The Whole Counsel of God

The Whole Counsel of God

For I have not shunned to declare to you the whole counsel of God.

Acts 20:27

The Apostle Paul was bidding farewell to the Ephesian elders. As he did, he gave a brief review of his ministry. Before he transitions into a charge to the elders regarding their own responsibilities, he closes with the statement which serves as our text today. He says, ‘For I have not shunned to declare to you the whole counsel of God.’ Here is the Apostolic standard for ministry. Let us consider it carefully, if we would desire to have such a ministry ourselves, or sit under one. The ‘whole counsel’ of God involves the preaching of Christ from every portion of the Scripture. The preaching and writing of the New Testament is replete with the preaching of Christ from all over the Old Testament. The preaching of Christ was the hallmark of Apostolic ministry, ‘And daily in the temple, and in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.‘ If we read the Epistles of the New Testament they brim with references to Christ, examples of Christ, and make the resurrection of Christ their constant refrain. All the commandments of the New Testament find their foundation in Christ and the obedience we render must be by the Power of Christ for ‘without Me, you can do nothing.’ We cannot make scant reference to the Person and Work of Christ and still claim to ‘declare…the whole counsel of God.’ The message of the Scripture is not mere religion nor pretentious morality, but rather the Living, Saving, Transforming, Enabling Christ. He and all that goes with Him is ‘the whole counsel of God.’

Our most Holy and Wise God,
we praise You that the message of Your Word,
is Christ, from beginning to end.
We rejoice that You give us the great privilege
of dwelling upon Him and declaring Him to all.

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning