The Sons of Sceva (Acts 19:11-20)
Notes
Transcript
Text
Text
11 And God was doing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, 12 so that even handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were carried away to the sick, and their diseases left them and the evil spirits came out of them. 13 Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists undertook to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “I adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul proclaims.” 14 Seven sons of a Jewish high priest named Sceva were doing this. 15 But the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I recognize, but who are you?” 16 And the man in whom was the evil spirit leaped on them, mastered all of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. 17 And this became known to all the residents of Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks. And fear fell upon them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was extolled. 18 Also many of those who were now believers came, confessing and divulging their practices. 19 And a number of those who had practiced magic arts brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted the value of them and found it came to fifty thousand pieces of silver. 20 So the word of the Lord continued to increase and prevail mightily.
Prayer
Prayer
Father, thank you for this word. We ask that you would open our eyes and amaze us with what you’ve done in history. Help us now, by your Spirit, to see the victory that has been won over Christ’s enemies (and ours), and we trust the Spirit also to apply these things to our lives, where needed. In Jesus name, Amen.
Introduction
Introduction
We’ve dropped into quite the scene from the Adventures of the Apostles of Jesus Christ.
A little backstory: at this point in Acts, Paul is on his third missionary journey and ends up spending a couple of years in the ancient city of Ephesus.
Ephesus was a port city, and a center for trade and religion.
It was the capital of the Roman province of Asia.
One of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World is located here: the Temple of Artemis.
Though this was Gentile territory, there was a significant Jewish population. However, Paul’s ministry focus has been shifting away from the Jews and more towards to the Gentiles. Earlier in Acts, we see multiple statements by Paul to this effect:
5 But the Jews were jealous, and taking some wicked men of the rabble, they formed a mob, set the city in an uproar, and attacked the house of Jason, seeking to bring them out to the crowd. 6 And when they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also,
45 But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and began to contradict what was spoken by Paul, reviling him. 46 And Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly, saying, “It was necessary that the word of God be spoken first to you. Since you thrust it aside and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles.
Following the Lord’s ascension into heaven, the Gospel began going out from Judea and into the surrounding areas. Out and out it went, going farther and farther over the years. Acts is a book that moves in the opposite direction of Luke—out from Egypt, Jesus came all the way to a cross outside Jerusalem. Then, in Acts, and Luke wrote both, the Gospel of Christ goes out from Jerusalem, to Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
Keep that image of the Gospel expanding out across the world in your head, we’ll come back to that in a bit.
Immediately before this text, Luke explains how Paul had brought the full ministry of the Holy Spirit to the disciples that were in Ephesus. There were already Christians in the area.
But Paul brought with him more light. This little outpost had a fire going, and Paul brought jugs of gasoline to help. Paul stayed in Ephesus for two years, which is the longest period of time Paul stayed somewhere on his missionary journeys (that we know of). He was preaching, teaching, edifying, and defending the faith in this city.
10 This continued for two years, so that all the residents of Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.
Observation
Observation
The Setting (11-12)
The Setting (11-12)
And now, the first few verses of our text:
11 And God was doing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, 12 so that even handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were carried away to the sick, and their diseases left them and the evil spirits came out of them.
Christian ministry is miraculous by nature. Sinners repenting and believing in the Lord is, itself, a miracle of grace. But Luke makes the point that what God was doing at this point was “extraordinary” (“not the ordinary miracles,” οὐ τὰς τυχούσας δυνάμεις).
God had electrified these men such that even their sweat rags and aprons were healing and exorcizing people.
We should notice two things:
Christ: the same man (Luke) who wrote Acts also recorded the instance where a woman who had persistent bleeding was healed by only a passing touch of Christ’s clothes. This connection is on purpose, as it establishes the authority of the Apostles and reminds us whose power they were channeling.
This was a special grace to the Ephesian people. Apostolic clothing wasn’t normally a tool of deliverance ministry, hence the “extraordinary miracles.” God was doing something special with the Ephesian people.
(Keep that thought of the Gospel going out from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth in mind as we continue.)
