God’s Word for You

Acts 20:25-27 A true apostle of God

by Pastor Timothy Smith on Tuesday, December 8, 2020

25 “See now, I have gone around among you preaching the kingdom, but I know that none of you will ever see my face again. 26 So today I testify for myself to you that I am innocent of the blood of all, 27 for I did not hold myself back from proclaiming to you the whole counsel of God.

We want briefly to notice three points in this passage: Paul surprised the Ephesian elders by telling them that they would never see him again. Paul also declared that, because of the boldness and extent of his preaching, he was “innocent of all blood.” Blood is equivalent here to death, and Paul means spiritual death in hell. He has preached the gospel wherever he has gone, and if anyone has heard Paul or read his epistles and still does not know Christ has rejected Christ for their own reasons. Thirdly, Paul has proclaimed “the whole counsel of God.” This means everything that there is to say about God’s plan of salvation for mankind. In some places (such as Berea), Paul simply had to add to the knowledge of some believers who already knew a lot. In other places (such as Corinth), he had to spend more time, teaching everything from Creation to Calvary. More important than specific details are the key doctrines of (1) law, convicting the sinner of his sin, (2) gospel, convincing the sinner of his savior (repentance is the combination of these two), and (3) the resurrection of the dead. Someone who understands these three things understands the Bible.

This was Paul’s work as an apostle, but it is also the work of pastors today. The office of pastor is the successor to the office of apostle. There is no line of “apostolic succession” that is commanded or described in the Bible. This means that no minister of the gospel is required to show his pedigree the way that the Jews had to show their family descent, and if they could not, they were “excluded from the priesthood as unclean” (Nehemiah 7:64) and could not “eat any of the most sacred food” (Nehemiah 7:65). A minister is a minister by virtue of his call from the church, not by virtue of who lays hands upon him, if any, when he is installed. As St. Augustine pointed out, if two men in a lifeboat had a Bible and came to faith through reading the Scriptures, one could ordain the other as a minster by virtue of the divine call, and the called one could then forgive the sins of the other by means of the same divine call.

That the ordinary preaching office (pastor) is essentially the same as the office of apostle is taught in the New Testament:

1. Apostles and ordinary pastors are the same according to their position. Apostles are servants and stewards of the gospel (1 Corinthians 4:1) and so are pastors (1 Corinthians 4:6). Also, Scripture places preachers on the same level as the apostles (1 Peter 5:1).
2. Apostles and ordinary pastors are the same according to their task. This task is feeding the flock and administering the sacraments, given to the apostles (John 21:15-17; Matthew 28:18-20) and to preachers. The Great Commission applies today as much as it did at Jesus’ ascension.
3. Apostles and ordinary pastors are the same according to their authority. Apostles are to rule in the church (as did Paul when he ordained ministers, 2 Timothy 1:6), supervise, exercise discipline, etc. Likewise, preachers have the same authority to supervise (Acts 20:28; 1 Timothy 1:3), to teach (2 Timothy 3:2, 4:11,12), to command (1 Timothy 4:11); to ordain (1 Timothy 4:14),  to rule (1 Timothy 3:5; Titus 1:5,7-9) and to demand obedience (Hebrews 13:17).
4. Apostles and ordinary pastors have the same offices according to their purpose, which is to save souls (1 Corinthians 3:5).
5. Also, the ordinary preaching office of pastor is the continuation of the office of apostle according to the will of God. We are certain of this because:
   1. Christ always wants to have preaching and teaching servants shepherding his church. When Jesus portrays his church as it will continue until judgment day (Matthew 19:28) he describes it as having preachers whom he will appoint (Matthew 22:3-4, 24:45), and he never portrays it any other way.
   2. Christ has his apostles specify the rights and obligations of his ordinary preachers, which shows the continuation of the office of preacher from apostle to pastor, which will last until judgment day.
   3. Those obligations and qualifications are listed in passages such as 1 Timothy 3:2-7. Those rights are also listed, especially the highest right, which is to demand obedience, both in the time of the apostles (Hebrews 13:7) and now in the time of ordinary pastors (Hebrews 13:17).

There are other points to be considered, but doing so might become a burden to the reader.

What condemns me in this passage (that is, the law) is where as a Christian I have failed to give my pastor my complete support, or have failed to pray for him, to constantly support the training of our ministerial schools, and most of all, when I have failed to give a pastor my obedience when he has stood in the place of Christ, not only forgiving my sins but also giving me direction in my sanctified living; how I will thank Jesus with my life. Christians sometimes doubt their pastors, imposing their own rules and assumptions about their lives. Shall I accept my pastor’s assurance that I have Christ’s worthiness through faith in him, and then claim that in some way I am unworthy of the blessings God offers to me? Shall I accept my pastor’s assurance that all punishment for my sin was taken up by Jesus on the cross, and then imagine to myself that God is punishing me for present or past sins in my life?

A pastor might be tempted to use reason or logic to help him convince his flock of God’s truth, and those things can be helpful tools, but in the end the only true tool we have that will change hearts is the gospel. The Christian might be familiar with Psalm 51: “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence and take not your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation. And uphold me with your free Spirit” (Psalm 51:10-12). But the pastor takes comfort in the next line, too: “Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will turn back to you” (Psalm 51:13). Listen to the gospel your pastor preaches, who whispers in his heart when he thinks of you: “Even though I may not be an apostle to others, surely I am to you!” (1 Corinthians 9:2). Pray that he will be faithful to the word, so that when you hear him you will be hearing a true apostle of God.

In Christ,
Pastor Timothy Smith

 

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