In Acts 13, Saul, re-named Paul, is deputized by the leaders of the church in Antioch to begin his formal ministry. In company with Barnabas and John Mark, Paul begins the first of his four missionary journeys, traveling first to the island of Cyprus where they encounter the “proconsul, Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man…who sought to hear the word of God (Acts 13:7 NKJV). As a Jewish sorcerer tries to keep Sergius Paulus from listening to the gospel, “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 13:9-10 NKJV). The sorcerer is blinded, and “the proconsul believed, when he saw what had been done, being astonished at the teaching of the Lord” (Acts 13:12 NKJV).
Paul and his companions then sail to modern day Turkey. In Antioch in Pisidia, Paul preaches first to the Jews, showing from their Scriptures (our Old Testament) how Jesus fulfilled all the prophecies related to the First Coming of the promised Messiah, including His resurrection.
Pastor Kevin explains how this account also gives us important insights about the role of fasting and prayer in the life of the Christian; the historical accuracy of Luke’s account in Acts; how the Cypriot sorcerer is a type of all who oppose the gospel; and why the time markers in Scripture preclude anyone but Jesus from fulfilling messianic prophecies. However, Jesus did fulfill all prophecies related to his First Coming, and Pastor Kevin exhorts us to cling with certain hope to remaining prophecies of the Rapture and Jesus’ Second Coming as we watch current events accelerate towards the Last Days’ fulfillment.
Maranatha!
Associated notes, links, and the uncensored audio file are at calvarypo.org under Sermon Archives, Acts, https://calvarypo.org/sermons/full-of-deceit-and-fraud-you-son-of-the-devil-acts-131-41/
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