August 10, 2023

Today's Reading: Acts 19:1-22

Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 6:19-7:17, Acts 19:1-22

Acts 19:19: “And a number of those who had practiced magic arts brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted the value of them and found it came to fifty thousand pieces of silver.”

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Magic always boils down to the same thing.  Whether it’s Lord of the Rings or Harry Potter or genuine dark arts and witchcraft.  Manipulate something spiritual to affect something physical.  Poke at something you can’t see to get something you can.  Which, if you think about it, is a lot like how most Christians treat prayer.  

That might actually be a good way to think about this.  In the text the exorcists weren’t calling out to Satan to cast out Satan. They were using the name of Jesus. They thought they knew the magic words.  It’s what broke the second commandment.  Magic is evil because it’s about control.  Using God’s name as a magic word to get what you want (please) is evil because it’s about control. The difference between magic and prayer is control.  Are you praying to a Heavenly Father who loves you for comfort in the knowledge that His will is going to be done in your life as it is everywhere else, or are you trying to manipulate something you can’t see to get something you can? God’s name is not something you use to get something else.  God’s name is a comfort to all who trust in Him.  

The difference between the exorcists and Paul’s teaching about the Holy Spirit and baptizing in the triune name isn’t just that Paul’s stuff worked. It isn’t because Paul meant it for good and the people trying to cast demons out of the sick and suffering had ulterior motives.  It’s that God would not allow His name to be misused to teach people He was the same as any other spiritual force out there.  Call upon it in every trouble, pray, praise, and give thanks.  But do so knowing you have a Father in Heaven who loves you, and that any peace comes from knowing you have received the Holy Spirit and need not worry about having to do magic in the first place.  Because God is in control.  That’s way better.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

O come, Thou Wisdom from on high, Who ord’rest all things mightily; To us the path of knowledge show, And teach us in her ways to go. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel Shall come to thee, O Israel! (O Come, O Come, Emmanuel, LSB 357:2)

-Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.

Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.

Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.