The Residue of Grace

Investigative

Coming to the end of this tragic journey at sea, the crew after having been warned not to embark on it in the first place spot land.

They did not know how far they drifted or where they were but they did notice that there was a beach.

This would’ve been the ideal spot for them to ground the ship on the beach and off board.

At this point they committed themselves to the plan.

They were still disregarding the reality that Paul had said earlier that the ship would be destroyed but they would be saved.

In their commitment they released all of the weight that would slow them down and sped into the harbor.

However, at this point they ran into a problem, literally.

Rather than running the ship ashore, they were caught at a sandbar/reef of some sort that caused them to stop short of the beach.

This was a horrific problem. In the midst of the worst possible storm, you are still possibly yards from the beach, waves crashing against the boat, and you’re stuck in the ocean.

With the ship stuck, the waves crashing against it, caused it to break. Imagine a car door left open as a car approached, that’s what this scene looked like.

Once again, using their wisdom, the soldiers sought to kill the prisoners.

The reason for this was pretty obvious in that if any of the prisoners escaped, the soldiers would be punished with whatever punishment the prisoner was set to incur.

However, the very person that was ensuring that Paul remained captive, actually became his protector. A centurion named Julius, stopped the soldiers from carrying out their plan, primarily out of a desire to save Paul.

This is probably one of the most fantastic points of this section.

Julius, a man who gives no indication of belief, progressively is endeared to Paul at some level.

In verse 3 we see him allowing Paul to visit friends. Obviously having heard Paul’s opposition to sailing in the first place.

Then we see him trusting him further when the sailors, seeking to save themselves in v. 30-31, were stopped from leaving the ship.

And now we see he saving the very life of Paul, and thereby also saving the lives of the other prisoners.

Instead, they all swam or drifted onto shore, and just as God had said through Paul earlier, all of them remained alive, yet the ship was destroyed.

TR: I’ll pause there and ask us to take a moment to reflect on what I’ve said and the truths of this passage, in a few moments I’d like for you all to verbally respond in a Q&A time to three questions. 1) Where is this passage challenging or presenting some conflict with you? 2) Where is this passage bringing some clarity to you or confirming something for you? 3) What thoughts does this passage lead you to?

Expressive

As we move into a time of response and explore what God is doing among us, I’d like to outline some ground rules.

Please don’t share more than a minute so other people can have a time to respond, you can also text in a question or statement in the GroupMe.

Please remember we are different humans with different opinions and it’s okay to hear something you don’t agree with.

This is a time to be nourished by listening to what the Spirit of God is doing amongst each other.

TR: SIT DOWN ON A STOOL

Collective

TR: STAND UP

I’d like to take a minute to collect our clarities and our conflicts

What are some themes you see on the board?

What are our feelings? What is intriguing?

What might God’s Spirit be saying?

Declarative

MAIN POINT Your pursuit of righteousness should leave a residue of grace on others

Think of the assignment of Julius, pulled from his normal duty to escort a meager small in stature man to Caesar because of religious beef

Yet after weeks of observation he not only has learned to trust this man but even more so, in spite of what others may say about him, believe he should live, even though Julius’ own life was on the line if he escaped.

The way Paul interacted with those around him had won the heart of Julius at the very least as a protector!

What’s amazing is that through the hands of unregenerate men, God worked deliverance of his servant and the physical salvation of all of those in his proximity.

NEVER underestimate your value for those around you! Even when they seek to abandon you to save their own hides, mock you for your beliefs, or when they are willing to crush you so that they might be saved.

There is a common grace, that because the Spirit of the Almighty resides within you, that permeates off of you to those around you.

Spread that encouragement, that wisdom, that grace, that tenderness, that courage and boldness.

Because God is faithful to his promise to Paul, who is a man redeemed from the same sinful pride as the men around him, others were swept along in the common grace of God!!

Let your light shine before people, answer their vitriol with gracious speech, their accusations with truth but humility, and be the most vocal advocate for justice but be the first to forgive!

See all people as image bearers of God, worthy of life, capable of redemption, and valuable in the eyes of God!

You won’t always be loved or listened to…look at Paul! And for that you might have some bad situations with people. However, through his resolute prayers FOR THEM they were saved!!!

God was faithful to His promise of delivering Paul to Caesar and the people to safety.

Because of Paul’s practices he won Julius’ dedication, because of prayers he won the lives of his shipmates, and because of his purpose he will win the souls of those on Malta.

But in order to do so Paul had to ride with them!

Oh Lord help us to learn we’re going to be in the boat with people that aren’t for us simply so that your grace on us can become deliverance to them....

Teach us how to walk with discernment in this life, not just with what situation we’re in but the opportunity it presents.

We’ll read next week how this island they landed on was for a very specific reason…Yahweh wanted to reach the people there.

As with everything, Yahweh directs us on winding paths to achieve His purposes for our lives. Don’t underestimate the value of yours!