Shipwreck and All Alive!

“But the ship struck a sandbar and ran aground. The bow stuck fast and would not move, and the stern was broken in pieces by the pounding of the surf…He (the centurion) ordered those who could swim to jump overboard first and get to land. The rest were to get there on planks or on pieces of the ship. In this way everyone reached land in safety.” –Acts 27:41, 43b-44 (NIV. Read Acts 27:27-44).

In the midst of the terrible storm at sea, the prisoner Paul was like the commander of the ship. He urged the crew, passengers and prisoners to eat after they had been without food for fourteen days during the storm. “Altogether there were 276 of us on board” (v. 37). It was good that Paul got them to eat. All would need strengthening for the ordeal ahead. The sailors tried to abandon ship in the lifeboat, but they were prevented from escaping. Finally, the ship went aground and was dashed to pieces. All 276 aboard, as Paul had predicted, reached the safety of the island, some by swimming through choppy waters and others by grabbing a piece of wood from the ship and floating ashore.

Talk about high drama, this account in Acts is full of it. The theme is man against the elements. And the hero is a prisoner named Paul who took charge as though he himself were the commander of the ship. It was he who had the word from God, he who saw to practical matters like eating after a fast of fourteen days (knowing that hungry men have no strength to work), he who told the frightened people that their lives would be spared. Next to him was Julius the centurion, charged with getting Paul and other prisoners safely to Rome. He, too, stands out as one used of God to preserve the lives of all the prisoners and assist in getting them to shore. When the guards wanted to shoot the prisoners, Julius intervened and would not let them do so. We can see why the soldiers assigned to guard the prisoners wanted to kill them. By Roman law, if they escaped, the soldiers themselves would have to stand trial for the charges against the prisoners. It would be easier to kill them. But the word of the angel to Paul was coming true: “not one of you will be lost. Only the ship will be destroyed” (Acts 27:22).

It may not be a shipwreck we survive in life. Most of us can recall narrow escapes. Maybe ours was from a wreck, some other accident, severe, life-threatening illness, for some it may be war, for others, disasters. Of one thing we can be assured: If we are a survivor, we were saved for a purpose. “Shipwreck and alive” could be a motto of what God has done to rescue us from danger and save us for His purpose and intention in life. It is worth serious thought and recommitment of life to the Lord.

c Ethelene Dyer Jones; Saturday, May 15, 2010

In Peril at Sea

“Last night an angel of the God whose I am and whom I serve stood beside me and said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar; and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you.’ So keep up your courage, men, for I have faith in God that it will happen just as he told me. Nevertheless, we must run aground on some island.” –Acts 27:23-26 (NIV. Read Acts 27:1-26)

In the port of Lycia, Paul, Luke, Aristarchus and Julius, the centurion in charge of the prisoner Paul, boarded another ship, an Alexandrian vessel bound for Italy.

The season of good sailing weather had already passed, and Paul warned them not to sail, but the centurion listened to the owner of the ship and its pilot rather than to Paul. Along the shore of Crete, sailing at first was smooth. But then a storm of hurricane force came. The ship was in great peril. They greatly feared they would wreck in the dangerous Syrtis Sands (on the coast of North Africa, known as the graveyard of many a ship). The crew had great difficulty rescuing and securing the life boat. They threw cargo overboard. For days there was no sun by day nor stars by night, nor did they have food. They were in great peril. They were tossed about too much to eat and probably endured severe seasickness. And then Paul stood in their midst, first reminding them that they should have taken his advice not to sail. But then he had better news. He told them an angel had appeared to him in the night and given him the encouraging message that no lives would be lost, even though they would run aground on some island.

In perspective, after the fact, and reading the story from Acts of Paul’s journey to Rome, we see how God’s purpose was accomplished. But sometimes in the midst of the storm, we have difficulty hanging onto the ultimate purpose. The main goal is to survive the present, to somehow ride through the storms and try to avoid shipwreck. Today, many calamities are striking. We wonder if the frequent hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanoes, floods and other disasters are the “end times” events.

