Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Hi, my name is Father Mike Schmitz, and you're listening to the Bible in a Year podcast, where we encounter God's voice and live life through the lens of Scripture. The Bible in a Year podcast is brought to you by Ascension. Using the Great Adventure Bible timeline, we'll read all the way from Genesis to Revelation, discovering how the story of salvation unfolds.
And now we fit into that story today. It is day 341. You guys, well done. Gosh. Day 341. You made it this far. And we are in Acts of the Apostles, chapter 20. We're reading 2nd letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians, chapters 3 through 5. So three chapters today, as well as Proverbs chapter 28, verses 25 to 28.
As always, the Bible translation I'm reading from is the Revised Standard Version, 2nd Catholic Edition. I am using the Great Adventure Bible from Ascension. If you want to download your own Bible into your reading plan, You can visit ascensionpress.com slash Bible in the Air. You can also subscribe to this podcast to receive daily episodes and daily updates. It is day 341.
We're reading Acts chapter 20, 2 Corinthians chapters 3, 4, and 5, as well as Proverbs chapter 28, verses 25 through 28. The Acts of the Apostles, chapter 20. Paul goes to Macedonia and Greece. After the uproar ceased, Paul sent for the disciples and having exhorted them, took leave of them and departed from Macedonia.
When he had gone through these parts and had given them much encouragement, he came to Greece. There he spent three months, and when a plot was made against him by the Jews as he was about to set sail for Syria, he determined to return to Macedonia.
So Peter of Berea, the son of Pyrrhus, accompanied him, and of the Thessalonians, Aristarchus and Secundus, and Gaius of Derbe and Timothy, and the Asians, Tychicus and Trophimus. These went on and were waiting for us at Troas, but we sailed away from Philippi after the days of unleavened bread, and in five days we came to them at Troas, where we stayed for seven days."
Paul preaches and heals Eutychus in Troas. On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul talked with them, intending to depart on the next day, and he prolonged his speech until midnight. There were many lights in the upper chamber where we were gathered, and a young man named Eutychus was sitting in the window.
He sank into a deep sleep as Paul talked still longer, and being overcome by sleep, he fell down from the third story and was taken up dead. But Paul went down and bent over him and embracing him said, Do not be alarmed, for his life is in him. And when Paul had gone up and had broken bread and eaten, he conversed with them a long while until daybreak and so departed.
And they took the lad away alive and were not a little comforted. But going ahead to the ship, we set sail for Assos, intending to take Paul aboard there, for so he had arranged, intending himself to go by land. And when he met us at Assos, we took him on board and came to Mytilene. And sailing from there, we came the following day opposite Chios.
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Chapter 2: What is the significance of Eutychus' healing in Acts 20?
He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body, we are away from the Lord. For we walk by faith, not by sight. We are of good courage. And we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.
So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ so that each one may receive good or evil according to what he has done in the body. The Ministry of Reconciliation Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade men. But what we are is known to God, and I hope it is known also to your conscience.
We are not commending ourselves to you again, but giving you cause to be proud of us so that you may be able to answer those who pride themselves on a man's position and not on his heart. For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God. If we are in our right mind, it is for you. For the love of Christ urges us on because we are convinced that one has died for all, therefore all have died.
And he died for all, that those who live might live no longer for themselves, but for him who died for their sake and was raised. From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh, even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. Behold, the new has come.
All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation. That is, in Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. So, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
For our sake, he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
The book of Proverbs chapter 28, verses 25 through 28.
A greedy man stirs up strife, but he who trusts in the Lord will be enriched. He who trusts in his own mind is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom will be delivered. He who gives to the poor will not want, but he who hides his eyes will get many a curse. When the wicked rise, men hide themselves, but when they perish, the righteous increase.
Father in heaven, we give you praise.
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Chapter 3: How does Paul demonstrate his commitment to the Gospel?
except, this is verse 23, except that the Holy Spirit testifies to me in every city that imprisonment and afflictions await me. And that's just, there is something so powerful about hearing St. Paul say this. He's saying that, no, I realize that following after Jesus Christ and doing his work
isn't bringing me worldly peace isn't bringing me worldly comfort isn't bringing me all this success i know that what awaits me is imprisonment and afflictions and he doesn't blame god for that he doesn't get mad at god about this it goes on in verse 24 he says but i do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself if only i may accomplish my course and the ministry which i received from the lord jesus to testify to the gospel of the grace of god
And that is, that's so good for all of us who, you know, sometimes we can get it into our heads that, well, if I follow Jesus, it's gonna be an easy road. If I follow Jesus, then what are these obstacles doing here? And yet here is St. Paul who is saying that just, he has the heart of the master, right? He has the heart of Jesus himself.
Jesus, who knew that he was going to experience persecution, he knew he was going to experience torture and death in Jerusalem. And nonetheless, he set his face like flint toward Jerusalem. And here's Paul doing the same thing, knowing that certain death, at least imprisonment and affliction awaited him. And he still set his face like flint towards that destination. Um,
At the end of this chapter, we have something that's just such an insight into who Paul was. You know, Paul, he writes these fiery letters sometimes, you know, in 1 Corinthians, these fiery letters to the Galatians. And yet the people loved him because he loved them so well. At the end of chapter 20, verse 36, as St. Paul basically saying, you're never going to see me again.
He says, when he had spoken thus, he knelt down and prayed with them all. And they all wept and embraced Paul and kissed him, sorrowing most of all because of the word he had spoken, that they should see his face no more. And there's something so powerful about that, that I know that we can have this maybe cold and antiseptic view of St.
Paul, especially because he just, sometimes he can rub people the wrong way. I think, you know, I know he's rubbed me the wrong way at times, but nonetheless, I'm He loved them and they knew that they were loved by him. They loved him back. And so this is why they're here. They are weeping at the idea that they would never be able to see him again in this life.
And that, again, it's a message for all of us that sense of the people that we are here to care for, that God wants us to take care of. Am I loving them the way they should be loved? Would they weep if this was the last time they saw me? And, uh, I think of that a lot of times because I know I've worked with different pastors. I've worked different priests and whatnot.
And, and sometimes one of the, this is a little insight, a little inside baseball right now. Um, one of my thoughts was at times I know being like the, the visiting priest or the guest priest and the pastor is away and the staff's like, oh, we can relax now because father's away. And I remember thinking, I guess, is that always how it is? Is that how it has to be?
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Chapter 4: What lessons can we learn from Paul's farewell to the Ephesians?
Please pray for me that I can love like Jesus and that I can live like Jesus. My name is Father Mike. I cannot wait to see you tomorrow. God bless.