The Fall of Hogwarts
Jay Haugh
Part of Sunday Notes
April 18, 2021

enews-header-ACTS.jpg

The Fall of Hogwarts
Jay Haugh
April 18, 2021
Acts 19:1-22

And it happened that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul passed through the inland country and came to Ephesus. —Acts 19:1

Close but No Cigar

There he found some disciples. —Acts 19:1

And he said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” —Acts 19:2

And they said, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” —Acts 19:2

Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. —Romans 8:9

And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” They said, “Into John’s baptism.” And Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus.” —Acts 19:34

On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. —Acts 19:5

And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying. —Acts 19:6

There is equality and unity in Jesus

The gospel proclamation continues

There were about twelve men in all. And he entered the synagogue and for three months spoke boldly, reasoning and persuading them about the kingdom of God. —Acts 19:7-8

A gospel response continues

But when some became stubborn and continued in unbelief, speaking evil of the Way before the congregation, he withdrew from them and took the disciples with him, reasoning daily in the hall of Tyrannus. —Acts 19:9

God uses “magical” miracles to draw attention to the gospel

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. —Acts 19:11-12

God uses sweat rags to heal people

We have some “wanna-be” wizards

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.”

Acts 19:13

Where there is the truth of God,
you’ll always find false guys trying
to get ahead under the guise of truth

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?” —Acts 19:14-15

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. —Acts 19:16

And this became known to all the residents of Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks. And fear fell upon them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was extolled. —Acts 19:17

He disarmed [literally stripped] the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him. —Colossians 2:15

Also many of those who were now believers came, confessing and divulging their practices. 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. —Acts 19:18-19

So the word of the Lord continued to increase and prevail mightily. —Acts 19:20

BIG IDEA

The Gospel prevails and transforms lives even in the hardest and darkest of cultures


SMALL GROUP STUDY GUIDE
The Fall of Hogwarts
Jay Haugh
April 18, 2021
Acts 19:1-22

Dwell in the Word
This spiritual practice is characterized by reading Scripture together, asking questions, and listening to the answers of others. Inside spiritual practices as a group, no one individual gets to be the authority. We honor the indwelling Holy Spirit at work in the heart of our group members and allow the questions and thoughts that arise from God to have jurisdiction over the moment.

STEP ONE
Select one person to read Acts 19:11-22. During this reading you will be looking to answer one of the following three questions:
What may someone who is far from God ask about this passage?

What would you tell ‘the you’ from 10 years ago about this passage?

What would you ask a Bible scholar about this passage?

Read through the passage and then allow a minute or two for everyone to jot down or think about these three questions.

STEP TWO
Split your group up into pairs. This could be with the person next to them, with their spouse, or any other creative way your group can imagine. The goal is for it to be two individuals sharing together. Once you have split up you will each take a turn sharing your answers without being interrupted and listening without interrupting. Here is a format to help:
Decide who will share first and who will listen first
Set a timer for 2 minutes.
Share your answers to the question uninterrupted
When the timer goes off, switch.

STEP THREE
Come back together as a big group. Each person will now take a turn sharing a summary of what their partner said. It may be tempting to help your partner remember correctly what you said. It could also be tempting to add meaning to what you heard your partner say. This may feel uncomfortable or intimidating, just do your best.

NEXT
Process this experience as a group. Are there ways God is trying to activate you or your group? The “Activated” Group Process questions on page 6 may be a helpful guide as your group engages with this material and with God.

ACTIVATED: GROUP PROGRESS
How is God activating your group this week?

Share how you are sensing God’s call on your 2 life this week. Listen as others share with you.

Lean into the Holy Spirit and spur one another on. This may include encouragement or asking questions.

Pray over these specific activations in the lives of one another.

What did you enjoy about this group experience?

What was uncomfortable?

How do you think a regular practice of this could
benefit our group?

SELF-REFLECTION

How did God get your attention during your personal rhythms with Him this week?

What is one thing God brought to your attention while listening to the sermon this week?

How do you think a regular practice of this could benefit our group?