Acts 27 | The Upward Way | Bible Study with A. Z. Adams — Transcript

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1. 0:00Acts chapter 27 verse 1.
2. 0:03When it was decided that we would sail
3. 0:04for Italy, they proceeded to deliver
4. 0:07Paul and some [music] other prisoners to
5. 0:10a centurion to a centurion of the
6. 0:12Augustan cohort, [music]
7. 0:14Julius.
8. 0:16And embarking in [music] an Andromachean
9. 0:19ship, which was about to sail to the
10. 0:22regions along the coast of Asia,
11. 0:25we put out to sea accompanied by
12. 0:27Aristarchus, a Macedonian of
13. 0:29Thessalonica.
14. 0:31The next day we put in [music] at Sidon,
15. 0:34and Julius treated Paul with
16. 0:36consideration and allowed him to go to
17. 0:39his friends [music]
18. 0:40and receive care.
19. 0:42So, Paul is a prisoner in route [music]
20. 0:45to the courts of the emperor Caesar. And
21. 0:49Caesar at this time is a maniac. He's
22. 0:53one of the most [music] dysfunctional
23. 0:55emperors that Rome ever had.
24. 0:58It's Nero.
25. 1:00And he's irrational. He's likely
26. 1:03mentally ill or demon-possessed, both.
27. 1:06And Paul is on his way there. But the
28. 1:09centurion
29. 1:11treats him with respect. He doesn't keep
30. 1:14him in chains. He allows him to go to
31. 1:16his friends. And what happens is the
32. 1:19whole journey to the courts [music] of
33. 1:22Caesar Nero
34. 1:23actually ends up being a very effective
35. 1:26time of evangelism for the Apostle Paul.
36. 1:29Everywhere he goes, he's doing ministry.
37. 1:32And he's getting a Roman escort to do
38. 1:34it.
39. 1:38From there we put out to sea and sailed
40. 1:40under the shelter of Cyprus because the
41. 1:43winds were contrary.
42. 1:45When we had sailed through the sea along
43. 1:47the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia, we
44. 1:50landed at Myra in Lycia.
45. 1:53Then the centurion found an Alexandrian
46. 1:56ship sailing for Italy and he put us
47. 1:59aboard it.
48. 2:01When we had sailed slowly for a good
49. 2:03many days and with difficulty had
50. 2:06arrived at
51. 2:07Cnidus,
52. 2:09since the wind did not permit us to go
53. 2:11further, we sailed under the shelter of
54. 2:13Crete off Salmon.
55. 2:16And with difficulty sailing past it, we
56. 2:18came to a place called Fair Havens,
57. 2:22near which was the city of Lasea.
58. 2:26When considerable time had passed and
59. 2:28the voyage was now dangerous, since the
60. 2:31fast was already over, the fast
61. 2:33referring to Yom Kippur in September or
62. 2:35October,
63. 2:37Paul began to admonish them and said to
64. 2:39them, "Men, I perceive that the voyage
65. 2:42will certainly be with damage and great
66. 2:45loss, not only of the cargo in the ship,
67. 2:48but also of our lives."
68. 2:51But the centurion was more persuaded by
69. 2:53the pilot and the captain of the ship
70. 2:57than by what was being said by Paul.
71. 3:01Because the harbor was not suitable for
72. 3:03wintering, the majority reached a
73. 3:05decision
74. 3:06to put out to sea from there, if somehow
75. 3:10they could reach Phoenix, a harbor of
76. 3:12Crete,
77. 3:14facing southwest and northwest,
78. 3:17and spending the winter there.
79. 3:20When a moderate south wind came up,
80. 3:23supposing that they had attained their
81. 3:25purpose,
82. 3:26they weighed anchor and began sailing
83. 3:29along Crete close inshore.
84. 3:33So, here we have a very interesting
85. 3:35equation about to unfold.
86. 3:37The Apostle Paul is a prisoner,
87. 3:39but the centurion is treating him with
88. 3:41great respect,
89. 3:43and winter is setting in, and the seas
90. 3:45are not going to be
91. 3:47compatible with traveling in the manner
92. 3:50that they need. And so, Paul warns them
93. 3:52and says, "If you do this, I perceive
94. 3:55through the gifts that he had in the
95. 3:57spirit, I perceive it's going to meet
96. 3:58with calamity."
97. 4:00But, he listens to the captain and the
98. 4:02pilot.
99. 4:03And the centurion decides that they're
100. 4:05going to go ahead and go.
101. 4:07They disobey the command of Paul.
102. 4:10But, before very long,
103. 4:12there rushed down from the land
104. 4:15a violent wind
105. 4:17called Euroaquilo.
106. 4:21And when the ship was caught in it
107. 4:24and could not face the wind, we gave way
108. 4:27to it and let ourselves be driven along.
109. 4:32Running under the shelter
110. 4:35of a small island called Cauda,
111. 4:38we were scarcely able to get the ship's
112. 4:41boat under control.
