The Burning of the Books and the Riot of the Heart!
In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, One God. Amen.
May the blessing of the Father who calls us and His Only Begotten Son Jesus Christ who saves us, and the Holy Spirit who sanctifies and transforms us be with us all, that we may hear His word and bear fruit—thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold. Amen.
“And many who had believed came confessing and telling their deeds. Also, many of those who had practiced magic brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all.” (Acts 19:18–19, NKJV)
It began with a fire—not the fire of rebellion, but the fire of repentance. Not a riot of angry voices, but a riot of the soul—where truth burned brighter than profit, and confession louder than chants.
Ephesus was no ordinary city. It was a stronghold of Satan, a center of pagan worship, demonic magic, and spiritual confusion. But something divine broke through the darkness when the name of Jesus was magnified. A revival erupted—not in noise, but in quiet surrender.
Confession that Consumes
“Many who had believed came confessing and telling their deeds.”
It’s important to note that these weren’t outsiders. These were believers—Christ-followers who had not yet fully renounced the old ways. Some still clung to magical formulas and talismans, unaware of their bondage. But after the failed exorcism of the sons of Sceva, they realized the danger of playing with spiritual darkness. They confessed. And with their confession came deliverance.
St. John Chrysostom writes: “Then not the Name does anything, unless it be spoken with faith… See how they used their weapons against themselves!” (Homily on Acts 19)
The name of Jesus is not a magic word—it is the power of God. And when that power enters the heart, it exposes what is hidden. These believers didn’t just admit their sins. They brought their idols to the fire—burned them in public, regardless of cost or shame. Fifty thousand pieces of silver—millions of dollars by today’s standards—went up in flames.
They could have sold them. They could have given them away. But when the Holy Spirit convicts the heart, compromise is no longer an option. What once seemed valuable is now poison. So they burned it—and the Word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed.
Mental Health and the Secret Bondage
What the believers in Ephesus experienced mirrors what many Christians experience today. Hidden compulsions. Shameful habits. Objects or practices rooted in fear or superstition. From a mental health perspective, these believers were releasing psychological and spiritual chains. They were moving from magical thinking to spiritual clarity.
They understood that secrecy is where demonic strongholds gain power. And so they confessed. They brought it into the light. They refused to keep even a symbolic tie to their past lives.
One of the greatest healing acts you can do for your mental and spiritual health is to remove from your home and heart anything that glorifies darkness—books, images, music, games, links, charms, relationships. Healing begins when you say: “No more. Christ alone.”
When the Gospel Disrupts the Economy
But when hearts are changed, the world resists. Demetrius the silversmith wasn’t afraid of theology—he was afraid of bankruptcy. He saw what the Gospel was doing: “This Paul has persuaded and turned away many people, saying that they are not gods which are made with hands.”
Christianity did not begin by tearing down temples—it began by building up hearts. And changed hearts didn’t buy idols anymore. That’s what made the riot start. Not protest. Not politics. But purity.
St. Cyril of Alexandria says, “The power of the Word is not in assaulting temples but in transforming temples—the hearts of men and women.”
The crowd in Ephesus shouted for two hours, “Great is Diana of the Ephesians!” Today, the world still shouts: “Great is success! Great is self-expression! Great is my body! Great is this addiction!”
But beloved, our cry must be louder—not in volume, but in faith: “Great is the Lord Jesus Christ, and greatly to be praised!”
What Still Needs to Burn?
What idols still sit quietly in our homes? What media or music or memory has a stronghold on your mind? It may not be a statue. It may be a browser history. It may be a charm from your past, a book on superstition, a game that glorifies evil, a social feed that poisons your peace.
Spurgeon said it best: “Have done with it, and have done with it forever.” Don’t keep it “just in case.” Don’t hide it for later. Burn it. Let the Word of God prevail.
When the Crowd Cries: “Great Is…”
For two hours the crowd cried out in emotional frenzy. Not because they loved Diana. But because they were afraid of change. The city clerk had to calm them, saying, “These men are not blasphemers. They’ve broken no laws.” And so, by the grace of God, the riot ended—not with bloodshed, but with order.
Let it be so in our own hearts. When inner chaos threatens—when the flesh cries out against surrender—let the Spirit of peace rise up and speak reason: “This is not the way.”
Idols die. False gods fade. But Christ remains.
Abouna andrew
Practical Practices
- Go through your heart. Ask the Spirit: What remains unburned?
- Confess your secret sins to your Father of Confession. Don’t carry the burden alone.
- Destroy, don’t donate, what is linked to darkness.
- Teach your children discernment—what is holy, and what is not.
- Replace what you’ve removed with prayer, Scripture, iconography, and worship.
- Declare daily: “Jesus I know, and I am known by Him.”
May the Lord bless us, transform our hearts and minds, that our homes may stand on the Rock, our hands serve in the harvest, and our hearts long for Heaven. Amen.