I invite you to turn with me this morning to Acts chapter 28. Acts chapter 28 as we consider together verses 1 through 10. This is the episode in the life of the Apostle Paul after having been shipwrecked. He finds his place on the island of Malta. Now brothers and sisters, we know that ever since sin entered the world, satan our adversary has been vying for power and position he worked hard throughout the old testament dispensation as we know it to try to prevent the lord jesus christ the messiah from coming and upon failing even now and throughout history since he has worked hard to stop the spread of the gospel. Throughout the ages, false religions, false beliefs have risen and continue to raise their ugly heads even today to oppose the truth. Yet, this particular text, this one of many of course, but this particular text is a wonderful picture that no one can stop and nothing can stand against the truth and the power of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Therefore, we begin at verse 1, 1 through 10 of Acts chapter 28 as we give our attention to the Word of God. Once safely on shore, we found out that the island was called Malta. The islanders showed us unusual kindness. They built a fire and welcomed us all because it was raining and cold. 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 saw the snake hanging from his hand, they said to each other, this man must be a murderer. For though he escaped from the sea, justice has not allowed him to live. But Paul shook the snake off into the fire and suffered no ill effects. The people expected him to swell up or suddenly fall dead, but after waiting a long time and seeing nothing unusual happen to him, they changed their minds and said he was a god. There was an estate nearby that belonged to Publius, the chief official of the island. He welcomed us to his home and for three days entertained us hospitably. His father was sick in bed, suffering from fever and dysentery. Paul went in to see him and after prayer placed his hands on him and healed him. When this had happened, the rest of the sick on the island came and were cured. They honored us in many ways. And when we were ready to sail, they furnished us with the supplies we needed. Beloved in the Lord Jesus Christ, what a fascinating episode in the life of the Apostle Paul. This is one of those stories that even for the boys and girls can't help but grab our attention even as the snake grabbed on to the hand of the Apostle Paul. Now we know, of course, that Paul was a suffering servant of God. At this time, he was a prisoner. he was on his way to Rome to stand trial before the highest official in the world at that time, the Roman Emperor Caesar. But we know that Paul was not a prisoner because of his faithlessness to Christ. But he was a prisoner because of his faithfulness to the Lord Jesus Christ. He was on trial for his faith. He was on trial for preaching the Gospel. Yes, Satan could not stop Jesus Christ from coming and accomplishing salvation. And He cannot stop the gospel from spreading and overcoming obstacles and rejections and saving those who believe, all by the power of the Holy Spirit. And through Paul in this episode, we see here that God will continue to have His way in the world. And that His Word, as Isaiah says in Isaiah 55, will accomplish what God desires. It will achieve the purpose for which He sends it. And therefore, in this episode, we consider the unbound gospel flows through Christ's bound servant. And it flows, first of all, on the prepared path for the gospel message. Now again, Paul was a prisoner. Yet we know from Acts 9 that he was God's chosen vessel appointed to suffer for the sake of the Lord Jesus Christ. And all that we have here and all that we have before really is a part of that suffering. Now in chapter 27, we have a detailed description of what is taking place before the shipwreck. They are caught in a storm, a hurricane type of storm, a very dangerous storm that's pounding the ship. And after so many days and beginning to lose hope, the crew begins to throw over the cargo to lighten the ship, hoping that they won't sink. Then after many days, after they decide that they need to try to run the ship up on a beach, it gets stuck on a sandbar, and again the waves begin to tear the ship apart. And we're told in chapter 27 that everybody jumped. And we're told how many that was in verse 37 of that chapter. It was 276 people. And it says in verse 44 that everyone reached land in safety. And that's amazing given the severity of the storm and that many people all jumping into the water and they all reached land in safety. But again, no accident, right? You remember what the angel of the Lord said to Paul in verse 24 of chapter 27. Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar. And God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you. And therefore, with nothing but the clothing on their backs, they find themselves safe on this island called Malta, and there they find hospitality. In verse 2 of our text, it says, the islanders showed us unusual kindness. They built a fire and welcomed us all because it was raining and cold. And the word translated there, unusual kindness, has the idea of extraordinary kindness. Something that was not normal. Something that was completely beyond expectation. We don't know exactly what it was. But they were completely cared for. That's no small task to show hospitality to 30 or 40, let alone to 276 people. But all of this, the storm and the shipwreck and the hospitality, it is all a part of preparing the path for the Gospel message, setting the stage. Yet, that path is not yet completely prepared as in the next scene. we find something beyond our imagination as even more specifically the path is prepared by exposing the ignorance and challenging the false religion of these kind and these generous island natives. Indeed, they were wonderful people, but they were ignorant people. And what happens, boys and girls, would cause us nightmares, wouldn't it? The snake attack. Now, Paul pitches in to help keep the fire going. And we read in verse 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. Now, that viper was a poisonous snake. We are to make no mistake about that. It was a poisonous snake. A deadly snake. And we are to also understand that it didn't simply wrap itself around Paul's hand and maybe bite him. That's what the critical scholars would have you and me believe. That it didn't really bite him. Or if it did, then the islanders were wrong and it was not poisonous. But the way Luke tells it, it was a poisonous snake and it literally bit into Paul's hand and hung there for all to witness. Now, this wasn't simply a case where Paul was in the wrong place at the wrong time. God prepared this very event as the path to open the way for the Gospel message. It was meant to get the attention of the island natives, which it did. And their response reveals the urgent need in the second place for the Gospel message. Their first response, or we might say their initial response, is found in verse 4. When the islanders saw the snake hanging from his hand, they said to each other, this man must be a murderer, for though he escaped from the sea, justice has not allowed him to live. Within moments, they have him tried and convicted and even dead. He deserved death, they said. He must have done something terribly bad because he would surely die from this poisonous snake bite. They must have known that because not too many must have survived a snake bite like this. But he would surely die from this poisonous snake bite and therefore that could only mean that he must have taken another life. He must have caused the death of somebody else. The punishment fits the crime. Yet they are surprised, they are shocked by Paul when he shook off the snake back into the fire as if nothing happened. Now, we're not told at all. We're not told that Paul in any way acknowledged the anxiousness of the natives. We do know that Paul was a man of faith. We do know that he was ready and willing to die for Jesus' sake if and when the Lord would require his life from him. But he also lived with the promise of God's Word. And he trusted God to keep His Word, that he would reach Rome, that he would stand before Caesar. And not a storm, not a shipwreck, not even a poisonous snake was going to be able to get in God's way. And beloved, we too have God's promise, the promise of His Word, and we are called to have confidence in God's promise. And what is that promise? Is His promise that the poison of the world won't affect us? Is His promise that the poison of sin won't touch us? Or is His promise that the poison of God's enemies won't hurt us? No. That's not God's promise. But He's given to us a much greater promise, as Paul explained to the Philippian jailer in chapter 16, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved. And brothers and sisters, that means that we as believers can face the difficulties of life. The varied forms that they come in. And we can endure the effects and the results of sin, our own sin. We have to live with those results at times. And the world's sin. And we can do so with confidence that nothing shall be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. And that's what these citizens of Malta needed to learn. Notice their continued response, their second response we might say. The text makes it clear that Paul suffered no ill effects. These island natives watched and they waited. They waited and they watched. They knew what they expected, but their expectation did not come to pass. And his survival could only mean that if he was not a murderer, well, then he must be a god. more than a man, a God. It's the only thing that makes sense. And we remember that already in Lystra. Paul and Barnabas were called gods by the citizens there after they healed the crippled man. But here we see that their religious superstition is uncovered. They had a faulty worldview that still dominates the way that many people think today. This cause always produces this effect. If this happens, then that's going to happen. We find it preached in a health and wealth gospel. If you give generously to this church, not any other church, but this church, then God will bless you beyond your wildest imaginations. And of course, we know that in God's created order, He has created laws of nature that many causes do produce certain effects. We know that. But that's not how God works when it comes to mankind. That's not how God works when it comes to the sin