Study Questions for Acts Ch 19 verses 11 – 22 Sunday May 24th

Ephesus was a famous centre for, amongst other things, all kinds of spiritual and sensual practices: belief in the most brutally demanding of gods and the most bizarre of black arts was everywhere. People were entrapped by these and it is no wonder that God led Paul to Ephesus in order to manifest his power of love and truth to break the spiritual and sensual chains that bound the Ephesians. One of the many dangers of dabbling in the black arts, however seemingly harmless, is that one passes over control of one’s life without noticing one’s freedom slipping slowly but relentlessly away, much like alcohol or drug addiction yet much less obvious. So the Ephesians were well acquainted with ‘unusual works of power’ but they desperately needed to discover the freedom and personal fulfilment that comes only through faith in Jesus. In these verses we see the clash of powers and note with joy the outcome!

1. What was it that enabled Paul to be a channel of God’s healing power?

2. What made the power effective in the lives of those who were healed?

3. What lessons about the use of power and of the name of Jesus can we learn from the Jewish exorcists’ encounter with the evil spirit?

4. What facts here persuade us that his was more than just a case of ‘mental illness’?

5. Can you see a pattern or model of response in the reaction of the new believers? v17 and 18

6. What does their decision tell us about the ‘cost’ of turning to Jesus?

7. Can you think of any parallels to this account which we might encounter today?

8. If so, how would you handle the situation?!!!

9. What do you think is the relationship between the word and the power of God?

N.B. You can get the accompanying talk for this study as well as previous talks on our website at www.allsaintsbrenchley.blogspot.com

‘The Power of God and other powers’ – Acts Chapter 19 vs 11 – 22

Sixth Sunday after Easter

The Collect 

(The special Prayer for the day)                                                                                                                  
 ‘God, our Redeemer, who delivered us from the power of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of your Son, grant that as by his death he has recalled us to life, so by his continual presence with us he may raise us to eternal joy: this we pray through Jesus Christ your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.’ Amen.

Sometimes in life things just come together in a way that seems, to some, to be purely a matter of chance or coincidence: to others, though, this is seen as much more a matter of God’s timing – and in part at least for the sake of those who can only believe in chance and coincidence! Now I’m not one to make a big issue of such curious comings together, though in hindsight such things have so often seemed to me to be the work of God rather than coincidence. It’s wise at least, surely, to be open to the possibility that God is interested in us, in what we do, and what we might be tempted to do if none the wiser.

So when I saw what today’s first reading was about – the clash of spiritual powers in Ephesus; and when I read the Collect for today – especially the first line; I did wonder if the Lord’s hand was not somehow involved, given our concerns over next Saturday’s ‘Tea and Tarot’ at the Memorial Hall.              

Now I know that some people in the village think that our having a special prayer meeting this coming Wednesday, part of which will be to pray against the affects of this so that there will be no casualties, is somewhat ‘OTT’ - over the top. But for Christians who take the spiritual realm, the spiritual dimension to life, seriously, we are called to action and especially to prayer – prayer against the ‘powers of darkness’ in whatever guise; and prayer for those who might be tempted to dabble with such powers. As C. S. Lewis once said, the two great mistakes people make are either to dance with the Devil or to think that he does not exist and does not interfere in this world and people’s lives.

Certainly our modern materialistic and scientific - or popular pseudo-scientific - emphasis on life and the explanations for it have rather pushed the spiritual world to the sidelines; albeit that I come across many people – I’m sure you do too – who have come to realise that there most certainly is a spiritual dimension to life that, well, just does not fit in to our materialistic and scientific categories and explanations. It’s there though; and on many occasions as we have already seen in the Book of Acts with its account of the growth of the early Church we see the clash between, on the one hand, the powers of deceit and darkness which entrap so many, and, on the other, the power of truth and light, embodied of course supremely in the person of Jesus, that not only liberates but is given by him as a gift to those who believe in him and who want to serve him as faithful and effective disciples in his continuing mission of reconciling a rebellious and unbelieving world to God.

Here in Ephesus in this morning’s reading we are presented with one of these clashes between light and darkness, deceit and truth: and I think there are some hugely important lessons for us to learn and then to consider applying in our own discipleship.

