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Bible Studies Ideas and Commentary for Acts 20:18-32
In this week's passage, we read about what was apparently one of Paul's hardest goodbyes; he was concerned about what the church at Ephesus would face in the future. Appealing to their knowledge of his commitment to them, Paul exhorted them to remember what he had taught and stay on guard against the false teachers who would follow behind him.
Therefore I declare to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all of you (20:26)
Getting Started: Things to Think About
Based on the circumstances of this week's passage, I came up with a number of icebreaker ideas. They definitely need some work, but I have no doubt that you could adapt any of these for your group.
What Are Your Goodbyes Like?
This is one of my favorite stories of the year:
This is a real thing. I guess people were lingering so long in the drop-off zone that traffic was affected, hence a hug limit.
Here's the chief's explanation:
just a 20-second hug is enough to release oxytocin and serotonin, the happy hormones that boost well-being, so three minutes is plenty of time to say goodbye and get your dose of happiness.
So, what say you? How long a hug do you need to say goodbye?
You can take this as far as you want -- how do you prefer to say goodbye? (For the sake of discussion, let's assume this is an "important and emotional" goodbye.)
This week's passage is all about goodbyes. For us to appreciate it properly, we need to put ourselves in a friendship state of mind.
The Place You Don't Stop When You're in a Hurry
Everybody has a place that we know to avoid when we're in a hurry. We know that if we stop there, we'll spend way more time there than we need to. Where's that place for you? Humorously, for us it's Buccee's. We can't stop there without spending a lot of time there. So, we actually adjust our schedule to make sure we have enough time to make a long stop!
For me personally, it's the church building. If I "stop by", I'm almost certain to get sidetracked with multiple something-or-others. For you, maybe it's your grandma's house, or maybe it's Walmart(!).
In this week's passage, Paul makes a strange decision not to stop at a very important city in his life. I wonder if he doubted his ability to leave (or say goodbye) and that it would be better for his schedule to just keep moving.
What's the Furthest You Would Travel to See Somebody Briefly?
To give future readers some context (and to admit I'm a day behind this week), the Dodgers won the 2024 World Series last night as I'm editing this post. They won it in New York, and I imagine that there will be a lot of fans at LAX cheering for them when they fly back. Have you ever done that? I wonder how far some of those fans will travel just to catch a glimpse of the team from a distance and wave.
Let's open this up some more -- let's say you heard that somebody you knew was "passing through" nearby. What's the further you would (have) travel to see somebody for a brief visit? (Throw out events and romance -- we all know that people will do extreme things for a special event or person.)
I hate to say that I'm not a person to talk to about this. "You want me to drive how far just to give you a hug? We're talking on the phone, aren't we? Want me to put it on video call?" My wife, on the other hand, is attuned to the importance of seeing somebody (for somebody who really doesn't like hugs). What about you?
In this week's passage, Paul's friends traveled multiple days just to see him briefly before his ship left port. That's how important their friendship was.
One Last Lesson
In this week's passage, Paul shares one final lesson with church leaders he loved dearly. So, "one last lesson" might be a topic you could build on. Maybe you remember something someone said in a retirement speech or a commencement address that stuck with you. On the other end of the spectrum, I remember some ridiculous and meaningless things my school friends said to one another when we all started to leave for college. You could also get really serious and share what someone told you on their deathbed.
Whatever you do with the topic, I would want you to end with Jesus' "one last lesson" to His disciples -- the upper room and the last supper. Do you remember what Jesus told His disciples on His last night with them before the crucifixion?
I'm talking about John 13-17. We covered this last year, and I have plenty of Bible study notes on them, starting with --
Later in the lesson, we're going to look at how Paul's final words compare with Jesus', so this topic does double duty.
