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Paul confronts a fortune teller

A fortune teller is delivered from evil powers.
Story also available on our translated websites: Spanish, Portuguese, Polish, German, Hindi
1
After Paul had a vision of a man from Macedonia pleading for him to visit Macedonia, Paul, Silas, Timothy (and possibly Luke) had travelled to Philippi, a Roman colony in Macedonia. – Slide 1
2
Philippi was a thriving Roman colony with a busy market and amphitheatre. Just outside the city was a river where believers in God met to pray. Paul taught the women meeting there about the Lord Jesus Christ. One of them, Lydia, had become a Christian and been baptised. – Slide 2
3
A group of Christians in Philippi began meeting in Lydia’s house as well as on the river bank. – Slide 3
4
Paul, Silas and Timothy often walked down the main street of Philippi, the Via Maris, on their way out of the city to join those praying by the river. – Slide 4
5
Now in the city was a slave girl who was possessed by an evil spirit that gave her powers to see into the future. – Slide 5
6
Her masters would charge people to tell their fortunes and they were making a lot of money from her evil powers. – Slide 6
7
Now as Paul and Silas walked down the road out of the city to go to the place of prayer by the river, this slave girl followed them. – Slide 7
8
She shouted after them, ‘These men are servants of God, and they have come to tell you how to have your sins forgiven.’ – Slide 8
9
Now this went on day after day. – Slide 9
10
She would shout loudly, ‘These men are servants of God … – Slide 10
11
‘ … and they have come to tell you how to have your sins forgiven.’ – Slide 11
12
One day Paul became distressed as the slave girl shouted at him. He turned around and addressed the evil spirit controlling her. – Slide 12
13
‘I command you in the name of Jesus Christ, come out of her!’ – Slide 13
14
Immediately the evil spirit left the slave girl. – Slide 14
15
She was now free from the control of the evil spirit. – Slide 15
16
But no longer had the power to tell people’s fortunes. – Slide 16
17
The masters who owned the slave girl were furious that the girl could no longer earn them large amounts of money by telling fortunes. – Slide 17
18
‘These Jews are corrupting our city,’ they shouted. ‘They are teaching the people to do things that are against the Roman laws.’ – Slide 18
19
Paul and Silas found themselves surrounded by an angry mob. – Slide 19
20
They were grabbed and dragged to the market place to face the local judges. – Slide 20
21
The judges ordered that Paul and Silas be beaten with wooden whips. Again and again the rods slashed down across their bared backs. Then they were thrown into prison. – Slide 21
22
Slide 22