Truth and Error

Paul and Silas had intended to preach God’s Word. The Bible says, “They were forbidden by the Holy Spirit to preach the word in Asia” (Acts 16:6).

Instead, Paul had a vision in which he saw a man from Macedonia standing before him pleading with Paul to “come over to Macedonia and help us” (verse 9). It is important to be open to God’s leading when doing His work.

There might be times our plans and God’s plans don’t match. It is wise, then, to be flexible enough to go in an alternate direction.

The missionary pair instead found themselves in Philippi, and as they were preaching the Word of God, a young woman began following them and calling out loudly, saying, “These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation” (verse 17). What is curious is that although the young woman was possessed by demons, she was absolutely correct in what she was saying.

Satan did not try to hinder their work by telling lies about Paul and Silas. In this case, he tried to hamper their work by telling the truth.

The devil will often tell you the truth. He may even tell you a lot of truth. But what sets Satan apart is that he will also lie to you.

And the best lies are those that are most plausible. The book of Revelation tells us that Satan’s lies are ultimately so effective that he succeeds in deceiving virtually the whole world (Revelation 13:8). The unfortunate young woman was right in what she said, as many of Satan’s agents so often are.

But what we want is the whole of the sanctifying, saving truth, not just a part of it. Search the Bible to make sure that all you believe is in harmony with God’s Word. If something does not line up with Scripture, let it go no matter how precious it seems to you. Allow God’s Holy Spirit to grow your understanding and lead you deeper into God’s will. Before Jesus returns, a lot of mostly right people are going to discover —too late— that they are completely wrong.