![]() But regardless of how we interpret these passages, it is not hard to conceive of situations in which we cannot repent wholeheartedly. One possible example is Hebrews 12:17 where Esau sought but did not find repentance, another is 1Samuel 15, the story of God's rejection of Saul as king, after he seemed to repent. That is, they seek true repentance, but God does not grant it, and they cannot create it themselves. Nevertheless, again as with faith, it is possible for people to have false repentance. A person that demonstrates God-given repentance is saved (cf. This brings us to your second question: Does God always forgive us when we repent? Much as with faith, true repentance is a gift from God (Acts 11:18). Once Peter spots him as a false believer, he rebukes Simon Magus harshly in order that the magician might see the error of his ways and have an opportunity to repent and be saved. If this interpretation is correct, then what we see in Acts 8 is Simon's wicked actions revealing the true nature of his so-called faith. So, getting back to Simon Magus, it is reasonable to say that he had some kind of belief that was not God-given saving faith. It also applies these terms to people that have false faith in the gospel, and to people who have faith in a false gospel The point is simply that what the Bible calls "belief" or "faith" isn't exactly the same was what modern Christians mean when they use these terms. ![]() Another way to describe these people is to say that they were "believers" who did not have saving faith. There we learn that Jesus did not entrust himself to those who believed in him, and that he withheld himself from them because he knew them. The difficulty for us as modern Christians reading the Bible is that the Bible itself does not clearly indicate what kind of faith it is talking about in all instances.Ĭonsider, for example, John 2:23-25. 2:8), residing in a regenerate heart (cf. In order for faith to be saving faith, it must have the proper content (i.e., conviction of sin, trust in God and Jesus Christ as savior) and it must be God-given (Rom. Still others say that he thought himself to be a believer, but his faith was poorly informed and not founded on Christ. It also coincides well with the way tradition has portrayed his character subsequent to the events in Acts 8. This is a reasonable understanding of the passage, particularly given Peter's strong rebuke. Others believe that he falsely professed faith in order to be accepted by the apostles and to learn the secrets of their trade, so to speak. However, other Scriptures clearly teach that this is impossible (cf. Some believe that he had saving faith but then lost it. The question of his faith can be understood in a different ways. He is said to have fallen to his death while levitating, or, more accurately, when he stopped levitating too soon. For example, he reportedly fell back into magic, and sometimes followed Peter around in order to refute Peter's gospel. The Bible records his encounter with Peter in Acts 8, and several early Christian writings tell of things that later happened with Simon Magus. ![]() Simon the Magician) is a very interesting character. Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary.He Gave Us Scripture: Foundations of Interpretation.Your Kingdom Come: The Doctrine of Eschatology.Kingdom, Covenants & Canon of the Old Testament.Kingdom & Covenant in the New Testament.
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