1. I came across some information that talks about inscriptions on tombstones.
2. To my knowledge, the following statements are actually inscribed on grave markers:
3. “The children of Israel wanted bread and the Lord sent them manna.
4. Old clerk Wallace wanted a wife and the Devil sent him Anna.”
5. On a cemetery stone in Georgia are these words: “I told you I was sick.”
6. A third says, “Born 1903 – died 1942.
7. Looked up the elevator shaft to see if the car was on the way down. It was.
8. In both life and death we often associate people and things with events or characteristics.
9. Stated another way, people and things can have a “reputation” or are often characterized.
10. Bible characters are sometimes treated in this same manner.
WHEN I HEAR PEOPLE DESCRIBE THE SIMON LUKE WROTE ABOUT IN ACTS 8, HE IS OFTEN REFERRED TO AS SIMON THE SORCERER.
a) If we stop to think about it, this is an interesting description.
b) Simon had been involved with trickery before becoming a Christian.
2) After becoming a Christian, he left that lifestyle behind; Luke says he “abode with Philip” – 8:13.
3) If Simon had abandoned his former ways, why do people continue to associate him with it?
4)
Why continue to call Simon Simon the
Sorcerer?
5) Someone might say it is easier to identify him if we associate him with his former ways.
6) If we want a means of identification, we could choose something else.
7) We could say “The Simon in Acts 8” or “the man who abided with Philip.”
8) We could name him in some other way, but many refer to him as Simon the Sorcerer.
9) Simon is not the only Bible character who created a lingering reputation.
10) How many, when they think about Peter, quickly bring to mind his denial of the Lord?
11) Just mentioning the name of Judas immediately takes most back to his betrayal.
12) Bathsheba is a name that brings one well known event to the minds of most.
13) Other people in the Bible bring to mind certain pictures just by mentioning their name.
14) Names such as Daniel and Moses conjure up images of faithfulness and dedication.
15) John the Baptist had a reputation and he brings to mind a preacher of righteousness.
16) Ananias and Sapphira have a reputation even to this day as do Sodom and Gomorrah.
17) Tonight I want to think about reputation from the standpoint of Acts 8.
18) Simon became a Christian, and when he did so he left behind a way of life that was wrong.
a) Today there are still people who make this choice.
b) When this happens, we may need to have a correct attitude towards a person’s former ways.
c) Romans 6:2 says a Christian “dies to sin.”
d) Peter made the same point in 1 Pet. 2:24.
e) 2 Cor. 5:17 says that after a person enters into Christ he is a “new creature.”
f) The “old things” are “passed away.”
19) God says that old life is gone; passed away; completely removed.
20) This should be absolutely clear, but there are times when we find something like this occurring:
21) A person learns about Christianity and wants to become a child of God.
22) This person has done some things prior to conversion that resulted in a bad reputation.
23) This person becomes a Christian.
24) One the one hand, he is congratulated and reminded that God has forgiven him of his sins.
25) On the other hand, there is sometimes a carryover from a person’s past.
26) It is just like saying to a mate or a child “I forgive you,” but the matter comes up again in 6 months.
27) Most of us have seen times when a person with a reputation was not allowed to be freed from it.
28) In the life of Simon we see an important and practical point.
29) If a person has died to sin and becomes a new creature, the old reputation needs to die.
30) In the church it is not “Simon the sorcerer, Simon the drunk, or Simon the drug dealer.”
31) If people have repented, these reputations are no longer accurate.
32) For a second Biblical illustration of this, we can turn to Saul of Tarsus (Acts 9).
33) Saul had a reputation. His reputation was well known and quite strong.
34) One description of it is found in Acts 9:21a – READ.
35) Saul was well known for his actions, but the day came when he became a Christian.
36) What happened to Paul’s reputation as a persecutor?
37) Did he come to assemblies and Christians said, “Look, the ex-persecutor is here”
38) “That’s the guy that imprisoned my brother. That’s the man who confined the preacher’s wife.”
39) This is not what we find in the New Testament.
