house. But nevertheless, there is an opposition to faith in Yeshua the Messiah by our own people. Even today, as we are here finding ourselves today in these days of age.

And so, he went, Shaul, from house to house, hauling men and women. Notice, it's not only men, but also women. We can see that it's not only the leaders of a household, but also their wives. They're taking them all, bringing them into prison. And if you read in Acts chapter 22, he will say later on in his testimony that he was also gone beyond merely taking them to prison. In Acts chapter 22 and in verse 4, it says that I persecuted this way unto death. Paul said, Shaul said in Acts 22 and verse 4. Literally, he was bringing Jewish believers and not only putting them in prison, but also seeking their death.

And that's the kind of men this man by the name of Shaul have been. But, you see, it had been said that the seed of the martyrs is the development of that which caused the church, the assembly, to grow. The more they sought to persecute the believers, they were scattered abroad, they were gone from one place to another place, but what do you think they did? They began to preach beyond the borders of the city of Jerusalem. They shared the message of the gospel. So, what we learn here from these verses, that persecution did not hinder the believers from sharing the message of the gospel beyond the area where they were living before.

And that's what really happened here, dear brothers and sisters. In verses 4 to 8 of Acts chapter 8, we see that the preaching of the message of the gospel have gone beyond the city of Jerusalem to a place that is called Shomron, Samaritan. And look at this, it says in verse 4, "Therefore they that were scattered abroad went everywhere preaching the word." The word for scattered abroad, it comes from the word, like we have earlier, it comes from the word diaspora. The Greek word is diasporo, it means to be scattered. That's where we get the word, the Jews of the diaspora. Here it is the Jewish believers who have been dispersed, have gone to the diaspora, have been scattered abroad.

But they preached the message. Wherever they have gone, they have preached the person of the message of the Lord Jesus, the Messiah. It may have been publicly. It may have been on a personal level. But they have preached the word of God faithfully. Wherever they have been, they were preaching the word, sharing the message of the gospel. Why? Because they understood the truth that faith comes by hearing. And hearing comes by the preaching of the message of the word of God. And that's why we on a regular basis preach the word here. We teach the Bible. We share the message of the word of God.

We don't deviate. We simply teach the message of the word of God. Verse by verse, chapter by chapter, book by book. Because through preaching of the word, sinners can be saved and saints can be encouraged in the things of the Lord. And so look, they have gone. They were preaching the word wherever they have gone, wherever they have been scattered to. And then we read in verses five, six, and seven, and eight, the preaching of Philip in the location that is called Shomron, Samaria. Now just pause here for a moment about the Samaritan. You notice it says in verse five, Philip went down to the city of Samaria.

Samaria. We call it in Hebrew Shomron. Shomron is what is known today as the West Bank. It's occupied by the Palestinian today, much of it. And it is the area that is being really discussed today. Does it belong to Israel or not? Should we give it to the Palestinian or not? But this area of Shomron, remember, that was part of the nation of Israel when God had given the land to the Israelis who came from Egypt, entered to the promised land, and it was given to the tribes of Israel. But what happened? The nation of Israel had been divided into these two nations, the northern tribes Israel, the southern tribe Judah, and then there was constant friction between those two nations.

And because of unbelief, and because of disobedience to God, he had carried the northern kingdom by the Assyrian away from the land. And you read it in 2 Kings chapter 17. Those ten tribes, because of disobedience, idolatry, and all kind of things that they have done, they have been carried by the Assyrian because God has judged the ten tribes. But you see what happened? When they were carried away by the Assyrian, apparently the king of Assyria brought other people into this area that is called Shomron, Samaria. There were people who are pagan from outside of the land, and they were living in this land, worshipping their own gods.

So what happened? They were bitten by lions, and they were worried. What are we going to do? And so the Levites told them, you know what? Because you are worshipping other gods, that's why you are being bitten by the lions. So he's brought back some of the people of the nation, and they end up intermingling with them. And that's how you got that what is called the Samaritan. It was a mixed marriages, but more than just mixed marriages. It was a union or mixture of faith in the true God, but also faith in all sort of gods and idols of the nations of the world.

