Introduction
When a move of God begins, there is a shift of focus. Small things that will have long term dramatic results start in strange places and can have major changes on the lives of many.
Some dramatic events can be better identified, like the earthquake in Turkey, the tsunami in the Indian Ocean, or hurricanes that batter our coastlands with flooding devastating winds.
Other events have smaller beginnings and the shift seems to be less obvious. An example would be the anointing of a shepherd boy names David and the future of a Kingdom. Or the prayers in the Berlin city hall for the reunification of Germany, or a pastor in Timisoara, Romania who inspired hope and saw a nation set free.
Acts 20 has only two “big” events recorded, a dead boy raised to life and Paul’s farewell address to the Ephesian church elders. But it is the little things in the chapter that point to a major shift in events that will affect all future world events. It also has to do with Paul’s calling: to Gentiles and “kings”! And it all begins in the first part of this chapter.
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The other mission trips of Paul are more detailed in their recording of events. This trip, though just as long as the others is glossed over. Perhaps that is because Luke is not present for most of it, or it is more pastoral than pioneering. Perhaps fewer miracles took place, though I doubt that, since God does not change. The shift in focus is seen in two things, whether Luke was aware of these two events or not, whether the reporting is intended to identify these two aspects or not, I don’t know, but it certainly pleases the Holy Spirit to let us know of these changes in the movement called “the Way”.
The first one is the shift in focus from what Paul does to placing an emphasis on his team and his mentees. He is focusing on the future, even though he is looking for the immanent return of Jesus. He wants his ministry to be reproduced and multiplied. The interesting thing about his team, though, is that they are multicultural, multi lingual, multinational politically, and just plain different. The unity they have in Jesus even though they are historically great enemies is significant. Even today, the people of Turkey hate the Greeks and vice versa. They are able to keep grudges for millennia! This team embodies what Jesus can do when churches can see Jesus as the head of the church. The underlying prejudges, the insistence of our way is “better”, and the undertones of mistrust and criticism that fight their way to gossip and spread unrest are confronted by not just one but many different members of the team who would normally suspect the others of injustice. Imagine if we had a Russian or Chinese leader in the church, and somehow they violated what we consider to be sin. Would we be quick to condemn or would we be among those who would try and restore the one who fell? I assume we hold different views here whether they are voiced or not. But the question is, will love win out? We all fall in sin, we hide sin from one another, and if discovered, our view of the fallen brother or sister is jeopardized. The response though from a biblical viewpoint is to restore the one who has fallen. If they don’t repent, we are to have nothing to do with them. Why? Because they need to start over again and until they repent, they ought not be a part of the life of the church. But if they repent, we need to receive them into fellowship without condemnation. We need to help them in the restoration process. How often do we criticize and hinder God’s work because we don’t see all that God is doing? What if we began to help e convicts to be restored after they get saved in a jail? Do we refuse help because “they just might do it again?” This is a powerful demonstration of the love of God overflowing into the lives of Gentiles not accustomed to Jewish culture or traditions, let alone familiar with the law and the prophets which speak of Jesus. No wonder Paul had so much to preach about to these Gentile believers. One side reason why such a large team was gathered is because of the offering they were most likely taking to the church in Jerusalem as well.
The second thing that comes up has to do with the breaking of bread. Notice that they meet regularly on the first day of the week, and that it appears to be a common event in the life of the early church. Interestingly, it happens twice in this passage to show that is is indeed a meal that is being eaten, not just a small reminder of the cross message. Eating together ought to be commonplace among the children of God. Many things can happen around the table, especially if you make it about discussions of scripture, include prayer times, and actually share communion with each other.
The third focus shift is the most significant. It has to do with the last portion of the book Luke is writing for Theophilus. This is the final movement of the team to Jerusalem. The solemnity of this was first approached in the last chapter where Paul indicates his need to go to Jerusalem after visiting the churches in Macedonia and Achaia. Here we see that he wants to sail to Syria, most likely to Antioch before going to Jerusalem. The plot against him changes his plans, and he goes back the way he came. The raising up of Eutychus, the breaking of bread listed specifically – even though it would have been a regular occurrence throughout all the churches, and the growing knowledge that he would be arrested in Jerusalem, indeed the trials that would lie before him, are all very reminiscent of the life of Jesus. The closer he got to the cross, the more time he spent with his disciples in training them. On the way to Jerusalem, he raises Lazarus from the dead. The original “Breaking of bread” occurs on the Thursday before Jesus is arrested, and he was prepared for the trials that would follow knowing what was required of him.
As we saw in Luke and you ought to have noticed in the other Gospel books, the first half of the books focus on the life of Jesus and the second half focuses on the last week of Jesus life and a brief account after the resurrection. So with Acts, we see the birth of the church in 1-8, the conversion of Saul in 9, the beginning of the Gospel to the Gentiles in 10, then a brief overview in 11-20 of the ministry of Paul, then from 21 to 28 Paul’s life in Jerusalem and the consequences thereof. The only difference was Jesus had to be in Jerusalem for the Passover while Paul is there for Pentecost. The reasons are striking: Jesus the Lamb of God takes away the sins of the world, and Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles uniting the whole church of those who are the called out, or the Ekklesia is there for the birthday of the church. The parallels are more than just coincidence.
How does this affect us? Because we are the ones chosen to continue this work until Jesus returns. The focus is to be on the saving of souls, establishing relationships with God, and seeing his church grow. When people repent of their sins, we need to join the angels in rejoicing. Whether it is done in a way we prefer is not the issue, Jesus is the one who draws people to himself. However that happens, we need to be involved in the process, from humble beginnings to great works of God we need to begin by personally hearing for God to ignite our hearts with his love and the power of his Spirit. However he chooses that to happen, let us be open to hearing his voice and walking with him in a personal relationship. Let our hearts be open to following his leading. Let it start with repentance in our hearts where he puts his finger on something in our lives that he wants to change, and allow him to change it.