Introduction
We began to study this passage last week which contains Paul’s farewell speech to the elders in Ephesus. You’ll no doubt remember that Paul had spent a long time in Ephesus, preaching, at first, in the Jewish synagogue, before moving to the hall of Tyrannus, where he taught every day for two years. And the word of the Lord went out from that hall into the surrounding area, so that Luke was able to report that all the Jews and the Greeks in the Roman province of Asia heard the word of the Lord. And the lives of many people were changed for the better as God’s word did its work in them and they gave up their sins.
But eventually it was time for Paul to leave. At first he re-visited some of the other churches he had planted. But now he wants to get to Jerusalem and then to Rome. And on the way, he reached Miletus. And while he was in Miletus, he sent for the elders in Ephesus. And when they arrived, he gave them this farewell speech.
And I said last week that it was a moving occasion. In verse 25 he said to them that they would never see him again. And when he had finished, they knelt down where they were and prayed. And they wept and hugged and kissed one another for the last time. And Luke says that what grieved them the most was his statement that they would never see his face again. He loved them and they loved him and his parting was like a bereavement which grieved them deeply.
We looked at the first part of the speech last week where Paul reviewed his ministry among them and how he served the Lord with humility and tears and through trials and troubles. And above all, he served the Lord by preaching and teaching the word of God to the people in Ephesus. Paul emphasised his preaching ministry throughout his speech and how he declared to them that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in the Saviour.
And having reviewed his ministry among them, he turns in verse 28 to exhort the elders to keep watch over themselves and over God’s people in Ephesus. And that’s mostly what we’re going to be thinking about today. And we’re going to think about how he likens the church of Jesus Christ to a flock of sheep. And he likens the elders to shepherds. And he likens false teachers to wolves. And that means that the shepherds must watch out for wolves and protect the sheep from them.
Sheep
Take a look at verse 28 where Paul says to the elders from Ephesus that they must keep watch over themselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made them overseers. Be shepherds, he says, of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. Paul therefore likens the church of God to a flock of sheep.
And this was not an idea which originated with Paul, because throughout the Old Testament God’s people are likened to sheep. Think of what is perhaps the most well-known psalm: Psalm 23. It begins with the words, ‘The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.’ I shall not be in want or in need, because the Lord is the shepherd of his people and he provides us with all that we need; and he leads us along the right paths; and he refreshes our tired and weary souls; and he protects us from all evil.
And then there’s Psalm 100, where it says: ‘Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.’ The psalmist is comparing God’s people to sheep who belong to the Lord our God.
And just as a shepherd leads his sheep, so the Lord led his people from Egypt and through the wilderness and into the Promised Land, which was like a well-watered field, where they could settle down. And in those days, God appointed kings to oversee his people the way a shepherd oversees his sheep. And Israel’s greatest king was David, who was himself a shepherd at one time, who looked after his father’s sheep. And the Lord took him from his father’s fields and made him king over God’s people, so that just as he once looked after his father’s flock. so now he was to look after God’s flock.
And then, in Isaiah 53, God’s people are likened to sheep who have gone astray. Sheep are notorious for wandering away and getting lost. If there’s a gap in the hedge or the fence, sheep will go through it. They’re always getting lost. And just as sheep are prone to wander, so God’s Old Testament people were prone to wander away from the Lord.
So, throughout the Old Testament, God’s people were likened to sheep. And here’s Paul and he’s applying the same image to God’s people in the New Testament. He’s comparing the church of Jesus Christ to a flock of sheep. And just as a farmer has to purchase his sheep before he can call them ‘mine’, so the Lord had to purchase us. He had to take possession of us.
This idea might seem strange to us, because, after all, didn’t God make us? And if he made us, don’t we already belong to him? As the psalmist says: ‘The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it, the world and all who live in it; for he founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters.’ So, because God made the earth, then the earth and all that it contains — including us — belongs to him. If that’s the case, why did God have to purchase us before we could become members of his flock?
