A Pastor's Final Plea

Because something that I've been reflecting on recently a lot of is leadership is hard.

! Can I just have a raise my hand? Who would consider themselves a leader here? In any context, just a leader.

! And then nod your head or cry if you agree with me that leadership is hard.

Man, I used to be that young hotshot in the back of a... I was a teacher when I was in England. I used to just be that young teacher sat at the back of the classroom in the staff meetings, watching NBA highlights,

and just thinking, I could do a better job. That was always what I would think.

But then you get to the place where you're like, oh, actually, you have to be the leader. Leadership is hard. Whether you're leading a life group, whether you're leading a family,

you have to lead when other people aren't feeling it, you have to be there. When other people are late, you have to really be there on time.

You have to be the one that is consistent. You have to be the one that shows up consistently every time.

And of course, the extra special pie is people look at you as a leader and they go, well, you're not doing that right.

Or you're not doing that right. Or I would do this if I was you as a leader. I would be more free and I would let you do this.

Or I would do this. And then before, you know, you've got all these other people who are looking at you going, well,

they can do a better job than you.

Leadership is hard. And it's not for everyone.

Yet in Scripture, in 1 Timothy 3, Paul talks about, hey, actually, it is good, it is noble to aspire to be a leader.

With that said, you're also going to be measured by a different measuring stick.

The office of a leader is hard. The responsibility of a leader is hard.

My favorite quotes that I've shared before, leadership is welcoming people on a suboptimal journey.

It's recognizing that we have limited resources.

We have limited time. We have limited people. We have limited anything.

And so you need leaders who can then discern and be wise and go, well, where do we go?

What do we do? How do we do it?

Leadership is disappointing people at a rate that they can absorb because of those limited resources.

So someone is going to be unhappy.

So then you have to decide, well, who's going to be the least unhappy?

Or rather, can we make the tough decisions for those people to grow?

Maybe it's during COVID, especially during COVID, when we were all looking at the leaders of the world and going, you're a terrible leader.

You are a terrible leader. You're making the wrong decisions, right?

We were in there. There was a snapshot in time where I looked across the world leaders.

And I was like, oh, Lord Jesus, it's time to pull the plug on humanity and come back.

We're done here.

Because leadership is hard, but yet we also see lots of people who crave leadership, who crave power.

Why? Because it's for selfish reasons.

There's a bishop from Ghana who said this,

it is so disheartening that leadership now is about selfishness and greed.

So it is unfortunate that service and servants are missing from the church now because the world does not see leadership as a service,

but as a status to be served.

We see leaders who have charisma, but without character, it leads to catastrophe, is what someone else says.

Leaders with charisma, but without character, leads to catastrophe.

They may have the gifting to take us there, but they don't have the character to stay there.

Leadership is hard.

Simon Sinek, one of my favorite people to listen to, to talk about this, he coined the phrase leaders eat last.

And he said this, leadership has nothing to do with rank.

Leadership is a choice, a choice to look after the person to the left of you and look after the person to the right of you.

If you commit every single day to helping them succeed, you become a leader.

Leaders are the ones willing to look out for those who need help.

When it matters, leaders choose to eat last.

Leaders.

Leadership is hard.

Not a quote by him, but I think I first heard it from the 90s Chicago Bulls basketball coach who said,

you are only as strong as the weakest link.

I would maybe actually twist that a little bit and go, I think you're only as strong as your leaders.

The leaders who choose this job, knowing that it's hard, who know that they will disappoint people,

who know they will be stabbed behind the back, and yet they will still choose to do it,

because it's what Christ did for them.

Especially in the church.

I'm going to ask you now, just to throw it out there, maybe just in society, in history,

who are some leaders that you look up to and go, oh, that's a good leader?

Any thoughts come to mind?

Any examples of good leaders that you've observed up close or from afar?

Any?

Jackie, you're nodding.

What have you got?

Good leader?

Any leaders that you can think of?

Yep.

Wealthy people who actually automatically resume places of leadership because of their wealth,

but they maybe not even should be there.

But of course, there are those who genuinely should.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

So leaders who have a lot, and yet they also choose to give a lot.

Those kind of leaders.

We all aspire.

We all are blessed by those kind of leaders.

What other kind of leaders come to mind, Queenie?

Any leader that comes to mind?

Yep.

Yep.

Yep.

Wang Yanlong.

See, and I feel as though, I'm guessing you actually know him personally.

Because that's something else that they say, right?

Never meet your heroes.

Never meet those leaders.

Because when you pull back the curtain and you see that they're actually real human beings

with real struggles and real flaws, that's when the problem comes.

From afar, I think I've quite admired, again, I'm a basketball fan.

I quite admire the NBA commissioner, Adam Silver.

I feel as though the way he holds himself, the way he makes decisions and articulates what

he's trying to do.

Again, he always makes decisions that not everyone is happy with.

But I feel as though that's maybe a trait of a good leader.

So I'm tempted to ask people for examples of bad leaders.

