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Verses 1 thru 6 of Chapter 20, deal with the wanderings of Paul before he returned to Jerusalem. After the riot, Paul called the believers together and gave them instructions (exhortations). He obviously seen that the believers here at Ephesus were going to have problems with the worshippers of Diana and those who benefited from this, so he instructed them on how they should deal with this and where the source of there strength would be. Then he left for Macedonia.
Leaving Ephesus, Paul went north into Macedonia and then south into Greece. He
spent three months in the area of Athens and Corinth. A plot was made against him
by the Jews as he was about to sail for Syria. Because of this, Paul returned
north into Macedonia. He went to Philippi and sailed to Toras where he stayed for
7 days.
To Jerusalem by way of Troas
["Click here for Acts 20:7-12"]
Verses 7 thru 12 of Chapter 20 record a miracle that Paul did at Troas. It was Sunday and the believers there had gathered together to worship and probably observe the Lord's Supper. Paul was asked to speak and got long winded and continued till midnight. Many were sitting around wherever they could find a place and a young man, setting in a windowsill, dozed off and fell out of the window, falling 3 stories.
The man's name was Eutychus. The name literarily meant "fortunate". He was indeed
fortunate that Paul was there for the fall killed him. Paul went down to where the
man laid and picked him up in his arms and life returned to his body. His parents
took the young man home rejoicing for not only was he alive, but he also was
completely healed of what ever damage had been done to him when he fell.
Then Paul went back up stairs and talked till daybreak. At daybreak, he departed
for Assos where he was to meet Luke and others who had arranged passage for him
back to Jerusalem.
Sailing
["Click here for Acts 20:13-16"]
Verses 13 thru 16 of Chapter 20, records his departure from Assos where they sailed
south on the Aegean Sea, pass Ephesus and made port at Miletus. It seems that Paul
was in a hurry to get to Jerusalem. It had been 4 or 5 years sense he had been
there. He wanted to visit the believers there and report to them all that the Lord
had done in Asia Minor. Also he wanted to be there to celebrate Pentecost. Jews
from all over the world would be there. It was an opportunity to preach Christ
that Paul did not want to miss.
A Farewell Sermon to the Ephesians
["Click here for Acts 20:17-38"]
Verses 17 thru 38 of Chapter 20 record for us what happened at Miletus. Paul and his group went ashore at Miletus. It would appear that the ship that Luke had hired at Assos (Ephesus) to take them to Tyre and then on to Jerusalem, was for Paul and his group use alone for while they were at Miletus, the ship waited in the harbor for their return.
At Miletus, Paul decided that he had something further to tell the believers back at Ephesus so he sent for the Elders at Ephesus to come to Miletus to receive his instructions. It was about 25 miles to Ephesus from Miletus so it probably took at least several days to get this meeting assembled.
The question that most people ask when they read this is why didn't Paul just go back to Ephesus himself instead of asking them to come to him? The answer is clear from his past visit at Ephesus. At that time he had a very hard time getting away from them. The People at Ephesus loved Paul very much and never wanted him to leave. Remember, time was short if Paul was to get back to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover. Twelve Elders came from Ephesus. They are believed to have been the 12 who received the Holy Spirit back in chapter 19.
It was a very sad but practical discourse that Paul gave these 12 men. He appealed to them concerning his life and his calling. His life was dedicated to the Lord. His spirit was exemplary. His conduct was without blemish (This does not sound like the man who will later call himself, "chief of sinners".) His energies were always used for the Lord, not for himself. His demeanor was always tender and affectionate. He had struggled with many difficulties while he was with them. His preaching was always as it should have been.
Paul always described his preaching with 7 adjectives:
He reminded these 12 men of this, but of course, they already knew that.
Then, looking into the future, he told them that surly he would continue to suffer for the Lord. He would not run away from persecution, to the contrary, he was running into it. He believed that he was led of the Spirit to go to Jerusalem. He did not know what kind of evil awaited him there, but that did not deter him for his concern was to do the will of God. He was dead set to finish the task to which he had been called.
Then he came to the difficult part, perhaps giving us another reason why he did not speak to all the believers at Ephesus but only to these 12. He believed that this would be the last time that he would see them. He speaks with a certain certainty that leaves no doubt in their minds. We can see, now, why Paul called this last meeting with these Elders. He believed his ministry with them had ended and he challenged them to think of any way that he might have been unfaithful to them. Verse 26, "I am innocent of the blood of all of you." He had done what he could and now the remaining unbelievers were in their hands. "For I have declared unto you all that God declared unto me."
Paul preached only what he had been led of the Spirit to preach. Only one place in all the scriptures did Paul express an opinion that was his and that was in I Cor. 7:25. He also did not hold back anything, weather good or bad, He told it like it was revealed unto him.
Then He charged the 12 Elders from Ephesus to do likewise, to be faithful in their work. He committed the care of that church into the hands of these 12 Elders. He commanded them to be diligent in their work, watching themselves and the flock and to be good "pastors" and feed them with the Word of God. Then he warned them about false teachers, informers, aggravators and gnostics. He warned that there would be some within the church that would be guilty of these things and draw away some of the members. Therefore, he said, be alert and remember all that I have taught you these past three years, for I have commended you to God and to His Grace and this, if you lay hold of it, will build you up and sanctify you.
Then he suggested that they use his life as an example to live by. These next statements seem to suggest that Paul was bragging, but that was not so. Paul lived, by the Grace of God, as good a life as anyone could. His example was well worth following, but he was not perfect and he often admitted this. Paul claimed, by the Grace of God, to have never coveted any man's silver, gold or apparel. There were many believers in Ephesus who were quite rich, but Paul never condemned nor did he envy them.
He worked for and provided, for the most part, the necessities of life for himself and those who were with him. He was a tent maker, an excellent trade in those days as many people either traveled in tents or lived in them. This labor supplied their needs and even allowed him to have some to give to the poor.
So Paul had stressed 5 important points that he wanted these 12 newly ordained Elders to remember:
Having said these things to them, he knelt down and prayed. Notice this about the prayer. They all prayed. It was an intercessory prayer. It was done in humility, as they all knelt down in reverence to the Lord and it was a parting prayer. Here Paul followed the example of Christ who after He had spoken to the Disciples, knelt down and prayed for them and with them.
It was a very sorrowful parting, many tears were shed because they all believed that this was the last time they would see Paul. Then they took him to his ship and he and his friends departed Miletus for Caesarea, a sea voyage of about 680 miles, considering the route that they took.
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