“One day the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know about, but who are you?” Acts 19:15

Acts 19 describes the apostle Paul’s ministry in Ephesus where he introduced people to the gospel of Christ. In verse 10 we learn his ministry there “went on for two years, so that all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord.”

As part of this ministry, it says that “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.” (Acts 19:11-12)

This aroused the interest of some spiritual pretenders seeking supernatural powers for their own personal gain. Verses 13-16 tell us they “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.”  Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this. One day the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know about, but who are you?” Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding.”

When we face a competitive threat at work, we call a meeting to strategize about how best to respond to the challenge posed by the competition. Here, when I read the demon’s question, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know about, but who are you?” I realized these pretenders were not even on Satan’s radar. They were of no threat to Satan’s efforts. He didn’t call a meeting.

And it made me pause to consider: is my walk with the Lord causing Satan and his forces to call a meeting to figure out how to deal with me? Or am I living in such a way that I pose no threat to his plans; that I am not even on his radar?

How about you? Are you on Satan’s radar? Lord, help my walk with you to cause Satan to call a meeting.