And the answer, of course, is that while we do belong to God, nevertheless, because of Adam’s fall into sin in the beginning, when he disobeyed God’s command about the forbidden fruit, we are all born into this world as sinners. And as sinners, we’re enslaved to sin. By nature, sin is our master and it bosses us around and it makes us do its will. It tells us to do this and it tells us to do that. People like to think that they’re free to do whatever they like, but by nature we’re not free. We’re born in chains and those chains are the chains of sin. By nature sin is our master and it bosses us about.
But the good news of the gospel is that the Eternal Son of God became flesh, when he came into the world as one of us. And as one of us, he gave up his life on the cross to pay the ransom price to set us free from sin. So, in biblical times, slaves could pay a ransom price to free themselves from slavery. And Christ has paid the ransom price to free us from our natural bondage to sin. And the ransom price he paid to free us from sin was his own blood. And when Paul refers to God’s own blood in verse 28, he’s thinking about Christ’s death on the cross, when he shed his blood and gave up his life as the ransom to set us free.
And so, God’s believing people have been set free from sin by the death of Christ. And we now belong to God as the sheep of his flock or as the members of his church.
And before we move on to what Paul says about the shepherds of his sheep, we should think a little more about the image of sheep. What do sheep do? The answer is not very much. An ox — which a farmer might have kept in those days — would be used to pull a plough. And a horse or donkey was used as a means of transport. They were put to work. But what was a sheep used for? Nothing. All a sheep did was eat. It spent all day feeding on grass. And that’s not because the farmer was feeding them up before he slaughtered them for meat. No, in those days sheep were kept for their wool and milk. And every day, the farmer let the sheep go out into the fields, where they spent all day feeding.
And that takes us to the next points, because just as a shepherd cares for the sheep by feeding them, so elders must care for God’s people by feeding them on God’s word and by protecting them from false teachers.
Shepherds
Paul says to the elders in Ephesus that they must keep watch over themselves and over all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made them overseers.
You’ll notice that Paul says that the Holy Spirit has made them ‘overseers’ of his people. So, we have the word ‘elders’, which was used back in verse 17. And now we have the word ‘overseers’ which is used here in verse 28. Paul is not referring to two groups of people, but to one group of people. And that’s because an elder is an overseer and an overseer is an elder. They are two different words for the same role in the church.
The term ‘elder’ comes from the Old Testament where it referred to an official leader among the people. We first read about the elders in Exodus 3. And then we read about them throughout the rest of the Old Testament. We also read about them in the gospels, where the word is again used to refer to the leaders among the Jewish people. But the same word is then used in the New Testament to describe the leaders of the church. And in Greek, it’s the word presbuteros and it’s where we get the word ‘Presbyterian’. The Presbyterian Church is a church which is governed by elders.
The word ‘overseer’ can be translated ‘bishop’, but ‘overseer’ is better, because it makes clear that their work is to oversee or to watch over God’s people. And the Lord appoints elders to oversee his people for their good. And so, elders are not like driving examiners who are there to spot our faults and to fail us. No, elders are to watch over God’s people the way a shepherd watches over the sheep. They are appointed to look after the Lord’s people and to care for them.
We should also note that Paul says it’s the Holy Spirit who appointed the elders in Ephesus. Someone might be puzzled by that, because you’re thinking: ‘Sure, we’re the ones who elect the elders. The Holy Spirit didn’t make them overseers; we did when we elected them.’ But here’s the thing: When we’re electing new elders, what we try to do is to recognise who among the congregation has received from the Holy Spirit the necessary character and the necessary gifts and the necessary qualities to undertake this work. We believe the Holy Spirit has given some of our members the qualities needed for this work. And so, when we’re electing new elders, we’re trying to discern who among us possesses the necessary qualities. Furthermore, we also believe that God rules over all his creatures and all our actions. And so, we believe that he guides his people and he helps them to elect the right people. And so, the elders are appointed by the Holy Spirit, who works through the decision of his people.
