that are far beyond what I have myself attained in my life.
But Lord, I stand here
because I have received this ministry
by your grace.
Not because of my worthiness,
but because you are gracious and merciful.
So I ask now that you would empower the preaching of your word,
that your powerful word would have its intended effect
as your spirit works in us.
Exalt the name of your son, Jesus Christ.
Fill our hearts with overflowing love of Christ,
of for Christ.
In his precious name we pray.
Amen.
In Acts chapter 20, verses 17 to 28.
Now from Miletus, he sent to Ephesus
and called the elders of the church to come to him.
And when they came to him, he said to them,
you yourselves know how I lived among you
the whole time from the first day that I set foot in Asia,
serving the Lord with all humility
and with tears and with trials
that happened to me through the plots of the Jews.
How I did not shrink from declaring to you
anything that was profitable
and teaching you in public and from house to house,
testifying both to Jews and to Greeks
of repentance toward God
and of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.
And now behold, I am going to Jerusalem,
constrained by the Spirit,
not knowing what will happen to me there,
except that the Holy Spirit testifies to me
in every city that imprisonment
and afflictions await me.
But I do not account my life of any value,
nor as precious to myself,
if only I may fit my course
in the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus,
to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.
And now behold,
I know that none of you among whom I have gone
about proclaiming the kingdom
will see my face again.
Therefore, I testify to you this day
that I am innocent of the blood of all,
for I did not shrink from declaring to you
the whole counsel of God.
Pay careful attention to yourselves
and to all the flock
in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers,
to care for the church of God,
which he obtained with his own blood.
I know that after my departure,
fierce wolves will come in among you,
not sparing the flock.
And from among your own selves
will arise men speaking twisted things
to draw away the disciples after them.
Therefore, be alert,
remembering that for three years
I did not seize night or day
to admonish everyone 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 coveted no one's silver or gold or apparel.
You yourselves know that these ones
minister to my necessities
and to those who are with me.
In all things, I have shown you
that by working hard in this way,
we must help the weak
and remember the words of the Lord Jesus,
how he himself said,
it is more blessed to give than to receive.
And when he had said these things,
he knelt down and prayed with them all.
And there was much weeping on the part of all.
They embraced Paul and kissed him,
being sorrowful most of all
because of the word he had spoken
that they would not see his face again.
And they accompanied him to the ship.
This is God's holy and authoritative word.
Almost every single guest preacher we have
in our church have commented to me
that we have a very attentive congregation,
that you guys listen to sermons very well.
But if I were to tell you
that this is the last sermon
I will ever preach to you,
I think you'd be even more attentive
because last words, parting words are weighty.
And people share what is dearest to their hearts.
This passage contains Paul's last words
to the church in Ephesus.
And it's the only one of Paul's speeches
recorded in the book of Acts
that's directed entirely to Christians.
As verse 16 says,
Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus
so that he might not have to spend time in Asia
for he was hastening to be at Jerusalem
if possible on the day of Pentecost.
But during his layover at Miletus,
he just couldn't pass up the opportunity
to address the elders of the Ephesian church
one more time.
And so he asks them to make the 20-mile journey south
to come to him in verse 17.
And this is how he exhorted him.
This is his main exhortation.
Remember that elders are called to serve the Lord
by shepherding his church.
That's the main point of this, his Paul's address.
Even though God will only call some of you
to be elders of a local church,
since elders are commanded in 1 Peter 5, 2-3
to shepherd the flock of God
and be examples to the flock.
And because Ephesians 4, 10-11 tells us
that God raises up shepherds and teachers
in the church not to do all the work of ministry themselves,
but to equip the saints for the work of ministry,
for building up the body of Christ.
Much of what Paul says here
to the elders of the Ephesian church
apply to every single Christian.
So elders are called to serve the Lord
by shepherding his church.
So we're going to look at those two in part.
First, the servant of the Lord and his word.
That's what elders are.