Where We Are in Acts
Rather than reinvent the wheel, let me point you to a handy summary page of Paul's three missionary journeys:
Here's their outline:
Paul's first missionary journey (Acts 13-14)
Cyprus
Asia Minor
Iconium
Lystra
Paul's second missionary journey (Acts 15:36-18:22)
Timothy in Lystra
Phrygia and Galatia
Macedonia
Thessalonica
Berea
Athens
Corinth
Ephesus and Caesarea
Paul’s third missionary journey (Acts 18:23-21:14)
Ephesus
Macedonia and Greece
Troas
Back to Asia Minor
When you notice that half of chapter 19 is about a riot, you realize that Luke tells us much less about Paul's third missionary journey than the others.
The riot in Ephesus is important to Luke apologetically. (Aside: it also is a direct result of Ephesus beginning to rely so heavily on religious tourism.) Remember that Luke is writing the book of Acts in part to convince Romans that Christianity isn't "illegal" or "immoral". In Acts 19, another public official sides with Christians against a mob. The subtext -- those who oppose Christianity are unreasonable, undisciplined, and baseless; reasonable people understand that Christians are not thieves, blasphemers, or rabble-rousers.
That said, we are given no evidence that the city clerk became a Christian. But that's not Luke's point. He just wants his readers to give Christianity a genuine hearing.
The short paragraph of Acts 20:1-6 redacts a lot of activity. We know from 2 Corinthians that Paul spent this time in Macedonia very worried about the church in Corinth (and very distracted from his ongoing missionary work). Eventually Titus brought him good news (2 Cor 7). "He traveled through that area" (20:2) is an oversimplification of a ministry that probably lasted more than a year (based on the timelines in Romans and 1/2 Cor). A big outcome of that mission work was the financial collection for the Christians in Jerusalem.
Then, he returned to Corinth (still 20:2) where he probably wrote the book of Romans. (Seriously. Luke put all of that into one verse.)
Paul apparently had a great desire to return to Jerusalem for the Passover of AD 58, and 20:3 explains why Paul didn't make it. It sounds like Paul was going to sail on a pilgrim ship from Greece to Syria, but some Jews caught wind of his plans and made a plan of their own to kill him while at sea. Then Paul's friends got wind of their plan and convinced Paul to instead take the long land route back through Macedonia before getting on a ship to sail around the coast of Asia Minor.
Then in verse 5, the actions slows way down again and Luke includes all kinds of place names and details that he had omitted earlier. Why? 20:5 starts a "we" passage. Luke was with Paul, so he knew a lot more details without having to ask! My assumption is that Luke unconsciously included more details from the parts of Paul's trips where he was present.
That also informs the not-funny(but-kinda-funny) tale of Eutychus getting so bored listening to Paul preach that he fell out of a window and died! And then Paul raised him back to life and went back to preaching. This is another part of Luke's effort to create obvious parallels between Paul's ministry and Peter's (remember Tabitha - Acts 9?). If you believe that God worked through Peter, then you should believe that God worked also through Paul (and vice versa). Again -- that might not be a concern to you at all, but in the first century, it was something that people cared about a lot.
By now, Paul had decided that if he couldn't make the Passover in Jerusalem, perhaps he could make Pentecost (50 days later). This seems to have convinced him to skip Ephesus entirely and sail from Assos to Miletus.
Considering how much time Paul had spent in Ephesus and how much he had personally invested into those people, this decision strikes me as strange. Above, I framed this as "maybe Paul was in a hurry and didn't wanted to be sucked into a long visit".
But there's another possibility. Maybe it was a goodbye that he didn't know if he could handle. (Btw, you could use that as a discussion topic if your group can handle it -- what's the hardest goodbye you ever said?)
The Holy Spirit was clearly compelling Paul to go to Jerusalem. Be we also realize that the Holy Spirit was warning Paul (and the people around Paul) about what would happen to him in Jerusalem. (More about this below.) We learn at the end of chapter 20 that Paul fully expected that he would not see these people ever again.
37 There were many tears shed by everyone. They embraced Paul and kissed him, 38 grieving most of all over his statement that they would never see his face again. (Acts 20:37-38)
Maybe it's that simple. Maybe Paul didn't know if he could handle that kind of a visit with the whole church. Maybe he thought that the best thing he could do would be to say goodbye to just a small group of the church's leaders.