And that's how the Samaritans were characterized. It was a mixture. Today in Israel, there are between 400 to 700 Samaritans who live in Israel, some in a city called Cholon. In another, some of them actually live on Mount Gerizim. And I personally have visited Mount Gerizim about a year and a half ago, speaking to some of the Samaritans there. They are really, in a very similar way, they are following some of the Israeli or Jewish traditions. They have Hebrew names. They have synagogues. They keep the Passover. They keep some of the holidays. But they don't believe that it is through Israel, through Judah. And in the city of Jerusalem is where the Messiah is going to be.

So you know what they are doing? They have introduced a temple in Mount Gerizim. They have introduced all kinds of things. They have eliminated the city of Jerusalem from the Torah, from the five books of Moses. And they claim that everything is being done through the Samaritans. Ultimately, the Messiah will come and they will establish a kingdom there in Samaria. And they needed to know that it is not through the Samaritans that the salvation will come. That salvation will ultimately come through the promises that God had given to the nation of Israel, to the Jewish people. And so here we see Philip. He is going to Samaria in verses 5, 6, 7 and 8.

He went down to Samaria and notice what he does. He preached Mashiach, Christ, unto them. He was simply preaching Yeshua the Messiah. And the people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Philip has spoken. And they heard and they saw the miracles which he did. Apparently accompanying the preaching of the gospel by Philip was the miracles that have happened. There was demonic activity there. There was physical needs there. And somehow, because Philip was connected with the apostles. Remember, he was not an apostle. He was one of those deacons, servants that was chosen by the people in chapter 6. And he was used by the Lord in the preaching of the message of the gospel there in Samaria.

And apparently, what a wonderful result there was there. He was preaching. They were listening to his message. And they have accepted. Many have come to faith in Yeshua the Messiah. He tells us here in verse 6 that the people with one accord gave heed to those things which Philip spake. And hearing and seeing the miracles which he did. Unclean spirit crying with a loud voice came out of many that were possessed with them. And many taken with pulses and that were lame were healed. So there was a miracle that was going on there. There was a preaching of the word accompanied by miraculous things that have happened.

That the Lord had used Philip to remove demons from many of them. To physically heal those that were sick of his palaces. And there was great joy in those cities of Samaria. Beautiful to see the work of the Lord in a place such as Samaria. But remember again, I would like to show this to you. That the Samaritans needed to know that salvation is of the Jews. And salvation comes through God's promises to the nation of Israel. Today, there's no such thing as the city of Samaria. It's a region called Shomron. But nevertheless, it was the joy that came there because of their faith in Yeshua the Messiah.

I wanted for a moment, please, to turn to the Gospel of John. Just for a couple of verses there in John chapter 4. And I'd like you to see the problem that have existed between the Jewish people and the Samaritans. You see, the Samaritans and the Jewish people had no relationship with each other because of what the Samaritans believed in. In John chapter 4, we read of Yeshua the Messiah in verse 4. It says, "He must go through Samaria." "Then cometh he into the city of Samaria, which is called Seichar, or Shechem, near the parcel of the ground that Jacob gave unto his son Joseph." And there he had a special meeting with the Samaritan woman.

It says here, "There cometh," in verse 7, "a woman of Samaria, to draw water." And Yeshua said unto her, "Give me to drink." "For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy food." Then says the woman of Samaria unto him, "How is it," look at this, "that you being a Jew, and you asked to drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria." And then it says, "For the Jews have no dealing with the Samaritans." Well, why there was no dealing with the Samaritans? Because the Samaritans had a mixed religion. They believed in God, but they also believed in all kinds of gods of the nations of the world.

There was a mixture of belief. And that's why there was no dealing, because the Jewish people, the people of Israel believed in a God, and the only God, the true and living God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And they could not mix with the Samaritans, because the Samaritans shifted and they moved away from simply faith in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And so the Samaritan woman was amazed. And she said to Yeshua, "How come that you, a Jew, Jewish, Yehudi, you ask me for water? Because I am a woman, number one, and number two, I am a Samaritan." And then Yeshua had to answer to her.

