Acts 28 - The Word gets to Rome!!

Yesterday when we closed Paul was telling everyone they were going to be safe, they just had to trust him...and by extension, trust God. Today opens on the island of Malta and the story here is one that I’ve loved since I was a child. Paul gets bit by a viper and absolutely, nothing happens to him. I want to put this in perspective. I was in Africa a number of years back and was doing some work for a mission there. There were a few of us in this group and while taking a hike one afternoon we came across a girl who had been bitten by a viper. She looked sick, so we literally, picked her up and carried her to the jeep and sped to the nearest clinic which was 45 minutes away. When we get there we carried her in and the doctor saw her. Only a few minutes later, we were told that this girl had passed. There is more to this story that I’m sure I’ll share someday, but I want to make the point that people don’t just walk away from these bites. Paul should have become gravely ill from this...but instead, nothing happens. God intervened in this situation to show these people his power. Then they were open to approaching Paul - and many were healed, and presumably saved. This was a critical element in Gods plan to take the Word to Rome and to the ends of the earth. These people helped Paul and his crew get back on track and a few months later get to Rome.

Scripture quotations have been taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.