Faith without religion.
Breaking Down Barriers: Acts Chapter 8 Part Two
Samaritans, Baptism, Faith
In a recent episode of the “I Don’t Get the Bible” podcast, the hosts delved into Acts Chapter 8, exploring the intriguing dynamics between Jews and Samaritans, and the spread of Christianity beyond Jerusalem. The discussion began with the story of Simon the Sorcerer and the apostles’ mission to Samaria, a region traditionally despised by Jews due to its mixed heritage and differing religious practices. The hosts highlighted the significance of Philip’s journey to Samaria, where he preached to the Samaritans, breaking down long-standing barriers.
The conversation then shifted to the role of Peter and John, who were sent to Samaria to pray for new believers to receive the Holy Spirit. This raised questions about the necessity of their presence and the process of receiving the Holy Spirit, sparking a discussion on the laying on of hands and its implications in different religious traditions, including Mormonism.
The podcast also touched on the story of the Ethiopian eunuch, a high-ranking official who encountered Philip on his way to Jerusalem. The eunuch’s reading of Isaiah and subsequent baptism by Philip underscored the openness of early Christian practices, contrasting with modern religious requirements for baptism. The hosts emphasized the symbolic nature of baptism as an expression of faith and new life in Christ, rather than a prerequisite for salvation.
Throughout the episode, the hosts challenged traditional religious interpretations, advocating for a more inclusive understanding of faith and the transformative power of belief in Jesus’ resurrection. They concluded with a reflection on the essence of Christian life, characterized by faith, love, and the peace that comes from living in alignment with spiritual truths.
Podcast Transcript:
all right Acts chapter 8 part two I
don’t get the Bible
podcast okay so we ended the last one
talking
about Simon being a sorcerer and the
evil that is sorcery mhm and uh so then
it says the apostles in Jerusalem here
that Samaria accepted the word of God
Samaria I just thought it was strange
that they would say a
whole area accepted the nation of God
the reason being were the Samaritans
were hated by the Jews in Jerusalem they
were mongr people to a Jew they had
mixed their blood they accepted the
first five books of the Old Testament
but not the rest they had their own
Temple they did their own thing and it’s
because I can’t go into all the history
CU I can’t remember it but bottom line
they’re a Schism sect and when Jesus
went to Samaria he talked to a woman at
the well and he cleared it up with her
he said the Jews know where the worship
supposed to be he’s you know he’s like
but he reached out to her it’s strange
that Philip went to Samaria because they
were only supposed to go to their
own but this was kind of a Mong Mongrel
expression of Judaism so I guess he felt
led to go to them next the Samaritans do
remember uh in the story of the Good
Samaritan yeah do you remember that yeah
there’s a man he’s he’s walking along
gets beaten up and a priest walks by and
ignores him and and another guy walks by
and ignores him and a Samaritan comes
along and helps him this was to teach to
break down those walls between the Jews
and the Samaritans that had long existed
that time in history so he went to their
place and I don’t know how to explain
why Wow and that’s due
to um what you brought up up in the last
episode which is the PX Mana opened up a
road there no it was closer Samaria was
within walking distance yeah I don’t
know you know maybe it was more than a
day but it’s within walking distance
it’s all in that area okay yeah oh so
paxar Mana refers to like far yeah it
refers to the other Christian disciples
going out Beyond Judea and jerus Israel
to get away from the persecution they
were feeling so maybe they went and they
started churches in different location
like Rome Philippi Corinth and oh oh
those I was going to ask you what are
name some names
okay okay um so then
John okay so
Phillip gets Samaria to
accept the Holy Spirit I’m trying to
find which verse I’m
on um and in turn they send Peter and
John to Samaria MH that does make me
wonder if Philip’s an apostle I know I
don’t know if that was for re I’m still
in a blank spot in that I can’t
remember it’s confusing because it
says when the apostles in Jerusalem
heard that Samaria had accepted the word
of God they sent Peter and John to Samar
that’s weird there there’s got to be an
a simple answer but I’m getting should I
look at up you can is Phillip an apostle
Phillip is an apostle
Philip the Apostle yeah yeah it just
came to me when you asked that
question so apparently Peter and John
heard that there was fruit being born
coming out of Samaria so they ran to
help okay well that’s odd to me um I
have a few questions for this part so
Peter and John go and pray for new
