Weathering the Storm to Share Christ with Others

Acts 27

English Standard Version (ESV)

27 And when it was decided ^(A)that ^(B)we should sail for Italy, they delivered Paul and some other prisoners to a centurion of the Augustan ^(C)Cohort named Julius. ² 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 ^(D)Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica.³ The next day we put in at Sidon. And ^(E)Julius ^(F)treated Paul kindly and ^(G)gave him leave to go to his friends and be cared for. ⁴ And putting out to sea from there we sailed under the lee of Cyprus, because the winds were against us.⁵ And when we had sailed across the open sea along the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia, we came to Myra in Lycia.⁶ There the centurion found ^(H)a ship of Alexandria sailing for Italy and put us on board. ⁷ We sailed slowly for a number of days and arrived with difficulty off Cnidus, and as the wind did not allow us to go farther, we sailed under the lee of Crete off Salmone. ⁸ Coasting along it with difficulty, we came to a place called Fair Havens, near which was the city of Lasea.

⁹ Since much time had passed, and the voyage was now dangerous because even ^(I)the Fast^[a] was already over, Paul advised them, ¹⁰ saying, “Sirs, I perceive that the voyage will be with ^(J)injury and much loss, not only of the cargo and the ship, but also of our lives.” ¹¹ But the centurion paid more attention to ^(K)the pilot and to the owner of the ship than to what Paul said. ¹² And because the harbor was not suitable to spend the winter in, the majority decided to put out to sea from there, on the chance that somehow they could reach Phoenix, a harbor of Crete, facing both southwest and northwest, and spend the winter there.

¹³ Now when the south wind blew gently, supposing that they had obtained their purpose, they weighed anchor and sailed along Crete, close to the shore. ¹⁴ But soon a tempestuous wind, called the northeaster, ^(L)struck down from the land. ¹⁵ And when the ship was caught and could not face the wind, we gave way to it and were driven along.¹⁶ Running under the lee of a small island called Cauda,^[b] we managed with difficulty to secure the ship's boat.¹⁷ After hoisting it up, they used supports to undergird the ship. Then, fearing that they would ^(M)run aground on the Syrtis, they lowered the gear,^[c] and thus they were driven along. ¹⁸ Since we were violently storm-tossed, they began the next day ^(N)to jettison the cargo. ¹⁹ And on the third day they threw the ship's tackle overboard with their own hands. ²⁰ When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days, and no small tempest lay on us, all hope of our being saved was at last abandoned.

²¹ Since they had been without food for a long time, Paul stood up among them and said, “Men, ^(O)you should have listened to me and not have set sail from Crete and incurred this ^(P)injury and loss. ²² Yet now I urge you to ^(Q)take heart, for there will be no loss of life among you, but only of the ship. ²³ For this very night ^(R)there ^(S)stood before me^(T)an angel of the God ^(U)to whom I belong and ^(V)whom I worship, ²⁴ and he said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul; ^(W)you must stand before Caesar. And behold, ^(X)God has granted you all those who sail with you.’ ²⁵ So take heart, men, for I have faith in God that it will be exactly as I have been told. ²⁶ But ^(Y)we must ^(Z)run aground on some island.”

²⁷ When the fourteenth night had come, as we were being driven across the Adriatic Sea, about midnight the sailors suspected that they were nearing land. ²⁸ So they took a sounding and found twenty fathoms.^[d] A little farther on they took a sounding again and found fifteen fathoms.^[e] 29 And fearing that we might ^(AA)run on the rocks, they let down four anchors from the stern and prayed for day to come. ³⁰ And as the sailors were seeking to escape from the ship, and had lowered ^(AB)the ship's boat into the sea under pretense of laying out anchors from the bow, ³¹ Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, “Unless these men stay in the ship, you cannot be saved.” ³² Then the soldiers cut away the ropes of the ship's boat and let it go.

³³ As day was about to dawn, Paul urged them all to take some food, saying, “Today is the fourteenth day that you have continued in suspense and without food, having taken nothing. ³⁴ Therefore I urge you to take some food. For it will give you strength,^[f] for ^(AC)not a hair is to perish from the head of any of you.” ³⁵ And when he had said these things, he took bread, and ^(AD)giving thanks to God in the presence of all he broke it and began to eat. ³⁶ Then they all ^(AE)were encouraged and ate some food themselves. ³⁷ (We were in all 276^[g] (AF)persons in the ship.) ³⁸ And when they had eaten enough, they lightened the ship, ^(AG)throwing out the wheat into the sea.