But I feel as though that would just be a can of worms.

Because something else happens when it comes to leadership is that, no doubt, all of you

have experienced some sort of bad leadership in some ways.

Some of you are just looking at me and going, yeah, right now.

And sadly, you've also been burnt by bad leadership.

Leaders who haven't had the courage to make decisions that you think are right.

Leaders who have looked after themselves.

And of course, the hard part comes when we become a leader and we realize, oh, we are

that person.

We are that person that has been looking out for ourselves, who is worried about how other

people perceive us.

Leaders are humans.

And what we're looking at today is a passage of scripture in Acts 20.

So I'd encourage you to turn there now before I invite you to stand.

So we were in Ephesus last week.

Remember the guys that tried to cast out the demon?

And then end up getting into a fight and then looting all their clothes.

That group.

And there was a riot that happened.

Chapter 20, then he starts to go into different, he leaves Ephesus and then he goes to Macedonia

and to Greece.

We won't really touch on that a little, that much today.

And there's this hilarious passage of this young man called Eutychus who is listening to

a sermon.

And the sermon gets really long.

And then he falls asleep.

I mean, if all of us had those moments where people would see we were in sermons and we

fell asleep, that would really be quite embarrassing, right, Caleb?

Like, just really embarrassing.

But he was tired that day.

But thankfully, I'm not going to speak as long as Paul.

And Caleb is a bit more mature and older than Eutychus was.

He was probably just a teenager at the time.

But then he falls from the third floor and then they take him for dead.

And they're like, what?

He died.

But then actually, he ends up, well, a miracle happens and Paul actually ends up reviving

him.

And so from that moment on, Eutychus does not fall asleep in a sermon ever again.

Or just sit by the window.

Don't worry, you're safe, Caleb.

You just stay as far from the window as possible.

And then we meet this passage here that I think is probably my favorite passage on leadership.

Paul offers a leadership blueprint to his leaders in the church in Ephesus.

Remember, the church that he just started one chapter ago.

The church that he spent two, three years with.

So imagine this.

It's about this size of group, mate.

Well, actually, the church was maybe this size, but then the leaders were a smaller group.

But around two, three years, Paul spent with this group.

And then something happens.

And this is where we're going to move into Acts chapter 20, verse 17 to 38.

Acts 20:17–38

I believe we have some special readers.

Jojo, have we got scripture reading?

Who have we got?

Ava and JJ.

Can you give a round of applause to Ava and JJ?

And can I invite us all to stand for the word of the Lord?

So you're going to do 17 to maybe there.

25 and then we'll do the rest.

Now from Miletus, he sent to Ephesus and called the elders of the church to come to him.

And when they came to him, he said to them, you yourselves know how I lived among you the

whole time from the first day that I set foot in Asia, serving the Lord with all humility

and with tears and with trials that happened to me through the plots of the Jews.

How I did not shrink from declaring you anything that was profitable and teaching you in public and from house to house,

testifying both to Jews and to Greeks of repentance toward God and of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

And now behold, I am going to Jerusalem, constrained by the Spirit, not knowing that will happen to me there,

except that the Holy Spirit testifies to me in every city that imprisonment and afflictions await me.

But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself.

If only I may finish my course on the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.

And now behold, I know that none of you among whom I have gone about proclaiming the kingdom will see my face again.

Therefore, I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all,

for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God.

Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers.

To care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.

I know that after my departure, fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock.

And from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things to draw away the disciples after them.

Therefore, be alert, remembering that that for three years I did not cease night or day to admonish everyone with tears.

And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified.

I coveted no one silver, gold or apparel.

You yourselves know that these hands minister to my necessities and to those who were with me.

In all things, I have shown you that by working hard in this way, we must speak.

We must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus.

How he himself said, it is more blessed to give than to receive.

And when he had said these things, he knelt down and prayed with them all.

And there was much weeping on the part of all.

They embraced Paul and kissed him, being sorrowful most of all because of the word he had spoken.

That they would not see his face again.

That they accompanied him to the ship.

This is the word of the Lord.

Please take a seat.

Thank you, guys.

So the context.

Paul is reaching the end of his life.

And if you just peek into scripture, you'll see we're at chapter 20.

We've only got a few more chapters left.

He's approaching the end of his life.

And actually, when you want to see what's most important to that person, you hear their last words.

That is probably going to be giving you a good clue.

And so he gathers the leaders in Ephesus.

But he doesn't have time to go to them again.

So he asks them to come over to him.

And so he gathers them together.

And it's an emotional time.

And it's an intense time.

And he goes through this.

Basically, I think what he does is he tells them.

He reminds them what kind of leader he used to be to them.

He tells them what kind of leader he is right now.

And then he tells them what kind of leaders they should be as they go.

Why?

Because they're not going to see him again.

I mean, just imagine this for a second here.

We've been together for three years or so.

And then I say that today, guys, this is my last time speaking to you.

Remember what I've got to say.

Because next week, I'll be gone.