They're also shepherds of the church of God.
Verses 18-19 say that
when the elders of the Ephesian church came to Paul,
he said to them,
You yourselves know how I lived among you
the whole time from the first day
that I set foot in Asia,
serving the Lord with all humility
and with tears and with trials
that happened to me through the plots of the Jews.
Paul's farewell speech here
is very heavily autobiographical
because he's exhorting the Ephesian elders
to follow the example that he set for them
while he was ministering among them.
He's saying, in effect,
Be imitators of me as I am of Christ.
And Paul reminds them,
You yourselves know this,
how I lived among you the whole time
from the first day that I set foot in Asia.
Paul was not a recluse.
He did not live in splendid isolation
in monastery or a parsonage somewhere
appearing once a week to preach
and then disappearing again,
sheltered from the needs and sins
in the lives of the Ephesian church.
He lived among them.
And Paul's lifestyle was consistent.
He was a part of their lives.
And the whole time,
from the first day he set foot in Asia,
he lived in this consistent way.
And how did Paul live?
He says,
Serving the Lord with all humility
and with tears and with trials
that happened to me
through the plots of the Jews.
The Greek word that is translated
serve here is not the usual word
that is used in the New Testament
for serving or ministering to someone.
It's a word that actually means
to serve as someone's slave.
It means literally to be owned by another,
to be a slave, to be subjected.
In many of his letters,
Paul describes himself proudly
as a slave of Christ.
He lived as a servant
who was completely disposed
to the will of his Lord.
That's what it means to serve with humility,
to renounce one's right to rule,
to be subject, subject oneself
to the lordship of another.
And this is why,
precisely why,
the ancient Greeks despised humility.
If you search ancient Greek literature,
you will not come across a single instance
where the word humility
has positive associations.
The ancient Greeks saw humility
as a bad thing,
a lowly and contemptible thing,
something that is only fitting for a slave.
The only strange group of ancient people
that extolled humility as a virtue
were the Christians.
And that's because they followed Jesus,
who said,
whoever would be great among you
must be your servant.
And whoever would be first among you
must be your slave.
Even as the Son of Man
came not to be served,
but to serve
and to give his life
as a ransom for many.
An elder,
and every Christian for that matter,
is a servant of the Lord,
a slave of Christ.
Have you renounced your right to rule?
Have you forfeited your power
to set your own agenda?
Paul knows that ministry
is not about himself.
He doesn't invite the Ephesian elders
to admire his accomplishments.
He has no accolades to point to.
Instead,
he points to his core identity
as a slave of the Lord Jesus.
He says,
remember how I lived among you
as a slave,
serving with all humility.
That's the call of the Christian.
Paul also says
that he served the Lord
with tears and with trials
that happened to him
through the plots of the Jews.
Tears and trials
suggests that Paul endured
much suffering and sadness
in service to his Lord,
much of it due to the persecutions
and the plots of the Jews.
In 2 Timothy chapter 4,
verses 1 to 4,
Paul charges Timothy
with a series of
pastoral responsibilities.
These are the things
you must do as a pastor,
including preach the word,
be ready in season
and out of season,
reprove,
rebuke,
and exhort
with complete patience
and teaching.
Do the work of an evangelist.
Fulfill your ministry.
But sandwiched
in the middle of that list,
you find something surprising.
The command,
endure suffering.
That's one of
the job requirements
of a pastor.
This is why at the time
of Paul's conversion,
chapter 9,
God said of him,
I will show him
how much he must suffer
for the sake of my name.
If we are serving the Lord,
we will suffer
because there will be opposition
from the world,
from the flesh,
and from the devil.
But we are commanded
to endure.
And that's what Paul did.
And no,
it was not easy.
Paul was not a stoic.
He didn't meet suffering
with detached indifference
or unfeeling callousness.
He says he endured it
with tears.
All the setbacks,
all the disappointments,
all the suffering.
