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 came into the province of Asia. 19 I served the Lord with great humility and with tears and in the midst of severe testing by the plots of my Jewish opponents. 20 You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house. 21 I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.
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26 Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of any of you. 27 For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God.
29 I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. 30 Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. 31 So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.
32 “Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. 33 I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing. 34 You yourselves know that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions.
How Paul lived. He did not hesitate to preach the whole truth including repentance. In this dark time we live in, it is hard to find a church where the whole truth is taught.
He lived with humility and worked with his own hands. He did not covet people’s money. He did not covet fame. This allowed him to be free to speak up about the truth.
He lived with a sense of urgency, compelled by the Holy Spirit.
When the church fails to feed me with the truth, I can always turn to the Bible to learn about the whole truth. Jesus, as he promised, did not leave us alone as orphans when he left this world. He sent the Holy Spirit to comfort and lead us and also established this great apostle to continue his work. I would like to learn from Paul how to live my life.
Speak the whole truth. Be humble and work with my own hands. Be led by the Holy Spirit with a sense of urgency.