God’s Protection in the storm Acts 27:1-26

Introduction

In the last two years of Paul’s journey, he faced many trials, many things had been said about him that weren’t true, he had been beaten, he had shared the gospel and it was rejected by two of the men that had him on trial (Felix and Agrippa). His life had not been easy, but one thing we know is that God always provided for him and protected him. Here in Acts 27, the story is no different. Whether through storm or through ship wreck, Paul had faith that God would take care of him.

This morning as we look at this amazing story we will see how we too can trust God despite the storms that we face in our life.

Paul’s Warning vs. 1-12

As they get ready to sail toward Rome, they take Paul and some of the other prisoners headed there and pair them with a man named Julius who was in charge of Augustus’ band. vs. 1

Paul and these prisoners would have been in good hands as history tells us that Augustus’ band was an imperial cohort of couriers responsible for communications between Caesar and his armies in the provinces.

They set sail out of Adramyttium which was a seaport on the west coast of Asia Minor. vs. 2

Paul had Luke with him, but he also had Aristarchus with him as well, who had travelled with him to Jerusalem to bring the money that they had raised for the church in Jerusalem.

The first stop they made on their journey was in Sidon vs. 3

While in Sidon, Julius let Paul have the liberty to go to his friends and allowed them to refresh him.

The church there in Sidon, which likely was started while Saul was persecuting the church, gave Paul the necessities he would need for the long journey ahead for him.

God uses people to take care of us as well, here he used the church in Sidon to provide for Paul.

The next stop they made was in Myra vs. 4-6

Because of the unfavorable wind, they passed Cyprus, sailed over Cilicia and Pamphylia and landed in Myra.

While there in Myra, Julius found a ship of Alexandria headed to Italy, that better suited the large group that was headed to Rome

From Myra they sailed to a place called Fair Havens which was close to Lasea. vs. 7-8

Notice Luke described their trip as slow, and that it took many days.

The distance between Myra and Cnidus was about 130 miles and with favourable wind could be reached in about a day, but due to the wind it took several days.

They weren’t able to take the easiest route and so by the time they got to the place called Fair Havens truly was a fair haven compared to the sailing they had just completed.

Paul tries to warn the centurion that they were about to go through a terrible time vs. 9-12

They spent much time in Fair Havens and sailing was now dangerous because of the season they were in

When the Bible says “the fast was now already past” it is taking about Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. This annual feast was celebrated on the 10th day of the 7th month which would have been about the first of October in A.D. 59.

You might be asking why is this important? Because from Mid-September until Mid-November all sailing ceased until the end of winter.

Paul was well travelled by sea and so he would have some knowledge about the time of travel and such, so the warning he gave to the centurion should have been taken more seriously.

Remember Paul had been ship wrecked three times and had spent a night and day in the sea because of one of them.

Paul admonished them in verse 10

He perceived or felt as though the journey would be full of hurt and damage

Their stuff would be damaged

Their ship would be damaged

Most of all their bodies would be damaged if they decided they wanted to leave the fair havens.

The Centurion believed the master and the owner of the ship, who thought it would be more commodious or suitable to port in Phenice which is an haven of Crete.

How to survive the storms of life vs. 13-26

Don’t get comfortable vs. 13-15

Sometimes we find ourselves as Christians believing that there won’t be any storms in our lives, but quite the opposite is true. In the Christian life we will have storms, but we don’t go through them alone, God is with us in the midst of the storm.

The first thing we notice in verse 13 is that they got comfortable when the south wind was blowing softly.

We must get careful that we don’t let our guard down when things seem easiest, because the devil is looking for a way in, and we don’t want to leave any doors open for him to come in.

1 Corinthians 10:12 “12 Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.”

When Satan can get you to loosen your armour he will go in for the kill, we need to wake up ready for the battle, because every day is a battle.

Notice they had let their guard down because they supposed or assumed their weather conditions were favourable because of the soft winds blew out of the south.

They let their guard down even though they knew that the winter storms on the see could pop up anytime.

Putting on the whole armour of God isn’t something we do only when we are in battle, we must put it on everyday.

In ancient Rome, soldiers were required to keep their armor in pristine condition, ready for battle at a moment's notice. Those who neglected their equipment often faced disastrous consequences on the battlefield. Just like these soldiers, we must not let spiritual laziness dull our faith or our readiness to face life's challenges. Our armor must be constantly maintained through prayer, study, and fellowship, so we are prepared when trials come our way.

Get rid of unnecessary things vs. 16-19

As they finally get their bearings after some time they go and start undergirding the ship.

I can imagine the centurion wishing he would have listened to Paul’s warning as they are in the midst of this storm.

Countless people acting without God have found themselves in the same situation and wished they would have heeded to the warning of a Christian who warned that the path they were on would lead to destruction.

As they are fighting for their lives, undergirding the ships they start throwing their things over board to lighten the load.

As Christians there are some things on our ship that we need to throw over as well. I think of Peter walking on the water toward Jesus and everything was going good until Peter took his eyes off Christ.

The storms of life are far easier to weather when we have our eyes on Jesus instead of on our stuff.

Remember when Joseph sent his brothers to get his dad and their families and to come to Egypt he told them simply regard not your stuff. This morning I’m challenging us with the same thought, I believe that we are so worried about our stuff that we are no longer worried about God.

We sing songs like I surrender all, but if we are honest we have a hard time giving every thing up

All to Jesus I surrender, All to Him I freely give; I will ever love and trust Him, In His presence daily live. I surrender all, I surrender all. All to Thee, my blessed Savior, I surrender all. All to Jesus I surrender, Humbly at His feet I bow, Worldly pleasures all forsaken; Take me, Jesus, take me now. All to Jesus I surrender, Make me, Savior, wholly Thine; Let me feel Thy Holy Spirit, Truly know that Thou art mine. All to Jesus I surrender, Lord, I give myself to Thee; Fill me with Thy love and power, Let Thy blessing fall on me. All to Jesus I surrender, Now I feel the sacred flame. Oh, the joy of full salvation! Glory, glory to His name!

Keep your faith in God and point others to Him vs. 20-26

After many days of not seeing the sun or the stars, they began to believe that they would never be saved, they had lost all hope.

After Paul spent some time away from them, he came and spoke to them.

He told them they should have hearkened to him when he told them to stay put, then we see though that this isn’t the end of his thought.

Look at verse 22

He had some encouragement for them. None of them were going to die in the storm they were in, but they would lose the ship.

One commentator wrote this about Pauls interaction here “By this time Paul’s serenity, helpfulness, good attitude, and cheerful kindness had won him the respect and goodwill of all. They were more ready to listen to him on that account. The testimony of his life, faith, love and hope had earned him a place in everyone’s heart.”

There will be storms in your life, but remember, people are watching how you react to the storm that you face.

Paul tells them about an Angel of God that appeared to him in the night and told him that he would appear before Caesar and everyone that sailed with him.

For good measure Paul tells them to be of Good cheer because he believed God and that everything God said is true.

May I remind all of us today that if God says he will take care of us, He will.

In the middle of our storm we can trust him, because he is right beside us.

Conclusion

Maybe this morning your’e a christian and your’e not prepared for the storm or trial you are going to face. I’ve heard it said that you are either in a storm, just got out of a storm, or about to go into a storm. Are you prepared? What is in your life this morning that is preventing you from being prepared? Do the people around us see us embracing the storm and trusting God?

MAybe this morning you are here and you have never trusted Christ as your saviour, come this morning and we can show you from the Bible how you can be saved.