This girl followed Paul and us, and cried out, saying,
“These men are the servants of the Most High God,
who proclaim to us the way of salvation.”
Acts 16:17
The Apostle Paul and his evangelistic team were led by the Holy Spirit to take their message to Europe, so they began preaching in Philippi, one of the chief cities in Greece. This was a whole new territory, and the satanic opposition was evident. Almost from the very beginning of their time there, a demon-possessed girl followed them and became very distracting. In her spirit-affected voice, she announced the missionaries to be “Servants of the Most High God.” Paul cast the demon out, but the opposition just intensified.
It is a very curious thing to note that this title of Christ actually came through demonic channeling. Demons are nothing more than the fallen angels who were cast out of heaven by the LORD of Glory, so they know who He is. When Jesus approached the demoniac in the county of the Gadarenes, the man fell down before the Lord and the voices inside him also recognized Christ as “Jesus, Son of the Most High God” (Luke 8:28). This was no profession of faith on the part of the evil spirits, but an acknowledgment that He was their God and would one day condemn them to go into the abyss.
The Apostle James makes this point when he wrote: “You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe — and tremble!” (James 2:19). Actually, the dark host has a better response to the Savior than the stiff-necked human race does. Demons acknowledge Christ’s deity, bow down before Him, and believe that their punishment is sure. They, however, rebelled willfully against their Creator, so the grace of God was never extended to them, and their doom is a sure thing.
People, on the other hand, were deceived into sinning, so God provided a way to escape through the blood of the Crucified One. Salvation is extended to those who approach Christ in faith, confessing their sin, and acknowledging Him as the Most High God.
August 6
