The Book of Acts ends with Paul being taken as a prisoner by ship to Rome and living under house arrest for 2 years, where he lived in his own rented house (Acts 28:30). For 2 whole years, Paul “boldly and without hindrance preached the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ” (Acts 28:31). The early Church fulfilled Jesus’ prophetic command from the beginning of the Book of Acts: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). The faithful Church today continues to fulfill this prophetic command around the world.

“Stormy Seas” And God’s Purposes

Paul’s ship voyage to Rome that we read about in Acts 27 is very representative of Paul’s entire life in faithfully proclaiming the Gospel and planting churches throughout the Roman Empire. The ship that he is travelling in encounters a terrific storm, in which even the sailors and soldiers give up hope of being rescued (Acts 27:20). But the LORD is with Paul and the crew in the midst of the storm. An angel of the Lord encourages Paul, and he, in turn, encourages and guides the crew (Acts 27:21-26). They encounter heavy loss in cargo, but no loss of life. God graciously spares everyone.

They end up shipwrecked on the island of Malta (Acts 28:1). Paul ends up healing the father of Publius, the chief official of the island. He also heals others, who come to him, when they hear of the initial healing (Acts 28:7-9). Through the trials of shipwreck, and through Paul’s faith, the LORD opened a wonderful door of ministry. This is how the LORD often works even today. For example, in the present pandemic crisis, the LORD has opened many doors of compassionate ministry for His people. There have also been many opportunities to share from God’s Word through on-line ministry.

Justified By Faith

Of the many letters written by the Apostle Paul, none is more systematic in its presentation of Paul’s theology than the Letter to the Romans. Paul is preparing to meet the church at Rome for the first time (Romans 1:8-13). In advance of this visit, Paul writes them his vaunted Epistle to the Romans.

This Letter is a great presentation of the core beliefs of Christianity. Paul first seeks to show that both Jew and Gentile are in need of the Gospel of Jesus, which is the “power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile” (Romans 1:16). For the Gospel reveals the righteousness of God, and the way to receive this righteousness is through faith in God’s promises, and trust in the faithful Promised One, Jesus (Romans 1:17,18).

Paul goes on to show that both the lawless Gentile (Romans 1:18-32) and the religious Jew (Romans 2) fall short of God’s glory and are subject to God’s wrath and judgment (Romans 3:9-20). The Good News is that God has provided the way of redemption through the atoning death of Christ. No matter who we are, whether religious Jew or a lawless Gentile, we can be justified freely by God’s grace through faith in what Christ did on the cross for us (Rom. 3:21-30).

Even Abraham, the father of the Jewish race, was justified through faith in God’s promises, and he received circumcision as a visible sign of that faith (Romans 4:10-12). Because Abraham was justified by faith in God’s promises, he is the father of both the circumcised (Jews) and the uncircumcised (Gentiles), who have faith. “He is the father of us all” (Romans 4:17). That’s why God changed his name from Abram (meaning “exalted father”) to Abraham (meaning “father of many nations”).

QOTD: Are you seeking your justification before God by faith in God’s Promised One, the Lord Jesus Christ?