Next week, I'm going to be going to Turkey and getting some hair transplants.

And you won't ever see me again in the same way.

And I may not make it back, guys.

So remember my last words.

That's the place that we're in.

Not exactly, but I'm hoping to be here next week.

Still with the same hairstyle.

Now, so, and he sits there and then he goes, this is, and this is where he starts.

And he, first of all, he reminds them of who he was.

And so he says this, you yourselves know how I lived among you the whole time from the first day that I set foot in Asia.

He says, you know what kind of leader I've been.

Why?

Because you've seen me up close.

You have known me personally, not just as a hero from afar, but you have seen the way I live.

That's huge, even right there.

You see, it's interesting.

In 1 Timothy 3, you'll see this jobster description, this CV of what a leader should be.

And he writes about that.

And that's a good, basically, I think a good baseline of what a leader is for Paul.

But then what you see here is actually even more important.

It's actually who he was.

So he actually lived this out.

How many of us have actually seen leaders who say one thing and then do another thing?

So this is where he goes, no, you yourself know how I have lived among you.

Our life group on Monday, I shared with them one of my favorite passages on discipleship is 2 Timothy 3,

where Paul talks to Timothy and says, hey, you have seen my teaching,

but you've also seen my conduct, my life, my aim in life,

how I suffered in life.

You've seen how I live.

This is a leader who says, you have seen every part of how I do my ministry and how I do my life.

And you yourselves know how I lived among you, serving the Lord with all humility

and with tears and trials that happened to me through the plots of the Jews.

You'll know what kind of leader you're dealing with when you see them go through tough times.

When the going gets tough, then you'll see what their true colors are.

How they deal with disappointments, how they deal with frustrations, how they deal with death.

You'll get to see a little bit of what is going on in that leader.

And Paul is essentially saying the same thing here.

And then he carries on.

And how I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable

and teaching you in public from house to house.

So what we see here, first of all, is a leader who is invested.

Someone who's looking at you and go, I know you.

I have been with you.

I have spent time with you.

The organization I was with for these last five years is called Young Life

that really works with young people.

And the motto always is, earn the right to be heard.

Go to where the young people are and earn the right to be heard.

You have no right to tell them how to live their lives unless you have earned the right to be heard.

What does that mean?

That you have spent time with them, that you have invested in them.

And when you have that right, then you can speak into that life.

In England, in our home, we used to love inviting people over to spend time in our home.

To actually live with us.

And we had spare rooms so we could do that in England.

And they would read stories with our kids.

It's those disciples, it's those people that we spent time with,

that we actually then felt as though we could earn the right to be heard,

to actually speak into their lives.

We had a rule, just an unwritten rule, which is,

actually, unless that person has stayed in our house,

we won't speak words of rebuke over them.

Because we want to feel as though we have invested and earned the right to be heard.

And so that's what Paul is saying here.

He's doing the same thing.

So he's invested in these people.

Well, later in verse 31, he says this,

I admonished you, which is I rebuked you, I told you off,

but I did it with tears.

And I did it day and night for three years.

What does that mean?

It means I'm disciplining you, but it's out of just this heartbreak.

It's out of this love that I have for you.

I'm not there to provoke you.

I'm there to love you.

And I admonish you with tears because my heart breaks as you make those choices.

Parenting is also hard because parenting is also leadership.

And I had someone give me an example that they said with their children,

which is, hey, look at this glass.

Just a glass of wine.

Just a glass.

And he says, and he told his kids, actually, my heart as your father is like this glass.

You hold this glass.

You hold my heart.

When you make a decision that hurts yourself or hurts me or hurts others,

you drop it and it smashes and it hurts.

Often we don't appreciate that as we're looking at the leaders that we have.

Maybe some of us haven't experienced leaders that have invested in us.

But this idea of a leader that admonishes his people with tears day and night for three years,

whose heart breaks when he watches the people that he leads or she leads make decisions that are destructive to them.

And so this leader is invested.

But what else is about this leader?

Verse 20, and how I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable.

This leader tells the truth.

Leadership is hard because you have to look at someone and go, I love you,

but actually, I need to tell you the truth.

That's hard.

How many of us have felt as though we're supposed to confront someone,

but we're like, you know what, that's just too hard.

Having those conversations is hard unless you're at Enneagram 8 and you like to challenge,

and then it gets a little bit easier.

But for a lot of people, that's just hard to actually go to someone and go,

I see that in you, and I think I want to call you higher,

and I want to tell you that that is wrong.

But not just to do it, just for the sake of it,

but for declaring to you anything that was profitable to build you up and not to tear you down.

We've all probably been recipients of leaders who have spoken down to us to tear us down.

And yet here we have a leader who admonishes with tears to raise you up.

That kind of leader is hard.

And then it carries on.

This leader is not only invested, not only willing to tell the truth.

Now, we have a lot of things that as Christians, as followers of Christ in this society,

that we have to speak truth into.

But of course, you do it with love.

But he also does it with integrity.

integrity.

