ACTS 20:28

Near the end of Paul’s third missionary journey, Paul was speaking to the leaders of the church in Ephesus and he said to them in Acts 20:28, “Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost has made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.” Paul told pastors in this verse that there are two things that they should give attention to. First he told them to “take heed,” and then he told them “to feed.”

When Paul told the pastors to take heed, he told them to take heed to themselves and to take heed to all the flock. You must take heed to yourself before you can take care of someone else. That is the same principle that Jesus Himself taught. Jesus said in Matthew 7:3-5, “And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.” It would be shame and it would be a violation of this verse if a pastor learned better and better how to stand before a congregation and deliver sermons; but did not also learn to improve his own personal spiritual life. The most important part of any person’s testimony is their own is their own behavior and actions, and that includes pastors, preachers, and teachers.

Pastors are told to take heed to themselves and to all the flock. A congregation of Christians is compared to a flock of sheep. One thing about sheep is that they need a shepherd. Jesus is the Great Shepherd, and Jesus selects other shepherds to work under His authority as shepherds of the flock. A shepherd helps to protect the sheep from wolves who would destroy them. The wolves are the false teachers. That is exactly what they are called in verse 29 that says, “For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.” What is it about Paul that made him so much more capable to keep the false teachers away? There were probably at least two things. Paul was certainly tenacious. He would not look the other way while those that are false came on the scene. He would take care of that problem. Unfortunately there have been some pastors who have not been so diligent to keep away false teachers. Some have looked the other way in the name of unity, when they should have been more like the Apostle Paul.

Another way in which the Apostle Paul kept away false teachers was by teaching that which is true, and teaching all of the things that are true. That is what he said in verse 27. He said, “For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the council of God.” The council of God comes from the Word of God, and from no place else. The council of God does not come from illustrations, it does not come from personal experience, it does not come from current events, and it does not come from commentaries. It comes from the Word of God. It might be okay to use some of those other things a little bit once in a while, but they are not the Word of God. If you want to learn to preach the way that Paul did, learn to expound upon the Word of God. Learn how to open it up. Learn to take the bread of the Word, to break it, and to distribute it among the multitudes. If you do, you will feed the flock for whom Christ died, and you will properly prepare them against false teachers.

Some false teachers come from the outside and try to take over with their false teachings. Others come from the inside. Acts 20:30 says, “Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.” We can understand how false teachers can come from without a Christian group, but how can they come from within? How is that possible? Everyone considered them to be genuine Christians. Evidently these are individuals who learn the language of Christianity and who sound like everyone else for a time, but eventually they show their true character.

The reason that there are so many false teachings and so many cults is because of all the false teachers who have come from without and come from within. What every Christian must do to avoid coming under the sway of some false teacher is to be constantly on guard on this matter. That is why Paul said in Acts 20:31, “Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.” Paul was focused on others. He was concerned about their spiritual needs. He was not just a little bit concerned either. He was greatly concerned. He said, “I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.” Jesus wept. Paul shed tears. “He that goeth forth and weepeth bearing precious seed shall doubtless come again with rejoicing bringing his sheaves with him.” How many tears have you shed for the souls and the spiritual needs of others? Remember that Jesus shed His blood for God’s children. What have you done for them?

In this passage Paul is showing clearly the contrast between himself and the false teachers who would eventually cross their paths. Paul taught them all the counsel of God: the false teachers will teach them falsehood. Paul was genuinely concerned for the spiritual needs of the Ephesians (twice it is mentioned that he shed tears for them in these verses): the false teachers were only concerned about themselves and what they could gain at the expense of the Ephesian believers. That is probably what Paul was referring to in Acts 20:33 when he wrote, “I have coveted no man’s silver, or gold, or apparel.” Sad to say that there are people in the Christian ministry who do this very thing. It certainly is what the false teachers do.

The false teachers will be control freaks. They will want to control you and your resources for their benefit. Paul is making it clear that he did not do that. Paul said, “I have coveted no man’s silver, or gold, or apparel.” Paul also said in Acts 20:34, “Yea, ye yourselves know, that these hands have ministered unto my necessities, and to them that were with me.” Normally, under the best of circumstances we would not want the pastor of the church to work outside of the ministry for his material necessities. “They that preach the gospel should live of the gospel.” “Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treads out the corn.” Much more will get accomplished if a pastor can spend all of his time in prayer, Bible study, and the other requirements of being a pastor. That is why there are deacons and church members with other gifts: in order to use their gifts to assist the pastor. Someone who has a gift to teach or to preach can only do so much if left to their own devices. But if they are assisted by those with other gifts, much more will be accomplished.

