The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Acts 27:23-24,
"Last night an angel of the God whose I am and whom I serve stood beside me and said, 'Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar; and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you.'"
Chapter 27 of Acts is a nail-biting sailor's story of an Egyptian cargo ship from Alexandria that gets caught in a "Nor'easter" as it sailed from Fair Havens on Crete to a harbor at Phoenix on the west end of Crete. Having to give way to the storm they found themselves blown from Crete for over two weeks and landing on the island Malta halfway across the Mediterranean Sea. Among those on board were Paul, Luke and other companions on the way to Rome under guard, escorted by a centurion, Julius. After "many days" of being driven by the hurricane-force storm and not eating, etc. Paul tells the crew and men on board that an angel of the Lord had visited him the night before and told the encouraging news of verse twenty four.
From what the angel told Paul, we find that the Lord had foreordained that Paul would appear before Caesar in Rome and presumably preach the gospel message to him there. As such the Lord decided to spare the lives of all aboard. Was this storm some kind of supernatural opposition from the devil to keep Paul from reaching Caesar with the gospel? I don't know if the devil has that kind of ability over the weather but I suspect that there was quite a storm within Satan's camp as they saw Paul headed for Rome.
Although Paul had never been to Rome before, we know that the gospel had already reached Rome and that the church had taken root years earlier. Paul's earlier letter to this church is one of the greatest pieces of literature ever written by man (and God) and an inspired writing that has guided the Lord's people for millennia. Now was the appointed time the Lord sent his apostle to the leader of the greatest empire on planet earth.
Clearly portrayed in the book of Acts is the Lord carrying out his agenda with hand selected people accomplishing exactly what he desires. It makes for fascinating reading to watch it unfold!
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know.
"Last night an angel of the God whose I am and whom I serve stood beside me and said, 'Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar; and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you.'"
Chapter 27 of Acts is a nail-biting sailor's story of an Egyptian cargo ship from Alexandria that gets caught in a "Nor'easter" as it sailed from Fair Havens on Crete to a harbor at Phoenix on the west end of Crete. Having to give way to the storm they found themselves blown from Crete for over two weeks and landing on the island Malta halfway across the Mediterranean Sea. Among those on board were Paul, Luke and other companions on the way to Rome under guard, escorted by a centurion, Julius. After "many days" of being driven by the hurricane-force storm and not eating, etc. Paul tells the crew and men on board that an angel of the Lord had visited him the night before and told the encouraging news of verse twenty four.
From what the angel told Paul, we find that the Lord had foreordained that Paul would appear before Caesar in Rome and presumably preach the gospel message to him there. As such the Lord decided to spare the lives of all aboard. Was this storm some kind of supernatural opposition from the devil to keep Paul from reaching Caesar with the gospel? I don't know if the devil has that kind of ability over the weather but I suspect that there was quite a storm within Satan's camp as they saw Paul headed for Rome.
Although Paul had never been to Rome before, we know that the gospel had already reached Rome and that the church had taken root years earlier. Paul's earlier letter to this church is one of the greatest pieces of literature ever written by man (and God) and an inspired writing that has guided the Lord's people for millennia. Now was the appointed time the Lord sent his apostle to the leader of the greatest empire on planet earth.
Clearly portrayed in the book of Acts is the Lord carrying out his agenda with hand selected people accomplishing exactly what he desires. It makes for fascinating reading to watch it unfold!
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know.
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