[Acts 19, Proverbs 29]

H – Acts 19:15, “But the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I recognize, but who are you?”

E – Who Are You?

This story of the seven sons of Sceva has always fascinated me. The question by the evil spirit also convicts me. The bases of the question is “who are you?” There are some interesting truths that are brought out by the question of the evil spirit. 

1. The enemy knows you. The enemy knows Jesus, recognizes Paul, and realizes that these seven sons of Sceva are not even in the same ‘spiritual’ category. The enemy knew that their invoking of the name of Jesus was a scam and the evil spirit was even put off by it; to the point that it leaped on them, mastered them, overpowered them, and beat the mess out of them until they were naked (19:16). 

2. The world will know you. It didn’t take long for the word to get out that these dudes were Jesus counterfeits. The world (those around them) heard and saw of their humiliation (19:17). This caused fear to fall on the people. After all, these seven men were sons of the High Priest; weren’t they suppose to be ‘religious’? 

3. Jesus knows you. Holy Spirit conviction fell on the people. Great repentance took place (19:18-20). Many of the believers came to the understanding that they were not faithfully following the One True God. They confessed, made known their sin, rid themselves of it, and surrendered to the Word of God. Only Jesus could bring about that type of immediate drastic change. 

The question for us is “who am I”? Am I a counterfeit proclaimer or true Jesus follower?

Do I invoke the name of Jesus based off what someone else has done or has there been individual surrender to the One True God?

A – Fear The Lord, Confess Sin, Repent, and Rid myself of any evil that the Lord reveals. Don’t play religious games. Be completely sold out to Jesus. 

R – Lord God, thank you for loving us. Lord, I know there is a spiritual battle taking place and I don’t want to play games. I pray for protection through the blood of Jesus Christ and the power of my testimony. God, put your hand on me, my family, our faith family. Lead us into the way of understanding. Use us mightily for your Glory. I pray we would be genuinely yours by living a life of repentance in mission and vision. Lord, the victory is yours! Do great things. 

In Jesus Name!