The Incident (13-16)
The Incident (13-16)
Remember that Ephesus was a large and bustling city. At least tens of thousands of people lived there, and it would eventually grow to over 200,000 people in the whole region. It was big, busy, and abundantly pagan. Pagan worship was everywhere:
“… most people in the ancient world made vows to gods to achieve specific, well-defined, short-term goals, such as avoiding illness, ensuring a bountiful harvest, completing a voyage safely, getting rich, or attracting a desirable lover. If the goal was realized, the person who made the vow dedicated a statue or an inscription… to the god(s) to pay off the vow.” - Guy Rogers, The Mysteries of Artemis of Ephesos
The reality of supernatural beings existing above humanity that could be interacted with was the spiritual air they breathed. When Paul was in Athens, he saw that it was “full of idols,” and this provoked him to righteous anger and zeal.
Also swimming around in this swamp of paganism were these Jewish exorcists. These were men who worked full-time in the devil-driving business. They probably had a good thing going, given that Ephesus was essentially ruled by demons until the Christians came.
Remember how Paul described idol worship to the Corinthians:
19 What do I imply then? That food offered to idols is anything, or that an idol is anything? 20 No, I imply that what pagans sacrifice they offer to demons and not to God. I do not want you to be participants with demons.
And centuries before that, the people of Israel did the same:
16 They stirred him to jealousy with strange gods; with abominations they provoked him to anger. 17 They sacrificed to demons that were no gods, to gods they had never known, to new gods that had come recently, whom your fathers had never dreaded.
What we need to pause and wrap our modern heads around is the reality of evil forces in this world. The world today has benefitted from 2,000 years of Christ’s power, and so demons often slink around in the shadows, but at this point, they were cavorting in the public square. Witchcraft, sorcery, divination, idol worship—it was all there and it was abundant.
So, these Jewish exorcists were shooting fish in a barrel—until real freedom came to town.
These “sons of Sceva” were likely frauds, as the high priest is, you know, back in Jerusalem. It was goats exorcizing goats. But the problems start when they try to imitate the Apostles. Their ministry was turning whole cities upside down, producing healings and blessings absolutely no one could match. The power of the name of Jesus Christ was unmatched.
So, in a quite entertaining, sleazy move, these men “try out” the name of Jesus on their next job.
“I adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul proclaims.”
These men thought they were invoking the name of a popular speaker from another town. This was simply a convenient innovation in the field of exorcism—a new tool added to their belt. Poor, poor boys, they played with the Deep Magic.
Knowing these men to be frauds, the evil spirit mocks them. “I know Jesus, and recognize Paul, but who are you chumps?”
With demonic strength and speed, the possessed man thrashed all seven of Sceva’s sons, beating them and stripping them naked. Though they escape with their lives, they have been utterly and completely exposed.
The Aftermath (17-20)
The Aftermath (17-20)
News of this event spreads.
17 And this became known to all the residents of Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks. And fear fell upon them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was extolled.
What do you think the following week at Ephesus was like? The normal hustle and bustle of idol worship, like a record, scratches and stops. It is full-stop interrupted. Nothing like this had happened there, ever. A man was possessed by a demon of such strength and provoked so intensely that seven grown men were savaged and sexually assaulted.
But that’s not what they feared the most, was it?
Fear fell upon the city, and the name of the Lord Jesus was extolled.
None of their gods could do what happened in the name of this Jesus. Never had a demon so angrily reacted to that name. And no power had ever been seen to master and drive away such demons.
The dense glory and power of the Gospel was laid upon Ephesus, and there was renewal and revival. Already-Christians and new converts together confessed their practices (v 18).
The gathered all of their spell-books and burned them before “the sight of all.” Luke records that the estimated value of this stuff was 50,000 pieces of silver. This was over 5 million dollars worth of occultic materials.
Luke ends this episode with verse 20, where “the word of the Lord continued to increase and prevail mightily.”
Application
Application
In the last half of this talk, I want to think a little more about what this meant back then as well as what it means for us now.
The Advance of the Gospel
The Advance of the Gospel
Remember that, at this point in time, the church was in its infancy. Christ had died, risen from the grave, gave his people marching orders to bring the Gospel to the ends of the earth, and then ascended into heaven.
The whole book of Acts is the personal history of our forefathers following the marching orders they were given by the Lord. Their task was take the burning glory of the Gospel out into the darkness. Like men with torches, they marched into places of darkness.
These places were in spiritual darkness because they were under the dominion of evil powers.
If you’ve ever read your Bible and thought to yourself, “I wonder what was going everywhere on the world,” the answer to that question is: demon worship. That is what paganism is. It is the worship of idols, which is the ministry of demons.
