Publius's Father: The Healing of a Great Fever by Paul

By the end of the Book of Acts, there is little that Paul and his fellow apostles have not seen. He has been shipwrecked, brought before Kings, beaten half to death, stoned, imprisoned, and by the end of the account of the history of the apostles, the shipwrecked Paul winds up on the island of Melita with a "barbarous people" who showed them "no little kindness". The first act of kindness is to try and warm the castaways from the sea with a fire. As Paul sits before the small comfort in the cold and rain, the world adds insult to injury: as Paul gathers sticks to add on the fire, a viper jumps from the heat and fastens itself to his hand.

The people of the Island of Melita are not Christians nor Jews: like so many that Paul encountered in his travels, they are pagans, with the various gods of the region, usually of the Greek variety. Even these kindly pagans, though have the idea of divine providence or imminent justice: they expect that Paul, pulled from the sea must have done something terribly wrong,positing him to be a murderer, that "vengeance suffereth not to live". (Acts 28:4)

.there came a viper out of the heat, and fastened on his hand.4 And when the barbarians saw the venomous beast hang on his hand, they said among themselves, No doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he hath escaped the sea, yet vengeance suffereth not to live.5 And he shook off the beast into the fire, and felt no harm.6Howbeit they looked when he should have swollen, or fallen down dead suddenly: but after they had looked a great while, and saw no harm come to him, they changed their minds, and said that he was a god. Acts 28:4-6

Two aspects emerge in the thinking of the Melitans encountering Paul on the shore that day:

1. Immanent Justice: He must have been a murderer because even after having been saved from the sea, he was bitten by a deadly viper, and

2. Divine nature or Intervention: Because he survived the viper bite, which would have killed most men, he must be a god or of a divine nature.

The belief that a god could come in human form was not strange nor odd to this Mediterranean people: most of their gods were in human form such as the gods on Mt. Olympus, such as Zeus, Diana, Apollo, Mercury and so forth, or lesser divinities which took the forms of nature. Paul was bringing healing and word of the true Messiah, the Living God incarnate though, and he must have spoken with care to express true doctrine. The healing that was about to occur on Melita though, was not without a preliminary dissension in the Melitan's thinking, that because Paul escaped both the sea and viper bite that he must be a god. At least one other place in Acts 14 , the same error is made of Paul and Barnabas following a healing:

Act 14:11 And when the people saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in the speech of Lycaonia, The gods are come down to us in the likeness of men.
Act 14:12 And they called Barnabas, Jupiter; and Paul, Mercurius, because he was the chief speaker.
Act 14:13 Then the priest of Jupiter, which was before their city, brought oxen and garlands unto the gates, and would have done sacrifice with the people.
Act 14:14 [Which] when the apostles, Barnabas and Paul, heard [of], they rent their clothes, and ran in among the people, crying out,
Act 14:15 And saying, Sirs, why do ye these things? We also are men of like passions with you, and preach unto you that ye should turn from these vanities unto the living God, which made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all things that are therein:

IN Acts 14, the two are horrified at being treated as Olympian gods, and use the occasion to turn the people's attention away from idolatrous practice to the true God and his gospel, but the people quickly turn in violence and run them out of town.

In Melita though, the people are kind, and when they see Paul survive the storm and the viper, great kindnesses are extended, including an invitation to stay at the house of a 'Chief man of the island', named Publius, with whom they stay three days:

Acts 28:7 In the same quarters were possessions of the chief man of the island, whose name was Publius; who received us, and lodged us three days courteously.

While staying with Publius, the last healing mentioned by an apostle takes place: the healing of Publius's Father.

The Healing of Publius' Father of a Fever and Bloody flux
The kindness of Publius in inviting this charismatic stranger into his home, resulted in yet another wonder of God: Paul heals the man's father.

Acts 28:8-9 And it came to pass, that the father of Publius lay sick of a fever and of a bloody flux: to whom Paul entered in, and prayed, and laid his hands on him and healed him. 9 So when this was done others also, which had diseases in the island, came and were healed.