And then in verses 20 to 27,
Paul tells us the ways
in which he served the Lord.
So this section
is structured chiastically,
meaning the first half of it
is mirrored by the second half.
And then there's one element
in the middle,
which is the core,
the most important part
that he's trying to emphasize
that stands by itself
that doesn't have
a matching element.
So if you look at verse 20,
he says,
I did not shrink
from declaring the word of God.
And that's matched
by verse 27.
I did not shrink
from declaring
the whole counsel of God.
Verse 21,
he says,
I testify to both Jews
and Greeks.
And in verse 26,
he says,
I testify that I am innocent
of the blood of all
because he's spoken
to all of them.
And then verses 22 to 23,
he says,
and now behold,
I am going to Jerusalem.
And then in verse 25,
he says,
and now behold,
none of you will see me again.
And that leaves verse 24
by itself.
And that's what he's really
trying to hammer home.
And it is that I do not
account my life
of any value.
If only I may finish
the course.
So first,
Paul says in verse 20,
I did not shrink
from declaring to you
anything that was profitable
and teaching you in public
and from house to house.
That's matched by verse 27.
I did not shrink
from declaring to you
the whole counsel of God.
Why might someone shrink
from declaring
the whole counsel of God?
Isn't it profitable for them?
Why might some people
shrink from telling people
what is good for them?
It's because as Paul warns
in Timothy,
in 2 Timothy 4.3,
some people will not
endure sound teaching,
but having itching ears,
they will accumulate
for themselves teachers
to soothe their own passions.
People who want to pursue
their own selfish desires
and sinful passions
don't want to hear
profitable teaching
from God's word.
They don't want to be
convicted or challenged.
They don't want to hear
the whole counsel of God.
Instead,
they want to cherry pick
passages they like.
They accumulate for themselves
teachers who will
scratch their itches
and say things
that suit their desires.
This is why some elders
might shrink from declaring
the whole counsel of God.
because if they preach
from certain passages
that go against
the spirit of the times,
some of their church members
might leave.
Some of the visitors
might never come back.
Some of their church,
well, outsiders
who are observing
might ridicule them,
criticize them,
maybe even persecute them.
But Paul says
he did not shrink
from declaring
everything that was profitable.
because rather than
fearing people,
Paul loved people.
So whether they
wanted to hear it or not,
he declared to them
anything that was
profitable to them.
And Paul didn't have
the option of not
declaring the whole
counsel of God
because,
as we said,
he was a servant
of the Lord Jesus.
A servant
who is sent out
to deliver a message
for his master
does not have
the power
to add to the message
or subtract
from the message.
He's merely
a messenger.
He doesn't get
to choose
the message
because he is
already a slave
of Christ.
He cannot
be enslaved
to the opinions
of man.
And Paul declared
the whole counsel
of God
to all without
distinction.
He says in verse 21
that he testified
both to Jews
and to Greeks
of repentance
toward God
and of faith
in our Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul preached
the gospel,
the good news
of Jesus Christ
that all who
turn,
repent of their sins
and turn to Jesus
in faith
by believing
in the life
and death
and resurrection
of the Christ
that they might
be saved.
And he preached
this message
to both Jews
in the synagogues
and to the Greeks
in the forum.
An ambassador
does not get
to choose
which country
he travels to
or whom
he speaks to.
He goes
wherever
the president
or the king
sends him to go.
He speaks to
whomever
the king
sends him
to speak to.
Likewise,
Paul,
because he's a servant
of the Lord Jesus,
he does not have
the option
of choosing
his audience,
of discriminating
between Jews
and Gentiles.
And verse 21
is matched
by verse 26.
Therefore,
I testify to you
this day
that I am innocent
of the blood
of all.
Paul believed
that it is
his responsibility
to proclaim
the gospel
because if people
perish without
hearing it,
that he'd have
blood on his hands.
So he faithfully
warned people
and he's now
washing his hands,
figuratively,
washing his hands
clean.
