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December 14th

The bible reading today is in Acts 27 and 28.

“And when it was decided that we should sail for Italy, they delivered Paul and some other prisoners to a centurion of the Augustan Cohort named Julius. And embarking in a ship of Adramyttium, which was about to sail to the ports along the coast of Asia, we put to sea, accompanied by Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica.”

‭‭Acts‬ ‭27:1-2‬

We are at the end of the book of Acts...not the end of the acts of the apostles...not the end of the acts of the Holy Spirit...and not the end of the acts of the church on mission with Jesus to the world....just the end of Luke’s record entitled Acts.

Today, Paul was on his way to Rome. God was up to something in the capital of the Empire and Paul was called to join him there.

Paul was escorted by Roman soldiers, on a Roman ship, and was accompanied by friends, Aristarchus, of Thessalonica, and Dr. Luke.

And the voyage began...“Since much time had passed, and the voyage was now dangerous...think about it with me...dangerous voyage...” a tempestuous northeasterly” kind of dangerous.

*Was God’s Spirit still guiding Paul...? Yes!

*Was Paul and his friends in a boat that was headed into a very dangerous storm at sea?... Yes!

*Was God still up to something? Yes!

He was still at work in Paul’s life...there was more Jesus faith and courage to manifest through Paul...the storm was God’s grace gift to him...and by the Spirit, Paul would shine brightly in a dark time...for everyone to see the calm, confident Jesus in him.

Reminds me of a story....you remember it too...a dangerous storm on the sea of Galilee...the fishermen were in the middle of the lake...and some of the disciples were really scared...

Where was God? “In the boat with them”...*resting...calm...secure...they called him Jesus.

Paul knew that Jesus was in the boat with him and his friends! Pretty Awesome!

Continuing in the voyage...Paul advised the Roman tribune, the shipowner, and the captain of the ship, saying, “Sirs, I perceive that the voyage will be with injury and much loss..."

‭‭Acts‬ ‭27:9-10‬

My take? Paul wasn't going on a gut feeling. He knew that God had saved him in Caesarea to get him to Rome. The Holy Spirit within him was guiding him to give that word of faith and knowledge to the captain.

But soon a tempestuous wind called the northeaster, struck down from the land.

Since they had been without food for a long time, Paul stood up among them and said, “Men, you should have listened to me and not have set sail from Crete and incurred this injury and loss.”

‭‭Acts‬ ‭27:14, 21‬

You see...The captain decided that the weather was acceptable for sailing on from Crete. The owner and the Tribune followed the advice of the captain. That made it: Paul 1...Captain, Tribune, Owner 3.

So they set sail and everyone on board experienced a perfect storm. Only by the grace of God did they survive.

And during the storm...Paul stood and addressed all on the ship...“I urge you to take heart, for there will be no loss of life among you, but only of the ship.

For this very night there stood before me an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I worship, and he said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul; you must stand before Caesar. And behold, God has granted you all those who sail with you.’”

‭‭Acts‬ ‭27:22-24‬ ‭

If I had been a sailor on that ship, with just a mustard seed of faith in Paul’s God, hope would have flooded my soul. If I had been the Tribune or the owner or the captain of the ship, no matter how skeptical I was of Paul’s faith, I would have paid more attention to Paul’s messages going forward.

Had I been a sailor on that boat, in that storm, One thing would have been made very sure to me...“the expert's arent always right and the majority are not always right...But Paul’s God was...right! I want to know Him and follow him like Paul.

Have a great day