113. 4:44After they had hoisted it up, they used
114. 4:47supporting cables in undergirding the
115. 4:49ship. And fearing that they might run
116. 4:52aground on the shallows of Syrtis,
117. 4:55they let down the sea anchor and in this
118. 4:58way let themselves be driven along.
119. 5:01They are no longer in control.
120. 5:04So, they are binding the underbelly of
121. 5:06the ship with cables to keep it from
122. 5:09falling apart. And they've let down the
123. 5:11anchor and they're letting the winds
124. 5:13drag them, but the anchor slow them down
125. 5:17as they're being driven in a way
126. 5:20that they have no authority over.
127. 5:23The next day, as we were being violently
128. 5:27storm-tossed,
129. 5:28they began to jettison the cargo.
130. 5:32They start throwing overboard all of the
131. 5:34weight from the ship.
132. 5:37And on the third day, they threw the
133. 5:39ship's tackle overboard with their own
134. 5:41hands.
135. 5:43Now, tackle doesn't refer to fishing
136. 5:45gear. It refers to everything you need
137. 5:47to run the ship.
138. 5:49The cables, the chains, the winches,
139. 5:51[clears throat]
140. 5:51everything you need to be safe in
141. 5:54managing a ship. They're throwing it
142. 5:55overboard.
143. 5:58Since neither sun nor stars appeared for
144. 6:00many days, and no small storm was
145. 6:03assailing us, from then on all hope of
146. 6:06our being saved was gradually abandoned.
147. 6:11When they had gone a long time without
148. 6:13food, then Paul stood up in their midst
149. 6:17and said,
150. 6:18"Men,
151. 6:20you ought to have followed my advice
152. 6:23and not to have set sail from Crete and
153. 6:26incurred this damage and loss.
154. 6:31Yet now I urge you
155. 6:33to keep up your courage,
156. 6:35for there will be no loss of life among
157. 6:37you, but only of the ship.
158. 6:41For this very night
159. 6:43an angel of the God to whom I belong
160. 6:46and whom I serve stood before me,
161. 6:50saying,
162. 6:51'Do not be afraid, Paul.
163. 6:54You must stand before Caesar and behold,
164. 6:57God has granted you all those who are
165. 7:00sailing with you.
166. 7:02Therefore keep up your courage, men, for
167. 7:05I believe God that it will turn out
168. 7:07exactly as I have been told.
169. 7:11But we must run aground on a certain
170. 7:15island.'
171. 7:19But
172. 7:20when the 14th night came,
173. 7:23as we were being driven about in the
174. 7:26Adriatic Sea,
175. 7:27about midnight, the sailors began to
176. 7:30surmise that they were approaching some
177. 7:33land.
178. 7:35They took soundings and found it to be
179. 7:3720 fathoms, and a little further on they
180. 7:40took another sounding and found it to be
181. 7:4215 fathoms.
182. 7:44Fearing that we might run aground
183. 7:46somewhere on the rocks, they cast four
184. 7:49anchors from the stern
185. 7:51and wished for daybreak.
186. 7:54But as the sailors were trying to escape
187. 7:57from the ship and had [clears throat]
188. 7:58let down the ship's boat into the sea on
189. 8:02the pretense of intending to lay out
190. 8:04anchors from the bow,
191. 8:06Paul said to the Centurion and to the
192. 8:08soldiers,
193. 8:10"Unless these men remain in the ship,
194. 8:12you yourselves cannot be saved."
195. 8:16Then the soldiers cut away the ropes
196. 8:19and the ship's boat and let it fall
197. 8:22away.
198. 8:26Now in this,
199. 8:28we have a parable
200. 8:30of what it means to be warned by God not
201. 8:33to do something
202. 8:35and to put ourselves in a world of hurt,
203. 8:39in a storm of impossibility,
204. 8:42where hope is lost.
205. 8:44But even in the storm,
206. 8:47the voice of God can still bring his
207. 8:51plan
208. 8:52back into view.
209. 8:54He can hijack the disobedience, so to
210. 8:57speak.
211. 8:59And that's what's happening here. Paul
212. 9:01is
213. 9:01rebuking them and telling them, "You
214. 9:03should have listened. But if you will
215. 9:05listen now,
216. 9:07God can be lord of even your
217. 9:09disobedience and he can lead it into his
218. 9:12purpose if you'll obey him from here on
219. 9:15out."
220. 9:16But
221. 9:18unbelief has a way, and so when we get
222. 9:21close to what we think is what we're
223. 9:23looking for,
224. 9:24the sailors are trying to sneak away
225. 9:27using the ship's boat to get there.
226. 9:29But this time, look at the decisiveness
227. 9:32of the obedience from the Centurion and
228. 9:35the soldiers.
229. 9:36They know better than to disobey Paul
230. 9:38now.
231. 9:39So, when he tells them these sailors are
232. 9:41trying to take the boat and get off to
233. 9:44this island, they better stay with the
234. 9:46ship.
235. 9:49The soldiers take their swords and slash
236. 9:52the lifeboats free.
