“I never shrank back from telling you what you needed to hear, either publicly or in your homes.”
Acts 20:20 (NLT)
Paul reminds the elders in Ephesus that he never shrank back from telling them what they needed to hear. He did the Lord’s work with humility, even when it hurt, even when it brought him to tears. He endured trials, opposition, and rejection because the message Jesus gave him mattered more than his own comfort.
But Paul did not only preach truth in public places. He taught believers privately, in their homes. He did life with them. That matters because Paul was practicing the same ministry method Jesus used with His disciples. They did not only hear Him teach; they lived close enough to see Him, hear Him, and learn from Him day after day. Some truth can be heard from a platform, but some truth is only learned through relationship. That’s where other believers are close enough to help us see what Scripture is calling us to do and practice what God is telling us to do.
The message is still simple: repent from sin and turn from the power of Satan to the power of God. Then receive forgiveness through faith in Jesus, and live as part of His kingdom. The hard part is continuing in that truth every day. Every day is a choice to follow God instead of the world, to listen to what we need to hear instead of isolating ourselves with what we want to hear.
So if you are leading, discipling, parenting, pastoring, or helping someone newer in the faith, practice what Paul did. Don’t just say what people want to hear. Say what they need to hear by listening to the Holy Spirit and guiding them into the whole truth, which sets us free. And let’s not be too busy to meet publicly and in our homes, do life together, build relationship, and follow Jesus completely, but together.