Paul's Journey to Rome

Acts 27 — Paul's Journey to Rome

With Paul's appeal to Caesar, the Roman governor Festus had no choice but to send Paul to Rome. So in Acts 27 and 28, Luke records this epic journey for us under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. The purpose is to show God’s protection and the Holy Spirit's guidance in Paul’s ministry. In Acts 23:11, the Lord Jesus told Paul, "Be of good cheer, Paul; for as you have testified for Me in Jerusalem, so you must also bear witness at Rome.” Looking at the events in Paul's life during his two-year imprisonment in Caesarea, one might think he was just a pawn in the hands of wicked men, both Jewish and Roman. However, the Holy Spirit was orchestrating Paul's Fourth Missionary Journey, now to Rome, even through their wickedness.

Now, it seems that even nature was attempting to stop Paul from getting to Rome. We could understand that Satan uses the agency of wicked men to thwart the progress of the Gospel. But why does God seem to allow circumstances to work against the new mission that He gave to Paul?

One, God's ways are not our ways. We seek our comfort. Our tendency is to seek what is in the world. However, God says,When we question God, we betray an attitude of irreverence, an attitude that shows that God is too small in our eyes and that we have an overinflated view of ourselves. Instead, we ought to respond with repentance and humility like Job did once he realized his sin (Job 40:4-5; 42:1-6). When we do that, we will say with the Apostle Paul, "We glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope" (Romans 5:3-4).

Two, we tend to look for God to accomplish His purposes through the supernatural (e.g., parting the Red Sea) but God also does that through ordinary means. Through the harrowing journey to Rome, God demonstrated His power through Paul further establishing His apostleship before the Romans. The Roman centurion, although seem to have already trusted Paul, let him determine the fate of the entire seafaring party during their dreadful ordeal.

Three, God uses the storms of life, literal and figurative, to allow us to minister to others. Because of this storm, many people on that ship, Jew and Gentile, Roman soldiers and ship captains, got to witness the power of God working through Paul who was instrumental in saving their lives as well as in bringing a message that could save their souls.

Are you trusting God in the storm of life?
Are you allowing Him to use these storms to build your character and to minister to others through them?