In this final quarter of Acts, Luke is adopting the Genesis-style narrative of promise and fulfillment, where God's promise meets with threat after threat, but vanquishes them all in succession. The story of Paul's journey to Rome is just such a Genesis-style narrative. Paul decided to go to Rome back in chapter 19, and then for ten chapters met with obstacle after obstacle to the fulfillment of God's promise. One such major obstacle, of course, is the shipwreck on the island of Malta that Luke recounted at length in the previous chapter. Now, at the beginning of this final chapter, Luke records how the apostle was received in Malta. Many commentators have noticed that Luke doesn't say that Paul preached, that people were converted, that Paul started a church on the island, etc. One even goes so far as to say that the text is all about how Christians can cooperate with non-Christians to make the world a better place. But I much prefer the comments of Luke Timothy Johnson, who points at that by this point in the story, Luke doesn't need to tell us that Paul preached and planted a church. Instead, Luke shows us the symbols that he has used time after time in his two-volume work. If you look, the marks are there. The natives received Paul; they showed hospitality; and they ruled money, showing generosity with their possessions toward the mighty apostle and his companions. Taken together, these three symbols leave no doubt: The Maltese show major evidence of conversion. The Son and Spirit of God were at work on this island, converting the Maltese and bringing them into the Kingdom.
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Caleb Nelson grew up in Ft. Collins, CO. Born into a Christian home, where he eventually became the eldest of 11 children, he has been a lifelong Presbyterian. He professed faith at the age of six, and was homeschooled through high school. He then attended Patrick Henry College...
