The problem many Christians face is that they don’t know who they are in Christ. They don’t realise they’ve been given authority. With authority in their hands, they walk around defeated and discouraged.
In Acts 28, Paul teaches us how to walk in the authority that God has given us. In whichever season of life you may be in, in your lows or highs, God's authority is available to you.
We’ve been given the authority to:
• Speak peace into our anxious minds, but we stay bound in fear.
• Pray healing over sickness, but we hesitate, thinking it’s only for “super spiritual” people.
• Stand firm against temptation, but we give in to sin as if we’re powerless.
• Proclaim truth boldly, but we stay silent to keep peace or avoid rejection.
Too many believers walk around spiritually handcuffed, unaware or afraid to exercise the authority Jesus gave us.
Malta was not in Paul’s itinerary, but it was in God’s plan
Paul’s plan was to go to Rome. Paul had that deep longing to go to Rome for quite a while now. In his letter to the Roman church, penned perhaps a year or two before this very journey, he declared, "I long to see you... I have often intended to come to you" (Romans 1:11, 13). He saw Rome, the heart of the Roman Empire, as a strategic hub for the spread of the Gospel to the ends of the earth (Romans 15:23-24).
Not just Paul’s personal choice, Paul had a prophetic word that he would go to Rome. 11 But the following night the Lord stood by him and said, “Be of good cheer, Paul; for as you have testified for Me in Jerusalem, so you must also bear witness at Rome.” (Acts 23:11)
In Acts 27, we see Paul was on his way to Rome not by personal choice but as a prisoner. Paul's current status as a prisoner.
Paul was held by Felix for two years until Felix was replaced as governor by Porcius Festus. A new governor meant a new trial for Paul. Once again, the Jewish leaders had an opportunity to get their hands on this man they wanted dead. They began to urge Festus to send Paul back to Jerusalem to stand trial, where they had an ambush prepared for him. When Festus wanted to do the Jews a favor, he asked Paul if he would be willing to move the trial to Jerusalem. But Paul had appealed his case to Caesar.
This meant he needed to go to Rome to stand before Ceaser. Ironically, although a prisoner, he was still achieving the same goal.
But even now, this plan did not go smoothly. If you read Acts 27, you find that the ship in which Paul was being taken to Rome, along with 256 other prisoners, suddenly encountered a storm. There was a shipwreck. All of them thought they would die. But for Paul’s sake, God saved everyone in that ship. Everyone made it safely to the land.
God did not explain the reasons and purpose of the shipwreck, but Paul was assured of God’s presence, and it is enough for Paul to be strong. Sometimes God doesn’t give us a reason for why we are going through what we are going through, but He is with us and He will bless and make us a blessing.
All of us love to make plans. We create to-do lists, set goals, and plan our lives, including itineraries for our careers, families, and relationships. And there's nothing inherently wrong with good planning; indeed, the wisdom and foresight are God-given.
But let’s be honest. Does life always go according to plan? Sometimes, we wonder why we are in this place, this situation, why this life? Why did this sickness suddenly? Why this job loss? Why this financial setback?
Those are the “Malta moments’ of your life. Sometimes you can land in Malta instead of Rome. You didn’t plan it, but you have to face it now. It is important that you learn to trust God during those moments in your life.
God allows some detours in our lives to bring us closer to God and to use us to bless others. You can see that from the life of Paul.
Paul has many reasons to ask God the question Why:
1. He is preaching the gospel but ends up in jail
2. He was blamed for a crime he did not commit
3. He was on board a ship but met with a strong typhoon
4. He was caught in a storm due to the bad decisions of ship captain
5. He is going to Rome to appeal his case but landed on the wrong Island-Malta
But Paul trusted God without murmuring.
In Malta, what happens?
It was the month of November. They swam across waters, and they are wet, shivering and cold already. And the weather in Malta is also cold plus it is raining.
The islanders showed us unusual kindness (Acts 28:2). Luke was writing the book of Acts. Although not a prisoner, Luke was there in the ship as Paul’s personal physician.
The islanders, described as ‘barbarians’ in some translations. They showed them unexpected kindness by building a fire to warm them from the rain and cold.
This kindness is highlighted as unusual. The islanders were not obligated to help prisoners, and they were facing their own challenges with the weather.
