~ Paul said: “So now, brethren, I
commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up
and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified." -Acts
20:32
We
have jumped past a great many events while moving to today's "God is
able" phrase. Jesus died; but He
rose to life. His followers became bold but were also threatened and killed. Then
the greatest persecutor became a believer himself; and that man, Paul, has now
been preaching about Jesus for more than 20 years.
Here
he is saying goodbye to his Christian friends from the city of Ephesus, located
in modern-day Turkey. It is a sad moment. In his parting words, he first
reviews his days of service with them—public meetings, conversations in homes,
preaching about repentance and faith. But then he adds, "You have
difficult times ahead. Some around you will try to destroy you, and some among
you will cause strife and division."
What
an unpleasant prospect! Surely the best plan would be for Paul to stay. He had
taught them before, and they grew spiritually then. Why abandon these
Christians to the wolves now?
But
no. Paul says, "I am leaving, but I
commend you to God and to His message of grace, which is able to build you
up." He departs, but he leaves them with a resource full of strength: the
Bible.
In
your life, has God used someone who is no longer there for you? Time or
circumstances have taken away the one you trusted and leaned upon. There are
seasons of life when we hold the hands of others as we walk; but at other times—often,
it seems, at the most difficult times—we are left alone.
But we are not alone. The Bible is a living book, and it is powerful. And God is still able to use His message to build us up, and as we read it He continues to make us into the people He wants us to be.
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