Christ Church Daily Devotion Dec11 2023

The Daily Devotion discusses a passage from Acts 8, where Simon the sorcerer tries to buy the ability to convey the Holy Spirit. Peter and John rebuke him, emphasizing the importance of pure motives. The lesson is that our actions in the church must be driven by genuine intentions, not for attention or admiration. The personal worship option encourages reflection on our own motivations for serving Christ. Welcome to Christ Church's Daily Devotion for December 11, 2023. Today we will be reading from Acts chapter 8, verses 18 through 24. When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles' hands, he offered them money and said, Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit. Peter answered, May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money. You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. Repent of the wickedness and pray to the Lord in the hope that He may forgive you for having such a thought in your heart, for I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin. Then Simon answered, Pray to the Lord for me, so that nothing you have said may happen to me. This week we will be looking at the motivations behind the actions of different people in the Bible. We will see examples of pure, upright motivations, but we will also see others that are not so good. In today's passage, we met Simon the sorcerer. Earlier in this chapter, we learn that Simon amazed people with his magic and boasted that he was someone great. When Philip came to Samaria, many people believed and were baptized. Simon, too, believed and was baptized. Peter and John followed Philip to Samaria to complete his work among the converts, placing their hands on them and praying for them to receive the Holy Spirit. When Simon saw the people being filled with the Holy Spirit, he wanted the power to convey the Spirit and gave money to Peter and John. Simon no doubt wanted the attention that would bring him. Peter and John rebuked him harshly, saying correctly that he was attempting to buy the gift of God. There is a lesson in this for all of us in the church. It is not enough to do good things. Our motives for doing them must be pure. Today's personal worship option, reflect for a few minutes on things you do in the church. Do you ever do those for attention or make others admire you? All of us desire to be accepted and to be successful in our ministries. Pray that those desires do not enter in your motivation for serving Christ.