What does that word mean?

That he's just the same everywhere.

What does he say here?

And teaching you in public and from house to house,

testifying both to Jews and to Greeks.

What he's saying, whether we were at church,

or whether we were at home,

or whether we were out on the sports field,

whether it's to you or to you,

it doesn't matter, I've said the same thing.

Aren't we all hungry for leaders who are filled with integrity?

People who you look at and you go,

I know exactly what you're like wherever you are.

That kind of people.

Don't we yearn to be those kinds of people ourselves?

Isn't it amazing that Paul can say,

after three years with these people,

he says, hey, you know how I've lived,

whether it's in the synagogue or whether it's at home,

whether it's the Jews or the Greeks,

I have done the same.

So my favorite chapter in the Bible is 1 Corinthians 9,

where he talks about,

to the Jews I'm a Jew,

to the Greeks I'm a Greek,

I become all things to all people in order to save some.

And at the end of the chapter,

he says,

I discipline myself,

my body,

train it to do what it should,

lest after preaching to others,

I myself might be disqualified.

So he's saying,

I have paved the way.

Leadership is hard,

because when you don't want to do it,

you still have to,

for the sake of those who are following you.

That's why it's hard.

That's why it's a noble task.

So what we have here is an invested leader,

a truth teller,

who is consistent,

and who is also persistent.

He's just constantly just saying the same message

to these people,

repent.

And what is the message?

Testifying both to Jews and to the Greeks

of repentance toward God

and of faith in our Lord Jesus.

He's saying the same message.

At home,

at work,

with his friends,

repent.

Turn around.

Turn around and follow him.

Follow Jesus.

That's all he's asking.

That was the leader that he was.

And so he's reminding them,

hey guys,

remember,

you're about to never see me again,

but remember what I was to you.

Remember who I was.

I think I am a recipient.

I was blessed by having a father

who was a man of integrity,

who I got to see whether he was at church

or whether he was at work

or whether he was at home.

On the most part,

we felt he's the same person everywhere.

There was never,

never any doubt in us that,

oh,

he's going to show up there

and suddenly he's going to do this.

People of integrity.

So needed

as we look at the leaders

in this world right now.

So he reminds them of the leader that he was

and then he says,

verse 22,

and now behold,

I am going to Jerusalem

constrained by the spirit,

not knowing what will happen to me there,

except the Holy Spirit testifies to me

in every city

that imprisonment

and afflictions await me.

So he says,

okay,

let me tell you about who I am now.

I am a leader

that is constrained by the spirit.

That's a really interesting term

that he's saying.

I can't help

but follow God's lead.

I can't help it.

And I tell you

where the Holy Spirit

is telling me to go.

He's telling me to go to Jerusalem.

And actually,

this will probably be my last trip

because I also know

on this trip

is where I'm going to experience

imprisonment and affliction.

A godly leader

is one of integrity

who's invested in people

who tells the truth

but someone who also follows

the Holy Spirit.

That is the kind of leader

that I hope that you

will look for.

That is the kind of leader

that I hope that you

will also become.

Someone who actually,

you cut them open

and what you see

is someone who has

a heart for God.

You see Psalm 27

and you say,

that's David's one thing.

One thing he asks

is that he will be with God.

As part of a leader

of an organization,

I often heard,

especially a Christian one,

I heard this term about,

hey, actually,

you need to have a vision.

You need to have a vision

in order for your organization

to grow and succeed

and be fruitful.

And the passage

that was often used

was Proverbs 29, 18.

And it was often quoted to me

as, hey,

without vision,

a people perish.

Not if you've heard that before.

Without vision,

a people perish.

And often it's been taken

by organizations,

Christian ones,

well-meaning ones,

to say, hey,

you need to have a vision.

If you don't have a vision,

your organization

is going to shrink

and then close down.

That's what people used it for.

But that's not the vision

that it's talking about here.

We've applied a worldly,

corporate,

strategic context

into that passage

when it says,

without vision,

a people perish.

That vision is not

a five-year strategic goal plan.

In order to grow your business

or grow your ministry.

That's not the vision

it's talking about.

What he's saying here,

without a prophetic vision,

without sight of God,

without the knowledge

of God's word,

people won't perish.

The word actually is

people will lack restraint.

If you don't hear from God,

if you don't see

and look for God,

you will be all over the place

is what it's saying.

The leader that he is right now

is constrained by the Spirit.

He says,

I can't help but do

the one thing

that the Holy Spirit

is telling me to do

and that is to go to Jerusalem

and that is to suffer

for his name.

Because in Acts 9,

when he met me,

when he blinded me,

he says,

you are going to be

my chosen instrument

and you are going to suffer for me.

So he knows

that's what it is.

Would we be the leaders

that look to God

and say,

even if it's tough,

I'm going to go there

because you tell me

to go there.

So he's that kind of leader.

That is the one thing

that he's asking for

in verse 24.

