Introduction

The book of Acts records numerous moments when the proclamation of the Gospel directly confronted spiritual darkness. One of the clearest examples occurs in Acts 13, when Paul and Barnabas were sent out on their first missionary journey and encountered a sorcerer named Bar-Jesus, also known as Elymas. This clash between the power of God and the deception of the enemy provides both a historical account of satanic opposition and a timeless illustration of how false spirituality resists the truth of Christ.

This same resistance is evident today in the New Age movement, which, despite its language of “love and light,” the devil uses to keep people blinded to the truth of the Gospel. That was certainly the case for me until the Lord opened my eyes and saved me while I was reading the Bible in 2017.

The Account in Acts 13

Luke tells us that Paul and Barnabas traveled to Cyprus, where they met a Jewish magician named Bar-Jesus, called Elymas (Acts 13:6–8). Elymas served the Roman proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man who was eager to hear the Word of God.

But Elymas opposed the apostles, “seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith” (Acts 13:8). Filled with the Holy Spirit, Paul rebuked him:

“You son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord?”

Acts 13:10

Immediately, Elymas was struck with temporary blindness. This divine judgment exposed his spiritual blindness and confirmed the truth of the Gospel. As a result, Sergius Paulus believed, “astonished at the teaching of the Lord” (Acts 13:12).

This passage highlights unchanging spiritual realities:

• The Gospel is always opposed by Satan’s counterfeits.
• Satan uses spiritually blind false teachers to distort God’s truth.
• The power of God triumphs over every counterfeit.

Elymas as a False Prophet

Elymas was both a magician and a false prophet. His name “Bar-Jesus” means “son of Jesus,” but Paul exposed him as a true “son of the devil.” Magicians in the ancient world practiced astrology, sorcery, and spirit invocation. Archaeological discoveries from the Greco-Roman era show how widespread magical papyri, spells, and incantations were.

Elymas embodied this syncretistic mixture of occultism and deception. In opposing Paul and Barnabas, he illustrated the truth of 2 Corinthians 4:4, “the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers.” His physical blindness symbolized the deeper blindness produced by Satan.

New Age Resistance to the Gospel

The New Age movement shares disturbing parallels with the deception seen in Elymas. While packaged as enlightenment, healing, and personal transformation, the New Age ultimately promotes a spirituality that opposes Christ.

Like Elymas, today’s New Age teachers promise wisdom, power, and healing apart from God. The similarities are striking:

Astrology and Cosmic Guidance

Ancient magicians sought knowledge through the stars. The New Age likewise claims that zodiac signs or planetary movements can shape our destiny.

Channeling and False Prophecy

Elymas claimed prophetic insight while spreading deception. Today’s psychics, mediums, and “intuitives” promise spiritual revelation but lead people away from Christ.

Energy Healing and Sorcery

Magical charms once promised control over unseen forces. Modern New Age practices such as Reiki, crystal grids, and “energy work” attempt to manipulate spiritual realities outside of God’s authority.

Both Elymas and modern New Age practitioners claim to offer light, but Scripture warns that Satan “disguises himself as an angel of light” (2 Corinthians 11:14). The New Age is not harmless spirituality. It is a counterfeit light that resists the truth of Christ.

Just as Elymas tried to turn Sergius Paulus away from the truth, New Age teachers often push back against biblical Christianity because it exposes the emptiness of false spirituality. Before Christ saved me, I saw this resistance firsthand.

The Power of the Holy Spirit

Paul’s rebuke came through the power of the Holy Spirit (Acts 13:9). The Spirit enabled him to discern Elymas’ deception and pronounce judgment. The temporary blindness served as both a warning and a demonstration that God will not be mocked.

This reminds us that spiritual deception, and the fight against it, is not merely intellectual. We wrestle “not against flesh and blood” but against demonic forces. The Gospel is “the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16).

Satan blinds minds (2 Corinthians 4:4), but when someone turns to the Lord, “the veil is taken away” (2 Corinthians 3:16). Salvation is entirely by grace: “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” (Ephesians 2:8–9).

The conversion of Sergius Paulus shows that the Gospel cuts through even the deepest spiritual confusion. No one is beyond the reach of God’s saving grace.

Encouragement for Evangelism

This passage gives believers great encouragement as we share the Gospel with those trapped in spiritual deception. Many immersed in the New Age seem unreachable. Yet countless testimonies, including my own, show that God can and does open blind eyes.

What Elymas sought to prevent, God accomplished. The Gospel prevailed. Sergius Paulus believed.

This same conflict continues today. New Age spirituality resists Christ, but God continues to save. The Gospel will triumph, for Jesus promised:

“I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”

Matthew 16:18

Praise God that He still opens blind eyes and brings people out of darkness into the marvelous light of Christ.

For more from Doreen please visit her page here at Servants of Grace or at our YouTube.