Would you please take the Word of God and turn with me to Acts chapter 20. And as you're turning there, we began the journey some years ago through the book of Acts to really understand what the church is all about. And the book of Acts is two things. I mean, it is, I know the Word of God, but it is a historical record of what did indeed happen. And as I've made the point several times throughout this study is the book of Acts is not everything that happened in the first century churches, but it is everything that God wants us to know happened. And so it is both factual, but there is also a spiritual value in the record that we have in the book of Acts. As we read through this book, I think it becomes evident that now that we are in the 21st century, we may ask the question, what has happened? And what I mean by what has happened is what has happened to churches. Where has the message gone? And where has the priorities that we find in the first century churches, where have those priorities gone as well? And so I begin the study of this book with the intent that we as a church might find what the first century churches were doing and do the same. To be faithful in proclaiming the gospel and to find the things that made the church, or how the church was described, and may the same things be said about First Abaptist Church. And I think we find some important truth here in Acts chapter 20, and we're going to begin reading in just a moment, but just by way of review, we've learned a number of things. Paul is heading back to Jerusalem. And on his way home he stops in Miletus and he sends word to the elders of Ephesus to come down and he has some final words for them. And in those final words we've learned some things about Paul, about the life of the church, about the church in Ephesus and let me sum up those things before we continue in our text. The first thing that we learn is that Paul faithfully served the Lord in Ephesus with all humility of mind." And what we learn here is that the manner in which we serve God is more important than the result. Let me say that again. The manner in which we serve God is more important than the result. At no point does Paul in his epistles talk about, well we had this many people saved and we build these buildings and we don't find that at all. What we find a whole lot of here is how we ought to serve God. Ultimately the result belongs to God, but we have to be interested in how we serve God, and Paul served God with all humility of mind. We also noted that Paul faithfully preached what was profitable instead of what was popular. He says to them that he kept back nothing that was profitable unto them. He taught them, he says, the whole counsel of God. He didn't shy away from that. And he says, I haven't robbed you. And so the idea today is that if churches are not preaching through the whole counsel of God, that they are robbing God's people. We've also learned that Paul was willing to suffer affliction for the Lord because he had his sight set on the finish line and not his present comfort. He said, neither count I my life dear unto myself that I might finish my course with joy. So there's two options here. Either I'm going to continue to serve God because what I have in mind is the joy of what the finish line means, or I can forsake that for present comfort. And he chose to look at the end of the road. We also noted that Paul was aware and he warned of the dangers facing the believers in the church. He talked about wolves that might come and devour the flock and teachers that might arise from within the church to draw away disciples after themselves and show too potential to either be devoured or to be drawn away. And he says these are the dangers facing the church. And by the way, if they were facing the church then, then certainly they're facing the church now. But we also see that Paul was emotionally attached to the believers in the church. And it's going to come out in this point, but we see a lot of tears in this chapter. Now why would God give us an insight into that? We believe that every word of God is breathed out by God. That it is inspired. That it is what God has told us He wants us to know. And so this is no doubt a historical record. But God wants us to know those details. And I wonder why? Why does God want us to know these details? Notice verse 19. Serving the Lord with all humility of mind and with many tears. Verse 31. A lot of crying and weeping. And so I wonder what this is all about. Let's begin reading if you stand with me for the reading of God's Word. We're going to read in verse 32 and work our way down to verse 38. We stand simply out of reverence for God and His Word because we believe that what God has to say is important. Today, when somebody important walks in the room, people stand, people rise. The bride comes in the wedding, and people stand up. Why? Out of reverence and respect. If the judge walks in the room, we stand out of reverence and respect, and we're reading God's Word. And God is speaking. And let's pay close attention to verse 32. The Bible says, And now, brethren, I commend you to God and to the word of His grace which is able to build you up and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified. I have coveted no man's silver or gold or apparel. Yea, ye yourselves know that these hands have ministered unto my necessities and to them that were with me. I have showed you all things, how that so laboring he ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive. And when he had thus spoken, he knelt down and prayed with them all. And they all wept sore and fell on Paul's neck and kissed him, sorrowing most of all for the words which he spake, that they should see his face no more. and they accompanied him unto the ship. I want to bring your attention to verse 32. Here is his closing remarks and he begins the closing remarks by saying this, I commend you to God. What does that mean? I am placing you in God's care. I am placing you in the hands of God because I'm leaving. And the work continuing is not dependent on me, or it's not dependent on you, it's dependent on God. And so let's pray as we begin this message this morning. Father, we thank You for the opportunity to study Your Word and to gain some insight into the life of the church, this particular church here that was in Ephesus that Paul met with those who were in leadership of the church. And Lord, we have a desire to not be 21st century Christianity, but to be 1st century Christianity. That's why we read the Bible. That's why we study it, because we want to know what was written in those first centuries. And we want to be made conformable to those things that we read about. And we ask, Lord, these things in Jesus' name. Amen. Thank you. You may be seated. Paul tells the church that he commends them to God. As I mentioned here, Paul three times in this text, he mentions that this is the last time that he is going to see them. These are departing words, last words. Now, we know Paul would write the letter of Ephesians, and we have that, but this would be the last time that they would see Paul face to face. And no doubt Paul has had an impact in all of their lives, and there has been a lot of fellowship and communion and preaching and teaching. We know it was in Ephesus that Paul wrote to the church at Corinth. He says, there's a great and effectual door open unto me But there are many adversaries. We know it was there that after he no longer could teach in the synagogue that he met in the school of Juan Tyrannios there for three years and he gathered the believers there and taught them. And to our knowledge in the book of Acts, the city of Ephesus was one of the places that Paul spent the most of his time in seeing a church established there in Ephesus. Now as we read here those remarks I've already made reference to all that he has said and there's three aspects Paul reflects back on his ministry in Ephesus, how he served. He talks about, gives them a perspective on his life now because no doubt they didn't want him to see him go. There was warnings that if you went to Jerusalem he would be taken captive and Paul simply tells them that look it's not like I haven't faced captivity before. It's not like I haven't faced imprisonment or you remember he was stoned out of outside of Lystra and Derby and he was left for dead. And so he is acquainted with suffering and the reproach that comes with the name of Christ and so he says that he doesn't count his life dear unto himself. In other words, he's not trying to save his life. He's trying to put himself in the hands of the Lord and whatever happens, happens. I'm committing myself to God because I'm interested in finishing my course with joy. And then He gives them a charge. for the future and he gives them warnings knowing that those things are going to happen. He uses the word shall. This will happen. Wolves will come in. False teachers will arise out of your own congregation. It's going to happen and he warns them. But now he gives this closing remarks, he's about to leave, and really that word, I commend you to God, in other words, I release you to God. When Paul, no doubt, was in the church of Ephesus, if he saw maybe wolves coming in the church, he could say, well, you're not welcomed here if you're interested in destroying the people of God. Or somebody had a different doctrine, he says, you can't teach this here, but he's leaving and he is committing the church to God, in the hands of God. And that speaks of his confidence, by the way, in the Lord that God is able to do that which he cannot do himself. Paul could not be everywhere. He was limited as a man, but God is not. And we're reminded here that as He does that, that the church does not belong to Paul, the church belongs to God. As we saw in His remarks to them, He says in verse 28, This is God's church. And we're reminded of the words of Christ when He said, I will build My church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And so in those departing words, what I would like to do here is a little different style of the message here, but I really wrote down a number of observations that I get from this text in those closing words, when Paul commends them to God, he releases them to God. And I wonder if these same observations can be made of First State Baptist Church. And so, as I make those observations, let's try to ask ourselves as a church, can those same observations be made of First-Day Baptist Church? As we observe here in our text, the first thing that we observe is, we observe the faith of the soldier. And what I mean by the soldier is Paul. Paul has been a soldier. talked about in his work at Ephesus how there were many adversaries in Ephesus and strong opposition in Ephesus and we know that when he writes later the letter to Timothy, 1st Timothy and 2nd Timothy, he encourages Timothy to continue to fight the good fight of faith while Timothy was there in Ephesus