⁷Now in the neighborhood of that place were lands belonging to the leading man of the island, named Publius, who welcomed us and entertained us courteously three days. ⁸And it happened that the father of Publius was lying in bed afflicted with recurrent fever and dysentery; and Paul went in to see him and after he had prayed, he laid his hands on him and healed him. ⁹After this had happened, the rest of the people on the island who had diseases were coming to him and getting cured. ¹⁰They also honored us with many marks of respect; and when we were setting sail, they supplied us with all we needed.

For a prisoner, Paul was treated quite well. Of course, the miraculous events the islanders had witnessed had paved the way for his warm reception; some even thought Paul was a god. It is unlikely that they were confusing him with the supreme creator of the universe or considering him to be among the Greek pantheon. But his survival from the poisonous bite put him in the category of deity, and as such, deserving of great respect—at least in the minds of the locals.

Paul’s concern for the well-being of others continued in the healing story here. The “leading man of the island” took special interest in the shipwreck crew and passengers. It is uncertain whether Publius took the initiative to invite Paul to visit his father or whether Paul asked to see him. Regardless, Paul healed the man. And this resulted in an outbreak of healing.

At this juncture, we observe that apostolic healing had not tapered off as time went on in the early church, at least not to this point. The time frame places this incident at no more than thirty or so years after Pentecost. Whether the gift of healing continued after the time of the apostles, Christians continue debating to this day. One thing about which we can be assured is that the healings of Scripture were bona fide, undeniable, observable phenomena. Diseases were healed—actually.

When God heals, He acts contrary to His normal pattern of working in the world. The observable world, which is subject to scientific examination, is merely a discovery and understanding of God’s regular patterns of activity:

For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. (Col. 1:16–17)

When God diverges from the normal, that’s a miracle. And that was now happening at the hand of Paul. God was confirming His will and protection when Paul and the others were at the complete mercy of the islanders.

Lord, keep reminding me that Your blessing is an indicator of Your guiding will.