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
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