[0:00] Thank you, Ms. Chimbala.
[0:30] Thank you, Ms. Chimbala.
[1:00] We find Paul, a prisoner on the ship, on his way to Rome, the way that God had to get him to Rome.
[1:12] It was God's will that he go to Rome. Paul didn't list his Holy Spirit, but got captured in Jerusalem, made prisoner. So the Lord now is having to get him there by ship and by as a prisoner.
[1:29] And they're just about to lose their ship in a storm. And so, let's see. Let's see.
[1:39] Let's see. Let's see. Let's see. Let's start with verse 10. And Paul said unto them,
[2:49] No one had a name for it. It's called Urocladence. When the ship was caught and could not bear up in the wind, we let her dry. Running under a certain island, which is called a plot, we had much work to come by and go.
[3:06] Which one they'd taken up, that's the life over. They used helps undergirding the ship. Period. That's where it's called. In the quicksand, straight sail and soul were driven.
[3:21] We being exceedingly tossed with a tempest. The next day, they lightened the ship. And the third day, they cast out of their own hands the tackling of the ship. Neither sun nor stars.
[3:32] And many days appeared. And no small tempest or storm lay on us. All hope that we should be saved was then taken away. I'll read more of this later.
[3:48] A lot of you know you're in Patsy Clancy. It might be good. I don't know. She was a country singer. I was really surprised when I came here 20 years ago to find a country singer.
[4:08] Up here amongst the Yankees. I'm going to read a little more of Acts 27. Paul and his fellow prisoners are causing a storm.
[4:21] So in verse 21, after long abstinence, Paul stood forth in the midst of them and said, Sirs, you should have heartened unto me in Luth and Crete to have gained this harm and loss.
[4:38] 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. We're going to lose the ship.
[4:48] No lie. There stood by me this night the angel of God, whose I am and whom I serve, saying, Fear not, Paul, thou must be brought before Caesar.
[5:02] And, Lord, God hath given thee all them that sail with thee. Stop right there. Most fortunate thing happened to all those 275 people.
[5:16] Was the tall afternoon. I wonder how many times, because a Christian is in the building, God diverts a disaster.
[5:29] One of the things that I've been doing, God diverts a disaster. And so on.
[5:42] I just thought of that, and I believe it's very true. Many times, God takes care of them. They're in the group. He takes care of the group.
[5:53] All right, he says, how be it, we must be cast upon a certain island. Verse 26.
[6:05] But when the 14th night was come, as we were driven up and down the Aedraic Sea, about midnight, the shipmen named that they driven here at some time.
[6:17] They sounded in 20 fathoms, and on the murder, it sounded again, found in 15. Very much, we should have fallen on rocks and cast, they had cast four anchors out of the stern, and wished for the day.
[6:31] As the shipmen were about to flee out of the ship in the light world, when they had let down the boat into the sea, under colors, though they would have cast anchors out of four ships, they wanted people to think they were still working, because they were going to try to get away.
[6:48] Paul said to the centurion, And to the soldiers, Except for these are by, and the ship cannot be saved. Then the soldiers cut the ropes off the boat, and let her fall off, so they don't have a right boat to escape in.
[7:04] While the day was coming on, Paul besought them all to take meat, saying, This day is the fourteenth day, that you tarried and continued fasting, having taken nothing. Wherefore, I pray you, to take some meat and fruit, for this is for your health, for there shall not an air fall from the head.
[7:23] I think you always have to be broke. When he had thus spoken, he took bread, and gave thanks to God, and pressed to them all. When he broke it, he began to eat.
[7:35] They were all in good cheer. He also took some meat or food. We were all in the ship. Two hundred, three score, and sixteen, two hundred seventy-six people.
[7:47] Now it goes on to say that they lost the ship, but they all got to land safely. Right? Now, storms are going to come.
[7:58] Right? They're going to come. You may not have them all named, but they're going to do as much damage as this one did, in a lot of cases.
[8:16] Storms are caused by three things. The devil caused them some. Other people caused storms, and we didn't call it. And we ourselves caused.
[8:31] I think Paul caused people to call. Paul was very proud to get him. I go to Jerusalem and said, you're going to be captured. You do. And he said, well, I can't be moved by this.
