Power is often defined as “the ability to do or act: the capability of accomplishing something.” In practice, that ability rests on the recognition and authority a person holds. For instance, when political leaders are elected to office, they are granted certain powers to make decisions on behalf of the people.

While wealth may be the most sought-after commodity today, power is what many ultimately chase for the benefits it brings. There are doors money cannot open that power can.
In Acts 13, Paul and Barnabas embark on a missionary journey to Cyprus. Arriving at Salamis, they preach in the Jewish synagogues. As they travel across the island, they encounter a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Elymas (also called Bar-Jesus). He is influential, an attendant to Sergius Paulus, the proconsul of a settled province.

The proconsul had invited Paul and Barnabas because he wanted to hear the word of God. As the apostles preached, Elymas opposed them, trying to prevent the governor from embracing the faith. His motive was selfish and desperate. He knew that if Sergius believed their message, his own influence and power would slip away.

Elymas was exercising the power of influence over the governor. What he did not realise was that there is a greater power; one that does not rely on position, manipulation, or human favour. What happened next shocked everyone present: “Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, ‘You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord? Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind, and for a time you will be unable to see the light of the sun.’ Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand.” (Acts 13:9–11)

Imagine witnessing that moment. The man who wielded influence suddenly unable to see, reaching out for help. His connections could not save him and his power could not preserve him. There is a detail that is easy to miss: “Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand.” Until that instant, Elymas had people to command and direct. Yet when true power confronted him, he was left exposed, isolated, needing guidance, with no one willing to stand beside him.

The power Elymas wielded was counterfeit, rooted in sorcery, craftiness, and manipulation. Confronted by the power of the Holy Spirit, he was disarmed and rendered temporarily blind. And the very outcome he tried to prevent came to pass: “When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, for he was amazed at the teaching about the Lord.” (Acts 13:12)

The same Holy Spirit who empowered Paul and Barnabas then is the One who empowers believers in Christ today. In Acts 1:8, Jesus promised this power to all who believe: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Unlike worldly power, often used to control, manipulate, and elevate self, this power equips believers to serve, to witness and to embody the truth of the gospel.

True power is not found in titles, wealth, or influence. It is found in the presence of the Holy Spirit, who transforms hearts, exposes deception and advances the gospel beyond human resistance. Elymas’s fall and Sergius Paulus’s faith remind us that the Spirit’s power is both corrective and compelling: it humbles the proud and draws the seeking to the truth.

If we desire power that endures, we must pursue the One who gives it, not for control, but for service; not to build our own kingdoms, but to bear witness to Christ. 

May we be people who rely on the Spirit’s power daily, speak truth with courage and trust that God’s authority will open doors no earthly influence can. And when opposition arises, may our confidence rest not in our position, but in the One who empowers us to be faithful witnesses to the ends of the earth.