Acts

Acts 28 includes two stories. The first story is about Paul staying on the island of Malta for three months and then leaving there after the winter to go to Rome. On this island, he supernaturally prevailed against the attack of the viper. He also healed the father of the chief official of the island and other sick people. We don’t understand why Paul lived on this island for three months but didn’t record much of his ministry there. For example, if we are talking about healing people on the island, Paul would be able to lay hands on them and heal them in just a few days. Since Paul was a prisoner, he probably did not have the tools to weave tents as he always did in his profession. While in Malta, did Paul preach the gospel and teach the natives about the Bible? Since details aren’t given, we don’t’ know exactly what he did for those three months.

Matthew 10:8 (NIV) says, “Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.” This sentence is what the Lord Jesus told the twelve disciples when He sent them out to preach. It seems that “raise the dead” is somewhat of an obscure command. Even among the twelve disciples, there is not much recorded of them raising someone from the dead. But there are a few examples, including Acts 9, where Peter raised Dorcas from the dead, and Acts 20, where Paul raised Eutychus from the dead, which we will read today.

Acts 25 is like a tug of war. Paul was imprisoned in Caesarea, a place Northwest of Jerusalem. The Jews insisted that Festus send Paul back to Jerusalem for trial, hoping to ambush and kill Paul on the way. Festus tried to please the Jews and asked Paul if he was willing to return to Jerusalem for trial, but Paul insisted on appealing to Caesar. So after Festus conferred with his council, he accepted Paul’s request.

Acts 27 records Paul’s voyage to Italy. This journey involves a variety of places, and often people don’t understand the details of Paul’s journeys and the spiritual significance behind them. Paul’s four journeys encompassed many different locations and can be confusing to those who haven’t studied it to the point of understanding.

There are many different translations of this phrase “strengthening the souls of the disciples”. For example, the NIV translates it as “strengthening the disciples” and the New Living Translation translates it as “they strengthened the believers”. But the English Standard Version, New American Standard Bible and King James Bible all pointed out that they strengthen the “souls of the disciples.”