Our 21st Century Simony

By: Dr. Jimmy Young

Simony. Ever heard of that word? It has to do with the buying or selling of ecclesiastical preferment. One of Martin Luther’s greatest hatreds was simony, as he watched Pope Leo X sell three German bishoprics to Albert of Brandenburg for a fee of 25,000 gold florins.

The word, included in every dictionary you own, comes straight out of a story in Acts 8, where a man, whose name was Simon, tried to buy the power “so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit" (Acts 8:19).

How crass and unthinkable! Who could possibly be that carnal?

How about you and me? Oh, sure, we would never whip out our checkbooks and seek to purchase some spiritual privilege. But we do, almost daily, try to offer God things to make Him love us more, or to make sure He is “in our corner.” We teach a class, we perform a benevolent service, or we may even write a check, all in the hope that by our good performance God will respond in a way we desire. Let’s call it 21st century sophisticated simony. What Peter said to Simon in Acts 8, we need to hear: “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money" (Acts 8:20).

Guys, everything God has for His people comes to us by way of a gift. Nothing is ever earned. So, with an eye simply on His glory, let’s give up our penchant for performing, and learn to love. I’m hard to love. God isn’t.