SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 9/24/2018
12:11 AM
My Worship Time Focus:
PT-2 “The Start”
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Acts 27:1-8
Message of the verses: “1 When it was
decided that we would sail for Italy, they proceeded to deliver Paul and some
other prisoners to a centurion of the Augustan cohort named Julius. 2 And
embarking in an Adramyttian ship, which was about to sail to the regions along the
coast of Asia, we put out to sea accompanied by Aristarchus, a Macedonian of
Thessalonica. 3 The next day we put in at Sidon; and Julius treated Paul with
consideration and allowed him to go to his friends and receive care. 4 From
there we put out to sea and sailed under the shelter of Cyprus because the
winds were contrary. 5 When we had sailed through the sea along the coast of
Cilicia and Pamphylia, we landed at Myra in Lycia. 6 There the centurion found
an Alexandrian ship sailing for Italy, and he put us aboard it. 7 When we had
sailed slowly for a good many days, and with difficulty had arrived off Cnidus,
since the wind did not permit us to go farther, we sailed under the
shelter of Crete, off Salmone; 8 and with difficulty sailing past it we came to
a place called Fair Havens, near which was the city of Lasea.”
We
pick up our thoughts in today’s SD from verse three where we see that Julius
treated Paul in a good way so that he could go and see his friends who were
willing to help minister to Paul in probably some tangible ways. We must keep in mind a couple of things and
the first was that Paul was an important prisoner, and also that he was a Roman
citizen.
Next
we see in verse four that they left Sidon and Luke mentions that the winds were
contrary, and this should have been a sign to those who were heading this
voyage that things were going to get worse.
This ship was traveling between Cyprus and the main land in order to try
and keep the ship safe.
After
that the ship continued to sail across the northeastern Mediterranean, as they
sailed “along the cost of Cilicia and Pamphylia.” Paul was familiar with this section as he was
from Cilicia and he traveled extensively in those areas on his missionary journeys. MacArthur adds “Helped by local offshore
winds and a west-flowing current, the ship worked its way west along the
southern shore of Asia Minor, making port ‘at Myra in Lycia’ and disembarking.”
Myra
was a very important port for the Roman ships as they brought wheat from Egypt
to take to Rome. After arriving there
the centurion needed to find a ship that was going to Rome and finding one, and
Alexandrian grain ship they sailed slowly for a good many days on it as once
again the winds were causing trouble. We
can see from verses seven and eight “When we had sailed slowly for a good many
days, and with difficulty had arrived off Cnidus, since the wind did not permit
us to go farther, we sailed under the shelter of Crete, off Salmone; 8 and
with difficulty sailing
past it we came to a place called Fair Havens, near which was the city of
Lasea.” Weary from fighting the
weather, the travelers entered the bay.
This would be a foreboding sign of what was to come for them as they
continued towards Rome.
Answer to yesterday’s Bible
question: “David” (1 Samuel 18:29).
Today’s Bible question: “What was the place called where Jesus
observed the Passover with His disciples?”
Answer in our next SD.
9/24/2018
12:30 AM
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