What do you think of book burning? Heating printed pages to 451 degrees Farenheit? Most Americans are against it—and against censorship of any kind. But believe it or not, some great legal minds have advanced arguments in FAVOR of censorship. In fact, we ALREADY censor child pornography. Some argue we should censor all pornography (as we once did)—because it does nothing good for the world. I agree.
But aside from censorship by the government, consider VOLUNTARY censorship. Do you own anything you should destroy? Any books you should burn?
When Paul was preaching in Ephesus, God worked miracles through him. Incredible things were reported:
“This became known to everyone… And many became believers… and those who had practiced magic collected their books and burned them in front of everyone. They calculated their value and it came to 50,000 pieces of silver” Acts 19:19.
That must have been a raging inferno, a huge conflagration, a massive pyre. But aside from the size of the roaring flames, consider the value. Fifty-thousand silver coins in today’s money is worth $4-5 million. That’s a lot of money! Why didn’t the former magicians take their books to a used book shop? Half-Price Books would have paid them a fortune! Or they could have auctioned off their best spells and potions on eBay, right? Why throw away such a valuable investment?
But as with horoscopes—magic is not harmless fun, it’s evil—and once the magicians repented of their sins and found Christ, they wanted to destroy the works of the devil, not pass them on to someone else.
What do you own that needs to be burned? What websites need to be blocked? What friends need to be shown the door? Sometimes God calls us to RADICAL OBEDIENCE. Even to the point of setting something on fire.
God, speak to us. Lead us. Draw us to you and show us what parts of our lives or habits we need to burn so we can be 100% dedicated to you.
ΑΩ
Household Words: 