Ep 455 – Acts 27:21-38

It's easy to be courageous when no danger or threat is imminent. Being brave is a piece of cake if you aren't staring down the proverbial barrel of a gun. But what about when things have gone south and you find yourself surrounded by circumstances that could prove disastrous, if not deadly? In Acts 27:21-38, Luke is going to provide us with just such a situation. It involves Paul, as well a host of other, unnamed characters who find themselves in a deadly predicament where loss of hope is accompanied by a real possibility of loss of life. They're on a ship in the middle of a raging storm and, as far as the men on board can determine, all is lost. But in the midst of it all, Paul will stand up and urge his fellow passengers to take heart. Basically, he will tell them to be of good cheer. They're being battered and beaten by the wind and waves, and yet Paul wants them to put on a happy face. Had he lost his mind? Was he delirious? No, he was trusting. He had received a message from an angel of God assuring him that not one single person on board the ship would die. They would have to endure a shipwreck, but they would survive, unscathed. And because Paul knew the message was from God, he knew the content of the message could be trusted. God was good for His word. And it was Paul's confidence in his God that produced courage in his heart and impacted all those around him who had lost all hope.