Believers that they might receive the
Holy Spirit yeah uh because the Holy
Spirit had not yet come on any of them
that they had simply been baptized in
the name of the Lord
Jesus um Peter and John lay their hands
on them then and then those people
receive the holy spirit so it’s like the
questions are why did Peter and John
have to go do this and Philip
couldn’t why did there even like I feel
like there are other times where the
Holy Spirit
enters without anything happening let
alone without a baptism happening then
there’s a baptism that happens why
didn’t the Holy Spirit come in then and
then
finally it made me think of Mormons the
laying on of hands and I wondered if
that’s how they do it now there’s
Apostles if if that is that what the
laying on of hands for Mormons is like
Apostles pass it down that power down to
the priesthood basically okay they
borrow that from the Jewish tradition of
laying hands on people to bless them so
the LDS are not original in it okay and
then they LDS just took it and they took
the text and they said okay we’re going
to make it uh certain you have the
authority someone has laid their hand
with authority laid their hands on you
you can then lay it on someone else and
it will work and perhaps that was the
way it was in that nent church and
perhaps Peter and John did bestow the
Holy Spirit on people in that day by
laying on of hands but it doesn’t mean
that’s what we do today yeah and it
didn’t that didn’t seem like the correct
trans ation of it because it seems like
I mean we’ll get to it but Simon or
Simon Simon even asks can I buy this
power and they’re like what is wrong
with you no but um yeah and like pet
Phillip didn’t even do it like Peter and
John are the only ones that could do it
so for any for people to think if
Apostles still existed today that they
could pass that power on other people
seems crazy and and why couldn’t even
Philip do it Peter and John were part of
Jesus in her uh in her Circle so it
could be they had more power because
Peter was going to open the doors with
the keys maybe he had to go there to do
it in Samaria just to let you know too
Jesus I mentioned this in that Jesus had
a conversation with the Samaritan woman
at the well and he wasn’t even supposed
to be talking to her as a Jew he wasn’t
supposed to be sitting there alone with
her as a Jew which he did and then she
ran into Samaria and said I’ve met the
Messiah many believed on him so it seems
like that’s what planted the seed in
Samaria for belief and Philip went in
and capitalized on that and then John
and and Peter then came in and and
officiated that as being
authentic yeah makes okay yeah so
um what about the idea of these all
these people got baptized and they
didn’t I thought baptism was like
synonymous with with receiving Holy
Spirit no um baptism is an ablution that
goes back to all the Washings that the
Jews did and it would be an
identifier of it was not it could be it
was an identifier of people in that day
and so if you were baptized in water you
were just saying I identify with
whatever it is that this thing is and
they were baptized in the lord’s name it
says right yeah yeah that’s right yeah
yeah
wait is that right yeah and they’re
baptized in the name of the Lord in the
name of the Lord Jesus yeah you know
what’s fascinating about that is in the
last chapter chapter 28 of
Matthew Jesus says after before he
ascends go ye therefore baptize in in
the name of the Father the Son and the
Holy Spirit but in Acts all we have them
doing is baptizing in his name which is
right which one is correct I think that
was a insertion by a trinitarian to
emphasize the three in one in Matthew in
Matthew yeah because we don’t have any
support for it in
Acts um yeah that makes sense MH
um well then the other side of that
question is baptism isn’t synonymous
with receiving the Holy Spirit but
people
could receive the Holy Spirit without
these things happening without the
laying on so I just it was curious to me
that let me put to you this this is the
box and you can never take baptism
receiving the Holy Spirit laying on of
hands or anything else and keep it in
that box within the narrative they’re
breaking the rules constantly everywhere
religion comes along and says no we got
to box it in got it for instance there’s
a group of people who’ve made a similar
um observance as you and they say you
have to be baptized and in that process
you will receive the Holy Spirit if you
are true and if you receive it you will
then speak in tongues oh God and that’s
called the the Jesus only movement and
so you have to do those things in order
to be accepted of them do that’s the
Jesus only movement yeah that does not
sound like Jesus only yeah
that’s you got to be baptized in jesus’
name only oh I see I see you uh you
receive the Holy Spirit as evidence by
you speaking in tongues and then you do
charismatic acts and you’ll have a
spiritual gift so maybe you can heal or