I have warned them.
I have preached
the gospel
to both Jews
and Greeks.
So if you don't
repent and believe
in Jesus,
then the blood
is on your hands,
not mine.
I am innocent
of the blood
of all,
is what Paul
is saying.
The elders
of the church
and all Christians
for the matter
are called
to testify
or bear witness
to the Lord Jesus.
We may not go
only to the groups
of people
that we share
a natural affinity
with,
people who look
like us,
people who
share our interests,
people who have
our social
or economic
standing,
people who share
our political views.
You know,
we must testify
to all peoples
without distinction
because we are
servants of the Lord Jesus.
And Paul continues
to speak of his
servitude to God
in verses 22 to 23.
He says,
And now behold,
I am going to Jerusalem
constrained by the Spirit,
not knowing
what will happen
to me there,
except that the Holy Spirit
testifies to me
in every city
that imprisonment
and afflictions
await me.
This is matched
by verse 25,
which begins
with the exact same phrase,
And now behold,
I know that none
of you among
whom I have gone
about proclaiming
the kingdom
will see my face again.
Paul is headed
to Jerusalem
and therefore
he knows that he
will not see
the Ephesian elders,
Ephesian believers again.
And so he even
acknowledges
that the Holy Spirit
has testified to him
that imprisonment
and afflictions
await him
in Jerusalem.
But then why
is he going
to Jerusalem?
He says he is
constrained
by the Spirit
to go and bear witness
to the people there.
The word constrained
literally means
to be bound
or imprisoned.
The same word
is used later
in Acts 21,
verse 11,
when Agabus prophesies
of Paul's impending
imprisonment
in Jerusalem.
It's the same word
that was used
three times
in Acts 9,
to describe
how Paul,
prior to his conversion,
was rounding up
Christians
and binding them
and committing
them to prison.
And so there's
a contrast here
between verse 22
and verse 23.
Why would Paul
travel to Jerusalem
where he knows
he will be imprisoned?
The answer
is that he is
already bound
by the Spirit,
constrained
by the Spirit
of God
to go.
He has no choice
because he is
a servant
of the Lord Jesus.
He is a prisoner
of the Spirit.
But he does it
willingly,
joyfully.
There's no human being
because all human beings
are sinful
who are fit
to be masters,
to own slaves,
but the Lord Jesus
who is perfect
and righteous
and just
and gracious
is a worthy master
that Christians
serve joyfully,
willingly.
Paul was a happy
servant of the Lord.
And so we've seen
three things so far.
One, Paul does not
get to pick
and choose
what he preaches.
He must preach
the whole counsel
of God.
Two, Paul does not
get to choose
whom he preaches to.
He must preach
to all,
to both Jews
and Gentiles.
And three,
Paul does not
get to choose
where he preaches
the gospel.
He must go
where the Spirit
of God constrains
him to go.
This is Paul's
autobiographical sketch.
It's a picture
of a man
who is in total
submission
to God.
Paul's reminding
the Ephesian elders,
it's not about
doing what you want.
Remember how I lived
among you,
not saying
whatever I want
or associating
with whomever I want
or going
wherever I want.
No, but saying
and doing
and going
only where God
would have
me go.
That's what it means
to be an elder.
And all of this
comes to a climax
in verse 24,
which is the center
of this
chiasis structure
that Luke
is intentionally
emphasizing.
but I do not
account my life
of any value
nor as precious
to myself
if only I may
finish my course
in the ministry
that I have received
from the Lord Jesus
to testify
through the gospel
of the grace
of God.
the world
tells us
that we should
prioritize
and protect
our own lives
over everything else
and that makes
perfect sense
from their perspective
because they believe
that this life
is all there is.
But for Christians
who believe
in eternal
resurrection life
after death,
for Christians
who believe
that our ultimate
rewards are in heaven,
there is something
more valuable,
something more
precious
than life itself
and that is
to finish the course,
the race,
to fulfill
our mission
and to testify
to the gospel
of the grace
of God.
