Paul and Silas were devotedly following the leading of the Spirit. They were seeing hearts opening to the good news about God and enjoying hospitality. Satan threw a curve ball that took them many days to figure out. He had a person who was clearly identified as under his possession praise them and speak only the truth about them giving them no good excuse to confront her.
But just like Jesus sending the demons out of the 2 men in Gadara, who then entered everyone in the region to stir them up with violent hatred, when the demon was ordered out of this girl, apparently unprovoked, the demons stirred up the whole city with mob violence.
This girl seemed to be doing no harm to anyone. She was not selling her body in prostitution. She was not foaming and wild-eyed and naked, she was highly respected and valued by the city and was helpful for “telling the future”. She was apparently a great asset to the community. She was not attacking or denigrating Paul and Silas or even disagreeing with them. She appeared to be supporting them fully and she was complimenting them. She seemed to be obviously an asset the their ministry and was supposedly adding to their success.
So why was Paul “greatly annoyed”? People were confused about the difference between Paul's source and the girl's source. They were basically saying the same. Paul was preaching freedom in Christ – she was affirming salvation while herself living in slavery not only to Satan but producing monetary increase for her masters. She was speaking the truth but she was not experiencing the freedom she talked about. She knew how to do and say the right things but her heart was locked up.
When Jesus set her free at Paul's word, the light exposed the true motives that had been behind the scenes – greed and influence. How many religious leaders today are operating in the same condition – loudly speaking the “truth” to keep the donations flowing to them. And when they are exposed the true messengers of grace will be attacked with unbridled ferocity and vicious malice. Then they must cling to God tenaciously in prayer and praise and singing just as Paul and Silas did.
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