Are they not warnings to us that we should listen to God, take heed and return to Him? Paul told the ship’s masters they should have listened to him about sailing in perilous times. We, too, have warnings from the Word and from God’s chosen spokesmen. Even our own judgment puts warning signs up for us. When we are in peril on the sea of life, we, like Paul, should listen to the voice sent from God. The crew of Sir Humphrey Gilbert’s ship of long ago was terrified and wanted him to turn back, but that noted captain said, “I am as near to God at sea as ever I was by land.” And so God wants to be with each of us!

c Ethelene Dyer Jones; Friday, May 14, 2010

Prisoner Paul Sets Sail for Rome

“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. Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica, was with us. The next day we landed at Sidon; and Julius, in kindness to Paul, allowed him to go to his friends so they might provide for his needs. From there we put out to sea again and passed to the lea of Cyprus because the winds were against us.” –Acts 27:1-4.

Scholars believe Paul spent about two years as a prisoner in Caesarea. Finally, Festus and others with control over prisoners decided Paul should be sent on to Rome for his hearing before the Emperor. Assigned to accompany and guard Paul was a centurion named Julius. He was a well-trusted officer, a member of the Augustan Cohort. He treated Paul with great respect and when they arrived at their first stop on the journey, Sidon, Julius allowed Paul to go ashore to his friends so that they might provide him with needs for his journey. Dr. William Barclay in his scholarly writing on Acts states: “It may be that when Paul and Julius stood face to face, one brave man recognized another.”

Notice that the account in Acts of Paul’s journey from Caesarea to Rome is written in first person plural: “we”. This indicates that Luke, the physician, and writer of the Gospel of Luke and of the Acts of the Apostles was also accompanying Paul to Rome. And another companion was Aristarchus from Macedonia in Thessalonica. He had deliberately chosen to accompany Paul because of his love and respect for the apostle. He had been with Paul from Greece to Jerusalem as Paul finished his third missionary journey, and probably had remained with Paul during the entire two years of Paul’s hearings before the Jewish Sanhedrin and the governors in Caesarea. Dr. Barclay suggests that Aristarchus voluntarily placed himself as “the slave of Paul” so that he could remain with him on the journey to Rome. In the letters of Colossians and Philemon, Paul mentions the name of Aristarchus as a “fellow prisoner.” Church tradition holds that faithful Aristarchus was put to death in Rome by Nero. But on the voyage to Rome, we know at least three in the “we” of those sailing: Luke the writer, Paul the Apostle, and Aristarchus, faithful friend to Paul.

“The winds were against us.” It was not smooth sailing. Winds tossed the merchant ship that also carried passengers. The captain chose the long way around on the leeward side of Cyprus because of the poor sailing weather. I can imagine the seasickness, the crowded conditions on the ship. Our journeys are not always easy. But also in the “we” of the company on that ship was God, ever present, working His miracles despite the weather and Paul’s condition of imprisonment.

Julius, a Roman centurion, was kind to Paul. Aristarchus and Dr. Luke were looking after Paul. And God’s presence was always amidst the prevailing winds. And so He is with each of us as we plough through life’s troubled seas! Today is my birthday. I have been a Christian for 71 of my 80 years. I am most grateful to have reached this milestone in my life. I’ve lived a long, long time! And through symbolic seas and adverse winds, as well as in the relative calm parts of my journey, like Paul, I have known and experienced the marvelous and miraculous presence, protection and power of God. God has provided many others who have helped me on the journey. I pay particular tribute to my dear husband of 61-plus years, a faithful minister of the gospel, who was the greatest helpmeet and companion anyone could have. May we thank God today for the “we” persons in our life who have helped us to become who we are. To God be the glory!

c Ethelene Dyer Jones; Thursday, May 13, 2010