The Symptoms in Your Life of a Python Influence and Bondage:
Act 16:18 – And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour.
In our society and in individual’s lives we often see a great tolerance for the intolerable. We stay in untenable situations and relationships that grieve and even torment us. We stay long after any opportunity for improvement is possible or likely and we refuse to take a stand. This refusal to deal with contaminating influences in your life emboldens the enemy and causes the people involved to become deeply entrenched in the bad behavior and predatory habits that hold you in bondage and frustration.
Ecc. 11: 11 Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.
When a person is putting pressure on you or is prosecuting a vision for your life contrary to what God says about you – it is time to act. The longer you wait the worse the outcome will be. Paul waited and waited and as a result when he did deal with this woman the result was catastrophic for him personally because the battle lines were drawn and the enemy emboldened.
Follow the Money – the Spirit of Python is Very Protective of Her Nest Eggs:
Act 16:19 – And when her masters saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they caught Paul and Silas, and drew [them] into the marketplace unto the rulers,
The woman with the spirit of python was very successful and brought her employers and masters much gain. Pythons as a species are very territorial and will protect their eggs to the death. Paul spoke deliverance to this woman and the spirit of python which was also in her masters rose up to defend her nest eggs.
Fellow ministers and Christians will tolerate you and love you when you are unknown and unthreatening to their agendas. When you begin to be successful and particularly begin to see financial favor in your life and ministry the spirit of python will enter them and launch all manner of attacks against you all in the name of God.
Father’s Heart Ministry is a non-traditional work that has touched the heart of many around the world. We’ve lost a lot of friends along the way who stood with us when we were broke, homeless and persecuted on every hand. They were willing to stand by us in our faltering but rejected us completely when God began blessing and opening doors for us.
Make no mistake the spirit of python will come at you with the lowest blow possible. He will not play by Marquess of Queensbury rules. The spirit of python will come at you in an all out brawl and you will be in for a street fight in the spirit of epic proportions. If you are thin skinned or easily discouraged your ministry will be destroyed before you are out the gate.
The Python Spirit will Use Legitimate Authority to Assault You:
Act 16:20 – And brought them to the magistrates, saying, These men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city, 22 – And the multitude rose up together against them: and the magistrates rent off their clothes, and commanded to beat [them]. 23 – And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast [them] into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely:
Those in your life under the python spirit will not be satisfied with simply disparaging you because you threaten their power or influence. They will use the legal system and other legitimate authorities to come against you. As a pastor or administrator of a ministry you have to use discernment when approached by a whistle-blower. They will identify someone in your sphere of responsibility as a trouble maker but they may in fact be the trouble maker themselves. Don’t allow yourself to fall into the trap of setting yourself against the hand of God in someone’s life just because an underling or supporter has sounded an alarm.
More broadly the cause of Christ is constantly assaulted through the courts by the Atheist lobby and the LGBT interests and other groups who want to keep prayer and God out of our schools and the public square.
What do you do when this type of assault comes? In Paul’s situation there wasn’t much he could do at this point but take the abuse. Perhaps had Paul acted more promptly in dealing with the spirit of python it wouldn’t have come to this. There were other strategies available to him. What if he had went first to the masters of the woman with the spirit of divination and brought them the gospel. It was not out of the realm of possibility they would have repented and Paul wouldn’t have wound up beaten and jailed at their demand. This isn’t intended to second guess Paul but to get you to look AHEAD OF TIME at alternative ways to work around and through problems before they happen
