HELL’S BULLETIN BOARD.

From Acts 19:13-15 we read, “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. And there were seven sons of one Sceva, a Jew, and chief of the priests, which did so. And the evil spirit answered and  said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye? 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”

HELL’S BULLETIN BOARD. I can remember years ago how you could go into any given United States Post Office and always see a bulletin board with pin ups of the FBI’s Most Wanted. The Post Office no longer does this, but they would put up pictures of dangerous criminals so customers could be aware of these enemies of the state. Their mug shots were plastered in Post Offices all over the country. If you had seen one of these enemies, you were asked to notify the authorities immediately, for these people were considered armed and dangerous..

DOES HELL HAVE A PIN UP OF YOU? Imagine for a moment that there is a bulletin board in hell’s Post Office where the devil puts up pictures of those he considers enemies of his kingdom of darkness. The devil’s pin ups are folks who are guilty of being on fire Christians, full of the Holy Spirit, armed with the Word of God and faithfully witnessing for the Lord. They are people like Paul was, known in heaven and feared in hell. Let me ask you a thought provoking question. Is your picture on the Satan’s bulletin board? Are you known in heaven and respected in hell? Or do you just have what I would call a secondhand faith?

A COPYCAT FAITH WON’T CUT IT. In our verses for today, the Bible tells us about a man named Sceva and his seven sons. They were Jewish exorcists who didn’t know the Lord but wanted to use the power of Jesus’ name. They had watched Paul cast out demons in Jesus’ name and thought they could do it too. They thought that by simply repeating the words Paul used and speaking the name of Jesus, they could cast the devils out of those who were possessed. What they didn’t realize, however, was the power over demons came from actually knowing Jesus, not just knowing about Him. They tried to ride piggyback on Paul’s faith in Christ, and it did not work too well. One of the demons replied to these Jewish exorcists and said in my words, “Who are you to order me around? You are not on our bulletin board in hell. You are not armed and dangerous!” And the Bible says, “…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”(v.16). I’ve always been intrigued by this incident in Acts 19. I’ve often wondered …what are some lessons we can glean from this story?

I believe the Lord revealed some truths to me recently and they are…First of all, you cannot overcome the devil in your own strength. He will defeat you at every turn. Notice that Sceva and his sons commanded the demons “…by Jesus whom Paul preacheth…” They did not have a personal relationship with Jesus themselves. Jesus did not live within their hearts. They had a secondhand faith and a secondhand faith will never experience the power of God. Jesus is not like a lucky rabbit’s foot or four leafed clover. And, secondly, notice what the devil said to these men, “…Jesus I know and Paul I know…” That’s an amazing statement made by the demons of Satan! Satan put Paul on the same level with Jesus. How could that be? It’s because Jesus lived within Paul! The Bible says, “…greater is He (Jesus) who is within you than he (the devil) who is in the world” (I John 4:4). He must first be our Savior and Lord and then He can work through us to accomplish great things. You can have a genuine relationship with Jesus just as Paul experienced. When Jesus lives within us, we have His power and grace to overcome the enemy in the spiritual battle we face. The Lord is enlisting, daily, those who desire to join His army!  He’ll make you a mighty, victorious soldier over the enemy. He wants to live in you and through you to make you a force for heaven. If you have never done so, you can join the Lord’s army today and become a soldier who’s armed and dangerous for the Lord. If you have gone AWOL, you can get back on track with Him, for He is the God of second chances (see Jonah 3:1). One of the Lord’s favorite words is “Come”. Will you take Him up on His invitation and come to Him?  “And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely”(Rev. 22:17). Think it over!🙏