In Acts 19 we read that God was working extraordinary miracles in Ephesus by the hands of Paul the apostle, including healings and the casting out of demons (vv. 11-12). Some so-called Jewish exorcists attempted to duplicate the miracles by naming the name of Jesus over persons who had evil spirits, saying: “I adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preaches.” One such case is described in verses 14-16:
And seven sons of one Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this.
And the evil spirit answered and said to them, “I recognize Jesus, and I know about Paul, but who are you?”
And the man, in whom was the evil spirit, leaped on them and subdued all of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.
The seven sons of Sceva were exposed as not being of the same authority as Jesus and Paul. It reminds me of Jesus’ words in Matthew 7:22-23:
Many will say to Me on that day, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out many demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?
And then I will declare to them, “I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.
They used Jesus’ name in vain – not actually knowing Him or being known by Him. The ensuing verses in Acts 19 describe the aftermath: the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified among both Jews and Greeks in Ephesus, to the point where many who were involved in evil religious practices confessed their wickedness and even burned the books associated with their magic-arts (vv. 17-19). Verse 20 summarizes the result: So the word of the Lord was growing mightily and prevailing. This was the prophetic word being proclaimed by Paul – and God performed acts of great power (v. 11) to authenticate both the messenger and his message as being the word of the Lord.
What a message for the church in a day where the forces of evil, death, darkness, and spiritual counterfeits are proliferating and encroaching all around us – to be the pillar and support of the truth (1 Tim. 3:15) – to declare and live the truth of God’s word revealed to us in the Bible! In the end, it is the truth that will triumph – in particular the One who is the truth, Jesus Christ. May the word of the Lord grow mightily and prevail in our lives and in the world around us as we proclaim and live it in the power of the Holy Spirit!