03/04/2020 - GOD´S SERVANTS TIME

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Now when neither sun nor stars appeared for many days, and no small tempest beat on us, all hope that we would be saved was finally given up. Acts 27:20

He who starts in the faith in Christ must never judge what he sees or hears through human eyes. Many feel that, by converting, they are doing God a favor. In fact, it is the Lord who does the sinner a great favor. When they go through trials, they say that the situation is wrong and ask: “Since God has all the power, why not deliver me from evil?

Saul of Tarsus, who later became Paul, was being taken to Rome because he was detained on the accusation of the Jews for preaching the Truth. The prisoner is not always guilty. There are cases where the crime is a misunderstanding, as occurred with the apostle. Paul aroused jealousy and hatred in the Jews, because, when speaking of Jesus, many were converted to the Gospel, and this was bad in the eyes of their opponents.

It was days when the sun did not appear during the day, nor the stars at night, since it rained continuously. The sea waves were very high because of the wind and bad weather in the Adriatic Sea. In Crete, before they all set sail, the apostle told the captain that it was best to spend the winter there, because it would be a very dangerous trip, and surely bad things would happen to the people and the ship as well.

Since Paul was a prisoner, they paid him no attention. But he was a servant of the Most High, who knows all things. The ship’s captain refused to meet Paul and departed. Faced with this grasp, they realized that they should have stayed on the island of Crete; however, it was too late. As a result, they spent many days without eating, throwing the ship’s loads over board to lighten the weight.

After a period without food, in which they saw death approaching, Paul said: It was indeed reasonable, O men, to have heard me and not depart from Crete, and thus would avoid this nuisance and perdition. (Acts 27.21). But no one listened to him. Then he gave them good news, saying that, that night an angel of God had been with him, carrying a message from the Most High intended for those on board: no one would be lost but the ship (v. 22).

The angel told the apostle not to fear, for he would be presented to Caesar the emperor (v. 24). Fourteen days passed, and the sailor planned to abandon all the cargo on the boat and launch themselves into the waters to find some land. Paul called the captain and said: If they do not stay in the ship, you cannot save yourselves (v. 31). Then the servant of God took a bread, gave thanks to God and ate, and all did the same (v. 35). Everyone’s spirits returned.

The ship ran aground between two seas and cracked opened with the force of the water. All of them threw themselves into the waters. Who knew swimming swam; those who did not know clung to boards and reached the beach (v. 43,44). The island was inhabited by barbarians, who, seeing that Paul was the prisoner, said that justice would not let him live. The apostle used divine power, and they saw that he was a man of God.

In Christ, with love,

R. R. Soares