The Responsibility of Elders | Acts 20:28–31

From the beginning, God created men and women in his image, equal in value and essential to accomplishing his purposes. Throughout Scripture, women lead, disciple, teach, serve, and use their gifts for God’s mission. At Watermark, the office of elder is reserved for qualified men, but that distinction should never diminish the significant role women have in the life and mission of the church. The invitation for all of us is to use the gifts God has given us, encourage others to do the same, and flourish together as the body of Christ.

In Acts 20, Paul charges the Ephesian elders to pay careful attention to themselves and to the flock God has entrusted to them. Elders are called by the Holy Spirit to steward a church that belongs to Jesus, remaining qualified themselves while caring for and protecting his people. Whether or not you are called to the office of elder, the invitation is to pray for your elders, gladly receive their shepherding, and, through the transforming power of the gospel and the Holy Spirit, grow into an elder-like follower of Jesus.

Every follower of Jesus is called to be a minister, which means leadership isn’t reserved for people with a title. In Acts 20, Paul points to his own life as an example of leadership shaped by Jesus: character that matches what he believes, humility that comes from submission to Christ, genuine care for people, courage to speak the truth, and a commitment to finish the ministry God has given him. The invitation is to become a leader worth following by depending on the Spirit, becoming more like Jesus, and faithfully living out the ministry God has entrusted to you.

Guest speaker David Platt joined us to teach from Isaiah 55 and remind us of God’s invitation to seek him with all our hearts. We see a God who is near, who passionately seeks his people, and who offers what our souls cannot find anywhere else. Through Jesus, the price for our sin has been paid, and we are invited into relationship with God—not because of what we have done, but because of what Christ has done for us. The invitation is not to observe from a distance or seek God casually, but to respond to him with repentance, dependence, worship, and wholehearted trust.

Guest speaker David Platt joined us to teach from Mark 11 and challenge us to consider whether we can participate in religious activity while still missing God. Jesus’ cleansing of the temple exposes a faith that looked active on the outside but lacked the fruit God desired. Because Jesus died and rose again, everyone who trusts in him can experience life with God through his Spirit. Rather than settling for casual cultural Christianity, we are invited to seek God and live with reverent worship, ongoing repentance, faithful prayer, forgiveness, and a heart for all nations.

Trip Lee taught from Genesis 39, showing us that temptation is an invitation to go the wrong way, and in a world full of those invitations, faithfulness can feel difficult. Through Joseph’s story in Genesis 39, we see that the answer is not greater confidence in ourselves but confidence that God is with us. Before, during, and after temptation, God remains faithful. Because of Jesus, we can trust his goodness, resist sin, and return to him in repentance when we fail.

Acts 19 reminds us that spiritual warfare is real. Satan and demons are actively working to deceive, tempt, and draw people away from God, but followers of Jesus do not need to live afraid. Jesus has already defeated the enemy, and through Christ we have everything we need to stand firm. The invitation is to live awake to the enemy’s schemes, confident in Jesus’s authority, and dependent on prayer, God’s Word, and the power of the Holy Spirit.

Acts 19 gives us a picture of the normal Christian life: trusting fully in Jesus, publicly identifying with him through baptism, and living in the power of the Holy Spirit. As Paul encountered a group of men with an incomplete understanding of Jesus, we are invited to examine our own faith and abandon a version of Christianity shaped more by culture or comfort than Scripture. Jesus saves us into new life, and his Spirit is at work making us more like him.

Priscilla and Aquila were ordinary church members who understood they had one life to leverage for the glory of Jesus. Their example gives us a picture of the normal Christian life: they were on mission together, lived with their anchors and sails up, were “all in” with the church, and made disciples. The invitation is not to settle for a comfortable version of Christianity, but to surrender our lives to Jesus and experience the joy, purpose, and abundant life found in following him.

In Athens, Paul saw a city full of idols and was moved to share the good news of Jesus. TA taught through the second half of Acts 17, which reminds us that we were made to worship Jesus, but we often give our worship to other things. As we turn our own hearts back to Jesus, we can faithfully share him with others and trust God with the results.