[8:42] I don't mind dying for the Lord. No, he doesn't want you to die yet, Paul. He wants to give you longer. Listen to him. Paul didn't. And you don't either sometimes, and I don't either sometimes.
[8:55] We cause our own storms, just like Paul. Paul could have had a mighty, easy way to go wrong. He had glistening to the Holy Spirit. Now he's got to go through all these troubles.
[9:06] So we cause our own problems sometimes. Sometimes the situation even looks hopeless, as it did in verse 20. All hope that we should be saved will take away.
[9:18] You ever been there? Yeah. You feel a mighty hope in the skin. The loved one that's sick under death, maybe injured. Jeremy, you had a terrible injury, a terrible wreck.
[9:32] And of course, when we get the news like that, we worry. We don't know how bad it is. It's amazing that you could be in church and you don't feel like being here, but the fact that you're here is going to make you get well with your day.
[9:49] God will bless you for being in church. You don't really like being in church. The guy was in the ICU, you get a motorcycle accident.
[10:00] Thank God you're okay. You're going to get well. Sometimes we have disasters that take away our hope.
[10:12] I remember reading about David when he and his body men were living in Ziklag and when they were going on a campaign, once an enemy came and captured all the women and all the goods and all the kids and took them all away.
[10:32] They came back home and everything was gone. Everybody was gone. And it says in those scriptures that the men of David wept until there was no more power to be.
[10:43] In fact, the most loyal army ever, David's army, talked of stalling him because they had lost their wives and kids.
[10:56] It says in that scripture that David encouraged himself in the Lord and his God. Sometimes you don't have anybody to encourage you. Sometimes you better have a good place to live with God.
[11:08] And that's the only courage to forget. So, hopeless. Storms may be a hatred or persecution or unreasonable opposition.
[11:20] God knows, I haven't done that in 55 years. But storms will come. Because there's a gentle lady that I've met.
[11:32] She wouldn't hurt her queen. And I've seen her backed up against the wall. women cussing her and reading her right act and saying all manner of evil things against her that hurt me.
[11:47] You're an old preacher's wife. You're a phony. You don't know what you're doing. Sometimes it's unreasonable for us. Still, we're there.
[11:59] We have to handle it. Well, even Joel one time said, what is the almighty that we should serve? What profit should we have if we pray than him?
[12:12] Even Joel got so discouraged that he was speaking words like that. But if you're God's child, what's going to happen? my dad's a preacher.
[12:27] Brother Steve, he had a sermon he preached one time. It came and passed. I thought, what's he going to do today? He preached that it came but it will pass.
[12:40] It came and pass. Well, look how David's sick flag storm turned out. Turned out well. He gained it. He got all the people back safely.
[12:52] Didn't lose a one. Look how Joel turned out in the last chapter. Everything turned out well. Now, your storm's going to pass. All my storms finally pass.
[13:05] blue skies finally appeared. I didn't think they were. They did. So were yours. I want to give you several things to do with the storm. Now, I said when it's done right here.
[13:18] You're going to have problems. There are going to be people that don't like you. Can you imagine that? You. Lovable you.
[13:29] There are going to be people that don't like you. There are going to be people that try to hurt you. What are you going to do about it? You're not supposed to fight back.
[13:42] You're supposed to turn the other cheek. One guy was being slapped around. He started to fight back.
[13:53] Christian decided and said, now you know the Bible says turn the other cheek. He said, all right. Here, here. Hit me right there. It's hit me. Thank God it just said turn one cheek.
[14:05] He was waiting so he could get a hold of that dog. I don't think that's the spirit. That's the spirit. We're supposed to let the Lord take care of his body.
[14:18] Sometimes that's not easy. It's not easy. What do I do when the storm comes? How do I have it? What are the things I have to do? Number one, I want you to notice what Paul said.
[14:29] He said, after long after the first 21, Paul stood forward in the midst of it. Now, this storm is going on furiously.
[14:41] And where's Paul? He found himself a place down in the bottom of the boat and saw the Lord. Call it a secret place. First thing you ought to do, the first thing you ought to do is get you a secret place and start talking to God about it.
[14:58] The first thing you do is don't call the doctor. The first thing you do is don't call the preacher. The first thing you do is find a secret place and get over the doctor.
[15:10] Number one, you might offend him if you go to somebody else first. You go to God first. Every sickness we have in our family, I go to God first and I say, Lord, you've got 15 minutes.