³⁹ Now when it was day, ^(AH)they did not recognize the land, but they noticed a bay with a beach, on which they planned if possible to run the ship ashore. ⁴⁰ So they cast off the anchors and left them in the sea, at the same time loosening the ropes that tied the rudders. Then hoisting the foresail to the wind they made for the beach. ⁴¹ But striking a reef,^[h] (AI)they ran the vessel aground. The bow stuck and remained immovable, and the stern was being broken up by the surf. ^42 (AJ)The soldiers' plan was to kill the prisoners, lest any should swim away and escape. ⁴³ But the centurion, ^(AK)wishing to save Paul, kept them from carrying out their plan. He ordered those who could swim to jump overboard first and make for the land, ⁴⁴ and the rest on planks or on pieces of the ship. And so it was that^(AL)all were brought safely to land.

(http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts%2027&version=ESV)

Paul had quite an adventure on this trip!  I have heard newscasts of the troubles people have had a cruise ships and this one must have been even worse.  Take note, these men thought they knew best.  They thought they could beat the odds of the weather.  In order to save their ship they sailed on and ended up losing their ship.  They didn’t listen to Paul but why should they have?  To them he was just a prisoner probably wanting to avoid his trial but his guard knew otherwise and took special care of him.  He even let him go be with his Christian friends at one stop.  Then in the end would not let them kill any prisoners because he wanted to spare Paul. 

Bottom line to me in this account of Paul’s travel is that he weathered a storm through God’s protection.  This gave him yet another opportunity to share Christ with others.  Then, a snake came along and could have killed him but he merely shook it off in the fire as if it were a fly.  God placed these things in Paul’s life just like He places things in our lives.  When we react it can be with a worldly reaction, such as, “No, I want to protect my belongings, my pride, my                    and will not heed the warnings” or “I want to be sure to give God all the credit for whatever His plan is for my life.”  I have to ask myself, “When I am angry, upset, disappointed in any situation am I trusting God or am I simply protecting my worldly belongings?  I am sure Paul was frightened at times on that ship.  Yet God allowed him to know that all would be saved (except the ship) and he was then able to share with those aboard so they could see the glory of God.  So it is for us today.  As long as we are living and breathing we need to declare the mighty wonders of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ no matter what our situation.

Seek Him and know Him, rest in the comfort of His peace and share with others of His greatness!

Seeking Him with all my heart,

Sheila 

Do you Know Him? Are you Sharing Him? (cont. Acts 26)

A Continuation of Acts 26

I hope you read Acts 26, if not, I would urge you to read it.  I posted it on my last blog. 

This entire chapter is a testimony of Paul, an eye witness account, a character account of Jesus Christ.  Paul used his testimony as a defense in front of King Agrippa and many others. 

Paul was raised in a very religious home.  He must have had parents who were not only rich but who believed in God.  They took him to the Synagogue and most likely taught him in their home regarding God.  He followed all the Jewish customs and even defended what he believed to be the truth.  He sounds like a pretty good guy in the Jewish circles.  Then, Jesus got a hold of him and gave him something to think about.  At the point of the interaction, the blinding of his eyes, and the healing, Paul was a changed man.  This had to be true just by looking at the radical change in Paul’s life.  Those he once knew and trusted turned against him and wanted to kill him because of his belief in the Lord Jesus Christ.  He had to leave the city he was raised in because the Jews there wanted to kill him. 

My life is dramatically different from Paul yet there are some similarities.  I was raised, not in a Jewish home but a Christian home.  I grew up knowing the Lord and made a decision to make the faith of my family my own personal faith.  It stops there.  I have never had an eye witness account of my Savior like Paul did, I have never been persecuted unto death by my friends because of my faith in Christ, I have never had to stand before a judge and defend my faith, yet.  Furthermore, I am still working on that part about counting it all joy when I find myself in certain circumstances. 

