Protecting God's Precious Possession

Acts 20:28-31 The Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. 29 I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. 30 Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. 31 So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.”
 
PAUL continues his “teaching farewell” to the Ephesus elders.
   There is no greater calling than to be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.  We may think there are many higher positions in the world. Overseeing a church as an elder or pastor isn’t that important, is it? Yes it is. Why? It is because God has entrusted people – perhaps you? – with his most precious possession.
   A  true overseer of God’s church must have a good understanding of God’s love for his church. An elder should see that God has especially created particular people for his church. Remember, each true believer has entered the church at great cost to the Father. The LORD God Almighty, who can do all things, performed the most difficult task of all when he put his Son on the cross and in a tomb. How sobering to know that God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:21) We seldom, if ever, think that our sin debt could only be paid when Jesus became sin! That truth should cause you to “tremble, tremble.” (from the hymn Were you There?). Can we have any comprehension of the holy becoming unholy, separated from his Father? The price Jesus paid for each person in his church is so extreme our minds will not fully touch the height, width, depth and length of his love until we meet Jesus face-to-face. How precious are the redeemed!
   Elders, then, have a high responsibility to keep the church from savage wolves. They must be alert and not be men who will arise and distort the truth to steal people away from the truth. Yes, “Be on your guard, elders! Hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.”  
   Everyone who has been a faithful elder knows the threats against the truth in Jesus’ church. God used Paul, Peter, John, James, Jude and the author of Hebrews to help us understand the critical importance of becoming and remaining faithful to God’s church.
   Most people do not hold the office of elder. But Paul’s admonition applies to all Christians. Mothers, fathers, daughters and sons in Jesus’ church, you must learn how precious you are to God and, in turn, understand how precious you are to each other. Each of you is called at some level of maturity to protect the truth of God’s Word and watch over others.
   God has put others in your life through Jesus’ blood. Care for and watch over one another for Jesus’ sake.