Paul's Meeting with the Ephesian Elders - Part Two

This message considers the second part of Paul's speech to the Ephesian elders, namely his admonition to them in view of their calling as shepherds and the threat that was looming on the horizon. That threat concerned "wolves among the flock" - men who would enter from without and also arise from within and wreak havoc on the church. They were going to scatter and devour Christ's flock, but not by overt tactics or the promotion of false doctrine. Such men would be immediately unmasked as wolves. The profound danger represented by these men consisted in the fact that they would appear as sheep among the flock. Paul had spent three years in Ephesus warning of this threat and he knew it would arise after his departure. He knew because he understood the way natural-mindedness infects, afflicts and undermines Christ's Church. Thus his admonition and exhortation to the Ephesian elders is his instruction to every church in every place and generation.