And if you remember, I'm not going to read all the text, but I wanted to see what he ultimately had to teach this Samaritan woman. He said to her, and I'm going down to verse 21, "Woman, believe me that the hour is coming when ye shall neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem will worship the Father. Ye worship what ye do not know, but we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews." Yeshua had to teach this Samaritan, this fact, that they have deviated with what God had intended to give to them. And the salvation that was promised by God will only come in accordance with his purpose and his plan.

And salvation will come through the tribe of Judah that will bring birth to the Messiah Yeshua. And ultimately he will be the one that will provide salvation to the world around. And so she needed to hear it. The Samaritan needed to learn that. And that's why in Samaria, when Philip went there, he had to present to them Christ, the Messiah of Israel, the Lord Yeshua himself. And so notice verse 8, and I'm back in our chapter. There was joy in Samaria because many of them have come to faith in Yeshua the Messiah. There was a great joy in that city. And it is always good. There is always joy in the heart of God when a sinner comes to know him.

You remember what we read in Luke, chapter 15, of the prodigal son, that he had gone astray. And when he returned, we read, there was a great celebration. There was a great joy because the son had returned. When the woman lost one of her coins and she searched for that. And the story is spoken in Luke, chapter 15, when she found that one coin, there was a joy. There was a celebration because the coin represented a lost individual who came back to God and came to faith in Yeshua the Messiah. But there was a great joy in that city. We read here in verse 8. And now we are moving on to another man.

You see, we talked about Saul, verses 1 to 3. We talked about Philip, verses 4 to 8. And now we are going to speak about another man by the name of Shimon, or Simon, the sorcerer, in verses 9 to 25. Look at this. First of all, we read of him in verses 9, 10, and 11, that Simon was a sorcerer and the people of Samaria were bewitched by him. It says in verse 9, "There was a certain man by the name of Simon, which before time in the same city used sorcery or magic, and he bewitched the people of Samaria, and he giving out that he himself was some great one, to whom they all gave heed from the least to the greatest, saying, See, this man is the great power of God, and to him they had regard because of a long time he had bewitched them with sorceries." Now, it is no coincidence that we have here this man by the name of Simon immediately after the preaching of Philip.

Because every time God does a work, every time the Spirit of God is on the move and on the go, and there is a preaching of the truth of the Gospel, and people get saved. At the same time, Satan does his job. As God moves about presenting the love of the Messiah to man, immediately following this, there is the move of Satan, the move of the devil, the move of the enemy of God, to present false teaching, to present that which is not of God. And so what we see here, this man by the name of Simon, he was bewitching, the Greek word for sorcery is like coming from the word magic.

He was tricking them, he was doing magic, he was beguiling them. He was like one that succeeded in the power of Satan to bewitch them, and to cause them to follow after him. It says there, that they said, this man is the great power of God. That is how the Samaritans, those that had followed him, looked at this man by the name of Simon. And they thought, wow, this man has really the great power of God. And you know, we can see, brothers and sisters, in this man, Simon, exactly what is going to happen in the tribulation period. When there will be those who will follow after the Antichrist.

2 Thessalonians 2 shows us that the Antichrist will have powers that were given to him, satanic powers. That he will show and reveal of himself, and many will follow after him. Well, here we see exactly what Simon was doing. He was bewitching, he was magically attracting the people, and many followed after him. And to him, they had much regard, because for a long time he had bewitched them with all sorts of sorcery. I don't have to tell you this today. Often times when I drive on the highway, I see all kinds of signs that says, you know, somebody can read your poems. Somebody can tell you your future.

Somebody can claim that they can see beyond the scene. They are able to show you the future. And many people go there. And they want to know what's going to happen in the future. How things are going to be. As if those individuals who can read your poem can tell you what's going to happen in the future. Well, that's what happened in Samaria. He was a magic man. He was bewitching the people of Samaria. And many followed after him. Because they thought that he was that man that had the great power that came from God. But, brothers and sisters, we see here that while he was doing so, at the same time in verses 12 and 13, we see that the Samaritans, many of them, had believed the simple message of the gospel.

