It Should Have Killed You

It should have killed you : Revivalist Terry Sisney

Acts 28:1-28:6

How many of us have looked back at our life and realized that it is only the grace of God that we have lived this long?

Car wrecks, drugs, gang violence, drowning, and so many other circumstances have taken the lives of those we have been acquainted with,

(Some of you here, right now you know that if it wasn’t for the grace of God you would have died in that car wreck, you would have been the one spending your life behind prison walls,

or you would have been the one who died of a drug overdose.

We begin this message with Paul advising them not to sail.

Acts 27:10 Paul tells them not to sail:

How many know we don’t always listen to wise counsel, (we could have saved ourselves a lot of grief and pain had we just listened to those who tried to instruct us).

Acts 27:11 But they didn’t listen

And they sailed directly into the storm of their lives

Acts 27:18-19 They lightened the ship

There’s nothing like a bad storm for realigning priorities, (You find out real quick what you need and what is unnecessary, or excess baggage).

The ship was destroyed

But they made it to land on boards, and broken pieces of the ship:

Somebody ought to lift your hands right now and say (I’m going to make it) I may be broken but I’m still coming, wounded but I’m still coming, bleeding but I’m still coming, crying but I’m still coming, confused but I’m still coming, rejected but I’m still coming.

I know I’m not everything I should be, I’m still struggling with some habits and hang-ups, I’m still wrestling with some anger and forgiveness issues, I still slip up every once and while and say something I shouldn’t say.

I know I’m not where I should be by now, but I know I’m moving in the right direction.

I know I’m chopping up the water all around me, but it’s just because I don’t want to drown

Acts 27:44 They all escaped safe to land:

Somebody needs to lift your hands right now and thank God that you made it through the storm,

It should have killed you, but you made it ( Most of it was your own fault, you brought it on yourself) but God had mercy on you and you made it.

You shouldn’t have made it, You shouldn’t be here, you shouldn’t have made it through the storm,

(But just tell the devil) I’m still here

Acts 28:1-6

They’ve made it through the storm, landed on an island, the barbarians on that island begin to kindle a fire for them, Paul begins to gather sticks for the fire and out of the sticks, a viper fastens itself to Paul’s hand

Now it says (Howbeit they looked) = to watch, to anticipate, to wait for,

There are people that are watching you who do not want you to make it, they are anxiously waiting and anticipating your downfall, they rejoice when they see you going through hard ships and trials,

Their watching, their waiting to celebrate your downfall, celebrate your breakdown, your defeat.

When he should have swollen or fallen down dead suddenly:

This means that they had seen this happen before, and everytime it happened this was the end result.

He should have swollen or fallen down suddenly.

Medical science says you should have died

Every legal advisor says you should have died

Every natural circumstance says you shouldn’t have made it

it should have killed you,

You should be in a mental institution or strung out on drugs, mad at God and mad at the world,

I came to tell somebody that not only are you going to make it, but you are not even going to look like you have been through what you’ve been through.

When the children of Israel went through the red sea, God didn’t just part the waters, he dried the ground that they walked on.

When they reached the other side, there wasn’t even mud between their toes.

For a little bit it looked like the enemy was closing in on them and was going to overtake them, but they just kept on walking.

And while they were walking God was taking care of their enemies, ( while they were walking their enemies were drowning).

I want to tell somebody today (just keep walking) it don’t matter what they say about you, it don’t matter what they do, it don’t matter what the doctor says, it don’t matter what the rebellious child says, it don’ matter what the financial report says (this is no place to sit and cry, just keep walking) and when God gets through blessing you, you wont even look like you’ve been through what you’ve been through.