Friday, August 20, 2010

Acts Chapter Twenty

Acts Chapter Twenty (NIV)
Acts Chapter Twenty (NASB)

I. SYNOPSIS

Verses 1-6: Paul visits Macedonia and Greece.

Verses 7-16: Paul raises a young man from the dead.

Verses 17-38: Paul gives his farewell address to the elders of Ephesus.

II. KEY PASSAGES

(A) Acts 20:8-10--"There were many lamps in the upper room where we were gathered. And a young man named Eutychus, sitting at the window, sank into a deep sleep as Paul talked still longer. And being overcome by sleep, he fell down from the third story and was taken up dead. But Paul went down and bent over him, and taking him in his arms, said, 'Do not be alarmed, for his life is in him.'" The "many lamps" would have reduced the oxygen in the room. Eutychus apparently sat in the window to catch some fresh air, but the late night discussion made him drowsy. He was "taken up dead," but Paul raised him from the dead.

(B) Acts 20:24--"But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God." This is, in my opinion, one of the coolest verses in the Bible.

(C) Acts 20:28--"Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood." This is an important verse for discussions of the Deity of Christ. Paul says that God obtained the church "with his own blood." There are two possible interpretations. First, "God" here could refer to Jesus, in which case the verse says that Jesus, who is God, purchased the church with His own blood. Second, since "blood" can refer to relatives or offspring, the verse could be saying that God the Father purchased the church with His own blood, i.e. His own Son. Either way, this verse proclaims the Deity of Christ. (On a different note, Paul tells the leaders to "Pay careful attention to yourselves," meaning that leaders are to be especially vigilant watching over their own spiritual condition, since they set the example for others.)

(D) Acts 20:29-30--"I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them." Timothy later served in Ephesus. Paul's letters to Timothy show that he was right when he said that false teachers would arise in Ephesus.

3 comments:

Verumi said...

Acts 17, along with Christian Prince and others, have been especially mentioned on a billboard. Sorry, I cannot post the link as I'm posting this using my mobile. The videos is titled "Islam Billboard Vandalism" posted by MegaBoxer77 on YouTube.

Zack_Tiang said...

Acts 20:29-30 - Refer to Letter to the church in Ephesus (Revelation 2:1-7) to further show that the Ephesians heeded Paul's warning and gotten really good at 'digging out' false teachers, prophets, etc.......... but they ended up neglecting Jesus (their first love).

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