That could give them an assurance and forgiveness of sins. It says in verse 12, "But when they believed Philip and his preaching, the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Yeshua the Messiah, they were baptized both men and women." Even though Shimon was doing his bewitching, his beguiling, his magic, his sorcery. And he succeeded to have many to follow after him. But there were those who came to faith in Jesus the Messiah through the preaching of Philip. You notice he preached, number one, the kingdom of God in verse 12. And number two, the name of Yeshua the Messiah. And you remember what we read in Acts chapter 4.

There is no other name given among men whereby we must be saved. He was simply preaching that name that is above every name. The Bible tells the name of Jesus, of Yeshua, every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess. And Philip simply preached the message of Yeshua the Messiah. And he preached concerning the kingdom of God. And it is important to understand the thought, the kingdom of God. Why does he preach to the Samaritans the kingdom of God? Because the Samaritans were in their background historically understood that there was a promise of a coming kingdom. And that God will establish his kingdom upon the face of this earth.

And that the kingdom will not come through the Samaritans. The kingdom will come through the nation of Israel through the birth of the coming Messiah who was born. And he will establish one day the kingdom in the land of Israel. So, Philip was preaching to the Samaritans the kingdom of God and the name of Yeshua the Messiah. And as he was preaching unto them that message, it says there that they were baptized, both men and women. Many were baptized and identify with this one with the name of Yeshua the Messiah. And so, they were baptized, they identify with Yeshua the Messiah. But in verse 13, we read that Simon himself, when he saw, he also believed, it says here, then he also was baptized.

And he continued with Philip and he wondered, beholding the miracles and the signs which were done. Now, let me pause here for a moment. It says here that Simon also believed. And it also says here that he was baptized. Let us just for a moment think about this. What kind of belief was the belief of Simon? And he actually publicly took the place in baptism, publicly going under the water, getting baptized just like the others. And it says here that he looked at the miracles and the signs which were done. You know, Simon, and we will see it in a moment, his faith in Jesus was not a faith unto salvation.

He did not believe in the work of Christ, in the work of the Messiah for him. But he believed because he saw miracles done. He only saw that which was external. And so, he wanted to have exactly what the others have had. So, he simply got baptized, identified with them. But the reason here in verse 13 was not because he recognized that he is a sinner before God, but simply because of the miracles that was done. And that is not a faith unto salvation. What a shame it is that there are many who think that because of baptism or because even looking at external experiences that happen, they believe in God.

But faith unto salvation must be faith because I recognize that I have sinned before God and Jesus the Messiah, Yeshua the Messiah paid for my sins. If you just go back for a moment to the Gospel of John for another verse, I would like you to read with me the last verses of John 2. John chapter 2 verse 23, 24 and 25, we find out what the Lord have thought about those who believe miracles only and not his person and his work. It says in John chapter 2, verse 23. Now, when it was in Jerusalem at the feast of the Passover, in the feast day, many believed in his name when they saw the miracles which he have done.

But look what we read, and Yeshua did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all men. And he needed not that any should testify of men, because he knew what was in men. Seeing a miracle and believing in Yeshua the Messiah because he was a miracle worker is not sufficient unto salvation. Philip's preaching of the word of God to the Samaritans accompanied by miracles and signs and wonders. Believing in the miracles that Philip have done is not sufficient unto salvation. What is essential in salvation is to understand the reason that Yeshua came to this world. And that's what Philip was presenting. When he presented the name of Yeshua, and he presented the Gospel, he simply told them, listen, Samaritans, the way for you to be saved, to be forgiven, is on a basis of the name of Yeshua, who paid the price for our sin and sins.

And then you can be saved. And so, apparently, many of the Samaritans did accept the Lord, did accept the work of Christ, of the Mashiach. But Simon, gone along with them. He believed because he saw the miracle. He even got baptized to give an external appearance as if he is part of the company of the believers there. But all was because he simply looked at the miracles and the signs which were done. We're going to look at that in a moment, and we'll see that really he was not a child of God. Well, look at the next verses now. I'm back in Acts chapter 8. And in the next verses, we find out in verses 14 to 17, the coming of the apostles from Jerusalem, Peter and John.

