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In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
“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.’ ”
When Paul had finished speaking, he knelt down with all of them and prayed. They all wept as they embraced him and kissed him. What grieved them most was his statement that they would never see his face again. Then they accompanied him to the ship.
Acts 20:32-38
This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Most of Acts 20 involves the Apostle Paul giving a farewell address to his beloved Christian church in Ephesus through the church elders who joined him in Miletus before he proceeded onto Jerusalem. Over the past few devotions, we have looked at different parts of his message which concludes in these final verses:
“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.’ ”
When Paul had finished speaking, he knelt down with all of them and prayed. They all wept as they embraced him and kissed him. What grieved them most was his statement that they would never see his face again. Then they accompanied him to the ship. Acts 20:32-38
Paul had invested a lot of time in Ephesus, bringing the Gospel to the city. He had a special place in his heart for all the believers there. But as he closes his message, he knows he would not return to Ephesus again and knowing he couldn’t watch over the church there anymore, he did the only thing he could do. He committed the church and the believers there to God and to the word of His grace.
That’s all any of us can do, right?
We can’t be with people every minute of every hour of every day. If you’re like me, you have beloved family living in many different places, both here in the United States and abroad in other nations overseas. The best I can do is commit the care of my family and friends to the Lord, and so, like Paul, that’s what I do. And when we do this, when we commit people more to the Lord than to ourselves, we place them in the hands of the One who is not always with our family and friends but offers an inheritance to all who commit to Jesus and become sanctified (or set apart) as a result.
In the Lord, we find all we could ever need and all we could ever hope for. Paul knew that and wanted the people to Ephesus to be blessed through their relationship with the Lord.
Indeed, our Lord is a great Provider and He made sure Paul had the resources he needed as he carried out his Gospel work. Paul didn’t need to covet the riches of others because he knew he was rich in Christ and that was what really mattered most. He worked hard for Jesus and did so selflessly, helping the weak while experiencing the joy that came from living out Jesus’ words when He said:
“It is more blessed to give than to receive.”
Through his words, Paul hoped the Ephesians would carry on that kind of self sacrificial work in his absence.
And with that, Paul was ready to get underway. He finished speaking and then “knelt down” with all the elders to share a word of prayer. The scriptures tell us it was an emotional farewell as the elders all wept as they embraced and kissed Paul as they would never see his face again. Wanting to savor every last minute with the apostle, “they accompanied him” to his ship as he departed for Jerusalem.
That’s where we’ll pick up tomorrow. Until then, pray over all your family and loved ones today, committing them to the Lord’s care and asking Him to lead them toward a life of self sacrificing service to those who are in need, experiencing for themselves the blessing that comes from giving over receiving.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please
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Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com
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