SERVICES: SATURDAY 6PM | SUNDAY 9AM & 10:45AM. 

We Livestream at www.FaithFellowshipWeb.com/livestream, through the FFC App, and YouTube.

Shaking Off Vipers

Shaking Off Vipers
Words of Faith 8-22-16
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2016
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL
<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><

Acts 28
Once safely on shore, we found out that the island was called Malta. [2] The islanders showed us unusual kindness. They built a fire and welcomed us all because it was raining and cold. [3] Paul gathered a pile of brushwood and, as he put it on the fire, a viper, driven out by the heat, fastened itself on his hand. [4] When the islanders saw the snake hanging from his hand, they said to each other, "This man must be a murderer; for though he escaped from the sea, Justice has not allowed him to live." [5] But Paul shook the snake off into the fire and suffered no ill effects. [6] The people expected him to swell up or suddenly fall dead, but after waiting a long time and seeing nothing unusual happen to him, they changed their minds and said he was a god.

God was watching over this group of shipwrecked travelers. The islanders showed kindness by building a fire so that they might warm up. But as Paul gathered brushwood for the fire he suddenly found a viper attached to his hand! After all this, would Paul die on the beach because of snakebite?
Paul quickly shook off the viper into the fire. Everyone waited for him to puff up and drop over, but this would not be the case. When Paul survived, the islanders thought that perhaps he was a god. This actually may have opened the door for Paul to later introduce them to the true and living God.
But there is more here than a wild adventure tale. Vipers can be a real problem, even today! Maybe not so much the literal kind, but we often encounter the type of viper that attaches without warning and leaves a venomous bite.
There are plenty of venomous strikes that can come our way! There is the poisonous viper of temptation. Don't forget the venomous viper of pride that can swell you up in an instant! Watch out for the viper of gossip, which easily slithers up and attaches itself. All of these are poisonous and each viper draws us away from the Lord and into our flesh.
Vipers often attack us just when we are doing the very thing that God wants us to do. The viper may even come from a source close to us. There is the critical spirit that comes alongside or the negative word just at the moment God is moving us ahead. There is the discouraging comment that attempts to take our energy and enthusiasm. There is the accusing voice which send us into self-pity, self-doubt or insecurity. These are just a few of the poisons.
But Paul shows us exactly what to do with vipers: Shake them off into the fire! The longer you allow a poisonous snake to stay attached, the more venom you will get!
But how do we do that?
1) If the viper is a temptation, run away from it! Flee the lust of the flesh. Run away from the sin of gossip. Move away from the pride of life as fast as you can. Get loose from the viper. It cannot be coddled.
2) Focus on God alone. That was the power Paul had discovered. God's opinion is the only one that counts. Paul was focused on God alone. Even the experience of being worshiped did not puff him up with pride.
This also guards us against the negative word. If we find our value in what people think of us, we will always have a viper of some sort attached! But if we find our value only in what God says about us, we will shake off the vipers of insecurity and self-accusation into the fire.
What has God said about us? He has declared that in Christ you are a new creation, the old is gone and the new has come (2 Cor. 5:17). He has declared that there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1). He has declared that you can do all things through Christ Jesus who strengthens you (Phil. 4:13). He has declared that you are the salt of the earth and the light of the world (Matt. 5:13-16). He has declared that He loves you with an everlasting love (Jeremiah 31:3). These are just a few!
Here is the rub. Such vipers are actually a sign that we are on the right track and we are doing the right thing! If this were not so, then the Enemy would not even bother with us. As we approach the path which God desires, we often will find an increase in viper activity. Paul was not off track, he was on track.
So for today, watch out for vipers. And when they attach themselves to you, shake them off quickly. God has His hand on you and is protecting you.

Lord, give me quick response when poison attaches itself to me. Give me strength to shake off the attacks of the Enemy. Show me who You want me to be and what You want me doing today. In Jesus' name.

<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><
© Jeffrey D. Hoy 2001, 2016
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy - Faith Fellowship Church (EFCA)
2820 Business Center Blvd.
Melbourne, Florida 32940 (321)-259-7200
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
SUBSCRIPTIONS - To receive the Words of Faith devotion five days a week, send an E-mail message addressed to join-words-of-faith@hub.xc.org. To stop receiving Words of Faith, send an E-mail message addressed to unsubscribe-words-of-faith@hub.xc.org. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2010 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.