Storm Survival Guide
Series: Acts
Chuck Sligh
June 24, 2018
NOTE: A PowerPoint presentation is available for this sermon by request at chucksligh@hotmail.com.
TEXT: Please turn in your Bibles to Acts 27.
INTRODUCTION
In Acts 27:1-2, we read “And when it was determined that we should sail into Italy, they delivered Paul and certain other prisoners unto one named Julius, a centurion of Augustus’ band. 2 And entering into a ship of Adramyttium, we launched, meaning to sail by the coasts of Asia; one Aristarchus, a Macedonian of Thessalonica, being with us.”
Paul, you recall, had appealed to Caesar due to having been unjustly imprisoned, so in verses 1-2, Paul begins his journey by ship to Rome. The trip began uneventfully, but starting in verse 13, Luke describes a terrifying storm they endured.
Unless you’ve ever been in a boat in a truly dangerous storm, you cannot fully comprehend the horrific storm Luke in Acts 27.
Illus. – When I was a teen living in Okinawa, I remember some of my friends and I taking a boat from the main island of Okinawa to visit one of the smaller islands. It was during the typhoon season and though we were not in a typhoon, we soon found ourselves in a really, really scary storm. We were in a ship much more modern and technologically superior to any of the Roman ship Paul would have been in. Yet, with each wave, our boat was like a plastic toy bobbing in that raging Pacific Ocean, which at that point in time was anything BUT “pacific”—which means “calm, peaceful.” We were engulfed by waves sometimes almost twice as high as our boat! I got right with God real quick—because I just knew that my number was up!
You may never go through a storm in a real ship during your lifetime, but life is full of personal storms in the form of troubles and trials we go through:
• Like MEDICAL storms of sickness, disease, accidents, degenerative health issues.
• Like RELATIONAL storms: marital problems, divorce, abuse, mental illness, emotional crises, depression, loneliness.
• Like FINANCIAL STORMS: losing a house, being put out of the military, bankruptcy.
Today, let’s look at storm survival from Acts 27:
I. NOTE FIRST OF ALL THAT LIFE’S STORMS HIT WHEN YOU LEAST EXPECT THEM.
In verses 1-8, which we’ll not take the time to read today, Luke describes the beginning of Paul’s trip to Rome. As you can see on the map on the screen,[1] they had a stop at Sidon, sailed north of the island of Cypress (instead of the more direct southern route) because of contrary winds), and then landed at Myra where they changed ships. After a couple more stops, they finally arrived at a port called Fair Havens.
Now the thing I want us to see is that up to this point, this was a normal, mundane sea journey, typical of any other voyage of its kind in Roman ships in that day. This reminds us that storms in our lives can hit in the most ordinary routines of life.
Have you ever been going through life and everything is fine and dandy?... Life is good; your finances are great; you and your spouse are getting along wonderfully; everyone in the family is healthy; things are super at work. And then BAM!—a storm hits that rocks your world: You have an accident that totals your car and puts you in the hospital; you find out you have cancer; you and your spouse go through a major marital crisis; a loved one dies; you’re falsely accused of something at work that could destroy your career.
These things happen to us even as Christians serving God. Paul was saved, serving God with all his heart and right with God. Yet, as we’ll see, he went through a horrible storm.
You see, storms don’t play favorites; Christians experience storms just as everyone does. Job said in Job 5:7: “Yet man is born unto trouble, as sparks fly upward.” The question is not IF you will experience major storms in your life, but HOW will you go through them?
II. THE SECOND THING WE SEE IS THAT WHEN A STORM HITS, WE NEED TO SEEK GUIDANCE FROM GOD.
In verses 9-12, it became apparent that the weather was going to be too bad to continue their journey all the way to Rome for the time being.
Again, for time’s sake, I’ll just summarize these verses for us. Luke says that they decided they needed to sit the winter out because it was so late in the Fall. Paul, having received counsel from the Holy Spirit, warned the ship’s officers that they should winter in Fair Havens.
But the experienced captain and crew knew that the harbor in Fair Havens did not shelter ships from the wind in every direction, exposing their ship and its cargo to greater danger over the winter. The consensus was that they should proceed to Phoenix, further up the coast, where the ship would be less exposed over the winter. However, Vegetius in the 4th century AD records that sailing in the Mediterranean after September 15th was dangerous, and after November 11th was impossible. [2] When they decided to sail after the Day of Atonement, as Luke records in verse 9, it was right in the middle of that dangerous period. Whether they stayed in Fair Havens or proceeded to Phoenix, either way was risky.