Ephesus was a centre of occult practices and the worship of many different idols. We learn from Luke v 11 that ‘God did unusual works of power through Paul.’ But it is quite clear that these works were effective because of the faith of those who brought the handkerchiefs or aprons that Paul had touched. And notice that the use of this ‘unusual power’ was not for evil or for personal gain but for good and for the good of others. And that is a good measure or test of whether something unusual, something miraculous, is from God or from elsewhere. Are evil or personal gain the aim or the result; or is it for good, for others, and to glorify God?

Miracles can be hard to understand but, as I have said before, we are dealing with God and so we cannot expect to understand everything of what He does; though I think miracles are best understood not as an offence against the laws of nature but as the perfecting of them; a taste of the Kingdom of God, an invitation into it, a glimpse of the ‘sure hope’ that is ours through faith in him. On the other hand, Jesus did warn us that the Devil is the Father of Lies and deceives people about the strength of his power. 

And let us be perfectly frank about this; some people are easily deceived, and usually because they want to exercise power for their own ends or gains. The trouble is that what they do not realise is this, that they do not control the power: rather, the power actually controls them. And this again is so different from the power God gives as a gift to use for the benefit, primarily, of others. Jesus deals in love, not lies.

Well obviously others see the effectiveness of this power exercised by Paul and want to cash in on the name of Jesus vs 13 - 16. But they get a salutary lesson in dabbling in something they do not understand. Jesus’ name and his power are not to be used like a spell – you know, in the way Harrison Ford as Dr. Jones does in the films – for personal gain or aggrandisement. The desire and the ability to use the name of Jesus and his power comes from a confidence in Him and His power based upon a confident relationship with Him and knowledge of Him as ‘Lord of all’ to whom ‘all authority in earth and heaven has been given’.

In vs 18 – 20 we see how the power of Jesus and the truth, the ‘word’, about him changes people, turns them and their lives right round. These verses are a wonderful illustration of a genuine and healthy repentance in the face of the power and the truth of Jesus. 

First they are convicted of their desperate need for salvation, their need to be freed from those things in their lives that they now realise to be wrong and unhealthy. Secondly, they show the humility, the courage, and the honesty v18 to ‘confess and disclose their practices’. And then thirdly they demonstrate that they have truly repented by giving up and, here, actually destroying what before had governed and guided their lives.

This is certainly a powerful and convincing testimony to others, perhaps considering the state of their own lives, of the power and the truth and the love of Jesus who came ‘to open the eyes of the blind and to set the captives free’. Of course it cost them dearly: for some their livelihood; and in a few years time for some their decision that day will have cost them their lives.

So, ‘the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed’; and so it does today where it is faithfully preached – and not some other different ‘gospel’ – and where it is believed and those hearing it decide to turn from lives and lifestyles which are unhealthy or selfish or dangerous to themselves or to others, to accept Jesus as their Saviour, their Lord, and their Friend.

It is better to journey this life with Jesus than to dance with the Devil. And we should remember what Jesus had to say about those who sit on the fence regarding him and who He is and what He calls us to turn from and become for Him and for the sake of others. Again ‘It is enough that good men do nothing for evil to prosper.’(Edmund Burke) This is why He wants us not just to be good people but effective disciples: and we can only be effective disciples if we are prepared to share his truth with others, to welcome and allow His power to be at work in us for others, and to love our neighbours as ourselves.

There is a spiritual battle going on; and a great part of the problem, as far as many Christians are concerned, is ignorance or even, sadly, wilful refusal to work with God and with the spiritual resources He gives us to overcome the enemy. That enemy is The Father of Lies who can appear as an ‘angel of light’. We have been warned; we have been called: let us not be found wanting. It is so much better to journey with Jesus rather than on our own; and if we are journeying with Jesus then we would be very foolish even to consider even one short dance with the DEVIL.

Anecdote

A fellow clergyman had been called to a house in his town because of ‘strange goings on in the house: bangings, movements, changes of temperature, etc. On arrival at the house, a man opened the door to him and announced, ‘I am a scientific atheist and I don’t believe in these things.’ My colleague replied, ‘Well if you’re a scientific atheist, whatever that is, why did you call me and not the plumber or the electrician?’

Acts 19 verses 1 -10

Do you sometimes think to yourself - there must be more to Christianity than this? You hear bible passages that speak of streams of living water flowing in your life and of experiencing love and joy and peace.

