<html><head></head><body><div><div><div><div><br></div>Acts 8;18-25<div><br></div><div><b>18. &nbsp;Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money,</b></div><div><b>19. &nbsp;saying, “Give me also this power, that&nbsp;anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”</b></div><div><b>20. &nbsp;But Peter said to him, “Your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the Gift of God with money!”</b></div><div><b>21. &nbsp;You have&nbsp;neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right before God.</b></div><div><b>22. &nbsp;Repent therefore of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you.</b></div><div><b>23. &nbsp;For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity.”</b></div><div><b>24. &nbsp;And Simon answered, “Pray for me to the Lord, that nothing of what you have said may come upon me.”</b></div><div><b>25. &nbsp;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.</b></div><div><b><br></b></div><div>Simon was a Believer, but was ruled by his<span>&nbsp;carnal desires. &nbsp;His old selfish will was directing him.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>He resented the loss of his prestige and influence. &nbsp;He wanted it back. &nbsp;He was like&nbsp;the Jews who wanted to return to Egypt instead of continuing to the promise land. &nbsp;As long as we seek first the things of this world, we have no place in the disciple-making work of the Church. &nbsp;We are estranged from our Lord.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>To be a faithful witness to Christ, we must be dead with Christ to all selfish desires. &nbsp;We by faith&nbsp;‘live in our Baptismal death’! &nbsp;We despise our old selves and seek to have nothing to do with who we once were.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Jesus came to serve, not to be served. &nbsp;His heart sought to give, not to receive. &nbsp;</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>The Holy Spirit inspires a giving,&nbsp;servant-heart in us. &nbsp;It seeks to know and do the will of the Father, not our&nbsp;own old selfish&nbsp;will. &nbsp;<i>“When we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’ it is the Spirit of God, bearing witness with our spirit, that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may be glorified with him.” &nbsp;</i>(Romans 8;15-17)</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>In the Offertory we sing, “Create in me a clean heart O God, and renew a right spirit in me. &nbsp;Cast me not away from Thy presence, and take not Thy Holy Spirit from me. &nbsp;Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation, and uphold me with Thy free spirit.” &nbsp;(LSB, Divine&nbsp;Service, Setting Three, pg.192&amp;3, and Psalm 51;10-12)&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Three ‘spirits’ are referred to in this Offertory&nbsp;prayer of the Church as we&nbsp;are singing and praying to the Father and the Son, by the Holy Spirit.</span></div><div><span>&nbsp;First, a <i>“re-newed, right spirit”. &nbsp;</i>This is the sanctified will of all forgiven, clean-hearted Believers. &nbsp;It is the spirit which was in Adam, before the fall into sin. &nbsp;It is a spirit without selfish desire, which seeks only to do the will of the Father.</span></div><div><span>Second, <i>“Thy Holy Spirit”. &nbsp;</i>This of course is the</span><span>&nbsp;Third Person of the Trinity who empowers the born-anew Believer to deny himself, take up his cross, and by faith&nbsp;follow Jesus in sacrificial obedience to the Father’s will. &nbsp;We, of our own human will, can not accomplish the works of God, even though we are forgiven Believers. &nbsp;(see the apostle Paul, Romans seven).</span></div><div><span>Thirdly, <i>“Thy free spirit”, </i>it is the spirit (will)&nbsp;of Christ, whose will it is only to do the Father’s will. &nbsp;His will is perfected, holy, unadulterated, and pure. &nbsp;This is the mystery of Christ indwelling Believers. &nbsp;Christ’s will and our own will are now in accord, one. &nbsp;This&nbsp;</span><span>sounds like marriage does it not? &nbsp;It is! &nbsp;Christ is the Bridegroom, we are the Bride, the two, become one!</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>In essence,&nbsp;Simon was rebuked by Peter for not dying with Christ to the sin of self-exaltation. &nbsp;His old-Adam was in control of his will. &nbsp;He was forsaking his own baptism into Christ. &nbsp;We are to<i>, “by the Spirit, put to death the deeds of the body.” &nbsp;</i></span><span>(Romans 8;13).&nbsp;</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Luther says it this way, Baptism with water signifies or indicates&nbsp;</span><span>that, </span><i>“the old Adam in us be drowned and die by daily contrition and repentance with all sins and evil desires, and that a new man should daily emerge and arise to live before God in righteousness and purity forever.”</i></div><div><span><i></i></span></div><div><span>&nbsp;(Luther’s Small Catechism, The Sacrament of Holy Baptism, the Fourth question)</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Prayer: &nbsp;Merciful Father, bless us this day to by faith live in our baptismal death to sin&nbsp;with Christ, and by the Spirit, put to death the deeds of the body. &nbsp;In Jesus we pray, Amen.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Love,</span></div><div><span>Dad/Baba/Eric</span></div><div><span>Grandpa Pickle Pastor</span></div><div><span>“A chapter a day, every day, progressively, be transformed, ‘soak’ in the living Word.”</span></div><div><br><br><div><a href="https://mail.onelink.me/107872968?pid=nativeplacement&amp;c=Global_Acquisition_YMktg_315_Internal_EmailSignature&amp;af_sub1=Acquisition&amp;af_sub2=Global_YMktg&amp;af_sub3=&amp;af_sub4=100000604&amp;af_sub5=EmailSignature__Static_" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"></a><br></div></div></div></div></div></body></html>


Acts 8;18-25
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 also this power, that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”20.  But Peter said to him, “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 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.
