Free Bible Commentary
“Acts 20:17-38”
Categories: Acts“From Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called to him the elders of the church. And when they had come to him, he said to them, ‘You yourselves know, from the first day that I set foot in Asia, how I was with you the whole time, serving the Lord with all humility and with tears and with trials which came upon me through the plots of the Jews; how I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you publicly and from house to house, solemnly testifying to both Jews and Greeks of repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. And now, behold, bound by the Spirit, I am on my way to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there, except that the Holy Spirit solemnly testifies to me in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions await me. But I do not consider my life of any account as dear to myself, so that I may finish my course and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify solemnly of the gospel of the grace of God. And now, behold, I know that all of you, among whom I went about preaching the kingdom, will no longer see my face. Therefore, I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all men. For I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole purpose of God. Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them. Therefore be on the alert, remembering that night and day for a period of three years I did not cease to admonish each one with tears. And now I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified. I have coveted no one’s silver or gold or clothes. You yourselves know that these hands ministered to my own needs and to the men who were with me. In everything I showed you that by working hard in this manner you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”’ When he had said these things, he knelt down and prayed with them all. And they began to weep aloud and embraced Paul, and repeatedly kissed him, grieving especially over the word which he had spoken, that they would not see his face again. And they were accompanying him to the ship.”
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In verse 16 we learn that Paul had intentionally sailed past Ephesus because he was in a hurry and he didn’t want to spend much time there. But he still earnestly desired to speak to the elders of the church in Ephesus; the men he had worked side-by-side with for the space of three years, preaching and teaching the Gospel (verse 31). They met together in Miletus and conversed with heavy hearts as Paul told them that they wouldn’t see him again on this side of eternity (verse 25), and that a very difficult road lay ahead for them to travel (verse 29). Just a few observations from Paul’s remarkable discourse with the Ephesian elders…
“I do not consider my life on any account as dear to myself…” (verse 24). Paul had a keen awareness of the insignificance of his own personal, fleeting, physical life when compared with all the lost souls in the world and the endlessness of the afterlife. He would not turn his back on God’s will for him and on the multitudes who desperately needed the message of salvation that Christ had entrusted to him, even if it meant certain death for him. Paul had willingly suffered the loss of his worldly positions and possessions in order to gain the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus and an eternal relationship with Him (Philippians 3:7-8); and he was not about to try to protect his own skin by keeping that Good News all to himself. Paul placed the wellbeing of other people’s souls above the safety of his own flesh.
“I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole purpose of God.” (verse 27). Paul did not scratch people’s itching ears by telling them only the things that they wanted to hear. Paul’s mission in life was not to make people feel good about themselves, but to show them who they really were in the eyes of their Creator, and the changes they needed to make by telling them the truth of God’s will for them. He lifted his listeners up with the life-saving message of Calvary’s cross, but he also reproved and rebuked people when necessary, and exhorted them to live their lives right in the sight of God (2 Timothy 4:2). Effective, faithful Gospel preaching is comprised of a good balance of the positive and the negative—of uplifting encouragement and productive reprimand.
“And now I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified” (verse 32). Paul knew he would not be there to personally help the brethren in the city of Ephesus again, and that saddened him. But he also knew that the word of God was more than sufficient to equip them and build them up spiritually and provide them with an inheritance in heaven that is imperishable, undefiled and that will not fade away (1 Peter 1:3). The Bible is all we need to make us right with God and keep us strong in the faith and provide us with an eternal home in heaven.
“It is more blessed to give than to receive” (verse 35). This phrase spoken by the mouth of our Lord Jesus is the motto by which Paul lived his life. He poured himself out in the service of his fellow human beings (Philippians 2:17; 2 Timothy 4:6). He completely spent and exhausted his existence in the pursuit of helping as many people as he could with their most pressing physical and spiritual needs. The greatest rewards that we receive in life come from giving to others, not from the things that they can do for or give to us.
I know these comments don’t even scratch the surface of the grace and knowledge and wisdom that are packed within this powerful passage of inspired Scripture. Let’s learn what we can and make application in our lives.
Please read Acts 21:1-14 for tomorrow.
Have a blessed day!
-Louie Taylor
