Acts 19:17-20 – “This became known both to all Jews and Greeks dwelling in Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified. 18And many who had believed came confessing and telling their deeds. 19Also, many of those who had practiced magic brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted up the value of them, and it totaled fifty thousand pieces of silver. 20So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed.”
“This became known…” Seven brothers tried to cast an evil spirit out of a man. They were unsuccessful, to the point that they left the house where the demon-possessed man was naked and bleeding. That’s a whipping. They were in over their heads and tried to move in an anointing that they didn’t have. That usually makes for the “how not to” section of training manuals.
The positive side to all of this was that the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified and a good healthy fear fell on those dwelling in Ephesus. But there were also signs of transformation. Many people who practiced magic brought their magic books into a public place and burned them. As a result, the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed (v. 20). It all started with “This became known…”
The point of this devotion is I’m not sure we make it known enough. It does not appear that people were told that what they were doing (practicing magic) was wrong. The fear of the Lord “fell” on them and the Lord Jesus was magnified. They were prompted to confession and conversion. Maybe if we make known what God is doing versus telling people what they’re doing wrong, we might find that people are motivated to forsake their sins more readily. Don’t get me wrong; I do believe that the scriptures give us a balance of teaching people the difference between right and wrong. However, there is not enough of telling what God is doing.
“This became known…” What can you make known today that will glorify God and encourage someone?