Priceless and Free--January 24, 2020

Priceless and Free--January 24, 2020

"Now a certain man named Simon had previously practiced magic in the city and amazed the people of Samaria, saying that he was someone great. All of them, from the least to the greatest, listened to him eagerly, saying, ‘This man is the power of God that is called Great.’ And they listened eagerly to him because for a long time he had amazed them with his magic. But when they believed Philip, who was proclaiming the good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. Even Simon himself believed. After being baptized, he stayed constantly with Philip and was amazed when he saw the signs and great miracles that took place. Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them. The two went down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit (for as yet the Spirit had not come upon 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. Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money, saying, ‘Give me also this power so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.’ But Peter said to him, ‘May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain God’s gift with money! You have no part or share in this, for your heart is not right before God. Repent therefore of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you. For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and the chains of wickedness.’ Simon answered, ‘Pray for me to the Lord, that nothing of what you have said may happen to me.’" [Acts 8:9-24]

Sometimes it cheapens something to put a price tag on it.

I know that sounds counter-intuitive at first.  But honestly, the things in life that are truly priceless have to be received and given as gifts, not as commodities, or else they lose their specialness.  And in a sense, that really does make perfect sense--after all, if something is of infinite worth, any price you name for it will come up short.

That is especially true when it comes to God's gifts that bring us to life.  Thinking you can buy God's gifts imagines that you can have a transactional relationship with God, while the God we meet throughout the Scriptures defies "this-for-that" kind of thinking at every turn.

And that's why I keep getting pulled back to this strange story from the book of Acts.  It's one that both inspires me and challenges me, as it unfolds.  For starters, the scene of the whole episode is set in Samaria--that whole geographic region that was filled it (wait for it) Samaritans, who were notoriously at odds with the Jewish residents of Galilee and Judea.  These were the hated ones, the unacceptable ones, and the dangerous foreigners across the border from Judea, and here the followers of Jesus are following the Spirit's lead in bringing the news and love of Jesus to them as well.  Right off the bat, this is a story of grace--of how God's life-giving power breaks down every wall, crosses every barrier, and welcomes the outsider without question.  Being Samaritan, after all, isn't something you can "repent" of--it is what you are if you are born in Samaria. And they can't stop being Samaritans once they are welcomed into the community of Christ--they keep their differences, their own identities, and their ways, while also becoming fully welcomed into the fellowship of Jesus' followers.  Two thousand years later, we still aren't very good at that--insisting on people having to fit out cookie cutter expectations before granting them "insider" status.  We still, in other words, try to attach a price to the gifts of Christ that God gives for free.

Well, against that backdrop, things get even more complicated when we are introduced to Simon.  Simon seems to relish being called "great," and he is also described as a "magician" (the same word used to describe the "Magi" who come visit the Christ-child by following the star, for what that is worth knowing).  Simon has had a career of wowing people and soaking in their praise as basically a showman, but when he sees these followers of Jesus who have the real deal, he wants a piece of it.  He sees the way the Holy Spirit is set loose among the followers of Jesus there in Samaria, and he wants to be able to do the same thing.  He wants the power they have.  

And this is where the story's turn becomes predictably tragic: Simon thinks that the Holy Spirit is a commodity for sale, rather than the infinite gift of God's own life-giving presence.  Simon treats the Spirit as something he can acquire in a transaction, and then once he has learned the apostles' tricks, that he'll be able to do the same kinds of wonders and signs that they do by this same Spirit.  He wants to use his money to leverage a way to get more power from the apostles, so that he will be seen as even greater than he thinks he is already.  And this is where it is crystal clear that Simon just doesn't get it.

Peter, the unofficial leader of the early church at this time, just calls Simon out on this and says that his whole mindset is unacceptable, indecent, and rotten through and through.  It doesn't matter that Simon's proposed deal doesn't go through--Peter, after all, isn't willing to sell access to the Spirit, since it's God's gift to give in the first place, and it is not Peter's right to withhold it.  But just the intention of Simon's proposed deal is corrupt through and through, and Peter will have none of it.  Even just asking to try and buy the power of the Spirit is completely opposed to the values of Christ, that it doesn't matter whether Simon's proposed deal happens or not. Just the request alone is outrageous to Peter and incompatible with the way of Jesus.

I'll tell you something--I used to be afraid and uncomfortable over this turn in the story. I didn't like the idea that Peter would be so harsh and so abrupt with Simon, who was clearly new to the faith and maybe still figuring out how much of his old way of thinking was going to be overturned by becoming a Christian.  It used to make me nervous that maybe I could find myself kicked out of God's good graces for some wrongheaded prayer request or some foolish petition.  But more and more, I am grateful that Peter wastes no time in saying a clear "No" to Simon Magus' corrupt and self-centered deal-making, and I am deeply glad for the clarity he brings to the moment in saying that even making the offer of a this-for-that with God is unacceptable.  It is refreshing in a time like ours when just about everything seems to be up for sale, and when integrity is so often on discount clearance.  It is a deeply hopeful thing for me to hear Peter say, "No! You just can't propose a deal like that--it is contrary to the character of God and anti-Christ!" because it means that Peter is wholly convinced that God operates entirely on the basis of gracious giving and has no room for petty deal-making.  The only way we can hear the "Yes!" of God's free gift of the Spirit who brings us to life is if we hear Peter's unequivocal "No!" to Simon's crooked and self-centered offer to buy what God only gives by grace.

And that's why this is essential: if decency matters, we need to hear that indecency is unacceptable.  If integrity counts for anything, we need to see that it is not for sale.  If God's grace is grace, then it cannot be purchased, commodified, or exchanged in a this-for-that deal. That's why, as much as Peter's harshness to Simon Magus might make me squirm, it is good news to hear Peter say, "No!  This is NOT the way we do things among the people of God!"  It is the "No" that clears the way for the "Yes" of the God who brings us to life by the Spirit.

Part of what it means for Jesus to raise what is dead in us is Jesus' insistence on rooting out from us all the old deathly ways of self-interest and crookedness in our hearts.  And we should be ready, in all honesty, that if we allow Jesus to bring us to fullness of life, it will mean pruning away all that deadness so that we can thrive in all the ways that are good and right.  It will mean that Jesus leads us to say "No" to things that the world around us may thing are "just business as usual," and it will mean that we refuse to sell our integrity, even when the conventional wisdom things it's a great deal.

But that's what happens when Jesus brings you to life: you see, all of a sudden, how a thing is cheapened when you put a price tag on it... and how the most infinitely precious gifts of all turn out to be free.

Lord Jesus, speak your No over all the crookedness within us and around us, so that we can hear the Yes of your freely given Spirit of life.