Acts 13:6-12 And when they had gone through the isle unto Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Barjesus: (7) Which was with the deputy of the country, Sergius Paulus, a prudent man; who called for Barnabas and Saul, and desired to hear the word of God. (8) But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn away the deputy from the faith. (9) 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? (11) And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing the sun for a season. And immediately there fell on him a mist and a darkness; and he went about seeking some to lead him by the hand. (12) Then the deputy, when he saw what was done, believed, being astonished at the doctrine of the Lord.
Why didn't Paul cast any demons out of this guy? He was a "false prophet", a SORCEROR for crying out loud! Yet, he doesn't do any demon-casting. Instead, he (being led by the Spirit) calls the guy a child of the devil and an enemy of righteousness. And then pronounces a temporal curse of blindness upon him, which occurs immediately.
No casting out demons. Didn't even bother to witness to the guy to get him saved after blinding him. Just called him a child of the devil and an enemy of righteousness and a perverter of the ways of the Lord, blinded him by Holy Ghost power, and off he went.
Oh, and the DEPUTY, a ruling government official, was at the center of all this activity. Because of all the hubbub created by the apostolic preaching, a magistrate gets wind of it and wants to inquire of the preachers what they are preaching about. His little Grima Wormtongue companion and advisor gets miraculously cursed, and the deputy is astonished. And becomes a believer.
So now a civil magistrate is a Christian. What do you think? Was there persecution against the Gospel on Paphos? Or do you think the Christian magistrate saw to it that the church was protected and the Gospel was published? At least as long as the now Christian deputy could last?
THAT'S "spiritual warfare". Is that stuff happening now? Are we having that kind of effect on the principalities and powers of our day?
Or are we inviting them to our meetings in Louisiana to sit and smile so we can take our photo with them and say "They're looking our way!" Meanwhile nothing changes?
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