40) God’s people knew that this man had changed so that old reputation was left in the trash bin.
41) There are some references which show some initial hesitation on the part of Christians.
42) Some had to be convinced that Paul really had changed.
43) When this was proven, we find that Christians gave Paul a new reputation.
a) A wonderful text for this point is found in Gal. 1:22-24.
b) These verses state that Christians were aware of Paul but they had not seen him.
c) There were brethren in the area of Jerusalem who had only heard about him.
44) Gal. 1:22-24 does make reference to Paul’s persecution, but it is momentary.
45) The mention of his former way of life was only to identify him to those who he didn’t know.
46) What is emphasized is what Paul was doing as a Christian.
47) Gal. 1:22-24 – READ.
a) When it came to Paul’s reputation, people put stress on what he had become.
b) God’s people were thrilled that Paul was now living and working as a Christian.
c) How Paul was treated provides us with some practical pointers for life today.
48) First, people can and do change. The gospels does that to people.
49) Second, when people truly do change, their old reputations no longer apply.
50) Third, when there is this type of change, godly people lay stress on a person’s new reputation.
51)
A mark of
Christian maturity and knowledge is concentrating on what a person has
become, not their past.
52) Almost all the phone in our household are made by Panasonic.
53) Sometimes I look at them and think about a conversation from more than 10 years ago.
54) A man who sells Panasonic products was given some phones made by that company.
55) He told me that were absolute junk; completely worthless; worst phones on the market.
56) For a long time I believed that. A while back I decided to try one.
57) Panasonic now makes some great phones.
58) Reputations can change, but we can hold on to things from the past.
59) When we find people who have changed, we should be ready to help them.
60) I am not sure why Simon stayed so close to Philip.
61) There may be several reasons, but here is one possibility.
62) People in Samaria had faith in Philip.
63) If Simon stayed close to Philip, it may have helped him build a new life.
64) He would have been in a position to re-build his reputation.
65) Today we can help people rebuild reputations.
66) There are people all around us who want that.
67) They look at their lives, see a mess, and they want a new life and to be characterized in a new way.
68) As Christians we can help people to that.
69) Earlier some information was given about Paul.
70) I now want to look at some additional information from this man’s life that is also found in Acts 9.
a) Paul’s persecution of Christians began in Jerusalem, and it was intense.
b) After some time passed he was converted.
c) After becoming a Christian he wanted to go to Jerusalem.
d) His appearance at any church gathering would have shocked people.
e) Going back to Jerusalem where he had done so much damage would have really created a stir.
f) His attending a service would have put fear into the hearts of the saved until people knew of the change.
71) Luke expresses all these thoughts in Acts 9:26 – READ.
72) At first Christians were not convinced Paul had changed.
73) Paul still had the reputation of a persecutor, and he needed help.
74) With this in mind let’s look at Acts 9:27 – READ.
75) A dedicated Christian helped another Christian (Paul) form a new reputation.
76) Philip may have done this same thing in Acts 8.
77) Today this is one of the things we can sometimes do as children of God.
78) We can help Christians and non-Christians in the area of reputation.
79) Many who worship here get the Gospel Advocate.
80) In the March 2004 issue of this publication there is a story about a man who was converted.
81) This man spent a lot of time in the church but a day came when he fell away.
82) He fell pretty far, but one day came into contact with more members of the church.
83) One of these Christians said, “We could use someone like you around here” (p. 38).
84) The fallen man was encouraged being returned to the Lord.
85) The fallen brother said, “You wouldn’t want me here. I used to be a bouncer in a topless bar.”
86) A thoughtful Christian said, “We don’t care what you used to be…We care about the man you are today.”
87) According to the fallen brother, these words were a turning point in his life.
88) Again and again in the Bible we see people who often had bad reputations in the past.
89) When we become a Christian, that entire past is put away.
90) Even delinquent Christians can have their negligence buried.
91) Dedicated Christians can help people by leaving someone’s former reputation in the past.
92) That’s where God puts it, and we need to follow His lead.
93) Look for people who are struggling with their reputation. They want help and we can offer it.