The mercy of trials and tribulations
Acts 27: 23-24 "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.' "
Paul's life is a testament to endurance and perseverance. To read about his seemingly constant trials and tribulations is to put our own daily inconveniences into proper perspective and to gain the courage to keep going.
In this case, Paul is caught on a ship being battered by a storm as it sails toward Italy. Paul receives encouragement from the angel that neither he nor his shipmates will perish. It would be easy for Paul to take this as a sign that God wants to save him in order to continue his great ministry and because God is pleased with Paul's faithfulness. In other words, it would be easy for Paul to believe that he had earned this salvation.
But the angel puts any of this self-serving thought process to a halt immediately by telling Paul that the reason he will be spared here is because he ultimately has to make it to Rome so that he may stand trial before Caesar. If I'm in Paul's shoes, I'm saying, "Are you kidding me? You aren't sparing my life so that I can go on doing these wonderful things I have been doing for God's glory? Instead, you are sparing my life so that I may finish my journey and stand trial before Caesar? If that's all I have to look forward to, maybe I'd rather just end it right here and now!"
Reading the account now, we have the benefit of hindsight and we know all of the good and all of God's will that was fulfilled after this point in the story. It is easy for us to see now what God really had in store, and to know that He wasn't finished with Paul yet. His plan and purposes is why He saves us, not our own. And we should never forget- God is NEVER indebted to us. He never owes us anything good based on anything we have done. All we deserve and will ever deserve, no matter how we perform or how many times we show up at church on Sunday, is death and eternal separation from Him. Our obedience is simply an act of worship, not to earn anything for ourselves.
Through trials and tribulations, God reveals more of Himself to us. That is His greatest act of grace and mercy- to allow us to know Him. Therefore, to not subject Paul to further trials, through which God revealed more of Himself to Paul, would be a true showing of God's wrath, not the trials and tribulations themselves.
Paul's life is a testament to endurance and perseverance. To read about his seemingly constant trials and tribulations is to put our own daily inconveniences into proper perspective and to gain the courage to keep going.
In this case, Paul is caught on a ship being battered by a storm as it sails toward Italy. Paul receives encouragement from the angel that neither he nor his shipmates will perish. It would be easy for Paul to take this as a sign that God wants to save him in order to continue his great ministry and because God is pleased with Paul's faithfulness. In other words, it would be easy for Paul to believe that he had earned this salvation.
But the angel puts any of this self-serving thought process to a halt immediately by telling Paul that the reason he will be spared here is because he ultimately has to make it to Rome so that he may stand trial before Caesar. If I'm in Paul's shoes, I'm saying, "Are you kidding me? You aren't sparing my life so that I can go on doing these wonderful things I have been doing for God's glory? Instead, you are sparing my life so that I may finish my journey and stand trial before Caesar? If that's all I have to look forward to, maybe I'd rather just end it right here and now!"
Reading the account now, we have the benefit of hindsight and we know all of the good and all of God's will that was fulfilled after this point in the story. It is easy for us to see now what God really had in store, and to know that He wasn't finished with Paul yet. His plan and purposes is why He saves us, not our own. And we should never forget- God is NEVER indebted to us. He never owes us anything good based on anything we have done. All we deserve and will ever deserve, no matter how we perform or how many times we show up at church on Sunday, is death and eternal separation from Him. Our obedience is simply an act of worship, not to earn anything for ourselves.
Through trials and tribulations, God reveals more of Himself to us. That is His greatest act of grace and mercy- to allow us to know Him. Therefore, to not subject Paul to further trials, through which God revealed more of Himself to Paul, would be a true showing of God's wrath, not the trials and tribulations themselves.
posted by Robert Jory Allen at
10:29 AM
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