Look, and this is also very important. Now, when the apostles which were in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John, who, when they were come down, they prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit of God. For as yet he was fallen upon none of them, only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. Now, there's also an important lesson here in these verses. Why was it so important for the apostles Peter and John to come all the way from Jerusalem to the area of the Shomron, to Samaria?

Well, do you remember, brothers and sisters, that now it is the foundation of the church, is the beginning of the assembly. And Peter, if you remember, in Matthew chapter 16, received from the Lord Jesus, the Messiah, the keys for the kingdom of God. You remember that? When Peter was asked by the Lord, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?" And Peter said, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God." And the Lord said to him, "Peter, flesh and blood did not reveal it unto you, but my Father which is in heaven." If you remember in chapter 16 of Matthew, he said, "And you are Peter, and upon your confession, upon this rock, I will build my church, and the gate of Hades shall not prevail against it." And then he said to Peter, "And I will give unto you the keys of the kingdom of heaven.

Whatsoever you shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatsoever you shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." So, Peter was given by the Lord Yeshua, the Messiah, the privilege of presenting the message of the gospel, and in a sense, to be used by the Lord Jesus to open the door to the kingdom of heaven. Number one, to the Jewish people, his own brethren. Number two, to the Samaritans in Acts chapter 8. And number three, to the Gentile world, in Acts chapter 10, at the house of Cornelius. And here we see, Peter come down from Jerusalem, and he is asking them, you remember, he came in verse 14 from Jerusalem, and they were come down, they prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Spirit of God.

Because the Holy Spirit of God did not yet fall upon them, because they were only baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus, the Messiah. You see, the apostles, who were the immediate contacts with the person of Yeshua, the Messiah, chosen by him as an apostles, they had to come down to Samaria. And there they were used by the Lord Yeshua, the Messiah, through prayer, to bring down the Holy Spirit of God upon the Samaritans as well. He had done that in Acts chapter 2 to his own brethren, the Jewish people. And now he came to Shomon, to Samaria, and there he uses the key, if you will, by opening the door that the Holy Spirit of God will come upon the Samaritans.

Now, I want to say this also here, that we will not make any mistake. We don't need today, Peter, to come from Jerusalem to our city here in Toronto to open the door for us to receive the Holy Spirit of God. We don't need that anymore. It happened the first time in Jerusalem. It happened the second time to the Samaritans in Acts chapter 8. It will happen and it have already happened in Acts chapter 10 to the Gentile world. And since that time on, up till this present day, the Holy Spirit of God is already here. And every person that accepts Yeshua, the Messiah, had been brought into the body of Messiah.

He's automatically receiving the Holy Spirit of God in dwelling in his body. We read in 1 Corinthians chapter 12 that by one spirit, we were all being baptized into that one body, whether we are being Jews or whether we are being Gentiles. And so we don't need that repetition of what happened in the time of Acts chapter 8. But nevertheless, Philip couldn't do it. The apostles had to come from Jerusalem to Samaria in order for the Spirit of God to take residence and to bring them, unite the Samaritan together with the Jews to be part of the body of the Messiah. And how wonderful it is, isn't it?

Where there is the Holy Spirit of God, this divine person took residence in those believers. Not only that he saved them and forgive their sins, but also united them together with any other believers that have come to faith in Christ in the Messiah before. Now, look at this. In the next verses now, we find out again about Simon. What does Simon have to say? You see, in the next verses, verses 18 to the end, Simon, this sorcerer, is coming to the front again. It says here in verse 18, when Simon saw that through the laying of the apostles' hand, the Holy Spirit was given. And you know what he did?

He offered them money and he said to the apostles, "Give me also this power that on whomsoever I will lay my hands, he may receive the Holy Spirit." You see what Simon did? Simon believed because he saw the miracles. Simon got baptized because he thought that's the thing to do. But Simon was never a child of God because his faith was not in the person and work of Yeshua, but his faith was in the miracles that have happened. So, he thought, "Boy, look at this. All what you have to do, you lay your hand on somebody, the Holy Spirit coming upon him, there's a great miracles here and I want to get it." So he said, "You know what, I'm going to give you some money." He said to the apostles, to the Philip, to the apostles, Peter and John, "Can you please sell me the ability to do this magic also?" And he thought that by money paying, he can earn and gain that power.