Note that this healing, like so many of the others, including those of Jesus, sets the stage for the preaching of the Gospel. Healing is a sign of God's power and imprimatur; while the Jews looked for and required a sign, the wonders of God were also a draw to gentiles as well. When one sees the power of God in a magnificent way, one is very likely to at least listen to what is said next by the people of God who are the conduits for the wonder, in this case a healing. Almost every healing is accompanied by the preaching of the Gospel, also in power, explaining the source of the power, the healing virtue, which is the indwelling Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Jesus Christ.

The Healing
Not a great deal of description is given regarding this healing by Paul. Paul enters in, prays,and lays hands on Publius' father. We have seen in other healings that the laying on of hands is taught as foundational, along with the basics of doctrine:

font color=blue>Hbr 6:1 Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,
Hbr 6:2 Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.

We have also seen that even the merest touch is not required when it is the voice of God who heals: the commands of the apostles and Holy Spirit filled disciples, filled with 'living water' carried the weight and authority of Christ: even today, when modernity snubs Holy Spirit healing, a servant of Christ walking in belief, obedience and power speaks a healing, he or she does it with the Lord's permission: this is no "Heroes" type power owned by the person, but the power of God working through the person to touch those who are infirm.

It is only a fever, so common an ailment which confronts the father, but it is stopped as is the hemorrhaging, both end. A simple healing before an unbelieving group of islanders, turns into requests for healing, and belief, as well as honor for God's apostle:

Acts 28:10 Who also honoured us with many honours; and when we departed, they laded us with such things as were necessary.

Nothing else is mentioned of the healing or the ones that follow, but it must have been quite a harvest among the islanders, for Paul and the others stayed a full 3 months before moving on th Syracuse, Rhegium and Puteoli, and finally to Rome.

Some last thoughts on the healing: Implications for faith

In summary, a few observations are notable regarding how the pagan people of Melita encountered Paul and his survival, and later his healing of the Chief man's father:

1. Assimilation and Accomodation: When the pagan people of Melita did not understand what they saw was divine power ; without knowledge they could only attribute it to a 'god'. When people see something not in their experience, most first try to draw it into constructs they already have, e.g. a 'power' belonging to one of the 'gods'; only when they can conceive of the thing being a brand new thing outside their understanding, do they then attempt to bring it as a new idea into their understanding, and 'make room' for it.

Paul played on this a bit when he spoke in Greece and pointed to their 'unknown god', a god that was supposed to sort of 'cover' them in case they had forgotten any. Paul did not endorse the worship of pagan or Greek and Roman gods, but instead, uses the pagan construct, to bring the living God into view, for those who had no concept of the slain Lamb of God who rose from the dead. He never endorses nor aligns with idolatry nor does he or the others allow themselves to be seen as 'gods', but quickly rebukes them, but he understood how to begin to speak of Messiah to non-Jewish people.
2. Immanent Justice-We referred before to the idea of "Immanent Justice": these terms are often found in 'Developmental Psychology' when explaining how young children think. The 'barbarous people' of Melita, have the idea of 'just punishment' or 'immanent justice', that if something bad happens to someone, they are being judged for some unseen evil deed. When they see Paul bitten by a viper right after a shipwreck involving prisoners, they must feel that he really did whatever crime with which he was charged. He shakes it off, unharmed, as promised. (they shall take up serpents, and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover (Mark 16:18). Some Appalachian churches even today use practices like 'snake handling' believing that true believers are tested by whether venom affects them, but that is not the spirit of the passage: Jesus refers to the event not harming believers, because the sovereign life of walking in Christ is above the natural life. To deliberately have snakes bite worshipers is to tempt or test God, to put him on trial, which we are not to do, and there is a difference between trusting his promises, and daring him to be right. In any event there is providential thinking.

3.When Paul lives the attribution is that he is good. Regarding the healing:

4.-It is immediate, as with the healings of Jesus

-It involves laying on of hands with prayer

-Multitudes show up on the island to receive healing after hearing of it. The apostle is blessed and honored in departing Melita.