[15:24] Amen. I mean, the fever is up to 103 and you've got 15 minutes. If you don't pull her down, I'm taking her to the doctor.
[15:37] But go to the Lord first. There's a fellow in the Old Testament who didn't go to God first and died of that thief's blood. Now the Lord can die of that thief's blood.
[15:51] I said, he's easy in his feet. That's the only one I can have. And the Bible said he died because he sought the physicians first and not the Lord. You ever get half his foot, you better call on God.
[16:06] We got the scripture for that one. Find you a secret place. There may be, somebody said, there may be something you can do after you pray, but there's nothing you can do.
[16:20] That's very important. Hey, I can stop the message right now and I told you something very important. You seek God first. Seek first his kingdom, his word.
[16:33] All these things we add, that means healing, that means health control. You've got to find the secret place first. Psalm 91.1 says, what is the secret place?
[16:45] Shall abide in the shadow of the Almighty. And the rest of that Psalm tells you how God takes care of that person that's in the secret place. Wonderful Psalm. Wonderful. While others were frantic with fear, Paul was down in the hole seeking God and he found him.
[17:01] He saw an angel in the secret place and the angel said, Paul, don't fear. Everything's going to be okay. You're going to lose the boat, but you're going to keep everybody else. And he was ready to go back up and represent God on that boat.
[17:14] Go to the Lord first. Go to the first. Number two, trust completely in the Lord. Now, that's easy to preach. That's not easy to preach.
[17:27] Just trust him. If you know your Savior, his child, he's going to take care of you. He's not going to take care of you one more. And sometimes not how he will.
[17:40] But he's going to take care of you. And you trust him you've got to learn to trust him. I, sirs, be in good cheer. I believe God that it shall be even as it was told to me.
[17:55] You just trust God. Trust in his presence. He's going to be with you. I will never leave you, Lord. See? He was on that boat with Paul. He's in your storm with you.
[18:07] I've had a mess storm. And always the presence of God makes that. He will not leave. It's the unfailing. Jesus said, Lord, I'm with you always, even under the end of the age.
[18:22] I remember when Moses would be called to leave a children's out of Egypt. And God loves to be compelled. Jesus loves to be constrained.
[18:33] Get Jesus up. And God wants you to beg them and insist on them coming with you. And they'll walk on by if you don't beg them and insist on them. Learn that.
[18:45] God said, I'm going to send an angel with you to take you to the holy land. And Moses said, Oh, who did you save? Oh, yeah, I'm going to send an angel to take you to the holy land.
[18:58] And Moses said, if you don't go with me, I'm not going. Yeah. Amen. What did he say? Oh, no, no, no. God, when you called me into this national business, to take care of these three million battles, when you called me into this, boy, you can pass the three million battles that wish they could be back in you.
[19:21] When you called me into this, you said, I will take you to the promise. Now, that's what you said. Now, you're talking about to be an angel. If you don't go, I'm not going. God said, okay.
[19:34] All right, I believe you. Now, you want to talk to God like that, you better be like Moses. He insisted on God's going to always be there. Sometimes, you wonder if he's going to be there.
[19:50] I told you a little story, I think, one time about this old gentleman was die hanging. His pastor was with him. He stayed for a long, long time.
[20:03] He didn't look like the old man was going to die that night. The pastor stayed up in the morning and he had to go home. And he said, Pastor, it seems like when you're with me, God's with you.
[20:18] I'm afraid when you leave, he won't be. Oh, no, he'll be here. His presence is more real than mine. And he took the old man's hand, which he is, and he stood up in the chair, and he put the old man's hand in that chair.
[20:37] He said, you just imagine Jesus sitting here where I can sit, and that you're holding his hand. And everything will be all right. The nurse said later several hours of the day, she said, I came in, and he had gone, and he was gone.
[20:55] He said there was a strange thing. His hand was lying over in this chair, and there was a smile on the face. Amen. Jesus never left.
[21:07] He learned something. Never left. Well, I heard another preacher one time that fear of flying. How many have fear of flying?
[21:20] Three or four that are honest to you. He had fear of flying, and he was scheduled to fly, and he was sitting in the airport, waiting for the flight.
