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Nov 01, 2024 06:00am

Finding True Light

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I unwrapped the tin foil of my treasure I had just pulled from the freezer.

It was 1992, and glow sticks were a rare find. Well, at least in Cord, Arkansas. I had gotten it at the fall festival the night before and had been enamored with it all evening. We had heard that if you wrapped it in aluminum foil and put it in the freezer, it would keep its glow.

As I pulled back the last piece of the foil, my smile faded, and the excitement was deflated.

There was no glow.

I snapped, twisted, and bent that thing as hard as possible to revive some tiny faint glow.

But it was no use.

Whatever light it seemed this little thing had, was gone. An idea surged through my little nine-year-old mind. My teeth were strong, and I would bite it!

“Yes! That’s a great idea!” I thought.

At that moment, my mom told me not to put that thing in my mouth because of how dangerous that liquid inside could be.

It seemed harmless from the outside. And it was so pretty before. Surely, this couldn’t be harmful… could it?

Acts 19:11-20
“God did extraordinary miracles through Paul,
12 so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them.
13 Some Jews who went around driving out evil spirits tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. They would say, “In the name of the Jesus whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out.”
14 Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this.
15 One day the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know about, but who are you?”
16 Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding.
17 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.”

Ephesus – a region known for black magic and sorcery. Lustful desires had people seeking forbidden practices.

These Jews who were trying to cast out evil spirits were trying to make a living off of something they knew nothing about. They thought they were in control. They traveled around charging hurting people to relieve them of the spirits that controlled them.

They heard about Paul having the power to cast out demons in the name of Jesus Christ. They thought adding that to their list of names would be good.

But as they tried this scheme, they quickly realized they didn’t know what they were up against.

The evil spirit spoke to them.

He knew the name of Jesus. He even knew the name of Paul, the one Christ had given authority to, but these men had no power.

The man controlled by the evil spirits fiercely attacked these Jews. And they ran away naked and screaming.

When people saw and heard this, they recognized the true power of Christ. The name of Jesus was more powerful than any map of stars, book of incantations, traditions, or spells. They had never realized that these things had no true power, only danger.

There was nothing more powerful than the name of Jesus.

And it is still today.

If you’re trusting in anything else to bring you “luck, fortune, peace, happiness”, don’t be fooled. A crystal, light, animal’s foot, book of spells, etc., will not deliver you. Only Jesus Christ has the power to do that.

Take it from the people of Ephesus.

Call on the name of Jesus today, and let Him show you His true power. He will fill you with a light that never goes out nor fades.

He is the treasure we seek.