This last healing in the Book of Acts in the last chapter of Acts bears the marks of all the other healings: some claim healings lapse and wane, and are only in the time around Pentecost, but this is certainly not true: this healing is in power, and in order, and leads to the salvation and healing of many. Though many today count the end of Acts to be the end of healings, tens of thousands can attest to the healing power of Jesus Christ, Yshua Ha Meschiach, Jesus of Nazareth the Messiah, through His presence in the Holy Spirit which indwells believers. Before ascending in a cloud into Heaven, Jesus , Emmanuel,"God with Us" promised that He would be the author of a Temple which could not be destroyed. The Power of God, in Healing and Prophecy, prophecy being the Testimony of Jesus Christ, is still alive today for the health and well being of His bride, the Church. Belief and the Power of God is not a dispensational age.

Till next time,
Elizabeth K. Best

What a Word is this?!.....The Demoniac in the Synagogue in Capernaum

Compose

The First Devil Jesus Casts Out: At The Synagogue at Capernaum

While the casting out of devils is often included among the healings of Jesus and his disciples, the expulsion of demonic forces in a person is in a sense different from the other healings because it involves the process of freeing the person from a form of captivity involving mental and emotional status, although the distinction is somewhat arbitrary, since both physical healings and the casting out of devils involve spiritual, emotional , cognitive and physical healing. Certain physical 'symptoms' go with devil possession: blindness, deafness, and dumbness, for example, as the devil 'overpowers' the faculties of a person, blocking, as John Bunyan once pointed out the 'Ear gate, the Eye gate, and the gate of the mouth' commandeering the person's abilities for a satanic habitation. Still, though the lines are somewhat blurred, the casting out of devils remains a more eminent evidence of the divine battle which Jesus fought: he was taking back what was rightfully his: the Lost Sheep of the House of Israel.

The time and place of the casting out of this devil, is also remarkable: Jesus is at the beginning of his earthly ministry, and while it is not the first time he has taught in the Synagogue at Capernaum, it is one of the first as he begins the path to Golgotha: right before the casting out of the devil at Capernaum, he has announced in Nazareth, that He is the fulfillment of the promise of Messiah. Luke 4 shows Jesus teaching from Isaiah 61 in what may be seen as his 'Inaugural Address' declaring the words of Isaiah the prophet fulfilled:

Luk 4:16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.
Luk 4:17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,
Luk 4:18 The Spirit of the Lord [is] upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
Luk 4:19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
Luk 4:20 And he closed the book, and he gave [it] again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.
Luk 4:21 And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.

Nazareth is where Jesus grew up, and as He would teach, " a prophet is a prophet everywhere but in his own country", and the crowd was taken with wrath as He declared the fulfillment: they ran him out of town, by first trying to throw him over the nearby cliff! Coming from one of their own this must have sounded disturbing, and over and over throughout his ministry, as Israel saw the wonders and miracles and healings of God, they were awestruck, they thronged him seeking healing and teaching, and yet they also were afraid at something so opposed to the ordinary, to the natural, that they could not reconcile the 'new thing' and became terrified. (e.g. the casting of devils into the herd of swine).

Jesus moves soon after to Capernaum, his home town, where he once again begins at the Synagogue, preaching the Kingdom of God, but a few things have already occurred: Simon, Andrew, James and John have been called (Mk 1:16,19-20), and it is after the Holy Spirit as a dove descends in the ensign of Baptism by John the Baptist. (Mk 1:9-10) This is after the temptation in the wilderness (MK 1:13), and as mentioned above, directly follows the heralding of his ministry, and the attempt to destroy Him by throwing him off the cliff at Nazareth (Luke 4:29-30).

Jesus enters the Synagogue in Capernaum on Shabbat. (Mark 1:21) In the Synagogue, among the other believers, their sits a man with what is described as an 'unclean spirit'.

