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. So the word of the Lord continued to increase and prevail mightily.

Ephesians 19:18-20

What do you value more, Christ or your interests, even if they conflict with the teachings of Christ? In the passage above, we have no record of Paul calling out people to “confess and divulge their practices.” Paul didn’t require anyone to burn their books. They likely did what they did in response to Paul’s call to holiness and separation from their old ways. I think I referred to this passage recently from Paul’s letter to these same people –

“Put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.”

Ephesians 4:22-24

When I was a teenager it was pretty common to hear stories similar to the one above. Sometimes I would hear of people getting rid of their entire vinyl album collection as they turned to follow Christ. Others would abandon their attachment to an Ouija board or other games associated with evil and darkness.

Those outward acts were developed from an inner change and commitment to the Gospel. Is there anything God might be convicting us that is getting in the way of our total commitment to Christ?