prophesy you know uh our good friend um
he’s the volleyball coach who Cassidy
loved he’s gay Travis Travis his brother
was one of those oh my gosh yeah he was
so excited about about everything and
then what they do to you is they say oh
you’re a Christian yeah have you been
baptized in jesus’
name um yeah did you speak in the uh
tongues did you speak by the Holy Spirit
and if you say no to any of those they
like no you’re not his
unreal so insane come up out of the
water and start
spitting how was it
again
sh
never a dull
moment oh my gosh
um okay and then like I said Simon says
what is this ability can I buy it from
you isn’t that awesome and that yeah it
is pretty awesome and Peter gives him
this radical
rebuke may your money perish with you
because you thought you could buy the
gift of God for money yeah with money
um anything to mention of that people
love that one yeah I bet repent of this
wickedness and pray the Lord pray to the
Lord in the hope that he may forgive you
for such a thought in your heart yeah it
it is so emotional it’s so dramatic and
so Christians think they need to be that
way too oh my gosh it’s so true your
money perish with
you um okay Simon was remorse for that
Peter and John return and then philli
return to Jerusalem Philip then goes
south and on his way he meets an
Ethiopian oo
baby we’re getting to the Ethiopian the
Ethiopian first of all this is a black
man just to let you know he’s an
Ethiopian but he’s probably an Ethiopian
Jew he could have been an Ethiopian
Samaritan but probably a Jew there for
the high holidays well this is my
question so samarit like the way they
talk about it or use the words I would
equate Ethiopian and Samaritan which is
like a nationality Samaritan is a belief
system Samar Samaria is a place and the
Samaritans live there and embrace that
belief system so okay
Samaritan ha is a
nationality but it’s also a belief
system yeah Ethiopian is just a
nationality the place where he’s from
it’s there’s no belief system tied from
Africa no so they could be an Ethiopian
Jew or an Ethiopian Samaritan or an
Ethiopian Gentile probably not a gentile
or an Ethiopian Samaritan because the
gospel hadn’t been open to them
officially it could have been a
Samaritan probably not a gentile because
Peter hasn’t opened that door for the
gospel to go to Gentiles so that’s why
and and Ethiopia in that time had a
large synagogue uh of Jews so that’s why
the assumption is this Ethiopian was
probably a Jew okay and he’s coming and
and there’s some other indicators that
he’ll say that make us think yeah he’s a
Jew okay it was an assumption but then I
realized I wasn’t sure and then
um you just said something oh did you
say already
what the Samaritan belief system is yeah
I talked about how they different Temple
they only believe in the first five
books things like that all right um
okay um so this guy this Ethiopian was a
unic is that what it’s
called what is that word I feel like
it’s been no testies oh
yeah oh my
gosh he’s been neutered
go it call it says that a unic is an
official in charge of the treasury yeah
uh probably more in charge of the
concubines or of the wives of the person
they serve they would cut off their
testicles so they wouldn’t have
relations with the
herum that is so crazy Jesus said hey if
you want to become a unic on by your own
hand go
ahead and Jerome early church
uh uh father uh I believe he was the one
who cut off his own unit for the gospel
sake goodness why doesn’t it why doesn’t
it say that here I would never have
known that if I didn’t remember that
word from you talking about it yeah well
I mean it says the word there it just
says and an important official in charge
of the treasury of the queen of the
Ethiopians okay well he was a unic first
of all right yeah but it says he met a
Ethiopian unic an
important
oh so a unic is saying an important
official is not them describing what a
unic is he’s a unic and very important
person yeah who’s in charge of the
treasury and I say he’s probably in
charge of a lot because he’s got no junk
he’s got he’s got the he’s got the
Willie but he’s got no okay we get it oh
my God you know what I think of when I
hear the word unic I have since I was a
kid an Ooma
Loompa why I just want to call him Unix
I don’t know why that is so
weird there’s no reason for that no
reason at all it’s so
odd
okay oh my goodness
okay oh my gosh I’m lost my place the
unic is
I don’t know what to call him I wanted
to call him unic the whole time cuz I
thought that was the offic the name of
his position they always say the
Ethiopian the
Ethiopian no they call him the unic no I
mean Christians today they they don’t
want to they might say the Ethiopian
unic they might say that okay so if I
hear someone refer to the Ethiopian it’s
this guy well it could be him or it
could be the guy who helped Jesus bear
the cross s was also Ethiopian Simon
yeah um okay this
man was going to Jerusalem to worship
