“13 Then we went on ahead to the ship and sailed for Assos, intending to take Paul on board there. For these were his instructions, since he himself was going by land. 14 When he met us at Assos, we took him on board and came to Mitylene. 15 Sailing from there, the next day we arrived off Chios. The following day we crossed over to Samos, and the day after, we came to Miletus. 16 For Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus so he would not have to spend time in Asia, because he was hurrying to be in Jerusalem, if possible, for the day of Pentecost.

17 Now from Miletus, he sent to Ephesus and called for the elders of the church. 18 And when they came to him, he said to them: ‘You know, from the first day I set foot in Asia, how I was with you the whole time — 19 serving the Lord with all humility, with tears, and with the trials that came to me through the plots of the Jews — 20 and that I did not shrink back from proclaiming to you anything that was profitable or from teaching it to you in public and from house to house. 21 I testified to both Jews and Greeks about repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus.'”

Acts 20:13-21

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Paul is beginning to wrp up his missionary journeys. He is making a B-line for Jerusalem as fast as he can manage. And even though he was planning on just skirting the coast and passing on by Ephesus, Paul knew that his heart wouldn’t let him do that. He had spent too much time, invested too much of himself in them and so he stuck his head in the door to say one last thing. And what was that message? 

“Hey guys, I love you, be good!”? 

“Hey, don’t forget to dress up nice for the gathering. Your appearances matter!”

“…and remember, do whatever you have to do to get people in the door. They’ll figure things out on their own later.”

No. Nothing even resembling those sentiments or viewpoints. It was nothing shallow, nothing vapid. Paul’s one thing, his one message, was this: “…repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus.” The Gospel message. The most basic thing that also meant everything. This is what needed to be repeated. Over and over again, Paul drove this message home with them. Over and over again, their hearts were turned toward repentance and what God accomplished through Christ. This is the beauty and majesty of the  Gospel, this is what is worth repeating.

If you were in prison, and had the opportunity to make just one phone call a year, who would you call? What would you say? If you were on your deathbed and given a live news crew and a streaming video feed, what would your last words be? Would you try to be clever, say something pseudo-profound? Or would you have just one thing that mattered above everything else? One thing that could atually change the course of someone’s life and eternity? If you had one thing to say that actually was profound, and could do all that, wouldn’t you say it? If your words could create a legacy worth following in a family’s storyline, in a city’s culture, in the world itself? 

Of course you would! And so Paul grabs the bull by the horns and cuts to the chase.

#1. Repent, be honest about it. You’re a sinner, too, deserving of death and hell.

#2. Be hopeful, God has taken care of everything through Jesus. 

Everything else is in an infinitelly distant second place. Not even a blip on the radar. This is what matters. We GoLove people by sharing the good news of the Gospel with them. Work, hobbies, sporting schedules, tv shows…none of this temporal, temporary stuff matters in comparison to the good news that Christ has saved us from ourselves. 

Paul knew it would be difficult. He could feel his heart trying to leap up through his throat as he speaks these final words. But he also would have had complete confidence that he had said what needed to be said the most. And that’s the peace that God offers to us. If we will simply be faithful, do what is required of us, we can live each day in peace, and leave this life (in the end) with peace, knowing we have done what needed to be done for the people around us. What else could you possibly desire?