In our study of Acts chapter twenty eight, we witness the faithfulness of God in delivering His servant through struggles. We will see the purpose for it and apply the promise of it to our lives.
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After our escape, we learned that the island was called Malta.
The island was called Myletus or Melita at the time but it is what is known as Malta today. Today, most of the population of Malta are Christians but, at the time that Paul landed here, it was pagan natives. We see the faithfulness of God as He has delivered Paul and the crew out of the waters and to the shores of this island just as was promised. That same promise is for us as God's children on a mission in this world today.
Its people showed extraordinary kindness - it was cold and it had started to rain, so they lit a bonfire and welcomed us all.
We all have pictured pagan natives as being blood-thirsty but, here, we see the favor of God at work once again. The natives welcomed Paul and his companions and made a fire for them. These natives (who had never even heard of Jesus Christ) welcomed 276 people to their home.
Sha'ul had gathered a bundle of sticks and was adding them to the fire, when a poisonous snake, driven out by the heat, fastened itself to his hand.
This one little verse tells us so much about the heart of the apostle Paul. This great apostle was humble enough to get his hands dirty by picking up firewood. There was more than enough people to pick up the wood but Paul did not kick back like a big shot. Instead, he took on the role of the servant just as Jesus had done. There are many people today that are using titles (even the title of apostle) as an excuse for them kicking back and being served by those under them but that is not the pattern that we saw demonstrated in Jesus or, here, in Paul. This verse has also been wrongly used by many to promote the religious practice of snake handling but that is not what happened here. Many, today, want to knowingly pick up a serpent as a demonstration of their faith and use this verse to say that Paul was doing the same. These people are yielding to the temptation of pride. This is the same sort of temptation that Satan used against Jesus as he tried to get Him to throw Himself from the highest point of the temple (see Luke 4:9). Jesus' answer was that we are not to put God to the test. In the same way, we see that Paul did not intentionally pick up the snake as it was hidden in the pile of sticks and only came out when it was close to the fire. The simple fact of the matter is that Jesus told the eleven apostles that were left after his resurrection that this was going to happen (see Mark 16:18). He did this to reassure them that, no matter what, He was in control and they did not need to fear death and the things of this world.
The islanders saw the creature hanging from Sha'ul's hand and said to one another, "This man must be a murderer. Even though he escaped the sea, justice has not allowed him to live."
When the native people saw Paul get bit by this poisonous snake, they immediately thought that it was a god at work bringing justice to him for wrongdoing. That is what happens even today as many people (even Christians) seem to think that God is just waiting to send punishment on the people every time they do something wrong. That is not the case for Christians as God does not condemn His children. Once we are saved by the grace of God, it brings freedom. This freedom also allows us to make mistakes without the fear that God is waiting to send a plague upon us.
But he shook the snake off into the fire and suffered no harm. They waited, expecting him to swell up or suddenly fall down dead; but after waiting a long time and seeing that nothing amiss was happening to him, they reversed their opinion and said he was a god.
When Paul was not killed, they changed their minds and tried to say he was a god. We see how quickly people change their opinions and how, if we chase after their approval, we will always be disappointed. What we actually see in this passage is the fact that God's people are not subject to death until He is finished with them here on the earth. Another example of this is found in the two witnesses described in Revelation 11. Paul was on a mission from God and no snake had the power to interfere with God's plan for him.
Nearby were lands belonging to the governor of the island, whose name was Publius. He received us in a friendly manner and put us up for three days.
It would not have been normal for any official of the Roman Empire to entertain a prisoner but Publius must have heard about Paul and the snake. The number three is associated with the earthly expression of God's will and we see, here, that God's will was for Paul to visit with this official and be a witness to him.
Now it so happened that Publius' father was lying in bed, sick with fever attacks and dysentery. Sha'ul went in to him, prayed, placed his hands on him and healed him.
The man's father was sick and we see that God had sent Paul to heal him. It is interesting to note that before healing the man Paul prayed to God for guidance. This healing was important in showing Publius (a pagan) the power of the living God and so Paul looked for guidance from God. Today, it seems that it is a popular thing among "churches" to hold healing services and the like. Many times the people are lined up and herded through like cattle and often the man performing the healing is glorified instead of God. We can take a lesson from Paul as the people were lifting him up as a god (in verse 6) but he made sure that it was obvious that it was a work of the one true God and not of man.
After this happened, the rest of those on the island who had ailments came and were healed.
The rest of the island heard about the healing and brought their sick to be healed. It is obvious that Paul let them know that the healing was from God and not of himself. The result is that, even today, the island of Malta is a "Christian nation".
They heaped honors on us; and when the time came for us to sail, they provided the supplies we needed.
Once again, we see the favor of God at work with Paul and his companions. This verse reminds us that God's provision may be in unexpected ways through people that we would not normally expect to help.
After three months, we sailed away on a ship from Alexandria called "Twin Gods," which had passed the winter at the island.
In Greek and Roman mythology, Castor and Pollux were twin brothers who were said to watch over sailors on the seas. In Latin, they were known as the Gemini twins and that is where we get the name for the Gemini constellation in the sky. The people with Paul must have known how ridiculous the idea of some false gods watching over the sailors was as they had experienced the protection of the real God.
We landed at Syracuse and stayed three days. From there, we arrived at Rhegium by tacking; but after one day, a south wind sprang up; so we made it to Puteoli the second day. There we found brothers who invited us to spend a week with them.
