Acts 20
McGeeCHAPTER 20THEME: Third missionary journey of Paul concludedAfter Paul’s experience in Ephesus, he continues on to Macedonia, to Philippi, back to Troas, and to Miletus. The elders of the church in Ephesus meet him in Miletus and they have a tender reunion and a touching farewell.
Acts 20:1
PAUL GOES INTO MACEDONIAThis means that he revisited Athens and Corinth.
Acts 20:3
The men named are all believers who had come to Christ under the ministry of Paul. He has quite a delegation now. These men have become missionaries. We need to recognize that when Paul went through Greece and Macedonia, he visited all the churches which he had founded there. He would have stopped at Athens and Corinth, at Thessalonica and Berea and Philippi. So he retraced his steps and visited all the churches that were in Europeor at least in the European section of his third journey.
Acts 20:5
PAUL AT TROASYou may remember that Troas was the springboard from which Paul leaped into Europe on his second missionary journey. Now he comes back to Troas on his last missionary journey. The “us” indicates that Dr. Luke stays with Paul while the others go ahead of them to Troas. This is quite a group of men, missionaries, who worked with Paul. I take it that these men had been traveling with Paul before. When Paul would have a ministry in a place like Corinth, probably these men would radiate out and have a ministry in the countryside and the small towns. We read in the Epistle to the Colossians about the fact that the Word of God had sounded out in that day to the whole world. That sounds unbelievable, but it was true. It was no oratorical gesture.
Of course “the whole world” means the Roman world because that was the world of that day. The Word of God had spread throughout the Roman world. We get some insight here and recognize that there were other people working with the apostles. Acts traces the work of Peter and Paul as the dominant onesPeter as the Apostle to the Jews and Paul as the Apostle to the Gentiles. What we have here in the Book of Acts is a very limited account of the missionary work that was going on.
Acts 20:6
It is interesting that the trip that took them five days to make can now be made by tourists in about fifty minutes. How different transportation is today! Transportation is more efficient, but our ministry is certainly not as effective.
Acts 20:7
There are several things I want to say about this verse. I want you to note that it was upon the first day of the week that they came together. Where we have a record of the day on which the early church met, it was always the first day of the week. Paul tells the Corinthians that they are to bring their gifts on the first day of the week (see 1Co_16:2). In our verse in Acts here it says that “when the disciples came together to break bread” it was “upon the first day of the week.” This means that they celebrated the Lord’s Supper on Sunday. It was on this day that Paul preached to them.
The early church met on the first day of the week. That was the important day because it was the day when Jesus came back from the dead. Under the old creation the seventh day was the important day, the Sabbath Day. That belongs to the old creation. On the Sabbath Day Jesus was dead, inside the tomb. On the first day of the week He came forth.
We meet on that day because we are now joined to a living Christ. That is the testimony of the first day of the week. Now the other thing that interests me about this verse is that Paul was going to leave them the next day; so he preached all the way to midnight. Now, I do not know any congregation that would listen to me until midnight. I’m of the opinion that there aren’t many preachers who would preach until midnight in these days in which we live. However, this is Paul’s last visit. It is a tender meeting. He is getting ready to leave and he will not be back. This gives him an excuse to preach that long. I tell congregations very frankly that I’m a long-winded preacher. I’m known as that. I love to teach the Word of God. I have a system of homiletics that I never learned in the seminary. I picked it up myselfin fact, I got it from a cigarette commercial. This is it: It’s not how long you make it but how you make it long. I believe in making it long; my scriptural authority for it is that Paul did it. He spoke until midnight. You can’t help but smile at that.
Acts 20:8
They had the place all lighted up. These early Christians didn’t stay up until midnight whooping it up, but they were still up at midnight listening to the Word of God and praising Him. May I say to you that we have let the world take away from us the fun that we ought to be having today with the things of God. So if your preacher goes a little overtime, friend, be patient with him. However, I think midnight was a little long for the apostle Paul to preach, because look what happened here.
Acts 20:9
A friend of mine who preached up in the country of Middle Tennessee invited me to come there to hold some meetings in his church. In the summertime they would have quite protracted meetings at their Bible conference. It was interesting that in the back of the church there was a place for several pallets. When a little fellow would go to sleep, the mother holding him would simply get up and take him to the back of the room and put him down on the pallet. When another little fellow would go to sleep, his mother would get up with him and do the same thing. There would be six or more children asleep in the back of that church.
One night after several mothers had put their children down on the pallet, my friend interrupted his message and remarked, “I’m a better preacher than the apostle Paul! Paul preached until midnight and he put only one to sleep. I’m preaching here until about nine o’clock and I’ve already put four to sleep!” I confess that Paul’s experience has always been a comfort to me. When I look out at the congregation and see some brother or sister out there sound asleep, I say to myself, “It’s all right. Just let them sleep. Paul put them to sleep, too.” Can’t you just see this Eutychus? It says that “he sunk down with sleep.” He was sound asleep, and I can imagine that he was snoring. He fell from the third loftwhich means he was higher than the second floor. It is no longer a laughable experience. If this had been the end, it would have been a tragedy. But notice what happens.