as the pastor of the church. And so there seems to be a lot of controversy in Ephesus. There seems to be a lot of adversity, a lot of conflict. And so here when Paul writes those words, brethren, I commend you to God. We observe here the faith of a soldier. Paul, in the work of God, has been involved in a fight. And by the way, it is a fight. And we know that we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against powers, against principalities, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in the high places. And we know that the battle that we face is not one of the flesh, but it is a spiritual battle. But nonetheless, it is a battle. And here Paul, with all of his concerns, His faith is expressed by saying, I commend you to God. And how is He able to do that? Notice what He says in verse 32, I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to what? Build you up and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified." And so how can Paul release them to God? How has his faith demonstrated? His faith is demonstrated in his commending them to God, but also in the fact that he commends them, notice, to the Word of God's grace. Not his words, the words of God. Throughout the epistles you'll find that Paul constantly referred to the teaching that he passed down to others, that he received that from God by the grace of God. That Paul was not an authority in and of himself, but that the authority that he had came from God. And so that's why the teaching and the preaching of Paul should not have been accepted as the words of men, but as it was in truth, the words of God. And so what can keep the church going? Well, notice he commends them to God, but he really gives them the recipe to continue to be faithful to God by saying, I commend you to God and to the Word of His grace. You see, if you're going to be in the care of God, you must be faithful to His Word. and to what God has declared, and to what God has said. By the way, we won't go there for sake of time, but you read 1st and 2nd Timothy. Timothy pastored the church in Ephesus, and he gives them, basically tells them, continue in the doctrine that you've received, that I taught you, that I received from God. fight for that doctrine, contend for the truth, Jude says, that was once delivered to the saints. And so here is how the church can continue by being commended to the Word of His grace. Notice, and what is the Word of God's grace able to do? He says it is able to build you up. We use the New Testament word, exhortation. The word exhortation means to build up, to strengthen. And so there are two things that have to be done. You're going to be built up as a church by what? By His Word. And so His Word has to be known, but also His Word has to be contended for. What did He just say in this chapter? Wolves are going to come in to devour you, and false teachers are going to come to draw you away. Disciples after them. People are interested in making disciples after them and not after Christ. And so this is the faith of... He expresses his faith that the work of God continuing is not dependent on him. It's dependent on God. But the church must be faithful to His Word because that's how the church will be built up, notice, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified. Quick question here, is that church still in existence in Ephesus today? It's not. As a matter of fact, you look through the book of Acts, are any of those churches in the book of Acts still in existence today? We can say, well, no. Now I know by extension that they started other churches and here we are 2,000 years later and we exist because the gospel was propagated and churches were established not just there but around the world. But the point is something happened to those individual churches in those cities. They fell away. And a church will always fall away first when it departs from the Word of God. When it ceases to be built up in His Word, it will cease in the long term to have an inheritance. That's why when Jesus Christ writes to the churches in Revelation chapter 2 and 3, He says, if you don't turn from this, I'm going to remove your candlestick. You will cease to be a light in the world. And by the way, lest we think of ourselves more highly than we ought to think, it is possible for the same thing to happen to First State Baptist Church. Let's pray that it does not. And so we observe here the faith of the soldier. He commends the believers to God and to the Word of His grace, which is able to build them up. But the second observation we have in verse 33 and 34 is we observe the heart of the servant. Now, we know how Paul did ministry. He preached the Word, but We know throughout the book of Acts that Paul had a trade on the side. And we know on a number of occasions that Paul, because he didn't want to make himself a burden to new believers, or to make himself chargeable, or that anybody might accuse Paul that the reason why he is starting a church is for money. because he wants to be rich, he would work on the side. That's what he did. Notice what he says in verse 33 and 34. I have coveted no man's silver or gold or apparel. Yea, ye yourselves know that these hands have ministered unto my necessities and to them that were with me. Now, by the way, we know that, for example, when he arrives to the church at Corinth, one of the accusations was going around that Paul was just in the ministry for himself. He was trying to get some money out of the ministry and