God’s Word for You
Acts 20:17-21 Repentance and faith
by Pastor Timothy Smith on Friday, December 4, 2020
17 From Miletus, Paul sent word to Ephesus and called the elders of the church to him.
We need to assume three or even four days at this point for the ship to put in at Miletus, getting the group ashore (they may have slept on board), and then sending word (probably through Paul’s two “Asian” associates, Tychicus and Trophimus, vs. 4) with travel time on foot thirty miles from Miletus to Ephesus and the same from Ephesus back to Miletus.
Since Pentecost happens fifty days after Passover no matter when Passover takes place, we can present a basic calendar of when Paul was where and just how much time he had before he wanted to be back in Judea. Let’s place Easter on April 11, which is just about the middle of the window for Passover. This puts Pentecost fifty days later on May 31. Our calendar, based on the text of Acts 20:6-21:17, fills out this way:
| April 11 | Easter Sunday |
| April 14 | (Wednesday) Paul and company sail from Philippi (20:6) |
| April 19 | Monday. They arrive at Troas (20:6) |
| April 25 | Sunday. The long sermon, raising of Eutychus (20:7-10) |
| April 26 | Monday. Departure from Troas (20:6,11) |
| April 27 | Tuesday. Paul meets the ship at Assos (20:14) |
| April 28 | Wednesday. Mitylene to Chios (20:15) |
| April 29 | Thursday. Chios to Samos (20:15) |
| April 30 | Friday. Samos to Miletus (20:15) |
| May 1 | Saturday. Paul sends for elders (20:17) |
| May 2 | Sunday. Delegation arrives at Ephesus? (20:17) |
| May 3 | Monday. Delegation arrives at Miletus (20:17-18) Paul’s farewell to the Ephesian elders (20:18-38) |
| May 4 | Tuesday. Miletus to Cos (21:1) |
| May 5 | Wednesday. Cos to Rhodes and Patara (21:1-2) |
| May 6-14 | Voyage from Patarra to Cyprus and Tyre (21:3) |
| May 14? | Thursday? At Tyre for seven days (21:4) |
| May 21? | Thursday? At Ptolemais for a day (21:7-8) |
| May 22? | Friday? At the house of Philip in Caesarea (21:8-10) |
| May 28 | Thursday, Walk from Caesarea to Jerusalem (21:15) |
| May 30 | Saturday, arrival at home of Mnason (21:16) |
| May 31 | Sunday. Pentecost at Jerusalem; gift delivered (21:17) |
Perhaps this is more or less accurate. But now we need to back up again and return to Miletus, where Paul is saying farewell:
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 arrived in Asia. 19 I served the Lord with all humility and with tears and in trials due to the plots of the Jews.
In Paul’s experience, there were certain men, certain groups of Jews and Gentiles, that caused him tears. These were not tears he shed because of his own injuries or because he was opposed. To use a recent slang word, Paul was no snowflake. But he shed tears on account of his opponents, because he felt their unbelief and their hardening hearts and saw them from the view of the Holy Spirit: lost and condemned creatures, rejecting all of the merits of Jesus and the invitation of the gospel. These were men and women in the process of falling into the pit of hell and shouting obscenities and blasphemies at God as they fell.
For many of us, in our experience, there are family members that cause us tears. These are the same tears as Paul’s. These are people who knew Christ once, but who somehow got the impression that they don’t want or need Christ. Many of them are geniuses in one field of study and never left the baby stage of their Christian education, so that they think of Christianity as being a thing for the simple, the opiate of the masses, of the common people, who, they think, don’t know any better. They, too, are falling into the pit, and we weep for them. But while there is life, there is hope. While we remain faithful in our worship, in our prayer life, in our life of faith, we set an example for them, and perhaps there will be a moment when they will think of you or me and remember something that they once knew, and be turned back to Christ. Keep sharing and showing your faith.
20 You know that I haven’t hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you. I have taught you in public and from house to house. 21 I have declared and emphasized both to Jews and Greeks repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul isn’t boasting about his accomplishments. He is sharing with the Ephesians his example (for them to follow) and the key teachings of the Scriptures: Repentance and faith in Christ. Repentance takes place when the law of God convicts us of our sins and shows us how deeply we have fallen, how helpless we are apart from God, and how completely we need a Savior, since we cannot possibly save ourselves. Faith is the solution to that pit of despair. Faith takes hold of what Christ has done for us, a gift grabbing on to a gift. Notice that faith is true faith only when it is in our Lord Jesus Christ. Faith that rejects Christ, in whole or in part, is not saving faith. But faith that trusts in Christ, whether strongly or weakly, is saving faith. The Lord cares for those who trust in him (Nahum 1:7), and he calls out to us, “Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth, for I am God and there is no other” (Isaiah 45:22). Whether you yourself have learned this in public or in private, it is your salvation. The Spirit works through the word of God in any case. So however you have heard it, or whether you were washed in baptism first and then learned from that moment on, each day, for the rest of your life right up to the present moment, cherish your faith. “He who believes has everlasting life” (John 6:47). This is what your Savior is looking for. Trust in him, and you will receive eternal life.
In Christ,
Pastor Timothy Smith
Pastor Smith serves St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in New Ulm, Minnesota. To receive God’s Word for You via e-mail, please visit the St. Paul’s Lutheran Church website.