Paul stands before the king and gives a personal account of his life and his faith in Christ.  Yet the king’s only remark was that Paul was trying to make him a Christian.  Seems so familiar, the king was nothing more than someone who thought he had it all together and this Christian life was for someone besides himself.  Yet Paul tells him that it is his hope that this man and all others would come to know Christ. 

King Agrippa was the great grandson of Herod the Great, the one who had all the male babies killed trying to get rid of Jesus.  The one who told the wise men to come back and report where Jesus was, so he could go to “worship”, no, he wanted to rid the land of him.  I am sure King Agrippa had heard many stories past down from generation to generation about Jesus.  He is convinced that he can live a life just fine without him.  Again, not so different from people today who are from all walks of life.  I know several people who think they have it all together yet have rejected Christ.  I have to ask myself, why? Why?  Why?  How can people sit and hear the wonderful stories of Christ and yet reject Him.  They have not had the personal relationship and they probably see us as not any better than them.  You know what?  We aren’t any better but if you know the Lord your God, repented of your sins, and trust solely in Him, then you are different! You are forgiven, yours sins are washed away!  Now, we need to act that way!!!!

Paul counted it a privilege to share his testimony with the king.  He didn’t much like the chains but he was happy to stand before a crowd of people and share how Christ changed his life.  It was his hope that many would come to know the Lord that day, especially the king.  Yet, the king cut him short, walked away from an opportunity to follow Christ.  What a shame!  I have seen that at church as well.  People are given the opportunity to turn to Christ yet what happens is they walk out the door the same as when they went in.  Just yesterday we had someone stand up and give their testimony about how Christ changed his life and invited others to do the same. Then we went home and some probably discussed more about how long the service was than about how wonderful it was that this man’s life was changed.  Why do we do that?  We should be rejoicing in a changed life and trying to bring others to know the Lord too!  We should be witnessing to those who think they have life figured out who are really lost in this world.  Just like Paul, we can’t change anyone but we can live our lives giving God the glory and be satisfied that He has placed us where we are for a reason and that reason is to serve Him and to share with others our testimony of how he changed our lives.

I pray as Paul prayed that if you do not know the Lord that you and many others would come to Him!  Get introduced to Him and welcome Him into your life.  If you do know Him, it is my desire that you too would be bold in your faith, that you will share with others the love the Father has bestowed upon you.  That you would once again know your first love, Christ, and that you would come running to Him.  God’s desire is that we share His love with the world so that all my have the opportunity to know Him. Do you know Him?  Are you sharing Him with others?

Seek Him and know Him as you seek Him with all your heart.

Seeking Him with all my heart,

Sheila 

Acts 26

Acts 26

English Standard Version (ESV)

26 So ^(A)Agrippa said to Paul, “You have permission to speak for yourself.” Then Paul stretched out his hand and made his defense:

² “I consider myself fortunate that it is before you, King Agrippa, I am going to make my defense today ^(B)against all the accusations of the Jews, ³ especially because you are familiar with all the ^(C)customs and ^(D)controversies of the Jews. Therefore I beg you to listen to me patiently.

^4 (E)“My manner of life from my youth, spent from the beginning among ^(F)my own nation and in Jerusalem, is known by all the Jews. ⁵ They have known for a long time, if they are willing to testify, that ^(G)according to the strictest ^(H)party of our ^(I)religion I have lived as ^(J)a Pharisee. ⁶ And now I stand here on trial because of my hope in ^(K)the promise made by God to our fathers, ^7 (L)to which ^(M)our twelve tribes hope to ^(N)attain, as they earnestly worship night and day. And for this hope ^(O)I am accused by Jews, O king! ⁸ Why is it thought ^(P)incredible by any of you that God raises the dead?

^9 (Q)“I myself was convinced that I ought to do many things in opposing the name of ^(R)Jesus of Nazareth. ^10 (S)And I did so in Jerusalem. I not only locked up many of the saints in prison after receiving authority ^(T)from the chief priests, but ^(U)when they were put to death I cast my vote against them. ¹¹ And ^(V)I punished them often in all the synagogues and tried to make them ^(W)blaspheme, and ^(X)in raging fury against them I ^(Y)persecuted them even to foreign cities.

