Summary: On his way to Rome to appeal to Caesar, and under the supervision of Roman centurions, Paul and company run into a storm on the Mediterranean. After days of tumultuous winds, little food, and constant fear of death, the ship is finally broken apart, and the crew and prisoners need to swim for shore on a nearby island called Malta. Miraculously, everyone survives.
In part 1, we looked at the bad news of Paul’s shipwreck on the way to Rome. In part 2, we will look at the good news. The good news is that we can trust God’s promises.
God had promised Paul that He would get to Rome. He told Paul he would stand before Caesar and would be given the opportunity to share God’s truth with him. God sends an angel to Paul to say, “Don’t be afraid, Paul, for you will surely stand trial before Caesar! What’s more, God in his goodness has granted safety to everyone sailing with you” (Acts 27:24). God fulfills His promises, doesn’t He? Throughout Scripture, we see that God’s promises are true. Even when, in the moment, it makes no sense or little sense from a human perspective, we can trust that God will see us through.
And we don’t need a new promise for a new storm. God promised you will reach your destination safely through Jesus Christ. But in Paul’s case, they were still going to run aground. God didn’t suddenly make everything calm and easy. Storms are still storms, but we can trust in the middle of them that God is faithful to do what He said He would do. Consider the promise He gives us in Philippians 1:6, where Paul wrote, “And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.” The good news is what God already said he would do.
Everybody on the ship is brought safely to land. But we shouldn’t be surprised. We know it is a foregone conclusion that God will keep His promises, because He always does.
The ship itself is part of the story. Acts 27:43-44 says, “the stern was repeatedly smashed by the force of the waves and began to break apart.…he (centurion) ordered all who could swim to jump overboard first and make for land. The others held on to planks or debris from the broken ship. So everyone escaped safely to shore.” The ship breaking apart provided flotation devices to get everyone safely to land, especially those who couldn’t swim. The whole of the Christian life is characterized by holding onto something when facing our personal shipwrecks.
So that’s the good and the bad news. The bad news is that discouragement is inevitable. The good is in the midst of that; God is going to show up in big ways. It’s not often how we plan for it, or what we would suggest He do. We need to simply trust God.
The writer of Psalm 112 had this in mind as well as he wrote verse 7, “They do not fear bad news; they confidently trust the LORD to care for them” (Psalm 112:7).
Discussion Questions:
- How do you define “trusting God”? Is it simply a feeling, or is it a choice to believe and obey even when circumstances are difficult? How does trusting in God help you cope with bad news?
- When have you struggled to believe a promise of God? What was that experience like, and what helped you overcome that struggle?