he was accused of that. And Paul reminds them here, he does in other epistles, that as a matter of fact, that's not how he did ministry. When he wrote to the church at Thessalonica, when he was there for three weeks and there was an uproar in the city where the Jews, they gathered lewd fellows of the baser sort and drove them out of the city. During that time he was working. He didn't want to be a burden to the new believers in Thessalonica because they were also suffering. And so here we have, we observe the heart of a servant, Paul, that he wasn't in it for the money. He didn't covet the gold and the silver or the apparel. And that's important because I think here we think about our hearts in ministry. What can be observed at First Saint Baptist Church? Why do we do what we do? Are we looking for some physical benefit that might come to our lives? because of our service to God. He says, "...I have coveted no man's silver." He not only provided for His own and ministered with His own hands, not just for His necessities, by the way, necessities, His basic needs, but to them and to them that were with Me. And so Paul not only worked for himself, but he even worked for those that accompanied him. Now we know in those journeys, we know Silas was with him. Luke was with him, Timothy was with him, and so Paul did not just work for himself, he worked for those other men as well to make sure they could eat and to make sure that they had a place to stay. What a heart of a servant. And so we observe here the faith of the soldier, we observe the heart of the servant, but we also observe the spirit of the supplier. He says in verse 35, and really using his life as an example, he says in verse 35, I have showed you all things, how that so laboring he ought to support the weak. Now I want to think about those two words. The word laboring means that there is an intensity about it, that a laborer becomes tired and weary. He is toiling. He is having a difficult time. And by the way, when we talked about what Jesus told his disciples, if any man will come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. What does that mean? Well, you have to deny yourself and then you have to, you're going to have to bear burdens if you're going to serve God. And you know what happens in our life sometimes? We have burdens when we're serving God. By the way, burdens will come. And we shouldn't say that there will be no burdens, right? The Bible says that all they that live godly in Christ shall suffer persecution, that affliction, offenses, they are going to come. And so often in our lives there are burdens. But Paul says, look, when you're laboring and toiling, you ought to support the weak. You know what we tend to do? We look at our trouble and our toil and our labors as well. I can't serve God. I'm exhausted. I can't care for the other people's needs. Look at my life. I'm laboring and I'm struggling through this. And Paul says, as you're struggling in your service for God, support the weak. In other words, he says this, and I know this is not popular, but this is what Paul says to them. Get your eyes off of yourself. I know laboring is hard. But look for the needs of others. Isn't that what we got from Philippians chapter 2, the theme for this year? Look not every man on his own thing, but every man also on the things of others. And then he says, Look at Jesus who is our example. He came not to be ministered unto. but to minister and to give his life a ransom for all. That's how Jesus Christ served. He said, let this cup pass from me nevertheless not my will but thine be done. Why? For the joy that was set before him endure the cross despising the shame. Why did he do all that that he might bring many sons into glory? You see, in his toiling and affliction, he looked at the needs of others. What was our need? Salvation. And so we have to do the same if we're going to serve the Lord. We observe here really the spirit of the supplier that when we, the tendency, by the way, we live in a, the self-centered, selfie generation. Life is all about me! Look at me! And the Christian is, Look at others. What are the needs? Who is going through difficulty? Who is having a weak moment? And to look beyond ourselves in the midst of our toils. Pastor, are you saying that when I have struggles I should look at other people's needs? That is exactly what I'm saying. And I understand that that may be difficult and hard to think about, but that's the truth of the Word of God. We observe a fourth thing. Verse 36. We observe the impulse of the spiritual. This is the last meeting between Paul and these believers. He commends them to God. We capture his heart as a servant. We see that he said there ought to be a spirit of supplier in the church. And we observe here the impulse of a spiritual man. When he had thus spoken in verse 36, he knelt down and prayed with them all. Now I know we may look at that and we may just glance over and say, okay he prayed and they prayed with them. But I think here it communicates something about this church and about the relationship between Paul and the elders of Ephesus and the warnings that he has given them and the charge that he gave them to continue and some specific instruction on how to continue and to follow God and to trust His word. And so now we're going to move on here. We're about to leave and he's about to never see them again. And how ought we to leave this situation? And there's something that's just the impulse. They pray. And I refer to it as the impulse of the spiritual because it comes from Paul. The Bible says, seems to indicate, when he had thus spoken, Paul, he, he knelt down and prayed with them all. What an example to this church. He commends them to God. He gives them some final instruction, and by impulse, because Paul is a spiritual man, not perfect, we know, he says, I know in me, in my flesh there is no good thing, dwelleth no good thing. But his impulse in that moment is to kneel down and to pray. Now, I believe every word of God is important. Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God. And so if we believe that every word of God is important, then we should believe that the information provided for us here is very important. When He had spoken this, the Bible says He knelt down. When you think about kneeling, what does that mean? Well, it's an act of when we know through history that you come in somebody's court and somebody comes and the impulse because you are subject to them is to kneel down. You bow down before an authority. We just read in Philippians chapter 3, the Bible says, When the name of Jesus Christ is sounded out, every knee should bow. And every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is God to the glory of God the Father. Is Paul bowing before these elders in Ephesus? No, that's not what he's doing. He's bowing before God. The subject comes to the king and says, God, we need you. We can't do this without you. The church cannot go on without you. God, we need you. And before all these elders of Ephesus, he kneels down, he reminds them that strength and the ability for the church to continue will be done with the help of God. And we need God. We are desperate for God. You see, that's the impulse of the spiritual. He doesn't say, hey y'all, When you fight, pull yourselves up by your bootstraps. You can do it. You're strong enough. No. Lord, we need you. That is the impulse of the spiritual. The impulse of the carnal is, we can do this. We got this, Paul. Don't worry. We got you. I know you're leaving. We're never going to see you, but we got this. No, that's not the impulse of a spiritual man. But there's one more thing we observe, and that is we observe the bond of the saints. This is really what compels me from this chapter. As I mentioned earlier, we see a lot of tears. Verse 37, 38 says, and they all wept sore. It seems that that arises from the time of prayer, right? Isn't that what they just did? That's how they leave. It's the way to depart. And no doubt, as they're praying here, believers are beginning to weep, and the word is, they wept sore. This was not just like a tear. There's grief going on, and they fell on Paul's neck. Their grief is expressed as they fall on his neck. The word that is used there is fall. They didn't just give him a hug. They fell on his neck and they kissed him. And that's just culturally what they did at that time. It was a sign of affection. Here in America, we shake hands. Well, back then, they kissed. If you would go to France, that's how my wife, when she went to France, she was in shock. Why? Because everybody kisses each other's cheeks. Right? And that was the greeting. That was both the greeting and the way to depart somebody. with a kiss in verse 38. Here is the expression of their sorrow, "...sorrowing most of all for the words which he spake." What words specifically? In other words, it's not everything he said, but what were the specific words that he said that moved them to tears that they should see his face no more? That's why they were crying. That's why they were weeping sore. That's why they fell on his neck. They even accompanied him to a ship. Let me ask you this, does it seem that Paul was emotionally attached to the believers in Ephesus? That seems evident. It's interesting that I don't know of other churches that we find that scene, right? In the book of Acts, where he spent some time, we know he spent a lot of time there, many years. And so the time that he's been in Ephesus has been a time where the saints have bonded together. And there is a strong emotional attachment. And I want to say to the church, it's not to a building, to a brick and mortar, but it's to the people in the church. You know, we know what the world thinks about church. Churches now have just become, it's another club. It's another community. I just passed, there's a sign, a church not too far from here, says Sunday morning service, Monday night yoga. So it's just another, you know, another gym. Another coffee shop where people gather. And that's the extent of their attachment. I'll pay my dues, I'll be part of this group, and then I move on. With all due respect, that is not the church. Can I ask you this? Are you emotionally attached to the people of the church? And look, as much as I can say this with all kindness, if you're not emotionally attached to the people of God, then maybe there's something missing. Maybe there is something missing that we find. God gave us this information. He wants us to know the spirit of the church there in Ephesus. He wants us to know how they were attached to one another. He wants us to know the bond that they had in Christ. I don't know whether Paul wept a lot. We know in Scripture when he wept and for what reasons he wept. And here it comes out clear that this chapter is saturated with an emotional tone. And we know that we ought not to be led by our emotions, but it is okay to be emotional when it is in the right