Day 179

Power Encounters

Wisdom Psalm 78:32-38
New Testament Acts 18:9-26, 19:11-13
Old Testament 1 Kings 21:17-20

Introduction

A few years ago, David (not his real name), a young lawyer, was in our small group on Alpha. On the first night, he told us that he was an atheist and had come with a sole purpose of disrupting the small group, which he attempted to do every time he came. Unlike many who come with this attitude, he did not change at all throughout the course.

After the talk on ‘How Can I Resist Evil?’, one young woman, Sarah (not her real name), who was not a Christian, said that she definitely did not believe in the power of evil. This was a major stumbling-block to her becoming a Christian.

But later that evening David became extremely angry for no apparent reason and, as if he were taken over by a demonic power, he physically threatened one of the helpers in our group in a terrifying way. Sarah happened to witness the incident. She saw God’s power at work in the gentle, restrained reaction of the helper. Her eyes were opened to the whole spiritual world. She put her faith in Jesus that night.

John Wimber defined ‘power encounters’ as the clashing of the kingdom of God and the kingdom of Satan.

The apostle Paul writes, ‘Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but… against the spiritual forces of evil’ (Ephesians 6:12). God’s power in you is so much greater than the power of evil.

Wisdom

Psalm 78:32-38

32 In spite of all this, they kept on sinning;
   in spite of his wonders, they did not believe.

34 Whenever God slew them, they would seek him;
   they eagerly turned to him again.
35 They remembered that God was their Rock,
   that God Most High was their Redeemer.
36 But then they would flatter him with their mouths,
   lying to him with their tongues;
37 their hearts were not loyal to him,
   they were not faithful to his covenant.
38 Yet he was merciful;
   he forgave their iniquities
   and did not destroy them.

Commentary

Understand the nature of evil

God wants us to learn from our mistakes and not to keep on repeating the same sins over and over again. The history of the people of God is that, ‘in spite of’ all that God did for them, ‘they kept on sinning’ (v.32a).

God, in his love for us, respects our freedom. Although he has the power to overrule our freedom, he does not. He acted supernaturally on behalf of his people. Yet, ‘In spite of his wonders, they did not believe’ (v.32b).

He disciplined them and they would return to him (v.34). ‘But they didn’t mean a word of it; they lied through their teeth the whole time. They could not have cared less about him’ (vv.36–37, MSG). Yet over and over again he was full of compassion and mercy, forgave ‘their iniquities and did not destroy them’ (v.38).

Why does evil seem to prevail so often in spite of God’s power? Perhaps this passage gives us part of the answer. It is not simply an encounter between the supernatural power of God and the supernatural power of evil. Human beings and human freedom are part of the equation. As the apostle James writes, ‘Each of you is tempted when, by your own evil desire, you are dragged away and enticed’ (James 1:14).

As you read of God’s power in this psalm, remember that, through the Holy Spirit, that power now lives in you.

Prayer

Lord, thank you for your mercy and forgiveness and for the power of the Holy Spirit living in me. Help me always to be loyal to you (Psalm 78:37).
New Testament

Acts 18:9-26, 19:11-13

9 One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision: ‘Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent. 10 For I am with you, and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city.’ 11 So Paul stayed in Corinth for a year and a half, teaching them the word of God.

12 While Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews of Corinth made a united attack on Paul and brought him to the place of judgment.

18 Paul stayed on in Corinth for some time. Then he left the brothers and sisters and sailed for Syria, accompanied by Priscilla and Aquila. ... 19 They arrived at Ephesus, where Paul left Priscilla and Aquila.

24 Meanwhile a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was a learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. 25 He had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and he spoke with great fervour and taught about Jesus accurately, though he knew only the baptism of John. 26 He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they invited him to their home and explained to him the way of God more adequately.

19
11 God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, 12 so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to those who were ill, 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.’

Commentary

Take authority over the power of evil

Filled with the power of the Holy Spirit, the apostle Paul took on the powers of evil. He faced ‘a united attack’ (18:12). ‘One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision: “Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent. For I am with you, and no one is going to attack and harm you”’ (vv.9–10). ‘That was all he needed to stick it out’ (v.11, MSG).

Presumably the Lord spoke to Paul in this way because he was tempted in the face of evil (being hauled off to court again on trumped-up charges) to be afraid, to give up speaking and to be silent. Do not give up in the face of opposition.

Paul saw power encounters between good and evil: ‘God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, 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’ (19:11–12).

The power of God in Paul’s ministry was so impressive that even people who were not Christians tried invoking ‘the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. They would say, “In the name of Jesus, whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out”’ (v.13). Tomorrow we will see the dangers of this approach (vv.14–16). The attempt to ‘tap the power’ of the name of Jesus by these Jewish exorcists had disastrous consequences.

Paul overcame the power of evil through the power of Jesus to perform miracles. This was part of the multifaceted way in which the Holy Spirit worked in his ministry. We see here some of the different areas of ministry where we need training and that our theological colleges, training schools and discipleship of all church members need to cover:

1. Teaching

‘He stayed another year and a half, faithfully teaching the Word of God to the Corinthians’ (18:11, MSG).