A reminder to us that God’s favour is available to us even amid unpleasant circumstances. God’s favour isn’t confined to Christian spaces. He shows his favour can show up through “unlikely” people, even barbarians. Wherever God places you, He is with you.
3 Paul gathered a pile of brushwood and, as he put it on the fire, a viper, driven out by the heat, fastened itself on his hand.
When the islanders were gathering wood, Paul did not remain silent. He participated in that work. When gathering wood for the fire, a viper apparently lying dormant among the sticks came to life because of the warmth of the fire. As Paul placed the wood upon the fire, a viper was fastened itself to Paul’s hand.
If you or I were in Paul’s place, what would have been our reaction?
We will be doing Olympic-level dance, or screaming to the top of voice, or drop the entire stack of wood from our hands in fear,
Look at how the people around react:
4“So when the natives saw the creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another, “No doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he has escaped the sea, yet justice does not allow to live.”
According to them, Paul is undoubtedly a murderer, and although he has escaped death in the storm, justice is not going to let him live. They thought the calamity was the result of divine punishment. It reflects an ancient worldview: bad things only happen to bad people. They were now waiting for him to swell and to die. None of them came forward to help him.
What was Paul’s reaction?
Vs 5 - But he shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm.
Paul didn’t panic. He didn’t scream. He didn’t run. He shook it off. Even after shaking it off, he did not fear.
How could Paul remain so calm in such a life-threatening situation?
Paul was exercising the God-given authority by showing immense faith in this situation.
Luke 10:19, Jesus said - "Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you."
I know Christians who are terrified of black magic, sorcery, witchcraft, evil eye. Bible says, I give you authority over all the power of the enemy. I would like to highlight the word ‘all’. Jesus doesn’t give us authority over some power of the enemy, but over all the power of the enemy and nothing shall by any means hurt you.
Numbers 23:23 - For there is no sorcery against Jacob, Nor any divination against Israel.
Isaiah 54:17 - no weapon formed against you shall prosper. And every tongue which rises against you in judgment You shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, And their righteousness is from Me,” Says the Lord.
We don’t get this authority because we are righteous. We get this authority because we have accepted Christ. We have the righteousness of Jesus, and Jesus has given us this authority.
Paul teaches us a very important lesson. When the enemy tries to attack you, tempt you, deceive you, just shake it off!
Shake off fear. Shake off shame. Shake off worry. Shake off lies from the enemy.
Many believers get stuck analysing the problem instead of exercising authority over it. Paul didn’t stop to study the species. He did not google, “Viper venom symptoms”; he didn’t ask the islanders for their opinion. In fact, he did not care what they thought. He didn’t even pray. He knew it had no place on him, and acted in authority. He threw it into the fire.
In Gen 3, we see a serpent that engages in a conversation with Eve. And Eve’s reaction was very different.
Genesis 3:1 “Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, ‘Did God really say...?’” (Genesis 3:1)
And instead of rebuking the serpent or turning away, Eve engages in a conversation.
Eve doesn’t shake the serpent off—she entertains him. She listens to doubt, opens her heart to misinterpretation of the devil, and ends up deceived.
That’s what happens when we dialogue with temptation in our lives. When you are tempted to sin, just shake it off. Don’t dialogue in your mind. You’ll be deceived.
I will provide some examples of how we allow the devil to deceive us instead of shaking it off.
When we are faced with a temptation to sin, instead of shaking the thought of, we say, “It’s not that bad… I can handle this.”
When we are afraid of something, Instead of declaring God's promises, we listen to the voice that says, “What if it all goes wrong?”
When we feel insecure, instead of affirming our identity in Christ, we rehearse lies like, “I’m not good enough. I’m always going to fail.”
The serpent's strategy hasn’t changed: he speaks half-truths, raises questions, and draws you into a conversation—because if he can get you talking, he can start sowing doubt.
Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. - James 4:7
Coming back to Acts 28, what was supposed to kill Paul became a testimony of God’s power.
Vs 6 - However, they were expecting that he would swell up or suddenly fall down dead. But after they had looked for a long time and saw no harm come to him, they changed their minds and said that he was a god.
Paul’s miraculous deliverance is such a surprise to the natives. Probably no one had survived before. So now seeing Paul alive, they conclude that Paul must be a god. That is quite a change of mind, in that just a few minutes before they had concluded that Paul must have been a horrible criminal to have been bitten by the snake. Now they say he is god. From villain to God in a matter of a few minutes.