of mankind. You see, these natives of Malta, they believed in good and evil. They believed that justice would be done one way or the other. And they were correct that justice must be accomplished. But they were wrong in how it would be accomplished. Again, in their thinking, Paul escaped the sea, but justice was going to win after all because those who were seriously punished as they perceived Paul to be seriously had done something wrong. While those who never experience bad circumstances must be good people because we all know that bad things don't happen to good people, right? And with Paul, since he was not affected by the poison, he must be more than just a good person. He must be a God. And think back again, to the unusual kindness that they showed. It was possibly a result of their superstition. It was to their advantage. It was an obligation if they wanted good to happen to them. Beloved, throughout history many have been plagued by this sort of a religious superstition. We remember Job. His friend Eliphaz said that Job must have sinned. That was the only reasonable explanation for losing everything he had and also being sick. And Eliphaz says in Job 4, verse 7, Remember now, whoever perished being innocent or where were the upright ever cut off. In other words, the innocent don't perish, he said. The righteous are not cut off. And maybe some of us have been tempted to think in this way at times as well. We might blame a tragedy in a family or in a nation on a particular sin. Or someone is falling upon bad times because they're certainly not living correctly. And we even make jokes out of this sort of religious superstition. If somebody has spouted off filthy, God-dishonoring language, we stand back and say, I don't want to be near you when the lightning strikes you. We turn it into a joke. But if that's how God deals with the sin of mankind, with your sin and my sin, then everything is hopeless. We have no hope because all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. And if that's how God deals with sin in this lifetime, then there's no one to be left on this earth. But Jesus corrects that wrong understanding. We read in Luke chapter 13, now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. Jesus answered, do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? I tell you no, but unless you repent, you too will all perish. Or those 18 who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them, do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? I tell you no, but unless you repent, you too will all perish. And in John chapter 9, when His apostles come to Him, His disciples say, with regard to the man born blind, is he blind because of his sin or his parents? Jesus says, no, that's not how it works. And the truth of the matter, as you and I know from experience, is that Christians often do suffer financially, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. And at the same time, the ungodly and the wicked are often successful and healthy and popular. It doesn't make sense to us. But it does to God. These Malta natives had a wrong understanding of the justice of the one true God, which proved their urgent need for the gospel message. They needed to know, beloved, that God does not punish sin in this lifetime according to what is deserved. We do suffer, again, the consequences of our sin, the results of our sin. And in that way, it's a punishment, it's discipline in this life, but not according to what our sin deserves. They needed to learn that one cannot earn salvation. In fact, one cannot even earn goodness and blessing in this life. Oh, we know those who strive to live righteously by the grace of God all often enjoy peace in any circumstance. And if you are kind to someone, often they will be kind back to you, but you cannot earn goodness and blessing in this life. They needed to be taught, as Jesus said in Luke chapter 13, That unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. They needed to learn, as was Paul's confidence, that for those who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, He paid it all. And justice has been served against Jesus for His people. And therefore, God will never, ever treat us as believers, as our sins deserve according to Psalm 103. And therefore, they needed to learn that storm, shipwreck, snakebite, not even Satan, can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. Indeed, beloved, the innocent don't perish. The righteous are not cut off. But it's not because of their innocence or their righteousness, but only because of the perfect innocence and righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ freely given to His people. Paul's preservation from this poisonous snake bite was a physical fulfillment of Luke 16, verses 17 and 18 where Jesus said, And these signs will follow those who believe. In My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues, 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. Now, Paul was not a god. But God reveals here that he was a man of God. And through this episode, God exposed Malta's false religion and prepared the path for the Gospel. The Holy Spirit alone prepares the soil of the heart for the seed of His Word. And He often does so through the difficulties of life that we