2. Mentoring

Paul spent a great deal of time ‘strengthening all the disciples’ (v.23). Priscilla and Aquila were probably among those that he mentored. Often those who have been mentored well become the best mentors.

For example, Priscilla and Aquila then mentored Apollos. Apollos was ‘a terrific speaker, eloquent and powerful in his preaching of the Scriptures. He was well-educated in the way of the Master and fiery in his enthusiasm’ (vv.24–25, MSG).

Priscilla and Aquila took him aside. ‘They invited him to their home and explained to him the way of God more adequately’ (v.26). He then became even more effective. ‘He was a great help to those who by grace had believed’ (v.27).

3. ‘Ministry’

We see an example of ‘ministry’ in the power of the Holy Spirit. ‘Paul placed his hands on \[the Ephesians\], the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied’ (19:6). Every Alpha Weekend, we have the immense privilege of laying hands on people and praying for them to be filled with the Holy Spirit.

4. Discussion

Paul ‘had discussions daily in the lecture hall of Tyrannus’ (v.9). The small group discussion on Alpha is perhaps the most important part of the course. It gives people the opportunity to explore, to talk through issues and to begin to find some answers to their questions.

5. Apologetics

Part of the discussion involved ‘apologetics’. This comes from the word ‘apologia’, which Paul uses at his trial when he says, ‘I make my defence (apologia)’ (26:2). It means presenting a rational basis for the Christian faith against objections and misrepresentations.

Paul ‘reasoned’ with them (18:19). He argued ‘for three months \[and\] spoke boldly, persuading and arguing and pleading about the kingdom of God’ (19:8, AMP). He taught Apollos, who entered into public debate, ‘proving from the Scriptures that Jesus was the Christ’ (18:28).

Prayer

Lord, help us to minister like Paul in the power of the Spirit by proclaiming the word of God and overcoming the powers of evil through the name of Jesus.
Old Testament

1 Kings 21:17-20

17 Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite: 18 ‘Go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, who rules in Samaria. He is now in Naboth’s vineyard, where he has gone to take possession of it. 19 Say to him, “This is what the Lord says: have you not murdered a man and seized his property?”

20 Ahab said to Elijah, ‘So you have found me, my enemy!’ ‘I have found you,’ he answered, ‘because you have sold yourself to do evil in the eyes of the Lord.’

Commentary

Be prepared to confront evil

Most of us do not like confrontation. But sometimes God calls us to confront evil.

In this passage we read about Ahab who, ‘pushed by his wife Jezebel and in open defiance of God, set an all-time record in making big business of evil’ (21:25, MSG).

First, we read of an encounter between evil and evil. Ben-Hadad king of Aram attacked Ahab. Out of the mouth of an evil man come wise words: ‘One who puts on his armour should not boast like one who takes it off’ (20:11). It is never a good idea to boast about what is going to happen. It is better to report it afterwards!

Then, we see how God’s power is greater than the power of Aram (chapter 20).

Next, we see just how evil Ahab and Jezebel are in the way they treated Naboth (chapter 21). In order to steal his land, they plotted to have him taken out and stoned to death. Then they stole his vineyard.

Elijah was a man of extraordinary courage. He was utterly fearless in the face of evil. God told him to go and ‘confront Ahab’ (v.18, MSG). Fearlessly he accused him of theft and murder and told him that he was in ‘the business of evil, defying God’ (v.20, MSG). He warned him that God’s judgment was about to fall on him.

Elijah’s words were so powerful that when Ahab heard them he repented: ‘He tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and fasted… and went around meekly’ (v.27). Remarkably, God showed him mercy (v.29). No matter what we have done, it is never too late to repent and seek God’s mercy.

Prayer

Lord, help us, like Elijah and the apostle Paul, not to be afraid to take on powers of evil. Give us courage in the face of evil. Fill us with your Holy Spirit.

Pippa adds

1 Kings 21

Choose a good spouse. Jezebel was the most evil woman we hear about in the Bible. Ahab might not have done quite badly if had he chosen a good wife.

Verse of the Day

Acts 18:9-10

‘Do not be afraid, keep on speaking, do not be silent. For I am with you…’

Thought for the Day

No matter what we have done, it is never too late to repent and seek God’s mercy.

Action for the Day

Today pray for God to give you courage to stand up to racism.

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References

Unless otherwise stated, Scripture quotations taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version Anglicised, Copyright © 1979, 1984, 2011 Biblica, formerly International Bible Society. Used by permission of Hodder & Stoughton Publishers, an Hachette UK company. All rights reserved. ‘NIV’ is a registered trademark of Biblica. UK trademark number 1448790.

Scripture quotations marked (AMP) taken from the Amplified® Bible, Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org)

Scripture marked (MSG) taken from The Message. Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

Bible in One Year

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