That's why Paul
uses this metaphor
of the race
to finish my course.
Years later
at the end
of his life,
Paul writes
in 2 Timothy 4,
7 to 8,
I have fought
the good fight,
I have finished
the race,
I have kept
the faith,
henceforth
there is laid up
for me
the crown
of righteousness
which the Lord,
the righteous judge,
will award me
on that day
and not only
to me
but also to all
who have loved
his appearing.
The crown
of righteousness
is reserved
only for those
who finish
the race.
Salvation
is reserved
for only
those who
persevere
to the end.
Matthew 24,
13.
Eternal glory
is reserved
for those
who endure
the momentary
afflictions
of this life.
2 Corinthians 4,
17.
Professional
athletes
would not endure
the afflictions
of strict diets
and grueling
workouts
day after day,
week after week,
year after year
if they didn't
know that there
is a trophy
or a medal
waiting for them
at the end.
But they do it
for a crown
that perishes.
But we do it
for an eternal crown.
Likewise,
Christians cannot
endure.
We cannot
endure to the end
and believe
that faithfulness
to Christ
is better than life
unless we keep
the end
in sight,
keep eternity
in view.
It's only
in light
of the eternal
rewards
that Christ
has for us
that we can say
along with Paul,
I do not account
my life
of any value
nor as precious
to myself.
That phrase
is quite emphatic.
It's literally
my life
is not worth
a single word.
an average person
speaks,
they say 7,000 words
per day.
A lot of people
considerably more
than that.
That's 2,555,000
words per year.
Expand that
to a lifetime.
That's a lot
of words.
And Paul says,
my life
is not worth
even one word.
Not a one,
it's not a single word.
if only I get
to finish
the course
that my Lord
has entrusted
to me.
Compared
to fulfilling
our God-given
calling
to bear witness
to Jesus,
my life
has no value.
It's not
precious to me.
When there are
many tears
and trials
in your life
as surely
many of you
have,
when you are
paying the price
of following
Jesus,
when serving
the Lord
is full of
pain and suffering,
remind yourself
of this,
my life
is not my own.
Jesus
already
purchased me
with his
own blood.
I am a
slave of Christ,
completely disposed
to the will
of my master.
And Jesus
is more
precious
than my life.
Jesus,
I would
rather die
than give up
serving him.
The long
life
is not
a Christian
aspiration.
The faithful
life
is the Christian
aspiration.
church.
Having
pointed the
elders of
the Ephesian
church to
the example
of how he
conducted himself
among them
as a servant
of the Lord
and his word,
Paul now
exhorts them
directly as
shepherds of
the church
of God.
So Paul's
addressing here
the elders
of the church
in Ephesus
as we saw,
and he says
in verse 28
that they were
appointed
overseers
of the church
by the Holy
Spirit.
And the
overseer
is the
Greek word
from which
we get
the English
word
episcopate
which refers
to bishops.
And then
Paul also
uses a
shepherding
imagery
throughout
verses 28
to 30
exhorting
the elders
to pay
careful
attention
to all
the flock
mourning
them of
fierce wolves
that will
devour
the flock.
So this
shows
that the
three
terms
that the
Bible
uses
elders
overseers
or bishops
shepherds
pastors
they're
actually
all terms
that are
used
interchangeably
to refer
to a
single
office
in the
church
that
of the
office
of elder.
They're
not
separate
offices
in the
church.
An
elder
is an
overseer
is a
pastor
and this
section
wonderfully
captures
what
pastoral
ministry
is all
about.
In
their
book
The
Deliberate
Church
Mark
Dever
and
Paul
Alexander
summarize
the
responsibilities
of a
pastor
with
helpful
alliteration.
He
says
they
guide
they
guard
and
they
graze.
And we
see those
three tasks
here in this
passage.