might experience. Through those things, He prepares the heart for the seed of His Word. Through those same difficulties of life that these natives thought were punishments for specific sins. With the path prepared and with the urgent need exposed, then these island natives are given in the third place the powerful demonstration of the Gospel message. Now, we're not told throughout this entire episode, we're not told that Paul said anything at all. We're not told that he set them straight, that he was not a god. But we do know, based on his actions at Lystra, that Paul would never have let them continue to think that he was a god. And we also know from Scripture that it was Paul's practice to preach in whatever city he entered. And the text here makes it clear that he demonstrated on this island, he demonstrated his own dependence upon God. and he does so through the healing of Publius' father. Now, without going into the gross detail of what dysentery is, we can say that Publius was a dying man. He was dying. And therefore, in their way of thinking, he too must have done something wrong. Something bad. But he was a dying man. Yet we read at the second part of verse 8, Paul went in to see him, and after prayer, placed his hands on him and healed him. You see, Paul demonstrates through this healing again that he is not a God, but he himself depends on God for God's power and God's saving grace. He prayed. And his prayer demonstrates dependence on God, the God from whom all blessings and all miracles flow. Paul was only a minister of this miracle. And I believe one commentator is helpful when he says Paul was not praying for the sick man, But he was praying for himself that if it was God's will, he would heal this man through Paul. And after praying, he laid his hands on him and healed him. And the laying on of hands, too, showed that it was not Paul doing the miracle, but the Lord doing the miracle through him. And Calvin is helpful here when he says the laying on of hands is nothing but a solemn rite of offering and presenting. And he's talking about offering and presenting to God. For God's work of healing, not man's. Paul was just a tool. And beloved, the same is true in the church today. We are only tools. The work is God's. We are tools, but we are to be tools. Willing and faithful tools in the hand of God in His kingdom. But it is God who gives the increase, both in numbers if it is His will, but also in faith through his means of grace. And just like the father of Publius received the saving power of the Lord, their religious way of thinking was blown to pieces. Paul's actions preached the Gospel message that salvation of life from sin comes from God alone. And beloved, that message spread as we read about the healing of many in verse 9. When this had happened, the rest of the sick on the island came and were cured. Remember, Paul was a prisoner. Paul couldn't go to the people, so the people come to him. And no doubt as he healed, he preached because, again, preaching was as natural for Paul as breathing is for you and me. And we know that in the early New Testament church, God gave the apostles many signs and wonders to perform, including healings. And these things served to authenticate, to prove that the gospel they preached was real. and to authenticate that they were true men of God. Paul's healings on Malta demonstrated the truth of the gospel that he proclaimed, that Jesus Christ came to heal the spiritually sick, to give new life in Himself. And that handcuffs and chains and poisonous snake bites, nothing could stop the sovereign good news of Jesus Christ from going forth. What hope for these island natives as they were cured from their illnesses. There is hope through Jesus Christ. Not only for this life, but also for the next. And then finally notice the faithful response won by the Gospel message. Verse 10 says, They honored us in many ways, and when we were ready to sail, they furnished us with the supplies we needed. Now, I'm not in any way assuming or implying that all the islanders became Christians. We don't know that. The text doesn't say that. We're not told of any conversion experiences or professions of faith or baptisms that took place on the island. There is speculation that Publius himself became the first elder on Malta, but we don't know. I believe that there probably were many conversions at that time. We are told, though, that God's healing mercy did not go unpunished and the natives responded. They responded by showing more kindness at the end than even at the beginning. Again, these healings proved their superstition wrong. And therefore, they respond now not out of obligation, but they respond out of gratitude for what God had already done for them through Paul. Their response of gratitude was for the blessing of God's mercy and grace which they did not earn, they did not deserve. Brothers and sisters, we have a beautiful picture here of the unstoppable Gospel. A beautiful demonstration here that no one, not even Satan himself, can bind to the Word of God and its power and no false gospel can stand against the truth of Jesus Christ. Governments can make Christianity and preaching illegal. Civil rights groups can work hard to see that we are stripped of all the religious freedoms that