Sometimes, in the midst of a severe storm, we don’t know what to do. No matter which decision we make, or how much advice we seek, there are drawbacks, and there’s no clear path of which way is best. How do we know which is the right decision to make?—WE HAVE TO GET COUNSEL FROM THE LORD.
There was one person on board who knew the right thing to do—that was Paul. Paul was not a seasoned professional sailor; but he did have the mind of the Lord. Had these sailors not only used their experience as a basis for their decision, but also sought the Lord for what to do, the outcome of their voyage would have been different. In the end, as we will see, they lost EVERYTHING on the ship and ended up spending the winter in even more dire circumstances.
So often, in our storms, we think out all the options, which is wise; we seek counsel from more seasoned and mature people who have been through what we’re experiencing, which is also wise, yet we fail to seek the LORD for counsel.
There have been so many times when I thought I didn’t know what to do in a situation, and then I went to God’s Word and God showed me something that was specific or precise to address the situation in a way I or my counselors had not thought of or gave confirmation to proceed with one of my options.
It’s great to think out your situation through your own logic and to seek the counsel of others wiser than you, but the counsel of the Lord is best! And you get that by spending time in God’s Word and in prayer, and even fasting, until God shows you the path to take.
III. VERSES 13-20 TEACH US WHEN YOU GO THROUGH STORMS, YOU FIND OUT WHAT’S REALLY IMPORTANT.
In these verses, we’re told that when sailing conditions seemed suitable, they chanced it, pulling up anchor and sailing for Phoenix. It was THEN that the tempestuous storm hit.
What they encountered was one of the periodic infamous storms they called Euroclydon, known to produce hurricane-force winds during many winters on the Mediterranean. And they were right in the MIDDLE of the storm. They were disoriented because verse 20 tells us they could see neither the sun nor the stars, the only means of navigation in those days before the compass.
It didn’t matter anyway: the storm was so ferocious that any attempt of trying to navigate against the storm could cause the ship to sink. So the captain made the decision to let the ship go where it would go. Their path was totally being dictated by the storm, and they lost all hope of survival.
Now look at verses 18-19 – “And we being exceedingly tossed with a tempest, the next day they lightened the ship; 19 And the third day we cast out with our own hands the tackling of the ship.”
“Lightening the ship” means that as the storm continued to rage, they were forced to begin throwing everything overboard in an effort to keep the ship afloat. This was a commercial grain ship, so all their cargo—and with it, all their financial gain—was thrown overboard.
Even that was not enough, so they threw the ship’s “tackling” overboard. This refers to the ropes and sailing gear and paraphernalia—important for sailing; but now the only thing that mattered was survival.
You see, when you’re faced with a situation in your life that you have no control over, when everything is spiraling out of control; when you’re just hanging on to survive, you suddenly realize what’s really important in life to hang on to.
Illus. – I remember in 1979, in the weeks after my cancer surgery when the doctor, having misdiagnosed my cancer, told me that I probably only had about six weeks to live—suddenly money, our house, reputation and status lost all importance. I cast them overboard, so to speak, in my heart and mind, and focused on the important things—my God and my family, and what legacy I would leave. Ultimately, nothing else in my life really mattered. I just wanted to cling to the God I thought I was going to shortly go to and to love Susan better, whom I had taken for granted, whom I had not loved as I should have, before whom I had not been the man I should have been.
When the doctors were able to correctly determine the kind of cancer I had and told me that with therapy, I had a chance of living, the pressure was off. But I was forever changed. I have never been, and cannot be, a perfect man before God and my wife and my kids, but I have striven for that goal for the rest of my life.
That experience taught me that all the money in the world and all worldly possessions and pursuits and priorities pale in comparison to loving God with my whole heart, loving my wife as I should, and being an example to kids.