Over the last 2,000 years, the Gospel has advanced across the world, driving out the darkness of pagan lands.
Here, at the beginning of that process, the Apostles knew what they were up against.
12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
But they also knew that the Lord Jesus Christ had done something in the heavenly places that changed things forever.
15 He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.
Something massive happened in the heavenly places during Jesus time on earth. Remember when the Pharisees tried to smear Jesus power to cast out demons as being “only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons.”
26 And if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand?
28 But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. 29 Or how can someone enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? Then indeed he may plunder his house.
The Sons of Sceva casting demons out of Ephesian gentiles is what? It’s Satan casting out Satan.
But the kingdom of God has come upon the earth, and Satan—the strong man—has been bound. He has been bound, and the church is plundering his house, one nation at a time.
A People for His Own Possession
A People for His Own Possession
So when these guys trot out to this demon the name of the Jesus, they were reminding the demon of how powerless and humiliated he was. What the demon did to those men is what Christ has done to all demons.
While Christians can be harassed and oppressed by demons, they cannot be possessed by them.
15 What accord has Christ with Belial? …
16 What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God…
Demons cannot possess that which God has already fully and eternally possessed.
9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession…
So as you navigate spiritual warfare at an individual level, remember these things.
Remember that Christ has cleansed you, and all of you, and has claimed every part of you for himself. Our God is a jealous God, and will not share his glory with anyone else. And because God is glorified by the holiness and praise of his people, he will not share us even for a moment.
Remember that you are “hidden with Christ, in God.” Father, Son, and Spirit, guarding you eternally. Three invincible layers. Jesus said, John 10:28–29 “28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.”
Remember Luther’s words:
“The best way to get rid of the Devil, if you cannot kill it with the words of Holy Scripture, is to rail at and mock him. Music, too, is very good; music is hateful to him, and drives him far away.”
“I am of a different mind ten times in the course of a day. But I resist the devil, and often it is with a fart that I chase him away. When he tempts me with silly sins I say, 'Devil, yesterday I broke wind too. Have you written it down on your list?’”
“I often laugh at Satan, and there is nothing that makes him so angry as when I attack him to his face, and tell him that through God I am more than a match for him.”
“And though this world, with devils filled,
should threaten to undo us,
we will not fear, for God has willed
his truth to triumph through us.”
Let us see Satan and all his dogs as they actually are: like the sons of Sceva, they are naked and beaten before the Lord.
Conclusion: Continental Crusade of Confession & Conflagration
Conclusion: Continental Crusade of Confession & Conflagration
Verse 20 says that the “word of the Lord continued to increase and prevail mightily.” This process has been ongoing since that point.
For something to prevail over another is to describe an offensive move.
18 … on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
What your view of history and how the end will look, every Christian must affirm that Christ is building something and it will win. It will ransom the slave and release the captive. It will shatter and destroy demonic hordes and drive them out of the lands they rule. They will slink back into the shadows, but only as God permits them to do so, and only ever for his purposes.
We live in a real-life fantasy movie of good versus evil. There are heroes and villains, angels and demons, castles and swamps. The hero is Christ and his army is on a victory march. The villain is Satan and he has been bound. Angels and demons war with each other over the souls of mankind. We are in the castle of Vina currently, and will venture out into the swamps during the week.
These swamps are full of people who are full of idolatry.
And yes, there are demons in these swamps, too.
To every man, woman, and child who belongs Christ, here are your marching orders:
“Wage the good warfare” (1 Tim 1:18).
3 For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds.
Do as the Ephesians did: confess your sins and divulge your practices.
Are you worshipping the gods of comfort or luxury?
Are you doing as the pagans do, and living for the moment, rather than eternity?
What are you willing to burn in the glorious bonfire of a holy life?
Jesus Christ has set you free from the demon worship you once gladly participated in.
8 Formerly, when you did not know God, you were enslaved to those that by nature are not gods. 9 But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world, whose slaves you want to be once more?
So I ask again, what needs to go in the fire? Having come to know Jesus, the Lord of glory, what is in your life that you are hiding, that you are afraid to possess? Is it something on your phone? Is it a way of thinking that is unbiblical? What has cast a spell on you?
In the name of Jesus Christ, throw into the fire.
