Text: Acts 28:1-16
Prayer Pointers:
For the victims of crime
For criminals
For all who need good news
For your own heart
RESCUED FROM THE SEA, Paul is attached by a snake emerging from gathered brush. The locals, come to help, are clear about what this means: justice is being done. Responding to what has been written on their hearts by the natural law (Romans 2:14-15), they interpret what has happened on the basis of that yearning for justice that every human has. This becomes a chance for Paul to give witness to the God who is just and yet who pours out his just wrath on himself, who experiences the estrangement of the criminal. We might see this event as further disaster; in God’s hands, it becomes a moment of witness and grace.
In our own day, we must be on guard against the work of that old snake whose wish is to sow dissension and discord, who desires to raise doubt and fear, who breaks faith and community. Pay him no mind! Toss him to the fire! Let us trust God, upon whose will every government rests, and see the days ahead as a chance to give witness to our God, who governs all things wonderfully. The best thing we can do right now is live with confidence and joy because opportunities for witness and grace are about to come to light.
May your day be grace-filled ~ Pr. Dave Brooks