Can genuine faith transform an entire city? What does revival look like?
Join us as we embark on a journey through Acts 19, uncovering the profound spiritual battles and transformations in Ephesus. Witness how Paul's encounter with Ephesian disciples who had only experienced John's baptism evolves into an empowering moment of the Holy Spirit, once they truly believe in Jesus.
This episode captures the tension between the Christian God's enduring reign and idol worship's temporary nature, culminating in a city clerk's efforts to restore order amidst chaos. Tune in as we explore these transformative events and their significance for understanding the power of genuine faith and repentance.
Acts 19 introduces us to a group of Ephesian disciples who were devout but lacked the Holy Spirit, highlighting a significant theological discussion. Paul encounters these disciples, who had only experienced John's baptism, a baptism of repentance. He enlightens them about Jesus and baptizes them in His name, resulting in their reception of the Holy Spirit, accompanied by speaking in tongues and prophesying. This passage underscores the transformative power of understanding and accepting the complete message of the Gospel.
The chapter also recounts the dramatic episode involving the seven sons of Sceva, itinerant Jewish exorcists who attempt to use the name of Jesus like a magic word. Their encounter with a demon-possessed man ends disastrously, as the demon overpowers them, leaving them beaten and humiliated. This incident vividly illustrates that invoking Jesus' name without true faith and understanding is futile and dangerous, emphasizing the importance of genuine belief over mere ritualistic use of His name.
Acts 19 concludes with a large-scale act of repentance as many new believers in Ephesus burn their valuable magic books, symbolizing their break from pagan practices and total commitment to Christ. This public renunciation of former ways has a profound economic impact, angering local craftsmen like Demetrius, who profit from idol worship. This leads to a tumultuous riot, quelled only by the rational intervention of a town clerk. This chapter encapsulates the transformative and often disruptive power of the Gospel, demonstrating how true faith can radically change lives and challenge societal norms.
Can genuine faith transform an entire city? What does revival look like?
Join us as we embark on a journey through Acts 19, uncovering the profound spiritual battles and transformations in Ephesus. Witness how Paul's encounter with Ephesian disciples who had only experienced John's baptism evolves into an empowering moment of the Holy Spirit, once they truly believe in Jesus.
This episode captures the tension between the Christian God's enduring reign and idol worship's temporary nature, culminating in a city clerk's efforts to restore order amidst chaos. Tune in as we explore these transformative events and their significance for understanding the power of genuine faith and repentance.
Acts 19 introduces us to a group of Ephesian disciples who were devout but lacked the Holy Spirit, highlighting a significant theological discussion. Paul encounters these disciples, who had only experienced John's baptism, a baptism of repentance. He enlightens them about Jesus and baptizes them in His name, resulting in their reception of the Holy Spirit, accompanied by speaking in tongues and prophesying. This passage underscores the transformative power of understanding and accepting the complete message of the Gospel.
The chapter also recounts the dramatic episode involving the seven sons of Sceva, itinerant Jewish exorcists who attempt to use the name of Jesus like a magic word. Their encounter with a demon-possessed man ends disastrously, as the demon overpowers them, leaving them beaten and humiliated. This incident vividly illustrates that invoking Jesus' name without true faith and understanding is futile and dangerous, emphasizing the importance of genuine belief over mere ritualistic use of His name.
Acts 19 concludes with a large-scale act of repentance as many new believers in Ephesus burn their valuable magic books, symbolizing their break from pagan practices and total commitment to Christ. This public renunciation of former ways has a profound economic impact, angering local craftsmen like Demetrius, who profit from idol worship. This leads to a tumultuous riot, quelled only by the rational intervention of a town clerk. This chapter encapsulates the transformative and often disruptive power of the Gospel, demonstrating how true faith can radically change lives and challenge societal norms.
Contact us at godsplanyourpart@gmail.com Thanks so much for listening to the show. We'll See you tomorrow. -Ryan and Jenny
Speaker 1:
Hey everyone, welcome to God's Plan, your Part, year 2, where this year we're reading through and studying the entire New Testament one chapter at a time. Thanks again for joining us in discovering God's Plan and your part in it.
Speaker 2:
Today we are in Acts, chapter 19, and one of the most exciting things we're going to see is a bunch of exorcists get beat up by a bunch of demons. It's quite an interesting chapter.
Speaker 1:
It seems really backwards because you would assume that kind of like Jesus was saying a house, like basically or like a kingdom is not going to be against itself. But here we actually see demons like associating with these men, who are like calling on Jesus' name to like wishfully get rid of whoever they are, and they like beat the crap out of them. Excuse my wording if that offends you. But I just think it's really interesting, to say the least.