I don't account my life

of any value

nor as precious to myself

if only I may finish my course

and the ministry

that I receive

from the Lord Jesus

does testify

to the gospel

of the grace of God.

Reminds me of Philippians 1.10

where he says,

to live or to die,

it really doesn't matter.

To live is Christ

and to die is gain.

Actually,

I'd rather depart

and be with Christ

for that is far better

but to remain in the flesh

is more necessary for you.

I want to go there

and I'll tell you

as a leader right now,

I would love to go there.

If you gave me a choice

right now,

which way would you go?

Would you rather stay

or would you rather go?

I would rather go.

But to stay

is more necessary

on your account.

I've got something

that I have to still give you,

admonish you with tears,

live with you,

invest in you

because it's for your good.

That's what he's saying here

and that's huge.

That I may finish

my course

and the ministry

that I received.

Wait, Paul,

you are the greatest

church planter

that has ever lived.

If you sat in front

of donors,

you would be able

to deliver

and share with them

the KPIs

and you will have

been off the charts.

All the churches

in the world

started really

from the movement

that you started

and yet he wouldn't

say that.

He would say,

that's just the ministry

that I received

from the Lord.

It wasn't what I started.

It wasn't my dream.

I'm not building

my dream here.

I'm not building

my kingdom here.

All I'm trying to do

is that I would focus

on God

and the ministry

that he gave me.

Philippians 3 says,

I press on toward

the goal

of the upward call

of God in Christ Jesus.

That's all I care about.

I don't care about

how big

my church is growing.

Man, I would love

to be in that place

where I'd say,

I don't really care

whether the gathering

stays,

grows,

or shrinks

and dies.

It doesn't bother me

because whatever it is,

it's the ministry

that the Lord gives to me.

I'm receiving it

and really,

it's none of my business

what he wants to do with it.

I would love to be

in that place

yet every time

I'm faced with

an opportunity,

I often wrestle

and go,

this is my project.

This is what I want

to do to grow

and that's where

I go wrong

and that's where

I go wrong

because this is a ministry

that I receive

from the Lord

and I'm supposed

to do my thing,

focus on my race

and guess what?

You're supposed

to focus on yours.

So the question

I have for you is

what ministry

do you think

you've received?

Look,

as a pastor

of this church,

I'm supposed

to just look at you

and go,

hey,

what's the ministry

that you've received

from the Lord?

What are you supposed

to do?

Are you supposed

to run an alpha?

Then run an alpha.

Then go for it.

We're all on

this journey together.

Oh,

you're supposed

to lead the worship ministry?

Lead the ministry.

Let me know

how I can help

support you.

You feel compelled

to go and do prison ministry?

Well then go

and do it.

this isn't what I dictate

and determine.

This is what you,

now it's then your job

to follow through.

It's your job

to actually live this life

and to follow the call

that God has on your life.

That's what Paul

is saying here.

And now behold,

I know that none of you

among whom I have gone

about proclaiming

the kingdom of God

will see my face again.

There I,

for I testified to you

this day that I am

innocent of the blood

of all,

for I did not shrink

from declaring to you

the whole counsel of God.

He's saying,

I'm about to leave.

I'm about to drop my mic

and actually it's not

my responsibility anymore.

Why?

Because I've already

told you the truth.

I've already told you

who God is.

I've already told you

who Jesus is.

I've already told you

who the Holy Spirit is

and what I'm doing

to follow.

I'm going to leave now.

You have to follow him yourself.

And it's not going to be

on me that you're

not following him.

I've done everything

that I can.

Now it's your responsibility.

This is the part

that sometimes I'm reminded of

and I get riled up

because so often

I hear, of course,

whether it's people

in this church

or whether it's people

in other churches,

oh, I'm just not

growing anymore.

The pastor's not

helping me anymore.

And I'll be like,

hey, well,

pastors, leaders,

can we do what

we're supposed to do,

which is not

stringed from the truth,

to teach them

the whole counsel of God,

to teach from this book

and not just

from our own wisdom.

But once we're done

with that,

it's your responsibility.

Your growth

is your responsibility.

Florence's father

is my dentist.

And so he's the only one

in this world

who makes me cry

every time I see him.

So he sees me

at my lowest.

That's why he doesn't

come to this church anymore

because he doesn't have

respect for me.

But I see him

twice a year.

How would it be

if I complained

about my teeth

and saying,

my teeth are

your responsibility?

No, it's not.

I've been told.

You've got to brush

your teeth.

You've got to floss.

You only need to floss

the teeth that you

want to keep,

but floss.

I can't go to my dentist

and say,

hey,

my teeth aren't doing well.

What are you doing

about this?

No, no, no.

It's each of our

responsibility

to run our race,

to walk the walk

that the Lord

has placed in our lives.

What we're supposed

to do is simply

follow the ministry

that he's received,

that we've received

from him,

and we'll do what

we're supposed to do.

Don't shrink from the truth,

tell it in love,

and then just,

that's it.

And then we keep

running our race.

That's the goal

that we should have here.

That's what Paul

is saying here.

