Act 13:12 Then the proconsul believed, when he saw what had occurred, for he was astonished at the teaching of the Lord.
Paul and Barnabas had been commissioned by the Holy Spirit to go on missions. At Salamis they preached the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews. In the Island of Paphos they met a Jewish sorcerer and a false prophet named Bar-Jesus. He was with proconsul, a very intelligent man. The proconsul called Barnabas and Paul and sought to hear the word of God but the false prophet withstood him, seeking to turn him away from the truth. Paul who knew the man’s dealings prayed that he be blinded for a season and he was. The miracle moved the proconsul but what drew him the most was the teaching of the word of God.
We ought to value truth of God’s word above miracles in reaching the lost. Jesus addressing the story of the rich man and Lazarus had this to say to the rich man who asked for miracle to convince his brothers not to end up in hades where he was. Jesus responded, “…, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.’ ” (Luk 16:31), why “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” (Heb 4:12).