Episode 773
Money, Power, and Faith: Unpacking Simon's Story in Acts 8 | Ep 773
Welcome to another enriching episode of “Daily Bible Refresh” with Rev. Dr. Brad Miller. Today’s daily Bible refresh draws from Acts 8:18-24, diving deep into the New Testament through the Message translation. The episode unravels the intricate interplay between money, power, and spirituality, brought alive through the thought-provoking narrative of Simon the Sorcerer and the apostles.
Narrative Summary:
Our journey today begins with Simon witnessing the apostles laying their hands and conferring the Holy Spirit upon believers, an act that intrigues and excites him. But Simon's excitement quickly veers into questionable territory as he offers money in exchange for this sacred power. Peter's fierce rebuke follows, condemning Simon's attempt to commodify divine gifts and highlighting a significant moral lesson: spiritual gifts cannot be bought; they are given freely by grace.
Rev. Dr. Brad Miller unpacks this scripture by challenging us to reflect on our own spiritual and financial transactions. Are there ways in which we have tried to buy our way into spiritual favor or bypass genuine transformation through financial means? It’s a call to conduct a “sacred audit” of our relationship with money and spirituality, urging us to shift from transactional to relational mindsets.
Takeaway Points:
- Spiritual Capitalism: Simon’s attempt to purchase spiritual power mirrors a modern trend where spirituality becomes commodified. From the prosperity gospel to the wellness industry, the commercialization of faith remains a pressing issue. This episode prompts us to examine where we might have commoditized the sacred in our own lives.
- Power and Privilege: Peter’s harsh reaction isn't solely about the money; it’s about the misuse of privilege and power. This reflects current societal issues where wealth and status often bypass genuine engagement with justice and community work. True spiritual authority comes from personal transformation, not monetary transactions.
- Transformative Justice: Notably, Peter’s tough stance ends with the possibility of redemption, as Simon seeks prayer for his missteps. This aligns with progressive Christianity’s emphasis on transformation over punishment, showcasing that even those who err can choose a path of genuine change.
- Conducting a Sacred Audit: The episode calls listeners to conduct a “sacred audit” by introspectively examining their spending patterns and attitudes towards spiritual practices. It encourages moving away from a transactional mindset towards one that values authentic relational engagement with spirituality.
- Relational Mindset: The actionable step provided by Rev. Dr. Brad Miller suggests focusing on justice work and genuine spiritual engagement rather than appeasing a guilty conscience with purchases. This is a transformative shift from buying spiritual status to cultivating authentic relationships based on faith and justice.
Concluding the episode, Rev. Dr. Brad Miller leads a prayer asking for divine guidance to recognize and remedy the commodification of the sacred in our lives. It's a poignant reminder that true transformation and grace are found not in transactions, but in authentic, heartfelt dedication to faith and justice.
Remember, God’s love and mercy renew every morning, inviting us to begin each day with a fresh, unbuyable grace.
Tune in daily at voiceofgoddaily.com for more insightful scripture readings and reflections with Rev. Dr. Brad Miller
===========
The "Daily Bible Refresh" is presented each day by Rev. Dr. Brad Miller who has a goal of speaking a bit of the bible into two million ears (one million people) in three years (2025-2028).
He is the author of "The A, B, C-1,2,3 Bible Study Guide" Free to you by clicking HERE.
Brad served as a local church pastor for forty years and has a background in radio and podcasting. Moreover, he is a life-long student of The Bible.
He believes in the words of Jesus that “scripture is fulfilled in your hearing” (Luke 4:21)
The "Daily Bible Refresh" is available seven days a week by 6:00 am ET. The episodes are no longer than ten minutes long and are...
- Understandable: A reading from the New Testament (usually the Gospel) selected from the Revised Common Lectionary using "The Message" translation.
- Relatable: You will have a couple of "points to ponder" from the text which will relate to your life
- Applicable: Every episode includes a way you can take action based on the reading
- A recommended resource to help you go deeper in biblical study and spiritual direction.
- A prayer for your day.
A companion resource to the Voice of God Daily Podcast is the “ABC Bible Study Guide” available by clicking HERE.
The "Daily Bible Refresh" is available every day at VoiceofGodDaily.com on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and all major podcast directories.
You can help Dr. Brad attain his goal of getting a bit of the bible into two million ears by subscribing to "Daily Bible Refresh" on Apple Podcasts, leaving a five-star rating, and writing a review. More importantly please share with your network of family and friends about the "Daily Bible Refresh".
Please make listening to the "Daily Bible Refresh" a part of your daily life.
Remember… “All scripture is God-breathed and useful”(2 Timothy 3:16)
Transcript
Hello, good people. Welcome to daily biblerefresh with
Speaker:doctor Brad Miller, brought to you by voice of
Speaker:god daily.com. This is a daily
Speaker:reading of the scriptures. We take the scriptures
Speaker:selected from the revised comma lectionary. We're in year
Speaker:c, the epiphany season, and we give you a reading of the
Speaker:Trimble that is both understandable, relatable, and
Speaker:applicable. We make it, understandable
Speaker:by reading the New Testament lesson only from
Speaker:the message interpretation or translation of the
Speaker:bible. We make it relatable by offering you a couple of points to ponder,
Speaker:applicable by giving you an action step with prayer,
Speaker:and we we're done in less than 10 minutes.