IV. IN VERSES 21-26 WE SEE THAT WE CAN BE CHEERFUL IN THE MIDST OF OUR STORMS – “But after long abstinence [meaning going without food, presumably because they were so focused on keeping the ship from sinking] Paul stood forth in the midst of them, and said, ‘Sirs, ye should have hearkened unto me, and not have loosed from Crete, and to have gained this harm and loss. 22 And now I exhort you to be of good cheer: for there shall be no loss of any man’s life among you, but of the ship. 23 For there stood by me this night the angel of God, whose I am, and whom I serve, 24 Saying, Fear not, Paul; thou must be brought before Caesar: and, lo, God hath given thee all them that sail with thee. 25 Wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer: for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me. 26 Howbeit we must be cast upon a certain island. 27 But when the fourteenth night was come, as we were driven up and down in Adria, about midnight the shipmen deemed that they drew near to some country.”
Now this is almost comical, if you think about it: Everyone’s running around, doing all they can in the midst of a raging storm to save the ship, and Paul gets up and says, “Hey guys, be of good cheer.”
Most of the modern translations translate this as “be courageous” or something similar, but I looked up the meaning of the word in the Greek and in both the Textus Receptus, which the King James and the Nestle Aland text, which most modern translations are based on, the Greek work is the same—euthumeo [e???µ??] and it literally means to “be cheerful; be merry.”
Why could Paul himself be so cheerful and how could he twice, in verse 22 and again in verse 25, counsel everyone else on the ship, to be cheerful?
1. First, because of God’s presence.
Paul says an angel from God told him not to be afraid because, though they would run aground on some island, everyone on board would survive. This reminds us that even in the storms in your life, God is there with you, and He’ll give you the comfort and help you need to get you through them.
Storms in life are a reality we all must face. They’re unavoidable—but we do not have to face them alone! Jesus said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” (Heb. 13:5) We are NEVER alone or abandoned.
2. Second, Paul could be so cheerful because of his faith in God.
Paul said in verse 25: “Wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer: for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me.”
Faith results in peace in the midst of storms, so even though the storm was raging, Paul could be cool, calm and collected. In fact, he could be CHEERFUL.
Everyone was dashing about, doing all they could to save the ship, and there was Paul over by the masthead, inspecting his fingernails, cool as a cucumber, just chillin’, and then he gets up and says, “Hey ya’ll, ya’ll need to just chill. Be of good cheer. My God’s got this all under control.”
They may have thought he had lost his mind!—but he was simply resting in the peace of God. Paul saw no reason for fear or dread.
We see why Paul was so calm in verse 25: He says, “For I believe God.” This gets to the essence of how we can go through the worst trials in life: by trusting God and His word, NOT focusing on our circumstances.
Hebrews 11:1 defines faith this way, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen.”
The words substance and evidence in the KJV don’t actually accurately reflect the original Greek. The ESV captures it perfectly: “…faith is the ASSURANCE of things hoped for, the CONVICTION of things not seen.”
If we could SEE what we’re hoping for, it would not require faith. In no situation in life is faith more difficult than during life’s storms. It is in those situations that things seem so confusing, and so desperate and so hopeless.
But it is just THEN that faith is MOST important! It is then, more importantly than any other time, that you must go to God in His Word and in prayer, and seek Him and experience His presence to find His solace and His love and His care and His guidance.
Illus. – I’ll never forget when I was pastoring in Wiesbaden when a missionary friend’s wife Thrasilla Hornung, went through a serious illness and had to be hospitalized for several weeks.
She suffered so much and could have been under great anxiety because for so long they could not determine the cause of her malady.
Visiting with her was like visiting a 20th century Paul in female form. I came to encourage and minister to her but left each time having been encouraged and ministered to by her. She faced her situation with such cheerfulness that it was inspiring. During her stay, she had several roommates, and each one she saw as a special project for ministry and witness. In fact, she told me on one visit that she felt she was sent to the hospital (her words) was so that she could witness to her roommates.
I asked her on one visit, “Thrasilla, how can you face this with such peace and joy?”
She just looked at me like I was dumb as a rock—like, “Chuck, you’re a pastor and you don’t know that?” and she said, “Well, Brother Chuck, I just believe God.”
Her outward circumstances yelled “Trial! Tribulation! Suffering! Trouble!,” but her faith shouted back, “Witnessing opportunities! A way to grow stronger in faith! More time to spend in God’s Word!”
