OVERCOMING THE DARKNESS

Ephesians 6:10-11 – “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.”

Ephesians 6:12 – “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.”

Colossians 2:15 – “Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.”

Acts 13:4 – “So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus.”

Acts 13:5 – “And when they arrived in Salamis, they preached the Word of God in the synagogues of the Jews. They also had John as their assistant.”

Acts 13:6-7 – “Now when they had gone through the island to Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew whose name was Bar-Jesus, who was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man. This man called for Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the Word of God.”

Acts 13:8 – “But Elymas the sorcerer (for so his name is translated) withstood them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith.”

Withstood – oppose, resist, stand in opposition

Elymas is standing against the Gospel, trying to keep Sergius Paulus from being saved.

Acts 13:9-10 – “Then Saul, who is called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him and said, ‘O full of 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 13:11 – “’And now, indeed, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you shall be blind, not seeing the sun for a time.’ And immediately a dark mist fell on him, and he went around seeking someone to lead him by the hand.”

Acts 13:12 – “Then the proconsul believed, when he saw what had been done, being astonished at the teaching of the Lord.”

“Luke brings before his readers a dramatic power encounter, in which the Holy Spirit overthrows the evil one, the apostle confounded the sorcerer, and the Gospel triumphed over the occult.” – John Stott

What do we do when we come face to face with the powers of darkness?

 

1. REMEMBER WHO YOU ARE IN CHRIST

1 John 4:4 – “You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He Who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.”

Romans 8:37 – “Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.”

2 Corinthians 2:14a – “Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ.”

1 Corinthians 15:57 – “But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

 

2. STAND IN YOUR AUTHORITY IN CHRIST

Luke 10:19 – “Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.”

James 4:7 – “Therefore, submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.”

Revelation 12:11 – “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.”

 

3. STAY FOCUSED ON THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST

Acts 13:12 – “Then the proconsul believed, when he saw what had been done, being astonished at the teaching of the Lord.”

Ephesians 6:19 – “And for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the Gospel.”

Romans 1:16 – “For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.”

2 Corinthians 4:3 – “But even if our Gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing.”

2 Corinthians 4:4b – “Whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of Gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.”

1 Corinthians 15:3b – “Christ died for our sins.”

 

Discussion Questions:

1. Have you had a personal encounter with the powers of darkness? How did you respond?

2. How does knowing who we are in Christ help us stand against the enemy?

3. Do you believe the Lord has given you authority over the powers of darkness?

4. Are you employing the authority the Lord has given to you?

5. There are people who are lost in sin and held captive by the enemy all around us. Who are some of those people in your life? Are you interceding for them in Jesus’ Name?