Acts 19:15 “The evil spirit answered ‘Jesus I know, Paul I know about, but who are you?’”
Christianity is a lot more than just a litany of beliefs that adherents opt to adopt. Faith is a lot more than acquiescing to orthodox theology. Followers of the way have a connection with the author of the faith that brings undeniable life transformation.
The demon that the Seven Sons of Sceva encountered recognized that they were pretenders of the faith. The sons knew the right words and went through the right motions, but their lives were powerless. They didn’t have the gifts, the graces, or the fruit that faithful followers carry.
Moving from “knowing about” to “knowing” doesn’t just happen. It takes a commitment of one’s personal life and time to align one’s life with the call and expectations of living The Way of a Christ Follower. In Romans, Paul asserts that salvation is a gift in Romans 6:23, but Paul also reminds the believers at Philippi that they must “continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:12) – a true paradox.
To the Galatians, Paul reminds them that those who live the faith have identified and conspicuous “fruit.” Their lives reflect Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-Control (Galatians 5:22–23). That kind of fruit doesn’t make weak, insipid, flaccid Christians. They don’t make for doormat Christians … but there are those who suggest that a true “Christian” is willing to tolerate almost any behavior in almost any- and every-one. BUT … both Jesus and Paul are exceptionally hard on those who claim to be believers or religious. And both Jesus and Paul are exceptionally gentle on those who don’t yet believe.
I think Dr. Luke includes the story of the Sons of Sceva in Acts as a warning: hypocrisy is not to be tolerated. Remember, the Holy Spirit took out Annas and Sapphira for their hypocrisy. And in this account a demon of darkness took out the Sons of Sceva for being pretenders to the faith. It seems to me that when the dark side of evil intentionally aligns with the eternal light of good against hypocrites, that we might want to be careful that our claims match our conduct.
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