Matins Devotion: August 5, 2025

Acts 28:1-15

Why do snakes creep us out so much? Why do we see them as something evil and terrifying? Well, if you watch nature documentaries, the secular narrators will typically tell you that it’s some sort of evolutionary memory passed down from our times as less evolved creatures when snakes were our predators as we were climbing about the trees. Ah, close but no cigar. Predatory snakes and trees are correct, but it’s not because we were once primates. It’s because once the serpent preyed upon Adam and Eve in the garden, convincing them to throw away eternal life by taking the forbidden fruit of a tree.

This, quite obviously, is a memory that was passed down throughout the generations, passed down from the sons of Noah to their sons who formed the various nations of the world. And even if the story of the serpent and the tree was forgotten, remnants of it remain. Which is why serpents are viewed with fear and suspicion all over the world, why they show up in the myths of countless tribes, and why the Maltese were certain that Paul must have been a murderer when he was bit by a viper. And then, when he shrugged it off like nothing happened and wasn’t harmed, it’s why they concluded then he was a god, that he was a being above the curse that afflicted all men.

Ah, close, but no cigar. Paul was, in a sense, a murderer in that he once rejoiced in the murder of Stephen and participated in the persecution of Christians. But then he came to know the love of Christ and received the forgiveness of his sins. So he was a murderer no more. And no, Paul was not a god, but he was covered in the righteousness of the Son of God, the one who conquered the serpent upon Calvary and crushed that viper’s head with His nail-pierced feet. Paul was clothed in that victory, so the serpent could not harm him.

And so it is for all who believe. Once we were murderers, thieves, liars, idolaters, adulterers, killed by the poison of sin that Satan pumped into our hearts. But then Jesus found us and gave us the antidote of His forgiveness, His perfection, His love. So whether you’re creeped out by snakes or not, don’t be afraid of what the snake represents, what he reminds you of. Christ has won. Shake off the viper. Leave behind your guilt and rest in the arms of God.