And there was a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out; Saying Let us alone; what have we to do with thee thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God. Mk. 1:24

This confrontation with the Lord and Savior, before more is known is astounding: the devils know who Jesus is, and are afraid of him. They cry out, "...Let us alone; what have we to do with thee thou Jesus of Nazareth...". Someone once tried to suggest that if the devils knew who he was, then maybe he was not of the Lord. Time and again, during his ministry, the Pharisees tried to ascribe his works to the devil but invariably showed a lack of knowledge about the scriptures. The devils are AFRAID of Jesus: they demonstrate the knowledge of his utter sovereignty, and that He is the Holy One: "...art thou come to destroy us? I NOW THEE WHO THOU ART, THE HOLY ONE OF GOD. (1:24). They are of an uncomfortable, but divine realm: they know who Jesus is: the long awaited and promised, the 'covenanted' Holy One of Israel. It is interesting to note that the term 'Holy One of Israel' is used 31 times as an exact term in the Old Testament, and not in the New Testament, save for this passage. The shorter term "Holy One" is used 6 times in the New Testament, but mostly in quoting the Old, and always referring to Jesus. The devil also uses the name "Jesus of Nazareth"- pointing to the location he was raised and has just been: most do not realize that before the days of Jesus, there is no city named 'Nazareth'---which means 'Branch', and no doubt comes from nazarim, which was, of course, a holy one, set apart for the work of the Lord.

The devil also knows that Jesus is capable of their destruction: no such interchange, even with the greatest of prophets has taken place before in Israel. So here we have, a Sovereign Holy One of God, who is capable of destroying the demonic. He is anathema to them: they cry "let us alone; what have we to do with thee?; the implicit response being 'nothing'.

Jesus Responds to the Devil

Jesus, while willing for the time of his sojourn here, to teach any who asked, never spends time in dialogue with devils: he casts them out. It is no less true here:

Mark 1:25 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him."

He silences the devil, perhaps not wanting it to even speak of the things of God, and commands the devil to let go of the man in the Synagogue driven to disrupt the service and his purpose. The Authority of God is clearly seen, and is shortly to be remarked upon here: the presence of God is seen and felt. He speaks directly to the devil, to the 'unclean spirit' though and not to the man per se. Why? because oftentimes in possession, the devil has crowded out the free will of the person. It is easy when we see a person who has such a bizarre and anti-social countenance, acting in unholy ways to feel ill towards the person: if the reason though is demonic, the person is as much the victim or more than those offended by his actions.

Casting Out an Unclean Spirit

The unclean spirit "akathartos" (compare to the idea of un-catharted) ἀκάθαρτος and spirit, pneuma, πνεῦμα is described in Thayers as having to do with the idea of moral uncleanness, but also as of an uncleanness pertaining to ritual law described in Leviticus. In the one mention of an unclean spirit in the Old Testament, in Zechariah 13:2 the unclean spirit is associated with false prophecy: true prophecy is in line with a healthy and pure lifestyle.
Unclean spirits in the New Testament are associated always with a devil or demonic activity and always in the context of casting out the devil from a person. In one instance we will study later, the unclean spirits are allowed into a herd of swine which violently run off a cliff.

Violence characterizes the casting out of demons. ('Devil' and 'Demon' are used interchangeably, though in the KJV, only devil is used, the word for devil is δαιμόνιον or daimonion (demon). Devil when referring to Satan is 'diabolos'. In the cases of casting out demons or devils, the meaning is clearly, 'an inferior spirit', obviously not of the Kingdom of God. The violence of a devil letting go of a human host is seen here:

"And when the unclean spirit had torn him, and cried with a loud voice he came out of him". Mark 1:26

In more than one healing, two we have already seen (e.g. Father with the son with a dumb spirit who is thrown in the fire) the unclean spirit has no love of its human host. Examples in scripture of the violent behavior of devils while possessing their host or exiting their host include throwing the person into fire or water, gnashing, foaming, a loud voice or cry, and similar characteristics. This healing is no exception: the spirit TEARS the man, right there, on Shabbat in Synagogue in Capernaum(Luke 4:35) and cries with a loud voice, and throws the man, but then exited, leaves him alone:

And when the devil had thrown him in the midst, he came out of him and hurt him not. Lk4:35

Once the devil is cast out, there appears to be no further harm, unless the person willingly lets down the defense of a pure life and mental/spiritual state, in which case it is Jesus himself who teaches and warns, that the process of letting down that defense opens the person up for an even more powerful overthrow (7 times).

