Pastor Terry Ciona’s Farewell (Acts 20:17-38)
- it seems like there’s always good news and bad news for a youth pastor
- the good news: you’ve baptized three people on a youth retreat
- the bad news: you lost one of them in the current
- the good news: the youth committee sent you a get-well card
- the bad news: the vote passed by 4 to 3
- the good news: Mrs. Jones thinks you’re a great youth pastor
- the bad news: Mrs. Jones is also wild about the Gong Show and the Bay City Rollers
- the good news: your youth have come to your house for a visit
- the bad news: it’s midnight and they’re armed with toilet paper and shaving cream
- the good news: the senior pastor accepted your job description the way you wrote it
- the bad news: he’s formed a search committee to find somebody capable of filling it
- the good news: God has moved you on
- the bad news: you have to listen to what I have to say before you leave
- Terry, it’s time to say goodbye
- saying good-bye has some obvious benefits
- it allows us to reflect on where we’ve been together
- it helps us to appreciate one another, and reminds us not to take our relationships together for granted
- it reveals the true nature of the relationship we’ve had together
- and it allows both of us to stand on our own, to see what we’re really made of
- saying good-bye can also be difficult
- I guess it all depends on who you’re saying good-bye to
- but Paul tells us how to say good-bye
- please turn in your Bible to Acts 20
- Paul was traveling to Rome, against the better judgment of many of the early Christians, and passed near Ephesus, a city he had visited earlier
- he couldn’t pass by without calling for the leaders of the Ephesian church for a very emotional farewell
- as I looked at this passage, I’ve discovered two characteristics of a good-bye that could be applied to our situation here today
- two lessons, if you will, on how to say a good good-bye
- LESSON NUMBER ONE: SAYING GOOD-BYE MEANS APPRECIATING OUR PAST RELATIONSHIP
- as Paul meets the Ephesian elders, the first thing he does is reminisces on their past relationship together – particularly the integrity of his own ministry among them
- read with me:
- (Acts 20:18) When they arrived, he said to them: “You know how I lived the whole time I was with you, from the first day I came into the province of Asia.
- (Acts 20:19) I served the Lord with great humility and with tears, although I was severely tested by the plots of the Jews.
- (Acts 20:20) You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house.
- (Acts 20:21) I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.
- when saying good-bye, it’s easy to look back at the past
- Paul points out that he wasn’t reluctant to jump in when he started, but says “from the first day” that he ministered the same way among them
- his motive was simple: he wanted to serve the Lord (verse 19)
- he wasn’t in it to make money, and he wasn’t in it for his ego
- his only motive was to serve the Lord
- the manner of his ministry was also simple
- the entire time he was with them, he lived a consistent life, and served the Lord with humility and tears
- and his message was well known to the Ephesians (verses 20-21): he didn’t hesitate to preach anything, but told sinners to repent and have faith in the Lord
- he had ministered to both Jews and Gentiles, and preached a balanced message, not hesitating to include anything that would be of benefit to the congregation
- in short, Paul had an exemplary ministry while he ministered in Ephesus
- the thing I like about Paul is that he didn’t have to hang his head in shame when he left them
- Paul could look back and praise God for an effective and credible ministry while he was among them
- were there problems? of course! just read Acts 19
- I guess you could call a riot a bit of a problem!
- but Paul could look back without shame or regret, and praise God that his motives, manner, and message were beyond question while he was among them
- I learn from Paul an important lesson here
- it’s important, Terry, to appreciate the past we’ve had together
- you can see tonight that you’ve been appreciated, and we’ll continue to appreciate you as we move forward
- but Paul also teaches us a second lesson
- LESSON NUMBER TWO: SAYING GOOD-BYE MEANS WE ACCEPT GOD’S LEADING ABOVE OUR OWN DESIRES
- (Acts 20:22) “And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there.
- (Acts 20:23) I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me.
- (Acts 20:24) However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me–the task of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace.
- (Acts 20:25) “Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again.
- (Acts 20:26) Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of all men.
- (Acts 20:27) For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God.
- Paul says in verse 22 that he is “compelled by the Spirit” to leave for Jerusalem
- it didn’t make a lot of sense
- everywhere he visited, the Holy Spirit told him through prophesies that jail was waiting for him ahead
- I don’t think anyone really wanted Paul to leave
- probably even Paul experienced the occasional doubt
- but I love verse 24:
- (Acts 20:24 NLT) But my life is worth nothing unless I use it for doing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus – the work of telling others the Good News about God’s wonderful kindness and love.
- Paul is saying, in effect, “I don’t care if I end up in jail – I have to go where the Spirit takes me. I don’t know what is going to happen, but I know I’m following Jesus.”
- and you can read between the lines and sense that Paul is reminding the Ephesian elders that even if they don’t want him to leave, they had better accept God’s will
- I could preach a whole sermon on sensing God’s will, but what I know is this: when God calls, you had better listen
- God has called you away, Terry
- just as you sensed God calling you here, you have sensed God moving you away
- we know God is preparing you for something
- jumping ahead for a minute to the end of Paul’s message, we see how the people reacted
- (Acts 20:36) When he had said this, he knelt down with all of them and prayed.
- (Acts 20:37) They all wept as they embraced him and kissed him.
- (Acts 20:38) What grieved them most was his statement that they would never see his face again. Then they accompanied him to the ship.
- nobody wanted Paul to leave, but if Paul is compelled by the Spirit, he had better go
- and if we are compelled by the Spirit as well to move on, we had better go!
- Paul teaches us quite a bit about saying good-bye
- he’s reminded us to appreciate the time we’ve had together, and to accept the Spirit’s leading
- I’m excited, because we’re both on the threshold of a new adventure
- with God’s help, and God’s future leading, who knows what blessings lie ahead?
- saying good-bye isn’t easy, but with the lessons we learn from Paul’s good-bye, it’s a little bit easier
- I hope you’ll pray with me that Terry’s ministry here will have reflected the words written o n an old burial plaque 300 years ago
- “In the year of 1653, when all things sacred were throughout the nation destroyed or profaned, this church was built to the glory of God by Sir Robert Shirley, whose singular praise it was to have done the best things in the worst times”
- may it be said of us that, like the Apostle Paul and like Sir Robert Shirley, we built our ministries to the glory of God by having done the best things in the worst times
