Under His Protection

When the apostle Paul was placed on a ship bound for Rome, he experienced a shipwreck along the way. But the Lord had appeared to Paul and assured him that no lives would be lost. They would reach their destination safely. Everyone made it ashore, and as Paul was warming his hands over the fire, a venomous snake fastened itself onto Paul’s hand. Paul simply shook off the snake, and everyone thought he was some sort of god because he survived. But Paul’s time had not yet come.

This reminds us of one thing: until God is done with us, we are indestructible. Jesus said of believers, “They will be able to handle snakes with safety, and if they drink anything poisonous, it won’t hurt them” (Mark 16:18 NLT). This doesn’t mean we should hold snake-handling services as some so-called churches have been known to do. Nor should we go out and drink poison to test our faith. That is testing the Lord, and it isn’t what God is saying.

Here is what it does mean: until God is done with us, nothing will stop us. We don’t have to live in constant fear for our lives, because until the day the Lord is done with us, we will be safe in His protective care.

And what about the day when He is done with us? As Paul himself said, “To live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21 NKJV).

Meanwhile, we are not to unnecessarily risk our lives. We are not to do foolish things to endanger ourselves. If we seek to stay in the will of God, we have nothing to worry about.

That’s a great outlook to have while we live in a dangerous world. We can thank God because we are under His protection.