Wednesday Devo
Scripture:
Acts 20
28 “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 leaders. 29 I know that false teachers, like vicious wolves, will come in among you after I leave, not sparing the flock. 30 Even some men from your own group will rise up and distort the truth in order to draw a following. 31 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.
28 “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 leaders. 29 I know that false teachers, like vicious wolves, will come in among you after I leave, not sparing the flock. 30 Even some men from your own group will rise up and distort the truth in order to draw a following. 31 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.
Commentary:
20:28 Pay careful attention to yourselves. Spiritual leaders need first of all to guard their own spiritual and moral purity. the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. The last part of this phrase refers to the blood of Christ poured out in his atoning death on the cross (cf. Rom. 3:25; 5:9; Eph. 1:7; etc.). The reference to God in the first part of this phrase (“the church of God”) most likely is a reference to Christ as the head of the church and as “God the Son,” the second person of the Trinity. Alternatively, if God the Father is in view in the phrase “the church of God,” then “his own blood” is a reference to the blood of God’s “own,” that is, of “God’s own Son” (which would be a legitimate alternative reading of the Greek). (See also ESV footnote indicating that some Greek manuscripts read “the church of the Lord” rather than “the church of God.”)
20:29–30 Paul showed remarkable insight into the future situation of the Ephesian church (probably through a revelation from the Holy Spirit). The letters of Paul to Timothy, who served Ephesus a decade or so later, attest to the presence of false teachers who were ravaging the church for their own gain and who had indeed come from within the church, in fact, from among the elders themselves (from among your own selves). (See 1 Tim. 1:19–20; 4:1–3; 2 Tim. 1:15; 2:17–18; 3:1–9.)
Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), 2130.
20:29–30 Paul showed remarkable insight into the future situation of the Ephesian church (probably through a revelation from the Holy Spirit). The letters of Paul to Timothy, who served Ephesus a decade or so later, attest to the presence of false teachers who were ravaging the church for their own gain and who had indeed come from within the church, in fact, from among the elders themselves (from among your own selves). (See 1 Tim. 1:19–20; 4:1–3; 2 Tim. 1:15; 2:17–18; 3:1–9.)
Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), 2130.
Questions:
- Another danger of being disconnected from a church body is that, without a commitment to a local church and its elders, you are PREY without PROTECTION. Sheep need a shepherd to watch over and protect them. We need to be faithfully taught how to exegete scripture (interpret Biblical text in context) so you we protected from all the junk out there... and there is lots of it! Is your ability to exegete scripture growing? When you hear a verse quoted, how often are you questioning the context and actual meaning of that verse?
- Jesus warned of false prophets and teachers who are wolves in sheep's clothing. We need to be protected from false teachings, from certain churches' influence, from certain authors, and certain "translations" of the Bible. How careful are you about what books you read, whose sermons you listen to? Do you think you have enough knowledge of scripture and discernment at this point to be able to spot the fake?
Pray:
- That you would develop a hunger for scripture.
- That you would study and know the original so you can spot the fakes.
This Week's City 7:
Try to commit to memory!
6. Is the Bible God’s Word? Jesus proved He is God by rising from the dead and said the Old Testament was God’s Word and gave authority to the Apostles to write the words of the New Testament, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, so that all the words of the Bible are God’s Word.
(Matthew 5:18; Luke 24:27, 44; John 14:25-26, 15:27, 16:12-13, 17:20; Acts 2:42; Ephesians 3:5; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:16-21)
(Matthew 5:18; Luke 24:27, 44; John 14:25-26, 15:27, 16:12-13, 17:20; Acts 2:42; Ephesians 3:5; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:16-21)
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