Now he turns.

He's saying,

look,

you know the leader I was,

and you also know

the leader I am right now

and where I'm going

and why I can't be

with you forever,

but now I'm turning to you.

And then he says,

pay careful attention

to yourselves

and to all the flock

in which the Holy Spirit

has made you overseers

to care for the church of God,

which he obtained

with his own blood.

He says,

pay careful attention

to yourself.

And this goes back

to the leader

who is invested,

this leader who is

of integrity,

who is honest,

who is vulnerable.

You yourselves

have to be there now.

You have to look

after yourself.

How often,

when we have leaders

who maybe were elevated

prematurely

because of the wrong reasons

and they are not people

of integrity

and they are not caring

for their own souls,

they are not modeling

to the people

that they're leading

what a godly leader

looks like

and you watch the flock

just suffer for it.

And he's saying,

I'm leaving now.

I'm gone.

I'm innocent at this

because I've done

what I need to do.

You now need to do

what you need to do,

which is this.

I know that after my departure,

fierce wolves

will come in among you

not sparing the flock.

Remember the magicians

before?

Remember those

who gave up

all their books,

the 35,000 US dollars

worth of books?

All the false prophets,

the sons of Sceva

that were trying

to just conjure up

and invoke

the name of Jesus?

Those people

are going to be back.

People like that

are going to be back.

They're going to come back

into the church

and they're going to try

and lead you astray.

And I'm going to be gone

and I can't tell you,

I can't protect you

from them anymore.

Leaders,

can you protect your flock

in the same way?

Can you pay careful attention

to what is the truth?

Why?

Not because you're nice people,

but because Christ obtained it

with his own blood.

If someone gave up their lives

to give you something,

you would look after

that very well.

You'd be like,

oh,

someone actually died

for these people.

As a leader,

I'm reminded of that.

When I look and lead

some of the people

and it's hard,

I look at you

and I'm going,

oh,

but Christ died for you.

Christ loved you.

I'm still trying to learn

how to love you,

but Christ loved you enough

to die for you.

He obtained you

with his own blood,

so I'm here

to try and care for you.

And they're going to come in,

not sparing the flock,

and this is where

it gets really scary.

Verse 30,

and from among your own selves

will arise men

speaking twisted things

to draw away

the disciples after them.

Someone

sat here

today

is going to say,

a twisted thing

to pull you away

from being a disciple of Jesus.

Isn't that scary?

Someone sat right next to you

could be doing,

me here and Melissa

just had the hilarious

look at each other,

among us.

And it's interesting

because those people

might not even be malicious.

You're not trying

to do it on purpose,

but you yourself

might be deceived.

What's the definition

of someone who's being deceived?

It's like you don't know

that you're being deceived.

You don't know

that this is a wrong thought.

And you're trying

to share it with someone else.

He's saying be careful.

There are those.

Let me stop here

and ask a question.

What are the wolves

coming to speak

to the church

in Hong Kong today?

What are some of the things,

what are some of the messages

that the church

is most in danger of

that needs to protect

and guard against?

in a congregation

like this?

What should we be

guarding ourselves against?

Shem,

what thoughts do you have?

Hmm?

Priorities.

We can always do it tomorrow.

Priorities.

When someone goes,

oh, I would love to do that.

I would love to read the Bible,

but I simply can't

because

A, B, C, D, E, F, G.

Oh, I would love

to join a community,

but

I can't because of this.

Priorities.

That's a huge one.

And it almost sounds right.

It almost sounds,

okay, well,

understand, understand.

I get it.

I get it.

Priorities.

That's a huge one.

Jasper,

what can you think of?

Division.

And if this starts

a little bit

with people going

at the leaders

and going,

well, okay, well,

I think you're making

the wrong decision there.

I think I know better.

I think we should do this instead.

And then it starts.

And then you've got

these places where,

okay, well,

I think this and I think that.

I prefer this

and I prefer that.

And so then we start

to whisper

and then we start to argue.

There's another quote.

I don't know if I,

I wrote this down.

It's often when you look

at any chaotic problem

in your workplace,

in your family,

anywhere,

in the church,

any chaotic problem

that you observe

that has to do with humans,

which is so many,

is often,

if you can root it

all the way back,

it's because of the lack

of a good leader.

Now,

it doesn't mean

that leader is perfect

who knows what to do

every single time,

but so often

the problems that we face

are because we're not

the leaders

that we're supposed to be.

division,

priorities,

busyness,

all these things.

Working to earn

your salvation.

These are things

that I think

that maybe our church,

that the church in Hong Kong,

that the city of Hong Kong

is probably the most

in danger of.

These are the things

that we really must

guard ourselves against.

So carry on.

Verse 31.

Therefore be alert,

I haven't talked

about this already,

remembering that

for three years

I did not seize

night or day

to admonish

every one of you

with tears,

everyone with tears.

Man,

to have that leader

who cares so much

about you

that when you're

making a stupid decision

that they break down

in tears.