Syracuse was the capitol of the island of Sicily which is located just to the south of Italy. The next stop was Rhegium which was located on the tip of Italy and the twin gods were worshiped there. The final stop was at Puteoli which is today named Pozzuoli and is located about five miles to the west of Naples. This was the main port for grain ships at this time and so Paul's travel by sea comes to a close. Paul and his friends were taken in and spent a week with fellow Christians there.
And so we went on toward Rome. The brothers there had heard about us and came as far as Appian Market and Three Inns to meet us. When Sha'ul saw them, he thanked God and took courage.
As Paul went on to Rome, he was met by his fellow Christians and this comforted him and he praised God for them. The same thing can happen to us as we walk in the purpose and plan that God has for our lives. Many times, it will seem that we are alone and headed for the unknown but we find that God has already prepared His workers to meet us and give us comfort.
And when we arrived at Rome, the officer allowed Sha'ul to stay by himself, though guarded by a soldier.
Once again, we see the favor of God at work in the life of Paul. He is allowed freedom even though he is still a prisoner and so he is able to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ and to strengthen the believers around him. We, too, shall see this favor when we are listening to the Spirit and following God's plan for our lives.
After three days Sha'ul called a meeting of the local Jewish leaders. When they had gathered, he said to them: "Brothers, although I have done nothing against either our people or the traditions of our fathers, I was made a prisoner in Yerushalayim and handed over to the Romans.
It was the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem that had caused Paul to be arrested and so he calls the Jewish leaders of Rome together to work out their differences. This is the biblical pattern for settling disputes among men. It is the same for us today in that, if we have a disagreement with someone, we are to go to them and discuss it with them. Many times, this does not happen and instead gossip and rumors are started.
They examined me and were ready to release me, because I had done nothing to justify a death sentence. But when the Judeans objected, I was forced to appeal to the Emperor - not that I had any charge to make against my own people. This is why I have asked to see you and speak with you, for it is because of the hope of Isra'el that I have this chain around me."
Paul explains to the local Jews how he came to be in chains in their city. We notice that, in this attempt to settle the differences, he did not point his finger at the Jews in Jerusalem and blame them. Instead, he sees and explains that the reason he is being held is to further the gospel of Jesus Christ which is the hope of all men. We, too, should remain focused on our goal of sharing the gospel instead of whining about our circumstances and blaming others for them.
They said to him, "We have not received any letters about you from Y'hudah, and none of the brothers who have come from there has reported or said anything bad about you. But we do think it would be appropriate to hear your views from you, yourself; for all we know about this sect is that people everywhere speak against it."
We see that this direct way of settling differences is effective as Paul was asked to share his faith with the Jews of Rome. The Jews were used to lively discussions of the scriptures and so invited Paul to share his point of view. There is something that has been lost among Christians today and that is the ability to have this type of discussion without judging the salvation of the people involved and condemning them.
So they arranged a day with him and came to his quarters in large numbers.
Because of Paul's open honesty, people were willing to listen to him and so they came in large numbers to hear what he had to say. He knew that it was the Word of God that drew people to hear and not anything about himself. Today, there is a tendency for pastors/evangelists to get a "rock star" mentality. They get carried away with themselves and forget that their whole purpose is proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ.
From morning until evening he explained the matter to them, giving a thorough witness about the Kingdom of God and making use of both the Torah of Moshe and the Prophets to persuade them about Yeshua.
Paul met the Jews where they were in terms of their understanding. They knew of the Law of Moses and the words of the prophets and so he tried to show them that the promise of Jesus was contained in them. This is the same thing that Jesus did with the two disciples on the Road to Emmaus after His resurrection (see Luke 24:27). The same principle applies to us in our efforts to tell people about Jesus (we must meet them where they are in their understanding).
Some were convinced by what he said,
Paul shared the Good News and some accepted it but others did not. It is the same today but, like Paul, we are called to share the Word and trust God to open the hears of those He has chosen.
while others refused to believe. So they left, disagreeing among themselves, after Sha'ul had made one final statement: "The Ruach HaKodesh spoke well in saying to your fathers through Yesha'yahu the prophet, 'Go to this people and say, "You will keep on hearing but never understand, and you will keep on seeing but never perceive, because the heart of this people has grown thick with their ears they barely hear, and their eyes they have closed, for fear that they should see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their heart, and do t'shuvah, so that I could heal them."'
Here, we see that it is possible to reach a point where you are no longer open to the work of the Holy Spirit. Paul uses this quote from Isaiah 6 and we see that the people had closed their own eyes so that they could not see the plan of God. The people could just not accept the fact that they could not work for their salvation but merely had to accept it as a gift. The same type of struggle followed Paul everywhere that he shared the good news and the same thing is happening today. This is also the same struggle that will continue even to the end of the great tribulation described in Revelation.
Therefore, let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Goyim, and they will listen!" After he had said this, the Jews left, arguing vehemently among themselves.
Why was salvation sent to Gentiles (those that were not God's people)? The simple answer is to shame Israel by letting them see that the gift they had rejected (Jesus) would be gladly accepted by others. This fact brought controversy to the Jews as they could not see the that it was God's plan all along.
Sha'ul remained two whole years in a place he rented for himself; and he continued receiving all who came to see him, openly and without hindrance proclaiming the Kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Yeshua the Messiah.
In this final passage of the book of Acts, we see that God is faithful and will deliver His people for His purpose. We might ask why God allowed Paul to go through all that he did and we see the reason contained in this passage. He was able to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ in the heart of the Roman Empire "without hindrance".
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