“And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain girl possessed with a spirit of divination met us which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying. The same following Paul and I saying these men are the servants of the Most High God, which show us the way of salvation. And this she did many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out of her that very hour. And when her masters saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they caught Paul and Silas and drew them into the market place unto the rulers, and brought them to the magistrates, saying these men being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city, and teach customs, which are not lawful for us to receive, neither to observe, being Romans”. – Acts 16:16 – 21
In the above account, I am particularly touched by the state of this girl. She was possessed with a spirit of divination and she brought her masters much gain by soothsaying. It is interesting that we are living in a time and age that people have itchy ears. People want to know where your problem is coming from- whether it is your mother-in-law or your step mother or somebody somewhere.
Friends, you have to be careful because the devil has released familiar spirits in is world and people are having different kinds of dreams, experience and supernatural things. But, the truth is: Any supernatural experience you are going through without Jesus as your foundation is faulty; it cannot be trusted. When you know Jesus, He will tell you about yourself. You do not need anybody to tell you something that will happen. When you invite Jesus into your life and you have the Holy Spirit, the spirit will teach you all things and He will bear witness with your spirit. When devil is planning some things you will know by revelation.
The Bible tells us that this girl made money for her masters through soothsaying. There are so many soothsayers. (Even in the Body of Christ as pastors). Without Jesus you cannot know who is real and who is fake. Jesus is like the mercury light used in banks and other places where if you want to know whether money is counterfeit or real, you pass the currency through it. If Jesus is in you, all you have to do is pass the spirit or the person through Christ in you. Through Christ you will know whether he is fake or real.
People are deceived because they do not have the discerning spirit, the spirit of discernment to know that something is not of God. Because somebody told you your name or he told you what you did yesterday does not make the person a man or woman of God; it does not mean that it was God that spoke through that person. Satan knows what you did yesterday. He knows your name and where you live (He has agents that monitor you). So do not deceived by such divinations and soothsaying.
For some people, a little revelation about their past from who they do not know would deceive them and get them carried away. People are taken that way because they lack discernment. They do not have the foundation in Jesus. When you are in Jesus He stabilizes you. Without Jesus you are tossed to and fro by any kind of wind. If you are not firmly anchored in Christ you will be carried away. It is like when you berth a ship at the harbor. If it is not firmly anchored or tied to something strong, the waves would carry it away and toss it up and down.
God wants you to anchor your faith on His Son, Jesus. Tie your faith to Him and hold on to God and say: Lord, I am holding on to Jesus, come rain or shine.
But you cannot do that unless you first of all humble yourself and acknowledge that you are a sinner; and then ask Jesus to come and help you to live a victorious life on this earth. Without Christ you cannot win. Without Christ diviners will mess you up. Without Christ native doctors and fake prophets will make a mince meat out of you – they would take you to bar-beach and all kinds of places and give you stuffs to eat and perfumes to spray and things to rub and sprinkle and drink. It is all about deception.
In the scripture we read, this girl was making her masters much gain. How did we know they are not from God? The Bible says they followed Paul for three days and Paul knows that was not the spirit of God. And Paul rebuked that spirit. Paul did not rebuke the girl; he rebuked the spirit that had possessed her. He said, ‘I command you in the name of Jesus to come out of her.’ And that same hour, the spirit left her. And when the owners of the girl saw that the spirit had left her, they became angry. They provoked trouble and beat up Paul and Silas and threw them in prison because they had spoilt their business.
Friends, you need Jesus Christ for stability; you need him for spiritual strength. You do not need any diviner. God is able to show you things yourself. I am not against true visions. I believe in visions. But God does not speak all the time we want to hear Him. Some people, once they close their eyes and shake their heads vigorously, they hear God and see ‘evil’ that is coming. I am weary of such people.
When you have God you do not need all that. You just know that the word of God has promised you some things. That is all that is important. If there is anything else God wants you to know, He will let you know it. Without God, without Jesus, you cannot have this kind of strength.
Do not be a victim. Do not let anybody mess your destiny up. It is time to return to God. Give your life to Christ and destroy all those things they have given to you, and know that Jesus Christ is the way.
If you have made up your mind to follow Jesus, then pray this simple prayer:
Lord Jesus, forgive me. Come into my life; be my Lord. I believe You died for me. I confess You rose from the dead for me and I believe You are coming back for me. I thank You that I am born again. From now on, old things have passed away and all things have become new. Thank You, my Jesus. Amen.
Father, I pray for everybody that prayed this prayer. Let their sins be forgiven. Let the power of the Holy Spirit be released into their lives right now. Let every yoke be broken. Let the spirit of divination around them be destroyed today in Jesus’ name. I release them to serve God in spirit and in truth, Amen.
NB: First published March 2014