Elder Devotional: Acts 20:29-30

Acts 20:29–30: “29 I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; 30 and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them.”

The Apostle Paul uses a metaphor that is all to familiar to the Ephesian Elders. The idea of wolves coming in and not sparing the flock puts the Elders into shepherding mode regarding the spiritual well-being of the church (29). Paul believes that this will happen once he departs and is no longer around to call out false teachers from near or afar.

Paul had often warned of false teachers and he called them out even at times by name. But it would appear that Paul anticipated that there was coming a time in the near future that he would no longer be in an position to do this.

The implications behind not sparring denotes the idea that Paul believes that the false teachers would do the flock harm. This could possibly be through teaching false doctrine, sowing seeds of division or simply fleecing the sheep for their own personal financial gain.

Is it still crucial for Elders to be concerned about such things coming into the church in our day and time?

Paul tells them that such a threat is not just from outside the church but there is also a possible threat from inside the church and he gives a specific example. There will be those men from inside the church that will arise speaking twisted things and they will do this out of their own selfish ambition (30).

The specific ambition that Paul has in mind here is that they will draw away disciples after themselves. This may be an attempt to feed their own prideful egos or for monetary gain or just as ministers of darkness bringing destruction to the church. But regardless of the specific motive it will still be a danger to the church.

Remember that Timothy eventually went to Ephesus and we saw that Paul repeatedly spoke to him about false teachers (by name) and the kind of false doctrine that men will eventually tune their ears to ( I Timothy 1:3; 4:1-3; 6:3-5; II Timothy 1:15; 3:1-9).

What is one of the best ways to keep such infiltration from happening?