Acts 28:7-10 (NIV)
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.
Publius, the chief official of the island, was gracious and hospitable. He opened the land on the island to the refugees to stay on while they waited for a ship to take them further on after the stormy season was finished, a stay which stretched to three months. He even had the people up to his estate and hosted them for three days, prisoners, soldiers and sailors alike.
It was while they were at Publius’ estate that Paul heard that Publius’ father was desperately sick with dysentery, an illness that frequently proved fatal due to dehydration, especially in older people. When Paul heard this, he asked to visit the man, and was granted permission.
Paul’s encounter was brief and to the point. He prayed for the sick man, then laid hands on him, and he was instantly healed. When the healing became known, it impressed not only Publius and the whole ship’s compliment, but all the people on the island as well. They brought many sick people to Paul, and God enabled him to heal them all.
The result was not only goodwill toward Paul (and openness to the gospel), but goodwill toward the entire group from the ship. They were no longer seen as merely refugees, but as a positive blessing by the Maltese people, so that when it came time for them to leave, they were richly supplied with all they needed for the trip.
All the supernatural events that God orchestrated, everyone being saved from the shipwreck, Paul’s surviving the snakebite, the healing of Publius’ father, and the further healings of the islanders, all served to build up Paul in the eyes of the people, and to glorify God’s name in the process. It opened doors to receiving the gospel and helped everyone to see God and His grace more clearly.
Father, it is so easy for us to look to You for miracles to meet our own needs or to make us more comfortable. But when You do a miracle, it is always done with these larger purposed in mind. Paul knew that, as did the other apostles, so they sought miracles, not for their own benefit, but so that Your power and glory would be more clearly seen, and so that more people would be receptive to the gospel. Help me, Lord, to live today sensitive to your leading and open to where You are working, so that you can make me a part of Your life-changing miracles today. Amen.
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