which is what which was my indicator of
him being a Jew he’s a Jew yeah okay
um and then he was sitting on a chariot
reading the book of
Isaiah um and quickly I just wanted to
ask I thought that the Old Testament
wasn’t n accessible to them oh no he was
a Jew so it was it was uh fully
accessible to them it like in Mass
copies where they each had one uh maybe
uh because he was on a chariot and he
was of big import and so he seemed to be
a leader he maybe he had access to a
copy you know and the synagogues would
have access too because they would make
enough copies for their people oh so it
wasn’t until the printing press that we
get the whole thing mass produced
but for their own people yeah they
would okay I thought it was like pure
oral tradition or something it was
certainly oral tradition back before the
second temple period which I won’t get
into okay but way back it was definitely
oral okay um so he’s reading Isaiah he’s
reading Isaiah and he’s
like Philip gets the call to go up and
stay near The Chariot and he goes up and
he’s like do you understand what you’re
reading and the guy’s like how can I
unless someone explains it to me um so
he invites Philip to come up and explain
it and I could read the passage but it’s
a passage that from points to Jesus from
Isaiah and Philip explains it’s talk and
because the sorry the Ethiopian asks who
is this talking about is it me how am I
supposed to know who am I it’s talking
about and Philip says it’s
Jesus and so um he asks
to be baptized he said he asks it saying
what can stand in the way of my being
baptized which I thought was kind of a
cool way of
asking um I didn’t have many questions
though about this is there something to
note yeah because what does Philip what
does he say Philip baptized him
wait um he
says
he gave orders to stop the Chariot then
both Philip and the unic went down into
the water and Philip baptized him when
they came up out of the water the spirit
of the Lord’s oh well he doesn’t say
anything okay but the spirit of the Lord
suddenly takes Phillip big one we’ll
talk about that in a second right now
really getting into mysticism now but
going backward note that we don’t have
there when the unic says Hey I just read
this passage in Isaiah who is it he says
it’s Yeshua and he says well what’s
stops me from being baptized and they
went and did it right that’s it now we
don’t have any profession of of he just
says I believe this I want to be
baptized he doesn’t even say I believe
it yeah he just says what stops
literally says can I get baptized he
doesn’t accept Eternal punishment he
doesn’t accept Trinity he doesn’t accept
anything people want churches today you
got to say this this this he’s just like
what stops me nothing boom yeah okay to
be what stops me from being baptized and
there are churches now that you can’t
get baptized unless you accept things
wow wor Mormons you can’t be baptized
unless you’re
worthy I never put that together bab
like I would think that they require
baptism for salvation but not that they
require things to get baptized that’s
right they require things to get
baptized wow yeah if you’re a felon you
can’t be baptized as a a Mormon are you
kidding me if you’re fresh out if you’re
on parole if you’re a the second person
in the history of the church was just
baptized who’s
transgender and apparently that person
renounced their reversal and so they did
it you can’t be baptized if you’re
living in sin you I mean if you go to
most pastors they won’t do it either if
you’re having sex with your uh boyfriend
or girlfriend and you haven’t been
married by some words by a pastor they
say you’re in sin and you can’t be
baptized till you repent of that and are
worthy wow yeah so now we see religion
coming in yeah he says what stops me no
sense yeah baptism is to wash Away The
Sins well or like in theory it’s a
theory in theory only Jesus uh did did
that post did it done uh but the the
baptism is really more emblematic of
being buried with him in his death and
then rising to New Life that’s really
what it’s about and so a lot of people
make a big deal out of this because it
says they went down to the water and
then when they came up out of so they
say baptism has to be by immersion which
is the best version of baptism but it’s
not the only one you know what I meant
by it it’s to wash away like that’s the
I do but I’m just clarifying for our
audience yeah it’s because they don’t
know how smart you are only I do to be B
but like is that the right assumption
like to be
buried with him is to like put the sins
behind you sort of thing and like let
him take like I don’t know if there’s
like a metaphor going on with baptism is
that it’s washing away we got to talk
about this no we got to talk about this
I you were disappointed just now no we
are out of time already but let it’s
fine let’s open up with this next part
we’re finishing really oh talk now yeah
let’s just finish