You hear of God working through people and touching people’s lives with his love and healing power. But if you’re honest this isn’t really your experience.

You come to church week in and week out and do your best to be a good person, to be kind and thoughtful but somehow God seems a bit distant.

Sometimes you pray and you’re sure that God must be listening but really it’s a bit of an effort. And sometimes you read your bible but you find it quite hard to understand.

You would like to share your faith but you find it very difficult and you’re really not sure what you should say.

If this resonates with you – you are not alone. I think this is a common experience for many who go to church.

We may have been baptised and confirmed and we may have had the odd spiritual experience when we felt close to God but by and large God can feel quite distant and our faith can feel a bit flat and lifeless.

Perhaps this is how the disciples we read about in today’s passage from Acts felt. No doubt they were good people who were genuinely trying to live in a way that pleased God – but there was obviously something missing from their lives.

Most of the pieces of the jigsaw were in place but a vital bit was missing and so their picture and experience of Christianity wasn’t complete.

However Paul being a spiritually perceptive sort of chap gets to the root of their problem quite quickly. They needed to open their lives to Jesus and receive the Holy Spirit and when they did this – the jigsaw would be complete.

And I think if we feel spiritually flat and a bit lifeless, the solution for us also - is to open our lives to Jesus and ask him to fill us and empower us with his Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit makes the world of difference to our lives and our faith. He is the one who makes God real and alive. He is the one who inspires us to pray and helps us to understand the bible. He is the one who fills our hearts with God’s love and inspires and enables us to reach out to others.

Of course there are lots of different theological views about the Holy Spirit and when and how he comes into people’s lives - but in some ways these theological arguments are a distraction from the really important questions which are – firstly - is He in our life? Has the Holy Spirit really come to live in us?

In other words have we been born again and do we know God? Have we opened the door of our heart and invited Jesus into our life? Because if we haven’t, our faith will be no more than a vague hope and God will remain outside our lives.

And secondly if we have done this - and the Holy Spirit is living in us - have we been empowered by him? Have we come to Jesus and invited him to fill us with his spirit and to impart spiritual gifts to us? Because if we haven’t we won’t be as effective disciples as we could be.

And although we may have faith and believe in Jesus - our Christian lives may be a bit flat and uninspiring; prayer and bible reading may tend to be a struggle and sharing our faith may be hard work, rather than an overflow of the life that is in us.

And thirdly, even if we have been empowered by him - are we continuing to live in that empowering? Are we continuing to ask the Holy Spirit to fill us afresh and remaining open to receiving whatever else God may desire to pour into our lives?

So wherever we are in our faith journey – we all need the Holy Spirit.

Of course once we have received him we still need to put effort into our relationship with God and set aside time to pray and read our bibles and look for opportunities to share our faith. It’s just that he helps us to do these things more effectively.

Personally I think it would make a tremendous difference to Brenchley church if more of us would recognise our need to be empowered by God - and then actually trust God enough to come to Him and invite Him to fill us with his Holy Spirit and to impart whatever gifts He chooses, to us.

Of course the problem is that many of us are perhaps – if we’re honest - a bit afraid. We’d like our faith to be a bit more alive but we’re nervous about opening our lives to God.

Although Jesus says that he will only give us good gifts, there’s part of us that’s unsure. Perhaps we’re afraid of being keener or more spiritually alive Christians. How different might we be - and what might people think?

So although ideally we’d like to be more fruitful and better able to share our faith – we hold back and shy away from God. What we are familiar with – even though it’s a bit dry and uninspiring - seems safer than receiving spiritual gifts that sound a bit – well – other worldly.

Or perhaps some of us have had negative experiences in the past and have been hurt by other Christians – and this has put us off. So we stick with what feels safe.

Perhaps although we haven’t had first-hand experience of the gifts of the spirit we’ve heard about them from others and it all sounds a bit well supernatural – so we shy away from it.

There are lots of reasons why Christians - especially in the West – shy away from seeking to be filled or baptised with the Holy Spirit – whatever you want to call it

I remember when I wanted to be empowered by God in this way – feeling quite nervous about it.

I’d been a Christian for 5 or 6 years but I noticed at the Anglican Church I was going to in Tunbridge Wells, that some people had a certain power when they prayed or spoke about God – which I didn’t have.

