Shake Off the Creature

Acts 28:1-6 ESV

“After we were brought safely through, we then learned that the island was called Malta. The native people showed us unusual kindness, for they kindled a fire and welcomed us all, because it had begun to rain and was cold. When Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and put them on the fire, a viper came out because of the heat and fastened on his hand. When the native people saw the creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another, ‘No doubt this man is a murderer. Though he has escaped from the sea, Justice has not allowed him to live.’ He, however, shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm. They were waiting for him to swell up or suddenly fall down dead. But when they had waited a long time and saw no misfortune come to him, they changed their minds and said that he was a god.”

Paul was a prisoner, and he was being taken by ship to come before Caesar, to whom he had appealed. The ship had run into some very strong winds, and eventually they ended up sort of crash landing on this island called Malta. And this was their experience once they got on the island.

Now, I am going to be relating this in a spiritual context to our lives, to our world, and to the church today, so I will be sharing the spiritual application I believe the Lord Jesus is giving me through this passage of Scripture. And so I am going to begin by saying that sometimes we have experiences in our lives which seem to begin well, and where the people are friendly and welcoming, and then something happens, and a “snake” of sorts comes out of seemingly nowhere and bites (attacks) the deeds that we are doing.

I have experienced this multiple times in my life, and if you are one who is serving the Lord Jesus with your life, you have most likely come up against some situations such as this, too. For Satan doesn’t like it when we are being successful in ministry, and when people are listening to us, and when what we are sharing with them is making a difference in their lives. And so he, the snake, will send one of his servant snakes to attack us in order to try to stop us from doing the will of God for our lives.

Now this next part reminds me of the story of Job, for Satan attacked Job first by killing off his children, his servants, and his livestock, and then by afflicting Job with sores all over his body. At first, Job’s friends were sympathetic, but then as Job began to speak, they began to falsely accuse him of sinning against the Lord and to assume that was the reason why he was being afflicted. But that is a false presumption, for the Scriptures teach that those of us who follow Jesus will be afflicted of the enemy of our souls.

But going back to Paul, he shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm. And Job defended himself against the attacks of his friends who were accusing him of wrongdoing when he had not sinned against the Lord, for the Lord had considered Job a righteous man. And there were many times that Paul had to come to his own defense when he was being attacked by people because of the works of God that he was doing. And so it will be with us, and particularly at times, perhaps, when it seems that all is well.

For that is one of the ways in which Satan works, for he attacks us when things are going well in hopes to defeat us, like in some of my own personal experiences that I have been led of the Lord to share in recent writings, and more. For it can throw us off balance, and it can defeat us if we are not prepared that these things are bound to happen to us, especially when things are going well and when we least expect these kinds of things to take place. So it is good for us to prepare our minds in advance for such things.

But this isn’t just about coming to our own defense. This is about emotionally, mentally, and spiritually shaking off these attacks against our minds and hearts and emotions, and giving them back to the Lord, casting our anxieties on him, for he cares for us who are his by genuine faith in him. When Satan attacks us via other humans, especially when we least expect it, we need to immediately take it to the Lord in prayer and cast it off so that it does not discourage and dishearten us, and so we continue to walk by faith.

Now, in our case, it is Satan and it is our physical enemies who are being used of Satan in our lives who are standing there watching, waiting for us to give up and die (literally or not). And when we do not die, and we do not give up, but we are victorious over the devil and his evil schemes against us, there are not people standing there declaring that we are gods, at least not in my experience. And we may not even have people there encouraging us, either. But we can take courage that, in the strength of the Lord, we were victorious over the enemy and he was not able to harm us. Glory to God!

Have Thine Own Way, Lord 

Words by Adelaide A. Pollard, 1907 

Music by George C. Stebbins, 1907

Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way! 

Thou art the potter, I am the clay. 

Mold me and make me after Thy will, 

While I am waiting, yielded and still. 

Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way! 

Search me and try me, Master, today! 

Whiter than snow, Lord, wash me just now, 

As in Thy presence humbly I bow. 

Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way! 

Wounded and weary, help me I pray! 

Power, all power, surely is Thine! 

Touch me and heal me, Savior divine! 

Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way! 

Hold o'er my being absolute sway. 

Fill with Thy Spirit till all shall see 

Christ only, always, living in me! 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z11avpKNLsA 

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