Why You Should Never Underestimate Spiritual Powers, No Matter What Their Source

It’s Up to Us to Find God’s Meaning and Purpose In Our Lives

Never Underestimate Authentic Spiritual Powers

(Acts chapter 19, verses 13-22)

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Last week when we completed part one of Acts 19, the apostle Paul had amassed an enormous amount of healing power through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. He was actively accessing this implanted power – power that he did not possess himself, but which had been imparted by his baptism with the Holy Spirit of the risen Lord Christ Jesus. Untold scores had been healed of various diseases or medical conditions, possibly many hundreds or even thousands. All this was occurring in the city of Ephesus, in what is now western Turkey. It was to the church there that the Book of Ephesians in the New Testament was written. There were also some other disciples who were driving demons out of victims of demonic possession, and that is where we will begin this week's lesson. So let's all start off together at verse 13.

Part One of This Week’s Study Verses

“13) Some Jews who went around driving out evil spirits tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. They would say, 'In the name of the Jesus whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out.' 14) Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this. 15) One day the evil spirit answered them, 'Jesus I know, and Paul I know about, but who are you?' 16) Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding.” (Acts 19, verses 13-16)

Don’t Trifle Around or Play With Demonic Forces

Demonic possession is very real, and it is not something that can be trifled around with. The 1970's movie, “The Exorcist” barely scratched the surface when it comes to something as extremely serious as demonic possession. These 7 sons of Sceva, as the apostle Luke relates, evidently thought they could drive out demons by a human combination of determination, focus and faith. While all three are certainly worthy of consideration as it applies to our topic, there is one missing ingredient that is vitally important to ministry – the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

A Time Line for These Events

Remember last week's study when Paul asked in verse 2 of chapter 19 if the brothers at Ephesus had received Holy Spirit baptism? They had no knowledge of the Holy Spirit, meaning they also had no understanding of Christ's resurrection. When asked whose baptism they had, they replied, “John's”, meaning John the Baptist. John the Baptist, you will recall from our study of Luke's gospel, had been executed decades previously by King Herod. No one knows the exact date of his execution, but it was probably in the years 28-29 AD (Matthew 14:1-12; Mark 6:14-27; Luke 9:9) after Herod the Tetrarch imprisoned John the Baptist in 27 AD (Matthew 4:12; Mark 1:14) at the behest of Herodias his brother's wife whom he took as his mistress. (Matthew 14:3-5; Mark 6:17-20)

Don’t Try This At Home Without Some Backup

It is likely that, like the believers Paul found at Ephesus, the 7 sons of Sceva had John's water baptism but not that of the Holy Spirit. Why is this significant? Because no one can drive out demons except by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Things that are solid cannot drive out spiritual things any more than one can mix oil and water. In that instance, neither can drive out the other, nor can they be mixed together. In the same way, it is not possible for someone without the baptism of the Holy Spirit to drive out demons, let alone be effective at it (see John's gospel chapter 3 for the meaning of Holy Spirit baptism).

So, when Sceva's sons tried to drive the demon out of their 'client' in verse 16, “.... the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding.” That's what you get for playing around with real demons, like Sceva's sons were doing. You'll be lucky to survive such an encounter as that, and that's no joke either. And now let's move on to part 2 of this week's ongoing lesson.

Part Two of This Week’s Study Verses

“17) All the people in Ephesus – Jews and Greeks – learned about this and were filled with fear and gave great honor to the Lord Jesus. 18) Many of the believers began to confess openly and tell all the evil things they had done. 19) Some of them who had used magic brought their magic books and burned them before everyone. Those books were worth about fifty thousand silver coins. 20) So in a powerful way the word of the Lord kept spreading and growing. 21) After these things, Paul decided to go to Jerusalem, planning to go through the countries of Macedonia and southern Greece and then on to Jerusalem. He said, 'After I have been to Jerusalem, I must also visit Rome.' 22) Paul sent Timothy and Erastus, two of his helpers, ahead to Macedonia, but he himself stayed in Asia for a while.” (Acts 19, verses 17-22)

The Insurmountable Power of the Real Holy Spirit

So the incident with the 7 sons of Sceva caused a sensation throughout that part of the world. People everywhere, “.... were filled with fear and gave great honor to the Lord Jesus. Many of the believers began to confess openly and tell all the evil things they had done.” Confession, as you just read, is an integral part of practicing Christianity. In fact, Christianity in the absence of confession and repentance is really not Christianity at all. The Bible tells us to confess our sins, errors, imperfections and faults, first to God and then to each other. Openness with one another is a requirement of Christianity, and keeping our relationships honest and open is vital to living Christianity as a lifestyle rather than merely as a set of beliefs or rules. Moreover, nobody can fool God. They would only be kidding themselves.

Genuine Faith and Repentance

“19) Some of them who had used magic brought their magic books and burned them before everyone. Those books were worth about fifty thousand silver coins. 20) So in a powerful way the word of the Lord kept spreading and growing.” This occurrence in verse 19, where fifty thousand silver coins would equal roughly $750,000 in today's money (assuming one ounce of silver per coin), is what I would call an example of true repentance. Any time you have a group of people willing to throw away what could have amounted to their life's savings for their newfound belief in a blessed Savior and Redeemer, I'd call that genuine faith and repentance any day of the year.

Paul, the Church Founder

Following all these things, Paul stayed in various places in the province of Asia (not the continent), vowing to visit Jerusalem and his old enemies there before working his way towards Rome. “He said, 'After I have been to Jerusalem, I must also visit Rome.' Paul sent Timothy and Erastus, two of his helpers, ahead to Macedonia, but he himself stayed in Asia for a while.” Now Macedonia is fairly close to where the country is situated today, although their borders do not correspond exactly.

It’s Up to Us to Find Some Purpose in Our Lives

The province of Asia, as it was known back then, comprises the western half of modern Turkey, and that is where Paul remained as he preached, taught and planted churches. He had no itinerary, no schedule, and no paycheck, and yet he was in his element because he was doing what God had called him to do, and he did so with fervor and purpose. He was living his life to the fullest, which is precisely what we all need to be doing, if we're not doing so already. Never worrying about money, where he would spend that night, what he would have to eat, or whether his sandals would wear out, Paul was called to be an apostle because Paul was a man who knew how to get his priorities straight.

What Matters Most to You?

Few people today are like the apostle Paul was. So few know how to get their priorities straight. They don't know what truly matters in life. Their lives are filled with social media skimming, TV show and movie streaming, video games, virtual reality, and pornography. All some people want to do is have fun all the time. Unfortunately, life simply doesn't work like that, nor was it ever designed to. So for this week, your assignment is to find out what really matters to you the most. If it's any of the above things, or if it's an addiction, you're on the wrong track. But please don't get mad at me for writing this. I'm just a guy who really cares and who really wants to help. But, if you are already overcoming these things, then keep up the good work. And next week we'll move on to part 3 of Acts 19.