Why, Lord?

GETTING STARTED

In the last two passages, we’ve seen Paul shipwrecked, saved from certain death, bitten by a viper, and confounding expectations. Paul has been through the ringer, but God keeps preserving him. Today we see the next experience he had while on the isle of Malta.

  • When have you experienced a particularly hard season of life that caused you to wonder what it was all for?

READ THE WORD: ACTS 28:7-10 (ESV)

7 Now in the neighborhood of that place were lands belonging to the chief man of the island, named Publius, who received us and entertained us hospitably for three days. 8 It happened that the father of Publius lay sick with fever and dysentery. And Paul visited him and prayed, and putting his hands on him healed him. 9 And when this had taken place, the rest of the people on the island who had diseases also came and were cured. 10 They also honored us greatly, and when we were about to sail, they put on board whatever we needed.

English Standard Version, copyright 2001 by Crossway Bibles. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

DIGGING DEEPER

  1. What do we know about Publius from today’s text?
  2. What opportunity was Paul given in this story?
  3. What results do you see from the situation for the islanders? For Paul and those he was traveling with?
  4. Who was blessed in this story?
  5. When was a time that God allowed you to go through something difficult or unexpected in order to bless you or someone else? How did that experience affect your faith?

RESPOND TO GOD

Our lives are full of things that are hard or that we wish we could avoid. It can seem as though it’s one big zigzagging path and that we’re not making any forward progress. But when we stop and look back, we see how God has ordered our steps for his purposes and for our good. Each thing that happened to Paul in this passage led to blessing not only for the people of Malta, but also for Paul. Romans 8:28 encourages us that all things work together for good for those who love God and are called according to his purposes. Stories like this remind us that, while not everything is good, God is working good in all things.

  • Stop and reflect on what’s going on in your life right now. Ask God to give you endurance and trust in him, that he will be with you in your trials and will use you to bless others (2 Cor. 1:3-4).