[21:33] And it was up in Otean. Somebody with a radio or a cell phone, I'm not sure exactly when this happened, said, hey, did you hear the news?
[21:46] And this preacher, no one, said, the plane just left this airport, about an hour ago, crashed in the land. And this preacher going to get on another thing.
[22:02] And he said, Lord, I don't know what you're doing, but you scared me today. And I don't think I could get on it. And he said, I don't know how it happened.
[22:15] I wasn't thinking for the verse, but said, this verse, I couldn't even find it came to you. The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.
[22:29] And he said, a picture came to me, a plane crying over the ocean, and God holding out his hand, and one hand under one wing, and one under the other. He said, I don't know, it wasn't a vision, but it came to my mind, and peace came with me.
[22:46] He said, something told me, now the other plane might have crashed, but God might not let you do it. But when you get on yours, underneath you'll be everlasting arms.
[22:57] And the preacher testified, I didn't have another fear. I just got on that plane and went to sleep and made my decision. Can you do that? I'm talking about fully trusting him.
[23:08] I mean, just trust him. I mean, he's not going to deceive you. Just trust him. Just trust him. Well, let your actions show it.
[23:21] Verse 33 through 36, Paul said, you fellas haven't eaten in 14 days. You're looking sort of peaking. Why don't you take something to eat? It'll be all right. We're going to make it. This is your help.
[23:32] There shall not a hair fall from the head of any of it. So he took bread and gave thanks to God. They all ate. Everybody was good to hear. Let your actions show you.
[23:45] A Christian shouldn't sit around worrying yourself at death and ever be worried. A Christian ought to have a big smile on his face in order to be cheering everybody because we can trust our God.
[23:58] You can trust your God. You say well you don't want out none. He'll overlook that if you're in trouble. He's still bad to you. He'll look a lot of mean folks he's having you.
[24:09] Not as bad as you. Just trust him. He'll look what he said he'll take care of you. Young man was burned badly.
[24:23] He was in delirium. Fever was skyrocketing. The smell of burned flesh was in the room. And his mother was sitting beside the bed.
[24:36] The preacher came in and she said it seems like it's worth it night. It's worth it night. It just seems like this night will never come back. And he said oh we've been made in Europe at night.
[24:52] the joy came from the night. And the lady said that first was to turn up. We've been made in Europe tonight. You may be in trouble but joy is going to come from the Lord.
[25:06] Can you trust the Lord? Do you believe in him? Do you believe in him? Well let me move on. when I was a young boy in Arkansas in our town we had two celebrities.
[25:27] Our town wasn't that big about 15,000. We had two celebrities. We had Time Magazine that would come out and write stories about these guys. They were on TV.
[25:39] Everybody we were quite proud of our two young boys that were in the time. One of them was born with arms and legs. He just sort of looked like a big egg.
[25:55] Then boy the magazines and the boarders was always coming and they loved to get around him because little Jimmy was the happiest guy in my town.
[26:07] Then Jimmy would give him a testimony. He got up to be about 14 years old. He didn't think he was here that long. He would say well everything is fine.
[26:21] I don't have to worry about the things you guys do with your legs and your arms. God didn't give me no worry. I just doing fine. Big smile. The other one was a very crippled guy.
[26:35] I told you about him the! name! Very crippled. everybody in our school who fought over each other and cared about the groups for him.
[26:47] It was such a joy to be around. Always had a cheerful countenance. Always praised the Lord. Couldn't do anything for himself. And yet was cheerful.
[26:59] I've thought of those guys many times when I wanted to get down to them. I've got everything. I've got good help. God takes good care of me. God is good to us.
[27:16] Neither of those boys lived to finish that year. Never gone. And our town was poor for it because they showed us that in the worst of circumstances God can cheer you and make good blessings to others.
[27:33] I've never forgotten that. Never forgotten. Trust the Lord. Believe him and act like it. You may be in that storm help somebody else. Maybe you are.
[27:47] Number three. I'm going to hurry now. Stay in the boat. All they wanted to leave. Had to cut the life boat off. People leave.
[27:58] Paul said hold it. Let me tell you something. God almighty has said he's going to take care of us on this ship. Now you go on your own!
[28:09] God is not in the ship. Whatever ship you're in, you better stay in your ship. Are you going to stay in the ship when the going gets up?
