GET ROOTED IN THE WORD

Acts 19 draws a sharp line between knowing about Jesus and knowing Jesus for real. The seven sons of Sceva saw Paul operating in the power of God, saw demons come out, saw bodies healed, and tried to copy what they saw. Their words gave them away: “in the name of Jesus whom Paul preaches.” They knew the name, but they did not know the Person. The evil spirit recognized Jesus, knew Paul, and then asked the question that cuts straight to the heart: “Who are you?”

God does not call His people to live off somebody else’s relationship with Him. The God of mama and daddy, the God heard about on Sunday morning, the God in somebody else’s testimony, and the God seen moving in somebody else’s life cannot replace knowing God personally. Jesus says that His sheep know His voice because there is a deep personal relationship there. A child recognizes a parent’s voice in a crowded store because that voice has been heard over and over again. God’s voice becomes more recognizable when His people spend time with Him.

The question is not simply whether a person knows Jesus as Savior. Salvation comes through faith in Christ, and even the thief on the cross found mercy in his final moments. The deeper question is, “How well do you know God?” A person can be saved, go to heaven, and still go through this life knowing only of God from a distance. That is a tragedy when God invites His people into intimacy with Him.

Psalm 42 pictures this hunger like a deer panting for water. Intimacy with God cannot stay a want; it has to become a need. Wanting a closer walk does not automatically create one. Faith without works is dead, and a desire without action stays only a desire. God calls for sacrifice because anything worth having is worth the sacrifice. Jesus says that anyone who follows Him must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Him.

Paul, the man who wrote much of the New Testament and encountered Christ in a supernatural way, still said, “That I may know Him.” Paul was not looking for more information. Paul wanted to know God intimately, to know the power of Christ’s resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings. That kind of relationship grows through time in the Word, prayer and fasting, consistent fellowship in God’s house, and quiet time alone with God. Prayer is not only talking. Prayer is also getting quiet enough to listen.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Know God, not just facts about Him The sons of Sceva had the right words but no relationship behind them. Their borrowed language exposed that they knew of Jesus through Paul, not through personal faith and surrender. God does not offer His name as a formula to be used; He calls people into a real walk with Him. [61:15]
• 2. Intimacy with God must become necessary Psalm 42 does not picture casual interest but a deer panting for water. A thirsty soul eventually learns that success, entertainment, relationships, and routine cannot quench what only God can satisfy. God must become more than an emergency contact when life gets hard. [76:52]
• 3. Desire without action changes nothing A closer walk with God will remain a want until time, attention, and sacrifice are put behind it. Excuses can pass month after month while the soul stays in the same place. Faith shows itself in what a person actually does, not merely in what a person says is important. [79:43]
• 4. Knowing God costs something valuable Jesus calls His followers to deny themselves and take up the cross daily. Some things must become secondary if God is going to become primary. The question is not whether there is time, but what a person is willing to give up to make room for God. [84:13]
• 5. Quietness makes room for God’s voice Prayer can become one-sided when people do all the talking and never stop to listen. God often speaks through the Holy Spirit, dealing with the heart, giving direction, and showing what needs to change. A deep relationship grows when talking to God is joined with waiting before God.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [47:38] - Knowing Someone or Knowing of Them
• [53:41] - Paul’s Extraordinary Miracles
• [55:27] - The Seven Sons of Sceva
• [58:25] - Jesus I Know, Paul I Know
• [60:56] - Knowing Jesus Personally
• [63:00] - How Well Do You Know God?
• [69:46] - The God of Mama and Daddy
• [73:17] - Intimacy With God Is a Process
• [75:18] - A Need, Not Just a Want
• [77:58] - Put Action With Your Desire
• [82:16] - What Are You Willing to Sacrifice?
• [86:12] - How to Grow Closer to God
• [90:07] - Prayer, Fasting, and Consistency
• [92:06] - Talking and Listening to God
• [95:08] - A Call to Change and Rededication

Bible Reading

Acts 19:11-16
“And God was doing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were carried away to the sick, and their diseases left them and the evil spirits came out of them. Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists undertook to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, 'I adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul proclaims.' Seven sons of a Jewish high priest named Sceva were doing this. But the evil spirit answered them, 'Jesus I know, and Paul I recognize, but who are you?' And the man in whom was the evil spirit leaped on them, mastered all of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.” [55:27]

Psalm 42:1
“As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God.” [01:16:52]

Philippians 3:10
“that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,” [01:26:12]

Observation questions

1. What extraordinary things was God doing through Paul before the seven sons of Sceva tried to use Jesus’ name themselves? [54:24]
2. What exact wording did the sons of Sceva use that showed they were relying on Paul’s relationship with Jesus rather than their own? [56:35]
3. How did the evil spirit respond to the sons of Sceva, and what happened to them afterward? [58:25]
4. In Psalm 42:1, what picture is used to describe the soul’s desire for God, and how was “panting” explained? [01:16:36]

Interpretation questions

1. Why does the phrase “Jesus whom Paul preaches” reveal the difference between knowing facts about Jesus and personally knowing Him? [01:01:15]
2. Paul had encountered Christ, served faithfully, and wrote much of the New Testament. What does his desire to “know Him” show about the kind of relationship believers can continue pursuing? [01:25:55]
3. What does the image of a thirsty deer help believers understand about the difference between casually wanting God and deeply needing God? [01:17:11]
4. Why might a believer attend church, hear testimonies, and know biblical information but still relate to God mainly from a distance? [01:10:57]

Application questions

1. If someone looked at the time and attention you give to God, what would they conclude about how well you know Him personally? What is one honest area where you want that relationship to grow? [01:03:07]
2. Are there ways you have depended on the faith of parents, friends, church leaders, or other people instead of seeking God for yourself? What would taking one personal step toward God look like this week? [01:10:19]
3. What usually keeps your desire for a closer walk with God from becoming action—busyness, tiredness, distractions, uncertainty about where to begin, or something else? [01:18:16]
4. What is one specific sacrifice you could make this week to create real time with God, such as limiting social media, adjusting a schedule, or setting aside another activity? [01:22:43]
5. What simple and realistic plan could help you spend time in God’s Word consistently this week—not just reading quickly, but seeking to understand and retain what you read? [01:27:25]
6. When you pray, do you tend to do most of the talking? How could you make room for quietness and listening for the Holy Spirit to speak to your heart? [01:32:33]