Acts 19:1-20
The Word Grew and Prevailed
Read the passage
1While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul passed through the interior and came to Ephesus. There he found some disciples
2and asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you became believers?” “No,” they answered, “we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”
3“Into what, then, were you baptized?” Paul asked. “The baptism of John,” they replied.
4Paul explained: “John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the One coming after him, that is, in Jesus.”
5On hearing this, they were baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus.
6And when Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied.
7There were about twelve men in all.
8Then Paul went into the synagogue and spoke boldly there for three months, arguing persuasively about the kingdom of God.
9But when some of them stubbornly refused to believe and publicly maligned the Way, Paul took his disciples and left the synagogue to conduct daily discussions in the lecture hall of Tyrannus.
10This continued for two years, so that everyone who lived in the province of Asia, Jews and Greeks alike, heard the word of the Lord.
11God did extraordinary miracles through the hands of Paul,
12so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and the diseases and evil spirits left them.
13Now there were some itinerant Jewish exorcists who tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those with evil spirits. They would say, “I command you by Jesus, whom Paul proclaims.”
14Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this.
15But one day the evil spirit responded, “Jesus I know, and I know about Paul, but who are you?”
16Then the man with the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. The attack was so violent that they ran out of the house naked and wounded.
17This became known to all the Jews and Greeks living in Ephesus, and fear came over all of them. So the name of the Lord Jesus was held in high honor.
18Many who had believed now came forward, confessing and disclosing their deeds.
19And a number of those who had practiced magic arts brought their books and burned them in front of everyone. When the value of the books was calculated, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas.
20So the word of the Lord powerfully continued to spread and prevail.
Berean Standard Bible
Read aloud
The disciples Paul meets in Ephesus know John's baptism but have not heard about the Holy Spirit. Paul explains that John told people to believe in Jesus. They are baptized in Jesus' name, and when Paul lays hands on them, the Spirit comes upon them. John's preparatory message has led them to the One he announced.
Paul then teaches for months in the synagogue and for two years in the lecture hall of Tyrannus. The Lord's word reaches Jews and Greeks throughout Asia. Alongside that patient teaching, God performs extraordinary miracles through Paul.
The sons of Sceva try to invoke Jesus' name by referring to the Jesus Paul proclaims. But the man with the evil spirit overpowers them. A borrowed phrase gives them no control over Jesus' authority. He is Lord, not a power people can operate with the right words.
As these events become known, Jesus' name is honored. Believers confess their deeds, and people who practiced magic burn costly books. Their response goes beyond being impressed: they part with practices and possessions they can no longer keep. The word prevails as people submit to the Lord it proclaims.
Questions
1 What baptism had the disciples known?
AnswerThey had known only John’s baptism, showing that they had heard about repentance but had not yet received the fuller message about Jesus and the Spirit.
2 What did Paul explain about John's baptism?
AnswerIt was a baptism of repentance that pointed people to believe in Jesus, the One coming after John.
3 What happened to the traveling exorcists?
AnswerThe man with the evil spirit overpowered them, and they fled naked and wounded. Invoking the name of Jesus whom Paul preached had not given them power over the spirit.
4 What did some believers do with their magic books?
AnswerThey brought the magic books together and burned them publicly, valuing allegiance to Jesus above the money those books represented.
What This Means for Us
Confession sometimes needs to be followed by a concrete break. An apology without changing a dishonest arrangement leaves the harm in place. The people burning their own magic books were giving up something valuable because their allegiance had changed. We can ask God to show us what we are excusing simply because we have spent money or effort on it.
Prayer
Lord Jesus, make our faith genuine rather than merely familiar language. Give us honesty to confess what needs to change and courage to leave destructive practices behind. Amen.