Acts 20:10
Paul raised this boy from the dead. You will remember also that Simon Peter raised Dorcas from the dead. This was a gift that belonged to the apostles. After the canon of Scripture was established, the sign gifts were not manifestedthey disappeared from the church. When Dr. Luke writes that they “were not a little comforted,” he means they were really thrilled that this precious young man had been raised from the dead and was back in their midst.
And now Paul continues to preach through the night even until daybreak. What a rebuke that is to us! In some churches there is a chorus of complaint if a pastor preaches ten or even five minutes longer than usual. These early believers sat up all night listening to Paul. I know someone is going to say, “If I could listen to Paul, I’d listen all night, too.” Paul probably was nothing more than a humble preacher of the gospel. We do know that Apollos was an eloquent man, but that is not said of Paul.
These believers simply wanted to hear the Word of God. How wonderful that is!
Acts 20:13
PAUL AT MILETUSNow they are traveling again. Dr. Luke and others of the group sailed to Assos but Paul traveled on foot. Why do you suppose Paul did that? Well, I’m sure it was so that he could witness along the way. I think as he walked, there were many places along the way where he would stop to witness to people.
Acts 20:14
Now there is a good exercise in pronunciation as well as a little study in geography. I hope you will follow these journeys of Paul on a map. They make a nice little travelog.
Acts 20:16
Paul wants to be in Jerusalem for the Feast of Pentecost; so he is in a hurry. However, he was determined not to miss Ephesus. He stops at Miletus, which is the port of Ephesus.
Acts 20:17
A good map will show you that Ephesus was actually a little inland. The river there slowly filled up the harbor at Ephesus. Today the city of Ephesus is actually inland about two or three miles from the water’s edge. A great part of the city is as much as five miles inland. Miletus is right down on the coast. Paul sent for the elders of Ephesus to come to Miletus to meet him there.
Acts 20:18
Paul was a faithful witness for Jesus Christ. He pulled no punches. He could declare that he had given them the Word of God, the total Word of God. I am not the first one to have a through the Bible programPaul taught it all. He gave to them the full counsel of God. He was faithful even in the face of opposition by the religious rulers of the Jews.
Acts 20:22
Here is a point over which many great teachers of the Bible differ. Some of my good friends in the ministry and many good, authoritative Bible teachers believe that Paul made a mistake in going to Jerusalem. They think that he should not have gone. However, this testimony which Paul gives is very clear. I believe that he was entirely in the will of God in going to Jerusalem. He is saying in effect, “I am going to Jerusalem.
I am bound in the spirit because everywhere I have gone, the Spirit of God has shown me that bonds and affliction await me in Jerusalem.” Now that is different from Acts 16 when he was forbidden by the Spirit of God to preach in Asia. In fact God simply put up roadblocks which directed him to Europe. There is no roadblock here. Rather, the Spirit of God is revealing to Paul what he will be walking into when he reaches Jerusalem. Paul makes it clear that he realizes he will suffer if he goes to Jerusalem. He says, “I don’t count my life dear.
I’m willing to lay down my life for Jesus.” He wanted to bring the gift to the poor saints in Jerusalem in his own hands. In his swan song Paul wrote, “I have finished my course.” I think Paul touched all the bases. Jerusalem was one of those bases.
Acts 20:25
Paul knew that he would not see these folk again in this life. Paul also knew that he had honestly given to them the entire counsel of God. As I write this, I am a retired preacher. I have made many blunders and have failed in many ways. But as I look back on my ministry, I can sat truthfully that when I stood in the pulpit, I declared the Word of God as I saw it. I have the deep satisfaction of knowing that if I went back to any pulpit which I have held, I haven’t a thing to add to what I have already said. I don’t mean I couldn’t say it in a better way, but the important thing is that I declared the whole counsel of God. I have always believed that the important issue is to get out the entire Word of God.
Acts 20:28
This is the business of the officers of the church. They are not to run the church, but they are to see that the church is fed the Word of God.
Acts 20:29
Friend, I have seen that happen. The Devil wants to get into a church where the Bible has been taught. He would like to wreck a radio ministry that is teaching the Word of God. The Devil is not our friend; he is our enemy. He wants to stop the teaching of God’s Word. Paul warned them at Ephesus that this would happen to them. He tells them there will be little termites right in their midst who will really cause trouble for them.
Acts 20:31
He commends them to God and to the Word of His grace. That is what we can do whenever we leave our people.
Acts 20:33
Paul was not covetous of money. He worked in order to support himself and those who were with him.
Acts 20:35
This is a tender meeting between Paul and the elders of the church in Ephesus. These men love Paul and he loves them. It is difficult for them to let him go, knowing that they will not see him again in this life. They bid him a touching farewell.