It’s easy for us to be seduced by the trappings of success, or to chase after it. This is what seems to happen to Simon the Sorcerer here. Having seen what has happened in Samaaria, believed and been baptised. He fundamentally misunderstands the gift of the Spirit, offering to pay to receive them. As is normal, Peter reacts gruffly, abruptly and without much grace at all. It’s easy for us to identify with him. A lot of us have known, or even been ourselves, a wolf in sheep’s clothing, someone who wants the glory but doesn’t want to make the heart commitment, or sacrifice, or suffer. We can judge them. Most of us can probably think of “celebrity pastors”. A lot of them end up falling or failing publicly. Often, I have caught myself enjoying this failure. What a terrible thing to have to admit.
Peter’s retort to Simon is that his heart isn’t in the right place, and so he has no place in the inheritance of the kingdom. How Peter is able to make such a statement with impunity I’m not sure. I don’t quite understand how his heart was in the right place and Simon’s wasn’t, but that’s probably a debate for another day. We must fight against taking the moral high ground in issues of faith, morality and ethics. Our task is to love God, love our neighbours and love ourselves, not judge or decry the lives of others.