When you act in the authority that God has given you, people who expected you to fall will begin to respect you. People who ignored you or insulted you will ask for your prayers. People who spoke ill of you will see God’s hand in your life.
And this led to another miracle.
7 In that region there was an estate of the leading citizen of the island, whose name was Publius, who received us and entertained us courteously for three days.
8 And it happened that the father of Publius lay sick of a fever and dysentery. Paul went in to him and prayed, and he laid his hands on him and healed him.
Paul learns that the father of Publius was sick with fever and dysentery. He went and prayed for him, laid hands on him and healed him. God brought Paul to the island of Malta to be a blessing to others. Here Paul exercises another authority of Jesus.
Mark 16:17,18 - And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; 18 they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”
This miracle opened the way for the gospel to be preached. Since Publius was an important person in that island, the message healing of his father spread quickly.
9 So when this was done, the rest of those on the island who had diseases also came and were healed.
The entire island knew the power of Jesus
10They also honoured us in many ways; and when we departed, they provided such things as were necessary.
This is such a powerful verse. When Paul entered the island, Paul was a prisoner. Shipwrecked. Stranded. Surrounded by strangers. Critisized as criminal. And when he left that island, he was honoured, blessed, and supplied.
Even today, February 10th, is that Malta is celebrating its big public holiday, the annual Feast of Saint Paul’s Shipwreck.
How did this happen? In the midst of the circumstances, Paul carried the presence and authority of God.
When God is with you, when you are surrounded by His presence, wherever you may be, even in unpleasant circumstances, you will see the hand of God over your lives.
2 The Lord was with Joseph, and he was a successful man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian.— Genesis 39:2 (NIV)
Joseph was in a place where they did not know God, but he was successful because the Lord was with Joseph.
Daniel was a captive, a slave and a teenage boy. But he received unusual favour.
“Now God had brought Daniel into the favour and goodwill of the chief of the eunuchs.” — Daniel 1:9
Paul was a prisoner but he received supernatural favour from strange people in an unknown island. Let me encourage you that God will bring favour from unexpected places.
11 After three months we sailed in an Alexandrian ship whose figurehead was the Twin Brothers, which had wintered at the island.
This means they were on the island of Malta for 3 months. His journey to Rome was delayed by more than 3 months. Some delays in your life are God-ordained. It may be 3 days, 3 months, 3 years. God allows them for His greater purpose.
14: 1There we found some brothers and sisters who invited us to spend a week with them. And so we came to Rome.
Finally, Paul’s long dream of coming to Rome is fulfilled.
When Paul arrived in Italy, he was greeted by Christians. Because the gospel had already reached there. That is why even before Paul arrives in Rome, he writes the epistle of Romans to the Christian community in Rome.
16 Now when we came to Rome, the centurion delivered the prisoners to the captain of the guard; but Paul was permitted to dwell by himself with the soldier who guarded him.
See the favour of God again. While other prisoners were delivered to the captain of the guard, Paul was allowed to dwell by himself.
Authority to preach the gospel
Chapter ends like this:
30 Then Paul dwelt two whole years in his own rented house, and received all who came to him, 31 preaching the kingdom of God and teaching the things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ with all confidence, no one forbidding him.
This is a picture of a man exercising his spiritual authority to the very end—preaching the gospel, discipling others, and advancing the kingdom even in chains.
Paul begins ministering in Rome. That was Paul’s longing. He wanted to minister in Rome, and he was finally doing it. He was again exercising his authority to Preach the Gospel.
“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations…” — Matthew 28:18–19
You don’t need to wait for your life to be perfect to walk in your calling. You don’t need to be perfect to share the gospel. You take the authority from God as you share the gospel. And the gospel has the power to change lives.
Who is given this authority?
Matthew 16:18-19, "And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."
The church is given the authority and the keys to the kingdom of heaven…
Jesus also snatched the keys of hell and death from Satan on the cross.
Revelation 1:18, "I am he that lives, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death."
You may be standing in a Malta season right now: confused, delayed, hurt, off-track.
But just like Paul, God is not done with you.
He wants to use you even there.
Even in the unknown. Even in the wilderness. Even in the waiting.
Even in Malta.
Exercise the authority that God has given you and he will make you a blessing to many.
