Acts 27 tells of the terrible ocean storm that threatened the Apostle Paul and 275 other men for many days and nights while they were aboard a ship bound for Italy.
The account makes clear that Paul, a prisoner of faith being taken to appear before Caesar, had warned the Roman soldiers with him that the ship would face a terrible storm and grave danger if the captain attempted a winter voyage.
Paul was ignored because the captain and the ship’s owner knew a big paycheck was waiting for them when they reached Italy.
The centurion in charge trusted the captain more than the preacher.
Big mistake.
Paul was right, of course.
For days, the ship’s crew and the soldiers and a group of prisoners being taken to Rome feared for their lives.
You can read the account by clicking here.
Not surprisingly, Paul never doubted his survival even when the raging storm blocked the sun and the stars for many days and men all around him were gripped by fear of death.
Listen, Paul was no emotional freak of nature who didn’t “feel” fear. And that’s not why Paul remained calm and clear-headed on the S.S. Chaos.
Instead, Paul’s emotional and spiritual stability was based on a promise given him by God that he WOULD declare the Gospel before Caesar, a divine promise recorded in Acts 23:11.
Just to make sure Paul’s confidence in that promise didn’t waver during the intense storm, God sent another angelic message to Paul that he would preach in Rome (Acts 27:23-24).
This was clearly a messed-up situation that could have been avoided if those in authority had listened to Paul. But they didn’t. And Paul suffered along with everybody else, despite it not being his fault.
That’s the challenge we Christians face at times — suffering because of the decisions of others even though we had clearly warned them that their choice would lead to big problems in a family setting or work setting or church setting.
It’s vital that we reject the temptation after the fact to ridicule and blast those who made the bad decisions we warned them not to make.
Paul didn’t resort to finger-pointing and condemnation and we shouldn’t, either. After all, would such choices have replaced the ship and rounded up all the lost cargo and lost sleep?
Before and after the shipwreck, Paul was gracious, focused on how to serve people and how to share Word of God’s protective grace.
Dear friend, be a person who focuses on restoration when problems occur because people didn’t listen to you. The confimation of your wisdom will boost your influence for God a lot more than will heaping condemnation onto those who messed up.
As always, I love you
Martin
