Acts 8:1-25
1 And Saul was there, giving approval to his death.
The Church Persecuted and Scattered
On that day a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. 2Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. 3But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off men and women and put them in prison.
Philip in Samaria
4Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. 5Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Christ[a]there. 6When the crowds heard Philip and saw the miraculous signs he did, they all paid close attention to what he said. 7With shrieks, evil[b] spirits came out of many, and many paralytics and cripples were healed. 8So there was great joy in that city.
Simon the Sorcerer
9Now for some time a man named Simon had practiced sorcery in the city and amazed all the people of Samaria. He boasted that he was someone great, 10and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, "This man is the divine power known as the Great Power." 11They followed him because he had amazed them for a long time with his magic. 12But when they believed Philip as he preached the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. 13Simon himself believed and was baptized. And he followed Philip everywhere, astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw.
14When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them. 15When they arrived, they prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, 16because the Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them; they had simply been baptized into[c] the name of the Lord Jesus. 17Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.
18When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles' hands, he offered them money 19and said, "Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit."
20Peter answered: "May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! 21You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. 22Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord. Perhaps he will forgive you for having such a thought in your heart. 23For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin."
24Then Simon answered, "Pray to the Lord for me so that nothing you have said may happen to me."
25When they had testified and proclaimed the word of the Lord, Peter and John returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel in many Samaritan villages.
Saul, also know as Paul (St. Paul, later) at first persecuted the followers of Jesus...He approved the stoning of Stephen...The witnesses of the stoning of Stephen laid their coats at the feet of Paul...Paul had watched Stephen and his great speech an faith be stoned to death... Immediately after the stoning Paul went out house to house dragging off men who were followers of Jesus...Only later, on his trip to Damascus, would Paul, see the light, and talk to Jesus and convert...
While Paul was out persecuting the church, Philip, one of the appointed seven (Acts 6:5) was traveling to Samaria...Philip proclaimed the Messiah and did many miracles...Philip healed cripples and paralytics...There was great joy in the city of Samaria...Philip's popularity and crowd sizes grew...Samaria and the Jewish people normally did not get along...The Samaritans were a people deported by the Assyrians hundred of years ago (2 Kings 17:6)...The lived in the same areas of the original ten tribes of Israel...These people intermarried with the Jewish people over the years and the Jewish people had always had tensions and did not see eye to eye with them...
While in Samaria, Philip meets a very good magician, named Simon...He could do many tricks with magic...Many Samaritans thought Simon the Sorcerer had divine power, because of his ability to do tricks of magic...Simon became a follower of Philip...Simon watched what Philip was doing and was baptized...Simon followed Philip everywhere...But Simon confused magic and the Holy Spirit...When the apostles heard that Samaria had accepted the Word of God, Peter and John were sent to assist Philip...Many Samaritans had been baptized by Philip, but had not received the Holy Spirit...Peter and John placed their hands on many of the baptized and they received the Holy Spirit...Simon thought one could purchase the Holy Spirit and offered Peter and John money on how he could do this...Peter condemns Simon and tells him you cannot buy the gift of God with money...The Holy Spirit is a gift from God, it is not for sale...Simon did not understand this and thought with all his other magical tricks, touching and producing the Holy Spirit, in another, was good for his business...Peter straightened Simon out on these points...Peter tells Simon to pray and ask the LORD for forgiveness...
Peter and John returned to Jerusalem and also preached the gospel in more Samaritan areas...They past history and not getting along with the Samaritans, must have been a major event and the reason Peter and John went to Samaria to (see) Philip, and why St. Luke writes about it... St. Peter would also later work with more Gentiles and other foreigners and realize that God had indeed no favoritism and is a God for everyone...
The name of Jesus can heal, do miracles, and is not for sale...We can be tempted by many things and want power and fame...But the Holy Spirit is not something for sale, it is a gift of God...It is for everyone, including Samaritan, Gentile, everyone as Peter learned throughout the life of Jesus and after His resurrection...