It’s a great danger to try to attach the name of Jesus to one’s personal ministry without being really linked to him, which is obvious by one’s refusal to do what he has said, namely with regards to ministry methods. What’s clear in the book of Acts is that Christianity and the church is not something to trifle with. Ananias and Sapphira found out the hard way in Acts 5; so did Simon in Acts 8 and now these sons of Sceva in Acts 19. Any attempt to simply add Christianity to one’s existing life or worldview results in disaster. Being saved by Jesus Christ and added to the church must consume one’s life; it’s a complete transfer from being a world lover to a God lover and it’s impossible to be both.
Now you might be thinking—“I don’t always see a lot of negative consequences in those who try to play the game and merely baptize their personal desires in the name of Christ to the end that they only partially commit to his will.” Well, one of the most destructive things anyone can do is to become accustomed to being apart of the church and sitting under the word and yet never grow or change. This principle appears in Scripture at the end of Heb. 3 and beginning of Heb. 4, which discusses the utter danger of hearing the word and not believing in the word. This created a hardened heart in the Israelites and they all perished in the wilderness, not entering God’s eternal rest. This did not occur immediately nor right after many infractions. In the patience of God, the severe consequences often take a while to show up. It often takes years of superficial interaction with the church to lead to something like adultery and/or divorce or the embracing of some false teaching that plunges one’s family into spiritual disaster for generations.
This is why it’s essential to understand that the power of Christ is strictly given to produce Christlikeness and bring glory to his name.