First he
talks about
guiding or
governing the
flock in
verse 28.
Pay careful
attention to
yourselves and
to all the
flock in
which the
Holy Spirit
has made
you overseers
to care for
the church
of God
which he
obtained with
his own
blood.
pastors
must
not be
negligent
or
complacent
in their
care for
the
flock.
They
must pay
careful
attention
to all
the
flock.
They
must know
the
conditions
of the
flock
who is
starving,
who is
weak,
who is
injured,
who is
hurting,
who is
going
astray,
and they
must care
for the
whole
flock,
not just
a part
of it.
Jews
and
Gentiles,
men
and
women,
rich
and
poor,
old
and
young.
But notice
that the
pastors are
not only
to pay
careful
attention
to the
flock,
they are
also
commanded
to pay
careful
attention
to
themselves.
This is
similar to
Paul's
exhortation
in 1 Timothy
4, 16,
keep a
close watch
on yourself
and on
the teaching.
Persist
in this,
for by so
doing you
will save
both yourself
and your
hearers.
If
pastors
don't pay
careful
attention
to their
own
lives
and their
own
doctrine,
then they
might
mislead
their flock
by their
example
and by
their
teaching,
and that's
dangerous.
So they
must pay
careful
attention
to
themselves
and to
all the
flock.
Ancient
Near Eastern
shepherds
typically led
the sheep
from the
front,
not from
the back.
So the
pastors
of the
church
must lead
by example.
Lest
after
preaching
to
others
they
themselves
should
be
disqualified.
Christian
author
Paul
Tripp
writes
in his
book
Dangerous
Calling,
which is
about
pastoral
ministry,
that what
gives a
ministry
its
motivations,
perseverance,
humility,
joy,
tenderness,
passion,
and grace
is the
devotional
life of
the one
doing
ministry.
pastors
must
pay
careful
attention
to
themselves
and to
all the
flock.
And two
things
convey the
gravity of
pastoral
ministry.
First is
this,
that the
fact that
the pastors
are appointed
by God
himself,
it says
the Holy
Spirit has
made you
overseers.
of course
there is a
process by
which the
local church
recognizes and
appoints
elders,
but it is
ultimately God
who calls up
and raises
elders.
That means
elders are not
their own
boss.
God is
their boss.
So they
better pay
careful attention
to the work
that they do.
The second
thing that
conveys the
gravity of
pastoral
ministry is
the precious
value of
the people
of God.
Pastors are
the care
for the
church
of God
which he
obtained
with his
own
blood.
This is a
reference to
the atoning
work of
Jesus Christ,
his death,
his resurrection.
God the
Father didn't
die on the
cross,
but since
the Son
of God,
the second
person of
the Trinity
did die
on the
cross,
it is not
inaccurate to
say that
God obtained
his church
with his
own blood.
God,
this is
why the
church is
the church
of God.
It is not
my church.
It is not
the pastor's
church,
it is the
church of
God,
because he
paid for
it.
And the
price you
pay for
something
communicates
the value
of that
item.
Think of
the most
valuable
possession
that you
have.
maybe a
car,
computer,
a house.
You
probably
protect it,
maintain it,
and perhaps
even insure
it.
The
church of
God was
purchased
with the
blood of
God's
own
Son.
Jesus,
whose life
has infinite,
inestimable
value.
That means the
Christian brothers
and sisters
sitting to your
left and to your
right,
the sheep of
God's pasture,
sure,
they might be
bruised and
battered,
maybe even
malnourished.
maybe they
don't appear
very valuable
to you.
You might
think they're
not worth
your time
and investment,
but don't
let your
eyes deceive
you.
Remember the
price God
paid for
them.
God gave
his only
Son.
The Lord
Jesus obtained
them with
his own
blood,
and so the
elders must
govern and
guide the
flock of
God with
care.
The second
thing elders
must do is
to guard
the flock.