I imagine that to be true based on the last stop Paul makes before Jerusalem (in Caesarea), where he is again warned about his inevitable imprisonment.
12 When we heard this, both we and the local people pleaded with him not to go up to Jerusalem. 13 Then Paul replied, “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.” 14 Since he would not be persuaded, we said no more except, “The Lord’s will be done.” (Acts 21:12-14)
By now, Paul has steeled himself. But his emotions have definitely influenced his choices on this final trip to Jerusalem.
Remember all of the emotions Jesus felt on His final trip to Jerusalem. He never gave into the temptations to avoid or delay His destiny, and I don't think Paul ever considered chickening out. However, I wonder if Paul felt the tug to extend his trip, if you know what I mean. I'm assuming that's part of the reason he chose not to stop in Ephesus.
Anyway, he did stop in Miletus. It was about 30 miles (!) from Ephesus. That's a full day's risk walk. The church leaders in Ephesus walked at least one full day (on short notice) to see Paul for a brief moment. That's deep friendship!
This Week's Big Idea: Acts 20 and Paul's Letters
Paul's farewell address in Acts 20 reads an awful lot like some of Paul's letters. And this is because Paul is speaking to Christians (unlike in the other speeches Luke records in Acts).
Why do we care about this? Because some skeptics are bothered by the fact that Luke doesn't say anything about Paul's letters, and we know that Paul wrote many letters during his missionary journeys! Here's a helpful article about Paul's writing timeline:
First Missionary Journey
Paul wrote Galatians
Second Missionary Journey
Paul wrote 1/2 Thessalonians
Third Missionary Journey
Paul wrote 1/2 Corinthians, Romans
Why didn't Luke say anything about Paul's letters? Is it because Luke was a fraud?!
Think of it this way: why would Luke write about Paul's letters? He has written about Paul's interactions with those churches; why would he also feel compelled to mention specific correspondence? Luke not mentioning Paul's letters has never bothered me.
But here in chapter 20, we can see a familiar structure.
Paul's history with the Ephesians (20:18-21)
Paul's plan to obey Christ in Jerusalem (20:22-24)
Paul's relationship with the Ephesians (20:25-27)
A warning and an exhortation (20:28-31)
A blessing (20:32)
One last topic of importance to Paul (20:33-35)
Your study Bible probably has outlines of the different books of the Bible. Take a look at the outline for, say, 1 Thessalonians or Galatians and see how those letters stack up with this address.
(Note: I know what you're wondering -- Paul wrote Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon later, while he was in prison in Rome.)
In other words, Luke doesn't have to say anything about Paul's letters for us to know that the same Paul who gave this week's speech also wrote those letters.
Part 1: Paul's Witness in Ephesus (Acts 20:18-21)
18 When they came to him, he said to them, “You know, from the first day I set foot in Asia, how I was with you the whole time, 19 serving the Lord with all humility, with tears, and during the trials that came to me through the plots of the Jews. 20 You know that I did not hesitate to proclaim anything to you that was profitable and to teach you publicly and from house to house. 21 I testified to both Jews and Greeks about repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus.
Like in many of his letters, Paul starts with a summary of his history with the people of the church. Today, we might find it strange to start a "farewell address" with a history of your own behavior. Where are the fun stories of the time we went fishing together? Or when you spilled wine all over the deacon's chair? Or when you asked Mrs. Jones if she was pregnant? That's how we tend to start those things today.
If you think about it, it's accomplishing the same this -- our shared history, our shared interests, the proof of our commitment to one another. Paul just doesn't start with the humorous stories. (Let's be honest -- we all think Paul was just a serious guy, right?)
Paul's shared history with the Ephesians was one of humble service, of sacrifice, of opposition, of commitment. I don't think his time there was very "fun". But here, Paul could say with all conviction, "You guys know me. You guys know what I'm about. Everything I'm about to say, you know to take it seriously."
