Acts 19:17-20 – When this became known to the Jews and Greeks living in Ephesus, they were all seized with fear, and the name of the Lord Jesus was held in high honor. 18 Many of those who believed now came and openly confessed what they had done. 19 A number who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls together and burned them publicly. When they calculated the value of the scrolls, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas. 20 In this way the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power.
“When this became known to the Jews and Greeks living in Ephesus, they were all seized with fear, and the name of the Lord Jesus was held in high honor.” Ephesus was a center for the evil of witchcraft, sorcery, demon worship, astrology, tarot cards and various other occult practices. In the last twenty to thirty years there has been a spiked interest in astrology, tarot cards and witchcraft in the United States. A 1990 study stated that there were about eight thousand Wiccans (witchcraft) in the United States. However that number has skyrocketed to a current estimate of over one and a half million now interested in these things. That is a larger group than some national Christian denominations. Adherents of witchcraft have re-packaged their beliefs to make it appear less demonic or evil. To millennials who are searching for their own way (though it is not exclusive to them or their generation but are really just repackaged lies) these practices are packaged as “pre-Christian,” with the attraction being that older is more mysterious. Perhaps, they think that it is somehow older is more powerful, less restricting, and more adaptive to one’s supposed freedom. It is an old lie long ago disproven. They become in bondage to these evil spirits. There is no actual freedom in these things, only the illusion of it. It is all still bondage and no different than any other sin that leads away from the freedom of the Gospel and to the bondage of sin. (Romans 8:21)
“Many of those who believed now came and openly confessed what they had done. 19 A number who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls together and burned them publicly. When they calculated the value of the scrolls, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas.” There were not just a few practitioners who huddled in dark rooms, in the forests, or lured people to have their fortunes predicted, there were many who believed in these false religions and lies. And they did not dabble in them, they studied and invested their money in reading and learning about them. They were committed in a way that could teach many a lackadaisical Christian a lesson or two. They brought, of their own volition, scrolls (books) that would amount to a modern amount of over $18,000,000 dollars and burned them. Why did they burn them? They burned them because they understood that they had been in bondage to the evil spirits behind their beliefs. They knew the dangers, the bondage, the dark spiral downward of practicing these evil ways. They hadn’t know their deep bondage until the Gospel set them free. Some may protest, but why burn them? Because they understood that these books taught evil and enslaved souls. They understood the seduction of them and wanted neither themselves to be sucked back in nor someone else to read them and become captive. Also, they knew that these writing were not only books (scrolls) that had evil written on the pages but that evil spirits, with real power, were behind it all. Today many people, young and old, get sucked into witchcraft. Family and friends, it’s not cute, it’s not just a fad, and it’s not innocent. It is of demonic origin and evil and all who practice such things will find they have been seduced from the truth and have embraced a lie of the enemy that leads to eternal torment. If these books were not dangerous, the people could have sold them. But the converts knew the evil and danger of them and would not sell them and risk that another person would be entrapped. When coming to Jesus we all must repent, which means to turn away from the evil we did and turning to Jesus. The converts repented and their actions showed it.
“In this way the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power.” As lives became dedicated to God, the evil in their city diminished. All was going well, but evil spirits rarely slink away when defeated, instead they come back with a different plan and increased intensity and ferocity, as we shall see in the succeeding verses. Yes repent, turn to Jesus, but don’t expect the enemy to slink away. But know that their plots are powerless against those who daily pray for God to open the Word to them and to lead their steps.
Family and Friends, God has always condemned those evil beliefs and religions that are a lie from the enemy to lead people away from the true Gospel of Jesus Christ. Watch out for them getting involved, even in a slight degree, with all these things of darkness is like letting children approach wild lions to pet them, it can only end in disaster. Let us turn from things that confuse away from Christianity and study and practice the things of God. Let us straight arm evil and run toward Jesus. In that we will be safe and have His peace and joy. God is good and He loves us so why study lies instead of the truth. Always may we praise and honor God! Praise God!
Psalm 150:6 – Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown You, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of You but to do justly, to love mercy, And to walk humbly with Your God.
Numbers 6:24-26 “The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.”