Somehow they just seemed to be a bit more in tune with God. I really wanted this power in my life but there was also a part of me that was afraid of going deeper into the things of God.

In the end my desire to be filled and empowered by the Holy Spirit was stronger than my fear - so I asked someone to lay hands on me and pray for me.

I felt something of the holiness of God when I was prayed for but apart from this I didn’t feel any different.

However over the coming weeks and months I did notice a new power and vitality in my Christian life. I felt better able to pray – especially in prayer meetings, and better able to share my faith.

I also noticed that God started to communicate with me more through little pictures in my mind’s eye and on occasion He gave me encouraging words to share with people – which He hadn’t done before. And I felt a new sense of wanting to worship God.

All in all what God did in my life that day has stayed with me and has made a tremendous difference to my Christian life.

Although I had been afraid - it really wasn’t a scary experience at all. Someone simply laid hands on me and prayed for me. That was it. I didn’t have any amazing visions or feel any power surging through me.

It was very much as we do when we have prayer for healing at the communion rail.

And the reason I’m sharing this is that I believe God wants to empower and fill all Christians with his Holy Spirit. If you are a Christian this is part of your birth right.

In the early church as we’ve read in the passage in Acts today - it was the norm for Christians to have hands laid on them and to be prayed for in this way. It was part and parcel of what was considered normal Christianity.

Today it is the norm particularly of course in Pentecostal and Charismatic churches, but increasingly also in some Anglican and Catholic churches.

I remember for instance a few months ago Campbell telling us about The Right Reverend Richard Hare, the Bishop of Pontefract who experienced being empowered by God, and the tremendous difference it made to his life and faith.

The trouble is, as I’ve already said, many of us are a bit suspicious of anything that seems a bit other-worldly , - but surely being a Christian is already other-worldly.

I mean if the Holy Spirit is already living in us – isn’t that other-worldly in a sense – and if He is already living in us - why is it scary to ask Him to empower us?

Ultimately I think the whole subject comes down to trusting Jesus. To trusting him when he says; “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

God loves us and He wants to pour good things into our lives. He also knows us better than we know ourselves. He knows exactly which spiritual gifts to impart to us – gifts that will useful for the roles He calls us to and gifts that will be a blessing to others.

I think we need to put aside all our negative preconceptions about gifts of the spirit and speaking in tongues. And if we’ve been hurt we need to realise that it wasn’t God who was at fault – it was unloving Christians.

And then we need to step through our fear. Fear is a trick of the enemy – and he most certainly doesn’t want to us to be filled and empowered by God because He knows it will make us more fruitful and effective Christians – something he doesn’t want.

My grandparents told me a story about a little boy who was afraid of a monster. His parents told him that the monster was small and harmless but he didn’t believe them. As far as he was concerned it looked huge.

His parents told him that if he walked towards it, it would become smaller, but again he didn’t believe them.

In the end though, he decided he’d be brave and trust his parents and so he walked towards the monster and a very strange thing happened. He found that the closer he got, the smaller the monster became.

And when he reached it, it was actually tiny and fitted in the palm of his hand. It wasn’t scary at all.

We all need to open our lives to God and allow him to empower in any way he sees fit – not just for ourselves - but for those around us – our family, our friends, our neighbours, and our church family.

God wants us to be fruitful. And if we believe that He really loves us – we need to trust him. Like little children we need to come to Jesus and say Lord I trust you to give me only what is good.

Please fill me with your spirit and empower me as you desire and impart to me any gifts that you want me to have - because I want to be the most effective disciple I can.

So to end, can I encourage you – wherever you are in your journey of faith –to open your life to God and to trust Him. If you’re not yet a Christian you can invite Jesus into your life quietly by yourself. He is only a prayer away. Or if you’d prefer – find someone to pray with you.

If you are a  Christian but you haven’t experienced being empowered by God - find a mature Christian that you trust and ask him or her to lay hands on you and pray that God will fill you with his spirit and impart to you any gifts He wants you to have.

And if you’ve been empowered in this way in the past, but you feel a bit like a dry lawn that needs watering - why not come to God again and ask him to refresh and revive you – to pour out His spirit upon you afresh.

In the name of the living God. Amen