Paul knew everyone on board except him were basing their assumptions on outward conditions, but he was resting his faith in God. Brethren, the enemy desires us to live in defeat. He knows he was defeated at Calvary, and he’s unable to touch the souls of the redeemed, but if he can get us to succumb to defeat, we’re rendered ineffective in service to God.
As we face the storms and trials of life, we have a choice to make—do we believe the promises of God or the lies of the devil? Our victory in the trials we face depends upon the choice we make. When you face storms in your life, choose to believe God! Go to His Word and find His promises and His words of encouragement and His guidance.
V. FINALLY, IN THE REST OF THE CHAPTER, WE SEE ONE FINAL THOUGHT: GOD’S DELIVERANCE FROM STORMS MAY NOT MEAN IMMEDIATE DELIVERANCE OR COMPLETE DELIVERANCE.
Basically, this portion of Scripture, what the angel had told Paul would happened did, in fact, occur just as prophesied. They ran aground on an island and though they lost the ship completely, all survived the storm.
Like Paul, you may be delivered from the worst part of a storm, but God may still allow you to be “cast upon a certain island” for reasons only He understands. Or He may choose to not deliver you from the storm at all. His purpose may be to make you stronger by enduring the full force of the storm.
Paul says in Romans 5:3-4 – “…we REJOICE in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces ENDURANCE, 4 and endurance produces CHARACTER, and character produces HOPE.” (ESV)
But here’s the thing: You can be assured that God will be with you all the way through.
CONCLUSION
In closing, I’d like you to turn in your Bibles to Philippians 4 where Paul gives us some practical advice when we’re going through a storm. His advice in Philippians 4 is simple and it works every time, if you’ll let it, but it’s not easy.
Philippians 4:6 says, “Be careful [that is, “anxious”] for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication [which means, “seeking, asking, entreating”] with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.”
1. First of all, Paul says, “Do not be anxious about anything.” – That’s not just good advice; that’s a command!
2. Second, Paul says, take your concerns and worries to God in prayer.
Spend time in prayer, but don’t just pray for deliverance or your preferred outcome. Pray that God would give you the strength to bear whatever He has chosen in His sovereignty for you to endure.
Pray for peace and calm and composure and courage, whatever the outcome.
3. Now here’s where the rubber meets the road: Paul goes on to say that we must pray and petition God WITH THANKSGIVING.
This is the hardest part of all. Usually, when we pray about our storms, we’re complaining to God. But that runs counter to Scripture.
• Jesus said to “Rejoice, and be exceeding glad” when persecuted and falsely accused, for “great is your reward in heaven.”
• Paul, as we saw a few moments ago, said, “we rejoice in tribulation.”
• James 1:2 says, “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds.” (ESV)
• The only way we can thank God in the midst of our storms is to trust in God, to trust that He knows what He is doing, to know that He loves you.
Those are propositions you must accept by faith, not by what you see or feel.
What happens when we do that?—verse 7 says, “And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
It is only when we have obeyed verse 6 that we can have peace in our storms. And not just any peace, but a peace “that passes all understanding.” [PAUSE FOR TRANSITION.] Are you going through a storm right now?
My counsel is to pray and pray and pray, and seek God, and thank Him for your storm, trusting that God will get you through this; that He will never leave or forsake you. May you, like Paul be able to say with confidence, as Paul did: “I believe God.”
If you’ll follow Paul’s example in Acts 27 and his advice in Philippians 4, you’ll survive the storms in your life just fine, and you’ll come out at the other end of them stronger, better and with more character and godliness than before.
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ENDNOTES
[1] Map found at https://www.google.de/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conformingtojesus.com%2Fimages%2Fwebpages%2Fpauls_voyage_to_rome_map1.jpg&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conformingtojesus.com%2Fcharts-maps%2Fen%2Fpaul%27s_journey_to_rome_map.htm&docid=KPrkmt41lJeHwM&tbnid=z98TyjlCRGygOM%3A&vet=10ahUKEwjYiNqrt-nbAhUBsBQKHUl-AMAQMwg-KAEwAQ..i&w=3162&h=1922&hl=en&bih=709&biw=1309&q=map%20paul%27s%20journey%20to%20rome&ved=0ahUKEwjYiNqrt-nbAhUBsBQKHUl-AMAQMwg-KAEwAQ&iact=mrc&uact=8
[2] https://www.bibleplaces.com/fair-havens/