[28:22] man, we had a couple storms come to our church. People left like rats. They couldn't wait to get out. We had one very big problem and the church was going to be sued.
[28:38] I can't say it. I mean, I've got money in the bank. And if they sue us, they get my money. I said, no, they won't. We're incorporated. They can't sue individuals. They sue the church.
[28:50] Our insurance company takes care of it. They're not going to get you a personal fortune. I'm afraid I can't take any chances. They got out of the boat and left. We had scores of people just to decide, I better get out of this ship it's sinking.
[29:06] No, it's not sinking. It's not sinking today. It wasn't going to sink then. But we were tested! see I know about those families that got out of boat.
[29:23] Wish I could tell you all the bad stuff. Let us come into those lives. Because they got out from under the protection of God. Not that God can't protect you somewhere else.
[29:34] But he's got a place for you to leave. If you get out of that place he doesn't he's not going to take you like you! If Elijah going somewhere else he starts to death God will want you to stay where he puts you.
[29:57] He'll take care of you there. In many cases that's a job. In many cases that's a town. In many cases that's a church. You stay in the boat. Very rarely it happens.
[30:12] Very rarely God leads you to go! Some of you have! And you have definitely led to join out.
[30:22] We talked about it and I agree to you to come here. In many cases I said to people like that I don't think you ought to come here. I think you ought to go back to your church and fix things that you don't know.
[30:36] Sometimes you are leave. Brother don't you leave unadvised you stay where you are.! There are actually decide you need to change your circumstances you wait till God changes them and otherwise you stay where you want.
[30:59] Well stay in the ship. What do you do if your circumstances turn bad?
[31:13] What if you don't want to stay in ship? What if it's easier outside? What if it gets unbearable? You let God decide that and you stay in ship. As long as I was it got pretty bad to the Bible.
[31:27] They were beaten but it stopped and thrown to prison. You and I would been moaning and drunk. Some of us would have been saying well Lord I thought you called me to be a missionary. Is this the way you going to take care of look how they are treating their bleeding they're hurting and the Bible said at midnight they couldn't sleep at midnight they sang praises unto God that's not easy to do folks but it works the Lord came the earthquake took their shackles off and freed them just stay in the boat wherever God puts you stay there and God does something don't try to flee the storm God has got the storm let you something stay in there don't flee the storm I read this thing and tried to find a godly young man was called a preach very excited about as he was preparing he began to notice that he was losing his eyesight
[32:41] God we praised for our eyes he did a wonderful blessing thank God for all the things that we take for granted you'll be a better person thank him for all things and so he was losing his eyesight he said I want to go blind what can I do I can't be a!
[33:05] preacher his mother said start memorizing scripture memorize everything you can if you won't be able to read it someday you can quote it just memorize scripture and so his wife began to read the bible to him as his eyes got worse and worse and he began to memorize memorize most of the new desperately much of the old and as a blind preacher he was used everywhere he became a blind evangelist used all over this country when I was in he stayed in the boat when I was in St.
[33:48] Louis area pastoring with a young fellow from my church he had bible he had on big glasses came home from school every once in a while one time he came and I couldn't see his eyes you know in bible thought I'm don't have money and see he had dropped his glasses and they got scratched and he couldn't I don't have a seat out he couldn't see much anymore and I said Jim good night what happened you last well pastor you know I dropped and he got scratched it's okay it's okay I said you're not good at everything but you can't see I took him down Lord in paradise oh he was thrilled to death Jim Bell went ahead graduated from house Anderson
[34:48] I said Jim I don't want you come down and be my he wanted to be a pastor school to be a pastor I said help you to be a pastor you have a sister pastor for a while and do music and whatever but so he came and became my sister by by the Lord let me ring that and I suggested they called him that was in when West what year was 86 86 as in 86 Jim Bell about two years ago about three years about three years ago he went blind and died being real bad across his eyes side!
