- If society deteriorates and its standards decline until it becomes like a dark night or a stinking fish, there is no sense in blaming society; that is what happens when fallen men and women are left to themselves, and human selfishness is unchecked. (John Stott)
- Worldliness is whatever makes sin look normal and righteousness look strange. (Kevin DeYoung)
- The sin underneath all our sins is to trust the lie of the serpent that we cannot trust the love and grace of Christ and must take matters into our own hands. (Martin Luther)
- The sin of worldliness is a preoccupation with the things of this temporal life. It’s accepting and going along with the views and practices of society around us without discerning if they are biblical. I believe that the key to our tendencies toward worldliness lies primarily in the two words “going along”. We simply go along with the values and practices of society. (Jerry Bridges)
- The world says love yourself, grab all you can, follow your heart. Jesus says deny yourself, grab your cross and follow me. (Francis Chan)
- Some of the most influential people in the history of the church have been those willing to stand up for what they believe to be true regardless of how many people disagreed with them. (Jim Denison)
- Every man must do two things alone; he must do his own believing and his own dying. (Martin Luther)
TEXT: Exodus 20:7 ‘You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.’
Recently (January 2025) I was conversing with a dear brother who is deeply committed to ensuring that unreached people groups have had a chance to hear and respond to the saving grace as explained in the God’s word. My mind kept wondering to who are the reached people in a culture where citing the name of Jesus/ God are a kind of aesthetics in what is labelled ‘worship’. Entertainment, self-promotion, meeting people’s social and economic needs and ‘ticking the box’ are central in what is in many Christian gatherings. In some gatherings, there is no scripture reading, no Psalms and hymns and signs that follow those who claim to believe (Mark 16:17). The works of flesh (Galatians 5:19-21) are more evident than the fruit of the spirit even though the converts seem to be increasing in number. Might the spirit that was in Simon the sorcerer have invaded some believers in influential positions in Church?
SIMON THE SORCERER (ACTS 8:13-27)
Simon listened to Philip share the message of the saving grace of Christ and accepted it. He got born again and was baptised which was a sign of regeneration and admission to the body of believers. Simon was among those who were prayed for to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit and he did. Simon was sincere, following the disciples of Jesus and keenly observing what they were doing. Remember, Simon, the new convert, was already a community leader who met the people’s needs using the spells and so his becoming a convert to Christ was an added advantage! If the disciples were in a hurry to fulfil the great commission of making disciples of all nations, they would have installed the new convert to pastor the church. Ooops! MOG- Man of God? What a thorn that would have been to an already persecuted church.
What can we learn from newly born again and spirit filled believer/leader whose basic beliefs have not been renewed by the word of God?
The understanding of power – The intangible force that gives ability to influence or control others. There are human sources of power such as access to scarce valuable resources, charisma that enables one to persuade/control others, mechanisms and societal structures that authorize some people to direct actions of others. Such mechanisms include government, religious organization, family, etc. There are supernatural or spiritual sources of power that include the Holy Spirit, a gift from God the Father that regenerates people and gives individuals capacity for God’s will and work to be done through them. Sorcery is the use of powers gotten with the help of or by the control of evil spirits. In Exodus 7:11-13, Pharaoh would call his wise men and sorcerers to mimic what Moses did. Simon, before he got ‘saved’ used spells and that gave him a position in his community.
The Holy Spirit cannot be bought or used for personal mission– ‘On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about.’ (Acts 1:4). What Simon did not know is that the power of sorcery was a way to circumvent God’s knowledge and sovereignty and to worship Satan. His beliefs that formed the knowledge he acted on had not been transformed. The core beliefs that form early in life can remain relatively stable in spite of acquiring new information. One is born again, baptised, and spirit filled, but as someone said, ‘Jesus may be in your heart, but grandpa is in your bones.’ New knowledge can lead to surface /veneer change while there are no adjustments or shifts in how we interpret the world. Adultery among the people called by the name of the Lord, greed manifested as corruption, envy and all kinds of evil can be traced to beliefs inculcated in earlier life. New knowledge is less likely to change established values or beliefs if those values or beliefs are directly related to personal primary knowledge such as identity.
It is about the kingdom of God not extension of worldly beliefs and values – Any power that seeks to circumvent God’s knowledge and sovereignty is a counterfeit power not the power of God. It is misuse of God’s name when one invokes the divine truthfulness as a pledge of one’s own truthfulness. To allow yourself be identified with God’s name is to align yourself with the God’s inherent truthfulness and it guarantees that whatever you communicate is always truthful, and genuine. Promises made to others in God’s name engage the divine honour, fidelity, truthfulness, and authority. To be unfaithful to them is to misuse God’s name and in some way to make God out to be a liar. Another way God’s name is misused is through intimidation. This occurs when one uses God and his name to get their way. Be careful when saying, “God told me to tell you …” and what you actually mean is to have control over others or you using God’s name to get your way. Still another way God’s name is misused, oddly enough, is to impress. God will not consider you sinless when you take advantage of his name.
Repentance is the only way -A genuine change of heart and mind and fully turning to God in appreciation of what Jesus Christ did is the only hope. Repent of assuming that you are changed when deep inside you are desiring to fulfil childhood dreams acquired from worldly systems. You are ‘unreached’ if you think you need to appease ancestral spirits as a way of accessing blessings or you can use money (tithe) to gain God’s favour. Repent of your aspiration to gain fame, recognition, relevance, and even leaving a legacy, though good, can be a worldly ambition. ‘One thing I ask from the LORD, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple.’ (Psalm 27:4). It is misuse of God’s name to assume that your position and title have given you power to deceive people that you can bless them if they bring money to church/ organization. ‘A culture built on the illusion of control is understandably shaken by events beyond our ability to forecast or manage.’ (Jim Denison) Just as Simon was in danger of experiencing God’s temporal curse for his specific sin of trying to purchase an apostolic power, and so is anyone who perpetuates beliefs that undermine the power and authority of God. God’s work is carried out by those who have become His disciples by being so committed to Christ that the new creation can be. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17 NIV).
How to identify a genuine disciple
The abundance in the heart is what reveals the real spirit in operation. For example, if one is facing genuine grief and heartache, what comes out of the abundance of the heart, reveals the core beliefs. The instinct is to either question the reality or character of God or to turn to him with anguished prayer and pleas for divine assistance. It is possible to be passionate about ministry not for spiritual significance but for the cultural value. It is possible to have no personal faith in a personal God, while acknowledging the positive impact of Christian ethics on self and considering the traditions of the faith to be vital to personal development.
God will not consider you sinless when you use the skills he has given you, such as an attractive voice, charisma, technological abilities, persuasiveness or organizational power, to cheapen, distort, misrepresent and merchandise his mission. To allow yourself be taught by one who manifest spirit of Simon the sorcerer, is to be part of those who nourish and perpetuate the kingdom opposed to God’s kingdom. Since you cannot, not communicate, if your everyday activities and interactions do not lead to repentance, there is need to examine the purity of the heart. Beware of the herd mentality, or popular culture! Don’t just swallow and follow whatever you see and hear! You cannot go along with something just because everyone else is doing it or preaching it. Stay close to the Lord, develop keen discernment and listen to the nagging voice of your conscience. The corruption, poverty, helplessness could be absence of God’s spirit. ‘If the house is dark when nightfall comes, there is no sense in blaming the house; that is what happens when the sun goes down. The question to ask is, ’Where is the light? Similarly, if the meat goes bad and becomes inedible, there is no sense in blaming the meat; this is what happens when bacteria are left alone to breed’ (John Stott).
“Are the things you are living for worth Christ dying for?” (Leonard Ravenhill)