October 05, 2023 | Be On Mission
Paul Arrives in Rome; On House Arrest
Scripture: Acts 28:11-16(NIV)
11 After three months we put out to sea in a ship that had wintered in the island—it was an Alexandrian ship with the figurehead of the twin gods Castor and Pollux. 12 We put in at Syracuse and stayed there three days. 13 From there we set sail and arrived at Rhegium. The next day the south wind came up, and on the following day we reached Puteoli. 14 There we found some brothers and sisters who invited us to spend a week with them. And so we came to Rome. 15 The brothers and sisters there had heard that we were coming, and they traveled as far as the Forum of Appius and the Three Taverns to meet us. At the sight of these people Paul thanked God and was encouraged. 16 When we got to Rome, Paul was allowed to live by himself, with a soldier to guard him.
Devotional
Three months after being shipwrecked on the tiny island of Malta, Paul and the other prisoners, soldiers, and sailors boarded another ship and headed for Sicily, then Italy. When they landed in the port of Puteoli, Italy some believers from two of the communities outside Rome met him and traveled with him, as the guards escorted the prisoners seventy five miles across land to the seat of the Roman Empire.
Imagine how Paul and his beleaguered ministry team must have felt when other Christians went out of their way to come to his aid and encourage him. They were living out the “one another” words of Scripture, some of which Paul himself had written. Take a look at a few of them. Which ones do you guess they were displaying? In what ways? Which ones is God challenging you to display to others?
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” John 13:34
“Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.” Romans 12:10
“Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.” Ephesians 4:2
“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Ephesians 4:32
“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” 1 Thessalonians 5:11
“And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” Hebrews 10:24-25
“Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble.” 1 Peter 3:8
Poem
Figureheads
We find ourselves sometimes with figureheads false
Twin brothers of mythic proportion result
Charmed tokens to bless us, to give us full luck
Like semi-gods, Castor, twin brother, Pollux
It’s tempting to trust in these cultural charms
To add them to our faith in case of some harm
Yet they should be cast off, don’t sail on their ship
‘Tis better to jump ship, in God’s grace to drift
So when you are weary or journey is rough
When having life season of winter that’s tough
Find figureheads, brothers and sisters, to stay
Thank God and take courage, keep evil at bay
