Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee.
Peter spoke this to Simon Magus after his baptism when he offered money for power to give the Holy Ghost by laying on hands, rebuking him with holy indignation and exposing his deception. His wickedness was thinking the gift of God could be purchased with money and treating sacred things as merchandise for selfish, earthly gain, because his heart was not right in the sight of God but in bitterness and bondage to iniquity. The command is to thoroughly repent of that wickedness and pray God that the thought of the heart may be forgiven, for pardon is not bought with money nor granted by human religious authority but must be sought from God. His presence among the baptized shows that tares grow with the wheat and false, unworthy brethren may be found in the church, professing truth and baptized yet without a rooted Christian experience. That same call to repent and pray applies to any heart governed by selfish aims, and especially to those who have had the message for years, that they give themselves wholly to God so He will accept them and cooperate with them by His Spirit.
Simon's Sin and Rebuke
The rebuke was spoken to Simon Magus after he had been baptized and then offered the disciples money for power to impart the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands. Peter answered him with holy indignation, exposing his deceptions and defeating his efforts to hinder the gospel. Simon's wickedness lay in thinking that the gift of God could be purchased with money and in treating sacred things as merchandise. He valued God's gift as a means of worldly gain, with his heart governed by selfish, earthly aims.
His heart was not right in the sight of God, but in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity. He remained bound by sin and untouched by grace, for a heart enlightened by grace would know that the sacred power of the Spirit cannot be bought or sold but is given through Christ to chosen instruments whose lives are free from selfishness and sin. His fear after the rebuke showed he was beginning to recognize his presumptuous sin, yet he had not yet been touched by grace. He is an example of one who welcomed satanic influence in order to obtain supernatural power and therefore had no conflict with the demons.
Forgiveness Through Repentance and Prayer
Peter's command to Simon was to thoroughly repent of his wickedness and to pray to God that the thought of his heart might be forgiven. The wickedness to be repented of was rooted in the heart, in the attempt to obtain the power of the Holy Spirit for money. Fear after the rebuke showed a beginning recognition of presumptuous sin, yet without yet being touched by grace. Simon stands as an example of one who welcomed satanic influence in order to obtain supernatural power.
Pardon for such sin is not bought with money and is not granted by any human religious authority. The sinner himself must seek pardon from God in prayer.
A heart enlightened by grace knows that the sacred power of the Spirit cannot be bought or sold. God's gift cannot be purchased, but is given through Christ to chosen instruments whose lives are free from selfishness and sin.
Warning and Call Today
Simon baptized and numbered among the early believers stands as proof that tares grow together with the wheat and that false, unworthy brethren may be found in the church. It is possible to profess the truth and receive baptism yet not feed upon the Word of life and never gain a rooted Christian experience. Christ bears patiently with those of perverse human nature because He is unwilling to lose any, and that patience calls believers to bear patiently with others. At the same time carnal trafficking in sacred things must be plainly reproved, for the rebuke to Simon is a sharp testimony that exposes sin. Such discernment rests on the truth that spiritual things are spiritually discerned by the Holy Spirit.
The command to repent of wickedness and pray God for forgiveness of the thought of the heart reaches every heart governed by selfish, earthly aims that values God's gift only as a means of worldly gain. It is directed with special force to those who have had the message before them for years, urging them to give themselves wholly to God so that He will accept them. That thorough repentance and wholehearted surrender is true conversion, and without it no one can be baptized with the Holy Ghost. Only where that conversion is found will the Holy Spirit cooperate in the work. That cooperation sends missionary labor outward into unworked cities by division and subdivision instead of centering in a few places and neglecting the cities, and it educates workers in small schools and humble, unpretentious efforts.
Peter spoke this to Simon Magus after his baptism when he offered money for power to give the Holy Ghost by laying on hands, rebuking him with holy indignation and exposing his deception. His wickedness was thinking the gift of God could be purchased with money and treating sacred things as merchandise for selfish, earthly gain, because his heart was not right in the sight of God but in bitterness and bondage to iniquity. The command is to thoroughly repent of that wickedness and pray God that the thought of the heart may be forgiven, for pardon is not bought with money nor granted by human religious authority but must be sought from God. His presence among the baptized shows that tares grow with the wheat and false, unworthy brethren may be found in the church, professing truth and baptized yet without a rooted Christian experience. That same call to repent and pray applies to any heart governed by selfish aims, and especially to those who have had the message for years, that they give themselves wholly to God so He will accept them and cooperate with them by His Spirit.
Simon's Sin and Rebuke
The rebuke was spoken to Simon Magus after he had been baptized and then offered the disciples money for power to impart the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands. Peter answered him with holy indignation, exposing his deceptions and defeating his efforts to hinder the gospel. Simon's wickedness lay in thinking that the gift of God could be purchased with money and in treating sacred things as merchandise. He valued God's gift as a means of worldly gain, with his heart governed by selfish, earthly aims.
His heart was not right in the sight of God, but in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity. He remained bound by sin and untouched by grace, for a heart enlightened by grace would know that the sacred power of the Spirit cannot be bought or sold but is given through Christ to chosen instruments whose lives are free from selfishness and sin. His fear after the rebuke showed he was beginning to recognize his presumptuous sin, yet he had not yet been touched by grace. He is an example of one who welcomed satanic influence in order to obtain supernatural power and therefore had no conflict with the demons.
Forgiveness Through Repentance and Prayer
Peter's command to Simon was to thoroughly repent of his wickedness and to pray to God that the thought of his heart might be forgiven. The wickedness to be repented of was rooted in the heart, in the attempt to obtain the power of the Holy Spirit for money. Fear after the rebuke showed a beginning recognition of presumptuous sin, yet without yet being touched by grace. Simon stands as an example of one who welcomed satanic influence in order to obtain supernatural power.
Pardon for such sin is not bought with money and is not granted by any human religious authority. The sinner himself must seek pardon from God in prayer.
A heart enlightened by grace knows that the sacred power of the Spirit cannot be bought or sold. God's gift cannot be purchased, but is given through Christ to chosen instruments whose lives are free from selfishness and sin.
Warning and Call Today
Simon baptized and numbered among the early believers stands as proof that tares grow together with the wheat and that false, unworthy brethren may be found in the church. It is possible to profess the truth and receive baptism yet not feed upon the Word of life and never gain a rooted Christian experience. Christ bears patiently with those of perverse human nature because He is unwilling to lose any, and that patience calls believers to bear patiently with others. At the same time carnal trafficking in sacred things must be plainly reproved, for the rebuke to Simon is a sharp testimony that exposes sin. Such discernment rests on the truth that spiritual things are spiritually discerned by the Holy Spirit.
The command to repent of wickedness and pray God for forgiveness of the thought of the heart reaches every heart governed by selfish, earthly aims that values God's gift only as a means of worldly gain. It is directed with special force to those who have had the message before them for years, urging them to give themselves wholly to God so that He will accept them. That thorough repentance and wholehearted surrender is true conversion, and without it no one can be baptized with the Holy Ghost. Only where that conversion is found will the Holy Spirit cooperate in the work. That cooperation sends missionary labor outward into unworked cities by division and subdivision instead of centering in a few places and neglecting the cities, and it educates workers in small schools and humble, unpretentious efforts.