Speaker 2:
So we will get to that in a second. The first thing I want to deal with in Acts, chapter 19, is we're introduced to a group of Ephesian disciples who are, from what we can tell, honoring people. They honor God, they want to follow God, but they don't have the Holy Spirit. And this can be kind of an interesting conversation, particularly between charismatics and non-charismatics. So I just want to touch on this briefly. Basically, what happens is Paul meets these people who are disciples. It actually says that in the text. It says there he comes to Ephesus, says there he found some disciples and he said to them did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed? And they said no, we have not heard that there even is a Holy Spirit, which is a problem. Like if they're believers, they should have the Holy Spirit, especially if we're going to teach people that all believers are indwelt with the Holy Spirit. So if that is true, this is a problem.
Speaker 1:
I feel like it's probably more common than not that people don't know that, because even Apollos yesterday had a very limited understanding and knowledge of who Jesus was, or even probably the Holy Spirit too, because he had a very clear understanding of John the Baptist and his baptism, which is very reflective of what the people here are understanding as well.
Speaker 2:
Exactly. So these people say that Paul actually asked them. They say, like he says okay, if you don't know about a Holy Spirit, like what baptism were you baptized with? And they say into John's baptism, which, again, john's baptism is a baptism of repentance. Essentially, they came to John, they were baptized because they were symbolizing that they repented of their sins and they wanted to make way for the kingdom of God. And so these people, their hearts, are in the right place, but they're unaware of the rest of the story. And we see that they're unaware of the rest of the story because Paul teaches it to them. So it says um, let's see.
Speaker 2:
Uh, paul says John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, jesus. On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying. So these folks were not even aware of who Jesus was or what Jesus did. And so they come to belief in Jesus, they are baptized in the name of Jesus and the Holy Spirit falls on them. I don't think this is a great text to use to make the case that you have to lay hands on people for them to receive the Holy Spirit, because one of the bigger things that's happening here is they didn't even know who Jesus was.
Speaker 1:
And.
Speaker 2:
Paul is teaching them, making them aware of who Jesus is, and once they do that, the Holy Spirit falls on them. And, typical Luke fashion, he records the fact that they started speaking in tongues. There's this supernatural thing that happens because they've believed in Jesus.
Speaker 1:
I think something that should have been mentioned towards the beginning of the episode, just kind of like an overarching theme of this, like because this is like the first story that comes in this chapter. But I like to think, like the way that my mind was kind of going, and as we read this chapter is, if you think of things in a very like super spiritual realm, only in my mind it was just like this constant battle of like back and forth, like the spirit is moving and demonic forces are like oh no, you're not.
Speaker 1:
And it's like this weird pushback because the more that the gospel is spreading in Ephesus- for sure the more that this, like spiritual tension, is just like pushing back and pushing back All the while there are still believers that are coming to know Christ and that people that are like holding out, like no way, are trying to cause riots. They're getting angry, they're getting upset. So, just like overall, I think that you're going to see just like instance after instance of this heavy spiritual realm kind of battle, war, situation going on.
Speaker 2:
It's interesting when you paint it in that light of like the spiritual war that's happening, because if you look at verse 11, 11 is going to kind of introduce this Sons of Sceva thing.
Speaker 1:
This is the gray area. Professional exorcists Can't decide where they are.
Speaker 2:
Well, the way that the idea is introduced is to talk about how Paul has incredible spiritual power, because even handkerchiefs that touched him had the ability to heal people. So obviously there's incredible power and the Holy Spirit is moving in pretty significant ways to draw people's attention initially to who God is and what God is commanding. Just in case you were nervous or curious or confused about where all the power is, it's not in Jesus' name specifically, and the reason I say not in Jesus' name specifically, it's not the actual word that has power. So you'll notice, in the first story when the people get baptized, it says they were baptized in the name of Jesus. It's not the word Jesus that had the power, it's their faith in Jesus that had power. And you'll notice, as the story continues, these handkerchiefs are touching Paul and like they have the ability to heal people, and so these exorcists are like oh, this is like Jesus is just like the new magic word.
Speaker 2:
And you can see, there's a lot of magic in Ephesus.
Speaker 1:
If you think, even like this is like a pre-faith kind of thing, I like think of my children.
