Apostolic Ministry
Dear Pastor, Preacher, or Bible Teacher –
God’s blessings to you! I pray you are blessed in your walk with God, your family, and your service unto God, His people, and a needy world.
Here’s a quick thought from Acts 28:
But when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and laid them on the fire, a viper came out because of the heat, and fastened on his hand. So when the natives saw the creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another, “No doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he has escaped the sea, yet justice does not allow to live.” But he shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm. However, they were expecting that he would swell up or suddenly fall down dead. But after they had looked for a long time and saw no harm come to him, they changed their minds and said that he was a god. (Acts 28:3-6)
I love this account of what happened to Paul after this ship carrying him (and many others) wrecked on the island of Malta. I think there is a lot for us to learn as pastors, preachers, and Bible teachers here.
Paul was a servant. There he was, cold and wet – yet the great apostle gathered wood for the fire, even though there were probably scores of people among the 276 passengers and crew far more suited for the job. Paul’s servant heart was always evident.
Being a godly servant did not prevent all trouble for Paul. A snake came out of the wood and bit Paul, even sticking to his hand.
The adversity didn’t seem to trouble Paul. He didn’t scream, “Why God? I can’t take any more of this!” or “Can’t You see I’m serving You?” Paul didn’t look at those sitting by the fire and say, “You lazy people! If you gathered wood instead of me, this wouldn’t have happened to me!”
God protected Paul: After the shipwreck, Paul knew beyond any doubt that he would make it to Rome as God promised. If a storm or a shipwreck couldn’t stop God’s promise, then a snake wouldn’t either. Paul suffered no harm.
Paul didn’t rise or fall on the opinions of others. Others wanted either to condemn or glorify Paul. The people of Malta first thought Paul was the target of the anger of the gods; then they decided he was a god! Paul couldn’t take their condemnation or their glorification seriously. He was a servant of the living God.
I don’t anticipate many of us will suffer shipwrecks in the coming weeks. But God helping us, we can:
– Be servants to others, not just preachers and teachers.
– Understand that some trouble will come our way.
– Have God’s peace in whatever trouble comes.
– Trust God’s protection.
– Refuse to rise or fall on the opinions of others.
Then our ministry will be “apostolic” in just the right way!
Blessings to you in Jesus’ Name – David Guzik
Click Here to Receive Email from David for Pastors, Preachers, and Bible Teachers
I Believe God
Therefore take heart, men, for I believe God that it will be just as it was told me. However, we must run aground on a certain island. (Acts 27:25-26)
Some two years before this, Paul was arrested in Jerusalem on the false charge that he had started a riot on the temple mount. In Roman custody, Paul eventually took his right as a Roman citizen and made an appeal to have his case heard by Caesar.
That meant Paul had to go to Rome, and the ship carrying him was caught in a terrible storm. For two weeks the ship was driven on the violent, storm-tossed waters of the Mediterranean Sea. The passengers and crew lost all hope and waited for the worst.
All of them – except for the Apostle Paul. During the literal storm, God sent an angel to Paul to bring good, encouraging news when all else seemed hopeless. Through the angel, God told Paul to put away fear and be confident that he would make it to Rome. God also promised Paul that everyone on the ship would survive.
Paul couldn’t keep this hope to himself. He had to pass it on. That’s when Paul spoke to all the passengers and crew and said, Therefore take heart. It was as if he said, “You have reason to take heart – God has given me assurance of your safety, and I believe God.”
Paul explained, I believe God that it will be just as it was told me. Paul’s confident words express the essence of what it means to put our faith in God and His word. God said it to Paul (through an angel) and Paul said, “I believe God.”
Paul didn’t say, “I believe in God.” Every demon in hell agrees with the existence of God. Paul declared his total confidence in God’s knowledge of his crisis and God’s promise in his situation.
Paul was not ashamed to say that he believed God, and he believed God when there was nothing else to believe. He couldn’t believe the sailors, the ship, the sails, the wind, the centurion, human ingenuity, or anything else – only God. This was not a fair-weather faith; he believed God amid the storm when circumstances were at their worst.
Paul’s unshakable confidence in God made him a leader among men, even though he was a prisoner.
Yet, Paul also told them the truth from God: we must run aground on a certain island. This was mixed news, and in these circumstances to run aground might be fairly called to shipwreck. Paul essentially said, “We’re all going to shipwreck on an unknown island, but everyone will be alright.”
God didn’t promise Paul, the crew, or the passengers an easy journey. It would be rough, but God would be with them and they would make it.
Today, can you hear God make the same kind of promise to you? Jesus promised to be with you until the end of the age (Matthew 28:20). Take that promise and say, “I believe God.”
