Friday, July 20, 2012,
7:08 a.m. – The Lord woke me this morning to the song “Here is Your God!” playing in my mind. Speak, Lord, for your
servant is listening. I read Acts 20
(quoting vv. 17-35 NIV 1984):
From Miletus, Paul
sent to Ephesus for the elders of the church. When they arrived, he said to
them: “You know how I lived the whole time I was with you, from the first day I
came into the province of Asia. I served the Lord with great humility and with tears,
although I was severely tested by the plots of the Jews. You know that I have
not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught
you publicly and from house to house. I have declared to both Jews and Greeks
that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.
“And now, compelled by
the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there.
I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and
hardships are facing me. However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if
only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me
—the task of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace.
“Now I know that none
of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me
again. Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of all
men. For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. Keep
watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you
overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own
blood. I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will
not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the
truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember
that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with
tears.
“Now I commit you to
God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an
inheritance among all those who are sanctified. I have not coveted anyone’s
silver or gold or clothing. You yourselves know that these hands of mine have
supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions. In everything I did, I
showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering
the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to
receive.’ ”
Saying “Good-bye”
Paul was on his way to Jerusalem. He hoped to get there
before the day of Pentecost. He called for the elders of the church in Ephesus
to speak with them. Evidently Paul believed or knew without a doubt that going
to Jerusalem would mean that he would never see the believers in Ephesus again,
so he wanted to leave them with some final words of encouragement and
exhortation, as well as to give them warnings.
He began his talk with them by giving them a summation of
his ministry up to this point. Then, he moved on to sharing with them how he
was compelled of the Spirit of God to go to Jerusalem, even though he knew this
could cost him his life. He was willing to lay down his life for the sake of
the gospel of Jesus Christ, if need be. He gave a defense of his ministry, and
then he left them with some words of instruction and exhortation concerning their
own future ministry. He concluded his talk with a blessing and an exhortation
to help the weak. Then, he prayed with them and they said their tearful
good-byes.
Training in
Righteousness
The Bible is more than merely a historical record of the
lives of people and events of times past. We learn in 2 Timothy 3:16-17 that “All
Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and
training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped
for every good work.” So, when we read this speech of Paul’s to the Ephesian
elders, it can serve to teach and to train us in righteousness, and to equip us
to walk faithfully in obedience to Jesus Christ, as Paul had done. So, I
believe that the Lord would have me examine, today, the various aspects of Paul’s
speech to see what I (and we) can learn from it that can help me (us) to grow
in my (our) faith and to remain faithful to Jesus Christ.
Humility and Tears
As followers of Jesus Christ, we are to be his servants in
doing whatever he has commands us to do, and in serving him in whatever way in
which he has specifically placed a calling upon our lives. To be a servant of
the Lord, we must humble ourselves and be willing to do whatever God wants us
to do, even though it may get us no recognition or praise of men, no particular
status or station in life, no human approval, or no financial gain or reward,
and even though it may, instead, get us much mistreatment, rejection, and
persecution.
God does not promise us if we say “Yes” to Jesus’ Lordship
over our lives that it will be smooth sailing from that point on. We will face
hardships, disappointments, disapprovals and rejections if we are truly walking
in obedience to him, and if we are giving witness and testimony for Jesus
Christ and to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Yet, there will be much joy, too, in
knowing we are in the center of God’s will, and much joy in the sweet
fellowship we experience with our Lord daily, and perhaps with other followers
of Christ, too. The tears we will experience may be tears of joy in seeing
people coming to faith in Jesus and seeing changed lives and people healed of
diseases and heartaches. They may be tears of pain and sorrow because of being
hated and rejected due to our commitments to Jesus Christ. Or, they may and
should be tears of repentance over our own sins and over the sins of others.
Yet, we must be faithful and persevere in our faith and in
our commitments to serve our Lord, in spite of those times when we are severely
tested for our faith and witness for Christ. We should, like Paul, consider our
lives worth nothing compared to completing the task the Lord Jesus has given each
one of us to do – the task of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace.
Dedication and
Proclamation
Paul said he never stopped warning them day and night with
tears, he never hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to them, and
he taught them publicly, and from house to house. He declared that all people
must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus, and he never hesitated
to proclaim to them the whole will of God. That is dedication and commitment!
Jesus Christ does not want a casual relationship with us, or
just to give us a “Get out of jail free” card. He wants a serious and intimate
relationship with us that is to be compared to that of a husband and wife. He
wants our faithfulness and our singleness of mind and heart in our commitments
to him. He wants our love and devotion, our time and our emotions. He wants us
to act like newlyweds with him. He doesn’t want what we are willing to do for
him. He wants us on the altar of sacrifice, holy and pleasing to him, no longer
conformed to the pattern (ways) of this world, but transformed in heart and
mind by the power of the working of the Holy Spirit within us (see Rom. 12:1-2).