that if you understand this you’re miles
ahead of the game I can show you through
scripture anybody who is you know who
knows scripture knows
this Jesus Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5
when he went down into the
grave he took the world with
him all died with him okay so the wages
of sin is death death he died for the
world so the world has died with him and
the world’s sin has been paid for they
paid the wages by the wages is dead yes
they are a blank slate so when
Christians pick on other people for
their sin they are ignoring the fact of
what he did for everybody he took away
the sin of the Flesh of this world okay
anything he took it all
away however you only come to a
relationship with his father by
Believing on his
Rising because him Rising the
resurrection is he came to New Life So
everybody’s been reconciled to God he’s
not angry at anybody because of his
son’s offering but you won’t have access
to God unless you receive his son and
when you do you rise up to New Life and
the spirit that raised him in his
resurrection is imputed to you and then
you start to live like a Christian so
you might not remember the stories of me
when we when you were younger and me
being terrible and everything but the
fact of the matter is when I believed on
him truly I rose up with him and I’m
empowered by his strength of the
Resurrection that’s the difference
between a non-believer and a Believer
and that’s the great news yeah the great
news is your sin’s done so let’s stop
marching against sin and and judging
people let’s realize that Victory and
now let’s teach hey if you want more
receive him by faith and you’ll rise
with him does that make sense yeah the
another cool aspect of that analogy or
whatever it’s called is that everyone is
dead that’s right like the current state
your a human’s current state is just
dead death yeah it’s covered
because they’re dead like they’re fine
but there’s life to be offered that you
can accept that’s the great news that’s
the great news accept it and you’ll rise
and that’s when you start talking about
the tangible change that comes not
through religion but through that spirit
and that’s what I attest to people of I
just did a two-hour with John attack I
attest to them of that fact and that’s
what uh Anthony magnabosco on D’s thing
you know you could say what you want you
know but argue with me about the change
that came when I rose with him through
faith and that’s the only empirical
evidence I have subjective as it is yeah
and that the other side of that is that
it’s life here like it’s life in the
afterlife
too which I understand and I still like
don’t like to think about it that much
because it’s life here like it’s a
better life here it makes life better
yeah they don’t believe that they think
it’s gonna make life worse it will in
some way like in the ways that they
probably value it makes it worse but
like self-will wins and they get what
they want do you get how that works yeah
so when it yeah
like yeah the counterfeit love that we
were talking about is from dead people
going to yeah and it will gain them this
world or whatever it will gain them in
the material ways that they want here
cuz love that yeah but actual
sacrificial love that comes from the
life that’s given through God is is one
way not going to gain you materially
here but it will gain you a better life
yeah a better life peace peace peace um
and longsuffering forgiveness something
I never had so I had punitive violence
self-will you know I believed in in the
nian Uber MCH I fully believed in it and
I believed in might makes right and all
of that was of my dead carnal flesh but
it wasn’t working it didn’t work for me
and so that’s when the change came one
last thing on that I’m sorry we
belabored it not but there are two sins
that apparently Jesus didn’t pay for and
they are
faithlessness and choosing not to love
here’s why I say that Adam and Eve in
the garden before they fell they were
asked to believe they had the capacity
to believe they were also tacitly asked
to love God first and what he told them
they didn’t I think we all will be
accountable even as blank slates now
it’s not going to be oh you know did you
have sex with your dog it’s G to be did
you CH did you choose Faith did you
choose to
love and and if you didn’t yeah which is
that is synonymous with living like I
feel
like living is that making that choice
yes to have faith and to love and it’s
the rising is defined by that and it’s
the only way in my estimation to live
I’ve lived most ways I mean you can name
the carnality of ways I’ve done it I’ve
tried them all and uh no that’s why I
speak so fervently for this position
yeah wow that’s great
thanks thank
you it’s like Christmas Story father
punch on
podcast that chair is certainly squeaky
it’s my jacket that’s what they always
say against the yeah I wonder if they
can hear that leather on leather yeah
probably bad idea sorry guys no uh
um we’ll see
