Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. Acts 20:28
Therefore—meaning, because of what has just been said. What has been said? Paul, you remember, was meeting with the Ephesian elders for the last time, and was giving them a few final words of exhortation and encouragement. He had reminded them of how he served the church in Ephesus. Therefore, in light of what they knew from his example and teaching, Paul exhorted the elders to “take heed.”
Synonyms for this Greek word translated “take heed,” include: “pay careful attention, be cautious, be on guard, devote thought to.” The idea is that as believers (and this applies to all believers, not just to elders!) we must be active (rather than passive) about following Christ. We must pay careful attention to Who and what we believe (Christ and His Word), and live accordingly. It is simply not good enough to believe in Jesus and then continue down life’s path as though we don’t.
In a parallel passage (1 Timothy 4:11-16), Paul exhorts young Timothy (v.16) to:
Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you.
Pay careful attention both to ourselves, and to biblical doctrine. How? By knowing both, and by conforming ourselves to the unchanging Word of God. Paul adds that we must “continue” in this endeavor. Why? Because we all have a proclivity to drift and to fade. So let us “take heed!”
What is the promise we can expect of we continue to take heed? More next time…