And what should the elders do? Paul mentions two things in verse 28. Firstly, the elders are to keep watch over themselves. So, they’re to keep watch over themselves so that they themselves don’t wander away from the truth. And they’re to keep watch over themselves so that they don’t fail in their duties.
It can happen so easily. Someone is well-respected in the congregation because of his godly character and his zeal for God’s glory. And he’s elected an elder. And everything is fine for a while. But then the devil comes along with his wicked schemes to deceive the elder or to lead him astray. And this elder wasn’t as alert as he needed to be. And perhaps suddenly, but more often it happens slowly over time so that you barely notice it’s happening until it’s too late, but in the end, this elder has himself gone astray. He abandons the truth and gets taken in by false teaching. Or he gets puffed up with pride and begins to throw his weight around and he abuses his position and he may even bully the people. Or he neglects to do his duty and he can’t be bothered watching over the people. So, Paul says to the elders: ‘Keep watch over yourselves’.
And then Paul adds: ‘and all the flock’. So, the elders are to watch over themselves and they’re to watch over all the congregation. Just as a shepherd watches over all the sheep, so the elders are to watch over all the people in the congregation.
Why do they need to watch over the congregation? Paul goes on to tell us in verse 29. He says: ‘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 disciples after them. So be on your guard!’ Why do the elders need to watch over the congregation? It’s in order to protect the congregation from false teachers. And Paul likens the false teachers to savage wolves.
Let’s think about that for a moment. Back in chapter 2 of his letter to the Ephesians, Paul said that the apostles and prophets formed the foundation of the church. In other words, the church was built on the message they proclaimed about Jesus Christ and his life and death and resurrection. Wherever they went, the apostles and prophets preached this message. And wherever people heard and believed this message, churches were established and built. The church was built on the message they proclaimed.
So, what happens to a church when the message of Jesus Christ and of his life and death and resurrection is no longer preached and believed? What happens to a church when that message is corrupted either by subtraction or by addition, when some vital teaching is taken away or when some false teaching is added? What happens to a church when the message of the gospel is replaced entirely? Well, when the foundation is damaged or removed, the church will collapse. It’ll collapse. The church building might remain. And the people might remain. But what’s left is no longer a true church. It’s no longer a true church if the message of Jesus Christ and his life and death and resurrection is not preached and believed.
And so, the elders are given the task of overseeing God’s people in order to watch out for false teachers who will undermine the foundation of the church. And Paul goes on to say in verse 31 that this is what he did among them for three years. So, for the whole of the time he was in Ephesus, he never stopped warning them about the danger of false teachers.
And, of course, we’re warned in the Bible that savage wolves can appear in sheep’s clothing. In other words, false teachers don’t advertise themselves as false teachers. It’s not immediately obvious that what someone is saying is wrong. It’s not immediately obvious that some book we picked up in the bookshop is wrong. And so, we need elders who know God’s word thoroughly and who are discerning; and who are able to warn God’s people of error and to teach them the truth.
In practice that means the elders have the responsibility for appointing some of the leaders in our organisations who can be trusted to teach the truth. And the elders are assigned to different organisations to visit them and to see what is being taught. We want to ensure that nothing is taught here which might undermine the foundation of the church, which is the message of Jesus Christ and of his life and death and resurrection.
But it also means that if you have a question about the faith, or if you’re not sure about something which you’ve read in the Bible, you can ask one of the elders who should be able to answer your question. And if they can’t answer it straightaway, they can go away and find out the answer for you. It also means they’re able to guide you in how to live. God has revealed in his word his will for how we’re to live as his people. And the elders can show you what his will is for you.
