What does Acts 28:8 mean?
Paul and 275 other crew and passengers of an Alexandrian ship are wrecked on the island of Malta. They barely survived a two-week-long tempest on the Mediterranean Sea. The native Maltese people responded by building fires so the castaways could get warm. Paul reached over to grab some wood and was immediately swarmed by a snake that refused to let go. The locals assumed he must be a murderer and although he had survived the gods' judgment on the sea, he would not survive on the land. Paul merely shook the snake into the fire and went about his business. The people quickly changed their opinion and determined he must be a god (Acts 28:1–6).Perhaps in response to this miracle, the chief man of the island invites Paul and some others to his home. Paul discovers the leader's father is ill. Instead of touching the man, dropping a cloth on him, or letting his shadow pass over him (Acts 5:15; 19:12), he stops and prays. In this way, he shows more fully where his power comes from. Luke doesn't mention if Paul talks about Jesus on Malta; he probably does. But Luke does record that the islanders bring their sick to Paul for healing and, in response, provide the shipwreck survivors with everything they need for their three-month stay as well as their journey on to Rome (Acts 28:9–11).
Paul's pointed use of prayer is something mature Christians should keep in mind. Sometimes we become so used to the work God does in and through us that we forget to identify to others how we do what we do. It is good to show God's love in practical ways (Matthew 5:16)—but good works don't lead people to Christ if they don't know from Whom the good works came.
