False prophet lurks among those who want to hear the Gospel.

Click for a description of the mark of the beast.
Click for a description of the image of the beast.

“Now when they had gone through the island to Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew whose name was Bar-Jesus, who was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man. This man called for Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God.” Acts 13:6-7

In the previous post on Acts 13:4-5, Paul and his companions were in Salamis on the island of Cyprus. They moved westward on the island to Paphos, as seen on the map below.

Paul was guided by the Holy Spirit regarding who he was led to minister to and those he wasn’t led to. His ministry was not based solely on converting a whole city or nation to Christ, but also on reaching one person who would make a difference within the family of Jesus Christ. By that personalized ministry, one person at a time, from small group to small group, and often to large crowds, the testimony of our lord Jesus reached to every continent around the world.

Paul, Barnabas, John Mark, and Luke [Acts 13:4-5] went through Paphos before they found that one person whom the Holy Spirit would open the door to a heart receptive to receive Jesus Christ. That one person was a proconsul named Sergius Paulus. A proconsul was a very powerful person of the Roman Empire, equivalent to a Governor or Senator of today. This intelligent person wanted to hear the word of God from Paul and Barnabas. The heart of Sergius Paulus was good soil,“…he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.” Matthew 13:23

As followers of Jesus Christ, we understand that the Holy Spirit is the only one who can bring people to God through Jesus Christ. Only when we are led by the Holy Spirit will we be effective in sharing our born-again experience [which is the Gospel of Christ written on our heart]. Any other time, sharing the testimony of Jesus is throwing the Gospel seed away from the good soil, onto stony places, or into the thorns. Click here for the parable on the sower from Matthew 13:1-23.

When meeting Sergius Paulius, “…they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew whose name was Bar-Jesus, who was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus…” In today’s culture, there will always be those people who want to prohibit the spread of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They even present themselves as ministers of righteousness [usually embracing humanitarian beliefs], but they are “false prophets” who oppose belief in God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. “For those who are such do not serve our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly, and by smooth words and flattering speech deceive the hearts of the simple.” Romans 16:18 “These are spots in your love feasts, …” Jude 1:12 They are the thorns among the blossoms of the fruit of the Holy Spirit.

“But Elymas the sorcerer (for so his name is translated) withstood them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith. Then Saul, who also is called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him and said, “O full of all deceit and all fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease perverting the straight ways of the Lord?” Acts 13:8-10

The false prophet, Elymas the sorcerer, was with the proconsul who wanted to hear the word of God. Elymas opposed Paul and Barnabas directly to prohibit Sergius Paulus from hearing the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In today’s world, it’s obvious to see how the Governors of states and Senators of the United States government are prohibited from governing through the word of God. Apparently, they have false prophets as their advisers, people who serve the atheistic beast that governs through what people think, feel, say, and do. Today, the government lawmakers no longer integrate the values of the Bible into their laws, policies, and executive orders. They are filled with all deceit and fraud as they have made themselves enemies of righteousness and pervert the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Our walk in Holiness is a process of sanctification that removes deceit, fraud, and perversion from our spirit and attitude to give light to the truth and righteousness of Jesus Christ. The work of the Holy Spirit in us is to lift up the testimony of Jesus.

Paul was filled with the Holy Spirit, and looked the false prophet squarely in the eyes, and plainly said to him, “O full of all deceit and all fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease perverting the straight ways of the Lord?” It is deceitful and fraudulent to keep the truth of Jesus Christ hidden from those who want to hear the Good News. People who do so are oppressing the presence of the Holy Spirit and instigating lawlessness by doing so. This is happening on a state, national, and global level. Even today, the churches have abandoned the Gospel of Jesus Christ to partner with community values. The churches are meant to be the light shining with the message of the Cross.

People who prohibit the testimony of Jesus and oppress the presence of the Holy Spirit are the sons of the devil. They are the children of the beast that opposes the Holy Spirit from living within the conscience and spirit to give people what to think, feel, do, and say. This entity gives life to the image of the beast to speak and live through people in cities across the globe. They are groomed to the mark of the beast by what they are given to say and do. Today’s culture, which is global, are enemies of the righteousness of God that comes through Jesus Christ in the presence of the Holy Spirit. They pervert the Gospel of Jesus Christ and make Jesus a very different Jesus than who died on the Cross to atone for sin, who was resurrected after three days, and now lives eternally. Because He lives, we will live eternally with Him.

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“….to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets,“
‘I will not impose any other burden on you, except to hold on to what you have until I come.’”
“I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.”
Revelation 2:24-25, 3:1