That Word Above All Earthly Powers

“The Astounding Power of God”

(Acts 8:9-13, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, October 16, 2011)

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.

The miracle of creation, the miracle of God become man, the miracle of being born again... these are impressive displays of the power of God. These are miracles that are past history or present facts.

Every time I go to meet with co-laborers in Christ I am confronted by the fact of men like Herb Shipman or Doug Domin. I have seen in my own life and in the lives of many of you a change that cannot be denied.

Sometimes spiritual life has been a present reality for a person for as long as he can remember. That is the case for Nathan Snyder. We thank God for that kind of life.

For others, life in Christ has come not just in one step, but in several motions of growth in grace in a person's life, like the spiritual equivalent of the two-stage healing of a blind man in Mark 8. When Jesus first healed this man, he said, “I see people, but they look like trees, walking.” That was great progress, but the second touch completed the work.

Some people come to believe, and the changes in their life seem so small, so that we wonder if they have been born again at all. The Lord knows. The second or third touch of the savior may come many years later, even when they are very close to their home-going.

We need all types. All of it is worthy of celebration.

There was a man named Peter. There was a man named Stephen. There was a woman named Lydia. And in Acts 8, there was an intriguing and troubling man named Simon. What a story!

This man was into spiritual power before his spirit was even alive in Christ. He was in the grip of the wrong side. He practiced magic... probably more than slight of hand, more than illusion. When we are told that Satan has appeared as an angel of light, when a serpent can talk, when spiritual powers can cause someone to say or do things beyond natural explanation, someone real and evil is at work. It should not surprise us that the Egyptian occultists actually did substantial tricks, and that the magician who was called Simon could amaze the people of Samaria.

How do you tell the true from the false? Notice this about Simon: he was going around everywhere saying that he was somebody great. The true miracle from heaven exalts God. The false worker of signs wants to be known as “Great,” and longs to amaze people with his sorcery.

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.

Philip, who was one of the Seven listed in Acts 6, had a different Spirit in him. He preached good news about the kingdom of God and about the name of Jesus Christ.

This was worlds away from Simon's message. Simon, and others like him, make themselves the message. They want to say, without any necessary reference to the Lord God Almighty, “Mine is the kingdom and the power and the glory.” The true servant of the Most High God teaches us to pray, “Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory.” The voice of the power of divine love is the voice of God in Jesus Christ, not the voice of a magician who has found a dangerous back door into spiritual realms in order to achieve his own plans.

The kingdom of God is very good news. It is the answer to one of our deep longings. Any honest observer must admit that something has gone very wrong on this planet. We do find much truth, and beauty and order here, but we also see hate, disease, and death. Is there any way out of our present sadness and darkness?

The resounding message of the true servant of the Lord is, “Yes!” God is establishing His kingdom. He is overturning all that is evil. At the very center of that kingdom is the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. His is the Name above every name. Philip was preaching the kingdom of God and He was preaching the good news of the name of Jesus Christ.

Does it surprise you that people in Samaria believed Philip? They did believe, and they were baptized, both men and women. Those baptisms meant something very significant.

13 Even Simon himself believed, and after being baptized he continued with Philip. And seeing signs and great miracles performed, he was amazed.

Even Simon himself, the great magician, believed. He was baptized, and he stayed with Philip. He had some later problems that we'll consider more another time, but we have good reason to believe that this man actually expressed true faith in Jesus Christ.

Not only did he listen to the word that Philip preached, but he also, along with many others in Samaria, saw the signs and great miracles that went with the message. Signs and miracles were part of the full testimony of our Lord during His own ministry on earth. He healed that blind man in two stages. We can guess about the meaning of that particular event, but it has become a part of the rich tapestry of so many heavenly signs that invaded this earth in the coming of the Messiah, culminating in His own resurrection.

These signs and miracles also accompanied at least some of the preaching of the church as it was recorded in Acts. How real were the miracles? Well, they impressed Simon. Together with the message that was proclaimed, they changed his belief system, and they changed his daily life. Maybe it did not happen all at once, maybe it was not perfect, but it was noticeable and undeniable. And there was a new Simon story, a story that gave glory to God.

Your life in Christ is a sign and a wonder in your own generation. It has come to you from heaven, from heaven's God, from the Creator, from the Messiah who died for you. You have been granted life. I know that any person can focus on himself too much, but isn't it also possible that a person can ignore or hide what God has actually done in his life?

Let's rejoice in the Lord's great mercy to you and to yours. Each story is deliberate, rather than random. It is purposeful, rather than meaningless. It is powerfully glorifying to God, rather than rightly dismissed. Simon was a sorcerer who used to glorify himself. Then He heard a new Word, a Word full of the power of good news.

1. How had Simon amazed the people of Samaria?

2. What was Philip's message?

3. What is the significance of baptism in this passage?

4. What is the significance of signs and great miracles in this account?

OT Passage: Psalm 29