Luke loves to tell his story by using contrasting pairs. Acts 4-5, as we saw in my last blog, contained such a pairing. Barnabas’ generosity stands in contrast to the greed and dishonesty of Ananias and his wife Sapphira. I will now look at another pairing about wealth and possessions.
In Acts 8, Philip, one of the seven chosen to distribute offerings to Jewish widows from the Gentile world, went to a city in Samaria. He did so because of a severe persecution initiated by Saul of Tarsus. In that city was a local celebrity/sorcerer, named Simon, who people called the Great Power of God. It was Philip, however, who displayed great power, from the True Great Power, God, Himself. Simon was so impressed with Philip that he followed him everywhere. Although we might be justified in doubting Simon’s sincerity, we are told that he, along with many others, believed the Good News about Jesus, and was baptized.
Because the Holy Spirit was not imparted when the Samaritans were baptized, (1) the Apostles sent Peter and John from Jerusalem to lay their hands on these Samaritan believers, and they then received the Spirit. Now, Simon the sorcerer was truly impressed, and tried to buy a piece of this action. Simon the sorcerer might have been impressed, but Simon Peter was certainly not impressed with the other Simon! “You and your money go to destruction,” is the stern translation of Peter’s words back to Simon. Terrified, Simon begs Peter to pray for him.
Meanwhile, Philip was sent by the Spirit far to the South, where he met a very different man. The man was an Ethiopian. He was a court official of the queen (thus a eunuch), in charge of the treasury. Here is a picture of significant responsibility and likely personal wealth, or at least financial security. He was in a chariot (not a Ben Hur chariot but more of a chariot limousine) reading Isaiah 53. This Spirit directed encounter led to a remarkable scene. This high official heard of the humble Messiah/Servant who gave His life, and the eunuch humbled himself in baptism into Jesus in a desert pool, being baptized by a simple Jew.
Unlike the story of Simon Magus, (2) the story of the Ethiopian official is completely positive! Also, the official, in contrast to the ending of the Simon narrative, left in great joy. What are these contrasts telling us? We often cite the saying, “Follow the money.” It may be understood in a couple of ways. First, it may mean that following the money can lead us to the person(s) behind something (usually illegal or unethical). It may also mean that in following the money, we discover a motive that is far from being that of the noble sounding program or organization it is purported to be, but is actually simple greed. In these two cases in Acts, we learn something deeper. The problem is not the money. Simon’s Money was not corrupt, his heart was. He, like many now, wanted to use his money to purchase power and prestige. In spite of great wealth at his disposal, the Ethiopian was humble and pure of heart. Money has no inherent value but is derived from its use and those using it. It is a tool to be used. If we belong to Jesus, bought with a price, we are stewards of that tool, but our possessions belong to the Lord. For the Lord and His faithful people, it’s never just about the money, but always about the heart.
As has been profoundly said, we are not to love things and use people, but to love people (our neighbors) and use things! Supremely, we are to love the Lord, God, the Master of our possessions.
Tim Kelley
(1)This is a notoriously difficult passage. I think it very likely that it relates to the Gospel breaking new ground with the Samaritans. We will see the opposite happen for the same reason when the Spirit falls on the full Gentile, Cornelius and his family, before they were baptized.
(2)This is the name he bears in Christian tradition, where a lengthy mythology of Simon as the first and chief heretic developed. This mythology goes well beyond what we are told in the New Testament.