Paul’s Speech to the Ephesian Elders laid out in thought connections. I have also separated the speech into sections for you. I think you will see the power of this as you look at both the details and take in the overall impact of the layout in summary. See what you can find before I begin to explain. Each indentation illustrates the connections between thoughts or statements by indenting subordinate ideas either by placing them in terms of importance or in order of time. For example, when they arrived THEN he declared, WHAT did he declare? THAT they knew. WHAT did they know? That Paul had done the Lord’s work humbly AND with many tears SIMULTANEOUSLY from the day he set foot in Asia until the time of the speech. Do you get the idea?
Well practice with the arrangement below until you get the hang of propositional analysis or gluing the thoughts together. See what new ideas strike you.
When they arrived
He declared
“You know
from the day I set foot in the province of Asia
until now
I have done the Lord’s work humbly and with many tears.
I have endured the trials that came to me from the plots of the Jews.
I never shrank back from telling you what you needed to hear,
either publicly
or in your homes.
I have had one message for Jews and Greeks alike —
the necessity of repenting from sin
and turning to God,
and of having faith in our Lord Jesus.
“And now I am bound by the Spirit
to go to Jerusalem.
I don’t know what awaits me,
except that the Holy Spirit tells me in city after city
that jail and suffering lie ahead.
But my life is worth nothing to me
unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus
the work of telling others the Good News
about the wonderful grace of God.
“And now I know that
none of you to whom I have preached the Kingdom
will ever see me again.
I declare
today
that I have been faithful.
If anyone suffers eternal death,
it’s not my fault,
for I didn’t shrink
from declaring all that God wants you to know.
“So guard yourselves and God’s people.
Feed and shepherd God’s flock—
his church,
purchased with his own blood
over which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as leaders.
I know that false teachers,
like vicious wolves,
will come in among you after I leave,
not sparing the flock.
Even some men from your own group will rise up
and distort the truth
in order to draw a following.
Watch out!
Remember the three years I was with you—
my constant watch
and care over you night and day,
and my many tears for you.
“And now I entrust you to God and
the message of his grace
that is able to build you up and
give you an inheritance
with all those he has set apart for himself.
“I have never coveted anyone’s silver or gold or fine clothes.
You know that these hands of mine have worked
to supply my own needs and
even the needs of those who were with me.
And I have been a constant example of how you can help those in need by working hard.
You should remember the words of the Lord Jesus:
‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”
When he had finished speaking,
he knelt and
prayed with them.
(Acts 20:18-36)
I asked the LORD to open my eyes and show me His face and His glory and He answered me, “I AM”.
Anon
Those little words, “I AM” will take eternity to unpack!
Lyn Wake
The words of His Word will also take an eternity to unpack.
Ian Vail
The words of Paul’s speech are manageable in our lifetime; even today.
Ian Vail
The highest purpose of our lives is to know Him and make Him known to others around you.
Ian Vail