Simon Says

When I was a kid, cell phones, before the Internet, before video games, even before Pong, we played outside with our friends. Often we played sports, but we also liked to play the old standards: Freeze Tag, Cops and Robbers, Mother May I, Cowboys and Indians, and Simon Says.

I was never very good at Simon Says. You’re supposed to only do something if the person who is “it” starts with Simon Says. I don’t know if I was just too ADHD or had a listening problem, or perhaps I was just so anxious to win that I always got out the first time that someone said something like, “Put your hand down.”

I would get so angry that I lost because the only way to be “it” was to be the last person to get out. Since I almost always lost within just a few minutes of the round, during those rare times that I did get to be “it” I would struggle to figure out what I wanted to say. “Simon says…” would be followed by a very long pause as I tried to figure out what they should do. I was not a very good Simon.

As we continue our series, “Going Viral,” we are introduced to another Simon who had a lot to say.

When the apostles who were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had welcomed God’s message, they sent Peter and John to them. After they went down there, they prayed for them, so the Samaritans might receive the Holy Spirit. For He had not yet come down on any of them; they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Peter and John laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. 

When Simon saw that the Holy Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money, saying, “Give me this power too, so that anyone I lay hands on may receive the Holy Spirit.” 

But Peter told him, “May your silver be destroyed with you, because you thought the gift of God could be obtained with money! You have no part or share in this matter, because your heart is not right before God. Therefore repent of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that the intent of your heart may be forgiven you. For I see you are poisoned by bitterness and bound by iniquity.” 

“Please pray to the Lord for me,” Simon replied, “so that nothing you have said may happen to me.” 

Then, after they had testified and spoken the message of the Lord, they traveled back to Jerusalem, evangelizing many villages of the Samaritans. (Acts 8:14-25, HCSB)

After the apostles heard about the work that Philip was doing in Samaria and how receptive the people were to the message that he was sharing, they sent Peter and John down to help. After they arrived, they prayed for the new followers of Jesus and placed their hands on each of them, we see that the Holy Spirit filled them.

Simon was a man that had practiced sorcery before becoming a believer and following the teachings of Philip. Sorcery was a form of drug dealing. Simon basically was mixing chemicals together for good or bad purposes, whatever the customer wanted or needed.

After Simon was baptized, he followed Philip everywhere and was amazed at the miracles that God did through Philip. Earlier in Acts 8 we can read that Simon used to claim that he was a great man, but the signs and wonders Philip was performing were far beyond anything Simon could do.

Then Peter and John come down and Simon witnesses how they prayed over the people, how they placed their hands on them, and how the Holy Spirit came down on them giving even these “ordinary” people the same power that Philip had. Until now, Simon had been silent, but suddenly we see that Simon says, “Give me this power too,” as he offered Peter and John money. He wanted them to teach him how to do this amazing thing.

After Simon says this, Peter let him have it. Not the power, but a piece of his mind. God gave Peter the ability to discern that money was the real thing that Simon was interested in obtaining. Simon used to have a power that amazed people and probably made a good living from that power. His fame was spread as people would tell each other, “What Simon says happens.”

People probably would come to him and ask Simon to curse somebody. Others might come and ask Simon to cure them of illness. Simon would whip up a potion and then give it to them. If they curse of cure did not work, Simon could always say, “There was nothing wrong with my potion. They didn’t follow my directions or perhaps the gods were acting against them.” Simon had it good and probably made a lot of money with his trade.

Now Philip comes to town and heals people for free. Simon is amazed at this power and his desire for money and power are overwhelmed by his desire to know the God that could do these things. But, as with most drug dealers, it didn’t take long for Simon to realize that his source of income was now gone. He needed a way to make some cash and this power that Peter and John had shown was just the ticket to put him back on top, to corner the market once again.

You've heard the saying, "Better to be thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove any doubt”? Simon was very foolish. He had power, he had fame, he had money. Simon could have been a very respected leader in the church. He could have had a testimony that would have drawn many others to Jesus. He had been a drug dealer. Now he was a follower of Jesus. He had been promoting himself, now he was supporting Philip as he shared about Jesus.

Simon could have allowed God to use his influence for reaching thousands. People could have now said, “Simon says he was mistaken and now we should believe what Philip is teaching us. Simon says that Jesus is the Messiah. Simon says…” But Simon was a fool.

As I said, it appears that Peter understood what Simon loved. He knew that Simon’s lust for power was all about the money. So, Peter said, “May your silver be destroyed with you, because you thought the gift of God could be obtained with money!” Peter continues to tell Simon to repent. No longer was this about what Simon says, but it was all about what God says.

Simon was not a dummy. He knew from following Philip around that God was the real source of this power. Simon knew that if God had the ability to do the many signs and wonders that he had witnessed, then God had the ability to put him in the poor house. So Simon says, “Please pray to God for me. Don’t let me come to ruin because of my greed.”

Simon lost. Simon lost his authority, he lost his power, he lost his income, he lost respect, he lost his opportunity, he lost everything. Why? Because he loved money more than God. Because he loved power more than God. Because he loved the attention. Simon was no longer “it” and that bugged him. It gnawed at him until he found another way, or so he thought, to get power and fame and money yet again.

Are there things in your life that you just don’t want to let go of? Things that you have made more important in your life than following Jesus and learning how to be more like Him? It could be anything from drugs to sex to money to food to TV to video games to fame…whatever. Anything that you allow to fill your mind and heart with is something that could lead you away from following Jesus.

God sent His One and only Son to take the punishment for our sins and all that he asks is that you will let Him be the boss of your life. What God wants, what God plans, what God asks is infinitely more important than our own desires and goals. God wants the very best for us so that He can receive glory and honor from others. So that others will see Him and want to be with Him. But we often are so filled with desires to satisfy our own needs that others never see Jesus.

Are we guilty of doing what Simon says? Are we consumed with a desire to be “it”? As a follower of Jesus we must understand that it has nothing to do with us. It is all about God. Our lives should point others to Jesus, not to our abilities or wealth or knowledge or power or fame.

God says…

Put God first and the things of this world will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace.

The things we desire are not nearly as important as what God has in store for you.