Simon was a Believer, but was ruled by his carnal desires.  His old selfish will was directing him.
He resented the loss of his prestige and influence.  He wanted it back.  He was like the Jews who wanted to return to Egypt instead of continuing to the promise land.  As long as we seek first the things of this world, we have no place in the disciple-making work of the Church.  We are estranged from our Lord.
To be a faithful witness to Christ, we must be dead with Christ to all selfish desires.  We by faith ‘live in our Baptismal death’!  We despise our old selves and seek to have nothing to do with who we once were.
Jesus came to serve, not to be served.  His heart sought to give, not to receive.  
The Holy Spirit inspires a giving, servant-heart in us.  It seeks to know and do the will of the Father, not our own old selfish will.  “When we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’ it is the Spirit of God, bearing witness with our spirit, that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may be glorified with him.”  (Romans 8;15-17)
In the Offertory we sing, “Create in me a clean heart O God, and renew a right spirit in me.  Cast me not away from Thy presence, and take not Thy Holy Spirit from me.  Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation, and uphold me with Thy free spirit.”  (LSB, Divine Service, Setting Three, pg.192&3, and Psalm 51;10-12)    
Three ‘spirits’ are referred to in this Offertory prayer of the Church as we are singing and praying to the Father and the Son, by the Holy Spirit. First, a “re-newed, right spirit”.  This is the sanctified will of all forgiven, clean-hearted Believers.  It is the spirit which was in Adam, before the fall into sin.  It is a spirit without selfish desire, which seeks only to do the will of the Father.Second, “Thy Holy Spirit”.  This of course is the Third Person of the Trinity who empowers the born-anew Believer to deny himself, take up his cross, and by faith follow Jesus in sacrificial obedience to the Father’s will.  We, of our own human will, can not accomplish the works of God, even though we are forgiven Believers.  (see the apostle Paul, Romans seven).Thirdly, “Thy free spirit”, it is the spirit (will) of Christ, whose will it is only to do the Father’s will.  His will is perfected, holy, unadulterated, and pure.  This is the mystery of Christ indwelling Believers.  Christ’s will and our own will are now in accord, one.  This sounds like marriage does it not?  It is!  Christ is the Bridegroom, we are the Bride, the two, become one!
In essence, Simon was rebuked by Peter for not dying with Christ to the sin of self-exaltation.  His old-Adam was in control of his will.  He was forsaking his own baptism into Christ.  We are to, “by the Spirit, put to death the deeds of the body.”  (Romans 8;13). 
Luther says it this way, Baptism with water signifies or indicates that, “the old Adam in us be drowned and die by daily contrition and repentance with all sins and evil desires, and that a new man should daily emerge and arise to live before God in righteousness and purity forever.” (Luther’s Small Catechism, The Sacrament of Holy Baptism, the Fourth question)
Prayer:  Merciful Father, bless us this day to by faith live in our baptismal death to sin with Christ, and by the Spirit, put to death the deeds of the body.  In Jesus we pray, Amen.
Love,Dad/Baba/EricGrandpa Pickle Pastor“A chapter a day, every day, progressively, be transformed, ‘soak’ in the living Word.”

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