“And now I am bound by the Spirit to go to Jerusalem. I don’t know what awaits me, except that the Holy Spirit tells me in city after city that jail and suffering lie ahead. But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God.
“And now I know that none of you to whom I have preached the Kingdom will ever see me again. I declare today that I have been faithful. If anyone suffers eternal death, it’s not my fault, for I didn’t shrink from declaring all that God wants you to know.
“So guard yourselves and God’s people. Feed and shepherd God’s flock—his church, purchased with his own blood—over which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as elders. I know that false teachers, like vicious wolves, will come in among you after I leave, not sparing the flock. Even some men from your own group will rise up and distort the truth in order to draw a following. Watch out! Remember the three years I was with you—my constant watch and care over you night and day, and my many tears for you.
“And now I entrust you to God and the message of his grace that is able to build you up and give you an inheritance with all those he has set apart for himself." Acts 20:22-32
It amazes me that Paul knew he was going to be jailed and could still say that without doing the work of the Lord, his life was worth nothing. I wonder if we could have the same attitude if we knew what was to come in our lives.
I do know that Paul gave some charges to his brothers and sisters in Christ, and that includes us. He admonishes us to guard ourselves as we feed and shepherd God's flock, protecting one another from those intent on hurting God's people just as a wolf will infiltrate a flock of sheep and destroy it from the inside out. Paul also encourages us to watch carefully over one anther because even some of those in the flock will turn against the others.
Interestingly, he doesn't tell us to do any of this in our own power. It will be through prayer that we will know God's voice, that we will hide His word in our hearts and instinctively know His message of grace to share with those who are set apart for Him. May we in the Church take heed of Paul's words today.
In His Grace!
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In His Grace!