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“Be of good cheer, Paul” (Acts 23:11).
“And now I (Paul) exhort you to be of good cheer” (Acts 27:22).
It is a very encouraging word that the Lord gives Paul in our first verse today. Paul had gone up to Jerusalem against the wishes of his brethren, who had warned him that he would get into trouble there. But when he landed in prison, the Lord did not rebuke him, but rather encouraged him. Paul knew he had missed the mind of the Lord, and he learned from the experience.
Later, on the voyage to Rome, Paul is then able to be above all his circumstances, and in the middle of a bad storm he is able to encourage everyone on board the ship. He knows exactly what is going to happen, and is confident that all of them will make it to land. The Lord had told him how everything would turn out.
In our lives the Lord loves to encourage us, and then we can be an encouragement to others, for we know from the Word of God what is ahead for this world. Even in the middle of real difficulties, we know that our salvation is sure, and that we can never be lost.
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