The devils Jesus or his disciples cast out also appear to have a hierarchy and rank: for example in Daniel, there is a mention of 'principalities' when referring to the 'prince of Persia', or in the New Testament when we speak of withstanding the powers of darkness:

Eph 6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high [places].

And Jesus is referred to as having 'spoiled principalities' in triumphing over the devil on the Cross.

Col 2:15 [And] having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.

Principalities alone are neither good nor evil: they are a level of reign or rule, but devils in the divine battle appear to have 'offices' or rank. Satan has 'minions' of the 1/3 fallen angels. Lucifer is a created angel who is allowed for an uncertain reason and season to operate before the end, not a 'bad or evil god' but a created being gone bad who must like all the rest of creation bow before a Holy God, and the Name of the Lord and Savior. Phil 2:10

What a Word is This...the 'New Doctrine'

The people in Synagogue that day, in Jesus's hometown, had already been astounded: can you imagine the depth of sermon Jesus must have just preached! And from Jesus, the son of Joseph and Mary whom all know! And following, a remarkable event: a devil cries out in terror at the presence and sound of the Savior's voice. A devil cries that he knows who Jesus is---not the hometown boy, but the Redeemer and Holy One of Israel: the Messiah. Devils do not know everybody---in Acts, when Sceva and the vagabond Jews try to use Jesus's and Paul's name to cast out devils, the devil cries

Act 19:15 And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye?

Even more astounding, Jesus casts out the devil in the presence of his most difficult audience: those who saw him grow up, and the man is thrown by the devil into the midst of them! They had never seen a devil called out! They thought it was a new doctrine and commented on the word, of the Word of God:

Mar 1:27 And they were all amazed, insomuch that they questioned among themselves, saying, What thing is this? what new doctrine [is] this? for with authority commandeth he even the unclean spirits, and they do obey him.
Luk 4:36 And they were all amazed, and spake among themselves, saying, What a word [is] this! for with authority and power he commandeth the unclean spirits, and they come out.

The Word says they were 'all amazed' and talked among themselves as to the new teaching. They are dumbfounded at his authority, not only over people, but over the unseen. They comment on his power, crying 'What a Word is this?'

The Result

As with most of the wondrous works and healings, the immediate result is found in Mark 1:28

Mar 1:28 And immediately his fame spread abroad throughout all the region round

about Galilee.

The parallel passage regarding the casting out in Luke adds only that the location and time was directly at the time of his 'fulfillment' address' but the time after in Capernaum. Nonetheless the casting out of the unclean spirit in the Synagogue comes

1. after he reads Isaiah 61 in Nazareth and declares it fulfilled
2. After he rebukes Capernaum in the Nazareth Synagogue for unbelief (4:23), and
3. After the violence already mentioned.

Jesus's ministry, the sojourning of Yshua among us, comes from a number of silent years, then comes in power: God, Emanu-el is back face to face in Israel, and he is beginning to make a few things clear, about the Kingdoms of this world vs. the Kingdom of Heaven. His Son is no minor Prince, but Sar Shalom, with authority over all other kingdoms, not only of this world, but of unseen realms. The Word of God (John 1:1) delivers the Word (Is 61) in power, and with His Word, puts Satan on notice that his dark kingdom has no ultimate authority over the Kingdom,reign and rule of God in his Messiah. What a Word is this? What a Word is this,indeed!.

Till next time, much healing and many blessings. ekbest