God Doesn't Need You to Perform a Miracle. Just Let Him Transform You.|08.30.26|Acts: Mission on the Road pt.10
Most of us assume that God isnât going to do something big through us. Because most of us donât really see opportunities in our everyday lives to be able to lead someone to Jesus, or rescue an orphan out of a horrible situation, or help someone overcome addiction.
And even if that situation showed up in front of us tomorrow, most of us are unsure how weâd respond and what next steps to take.
Because weâre not like Billy Graham! Weâre not like our guest speaker last week, Pastor David, who has helped plant over 5 churches in Germany!
And because you think that Godâs ârealâ work happens through big stuff like that, most of you assume that you wonât be involved in that type of stuff. So you stick to âyour roleâ as Christians: show up to church, give, maybe work up the courage to invite someone to church and hope that the music team and the pastor does the rest.
But because you assume that your life and your faith doesnât have as much to offer as some missionary or a mighty man or woman of God, you end up keeping yourself to a smaller vision of the life that Jesus has for you.
But that assumption is about to get challenged in our Bible passage today, because weâre going to see just how big of an impact God actually wants to make through your life.
[Scripture Ref]
So open your Bibles with me to Acts 19 (105). And let me remind you that a few weeks ago, we looked at the two years that the Apostle Paul spent in the town of Ephesus. And he wasnât necessarily doing big events or flashy sermons, he was just spending daily time with people, helping them learn about Jesus, and God worked through that daily discussion and conversation to deliver the gift of faith to the whole region.
And our passage today picks up with that same period of time showing us what happens when people try to grab at Godâs power without actually being connected to him.
Now, before we read it together, I need to explain how people during that time viewed spiritual power. Because they had a local patron goddess: Artemis, who was a fertility goddess who also oversaw the city's safety and prosperity.
And so, not only did people give offerings and sacrifices to the goddess to ask for her to provide and protect them, but they also had a whole industry built around magic: using special spells, incantations, and powerful words that could help someone wield power, either to overcome an obstacle or to coerce the gods to help them.
And this wasnât just using âthe magic wordâ to ask kindly, and it wasnât just coming up with the âpasswordâ that let you through a checkpoint⌠but it was about finding and using the power that was around them for their own benefit.
And so as we read, weâre going to meet these seven brothers who are Jewish exorcists: they have made it a family business to be hired out to help people dealing with various spiritual oppressions to try and help them get rid of the bad energy and dark forces.
And these seven brothers have been watching Paulâs ministry closely, and seeing how he seems to have access to a power they have never seen before.
But as we read, I want us to look for how people try to USE power, and what God actually uses his power to accomplish. Letâs RISE for the reading of Godâs Word.
[Acts 19:11-20]
[Acts 19:11-12]
Okay, so this is one of my favorite sections of Acts, and when I was preparing for the message this week, I got even more excited, because there are just too many cool things going on.
And weâve got to start right at the top with this crazy detail about handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched Paul being brought to sick people⌠and they got HEALED!
But notice the wording very carefully. Because it wasnât the handkerchief that did the healing. And it wasnât Paul that healed them. It says it right there: âGod did extraordinary miraclesâŚâ GOD DID.
It wasnât like the handkerchief was some sort of magic object that had some residual power from Paul (even though Iâm sure thatâs what people thought at first). No, it was GODâS POWER at work, and when Godâs power drew near, the disease left. The oppressive spirits fled.
Because disease and demons are rendered POWERLESS in the presence of the power of God.
[Acts 19:13-14]
Then thereâs these guys who try and jump in on this trend. The seven sons of Sceva, these travelling exorcists who have made it a family business to make house calls and drive away dark vibes and oppressive forces.
Well, they have been following Paulâs ministry for a while, and they notice that heâs got some sort of power that they havenât seen before. And so they figure, we might as well try and see if wielding the name of Jesus works for us, too!
And before we gloss over it as something that can never connect to our lives, (because I donât think there are many of us who wanted to be âitinerant Jewish exorcistsâ when we grew up)⌠we need to see how this impulse to wield power that is not ours, or to make shortcuts for our own power and authority â this is something that definitely is quite common today.
Because we might not chant over people or our situations, but we absolutely DO reach for tools that promise power we havenât actually connected to: status, security, control.
Just look at the anti-aging industry, and tell me it isnât trying to sell the same promise that magic spells once promised: hold on to the youth and beauty that is slipping away. Get your hairline back. Get your energy back. Get your mojo back.
Or what about networking groups, clubs, and events? Selling access to influence that we havenât earned relationally.