Paul warns
them in
verses 29
to 31,
I know
that after
my departure
fierce wolves
will come
in among you
and not
sparing the
flock,
and from
among your
own selves
will arise
men speaking
twisted things
to draw away
the disciples
after them.
Therefore
be alert,
remembering
that for
three years
I did not
seize night
or day to
admonish
everyone with
tears.
Some of
these fierce
wolves will
come in
from the
outside,
but others,
Paul says,
will rise up
from among
your own
selves,
from within
the Ephesian
church itself.
A telltale sign
of a wolf is
that he speaks
twisted things.
He doesn't
speak the
straightforward
truth of
God's word.
Instead,
he speaks
twisted things
in order to
draw away
the disciples
after them.
Their ultimate
goal is
division and
schism.
They're
interested in
making disciples
who follow
after them.
This is a
sobering reality
and I think
Paul speaks
so confidently
and definitively
in verse 29.
I know,
he says,
I know that
after my
departure,
fierce wolves
have come.
I think he
could say that
because he
knows that
wherever there
are sheep,
there will
be wolves.
and it's
for this
reason that
pastors must
be alert.
But it's
important to
note that
there is a
difference
between sheep
that disagree
with the
shepherd and
an actual
divisive wolf.
Being watchful
of wolves
and being
cynical and
suspicious of
sheep are
not the same
thing.
And it
requires
humility and
discernment to
tell them
apart.
So the
pastors are
to guide and
guard and
thirdly,
they are to
graze the
flock in the
green pastures
of God's
word.
It says in
verse 32,
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.
The word of
his grace is
the same thing
as the gospel
of the grace
of God that
Paul mentioned
earlier in
verse 24.
So yes,
pastors are
supposed to
preach the
whole counsel
of God,
but because
all of
scripture points
to Jesus and
is fulfilled by
Jesus, the
work of
preaching always
involves commending
people to God
and to the
word of his
grace.
That sinners
deserving of the
just wrath and
punishment of
God may be
forgiven and
reconciled to
God through
the death and
resurrection of
Jesus.
That salvation
is not something
that we earn
through our
hard work or
good work,
but that it
is a gift from
God to be
received through
faith.
That is the
gospel, the
good news of
the grace of
God.
And that's the
news that builds
up the saints and
it is by
persevering in our
faith in that
gospel that we
receive our
heavenly inheritance.
And then Paul
returns again to
his personal
example in
verses 33 to
35.
He says,
I coveted no
one's silver or
gold or apparel.
You yourselves
know that these
hands ministered to
my necessities and
to those who were
with me.
In all things I
have shown you that
by working hard in
this way we must
help the weak and
remember the words
of the Lord Jesus.
How he himself
said, it is more
blessed to give
than to receive.
In the Roman
Empire there were
various kinds of
philosophers,
itinerant philosophers
that traveled and
spoke in various
places and they
gained fans and
followers.
And these itinerant
teachers had four
different means by
which they supported
themselves.
The first was to
rely on a wealthy
patron or patroness
who would host these
luxurious dinners
where they would be
the honored guests
giving lectures.
The second was to
charge fees for
their speaking and
their teaching
services.
And third was to
rely on public
charity by begging,
by asking for
donations.
And the fourth,
and by far the
most despised way
among the Greeks,
was to work as
manual laborers.
Because these itinerant
philosophers viewed
that as beneath their
social standing.
And the great
apostle Paul refused
compensation for his
ministry, worked with
his own hands as a
tent maker so that he
might provide for
those who have need.
He says, with these
hands, it seems like
as Paul speaking, he's
lifting up his hands,
showing his hands to
people saying, with
these hands I provided
for myself.
Probably callous from
all that tent making.
This is not because
Paul doesn't think that
elders should be
provided for by their
churches.
He does say in 1
Timothy 5, 17 and 18,
that elders who rule
well and labor in
preaching and teaching
deserve their wages.
