“But Elymas the magician (for that is the meaning of his name) opposed them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith. But Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him and said, ‘You son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord? And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and unable to see the sun for a time.’ Immediately mist and darkness fell upon him, and he went about seeking people to lead him by the hand.” Acts 13:8-11
Devotional Thought For The Day
People become accustomed to doing what they want, pursuing their own agenda and plans, adopting certain opinions and arguing certain positions and viewpoints, and because they are able to oppose God’s good and gracious will for lengthy periods of time without being stricken, they assume that what they are doing is safe, not all that offensive to God, perhaps even acceptable to God and approved by Him. Such was the case with Elymas, who was not only a magician but also a false prophet [Acts. 13:6]. He was doing his own thing, padding his reputation with his “magic” and sorcery, and asserting authority by his pretentious prophesying, hanging out with people in high office, the proconsul, and achieving success in fulfilling his plans. Not only had no evil befallen him, but he had actually gained a position of prominence, respect, reputation, and status. When he opposed Saul and the preaching of the Gospel, I’m sure he was convinced that it was safe to do so, that there was no possibility that God would intervene and place His hand upon him for judgment and destruction. This was a very serious miscalculation and mistake!
It is no different today. Many people are blinded to true spiritual power, the reality, omnipresence, and immanence of God, and the reality of His love for people, especially that they come to know and believe what He has done for us in the gift of His Son Jesus Christ. Some, like Elymas, assume the position of “prophet” and convince others that they are servants of God – but for a variety of purposes other than God’s purpose in sending His servants, servants of His Word, and rather than leading people to Christ and the grace of God, they lead them away from Christ, and blind them to Christ. They may gain great wealth, respect, and status, and so presume that God will do nothing negative to them. They salve their conscience with the thought that at least they are making people happier, or enabling them to be more successful, or even helping them to be “better” people, and so they don’t have any guilt or sense that God is poised to put His hand upon them. They also are bold to resist, to attempt to thwart, and even to try to intimidate or destroy true servants of God, true preachers of Christ and His Gospel. But even today this remains a very serious miscalculation and mistake, and God’s hand will come to them.
At the same time, in many Christian groups and congregations served by true servants of Christ, God’s Word, and the Gospel of His gracious mercy and forgiveness, there are people who want to assert influence, power, and prerogative that opposes God’s Word and His good and gracious will – and at times they have no fear of opposing God’s true servants, no fear that His hand may also come upon them. So they politicize the church, exert pressure on God’s servant in a variety of ways, oppose him privately and publicly, perhaps even threaten him, perhaps even slander him, and otherwise attempt to drive him off of his calling or away altogether. All of this is done by people who are at best naive and blinded, and at worst cynical and wicked, and who don’t believe there is any danger in this, maybe even that they are doing good, but who are oblivious to the hand of God poised to come down upon them. And His hand does still come to protect His servants, to pave the way for the accomplishment of His will, and to discipline or destroy those who oppose Him and His good and gracious will that all be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth.
There was mercy in what God imposed upon Elymas, something for him to hold on to and to perhaps change his evil thinking. Paul told him that he would be blind and unable to see the sun “for a time.” There was still hope for healing and restoration – and hopefully Elymas grasped this clemency of God and opened his heart to what Paul preached and taught the proconsul, so he might also come to faith and be saved. It is the same for people today who oppose the Gospel and are spared – for a time; God is being patient and merciful toward them, not wanting them to perish, but to come to repentance, faith, and acknowledgement of the truth, to humble themselves under His Word. For those who refuse, who grow more cynical and arrogant, and especially for those who grow bolder in their evil attacks upon God’s servants, it is certain that God’s hand will come upon them – with even worse punishment than the blindness that already afflicts them. So take heart if you are among those being pressed upon and opposed for your adherence to God’s Word – God is near to protect and vindicate you. Take heart also if you are among those tempted to oppose the Word of God and His message of grace and mercy, willing even to oppose and do evil to God’s servants – for His hand of judgment and doom is also near, and it is a terrifying thing when the weight of His hand is being felt. Let us all be aware that God is no one to be trifled with!
Prayer For The Day
Dear Lord Jesus, Your good and gracious will for all to come to repentance and faith, to the joy of Your salvation, is preeminent and without any compromise. Help us to rejoice in this reality, and also to have great fear and reverence so that we do nothing to oppose Your ministry of grace. Keep safe Your servants, those who do Your bidding faithfully, and expose and thwart those who hate them because they hate You. Grant repentance to those who are salvageable; neutralize and negate those who cannot be turned, that Your kingdom grow and Your people have joy. Amen.