They are sad for you.

Praying.

Praying that we would

be those kinds of leaders.

Verse 32.

And now I commend you

to God

and to the word

of his grace

which is able

to build you up

and to give you

the inheritance

among all those

who are sanctified.

I coveted no one

silver or gold

or apparel.

You yourselves know

that these hands

minister to my necessities

and to those

who were with me.

Not only was I

invested just in you,

I would also

look after myself.

I would pay my own ways

what he's saying.

You saw how hard

I worked.

That I was a tent maker

by day

and then I was then

going into the synagogue

in the evenings

and the weekends

to minister to you

and to your house.

I was working,

I was not lazy.

And you could see that,

oh, to get to the end

of your race

with a certain group

of people

and for you to be able

to say,

I gave you my all.

And you saw it.

And there's no doubt

in my mind.

Now you go

and do the same.

In all things,

I have shown you

that by working hard

in this way,

we must help the weak

and remember the words

of the Lord Jesus,

how he himself said,

it is more blessed

to give than to receive.

Now, those exact words,

it is more blessed

to give than receive,

we don't actually see

in scripture.

But the book of John

at the end also tells us

that Jesus said so many

other things

that they couldn't

write it all down.

And so this could be

one of them.

And of course,

it's consistent

with what he said,

which is what?

Be generous.

If you have lots

of wealth,

be generous.

If you have very little

wealth,

be generous.

To be people who give,

not just money,

but time.

Not just time,

but care.

Not just care,

but actually make effort

to pay attention

to the people.

That's what he's saying.

Be generous.

And then I can just imagine

this emotional scene already,

verse 36,

and when he has said

these things,

he knelt down

and prayed with them all

and there was much weeping

on the part of all.

They embraced Paul

and kissed him,

being sorrowful most of all

because of the word

he had spoken

that they would not

see his face again

and they accompanied him

to the ship.

They say goodbye.

They leave.

And they're in tears.

Oh,

to be in a place.

Now,

none of us are ever

going to stay

in the setups

that we have right now

with the friends

that we have right now

forever.

I mean,

the most morbid thought

is that everyone

we know around us

will die,

whether it's us first

or them firsts.

But to be in a place

where you've invested

in each other

so when you leave,

you know,

I have given everything

to this group of people.

That's the prayer

that I have for me.

It's the prayer

that I also hope

that you have

for your life group,

for your workplace.

That you can leave

and go,

I have given everything

to you.

Why?

To what?

Not just to make you

a better person

to like me more,

but that you would then

be closer to the Lord Jesus.

You would look

more like Jesus

in all of that.

What you see from Paul,

and this is where

I'm getting close

to finishing,

in 1 Corinthians 11,

1,

he says this,

imitate me

as I imitate Christ.

He earned the right

to say that

because they saw

how he lived

and he says,

now you've seen

how I've done it,

now you do it.

You've seen

how I copied Christ,

now you copy me

and that's discipleship

and that's

what it is.

If you just scan back

through this passage

and I haven't really

focused on it

but I will now

because really

it's the center

of everything.

Verse 21 says,

this testifying both

to Jews and to Greeks

of repentance

toward God

and of the faith

in our Lord Jesus Christ.

Verse 24,

if only I may finish

my course in the ministry

that I received

from the Lord Jesus.

and then later,

imitate,

remember these words

by the Lord Jesus.

This is a leader

that's not trying

to build his own

profile,

his own campaign.

This is a leader

that actually everything

is centered around

the Lord Jesus.

Reminds me of the words

of John the Baptist

in John 3

when he says,

he must increase,

I must decrease.

I'm outrageous, guys.

I live in the wilderness.

I dress funny.

I shout

but it's not about me.

It's about him.

Can we be leaders

that ultimately

point people to Jesus

and that is it?

I'm reminded of

Jesus' last words.

We've just been looking

at Paul's last words

to the leaders of Ephesus.

I'm reminded of Jesus'

last words in John 13

after the last dinner.

He says,

love one another

as I have loved you.

How have I loved you?

I've washed your feet.

John 14 says,

I'm the only way,

the truth,

and the life.

Follow me

and only me.

In my Father's house

there are many rooms.

You must come

but only through me.

How are you going

to get there?

By the Holy Spirit

is what he says.

John 15,

he says,

abide in me.

Bear fruit in me.

I'm the vine,

you are the branches.

Chapter 16,

he says,

but you can only do that

because of the Holy Spirit.

And he says,

in this world

you will have trouble

but take heart,

I have overcome the world.

Those were Jesus' last words.

Those are the words

that we pay attention to

and I hope that these

are the words

that you pay attention to

as I finish my sermon

and if you forget

everything else

in the sermon,

I pray that you

would remember these.

That we here

are all striving

to be leaders

who bear the image

of Paul,

who was invested,

who was committed

to truth,

who was consistent,

who was persistent,

a man of integrity

and that we would all

be leaders

pursuing to be

like Christ.

everyone wants

to be a leader

until they realize

how hard it is

to be a leader

and some stay

in the position

of leadership

because of selfish gain.