Speaker:Let's read our scripture for the day. It's from Acts chapter 8 verses
Speaker:18 through 24, reading from the message.
Speaker:When Simon saw that the apostles were merely laying on hands
Speaker:confirmed confirmed by the Holy Spirit, he pulled out his money
Speaker:and excited and said, sell me your secret. Show
Speaker:me how you did that. How much do you want? Name your
Speaker:price. And Peter said, to hell with your
Speaker:money and you along with it. Why, that's unthinkable.
Speaker:Try to buy God's gift. You'll never be a part of what God is
Speaker:doing by striking bargains and offering
Speaker:bribes. Change your ways, and now
Speaker:ask the master to forgive you for trying to use God to make
Speaker:money. I can see this is an old habit with you. You reek
Speaker:with money lust. Oh, said
Speaker:Simon. Pray for me. Pray to the master
Speaker:that nothing like that will ever happen to me.
Speaker:Well, we have a scripture here that's really about, not
Speaker:the Trimble and money. It's an age old story, and it's about some people
Speaker:trying to commoditize the commodification,
Speaker:if you will, of sacred spaces, and that's what acts
Speaker:chapter acts chapter 8 is really about. It's about the intersection
Speaker:of money, power, and spirituality. Here's a couple of
Speaker:points to ponder. There is such a thing as spiritual capitalism,
Speaker:and Simon's attempt to purchase spiritual power reflects
Speaker:a modern tendency to commodify everything,
Speaker:including the sacred. From prosperity gospel to
Speaker:wellness industry spirituality, we continue to struggle with the
Speaker:commercialization of faith, and this is a
Speaker:passage that speaks to this, and it challenges to examine where
Speaker:we've turned spirituality into a marketplace
Speaker:transaction. Another point,
Speaker:it's about power and privilege. Peter has harsh
Speaker:has a very harsh response, and it isn't just about
Speaker:money. It's about the abuse of privilege and
Speaker:power. Simon sought to buy his
Speaker:way into spiritual authority rather than doing
Speaker:the hard personal work of transformation.
Speaker:And this really mirrors contemporary issues of
Speaker:trying to find the easy path, issues where wealth and
Speaker:status are used to bypass authentic
Speaker:engagement with justice and community work.
Speaker:You just can't buy it. One more point, it's
Speaker:about transformative justice. Notice
Speaker:that Peter's strong words and the
Speaker:story ends with the possibility of change
Speaker:though. Progressive Christianity emphasizes
Speaker:transformation rather than punitive justice.
Speaker:Simon's request for prayer shows that even though
Speaker:even those who are caught basically red handed trying to exploit
Speaker:others can choose a
Speaker:different path, and the option is there.
Speaker:Here's your action step for the day,
Speaker:conduct a sacred audit audit. That is examine
Speaker:your relationship with money and spirituality. Where
Speaker:have you treated sacred things as commodities? Maybe look at
Speaker:your own spending patterns or your own spiritual practices, and
Speaker:choose an area in your life where you can
Speaker:decommodify your spiritual your spiritual life.
Speaker:Perhaps by leaving a
Speaker:transactional mindset for a moment or 2
Speaker:and be guided more by a relational mindset.
Speaker:Think about what you can do to apply your life
Speaker:to justice work and not just buy something to try
Speaker:to appease a guilty conscience.
Speaker:We're gonna have a prayer here in just a moment. We
Speaker:do have a Trimble study resource for you that I want to offer you as
Speaker:a resource. It's the ABC C
Speaker:Trimble study guide. You can find it at
Speaker:voiceofgoddaily.com. It's right there in our show notes
Speaker:along with the transcription of today's of today's episode.
Speaker:I've just offered to you as a gift, the C 123 Trimble
Speaker:study guide will make studying your Trimble as easy as 123,
Speaker:and I hope that you'll take advantage of it. Let's pray.
Speaker:Oh God, the divine source of all, of all,
Speaker:of all things. We confess our tendency to turn
Speaker:everything into a transaction, to seek shortcuts
Speaker:to transformation, to buy our way out of discomfort.
Speaker:Help us recognize where we've commodified the sacred,
Speaker:where we tried to purchase what we can only be freely given. Guide us
Speaker:toward authentic relationship with you and others. Free us from the
Speaker:marketplace mentality that pervades our world and show us
Speaker:how to use our resources for justice, not for
Speaker:spiritual status or power. May we find grace in the journey of
Speaker:transformation even when it challenges our comfortable
Speaker:patterns. Amen.
Speaker:Well, it's been good to be with you here on the daily
Speaker:biblerefresh. My name is doctor Brad Miller. It was my pleasure and
Speaker:privilege to be with you every morning. We come to you
Speaker:from at voice of god daily.com. Hope
Speaker:that you join us again tomorrow and invite someone else in your
Speaker:circle to join us as well. Until that time, remember that
Speaker:God's loyal love doesn't run out. His
Speaker:merciful love hasn't dried up. It's created
Speaker:new every morning.
