They traveled through the whole island until they came to Paphos. There they met a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus, who was an attendant of the proconsul, Sergius Paulus. The proconsul, an intelligent man, sent for Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the word of God. But Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith. Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, “You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord? Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind, and for a time you will be unable to see the light of the sun.” Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand. When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, for he was amazed at the teaching of the Lord.
Acts 13:6-12
The story above shows us the power of God over Satan. Paul spoke up in boldness against the dark evil of the sorcerer. The sorcerer knew if Paul and Barnabas actually talked with his boss, the proconsul, he would more than likely be unemployed. This is why he tried to stall and distract them. There are people all around us today that act just like the sorcerer. Satan cannot do anything about our salvation because it’s already guaranteed! However, he sure can stop us from bringing others with us. He can stop us by creating chaos and distractions in our lives. We need to learn to weed out the chaos and distractions. As a mother of three children, I know all too well how parents can let their children’s activities consume all their free time. I’m convinced that this is a ploy that Satan uses to keep us too busy to find time for God. I see it all around me. I see it with my friends. We need to act like Paul and speak up boldly and help our friends. Paul, who was filled with the Holy Spirit, really let the sorcerer have it. Well, you know what? We’re filled with that same Holy Spirit. We, too, can and should be speaking up boldly for Christ. I’ll leave you with this powerful verse:
Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you?
1 Corinthians 3:16
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