Many modern Christians even treat their faith this way! Using a verse or a prayer or a spiritual practice as a lever to pull to get the outcome we want, rather than as a pathway to deeper relationship with Christ.
And thatâs exactly what these seven sons of Sceva are doing, because they have recognized that there is power in the name of Jesus, but they arenât approaching it with ANY reverence for Jesus or relationship with Jesus of their own.
Just look at how they try to use the name of Jesus like itâs a magic spell that can be picked up and used like any old tool from their toolbelt: âI command you by THE JESUS that Paul preachesâŚâ
Itâs like when you show a kid a magic trick for the first time, and âhey presto, a coin from your earâ and then they go around shouting âhey prestoâ or âabrakadabraâ at things, hoping that if they shout the magic word just right, then the magic power will bend to their will.
[Acts 19:15-16]
Like, itâs kind of humorous, isnât it? And itâs almost like the evil spirit is chuckling when he answers: âJesus I know, and Paul I know about, but who are you?â
âWho are you to try and wield this power?â Like the evil spirit is calling them little kids who tried to play dress-up in daddyâs uniform, but it doesnât fit and they keep tripping all over it.
And then what follows is a straight-up beatdown. And a pretty severe one because it leaves them naked and wounded.
[Acts 19:17]
And then word gets out. Not about the beating, per se, but about what the beating proved: that the name of Jesus isnât some âtoolâ that can be picked up and USED by people for their own ends.
And everyone who heard the story realized the same thing: that the name of Jesus belongs to someone who is truly King. And his power and authority isnât something you can just wield.
[blank]
And so we definitely donât want to be like the sons of Sceva. We definitely donât want to be trying to reach aggressively for power that we have no relationship with.
But I donât think thatâs the thing most of us will struggle with, right? Because thereâs actually a second way to miss the power of Jesus, and itâs waaaaay more common for us in this room.
Because while most of us might not be overreaching and trying to USE Godâs authority, we also need to make sure that we donât swing the pendulum too far the other way and shrink back from what God is calling us to do.
Because think about the last time you thought of someone who needs God. The last time their name popped into your head out of nowhere. Maybe it was your coworker, or your neighbor, or that family member that is close to you but who feels far from God.
And your first thought was something like: âman, I wish someone would talk to them about God. I wish theyâd find their way back to church. I wish someone could help them see what I see in my faith.â
Just pause for a second. Do you realize that when that thought popped into your head, when you were wishing for⌠asking for âsomeoneâ to connect with them⌠THAT WAS A PRAYER?!
Talking to God about the people we care about and he cares about⌠thatâs the same thing as praying for them.
âGod, I wish someone would come into their lifeâŚâ is a prayer. âGod, I wish that they could go to church.â That is a prayerâŚ
And sometimes, God wants to use YOU as the answer to your own prayer.
I mean, what makes you think that it wasnât God who put that prayer in your heart? When you pray, âGod, I really wish that someone could be a voice of hope and love in their lifeâŚâ maybe God put that person in your head AND the prayer for them in your head. Because he wants that for them too!
And maybe he wants to work through YOU to be the answer to that prayer and BE the voice of hope for them that day.
Or when we see that coworker who has been searching in all the wrong places for meaning and purpose and the power to change their life⌠theyâve been grasping at ways to hold on to youth or influence or money or status or security.
âŚand you know that what they REALLY need is to be introduced to the never-ending and fully sufficient love and grace of GodâŚ
âŚwell, MOST LIKELY, God is the one who nudged you and put that person on your heart. And God is the one who gave you the eyes to see all the imperfect things they are pursuing. And God is the one who put inside you the desire for them to experience his love because of how youâve experienced it in your own life!
And maybe, just maybe, God is inviting you to be used by him to be the answer to that prayer you just prayed by continuing with those BLESS practices, and listening to them, sharing a meal with them or a coffee or a conversation at the water cooler, serving them in some tangible way that lets them know they matter.
Because hereâs the deal, I donât know how the belief got started that God only works through people like Billy Graham, but itâs not true! God isnât limited by your personality type or your gifts or your shyness.
Your role in Godâs mission isnât just to sit on the sidelines. God wants to work through YOU, not just the pastors or your friend who âknows more about the Bible than you.â He wants to work through YOU to impact the people around you!
[Acts 19:18]
Which is why we want to be serious about our own journey of following Jesus. Because as Jesus transforms our life more and more, then more and more people are going to notice the change. Just look at what happened in Ephesus:
Belief led to confession. Usually, we think that the order is repent, then believe. First, we turn back to God, or fix ourselves, or change our life⌠and then we demonstrate belief or faith.