And then it also means that when you come here on Sundays, there will always be an elder in the church — and I’m an elder — who has been given the task of feeding you from God’s word. Remember what I said about sheep and how they spend all day long eating grass? Well, God has set apart one day in seven for his sheep to gather together in the morning and in the evening so that you can be fed from God’s word. God’s word is food for the soul and God uses the reading and preaching of his word to build up his people so that you will be strong in the faith and so that you will become mature believers who know God’s will and who do God’s will.
And so, the work of the elders is to care for God’s people the way shepherds care for their sheep. And that means the elders will feed God’s people on God’s word the way shepherds feed their sheep on grass. And just as shepherds watch out for savage wolves, so elders are to watch out for false teachers and warn the people about them. That’s the work of an elder. In modern times, many people regard the elders almost like the directors of a company who have to come up with the equivalent of a business plan for what the church must do; and then the elders go looking for people to execute their plans. But the work of the elders is quite simple: it’s to feed God’s people on God’s word so that they persevere and grow in the faith; and it’s to watch out for false teachers who might lead God’s people astray.
Conclusion
But Paul still hasn’t finished his speech. He goes on in verse 32 to commit the elders in Ephesus to God. So, he entrusts them to the Lord for safe-keeping. And he not only commits them to God, but he commits them to the word of God’s grace, which can build them up.
Isn’t that interesting? The elders are to feed God’s people on God’s word so that they know the truth. And the elders themselves must rely on God and his word so that they too will be built up in the faith and kept safe in it.
And I wonder if you’ve noticed how Paul keeps going back in his speech to the importance of God’s word? In his speech he said that he himself preached it in public and in private. He did not hesitate to preach anything helpful. He declared God’s word to everyone and he proclaimed the whole will of God. And in his speech he exhorts the elders to keep watch over the people so that they’re not led away from God’s word into error. And now he’s teaching the elders to rely on God and his word. By paying careful attention to God’s word, they themselves will be built up in the faith and kept safe in it. And by paying careful attention to God’s word, they will receive an inheritance among all those who are being sanctified. He means that they will inherit eternal life in the presence of God if they continue to believe God and his word.
And having referred to the inheritance which all of God’s people receive by faith, Paul remembers one other thing he wanted to say to the elders about his own ministry and about their own ministry. He says that he did not covet anyone’s possessions. And he didn’t sponge off the congregation. Instead he worked hard among them to show the elders they they must help the weak.
And so, there’s another reminder that the work of the elder is to care for God’s people. It’s not about lording it over other people. It’s not about bossing people around. It’s not about telling people what to do. And it’s certainly not about making ourselves rich. It’s about helping people and it’s about helping the weak especially.
And then Paul quotes some words of the Lord Jesus, which are not recorded anywhere else in the Bible. The Lord said that it’s more blessed to give than to receive. So, receiving something from someone is good. It’s always nice to receive a gift. But giving something to someone is even better. Those who give to others can expect to be blessed by God and to find happiness by serving the Lord in this way.
And when we give to others we model the life of our God, who has given and given and given and given to us out of his overflowing goodness and love. Every good thing we have has come to us from him. He has given us our life here on earth. And he’s filled our life with good things to enjoy: work and rest; friends and family; health and strength and daily food; and everything else. It all comes to us from him. And he’s given us a perfect Saviour by sending his Son to die for us. And he’s given us his Spirit, who is the Lord and Giver of life, who gives us the hope of everlasting life through faith in Christ. And he’s given us the fellowship of God’s people in the church; and he’s given us elders to watch over us for our good. He gives and gives and gives to us.
And he says to us in his word that it’s more blessed for us to give than to receive. It’s good to receive, but it’s even better to give. And so, what will you give to others from out of all the good things which God has given to you? You might give someone some money or a gift or a helping hand or some of your time or some of your attention or your friendship or a kind word or forgiveness or encouragement. There are lots of things we can give, because God has filled our lives with many good things. So, what will you give? — because those who give in obedience to the Lord can expect to be blessed by God and to find happiness by serving him in this way.
Sermons and Stuff 