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Celsus Library, Ephesus |
Today’s reading is Acts 19:11-20. Paul is in
Ephesus (in present day Turkey) and God is performing miracles through him so
people would believe in Jesus. The sons of Sceva were using the name of Jesus
to drive out evil spirits.
The problem was that the sons of Sceva did not
believe in Jesus. They were using his name to perform “magic tricks”, most
likely to obtain money from people in Ephesus.
As it turns out, a man with an evil spirit
severely beat the sons of Sceva. The sons learned that you will get burned if you
play with fire.
Some people today want to interact with God and
the spirit world. They use séances, tarot cards fortune tellers, mediums and
other portals to the spirit world. Their interactions must be on their terms. Little do they know that they may be playing
with fire.
God has given us the portals we need. He has told us what those interactions are.
He sent the
Holy Spirit to us for guidance and counseling. He gave us God’s Word – the Bible
– so we will know God’s Will. Baptism and Communion
are very important touch points into God's spiritual world. The
Holy Spirit becomes part of us at baptism, and Jesus nourishes us at
communion.
These are the best ways to find God – and safely I might add!
This explains how someone can find God. But what if God is looking for someone?
Yes, there is a portal, or touch point, in the this direction
too. It is Christ’s Church. God finds his people through Christ's Church. As members of his Church, we represent Christ,
spreading His message and looking for his members.
The church is a portal into the heavenly kingdom. We are members of the church.
People can find Christ in us and in our actions. We can be a portal for someone into the heavenly kingdom.
This is why we need to know Christ, Grow in Christ
and Go with Christ.
The Church is the real portal into the God's World.
Not fortune tellers, mediums and tarot cards.
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