Yet we follow someone

who lead,

who led,

who still leads

in a different way.

Alex Lee

in the pre-service prayer

led us on that passage

and it's just,

it has everything

you need to know

of what it meant

to be a leader

for Jesus.

Philippians 2.

He says,

don't do anything.

Don't do anything

for your own self.

Do nothing out

of selfish ambition

but in humility

consider others

more significant

than yourselves.

Let each of you

look not only

to your own interests

but to the interests

of others.

And you might ask,

well how can I do that?

I'm selfish,

I know you are

because I am too.

And then he says,

have this mind

among yourselves

which is yours

in Christ Jesus.

You can be that kind

of leader that is selfless,

that is invested

when you have this mind

among yourselves

when you recognize

that actually it's Jesus

who's going to help you

be the leader.

And it's his spirit

that's going to help you

be the leader.

Jesus who,

though was in the form of God,

did not count equality

with God a thing

to be grasped

but emptied himself

taking the form

of a servant

being born

in the likeness of men.

He humbled himself

by becoming obedient

to the point of death,

even death on the cross.

He became that boss

that came to kneel down

by your table

and leveled with you.

He became that

authoritative figure

that could have just

stayed up there

with his arms crossed

but he came down

to be with you

and humbled himself

to the point of death,

even death on the cross.

That's the kind of leader

he wants.

That's the kind of leader

that we want to be.

So I'll finish

by asking again,

who of you here

is a leader?

And of course,

a leader is anyone

who is looking

to the interests

of those to his left

and her left or right.

Would we be

those kinds of leaders

that lay down our lives?

Amongst Jesus' last words

in John 15,

there is no greater love

than this,

that someone would lay down

their lives

or their friends.

I hope that you can

be inspired enough today,

exhorted enough today

that you would walk

out of this room

and go,

I am so wanting

and desperate

to be a leader

to that person.

I want to lay my life

down for them.

I want to lay down

my priorities for them.

You pick where we go

for lunch today.

I would like to eat

what you want to eat.

I would like to do

the thing that actually

you've always been

asking me to do

but I don't really want

to do because I'm selfish

and I'm lazy

but I want to do it today

because I want to lead well.

What's the secret

of being a leader

despite the hardships?

Humility.

And he says it

and it's just hidden there

at the very beginning.

Verse 17.

You yourselves know

how I lived among you

the whole time

from the first day

that I set foot in Asia

serving the Lord

with all humility.

I was at the privilege

a couple years ago

spending time with a leader

who was well known

who was a great leader.

Lots of people following

and I remember asking him

as a young blood

going hey can you teach me?

Teach me how to be a leader.

Teach me the skills

of a speaker.

Teach me how to be

someone who leads well.

And he said this

and he was just like

hmm

the best leaders

are the ones

that are humble.

And then he just left me there

and then he just walked off.

The best leaders

in this world

are the ones

who are the best followers

of the kingdom of God.

That is all.

Let us follow

in the footsteps of Paul.

Let us follow

him as he follows

Jesus.

We're going to move

into a time of communion now

as he said there

pay attention to the flock

which he bought

by his own blood.

We're going to spend

the time in communion

where we gather

around the elements.

And so let's just

spend a moment now

just to reflect.

You can even reflect on

what kind of leader

you are.

What kind of leader

you were.

What kind of leader

you want to be.

Or maybe the hurt

that you've

received

from a bad leader.

How you've been

a victim

of poor leadership.

And I'll stand

right here

and say

I have invested time

and tears

into this community

but I'll also be

the first one to say

I've made mistakes

that I have not

led you well.

My prayer

my only prayer

is that Psalm 27

would become your prayer

that you would

yearn and hunger

just for Jesus.

Please

please

don't look to me.

I will fail you.

But look to him.

He is the author

and he's the perfecter

of your faith

of my faith

of our faith.

Let's spend a moment

just to examine

our own hearts

whatever is coming up

whatever the Holy Spirit

leads in you

and then we'll

take the elements together.

so as we reflect on leadership

again would we center our hearts on

Jesus

our king, our chief

leader, the one who

adorned himself in humility

humility to the point

of becoming obedient to the point

of death, even death on our cross

so before we leave from here

if you just spend a moment, just 30 seconds

just you and the Lord

just asking the spirit

what does obedience

look like for me this week

Jesus how may I follow after you more this week

how may I put aside my own

desires in humility for

those to my left, those to my right, my family

my friends, those

I work with, those that are difficult to

love, so would we lift

those people up to the Lord

now, would we lift up our hearts to the Lord

now just for a few moments

Jesus, we look to you

you set the example of what it means to love

to lead

and to give of yourself

so as your people

we confess that it's hard for us

yet we declare

Lord, we want to be those people

who embody

sacrificial love to those around us

so fill us by our spirit

send us from here Lord

we're grateful for your love for us

Jesus, we pray this all in your name

Amen