June 3, 2020
Central Truth
A heart must be fully open to God to understand the full width, length, height, and depth of His love and grace.
"You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right before God."
9 But there was a man named Simon, who had previously practiced magic in the city and amazed the people of Samaria, saying that he himself was somebody great. 10 They all paid attention to him, from the least to the greatest, saying, “This man is the power of God that is called Great.” 11 And they paid attention to him because for a long time he had amazed them with his magic. 12 But when they believed Philip as he preached good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. 13 Even Simon himself believed, and after being baptized he continued with Philip. And seeing signs and great miracles 1 8:13 Greek works of power performed, he was amazed.
14 Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent to them Peter and John, 15 who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, 16 for he had not yet fallen on any of them, but they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 17 Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit. 18 Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles' hands, he offered them money, 19 saying, “Give me this power also, so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” 20 But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money! 21 You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right before God. 22 Repent, therefore, of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you. 23 For I see that you are in the gall 2 8:23 That is, a bitter fluid secreted by the liver; bile of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity.” 24 And Simon answered, “Pray for me to the Lord, that nothing of what you have said may come upon me.”
25 Now when they had testified and spoken the word of the Lord, they returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel to many villages of the Samaritans.
26 Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Rise and go toward the south 3 8:26 Or go at about noon to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is a desert place. 27 And he rose and went. And there was an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure. He had come to Jerusalem to worship 28 and was returning, seated in his chariot, and he was reading the prophet Isaiah. 29 And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.” 30 So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” 31 And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. 32 Now the passage of the Scripture that he was reading was this:
“Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter
and like a lamb before its shearer is silent,
so he opens not his mouth.
33
In his humiliation justice was denied him.
Who can describe his generation?
For his life is taken away from the earth.”
34 And the eunuch said to Philip, “About whom, I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?” 35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this Scripture he told him the good news about Jesus. 36 And as they were going along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?” 4 8:36 Some manuscripts add all or most of verse 37: And Philip said, If you believe with all your heart, you may. And he replied, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. 38 And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. 39 And when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away, and the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing. 40 But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he passed through he preached the gospel to all the towns until he came to Caesarea.
I want to be the Ethiopian in Acts 8. He sought after God, yearned to know more, and had questions answered. He responded in faith, was baptized, and rejoiced. He understood what Paul was talking about in Ephesians 3:18-19. He was able to grasp how wide, long, high, and deep the love of Christ is. He was filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
How was this possible? His heart was completely open to God's deep, penetrating love. He let God have it all.
I want to be the Ethiopian. I am now, but for years I was Simon. I trusted in Christ like Simon. I was baptized. I followed leaders who proclaimed the truth and wanted more. I asked for God's favor and gifts. Yet, I, too, lived in the "gall of bitterness" (the bitter center of bitterness). For years I harbored bitterness toward my dad. He made some bad choices, and I was angry. I had given most of my heart to Christ, yet this piece I kept for myself. I believed I had the right to be mad. This bitterness poisoned me. It kept me from experiencing God's love to the fullest. It kept me from loving my dad well. He became sick with cancer, and I was still bitter. He suffered. I was sad, but still mad.
I was pointed to re:generation. There I saw the ugliness of my heart. I understood my sin. God grabbed hold of my WHOLE, now open, heart. I let go of the bitterness that consumed me for so long. For the last year of my dad's life (before cancer took him), I lived the Ethiopian's story. I truly understood the full width, length, height, and depth of God's love and grace for me. Out of that I was able to love my dad truly and fully for the first time.
It is my prayer that everyone lives the Ethiopian's story. It is possible if our hearts are open and fully given to God.
1. What does it mean to open your heart and give it fully to God?
2. Is there a part of your heart that you have kept for yourself that you need to give to God? What is preventing you?
3. When was the last time you were filled with incredible joy and reacted with rejoicing?