237. 9:54That's decision.
238. 9:56That's cutting off your options. That's
239. 9:58saying we're going to do it God's way
240. 10:00even if it seems impossible.
241. 10:03Then the soldiers cut away these ropes
242. 10:05of the ship's boat and let it fall away.
243. 10:10Until the day was about to dawn, Paul
244. 10:13was encouraging them all to take some
245. 10:16food saying, "Today is the 14th day and
246. 10:20you have been constantly watching and
247. 10:22going without eating having taken
248. 10:24nothing.
249. 10:25Therefore, I encourage you to take some
250. 10:28food for this [snorts] is for your
251. 10:30preservation for not a hair from the
252. 10:33head of any of you will perish."
253. 10:36Paul is a shepherd. He's telling these
254. 10:38guys who are freaking out, "It's been 14
255. 10:41days. Y'all need to eat something.
256. 10:43You've been watching. You've been
257. 10:44staying up.
258. 10:46God is going to watch over you, but he's
259. 10:48going to do it through your obedience to
260. 10:50a word outside of your own
261. 10:51understanding.
262. 10:53Submit to that word
263. 10:55and let him be captain of this ship.
264. 10:57This ship of the disaster you created.
265. 11:01Having said this, he took bread himself
266. 11:03and gave thanks to God in the presence
267. 11:05of all and he broke it and began to eat
268. 11:07and all of them were encouraged
269. 11:10and they themselves also took food.
270. 11:12All of us in the ship were 276
271. 11:16persons.
272. 11:18This is a big ship.
273. 11:20When they had eaten enough, they began
274. 11:22to lighten the ship by throwing out the
275. 11:24wheat into the sea.
276. 11:26They're so confident
277. 11:28that Paul has told them the truth that
278. 11:30they're even tossing over some of their
279. 11:32future food.
280. 11:39When day came, they could not recognize
281. 11:41the land, but they did observe a bay
282. 11:44with a beach, and they resolved to drive
283. 11:47the ship into it if they could.
284. 11:51And casting off the anchors,
285. 11:54they left them in the sea.
286. 11:57Do you see the story of divestment?
287. 12:00First, God is divesting them of their
288. 12:02pride, of their knowledge that doesn't
289. 12:04come from him, but from their own
290. 12:06understanding, their trust in the
291. 12:08captain and the commander.
292. 12:10Then he's divesting them of their extra
293. 12:13baggage, all the things that they took
294. 12:15on board that they that were really just
295. 12:17going to sink them in the storm. Then
296. 12:19he's divesting them of their tackle, how
297. 12:22they're going to guide this thing by
298. 12:24their own strength and wisdom.
299. 12:26Amen. Then he's divesting them of their
300. 12:28lifeboats, all their plan B's, all their
301. 12:32back door options.
302. 12:34Then he's divesting them even of the
303. 12:36extra food that they're going to need if
304. 12:38they don't trust him and he doesn't
305. 12:40actually bring them through.
306. 12:43It's pretty incredible, isn't it?
307. 12:45At last, [music] he's divesting them of
308. 12:47their anchors,
309. 12:48their resistance to the storm,
310. 12:52their resistance to the way God is
311. 12:54working through [music] the storm now
312. 12:56that it's been surrendered back to his
313. 12:57care.
314. 12:59And they're moving toward a harbor.
315. 13:03And casting off the anchors, they left
316. 13:07them in the sea, while at the same time
317. 13:10they were loosening the ropes of the
318. 13:12rudders and hoisting the foresail to the
319. 13:15wind. They were heading for the beach.
320. 13:19But striking a reef where two seas met,
321. 13:24they ran the vessel aground,
322. 13:27and the prow struck fast and remained
323. 13:29immovable, but the stern began to be
324. 13:32broken up by the force of the waves.
325. 13:36But Paul had told them, "Remain with the
326. 13:39ship, and there will be no loss of
327. 13:41life."
328. 13:42The soldiers' plan was to kill [music]
329. 13:44the prisoners so that none of them
330. 13:47would swim away and escape.
331. 13:50Because if they let their prisoners go,
332. 13:52they're [music] going to die under Roman
333. 13:53law.
334. 13:55But the centurion,
335. 13:57wanting to bring Paul safely through,
336. 14:00kept them from their intention and
337. 14:02commanded that those who could swim
338. 14:05should jump overboard first and go to
339. 14:07land.
340. 14:10So now he's [music] divesting them of
341. 14:12the ship.
342. 14:15And the rest should follow. Some on
343. 14:17planks, [music]
344. 14:19others on various things from the ship,
345. 14:21and so it happened that they were all
346. 14:25brought safely to land.
347. 14:28God tells them to stay with the ship
348. 14:30until it's time for the ship to be
349. 14:32dismantled.
350. 14:33And in the end, they float into their
351. 14:35salvation, clinging just to the planks
352. 14:39of the thing they should have never
353. 14:40boarded in the first place.
354. 14:43But obedience sees them through.
355. 14:48What a parable.
356. 14:51>> [music]