Devotional Acts 28: Why We Suffer and God's Truth Discover in Acts 28 why trials are not always our fault, how Christ's truth creates division, and how to approach hardened hearts. Topics: Devotional, New Testament.

Devotional Acts 28: Why We Suffer and God’s Truth

Today’s devotional is found in the book of Acts, chapter 28, and this is what happened.

Synopsis: The chapter begins with Paul and his companions arriving on an island after the shipwreck. At first, they did not know the name of the place, but later they discovered that the island was called Malta. They stayed 3 months on this island. During their stay, Paul was bitten by a snake. And when the islanders connected the incidents Paul was going through, they came to the conclusion that he was guilty, which is why he was cursed. So, they were waiting for Paul to drop dead soon. But when they perceived that nothing happened to him and he showed no symptoms from the snake bite, they thought Paul was a god. After their stay in Malta came to an end, Paul and his companions continued the journey toward Rome. Along the way, they found Christian brothers in a few places who invited them to stay with them for a few days, which overjoyed Paul. When they finally arrived in Rome, Paul had the privilege of staying under house arrest in a rented house guarded by a soldier. During his house arrest, Paul received the Jewish community of Rome, who sought to know why he had been transferred and was awaiting trial in Rome. Paul had several meetings with them to explain what had happened. But he also took the opportunity to preach the gospel to them and to all who visited him during his house arrest. However, the Jews in Rome were not convinced that Paul was innocent. Therefore, he remained under house arrest for 2 years, awaiting the day of his trial before Caesar.

Observations

These were my observations:

1. Not every time someone goes through storms is it their own fault. In this chapter, we see a clear example of that. As soon as Paul was bitten by a snake, the islanders of Malta immediately found him guilty of all the misfortunes he was going through (i.e., the shipwreck and the snake bite) (Acts 28:3–4 NIV). The islanders were mistaken because they believed that bad things only happened to bad people. Unfortunately, this is the line of thinking of many. This was not an isolated problem of that particular island, for this was the belief of most people from original sin up to Paul’s day. Evidence of this line of thinking can be found in the book of Job. Job’s friends (Eliphaz, Bildad, Zophar, and Elihu) found him guilty because, according to them, the innocent and upright do not suffer the misfortunes that Job suffered (Job 4:7–8, 8:3–4, 11:5–6, and 34:7–8 NIV). Although the narrative demonstrates clearly that Job was innocent and was put to the test because of a challenge proposed by Satan (Job 1:8–12, 2:3–6 NIV). The same happened with Paul. He was not guilty of the charges brought against him (Acts 26:30–31 NIV), nor of the shipwreck (Acts 27:9–12 NIV), nor of the snake bite (Acts 28:3 NIV). This is a lesson we must all keep in mind so as not to commit the same mistakes as Job’s friends and the islanders of Malta.
2. Truth brings division and is exclusive. For Jesus told the apostles that He came to bring division among us and not even our families are exempt from this (Matthew 10:34–36 NIV). Furthermore, He also told them that He was the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Him (John 14:6 NIV). When Jesus said these things, He did not mean that His intention in coming to earth was to intentionally cause wars. It is completely the opposite. But what He was saying is that truth is exclusive (i.e., a statement can only be true or false). If Jesus’ statement is true, then all other beliefs that contradict it are false. And it is this realization that causes division among friends and relatives. Therefore, we must be prepared to face opposition from people, since our belief and faith in Jesus Christ indicate that we view Him as Lord and Savior. Thus, we disagree with all other ideas that contradict Jesus’ statements. And by expressing our belief with conviction, we must be ready to potentially create division between ourselves and our loved ones who vehemently reject Jesus Christ. For this reason, it should not surprise us that Paul’s preaching to the Jews caused division among them (Acts 28:24 NIV).
3. People do not believe in God because they have hardened hearts. Many times, people say they do not believe in God because there is not enough evidence of His existence or due to any other excuse. But the unbelief we observe today is very ancient, as we see it in several books of the Bible (including this one). And the most common reason, according to the Bible, for such rejection and unbelief in God has to do with hardened hearts. We see an example of this in the book of Exodus, when Pharaoh refused to do the Will of God (Exodus 7:13, 22; 8:15, 19, 32; and 9:34 NIV). And we see it as well in this chapter, when Paul tries to explain the gospel of Jesus to the Jews and many of them refuse to accept it. Then Paul reminds them of the scriptures of the prophet Isaiah regarding their ancestors not having listened to the voice of God due to the insensitivity of their hearts (Acts 28:25–27 NIV). For this reason, we must pay attention when we share the gospel with someone. The first thing we should know is whether this person is truly willing to receive the gospel and God’s salvation, or if their heart is hardened by life’s circumstances and harbors resentment toward God. If the person is open to knowing God and His Word, we should proceed, explain it, and help them in their walk of holiness. But if that person has their mind and ears closed, we should simply advise them to give God a (or another) chance to transform their life, pray for their reconciliation with God and salvation.