Speaker 1:
So like we have very young children, like one year old, and then we have an eight year old and all kinds of ages in between and, like the eight year old completely understands how to like speak and make like actual conversation, the one year old understands that, oh, I can be talking too and I can make conversation too, and just babbles off something and is totally content with herself. That's like kind of the picture that I get here. Like the maturity is obviously not there and their abilities to speak that's exactly what I think of Like these, like very immature, very unwise individuals, like they don't know, like they hear the word Jesus and they're like, oh, that does something.
Speaker 2:
Yeah.
Speaker 1:
And then they want to turn around and just like say it out loud and see what happens and like it's so crazy how this plays out, because they don't actually even understand what they're dabbling in and they're trying to like make these demons go away. And they're like, hey, listen, like the demon speaks back and says I know who Jesus is and I know who that Paul guy is too. I, I don't know who you are, what you think you're doing, and like totally like has them running with their tails between their legs. It's crazy, yes, naked and running.
Speaker 2:
It is really interesting how you can see the influence of magic on Ephesus, because part of the people's repentance in Ephesus is they're going to burn their magic books, which we can talk about in a second Magic books.
Speaker 1:
It just sounds ridiculous. It's a pretty big deal.
Speaker 2:
And you can see that magic is a huge part of this culture. That is obviously demonic kind of stuff.
Speaker 1:
And that's that evil tension I was talking about at the beginning. It's just pushing back against what is being brought in.
Speaker 2:
So these guys see what's happening and they just think Jesus is the new magic word. They don't understand who he is.
Speaker 2:
They don't understand what he came to do. They certainly are not trying to honor him with his, with their lives Uh, they just think it's the new cool word to use. They remind me sort of of Simon the magician earlier on in the story that wanted to pay for the Holy Spirit, and Peter is like what are you talking about? Like you cannot pay for the Holy Spirit. Here they think they can just command the power of Jesus by just uttering his name. That doesn't work either, and so I think it is an important distinction, because there's different realms of thought out there how you use Jesus' name and what you can do with Jesus' name, and how you, how you should say it, when you should say it. I think it's important to recognize that the name of Jesus is not a magic word, and what matters more than the name of Jesus is actually your faith in Jesus, your belief in Jesus, that you, that you, practice the commands of Jesus, because these guys try to use this magic word and these demons beat them up.
Speaker 1:
That's like I, I don't know. That's just like super powerful. But again it's like, oh man, they don't even understand. And like demonic forces are just like not even concerned about keeping their own. You know what I mean. Like they're not, like. I would assume that if they were on the team of keep up the evil stuff, they wouldn't be doing that to them. But it's crazy because that works to God's sovereignty, because so many people hear about it Jews and Gentiles and they're like, oh man, that's like terrible, and come to know who Jesus is and in turn, get rid of all of it.
Speaker 2:
They burn their magic books, so which you love.
Speaker 1:
I feel like we're in a Harry Potter episode.
Speaker 2:
Verse 19 says 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 50,000 pieces of silver. So some translations talk about drachmas. It seems to be that this is about a day's wage, 50,000 days wages. We did a little bit of research before we started the episode and it could be between three and four million dollars in modern day value. So this is not a small little thing. This is a repentance on a large scale.
Speaker 1:
This is cold turkey.
Speaker 2:
That affects the economy. So people are watching this and they're like wait, a minute, like which is going to set up the next story? They're seeing these people repenting and changing their lives and you know what's interesting, it seems like sometimes we can kind of mock people that repent in significant fashion. So like like back in the nineties, it was like you got to burn your CDs and you got to, you know, throw out your DVDs and it's like I don't know, like today I've heard the smash your phone.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, Like if you.
Speaker 2:
I've said that before. Actually, I've strongly encouraged people to do that very thing. I have a soft spot for that, like, if you want to repent in significant fashion and you want to make sure that you are not giving room to evil in your life, I don't think it's a bad thing to do those kinds of things. Obviously, you have to learn self-control and you have to learn wisdom and you have to learn discernment. But we have a pretty good example here where people are like you know what? I'm going to follow Jesus, I'm cutting all this stuff out, I'm burning it on the spot. So be careful, don't mock people when they're trying to be really sincere in their repentance.
Speaker 1:
That is a that is just as much of a sin as the things that hold us back like if that was a sin for them.
Speaker 2:
They're not gonna be like well, I'm just gonna keep one book like that's so dumb I would be like totally opposite of what this story is even trying to, and it would be kind of silly as a christian to stand on the sidelines and be like, oh my word, look at those people burning their magic books. It's like, hey, I think these people are trying to get serious about repentance. I think it's a good thing. So what happens is there's this silversmith whose name is Demetrius and his job is essentially to create idols, and he sees what's happening and he's like shoot if people start to follow Jesus. I'm out of work because my work is encouraging people to do wicked and evil things. So he tries to stir up a riot and he's fairly successful.