If you need to, skim back through last week's notes about Paul's time in Ephesus:
We've spent a while now with Paul in Acts. Read verses 20-21: What are Paul's main points with those two statements?
Now let's get to the application I see for us: if you were to move away tomorrow, what would be your witness/legacy in this community? What would people remember about you? What ongoing effects would you have here?
People knew from examining Paul's life that he cared about everybody, that he cared about the truth, and that he put his whole heart into serving the Lord in Ephesus. I would love for people to say that about me when I'm gone, but will they? And if I'm not sure what people would say, what do I need to change in my life to leave the kind of legacy that Paul left?
Aside: Evangelism and Discipleship
I hope we all noticed that Paul evangelized the whole city. Jew and Greek alike, he told everybody how and why to put their faith in Jesus.
But in addition to that, he also taught everybody anything and everything that would be "profitable" to them. That leads to an obvious discussion topic: what do you think Paul would think is profitable to teach? We'll talk more about this below, but we may as well start here. What would Paul teach a new Christian?
Lifeway recently talked about a new study that's out, and they came to the only appropriate conclusion:
Jesus' Great Commission is for us to evangelize and disciple. If we aren't sharing Jesus with non-Christians, we aren't obeying the Commission. And if we aren't helping to build up new Christians in their faith, we aren't obeying the Commission. We are called to do both evangelism and discipleship.
In these few verses, I see Paul's commitment to both, and we should emulate it.
Part 2: Paul's Future with the Ephesians (Acts 20:22-27)
22 “And now I am on my way to Jerusalem, compelled by the Spirit, not knowing what I will encounter there, 23 except that in every town the Holy Spirit warns me that chains and afflictions are waiting for me. 24 But I consider my life of no value to myself; my purpose is to finish my course and the ministry I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of God’s grace.
25 “And now I know that none of you, among whom I went about preaching the kingdom, will ever see me again. 26 Therefore I declare to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all of you, 27 because I did not avoid declaring to you the whole plan of God.
Catch this -- the Holy Spirit is telling Paul to go to Jerusalem. The Holy Spirit is also warning him about terrible things that will happen when he gets there. How can both of those things be true at the same time?
If you did the exercise of reading John 13-17 (or if you remember anything about the Gospels), you know that Jesus was very clear about what was going to happen to Him. Why? Why was Jesus so clear about this?
Think about what Jesus said to His disciples:
John 15:18 “If the world hates you, understand that it hated me before it hated you. 19 If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own. However, because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of it, the world hates you. 20 Remember the word I spoke to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours.
Paul knew this, and he wanted to be counted worthy of that association.
Phil 3:8 Because of him I have suffered the loss of all things and consider them as dung, so that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own from the law, but one that is through faith in Christ—the righteousness from God based on faith. 10 My goal is to know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings, being conformed to his death, 11 assuming that I will somehow reach the resurrection from among the dead.
Paul hoped that he would be found worthy of suffering for Christ, and he called upon his fellow Christians to have that same desire.
Paul believed that he would never see the Ephesians again. He believed that his imprisonment would end in his death. Now -- a lot of us believe that Paul got out of prison after the end of Acts, and so it's very possible that he went back to visit all of his old churches again, but none of that changes that Paul believed he would never see them again.
And here's the meaning of verse 26: Paul had no regrets leaving them. That's a truly astonishing idea. What are regrets you have about the last time you saw somebody?
Let's be honest -- I don't know how many relationships I have that don't involve some kind of regret. There are lots of things that I wish I had said. (There are lots of things I wish I hadn't said.) Apologies, stories, feelings, answers -- so many things I'd love to have another conversation to resolve. Well, Paul didn't have that. He lived each day as if it were his last. If there was something that needed to be said, he said it. I am almost in awe of his clean conscience.
