Philip’s ministry in Samaria in Acts 8included the belief and baptism of a man named Simon, who formerly attracted a large following by performing Satanic magic arts in which he boasted. Therefore, his conversion doubtless had a profound impact upon many. But there were at least two problems. One, the Holy Spirit had not yet […]
Yesterday at our Good News Club – February 14th – we spoke of the origin of Valentine’s day. It is named after a third century A.D. Christian named Valentine who was executed by order of the Roman Emperor Claudius on February 14th, 269. Although some of the events surrounding Valentine’s life are unclear, it is […]
Philip’s ministry in Samaria in Acts 8 included an encounter with a man named Simon. According to verse 9, Simon practiced magic or sorcery in the city. In fact, the early church fathers referred to this individual as Simon Magus (Simon the magician). He was not what we would refer to as an illusionist, but […]
In Acts 8:4 we read that the Christians who were scattered as a result of persecution of the church in Jerusalem “went about preaching the word.” This is especially true of the Greek-speaking Jews-turned-Christians after their unspoken leader, Stephen, was martyred by angry Jews. Verse 5 says that one of them, Philip: “went down to […]