Speaker 2:
But what's interesting? You got to listen to this. Look at verse 27, and this is him speaking. He says and there is danger not only that this trade of ours may come into disrepute, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis may be counted as nothing, and that she may even be deposed from her magnificence, she whom all Asia and the world worship. Think about what this guy is saying about his God. First of all. He says, first and foremost, if this continues, we're going to lose our money, and that would be bad because it might bring shame on our goddess.
Speaker 1:
Well, it's like any economy that you think about, like any or even any business. Like, oh man, those people down the road they're selling something else and as soon as they start doing that, not only will we not make money, but now our business is going to just be like the next Kmart. So it's just like. To me it is really interesting that it holds like absolutely no value. Like there's no eternal value, there's no lasting value, there's no hope for the people. Value Like none of that exists, because it's all about them, their money and making sure that their craft continues.
Speaker 2:
What's interesting is like Artemis is definitely done and over with, like there's not many people that worship Artemis anymore. I've done some research on this. There's actually some people in the United Kingdom that still do weird Artemis parties and it's kind of freaky Weird. But Artemis is largely destroyed, and what's interesting is that our God continues to reign, to move and to work and people come to follow him. We don't find ourselves saying like, oh my goodness, if this doesn't stop, I think our God might be in trouble. Our God is never in trouble, our God is never dishonored, our God is never out of control, and so it's just really odd to read and have insight into how these people felt about their gods. You can see that they essentially knew that this is completely pretend but it's a great way to make money.
Speaker 1:
So in verse 20, backing up just a little bit this is after they've burnt their things, their books. So the word of the Lord continued to increase and prevail mightily. Okay, so that's the good tension that's rising, yeah, of course. And because of that good tension that's rising, this evil tension follows up with it. Where they are constantly like over and over the voice of these people, they're starting to cry out. Great is artemis of the ephesians, and the city becomes like enraged well, it also says confusion too.
Speaker 1:
Um, so I can imagine like something that is like one, a faith thing, but also like a I don't like a marketplace thing.
Speaker 2:
This is kind of a culture thing.
Speaker 1:
It would really throw people off if all of a sudden it was like wait, everything's changing. And then all these people are like running around great is Artemis of the Ephesians. So, like everybody's in on it and I don't know, I would suppose if you were one of the newer Christians you would probably be a little freaked out yourself. Because they start, didn't they say they start taking people into.
Speaker 2:
Well, they basically try to drag people into the crowds and beat them up anybody that's leading these movements. What's interesting is that Paul himself wants to be drug into the group of people to make a case.
Speaker 1:
He probably sees it as like a ministry opportunity. Yeah, he does.
Speaker 2:
A hundred percent he does, and the disciples are actually like no, you're not going in there, they'll kill you. He always uses huge crowds to preach the gospel, so I'm sure that was something on his mind.
Speaker 1:
So this, like it continues and continues, that greatest arguments of Ephesians. You hear that multiple times. And then eventually somebody a town clerk I'm not sure how much influence he had, but apparently enough because he tells the people like guys, basically like be quiet, because if you continue this, it's all going downhill for us, because we're causing this huge scene and we're going to just like get stamped out if you don't stop. And he's basically saying, like if you've got problems, take them somewhere and deal with it in a way that's not going to get us in trouble for doing what you guys are doing right now.
Speaker 1:
So I just I don't know. It's interesting that it all transpired that way. Paul didn't die because he didn't go in for it, and then this random guy is just like hey, settle down.
Speaker 2:
This is one of my favorite stories and I can turn this into the your part.
Speaker 2:
This is one of my favorite stories in the book of Acts, because it shows that genuine repentance actually has impacts across culture. So people started to come following Jesus and it made a difference in the marketplace. This is a genuine, authentic, real revival. Like one of the stories of modern day revivals is that people start turning to Christ and the bars have to close down because nobody wants to go to them. And so, like, this is a. This is a great account of a real revival that occurred in Ephesus.
