Crazy Things Are Happening

I want to bring a message this morning from the Book of Acts Chapter 19. I have always been INTRIGUED by this passage of scripture. It’s kind of CRAZY what goes on here.

Do you all ever get tired of TELEMARKETER’S calling? Man I do. Right at DINNER TIME when I’m sitting down to eat they call.

Let me tell you what I started doing a while back but it came back to bite me. I got a call several years ago from a Telemarketer out of Texas. I answered the phone, “Hi, how are YOU doing!!!” And then I keep it up like I am so excited that they would call and I get more and more excited until they finally hang up on me. So that’s what I started that evening with the Telemarketer from Texas until I figured out it was my Health Insurance Agent. I think she thought I had flipped my lid. Well, she explained who she was and then I had to explain myself. It was a little bit embarrassing. But she said she thought it was funny. That’s just a NICE WAY of saying, “I think you’re CRAZY.”

But in this passage we’re going to read today there were some “CRAZY” things going on. And these “CRAZY THINGS” were brought about NOT by Paul or any other person but by the Power of God. Let’s take a minute and turn to the Book of ACTS. Chapter 19. And we will read Verses 11-20.

“And God wrought special miracles by the hands of Paul:

12 So that from his body were brought unto the sick handkerchiefs or aprons, and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out of them.

13 Then certain of the vagabond Jews, exorcists, took upon them to call over them which had evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preacheth.

14 And there were seven sons of one Sceva, a Jew, and chief of the priests, which did so.

15 And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye?

16 And the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, and overcame them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.

17 And this was known to all the Jews and Greeks also dwelling at Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified.

18 And many that believed came, and confessed, and shewed their deeds.

19 Many of them also which used curious arts brought their books together, and burned them before all men: and they counted the price of them, and found it fifty thousand pieces of silver.

20 So mightily grew the word of God and prevailed.”

Yeah, I learned a good lesson that evening by making a fool out of myself.

And in this passage we see some fellows who make a fool of themselves. The seven sons of Sceva.

But before we get into this message let’s go to the Lord in Prayer.

Brother_________ would you lead us?

Before we actually get into the HEART of the message let’s take a look at what all was happening here in this passage.

This EPISODE takes place in the City of Ephesus. It was the LARGEST and MOST IMPORTANT city in the Roman PROVINCE of Asia Minor.

Ephesus has been called the Dark Castle of Asia Minor.

It was known for it’s black magic and spiritism.

The Pagan Temple of Diana was located there.

Nearly the entire city was involved in some kind of Idol Worship.

It was a ROUGH PLACE for Paul to start a church. But start a church he did and he spent about three years here in Ephesus WORKING with the Believer’s who had become followers of Jesus.

I. Now looking at Verses 11 and 12 we see where Paul, through the POWER of God, was working some miracles here in Ephesus and it was getting people’s attention. Handkerchiefs and Aprons that Paul had WORN and USED, they were being brought to the SICK and DEMON POSSESSED and the sick were healed and the demon possessed were being delivered.

I think it’s important to see that these folks who saw this, and marveled at this, KNEW that it was the POWER of GOD and NOT Paul. And it was this POWER that they wanted.

They didn’t want Paul’s Righteousness. They wanted God’s power like Paul had.

They didn’t want to become a SERVANT to others like Paul was, they wanted God’s power like Paul had.

They didn’t want HUMBLE themselves like PAUL had done, they wanted GOD’S POWER like Paul had.

It was this GOD GIVEN POWER that they wanted.