{"id":1703,"date":"2019-07-15T05:41:31","date_gmt":"2019-07-15T13:41:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/?p=1703"},"modified":"2019-07-15T05:41:31","modified_gmt":"2019-07-15T13:41:31","slug":"devotion-acts-134-12-directed-and-moving-out-part-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/?p=1703","title":{"rendered":"Devotion Acts 13:4-12 Directed And Moving Out Part 2"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Acts 13:4-12\u00a0<\/b>\u2013 The two of them, sent on their way by the Holy Spirit,\u00a0went down to Seleucia and sailed from there to Cyprus.\u00a05\u00a0When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God\u00a0in the Jewish synagogues.\u00a0John\u00a0was with them as their helper.\u00a0 6\u00a0They traveled through the whole island until they came to Paphos. There they met a Jewish sorcerer\u00a0and false prophet named Bar-Jesus,\u00a07\u00a0who 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.\u00a08\u00a0But Elymas the sorcerer\u00a0(for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul\u00a0from the faith.\u00a09\u00a0Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said,\u00a010\u00a0\u201cYou are a child of the devil\u00a0and 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?\u00a011\u00a0Now the hand of the Lord is against you.\u00a0You are going to be blind for a time, not even able to see the light of the sun.\u201d\u00a0 Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand.12\u00a0When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, for he was amazed at the teaching about the Lord.<\/i><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\u201cThey traveled through the whole island until they came to Paphos.<\/i>\u201d\u00a0 They worked their way through the whole island with the intent of not missing the opportunity to make sure that everyone had an opportunity to hear and respond to the Gospel.\u00a0 Have we been so diligent to spread the Gospel wherever the Lord has us?\u00a0 Do we wake up with a desire to share the Word?\u00a0 Or do we wake up with excuses?\u00a0 I believe that I do desire to share the Word as I am able, but I could be much bolder.\u00a0 Who dictates to us when and where we will share?\u00a0 Is it the Lord or the world?\u00a0 We should ask the Lord for the truth about that.\u00a0 Just ask the question without the excuses.\u00a0 Is that kinda scary?<\/p>\n

Mythology was rife in Paphos.\u00a0 Those who propounded mythology set the city as the first home of Aphrodite, the goddess of love.\u00a0 Around 58 BC the Romans took over Cyprus and Paphos became the seat of the military government.\u00a0 Sergius Paulus became named proconsul who ruled from there.\u00a0 A proconsul was a governor who ruled beneath a consul and were appointed by the Senate.\u00a0 They served a limited term, usually two, and were either someone who had served previously as a consul, or were on their way up to being a consul.\u00a0 Most important to note is that Paphos was where the proconsul Sergius Paulus ruled from.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere they met a Jewish sorcerer\u00a0and false prophet named Bar-Jesus,\u00a07\u00a0who was an attendant of the proconsul, Sergius Paulus.<\/i>\u201d\u00a0 We notice that that Bar-Jesus (son of Joshua) was a Jew.\u00a0 He knew better.\u00a0 But like in all countries, not all men follow laws, even the educated ones.\u00a0 This man was very educated.\u00a0 The word translated here as sorcerer is the same word that was used to describe the \u201cwise\u201d men who came from the east to worship Jesus as an infant (Matthew 2:1<\/b>).\u00a0 This was not usually a \u201csorcerer\u201d who dabbled in witchcraft or who communicated with the dead.\u00a0 They were educated men of actual science who also believed pagan superstition, so they being experts in astronomy, blended it with their superstition and practiced the cursed astrology.\u00a0 Bar-Jesus had a lofty position serving under the proconsul Sergius Paulus, he was an educated and intelligent man and may have originally been a priest from Persia. Unfortunately his pagan interests led him into, besides astrology, interpretation of dreams (not divine interpretation) and divination using the occult.\u00a0 He is called a false prophet.\u00a0 We have many of them today, people who do not look to God for truth and revelation, but to the false religions and pseudo sciences of the world.\u00a0 If one claims to know the future we should listen to see if God is getting the Glory, and if it is from the Word of God.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe proconsul, an intelligent man, sent for Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the word of God.<\/i>\u00a0 The proconsul was an intelligent man.\u00a0 We many safely assume that he was one whom we may call a \u201cseeker.\u201d\u00a0 Someone who genuinely wants to know God, but had, to that point, not come to know Him. He had likely heard of Barnabas and Saul as the news had certainly gotten to him about these two going throughout the island preaching and teaching the Gospel.\u00a0 So, when they got to Paphos he genuinely wanted to know if what they were preaching was Truth from God.<\/p>\n

