Bible Reading: Genesis 14; Nehemiah 3; Matthew 13; Acts 13
Acts 13:9-10 Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him, 10 And said, O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord?
Paul said this to Elymas the sorcerer who was trying to keep Sergius Palus the deputy of Paphos from believing on Jesus for salvation. Sergius Palus wanted to hear what Paul and Barnabas were preaching, but this sorcerer withstood them, seeking to turn away the deputy from the faith. Acts 13:8b. Paul spoke to this man filled with the Holy Ghost and said that he was full of all subtilty and all mischief. He also called him a child of the devil who was an enemy of all righteousness and was seeking to pervert the right ways of the Lord.
Genesis 3:1 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
Paul said the sorcery this man practiced had made him like his father, the devil. That old serpent is subtil and is at work to turn people away from the faith. How does he work? The Bible tells us that he specifically plants his children in places where they will be useful to him. Jesus told a parable about the enemy sowing tares among the wheat. He gave the interpretation of the parable by saying:
Matthew 13:38 The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one…
Jesus encountered those sow by Satan during his ministry. They were among the religious leaders of his day.
John 8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
They have been around since the very first boy born of man.
1 John 3:12 Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother's righteous.
There are those who have been deceived by Satan and hate God. They do everything they can to hinder the work of God. They are sown by the enemy in specific places. Do not be surprised when you encounter them. However, learn from Paul and do not be afraid of them. Keep on preaching the gospel. The gospel has the power to open blind eyes!
In Christ,
Rody