However, Paul himself
decided to forego this
right, and he did
manual labor in order to
provide for himself as
well as for his fellow
missionary companions.
And Paul did this, he
says, in order to help
the weak and remember
the words of the Lord
Jesus, how he himself
said it is more blessed
to give than to receive.
The weak is likely a
reference to people who
were in one way or
another incapacitated or
limited, therefore unable
to provide for
themselves.
As Christians, we don't
hold a job and work
merely to provide for
ourselves and for our
families.
We also work to give
generously to those in
need.
Ephesians 4, 28 says,
let the thief no longer
steal, but rather let him
labor, doing honest work
with his own hands, so that
he may have something to
share with anyone in need.
This is the example that
Paul set for the Ephesian
elders, and he confirms it
with Jesus' teaching, it is
more blessed to give than to
receive.
I was just talking to, I
think it was Jen mentioned,
Gary told her about this
Instagram handle called
pastors and sneakers.
You guys know about that?
Preachers, sorry.
Pastors and preachers.
Or, no, preachers and
sneakers.
Sorry, I guess that rhymes
better.
Apparently, the guy who
has the handle just came
out with the book.
He's kind of, he's
criticizing the way
consumerism has taken over
some parts of church and
clergy and how the church
culture is following the
world's celebrity culture.
$5,000 sneakers.
I didn't even know such
things existed.
I didn't know such things.
The pastoral ministry is not
a platform for self-promotion.
How many poor widows gave for
that?
The church offerings are not a
means for personal enrichment.
Church members are not a
platform for pastoral
celebrity and self-promotion.
Pastors must remember that
they are called to feed the
sheep, not feed on the sheep.
And that it is more blessed to
give than to receive.
This is really the attitude that
befits every Christian.
Think more of what you can
give to the church than get from
the church.
Think more of how you can serve
others than to be served.
It is human to give in return for
something else.
It is Christian to give without
expecting anything in return.
Because we know that God will
ultimately repay us.
That's the appropriate Christian
attitude because Jesus came to be,
not to be served, but to serve and
to give his life as a ransom for
many.
Pastoral ministry is ultimately
patterned after the ministry of the
good shepherd, our Lord Jesus.
Jesus said in John 10, 11 to 15, I am
the good shepherd.
The good shepherd lays down his life
for the sheep.
He who is a hired hand and not a
shepherd, who does not own the
sheep, sees the wolf coming and
leaves the sheep and flees.
And the wolf snatches them and
scatters them.
He flees because he is a hired hand
and cares nothing for the sheep.
I am the good shepherd.
I know my own and my own know me.
Just as the Father knows me and I
know the Father and I lay down my
life for the sheep.
The people of God throughout history
have been shepherded by many hired
hands.
Rulers and leaders who clothed
themselves with the wool and
slaughtered the fat ones who didn't
strengthen the weak or heal the sick
or bind up the injured and bring back
the strayed or seek the lost sheep.
None of your pastors that you ever
have, including myself, are not going
to be the perfect shepherd.
None of the things that you turn to
for your comfort, for your
provision can be that perfect
shepherd.
But our Jesus is the good and
perfect shepherd.
If you are hungry, he is the
shepherd that can feed you with
manna from heaven, bread from
heaven.
If you are walking through the valley
of the shadow of death, Jesus is the
shepherd who has his trusty and
comforting rod and staff to assure you
so that you may not fear.
When you feel weary and heavy laden, when
you feel weighed down by your own guilt
and your own failures and your own
sins, it's the Lord Jesus alone who can
be the good shepherd that lays down his
own life for your salvation, for your
forgiveness.
What kind of shepherd gives his life
for a sheep?
For a sheep.
The shepherd who truly loves the sheep, who
really owns the sheep.
It's because we are his that Jesus cares
for us in this way.
And as we follow him, surely goodness,
surely mercy will follow us all the days
of our lives.
And we will dwell in the house of the
Lord forever.
Let's pray.
God, we thank you.
Amen.