Now, brothers and sisters, listen. The power of the Holy Spirit was only given to those that have trusted Yeshua, the Messiah. The power and the person of the Holy Spirit is only given to those who are broken before God, who recognize that they are not right with God and they need their sins forgiven. You cannot buy the Holy Spirit of God. You cannot buy the power of God, the person of the Holy Spirit of God. And that's why Peter was so strong with Simon. And Peter said to him in verse 20 on, Peter responds to Simon's request and he said to him, "Your money perish with you because you have thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money." You know, it's beautiful to see that the gift of God, eternal life, relationship with God, forgiveness of sin, you cannot buy it with money.

It is without price, without money, without silver and gold. You remember what Peter said already earlier, "Silver and gold have I none, but such as I have I given to thee in the name of Yeshua, the Messiah, rise up and walk." So Peter said to him, "Your money perish, and not only your money, but your money perish with you, Simon, because you have thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money." "Thou had neither part nor lot in this matter, for thy heart is not right in the sight of God." You know, God desired a heart that is broken before him, that is sincere, recognizing his or her need, and coming to him and said, "God, I know that I am a needy person, I want to be right with you, and the only way to be right with you is to acknowledge my sins before you, and accept Yeshua, the Messiah, as my Lord and Savior." Well, he was not right with God.

And Peter said to him, "That you are going to perish together with your money." And then he continued, and he said to him, "Repent, therefore, of this thy wickedness, and pray, God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven." Peter challenged him, and he said to him, "Simon, you need to repent, to change your mind, to change your thought pattern, to change your ways, and to turn back to God." What Peter was saying is what we need to say to others around us. The importance of repentance towards God, and faith in our Lord Yeshua, the Messiah. Peter gave him this warning, and he said to him, "Repent and pray to the Lord, that none of these things which have been spoken will come against you." And Peter was giving him this warning to turn around and come back to God.

So finally, in the end of these verses, we find out, "Simon asked them to pray for him." And then we read that Simon, it says in verse 24, "He answered and he said, "Pray ye to the Lord for me, that none of these things which ye have spoken will come upon me." Now you can see Simon, you can see that his faith was not genuine. He was not really a believer in Yeshua, the Messiah. He was not right with God, and he needed to repent and turn back to the Lord. Well, he asked for prayer from the apostles, because he knew that they are the one that can talk to the Lord, and request from the Lord an answer for his sin.

And so the end of this portion about Simon is when they finished there. We read in verse 25, and that's where I'm going to stop with today. They continued to preach the message of the gospel faithfully. In verse 25, "When they had testified, and they preached the word of the Lord, they returned to Jerusalem, and they preached the gospel in many villages of the Samaritans." You notice that, by the way, this passage, the whole text that I read today, is the preaching of the word, the faithful preaching of the word of God. Philip went down to Samaria to preach, and then the apostles on the way back to Jerusalem, through the villages of Samaria, they were preaching the message of the gospel.

And that is what we really need to learn, if we learn anything from this text. Brothers and sisters today, we need to simply preach the word of God as it truly is, the word of God in sincerity and in truth. People will hear the message. People will accept the Lord Jesus simply because God is faithful to use his word for the salvation of souls. And that's what happened here in the cities of Samaria. So persecution did not stop the proclamation of the gospel. And the Samaritans ultimately came to faith in Yeshua the Messiah and enter into the body of the Messiah. So now what we have, the Jews in Acts chapter 2, the Samaritans in Acts chapter 8, and Lord willing, when we're going to get to Acts chapter 10, we will see the Gentile, the door open to the Gentile nations, to the goyim, and that the message of the gospel will continue to move on around the world.

And so we are so thankful for the work of the Lord. In the midst of all the chaos that existed there, the preaching of the scripture moved about to the salvation of many in the cities of Samaria.