THE KING’S BUSINESS
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men. Demoniacal possession is a reality. It is witnessed to not only by the Bible, but by careful investigators of the occult, both in ancient and modern times. Demo-- niacal possession beyond a question exists today. Dr. Nevius has written a large and carefully scientific work on the subject (Demon Possession and Allies Themes), in which he demonstrates scientifically its existence in China today in forms similar to that recorded here. In demon posses sion is found the explanation of that of which modern psychologists make so much under the name of Dual Personality. While most of the fortune telling and mediumis- tic pretensions in our own land are pure fraud, there still remains a certain amount of phenomena that are best accounted for by the theory that some mediums are in communication with the world of spirits, not of departed spirits of men and women as they claim, but of demons. Two mediums, one a very prominent medium, have confessed to me with sorrow, and one of them with great horror, that this was the case with them. They came to know, though they had not at first suspected it, that the spirits which had taken possession of them were evil spirits. The evil spirit in this girl was forced to acknowledge that Paul and his companions were “the servants of the Most High God,” just as the demOhs in Jesus’ own day were forced to confess that .He was “the Son of the Most High God” (Mark 5:17, R. V.). But Paul, like his Master, refused to take testimony from such an infernal source and bade the spirit, in the name of Jesus Christ, to come out of the young woman. The power of Jesus’ name triumphed. The poor girl was set free, the spirit bowed to the name of Jesus and came out. What a solemn lesson there is here for professed Christians today who dabble in occultism and seek information and communication with the unseen world, and healing from infernal sources. The world of spirits to which one is thus intro duced is not the world of the holy dead, but the world of demons, who often simu late the appearance of our departed.
and Lydia believed and all her household and all were saved. It is evident Paul in this first discourse had referred to the duty of baptism, that is, to baptism as God’s, appointed mode of confession of sin and of acceptance of Christ, and Lydia at once humbly submitted to baptism. She evi dently carried her household with her in her faith and in her obedience (cf. v. 31, 33; 1 Cor. 1:16). Household baptism seems to have been the order of the day in the apostolic times. The steps in Lydia s con version were very plainly marked and typi cal: (1) She went out to pray (v. 13). (2) She heard the word. (vs. 13; 14; cf. John 5:24). (3) The Lord opened her heart. (4) She gave heed unto the things that were spoken (v. 14, R. V.). (5) She was baptized (v. IS; cf. ch. 2:41; Mark 16:16). Lydia’s heart went out in gratitude toward those whom God had used as instruments in her conversion and she constrained them to come into her house and abide there. Lydia was a business woman and seems to have been somewhat prominent, and also to have had some means. The history of the church shows many instances of women of prominence and culture and wealth who have found in the Lord Jesus the only thing that satisfied their hearts, and who have turned their backs upon the world and all it had to offer to serve Him. Luke, who writes the account of the con version of Lydia, was himself one of the guests invited to her home. Friday, February 9 . , Acts 16 : 16 - 18 . We now meet with a very mysterious but very instructive incident. There was in Philippi a young woman possessed of praeternatural powers of discernment, a fortune teller or medium, who was not altogether a fake. She really did possess more than human powers of discernment; she was indwelt by a person of more than human intelligence. But this spirit that indwelt her was an unholy spirit, possess ing, it is true, powers of intelligence in some directions beyond those possessed by
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