There is a spirit of sorcery at work in our culture, and sadly, within some parts of the Church. The mission of this spirit is to distort and misinterpret the message of Jesus Christ. This is nothing new. It took place when Barnabas and Paul were speaking to a government official who was living under the spell of sorcery.
While traveling through Paphos, Barnabas and Paul encountered a sorcerer who was influencing the governor. Regarding the sorcerer, “He had attached himself to the governor, Sergius Paulus, who was an intelligent man” (Acts 13:7). The governor was interested in hearing Barnabas and Saul speak, so he invited them to come and speak with him. The sorcerer began to interfere with the message about Jesus.
“But Elymas, the sorcerer (as his name means in Greek), interfered and urged the governor to pay no attention to what Barnabas and Saul said. He was trying to keep the governor from believing” (vs. 8).
The sorcerer realized the governor was an intelligent man, so he had to pervert the message of the Gospel just enough to cause the governor to reject Paul and Barnabas’ message. The interference of the sorcerer was a perversion of the truth, distorting and misinterpreting what the disciples said.
When Paul discerned what was taking place, he confronted the sorcerer. “Saul, also known as Paul, was filled with the Holy Spirit, and he looked the sorcerer in the eye. Then he said, ‘You son of the devil, full of every sort of deceit and fraud, and enemy of all that is good! Will you never stop perverting the true ways of the Lord? Watch now, for the Lord has laid his hand of punishment upon you, and you will be struck blind. You will not see the sunlight for some time.’ Instantly, mist and darkness came over the man’s eyes, and he began groping around, begging for someone to take his hand and lead him” (vs.9-11).
After the power of God’s Spirit was demonstrated and the interference of the sorcerer was broken, something happened.
“When the governor saw what had happened, he became a believer, for he was astonished at the teaching about the Lord” (vs.12). Only when the interfering attachment of the sorcerer was broken could belief take place.
The spirit of sorcery must first be broken before belief can take place. This requires that we be so in tune with God’s Spirit that we will have the courage needed to challenge those bringing the distortions and misinterpretations. Sorcery can only work when it is allowed to distort and misrepresent what is true and is not confronted.
Our modern-day sorcerers do not look like witches dressed in dark robes. Their attachment to their victims must look and sound convincing. They are represented as credible people masking their dark intentions. They can stand behind a pulpit or a public podium, lending credibility to the distortions they bring.
Paul was so filled with God’s Spirit that he was able to discern what was happening. He was courageous enough to challenge the spirit of sorcery wherever it appeared. A faith without this kind of confrontation will allow spirits of sorcery to have their way and prevent belief from taking place when ungodly attachments are left unchallenged.
This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Garris Elkins
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