To Rome! Acts 27-28

‘Agrippa said to Festus, “[Paul] could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar.”’ (Acts 26:32).

Do you ever think about ‘what might have been’?

Chapter 27

Using a map, track the progress of Paul and his companions on their journey from Caesarea to Rome.  (I hope you do not feel too seasick!)

Why do you think that this journey is related in such vivid detail?  (I don’t think the answer is very complicated!)

By what ‘natural’ (human) and ‘supernatural’ (divine) means are Paul and his companions kept safe?

Chapter 28

We might assume that people who do not share the Christian faith will always be hostile towards those who do.  How does the response of the Maltese islanders (28:1-11) lead us to question this assumption?

Some Christians today have a high expectation, and others a lower expectation, of seeing miracles such as those recorded in 28:7-10.  How do we account for these differences of expectation?

Some years earlier, Paul had asked, ‘Did God reject his people?’ (Romans 11:1).  What is the answer, taking Acts 28:17-28 into account?

In what ways do the final verses (28:30-31) round off the Book of Acts neatly?  And in what ways do they leave things open-ended?

Looking back over Acts 27 and 28, what encouragements do you see for Christian mission and ministry today?