[35:43] Jim Bell had with those bad eyes had written several books good books done research on Baptist history became an expert in Baptist history in the United States went to London and all those libraries over there and internally all those libraries really became outstandingly learned in history Bible Baptist history all while his wife was bleeding most of it too never quit never quit just went off never bragged and growled accomplished more than most of us had to die we got word about two years ago Jim brother died so not going praise God he used the time he had and he used it properly he never quit he never gave up you got to respect somebody like that read the story of several years ago a young couple of children fell dead to the
[36:57] Bible college and prepared to ministry it's very hard to work your way through and have a family hard to do it one day the oldest child became dead and sick they had no insurance and no money they waited and prayed they waited and prayed when the family took the baby to the doctor said we don't have money we have insurance can you help us the doctor takes a little little child and says sir we could have helped you earlier this child didn't die and the little child did die they picked themselves up shook themselves off hugged their other little baby got back in school and kept on going not long after the wife went in to get the little baby in the morning and found the little baby's dead in the crib second child died they picked themselves up shook themselves off said the
[38:03] Lord hath given the Lord hath taken away blessed be the name of the Lord finished Bible college with a big smile God knows what he's doing I'm not going to question him something bad might happen to these kids God knows and today I won't call their names today they are in a great past their faces are bright they radiate the love of God they're doing a great work because they stayed in the ship they didn't give up they didn't quit you're going to have temptation to quit you're going to have temptation to give up I'm just telling you point number three which I take a lot of time is in the ship you'll be glad you did you'll be glad you did well let me see if I can close this thing out I started a little bit late this morning why don't we just go to the last point
[39:06] I noticed that Paul stayed focused on soldiers not many times in the Bible are men called soldiers but all had noticed too there are 276 soldiers on the ship thank God God is preserving them alive and I have no doubt that Paul got on that island and preached to God to see how many of he could get saved the man never gave up on trying to somebody you know what's wrong with you you you're not soul conscious you don't care about soul you got your you're letting everybody go you're supposed to share what you have with somebody else don't quit going after your soul don't quit I've got one illustration everybody heard Tom Galong that great preacher I've been at Michigan for many years I read many stories about a great preacher one time
[40:07] Tom and that little lady get rid of sick little lady died on Saturday night he looked at Mrs.
[40:19] Malone she looked at him he said you know what we're going to do tomorrow she said I'm going to sing and you're going to preach he said exactly like and while they were preparing their baby for a funeral the baby is in the barn and the woman got up and sang the great grace of her heart and the preacher Malone got up and preached with great power there was a 56 year old man that had come in that morning and he said no I don't think that's going to be God I think I'm alright but that particular Sunday he decided to come here!
[41:09] Because he heard that Malone baby had died and that Brother Malone was going to be preaching he said I don't believe you I'm going to go see him came to the service sat in the back saw the mother singing father preaching and that 56 year old man nudged his wife at invitation time here's what he said if they can sing and preach the day their baby dies there must be something to what they have I'm going down front and get whatever you don't know God knows all all sorts of ways of looking at situations I guarantee you it's always stay in the boat don't quit praying trust the
[42:13] Lord find you a secret way just stay with you don't quit God will not give up on you you won't give up on me how many years ago was it being involved in that doctor his nurse called you had no knock in your throat we went up and they took some x-rays and the doctor said we were calling him the next day the sessions called on one day 32 years 30 years 30 years ago they called and said you need to get your wife so we drove down the doctor said well she has something in her throat that's not right and he said we're going to go in there and take it out but he said all the indicators are that she had cancer now
[43:22] I'm not going to say that nothing will take it out but it looks like it might be goodnight we were going to get for nothing ever happened to help before trying to serve the Lord and I feel like what you doing for why me what's it for we went to surgery the doctor told me and told her if the incision is small it was not cancer if the incision goes all the way across it was cancer you had to do a lot of extinence I went in after she came back from recovery room she was with the frog in I went to bed rolling hands I looked at me just waking up and her fingers went to that bang
[44:26] I saw it she came down to the middle and kept on going and coughing and her eyes were aching a couple times and she said it was cancer blood I said yes we heard water but they got it all there there's a compliment they got it all now you'll have to go through some radiation stuff just to be sure but isn't God good and we started praising the heart what else can you do can get out of mother grub you gotta keep going she got over it went through all treatments learned a lot of stuff had a lot of experience not many not long after that knock on the door a lady who traveled hundreds and hundreds of miles had heard about all cancer she said
[45:34] I've got cancer and it's killing me I don't know what to do I thought I'd come and see if you can encourage me I can't tell you how many times we got encouraged to stay in the ship learn what he wants you to know just trust him he'll have your storm turn out he'll bless him to somebody all right you know