Acts 27 | God in the Stormਨਮੂਨਾ

Paul Goes to Sea

A course he never would have expected happened just a few chapters ago when Paul came to Jerusalem. Never would we have expected that it would result in being shipped off to Rome.

You might remember the story. Rescued from the hands of an angry mob, Paul finds himself now in the hands of the Romans—Romans about to interrogate him with a whip. Paul is a Roman citizen—and that brings a certain level of protection—so he plays it to his advantage.

He appeals to Caesar.

It gets him out of a flogging, but results in a two-year prison stint in Caesarea—a prison stint where he testifies before a Jewish king and Roman governors. A testimony to a saving hope in the risen Christ.

Remember what Jesus said? “They will seize you and persecute you. They will hand you over to synagogues and put you in prison, and you will be brought before kings and governors, and all on account of my name. And so you will bear testimony to me” (Luke 21:12, NIV).

The Jewish leaders want Paul dead. King Agrippa and the Roman governors can find no basis for it. But since Paul appealed to Caesar, it’s off to Rome he’ll go. Never would one imagine that a collection for the poor in Jerusalem would lead to this.

Acts 27 picks up with this opening line, “When it was decided that we would sail for Italy, Paul and some other prisoners were handed over to a centurion named Julius, who belonged to the Imperial Regiment. We boarded a ship from Adramyttium about to sail for ports along the coast of the province of Asia, and we put out to sea” (Acts 27:1-2, NIV).

Paul is now bound for Rome by sea.

Today, read the account of Paul’s journey by sea. It’s harrowing and exciting, filled with danger, fear, and uncertainty. It’s a story with God in the middle of it—rescuing, saving, and bringing about his purposes. It continues what Jesus said from the beginning: You will be my witnesses to the ends of the earth.