Speaker 2:
The people that were doing evil things found it dangerous to their bottom line because millions of dollars were being sacrificed on behalf of serving God, and so I'm just encouraged by it and I think that we will continue. I think there will be more stories like this, where people come to authentic repentance in large movements, and I think we should pray for those things. And I think that we should be thankful for small moves of repentance where just one person does it, and we should be thankful for huge moves of repentance where hundreds of people do it or thousands of people do it, and we should continue to ask God to move in significant ways. So I love this chapter. I think it's a great chapter to dive into and check out. It gives us some great context of the background of the book of Ephesians and also just reveals a little bit more about Paul in his ministry. So your part, repent and live authentically and continue to ask God to move in significant ways, because he has and he will continue to. We'll see you again tomorrow. Bye.
Speaker 1:
Thanks for joining today's episode of God's Plan your Part, as always. Please consider partnering with us, as we are a listener-supported podcast that we hope to continue to grow, with support from listeners just like you.
Speaker 2:
We've made it super easy to partner with us, and you can support us by following the link in our show notes or our description. You can support us with as little as $3 a month.
Speaker 1:
Every little bit of this helps so much, and we're so thankful for your support. With that in mind, here's today's reading.
Speaker 2:
Acts, chapter 19. And it happened that while Apollos was at Corinth, paul passed through the inland country and came to Ephesus. There he found some disciples and he said to them Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed? And they said no, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit. And he said Into what, then, were you baptized? They said Into John's baptism. And Paul said John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, jesus. On hearing this, they were baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus.
Speaker 2:
And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying. There was about twelve men in all and he entered the synagogue and for three months spoke boldly, reasoning and persuading them about the kingdom of God. But when some became stubborn and continued in their unbelief, speaking evil of the way before the congregation, he withdrew from them and took the disciples with him, reasoning daily in the hall of Tyrannus. This continued for two years so that all the residents of Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks, and God was doing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, 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. 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 Jesus, whom Paul proclaims. Seven sons of a Jewish high priest named Sceva were doing this, but the evil spirit answered them. Jesus, I know, and Paul, I recognize. But who are you? 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 the house naked and wounded, 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. Also, many of those who were now believers came confessing and divulging their practices, 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 that it came to fifty thousand pieces of silver. So the word of the Lord continued to increase and prevail mightily.
Speaker 2:
Now, after these events, paul resolved in the spirit to pass through Macedonia and Acacia and go to Jerusalem, saying After I have been there, I must also see Rome. And having sent into Macedonia two of his helpers, timothy and Erastus, he himself stayed in Asia for a while. About that time there arose no little disturbance concerning the way, for a man named Demetrius, a silversmith who made silver shrines of Artemis, brought no little business to the craftsmen. These he gathered together with the workmen in similar trades and said Men, you know that from this business we have our wealth. And you see and hear that not only in Ephesus but also almost all of Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away a great many people, saying that gods made with hands are not gods. And there is danger not only that this trait of ours may come into disrepute, but also that the temple of our great goddess Artemis might be counted as nothing and that she may even be deposed from her magnificence, she whom all of Asia and the world worship.
Speaker 2:
When they heard this, they were enraged and were crying out Great is Artemis of the Ephesians. So the city was filled with confusion and they rushed together into the theater, dragging with them Gaius and Aristarchus, macedonians who were Paul's companions in travel, but when Paul wished to go in among the crowd, the disciples would not let him, and even some of Aristarchus, who were friends of his, sent to him and were urging him not to venture into the theater. Now, some cried out one thing, some another, for the assembly was in confusion and most of them did not know why they had come together. Some of the crowd prompted Alexander, whom the Jews had put forward, and Alexander, motioning with his hand, wanted to make a defense to the crowd, but when they recognized that he was a Jew, for about two hours they all cried with one voice, great as Artemis of the Ephesians.
Speaker 2:
And when the town clerk had quieted the crowd, he said Men of Ephesus, who is there, who does not know that the city of the Ephesians is temple-keeper of the great Artemis and of the sacred stone that fell from the sky?
Speaker 2:
Seeing, then, that these things cannot be denied, you ought to be quiet and do nothing rash, for you have brought these men here who are neither sacrilegious nor blasphemers of our goddess. If, therefore, demetrius and the craftsmen with him have a complaint against anyone, the courts are open and there are procouncils Let them bring charges against one another, but if you seek anything further, it shall be settled in the regular assembly, for we really are in danger of being charged with rioting today, since there is no cause that we can give to justify this commotion. And when he had said these things, he dismissed the assembly emotion. And when he had said these things, he dismissed the assembly to us directly at godsplanyourpart at gmailcom, as always, if you don't have a Bible or if you'd like to use the one that we use, reach out to us via email and we'll be happy to send one to you. Thanks again for listening. We'll see you again tomorrow, thank you.