MRE- Acts 8:14

Acts 8:14 (NLT)
“When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that the people of Samaria had accepted God's message, they sent Peter and John there.”

We need to go back to verse four and read through verse 25 to get the full context, then over the next ten days we are going to look into each verse one by one.

Acts 8:4-25 (NLT)
“But the believers who were scattered preached the Good News about Jesus wherever they went. Philip, for example, went to the city of Samaria and told the people there about the Messiah. Crowds listened intently to Philip because they were eager to hear his message and see the miraculous signs he did. Many evil spirits were cast out, screaming as they left their victims. And many who had been paralyzed or lame were healed. So there was great joy in that city. A man named Simon had been a sorcerer there for many years, amazing the people of Samaria and claiming to be someone great. Everyone, from the least to the greatest, often spoke of him as "the Great One-the Power of God." They listened closely to him because for a long time he had astounded them with his magic. But now the people believed Philip's message of Good News concerning the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ. As a result, many men and women were baptized. Then Simon himself believed and was baptized. He began following Philip wherever he went, and he was amazed by the signs and great miracles Philip performed. When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that the people of Samaria had accepted God's message, they sent Peter and John there. As soon as they arrived, they prayed for these new believers to receive the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them, for they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Peter and John laid their hands upon these believers, and they received the Holy Spirit. When Simon saw that the Spirit was given when the apostles laid their hands on people, he offered them money to buy this power. "Let me have this power, too," he exclaimed, "so that when I lay my hands on people, they will receive the Holy Spirit!" But Peter replied, "May your money be destroyed with you for thinking God's gift can be bought! You can have no part in this, for your heart is not right with God. Repent of your wickedness and pray to the Lord. Perhaps he will forgive your evil thoughts, for I can see that you are full of bitter jealousy and are held captive by sin." "Pray to the Lord for me," Simon exclaimed, "that these terrible things you've said won't happen to me!" After testifying and preaching the word of the Lord in Samaria, Peter and John returned to Jerusalem. And they stopped in many Samaritan villages along the way to preach the Good News.”



Now let's look at some specific things about today's verse. When persecution came to the church in Jerusalem the majority of those following Jesus began to flee. Philip went to Samaria. Now, Samaritans are the descendants of the Israelites and the people of various ethnicities that were transported by the king of Assyria after conquering the land (2 Kings 17:24). There is much hate between the Samaritans and the Jews, going back to when the two kingdoms split at the time of Solomon's son Rehoboam. The Samaritans for the most part worshiped false gods or worshiped God in the wrong manner (1 Kings 12:25–33; 2 Kings 17:25–33). Remember in Luke 9:51-56 when John and his brother James once volunteered to call fire down on a Samaritan village? Jesus at one time also prohibited the disciples from preaching in Samaria (Matthew 10:5–6). Understand everything Jesus did was specific and the timing always mattered, He only did what the Father told Him to do.

Jesus knew the restriction would only be temporary, until the time to take the Gospel to the Gentiles had come. He promised the Samaritan woman that one day her people would worship the true God the right way in the place they lived (John 4:22–26). The Apostles of the church in Jerusalem need to see if the Samaritans are really choosing to follow Jesus. The Word of God gives the importance of having two or three witnesses to confirm something (Matthew 18:18–20; Deuteronomy 17:6), so Peter and John go to see what is taking place.

The "rock" upon which Jesus promised to build His church is not Peter, but the revelation that He is "the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Matthew 16:16). However Peter being an Apostle among the disciples plays a role in validating the spread of the gospel to different people groups (Matthew 16:13–19; Acts 10). He was the one the Lord used to preach the first message after coming from the Upperroom, and so who better to send to confirm, than the one who got the initial revelation of Jesus, preached the first message, and was not just a partaker but witnessed the first outpouring of the Holy Spirit!

At this time, before the New Testament books had been widely spread, the Word of God does not yet have the meaning of the full canon of Scripture. However it carries the total message God gives to mankind.

That Jesus is the Son of God, born of the virgin Mary, lived a perfect sinless life in the flesh, took the full punishment for all of mankind's sin on the Cross, died, was buried, and resurrected three days later, ascended to Heaven, now seated at the right hand of the Father, and He will come again, to resurrect the dead, judge all of mankind, restore heaven and earth, and rule and reign for all of eternity!

Jesus is King!
Be Blessed in Jesus Name!!!