For some reason when Paul was in Ephesus he saw the necessity to support himself by his own labor: perhaps because he just was not being given enough support or perhaps because the Ephesians were just too sensitive to the subject of giving money for the support of the ministers of the gospel. But for whatever reason, what Paul did in supporting himself for a time was a great contrast to the false teachers who would come to profit at the expense of the Ephesian believers.

Paul reminded the believers in Ephesus that the fact of his working to supply his own needs and to supply the needs of others was a good example for them to follow in regards to their own material possessions that they gained. He said in Acts 20:35, “I have showed you all things, how that so laboring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.” There are several reasons to work and earn money. One reason to work and earn money is to provide for your own needs. “They that do not work do not eat.” Similar to that reason is to work to provide for family members. “He that provides not for his own, especially for those of his own household has denied the faith and is worse than an infidel.” Of course, it is perfectly appropriate and makes good sense to save for a rainy day, to save for the future, to save for retirement. Proverbs 6:6 says, “Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways and be wise; which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, Provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest.” One of the reasons for earning money is to give to those less fortunate than yourself. God gives to us from His storehouse. We should be more like Him. God’s welfare system for Christians is that those who have more would give to those who have less. God is a giver. “For God so loved the world that He gave….” “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and upbraideth not.” We who are saved because of the spilling of His blood should be givers also.

Paul knew that this was going to be the last time that he would see these Christians. He taught them everything that he could teach them, and he knew that there would be some difficult times ahead for them, like there will be for all Christians. When those difficult times came, Paul would not be there like he had been in the past. But even without Paul these Christians would still have the means to face victoriously whatever life threw at them. Paul said in Acts 20:32, “And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified.”

Even though Paul was not going to be with them, the Lord would still be with them. Jesus said, “I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.” Everyone in the world may forsake you, but God never will. “In Him we live and move and have our being.” Hopefully these Christians knew how to trust in the Lord and to be followers of the Lord, and not to be followers of any man. Those who follow men are carnal and not spiritual. In speaking to the Christians in Corinth and how carnal they were, Paul said in First Corinthians 1:12, “Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ.”

They would always have the Lord, and they would always have the Word of His grace. The emphasis is on the grace of God. If you do not understand His grace, then you do not understand His Word. God is gracious. He gives saving grace to the lost, and He gives sustaining grace to the saved. God is a gracious giver. You can count on the fact that God will give to you out of His abundant storehouse, and therefore you will be taken care of in regards to the most important things. What are those things that God will graciously give to you? Two of the most important ones are mentioned in verse 32. Interestingly enough they do not involve material things. The things that you can count on that God will give you are: spiritual strength in this life and future rewards in the next.

The spiritual strength that God is able to give to you by the Word of His grace is indicated in verse 32 when it says, “which is able to build you up.” Every Christian needs to be built up. You are not near as strong as you may need to be in regards to the trials that may still come into your life. Don’t ever think that you are already everything that you need to be. There are challenges ahead for which you need to be built up: in faith, in character, in patience, and in love. How are you going to get the strength that you need for what lives ahead in your life? And how are you going to grow? From God: not from any man, but from God and from the Word of His grace. He speaks to us through His Word, and it’s all about grace. If you become strengthened, it will not be because of your goodness or your accomplishments that it will happen. It will be because of God’s grace. Any strength, any victory, any faith, any love that you have will be because of God’s grace. That grace comes from His Word and it comes from Christ who is the living Word. Any time that we talk about the grace of God, we are talking about the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace comes from Christ. He made it possible by dying for the sins of the world. He is the God of all grace. He has grace that is greater than our sins. If there is anything at all troubling you, you can always come to the throne of mercy and find grace to help in the time of need. Paul was exactly right. If there is anything that you need, and you will need many things as the days and months and years go by especially in regards to the strengthening of your faith; you will find them from God and from the Word of His grace.

Finally, Paul had to leave the Christians from Ephesus. Hopefully all of our goodbyes will be as heartfelt and warm and genuine. Christians should love each other, and should never have divisive or angry separations from one another. The Bible says in Acts 20:36-38, “And when he had thus spoken, he kneeled down, and prayed with all. And they all wept sore, and fell on Paul’s neck, and kissed him, Sorrowing most of all for the words which he spake, that they should see his face no more. And they accompanied him unto the ship.”

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