Don't Be Fooled
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· 6 viewsJuly 10, 2022 Evening Worship
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Alright, well good evening and welcome back!
Tonight we are going to be looking at Acts 20, focusing on verses 28-31.
And, our focus deals with Paul's address to the disciples just after he had left Ephesus, traveled to Macedonia, and down into Miletus on his way to Jerusalem.
When Paul first left Ephesus after three years of preaching, there was an uproar and near riot over his preaching against the false gods of the city, which threatened to put all the merchants that sold little "god statutes" and trinkets for the people to worship out of business.
Under that pretense Paul left Ephesus and went down to Macedonia, then to Assos, and finally down to Miletus.
From there he knew that the Holy Spirit was leading him to Jerusalem and began to address the elders from Ephesus in Miletus before leaving for Jerusalem, which is recorded just prior to our passage . . .
“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.
As the scripture indicates, this is an important address to the people because Paul is telling them goodbye and that he will never see them again.
Paul was giving them final instructions as elders, but those instructions ring true to us as a church in America in the 21st century.
And it is the 21st Century church that I want to talk about tonight.
Several years ago, a theologian by the name of AW Tozer wrote this . . .
Within the circles of evangelical Christianity itself there has arisen in the last few years dangerous and dismaying trends away from true Bible Christianity. A spirit has been introduced which is surely not the Spirit of Christ, methods employed which are wholly carnal, objectives adopted which have not one line of Scripture to support them, a level of conduct accepted which is practically identical with that of the world—and yet scarcely one voice has been raised in opposition. And this in spite of the fact that the Bible-honoring followers of Christ lament among themselves the dangerous, wobbly course things are taking....The times call for a Spirit-baptized and articulate orthodoxy. They whose souls have been illuminated by the Holy Ghost must arise and under God assume leadership. There are those among us whose hearts can discern between the true and the false, whose spiritual sense of smell enables them to detect the spurious afar off, who have the blessed gift of knowing. Let such as these arise and be heard. Who knows but the Lord may yet return and leave a blessing behind Him?
And be clear, Mr. Tozer wasn’t talking about the type of music, preaching style, worship style, or any of that sort of stuff.
He was referring to this spirit that he has seen begin to invade the Church that waters down the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
He was referring to this “don’t offend anyone” by not talking about the need for repentance and dedication to Jesus Christ that is missing from many circles.
It’s missing because it makes people uncomfortable and peopled don’t want to be uncomfortable.
And honestly as well meaning as some of these people doing this are, they are doing more harm than good.
By diminishing the “offense of the Cross” as Billy Graham put it, they are also diminishing the power of the Cross.
They are diminishing the power of Jesus Christ to not only save but also deliver and change us.
The power to carry us through this life into glory in the next.
And today, more than ever, we have to recognize this and we have to fight against this urge to “be just like everyone else.”
We have to stay true to Christ—even if it causes an uproar like it did for Paul in our passage tonight.
There is too much at stake and too much to lose for us to just be comfortable and just make everyone like us.
So, Acts 20, starting in verse 28, Luke writes . . .
Scripture Focus
Scripture Focus
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.
Feed The Flock
Feed The Flock
So, again here Paul has gathered the elders of Ephesus and begins to address them with instructions to carry out when he leaves them, knowing he will not return.
And he tells them . . .
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.
And the first thing I want us to pay attention to here is what Paul tells them to keep watch over, or take heed as the KJV puts it.
He tells them that . . .
They themselves need to take heed. They themselves need to be listening to what Paul is saying.
They also need to be warning their flock, or their church about what Paul is telling them.
And the reason he is saying this to this group of people is because Paul is actually addressing the overseers, the elders, the pastors of the churches but his message is not for their ears only.
And we have covered this many times and although not all of us are called to be the pastors or overseers of the church, there are those among us who are the leaders in the church.
We have in our church for example . . .
Board Members
Teachers
Basically anyone who others look up to as a person of authority or wisdom counts
And in addition we also believe in the "ministry of all believers."
We believe that we are all ministers and are all given a ministry in which God has called us into.
After all Jesus teaches us . . .
Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
And by the way, “servant” here in the NIV is translated as “minister” in the KJV and some other translations.
In fact the word “Minister" which is "dee-ak-on-os" in Greek.
It is where we get the word "deacon," and again means "servant."
And what we have done in the church is that we want to take that word and romanticize it and isolate it to mean the pastor or the overseer, but the minister is the servant.
But that is not so.
We are all called to serve.
So we see now that Paul's message is directed towards us all.
If that is not enough to convince you then Paul goes a step further and says that this is “to all the flock, over which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers."
And he says, "give this message to the entire flock that God has given you leadership over."
And I also want us to notice that he says the flock that "The Holy Spirit has made you overseers."
Because that is where so many times we miss it.
We have flocks that man has made someone the overseer and not the Holy Spirit and that is why we see so many churches in the mess they are in today.
That is also why Paul has to deliver this warning to the church there in Ephesus.
The Holy Spirit has shown Paul what was going to happen and had given him a burden to warn the people.
So Paul instructs the pastors to "feed the flock," or to "shepherd and nurture the flock" that was "purchased with his own blood." The blood of Christ.