But v18 shows us that it is belief in Jesus, trust in Jesus as our king, that actually enables us to confess. Itâs his grace reaching towards us that actually enables us to disclose our sins and repent, turn back to him.
You canât step into the light until the light is already shining towards you. And we donât convince the light to turn on with how well we are trying to believe in Jesus. Itâs Godâs grace that calls people into the open and into his healing. Itâs Godâs resurrecting power that breathes new life into us.
[Acts 19:20]
And we see what happens as lives are transformed: the word of the Lord grew and prevailed.
The news spread that disease and demons fled from the power of God, and the news spread that the whole community was turning from sorcery⌠but it doesnât say that âPaul became more famous.â And it doesnât even linger on the beatdown of the exorcists as some cautionary tale.
It puts the WHOLE FOCUS on the Word of the Lord. The only thing that has had power this whole time: the power of God.
And Godâs power was at work through ordinary lives becoming transformed, and THAT led to even more life change and belief.
[God works through]
God works through your transformed life to transform lives. He doesnât work through some perfectly memorized speech. He doesnât only work through specially trained professionals who have mastered some technique.
He works through YOUR LIFE. And as your life is transformed by Jesus to look more and more like the fruit of the spirit, little by little, small daily changes⌠people get to see that.
And as God transforms your life, the people around you get to see that âthis is real. God is real. His love and grace is real.â
And this isnât something that you have to DO on your own power. God doesnât need you to wield anything or accomplish anything. Heâs not standing around with his arms crossed, waiting for you to change your own life.
He wants to work through your transformed life to transform the lives of others.
[Acts 19:19]
Just look at v19 with me: âA number of those who practiced magic collected their books and burned them publiclyâŚâ
These are people who had built their whole livelihood on magic, on the promise of being able to claim and wield power to get what you want. And they BURNED their scrolls. Not left them in a back cupboard. Not resold them on Facebook marketplace to regain some of their investment. BURNED.
And the investment was immense! 50k silver coins would be between 10-20mil today. Like, imagine if all the local slot machines and sports betting people suddenly BURNED all the gambling machinery and websites here in our area one day?
Not because they had been finally convinced that it wasnât financially smart. Not because someone argued them out of the promise of âhitting it big.â
But because they saw up close and personal what FULLY ALIVE LIFE looks like through the transformed lives of people who follow Jesus! Because they realized that all the other promises pale in comparison to the all-surpassing WORTH of knowing Christ and being known by him.
These people in Ephesus saw the true power of God at work in the lives of regular people, and that caused them to TURN AWAY from the lesser things they had invested their lives in. It brought about transformation in THEIR lives!
And THAT led to âthe word of the Lord growing mightily and prevailing.â
Because God works through people to reach people. He works through your transformed life to transform the lives of others.
[BLESS]
And so thatâs why I want to encourage you to obey the nudge this week that God gives you.
That name that pops into your head? That neighbor that youâve been thinking about recently? Thatâs not a coincidence! And the thought that you have about them, hoping that God would reach them in some way⌠thatâs not just a feeling to notice and then move past. Itâs a prayer, and God might be trying to answer that prayer through you.
So obey the nudge when God gives you a nudge this week and ask the follow-up question: how can I BLESS them this week?
Pick one BLESS action. Pray for them by name. Connect with them by listening with care and compassion. Practice hospitality by inviting them to eat with you. Find a small, tangible way to serve them. Or, tell them how Jesus has worked in your life.
Pick one BLESS action this week. Not all five! Just one small step of obedience when God gives you a nudge. Because heâs the one who has the power for transformation and healing and resurrection. And heâs the one who is at work, through your obedience as you join him in his work.
[END]
And as we pay attention to those small nudges God gives us, little by little, He is at work growing his kingdom and impact here in the Sauk Valley. God is the one doing it, but heâs just decided that the way heâs growing it is through people just like us that heâs transforming to become more and more like Jesus.
Don't you want to see our community change in that way? Where our small steps of obedience are used by God to bring about transformed lives for our coworkers, and neighbors, and family members?
Just imagine what it would be like for that person that God has kept putting on your heart to experience some of the freedom and the grace and the joy that comes when we say yes to Jesus and let him work in our lives.
Just imagine how their transformation would impact and affect the people around THEM, spreading through Sterling, and Rock Falls, and Dixon, and P-Town, and Morrison, and Polo, and Amboy, and throughout the whole Sauk Valley and beyond!
Thatâs exactly the mission that weâre a part of. Itâs exactly what weâre stepping into and recommitting to this fall. Because Jesus Christ is the name above all names, and his love and justice is making all things new and renewed. And heâs inviting us to be a part of it.
Isnât that good news?