place, at the right time, for the right things. See, there's a lot of emotions for the wrong things. Our world is emotional. An emotional, we could say, basket case. And emotions are out of control. But when there is emotion, true, genuine, what would you think of this? Well, there's affection. There's love. There is no doubt admiration for Paul and the time he spent in Ephesus. And there's mutual respect. And we find that in the church. We observe all those things, and I asked the Lord, I said, Lord, would you help that those things would be observed in the church, this church? It'd be wonderful if God could say the same thing of First Abaptist Church that he wrote here about the believers in Ephesus and Paul. But we ask ourselves here in conclusion, why all this? What's the big deal? There's a fight going on, and we ought to have the heart of a servant, not look for ourselves, but to be suppliers of the weak, those in need, and we find a spiritual impulse to pray, and we find a strong bond for the saints. And so it seems to me very apparent that the church is special. God's people are special. It is not something to be taken lightly. It is something that is important to God. By the way, He gave Himself for the church. He shed His blood for the church. And when we think about the church, I think we have to understand the magnitude of the church. Do we understand today that there is no other entity in the world that is as important as the church? It is the church that is the pillar and ground of the truth. It is the church that has the gospel and that carries the gospel to the ends of the world to the lost who do not know Jesus Christ. It is within the church that people are baptized. It is within the church that people grow in their faith. It is in the church that people can exercise their spiritual gift. In other words, everything that goes on in our lives as believers ought to happen in the church. And there is no other institutions in the world that is as important today than the church. I am not against orphanages. I'm not against all the providing food and all those things. Those are all wonderful things. But they are not a substitute for the church. The church is the pillar and ground of the truth. What do men need more than anything is the truth. And the wonderful thing about the church is you think about all those saints. Paul wrote often about people and their former life and I'm sure what they all have in common is something like this. As they're gathering this last meeting, here are a bunch of sinners who are deserving under the wrath of God. And Paul said himself, I'm chief sinner. I'm least, less than the least in all the saints. I'm the least of the apostles. I'm not worthy to be called an apostle. And so here's a group of people who've been saved by the Spirit of God, who have this special meeting, this special gathering, those last moments together and how significant those moments were. You know, I don't know what you've experienced, but for the last few years, you know, we've seen people come and go, and sometimes people have come and gone, and not anything bad. Sometimes, you know, people get upset, and they leave, and sometimes maybe somebody has a false doctrine and says, well, this is not the place for you, and so that happens, but sometimes people have been here for a number of years, and they relocate, and they move on. And my wife can attest to this. It's hard. I say, man, pastor, get over yourself. I can't. Because I believe there is a bond that takes place in the church. And I'm not saying that somebody shouldn't leave the church, they relocate. That happens, I understand. But how do you feel when somebody leaves the church? Ah, whatever. Does it break your heart? Does it feel like, man, somebody that we have a bond with that is dear to us is leaving? And I say that's what we find in the Church of Ephesus. If the emotional element is missing within the church, I think something might be wrong. that we have no emotional attachment to one another. I said, Pastor, that's a really different message. I've never heard anything like this. I'm just saying, that's what we observe. That's what we observe in the Church of Ephesus. And God wants us to know that that's what we ought to observe in the church. And so, I said, Pastor, are you trying to make us more emotional? No, I'm just... may be asking you, how involved are you? Because maybe our level of involvement and regard to the church has to do with what we think and how we feel about the church. If it's just, well, take it or leave it, whatever. The church is just the church, whatever. Find another one. By the way, that's how the world views the church, is it not? Well, you know, go find somewhere else. Go somewhere else. And that happens, and people treat, you know, the church like a gym. Well, you know, I went to this gym, and they had all the equipment. Then, you know, the service was not too good, so I went and found another gym, and then another gym. And that's how people have come to treat the church. It's just some other entity, some other gathering. In other words, it's insignificant. It's a small part of our lives. When the rapture happens, you know who's going to be raptured? the church, believers in the church. The world will not be there, but we will all be together. So what has more significance in our lives? All that is going on in the world, or what's going on within the church? So may the Lord help us. Let's bow our heads and pray.