For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    The wise will gain wealth at the expense of those who act disgracefully, even if the former begin their lives in positions of subservience and the latter are children of privilege. In the same way that fire or extreme heat is used to purify silver and gold so will God purify our hearts. When we face difficult times, it is God seeking to purify us. Let His work proceed to clean and purify us so that we become clean and pure.

    Let us follow the psalmist’s example and cry out to God from the depths of our despair. No matter how desperate our situation may seem to us, God is ready and willing to listen to our cry. While our sins may overwhelm us, He is willing to forgive us. Let us put our hope in the Lord. Let us long for Him. God will redeem us from our sin, no matter how steeped in that sin we have become. All we need to do is cry out to Him and ask for His deliverance.

    We have the continuation of the story of Simon the Sorcerer in today’s passage. When Peter and John came to Samaria from Jerusalem, they laid their hands upon people and they received the Holy Spirit. When Simon saw the results, he offered Peter and John money for the ability to do the same thing. This tells us that when people received the Holy Spirit something very noteworthy took place. Something which a showman like Simon desired the ability to replicate. Peter rebuked Simon for thinking that he could purchase God’s gift. Simon accepted Peter’s rebuke and asked Peter to pray for him. I believe that Peter’s rebuke of Simon was justified. Simon wanted the ability to deliver the Holy Spirit in order to gain glory and prominence for himself. However, I also believe that Simon saw the benefits of people receiving the Holy Spirit and wanted to be able to help people by delivering the Holy Spirit to them. I believe that Simon’s repentance was sincere.
    Shortly after Peter and John returned to Jerusalem, Philip was led by the Spirit to travel south towards Gaza. On the road, he encountered the Ethiopian. The Ethiopian was reading from the prophet Isaiah. The Ethiopian did not understand what he was reading. Philip explained how the passage he was reading was a prophecy about Jesus. The Ethiopian was seeking God by reading Scripture, but he did not understand what he was reading. In the same way that the Spirit directed Philip to the Ethiopian the Spirit will direct us to those who are seeking. Let us be prepared to explain the Gospel, starting from where they are.

    God accepted Solomon’s request. He agreed to set the Temple aside as Holy. He made it a place where His name would be honoured forever. The Temple is dear to God’s heart. While God is not limited to the physical location of the Temple and has chosen to act in this world through His Spirit living in the hearts of believers, He still maintains a presence in Jerusalem.