October 03, 2023 | Be On Mission
Paul Shakes off a Snake & is Seen as a God
Scripture: Acts 28:1-6(NIV)
1 Once safely on shore, we found out that the island was called Malta. 2 The islanders showed us unusual kindness. They built a fire and welcomed us all because it was raining and cold. 3 Paul gathered a pile of brushwood and, as he put it on the fire, a viper, driven out by the heat, fastened itself on his hand. 4 When the islanders saw the snake hanging from his hand, they said to each other, “This man must be a murderer; for though he escaped from the sea, the goddess Justice has not allowed him to live.” 5 But Paul shook the snake off into the fire and suffered no ill effects. 6 The people expected him to swell up or suddenly fall dead; but after waiting a long time and seeing nothing unusual happen to him, they changed their minds and said he was a god.
Devotional
Malta was a tiny island, eighteen miles long by eight miles wide, sitting fifty miles south of Sicily, which itself was a huge island off the coast of Italy. This is the farthest west Paul had traveled, and the closest he had come to the seat of the Roman Empire.
Luke writes that the Maltese islanders showed unusual kindness to the sea-soaked, shipwrecked survivors. A huge fire would warm their chilled bodies, and good food would satisfy their ravenous stomachs. Their ship was in parts, floating out at sea. They were there for the long haul.
In this early encounter, the islanders watched Paul get bitten by a poisonous snake. They called him cursed. When he survived they called him a god. In their Greco-Roman culture with a pantheon of gods and goddesses, they assumed that everything was because of a deity, one way or another.
Back when Paul and Barnabas started their first missionary journey, the people of Lystra (Timothy’s hometown) watched as Paul healed a man who was born unable to walk. They shouted, “The gods have come down to us in human form!” (Acts 14:11). The people wanted to offer sacrifices to the dynamic duo. Paul told them to back off, as he and Barnabas were mere humans bringing the good news of the true God. They rewarded him by joining with rabble-rousers from two nearby cities, stoning Paul to within an inch of his life.
Now, over a dozen years later, after as much as 10,000 miles of traveling and preaching, facing a trial before Caesar, Paul was again accused of being a god. Perhaps he could have accepted the honor. Maybe the Roman centurion and soldiers would have agreed. Possibly he could have escaped the impending trial.
But that would be a lie. Paul was no god. But he did know God. And he wanted everyone else to know Him too. He was scheduled to appear before Caesar (who, ironically, was seen as a god). This could end Paul’s life, but it was also his best shot of taking the gospel of Christ truly global.
Do you have anyone on too high of a pedestal? Does anyone else have you too highly exalted? Do you think too highly of yourself? Take some time and humble yourself before the Lord, asking Him to use you as He sees fit.
Poem
Snake Bite
Slith’ring enemy well hidden
Forked tongue lies from which are driven
Tempting, Twisting
Slither, Slither
Venom slung from poison’s quiver
Eden’s grace turned into death
Snake bite ankle
Tomb-stenched breath
Rocky desert, arid waste
Cobra rising, Egypt’s taste
Threat’ning, Torment
Rattle, Rattle
Idolatry, God’s people’s curse
Freedom slain by snake bite death
People mourning
Anger’s wrath
Lonely garden, Christ in prayer
Satan slithers full aware
Waiting, Watching
Nasty, Nasty
Deed is done, betrayer’s kiss
Snake bite to our Savior’s cheek
All forsaking
Poison wreak
Empty tomb, snake’s head is crushed
Life springs forth, Death’s curse is hushed
Praying, Praising
Shake off, Shake off
Enemy still tries to strike
Into fire his carcass goes
Grace restored
To end curse woes
