The seven sons of Sceva getting their butts handed to them by a demon-possessed man. To be quite honest, it was a little embarrassing.

In Acts 19, a band of misguided Jewish brothers went on a stroll through downtown Ephesus when they were approached by a demon-possessed man babbling in the streets.  In an attempt to make a name for themselves, they recited their obviously rehearsed exorcism routine:

“I command you in the name of Jesus, whom Paul preaches, to come out!”

Normally you’d expect some flailing around and a bit of green pea soup, topped off with an evil spirit vacating the premises… but not this time.  No, the man just started at them.  Then he simply asked:

“Jesus I know, and Paul I know.  But who are you?”

The brothers didn’t have an answer.

The tale ends with the devil chasing them down the street, stripping them of their clothes, and winning the battle.  Now, the problem wasn’t that Jesus wasn’t powerful enough.  It also wasn’t that Paul’s preaching wasn’t good enough.  The problem was that those wannabe-exorcists didn’t know who they were.

This is where I come in.  My job is to teach Christians who they are so they can do what God has called them to do.  Or, as Paul so beautifully put it,

“His responsibility is to equip God’s people to do His work and build up the church, the body of Christ.” [Ephesians 4:12]

Too many Christians aimlessly wander the earth without knowing who God created them to be.  We are a church in the midst of an identity crisis, not sure where we came from, what we are here for, and what we are supposed to do.  So that’s what you can expect from me.  That’s what you can expect to find in my blog, my books, my videos, and my sermons.  To learn who you are, how God feels about you, and what you can do to advance God’s kingdom on the earth.

Enjoy the ride.