Paul Tells of His Conversion

¹² “In this connection ^(Z)I journeyed to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests. ¹³ At midday, O king, I saw on the way a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, that shone around me and those who journeyed with me. ¹⁴ And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me ^(AA)in the Hebrew language,^[a]‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ ¹⁵ And I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. ¹⁶ But rise and ^(AB)stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, ^(AC)to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you, ^17 (AD)delivering you from your people and from the Gentiles—^(AE)to whom I ^(AF)am sending you ^18 (AG)to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from ^(AH)the power of Satan to God, that they may receive ^(AI)forgiveness of sins and ^(AJ)a place among those who are sanctified^(AK)by faith in me.’

¹⁹ “Therefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to ^(AL)the heavenly vision, ²⁰ but declared first ^(AM)to those in Damascus, ^(AN)then in Jerusalem and throughout all the region of Judea, and also ^(AO)to the Gentiles, that they should^(AP)repent and ^(AQ)turn to God, performing deeds ^(AR)in keeping with their repentance. ²¹ For this reason ^(AS)the Jews seized me in the temple and tried to kill me. ^22 (AT)To this day I have had the help that comes from God, and so ^(AU)I stand here testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what ^(AV)the prophets and Moses said would come to pass: ^23 (AW)that the Christ ^(AX)must suffer and that, ^(AY)by being the first ^(AZ)to rise from the dead, ^(BA)he would proclaim ^(BB)light both to our people and to the Gentiles.”

²⁴ And as he was saying these things in his defense, Festus said with a loud voice, “Paul, ^(BC)you are out of your mind; your great learning is driving you out of your mind.” ²⁵ But Paul said, “I am not out of my mind, ^(BD)most excellent Festus, but I am speaking ^(BE)true and ^(BF)rational words. ²⁶ For ^(BG)the king knows about these things, and to him I speak boldly. For I am persuaded that none of these things has escaped his notice, for this has not been done in a corner. ²⁷ King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know that you believe.” ²⁸ And Agrippa said to Paul, “In a short time would you persuade me to be ^(BH)a Christian?”^[b] 29 And Paul said, “Whether short or long, I would to God that not only you but also all who hear me this day ^(BI)might become such as I am—except for ^(BJ)these chains.”

³⁰ Then the king rose, and ^(BK)the governor and Bernice and those who were sitting with them. ³¹ And when they had withdrawn, they said to one another, ^(BL)“This man is doing nothing to deserve death or imprisonment.” ³² And Agrippa said to Festus, ^(BM)“This man could have been set ^(BN)free if he had not appealed ^(BO)to Caesar.”

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts%2026&version=ESV

This is plenty of reading for today.  I will write about what I learned from it later.

Seek Him and know how much He loves you!

Seeking Him with all my heart,

Sheila 

Free or in Chains?

Acts 25:23-27

English Standard Version (ESV)

²³ So on the next day ^(A)Agrippa and Bernice came with great pomp, and they entered the audience hall with the military tribunes and the prominent men of the city. Then, at the command of Festus, Paul was brought in. ²⁴ And Festus said, “King Agrippa and all who are present with us, you see this man about whom ^(B)the whole Jewish people petitioned me, both in Jerusalem and here, ^(C)shouting that he ought not to live any longer. ²⁵ But I found that ^(D)he had done nothing deserving death. And ^(E)as he himself appealed to ^(F)the emperor, I decided to go ahead and send him. ²⁶ But I have nothing definite to write to my lord about him. Therefore I have brought him before you all, and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that, after we have examined him, I may have something to write. ²⁷ For it seems to me unreasonable, in sending a prisoner, not to indicate the charges against him.”

(http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts%2025:23-27&version=ESV)

Today, just a few short verses but tomorrow we will look at the entire chapter of Acts 26.  Today let’s look at the contrast between the people at this meeting.  First we have King Agrippa and Bernice coming into the room with pomp and circumstance.  The king entered the room much like the celebrities walking on the red carpet with all the cameras flashing.  There was probably a big announcement, music playing, and people cheering as they entered. Then Paul come in with chains, brought before the king by someone who can’t find any fault in him yet has him chained and brought before the king anyway.  He can’t just have him visit with him but has to bring him in with chains in front of a crowd of people.  How humiliating do you think this could be?  Yet it wasn’t humiliating to Paul, it was a chance to share with others his testimony.