\u201c8\u00a0But Elymas the sorcerer\u00a0(for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul\u00a0from the faith.<\/i>\u201d\u00a0 Another name for Bar-Jesus was Elymas which means, as the verse states \u201csorcerer.\u201d\u00a0 He certainly had given the proconsul much counsel using science and false religious beliefs.\u00a0 Now Barnabas and Saul were coming to bring the Truth.\u00a0 His job, and maybe even his life were in jeopardy.\u00a0 Elymas, like a scared long-time politician, like the Sanhedrin, was afraid for his livelihood and his life and he would oppose the gospel for purely selfish reasons.<\/p>\n

\u201cThen Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said.<\/i>\u201d\u00a0 This deceitful, skilled human was now facing the real deal.\u00a0 A man, Paul, filled with the living God, was looking straight at him.\u00a0 It would seem that Elymas felt his blood run cold.\u00a0 For him, the jig was up.<\/p>\n

Also note a couple important items.\u00a0 It is here that we first hear Saul called Paul.\u00a0 The man who was filled with pride and considered himself a \u201crequested one\u201d has become \u201clittle\u201d as it was not he who was important, but the important one was the Holy Spirit who was within him, guided him, and moved through him.\u00a0 From here on out Saul became known as Paul.\u00a0 Paul would later write to the Corinthians \u201cThat is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong<\/i>.\u201d\u00a0 (2 Corinthians 12:10<\/b>)\u00a0 Paul had learned the deeper meaning of\u00a0Proverbs 3:5-7<\/b>\u00a0\u201cTrust in the\u00a0<\/i><\/span>Lord<\/i><\/span>\u00a0with all your heart<\/i><\/span>\u00a0and lean not on your own understanding; 6\u00a0in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths\u00a0straight.\u00a0 7\u00a0Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the\u00a0<\/span>Lord<\/span>\u00a0and shun evil.<\/span><\/i>\u201d\u00a0 Family, when we quit trying to do things in our strength, whether it be while battling hard times or whether we are doing the work of the Lord, that is when we see God do the wonderful and the miraculous.\u00a0 We need to bring the Holy Spirit with us and let Him propound the Word through us.\u00a0 Then we, as Paul, move from being self-important to someone who prays to God to do the work and then see the great works of God.\u00a0 We have our part, God brings the desired results.\u00a0 He did it for Paul.\u00a0 He will do it for us.\u00a0 Praise our good and loving God!\u00a0 Praise God!<\/span><\/p>\n

Psalm 150:6<\/b>\u00a0–\u00a0Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.\u00a0 Praise the Lord!<\/i><\/p>\n

Micah 7:7<\/b>\u00a0–\u00a0But as for me, I watch\u00a0in hope\u00a0for the\u00a0Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear\u00a0me.\u00a0<\/i><\/p>\n

Micah 6:8<\/b>\u00a0–\u00a0He has shown You, O man, what\u00a0is\u00a0good; And what does the\u00a0Lord\u00a0require of You but to do justly, to love mercy, And to walk humbly with Your God.<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Acts 13:4-12\u00a0\u2013 The two of them, sent on their way by the Holy Spirit,\u00a0went down to Seleucia and sailed from there to Cyprus.\u00a05\u00a0When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God\u00a0in the Jewish synagogues.\u00a0John\u00a0was with them as their helper.\u00a0 6\u00a0They traveled through the whole island until they came to Paphos. There they met…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1192],"tags":[82,129,101,94,88,17],"class_list":["post-1703","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-devotion","tag-acts","tag-corinthians","tag-matthew","tag-micah","tag-proverbs","tag-psalm"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1703","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1703"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1703\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1704,"href":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1703\/revisions\/1704"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1703"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1703"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1703"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}