Which means that ALL OF US HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY TO STEP INTO THE MINISTRY GOD HAS CALLED US INTO AND TO USE THAT TO FEED THE FLOCK.
It is all of our responsibility to do this as we are able.
Remember what Jesus told Peter as he was restoring him after Peter denied Christ?
When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.” Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me?” He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.” The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.
So, I ask you the same thing Jesus asked Peter, Do we love Him?
If so then we are to feed His sheep!
And it is vital that we do this because there are things that are going to come against the Church and the believers.
And if we are not ministering and feeding each other there is real danger of real destruction.
And in our passage Paul tells them about two types of enemies that will come in to destroy them.
Enemy Type 1: “Savage Wolves” from Outside
Enemy Type 1: “Savage Wolves” from Outside
First, in verse 29 . . .
I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock.
So, he’s telling them that these savage wolves will get in among the flock and will tear them apart and destroy them with lies, hypocrisy, false doctrine, sin and evil.
They would come to distort the truth and bring confusion and disruption.
This became so much of an issue that Paul and even Christ himself through John in the Book of Revelation ended up addressing it.
First, Paul . . .
The reason I left you in Crete was that you might straighten out what was left unfinished and appoint elders in every town, as I directed you. An elder must be blameless, the husband of but one wife, a man whose children believe and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient. Since an overseer is entrusted with God’s work, he must be blameless—not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain. Rather he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined.
And . . .
Timothy, my son, I give you this instruction in keeping with the prophecies once made about you, so that by following them you may fight the good fight, holding on to faith and a good conscience. Some have rejected these and so have shipwrecked their faith. Among them are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan to be taught not to blaspheme.
And . . .
The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth. For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, because it is consecrated by the word of God and prayer. If you point these things out to the brothers, you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, brought up in the truths of the faith and of the good teaching that you have followed. Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly.
And . . .
Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly. Their teaching will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, who have wandered away from the truth. They say that the resurrection has already taken place, and they destroy the faith of some.
And . . .
But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them. They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over weak-willed women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires, always learning but never able to acknowledge the truth. Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these men oppose the truth—men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected. But they will not get very far because, as in the case of those men, their folly will be clear to everyone.
And finally . . .
“To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands: I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.
Enemy Type 2: Insiders who draw believers away
Enemy Type 2: Insiders who draw believers away
So, that’s the first type that will try and destroy the believers, but what about the second type?
Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them.
So, these were those who rose up from within the ranks of the church.
These were those that constantly and consistently followed their own path and did not listen to God.
These were ones who were deceived by the devil, believing his lies and erring from the faith.
These are the ones Jesus talks about in Luke 21 . . .
“Teacher,” they asked, “when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are about to take place?” He replied: “Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them.
And one of the keys is to be operating in the Spirit and not in the flesh.
In the flesh we can be deceived.
But in the Spirit we can recognize those who are out to deceive and lead us astray by their motives . . .
Paul says that those in the flesh will distort the truth. They have an element of truth in them but something just isn't right.
The biggest one, "to draw away disciples after them." Their goal is to draw disciples away from God and to themselves. They want people to follow them and not God.
They say things like "come follow me, I know the way."
They talk and boast of all these great things that they can do or talents that they have or abilities that they have.
The language you hear is the "I" language, or the "me" language.
They exist to edify self and ease the conscience of itching ears, ignoring sound doctrine for goose bumps and warm fuzzies.
They lull people right into hell because no one will tell them the truth about sin.
THAT TRUTH BEING THAT A SINFUL LIFESTYLE THAT CONTRADICTS GOD'S WORD MEANS THAT YOU ARE NOT RIGHT WITH GOD AND WILL NOT GO TO HEAVEN.
The problem with today's church in America is that we have millions being lulled into this belief that you can live anyway you want and that there are many different paths to heaven and to God.
There is only one way, Jesus.
If we are not careful though we run the risk of falling into the same trap and scheme of the devil.
The Warning: Watch and Remember
The Warning: Watch and Remember
Which is why Paul tells them . . .
So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.
In other words, Paul tells them to watch out!
Watch out for this evil that is trying to creep into their lives and their churches.
Watch out for the world that is trying so desperately to corrupt the things and people of God.
Folks, we have got to quit thinking in worldly terms and from a worldly viewpoint.
We have got to quit embracing the world and the stench of evil that is on it.
We are not of this world and need to start acting like we believe that.
Altar/Challenge
Altar/Challenge
And the last thing in our passage . . .
“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.
So, Paul finishes on a positive note.
He commits them to God— puts their survival in God's hand and the Word of His grace.
That Word is also able to build us up.
It is a roadmap and an instruction manual.
It will lead us into an inheritance among all them which are sanctified.
Those who are set apart and made holy by God.
And isn't that the goal?
To be set apart, made holy, receive the inheritance?
However, if we become deceived and led astray because we are not grounded in sound doctrine, we will never get there.
Ephesus was in bad shape.
The church of America is in bad shape.
So, we, in our small little church have to decide, are we part of the problem or part of the solution?
Let’s pray . . .