Then, we will begin to know his heart and mind and to feel and see and be
passionate and compassionate about the things he cares about.
It is through this kind of intimate relationship with Jesus
Christ that he is able to show us his heart so that we will care about what he
cares about. And, it is this kind of passion that will keep us going even when
we don’t feel like it; even when we are tired; even when we face much
opposition or persecution; and even when we don’t see immediate results for our
labors. Paul was not just a rough and tough individual who could take the hits
and keep on ticking. He had a heart transformation of such magnitude that he
knew what he must do, and he cared deeply about the lives he impacted. He was
willing to lay his life on the line so that others could go free.
He declared that all people must turn to God in repentance
and have faith in our Lord Jesus, and he never hesitated to proclaim to them
the whole will of God. We must turn from our ways of wickedness; from our sins
(and sinful lifestyles) and then we must turn to God by faith in Jesus Christ. Faith
is not just a thought, belief or emotion. Faith is putting feet to what we say
we believe. If we say we believe Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins so
that we could be free from sin and free to have fellowship with our Lord and to
now walk in the Spirit and in faithful obedience to Christ, then to put feet to
that means to turn from our sin so that we are no longer controlled by our
sinful passions and desires, and to turn to follow Jesus Christ in full
obedience and surrender to his will for our lives. This is what it means to
proclaim the “whole will of God.” Salvation requires repentance and obedience.
Exhortations and
Warnings
Paul was talking to elders. They were shepherds of the flock
(the believers in Christ), so they were to watch over them carefully,
prayerfully, and to make sure none of them were going astray, as well as to
guide, counsel and direct them in the way they should go. We may not all be
shepherds of the flock in this sense, but we are all given the responsibility
of making disciples, and of teaching them to obey Christ, and for the encouragement
and nurturing and spiritual growth and development of our fellow Christians
(See Eph. 4).
We may not all have the responsibility of being “watchmen”
in warning the church about savage wolves (in sheep’s clothing), i.e. against false
teachers who will come in among us and who will not spare the flock, many of
them even coming from our own number. Yet, we are all given the responsibility
to care for and to watch over and to show concern for our fellow believers in
Christ, which involves warning against false teachers who distort the truth in
order to draw away disciples after themselves.
There are many of these false teachers and preachers today
in our churches and in public view on television who have greatly watered down
the message (the whole will of God) and have gathered many followers after
themselves. Some don’t even talk about Jesus anymore but preach a very
humanistic religion of men for the praise of men. Others have removed the
Biblical requirements of repentance and obedience from the gospel of salvation,
thus leaving people still in their sins. The gospel has been reduced to
something that will be acceptable to the world so the world will come into the
church, but we are not supposed to attract the world to our organizations, but
to true faith and heart commitment to Jesus Christ.
Our Heart Response
So, what should our heart response be to all that we have
just learned from this appeal of Paul’s? This song “Here is Your God!” is taken
from Isaiah 40, in the Bible (Old Testament). This passage in Isaiah 40 is an
encouragement to us today to speak to our own people and to the church,
proclaiming who God is and all that he has done and desires to do for us. We
are not to be afraid of the people, but we are to boldly share aloud the truths
of the gospel of Jesus Christ. He is our shepherd. He gathers us in his arms
and carries us close to his heart. He who created all things, and who sustains
all things can take care of us and our circumstances. Our lives are not hidden
from God. He knows what we are going through. He has not forgotten us. He will
give us the strength and power we need to make it through each day. We just
need to trust him with all that is going on in our lives, and he will renew our
strength so that we can walk this Christian life and not grow weak, weary or
lose heart.
Here is Your God!
/ An Original Work / July 18, 2012
Based off Isaiah 40:9-31 NIV
You who bring
good tidings to Zion,
Lift up your voice;
raise with a shout,
And do not be
afraid of the people.
Say, “Here is your
God!”
See how the Lord God
Comes now with power.
His arm rules for Him;
His reward with Him.
He tends His flock
Just like a shepherd,
His lambs in His arms.
Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
Has it not been told
you
From beginning?
Our Lord sits
Enthroned above all
things.
None to Him compare.
Lift up your eyes
And look to the
heavens.
Who made all of these?
Who calls them by
name?
Because of His great
Power and strength,
All accounted for.
Why do you say,
“My way is hidden
From the Lord, and
My cause forgotten”?
Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The Lord, He is your
God.
He will not weary.
He gives us power.
Those who trust in Him
Will renew their
strength.
They will soar on
wings
Just like eagles;
Walk and do faint not.
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