we enjoy. The people of the world can oppose the gospel all they want, as hard as they want, and Satan can use all of his resources to try to stop our mouths and plug our ears, but none of that can stop or make less true or powerful the Gospel of Jesus Christ. And instead we know that God has and He will continue to open the doors for His people to fulfill our Lord's command to go into all the world and preach the Gospel. We know that Jesus Christ will not lose even one of His sheep. And we've seen those open doors even in our lifetimes. As languages throughout the years have been translated into the biblical language. Translation after translation for those who have never heard. Also, some of you know, as I do, those who even in our day take Bibles to China. Not necessarily the safest activity. And maybe you've heard stories too about how they should have been stopped at the airport at customs there with suitcases full of Bibles. But the Lord opened the door for them to pass right on through. And even in our own area here, we are taught about that new device called the Talking Bible. That even for those who cannot read, they can hear in their own language. God has and will continue to open the door for His people. And that's because the Holy Spirit is unstoppable. not one not even satan can silence the holy spirit and stop his work from giving new life in christ and bringing to faith in christ and causing you and me to hide god's word in our hearts beloved only the holy spirit and gospel power can overcome unbelief only he and gospel power can bring a response of gratitude that then freely gives as one has received only he and gospel power can transform one from working for salvation to working from gratitude for such a great salvation freely given and received. And even as Christian parents, we present our children to be baptized, as we witnessed this morning with Brandon and Kate. And in response to that precious promise of God signified and sealed to our children through the sacrament, that precious promise of God to our children to save those who believe in response to that we as parents promise to do our utmost as they have to teach and train our children in the way of the Lord yet we must confess beloved that as we raise our children our our actions often contradict our words and at times our words contradict our actions yet praise God that if our children one day embrace the Lord Jesus Christ by faith, it's not because of us. God may have used this as a tool. We have been, may have been the means in some way, but it's not because of us, but it's in spite of us. It's only by the grace of God. And beloved, those who are touched by the gospel message do not and cannot remain the same. There will be a response, even among each and every one of you and me this morning. There must be a response. Sadly, there are some that God allows to be hardened by His Word. To be more confirmed in their rejection and unbelief. Think of Pharaoh in the time of the plagues. But his elect, he penetrates with his saving grace. And that means that you cannot leave here this morning the same as you came. If you don't believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, you will leave with a harder heart. than when you came. And you are being sincerely and earnestly called to repent of your sins and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ in whom alone there is healing of all of your sicknesses, all of your diseases, all of those spiritual diseases that we suffer from. But if you do believe, you will be strengthened in your faith. You will be encouraged in your walk with the Lord by the grace of God. And that's because, as Isaiah 55, verse 11 says again, His Word shall not return to Him void. It will accomplish what God desires. It will achieve the purpose for which He sent it. And therefore, beloved, praise God for His unstoppable, powerful Word. His incarnate Word that could not be kept from dying for our sins. His Word that cannot be kept from transforming our lives. His Word that will not be kept from bringing all of His people to glory one day. And may God work in the world through each and every one of us. May our lives be living sermons for the world to see and read. And may He work in such a way through us and in us that our faith may grow in the knowledge and the assurance of God's eternal promises And that the power of Christ's saving grace may, through us, be visible for all to see. Let's pray together. Our great God and Heavenly Father, we praise Your name for the power of Your Word, empowered by Your Holy Spirit. We praise Your name for what You have done with Your Word in our hearts and lives that not even we ourselves could keep You from changing our hearts. Thank You, Lord, that we were not able to do that. That Your grace is greater than all of our sins. That You are more powerful than us, powerful to save us even unto eternity. We pray too, Lord, that Your Word would continue to go forth in all of its beauty, in all of its truth, and that You would continue to bring many to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ until the day of Christ Jesus. Father, hear our prayer. Continue to strengthen us by Your Word, through Your Spirit. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.