Realize that Paul wasn't saying this to pat himself on the back. This was for the sake of the Ephesians: he wasn't to give them closure, and he wanted to give them agency. "I've done all I can do. Our partnership is complete. Now you can take the baton, and I won't be looking over your shoulder."
Had you ever thought about how Paul's words here were actually empowering to the Ephesians?
Aside: What Is the Whole Plan of God?
Think of this as part 2 of the previous aside. Evangelism and discipleship are both sides of the same Commission. But what is it we're supposed to teach? What is this "whole plan of God"?
This article suggests that it's "the gospel" --
and it's hard to argue with that. "The gospel" is a lot more than the "simple" plan of salvation, but rather the entire story of God's rescue plan for sinners. But even then we have to remember that God's rescue plan also includes instructions for how rescued sinners are to live. So, we're basically talking about the whole Bible as understood through the New Testament.
How would you try to summarize that? How long do you think you would need with someone to teach them all of that? (How long did Paul have with the Ephesians?)
Part 3: Paul's Final Instructions to the Ephesians (Acts 20:28-32)
28 Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as overseers, to shepherd the church of God, which he purchased with his own blood. 29 I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. 30 Men will rise up even from your own number and distort the truth to lure the disciples into following them. 31 Therefore be on the alert, remembering that night and day for three years I never stopped warning each one of you with tears. 32 And now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you an inheritance among all who are sanctified.
Now I'd really like you to make a more thorough comparison of Paul's words here with Jesus' final words in John 13-17. If you're overwhelmed, just focus on John 17.
Remember that Paul is here talking to the leaders of the church (just like Jesus was talking to the apostles). If you're not a "leader" in your church, what should you take away from this warning?
Ha! It's a trick question! It means the same thing to you as it does to your church leaders. As Baptists, who is responsible for bringing in our church leaders? We are. But more to the point, as Christians, who is responsible for who we follow? We are.
You might be tempted to ask an obvious question: why would anybody bother to try to take over a church for their own designs? I think that's worth talking about. If you don't understand why somebody would do it, you might miss what they're doing until it's too late.
I've seen this happen at full-scale convention levels, at local church levels, and even in individual Sunday School classes. Why would somebody do that, and what should you watch out for?
Jesus' most famous statement about this didn't talk about the "why" at all, only the "what":
Matt 7:13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who go through it. 14 How narrow is the gate and difficult the road that leads to life, and few find it.
15 “Be on your guard against false prophets who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravaging wolves. 16 You’ll recognize them by their fruit. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes or figs from thistles? 17 In the same way, every good tree produces good fruit, but a bad tree produces bad fruit. 18 A good tree can’t produce bad fruit; neither can a bad tree produce good fruit. 19 Every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 So you’ll recognize them by their fruit.
21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in your name, drive out demons in your name, and do many miracles in your name?’ 23 Then I will announce to them, ‘I never knew you. Depart from me, you lawbreakers!’
This makes me think of one of the stranger Peanuts cartoons. I don't think Schulz was going for this, but it reminds me that people can be on the lookout for completely the wrong things. If you don't take this seriously, you could be setting yourself, your family, and your church up for some real dangers.
Paul really cared about them, their well-being, and their future. He lost sleep over this. He agonized in prayer over this. But ultimately, he understood that he could not protect them from everything -- he had done all he could, and now they had to take responsibility for their own walk with Jesus. And Pau knew that God was a far better Shepherd than he could ever be.
Does your pastor or Sunday School teacher care about your spiritual well-being like Paul did? The answer is yes, as best as us normal people can approximate the Apostle Paul. We want everybody in our churches and classes to be rooted in truth, walking with Jesus, and growing in faith -- not so we can feel good about ourselves but because it is what is best for you, your family, everybody around you. And within that, when the storms of life come, you will have a firm foundation to weather them.
When Paul got to Jerusalem, he was indeed imprisoned, and next week we will read about one of his trials. Paul was very secure in who he was in Jesus, and that secure foundation led him to great boldness before his judge.
God bless you!