Paul, in chains, stands before King Agrippa and the others so much freer than they.  He knew that even though he was in physical chains he was free in Christ Jesus the Lord.  He knew that someday he would stand before the King of kings and Lord of lords and he would be set free.  He wanted nothing more than for the people he stood before to have the same freedom.

Each of us needs to examine our own lives and answer this question:

Are we living this life a free person or are we a slave to this world, chained by its desires?

Paul even though in chains was free and those who thought they were in control and of great importance were really the ones who were in chains.

As you seek Him my prayer is that you will find the freedom in Him and rid yourselves of any chains that may be preventing you from that freedom.  As I woke this morning the song on my heart was “Victory in Jesus”.  What a wonderful thing to be reminded of this day and everyday.

Seeking Him with all my heart,

Sheila

Let God Take Care of It

Acts 25:13-22

English Standard Version (ESV)

¹³ Now when some days had passed, Agrippa the king and Bernice arrived at Caesarea and greeted Festus. ¹⁴ And as they stayed there many days, Festus laid Paul's case before the king, saying, ^(A)“There is a man left prisoner by Felix,¹⁵ and when I was at Jerusalem, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews laid out their case ^(B)against him, asking for a sentence of condemnation against him. ^16 (C)I answered them that it was not the custom of the Romans to give up anyone ^(D)before the accused met the accusers face to face and had opportunity to make his defense concerning the charge laid against him. ^17 (E)So when they came together here, I made no delay, but on the next day took my seat on^(F)the tribunal and ordered the man to be brought. ¹⁸ When the accusers stood up, they brought no charge in his case of such evils as I supposed. ¹⁹ Rather they ^(G)had certain points of dispute with him about their own religion and about^(H)a certain Jesus, who was dead, but whom Paul asserted to be alive. ²⁰ Being at a loss how to investigate these questions, I ^(I)asked whether he wanted to go to Jerusalem and be tried there regarding them. ²¹ But ^(J)when Paul had appealed to be kept in custody for the decision of ^(K)the emperor, I ordered him to be held until I could send him to Caesar.” ²² Then ^(L)Agrippa said to Festus, “I would like to hear the man myself.” “Tomorrow,” said he, “you will hear him.”

(http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts%2025:%2013%20-22&version=ESV)

There is one thing for sure, Romans during this time did not know how to have a speedy trial.  Felix had already had a trial and did not find fault in Paul and now Festus wants to do the same thing.  Festus is so new on the scene that he asked King Agrippa to help him out with the situation.  He admits in these passages that he does not even know what charge he has that make any sense to send it to Rome.  But, you know what?  God is in control.  He has plans for Paul and one of them is to minister where he is and another is to minister in Rome.

Nothing in these passages makes sense to us.  We may wonder why God didn’t just let Paul be set free. There were really no charges to hold him on.  Two different leaders heard the charges against him and found that he had no fault yet they continued to hold him to try to find favor with the Jews. 

I find myself in a kind of prison.  It makes no sense why I am where I am vocationally and why I can’t seem to get hired for the position that I am most qualified for.  No bad evaluations, a passion for the work, a very good track record.  Yet, I am held in a sort of prison away from what I know and enjoy best.  I can become bitter which has seeped into my thinking.  I can feel hurt which I have.  I can ask God why this is happening, check that one off too.  I am not facing physical death because of it but I am experiencing a death of a career that I thought I would retire in.  A death of the goals which I set forth to accomplish and worked extremely hard towards.  Yes, in some ways it is a death of my being.  Yet there is a contrast between Paul and myself.  Nowhere in these passages do I see Paul complain.  His defense does not put others down yet states the facts.  When he is questioned in private he shares the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  He does not bribe or try to persuade anyone to let him out of prison.  Why?  Because Paul knew that God had him just where He wanted him and he was content with that.  This is something that I struggle with on a daily basis, even though I am certain that God is in control, I try to be the backseat driver that tells Him what to do.  Who am I kidding, only myself, to think that I know more than the Almighty God. 

As you seek Him today, be assured that if you are His child, He has a plan for you.  A perfect plan, one that none other can fathom.  Trust Him and know that He is in control.

Seeking Him with all my heart,

Sheila